Fans of Morphz.com

Some icons for you.

2007-06-27T00:45:37Z

Sorry I don't have any more pictures. The only photos I could find were from Christopher Ralph and Brooke Nevin's official sites. There are so few Pictures of Cassie and Marco, and they're my second and third favorite characters. ;_; Well, here you go.

morphz @ 2007-06-18T06:46:00

2007-06-17T22:49:17Z

hey im new
im really interested in animorphz and would like to know more about
this morphz group.....
thanx cait xx

Way Better the First Time

2007-05-10T03:49:02Z

Heya! Here with something I wrote inbetween exams(oh the fun). Hope you like it!

Author: Me
Rating: PG
Warnings: Not really

"I'm totally serious, this game was way better the first time. Don't even try playing it a second time. When it's new, it's okay, but again..." Jake shook his head, slightly shaggy brown hair getting in his eyes.

Marco laughed and pushed his friend's hair aside playfully, a little rough. "Dude, you need a haircut."

Jake laughed ruefully and brushed it back self-consciously. "Yeah, I know. But it's kinda hard..." he lowered his voice, the way Marco heard him do forty times a day lately, and continued, "you know, with everything going on. Not too high on my list of priorities."

Marco shrugged. "Fine, just don't blame me when Cassie asks me why you're becoming a hippie too." His fingers never stopping on the controller, he shot a glance at Jake. "You better not start hugging trees and starting blood drives for baby skunks too, man."

"Hey, don't you think it's kinda nice that Cassie cares so much?" Jake asked, half-laughing.

The little man on the screen was getting shot by about twenty different aliens. Marco smacked the controller. "Yeah, dude, it's awesome. You two can get married and go live on a nudist colony that makes paper out of sand or a treehouse or something."

Jake shoved his shoulder with one big hand and Marco winced internally; his friend was far stronger than he was aware. "Shut up," he said good-naturedly.

"I can see it now," Marco proclaimed, abandoning the game(which he was losing anyway) and standing up dramatically. "All-American Boy and Hippie Girl join forces and produce the most energy-efficient, patriotic children the world has ever known. Together they and their children fight crime and make it safe for all of the good clean Americans!" Marco raised his eyebrows at Jake and grinned. "There's no part of All-American Boy that isn't classic, preppy, and boring as hell!"

"Oomph," Marco spat out as Jake shoved into him, knocking him onto the bed. "Get off of me, All-American Oaf!" he laughed as Jake faked pummelling him, which mostly consisted of shoving him down into the mattress and trying not to smile.

Rolling his eyes, Marco grabbed Jake's arms and threw him over to the side, landing sitting on top of him.

Jake grinned up at him. "I always forget that you've got some muscles, midget." Marco realized that he could look straight into Jake's eyes, because he was hovering directly overhead, leaning over his face and holding onto his arms still.

"You're still stronger, jerk," Marco said, wishing he could take it back as soon as he said it. It might have been true, but it still wasn't something he admitted. That sounded like he was self-pitying. Marco had enough things in his life people could pity him for - losing his mom, a depressed dad, being short - he didn't need to create more things.

Jake looked at him in a weird way; putting his head to one side and lowering his eyelids until he looked almost sleepy. He put one broad hand up, sliding past Marco's shoulder, to his head. It should have gone up further and ruffled his long hair in an annoyingly supportive way(but the only support that Marco would tolerate, all the same), but stopped still half over his cheek, hovering lightly and warming the side of Marco's face. They stared at each other for a moment before Marco pulled one side of his mouth up in a grin and pushed Jake away as he rolled off the bed and grabbed the controller again. When he glanced back up at the bed, Jake was laying on his stomach, head resting on his arms in an uncharacteristically quiet way.

"What, have you turned into a lazy bum on me?" Marco could help saying. "Because I occupy that position full time already."

Jake shot a glance at Marco. "We've all changed."

Marco didn't know how to deny that, so he shot another alien and cursed when the screen told him he'd died.

And the winner is...

2007-05-09T19:07:57Z

Well, we had a grand total of one entrant in the fanfic crossover contest, odette_river who has won with her fic, "Five Ways the Yeerks Weren’t Defeated". So many congrats to her! Prize is on its way. :)

And a question to everyone else: are you not interested in the com anymore, or just not in the crossover challenge? What can I do to get you people to wake up?

Morphz Contest

2007-05-01T19:47:57Z

Title: Five Ways the Yeerks Weren’t Defeated
Fandom: Animorphs/Stargate SG-1
Rating: PG
Word Count: 235

yes.

morphz @ 2007-04-23T12:59:00

2007-04-23T18:01:20Z

So, we, uh, didn't get any entries yet for the fanfic contest. Due to computer issues at home for me, I didn't even finish. So the deadline for the contest is extended to May 7th.

Come on, people! I know you want to win the lovely prizes!

Morphz Challenge

2007-04-09T18:56:05Z

So...I made icons. Or, rather, one icon, with a base for those of you who don't like my word choice and want to add your own (or nothing at all). There may or may not be a fic behind this, I'm not sure yet (but I'm leaning toward yes). Enjoy.

Morphz Challenge!

