Makuta is the embodiment of destruction, which isn't inherently evil or good according to him, as he said to Pridak in the Pit. "Let's say you create a weapon capable of destroying all life in the universe, its whole purpose is destruction, but it was born from creation". He sees himself as that weapon, the necessary destruction element of a binary universe where Mata Nui represents creation.

I actually liked how he was portrayed in Mask of Light, where the line "my duty is to the Mask of Shadows" implies that he was just doing his duty that was given to him due to his creators giving him the Kraakhan but he takes his duty to the tee. Reminds me of Clu from Tron Legacy.

I really love this interpretation. The mind has ways of justifying even the most brutal and evil acts if their conviction is strong enough. Maybe in Makuta's mind, he genuinely thought what he was doing was for the betterment of the MU inhabitants, even when he resorted to evil tactics. The possibilities of interpretation for the Bionicle storyline really are incredible, and I love the viewpoints you bring to the table in your videos. See you in the next video!

It’s honestly not hard to imagine Makuta as somewhat sympathetic in this view. After all, what is creation without destruction, and more literally, what is light without shadow?

Were I to portray Teridax more sympathetically, I wouldn't even change that much from the canonical story, as I feel the canon itself gives a good groundwork for a more sympathetic motivation. Mata Nui was an absent god who didn't really think about what the individuals in his body were doing, and thus didn't really care for them or interfere in their ongoings. Makuta, seeing the endless suffering and carnage in the MU whether that be caused by opportunistic despots like the Barraki or the scuffles between MU inhabitants like in the Metru Nui civil war, probably felt that Mata Nui didn't do his job of protecting and caring for greater universe as he allowed all these tragedies and mistakes to happen and didn't do anything to even prevent these things from happening in the first place. As one of the jobs of Brotherhood was to be assigned guardians of the MU, Teridax probably slowly started to feel that he could do a better job at watching over the whole MU than Mata Nui did: he was already doing that, but from a much smaller scale, only watching over one location rather than the whole universe. Thus, when he learned of the true nature of MU thanks to Mutrans Tren Krom shenanigans, I wouldn't be surprised if an already disallusioned Teridax saw this as the perfect opportunity. No longer could he just think that he could do Mata Nuis job better, there was an actually realistic possibility for him to actually *replace* Mata Nui in his job, and thus do a better job protecting the Matoran Universe. This would essentially keep his canonical goals/motivations somewhat same, but add more depth to them than pure megalomanical god complex. These motivations also are interesting as they'd have Teridax paralell Tuyet of all characters, as it'd make Teridax's motivations essentially be the same as Tuyets, just from a much a larger scale. Regarding your idea I do really like it. I like the idea of Makuta becoming self aware of him being essentially a tool used by the Great beings, and wanting to avoid/rebel against his Destiny and prevent him and the rest of the universe becoming obsolete. He's essentially doing this all to protect his brother and the world they protect, and making it more than just some puppets or drones used by a "higher" being. The one thing I don't like is that this motivation somewhat makes the "free will bad destiny good" undercurrents Bionicles narratives has all the more prominent as well as how it fits more with Makutas 01-03 portrayal (although that seems to be the point of making the portrayals more even and equal rather than drastically change the character halfway through the story), but other than that I do really like the idea.

The whole notion of Teridax rejecting his imposed purpose and rebelling against his creators/God really puts him in the same category as characters like Satan and Melkor/Morgoth, and I love that. It allows him to be in a place where he (on a metaphysical plane) he really both *is* the antithesis to Mata Nui but also 'simply' an overly ambitious schemer with a giant ego. He *made* himself Mata Nui's brother. I think it's also possible to unify his god-complex with his interpretation as the personification of evil. Note that it wasn't simply his realization of how the MU works and what it's really for that made him rebel - Mata Nui (and perhaps some other characters like Artakha) knew about it too and it didn't make him/them rebel against the GBs. He did it because he felt undignified by his Duty, unlike others who saw a sense of purpose in it. One might be tempted to analyze his actions as a direct result of him 'leaving Plato's cave' and gaining a higher understanding of the world, but again, the fact that there are others who have done similarly and did *not* react by wanting to tear everything down or possess it reveals that he really was just a cynic. It mirrors the behaviour of people who come to realize that there is no God or objective morality and see that as an excuse to behave destructively, despite others having reached the same view of the world and still managing to hold themselves to some standard of morality, even if only a subjective, self-imposed one. That realization that 'Nothing is true and everything is permitted' must always be followed by such a self-imposed moral standard, and what people choose that to be is what ultimately reveals thir moral character. Makuta chose egoism, destructiveness, suffering, and death, and that why is he is the villain: Because that is by definition what villains are. Cynics.

