Transformers PRIME

[RD Blade]

I'm psyched that Adam Baldwin is part of the new show. He was awesome as Superman...and epic as Jane Cobb.

[areaseven]

This was already posted on the general TF super thread, but I thought I'd post it here, as it is related to this series.

HubWorld Official Launch - Transformers: Prime Character Renders, Games and More

[areaseven]

Updated CGI Renders - Looking good, so far.

[protostar8]

Just curious, when does this show start? I just realized my tv package gets me this channel, so I may watch it just for the heck of it even if I don't care for the designs too much.

[David Hingtgen]

Nov 29, last I heard.

[protostar8]

Nov 29, last I heard.

Okay,

Thanks for that!

[Black Valkyrie]

Starscream looks alright but Soundwave 50/50.

[Shin Densetsu Kai 7.0]

Newest trailer:

Transformers PRIME Launch Trailer

[Guest sh002]

looks cool. still like arcee the most and would pick up a figure of her

Edited November 24, 2010 by sh002

[areaseven]

Here's a sneak preview and behind-the-scenes look at the series:

[one_klump]

Despite my being on the fence about the actual show, that was by far the best behind the scenes bit yet.

[Chewie]

Not a huge fan of the bot animations and not a fan at all of the overall animations but to hear Frank and Peter again was pretty awesome. The first two episodes didn't really seem like it was going to be a good story for a mini-series and 30 minutes each just doesn't really give it enough time but I guess we'll see.

Worst case scenario: we all lose 2 hours and 30 minutes of our lives spanned over a couple weeks.

Unless it being a mini-series is only for the first 5?

Edited November 27, 2010 by Chewie

[mikeszekely]

Not a huge fan of the bot animations and not a fan at all of the overall animations but to hear Frank and Peter again was pretty awesome. The first two episodes didn't really seem like it was going to be a good story for a mini-series and 30 minutes each just doesn't really give it enough time but I guess we'll see.

Worst case scenario: we all lose 2 hours and 30 minutes of our lives spanned over a couple weeks.

Unless it being a mini-series is only for the first 5?

I think the first season is 26 episodes, and I think the first five make a mini series. And I'm not sure what the regular schedule is supposed to be, but the first five eps are supposed to air one a day, Monday through Friday this week. What we got on Black Friday was like a preview, and those eps will air Monday and Tuesday.

[RedWolf]

Prime borrows a lot from other continuities in the franchise.

Bumblebee mute and beeping- Movie and Unicron Trilogy

Ground Bridge- RID spacebridge

Jack - Movie Sam expy

Miko - Animated Sari expy

Ratchet- WFC design and Animated snarkyness

Megatron- Movie design and WFC madness

Optimus Prime- Movie Prime

Agent Fowler- Movie bureaucrat/S7 agent

Autobot Base- Earth base in Cybertron

Eradicons- Cylons as Vehicons only intelligent

Energon- Beast Wars and Energon

Dark Energon is common theme with WFC and Exodus but dialogue suggest Prime is a new continuity no matter what Hasbro says.

Edited November 28, 2010 by RedWolf

[Guest sh002]

so there's no where to watch this if you miss it or don't record it right? why can't the hub website have full episodes? lame.

Edited November 28, 2010 by sh002

[David Hingtgen]

No less than 3 sources here: http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/transformers-prime-discussion/344344-anyone-posting-episodes-youtube-8.html

[Shin Densetsu Kai 7.0]

Prime borrows a lot from other continuities in the franchise.

Bumblebee mute and beeping- Movie and Unicron Trilogy

Ground Bridge- RID spacebridge

Jack - Movie Sam expy

Miko - Animated Sari expy

Ratchet- WFC design and Animated snarkyness

Megatron- Movie design and WFC madness

Optimus Prime- Movie Prime

Agent Fowler- Movie bureaucrat/S7 agent

Autobot Base- Earth base in Cybertron

Eradicons- Cylons as Vehicons only intelligent

Energon- Beast Wars and Energon

Dark Energon is common theme with WFC and Exodus but dialogue suggest Prime is a new continuity no matter what Hasbro says.

Prime's shoulders look similar to WFC Prime's.

[mikeszekely]

Well, I wanted to give it until I'd seen all five parts of the first story arc to form an opinion. I've got a few.

I'd rather Orci and Kurtzman stay the hell away from Transformers. Bayformers have been the worst incarnation of the franchise, and Prime is at least 70% Bayformers.

The writing so far is pretty bland. It's mostly hobbled together elements from the disparate Transformers universes, and without the imagination that Animated had.

The Transformers are pretty bland. Ratchet is grumpy Ratchet from Animated, but without the cantankerousness of age, he's just unlikeable. I hate to criticize Peter Cullen since, in my ears, he IS Optimus Prime, but while Peter definitely has the market on Prime's wisdom, compassion, and determination, I think Gary Chalk's Prime is more energetic. Likewise, while it's cool to hear Frank Welker doing Megatron again, his Megatron sounds a little cheesy compared to, say, Corey Burton. That's not too bad, because Megatron in Prime is definitely more crazy megalomaniac Megatron than Animated's brutal and cunning version. As for the rest of the cast, Bumblebee and Soundwave have no dialogue, Arcee is your stereotypically guarded tough-gal, and Bulkhead is your stereotypical dull but compassionate tough-guy. Bulkhead makes me sad especially, because he lacks most of the character that he had in Animated.

