ET TU, SPOCK????? but also yes that is interesting, although starscream heavily implies that he had his own plan to get out, when he (semi-sincerely?) thanks soundwave for his part in setting off the ticking time bomb:
I mean it's Starscream. He's anything but stupid. So it makes sense he probably had several exit scenarios accounted for and his trine at least, probably all of the seekers ready to get the hell out the second he gave the command.
I'm rereading for the eight millionth time and I still cannot get over Soundy being jealous of music because Jazz likes it so much This fuckin robot, man
like "OH I'M SORRY I GUESS YOUR BEST FRIEND MUSIC SHOULD TAKE YOU ON A WALK AND BUY YOU PRESENTS!! WHY DON'T YOU AND MUSIC JUST GET MARRIED, WHO NEEDS ME WHEN YOU'VE GOT MUSIC"
okay i had to find the thread and post this here because spock got me reading this and i just messaged this to her how can you do this to me? why lisa, why, why? everybody betray me, i'm fed up with this world!
man do you guys ever go look up the songs that jazz played in the Musical Episode to get the Full Experience because.... aw man..... (this one is a cover because that's the version i heard first and i Like It, So There) The Byrds -- Turn! Turn! Turn! jazz and the autobots, surviving together, jazz keeping them sane and as safe as he can Spoiler: lyrics To everything - turn, turn, turn There is a season - turn, turn, turn And a time to every purpose under heaven A time to be born, a time to die A time to plant, a time to reap A time to kill, a time to heal A time to laugh, a time to weep To everything - turn, turn, turn There is a season - turn, turn, turn And a time to every purpose under heaven A time to build up, a time to break down A time to dance, a time to mourn A time to cast away stones A time to gather stones together To everything - turn, turn, turn There is a season - turn, turn, turn And a time to every purpose under heaven A time of love, a time of hate A time of war, a time of peace A time you may embrace A time to refrain from embracing To everything - turn, turn, turn There is a season - turn, turn, turn And a time to every purpose under heaven A time to gain, a time to lose A time to rend, a time to sew A time for love, a time for hate A time for peace, I swear it's not too late! Poe -- Control jazz and megatron and "intimacy" and manipulation, SO SATISFYING IN LIGHT OF RECENT EVENTS, especially if you listen to it with a ship-biased ear Spoiler: lyrics Don't you mess with a little girl's dream Cause she's liable to grow up mean Surprised you to find that I'm laughing You thought that you'd find me in tears You thought I'd be crawling the walls Like a tiny mosquito and trembling in fear Well, you may be king for the moment But I am a queen, understand? And I've got your pawns and your bishops And castles all inside the palm of my hand While you were looking the other way While you had your eyes closed While you were licking your lips Cause I was miserable While you were selling your soul While you were tearing a hole in me I was taking control Now I have taken control, control Now I have taken control, control Now I have taken control, control This is beginning to feel good Watching you squirm in your shoes A small bead of sweat on your brow and a growl In your belly you're scared to let through You thought you could keep me from loving And you thought you could feed on my soul But while you were busy destroying my life What was half in me has become whole While you were looking the other way While you had your eyes closed While you were licking your lips Cause I was miserable While you were selling your soul While you were tearing a hole in me I was taking control Now I have taken control, control Now I have taken control, control Now I have taken control, control So this is how it feels To breathe in the summer air To feel the sand between my toes And love inside my ear All those things That you taught me to fear I've got them in my garden now And you're not welcome here Come here Come a little bit closer Let me look at you I gave you the benefit Of the doubt, it's true But keep in mind, my darling Not every saint is a fool While you were looking the other way While you had your eyes closed While you were licking your lips Cause I was miserable While you were selling your soul While you were tearing a hole in me I was taking control Now I have taken control, I was taking control Now I have taken control, control, control Don't you mess with me and then there's the Xtreme Lack Of Chill song from the club scene which i will add JUST IN CASE one of you has not listened to it, because you must, you must The Bravery -- I Am Your Skin Spoiler: lyrics And you know me now Like a mother knows a child And you know me now Like I came from your own body I can feel your pulse like a moth inside a jar And even this is still too far Even this is still too far I wanna be your skin I wanna feel everything you feel I wanna be your covering So let them come like an army against us I know you won't be afraid Because I am the armor upon you now And we are never betrayed There is no ending between you and me I wanna be your skin I wanna feel everything you feel I wanna be your covering And I will hide you inside of me With every breath in harmony I wanna be your skin I wanna be your covering. GOD!!!! honestly i wish peacewish would just embed a link to every song she quotes, MY EXPERIENCE IS SO ENRICHED
