Let's Read Animorphs! The Whole Series! Ch-ch-ch-chaaanges

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OctaviusBeaver: Apr 30, 2009; Say what now?

I think an open war would be better for humans just based on the fact that the Yeerks think that keeping it quiet is better. If the Yeerks thought they could easily and quickly win an open war they would start one.

# ? Apr 18, 2021 15:00

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# ? May 25, 2024 08:22

freebooter: Jul 7, 2009

I get what you mean, but it sorta depends on how you define "better." It would get millions or hundreds of millions of people killed - bad for us, bad for the Yeerks who want the hosts. South Korea could wipe the floor with North Korea, but there's no scenario in which they go to war where Seoul doesn't get laid to waste in the first hour.

# ? Apr 18, 2021 22:07

WrightOfWay: Jul 24, 2010

I think the Yeerks probably lose a protracted war with Earth, but it would make World War 2 look like a minor skirmish. The logistical problems the Yeerks face are insurmountable in the long term, despite their technological superiority. The Yeerks best chances would probably be a massive first strike and hope to coerce major earth powers to surrender to avoid annihilation. But that doesn't work if it becomes known that the Yeerks need humans alive. Basically, there's a very good reason the Yeerks are opting for the stealthy approach at this point.

# ? Apr 18, 2021 22:56

Comrade Blyatlov: Aug 4, 2007; should have picked four fingers

The other thing is, going to a hot war is the exact opposite of what the Yeerks want anyway. Every human they kill is one more human they can't use.

# ? Apr 18, 2021 23:03

blue squares: Sep 28, 2007

I just stumbled across this thread and I am so excited to catch up and join the convo. I loved the books so much as a kid! I'm reading page 3 now and it will be a while before I get caught up with the thread, but when I do I'll participate in the discussion.

Unless of course I get bored or busy and never return...

# ? Apr 18, 2021 23:09

Homora Gaykemi: Apr 30, 2020; by Fluffdaddy

Modern Day Marco tries to take David to call his folks on a payphone only to find that the one he's thinking of was removed years ago and he never quite noticed

# ? Apr 18, 2021 23:13

Strategic Tea: Sep 1, 2012

I think the other thing with Yeerks is simply - do they have enough Yeerks? They have the one pool ship and one pool on the surface, unless more are introduced later?

Even if there are tens of thousands, it wouldn't be enough to win an open war on the surface. And presumably if they started openly moving a proper invasion force, the andalites would realise that there was a major prize at stake and scramble right after them.

# ? Apr 18, 2021 23:24

Rochallor: Apr 23, 2010; ふっっっっっっっっっっっっｃｋ

Strategic Tea posted:

I think the other thing with Yeerks is simply - do they have enough Yeerks? They have the one pool ship and one pool on the surface, unless more are introduced later?

Even if there are tens of thousands, it wouldn't be enough to win an open war on the surface. And presumably if they started openly moving a proper invasion force, the andalites would realise that there was a major prize at stake and scramble right after them.

The Yeerks would have utter air superiority and could probably threaten and carry out bombardments of the White House, Parliament, etc. from space, but yeah, essentially their whole army has to stay within three days' travel of two different spots on the globe. There's a reason they're all sticking in the same place. In the event that the invasion is made public, you might expect a guerilla resistance, but probably not even that because there's hardly any Yeerks to resist against.

You would probably end up with a weird standoff with say, the Secretary of State threatening to nuke the Yeerk Pool and millions of potential hosts.

# ? Apr 18, 2021 23:38

e X: Feb 23, 2013; cool but crude

Man, Reading this as an adult, they are absolutely terrible at integrating a new member to their group. If the circumstances would be different, they just be bad at orientation and Integration, but as it stands, they are downright cruel.

# ? Apr 18, 2021 23:57

Comrade Blyatlov: Aug 4, 2007; should have picked four fingers

Rochallor posted:

The Yeerks would have utter air superiority and could probably threaten and carry out bombardments of the White House, Parliament, etc. from space, but yeah, essentially their whole army has to stay within three days' travel of two different spots on the globe. There's a reason they're all sticking in the same place. In the event that the invasion is made public, you might expect a guerilla resistance, but probably not even that because there's hardly any Yeerks to resist against.

You would probably end up with a weird standoff with say, the Secretary of State threatening to nuke the Yeerk Pool and millions of potential hosts.

I dont know if I'd go so far as to say they'd have air superiority. I could absolutely see a massive cruise missile strike dusting a bunch of Bug Fighters.

I think we can all agree open war is a loss condition for the local Yeerk forces, regardless of what happens next. It's almost like the ending of The Thing, in a way. Once the humans go scorched earth, all bets are off.

