Pterano Showcase - June 2020

[rhombus]

Let's see here... who was next?



Oh, right!  How could I forget?

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In this topic please feel free to discuss Pterano as a character, to share your own creations (fanfics or fanart), or to mention some of your favorite fanworks of others involving him.  For a full set of rules please see the 2020 Monthly Character Showcase topic but keep in mind that this is meant to be fun as opposed to any sort of contest.

I will go ahead and get the discussion started with the following questions:

1)  Pterano seems to be one of those characters in the fandom for which there is a lot of polarization.  He has numerous fans, but also detractors.  Why do you think he is so polarizing in terms of how fans see the character?

2)  What is your own personal view on Pterano as a character?

[Gentle Sharptooth]

Yay its Pterano! I am currently playing him in an Role Play.

1) I think he’s polarizing because he represents the archetype religious zealot. That he lead the herd to their doom before and now seeks to find the mystical Stone of Cold Fire. Pterano brings up painful memories for people abused by religious charlatans and false prophets.

2) Personally I like Pterano, his relationship with Petrie is particularly a highlight since Petrie has no father.  Everything Pterano does is because he believes in his heart it is for the best. He’s not malevolent or totally mad, just eccentric and zealous.

[RainbowFaceProtege]

AAaaaugh I didn't get around to whipping up a Rinkus and Sierra picture before May ended!
Good thing I already have a Pterano...

[Gentle Sharptooth]

AAaaaugh I didn't get around to whipping up a Rinkus and Sierra picture before May ended!
Good thing I already have a Pterano...

Epic art piece! Pterano is one of my fav supporting characters.

[OwlsCantRead]

PTERANOOOOO... what serendipitous timing...

I'll post a full dossier of my thoughts some other day, but until then I should just make do with preaching about his character, just like Petrie does.

So for today's Pterano Ptera-tastic showcase, an amazing flyer trio drawing by @DarkWolf91 that captures the Great Pterano's full majesty!

[StardustSoldier]

I've fallen behind on the last few showcases, so I need to go back and do up some reviews for those. Expect to see that in the near future.

[Anagnos]

I've fallen behind on the last few showcases, so I need to go back and do up some reviews for those. Expect to see that in the near future.

I'm guilty of the same. I've wanted to post my thoughts for a while, but I can't seem to find time to do so.

[The Mr E]

I understand why opinions of Pterano would be polarised.  It's interesting how Littlefoot picked up on the murky motives behind his unsettling 'charm' so quickly.  He's kind of relatable (if you squint), pretty amusing and somewhat intriguing.  I like how he seems to have taken a redemptive arc, even if that arc is sadly incomplete.

In the fanfic 'War Before Time: Mentors of Yesteryears', Pterano has evolved a bit.  He's been up to some interesting things during his banishment, as we'll soon find out.  I won't spoil it, but the sharpteeth call him 'The Day Breaker'.

[Gentle Sharptooth]

Caption: “Will you join in our crusade? Who will be strong and stand with me? Somewhere beyond the barricade Is there a world you long to see?“ (Les Misrables)

[DiddyKF1]

I've fallen behind on the last few showcases, so I need to go back and do up some reviews for those. Expect to see that in the near future.

I desperately need to start reviewing showcases again. I haven't done one in ... God knows how long.

[OwlsCantRead]

I've fallen behind on the last few showcases, so I need to go back and do up some reviews for those. Expect to see that in the near future.

I desperately need to start reviewing showcases again. I haven't done one in ... God knows how long.

Since Petrie

[DiddyKF1]

Well, while I'm here, I mind as well do one right now.

Ah, Pterano. Certainly a good "actor," if you will, depending on whom you ask. Most of the Gang definitely would disagree. I always wondered what it was that drove him into believing he could gain supernatural abilities because of a supposed magical stone. Only fanfiction seems to have explored supernatural elements in The Land Before Time while the films have left us empty-handed. Every time that's brought up, it always seems to bring us back to Petrie's beloved uncle.

On the outside, Pterano may seem to be just some unstable liar, but on the inside, he deeply loves his nephew and (correct me if I'm wrong) would do anything for him, even if it meant lying and manipulating others (including Petrie himself) for his own gain. It's too bad he became a one-movie-only character. It would have been nice to explore Petrie and Pterano's relationship just a little further before fanfiction answered all those questions, and we'd all see that this character is more complex than the film makes it out to be.

 

[Gentle Sharptooth]

@DiddyKF1 I agree, the highlight of Pterano is his relationship with Petrie. As for how he cane to bekievecthe Stone of Cold Fire could mystically guve him supernatural powers, I imagine he learned such knowledge like Grandpa did about the suoernatural bad luck teeth of sharpteeth on Saurus Rock. 

