#though that's purely my own theory since they didn't hint at that anywhere

[eukarisparadise]

A theory about Sideswipe's personality (WFC/RiD2015)

Honestly, I understand the fandom's skepticism about RiD2015 (even though I don't share it at all lmao), but I still find it interesting to think about the Aligned Universe as something unified, even if Hasbro made a lot of plot and lore holes. For example, Sideswipe was originally supposed to be another character named Fastlane, but he was given the name Sideswipe for marketing purpose. Does this mean it's the same Sideswipe that was in WFC and the novels? People are quick to say no, but realistically there could be a ton of reasons why they are so different from each other. After all, it wasn't canonically debunked like with Grimlock, who isn't the same Grimlock from WFC and has a real name Steelwall.

I personally like to think that it's the same Sideswipe just because it could make him cooler haha

As for the reasons: my personal headcanon is that Sideswipe may have been one of the many Autobots who used mnemosurgery after the war. Removing traumatic memories must've been in demand on Cybertron both during and after the war (in the IDW universe it was also practiced before the war). Maybe the procedure just didn't go well and he «regressed» in a way, but I prefer to think that this was Sideswipe's original personality before the war, that he was like that until it changed him.

I don't think that referring to Sideswipe as a «teenager» or «kid» necessarily hints at his exact age – I mean, Bumblebee was called and treated like that himself 5 years ago in TFP. Maybe he just found someone to take it out on, haha (granted, it's Strongarm who could be an actual teenager, since we don't know anything about her past, she's a new character).

Most bots, from elders like Ratchet, or young ones like Bumblebee, chose to keep their memories to themselves, but Sideswipe may have had his own reasons for deciding to forget about it, and I probably even know which one.

At the end of season 3, Autobots loyal to Optimus appeared on the Council's blacklist and were declared outlaws, but among them was the already dead Tailgate.

Perhaps the compilers of the list simply didn't know about it and included him by mistake. Sideswipe's brother, Sunstreaker, also appeared among them, and... who said he 100% survived the war? I mean, maybe he did, but also – maybe his death was the reason Sideswipe couldn't bear the memories about it and everything related to it.

It's not even necessary that Sideswipe went through the war completely: we don't know where he was between RoTDS and the events of Prime. He could effectively be anywhere: on the other side of the galaxy or lying in stasis on a desolate Cybertron. But when Cybertron was restored and the Autobots returned to a peaceful life, maybe then he realized that he couldn't live like this and used mnemosurgery. That's why he never mentioned Sunny.

Now, I said that the operation might not have been entirely successful (this is a very difficult technique both for the patient and for the mnemosurgeon himself, after all) and instead of completely removing the memories, they could simply be suppressed. That's why he still exhibits the abandonment issues throughout the series and gets clingy after couple of traumatic events in episode 62 – something that could trigger the memories from Sunny's death.

But this also plays out on the other side: when he met Jazz, he began to fanboy over him not only because he was looking for his approval and role model and a crush, but also because it could be «Wow! Wait a minute, I recognize him!🤩», since it's the same guy with whom he beheaded Bruticus Maximus and brought the Autobots their first victory in the war.

Why he specifically disliked Optimus - I don’t know, but since I myself am not a fan of TFP Optimus, I don’t need a reason at all :D

His body design differs significantly from the design in the games (unlike the design of other characters, whose differences are purely stylistic): he, like Starscream, could buy himself a new body in order to «move» into it with a «cleared» mind. Well, we see how did that work out for him.

...that, or he's really just a new character with the same name. But, eh, we already have Grimlock in this team with the «really popular name among dinobots», I honestly find this explanation really boring, as well as the impersonation take. But that's just me, I dunno 🤷🏼‍♀️

#transformers #transformers prime #transformers rid2015 #rid 2015 #sideswipe #war for cybertron #optimus prime #theory