Damolisher wrote:And there we go, trying to use the book which was written years after the cartoon and Marvel comic and has no impact on either again. How about you give up using MTMTE, no-one gives a crap what the books say. And Tramp, say goodbye to your argument:
1. Arcee's origin: The specific text from the guide is," Notable for her rare female styling and warrior status, Arcee tries hard to shrug off the strange, gender-based bias of her peers. Strange, because Transformers are inherently non-gender-specific, and only some quirk of their timelost origins can account for the difference in appearence and attitude."
Damolisher, you are forgetting one part of that passage, a part that you so curiously omitted:
. "..And only some quirk of of their timelost origins can account for the differences in her appearance and attitude." You also forget that this ties directly into the passages about the Quintessans and the Well of the Allsparks. Arcee's being femal in what is considered a nongender
specific society—not a "genderless" one— has to do with their diostant past, a time when there were males and females all over Cybertron. During this time they also had a close connection to Primus, then they were invaded by the Quintessans at least twice. The secion on the Well of the Allspark specifically states that their connection to Primus was severed as a result of an invasion, and the section on the Quintessans specifically states that they have invaded and colonized Cyberton numerous times, and, based upon both the DW and cartoon continuities were driven off, and that they have had a dramatic effect on the development of the TransFormer race. Given that in the DW run, there were still femmes on Cybertron during the time of
War Within, the Quintessans had to have invaded some time after that. since after that time were were no femmes until Arcee. Also, since the ongoing series shows that Arcee was sent by the Quintessans to infiltrate the Autobots and that Firestar, Chromia, Moonracer and Elita-1 are the "extraction squad" about to be sent to collect Hot Rod, The reason why Arcee's design comes from timelost origins becomes fully apparent—
all of the females were taken by the Quintessans afteh their last failed invasion attempt.
2. Season 2 "The Search for Alpha Trion": Refers to Elita-one as being a "female" transformer.....make particular note of the quotations.
See above. Also watch the actual episode. Elita-1 and Prime are mates. They are lovers; just as Ironhide and Chromia are, as well as Inferno and Firestar, and Powerglide and Moonracer.
Judging from these 2 points alone, it seems to be aiming at a point that female exoskeletons are just a body style & nothing more. & the 'quirk of timelost origins' could just as easily be gender-specific alien influence on a non-gender-specific society as it could be sexual reproduction.
No, because there were no females after
War Within, Arcee was the first in millions of years. TransFormers were not created by organic aliens, they were born of Primus. We know the identities of six of the Original 13, and possibly a seventh, That seventh is a femme. IF Beta is indeed one of the Original 13—and given her comparitive age to Alpha Trion, this is highly likely— then it is likely that there were other females among the Original 13 as well and that Primus created the TransFormers as male and female.
Something else, too, dealing with Primus...if he is a god, & has the ability to make TFs in any form he so pleases, it would be possible to make them in such a way that they could be alive without having to do the wild toaster dance. In fact, IIRC most TF mythology involving Primus has him directly making more TFs or indirectly through artifacts, eliminating a need for reproduction at all. The 'other means' that you keeps championing could just as easily be other artifacts.
They would still need to be capable of procreation. Of autopoietic reproduction. Given that they have
genders, then that form of reproduction would logically be sexual, since that is what genders are for. Primus created them with genders, The Quintessans are the ones who stole the femmes away, leaving the remaining TransFormers a single-gender society. And the only known source that directly shows Primus creating one of the Original 13 is from the MArvel run, and that was Prima who grew litrally from Primus' own flesh—the planet Cybertron itself—just as in the Bible, God made Adam from the very earth.
There's also something probably worth mentioning reguarding Beast Machines, because it specifically shows that before "the reformatting" Transformers are essentially sparks with mobile suits for bodies, & said bodies are interchangeable, such as the case with all the vehicons commanders being drone bodies with a spark attatched such as Rhinox/Tankor, Jetstorm/Silverbolt, & Thrust/Waspinator, & Megatron having several bodies built for him...one in particular being a variation of Optimal Optimus, minus the gorilla mode. this suggests that individual TFs don't have a "genetic code" inherent to one particular TF, & if they did, changing the body would completely do away with the genetic code in exchange for another. & if that were the case, that would essentially make a TF more of a symbiotic life form (intillegent spark life form collaborating with an unintelligent robotic life form to give a body to an otherwise "etheral" spark)...which would make all kinds of crazy stuff I don't even want to start to think about.
Not quite..The Spark is akin to the Soul. It is the life force of the TransFormer. without it, the body is just a lifeless husk. Animating a sparkless body is basically creating a zombie—walking dead. The Spark also cannot exist outside a body. In
Beast machines, they were imprisoned in a
containment vessel, which
is a body in a sense. Without a body, the spark returns to Primus. It cannot exist on its own separate from the body.
Also, you go on about birth being inappropriate for children, correct? What about shows such as Rugrats, where you see (SHOCK HORROR) Pregnant women? The reason that so many writers skim around the subject of robot pregnancy is because they obviously expected better of Transformers fans than this debate, which clearly isn't the case, being as you still want to beat a dead horse, and still want to inflict your unsubstanciated claims of Robophilia on everyone. Obviously, the writers didn't think there was Transformers fans so sad and pathetic, they've got nothing better to think about than consider robots could have babies.No,
birth[]/b] isn't the problem, showing [b]sex is the problem, even if it is mechanical life forms doing it. That is what is innapropriate for children. Showing them actually in the act is what is inappropriate. And, like I said, there are plenty of indirect evidence to support the possibility of them being capable of sexual reproduction without directly showing them in the act of mating, or giving birth on screen. Being husbands, or wives, mothers and fathers, sons and daughters, brothers and sisters, aunts and uncles, courting each other and vying for the affections of the opposite sex, and having small children, is all evidence in support of sexual reproduction.
Clearly, they were wrong.And with that, I bid you, adieu. Sorry, Trampy baby, you lose.
Try again Damolisher.