#ojr

Serenity was never quite sure how her father came to love her mother. He’s practical as can be, a farmer who prefers to have dirt on his hands rather than his head in the clouds. The way he tells it, one trip into the nearest town with his buddies turned into a fling with the new bartender turned into a romance that culminated with her returning to the city. Sure as clockwork, nine months later, Serenity was left on her father’s doorstep, her birth mother not looking back once. Her father remarried when she was three, and Serenity currently has two half-siblings she is sure to call at least twice a month.Serenity’s interest in the divine and mystical has revealed just how much like her birth mother she is. All that she really knows of the woman, was that she was exotic and knew more than a little about various religious and occult practices. 

While even she may not be a full believer sometimes, Serenity is a practiced Wiccan and favors all types of divination; quite unheard of for a magical being. She’s exceedingly good at it and has earned more than a couple friends by offering them a reading here and there. Her Wiccan affinity has given her an edge within her courses, but she’s careful to keep it as separate as possible. Her knowledge of her previous lives are recorded in a sacred book that is passed down through the generations. She knows all about who she was before she was Serenity but doesn’t dwell on the past. Living in the now is how she prefers to be. When it comes to relationships of any kind, Serenity is deeply committed. Having been left on a doorstep, literally, she doesn’t want anyone to have to feel as abandoned as she did growing up. Her magic is one of her prized abilities, along with her perceptiveness. Being of the phoenix race has made her more aware than others of the fragility of time and life. She doesn’t take any of her classes for granted and soaks up as much knowledge as she can. Magic is delicate but equally precious and she’s known to be one who doesn’t hold things for granted, ever.

Connections

Regina Kladivo {roommate} Wyatt Thorne {best friend} Theran Magrog {friend}

Extras

Residence: Redbury House Clubs: Philosophy Club, Environmental Club, Chorus, Art Club, Poetry Society Sports: Cheer

Alright, now we have the second flying zoid and already we’re off to better start than Glidoler. It still has some awkwardness with the large body with the wheels and such and shares the same blue and grey with black caps color scheme. I’m pretty sure it’s the same basic chassis as Glidoler, just without the large foot-pontoons. Unfortunately, like Hidocker, Pegasuros isn’t supposed to be any specific avian creature, but just “bird-type”. Again this is just kind of lazy, though it doesn’t bother me as much because I can’t really say Pegasuros resembles any particular bird in particular. Glidoler likewise didn’t really look at all like a duck, but at least elements of its design, such as the capability to land on water, fit the theme.

Here’s a side-by-side comparison with Pegasuros’ progenitor and it’s immediately clear how much sleeker and more aerodynamic it is. My complaint of the small wings has been addressed and it actually appears to be equipped with weapons. One detail I’ve just now noticed looking at pictures for this review is the tiny feet which is an odd detail. Every other flying zoid either doesn’t have feet at all or walks on them, instead of having wheels. There are always a few details of each zoid model that you wouldn’t see represented if it were a real mech, but it’s kind of hard to see what the intent is here. Would the actual zoid walk on the legs and simply not have most of the wheel mechanism? Or are the legs just some sort of decoration?? It’s kind of bizarre to think about.

Never knowing his parents, Shay was adopted by an older vampire couple who were unable to have children. The early years of his childhood was quite happy; he had the sort of family anyone would dream of having. He never wanted for anything, spoiled by his adopted parents. He never once thought of his birth parents as he enjoyed all that life had to offer him. This was before it was ripped away from him. At seven years old, he found himself once again orphaned as he learned that his adopted parents had died in a car crash; though a part of him did wonder how much of an accident that had been. Without anyone to take him in, Shay found himself in magical foster care.

For the next few years, he found himself as an outcast. He didn’t fit in anywhere, at the group home or at school. He wasn’t too good at sports, his clothes were old hand me downs, and he had only a few friends. Not to mention he really didn’t have a human gender he identified with. The only thing he had ever succeeded in was his school work. When his adopted parents, who he considered his real parents, were alive. They had accepted him, flaws and all. Now it appeared that nobody wanted him, he was too old to make a good son or daughter to another couple. He went from foster home to foster home but never got to stay. Yet, Greenwood Academy eventually grew on him. 

There he has quite a lot of friends, good grades, can proudly say he’s agender, and he even made the soccer team this year. Still he can’t break his make-due ways and works part time at the library and tutoring. He takes pride in his situation and how he’s still managed to stay a positive person. About the only thing that he feels self-conscious about is the fact that he has no magical affinity that other vampires do. After many visits to counselors and meetings with his teachers, it’s been found that he may never develop magic.

Connections

Vulwin Roceran {roommate} Felix Whitehorn {friend} Kacie Crespin {acquaintance}

Extras

Residence: Wright House Clubs: Book Club, Chess Club, Culinary Club Sports: Soccer Job: Science Tutor & Library Page

Here it is, the very first zoid. Considering the popularity of dinosaur zoids later in the series, it’s very appropriate that Garius is a tyrannosaurus type. First, a little history on zoids. The very first zoids line hit store shelves in Japan in 1981 under the name Mechabonica, which is an amazing name. The subtitle (or full title?) or this series was “Messengers To The Space Mechabonica” and I don’t know what that means, but I think I like it. The name is highly appropriate as well, considering that the three zoids released under this name all have a spooky robo-skeletal look about them. They were also released under the name Starzeta in Spain, although these may have been bootlegs. 

Apparently Mechabonica didn’t sell well, because only three models were released before the line was discontinued. These three, along with three additional models, were rereleased a year later in the US and Europe under the name Zoids: The Pre-Hysterical Monster-Machines which again, I quite like. This was the first time these kits would be called “zoids”. In 1983 Zoids would relaunch in Japan, starting the most successful line, commonly referred to as OJR, or Original Japanese Release, which would run until 1990.

ANYWAY, Mechagirus, or Tyrannazoid, or Garius, depending on the release in question, is a really excellent way to start. As a kid I was more interested in larger, motorized zoids to the point of being obsessed with the likes of King Gojulas and Madthunder, but over the years I’ve come to appreciate smaller, wind-up zoids much more and Garius is an excellent example of one. It’s a cute little skeletal tyrannosaurus and I love it.

Over the course of this series, we’ll see definite trends to zoid design, going from skeletal monsters to more curved and molded kits. I doubt it’s intentional, but Garius looks like the first zoid. It’s simple and barebones, without any weapons or armor plates that would come to cover later models. In that way it almost looks like a prototype, possibly deployed in a few limited engagements. It kind of reminds me of the Mark I tank, important historically, if not exactly the most effective weapon. 

The colors are typical of a Republic zoid of the era, mostly being grey, blue, white, and black. I particularly like how the design apes the more antiquated, and incorrect, idea that the t-rex walked upright, rather than with its spine parallel to the ground. In a way, it’s design is more reminiscent of Godzilla than a t-rex, though we will see zoids that are more explicitly based off Godzilla later. The cockpit has the most character, being the only white part of the model and having a design like a car on a ride at Disney World. It’s attractive in a sort of 80s futurist way which is good, because we’ll be seeing a lot more of this cockpit design before we’re done.

Overall, I think Garius is a successful design that works well in the context of the series as a whole. It’s nothing mind-blowing and we’ll see more interesting tyrannosauruses down the line, but Garius does what it sets out to accomplish.