2007-04-05T20:52:15Z

Well, I'm hoping more people are still interested in this community than replied to my first post, but if not, then the few of us remaining can still have some fun.
So here's my first challenge: Animorphs Crossover Fanfic!
The rules:
1. Animorphs, obviously, must be included, as well as members/etc. from at least one other fandom. Multi-fandom crossover is great--though it's best if the fic is more Animorphs-driven.
2. If it's more than PG-13 (and we all know, those can be the most fun), just make sure you note that.
3. LJ-cut so there's no flooding of people's flists. If you somehow don't know how to do that (don't worry, I took my time learning), just ask.
4. Any length you want. Preferably no previously written material.
5. If you're not a fanfic person, icons are also cool.
6. The Theme: "Animorphs: It's not just a job, it's an adventure!"

It starts whenever you read this, and ends April 22nd at midnight.

There will be prizes! (Except for me, 'cause that wouldn't be very fair.)

Hello, all!

2007-03-29T14:00:49Z

Our creator and original mod has agreed to hand Morphz over to me, and I'm hoping that we can get things up and running again!

First things first: the 2006/2007 read-through. I want to know if people are still interested. If so, we'll figure out a new schedule, and I'll do my best to come up with stimulating discussion questions, etc. If not, then I've still got a few ideas I'd like to toss around for this community, and if anyone has any other ideas, I'm open to them.

I'd like to do some fanfic, fanart, and fanicons challenges. Some more discussions about the books, and not just the normal "who was your favorite Animorph?" discussions. Post your favorite parts of the books, your favorite quotes, what you see or do nowadays that still reminds you of Animorphs (or Morphz), swap recipes for instant ginger-maple oatmeal. I don't want to compete with other Animorphs communities, but I do want this to be a kind of catch-all and open forum for everyone. If you've got fanart, fanfic, icons, banners, backgrounds, songs, videos, or dances or whatever, we want it. Basically, I want to honor Morphz by keeping Anifans' interest in Animorphs alive.

Also, I'm going to do a weekly "Identify that quote" where I pull a funny or serious quote from somewhere in the Animorphs series. Whoever names the book and scene it's from first wins! What do they win? Why, the honor and respect that accompanies knowing random Animorphs quotes! I'll have the first quote for ya'll tomorrow. :)

If you're still hanging out or interested in this com, please comment so I have an idea of how many people I've got here. And again, I'm open to suggestions to stuff you want to see in this community!

~Lori

Cinnabon 4eva

2006-04-05T10:05:42Z

I really hope this community is still up and running (where are the comments about book 4??;) because I just found it and I've just been having a nostalgia trip... I hope to join this journey with you all, if it's still running.

I sit here, almost 20, a college student, and it amazes me how much of my life was caught up with this series. I started it at age 9, and I still remember seeing books 1 & 2 in the scholastic catalogue and being intrigued. I was always an animal lover, but this series is what got me into their heads, through Cassie and the others I went through all those moral and ethical questions that I love so much about these books. Now I'm studying environmental management and I'm a vegan, and I think Animorphs is what made me realise my passion for these things. Like them, I want to save the world. I know it sounds corny, but they really got me into humanitarian and environmental issues and gave me something to really aim for in life. A lot of the books were just fillers, but it also astounds me how much of an impact some of them had, and are still having. Books that I would devour, and then sit thinking for hours about the world, the universe.. I would stare at the stars and wonder. It's great to find other people so enamoured by these books; I think they were overlooked by a lot of people. By all appearances, they seem trashy, like Goosebumps. I tried desperately to get all of my friends into them just so I could have someone to talk to about them - but in the end I met this girl who was reading one of the books on my schoolbus. Although she was older than me by 2 years and it was incredibly uncool for her to be friends with me, we became inseperable and spent the next 4 years talking about life and everything on our daily trips to school.

I remember the day I read the last book. I was devastated. Five years of my life, and now it was over. But what I didn't realise is that it would never be over. I really think these books have changed me, and will always have a place in my life. I think I will still like them, even as an adult. What do you guys think? Will you still like them at 30, 40? I never would have imagined, on the day I got them, that I would still love them so much, 10 years later.

Did anyone else stare out at the stars in wonder? (Especially after any of the Chronicles, those blew me away.)

Eeeep.

2006-04-02T03:13:51Z

Sorry about disappearing off God’s green earth like that- personal issues. Major apologies everyone.

Anyway! Book four! Please use this entry as a discussion board, I’ll try to whip up a longer entry soon. We could also skip ahead, if you’d like.

Pokes reading group

2006-03-15T01:35:33Z

Is this still going on...? Or did it die out already....?

And who was in charge of book 4...?

#3 The Encounter

2006-02-27T03:24:41Z

Like jeffsampson I haven't started re-reading this book just yet. anirachel? Sorry, but it looks like I'll be getting this up today. :)

What I do remember about this book is Tobias as a character. He kills for the first time in this book. Marco was always giving him crap about eating mice and rodents. Remember Jake ate that spider as a lizard in book 1.

Tobias' hawks mind takes over his human one and before he knows it, he's going into a dive, talons closing in on the mouse. He's way too stunned and shocked about what he's done. He goes and see Rachel at the mall. She was putting on a show, Marco was there to watch her, but in hiding. Tobias starts flying to the glass ceiling, and Marco, yes, Marco the one that gave him crap about eating roadkill, throws a baseball through the glass a split second before Tobias hits it.