# ? Apr 19, 2021 00:34

WrightOfWay: Jul 24, 2010

Comrade Blyatlov posted:

I dont know if I'd go so far as to say they'd have air superiority. I could absolutely see a massive cruise missile strike dusting a bunch of Bug Fighters.

I think we can all agree open war is a loss condition for the local Yeerk forces, regardless of what happens next. It's almost like the ending of The Thing, in a way. Once the humans go scorched earth, all bets are off.

Human weapons can probably take down Bug Fighters but they have stealth systems that render them invisible to radar and the naked eye, which would make shooting them down a lot more difficult.

# ? Apr 19, 2021 00:44

Comrade Blyatlov: Aug 4, 2007; should have picked four fingers

poo poo, I forgot about that.

Asymmetric RTS Yeerk invasion game when

# ? Apr 19, 2021 00:48

WrightOfWay: Jul 24, 2010

XCOM total conversion mod. Your team can also obtain morphing technology.

# ? Apr 19, 2021 00:53

Comrade Blyatlov: Aug 4, 2007; should have picked four fingers

gently caress. I want this.

# ? Apr 19, 2021 01:08

Epicurius: Apr 10, 2010; College Slice

Animorphs-Book 20-The Discovery, Chapter 21

quote:

There were two big tests ahead for David. One was his first morphing. The other was his first battle. We�d all gotten used to morphing. Almost. But the first time was a serious eye-opener. You think you�ve experienced weird? You haven�t experienced anything until you watch your own body turn into something extremely different.

It would have been nice to have some time to prepare David. But there was no time. Erek had told us the world leaders would be showing up in four days. Time was up. They were coming. And we had to figure out which one was a Controller, protect the others, and if at all possible, find a way to warn them all of the Yeerk conspiracy.

�I have the brochure,� Rachel announced as we met once again at Cassie�s barn. �I downloaded it off the Internet.�

She held out some color printer pages showing the Marriott resort. There were photographs of rooms. Pictures of giddy, happy people in bathing suits, a shot of a big buffet table maybe fifty feet long and loaded with food, and a map of the resort. The map showed a big, main hotel building that was twenty stories high. And down, closer to the beach, a jumble of smaller �cottages.� Ten cottages in all.�

They�ll be in the cottages,� I said. �The leaders, I mean. They�ll dump all their people in the main hotel building.�

�Sounds right,� Jake agreed.

�They�ll have security so tight no one will be able to burp without nine guys in sunglasses running over with their Uzis cocked and ready.� I counted off on my fingers. �French security, German security, Japanese security -�

�Ninjas?� David asked.

�Yeah, Jackie Chan himself,� I said, rolling my eyes.

�He�s Chinese, not Japanese,� David said, rolling his eyes back at me.

�British security,� I said, adding quickly, �and no one say, �Bond, James Bond,� please. Russian security and American secret service, FBI, and local cops.�

Jake sighed and shook his head.

�Now just to make things really fun,� I continued, �there are the Yeerks. How many of the hotel�s maids and waiters and pool boys are Controllers? Don�t know. How many of the Russian, German, British, French, Japanese, and U.S. security guys are also Controllers? Don�t know. All we know is that one of these presidents or prime ministers is a Controller.�

�At least one,� Cassie said. �Sorry to interrupt, but it�s kind of important. Erek said one of them was a Controller. He didn�t say for sure that the other five were not.�

We all just gaped at Cassie. It hadn�t occurred to me. It should have, but it didn�t.

That's a good point, btw.

quote:

�Can I say something?� David asked.

�Sure,� Rachel said darkly. �As long as it isn�t more bad news.�

�It kind of is. My dad is part of the National Security Agency. What they do is electronic surveillance. You know, like bugging phones and watching people from satellites in orbit? Well, it just seems to me the Yeerks can do all those things plus a lot more. So probably the entire Marriott resort is being watched by the Yeerks.�

�I�m pretty sure I said, �No more bad news,�� Rachel grumbled. �Oh, man.�

Nothing scares me more than Rachel being discouraged. By the time she starts worrying, any sane, sensible human being is ready to run screaming from the room.

�We have no choice,� Jake said. �Do we?�

<If the Yeerks get to the President and these other guys, we might as well give up,> Tobias said.

<Six powerful world leaders, all Controllers? I mean, those six people are just slightly more powerful than the seven of us.>

�All that security,� Jake said. �That�s a lot of ways to get shot.�

�Yeah,� Rachel agreed. �So, let�s do it.�

�You ready?� Jake asked David.

David nodded.

�Okay,� Jake said. �This should be a nice, safe, easy trip down the coast. We�re just spying the situation out. You�ll need the eagle morph, but not the other morph you acquired at the zoo.�

�Still, the morphing will be very creepy,� Cassie warned. �So be prepared. What you do is just concentrate. Focus on the eagle.�

I could see David�s brow creasing with the effort of concentration.