I need to respond to the prompts of orher showcases myself.

[StrutEggStealer]

 What better way to spend quarantine than discussing one of my all time favorite antiheroes!

1)  Pterano seems to be one of those characters in the fandom for which there is a lot of polarization.  He has numerous fans, but also detractors.  Why do you think he is so polarizing in terms of how fans see the character?

It's easy to see why there's so much back and forth regarding Pterano as he is very back and forth, and his loyalties switch around a lot (from himself and his needs to those he decides to serve). I remember reading (I think it was on here lol) that the Stone of Cold Fire and Pterano was a new spin on the Land Before Time series. Once charming sing-a-longs turned into exciting capers, dark schemes, and even death! I don't think the detraction is undeserving per se; it is Pterano after all, and the guy is as shady as they come

2)  What is your own personal view on Pterano as a character?

Ahh, yes the moment I've been waiting for 
Stone of Cold Fire was a Christmas present back in the day and I remember watching it later and absolutely loving the grittier backstory and the ultra charming, always scheming Uncle Pterano. He was an instant favorite, and the subject of much of my early fanart. It wasn't until later on when I found this site along with some amazing fanfics that I came to fully appreciate how complex and fun this character was, and it made me fall in love with his concept all over again. I find that it is because of his mentality that he is such an enjoyable character. He's dark and expressive, sneaky and manipulative, and the voice acting just adds so much to that. He's such an easy character to identify with and root for, even when he's doing bad things, and you can't help rooting for him as he flies away at the end, hoping that he'll come back soon one day.

There's my two cents 

[RainbowFaceProtege]

@StrutEggStealer May I just say I love your username?

Anyway, my Pterano views:
1)  Pterano seems to be one of those characters in the fandom for which there is a lot of polarization.  He has numerous fans, but also detractors.  Why do you think he is so polarizing in terms of how fans see the character?

First off, I think that a character's popularity alone can, in itself, cause detractors to appear. Some people just quickly get sick of things that are popular. (Frozen haters, anyone?) While I've never been a flat-out troll/hater of popular stuff, I myself have a habit of not getting very excited about things that are wildly popular because they're so popular (which, yeah, I've realized is irrational of me). Secondly, Pterano's melodramatic personality is hardly subtle. "BESTOOWWW UPON MEEEEE YOUR GIFTS!" If you don't love it, you're probably gonna hate it. The less subtle the character, the less subtle the reaction, for better or for worse, seems to be the general rule of fandoms.

2)  What is your own personal view on Pterano as a character?

My opinion of Pterano has fluctuated over the years. Of course, he had a big part in my childhood, being the villain of my favorite movie. Even though he was never the main attraction of LBT VII in my eyes, I definitely remember enjoying him when I was a kid. (Funnily enough, I recall thinking that it would be fun to dress up as Pterano for Halloween, which wasn't something I remember thinking about any other specific LBT character. Guess I must've enjoyed Pterano to a somewhat large extent, even though he was no Rainbow Face.)

Once I'd gotten older and I started looking around the LBT fandom online, though, I realized just how popular Pterano was...and yeah, I'm embarrassed to say that was enough to put me off him for a while, thinking he was just overrated. Since then, however, the Pterano fan in me has gradually made a comeback, and he currently holds the #8 spot on my Top 10 Characters list. He's so entertaining, and he's quite a unique villain for LBT! Having an overdramatic power-hungry villain in the series was fun, and better yet, he ended up not being all bad after all. Plus, "Very Important Me" is one of the best LBT songs ever IMO--it's so powerful and majestic!

I do think the "tragic backstory" aspect of Pterano is overrated, though. It's supposed to be a backstory, yet it fails to answer what might be the most important question about the guy--why was he so drawn to leadership and power in the first place? But I guess the flashback still served the purpose of setting up Pterano's redemption arc, so I'm not gonna complain.

One last note: when I was little, I remember it being tricky for me to understand what Pterano was saying at times due to the emphasis on his accent. Same with Sierra and Rinkus, actually. I guess I probably was just too young to decipher accents the first time I saw this movie, and the way certain lines from the characters got butchered in my head so early on had me messed up for ages, until one day I finally saw the movie with subtitles on.

[OwlsCantRead]

I'll give Pterano credit: he's one of the few antagonists in the series with a greater goal than "I'm going to have the gang for dinner". Coupled with being a leaf-eater, it makes him really stand out amidst the crowd.