After that Tobias lets the hawks' mind take over for a few days. Then he goes back to the group after saving some guy being chased by Hork-Bajir.

So, a few questions come to mind:
What animal would you want to be stuck in as a nothlit? What would you do if you killed for the first time? Who would you turn to? What would you have done in Tobias' place?.

I would want to be stuck as a cat. Primarly because they are my favorite animal. :D

I guess I would freak out just like Tobias did when he killed for the first time. Honestly, I don't know what I would do.

I would turn to Jake or Cassie, honestly. They would both know what to do.

In Tobias' place, I probably would not done what he'd done. Let the hawk mind take over. Personally, I would try to stick with my friends as much as possible, but we got to remember that Tobias comes from the most screwed up family in the group.

Disscuss away.

#3: The Encounter!

2006-02-26T22:47:00Z

So, we're up to #3, yay! Some things I request of our little reading group, though:

Don't be shy! The leader's not the only one that can ask questions.

Participate! We'll get more out of it this way.

Volunteer! We're coming up to #6 and we still don't have a leader. Anyone want to volunteer?

Peace, Shorms, & Together we fight,

Rachel

ANIMORPHS #2 The Visitor

2006-02-21T20:31:52Z

This week's book:

If someone told you Earth was under silent attack, there's a good chance you'd think they were pretty strange. If that same person said Earth's only means of defense depends on the actions and powers of five kids, you'd probably start to look for a quick exit. Guess what? It's all true.

Rachel and her friends knew they were in for some pretty strange stuff from the very beginning. How often do you run into a dying alien who gives you the power to morph into any animal you touch? But that was before they knew what they would be up against. Now they know. And they know what they have to do. Before it's too late . . .

Egg Fu Says:

Wow, can we all say "generic summary"?

Since I haven't had a chance yet to read this book, I'm going to start off this week's discussion by questioning our memories before we get into our new impressions. If I remember right, #2 was often noted as one of the least favorite books of the fans--though I often remember that it was also noted as being one of the books that drew in a lot of fans. I'm guessing it was the nifteezy cover. So, the opening question is:

What do you remember thinking about this book when you first read it? What are your overall imprssions re-reading it now?

When I think of book 2 I usually think of it only as the book that first introduced Fluffer McKitty and Melissa Chapman. I remember liking the book fine; the scene I remembered most is the morphing of the shrew. When all was said and done, it definitely wasn't the book that really pulled me into the series. What's strange is that, initially, Rachel was my favorite character--but I liked her more when seeing her through other characters' POVs rather than than when I actually read her own POV in this book.

From what I've re-read so far, I'm struck by how shaky this book feels in term of voice. It feels clear to me now, since I'm now an author myself, that Katherine Applegate and Michael Reynolds were still getting the hang of the voice and feel of the series. Rachel's "voice" doesn't feel distinct from Jake's in book 1 or Tobias's in book 3, at least not to me. That's certainly not true of later books, where it was always very clear whose head we were in.

I was also interested by my reaction now to the opening snatching-the-guns-and-beer-from-poachers scene; it felt a little too PSA, when I don't remember Animorphs being so preachy.

Now, like I said, I haven't read the entire book yet, so I'll have more specific observations to discuss as we move forward. 'Til then, I'm curious to see what everyone else's overall thoughts are on the book as they read it now in comparison to when they read it initially. Let's share, folks!

Just to let you know...

2006-02-21T04:16:43Z

As of yesterday, we are starting book 2....

My esteemed colleague jeffsampson will lead discussion whever he GETS OFF HIS LAZY ASS.

Actually, I don't blame his ass. I'm sure his ass is very productive. It's the brain that controls the ass that matters.

(Love you, Fuey.)

morphz @ 2006-02-15T19:42:00

2006-02-16T04:24:26Z

My story of meeting Animorphs is pretty

I was a huge reader as a kid. I would really read anything I could get my hands on. My first love as a kid were the Chronicles of Narnia, and anything I could find by Madeline L'Engle. Then I discovered the Babysitters Club series and devoured those. I think I hung in there from practically to the beginning up until a little past the hundredth book in the main series, but I usually liked books a little more advanced as a kid, and kind of acknowledged them as my guilty pleasure even when I was little.

BSC was pretty much the only thing I could afford to be addicted to for a while as a guilty pleasure series. But around fifth or sixth grade, I started thinking that the BSC characters were acting OOC. I may have even started questioning the fact that these girls had spent about twenty years in the eighth grade (and yet, Claudia still had to be held back a year; you'd think she would have gotten it after a point, man). I have since heard that the books were ghostwritten after a point, which may explain a lot. So when I was in sixth grade and wandering around the Scholastic book fair, I saw The Invasion and picked it up.

I thought the cover was kind of cool-looking, and snagged it on a whim.

I remember being not entirely sure if I liked it or not at first, actually. I was intrigued, but I think I was a little scared by the books. I was always a paranoid little kid - my greatest fear was always that everyone in the world had the power to read minds except for me, and they were reading my mind and laughing at my thoughts amongst themselves. So Animorphs was really, you know, just feeding that thought pattern. :D

I settled in after #2, since I decided I really loved Rachel (I was also really into gymnastics as a little kid), and then after #3, Tobias cemented himself as my first ever fictional boyfriend. And I was obsessed with dolphins, and so #4 pretty much clinched it.