Surprisingly, though, the humans aren't too bad. Jack can be a little emo at times, and Miko can be a little annoying, but I think they might be my favorite humans in a Transformers show so far. Well, regular humans, at any rate... Detective Fanzone was kinda cool.

Bottom line, I'm going to watch it because it's Transformers. I hope that it'll get better now that they've got the "epic" premiere out of the way. But in the back of my mind, I'm always going to be thinking, "They canceled Animated for THIS?"

[Fit For Natalie]

Funny, I see people say they love Ratchet, because he's such a dick. Especially when he opens the ground bridge right after Jack decides to leave. Great timing.

Edited December 5, 2010 by Fit For Natalie

[RedWolf]

Funny, I see people say they love Ratchet, because he's such a dick. Especially when he opens the ground bridge right after Jack decides to leave. Great timing.

When Jeffrey Combs said Megatron was desecrating their ancestors and his own he was pretty much channeling Shran there.

Starscream here is different from the rest of the Starscreams, he'll just wait for your plan to blow up on your face, promptly leave you for dead thus having a legitimate claim to command without looking like a backstabber. He also expresses a facade of concern. Though he has a berserk button for saying he is not in charge. Cliffjumper and Fowler were his cruelest for being smart-alecs.

[Dio]

Only seen the first 2 (from the youtube links) and have a mixed bag of reviews.

I feel somewhat tainted by previous shows, in that this one is coming off as a bit of a Frankenstein mix of "things the writers heard the fans loved about Animated" and "things the writers want to inject into it because it's a tie-in to the movies they also wrote." There just doesn't seem to be much understanding of the source material there, and the homages/copied elements that they're trying for come off as half-assed and not well understood.

"Con" Examples

Ratchet & Bulkhead are cranky, and ostensibly an endearing giant, respectively. However, it just comes off as "jerk" and "generic muscle that the token human girl forms an attachment to."

The back story of Cybertron seems to contain a few general points throwing back to WFC (advertised as the prequel), but it's like they didn't really do their homework and just watched a few game clips on YouTube, then decided to include the plot points they could remember.

Despite all that, oddly enough, it's the new original material that I'm liking the most, and what I think will be the show's strong points.

"Pro" Examples

Arcee and Cliffjumper are pretty compelling incarnations this go-around. I especially like Cliffjumper's portrayal, because it establishes that the series isn't messing around and wants to carry some sense of gravity. Arcee with a little bit of a past isn't done over-the-top and I think they're doing a good job of setting up the partnership with her human character. She could have very easily been done as "Cheerleader Prowl" and I'm thankful they're exercising a little bit of subtlety.

Optimus is seeming pretty classic, and so far is done right. Seeing him interact with a more realistic human government is a neat angle that they never really explored outside of the movies.

Megatron will hopefully see some character development as well, there's potential there.

Soundwave I'm really liking - it's a good style for him.

It looks like it's got some good production values and they're at least putting some thought into it, so maybe it will find its feet and really make that extra push to become something awesome in its own right. Either way, I can't wait to see the toys. And their zombie versions.

[RedWolf]

"Con" Examples

Ratchet & Bulkhead are cranky, and ostensibly an endearing giant, respectively. However, it just comes off as "jerk" and "generic muscle that the token human girl forms an attachment to."

The back story of Cybertron seems to contain a few general points throwing back to WFC (advertised as the prequel), but it's like they didn't really do their homework and just watched a few game clips on YouTube, then decided to include the plot points they could remember.

One setting Prime as a sequel to WFC was a move by Hasbro marketing to attract people to Prime. Two WFC developer High Moon made WFC thinking G1 prequel. Three this is Orci and Kurtzman we are talking about notorious for continuity snarls and not doing research. Star Trek the whole Klingon Neutralzone, In RoTF failing at geography not to mention forgetting Israel existed. Israel is smack dabbed in between Egypt and Jordan.

The only thing in common between WFC, Exodus novel and Prime is Dark Energon. Even its effects are different. Plus in Prime it was as if Starscream hasn't seen Dark Enegon before. In WFC and Exodus Starscream was in charge of the damn stuff. Not to mention Megatron already mastered Dark Energon.

Prime's history indicated the factions and war was before Optimus and Megatron and the war was over Energon. The Energon on Earth was brought there by the ancient Autobots and ancient Decepticons as spoils. Earth was the biggest Cybertronian battleground in this galaxy. Optimus Prime and Megatron was once friends. Megatron lost his way, Optimus Prime chose a side.

In WFC and Exodus the factionalization was recent.

