Tamaru - Jungle Defender

[Tamarutoe]

This is awesome. The Hero Factory, System and Bionicle elements are blended so well. And a beautiful choice of subject matter.

[Takuta-Nui]

Very cool-looking creation, and an inspiring headcanon! A few have mentioned the feet might not be the best choice, and I almost agree because of the hump on top that makes it seem almost clown-like. However, imagining this as a real foot that can flex makes sense since it looks like it would have a really good grip for tree branches and the like - apt for a Le-Matoran. And who's to say that feet have to look perfect?

 

I like the use of the Le-Metru Kanoka rather than a Mata Nui bamboo disk. The plastic has a tinge of green, which actually adds to the colour scheme. Black wouldn't wreck it, though.

 

I'd also like to say that it's very inspiring to see such a casual and inclusive treatment of transgender identity here.

[Endless Sea (Alaki Nuva)]

I really like the look and color implementation here, although my personal MoC-ing preferences make me want to nitpick a few things that I'm too tired to go into right now anyways.   Not too sure how comfortable I am with female Tamaru, considering I've known the little guy as male for thirteen years or something by now, but I do agree with the sentiment that Bionicle needs more gender equality.

[Fsnorglepuff]

This is a nice use of HF for a Bionicle, though there are some changes that might improve it.

 

No dark green - black ball joints are on the elbows and the launcher, so no need to introduce another dark color when you have black. In fact, replacing the Metru waist with a lime one, the elbow ball joints with lime ones, and the Vahki waist with a custom construction to use more lime joints, you can eliminate black and dark green entirely from the color scheme. 

 

Similarly, the black on the launcher could be silver, and the pouch would be better as green since turquoise doesn't fit so well with the blue (which is a terrific choice, btw) and it already has a green strap. 

 

Lastly, a regular mata head would likely look better, connected with (you guessed it) a lime ball joint. Changing every joint so it is a blue socket over a lime ball would be ideal... but now I'm suggesting an overhaul of the limbs so I'll stop, haha. 

[Makaru]

Thank you for your critique, Fsnorglepuff.

 

No dark green - black ball joints are on the elbows and the launcher, so no need to introduce another dark color when you have black. In fact, replacing the Metru waist with a lime one, the elbow ball joints with lime ones, and the Vahki waist with a custom construction to use more lime joints, you can eliminate black and dark green entirely from the color scheme. 

 

I think before we can continue, we have to discuss colour theory, colour blocking and how it relates to MOCs. While not completely without undue criticism, I think my MOC quite effectively showcases a lot of core principles when it comes to colour on MOCS.

 

Take a look at any MOC. Look at the colours. What do they mean? In the case of Tamaru, Lime is actually used quite sparingly, as it is a fairly bright colour. Garish at times, even. But it is an important colour for Tamaru. By introducing more bright colours, especially on inner sections you will muddle detail and shape.

 

Keeping darker colours inward helps bring out the lime, making detail and shape "pop out".

 

That in mind, the core of the MOC only provides so many solutions. I could go with an all black interior, but I feel that would owe too much to the Hero Factory construction type than I intended. Teal/azure blue would have been ideal but those pieces do not exist. I felt keeping it in the green spectrum was important to the character, and dark green provided itself as the optimum solution.

 

Using multiple colours is not necessarily a bad thing. You must have a reason for them though. Like I implied earlier, lime is predominately used for armour. teal/azure blue is muscle tissue. Grey is technological matter. dark green is skin. The black ball joint is regrettable but unavoidable. The piece I used to connect the disk launcher has been changed to silver per your advice.

 

The purse is more of a personal choice for me, I guess? Because it's not an organic extension of Tamaru, it is an accessory. Colour theory does not really apply to it entirely. I used the teal because I felt the actual colour BELONGED on this MOC somewhere. This was the only way to use it and yet feel natural.

 

As for the head, I completely disagree with your choice of Mata head over Metru head. Because of the connection and the dimensions, the Mata head severely restricts mobility and the ability to pose Tamaru in many of the action poses you see. Completely unacceptable, in my opinion.

 

 

 

In fewer words I think about colour when building a lot. It is always forefront of my mind. I think it is a very important feature most builders frequently overlook. Take a look at any MOC by DViddy or Kakaru. They completely NAIL the aspect.

[Seltz]

Girl?  Meh.  Femboy?  Makes more sense.  Don't push transgenderism "just because" (before the storm comes I'd like to add that I am transgender).  There are some things that needn't be done, and one of them is a female Tamaru.

