Transformers: The Portrayal of Megatron

[Captain Marvelous_v1legacy]

So, until recently I've never read a Transformers comic before. I watched the movies and every cartoon since Beast Wars [Except Go! and Rescue Bots. Might watch the new RiD, but Prime was way too mature for me to go to something more colorful and childish all of the sudden. I'll need time.] but I never got the chance to pick up a comic. Ever since I read up on The Transformer's backstory, I realized that, I don't like the way Megatron is portrayed in almost every single one of the movies, games, and cartoons.

The way I understand it, Megatron rallied the lower members of Cybertron's rigid Caste System and started a war that would rage for 4 Million+ years. He didn't just wake up one morning, clap his evil hands, and start a war while laughing maniacally while at the same time making deals with the devil and attempting to destroy his home. He wanted a Revolution! The Decepticons were set up to be America and the Autobots are Britain. The Decepticons are the Black Panthers while the Autobots are, well, the government back then. Creating laws that kept the Caste system in place and forced the lower caste Cybertronians to do the job they were "Created For", while allowing the rich to change as they pleased.

You see what my problem here is? Megatron and the Decepticons are pretty much set up as the good guys. He rallies slaves and warriors that are treated like crap and starts a revolution. A bloody and long one, but a revolution none-the-less. In the beginning his aims were so noble. The Autobots were pretty much the Opressors. Hell, the three primes before Optimus were corrupt and evil. So what happened? The Decepticons went bat shit crazy, that's what. I guess my problem stems from the fact that I don't know the original cause of the war. The Gen One version created before I was born. Maybe that origin has castes Megatron in a less redeemable light that has pretty much influenced all Transformers products since.

I don't mean to say I don't like Evil, willing-to-make-a-deal-with-the-devil-murdererous-psycopath-destoyer-of-worlds-batshit-crazy-Yes- Megatron. It's just that I'd like a more balanced portrayal of this Civil War. There doesn't need to be a bad guy. Just two side going at it. The winner will obviously portray the loser as evil. Someone's got to take credit for all those deaths.

Anyway, how do you guys feel about the Portrayal of Megatron and the Deceptions as evil. Like it? Hate it? You a Bayformers fan? Get. Out. Kidding! [small]I guess[/small]

P.S. My jumping point is More Than Meets The Eye. I do intend to go back and read IDW's Generation One reboot from the beginning.

P.S.S This little add on has nothing to do with Megatron and everything to do with what are essentially homosexual scenes in MTMTE. Yeah, the Cybertronians don't have sex. I'm aware. They are robots after all, but they're also pretty much all male. As far as I'm concerned anyway. There are only 4, again as far as I know, Cybertronians that identify as female. Arcee, Chromia, Nautica, and Windblade. I'm pretty much talking about Rewinds relationship with Chromedome and Tailgate's relationship with Cyclonus [He's a total Tsundere] and that Moment when Rodimus comments that he finds Rewind and Chromedome's relationship odd while Drift teaches him how to parry from behind [Think romantic tennis instruction.] Edit 1: Got an image!

Spoiler

Again, I know that they aren't homosexual, but I do like their relationships. More than bros. Aren't lovers. Robot Anatomy and all that. So... family. I guess... Whatever.

 

[Sahngar]

I once tried to argue that the Decepticons are essentially the good guys and the Autobots are bad (from the point of wview of a neutral robot anyway)

the reason they're here is for energy to restart their dead planet. Megatron doesnt really care about us, we're just in the way.
Except, for some reason Optimus and the autobots keep stopping them and getting in their way.

 

[Overhead]

The Decepticons in the IDW comics started from good ideals and the entire point is they became more extreme over time. When we see Megatraon at his earliest, he's in a cafe having written a political manifesto about equality that advocates non-violent resistance. Several million years later he's happily committing mass murder and what have you.

Also the Autobots were typically more enfranchised that the Decepticons were, they were still anti-establishment. Optimus Prime, as a police officer, for instance fought against corrupt senate thugs who tried to make him break the law and didn't like him freeing Megatron. Optimus fought his way into the senate and read out part of Megatron's manifesto, challenging the very nature of their rule. He quickly ended up on the run.

If the Decepticons hadn't quickly changed tactics to rely on killing and murder, Megatron and Optimus could very easily have been allies

Also of note in later comics:

Spoiler: Major plot spoilers

The conflict is largely resolved, Megatron willingly stands trial for Crimes Against the Species and on an ancient legal technicality gets allowed to be judged by long lost cybertronian knights who no longer exist. As penance he therefore is tasked with searching for them so they can deliver their verdict. he does this working under Rodimus Prime, having denounced his old ways and even becoming a Autobot.

The Autobots, Decepticons and neutrals all return to Cybertron and try and live in peace together although there is violence and struggles which cause ongoing conflict.

Edit: Also the Cybertron colonies generally have both genders. As these are just getting introduced we're seeing more female characters, like Moonracer and Override.

 

[Baron von Blitztank]

For me it all kind of depends on the Universe and how much material is dedicated to fleshing them out. I'm only going on the cartoons here since, while I have read some of the IDW comics, the issues I have with comic books have prevented me from continuing with them (doesn't help that Transformers comics are rare as hell to find in the UK...)

