Transfans memories

[Professor Smooth]

There are now a few of us that've been around Transfans (.com, .net, .uk, and inevitably .xxx) for a decade. Let's reminisce about some of the highs and lows of those 10 years. On the board(s) and off (as pertains to said boards)

Highs:

I've met Best First, Computron, and a load of guys who've come and gone (Insane Galvatron, Weirdwolf and Monzo, etc).

I accepted that the Marvel comics are the One True G1 continuity.

I learned to be less of a **** about a great deal of issues. Religion and politics, chief among them.

Lows:

Due in part to the obsession with Transformers that you guys helped foster, I've made actual, real life enemies.

Break-even:

That whole Seibertron.com thing...

SHARE!

[Kaylee]

Highs:

I think I genuinely helped Paul get over that sad breakup a few years ago (as much as some bloke on the net can help anyway). I've always been proud of that

I think I was a comfort to a few people on occasion.

Made some friends who, although some available evidence may not back up, I think highly of.

Lows:

Lots. My (far too public) breakdowns. Needless arguments. That sort of thing.

Ah, memories.

Remember that time you faked your own death, Kevin?

[Brendocon]

I thought that was Starscreamer?

Unless they both did it?

Unless Smooth IS Starscreamer? But what sort of crazy fool would have multiple accounts for someplace like this?

[Kaylee]

I thought that was Starscreamer?

Unless they both did it?

Unless Smooth IS Starscreamer? But what sort of crazy fool would have multiple accounts for someplace like this?

Him too. Kev was apparently killed in a car wreck at one point

That was ~10 years ago now. My time flies!

[Professor Smooth]

I thought that was Starscreamer?

Unless they both did it?

Unless Smooth IS Starscreamer? But what sort of crazy fool would have multiple accounts for someplace like this?

Him too. Kev was apparently killed in a car wreck at one point

That was ~10 years ago now. My time flies!

I really think you're misremembering that. I think I'd remember faking my own death. I got hurt in a car wreck years ago, though. Pretty sure it didn't kill me. Especially after that mother****er Starscreamer did it. I cried for that sob.

For the record, my alt IDs were Big Red Machine, Triumverate Machine, Mr. Showtime, Prof_Smooth, Professor Smooth, Kevin and Evangelion Unit 01.

Jeebus, I can't believe how long I've been here. I think I started posting when I was 16. Maybe 15. When did Beast Wars season 2 finish up?

Hey, remember when Hot Shot joined? He was like the first new "regular" we'd had in years!

One of the reasons I'll always remember this board is because of how far Transformers has come since I joined. Back then, as far as G1 goes, Transformers was pretty much over. Nobody even seemed to care that the entire Marvel UK run was scanned and uploaded on the site.

I remember when Takara released the first G1 reissue, those PVCs, and (eventually) DVDs of the G1 show. Then there were a few homages to old characters. Takara (again) did Car Robots. The Beast Era ended and we got car Transformers again. Armada was announced. We finally got a big-ass Unicron toy. Dreamwave got the TF license. Furman came back IN FORCE. Our old pal Guido Guidi (and bunch of other people who were active in the community) got their big breaks. Then Pat Lee did what that ****************** does. Twice. The movie happened. Classics happened. IDW happened. The other movie happened. Spider-Man teamed up with the AUtobots again. Predaking got reissued. Twice.

Oh, and I moved to Japan. Something that absolutely would not have happened if one of you guys hadn't posted a link to Prime Saber's site with all that Japanese TF info (which, the internet being what it is, led me to learning more and more about Japan).

Oh, and there were those threads on 9/11/01.

I grew up here. That's a weird thing to say.

[Kaylee]

I thought that was Starscreamer?

Unless they both did it?

Unless Smooth IS Starscreamer? But what sort of crazy fool would have multiple accounts for someplace like this?

Him too. Kev was apparently killed in a car wreck at one point

That was ~10 years ago now. My time flies!

I really think you're misremembering that. I think I'd remember faking my own death. I got hurt in a car wreck years ago, though. Pretty sure it didn't kill me.

Well what I remember is a poster saying he was your brother saying you were dead in a crash, then about 20 minutes later yourself came on saying you were fine.

pretty sure that's what happened. Anyone else or did I dream it?