�It�s going to be weird,� Rachel warned.

David�s skin was already changing colors. It was turning a sort of medium brown. His eyes widened as he looked down at his hands.

�It won�t hurt,� I reassured him.

Lines began to appear on the brown flesh. Lines that outlined feathers. And at the same time David began to shrink.

�What�s happening?!� he cried.

�You�re getting smaller,� Cassie said gently. �It�s part of the process. Now the lines on your skin will deepen and go three-dimensional. You may feel itching.�

�Ahhh!� he yelped as the outlines of feathers became actual feathers.

�Just hope he doesn�t do that finger bone thing I did the other day,� I muttered to Jake. �That�d rock his world.�

Maybe I should have kept my mouth shut. Because at that exact moment, both of David�s arms went shooting out, lengthening suddenly. The bones of his arm and fingers shot out, bare and white and thin as uncooked spaghetti.

�Aaaaahhh! Aaaaahhh!� David screamed.

�Eeeewww!� Rachel commented helpfully. �Now that�s gross.�

�Ride through it,� Cassie said. �Just stay with it. Look! See? The flesh and feathers are covering the bones now.�

Sure enough, the bones were only visible for a few seconds. But David was rattled.

�Don�t sweat it,� I said. �Wait till you morph a fly. You want to see disgusting? That�s disgusting. This is nothing.� I waved my hand dismissively.

�I don�t want to -� David started to say, but then his mouth bulged out. The lips stretched, formed into a pink, fleshy beak-shape, then hardened like setting cement.

David was small now. Smaller than me. Half my size. But with enormously long, brown wings. His clothing was hanging loosely, wrinkled up around his feet. Probably a good thing. If he�d looked at his feet right then, it wouldn�t have made him feel exactly better.

Then it occurred to me. �Umm, guys? David here doesn�t know how to morph clothing yet. He doesn�t have a morphing suit.�

�Rachel and I will look away till he figures it out,� Cassie said.

�We can get him something nice,� Rachel said, considering. I knew in her mind she was running through the stock of every store in the mall.

David was almost all eagle now.

�Okay, now you can�t talk anymore,� Cassie explained to him. �But you can thought-speak. Just think of who you want to talk to, whether it�s me, or Marco, or all of us at once. Form the words in your mind, and we�ll hear them.�

<Can you hear this?>

�Yes.� Cassie nodded. �See? It�s easy. But now comes the really tricky part, because the eagle�s brain, its basic instincts will kick in and -�

The eagle head, faintly gold in the dull gray light snapped left. The eyes focused sharply on Tobias.

The golden eagle was flapping wildly, aiming sharp talons and ripping beak toward Tobias before anyone could move.

The first rule of being in Animorphs is don't kill other Animorphs.

Chapter 22

quote:

David was quick. But Cassie was quick and prepared. She stepped in, expertly grabbed the flailing eagle, and held him down.

<See! See what I mean?> Tobias demanded as he retreated back up into the rafters of the barn. <Golden eagles. They�re all psycho. Them and crows. And jays. And a few other birds I could mention. I mean, there are plenty of mice and rabbits to go around, no one needs to be attacking fellow birds.>

�David, David!� Cassie said. �Think, now. Focus. Your name is David. You�re human. Get a grip.�

The eagle flapped its wings and struggled, but even a very large bird can�t fly with a girl practically riding its back. And it was still entangled in David�s own clothing. Slowly David calmed down. <That was weird,> he said at last. <It was like I was myself, only suddenly there was someone else in my head, too.>

<You will become accustomed to it,> Ax said. <When I morph a human I often experience the human mind and human instincts. The need for food, for example.>

�Yeah, don�t get between Ax and a cinnamon bun,� I said.

�You want to try to fly?� Jake asked David.

<Fly?>

�Duh. What do you think those wings are for?� I said.

<How do I do it?>

�Well, first, wait for us all to morph. Then trust the eagle. He knows how to fly,� Cassie said.

In a few minutes we were ready to take off. We left David�s clothes behind in the barn. It was strange and kind of emotional, watching someone morph for the first time. I don�t know how to explain it. It was like, I don�t know, like when someone becomes a citizen. You know, when they swear someone in, and one minute he�s Chinese or African or Dutch or Mexican or whatever, and the next minute, once he�s �solemnly sworn� or whatever, he�s an American. As much an American as any other American.

I�ve always been kind of affected by watching that happen. I mean, my own mother was born in another country.

Anyway, that�s how I felt now, watching David test out his wings. He was the new Animorph. It was official. He was one of us.

And we knew nothing about him, except that he had a snake named Spawn and a cat named Megadeth.

