By the 2013 hardcover history "The Covenant of Primus," the two gods become a singular being that - in a move that would put any soap opera to shame develop opposing personalities and split into two. [6], The official international Transformers convention is BotCon, but other fan events include Auto Assembly and TransForce in the UK and past Transformers only events have included BotCon Japan, BotCon Europe and "OTFCC". Once all that's taken care of, the plans get shipped across the street for the model stage. Whether that involves the two forces fighting to a standstill or Unicron being banished for a time, Primus remains wary of his enemy's return. ", "New Transformers Series Coming to Cartoon Network", "Hasbro Answers to TFviews Questions #11", "Steve Blum and Jeff Kline talk Rescue Bots & Transformers Prime", "Hasbro to Launch 'Transformers: Robots in Disguise' in Spring 2015", "Machinima & Hasbro Reteam To Develop Final Two Transformers Prime War Trilogy Chapters", "The Transformers: Titans Return Animated Series Gets Real Voice Actors", "Exclusive: 'Transformers: The Last Knight' Blu-ray Includes 'Transformers: Combiner Wars' Series", "Watch the First Transformers: Titans Return Episode Right Now! While youre here you might like to see my rundown of what I think are the 13 best toys of the 80s. The original Transformers came out in a very different toy environment than what exists today, and at a time when the market was venturing out from the slow-paced 1970s into undiscovered country.. First of all, the market itself was simply broader. These car-robot hybrids arrived on store shelves back in 1984, courtesy of Japanese company Takara Tomy and Hasbro of the United States, instantly popping up everywhere from playgrounds to. According to this article from TFW2005, retailers around the world have been given April 2022 as their supply date. This way the broadcasters could air them in any order and not create confusion among a storyline. The Transformers then wake to an Earth awash in robots thanks to a human scientist who found Megatron's shattered body and reverse-engineered it into his own robotics company. Introduced in mid-2016, Titans Return (initially touted under the early working name Titan Wars) features its own new line-wide gimmick: all Deluxe, Voyager, and Leader Class figures include a Headmaster -style Titan Master partner, all of which are completely interchangeable. Transformers led to an animated movie in 1986, many future toy lines and a series of live action movies. Factory released the complete series of Beast Wars on DVD. Gobots was a line of transforming robot toys produced by Tonka from 1983 to 1987, similar to Transformers. Optimus returns with the Dinobots and he and Megatron have it out leading to the death of Optimus Prime. 28. This is it. Most of today's Transformers weren't around for their origins any more than today's humans were around for ours. [78] Originally scheduled for late after 2007 under the title of Transformers: Heroes,[79] Transformers Animated is set in 2050 Detroit (after crash landing 50 years earlier),[78] when robots and humans live side by side. Revenge of the Fallen (or Transformers: The One Where Shia LaBeouf Goes to Robot Heaven) is where the alternate . This story doesn't take place in our present, though, but our future - the 22nd century to be exact, as we learn in the sixth episode, "Blast from the Past.". Like a human soul, the spark is what makes each Transformer a living being. If your meaning The Transformers, the answer would be 1982. The stories of this time are too numerous and varied to recount, but you'll be hard-pressed to find a comic, cartoon, or movie that doesn't offer a version of the Autobot-vs.-Decepticon battle on modern Earth. That's why most Transformer tales begin in the modern era when the Cybertronians bring their war to Earth, thereby making it our problem. Hasbro would release Generation 2 (theres the debate that theres no such thing as Generation 1 as that was simply referred to as Transformers) in 1993. Devil's Due had Cobra re-engineer the Transformers to turn into familiar Cobra vehicles, and released further mini-series that sent the characters travelling through time, battling Serpentor and being faced with the combined menace of Cobra-La and Unicron. It primarily follows the heroic Autobots and the villainous Decepticons, two alien robot factions at war that can transform into other forms, such as vehicles and animals. Instead of the entire Transformer civil war, this series focused on the two leaders once again and the crews of their starships as Optimus sought to flee Cybertron and find the missing Allspark. Evil is a relative term, and Megatron is an especially complex villain: From his perspective, the Great War is nearly always begun as a rebellion against an unfair system. He's just the second-in-command. Let's Be Heroes: T.K.O.' The toy line had a bit more of a militaristic, and obviously, robotic look to them and it was up to Japanese designer Shohei Kohara to give them a bit of a new look. The extended Japanese run consisted of The