The Gang of Five
The Land Before Time => General Land Before Time => Topic started by: dragoonanime on June 16, 2009, 10:57:52 PM
-
I would have to say number 3 because he becomes over protective of the water and does not let anyone drink unless it is their turn.
-
Definitely #11. Those poor tinysauruses. Everyone was a little out of character in #11. That's one of the reasons I didn't like the movie very much.
BTW, welcome to GOF. Why not make a topic in the welcome section introducing yourself? :yes
-
Cant' be 4 since he refused to be in that one, or was on vacation with Ducky and Petrie's parents I Think.
-
He really was a jerk in LBT XI, and I'm not surprised Tria stayed away from him for awhile after he yelled at her like he did <_<. However, I believe he was the biggest jerk in LBT III. Not only did he become so daggone bossy 'bout who got how much water, but he not only attempted to stop Cera from ever playing with her best friend in the world, he also endangered her life by leading her straight into the wildfire. He really was a jerk then :anger.
-
However, I believe he was the biggest jerk in LBT III. Not only did he become so daggone bossy 'bout who got how much water, but he not only attempted to stop Cera from ever playing with her best friend in the world, he also endangered her life by leading her straight into the wildfire. He really was a jerk then :anger.
Dude that was the same reason why I choice Number 3. He was a Jerky on a Whole New Level.
-
Shouldn't the first LBT movie be available to vote for as well? His role in that one was small, but bigger than in X and XIII, and he didn't even appear in IV.
Not that it matters to me, since I voted for LBT III. Between insulting the other herds, accusing Littlefoot of wasting water, forbidding Cera from playing with Littlefoot, becoming a water rationing tyrant, refusing to follow the longnecks' fire escape plan, and starting an argument that forced the gang to take charge of everything, Mr. Threehorn was never more truculent. (When I was younger, I rather disliked the third movie, because of all the "mean" characters in it.)
-
I must go with LBT 11 for this. Nowhere else do we see Mr. Threehorn being so unreasonably cruel to anyone as much as he was to Tria (public embarrassment and insult). In LBT3, topsy was not properly educated, nor thinking clearly; he still legitimately cared about Cera. There was no obvious sense of love or caring for Tria in *that scene* of LBT 11. After this, I'm truly amazed Tria stayed with Topsy, honestly. That seemed rather broken to me.
-
As for LBT 3 it would be interesting to know if he treated all kinds equally in his guarding of the water or if he (for example) treated threehorns less strictly than others. On Topsy's behalf, there is not a shred of evidence that he did anything like that, though a vain wish for being "in charge" may have played a role in his taking the helm in the first place.
The acting in LBT 11 was not only unkind but also uncharacteristic for Topsy. It is suggested in the movie itself that it was because of Tria's presence (to an effect quite contrary to what he was probably hoping for) that he got so worked up over the tinysauruses which I expect would have been "beneath his notice" under normal circumstances.
In the first movie the segregation of the kinds is still the "normal state" for all kinds. I cannot hold it as much against him as any actions conducted after he had his chance to learn. And as for that Tops seems to have learned more than we are willing to give him credit for. It is one thing to become tolerant towards others by giving up rules, but another thing to become tolerant giving up principles one has been brought up to and with teachings of the own superiority in mind. Of course those principles and ideas are really wrong but it is a lot more difficult to teach an old dinosaur new tricks than it is to teach them to a hatchling and much more difficult to teach them to someone who followed the "old ways" out of conviction rather than "custom". Taking all this into account Tops is in my opinion more than just the shallow jerk as which many may see him. This is a credit I have to give to a character I have thought about a lot for the story "Old Threehorns".
-
I doubt he would have hesitated in killing the poor tinysauruses if he caught them in LBT 11. That was just horrible the way he acted. Totally uncalled for and just plain cruel.
-
I think Malte is spot on with his argument that we shouldn’t be too hasty to label Topps as “cruel” or “a jerk.” The fact that we really know very little about him means that we have no idea of what pressures could have influenced him to act the way he does (the “fight, not flight” mindset instilled in him by his father aside :p). For starters, his (over)protectiveness of Cera may be due to the fact that his mate and other daughters appear to be missing, and are presumed dead. (Of course, as is inevitable with most speculation into Topps’s family history, Dinah and Dana throw a monkey wrench into this hypothesis. :rolleyes) I have also thought it possible that Topps was once the leader of a herd of threehorns, the other members of which either dispersed upon reaching the Great Valley or died beforehand. That could explain his perpetual bossiness and apparent desire to be “in charge” of everything.
By the way, I thought I’d mention that since my “rediscovery” of LBT, I have come to like the third movie much more, and am now far more sympathetic to the two characters I had previously regarded as “mean” (Topps and Hyp). However, I stand by my decision in choosing that movie as the one in which he was the most belligerent.