He flew. It wasn�t a great day for flying, but we had no choice. We had to scope out the Marriott resort before all the big heavies arrived. As we flew I tried to put myself in the head of whoever was planning security for the summit. There would be roadblocks on all the roads that approached the place. There�d be snipers on the roof. Quick-response teams with heavy weapons nearby. Guys with shoulder-launched antiaircraft missiles. Stingers, I think they�re called.

Amazing what you can learn by watching movies of Tom Clancy books. They�d have boats patrolling the shoreline. Probably very fast speedboats
backed up by Coast Guard cutters.

They�d probably -

<This is so excellent!> David yelled for about the tenth time, interrupting my thoughts once again. <I can see everything! I can see little crabs all the way down there on the beach! I mean, whoa!>

They�d probably have sealed up every manhole cover. They might have installed automatic locks on a lot of the doors, and of -

<Look! Look! Look at this!> David yelled as he caught a warm updraft, spread his wings, and went shooting straight up.

<Yeah, yeah, it�s cool,> I said. <But I�m trying to think here.>

David ignored me and shot past me, huge, twice my size, like a Boeing 747 jumbo jet alongside my 727. A rare glint of sun poking through the clouds flashed the muted gold of his head and neck feathers.

<Yah-haaaah!> David yelled in sheer glee.

Okay, he was being annoying. But I couldn�t really get mad. Flying is the coolest thing in the world. It just is. Having your own wings and being able to roam across the sky is amazing.

But I was supposed to be thinking. We had to know what to look for when we reached the resort.

Had to figure out how we could move within the compound, how we were going to reach the various world leaders and spy on them. And protect them.

There were other birds in the sky, of course. And we were flying fairly far apart so, as Tobias put it, <We didn�t look like some kind of birdwatcher�s fantasy.>

We were spread across a mile or so of sky, sometimes closer together, sometimes farther apart, depending on the breezes and the little pockets of dead air that�d drop you twenty feet. There were geese flying fast above us, a neat V in the sky. And there were crows, gulls, and the occasional innocent hawk, all floating around below us, looking for food or just hanging out.

I didn�t think anything of them, although the other birds sure noticed us. They knew the bird-ofprey silhouette. They knew they didn�t want to be too close.

<Yeeee-haaaaahh!> David yelled. <I�m doing it!>

It took me a few seconds to notice that his tone sounded different. More excited. More keyed up.

By the time I looked, it was too late.

David was tearing down, down, down like a falling rocket. Swooping, straight toward a careless crow.

I watched, helpless. I was an osprey. There was no way I could catch him. Golden eagles are blazingly fast. Only Jake in his peregrine falcon morph might have intercepted the eagle, but he was too far away.

With my laser-focus osprey eyes I saw the big eagle talons rake forward.

There was no sound as David struck the crow. They were too far below me for sound. Just one minute the crow was flying along, and the next second it was tumbling.

David caught the breeze again, leveled off, and swooped back upward. The lifeless crow twirled down through the air, an unbalanced, black pinwheel.

<What are you doing?!> Jake roared.

<Um � um � I guess this eagle�s brain kind of took over for a minute,> David said. <I can�t believe I just did that! That poor bird! I just lost control.>

It was possible. It was hard, sometimes, to control the animal you�d morphed. So it was possible that�s what had happened. The others certainly bought it. Cassie comforted him.

But I have an instinct for lies. Maybe it�s because I can lie pretty well when I need to. I know a lie when I hear one. David had killed that crow. Deliberately. In cold blood. For absolutely no reason.

So we can agree this is probably a bad sign, right?

quote:

<Hey, look!> Tobias said. <There�s a helicopter coming up behind us. Marine Corps helicopter. It�s � whoa! That must be Marine One!>
<Marine what?> Rachel asked.

<You know, Air Force One, the President�s jet? Marine One is the President�s helicopter,> Tobias explained.

<The stuff you know, Tobias,> Rachel marveled.

I focused my osprey eyes on the helicopter. No time to worry about David. The helicopter was coming from the direction of the airport, straight toward the compound. A second, identical helicopter was a mile back from the first. A decoy. Unless the first chopper was the decoy.

Then I noticed something else. A blurring in the air above and behind the helicopter. Like the air itself was swirling a little. Almost like heat waves coming up off hot asphalt.

Tobias had noticed it, too. <Oh, man! We�ve seen that before!>

<What�s the matter?> David demanded.

<Yeerk stealth technology,> Ax said calmly. <Human eyes would never notice. Human radar won�t spot it. But these eyes are very good. And Yeerk technology is, well, it�s not exactly Andalite technology.>

<So what is it?> David cried.

<Yeerk spacecraft. Shielded,> I said. <One coming right up behind the President�s helicopter. They aren�t going to wait for the conference. The Yeerks are going after him right now!>

This chapter has both Tobias's bird rants and Ax's condescension against other species with worse technology. and also thermals. This is the best chapter of an Animorph book ever. Oh, and also the Yeerks are going to kidnap the President.