Headmasters, Super-God Masterforce, Victory and Zone, then in illustrated magazine form as Battlestars: Return of Convoy and Operation: Combination. We use cookies to personalise content and ads, to provide social media features and to analyse our traffic. Transformers may live for millions of years, but few still surviving were among the first born on Cybertron. The show was airing on Saturday mornings between October and December and served an important function of introducing new characters that would be added to the 1985 toyline. They bring Megatron back as a prisoner, but something goes terribly, terribly wrong during the time jump. They also would refer to any vehicle by its full name which G.I Joe would also focus heavily on. First broadcast in Japan in 2000, Robots in Disguise was a single animated series consisting of thirty-nine episodes. The origins of Transformers start with the Diaclone toy line made by the company Takara Toys launched in 1980. Writer Simon Furman proceeded to expand the continuity with movie spin-offs involving the time travelling Galvatron. It incorporates all the elements of technology, machines, cars, planes, action and a cool back story to create something that is a definitive part of the 80s. Transformers Generations Legacy Series Leader Transmetal II Megatron Price: $55.99 USD Release: February 1, 2023 BEAST WARS-INSPIRED DESIGN: This Legacy Series Transformers 8.5-inch. This article is about the franchise. Transformers led to an animated movie in 1986, many future toy lines and a series of live action movies. The Transformers began with the 1980s Japanese toy lines Micro Change and Diaclone. Eric Calderon was executive producer of the trilogy. By the time the Autobot and Decepticon war finally explodes into the public consciousness in the 21st century, Earth is old hat to the Transformers. Value: $1,825. I didnt even see the last two which you if you had told ten year old me that would be happening he would probably roundhouse you in the shins. In "The Five Faces of Darkness" episodes, the cartoon established that the mechanical, squid-like race had created and enslaved the Transformers before being overthrown. In the world of the "Transformers: Prime" television series, the Quintessons had infiltrated ancient Cybertron, bringing technology and prosperity as they secretly prepared the Cybertronians for slavery. In the real world, "Robots in Disguise" was an adaptation of the anime "Transformers" series, "Car Robots." It stars Shia LaBeouf, Josh Duhamel, Megan Fox, and Tyrese Gibson in the lead human cast while voice actors Peter Cullen and Hugo Weaving voice Optimus Prime and Megatron, respectively. A live-action film series started in 2007, again distinct from previous incarnations, while the Transformers: Animated series merged concepts from the G1 continuity, the 2007 live-action film and the "Unicron Trilogy". So the idea of Transformers as you know it may not have been an original idea. Ron Perlman as Optimus Primal, the leader of the Maximals that can transform into a gorilla. "Command Performances", Michael Higgins(w),Herb Trimpe(p). [111] Each series is made up of six episodes, each a half hour long. Toys may come later, or before, but that is the intended date for the wave 1 . The Transformers toys first hit US markets in 1984, and their success was almost immediate. Instead, 2001's "Transformers: Robots in Disguise" cartoon tells the story of Optimus Prime leading his Autobots to protect Earth when Megatron and his Predacons (not Decepticons)target it. Factory released the entire G1 series in a 16-DVD box set called the Matrix of Leadership Edition. -, John Moschitta Jr (the voice of micromachines commercials), Beast Wars and Beast Machines (1996-2001), Transformers: Kiss Players. Transformers premiered on June 10, 2007 in Seoul and was released on July 3 in the United States. Unicron, a transformer who devours planets, fears its power and recreates a heavily damaged Megatron as Galvatron, as well as Bombshell or Skywarp becoming Cyclonus, Thundercracker becoming Scourge and two other Insecticons becoming Scourge's huntsmen, the Sweeps. For the Autobots, some of the subgroups would be the Dinobots and the Omnibots while the Decepticons would have the Insecticons and Constructicons. In 2004's hardcover "Transformers: The Ultimate Guide," we're told The One created Unicron, then split Primus off of him. After Unicron reformats Megatron into Galvatron and creates a new, more deadly breed of Decepticon, Rodimus Prime defeats the galactic devourer once and for all. ", G1 Transformers toy figures and parts identification archive at Transformerland.com, The Last Knight Music from the Motion Picture, Before It's Too Late (Sam and Mikaela's Theme), https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Transformers&oldid=1151951348, Wikipedia indefinitely semi-protected pages, Articles with unsourced statements from June 2013, Articles to be expanded from February 2023, Articles with empty sections from February 2023, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 27 April 2023, at 07:17. The official