[Professor Smooth]

Him too. Kev was apparently killed in a car wreck at one point

That was ~10 years ago now. My time flies!

I really think you're misremembering that. I think I'd remember faking my own death. I got hurt in a car wreck years ago, though. Pretty sure it didn't kill me.

Well what I remember is a poster saying he was your brother saying you were dead in a crash, then about 20 minutes later yourself came on saying you were fine.

pretty sure that's what happened. Anyone else or did I dream it?

I still don't remember that. But it may have happened. I had a lot of friends (ok, like 3) who signed up back in high school. We used to cruise the site during study halls and lunch breaks.

T1 lines were new and interesting at the time.

[Kaylee]

I might have dreamed it

[Professor Smooth]

I might have dreamed it

You know what? If I showed up in your dreams, I'm totally honored.

[Hot Shot]

Highs:

I've matured by reading this forum regularly. All the great thought-provoking discussions and debates opened my eyes to a lot of things, and for that I'd like to thank everyone here.

I discovered all the good things about the G1 comics I'd never read on other sites, and it was enough for me to finally take the plunge. Needless to say I've thoroughly enjoyed it and turned my back on the toon.

Lows:

All the twatty things I said during the first year-or-so here. It makes me cringe when I find some of my old posts.

Mehs:

I lost my faith. It hurts like hell, but at the same time I feel a little better.

[Kaylee]

I might have dreamed it

You know what? If I showed up in your dreams, I'm totally honored.

[bumblemusprime]

Hotty McShotty, I also lost my faith and this was one of the only places I could be public about it. Ping me if you need to vent.

Among other things, I quote, without need to go into detail:

Due in part to the obsession with Transformers that you guys helped foster, I've made actual, real life enemies.

Heh. Ha.

Also met Besty, Angloconvoy, Legion and especially old Emvee, who showed us around London, gave us a couch to... ahem... sleep on, and found a hole-in-the-wall where I could fulfill my childhood dream of buying REAL LIFE BRITISH TF COMICS.

Met Shanti. Ate Ethiopian food with he and his lovely lady. We proved our old fuddy-duddiness by being too broke to buy a TF shirt with Derek Yaniger art on it.

Joined up right as Besty broke up with the 2004 gal. Joined up because reading Transformers was a good way to get my mind off wedding stress.

Lots of talk about religion and politics. A lot of what has been said here has influenced my evolving view of divinity and religion.

Wasn't Karl in a nasty wreck as well?

[Optimus Prime Rib]

Highs: Finding the TF scans amongst a bunch of people with the same sense of humor as me.

Long random chats with Impy about his 3d modeling.

Getting myself on the front page of total posts by getting into a 1 letter posting contest with Impy and Besters.

Sharing all of my children being born and my wedding with everyone.

My G1 Autobrand Tattoo.

Getting "Newbie of the year"

Lows: Getting so upset with the anti-US sentiment that I left the board for a couple years.

Predabot

[Brendocon]

Lows:
One member of the board seemingly deciding I'm an ubertroll mixed with the antichrist. But then he's a ****, so I'm not massively bothered.

Highs:
Most of the rest of it, tbh.

[Professor Smooth]

Lows:
One member of the board seemingly deciding I'm an ubertroll mixed with the antichrist. But then he's a ****, so I'm not massively bothered.

Was that the guy who wrote a fanfic where he killed you? And had a sig where he was waving your head around?

[Kaylee]

Also 'wrote' parody songs?

[Brendocon]

That'll be it. Being selected as the villain in some self-insertion fic is neither here nor there, but that delusion then being carried over into the main board is just bonkers.

It's like those actors who have people behaving like they're the character. But, y'know, without ever having played the character.

On the plus side, I've thoroughly enjoyed the sporadic occasions when I've met members of the board. Be it at Transforces or Transfests or in Bath or Manchester. It's even resulted in me being a zombie in a film.

[Best First]

Also 'wrote' parody songs?

Are the inverted commas in the right place there? I'd move them a word along...

[Kaylee]

Also 'wrote' parody songs?

Are the inverted commas in the right place there? I'd move them a word along...

How about:

'wrote' 'parody' 'songs'

That about covers it.

[Best First]

Good call.

