Drift

[GoktimusPrime]

Not true. It's my experience having talked to other fans both online and in person that it's the very vocal minority that hate him. Most people don't mind him, or acknowledge that he's not done enough to warrant the amount of hate he gets.

Simply because most people you've spoken to don't like Drift doesn't mean that most of the fandom likes him. Likewise just because most people I know don't like Drift doesn't mean that the fandom in general hates him either. Remember that "the people we know" are just a portion of the fandom. For example, a lot of my friends who are TF collectors have collections numbering over a thousand, yet my studies show that we are actually a minority, with most collections actually numbering 100 or less. This year's survey may show different results, but past surveys have shown that the average collection is quite small. By simply saying "people I know" we're just presenting anecdotal evidence.

Also, some people like George Lucas insist that the people who hate Jar Jar Binks are a "vocal minority" of the fandom. And he could be right. You could be right too. But just because an opinion is in the minority doesn't make it any less valid or worthy. For example, most fans like Beast Wars - but if someone doesn't like Beast Wars and they have their own valid reasons for it, then it doesn't make their opinion less worthy than those of us who love Beast Wars right? You may not agree with those reasons, but it doesn't mean they're less valid. If I were a fan of the Drift character I'd welcome criticism and avidly defend the character; just as I'll vehemently defend Beast Wars should anyone want to criticise that franchise (as they are entitled to do).

Also, in a thread where we're discussing how to improve Drift we need to acknowledge any potential problems - cos obviously if we think Drift doesn't have any problems then there's nothing to improve on.

I'll discuss some of the problems with Drift first, then look at ways to improve. My main gripes with Drift are:
1/ He's a Gary Stu, or as role play gamers call them - "Munchkin". A character develops through complications presented to him/her within the plot/story. Little complication (challenge) means limited opportunity for decent character development and depth. This is what differs someone becoming an actual character or just being an archetype. This was the problem with the G1 cartoon - it was full of archetypes rather than developed characters, and the Marvel Comics were better at giving us actual characters which is why I preferred them.
2/ He sticks out like a sore thumb amidst a cast almost completely comprised exclusively of "GeeWun" characters. There is a WEALTH of existing characters in G1 and G2 who still remain untapped and I would much rather see them being exploited rather than just making up some character - that's one thing I liked with Last Stand of the Wreckers. Toys I've had for years like Ironfist and Rotorstorm suddenly became cool. And probably for the first time ever there was a peak in demand for Pyro (heh). The fact that he's among all these GeeWun characters - to me - makes it look like they're trying to pretend that Drift is a GeeWun character and that he's been there the whole time. As MV75 and others have aptly said when the topic of Drift was raised... "Who?"

So how can we improve on this?

My suggestions:
1/ This is simple - give him greater complications. As others have said, he needs more stories, and these stories should be presenting him with complications. A protagonist only improves by facing against greater challenges. Even Superman has his Kryptonite (and his greatest flaws are emotional ones; difficulties with social interaction (e.g. Lois Lane) etc.). As Stan Lee often said, it's a hero's flaws that make him (or her) interesting.
2/ Easy solve: Introduce more post-GeeWun characters. Mix it up more, then Drift won't look so out of place! Bring back Skram damnit!