synopsis of Transformers: Rise of The Beasts is as follows:. In "War for Cybertron: Kingdom," Optimus Prime and Megatron lead their factions to Earth in search of the AllSpark. Giving the toys a backstory and character profiles created more of an identity that kids could connect with. The series featured returning Titan characters such as Metroplex, Fortress Maximus and Trypticon and the resultant destruction such enormous characters create. I apologize if you love these movies but they felt like a huge blown opportunity. -Also on Amazon is this Megatron figure that transforms into a tank. [111] The series also had a tie-in toyline. Honestly, this movie is pretty good. [117], The trailer for the final series, Kingdom, debuted on July 5, 2021[118] and the series premiered on Netflix on July 29. The naming of the Transformer ship, the "Ark" (and reference to 1984, the year the Transformers on board were revived) and the character, Ravage being shown as intelligent, and Cybertron having an organic core were elements taken from the comics. Megatron escapes and does what his predecessor never quite managed to, enslaving all of Cybertron and reformatting Maximals and Predacons alike into mindless drones. It doesn't matter where in the multiverse you land: Unicroniscoming. Kids needed to know the name of the toy they would be screaming for in the middle of a Walmart. [102] Power of the Primes focused on the arrival of Megatronus, one of the original Primes. Produced by Boulder Media Limited, Hasbro Studios and Allspark Animation for Cartoon Network, it started airing on September 1, 2018. But Transformers would not disappear from TV as a Fifth season was released which was just re-runs of 15 episodes from the original series along with the movie which was edited into 4 episodes. Both of these releases took place over 1984 and 1985 but were considered as one giant release. Some stories, like "The Covenant of Primus," which serves as a history for the "Transformers: Prime" cartoon, refer to The Thirteen - the original, legendary Primes who set all of Transformer history in motion. In the 1980s, the mega-popular Transformers toy line by Hasbro spawned an animated series, an animated movie, and a run in Marvel comics. The Transformers is an American animated television series that originally aired from September 17, 1984, to November 11, 1987, in syndication based upon Hasbro 's Transformers toy line. In two of the most modern continuities - the "War for Cybertron Trilogy" and 2018's "Cyberverse" cartoon the exodus begins when Optimus ejects the AllSpark into space to keep it out of Megatron's hands. The Transformers animated television series debuts with a mini-series entitled "More than Meets the Eye." New episodes began in September, airing on Saturday mornings. ", "Starting the beast war: dreamwave talks tformers: beast war", "BotCon 2006 - Transformers Comics: Past, Present & Future", "IDW Loses GI Joe, Transformers License at the End of the Year", "IDW's Plans For Transformers Revealed At The 2006 San Diego Comic Con", "Stuart Moore Talks New Avengers/Transformers", "Ryall answers fans' questions on TF/Avengers crossover", "NYCC, DAY 2: MOORE, ROSEMANN AND RYALL TALK "NEW AVENGERS/ TRANSFORMERS", "A New IDW Comic Is Mashing Up Star Trek and Transformers in the Most Glorious Way Possible", "Transformers Comics For April 2007 From IDW", "Hasbro Confirms The Transformers Cinematic Universe - Transformers 5 In 2017? Primus was introduced as the creator of the Transformers, to serve his material body that is planet Cybertron and fight his nemesis Unicron. if(typeof ez_ad_units!='undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[300,250],'everything80spodcast_com-large-mobile-banner-2','ezslot_10',151,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-everything80spodcast_com-large-mobile-banner-2-0');They would also introduce the remainder of the 1985 toyline with a two-part episode called Dinobot Island. [112][114], A trailer for the second series, dubbed Earthrise, was published on December 7, 2020[115] The second series debuted on Netflix on December 30. However, the Japanese broadcast of the series was supplemented with a newly produced OVA, Scramble City, before creating entirely new series to continue the storyline, ignoring the 1987 end of the American series. [67], IDW Publishing introduced The Transformers: Evolutions in 2006, a collection of mini-series that re-imagine and reinterpret the G1 characters in various ways. This would lead them to crashland on earth where they laid dormant for 4-million years. [note 1] Michael Bay directed the first five films: Transformers (2007), Revenge of the Fallen (2009), Dark of the Moon (2011), Age of Extinction (2014), and The Last Knight (2017), [1] [2] [3] and has served as a producer for subsequent It takes place in the year 2005, twenty years after the events of season 2. Sequels followed, such as the Generation 2 comic book and Beast Wars TV series, which became its own mini-universe. [97] The first series was included as a bonus feature on the Transformers: The Last Knight Blu-ray release. After