‘Sleep spares him pain! Awake, he suffers!’

I've thought about this question before myself, and my main thought WAS a Makuta that basically wanted to defy God (in this case Mata Nui and then the Great Beings), while also seeking to BECOME God (aka the Great Spirit). IDK if you've seen Prometheus or Alien Covenant but I could almost see a character similar to David 8, an artificial being who kinda resents his creators but then develops his own god complex from that, becoming a monster in his own right. But yeah, I do think a lot of the idea in my scenario would basically hinge on "Mata Nui is an absent god" as one other comment put it, and "the Great Beings created us to merely be tools". I guess in my idea I'm not sure if he necessarily would sympathise with Mata Nui, but you describing how he could at least pity him as he sees him as basically a slave to his predestined purpose, so that's a great addition there. The idea of Makuta seeing the matoran and other MU inhabitants developing sentience and justifying to himself is also something interesting, though I wonder if there could be a version of himself that sees himself as a liberator instead of merely a ruler. But yeah, lots of fascinating ideas here. In a similar vein, I kind of think about the Zyglak as well, a species that are just treated as bloodthirsty monsters but they kind of justifiably have reasons to be so angry, literally being "the Great Beings' mistakes". Like, sure, maybe taking out their anger on matoran isn't the best way to go about things, but to be treated as just some abomination that shouldn't exist is kind of tragic to me.

A lot of this actually fits even with later lore, particularly with the introduction of Tren Krom. Before Mata Nui had been completed, Tren Krom was created to act as a sort of "primordial god" to the Matoran universe, controlling its various systems from inside Karda Nui until Mata Nui was ready to be fully activated. And when Tren Krom was no longer needed? The Great Beings simply discarded it, fusing it to a rock and banishing it to Tren Krom's Island in the Great Spirit Robot's right hand. Fast forward a bit, and the Brotherhood of Makuta discover Tren Krom's existence and send Mutran to scope the creature out. Mutran learns of Tren Krom's origins and brings this information back to the Brotherhood. In canon, this simply allowed the Makuta to learn of the true nature of their universe, but in this slightly altered timeline where Teridax's motives are more sympathetic, he and the other Makuta realize that should Mata Nui complete his mission, he would be deactivated, which in turn would not only kill those within him but annihilate their entire existence with the destruction of the Matoran universe. I honestly prefer this more sympathetic version of Teridax. It gives depth to a character who honestly otherwise comes off as a "card carrying mustache twirler".

This made me rethink how Makuta is seen by the wider community, and how the writers ended up having to force the larger battle in. I think they may have originally had Mata Nui and his friends discover more and more about what the great beings had to to build the robot, maybe awful mining or even enslavement that later led to them being forced out altogether. They obviously held a ton of sway due to their ability to even build the two robots, yet alone make them so big. That they would just abandon and hide from the agori after the planet exploded is very very odd, especially when they apparently tried to stop the war. Perhaps the recombination was even an afterthought when building the machine, since the first robot was built before the core wars began. Given just how much history and in-depth worldbuilding the Matouran universe had even in the beginning, Greg likely had to rush this final battle several years before it could be properly set up, leading to Makuta within the robot being far less fleshed out than he otherwise would been. A true shame given what could have been.