It's not Jazz's preferred genre, but I've got an appropriate song, Dessa as Jazz and Sims as Soundwave. Spoiler: Lyrics [Sims] I'm in your garden now I picked them flowers out I went too far right now I meant we bottomed out You dig for higher ground You hit the fire now No time for stopping, tore the wires out [Dessa] I've got this music in my head I've got this hole in my chest I've got this bird in my hands That looks like it's been crushed to death But it's a players game Ante up and pick your token Keep one beneath your tongue for when your best gets broken I swallowed my tongue I bided my time Trying to get just this one thing right By the book but the hook just sends I'm shook God knows I'll always bite Cause part of the fun is the road rash (yeah) Feeling the gravel go past (yeah) And I don't care what they say There's no such thing as a clean break [Sims' Hook] You're too smart to say what you think And I'm too real not to say what I feel But when it starts to sink I'll grab the wheel I'll keep on steering for you Ill keep on steering for you [Sims] Reap out the end if I could She walked with vengeance, walks good She wants my head up on wood Lopping off the chopping block Shoulda stopped And watching red flags coming The red things a running Always heavy, heavy drops to the floor Locking the door And that's it Don't let her in No veteran Hello though, the L-O-V-O The mold lettering Back in the red again Latched to a skeleton Old friend, relax and just settle in Enjoy that, bad medicine Push it to the limits Good beginnings are the toughest ones to finish [Dessa's Hook] I found your pale faced blue lipped God Beneath the kitchen table Starving, and eating paper He showed me what you wrote and what you'd asked Love Nothing can live on prayers like that Love [Dessa] It's not vengeance and it's not bloodlust Justice is just a rule of law So hold down the magician The beautiful assistant Should get her turn with the saw [Sims] Percocet, gauze She working them claws Only purpose to draw more bad blood That's a sad war, love You know that though You know those chains were self-imposed Your words, my stinging molars Sing it slow I'll curse it while your world is sinking lower [Dessa] Rewind and watch it go backwards From last lines to first words The flash goes back in the camera The flask back in the handbag Don't ask How after one phone call He hit two lovebirds with only one stone wall [Sims] Valentine's day at the dead letter office Looking for my girl like Yellow Ledbetter, 214 She said she left to find the meaning of life Whatever that means I wonder where she's sleeping tonight [Dessa's Hook] [Sims' Hook] I'm in your garden now I picked them flowers out I went too far right now I meant we bottomed out You dig for higher ground You hit the fire now No time for stopping, tore the wires out (Wires out) I'm in over my head Over my head You dig me deep, deep, deep You dig me deep, deep, deep (x2) I've got this music in my head I've got this hole in my chest I've got this bird in my hands That looks like it's been crushed to death But it's a players game Ante up and pick your token Keep one beneath your tongue for when your best gets broken
@aetherGeologist Spoiler: long Okay, I'm striking out on figuring out a pithy little summary of how the slavery is shown, because we've got a couple layers to how it all comes through. The general gist of the story is that the autobots lost the war, a lot of them were killed, and the survivors were all enslaved. Some of them are on earth working to mine energy resources, some of them are ~personal slaves~ on cybertron, either for megatron or for whichever of his soldiers he wants to favor. And a very, very few are still free out there somewhere, but nobody knows where they are. There's a good amount of sexual exploitation going on at all levels here, and frequently there's physical abuse too. I'm... pretty positive none of the slaves are happy to be saves, and their treatment varies by owner, but lemme dig down a little. Now, we get all of our pov in this fic through Soundwave. And he's a complicated character to try to break down. He doesn't oppose the slavery, and I think... he feels that it's the natural progression of losing the war, and that it's illogical to get too worked up over the situation, because? you lost? this happened? none of these developments should be that surprising given the end of the war. However, comma, a lot of this ties back to how he's a carrier model and has his cassettes, and the way protection and caretaking are wired into him bone-deep. He doesn't have any issues with the slavery in general, but he doesn't really think it's right for people to hurt their slaves, and sometimes it seriously distresses him to see that abuse going on. BUT, this is warring it out with things like his loyalty to Megatron, and he's really, really good at leaving some cognitive holes in his thinking in some areas. This does get addressed, but it's a slow burn element of the fic. And Soundwave is boundary-violating in other ways. I want to say... he doesn't dehumanize Jazz, but he does try very hard to wear down Jazz's boundaries until Jazz decides he's happy here. It doesn't work, but Soundwave has... weird ideas about independence and social hierarchies. Again, it is being addressed and we do see development, but we're seeing it all through his pov, so it takes some time. He doesn't think hurting slaves is right. Because it's easier to own them all the way down if you use kindness, obviously. There's some stuff in there with Jazz (and in the backstory with Ravage) where Soundwave has real issues respecting a 'no'. But he doesn't push as hard as he could, and he favors patience, gentleness, and a slow game. The patience slips sometimes when something happens to distress him, but in general, he wants Jazz to voluntarily give himself over to him. It doesn't work, though, Jazz holds on hard to his sense of self and independence, and he pushes back at Soundwave over all this, even while they're both falling in love with each other. Lessee, the other autobots... I don't think there's anyone else who's in any 'forced into happiness' position. Megatron is a vengeful fuck in this universe, and really, really wants the autobots to be miserable. It's actually a problem occasionally that Jazz seems sorta happy sometimes, because