 

However, the build is fantastic.  Think you can give us a view that would give a better idea on how to replicate it? 

[Makaru]

I'm not "pushing" anything. There's no agenda. This is a MoC I made of a good friend's headcanon interpretation of Tamaru. She is also trans. And she has educated me a great deal about the topic; such as being part of a community does not exclude you from making terrible commentary on it.

 

But I digress.

 

The build is fairly simple, and the view from behind shows enough of the construction to get a good idea on the build. So no, I will not be posting instructions.

Edited September 15, 2014 by Makaru

[Seltz]

I'm not "pushing" anything. There's no agenda. This is a MoC I made of a good friend's headcanon interpretation of Tamaru. She is also trans. And she has educated me a great deal about the topic; such as being part of a community does not exclude you from making terrible commentary on it.

 

But I digress.

 

The build is fairly simple, and the view from behind shows enough of the construction to get a good idea on the build. So no, I will not be posting instructions.

I'm confused.  I didn't ask for instructions, didn't imply an agenda, nor did I resort to insults like you just did.  I said my opinion after you said yours, and I didn't denounce yours either.  I simply stated mine.  Female Tamaru is an unnecessary change, in my mind.

[Sumiki]

 

I'm not "pushing" anything. There's no agenda. This is a MoC I made of a good friend's headcanon interpretation of Tamaru. She is also trans. And she has educated me a great deal about the topic; such as being part of a community does not exclude you from making terrible commentary on it.

 

But I digress.

 

The build is fairly simple, and the view from behind shows enough of the construction to get a good idea on the build. So no, I will not be posting instructions.

I'm confused.  I didn't ask for instructions, didn't imply an agenda, nor did I resort to insults like you just did.  I said my opinion after you said yours, and I didn't denounce yours either.  I simply stated mine.  Female Tamaru is an unnecessary change, in my mind.

 

The headcanons of a few do not affect the canon or your personal headcanons. Many (myself included) like the idea of trans representation. You don't have to be trans to realize that society is objectively terrible to anyone who doesn't identify with the gender they were assigned at birth.

 

The fact that you thought the existence of Makaru's realization of a female Tamaru was "pushing" it makes me think that you don't realize that no one is pushing this headcanon on anyone else. I'm not even fully sure what "pushing it" would look like, but I'm pretty sure it'd take the form of more than just a few scattered posts and a MOC.

[Nidhiki of the Shadows]

...That's freakin beautiful.

 

An amazing mix of new and old constraction parts (didn't know they came in that colour!) 

 

It works really well. The colours, torso, the legs... Just perfect. 

 

Also, the trans-Tamaru idea is actually nice. I like how it gives a new depth to the whole Matoran reconstruction thing. I wouldn't mind it actually happened, cause it would make nice social commentary. 

 

-NotS

Edited September 16, 2014 by Nidhiki of the Shadows

[Seltz]

 

 

I'm not "pushing" anything. There's no agenda. This is a MoC I made of a good friend's headcanon interpretation of Tamaru. She is also trans. And she has educated me a great deal about the topic; such as being part of a community does not exclude you from making terrible commentary on it.

 

But I digress.

 

The build is fairly simple, and the view from behind shows enough of the construction to get a good idea on the build. So no, I will not be posting instructions.

I'm confused.  I didn't ask for instructions, didn't imply an agenda, nor did I resort to insults like you just did.  I said my opinion after you said yours, and I didn't denounce yours either.  I simply stated mine.  Female Tamaru is an unnecessary change, in my mind.

 

The headcanons of a few do not affect the canon or your personal headcanons. Many (myself included) like the idea of trans representation. You don't have to be trans to realize that society is objectively terrible to anyone who doesn't identify with the gender they were assigned at birth.

 

The fact that you thought the existence of Makaru's realization of a female Tamaru was "pushing" it makes me think that you don't realize that no one is pushing this headcanon on anyone else. I'm not even fully sure what "pushing it" would look like, but I'm pretty sure it'd take the form of more than just a few scattered posts and a MOC.

 

I see what you're saying, and the first reply I made here was made with good 'ole Woodchuck Ale pumpin' through my veins so it was needlessly harsh.

 

What I meant to say was, to me, it seems like you chose to make him transgendered because of how topical and "trendy" it's become, and that it'd make you seem all progressive and whatnot. But since you said it's based off of your trans friend's headcanon, Idk, man.  I still think the concept can be done well, but it'd be hard in bionicle.  It kind of breaks the otherworldly mystique of Mata Nui.  The incisions into the lore sack must be precise. 

