How much Elemental Power did Turaga have? | BIONICLE Deep Dive
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- Опубліковано 5 вер 2024
- Just how much elemental power did Turaga keep after retiring as Toa? Here in this video we take a look at available canon material, as well as their thematic role, to piece together what powers the Turaga may have possessed.
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Oooh, that scene in the first movie when Vakama tried knocking the Rahkshi with his staff like "Back off evil creature, one step ahead and I will...".
I thought about it as a gag but after seeing the Legends of Metru Nui I recalled this scene like "Dude I was a Toa me and my boyyys we bitch-slapped Teridax you really want to do this?"
I like the fact that Turagas aren't "weaklings elders" and are still more powerful than an average Matoran. I think this is still cooler that they play the role of the wise guys and have a deep connection with their element, but the fact that Vakama almost tried fighting a Rahkshi is hilarious.
Lmao, yeah, he may have lost most of his powers but he didn't lose his courage! "You lucky you ain't facing me in my prime, I'd've roasted your ass by now"
Vakama definitely let his pride of defeating Teridax inflate his confidence there. He forgot his powers were very minuscule compared to his youth.
I remember a scene in one of the books where when the toa nuva were looking for their nuva mask Vakama saved all six of them from a giant rahi by using his mask power to confuse it.
I'm 100% on board with this theory. I wonder how many times the Turags wish they could use their elemental powers like they used to be able to, especially when watching the Toa Mata get their butts kicked because they can't seem to remember to work together. I bet Vakama looks at Tahu and goes "no no no, just.. let me do it."
That would be very interesting if the Turaga still had a degree of combat power from their elements, especially in terms of foreshadowing. Though having them not have enough power to be full heroes does make the sacrifice very poignant
Offtopic but I love how they managed to make the Turaga "look old". Masks don't get wrinkles of course, but with a mixture of body proportions, posture, and movement, the designers created an association with aging people who left their fighting days behind them but still carry that spark.
Yeah! Even in the sets, but especially in the movies, the Turaga really came across as old, but still kinda fierce! And its also funny because, they weren't actually that much older physically, but their wisdom, and their apparent age, comes from their experiences!
I always figured that when Vakama talks about "communing with the Sacred Flame" or sth. like that, that was his way of hiding that he has vision powers while still able to employ them whenever they turn out to be useful. Not sure *why* he would hide that (maybe because his visions are sometimes unreliable and he's trying to shift the blame lmao), but - to get back to the topic of the video - I think he definitely used his limited fire-powers for theatric effect in those instances, like at 3:19. I always figured that was about the extent of their elemental power, like maybe setting a tree ablaze or casting one fireball (and analogously in scale for the other elements).
True, that could also be his visions! Also I do enjoy the idea of them being able to make small demonstrations with their element, like with the fire, or maybe Onewa moving the storytelling stones with his powers!
Yeah it was a cover story for the visions he received.
I remember that the BioSector01 wiki said that the respective power levels of Matoran, Turaga, and Toa of Light were comparable to a candle, lantern, and sun. I can't for the life of me find it, but I remember it was in the trivia section for one of the pages.
I remember that too!
Oh I like, no _love_ the idea of three tiers of elemental affinity based on status. It fits quite neatly with many of the other themes and tropes of the series, and lines up almost perfectly with The Three Virtues "Unity, Duty, Destiny", with elemental adaptation encouraging Unity, elemental adaptation and connection demonstrating Duty and elemental adaptation, connection and control being necessary to fulfill Destiny.
As I was typing, my brain realized it goes even deeper than that. With adaptation being present in all three stages of existence (Matoran, Toa and Turaga), it goes even further into Unity by giving all members of that elemental affinity, well, a unified understanding of that element in addition to giving the Matoran themselves a unifying focus of their efforts, energies and communities.
Connection being shared by just the Turaga and Toa not only gives them greater insight into their elemental affinity, but also demonstrates their Duty to protect, guide and lead the Matoran in their various endeavors to serve and protect Mata Nui. Having that connection to their element gives Turaga the insight to direct and focus the efforts of the Matoran, and being former Toa, also allows them to share their wisdom with any current Toa.
Control being only the purview of the Toa allows them to fully recognize, realize and fulfill their Destiny as the ultimate protectors of their particular elemental affinity. Turaga had their time to do fill that role, but their lessened stature from Toa signifies that they have chosen (or been chosen) to step down from that role after fulfilling their own Destiny, and made way for the next generation(s) of Toa. After all, what would even be the point of appointing new Toa if the Turaga could do their job for them with the same level of power? Giving up their Toa energy would be a meaningless gesture if that were the case, so it becomes necessary to give up that control in order for their sacrifice to have any meaning. Thus, control being tied to Destiny also becomes essential for the Toa.
Now, yes, I am aware that all three virtues are supposed to apply to Matoran, Toa and Turaga equally, but it can be argued that each stage of existence represents one specific Virtue over the others, specifically, Matoran representing Unity, Toa representing Destiny and Turaga representing Duty.
Huh that's a really interesting point!
Honestly I love your content it's something that really itches the curiosity part of my brain of the world of Bioncle, and honestly I'm glad to see you talk about these fun topics here like the one where you talked about the toa
Why don't you have more subs smh
Thanks! Honestly I made this channel to scratch my own itch about talking about Bionicle, glad it scratches yours too! I think a lot about it and its great getting the thoughts out of my head!