# ? Apr 19, 2021 03:54

Mazerunner: Apr 22, 2010; Good Hunter, what... what is this post?

Things Tobias knows about:

-birds
-aircraft, which are basically metal birds
-dinosaurs, which are basically scaly old birds
-thermals, which are basically hot windy birds

# ? Apr 19, 2021 04:07

Comrade Blyatlov: Aug 4, 2007; should have picked four fingers

I'd just like to point out David has a cat. You know who else is a cat person?

# ? Apr 19, 2021 04:12

Epicurius: Apr 10, 2010; College Slice

Comrade Blyatlov posted:

I'd just like to point out David has a cat. You know who else is a cat person?

Melissa Chapman?

# ? Apr 19, 2021 04:23

Tree Bucket: Apr 1, 2016; R.I.P.idura leucophrys

Epicurius posted:

Melissa Chapman?

Melisser Three

# ? Apr 19, 2021 05:03

Homora Gaykemi: Apr 30, 2020; by Fluffdaddy

The president is being pursued by Controllers. Are you a bird enough dude to rescue the president?

# ? Apr 19, 2021 05:04

Fuschia tude: Dec 26, 2004; THUNDERDOME LOSER 2019

Comrade Blyatlov posted:

I'd just like to point out David has a cat. You know who else is a cat person?

His pet cat was Tobias's first morph...

# ? Apr 19, 2021 06:25

Epicurius: Apr 10, 2010; College Slice

Fuschia tude posted:

His pet cat was Tobias's first morph...

Now that Tobias is a bird, I wonder what happened to Dude. Did his evil uncle kick the cat out or something?

# ? Apr 19, 2021 06:44

Fuschia tude: Dec 26, 2004; THUNDERDOME LOSER 2019

Epicurius posted:

Now that Tobias is a bird, I wonder what happened to Dude. Did his evil uncle kick the cat out or something?

Since he tended to bounce around between family, I wonder whether it was his or belonged to (his uncle?) anyway.

# ? Apr 19, 2021 06:59

Shwoo: Jul 21, 2011

That was (vaguely) addressed in one of the letter columns on the Scholastic site.

quote:

You know, I've been wondering why this question has never been asked. As a cat owner, I've felt guilty about this for two years. I have to assume that "Dude" was left with Tobias' various useless aunts and uncles. Incidentally, "Dude" is named for a former kitty of mine who, unfortunately, was run over. Dude was a female, an amazing jumper and destroyer of mice. She got her name because she was abandoned by some teenagers who for some bizarre reason insisted on calling themselves "The Dudes." We used to see her around and started calling her "the Dude cat," not knowing she was female. The name stuck.

I guess Dude was Tobias's cat, but his uncle either kept him after Tobias disappeared, or sent him to a sibling?

# ? Apr 19, 2021 08:18

Fuschia tude: Dec 26, 2004; THUNDERDOME LOSER 2019

Shwoo posted:

That was (vaguely) addressed in one of the letter columns on the Scholastic site.

I guess Dude was Tobias's cat, but his uncle either kept him after Tobias disappeared, or sent him to a sibling?

It's funny how they misread and answered the wrong question there, which kind of was more interesting than the one that was actually asked. (Which I'm pretty sure the answer to was just "no.")

# ? Apr 19, 2021 09:31

Jazerus: May 24, 2011

Shwoo posted:

That was (vaguely) addressed in one of the letter columns on the Scholastic site.

I guess Dude was Tobias's cat, but his uncle either kept him after Tobias disappeared, or sent him to a sibling?

i do like this response to one of the questions:

quote:

Ax has only attended human school for brief periods. He goes for a period at a time, then leaves to demorph. Kind of wish you could do that sometimes?

mostly because i deeply enjoy the idea that ax, who was so inattentive in andalite school, would view going to human school as a casual entertainment activity he does once a week or so; and that since he probably just picks a random classroom to join, every teacher in the school is completely confused about what the deal is with "jake's cousin, philip ip-ip"

# ? Apr 19, 2021 10:01

freebooter: Jul 7, 2009

quote:

�I have the brochure,� Rachel announced as we met once again at Cassie�s barn. �I downloaded it off the Internet.�

I know YA fiction likes to break one of Elmore Leonard's cardinal rules all the time, but I love the fact Rachel "announces" this. "I downloaded it off THE INTERNET!" (Slaps down a bunch of lovely, pixelated printoffs onto a hay bale.)

