Was Animorphs more thoughtfully written than we give it credit for?

seitora

Well-Known Member
#1
Maybe thoughtful isn't the right word there. But, for example, basically every major species in the series has actual biological disadvantages that they never had the need to evolve out, but which is a weakness once they get to their interspatial war. Yeerks need sunrays like their homeworld, Taxxons have insatiable hunger, and the Andalites have weak upper bodies. The Yeerks also use their one advantage in a big, big way. I'm still amazed that the author came up with alien species that are actually wildly divergent, instead of 'bipedal humanoids with blue skin and the females still have big titties' .

The kids fight a very low-key guerilla war which I struggle to think of from any other series. Even if the good guys are guerilla fighters, usually they're more high-impact action. It's made clear later in the series the kids were mostly only ever a thorn in the side of the Yeerks, but what they did do was slow the Yeerks down enough for the Andalite fleet to catch up. Behind-the-scenes politiking was actually fairly tight, too, even with the number of ghost authors - it was Visser One's slow infiltration strategy that the Yeerks went with during the first odd 45 books, but after Visser One got killed and Visser Three got his promotion, the Yeerks changed to his full-throated quick conquest strategy, which of course blew up in their faces.

(also, character development was really damn good)
 

Karnath

Well-Known Member
#2
I haven't thought about this series in years, I remember calling the closest book store every day after the new book was supposed to come out and then asking my mother to pick it up on her way home from work. I don't think I ever actually finished the series, I eventually moved on to more I want to say adult books? Not that they weren't great in their own way, it's just the first book came out when I was 9 and I eventually moved on to books like The Wheel of Time, Shannara, Lord of the Rings, and The Dark Tower.
 
#3
I'm still amazed that the author came up with alien species that are actually wildly divergent, instead of 'bipedal humanoids with blue skin and the females still have big titties' .

The kids fight a very low-key guerilla war which I struggle to think of from any other series.

(also, character development was really damn good)
I agree with you. I haven't seen a lot of series geared toward young teens and kids with as much detail and character development for all the characters involved, not just the main ones. Antagonists got well developed back stories as well as growth in change in the series even though it took place in a relatively short amount of time.
 

Marth

Well-Known Member
#4
If only the ending wasn't such absolute crap. That was my main gripe with it, aside from a certain someone dying in the latter part of the series.
The Ellimist Chronicles was a decent read, from what I recall.

Oh, and the bullshit reply letter than KA Applegate penned when fans complained that the ending was too bitter and such, following the release of the last book. Such a treat, seeing a grown woman throw the equivalent of a mature temper tantrum.
 

seitora

Well-Known Member
#5
If only the ending wasn't such absolute crap. That was my main gripe with it, aside from a certain someone dying in the latter part of the series.
The Ellimist Chronicles was a decent read, from what I recall.

Oh, and the bullshit reply letter than KA Applegate penned when fans complained that the ending was too bitter and such, following the release of the last book. Such a treat, seeing a grown woman throw the equivalent of a mature temper tantrum.
It's funny you mention the ending. Most people interpreted ramming the Blade Ship as basically a suicide move, but it was apparently meant to be a callback to Elfangor ramming Visser Three's Blade Ship in the backstory — which he survived and was promoted to Prince for. But that background event was really too obscure for most people to catch the reference.
 

seitora

Well-Known Member
#6
It also occurs to me they technically committed genocide against two species at the end of the books (the Yeerks and the Taxxons) by giving them morphing powers and making them turn into nothlits of Earth species. Though I guess that's understandable in the circumstances, given being either a Yeerk or a Taxxon completely sucks.
 
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