Just To Remind Myself Of That Time I Somehow Ended Up Recommending The Fic Op Actually Wrote About This

just to remind myself of that time I somehow ended up recommending the fic op actually wrote about this in the comments to someone without realising op was, in fact, the author of that fic.

sometimes you follow someone for their skyfire/starscream comic and find out later they're the author of your fav starscream redemption fic

this hellsite is alright actually

Look my favourite 'Starscream joins the Autobots' concept involves him absolutely playing up his victimhood in a manipulative attempt to win sympathy. He's a Decepticon! He's Starscream. Of course he does! He will act however weak and vulnerable he needs to, in order to achieve his ends.

This gives him a fascinating duality. He's a Machiavellian selfish would-be-tyrant who fucking dares the Autobots to feel sorry for him; while at the same time, he's a wheedling, snivelling mess, making puppy-dog eyes as he cunningly reveals tailored scraps of his abusive relationship with Megatron to win over the 'soft-sparked' Autobots.

Everything he shares is true.

In fact, things with Megatron were probably even worse than he portrays, albeit more complex - i.e., with far more goading and violence on his side, but which in NO WAY justified the ghastly abuse he was subjected to.

This is a way for him to feel like he's in control of the shit that's been done to him. If he's using his victim status as a weapon, it feels like it's his. He's taken possession of it. He's made it into something more powerful, in his mind (even if this defence tactic kinda... prevents him from fully recognising that what happened to him was actually really really awful).

I wish more fics engaged with this aspect of his character, where he's PERFECTLY WILLING to go 'OH THE ABUSE. OH I HAVE SUFFERED' if it'll get him ahead in life, while perhaps not even fully understanding just how much trauma he's gone through.