TF Animated - opinions?

BB Shockwave · Post by **BB Shockwave** » Fri Apr 11, 2008 1:50 pm

I can't believe the first season is over and yet I see no threads about the new cartoon... I'd love to discuss it with you!

So, what do you think? Opinions?

Hound · Post by **Hound** » Fri Apr 11, 2008 1:59 pm

I think it's the best Transformers cartoon since Beast Wars.

The voice acting is superb.

The animation is much better than anyone gives it credit for. What it lacks in complexity it more than makes up with personality.

The character designs are unique, but there are plenty of nods to G1 throughout the season. Infact there are tons of easter eggs in general. Personality wise, each character is very strong, even the guest characters like Lockdown leave an impression.

The stories, whilst far from complex, are far more intelligent than anything in G1, and the running themes throughout the first season stop it from being too kiddy. Events in previous episodes (set pieces or character pieces) have an impact on the progression of the story.

The toys also look like fun!

My only gripe is that the human villains are a bit weak. Meltdown especially.

I think the 1st season was a resounding success. No reason why the 2nd season shouldn't be even better.

Professor Smooth · Post by **Professor Smooth** » Sat Apr 12, 2008 3:08 am

I love it. I can't find anything to criticize at all. A grand slam.

That's probably why I can't find much discussion of it. On many TF sites, the most popular threads are complaining about something. Animated has very little to complain about IF you can get past the all-new art style.

BB Shockwave · Post by **BB Shockwave** » Sat Apr 12, 2008 9:03 am

Glad you feel this way...

I'm too loving Animated - in fact I'm translating it to Hungarian since our CN didn't yet state that they want to air the show in central europe.

Some of my favourite episodes were the three-parter season start, "Thrill of the hunt", "Along came a spider" and "Sound and Fury".

I really love the reimagining of the characters - Ratchet is truly my favourite of the Bots. I can totally see him sacrificing himself to destroy Megatron, just like Marvel Racthet.

Starscream is excellent too, the same old betrayer as in G1, but he's less stupid and more sophisticated. Still has an ego the size of Fort Max though ("You interrupted my speech!!!")... Tom Kenny is an excellent voice actor for the role.

Megatron is truly one of the best incarnations of the character in years... Cold and cruel leader, but he can play the role of the 'innocent autobot' when needs to. And unlike G1 Cartoon Megs, TFA Megs didn't let Starscream get away with his treachery day after day - the first time was the last.

I loved their little talk in Megatron Rising.

The new characters are equally great - I quickly became to like Bulkhead, very strong personality-wise. Lugnut is hilarious, kinda like Inferno but less silly. The triple-faces of Blitzwing were an ingenious idea... And Lockdown is the next best thing we could get to an Animated Death's Head.

If I have some criticism with the series, they are only minor ones, and hopefully they'll be adressed later... Such as, I hope in time all the Dinobots learn to talk, and Grimlock becomes more bad-ass and less 'cartoon-silly' as time progresses. And Animated Soudnwave stole G1 Shockwave's logical 'schtick'!

The nerve!

Granted, I heard rumors Animated Shockwave will make his appearance in Season 2.

One thing I'm most intrigued about is all the talk about "autobot tryanny" and the way Magnus and co. don't seem to be pretty nice leaders... I wonder if Megatron truly started out as a revolutionary rebel this time...

Aaron Hong · Post by **Aaron Hong** » Sat Apr 12, 2008 12:28 pm

Hound wrote:
My only gripe is that the human villains are a bit weak. Meltdown especially.

We got that episode this morning - seriously, a little less cheesy and Meltdown would belong on The Batman.

BB Shockwave · Post by **BB Shockwave** » Sun Apr 13, 2008 11:35 am

Yep, Meltdown=Phosphorous, don'tya think?

Btw, Jazz is ACE. Great design, good voice talent, and pretty close to his G1 personality. Plus, he knows Metallikato!

Magnus certainly CAN deal with stuff now. He also seems to have inherited Thor's hammer!