In regards to LBT XI, Topps definitely went overboard in his hunt for the tinysauruses, but for some reason I never thought his remark towards Tria was that bad. Sure, it was rude, don’t get me wrong, but mild compared to some of the things we’ve heard him say to other dinosaurs over the course of the series.
While I’m on the subject, I wonder if his dislike of the tinysauruses had anything to do with the fact that they were longnecks, albeit tiny ones. Would he have been as fanatically intent on exterminating them if they had been tiny threehorns instead? Now THAT would have been interesting (not to mention darned funny :smile). Imagine how incredulous Topps would have been if Littlefoot had blamed the disappearance of the tree sweets on “little threehorns! I saw them with my own eyes! They were only about this tall!” :lol :lol :lol
P.S. Malte, is there anywhere I can read your “Old Threehorns” story? It sounds really interesting.
-
Without passing the label of being "cruel" or "jerky" (as it's been stated already :D ), Mr Threehorn's anger sparks do seem to fly a little more readily in #11 but to justify that, I reckon Cera summed the situation up pretty well:
<Cera to Tria> "He felt that he took those treesweets away from you and that's why he doesn't like them..."
When something is made personal, the response is normally multiplied because it is a stab at a single entity. Obviously because Topsy wanted to impress Tria and he couldn't deliver what he promised due to someone else's meddling, hence why he flew off the handle.
In #3, Topsy adopts the "being cruel to be kind" stance in protecting/rationing what little water the Great Valley had after the drought. Because he is the sole entity policing a source, everyone wants, it's easy to stamp him as a "bad guy" cause he goes against the majority.
-
I doubt he would have hesitated in killing the poor tinysauruses if he caught them in LBT 11.
That's an interesting question (and one of those which we cannot answer beyond any doubt). What would have happened IF Tops had actually caught the Tinysauruses rather than chasing them over open ground (remarkable that if he was really intent to catch them he did not in spite of the fact that he is so much larger he would probably cover the distance of 20 to 30 Tinysaurus steps with a single step of his own). Had he corned the two terrified and trembling Tinysauruses in some dead-end, would he have murdered them in cold blood? We cannot be certain, but I really don't think so while I do think that he could have caught them if he had really wanted to. Much of this seems to have been his attempts to impress Tria (and it was exactly the kind of thing suited NOT to impress her).
I suppose if he had actually caught them he would have ended up in an embarrassing situation himself. I expect he would have done what he could to scare the heck out of them thereby trying to make them leave for good (unkind enough), but at the same time let them live and save face. I cannot be certain of course, but it is what I would consider more plausible than Topsy turning into a baby butchering maniac.
By the way, I thought I’d mention that since my “rediscovery” of LBT, I have come to like the third movie much more, and am now far more sympathetic to the two characters I had previously regarded as “mean” (Topps and Hyp).
LBT 3 is one of my favorites too, though I must admit that for my taste they became a bit too moralizing, especially towards the end of the movie.
P.S. Malte, is there anywhere I can read your “Old Threehorns” story? It sounds really interesting.
Thank you very much :)
The story is not online and it is not complete, but I would be happy to send what I have written so far (some 240 pages I think) via email or MSN if you send me your address (you can email me or see my MSN address in my profile). But I must warn you that the story is probably too long winded to keep people interested. Of many whom I sent it so far only one has ever read all that is written so far.
-
Talking about daddy tops I heard cera had a older brother.
-
Talking about daddy tops I heard cera had a older brother.
None of us know if that is true or not :unsure:.
I think Mr. Threehorn is softer now than he ever was, and this is possibly due to the presence of Tria and Tricia. As far as him bein' overprotective is concerned, that does not provide him a valid reason to yell at Cera so much. He even realizes he yells at her too much (mentioned in LBT III). If he really wanted her to be okay 'cuz she's all he has left of his original family, he would try to pursue a warmer father/daughter relationship with her and not be so gruff toward her. Anyone can see Cera still loves her father and looks up to him, but how much longer will that last if he keeps treating her the way he does <_<?
As for Tria, I'm not surprised she did not leave him. My reasoning is 'cuz I think she had become fond of Cera, and after her talk with Cera, Tria probably understood Mr. Threehorn better and figured he was just bein' a dingdong at the time :rolleyes:.
-
I wouldn't exactly call Mr.Threehorn (or Topsy) aggressive and mean. I've not seen The invasion of the tinysaurus, so can't pass judgement on his apparent behaviour but in the Great Time of Giving (III), Topsy was only acting as he saw what was right for survival thus to protect all the Great Valley's dinosaurs. The significant phrase use in the 'Tough"song (I have a daughter, going to make sure we all get water enough, roughly like that) shows that he was only seeing the survival of all the dinosaurs. Which is interesting to see, since not long ago (if we take the length of time during the movies) that segregation between the dinosaur species was quite enforced. See how much one can change in living in a valley with other species of dinosaurs?:)
Edit: Just to further that, I feel as though Topsy sees himself as a sort of protector of the Great Valley. Who will act (as he did in the III movie) when he feels is important.