I read on for a while, but just before the David trilogy, I quit reading. After reading over one hundred BSC books, I started fearing that Animorphs was going the way of filler with no ending in sight, and didn't have the energy to read another series that went on forever and ever.

I had friends who still loved it, though. Actually, my best friend all through middle school and high school had been an avid fan before I knew her, but I never knew it. One day after we'd known each other for about four years, the books came up in conversation, and we started at each other in awe of finding a fellow fan, and shrieked in the same breath, "DID YOU READ THE ANDALITE CHRONICLES?" Anyway, I heard it through the grapevine when the series finally ended, and I wandered back to the bookstore to read #54. My reaction was....well, you guys know. :D

I ran into some online discussion about the books a year ago, though, and found my way back here. I started buying the books off eBay again, and I've been hooked ever since. I actually love them far more than I did when I was little.

Random things I liked on my reread of #1: how right off the bat, Jake mentions Marco's skill at strategy in video games. Also, the fact that Elfangor nods assent when they ask him a question. It seems completely natural, but later the idea of nodding as a human custom is emphasized so much when dealing with Andalites, so it's a really clever detail that reveals Elfangor's history on Earth.

Oh, and how Jake is OMGSOTRAUMATIZED by eating the spider in lizard morph. After you've read the whole series, you can't help but think, "Poor kid, you think that was trauma? You haven't seen anything yet."

My Animorphs experience.

2006-02-15T05:55:17Z

Yeah, I'm kind of late with my entry... So sorry. But hey, what a way to get to know eachother, right? It's an awesome first discussion!

My name is Jorie.

There's nothing extraordinary about my story. It's actually pretty average. It didn't take me anywhere truly spectacular, except in my mind. And I don't have much to show either for getting into the books, since most of what they meant to me occurred internally, inside me. Let's face it, Animorphs didn't make me a superhero. Animorphs didn't make me want to change the world. But maybe it did make me want to change myself. But my life did take a turn when I picked up The Invasion. And before I knew it, I was hooked on something amazing for a good few years of my life. No, hooked isn't a strong enough word. I was IMMERSED. And deep down, I will always be an Animorphs fan.

I was about 10 or 11 when I got into the series. Actually, take that back. I have no idea how old I was. I only know I was in fifth grade at the time. When I was in fifth grade I enjoyed everything fantasy. I was really into the Dinotopia books and I think I was casually reading the end of the Chronicles of Narnia. I'm also pretty sure I picked up The Hobbit around this time as well. In my fifth grade Language Arts class, we were learning about Sci-Fi and Fantasy books and were given a project about it. The project was to actually make a claymation scene from the Scifi novel that we were allowed to choose to read. Pretty cool project, I was ecstatic. There were a lot of grumbles from the class, being forced to read a book about aliens or what have you and having to make stuff out of clay for weeks on end. Sadly, I did NOT pick Animorphs for this project. I did a scene from The World Beneath, a Dinotopia book. However, a few kids from the class did either one of the first two Animorphs books. One of these kids being my crush, a guy I secretly liked. Yay, lame and so grade school - I know. But, hey, he was cute and I had hormones then.

I would work on my little claymation dinosaurs and sit next to this boy who constructed five people and a strange blue centaur out of clay. I was intrigued by this blue guy. Thought he was adorable. That was when I decided to pick up one of the books myself to read outside of class. I picked up The Invasion at the bookstore, basically because I like to start at the beginning. Reading the first book I was intrigued. I wouldn't say I was hooked yet, I'd just say that I found the book to be enjoyable. But at the time, I was into a lot of other things, so it was almost like my mind didn't want to accept another obsession. I did like the characters though. I loooved animals so reading a book about kids turning into animals to fight evil slugs was just top of cool. But I wasn't allowing myself to get hooked yet. I kept holding back. Next time I went to the bookstore I bought #2 and #3, just to give them a try. After all, there's a girl turning into a cat on one cover, and a cute boy turning into a hawk on the other. Read them both basically in secret. I didn't want my family or my friends to think I had another obsession brewing. So I thought I'd try these two more out before anything drastic happened. I enjoyed The Visitor, but it wasn't until The Encounter that I became absolutely hooked. Something about the trials of a boy trying to live life as a bird and as a human just spoke to me. I wouldn't say that Tobias was my favorite character, it was just something about him that bonded with me. Something about the tone of his books, and about his situation. It really spoke to me.

After that, I was buying each book as they came out. And when I had no money, I'd cleverly talk my mother into buying them for me. After all, I'm READING, mom! READING! Be proud! Buy me Animorphs! I'd call each month to the local Waldenbooks, asking when the next one would arrive. The guy who worked there began recognizing my voice. I guess that's when you know that you're just totally obsessed with something. I became obsessed. And by obsessed, I mean REALLY obsessed. All of those dinosaur and Jurassic Park posters came straight down on my walls and were covered with my own hand-drawn, hand-created Animorph ones. < Together we fight > was plastered EVERYWHERE. I also started caring for and breeding pet mice at the time, and most of them had Animorph names. I was becoming an insane fanatic of the series. All I could think about was Animorphs. My dreams were all Animorphs related. The people I hated or made me uneasy became Controllers in my eyes. Deer hoof prints in the mud outside my house could actually be prints of a lone Andalite in my mind. Every red-tailed hawk that floated high overhead became Tobias. I was insanely obsessed.