Sentinel Prime is a jerk, pure and simple. Can't wait to see him lose his head, not figuratively speaking, in Return of Headmaster...

Sunyavadin · Post by **Sunyavadin** » Sun Apr 13, 2008 1:50 pm

My first response to seeing it was a resounding LOL WUT?!?
But it seems to have started my friends' kids getting into TF. Which is a good thing.

Aaron Hong · Post by **Aaron Hong** » Sun Apr 13, 2008 4:24 pm

BB Shockwave wrote: Magnus certainly CAN deal with stuff now. He also seems to have inherited Thor's hammer!

Hang on. Prime has a big axe, Magnus has a hammer - all we need is some casters and the raid party is complete.

Betcha Grimlock gets the 2-hand sword.

BB Shockwave · Post by **BB Shockwave** » Tue Apr 15, 2008 8:14 am

Aaron Hong wrote:
BB Shockwave wrote: Magnus certainly CAN deal with stuff now. He also seems to have inherited Thor's hammer!
Hang on. Prime has a big axe, Magnus has a hammer - all we need is some casters and the raid party is complete. Betcha Grimlock gets the 2-hand sword.

Hehe, too true! Sentinel also has a shield and G1 Trailbreaker's forcefield powers...
Magnus is more like a fighter/druid with the call lightning stuff...

Prowl could be the rogue...

Post by **spiderfrommars** » Tue Apr 15, 2008 10:56 am

Will have to wait for the DVD. Not on terrestrial or digital TV here.

Impactor returns 2.0 · Post by **Impactor returns 2.0** » Tue Apr 15, 2008 12:18 pm

i watched a few episodes, and whilst the story was, interesting, the art style is basically, cheap.

This art style isnt used because its pretty on the eye, or anything, its purely used becauses incredibly cheap to achive, unlike actually drawing out a proper TF, like in say the G1 cartoons.

Many animations on TV now use this style for the reason of cost alone but no animation in my opinion suffers so greatly as TF.

I can accept it on clone wars (which is of high quality) and power puff girls etc... because the content is mainly organic and bouncy but TF are 50ton metal robots, that by thier very nature are stiff and, well robotic.
This art style gos against what they are, its akin to me asking you draw an old factory using jelly, its a contridiction of terms.

Ok, so ignoring the art, the story is as good as the G1 cartoon I suppose, its enjoyable in places, and zips along nicely, im not sure on all the characters, megatron seems over powered, and the cast to thin to combat megs on any scale.

I dunno, for all of G1's short-falls, there is a certain grace about 1980's cartoons, they are violent in places, and toy commercials in others yet they get the job done properly, and leave the overtly PC nature of nature of todays nanny state cartoons in the sand pit, with the other children, too scared to play on the slide with the big boys...

anyhows. animation, sucks for me, story, average.
overall, they dont make them like they used to, and, I dont see what this cartoon brings to TF, other than overtly childish image which does nothing for the brand.

Sunyavadin · Post by **Sunyavadin** » Tue Apr 15, 2008 4:20 pm

Agreed, it looks absolutely hideous.

The Last Autobot · Post by **The Last Autobot** » Tue Apr 22, 2008 7:57 pm

Ill buy a couple of toys (who am I kidding, Ill probably buy all as usual).

But I cant stand the show yet, maybe Ill see all the episodes in a marathon to not see them again in my life.

Aaron Hong · Post by **Aaron Hong** » Tue Apr 29, 2008 5:21 am

We just got the Lockdown episode on TV here. I gotta say, the idea of a TF version of Sylar probably works better in ttheory because you wind up with this guy who's starting to look more like Autobot X with his mixed-up parts. At least the toy holds together okay. And getting Susan Blu back in the role of Arcee only to have her KOed near the end... guess you really can't please everybody.

BB Shockwave · Post by **BB Shockwave** » Wed Apr 30, 2008 7:22 pm

Aaron Hong wrote:We just got the Lockdown episode on TV here. I gotta say, the idea of a TF version of Sylar probably works better in ttheory because you wind up with this guy who's starting to look more like Autobot X with his mixed-up parts. At least the toy holds together okay. And getting Susan Blu back in the role of Arcee only to have her KOed near the end... guess you really can't please everybody.

