Why I dislike the Protomen
One word: Disappointment.
I never read much fan fiction, presumably because I’m a writer and I can’t be bothered to sift through it all to find the good ones, or to forgive the numerous mistakes. But you ever encounter fan fiction that is so far removed from the characters that it might as well have been an original story?
That’s the Protomen in a nutshell. As far as Rock Operas go, theirs is very good. But ignoring the length of it and some of the lyrical missteps, there is one severe flaw; it’s not related to mega man at all. Oh sure, they slapped some names and shout outs in there, but that’s the only tenuous connection there is. Even the album art doesn’t bother to make Dr. Light look at all like his canonical self.
This isn’t bad. Truth be told I like Dr. Light’s appearance, and his voice matches up perfectly with it. And Wily has an appropriately whiny voice. Emily voice, however, doesn’t fit at all (she sounds like a whiny, overweight chick), and Joe’s is too much like Dr. Light’s.
But if you are capable enough of writing a plot, and tying the music to it as they’ve done, why bother even pretending that’s it’s related to mega man in the slightest? If they weren’t pretending it was, these would be two of my favorite albums. Proper Rock Operas are hard to come by, and these really are great. But they can’t truly be, because the connection to their “source material” is too tenuous to justify anything, and so blatant as to bring down the music.
There are other flaws; the plot goes in a haphazard direction, important bits are hard to follow or nonexistent, and even if it was easier to follow, you could predict it all with one simple law- Finagle’s (anything that can go wrong will)- so you don’t need to get attached to anyone but the main characters, and there isn’t much shock when people die. This may yet be averted in the 3rd album, whenever that is. There’s also too many instrumental sections to cover up action. After all the great dialogue, why stop? Some narration, or even some grunts or noises would’ve helped, and they were more than capable of writing more lyrical dialogue. They try this in several areas and fail. Liner notes are not a substitute for storytelling, especially when I refuse to read them. After “The State Vs. Thomas Light” on Act II, this is all there is.
Further, the band has this sort of act going (and their fans are in on it) that they’re members of the universe they’ve built, but they really can’t pull it off at all. The effort would be better spent on their music.
If they were just another prog rock band, I could really like them. But their gimmick drags them down, and Tommy didn’t take three albums to get the job done. It’s really too bad. Disappointing, even.
Best Tracks:
Act II:
- 2. The Good Doctor
- 3. The Father of Death
- 4. The Hounds
- Light Up The Night
As always, don’t hesitate to comment.