Sadly, I didn't use my new computer and internet connection to look up Animorphs fan sites. Shame on me! I did use it to log on to Scholastic many times a day, though. Joined some Animorphs club that promised cool items to be sent through the mail monthly and books shipped right to your door. Spent a good deal of money on that too. But, I didn't receive ONE shipment. Bloody hell, was I disappointed! I also caught the Animorphs TV show when it first aired. Was disappointed, it gave me a good laugh. But I still watched a few episodes. I didn't catch them all though, probably none of the second season. It was entertaining to say the least. And interesting to see another companies interpretation of my favorite books on a limited budget. But the books still held my heart.

During the rest of fifth grade and part of sixth I would read the books during silent reading. I was pretty open about liking the series, though I seemed to be the only one in my classes who liked the books that much. I ended up converting my two good friends into reading the books, so that was comforting. But as time past, almost moving on to the seventh grade, liking a fifth grade book was just so - uncool. I got ridiculed a lot my by classmates and my family. I began continuing to read the series in private, no longer carrying my books in my backpack and no longer bringing it up in normal conversation. But my mind didn't sway from the series still. All of my thoughts still focused on the Animorphs world that I could relate to in some way that's hard to explain. I guess I became more introverted. I sort of began to keep to myself a lot. The once outspoken me with a few friends became the girl that had maybe two friends and sat at the back of class with her head in the clouds. Recess became my thinking time instead of my running to chase boys time. I still socialized somewhat, but it all seemed forced. I couldn't relate to anyone anymore. Because everything about me had become infatuated with this book series about kids with special powers while everyone else was talking gossip about so-and-so and how this new awesome romance flick about a boat came out. I could still relate to my friends who were into the books like I was, but I seemed to be just way over-the-top with it. I recall one time I suggested playing Animorphs with my two friends in one of the girl's backyard. We had a decent time, I played more than one character, and much running around and pretending to morph took place. But still, I think I was the only one who truly loved role-playing like that. Acting out the fantasy that my mind had created about these books. We never played Animorphs after that, basically because my friends just weren't into that sort of thing anymore, I guess. They liked the books, but they didn't like Animorphs as much as I did I suppose.

Seventh grade began, I still bought the books, but I began to fall out of the series. The ghostwritten books just seemed so under par compared to the Animorphs I fell in love with. By end of seventh grade going into eighth I began to focus my mind on other things, new obsessions began to arise, and my Animorphs obsession began to regress, overthrown by these other obsessions. I guess my life has always been one obsession after the other, so I guess this shouldn't have been anything new. But I did sort of feel like a piece of myself was missing. After getting out of Animorphs almost completely, I did hit a sort of small depression. Even with my mind focusing on new obsessions like art and The Lion King, I still felt a great emptiness that I couldn't quite pinpoint. And because of that, things in my life began to effect me much greater than it used to. My mind was no longer my sanctuary to stay in all day and play out my Animorph fantasies. I now had to use this mind to socialize with people, try to figure out this person I am sans the obsessions, and also try to grow up. And I guess I just didn't know how to handle it. I guess I didn't -want- to know how to handle it.

End depressing paragraph to talk about something cheerful. CHARACTERS! So who to this day is my favorite character? I wish I knew XD It seems to change every time I read through the books. I know one time I claimed Jake to be my favorite character, and another time it was Tobias, and another time it was Cassie, and Aximili. It just kept changing! I think I've come to the conclusion now that I like all the characters the same. Because they all speak to me in their own way. I like it how Jake was always torn with decision making, and the fact that he cared more about being a good friend than being the fearless leader. I liked the fact that Rachel always had this gung-ho attitude externally, but reading her books you discover her softer more timid side. The side of her that was more concerned about coming across as strong to everyone else than to show a small hint of weakness. I think she always felt like she had to be the backbone of the group. And Marco. What can I say, I absolutely adore his humor. Anytime Marco is interacting with Rachel or with Ax, I'm bound to laugh out loud. But Marco also has that side to him that you KNOW he cares, he just doesn't always know the best way to show it. Cassie, I have to say that she reminded me a lot of myself at times. Most people found her to be annoying, but I found her touching, intuitive, and fascinating. #19 will always reduce me to tears no matter how many times I read it. Tobias was probably my favorite character for a while. I'm just astounded by the jump of tone from books #1 and #2 to #3. It just shows how remarkably DIFFERENT Tobias is when it comes to thinking about things. But I guess I've come to realize that even though Tobias's books make me tear up from time to time, and even though I find myself relating to his words on the page, I don't think I'd call him my favorite character. Maybe Tobias is the character I can mostly relate to, but not my favorite. And Aximili, oh what can I say about this crazy alien aristh? His antics, especially when he's in human morph, are always laugh-inducing. How can you not love a guy who doesn't wear a shirt and says "But the men on the Young and the Restless don't wear shirts. I am young, and occasionally, I am restless." and Marco remarks, "Ax, put on a shirt."? Classic. And his loyalty is always something I'd look up to. And I'll always have a spot in my heart for Ket Halpek and Jara Hamee, as well as good old Prince Elfangor. So, in conclusion, I like all of the characters.

