Transformers 2015 Cartoon Update: Bumblebee Reveal Not a Good Representation of Final Designs

Posted by El Duque Mar 18, 2014 at 2:53pm CDT 40,229 views

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Quick update yesterday's big Transformers 2015 cartoon reveal. Matthew Humphreys, who previously worked on Transformers Prime, has updated his blog with a message regarding the character designs. According to his post, yesterday's Bumblebee character reveal is not indicative of how the final designs will look. See his full statement below:

Matthew Humphreys wrote:Transformers 2015

I can’t say much because you know the reasons. But I just feel the need to say that with our new show being announced the artwork shown on various sites is NOT a good representation of what the designs look like fully fleshed out. The new show looks amazing and I’m having a ton of fun working on it and I hope everyone watches when it comes out.

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Re: Transformers 2015 Cartoon Update: Bumblebee Reveal Not a Good Representation of Final Designs (view post)

Comment by Ravage XK Mar 18, 2014

Rated X wrote:
Sabrblade wrote:
Rated X wrote:Doesnt the facial expression on THAT PIC kind og make bumblebee look like a pedophile ? I cant be the only one seeing it...
Head. Gutter. Out.

Those eyebrows combined with that lifeless stare and creepy grin really give him the look. Its also funny how the same hasbro that felt robots didnt need noses now want to draw them with eyebrows.

Eyebrows help express emotions, the only thing a nose can express is "I don't care for that smell".

Re: Transformers 2015 Cartoon Update: Bumblebee Reveal Not a Good Representation of Final Designs (view post)

Comment by Fires_Of_Inferno Mar 18, 2014

Alright, that makes sense. Still more than a year before the series starts (assuming it starts in the fall), so they probably don't even have finalized designs yet.

Re: Transformers 2015 Cartoon Update: Bumblebee Reveal Not a Good Representation of Final Designs (view post)

Comment by SlyTF1 Mar 18, 2014

Ravage XK wrote:
Rated X wrote:
Sabrblade wrote:
Rated X wrote:Doesnt the facial expression on THAT PIC kind og make bumblebee look like a pedophile ? I cant be the only one seeing it...
Head. Gutter. Out.

Those eyebrows combined with that lifeless stare and creepy grin really give him the look. Its also funny how the same hasbro that felt robots didnt need noses now want to draw them with eyebrows.

Eyebrows help express emotions, the only thing a nose can express is "I don't care for that smell".

They could have animated the eyes to show emotion instead of giving them eyebrows.

Re: Transformers 2015 Cartoon Update: Bumblebee Reveal Not a Good Representation of Final Designs (view post)

Comment by Fires_Of_Inferno Mar 18, 2014

SlyTF1 wrote:
Ravage XK wrote:
Rated X wrote:
Sabrblade wrote:
Rated X wrote:Doesnt the facial expression on THAT PIC kind og make bumblebee look like a pedophile ? I cant be the only one seeing it...
Head. Gutter. Out.

Those eyebrows combined with that lifeless stare and creepy grin really give him the look. Its also funny how the same hasbro that felt robots didnt need noses now want to draw them with eyebrows.

Eyebrows help express emotions, the only thing a nose can express is "I don't care for that smell".

They could have animated the eyes to show emotion instead of giving them eyebrows.

Honestly, I prefer the eyebrows. If they animated the eyes to show emotion instead then it would look too much like Animated or RID (I think they did it a little bit in G1 too, but I'd have to watch it again to be sure). They did it for Beast Wars, but that was more "cartoony" than Prime was so it fit there.

Re: Transformers 2015 Cartoon Update: Bumblebee Reveal Not a Good Representation of Final Designs (view post)

Comment by StormShot Mar 18, 2014

I think the Movie/Prime design of Bumblebee is alright, but who else thinks it might be neat to have a Bumblebee similar to his WFC/FOC design? I really like the physics and design that the video game series has, and I think it'd be great to see it translate over to cartoon format.

Also, anyone have any story ideas? Could we see Starscream or Shockwave return?
Or how about a new villain, Galvatron? One that was never Megatron, of course.

Re: Transformers 2015 Cartoon Update: Bumblebee Reveal Not a Good Representation of Final Designs (view post)

Comment by Dead Metal Mar 18, 2014

SlyTF1 wrote:
Ravage XK wrote:
Rated X wrote:
Sabrblade wrote:
Rated X wrote:Doesnt the facial expression on THAT PIC kind og make bumblebee look like a pedophile ? I cant be the only one seeing it...
Head. Gutter. Out.

Those eyebrows combined with that lifeless stare and creepy grin really give him the look. Its also funny how the same hasbro that felt robots didnt need noses now want to draw them with eyebrows.

