The Energon Pub

[william-james88]

"Our World's are in Danger!"

No... no, noooo!!!

THE AUTOBOTS WAGE THEIR BATTLE...TO DESTROOOOYYYY THE EVIL FORCES OF THE DECEPTICONS!

Ah, I love this theme song, and I never even grew up with the show, nor have I seen it

Hearing that brings back so many good memories. Am I the only one who thinks that Garry Chalk should take up the mantle permanently once Peter Cullen retires?

They are both quite old though

[o.supreme]

I wouldn't mind seeing Neil Kaplan get another shot at it. But, thinking long term, If there are going to be movies and TV series for another 30 years, Jon Bailey might be the front runner.

[Sabrblade]

Presently, we have Jake Tillman and Hiro Diaz in the current shows and they sound fine.

[william-james88]

I wouldn't mind seeing Neil Kaplan get another shot at it. But, thinking long term, If there are going to be movies and TV series for another 30 years, Jon Bailey might be the front runner.

That's good. Though I find Jake Foushee to be a pretty good take too.

[o.supreme]

^I had to look them up (had no idea he went by 2 names ...) because I have taken no note of the VA's on Cyberverse because it isn't my thing. He isn't terrible, but I guess I'd have to see how he did Optimus Prime in something closer to the original series. Who knows, if they conscript him to work on the Netflix series, he might win me over if it's really good...

[Jeddostotle7]

Presently, we have Jake Tillman and Hiro Diaz in the current shows and they sound fine.

Yeah, I think I would prefer Jake Tillman take up the mantle. As much as like Jon Bailey... I've never been a huge fan of his Optimus voice tbh? It's never sounded quite right as a serious Optimus to me. Jake Tillman could probably afford to put a bit more range in the voice, but he's still settling into the role, and his voice already sounds closer to Peter Cullen's to me.

[Skritz]

Presently, we have Jake Tillman and Hiro Diaz in the current shows and they sound fine.

Yeah, I think I would prefer Jake Tillman take up the mantle. As much as like Jon Bailey... I've never been a huge fan of his Optimus voice tbh? It's never sounded quite right as a serious Optimus to me. Jake Tillman could probably afford to put a bit more range in the voice, but he's still settling into the role, and his voice already sounds closer to Peter Cullen's to me.

Jake Tillman sounds good but I think him trying to sound too much like Cullen is to his detriment. For one thing, he's a very young guy (**** he's younger than me! ) and it seems like he's aiming for the Movie-verse/Prime-styled 'Old Peter Cullen' voice, which is very deep and aged. Maybe its not his fault and its the producers telling him to try to be as 1:1 to Cullen as he can which is a shame because Chalk, Kaye and Kaplan all voice some incarnation of Optimus without doing that voice. Granted, David Kaye was doing a young Optimus Prime but still.

Yes, I know Peter Cullen is the iconic Optimus Prime voice and has very much reclaimed the throne after 2007 but lets be real: when Gary Chalk was doing Optimus Prime in the Unicron trilogy it was fine. Same with Corey Burton doing a spectacular Megatron on Animated. Its only because of the movies and TF Prime that Peter Cullen and Frank Welker's modern take on the characters seem to have taken over our mental image.

However, since Transformers reboot itself every couple year I wouldn't mind (and think it would be better!) if they let these voice actors do their own thing and inject some personality into their role. Beast Wars Megatron would not be as fondly remembered if David Kaye had been told to 'try to copy Frank Welker'. A good example of a role that keep changing hands and work every time: Starscream. We've had, in recent years, Michael Dobson, Tom Kenny, Steve Blum, Sam Riegel, Charlie Adler and Billy Bob Thompson doing their own take and they usually work.

[o.supreme]

For one thing, he's a very young guy (**** he's younger than me! )

Fun Fact; He would have been one year old, when i attended my first Botcon in 1998 #so old.....

