rewatching transformers prime and studying its body language !!! gonna update with notes on what i see
part (season) 1 ! seasons 2 and 3 will be separate
hey edit like ages later i'm probably gonna translate all of this to a doc to make this more coherent and updated
right off the bat, you’ll notice how fluid the movements for the bots are !!! you’ll see how this is important later (lots of little movements, cliffjumper is our first example)
autobots seem to have more fluid body language than (most) decepticons
metal is HEAVY . this show handles weight distribution beautifully it’s gen stunning
starscream’s body language interestingly seems based off of cobras (his silhouette is based off of them, too)
ratchet’s eyes widened upon finding out cliffjumper’s signal went offline
optimus’ hands are often balled into fists more than idly open
i find his body language super interesting — his stance is often straight with that first point in mind ! his hands are more commonly open when talking with team prime
he’s aware of how huge he is and looks down + leans a little to make eye contact (while he’s talking to the kids in s1e01, he looks between the three a few times)
^ additional attentiveness !! he looks down at whoever’s talking to him even if he’s not replying
his eyebrows are furrowed the majority of the time, this is important later
handles smaller objects/people with gentle care
his hips sway more than megatron’s but his arms swing less HSJS
bots seem to use rear view mirrors/headlights to look around in their vehicle modes
jack put his hands up after getting off of arcee in s1e01, probably instinctively for self defense
man was clinging on for dear life every time he was on her seat during that episode LMAO
arcee is also aware of her size — she utilizes it in combat
bumblebee has VERY expressive body language !!! for example, his eyes and doors
jack has somewhat resting bitch face NFJAJSK
not particularly body language, but it’s very visible if a bot has been roughed up ! beautiful attention to detail
characters often make eye contact or just glance someone’s way when they’re talking to one another
bots are typically 2-3 times larger than humans (they know this) and a handful of them kneel when they talk to any on the ground
ratchet’s eyes widened upon seeing the humans and his posture straightened
bulkhead visibly tensed when miko went up to him
miko very obviously thought bulkhead was cool as SHIT
the sass in ratchet’s eye roll and glance to the side was horrendous LMAO
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT TO HOW FUCKING HUGE OPTIMUS IS . THE GROUND SHOOK
the ground shakes whenever megatron walks too !!!!
it appears that the bigger the bot, the heavier their steps are
miko seems the most relaxed out of the three about the situation in s1e01
since soundwave is nonverbal, he communicates a lot through nods, gestures, and recordings/displays on his screen
megatron is fuckinf HUGE . like dwarfing everybody else huge
he doesn’t really move much to make eye contact, but he does look down/give glances to whoever he’s talking to ! his eyebrow lifts whenever he looks to the side
his movements are precise, calculated
HIP SWAYS . WHEW
his steps are HEAVY . his arms swing more than per usual whenever he walks
ratchet did a little step after going “squish” HSJSK
agent fowler’s body language is tense at first
despite the stoic expression, optimus has somewhat emotive facial expressions ! it helps if you pay attention to his eyebrows
cliffjumper (when reanimated) has very rapid and unpredictable movements
ratchet had his hands on his hips talking about the ground bridge QHSJAJ
optimus waited for arcee before they fled the mine in s1e02
ERRATIC FUCKING MOVEMENTS WHEN MEGATRON STABBED HIMSELF WITH DARK ENERGON
the thing that got infected with it as well also had erratic movement
bulkhead is careful with handling equipment, technology, and moving around the kids — also expressive eyes
HE SHIELDED MIKO WHEN HE PICKED HER UP . FOUND FAMILY BOND IN THE MAKING
starscream has gay ass hand movements sorry
ratchet rolled his head to crack his neck in s1e03
things under the influence of dark energon after megatron Fucking Stabs Himself with It have more ragged movements than erratic
megatron has fucking theater kid movements sorry
the more confident he is, the more that shows LMAO
also appears to be pretty emotive with his eyebrows
miko’s ponytails droop whenever she’s upset/sick
arcee had a soft look when she caught jack and raf ☹️☹️ /pos
ratchet and optimus did move a little more sluggish/slowly when ratchet pointed out their energy being sapped
all of the autobots kneel and squint at miko’s phone at some point HWJAHA
optics (specifically their pupils) appear to dilate/retract to get a closer look or zoom out
they can individually dilate/retract
soundwave’s combat appears to be stationary — he doesn’t move around much
he nods when he takes photos HAHA
both optimus and megatron are HORRENDOUSLY strong
they nearly knock each other over several times duking it out in s1e05
MEGATRON CASUALLY LIFTING A CLUSTER OF DARK ENERGON TWICE HIS SIZE OVER HIS HEAD???