In my personal headcanon Makuta was subconciously aware that he was created to control the Great Spirit Robot, but didn't know or care why. It was just natural for him to strive for godhood. The shell he inhabited was too small for his ego. His unfulfilled desire turned into madness over time. It explains why Makuta addressed the three virtues but dismissed all but Destiny in his mind in "Shadows in the Sky". That also explains why Melding Teridax didn't go evil. There was no GSR, he had no higher purpose than the one he served when Mazeka met him.

As for a reason why Makuta would try to kill his brother in the battle, I have some thoughts. Perhaps he didn't truly intend to kill Mata Nui, but to destroy his new body and absorb him into himself. In doing so, they would become one, and Mata Nui would be "saved". Initially Makuta simply sent Mata Nui away, perhaps believing that bereft of his original form, he could live without the burden of destiny. But even then, he continued to seek out his destiny and doom, so Makuta saw no other way left to save him.

This fits with his line in the Mask of Light movie, "Now, I will protect Mata Nui from you. Sleep spares him pain; awake, he suffers." His job was to protect the MU, and by placing Mata Nui in permanent stasis he effectively did just that, if his plan is to protect the MU from the Great Beings and Agori.

A fascinating reinterpretation That "Awake, he will suffer" line stuck with me a lot, because it gets completely ignored, only for Voya Nui and Mahri Nui to reveal "Mata Nui is now dying" shortly afterwards. Since that clearly wasn't Makuta's plan, I can't help but imagine, particularly with a more sympathetic interpretation like this one, that trying to wake Mata Nui early caused that, and this was Makuta trying to warn them.

Tbh no. Seeing a pure evil villain for once is something we need. Makuta really is just doing his job that his creators gave him due to the mask given, but he takes it WAY too far. Light and Dark should be balanced. Makuta wants to just encase everything in shadow instead of letting the light share, like how all the other elements do. Tbh the only way I can see the sympathetic element working is if the mask of shadows corrupts the wearer and makes them insane. I'm actually surprised bionicle never did a mask that took over the wearer's mind

This is a truly fascinating take on Makuta's motivations and outlook. It would definitely fit in with both his lines in the story, and the overarching themes.