Jazerus posted:

mostly because i deeply enjoy the idea that ax, who was so inattentive in andalite school, would view going to human school as a casual entertainment activity he does once a week or so; and that since he probably just picks a random classroom to join, every teacher in the school is completely confused about what the deal is with "jake's cousin, philip ip-ip"

I like the idea that none of the Animorphs know he's doing this until one of them randomly walks past a classroom with an open door one day, where he's gone up to the front to correct the teacher and is doing a bunch of equations on the chalkboard and has just "invented" nuclear fusion

# ? Apr 19, 2021 10:23

freebooter: Jul 7, 2009

Also, going back to the open war vs secret infiltration discussion, I forgot that we eventually learn that a big reason for this is Visser One was originally calling the shots, and she was pushing for secret invasion because she was one of the first scouts and lived among humans for years. And also - bigger spoilers, for those who might have read that book but forgot this detail and want to go in semi-fresh again - she gave birth to a human child while in a human host, or something? So she has a secret kid out there? Which I don't really like as much, the cliche of the villain just caring about their own loved one. It would be more interesting if she was just a big backer of voluntary hosts, of the Sharing etc, of the idea that the Yeerk Empire could theoretically be peaceful - which would tie in with the Yeerk peace movement. We know there are a lot of voluntary human hosts, and that a lot of Taxxons were voluntary, but it feels like an underdeveloped idea overall.

# ? Apr 19, 2021 10:30

Comrade Blyatlov: Aug 4, 2007; should have picked four fingers

freebooter posted:

Also, going back to the open war vs secret infiltration discussion, I forgot that we eventually learn that a big reason for this is Visser One was originally calling the shots, and she was pushing for secret invasion because she was one of the first scouts and lived among humans for years. And also - bigger spoilers, for those who might have read that book but forgot this detail and want to go in semi-fresh again - she gave birth to a human child while in a human host, or something? So she has a secret kid out there? Which I don't really like as much, the cliche of the villain just caring about their own loved one. It would be more interesting if she was just a big backer of voluntary hosts, of the Sharing etc, of the idea that the Yeerk Empire could theoretically be peaceful - which would tie in with the Yeerk peace movement. We know there are a lot of voluntary human hosts, and that a lot of Taxxons were voluntary, but it feels like an underdeveloped idea overall.

That was the whole thing with Visser One though. She had all of that, experienced all of it, then callously and coldly turned her back on it. To my knowledge she didn't give the slightest poo poo about her child once she left Earth. That entire story was there to demonstrate what an absolute monster she was. I stress again. If Visser One had been running the show, the invasion would have been over before anyone knew what happened. I think it's Ax that describes her as "brilliant and dangerous."

# ? Apr 19, 2021 11:40

Cythereal: Nov 8, 2009; I love the potoo,
and the potoo loves you.

With regards to David: really, the whole morphing power probably would be a hell of a drug trip. The series has already touched on how much fun morphing can be (llama Marco, anyone?). But for someone already in a not great place psychologically, the sensation of power must be overwhelming.

# ? Apr 19, 2021 15:16

QuickbreathFinisher: Sep 28, 2008; by reading this post you have agreed to form a gay socialist micronation.
`

Just saw some panels from the second graphic novel. Spoiled in case anyone is avoiding these, but it's from book 2 so we've covered it already in-thread. I think this illustrator is doing a really good job of conveying the body horror of it all.

The pink on that nose/trunk in the last phase is just awful. I love it :haw:

W/r/t David, yeah, they are being really really unhelpful to this kid who's just lost everything and clearly got some stuff going on. I don't love how his liking metal is shorthand for him being a fuckup but hey, it was the 90s and what says Clintonian end-of-history like a good old fashioned moral panic?

I always wish this next arc was a little longer, I think it would really benefit from seeing every character's perspective on the new kid. It would have been really interesting to get a book with David as the narrator after this one. Enjoy the ride, thread!

# ? Apr 19, 2021 17:34

ANOTHER SCORCHER: Aug 12, 2018

The pretty awful job the Animorphs do with integrating David into their crew does serve as good reminder that these are 13 (maybe 14 by now?) year-old children. Kids can be brutal with outsiders who don't match their vibe, which David clearly doesn't.

# ? Apr 19, 2021 17:40

Epicurius: Apr 10, 2010; College Slice

Animorphs-Book 20-The Discovery, Chapter 23

quote:

<Move! Move! Move!> Jake yelled.

We hauled. We flapped our wings like insane ducks, racing to reach the helicopter before the Yeerks did. It was off to our side. Going the same direction as us, but still distant.

At the speed the helicopters were moving, they�d probably have reached the Marriott resort in twenty minutes. It was an hour away for us.
I could see from the dimensions of the shimmering effect that this was no little Bug fighter moving in. This was far bigger. And there was only one Yeerk ship likely to be big enough.

The Blade ship. Visser Three�s personal death-dealing machine.