Eyebrows help express emotions, the only thing a nose can express is "I don't care for that smell".

They could have animated the eyes to show emotion instead of giving them eyebrows.

What are you talking about? The eyes in Prime are animated. One of the biggest and most obvious animation glitches is even related to the eyes, one of Megatron's eyes suddenly wanders of and looks into a completely different direction than it should.

El Duque wrote:Quick update yesterday's big Transformers 2015 cartoon reveal. Matthew Humphreys, who previously worked on Transformers Prime, has updated his blog with a message regarding the character designs. According to his post, yesterday's Bumblebee character reveal is not indicative of how the final designs will look. See his full statement below:

Matthew Humphreys wrote:Transformers 2015

I can’t say much because you know the reasons. But I just feel the need to say that with our new show being announced the artwork shown on various sites is NOT a good representation of what the designs look like fully fleshed out. The new show looks amazing and I’m having a ton of fun working on it and I hope everyone watches when it comes out.

Called it.

Re: Transformers 2015 Cartoon Update: Bumblebee Reveal Not a Good Representation of Final Designs (view post)

Comment by kirbenvost Mar 18, 2014

PrymeStriker wrote:Because that's the fault of the cartoon and totally not a problem with retailers over-ordering and overstocking the toy.

Hasbro is partially to blame for over-marketing the character and having wonky case assortments that are too heavy on certain figures, like Bumblebee.

Re: Transformers 2015 Cartoon Update: Bumblebee Reveal Not a Good Representation of Final Designs (view post)

Comment by King Kuuga Mar 18, 2014

kirbenvost wrote:
PrymeStriker wrote:Because that's the fault of the cartoon and totally not a problem with retailers over-ordering and overstocking the toy.

Hasbro is partially to blame for over-marketing the character and having wonky case assortments that are too heavy on certain figures, like Bumblebee.

It's been stated many times that retailers determine the case assortments, not Hasbro.

Re: Transformers 2015 Cartoon Update: Bumblebee Reveal Not a Good Representation of Final Designs (view post)

Comment by hinomars19 Mar 18, 2014

Not the least bit surprising. I figured it was probably concept art, given the show is nowhere near any completion stage if it's not even on until next year.

Sadly, marketing strikes again. Placeholder images thrown at media without any clue what it represents. (that's my guess, anyways, considering it happened to me a gazillion times and I was the muppet having to 'explain' my artwork to confused convention goers.)-actually scratch that for a minute-where did this image come from? It didn't seem to be on the actual press release, right?

Still, no matter. I commented simply on the image we saw. Animated taught me a valuable lesson in reacting to these things too quickly. I'll never love animated's look (or Primes CG models, to be fair.) But it worked for what it was, and a lot of animated designs shone as toys. As do the movie toys (rotf ones at least

) This artwork is bad, rescue bots looks better. Sorry folks, it's how I feel.

The design as it is here has potential. Interested to say the least. And as for the plot of the show, yes a new leader is good. The stigma attached to Bee in recent years throws a lot of us off the idea, but I'm open to it

Re: Transformers 2015 Cartoon Update: Bumblebee Reveal Not a Good Representation of Final Designs (view post)

Comment by Spleenzorio Mar 18, 2014

I wonder if we will see some Dinobots in this series :O

Re: Transformers 2015 Cartoon Update: Bumblebee Reveal Not a Good Representation of Final Designs (view post)

Comment by Shockwave7 Mar 18, 2014

I just feel the need to say that with our new show being announced the artwork shown on various sites is NOT a good representation of what the designs look like fully fleshed out.

Which immediately raises the question - WHY did they release the image in the first place?

'Daaah, we wanted to show you what the character will NOT look like when we NOT premiere the show! Daaaaah!'

Re: Transformers 2015 Cartoon Update: Bumblebee Reveal Not a Good Representation of Final Designs (view post)

Comment by Sabrblade Mar 18, 2014

Shockwave7 wrote:
I just feel the need to say that with our new show being announced the artwork shown on various sites is NOT a good representation of what the designs look like fully fleshed out.

Which immediately raises the question - WHY did they release the image in the first place?

'Daaah, we wanted to show you what the character will NOT look like when we NOT premiere the show! Daaaaah!'

Maybe someone demanded that they be giving some sort of preliminary art to go with this announcement. Though Bee won't be animated like this, his final design could be like this design animated instead in 3D.