MIKO’S FACE LIT UP SEEING BULKHEAD
bots who don’t necessarily talk/speak coherent languages are a lot more expressive in their body language
ratchet looks fucking batshit when his eyes are completely widened LMAO
the bots talk a lot with their hands ! particularly optimus, starscream and ratchet
the general first response for self defense for bots is also to hold their hands in front of their faces
optimus and arcee’s movements were shivery before they got back to base in s1e07
bulkhead nodded at miko around a minute into s1e08 !!!
i found it interesting how makeshift also had rigid body language while mimicking wheeljack — staying true to the very first point of this study !
his expressions were more empty than per usual of what you see in bots
his eyes widened ONCE and that was it
OPTIMUS SMILED THRICE IN S1E08
bulkhead’s body language is a lot more vigorous in that same episode !
starscream subtly shakes for a second when he’s pissed LMAO
not necessarily body language but it was clear in optimus’ voice that he didn’t like agent fowler touching the driver’s wheel in s1e09 DJWKJDW
^ minimal force was bumping into mech’s vehicles apparently HAHA
bumblebee does a few little bounces before swinging at an opponent
optimus shakes his head a little after recovering from fatigue/being knocked out
HIS HEAD LEANED BACK WHEN HE HELD BACK THAT TRAIN
it also tilted a little when ratchet commed asking if everything was okay
his eyes COMPLETELY widen if he’s hurt and unable to move
not body language but optimus has little claws on the sides of his fingers . like those on construction vehicles !
bots use their headlights for communication ! (morse code)
starscream always does the gayest fucking poses before he transforms LMFAO
he is so fucking pompous . especially when he’s confident in himself
knockout is the most fucking pompous and flamboyant man you’ve ever SEEN . he immediately targeted the guy that scratched his paint in s1e11 LMAO
he pointed at the scratch later on in the episode
bastard smile.
breakdown has the blankest stare known to man HWHAHA
bumblebee’s optics spin a lot when he makes facial expressions !
either the stereo or the wheel glows when a bot talks in their vehicle mode
breakdown stumbled a little when bumblebee shot him LMFAO
also looked away and shuddered a little when starscream scratched knockout’s paint
arcee actually has incredible balance
OPTIMUS CAME OUT OF FUCKING NOWHERE NEAR THE END OF S1E11
both megatron and starscream get all up in people’s faces HAHA
arcee’s body language is much more tense upon finding airachnid’s ship
it’s subtle, but she’s shaking upon coming out of it
she shakes + flinches a lot in s1e12
HER YELLS ARE SO FUCKING GUTTURAL
^ jack was also shaking a little while waiting !
arcee and airachnid are FAST . fights between the two are vigorous and quickly paced
airachnid hisses a lot . freaky
she tapped her fingers on her arm while asking where jack scampered off to LMAO
SHE GROWLED NEAR THE END OF THE EPISODE??
ratchet shrugged a little at the start of s1e13
^ optimus stumbled a little upon entering the ship in the same episode
man shook his head like a dog that got wet
his optics flickered a little after he was returned to base in every scene he was shown in :((
ratchet was so worried about optimus in s1e13 you could see his eyebrows bro
bumblebee very subtly shook when they found megatron
arcee raised her eyebrow when ratchet said “perfect” LMAO
starscream shook his head a little as the vehicons he was talking to left in s1e13
bumblebee went 👍 HWHAHA
his doors flapped a little at one point while in megatron’s head
he also did a little shrug
^ megatron circled bumblebee somewhat in the same episode
also like the one time he willingly bent down to talk to a smaller bot
soundwave’s head twitched a little shortly before pointing out the cortical psychic patch
ratchet held out his hand in case optimus stumbled while helping him up !!!
bumblebee’s movements are much more rigid when megatron is in control ! another nod to the first point of this study
his eyebrows also raise higher ?? didn’t remember him being more emotive because of megs
his optics retract whenever megatron gains control
knockout and breakdown’s movements are more fluid than the typical decepticon’s ! i feel this was an allusion to when knockout joins the autobots
breakdown was originally supposed to join with him :(
bumblebee struggled to grab the shard of dark energon for a moment
he ran his thumb along it for a sec ,,
ratchet motioned for raf to stay behind him on the nemesis :((
ALSO THE FIRST TO GET HIM OUT OF HARM’S WAY
starscream grabbed knockout’s face and then megatron grabbed starscream’s face later on LMFAO
bumblebee tilted his head when he turned to look at miko yelling at jack in s1e15 LMAO
ops’ eyes widened upon hearing the decepticon’s ground bridge open in that same episode
reanimated skyquake's movements are more slow and ragged (animalistic, in a way ? like a predator stalking prey)
his arm moved MUCH more erratically
OP SMILED AT THE KIDS AT THE END OF S1E15 :(( /POS