1) The reason I find Pterano so polarizing is because he can be very overbearing in his scenes. He is so self-centered and self-effacing in his goals (I will rule the Great Valley and ascend it to greatness!) and if it weren't for his exaggerated gesticulations and melodramatic voicework he could come off as a very obstinante character which the audience would be frustrated by. I mean, the very reason he didn't see his comrade's treachery is literally detailed in the song "Very Important Creature". Basically, if you've ever had to deal with a stubborn person in real life who has his head so high up in the clouds that nothing gets through to them… then you probably won't like Pterano very much.

2) That being said, I'll admit it: I actually enjoy Pterano. I like him as Petrie's uncle (and in a way, father figure) to Petrie more than his actual plans to find the Stone of Cold Fire. His scenes with his nephew and his manipulation of him using his words are some of the more interesting ones, especially since he does genuinely care for Petrie, and overall his mannerisms are just plain entertaining to watch. I do think that a look of his life in the Mysterious Beyond after his exile is worth exploring — would it really change him as a character, given how drawn he is to have followers, being alone would probably drive him crazy.

EDIT: This turned out to be my 1,000th post, so ironically I went from Petrie rank to Ducky rank ahahahahaha How fitting, given that Ducky's plight near the end was what drove him to change in a feat of heroism…

[Anagnos]

Congratulations for over 1,000 posts, Owls!

[DiddyKF1]

Congratulations on becoming a Swimmer, Owls!

He is so self-centered and self-effacing in his goals (I will rule the Great Valley and ascend it to greatness!) and if it weren't for his exaggerated gesticulations and melodramatic voicework he could come off as a very obstinante character which the audience would be frustrated by.

I must admit, Michael York has been known for his melodramatic style. Don't believe me? Just look at his scenes in the Austin Powers trilogy.

[a1iengutz]

I always liked that pterano had a little more depth than other LBT villains! It was also really nice to see more flyer rep than usual. Here's some art I made of him 

[StardustSoldier]

See here for the first half of my review...

1)  Pterano seems to be one of those characters in the fandom for which there is a lot of polarization.  He has numerous fans, but also detractors.  Why do you think he is so polarizing in terms of how fans see the character?

He's polarizing? He always seemed like a pretty popular character to me. He's definitely a strong fan favourite, at least. Although reading through the thread, I can see a couple of more mixed opinions about him, but most people I've talked to appear to like him a lot.

2)  What is your own personal view on Pterano as a character?

Hmm... well as I've stated in the past, I appreciate his uniqueness as an LBT antagonist. There's definitely more nuance to him than usual... and yet, I still feel he was a bit underdeveloped. Like, I appreciate the general direction they were going for with him... but at the same time it just made me want to know more about his backstory and his motivations. I do like his character overall, but at the same time I have a bit of conflicted feelings on how they handled him.

Other assorted thoughts:
The log-riding chase is a lot of fun. That, and when they meet up with the Rainbow Faces inside Threehorn Peak, are my favourite parts of the film.

When they're running after the Rainbow Faces inside the cave, you can see from his shadow that one of the Rainbow Faces crashes into the wall and falls over. I never noticed that the first two times I saw the film.

It also dawned on me on this most recent viewing that the "Stone of Cold Fire" is probably just a standard meteor. Which seems pretty obvious now, but I honestly never thought of that before.

I still love that adorable moment after Cera saves Petrie from the falling rock.
"Cera, you save me!"
"Yeah, so? No big deal."
*he hugs her and they both smile*
<3

I was at my mom's place when I was watching the film. My mom, who knows I'm an LBT fan in my adulthood, pointed out that I wasn't even into dinosaurs as a little boy. "Funny how that works out, isn't it?" I responded.

As for the songs in the film, I didn't care for the latter two, but "Beyond the Mysterious Beyond" is pretty good.

Lastly, I'll close out with some memorable commentary highlights from the earlier live streams. :3

Mario: "It's a flying rock! It isn't magic!"
Luigi: "It is, it has Cold Fire!
Mario: "What are you waiting for throw me a pass!" GETS CRUSHED!

Sucks to be an uncle, makes you automatically evil

Also I want more interaction with Mama Flyer and Pterano. XD

Hyp: "Stinkbugs? Better write down that insult."

Where Petrie isn't too good at lying, Ducky's stealth abilities leave a bit to be desired.

They actually stopped the chasm thing for a bit after this, didn't they?

[The log chase] is what Great Valley Racing should have been.

Yes, Topps, yes it is [your fault].

Hunger Games: An unknown sponsor has provided GoF with: a bunch of treestars