-
I agree. While Topsy's behavior in LBT III may be considered unfair and mean, I do feel he was doing the right thing by restricting the water supply so that everyone got some. They all had no idea when the water would return, and they had to preserve the water in anyway they could. That's all Topsy was doing. Sure he comes off as a jerk as he does it, but I feel his heart was in the right place. He was only trying to help.
-
Yes, I thought it out after watching the LBT III again. Sadly, because he was aggressive albeit with the best intentions the other valley dinosaurs didn't see it that way and thought him cruel, unfair and to put it in Grandpa Longneck's words "Unreasonable".
In a similar instance, when he takes Cera to escape from the flames brought on by the drought he did it with misguided intentions but only because he wanted to protect Cera.
-
I vote for LBT 11. Yes, Tops was a real jerk in second sequel, but killing the whole species of "possible threat"... That's like genocide.
-
^ Keep in mind that whether or not he would have actually done anything like that remains hypothetical.
-
LBT 3. I can't judge on LBT 11 but judging from what I hear, he totally crossed the line on LBT 11.
Though one of his measures was totally justified (water rationing) and one of his measures was the result of sheer misguided thought. Some of the other things he did crossed the line (insulting other herds, accusing Littlefoot of wasting water, etc).
-
^ Keep in mind that whether or not he would have actually done anything like that remains hypothetical.
Well, as far as i can tell, he only seen tinysaures as vermin and threat. Not exactly the best way to communicate. :)
-
Though one of his measures was totally justified (water rationing) and one of his measures was the result of sheer misguided thought. Some of the other things he did crossed the line (insulting other herds, accusing Littlefoot of wasting water, etc).
Whilst this is differing opinions, I don't really think that the insulting other herds, accusing the children of wasting water was entirely crossing the line. I feel that Topsy was misguided as he is protective. As I stated previously, I've always gotten the impression that Topsy views himself as the supreme protector of the Great Valley (That's probably why he argues alot with Grandpa Longneck :lol) who is willing to protect and serve no matter what the cost is. Aggression and cruelty can be expressed as a radical determination for withholding the rules of protection that I am sure that Topsy felt that he alone had to carry out.
-
I believe he was the most cruel in 11. He really was overreacting and being illogical in that sequel. I mean he usually is anyway....but I even thought that was a bit extreme for him to react like that to the little dinos. :p
-
You forgot the first movie. That's what I would have voted for. In all the others, he learns his lesson in the end and strightens up. In the first, he interupts two children playing, snarling, "Threehorns never play with longnecks :anger " and stomps off prejudiced. And he stayed that way.
-
I'd say 3. Movies 1 and 2 stripped his role down to the essentials, giving him hardly any screentime and only just establishing his both mean and loving sides. He wasn't in 4, unfortunately---maybe in a director''s cut some years from now? From 5 to 9 he got fairly decent sized roles and became somewhat likeable towards the end, although he sure was mean at some points in 5 and seemed more agressive then usual in 7. Movie 10 he didn't really have any role at all---all we see is him shouting "Little-foot! Little-foot!" in the crowd scene in the dream sequence, and then they show him sleeping fitfully (am I the only one who was wondering what the hell he was dreaming bout?!) Movie 11 was the second to give him a major role, and just when it seemed he'd come about as OK, he suddenly went out on an extermination spree! Okay, I admit it, when I first saw the idea of "tinysaurs" I sort of wanted to do the same. I still don't like them, by the way.
Movie 12 is the one that, well, softened him up. It took nearly the whole film series but it had to happen at some point! Need I say why? :D
Movie 3, however, remains the one in which Topps is definitely the cruelest. My god, it's an underated film, I should also add.
-
think Mr. Threehorn is softer now than he ever was, and this is possibly due to the presence of Tria and Tricia.
Were they really necessary? I mean, I know I'm supposed to like someone when they turn nice, but Mr. Threehorn was always good deep down, even if he was racist. It's not until towards the end of the series that Tria and Tricia come in, ad that was at the point when it was becoming pure crap. Sure, he seemed a little over the edge in 3, but he seemed just fine in 6-9---was it really necessary to soften him up by giving him a girlfriend and a baby daughter?
I'm only saying this because the tough, unstoppable Topps is the one I've grown to like, and suddenly, 11-12 films into the series they have to add pink female characters into his life to toughen him up? I'm not saying I don't like Tria and Tricia, of course, but at the price of softening one of the series' most interesting characters, who was already just reaching that compromising point where he didn't seem overly mean?