Occasionally, I'll still pick up the books, read them all the way through. Or just read one of the Chronicles. And the obsession would start up again for a limited time, and then ebb when my mind focused on something else I was interested in.

I've had to save my books many times from my mom selling them to Goodwill or at garage sales. I have lost quite a few books though, mostly from me lending them out to friends (and I have a habit of not remembering who I lend things out to, nor even remember lending things out to begin with) and never getting them back. I hope some day to gain those books back, I need to make it a habit to run out to those second-hand bookstores from time to time. But the fact is, I can't let these books go. I will never be able to let them go. I can imagine that if I ever move out of my house, either to college or whatever, those books would probably be the first thing that I'd pack. Because out of all of the things that I own, my LOTR stuff, my posters, my sword, my movies - none of them have nearly as much nostalgic feeling or meaning like Animorphs did and still has for me.

I think I've finally come to the conclusion that the obsession will always live in me, and if I ever want to revisit that obsession, all I'd need to do is think about it or pick up one of the books. And in some ways, that's comforting. It's comforting to know that even if you start to lose the things that you used to be obsessed with, it doesn't mean that they died. It doesn't mean they left your soul completely. All you need to do is call and it will come right back up again. That that nostalgia doesn't always have to bring back tears of sadness. Instead, bring back that feeling of - yes, this is something that I can relate to somehow. This is something that I can call on to help me feel solaced. And to me, at least, that's comforting.

Now I'm 19, and I'm not afraid to say I'm an Animorphs fan. I think it's much better today than it was when I was younger. Nowadays, you get caught reading Animorphs on the bus and odds are someone will come up to you and say, "ANIMORPHS! Oh man! I loved those books!" and not "Animorphs is for LOSERS." I am surprised to find that many of the friends I have today were absolutely in love with the books when they were younger as well. I guess I'm surprised because I never knew any rabid Animorphs fans growing up, and I kept my obsession a secret for most of the time I was into them. I guess I just had no idea that something that was so close and comforting to me could mean the same thing to someone else. And in some ways, I'm incredibly relieved. Because, yes, now I know I'm not alone.

"Be happy for me, and for all who fly free." - Tobias

Hah, sorry for how INCREDIBLY LENGTHY this is. I just started to ramble. And I feel really sorry for everyone who read this far. Just wow. Go take a nap now, I'm sure your eyes hurt. So yes, that's my story. Nothing special. Nothing glitzy and sugar-coated. Just the bare-butt truth. And if I got off-topic, I apologize. Basically, Animorphs effected me A LOT, and I tried to include all the ways it effected me.

Opinion: Weakness

2006-02-14T21:19:18Z

Okay, take the six (well, 5 currently) Animorphs. Who are the two weakest in your opinion?

I think, at this point, it's obviously Cassie and Tobais. They aren't outwardly strong in any sense. Jake makes a point of having the Hork-Bajir follow him and Rachel 'cause the two of them are the fastest. Tobias is "totally out of shape" and Marco and Cassie "are too short to be fast." Marco, however, plays up the macho in his first sequence with the nether fjord, therefore making him weaker than Cassie.

And K.A. proves that they are the "weakest" (physically) by giving them something the others didn't have the guts to do: morph on their own. Cassie and Tobias are the first to morph without a push from someone else. Jake doesn't do it until Tobias does. And after Cassie morphs, everyone's willing to try it. But because Cassie and Tobias morph on their own, they are proven to be challenged. K.A. gives them an alternate destiny: that of a strong person on the inside.

So...there's something for you to think about. Talk amongst yourselves. ;o)

The Beginning

2006-02-14T15:44:53Z

I stole my first Animorphs book. How good of an introduction is that? I didnt mean to, I swear. I think I was in 5th or 6th grade. I was in a bookstore, and I was about 2 chapters into #1 and loving it. My little brother and sister ( who were 3 months at the time) started screaming and we had to leave. My mom asked me to grab the bag and push the stroller. I guess I dropped it into the bag and walked out. I didnt find it until I got home.
So anyways, I had always liked sci-fi and fantasy...as soon as I was old enough to comprehend, my father would read a chapter a night to me out of things like The Hobbit, advancing up to things like I, Robot when I got a little more intelligent. The love for the surreal was already in me. I read the whole thing in an afternoon. The next day was Thursday, which was the day I got together with my very best friend from out of town. Our parents met in Lamaz class, we were born 2 weeks apart and were best friends since. I forced the book on her, and she loved it as well. We were hooked. We were just old enough to be self concious, but not old enough to care, so we would run around the back yard pretending to be Animorphs ( I was always Rachel and she was always Cassie). Sometimes one of us would get captured and made into a controller, and sometimes we would have the WORST fights about who had the coolest morph. Every month we would go to the store and buy the new books. It really helped us stay very close through middle school, even when she went to private school. On the outside we were trying to conform and being cool ( just like every little 13 and 14 year old wants), but every Thursday we were able to indulge in our less cool sides, and be with someone who truely understood us. It was really what we both needed, and I have Animorphs to thank.
Unfortunitly, we both put down the series when the ghostwriters seemed to be doing all the writing, we just didnt have the time to do it anymore. Life got in the way. We still talk about it sometimes. We found out it ended and decided to go to the store and buy the last 3 books, and read them that afternoon. We both cried and hugged each other and felt nostalgic. Since then we have seperated. I talk to her only a few times a year, and its not much more than " Hey how are you" " good" "good!". Off to college we went and I again felt that need to conform ( at least for a few minutes :) ). I was worried about good impressions and getting alog with the roomate and such. I had all my stuff in the room, and now it was time to unpack. I had my very personal items in the very bottom- my favorite Animorphs and the stuffed lion that I had shared a bed with since I was 3 years old- afraid of what she might think. SHe seemed real nice, and as it turned out, she was just as concerned. We unpacked all of our stuff( except for that one box...) and it was like something on a TV show. With nervous look I reached in and pulled out Tigger the Lion. She reached in her last box and pulled out Fuzz the cat. We both laughed and then I reached in and pulled out my collection of Ax and Marco Animorphs, and her jaw dropped. I thought the worst when she started laughing. However she reached in her box and pulled out half a dozen Tobias and Jake books. SHe thought she was the last person in the world who still had them.