G1, RiD (2001, (it counts, even though the main villains are Predacons here) ), the Unicron Trilogy, Bayformers and Prime all had little to no material surrounding the Decepticons so Megatron does come off as a power-hungry dictator who lives only to destroy and conquer. Although I did love Megatron's incarnation in Transformers Armada, where he's an honourable warrior who deep down respects Optimus Prime as a fighter and longs to have one final battle wit he's still nonetheless a villain.

Animated improved things considerably as it takes place after the Great War between the Autobots and Decepticons has already been won and we see more of how Autobot society is run and, for the most part, they're total dicks. They're germaphobes with fear of organic life (somewhat justified by the existence of zombie-plague Space Barnacles and HUGE Cybertronian sized spiders) who'll either do what they can to shield themselves from it or will outright try to exterminate it. Instead of seeking peaceful (begrudging) co-existence with the remaining Decepticons like in G1, Armada and Prime (to some extent), the Decepticons have all been booted off their homeworld and left to fend for themselves and naturally Megatron plans to take it back so the Decepticons actually have a place to live.

Megatron's forces also consist of troops who would be seen as 'undesirable' in Autobot society. Blackarachnia is techno-organic and seen as an abominatio and despite previously being Elita-1, a love interest for both Optimus and Sentinel Prime, Sentinel tries to actively kill her. Then we've got Blitzwing, a triple changer, and in this universe triple-changers are insane lunatics (hence the three-faces). Megatron doesn't even show that much of a disgust for organic life like the Autobots and other incarnations of himself as he uses Professor Sumdac to help revive him from his state as a decapitated head and later kidnaps him, knowing that he's useful instead of freaking out and trying to crush him like an insect.

These all paint this version of Megatron as being far more sympathetic than other incarnations as we actually know and understand his motivations this time, to take over Cybertron so that the Decepticons once again have a place to call home and free it from the Autobots, who were and still are total dicks. However he still comes across as a villain as while he doesn't despise organic life he still couldn't give less than a damn about what happens to Earth and it's populace and he's fighting against Optimus and his crew, who don't show any of the traits that make their fellow Autobots complete assholes as they actually show care and respect to organic life, even offering their services as peace-keepers and heroes to the hosts of their new world, however they do still come across as the exception to Autobot society.

Spoiler: DECEPTICONS FOREVER!

God, I'm such a nerd...

 

[Thaluikhain]

The Decepticons were set up to be America and the Autobots are Britain.

Exactly, the Decepticons are evil.

*hides*

Cynically, one could argue that the Decepticons are evil, because any revolutionaries are not just to the other side, but to those who just don't care and wish for the absence of conflict rather than the presence of equality. The audience is mostly going to be mostly happy with most of the status quo. There's always someone that should shut up about being oppressed and we'll get round to their problems eventually maybe.

And/or the writers tried to make them evil and failed.

 

[WhiteFangofWhoa]

The road to the Pit is paved with good intentions.

The other, less noble side to the Decepticon rebellion in a few continuities tends to be Megatron's belief that Cybertronians are superior beings to all organic life, and thus they should rule them, making Cybertron an empire of conquest instead just a single planet that doesn't make contact with many other worlds. The more sympathetic parts only got much in the way of focus in the recent Prime series. The rest of the time, there's barely a hint of the rebel leader Megatron once was beneath the blustering megalomaniac he's become.

 

[Scarim Coral]

I haven't read the comic so I can't really say much about that versions of him.

For me, I think the best portaryal is probably Prime due to adding a new mythos of him being a revolutionary leader at first and did strife for equality for all Cybertoians.
Also this origin video kinda summed him up well.
His intention were good at first but due to him being raised in the fighting pit, he deem violence and force as the answered to everything.

Also the Exodus was a bad portaryal of him. Sure Prime is based in the same universe as that but the book made Megatron into a drugy cos of the dark energon and lose sight of his goal.

 

[Cicada 5]

I once tried to argue that the Decepticons are essentially the good guys and the Autobots are bad (from the point of wview of a neutral robot anyway)

the reason they're here is for energy to restart their dead planet. Megatron doesnt really care about us, we're just in the way.
Except, for some reason Optimus and the autobots keep stopping them and getting in their way.

The problem is that the Decepticons are still racist towards humans and have no problem wiping them out, even when it's not necessary. In the Transformers films we see numerous instances of the 'Cons doing harm to humans with little-to-no provocation. Also remember that most of the time the war is the Decepticons' fault. The reason the Autobots oppose them is they don't want the Decepticons to do to another race what the Cons' did to their planet.

 

[CrimsonBlaze]

-Snip-

Sorry, all good stuff, but a bit too long (Don't worry - TL;SR).

Huh. So I guess the Decepticons winning the Splatfest in Splatoon a while back was rightful and just?

Yay(?)...Decept-Ameri-cons(?).

 

[deleted+75193]

DELETED

 

[Breakdown]

In the old Marvel UK comics the Decepticons wanted to transform Cybertron into a giant Death Star style station and conquer the galaxy, with the Autobots trying to stop them. I don't think Megatron was actually the leader of the Decepticons though.