a dangerous pursuit through transwarp space, both the Maximal and Predacon factions end up crash landing on a primitive, uncivilized planet similar to Earth, but with two moons and a dangerous level of Energon (which is later revealed to be prehistoric Earth with an artificial second moon, taking place sometime during the 4 million year period in which the Autobots and Decepticons were in suspended animation from the first episode of the original Transformers cartoon), which forces them to take organic beast forms in order to function without going into stasis lock. Back on TV, meanwhile, his and Galvatron's time-travel manipulation brought the Autobots, Decepticons, Maximals, and Predacons crashing together in spectacular fashion in the "War for Cybertron Trilogy." In Devil's Due, the terrorist organization Cobra is responsible for finding and reactivating the Transformers. Ultimately, the Transformers revolt and explore the cosmos before coming to Earth about 19,000 years before modern times. This led to a Golden Age that was spoiled when Megatron discovered that the Quintessons still secretly controlled Cybertron's ruling council (he gives this reason for starting the Great War). It's one of the more curious futures out there, based on an utterly unique take on Transformer history. Young Megatron often counts Optimus as a friend, and the two initially share ideals of Cybertronian freedom and self-determination. These three shady bots technically answer to the Maximals but still plot to regain power, even as they brand this era's Megatron a criminal for taking similar actions in the past. While it's not necessarily always the case, in most realities, according to the official "Ask Vector Prime" Facebook page which was originally created by Hasbro as a feature on their website Primus himself is the "divine spark" that ignited Transformer life, millions and millions of years ago. The story is notable for setting up Unicron's godlike powers and ability to mess with time by pulling Galvatron out of the future. They approached Marvel Comics to create a backstory with names and short descriptions for each character, which were written by Bob Budiansky. After he was defeated, he headed over to Marvel comics, threatening their universe beginning in 1990. This wasnt an anomaly but up until that point, there had been HUGE restrictions on anything that revolved around advertising to children. Sometime in the 21st century, the Great War finally ends with the Autobots defeating the Decepticons and signing the Pax Cybertronia peace accords. The line was originally called The Transformers, with "Generation 1" originating as a term coined by fans of the toys when the Transformers: Generation 2toy line was released in 1992. More time travel shenanigans ensue, but ultimately the Maximals fend off the Predacons and return to their own time. The only Decepticons in the entire universe are created when Megatron gets his hands on a small handful Autobot "protoforms" (Autobot blank slates) and brainwashes them into new, evil creations. [99] Titans Return debuted on November 14, 2017, on the Go90 platform, consisting of ten episodes at roughly 11 minutes each. Is transformers 4 coming? [12] Shockwave is loyal to Megatron in the TV series, keeping Cybertron in a stalemate during his absence,[13] but in the comic book he attempts to take command of the Decepticons. The second NTFA convention with official support from Hasbro Nordic, now renamed "NordCon" (to avoid copyright problems with the name "Mini-Con") was held in Aalborg, Denmark from 19 June to 20 June 2010. The definitive toy and cartoon series to me growing up in the 80s. Cast: Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Tobias Menzies, Michaela Watkins. It's been five years since the last movie directed by Nicole Holofcener ( Walking and . . This was pretty imperative because it would make Transformers part of a kids daily routine. In the second season, the two-part episode The Key to Vector Sigma introduced the ancient Vector Sigma computer, which served the same original purpose as the Creation Matrix (giving life to Transformers), and its guardian Alpha Trion. Both groups would have to leave Cybertron to try and find new sources of energy to be able to revitalize their war efforts. To me, its the kind of toy a kid doesnt even know he wants. [43] They also released the same content as individual seasons.