I've been deving a Bionicle mod for CK3 recently, and to spice up the story/gameplay for the mod, (which takes place a bit before the Metru arc) my headcanon/retcon for Makuta is that Makuta is a being that came from outside the GSR, perhaps infilitrated it from one of the planets it journeyed too, or perhaps something else. Though definitely not the same creator of the Matoran (in my headcanon no Great Beings, it's ambiguous). When the inhabitants of Destral come across this being, the Makutas presence forcefully evolves some of the inhabitants into the beings who we we see later down the line (Icarax, Teridax, the 2008 villians, etc...) Believing it to be a god, they worship this being, creating the Brotherhood of Makuta, which is more of a cult than a peace-keeping/"""law""" enforcing organization, since the Order of Mata Nui already fulfils that role and it's weird to have 2 organizations that roughly do the same thing. With that in mind I also rename it to something along the lines of Children of Makuta or Makuta's Templar, to make it more sinister or cult like, and to give that militaristic vibes. If the Order of Mata Nui are the real life equivalent of the Teutons or Templar, the Makuta Cultists, are the real life equivalent of the Gnostics, Free Masons, Kabbalah, Roscurians, (conspiracy theorist version mind you, not the actual way they work) and the Islamic Assassins aswell since the Makuta use the Shadows. Basically they are more of the unseen force they are made out to be in 2001-2003 and some parts of 2004, and not the way they were made out to be in pre-2004 lore like destroying a part of Xia for price changes (pretty dumb imo) and a bit of 2008 and 2009. The Makuta, being an outsider knew of the GSR already, and being a virtually non-physical being, he also knew of it's purpose. The Makuta itself doesn't display any motivations, the Cultists, or more accurately Teridax, who believes Makuta speaks to him and is the bearer of his word, believe the Makuta is the savior, for Mata Nui will soon destroy the world (return to Spherus Magna) and all of those who live with in it. Which we could assume, very well may have happened if the Great Beings still existed on Spherus Magna. This playing into the fact that Makuta is obviously a Satan/Anti-Christ analogy. The cultists believe as well, that Mata Nui is keeping them as weaker version of what they could be. We've seen the Brotherhood evolve/mutate species in the past, Visorak, Skakdi, themselves, and probably countless more that I can't think of right now. So why not make that a motivation too? The Makuta (technically the cultists) want to forcefully "evolve" or "un-shackle" the matoran and other species from the chains Mata Nui has created (The 3 Virtues, their obviously small and weak stature, etc...) and evolve them into their most superior forms, and bring peace from what has been near constant war, squabbling, and sometimes depravity in the MU. This way it also plays into why the League of Six Kingdoms/Barraki and the Makuta/Cultists rivalry, as the Barraki, being the most supreme and perfect biological specimen, would not want to be equals with everyone else. When we get to the main storyline, 2004, it plays even more into the orwellian vibe they wanted. The Makuta/Cultists are quite literally the shadow government ruling over Metru Nui, and Turaga Dume, is complacent and even a follower of the Makuta. So then if Turaga Dume isn't Makuta, what is the 2004 arc about? Well the actual being of Makuta, has had no physical form in the time he has entered the GSR, the closest they get is having his essence inside of "idols" or religious artifacts, think of like the Statues of Greek Gods, the Arc of the Covenant (kind of), or Pendants/Rosary, or more iconically, the infected Kanohi. but truly they have no way of putting him inside of a mechanical or fleshly body like everyone else has, and being embodied, his essence is only in stationary objects. Well in 2004 that's whats happening, the Cultists are trying to give Makuta a body, that body being the GSR. The cultists believe they are actually "freeing" it from the state it's in currently, which is also true technically. I haven't gotten farther in detail after this point, but to summarize some ideas I've came up with for this portion, they need the Matoran as a sacrifice of some kind, OR these Matoran will be used for the first evolution, hence why they are in a diminshed state in 2001-2003 compared to 2004. Perhaps the Makuta is not only infecting the great spirit robot, but infecting every living being too, which one will become all and all will become one kind of thing, In the end though it fails as the Toa Metru stop the Cultists and Teridax, who would be the "Pope" who believes Makuta speaks to him and that he is the embodiement of his word, from infecting Mata Nui. The ritual is botched and perhaps instead of becoming the GSR a portion of Makuta is infused inside of Teridax, or that the Ritual of what he witnessed breaks him mentally? Maybe something like that. Either way, for 2001-2003 Teridax snaps and is basically a lunatic, believing to be the Brother of Mata Nui and Makuta himself, either due to somewhat actually being him, or that he has lost his mind. Not sure which I like more, or if there is another cool idea. Anyways perhaps he believes that the Matoran of Mata Nui (island) are unfinished, and that is why he spreads the infected Kanohi masks, to force the evolution of the Matoran and to make them realize the error of their ways and come back. In his eyes, he's already won because the GSR is sleeping, and that he is already Makuta manifest, and that the only thing left to do is to uplift the Matoran and to unshackle them. That is until the Mata Nui Toa arrive, which he views as oppressors keeping the Matoran weak while they hold power he believes all deserve to have. I know this is a bad opinion but I really didn't like the Rahi stuff of 2001. Thought they were kind of lame villains, I thought the infection in Po-koro was far cooler, but for sake of being true to the source, the Rahi are still a threat, just not as big of a threat as it was. Anyways Teridax/Makuta rationalizes that the Matoran of Mata Nui are beyond saving after the encounter with the Toa in the chambers (MNOG1) and that it is his duty as God to wipe the Matoran and Toa as an act of Mercy for if they can not be unshackled alive that in death they will be saved. Hence, he releases the Bohrok. We could also have it he rationalizes the the perfect state IS non-existence and that it is his duty to destroy everything to free them. (Assuming the Red Star doesn't revive Matoran, or that the Red Star is a creation of the Makuta??? Maybe?) Also, not sure who the Matoran should be from MNOG1, should it be a matoran who has been so infected he also believes he is Makuta, or is it actually Makuta? To go further, should a being known as Makuta actually exist? Beyond this, I also think the Av-Matoran/7th Toa, should be Mata Nuis response to Makuta, now realizing it is a threat, instead of something that has always existed. Since the natural state of all things is darkness, I think it's cool to think that in response to the Darkness, Mata Nui imbues few Matoran with the power of light (the true bearer of that power being Mata Nui himself) who will possibly become Toa. The Bohrok though, being canonicaly Av-Matoran, I think still work as just being dead/zombie Matorans. Anyways, as for a swarm, its a bit odd that having the rarest Matoran being made into the thing that is meant to have strength in numbers. Idk, just found that odd. Anyways after that Im still figuring out and already have spent 15 minutes writing this out so Ima stop it here lol! I know this is a complete rewriting but I find it fun because in a way the actual storyline is unchanged, just the actual details of what causes the changes up a bit more and in my opinion more fun/cool than what we got.