I don't think so. I mean, say one of the best, hardest rock star out there suddenly settled down and got married, had a kid, and started making his music soft---there would be a broken fanbase, wouldn't there?
I'm not saying this to offend anyone who likes the new Topps, I just miss the old one.
Oh, and:
You forgot the first movie. That's what I would have voted for. In all the others, he learns his lesson in the end and strightens up. In the first, he interupts two children playing, snarling, "Threehorns never play with longnecks " and stomps off prejudiced. And he stayed that way.
He doesn't learn his lesson in 2, or 4 ad 10, where he just has the brief cameo appearence, or in 6, and for all I know, 13. By learning his lesson, do you mean "becoming soft at the end"? Cause he does in 1; he is affectioate with Cera, and to emphasize the point he is drawn a soft lavender color :x Fortunately he's never shown that color again. :exactly
-
I'll go through how he is in the film.
LBT 1: Well, he's clearly shown as being a lot more racist then Littlefoot's mom is, but then again, he it's established that threehorns are very stubborn. If he was in a situation similar to Cera, I don't think the idea of him (reluctantly) joining the others is out of question.
LBT 2: Absolutely nothing really bad from him here. He even steps in front of Ducky and Petrie when one of Chomper's parents attacks them. They're not his kids, or threehorns even, but he protects them anyways, which is a big step from what we'd seen so far of him. He's also even scene getting leaves down for different kinds of dinosaurs during the credits. :exactly
LBT 3: The first film where he really learns his lesson. A lot of what he does in this movie is because he is frustrated over the water problem. And the reason he doesn't want to make exceptions for kids because he doesn't want to be seen as soft or anything. As for leading Cera into the fire, it's not too different from what Cera herself did in the first movie. She was sure she knew the right way, but she was wrong. Here, the same thing happens with Topps. He would never lead his daughter into danger if he wasn't positive it was the right way, and unfortunately, sometimes when we're sure we're right, we just end up being wrong.
LBT 4: Nothing here to discuss. Just that there's a smaller threehorn beside him who looks just like him.\
LBT 5: Again, he's very frustrated cause of the heat, but towards the end, you can tell he's not as bad as you might think.
LBT 6: Scolding Cera for losing the twins is a perfectly normal thing for a parent to do. As for how he acted about Doc, he may just have a hard time letting old predjudices go, but he actually is now talking to Littlefoot and calling him by his name. He even kindly adressed him as "son", so I think by this point Topps has certainly come a long way.
LBT 7: He's really grouchy in this one. But he does owe up when it's his fault.
LBT 8: Once again, he's simply grouchy at Thicknose cause he's hungry---he even says so. Once he gets to the oasis, he and Thicknose are on good terms.
LBT 9: Really, the only thing you could possibly consider bad was his unwillingness to help Mo, whom, for all he knew, was something dangerous.
LBT 10: His appearence this time was a bit of a joke <_<
LBT 11: Now he gets a girlfriend and is being softened. As for wanting to exterminate the tiny longnecks...let's just say I think a lot of us had negative thoughts about them on first seeing them, so we shouldn't just blame him so quickly.
LBT 12: His new daughter is about to hatch, so it's obvious he's gonna be grumpy if someone makes an interuption! Really, he's too soft by now.
LBT 13: Don't care
Really, it seems he's not as mean as we think he is! :D
Just wish they didn't have to bring Tricia and Tria in to soften him up. <_< Guess I'll just have to make do with his earlier appearences.
-
I'm agreeing with the majority of the crowd...LBT 3. Yeah, he was threatning the tinysauruses, but he was certaintly about to attack any dinosaur that got just a taste of water.
-
You forgot the first movie. That's what I would have voted for. In all the others, he learns his lesson in the end and strightens up.
No, he doesn't. Not in 2, not in 6, not in 8, and not in 9. The only movies where he "learns his lesson and straightens up" are 3, 5 (somewhat), 7, 11, and 12...except it's about halfway through the last one that he suddenly becomes soft, seeing as Tricia is born about halfway through.
And he doesn't in 4 or 10...since he's not really in them...so why the heck are they even on the list?!
-
Honestly, I'd have to say movie three.
-
I voted for three because, even if he had good intentions, was it really necessary to come roaring at a dinosaur who wanted a drink, why couldn't he have just walked up and, gruffly, told them that it wasn't their turn? I respect everyone's opinion, but I believe that infact, he was a dictator in this, which you can't really argue with.
-
Three,I don't think I could say something which others haven't said about it alredy.
-
A hard choice between LBT 3 and LBT 11. Apparently, Topsy wanted to kill the Tinysauruses in 11, but I don't know for sure. Anyway, I vote for 11.