How To Write The "Perfect" Transformation

[Music] [Music] transformations in order to show growth in a story the two main routes riters take are internal or external with the internal route you have your character change in an emotional slal way put their belief systems and ideologies to the test and place them in a situation to express that change one of my favorite examples of this type of character growth is in Matt Reeves the Batman from the introduction we see how Bruce uses the Batman Persona to instill fear into his enemies but this has the negative side effect of ins stealing fear into

the same people he is trying to protect and inspiring others to use that same method to terrorize the city but by the end of the film our hero realizes the error of his approach and decides to become a literal Beacon of Hope we see that fear turned to trust while it is vocalized by Bruce through the narration I think it's still effective with the external growth the variety of options are almost endless maybe you do a Time skip showing how the passage of time has changed the character and their way of life maybe they go

from Rags to Riches or vice versa maybe it's an upgraded suit or a new haircut they Master a technique they couldn't before or able to obtain an item they couldn't have until they were ready expressing character growth or in other words a transformation in some way is a pivotal aspect of good storytelling when there is a transformation in one's belief or attitude or a change in their entire perspective even we as people in real life as we learn we transform maybe our Transformations aren't as grandiose as they are in some of our favorite media there

is some parallels that you can draw from some of your favorite stories I don't know how much you consider this when consuming media but it could be fun when you start noticing it actually do you have have any favorite character growth moments you can think of um I I'm not sure how this relates to your treatment but I'm sure if I gave it some thought something may come to mind thank you for sharing your interest in storytelling with me Jonathan maybe next time I can ask you who your favorite villains are anyway outside of that

we covered a lot of ground today Sans the screenwriter talk before we end our session I suppose the last question I have for you is what would you like to gain from therapy is there something specific that you want to work on when it comes to your mental well-being hello friend yeah I'm talking to you this time bet you thought that first part was for you I got to say I feel like I'm going to get decent mileage out of this whole therapy thing I feel like I might be able to be myself around her

or or whatever that means and no I don't think I'll tell her about you anytime soon doesn't really seem like a good idea considering you're not real enough about that when I was talking about character growth a moment ago I forgot to tell her about my favorite kind of external growth in stories specifically in anime and manga the unlocking of new forms when a character changes their appearance completely and unlocks a look and power to fight against their enemies I'm obviously referring to the actual real meaning behind this term Transformations design ability and purpose when

I think about my favorite Transformations all three of these elements are prevalent the key is having balance between them though some put more stocks in to different areas that works out into one of those triangle graph thingies what are they called uh pentagrams let if we can capture the anatomy of Transformations by going through all three of these elements and chatting about our favorite forms while we're at it it'll be fun well fun for me I'm not really sure how you feel about [Music] it understanding character design can get kind of messy there someone who

used to draw a lot in high school and in my early years of college I don't fully understand what goes into making good character design getting the base design down of your character is a real chore and that must go double for Designing their Transformations so what are my favorite kinds of designs well that's simple no literally like simple designs the transformation should Elevate the base design not completely overtake it or go way far off course for me at least for example The Godfather of Transformations the iconic the Legendary Super super san Spike up the

hair Dy it blonde and change the eye color boom you got yourself a killer transformation so much so you can see this very design philosophy and other Transformations yeah but that's kind of an old ex Turner plot that's the word I was looking for earlier it's not pentagram let's try something a bit more [Music] [Applause] current gear five the modern Super Saiyan is a peak simplistic design taking monkey duy's amazing fun bass design and elevating it to God's status and all that's required is a white color palette and fluffy hair while I am an enjoyer

of his previous gear forms I may be one of the last Defenders of Bounce man gear five is truly something special it's still Luffy the character we all know and love but with small changes that make him feel like an otherworldly being his mannerisms and new powers are definitely part of his transformation but it's so simple and striking that I loved it from the moment I saw it and speaking of new [Music] powers for a transformation to be worth anything it's got to be more than just for the look a transformation is meant for a

character to transcend their current self and overcome what is in front of them give them the power strength and ability to achieve a goal and that Vari ability better be cool as hell now you have your basic strength boost transformations like Max potential gone Dragon Force natu and of course Super Saiyan but personally I think the best thing to give a new form is either a specific attack that can only be attempted during the transformation or a specific fighting style that can only be done in said form for the former you can go with something