[Professor Smooth]

If not for Transfans, where would I come to share funny TF-related stuff I come across. Like this comment about Dirk Diggler singing The Touch in Boogie Nights:

I used to think "You got the touch" sucked in Transformers but then Dirk had to mess it up even more. I guess having a big Pananis doesn't make you smart.

I mean... Where to even begin?

[IronHide]

Highs:
- Compy asking me to be a mod, even though I really dont moderate much of anything.
- Nukezone
- Every topic that made me laugh
- Still being entertained by a message board, hard to say that about most.

Lows:
- That 'lone wolf' db Ishin Okamawhatever.
- All the times I acted like a di*k just cause, burned a few bridges for no real reason.

And where was I when the 'dead brend' fanfic was posted? I dont remember that at all....

[Professor Smooth]

And where was I when the 'dead brend' fanfic was posted? I dont remember that at all....

Well, a bit of google-stalkery later, I found it. It was called Transfans Revolutions. And it was written by Aaron Hong.

Here's part 1:

http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/s ... en&ct=clnk

Here's part 3:

http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/s ... en&ct=clnk

At least, I think that's it.

I've never read it, and only became aware of it when Aaron was using a signature picture of his avatar holding a picture of Brendocon's actual head. When Brend called him out on it, Aaron's response was something along the lines of, "Well, if you'd READ TF Revolutions, you'd know that it's part of the ongoing story."

[Optimus Prime Rib]

- Nukezone

This.

I forgot about Nukezone.


A.I.D.S. FTW!

[Impactor returns 2.0]

Wizard!...

[Best First]

Good topic.

Highs:

As alluded to above, this place (or more accurately some of the posters here) was one of the things that got me through a rather horrific break up and the following two years on depression. So a low in itself but a high from a Tfans perspective.

This still makes me laugh, which may be a poor reflection on me but if so I am ok with that; http://transfans.co.uk/relics_20031120-1-008501.php

I think I once wrote a pretty cool thing about revision/academic achievement when Pops was stressed.

All the get togethers have been good – pretty random looking back a bunch of people who had never met all just descending on Bath the first time round and trying to figure out who each other were – especially as this predated most of us having mobile details for each other.

Getting an email from Geoff Senior thanking me for the kind words said on Transfans about his work.

As Smooth suggests, realizing that being a snide tw@t probably isn’t the best way to bring others round to your point of view (although I insist on retaining this skill for the moments when reason gives up the ghost).

Finding out that the nicest guy in Britain and the hairiest guy in Britain ARE THE SAME GUY.

The Transfest comic – notably Brend’s amazing Shockave’s letters page.

The fact that we have almost toilet trained JaJa.

Karl coming back!

Being called the cancer of the fandom.

And Papa Snarl being Papa motherf*cking sh*t shooting thunderc*nting Snarl.

Lows:

Seemingly sound people going mental and wading off on racist tirades or the like.

I’ve definitely flipped out a few times, probably largely in the two year period alluded to above, but still.

Karl disappearing!

The numbing realisation that logic and reason are mere inconveniences to be heroically shrugged aside for large sections of the internet.

Enduring a rather lengthy period of lowland passive aggressivism.

Our complete lack of a support strategy for this place.

Not being able to do this as a full time job.

The prospect of toilet training Emvee.

And… I miss Computron, the big nerd

[Kaylee]

I miss computron too.

I'm at work so an unfortunate time to get choked up. Thank you regardless, Paul. I'm sorry I went. X

[Professor Smooth]

Funny Computron memory. We'd talked online for years. Even met up IRL once. But it wasn't until like a year later that I found out that were both living at the same college.

I also remember that time Compy and I met up with BF. It never dawned on either of us to learn each others names. So, when I saw some guy waiting around at the spot we'd agreed on, I went up to him and said something like, "Uh, if you're not the guy, this is gonna sound REALLY strange, and I can't even believe I'm about to say this, but do you go by... Computron?"

[bumblemusprime]

I seem to remember a certain thread about swinging that the wife got involved in. Good times... no wait, they weren't.

Also, making Lying In The Gutters was interesting.

http://transfans.co.uk/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=7538

[Best First]

Ha - i was going to post that as a high but thought you might not like it.