[44]. [22] In the United Kingdom, the weekly comic book interspliced original material to keep up with U.S. reprints,[23] and The Movie provided much new material. Figures feature deco inspired by their universe with an updated Generations design. Starscream disposes of the wounded Megatron in space while the planet-sized Unicron (voiced by Orson Welles in his last role) rolls through the galaxy. At this point, the Transformer is . Some more modern tellings, like IDW's 2005 "Transformers" comic book series, have Optimus, Megatron, and their troops intentionally infiltrating modern Earth, having never lain dormant at all. [77] Bumblebee was released on December 21, 2018, serving as a prequel to the first film, although it has since been declared a reboot of the film franchise. They bought the rights and molds to all 28 figures that were in the Diaclone line. This is why when you watch cartoon shows, specifically during this time period, you notice that the characters would always address each other by their full name. Optimus Prime sends a shuttle to earth for supplies but its hijacked by Megatron leading to the death Sorry, clearing out of Ironhide, Ratchet, Prowl, and Brawn. First introduced with zero background in 1986's . Two seasons, named "Chapters", were planned, with the first aired in 2018 and with the second, subtitled Power of the Spark, planned for 2019. More or less. Ditto Starscream, Thundercracker, and Skywarp. The designs for the original 28 figures were made by Shji Kawamori,[3][4], In 1986, film critic Richard Martin called the original toy series a more fun counterpart to Rubik's Cube in "[helping] children develop their hand-eye coordination and their spatial reasoning skills, but Hasbro kept quiet about this, believing no self-respecting 10-year-old boy would bug his parents half to death to buy him an educational toy". The two factions are born from the scant remains of the surviving Cybertronians and live under constant threat from Galvatron and Nemesis, Unicron's lackeys reborn from Megatron and Optimus' dead bodies. It seemed like a monumental task and the technology might not have been there. ", "Next TF Cartoon Series: "Transformers Heroes"? The toys have always been going pretty strong. There was Primus and Unicron. The franchise encompasses toys, animation, comic books, video games and films. nearly four decades later, the Transformers, official "Ask Vector Prime" Facebook page, Megatron is an especially complex villain, beloved corner of the "Transformers" universe, "Transformers," kicking off an uneven series, 2022's "Transformers:Rise of the Beasts". The premise behind the Transformers toy line is that an individual toy's parts can be shifted about to change it from a vehicle, a device, or an animal, to a robot action figure and back again. 1986's "Transformers: UK" annual first establishedthis path with the story of the brutal gladiator Megatron initially joining Optimus in a war between tyrannical city-states. On the planet, they encounter characters previously seen in the older series Transformers: Beast Wars. Hasbro, either too lazy to come up with something or just seeing the huge potential licensed the car-robot toyline along with the micro man line from Takara. All in all the first movie had more of an alien invasion feel to it and didnt seem to capture the essence of what made the Transformers so beloved. To follow the full path of the Transformers could take days and days and youve probably got better things to do. It is notable for being the first television series of the franchise to have an 11-minute runtime (the latter two installments of the Prime Wars Trilogy have first utilized this format) and for having a New York cast instead of the usual Los Angeles one. He created a more humanistic appearance and they were even further simplified by Floro Dery who would become lead designer of the series. If it weren't so wildly outside of the main continuities, this next-century future could have been a bridge between the robotic Transformers of the past and present, and the technorganic bots of the future. Not only that they kill him off like 23 minutes into the damn movie. The second series of the Transformers reissued all the toys from the first set plus twenty-six new toys. When did transformers come out? He said "[kids mastered] its difficulties in no time [but it makes] grown-ups feel like klutzes". Transformers: Animated is a cartoon that was aired in early 2008 on Cartoon Network in the United States. [6], The Transformers mecha were largely designed by Shji Kawamori, the creator of the Japanese mecha anime franchise Macross (which was adapted into the Robotech franchise in North America). Transformers is a media franchise produced by American toy company Hasbro and Japanese toy company Takara Tomy. I never saw it till later on as a kid and had no idea I was watching a 90-minute commercial. Transformers received mixed to positive reviews and was a box office success. This new continuity originally consisted of a comic book series titled The Transformers with a companion series known as The Transformers: Spotlight. Hasbro, in an attempt to stop the wave of reboots that started in 2001, created the Aligned Universe, with the intent to unify every Transformers media into one continuity. Thats just epic knowing this. After the Quintessons are driven off, the Transformers, for better or worse, become masters of their own fate. In one of the Transformers' futures, the Beast Wars end with the Maximals returning to Cybertron in their own time. It introduced the Matrix as the "Autobot Matrix of Leadership", as a fatally wounded Prime gives it to Ultra Magnus; however, as Prime dies he drops the matrix, which is then caught by Hot Rod who subsequently becomes Rodimus Prime later on in the film.