um??? NOPE, not allowed, I'll take him back and deal with this myself if that keeps going on. The dehumanization... hmmm. There are elements of that here and there, but it varies a lot. It goes between Hook having First Aid, and being a little rough with him, but still training him, respecting his skills, and taking care of him. Thundercracker has Fireflight, and is a bit besotted, but he does fall into the trap of 'he's happy like this, isn't he?' and gets called the fuck out. Skyfire is trapped in his alt mode (a shuttle) and used as a taxi, but he's still talked to like a person and retains his personhood even like that, if that makes sense. Mostly things are complicated because Soundwave is one, bad at boundaries, and two, good at avoiding thinking about the ugliest parts of this system. But the development does happen, and even through Soundwave's head, we get a REAL good view of how Jazz feels about the situation. Even in this nasty situation where Soundwave is trying to force happiness (Jazz went from a physically and sexually abusive owner to Soundwave, who is gentle and nonviolent with him and tries to wear him down with kindness, even if he sometimes gets a bit molest-y), it isn't working. Jazz holds on hard to every last shred of his independence and autonomy, and he like... surrenders a few of the little battles in favor of trying to win the war. This all comes through even past the genuine romance growing between them. Jazz isn't happy in slavery, he badly wants Soundwave to admit the system is fucked up and that they should be equal partners. And he'll absolutely prioritize his independence over that relationship. There are recent developments that were just like LOUD SCREAMING all over this thread where after [spoilers], Soundwave makes a major move towards admitting the slavery thing is no good. For most of the fic, he thinks Jazz needs to bend to the system, but like... the inside of his head is a quietly strange place. On the one hand you've got his intense loyalty to Megatron and willingness to follow Megatron's rules, plus his own boundary-violating ideas of how he should bring someone in to his family and make them happy. On the other hand, he's also intensely intelligent and is slowly processing everything Jazz is trying to make him understand, and his growing respect and love for Jazz also help him see the flaws in the current system. He does definitely try to force happiness, but it's one of the most satisfying reads I've ever had seeing Jazz fight back hard against that and win.
@aetherGeologist Spoiler: Addendum to Spock's post I'd say the most dehumanized character in TGWP is actually Chromia, because Shockwave has trained her out of even showing that she's heard things people other than Shockwave say to her. The other Decepticons really dehumanize her as a result, but it's all with an air of disgust that Shockwave has done that. Shockwave treats her fully like an object. The Autobots know she's not, but can't see a way to help her as long as Shockwave is around. So that's pretty severe dehumanization, but not really treated as a good thing by anyone but Shockwave, who is clearly not supported by the narrative.
Ahhhh, yeah, totally forgot about her, whoops. I still haven't hit any parts of the G1 cartoon where she exists, so I always slip back into thinking she's a new character with Windblade and Nautica
Thanks for the replies! I think I'll probably be ok with Chromia if the dehumanisation is treated as that much of a bad thing by the other characters and the text. The Soundwave/Jazz relationship sounds like the kind of Dead Dove situation that could very easily flip from yes, alien mindsets + messed up power dynamics, that is absolutely my thing to NOPE very quickly, but from your descriptions it does look like a way more nuanced portrayal than a lot of other fics I've run into and had to back straight out of. I think I'll give the fic a go. I can always stop reading if it starts pinging me too hard.
Jazz. So don't become some background noise A backdrop for the girls and boys Who just don't know or just don't care And just complain when you're not there You had your time, you had the power You've yet to have your finest hour
Sometimes I flow staccato Strip you of vibrato While you be acting macho I try and switch it up I see the games you play And the traps you lay Not fit to fall in But I let you play them anyway
I'm only about a chapter into my reread of this fic, and already, I am overcome by emotions. Seeing Jazz when he's half-starved, on a pathway to outright dying. Soundwave quietly heartsick and falling to pieces over how he failed as a protector. And then, jumping ahead, the cassettes' angrysad denial when Soundwave tries to tell them that Jazz isn't a part of the family. Laserbeak not wanting to believe Jazz was hiding things from her when he was her date. Frenzy and Rumble refusing to listen, because it's hurting them to hear that Jazz might not care about them the same way they care about him. Even Ravage. Plus, for your consideration: Megatron sees cassettes as not-people. Laserbeak, Buzzsaw, and Ravage are sneaky as shit. Rumble and Frenzy can.. do sneaky if they have to, but their natural state is loud and obnoxious, and they tend to speak their minds. As Megatron goes more and more on edge and runs out of punching bags, how much risk is there for Rumble and Frenzy particularly? Partially because I am frightened on behalf of Soundwave's entire family, but also because I want to see Jazz defending Rumble and Frenzy the same way he's been defending Soundwave and the other autobots. As upset as he is, I don't think Soundwave will be open to believing Jazz means anything he says, especially anything about how he really does care about Soundwave. But if he jumps in front of a bullet for the sake of Soundwave's family, I think that's much more likely to affect Soundwave hard.
