Post by Jeff on Aug 18, 2007 15:43:22 GMT -5
Ep 25: Another Evil Scheme
I still wasn't sure what new conflict I was going to introduce for this story arc by the time of "Another Evil Scheme." Sure Poseidon was about to toss Prime off a cliff, but this was intended more as a one panel gag at the time. I didn't really intend to go anywhere with it beyond giving Poseidon more opportunities to obsess over the movie throughout the arc.
I definitely saw Fred as the major antagonist of ACT, so I knew bringing him back into the fold might lead to something good in this story. Before I did anything else, though, I felt it was important to explain exactly why an ultra powerful robot capable of single-handedly taking down the Autobots didn't just walk into their headquarters (he knew where it was!) and do just that. Going back to the original Transformers cartoon (and others like it), how many times did the Autobots or Decepticons find an amazing way to defeat the other side, get thwarted at the last second, and never try the same idea again on another day? I clearly remember one early TF episode where the Autobots are able to shrink themselves down and secretly enter the Decepticons' bodies. Something causes them to abandon the plan before they can tear out all of Megatron's wires, but why not try it again the next day?
...because then they wouldn't be pimping it with style.
No self-respecting hero or super villain tries the most practical approach. Fred and Battle Buffalo recognize this.
In hindsight, I'm not as pleased with the second half of this episode. Fred's army seemed too small at the time, so I introduced four new characters that I never ended up liking. The whole gag was supposed to be poking fun at Michael Jackson naming his sons Prince Michael 1 and Prince Michael 2 (who does that?), but it was a cheap shot, and it was only good for one poorly delivered gag.
I wanted Waruderos and his sons to seem more alien and scary, thus the computerized fonts for their dialog. In hindsight, it's just too hard on the eyes, though. Fred and Battle Buffalo's whispered conversation is no easier to read. Poor decisions all around on this one.
The one choice I made in this episode that I like in hindsight is "Evil is Sexy." If it was now established that my computer was Fred's headquarters, it seemed natural to customize the area a bit. I don't remember what our real desktop display was at the time, but I did change it to "Evil is Sexy" and back again whenever it was time to shoot a Fred episode after this.
I still wasn't sure what new conflict I was going to introduce for this story arc by the time of "Another Evil Scheme." Sure Poseidon was about to toss Prime off a cliff, but this was intended more as a one panel gag at the time. I didn't really intend to go anywhere with it beyond giving Poseidon more opportunities to obsess over the movie throughout the arc.
I definitely saw Fred as the major antagonist of ACT, so I knew bringing him back into the fold might lead to something good in this story. Before I did anything else, though, I felt it was important to explain exactly why an ultra powerful robot capable of single-handedly taking down the Autobots didn't just walk into their headquarters (he knew where it was!) and do just that. Going back to the original Transformers cartoon (and others like it), how many times did the Autobots or Decepticons find an amazing way to defeat the other side, get thwarted at the last second, and never try the same idea again on another day? I clearly remember one early TF episode where the Autobots are able to shrink themselves down and secretly enter the Decepticons' bodies. Something causes them to abandon the plan before they can tear out all of Megatron's wires, but why not try it again the next day?
...because then they wouldn't be pimping it with style.
No self-respecting hero or super villain tries the most practical approach. Fred and Battle Buffalo recognize this.
In hindsight, I'm not as pleased with the second half of this episode. Fred's army seemed too small at the time, so I introduced four new characters that I never ended up liking. The whole gag was supposed to be poking fun at Michael Jackson naming his sons Prince Michael 1 and Prince Michael 2 (who does that?), but it was a cheap shot, and it was only good for one poorly delivered gag.
I wanted Waruderos and his sons to seem more alien and scary, thus the computerized fonts for their dialog. In hindsight, it's just too hard on the eyes, though. Fred and Battle Buffalo's whispered conversation is no easier to read. Poor decisions all around on this one.
The one choice I made in this episode that I like in hindsight is "Evil is Sexy." If it was now established that my computer was Fred's headquarters, it seemed natural to customize the area a bit. I don't remember what our real desktop display was at the time, but I did change it to "Evil is Sexy" and back again whenever it was time to shoot a Fred episode after this.