Re: Transformers 2015 Cartoon Update: Bumblebee Reveal Not a Good Representation of Final Designs (view post)

Comment by SlyTF1 Mar 18, 2014

Dead Metal wrote:
SlyTF1 wrote:
Ravage XK wrote:
Rated X wrote:
Sabrblade wrote:
Rated X wrote:Doesnt the facial expression on THAT PIC kind og make bumblebee look like a pedophile ? I cant be the only one seeing it...
Head. Gutter. Out.

Those eyebrows combined with that lifeless stare and creepy grin really give him the look. Its also funny how the same hasbro that felt robots didnt need noses now want to draw them with eyebrows.

Eyebrows help express emotions, the only thing a nose can express is "I don't care for that smell".

They could have animated the eyes to show emotion instead of giving them eyebrows.

What are you talking about? The eyes in Prime are animated. One of the biggest and most obvious animation glitches is even related to the eyes, one of Megatron's eyes suddenly wanders of and looks into a completely different direction than it should.

I'm talking about how they animated the eyes in just about every other series. Without everyone having big ass eyebrows. I don't exactly mind it too much, since almost everyone in animated had big ass chins, but still.

Re: Transformers 2015 Cartoon Update: Bumblebee Reveal Not a Good Representation of Final Designs (view post)

Comment by #Sideways# Mar 18, 2014

Hopefully it won't look like another Animated. I was definitely not a fan of those designs, though being slightly hypocritical because of mine liking of Prime characters and their designs (though their waists aren't like toothpicks).

And to answer Sabrblade's question, I consider the "fun and adventure" of Prime to be a much different breed of "fun and adventure" than a five year old would have in mind. For instance, they would consider Dora or Barney fun, while an adult would not. That is what I meant.

Thankfully, with some shading, I can see this design being something better to my liking. I mean, this is like Mewtwo's Y Mega when I first saw it. I don't want to like it, but I think it may warm to me, should they do some tweaking.

Re: Transformers 2015 Cartoon Update: Bumblebee Reveal Not a Good Representation of Final Designs (view post)

Comment by The Variable Mar 19, 2014

Actually not surprised that Bumblebee is not final. After all, the original press release in the previous news item regarding this topic already made it quite clear:

"Blending 3D characters with hand-painted environments, the series mixes action-packed adventure with lots of comedy, making it a rip-roaring experience for kids and families to enjoy together."

So I immediately considered Bumblebee's character art to be a concept piece. I still like it, and I want to see what the final render is going to look like. I'm also interested in seeing what kind of environments will be used in the new story. Hopefully less deserts and frozen wastelands, and maybe more Cybertron?

Re: Transformers 2015 Cartoon Update: Bumblebee Reveal Not a Good Representation of Final Designs (view post)

Comment by Balgus82 Mar 19, 2014

Knowing Matthew Humphreys is one of the designers actually makes me feel better. I've been a fan of his on deviantart for years.

I can't help but think they should've went with Hot Rod for the main character instead of BumbleBee. They could've even kept the same design and Friedle, and just changed his colors to red and orange.

In fact I stumbled accross this image today that is exactly what I would've wanted:
http://dyemooch.tumblr.com/post/8005446 ... do-this-xd

Re: Transformers 2015 Cartoon Update: Bumblebee Reveal Not a Good Representation of Final Designs (view post)

Comment by Dead Metal Mar 20, 2014

SlyTF1 wrote:
Dead Metal wrote:
SlyTF1 wrote:
Ravage XK wrote:
Rated X wrote:
Sabrblade wrote:
Rated X wrote:Doesnt the facial expression on THAT PIC kind og make bumblebee look like a pedophile ? I cant be the only one seeing it...
Head. Gutter. Out.

Those eyebrows combined with that lifeless stare and creepy grin really give him the look. Its also funny how the same hasbro that felt robots didnt need noses now want to draw them with eyebrows.

Eyebrows help express emotions, the only thing a nose can express is "I don't care for that smell".

They could have animated the eyes to show emotion instead of giving them eyebrows.

What are you talking about? The eyes in Prime are animated. One of the biggest and most obvious animation glitches is even related to the eyes, one of Megatron's eyes suddenly wanders of and looks into a completely different direction than it should.

I'm talking about how they animated the eyes in just about every other series. Without everyone having big ass eyebrows. I don't exactly mind it too much, since almost everyone in animated had big ass chins, but still.

Ah gotcha.

Re: Transformers 2015 Cartoon Update: Bumblebee Reveal Not a Good Representation of Final Designs (view post)

Comment by El Duque Mar 26, 2014

Earlier this month we got our first look at Bumblebee from the new Transformers cartoon scheduled to hit the air in 2015. Now thanks to Kids TV magazine we get another look at Bumblebee and Optimus Prime's new design! Check out the new image below. The new series is set to air in the Spring of 2015.