Honestly I'm surprised how fast the channel is growing, I only started a few months ago! I get new people almost everyday!
@@heroranuva8295 I guess you scratched a niche on biotube that many haven't done in awhile lol
Yeah, I've noticed that there's a lot of biotubers who do lore overviews describing things that happen in the plot, or various locations and objects, but not as many who do more analysis type stuff, focusing on underlying themes or theories, so its nice to make content for that niche.
I'm a hardcore fan, but I'd never really considered how much power Turaga retain from their time as Toa.
We need a video for how powerful Matoran are, because I think it's also not insignificant, especially those of non-standard elements.
My wounds over the Turuga/Toa Metru have opened yet again.
*breaks into sobbing tears*
God the Toa Metru had such an emotional tugging journey
@@heroranuva8295 I'm still reading "Web of Shadows" and...
I'm trying to process all the bat-shit insanity of the things I've just read. I'm How did these guys not go insane and keep all these secrets for a thousand years, with no therapy? Unless they acted as each others therapists and share their feelings to each other.
@@cathleenmoyle1476 Honestly I wonder if the various stories and legends they told were their own way of processing what happened. There's a lot to be said about processing grief and life experience through storytelling
@@heroranuva8295 You mean before Vakama started talking about Metru Nui or when he started talking about Metru Nui?
@@cathleenmoyle1476 Both in a way, but mainly before. During the 1000 years, the Turaga told many stories and legends to the Matoran to bring them hope, many of them were fictionalized versions of the history from before they arrived on Mata Nui. I wonder if the legends they told the Matoran also helped them process the secrets they kept within them. They essentially gave the Matoran the spirit of their truth, if not the actual facts of it
Now i wonder if toa mata could ever be turaga if story went on longer
Presumably they could! Though many fans wonder if they ever actually would decide to do so, since they never had lives as Matoran, they might not want to. Becoming a Turaga is essentially like going back to "normal" life as a Matoran, but the Mata never had normal Matoran lives to go back to
bit late on here but i remember reading years ago that for light matoran/turaga/toa they were compared as if Toa of Light were the sun, a turaga was a 100 watt light bulb and a matoran a faint candle. Scaling might differ between elements.
I remember that too! And in a certain sense the scaling is still somewhat consistent. Toa are a powerful natural force (sunlight/ a whirlwind), Turaga are a way smaller but noticeable version of that (lightbulb/stiff breeze) and Matoran have slightly less than Turaga. Obviously the precise difference between the Sun and a lightbulb is way more than a breeze and a whirlwind if we take it literally, but if we take both as being more generalized metaphors it stays consistent
@@heroranuva8295 and the quote was in relation to just Toa, if I had to take a guess Toa Nuva would be even more, if Toa Lewa is a Whirlwind then Toa Lewa Nuva is a hurricane for example.
I wonder. Even though each Turaga may wield a staff mostly for ceremonial purposes, it might be possible for them to utilize it as a catalyst for small bursts of elemental energy. Take Vakamas staff. I could easily picture him making a fireball launch from it should it be necessary, be it self defense or signaling for help.
I never really thought about that before, it does make a lot of sense.
Thanks!
I was always under the impression that the Matoran were, at least in part, the children of their tribes, Toa the adult guardians, and theTuraga the village elders.
Now that I've seen a couple of your breakdowns, I see that I was missing some context, but was not completely incorrect
Yeah, its clear that they were in a way meant to parallel that, but at least in universe the Matoran were very much adults. Honestly, their progression is a bit like Pokemon evolution tbh
What kind of matoran do you see your self as and does it change if we talk about what turaga do you see yourself as?
Huh, interesting question. I personally flip flop between Matoran of Air and Earth (ironic I know considering they're opposite elements, but they both relate to me). Maybe a little bit of Water thrown in there too. Honestly, I don't think it changes what type of Turaga I'd see myself as.
Also, as far as seeing myself as a Turaga, a pipedream of mine is that if I ever need a cane when I get older, I'll make a Turaga staff for myself. Maybe make the head detachable, so I can rotate between all the different staff types. See who comes to mess with me when I'm on firestaff day XD
I ways pictured Narmoto's fire-storytelling feat in the G2 animations to be about what a G1 Turaga would be capable of, but there's obviously no official basis for that.
I never thought about it that way! That is so cool!
Thanks!
The real question is, how Hypothetically powerful would Turaga Ahkmou have be? We never saw him fight in this state in his story.
Ahkmou wasn’t a real Turaga, he simply took the title but didn’t transform, and would only have a Matoran’s level of power since he was just a regular Matoran.
So basically, Turaga powers are wisdom (related to their element).
Turaga have wisdom to the extent of being philosophical about their element, but not as much power as the Toa. One can have a great deal of power but not much wisdom to handle it, like for example the US in Afhganistan or a certain Winnie the Pooh.
Unrelated to the video, but did the Toa Mata collect the Turaga's noble masks?
Yes they did. It’s not talked about much, but along the way they also found the noble masks, which according to some sources Makuta stole and hid from the villages. The Turaga let the Toa use the noble masks in addition to supplement their powers, and we see them use the noble masks a lot in MNOG
@@heroranuva8295 that's such a cool hidden detail
Sooooo like
Unity, Destiny, Duty but with elements
501 subs lets goooo
Thanks!