We are the best of friends, and not just because of Animorphs. I can be who I am, she is who she is, and we know all about each others weaknesses for the nostaligc items from our past.

*phew* that was quite a story!

So, thats been my experience w. Animorphs..

Ooh, shiny.

2006-02-14T08:57:29Z

Hey all, new member here...unfortunately I was never a part of the Morphz boards, since I was into the series way the heck back in sixth grade when I basically knew nothing about computers, and until recently only got back into the series when I re-read it to be nostalgic.

However, I am fully willing to admit that I am still a fangirl. XD In sixth grade - which would have been 1998-1999, if I'm doing my math properly - my best friend at the time and I were obsessed to the point where we were regularly threatened with detentions for reading our books in class.

Unfortunately I fell out of the fandom before I ever finished reading the series, so I've never read many of the later books. I did go pick up "The Beginning" when I heard the series had ended, and then proceeded to screech and throw my copy at the wall when I was finished reading. To this day I still giggle to myself every time I pass a Cinnabon, and will occasionally use Marco's jokes when it gets too quiet and enjoy the bizarre looks I receive as a result.

Hmm. That's all. Perhaps I should go to bed now.

-ETA- Oh. Phht. I'm a smart one. Perhaps I should actually, y'know, introduce myself, huh? I'm Terrasina Dragonwagon, though right now my most common nickname is Nako. Yes, that makes sense. Hush. It's three am.

How I did it. You know, just like you all did.

2006-02-14T04:55:08Z

My dad and I took trips to Border's all the time, and we'd both pick out all these books. My mom would sigh and shake her head, but she wouldn't say anything about spending money on books because they didn't want to 'discourage reading.'

I was a huge fan of sci-fi, and I still am, thanks to my father. My dad was always telling me about classics like Dune, Ringworld, and I, Robot, and I wanted to read them, too. Unfortunately, I was pretty little, and such books were a bit above my head. There weren't many sci-fi books for kids my age, but I found Animorphs #9 and had my dad buy it for me.

I loved it, and I bought a book every month from the Scholastic Book fair catalog thing, along with buying the old ones from Border's. I continued buying them once a month until they stopped coming out.

That's how I did it.

morphz @ 2006-02-13T21:15:00

2006-02-14T04:19:23Z

My name is Asia. Or at least, that's close to my real name. I've got to be careful. Really careful. So I don't trust anyone. Because if they... Ok, I'm done now.

So, we're all supposed to be posting our experiences with Animorphs, I guess. Here's mine.

First book I read was #2 The Visitor, and I had no idea what was going on. What was with the sideways "v"s (I was around seven or eight, at the time), why were they birds, what were Andalites, etc. KA's writing floored me at first - says so much with so little detail. I dabble in writing these days, and that style has affected mine - I have a huge problem writing detail and slowing scenes down enough to take in important things, but I have a gift for sound effects and simplistic, super-quick action scenes. Go figure.

I re-read that book about 6 times in three months, until I could (I swear, I did this once at school when I was bored) write out the first two chapters from memory, with few mistakes. I finally picked up the first book, and after that, the rest of them up to six or so, which was all out at the time. There was this kid in my class who I used to compete with to see who could buy and read them quickest. I usually won.

I still loved them by the time #54 rolled around - I cried heavily at the end of that, even though I didn't like the ending at all. Read Everworld as well, but I never got into Remnants or the TV show.

I just picked them up again after about five years for a re-read, and I'm up to #27, excluding the chronicles. I'm going to make an exception for the Hork-Bajir, however, as I'm supposed to do a read-through of it... someday. I'll probably sign up for an earlier book as well, so stay tuned.

this isn't a mod post, just my input for anirachel

2006-02-13T15:35:53Z

*waves* Hello! This is your friendly neighborhood mod speaking who's been too quiet and shy to say anything here until now. ;)

Following up from this post, I was either fourteen or fifteen when I first saw the books. What caught my eye were the first four or five books, right in a row. Kids morphing into animals and I thought how stupid they looked. Reminded me of the Power Rangers and I thought it was a sorta rip-off at the time. But then my brother picked up the fifth one, the one with the stupid kid's smirk as he morphed into a gorilla, and he started talking about how cool it looked. I suddenly felt the urge to sorta "get into" the Animorphs fandom before he did, because at my age at the time, I didn't want him liking anything that I liked (he was about three years younger than I was). So I told him not to get any of them because they looked stupid and so he shouldn't get them. But I secretly wanted them for myself. Y'know, stupid sibling rivalry stuff that unfortunately haunts me to this day.

