BOTS WILL BE BUGS follows Wasp, all the way from his start at boot camp to his mutation into Waspinator. This animatic specifically hones in on Wasp's hidden self-hatred and how it has manifested into a fake ego in a desperate attempt to look impressive to those around him. Most of it follows canon events with a touch of fanon and personal headcanons on events and characterization. This was created for day seven of TFA week (the prompt was "emotional"), but I've had the concept for the animatic for about a year now! I started this about three weeks ago and finished today.
This animatic kicked my ASS but it was also a really insightful experience for me! It was a challenge to do so much work and to draw robots of all things, but I learned a lot and I think I've come out a better artist-- and definitely a better animatic-maker.
BREAKDOWN & ANALYSIS
The animatic begins right before Wasp joins boot camp. Being of a very common and small frametype, Wasp has been mocked and belittled his entire life. He views boot camp as an opportunity to change this, and upon seeing Bumblebee-- a bot of his own frametype-- he decides that he will not be seen as equal or inferior to Bumblebee; he'll be bigger and better. This leads to Wasp picking on and bullying Bumblebee, and as Wasp gains friends and the respect and admiration of his sergeant, his confidence and ego only grows. He still struggles, his buried self-hatred creeping back up every now and then, but his homebrewed solution is to continually take it out on Bumblebee.
Everything seems to finally be going his way when Sentinel discovers a Decepticon communicator in Wasp's locker. Though he pleads his innocence, Wasp is arrested and thrown in the stockades, losing everything he has. 50 stellarcycles past and he is freed by a familiar face. Blinded by revenge, Wasp seeks out Bumblebee and attempts to replace him, which of course, fails. He's then kidnapped and mutated by Blackarachnia and comes face to face with Bumblebee one last time.
In the final scene, both Bumblebee and Wasp have their own internal revelations: Bumblebee realizes that Wasp was just as self-conscious as himself and that all the bullying that he endured wasn't personal. Wasp does feel remorse and guilt for what he did to Bumblebee but also thinks that he might just deserve everything that has happened to him.
PROGRAMS USED
- paint tool sai
- sony vegas pro 17
AUDIO USED
- "Boys Will Be Bugs" by Cavetown
- "Boys Will Be Bugs Karaoke" by UkieBabie ( • Boys Will Be Bugs Karaoke )