Umm, Lockdown was more like the TFA version of Death's Head and Boba Fett rolled into one...

Btw, Arcee will be back in Season 3. We might even get a G1 hommage Arcee toy actually - it's WIP right now! Was shown at Botcon.

Anyhow, if you want to see Starscream getting what he had coming for years (G1 Megs in the cartoon always let him get away with treachery)... Then watch episode 19. It's hilarious. Basically, Starscream is dead (spark extinguished by Megs), but a fragment of the Allspark embedded in his head always brings him back to life - making him immortal.

And of course, what does any Starscream do with great power?

He uses it unwisely. Namely, trying to kill Megatron, again... and again... and again...

See all this remastered to classic Benny Hill music!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fHefnuB1qik

Megs: "You wanted to lead the Decepticons? You couldn't lead a parade."

Aaron Hong · Post by **Aaron Hong** » Sun May 04, 2008 2:39 pm

We got the Nanosec episode this week. Now, this bugger may look like he definitely belongs on Teen Titans, but that bit at the end when they revealed what his accerating-suit was really doing to him left a bit of a chill. Even the two cloning guys on Teen Titans and The Batman didn't show any lasting damage, a twist like this belongs on BtAS for sure.

Next week Blackarachnia appears - for some reason the guy voicing over the trailer was allowed to say 'hell hath no fury like a Decepticon scorned'.

EDIT: OK, I just managed to put my finger on the one niggling thing about TF Animated that sort of bothers me - those long silences between lines. Didn't G1 have background music for every blinkin' occasion?

Toywise, all I got are Bumblebee and Prowl - and a spare Prowl on the cheap. I swear TF bikes are getting smaller.

EDIT 2: Got up a bit late forthe Blackarachnia ep. Well, I still miss Venus Terzo but Cree Summer came pretty close with the voice. And speaking of voices, OMFG SOUNDWAVE.

EDIT 3: Two weeks down, two more eps.

Soundwave - they gotta bring him back. I don't care if he was a children's toy pooped out by G1 Soundwave, he was perfect.

Return of the Dinobots - apparently when one The Batman reject isn't enough, you send two. I have a very hard time believing Grimlock of all people would be afraid of anyone, it actually makes more sense for him to be tricked into following the bad guys. Didn't that happen on G1?

Next week, the extra head on Leader class Bulkhead is explained.

Eber · Post by **Eber** » Sun Sep 21, 2008 8:24 am

Well...the animation is quite bad. The constructicon characters are lame as ****. Optimus Prime is ****. Bumblebee is ****. This wshit Is just bad. The drawings look like ass. Bulkhead is just ****. He looks like he's retarded. What a ******* asshole.

stranger · Post by **stranger** » Sun Sep 21, 2008 6:23 pm

Eber wrote:Well...the animation is quite bad. The constructicon characters are lame as ****. Optimus Prime is ****. Bumblebee is ****. This wshit Is just bad. The drawings look like ass. Bulkhead is just ****. He looks like he's retarded. What a ******* asshole.

Do you kiss your mother with that mouth?

BB Shockwave · Post by **BB Shockwave** » Tue Sep 23, 2008 7:29 pm

Aaron Hong wrote:Even the two cloning guys on Teen Titans and The Batman didn't show any lasting damage, a twist like this belongs on BtAS for sure.

Well there is plenty lasting damage in TFA - just think of Meltdown. Even his transformation was kinda creepy...

But Nanosec will be back...

Next week Blackarachnia appears - for some reason the guy voicing over the trailer was allowed to say 'hell hath no fury like a Decepticon scorned'.

Come now, people there still cannot say 'hell' on TV? Why? I mean, do they -bleeep- out the word when a priest talks about heaven and -bleeep-?

It's times like this I'm glad I live in Europe. Then I check the toystores and I wish I lived in the USA... Hard choices.