Edited December 7, 2010 by RedWolf

[eriku]

I think this is one of the more enjoyable TF shows so far, although not yet as much fun as Animated was. Overall though it's hard for me to get very interested or care about most TF cartoon series when almost every single one is a reboot/origin story told slightly differently each time - like each series is about the same characters in various parallel dimensions. That's one of the reasons 90% of my attention for Transformers is focused on the toys. Say what you will about the quality of the multiple Star Wars movies, TV shows, comics, books and games - but at least they make an attempt to hold it all together within the same universe and continuity. With Transformers every new cartoon introduces it like it's the first time the story is being told. I guess that's to be expected when the primary objective for the show is being a toy commercial aimed at kids who might not be familiar with Transformers toys.

And on that note, I want a TFPrime Bulkhead toy like NOW.

[RedWolf]

Interesting email by Hasbro UK, WFC and Prime are separate continuities.

Course this isn't Hasbro US statement. Wonder if they'll follow through.

Anyway High Moon is planing a WFC sequel.

[Shin Densetsu Kai 7.0]

Interesting email by Hasbro UK, WFC and Prime are separate continuities.

Course this isn't Hasbro US statement. Wonder if they'll follow through.

Anyway High Moon is planing a WFC sequel.

Hasbro US responded:

Transformers Prime Continuity Clarification from Hasbro

[Scream Man]

I've only seen 2 episodes so far, but it didn't wow me!

[areaseven]

I just finished the first three episodes and thought I'd give my $0.02 on the series:

- The pacing is rather slow compared to other TF shows. I know the emphasis is mostly on character development, but just like the live-action movies, Prime seems to put the spotlight too much on the kids.

- I was expecting modern CGI animation after seeing tidbits of it on the trailers, but instead, the character animation looks no different from Beast Wars mixed with Re-Boot.

- Why does Optimus' look young on this? His unmasked face doesn't mix well with Peter Cullen's voice.

- I can actually get used to Steven Blum's version of Starscream. At least it shows that he can make his voice completely different from all of his anime roles (i.e. Cowboy Bebop, The Big O).

- The Rock as Cliffjumper? I just don't see it. Who's the jabroni that came up with this idea?

[M'Kyuun]

I'm not a fan of Bay's movies, nor do I care for Kurtzman's and Orci's writing, at least for Transformers. I liked Star Trek, but anyway... "Prime" is too close in appearance, dialog, and overall feel to the live action movies for my taste. I watched all 5 parts. I thought it was out of character for Optimus Prime to go gunning down his zombie-ized comrades...it's a quick and cheap plot point to have zombies, or drones for that matter, as they're just fodder to amp up the action/shooting scenes. It'd have been far better if Prime found a way to isolate his zombie comrades (actually, zombie robots is pretty dumb, too) and determine a way, which would require no small number of challenges, to remove the dark energy and return all his fallen comrades to a dignified grave with their honor restored. The Prime of G1 or Beast Wars would have taken the hard road to preserve honor. It's merely a speed-bump for Orci's and Kurtzman's Prime.

Or maybe I just have too idealized a picture of Prime.

Overall, I thought the show lacking, although Ratchet's "dick" moments were amusing to a point. As others have pointed out, it's an unimaginative rehash of what's come before, with Bay's characters' influence at the fore.

That said, where are the preliminary toy pics? heck, we saw pics of Animated toys and art before the show ever aired.

Edited December 9, 2010 by M'Kyuun

[areaseven]

The Deluxe Starscream has a bit of bottom kibble in fighter mode as expected, but the robot mode is very impressive.

[danth]

I HATE the new style of transformers.

[peter]

Is Starscream an F-16 now? Kinda looks like an F-16 but the wings are a bit too narrow. Maybe one of those SAAB fighters? Or is a new fighter from GM, haha!

[David Hingtgen]

He's a not-F-16. As in, obviously based on the F-16, but purposely altered so as to avoid any sort of copyright law. Kind of like how ROTF Dirge is not a Harrier.

BTW, every SAAB jet of the past 40+ years has been a canarded, delta-winged plane. Starscream is neither.

[peter]

The F-16 has delta wings too doesn't it?

Copyright law? Figured General Dynamics would want some product placement, unless Lockheed Martin has the sole rights to be a Transformer now. There was a Harrier-type aircraft in ROTF? I'll have to watch my dvd-rip again.

[kaiotheforsaken]

I believe there was a variant of the F-16 that had delta wings (though I'll bet David knows for sure). But by and large, no it doesn't. Most variants are just well...variants of this: http://www.fas.org/man/dod-101/sys/ac/f16_3.jpg

[peter]

I believe there was a variant of the F-16 that had delta wings (though I'll bet David knows for sure). But by and large, no it doesn't. Most variants are just well...variants of this: http://www.fas.org/man/dod-101/sys/ac/f16_3.jpg

Oh, woops....I was thinking the shape of the wing is the same, but yeah, you guys are right, the wings don't run all they way to the back of the aircraft on the f-16.