The shimmering air moved closer, up behind and above the helicopter. We got closer, but we were spread out, ragged. Rachel behind with Tobias, Jake and David up front, me, Cassie, and Ax more or less in the middle.

A long, narrow rectangle began to appear. It appeared in the sky as if it were just floating there.

A very narrow, very long rectangle that slowly opened wider.

<The Blade ship is opening its belly hatch,> Ax said. So. He, too, had decided this must be the Blade ship.

The hatch widened, opened, revealing the inside of the Blade ship. It was utterly bizarre. The stealth shield didn�t work over the hatch itself. I could see inside. I could see a sort of inverted cradle, ready to receive the helicopter. I could see foul Taxxon heads rising from behind consoles and control panels. And I could see Hork-Bajir warriors, wearing the red uniforms they wore aboard the Blade ship.

I'm the only person who feels anything like pity for the Taxxons, aren't I?

quote:

But none of this could be seen by the helicopter. The hatch was in a blind spot above and behind. And the chase helicopter wouldn�t see it, either. The angle was all wrong.

I raced. The hatch opened. I was wearing out, beating my wings against the breeze. But I was getting closer.

Suddenly, the helicopter�s rotors slowed. The engine roar died out.

<They have it!> Ax yelled. <Force field is on. It killed the engines. They will probably have stunned the humans on board.>

The helicopter was almost directly above us now. From below, it looked sort of like a dark green boat as seen from underwater. There were two pylons sticking out on either side for the landing wheels.

<Aim for those pylons!> Jake said.

Jake and David soared, up and up. The rest of us went after them.

<The other chopper�s going to see that this one has disappeared,> Tobias pointed out. <Even humans aren�t that blind!>

But at that moment, as if in response to Tobias�s warning, something new appeared. It looked as if it were a halo of light glowing all around the helicopter. But then it separated slowly, becoming distinct.

A second helicopter! It looked as if the real helicopter had shed an outer skin.

<A hologram,> Ax said grimly.

The true helicopter�s rotors had come to a stop. The hatch was fully open. Up it rose. Up inside the Blade ship. And the hologram of the helicopter took its place, flying along, looking exactly like the real thing.

Jake and David soared. Jake flipped in midair, extended his talons, and caught an edge of one of the pylons. David grabbed a strut and held on.

The hatch began to close!

<No way!> I said. I flapped till I thought my lungs would burst. Hatch closing � me racing � hatch closing �

I saw Cassie zip through, followed by Ax.

No time left! The hatch was closing too quickly. The opening was two feet wide � eighteen inches � a foot � six inches �

Zoom!

I blew through, scraping my belly and my back. A split second later, I�d have splatted. But I was in! I killed speed, twisted hard, swooped under the belly of the helicopter, and landed on the now closed deck.

<Yes!>

I�d made it! I�d made it aboard the Blade ship of Visser Three.

Oh, goody.

What, was I insane?

Probably.

Chapter 24

quote:

I was beneath the helicopter. So were Jake, Ax, Cassie, and David. Rachel and Tobias were stuck outside.

Poor Rachel and Tobias.

The helicopter sat low to the ground, and since it rested in a sort of shallow depression in the deck, we were almost entirely hidden from sight.

I looked at Jake.

<Demorph,> he said tersely. <This is going to get nasty. Be ready for a fight.>

We demorphed. Within minutes we were four very scared kids and one shaky Andalite lying beneath the President�s helicopter. I looked at David to see how he was maintaining. He looked like he was getting ready to visit a dentist who didn�t believe in Novocain. He was ready to wet himself.

Good, I thought. Only an idiot wouldn�t be scared.

Looking past him and the others, I could see Hork-Bajir feet rushing around the helicopter. They carried an unconscious man from the helicopter. I saw dark gray suit pants, and black shoes. I saw the sole of one shoe. There was a slash across one heel. Like he�d stepped on something sharp.

The President? If so, we had less than zero time.

�Ax,� Jake whispered. �We need a distraction.�

Jake obviously thought the same. We needed time to morph.

I think if I were Ax, I might have felt just slightly resentful right then. It was like, �Ax-man, go get yourself killed so we can take our time morphing.�

But Ax is a soldier down deep inside. Smug and superior sometimes, loopy and silly other times, Ax is still an Andalite aristh, a warrior-in-training. And he�s Elfangor�s brother, which tells you a lot.

<Yes, Prince Jake, I think that would be a good idea.>

Unfortunately, it wasn�t such a good idea. There was no room. Ax was squeezed in beneath the helicopter�s bottom. And it was suddenly obvious that none of us could go to our combat morphs in such a small space.

This was not going to come down to a quick battle. We were already too late to save the man in the slashed shoe.