that's like an enhanced version of an already existing attack just like how Naruto's Rasengan changes and gets more powerful with each new form with the latter you can have Transformations that are designed to take base characters who don't fight at all and give them the power to enter combat I like to call them the Power Ranger Transformations think like Sailor Moon Attack on Titan killak kill sa seya Ben 10 Moka Maga Tokyo Mumu you know I I just realized I literally am just describing magical girl Transformations whatever the point is to give the character a

form that takes them from Zero to Hero or in my favorite case of this type of transformation from zero to devil [Music] dji's chainsaw man form is so cool to me it exudes such chaotic energy denji himself is a relatively normal looking kid the only outstanding feature being his razor sharp teeth but the moment he pulls the cord he becomes Unstoppable his head in the form of a literal chainsaw and chainsaw blade sprouting from his hands he has given the power to shred through anything his attacks are so wild free flowing sloppy yet immensely destructive

he can Sprout blades from any part of his body and even use the chains as a tool in his Arsenal becoming chainsaw man is to become a weapon of Carnage the moment I hear the Roar of the engine I know I'm about to witness greatness the ability that a transformation grants should be as striking and as integral to the form as the design itself if you can achieve a great design and great ability for your trans information I got to say you've done a pretty good job in my book but if you want to take

it to the next level well maybe you need the final piece I'm sorry I C you that I got a little carried away I won't do it again I [Music] promise the final element to a great transformation the part that I think is the most important is the reason for the transformation to exist in the first place in great stories all the moving pieces have a reason for being there there's deeper meaning to pull from and I think a transformation should be no different the purpose behind a transformation is what really elevates it to new

heights just above it looking cool becomes a story element in itself and in turn allows the reader to have greater appreciation for the form I mentioned gear five as an example of great design but it also works in this department too gear five means a lot to the greater one piece Cannon and its purpose to Luffy is to be a reflection of his free spirited nature the form is who Luffy is at his core goon's transformation while terrifying is literally a depiction of gone at his maximum potential what it would look like if he had

reached the peaks of his power in the situation in which he Taps into it has a major significance as well it's all about context I guess the why behind the transformation is very important to me but I think the perfect example of a character whose transformation has purpose the one whose forms are a reflection of his internal struggle from overcoming the monster to accepting the truth of his origin is the boy whose name means [Music] strawberry isigo kurasaki is a widely beloved character for not just his cool design his cool attitude his cool techniques but

also for his internal struggle as a character Ichigo who just wants to live a life helping people and protecting his friends someone who will do the right thing no matter what it costs him he isn't interested in being someone great he uses his power to stand up to those who threaten the lives of the people he cares about and protecting the weak along his journey Ichigo has had to contend with the conflict of his inner desires the combination of different Bloodlines the fear of his own weaknesses the forces that transcend human comprehension at every juncture

Ichigo has not only had to face insurmountable challenges but also himself and every single one of his Transformations are a reflection of those struggles and epiphanies to be honest I've never been a huge fan of ichigo's forms from a design perspective they don't speak to me like others do they feel a little too messy I prefer his more Sleek looks like Hollow Mask Bon Kai Ichigo but I can't deny what his forms offer in terms of purpose and meaning they have weight to them from the dark monster sleeping within him in the form of his

perfect holic to how his Hollow Mask evolves as he gets stronger to the way his fullbringer form at the beginning looks more like his soul Reaper outfit Ichigo wears his heart on his sleeves literally and that is something to be commended from a writing perspective okay well that's all the elements in a nutshell that sure was fun wasn't it there's a lot you can learn just by looking at design choices for Transformations say what you will about anime and manga or Shonen in general but a lot of time and effort is put into making these

series what they are some may see Transformations as just a tool for cool Factor but if you look beneath the outer layer you'll see where their true beauty lies or at least that's what I think plus it's fun talking about all the different Transformations that I like I mean none of them were my favorite but eh no biggie hm what's with that look ah you want to know what my favorite transformation is well I've given this one some thought and I think the answer for me is as clear as day Vegeta what does a scouter

say about his power level it's over 9,000 there is a common narrative in the anime community that I really don't like surrounding Dragon Ball Dragon Ball is as I'm sure you're aware a widely beloved and popular series it's everywhere you can't escape it it's worked its way into the social Consciousness from memes to movie references to merchandise to Thanksgiving parade it's kind of hard to believe that this series was once just a simple story about a young boy going on an adventure to find a couple of Mystic balls for me I feel like Dragon Ball

