[Librarian]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Black Fang

At least with Cross-Magma, there's some connection between Magma and Dragon via fire; how are robots and blizzards related?

Emotions are the connecting theme.

Dragon's breathe fire, and Cross-Z's passion burns bright and hard. He has a temper. He's hot headed. The entire build of the story has been him learning to keep that hot headedness in check. To balance his temprement and emotions. To cool that fire and channel it better. Also stems from the person he lost, and his burning passions for her, and hot blooded anger over that.

Grease is calm, cool, collected. His entire story is mostly built on controlling his emotions. Keeping them cool, and then learning how to channel them when needed. Comparatively to his robot bottle, he's 'emotionless' or 'cold with his emotions'. Outside of his idol love at least. His entire story has been to get his emotions to rise to the surface more and more. He's been very cold fury overall. But then learning to let it out so to speak and accept help. To open up to that fire. Which again goes to how he coped with loss too, in how he was more cold about it, but still cared. It was a more cold-hearted revenge aspect. But he's warmed up to friendship over the course of his story.

So the thematic balance of their opposing knuckles is based on that. From a design standpoint at least.

As for the suit. It's his default. Cross-Z had a different default since he had a suit pre-sclash. So otherwise it'd be an all-new design too late in the series, and could alienate too much of the intended audience by changing designs too much at this climax point. So his upgrade had to be something relatively easy on the budget, as well as visually similar to identify it as Grease and not another Build form.

They kept the shoulder panels but it does look like they got rid of the grease translucent overlay. So the panels are more emblematic, while still evoking original Grease. Whereas Cross-Z, the Sclash was more what over channeled his firey emotions. Grease on the other hand was more imbued with the sclash to become Grease. Cross-Z is wrapped in the full bottle of his lost love(whereas Sclash is where he forsaked the grief/loss for pure fury and the want to fight for fighting's sake). Grease is more solid in his conviction, and has been from the start. So his form is more solid, not divided, like a block of ice sustained in a blizzard. Unlike others that have more split issues or other side aspects that make them complex in why they fight and their backstories(Build with the faceswap story, and Cross-Z with his divided pursuits of clearing his name/revenge for his lost love, and so on). Grease is solidly one thing(protecting his home and the people/families in it). Alongside being from the north.

Poetically/symbolism-wise it makes a lot of sense. (As well is easier on retools for the budget and toy budgets!)