When they were doing the Scholastic fair at my school, I only grabbed the first book in case I didn't like any of the others. But I was hooked after reading the first few chapters. It wasn't like the Power Rangers at all. Best of all, it was written for kids and had a "kids voice," something I could easily relate to.

I almost cried when Elfangor died. I wanted to learn more about this creature. This sweet, kind loving creature who didn't deserve to die when he did, in that way... not at all... but as I finished, I realized I would never learn more about him in that book. But I did want to finout what happens next with those other kids, now that they had the power to change into animals and were needed to stop the invasion.

I then got books two and three, but somehow missed out on getting the fourth one. I then got book five, thinking it wouldn't have been a big deal and I probably wouldn't have missed much (I assumed it was some adventure at a SeaWorld-like place or something), but after starting book five, I went nuts with confusion. LOL. Needless to say, I vowed to never again do that in ANY fandom series, whether books, TV, or otherwise, and I read the rest in order. (The Batman fandom is okay to go in and out of order because DC Comics makes it so easy for newcomers to jump right in without feeling too discombobulated.)

All of the Tobias books (except for one of them... I think it was #43? that I didn't like) were my favorites, and The Andalite Chronicles is still my absolute favorite Anibook to this day. I think I've read that book more times than the others, which were only once. #23 and #33 made me cry, and I LOVED how Elfangor touched Tobias's life and his emotions so much despite he was no longer alive. Poor little Tobias. :(

I still have all of my books, and I do mean ALL of the Anibooks (even the "Choose Your Own Adventure" books - I figured you'd had to be a BIG die-hard fan to get those books... and I wanted to be one of 'em 'cause I thought it was cool ;)) neatly packed in fives wrapped in plastic paper (sandwich baggies, really, but they're five times the size of sandwich baggies) to keep those book-page bug eaters things off my books. They're also under my bed in a long box to prevent the sun from making the pages turn yellow or whatever. But I think anything that's in print will fade to a dull yellow color. Oh well.

I still remember getting angry that KAA wanted ghostwriters for the books. But then I figured if I really wanted a good Anibook, I'd have to let KAA have her own way so I could get a good KAA-written Anibook. Even if it was meant to be once a year (like another one of those Chronicles books).

Lastly, I think it's the same with me as it was every one else when it came to the Internet. Parents got it, I discovered fansites, making www.morphz.com my number one site to visit (even when it was back to Jeff's oooold site... TAA, I think?) and then later discovered message boards. Been at Morphz's message board since Jeff had his InsideTheWeb.com message board at MZ.com.

So that's my story. I still have yet to reread all of the books (except for #1 and TAC, which I reread over and over again, mind), so it'll be a wonderful experience for me personally to reread all of them in order and at my convenience (as opposed to waiting over a month for the next one). ^_^

< Together We Fight. > Ahh, haven't written that in so long. Takes me back...

Thanks, Greg, for getting me into these books.

I'll Intro

2006-02-13T15:22:51Z

Scene: my 13th birthday. My mom, my sister and I go to a restaurant about twenty miles from my house at my request. Afterwards, my sister says that she needs a new sleeping bag, so we head over to the nearby Target to pick one up for her.

As usual, I go to the book section, so that I can kill time while my sister, already a professional shopper, selects the perfect sleeping back. One particular book catches my eye; it has a picture of a girl turning into a cat on the front cover. I pick it up, and see that it mentions aliens. And mind control. I get the vague idea that the girl on the front cover is an alien.

Because it's my birthday--and because my sister is getting a brand-new sleeping bag--my mom agrees to buy me the book. I read the entire thing that night, and, the next day, I make my mom drive me to B. Dalton so that I can get the first book. I finish that the same day as well, and then start calling B. Dalton obsessively about the third book, which isn't due to come out until July.

. . .for the record, the guy at B. Dalton who worked there between 4pm and 9pm every weekday was named Jason. He got to know my voice. He worked there until it closed a few years later. I spoke to him at least five times a month.

I was hooked from the first word. The idea of mind-controlling aliens was just way-too-cool-for-words. When I finally got internet access (by using my mom's screen name), the first things that I looked up were LJ Smith and Animorphs. I became part of an Animorphs community, and spent way too much time hanging out in Cassie's Barn. I met my first boyfriend there. I met some of my best friends either there or on the AniBoards. I wasted oodles of time there.

The series ended the month that I graduated high school. I remember getting ready for senior prom, and stopping on the way home from the hairdresser to pick up #54. I remember wishing that it hadn't ended, and also being grateful that it had ended when it had. I remember the god-awful TV series, and the Animorphs toys at Taco Bell that I asked a friend who worked there to swipe for me. And, honest to God, if they decided to make an Animorphs movie, I'd be right there with Star Wars-type obsession.