The shell program stuff sounds right, though there seemed to be more going on than amplification and reduction of personality aspects. All three generals had totally different mannerisms and speech patterns when operating through their 'shell programming'. So it makes sense that Clone-Dinobot, as a shell without a gooey spark center, would still be able to emulate Dinobot's personality to the degree shown. I do agree that he probably would have been found out evenutally due to programming limitations, if fighting with himself hadn't outed him early.

 

(The drone in BM is another example of an extremely personalitied, sparkless AI.)

 

I'm not sure I'm with you on the 'totem' thing. Every single one of the TFs demonstrated tendencies appropriate to their beast modes, right off; in t-rex mode, Megatron roars like a t-rex, and don't get me started on Wazzzzpinator. It seems to me that when the Maxies and Preds incorporated their beast modes, they incorporated beast mode attributes directly; almost like another personality overlay, usually dominated by their 'base' personalities. This fits nicely with the "in BM, DNA incorporates personalities" theory.

I guess part of it is that I don't think DNA incorporates personality in humans... so I don't see how it would work for a robot. But that's just me.

Well, there's no reason to think that TFs use *actual* DNA at all, even in animal mode; it's not like that's a functioning animal with blood and bones and organs there. Perhaps they just 'coincidentally' use the term DNA to refer to an internal description that each robot has, which would naturally enough incorporate information about the software as well as the hardware.

Well, there's no reason to think that TFs use *actual* DNA at all, even in animal mode; it's not like that's a functioning animal with blood and bones and organs there. Perhaps they just 'coincidentally' use the term DNA to refer to an internal description that each robot has, which would naturally enough incorporate information about the software as well as the hardware.

Unfortunately, the writers said that their beast modes are indeed "fully functional"... as Rhinox's farting would seem to indicate. However, I tend to ignore that as the implications are just too icky.

Unfortunately, the writers said that their beast modes are indeed "fully functional"... as Rhinox's farting would seem to indicate. However, I tend to ignore that as the implications are just too icky.

Really? I could have sworn that there was gobs of evidence to the contrary; heck I vaguely remember seeing an injury on an animal mode showing techno stuff underneath. Not to mention that the speech in the Rhonox farting episode indicated that the consumed beans were being converted to machine fuel... (Tarantulus said something similar in episode 3, though oddly enough the same conversation implied that Cheetor was organic all the way through...or was it vice versa... :wtf )

 

With regard to the farting, I always assumed that Rhinox's tailpipe was a literal tailpipe, and that the emissions were an explosive combination of poorly-converted fuel and imperfectly-refined scriptwriter senses of humor...

Trust me, I'm not wanting to believe that they were really all animal-y underneath the surface. I prefer to think of it as just a layer of living tissue that allows them to *look like* animals, and function as them on a superficial level.

 

Anything more than that.... bleah

I prefer to think of it as just a layer of living tissue that allows them to *look like* animals, and function as them on a superficial level.

phased-plasma rifle in the forty watt range'd

I prefer to think of it as just a layer of living tissue that allows them to *look like* animals, and function as them on a superficial level.

phased-plasma rifle in the forty watt range'd

:tflaugh

 

 

 

 

*hides geek wood* :redface

*Doesn't get it.*

 

BTW, I've always thought that the BW definition of DNA wasn't the same as ours, simply because of Dinobot's clones. >.>

If you guys wanna bring in the Dinobots, how bout this, I read somewhere that Mainframe wanted to have the Conhead Seekers resurrected. Maybe they came with Shockwave(in Cybertron alt modes). The dinobots (I never read the comic so bare with me) They come to Earth shortly after or Dig there way out of their buried escape pod which scans some underground fossils. They take out the Coneheads pretty quickly. Next, Shockwave takes oult all but Grimlock. Then he goes on and on about how feable, clumsy and inefficient Grimlock's alt form is. Grimlock sorta proves him wrong as there battle takes them both out.

 

*edit from my original story *

The history tracks tell the Maxies that the Dinobots should be buried by the Ark or something. While the Coneheads and Shocky should have never left Cybertron. Maybe Rattrap or Rhinox could have an accident while trying to put Grimlock in emergency stasis. the Accident F's up his speech function.

 

Also, I like the Idea of the Preds using the Nemesis as a base. The time spent there is for repairing it and placing the transwarp cell in place.

 

Why do you talk of the Dinobots as if they existed somehow during BW? What am I missing?