Oh this is good, I enjoy this idea a lot, and it makes a lot of sense

Its really the only interpretation that makes the mask of light lines make sense so its my favorite

@HeroNuva What if in the original version Mata Nui never found the knowledge to fix Spherus Magnus, even after hundreds of thousands of years? Makuta could have realized that it was an endless quest, which only brought disappointment and frustration to Mata Nui. Therefore, to spare him pain, Makuta puts him to sleep.

I love nuanced characterisation like this

I watched this video again, because I really love this idea & it makes so much sense. A great video!

After the failure of the League of Six Kingdoms leaded by the Barraki to overthrow Mata Nui and rule the Universe ended as a crushing defeat for the Barraki Warlords, thanks for the leadership of Makuta Teridax to end the rebellion and ordered the execution of the Barraki, but in the last moment has been interrupted by Botar that trapped them into the Pit. The ideas of the Barraki rulers of reign and conquer, inspired Makuta to do the same, and also the idea of not been valued and appreciated by the Matoran for his work in maintain order in the Universe, Makuta became jealous and also been very ambitious, started to think of taking Mata Nui`s place as the "New God" of the Universe, and been venerated by the Matoran. The title and the theory of Makuta been Sympathetic, sounds very interesting to me to hear. Perhaps all his evil actions were justificated to help the Matoran and prove to everyone that Makuta himself was a better ruler than Mata Nui, maybe, only a idea that occurred me. But Makuta`s true intentions be his ruling desires and ambitious plans of been above everyone and became the God and absolute ruler of the Universe, and without sharing power, lead his fellow Makuta brothers to death in Karda Nui, to secure his position as the ONLY ruler of the Universe. After listening you, the Deep Dive videos i think you are a Bionicle philosopher, you are wise as Turaga Vakama or Turaga Nuju.

You compare this version to Anakin Skywalker. But honestly, it reminds me more of IDW Megatron. A slave who rose above his corrupted government to free all the less fortunate. But he became so untrustworthy of others, that he only viewed himself capable enough to lead Cybertron. In his efforts to save Cybertron, he becomes the very thing he swore to destroy.

Considering We get to see his banevilant self from an alternet timeline. I'd say That's probably how his god complex started. He watched the Matoran and all other races become intelligant and free thinking, and feared what would happen to them after Mata Nui finished his task. He tried to get Mata nui to see his side of things, and was ignored, so he sought to do it himself, and during the time he had to wait for things to line up. His resentment festered to the point his god complex formed, and from there is where we get the Teridax we know.

This has been my understanding of Makuta Teridax for years now. Mata Nui was a negligent god, Makuta takes the path to take that divine throne for himself and become a micromanaging deity that intervenes constantly without concept of transcendence. Him trying to take hold of his own destiny by rebelling against the Great Beings as well fits in with this. In my old project A Rude Awakening, I had it that to create order within the MU during his reign, Makuta had appointed Akhmou as not only Turaga of Metru-Nui, but also Turaga of the Makuta Cult, which survives even after Teridax's death in the duel of gods on Spherus Magna, and their purpose is to appease the spirit of Makuta by sabotaging the Matoran-Agori allied realms. Also: is Makuta Teridax specifically meant to possess the prototype robot or just any Makuta?