has always been there I remember being a young impressionable six-year-old kid sitting in front of my CRT on a Friday afternoon waiting to see if Goku would beat Frieza in time now being at the big age of 26 arguing with my friends on Discord if satoru Gojo could beat Goku the passage of time is pretty funny when you think about it I really like Dragon Ball sure there are plenty other ser series that I love more but it will always hold a special place in my heart but there's a problem with the series reaching the

heights of popularity that Dragon Ball has for a series being as endless as it feels the beauty of what made the series as good as it was starts to get lost with every new game spin-off movie history starts to become a bit revisionist people start to say things like Dragon Ball was never that great the fights were the only good part the storytelling in Dragon Ball was always weak a korama created a story that was capable of standing the test of time a tale that almost could live forever and has continued through series like GT

and super it has cultivated a generation of people who have never seen what the series used to be it has also caused the generation that was there from the start to forget what made the series so special I have to admit it happened to me too I started to forget but in 2023 I decided to revisit the series my readr of Dragon Ball from start to finish was an absolute blast I forgot how funny adventurous intense and creative this series could be there are certainly a number of moments I could pick from to illustrate why

Dragon Ball is so great for as much as I was enjoying reading through DB all the way to Z there is one moment where it truly made sense to me a moment that embodies the essence of Dragon Ball to me that moment also happens to introduce my favorite transformation and I won't watch this anymore Gohan's transformation into Super Saiyan 2 is my favorite transformation of all time to me it is perfect for so many reasons not only does it look incredibly striking taking the basic elements of Super Saiyan and turning them up to 100 not

only does it unlock Incredible strength for Gohan to the levels we have not seen up to this point as well as giving us some of Gohan's most iconic moves to date but the main reason the core of it all is what it represents its purpose Gohan reaching ascended sayyan is the embodiment of all the character work Toriyama poured into him since the start of Z Gohan's Journey throughout Dragon Ball is truly something to behold this is a boy who is introduced to us as a complete opposite of his father quiet polite gentle he cried he

screamed kidnapped and stricken by fear Gohan was framed in a way to not be taken seriously sure he is the son of Goku the warrior of Earth but this kid seemingly had no interest in being like his father but then we are given glimpses moments of Gohan's destructive explosive power Peaks into What Lies Beneath the surface as he grows and matures Gohan Bears witness to what it means to be a fighter a warrior he follows in his his Father's Footsteps to help his friends and grow stronger with every situation it's really fascinating to read Z

from this perspective when you allow yourself to pay more attention to how the narrative pushes Gohan to the Forefront with every passing encounter becomes more and more clear what Toriyama had planned for him his training with Piccolo him spiking the Spirit Bomb at Vegeta saving dende Gohan is given moments to let his tenacity and strength of Will Shine through shocking everyone at what he is capable of everyone except Goku I guess it comes as no surprised but it truly is heartwarming to see how much Goku believes in his son he encouraged Gohan praised him for

his hard work and would egg him on to go further I like to imagine the moment Goku held Gohan in his arms for the first time and think if he saw what Gohan would grow up and Achieve by the time we reached the start of the Cell Games Gohan has now achieved Super Saiyan it's clear Gohan underwent rigorous training in the hyperbolic Time Chamber but by this point the spotlight for who will defeat cell was still on Goku everyone even the prideful Vegeta is waiting with baited breath to see if Goku can defeat this foe

like he's always done but once Goku backs down and throws in the towel the spotlight immediately shifts and beams directly on Son Gohan I always had an affinity for Underdog characters but Gohan was particularly cool to me despite his small stature despite how scared he got he would find the power to stand up and fight even if it had to be forced out of him watching his character development gave me a sense of hope for myself I often hear people say that they want to be like Goku or Vegeta or trunks but personally I always

wanted to be like Gohan to work hard push past my fears help people and find that hidden strength within me and when the moment finally comes to transform into a hero Super Saiyan 2 Gohan is what makes Dragon Ball special the storytelling in this series is far greater than what consumers today give it credit for the character growth subtext and Nuance of this series can easily be missed by those who aren't looking just because it's simple or about battles doesn't mean it isn't capable of being profound after having to watch his friends and family brutally

beaten by the cell Juniors Gohan is stricken with fear once again doubting himself in the heat of battle unsure if he can live up to the expectations his father placed on him but with final parting words from Android 16 someone who shared Gohan's love for Earth and all living things the seal is finally released transcended power erupts from Gohan and he Dawns his new form the representation of everything this character has been through up to this point the one character who could truly surpass his father and all Sands before him Gohan has now become the

only remaining protector of Earth thank you Gohan you inspire me you give me hope that one day I'll achieve my very own transformation