�David,� I whispered. His face was just inches from me now as he squirmed to get out of Ax�s way. �Did Cassie set you up with a bug morph?�

He looked confused. �She made me touch � I mean, acquire � a cockroach. Is that what you mean?�

�Jake!� I said. �He has a cockroach morph. What do you think?�

Jake nodded. He wasn�t happy, obviously. But it was the only way. We�d have to morph something small enough to get out from under the helicopter. Then worry about breaking up whatever was going on.

�Okay, dude,� I said to David. �We�re morphing roaches. Just focus down hard, shut your eyes, and don�t think about it.�

So far, nothing was going well. For one thing, we didn�t have Rachel or Tobias with us. For another thing, we were trapped beneath a helicopter. And for a final thing, whoever the guy with the slashed shoe was, we were going to be too late to help him.

Unless they moved awfully slowly, the Yeerks would have plenty of time to infest him.

I assumed the slash-shoe man was the President of the United States. And man, you just don�t want to think about your president being a slave of alien invaders.

If that happened, the only possible thing we could do would be to kidnap the man and keep him locked up for three days till the Yeerk in his head died from lack of Kandrona rays.

Kidnap the President. Off an alien spaceship. And keep him hidden for three days. No problem. It�s not like anyone would be looking for him. Only the ENTIRE WORLD.

Take it easy,Marco, I told myself. One step at a time.

I focused on the cockroach whose DNA was inside me. And I began to change.

I watched David. He was watching me, eyes showing white all around as he stared.

�Close your eyes,� I said.

He did. But a second later they were open again. He was morphing, but slowly. He was shrinking quickly enough and was already no more than two and a half feet long. And the hard brown wings were forming on his back. But the really hideous stuff hadn�t started yet.

I felt my own body shrink and saw the floor expand out in every direction at once. I saw my skin grow hard and yellow-brown, like old-man fingernails. I glanced again at David. So far, so good. He was still shrinking. The roach body was taking shape. The neck was already pinched down, the wings were distinct, his arms had begun to segment, his legs likewise. He was halfway to roach. But his face was still mostly human. Distorted, twisted, contorting as it was reconfigured to be a roach face, but his eyes were still staring.

He�ll be okay, I told myself, as long as he gets past the extra legs.

And just then, the extra legs appeared. First on me.

Sploot! Sploot!

They came shooting out of what had been my sides. Two big, long, hairy cockroach legs. And I guess my face probably turned roachy at that point, too, because when I next saw David it was through compound eyes.

So I saw hundreds of tiny, distorted images of him opening his mouth to scream.

And when I heard the weird, railing, moaning, horrible sound, it vibrated down my antennae.

So apparently, they were not bird enough dudes to save the President. Also, probably the worst couple days of David's life.

# ? Apr 20, 2021 04:05

freebooter: Jul 7, 2009

"She made me acquire a cockroach. She didn't make me try the morph first before we went on a mission; she said that's 'not how we do things'."

Also if Jack Bauer can kidnap the POTUS on 24 you can do it with seven morph-capable guerilla fighters. :colbert:

# ? Apr 20, 2021 09:02

Tree Bucket: Apr 1, 2016; R.I.P.idura leucophrys

Homora Gaykemi posted:

The president is being pursued by Controllers. Are you a bird enough dude to rescue the president?

extraordinary

# ? Apr 20, 2021 09:09

GodFish: Oct 10, 2012; We're your first, last, and only line of defense. We live in secret. We exist in shadow.

And we dress in black.

The Taxxon's definitely have the roughest deal of any of the aliens we've seen

# ? Apr 20, 2021 09:43

feetnotes: Jan 29, 2008

Man, when I was a kid my read on this storyline was more about how well they pulled off the Animorphs Action Thriller concept of accidentally letting A Bad Person become an Animorph and using their own abilities against them. Reading it now... yeah the team definitely just go about absolutely everything in the worst possible way. I actually have much more sympathy for David here than I would have remembered being justifiable. To the point where him flipping out after all of this actually seems more realistic than the OG Animorphs keeping it together admirably well after all they�ve seen and done.

# ? Apr 20, 2021 19:56

gourdcaptain: Nov 16, 2012

feetnotes posted:

Reading it now... yeah the team definitely just go about absolutely everything in the worst possible way.

This thread in a nutshell for me, basically.

Isn't David going to start doing weird creepy stuff in addition to cracking due to this? I almost feel it might be more interesting without that...

# ? Apr 20, 2021 20:22

Terror Sweat: Mar 15, 2009

Bringing him along for this mission was incredibly dumb

# ? Apr 20, 2021 20:23

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# ? May 25, 2024 08:22

TheGreatEvilKing: Mar 28, 2016

Yea they basically set poor David up to fail, don't they?

# ? Apr 20, 2021 20:45

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