EDIT: OK, I just managed to put my finger on the one niggling thing about TF Animated that sort of bothers me - those long silences between lines. Didn't G1 have background music for every blinkin' occasion?

I noticed that too - quite frankly Animated's music never really stuck to my mind. If there is a background music, it's well hidden.

EDIT 2: Got up a bit late forthe Blackarachnia ep. Well, I still miss Venus Terzo but Cree Summer came pretty close with the voice. And speaking of voices, OMFG SOUNDWAVE.

BA is awesome. Both the new backstory (heck, she's Elita One!!!) and the design. Sure, for us Batman TAS fans she seems like an obvious Catwoman ripoff, but this kind of thing is certainly new for TFs.

Soundwave - they gotta bring him back. I don't care if he was a children's toy pooped out by G1 Soundwave, he was perfect.

He'll be back in Season 3 with more appearances - some rumor he might even get to lead the Decepticons in Megs' absence.

Return of the Dinobots - apparently when one The Batman reject isn't enough, you send two. I have a very hard time believing Grimlock of all people would be afraid of anyone, it actually makes more sense for him to be tricked into following the bad guys. Didn't that happen on G1?

But the cameos of Bomb-Burst and Submarauder were priceless...

But yeah, the only thing I could not cope with in Animated is Grimlock (and the other two nameless stooges). A badass Grimlock could have been done in Animated... so far, Grimmy didn't even ever fight the Decepticons yet, he's more trouble to the Bots...

Funny thing is, as Simon mentioned on his blog to my question, he does enjoy Animated and especially likes the dumb Grimlock! He says it's so different then his version, it's enjoyable. He will write a story for them in the UK Animated comic, btw.

Astrotrain99 · Post by **Astrotrain99** » Wed Oct 22, 2008 10:42 pm

I was one of the ones whom would have preferred a bit more realistic look for the series (closer to TMNT 2003 and He-Man 2003), but its defiantly grown on me and the animation itself is very fluid and detailed. (At least they don't move all stiff like the cheap anime style they used for the Unicron Trilogy).

I think this show is the by far the best since Beast Wars as far as story, character development, and general feel of the show. Done in a fresh new style of the kids, but still throws out the easter eggs every other episode for the older fans.

Aaron Hong · Post by **Aaron Hong** » Thu Oct 23, 2008 2:54 pm

Well, the local broadcast of New Transformers (which is what we've taken to calling it because Animated really doesn't roll off the tongue easily) is finally over, only for some reason the network people felt like extending the series by rerunning some episodes. About 2 or 3 spliced between the Bumblebee Boot Camp and Black Friday episodes.

I don't know what the bigger surprise is, the fact that they brought back Shockwave, or Waspinator. My kids were like OMG WASPINATOR.

Memories of Black Friday are a bit fuzzy, something about Grimlock crushing on Blackarachnia? At least that seemed a little more believable. I still think they shot themselves in the foot by turning two characters into one (Elita-1 and BA) like that. Although they could still release a Elita-1 toy down the line if they wanted to. It's high time we had a new fembot above Deluxe class.

So the last episode rolls around. Figures we're getting Encore Omega Supreme in stores at around this time. (I had to explain him to the kids by saying 'aaaaaaall that, turns into this'.) And they managed to top the whole Shockwave thing with some even bigger surprises (I woke up late so I have no idea how the Seekers came about, blagh), especially the last surprise in the end... but Megs and Screamer bickering in the credits killed the whole effect from all that.

Now I gotta stop my kids from opening my Animated Starscream's head.

Legion · Post by **Legion** » Mon Feb 23, 2009 6:15 pm

just watched the first season of this over the weekend and i was very pleasantly surprised! I wasn't expecting much from it, but it's actually quite good, characterisation is pretty good, plots are ok, heck, there's even continuity...
Don't get me wrong, it's no beast wars, but it's far far better than what i picked up from the promos etc.
Took me a while to adjust to the animation style, but that's actually overlookable once you get into it!

me likes.

hoping to get into season 2 soon!