[Comment Expired]

I like the MOC design itself, but... The whole "trans" thing, right? Honestly speaking I'm really sure why it would exist in this context. Matoran are artificial beings, and the girls are placed in a segregated ghetto for some reason. That, to me, suggests that the concept of gender in Bionicle isn't fluid, but is more like programming. If Tamaru was a girl he would have been built as a Ga-Matoran, since the Matoran are designed by a specific creator rather than our species with all its evolution and biology and chemicals and so forth. I could see it maybe on Bara Magna, but here it just seems weird and out-of-place.

 

That said all a Matoran would need to crossdress is a bucket of blue paint.

[Lyichir]

This is an amazing MOC! I don't personally subscribe to the Trans!Tamaru headcanon, but either way this is a great MOC with great colors and a great look.

 

I don't know how I feel about the Bright Bluish Green satchel/purse. It's close enough to the Medium Azur parts to look like it's supposed to match, but different enough that it stands out like a sore thumb. I actually think it'd look better in Dark Green (Mata Green), so it matched the strap and was more easily perceived as an accessory rather than a part of the figure.

Edited September 16, 2014 by Lyichir

[Kek]

Okay, I love this concept. It's inspired me to make my own Tamaru; and Makaru, I give you props. The only thing I could say that would help the moc blend better would be replacing the Metru disk for a City Throwbot disk to help with the flow. Everything else is great though.

 

Now, there is one problem however, and it's that I'm noticing some of the users who aren't really feeling the trans-Tamaru headcanon for their own personal reasons are being labelled as transphobes on Tumblr. Could we maybe not do this? Just because they think a headcanon for a children's toyline isn't super-duper awesome; whether it be they just think it doesn't fit the lore, or they think it's just too fanfiction-tier to be really original, they should be able to say why without being ostracized and targeted for it. Honestly, just because they don't like it doesn't mean they need to be put up for display in a blog and the painted as evil or inhuman. I mean, read Seltz's comments as to why she disagrees. She has her own personal reason. So do other members.

 

Thank you again Makaru for the inspiration, and thank you to the original creator of the concept. I thought it was outside the box, and love the idea. And if someone else doesn't like it, then fine. I for one won't judge and act like a child about it like some have been doing. Have a good one, everybody.

[Makaru]

You appear to be privvy to information I do not have. Discussion on Tumblr (at least between the people I follow) dried up weeks after I posted my MoC.

 

And it's not like I'm not paying attention. This is the first thing I've made that more than 10 people have expressed any interest over. The last thing I want is for people to get their knickers in a twist.

 

The only thing I can think of is there was a couple of days about a month ago when another site was using Tamaru being featured in the news to say grossly transphobic things directly about the headcanon creator.

 

But I cannot control those people. I don't control tumblr either. I will get a little defensive on bzp though when certain terms get thrown around.

Edited September 16, 2014 by Makaru

[Comment Expired]

Nobody's holding you or the MOC or it's inspiration at fault. The poor behaviour is happening on some other site. You shouldn't worry about it; this thread has been nice and civil, and it deserves credit for that.

[Kek]

You appear to be privvy to information I do not have. Discussion on Tumblr (at least between the people I follow) dried up weeks after I posted my MoC.

 

And it's not like I'm not paying attention. This is the first thing I've made that more than 10 people have expressed any interest over. The last thing I want is for people to get their knickers in a twist.

 

The only thing I can think of is there was a couple of days about a month ago when another site was using Tamaru being featured in the news to say grossly transphobic things directly about the headcanon creator.

 

But I cannot control those people. I don't control tumblr either. I will get a little defensive on bzp though when certain terms get thrown around.

Oh, you had no part in it. I know that much. Stuff just happens. It was around yesterday's spike of new activity in the topic. Some member took the comments and posted them to tumblr. I just wish we could all get along in terms of this head canon, yay or nay.

 

Like I said though, it's a beautiful MOC, and thanks to you, I'm going to grab a City/Turbo Throwbots disk, a Kongu, and a Lime Rau, and make a Tamaru myself. Might make a backpack out of the same piece you used for the satchel.

Edited September 16, 2014 by Kek

[Reznas]

Mak, this MoC is beautiful. I absolutely love the build. It's so smooth and fluid. ^.^ Great work!
 
-Rez

Edited September 16, 2014 by Reznas

[Black Six]

This topic is for the discussion of a MOC. If you have issues with people on Tumblr and other sites, that's for you to deal with on those sites.