You just recruited me for this way of thinking.

I admit I'd rather have a morally ambiguois Teridax because I like the idea that he was becoming like, he was passing from a living being to an eldritch entity. I think Makuta Teridax is what happens when a powerful mortal (extremely powerful, but still mortal) has just the slightest opportunity to become a god. I'm a big fan of lovecraftian and eldritch themes and I like the idea that Teridax thought of himself as "something more".

I think it's a combination of somewhat noble intentions mixed with petty megalomania... All that stuff you bring-up about him fearing what will happen to him and the rest of the MU, once Mata-Nui fulfills his destiny, is a good point. In essence, it starts out with - I won't let my people be enslaved; goes to - I won't be enslaved; and concludes with - My people will be better-off if enslaved to me. In essence, I don't think he truly hates Mata Nui and wishes him dead; if he did, he could've just destroyed Mata Nui's consciousness instead of downloading it onto the Mask of Life. On some level, him preventing Mata Nui's duty, keeps the MU going... But on the other hand...I think what pushed him to do this really is out of Spite, and he harbors a great deal of resentment toward Mata Nui... Let's just say hypothetically that...One day, _God starts talking to you._ Out of anyone he could talk to, he chooses _you_ to reach out to, and have a personal relationship with. I'm sure that would boost anyone's ego... Then, God lets you peak behind the curtain and see the truth of your reality...And a full-blown existential crisis hits you like a freight train; everything you knew and believed was a lie, the entire world you know is inside God's body, and you and everyone you know are nothing more than little worker-drones to keep God healthy... So maybe you think, "I'll be the best Antibody _ever!"_ and start protecting God from all sorts of various threats. Heck, you even squash an attempted coupe that would have succeeded in overthrowing him... And yet in response to this...God just stops talking to you. I think that your version - Makuta being afraid that the Great Beings will just _toss him and all the others aside_ is paralleled by how Makuta must've felt when Mata Nui _tossed him aside_ before. We know from the lore that at some point, Mata Nui stopped paying attention to the Matoran inside him... I think Makuta took this personally - coming to see the Great Spirit like a Brother, only to be left behind... I think on some level, he decided that Mata Nui was too blinded to see the inevitable coming. So he vowed that he would replace Mata Nui - become the master of everything that was his, and use his power for his own purposes - to overthrow the Great Beings, and never be enslaved again. But he's also petty. He didn't want to kill Mata Nui when he replaced him. Instead he put him in the Mask of Life and yeeted him out to space. Why? Because he wanted Mata Nui to feel what it was like; to know what it is to be _cast aside_ and forgotten...left to face a cold and unforgiving universe, rejected by such a grand and powerful being who once saw you as a friend.. _as a brother._

Makuta could literally have any motivation, as long as he still has Lee Tockar’s voice…

Yes.

I think you may be correct.

This just makes me wish things didn't end with Stars. It would have been great to see what Makuta did when he had the power he desired, it would have fleshed things out a lot more.

I always assumed "Teridax taking over the universe because he thought GB's mission was bullshit" was the case all the time.

Headcanon approved

Makuta and taka nuva reminds me of jacob and the man in black from lost

Well, as Teridax is inspired by Christian Faber's tumor, I'm more partial to a pure evil interpretation of him. However, it could be interesting if his base motivations were sympathetic but his "programming" was corrupted by the Kraahkan or Velika ors which leads him to become the ultimate evil we know him as.

I loved the makuta, especially the 08 ones. I loved how much of a threat each of them are, each one being basically a fallen angel

Here’s an idea. What if the roles of villains and hero’s role where reversed . Can you please and thank you do a video on that ?

I like to imagine in my headcannon that the reason he didn't want to use the rahkshi is because he was somewhat fearful of them. I mean alone dire no problem but if enough of the working together can give the toa a run for his money imagine what they could do to him if je should loose control over them for a time or they somehow went rouge

Where are you? when is your next video?

Truth be told, I think it would diminish from Teridax if he were a sympathetic villain - sympathetic villains are an overrated modern trope.