Honestly though, while Cullen and Welker may have faded from some peoples memory, they never faded with me. The only reason I was OK with the different voices in BW & RiD was because they were different characters. If there had been new shows trying to be the original characters, I would have hated them. Also, at BC 2004, when details of the first live action movie were first taking shape, a fan asked if Cullen would do the voice for the movie. He of course had no idea at the time, but there was a standing ovation encouraging him to go it. In fact, it was pretty much the fandom that coerced Bay into hiring him in the first place. Of course Bay didn't have to hire Cullen...but that's not a world I want to imagine....

[Sabrblade]

For one thing, he's a very young guy (**** he's younger than me! )

Fun Fact; He would have been one year old, when i attended my first Botcon in 1998 #so old.....

Honestly though, while Cullen and Welker may have faded from some peoples memory, they never faded with me. The only reason I was OK with the different voices in BW & RiD was because they were different characters. If there had been new shows trying to be the original characters, I would have hated them. Also, at BC 2004, when details of the first live action movie were first taking shape, a fan asked if Cullen would do the voice for the movie. He of course had no idea at the time, but there was a standing ovation encouraging him to go it. In fact, it was pretty much the fandom that coerced Bay into hiring him in the first place. Of course Bay didn't have to hire Cullen...but that's not a world I want to imagine....

Fun Fact; Bay original had Liam Neeson in mind for Movieverse Optimus. While not Cullen, I gotta admit that would have been cool, too.

[Stargrave]

I love doing my Optimus impression I have a G1 one which I prefer but I can butch it out for the movie version too. I just copied the intro to Voltron as a kid about a thousand times and just found I can copy the tone and intonation. He has a specific lilt in his cadence and it it’s not there it’s just not right.

Like in the ‘86 movie which I used to again copy a million times as a kid there that tone when he says ‘We don’t have enough Energon (here) to power a full scale assault (slight pause)’ it’s that cadence that makes it, not just a proper gravel. Sorry I’m a voice actor fan. Always loved the art form.

My G1 Ironhide is just as good.

[o.supreme]

Fun Fact; Bay original had Liam Neeson in mind for Movieverse Optimus. While not Cullen, I gotta admit that would have been cool, too.

Neeson is a great actor, but wouldn't quite fit. The most commanding voice I can think of he did was Aslan in the Narnia Films. It still had a lightness that doesn't quite work. It wouldn't be terrible, but kind of like Hugo Weavings Megatorn, it would just seem off....

[Sabrblade]

Fun Fact; Bay original had Liam Neeson in mind for Movieverse Optimus. While not Cullen, I gotta admit that would have been cool, too.

Neeson is a great actor, but wouldn't quite fit. The most commanding voice I can think of he did was Aslan in the Narnia Films. It still had a lightness that doesn't quite work. It wouldn't be terrible, but kind of like Hugo Weavings Megatorn, it would just seem off....

You may need to watch him in Taken, then. Or Batman Begins.

[o.supreme]

You may need to watch him in Taken, then. Or Batman Begins.

Batman Begins is one of my favorite films. Neeson can act from calm to angry well enough, but still not enough bass in his voice that Cullen has to be Prime, just my opinion though.

[Stargrave]

I’d take David Kaye back in a heartbeat I loved his rendition it was the voice of Orion Pax becoming Prime so serious but younger with an innocence that came from his naïveté about Earth culture. Great stuff.

[ZeldaTheSwordsman]

Garry Chalk Optimi have the best "Done with everybody's crap" voice by a country mile.

[Stargrave]

Garry Chalk Optimi have the best "Done with everybody's crap" voice by a country mile.

Dude, that rhymed. Dangerous.

[D-Maximal_Primal]

Still so sign of a 3rd Reflector. Girlfriend thought the camera was a cool idea too, she wants to see it

For one thing, he's a very young guy (**** he's younger than me! )

Fun Fact; He would have been one year old, when i attended my first Botcon in 1998 #so old.....

Wait wait wait wait wait.

stop the Car.

Everybody out.

You telling me I am 2 years older than the current voice of Optimus???

Damn. It.

I need to get my life in gear.

kind of like Hugo Weavings Megatorn, it would just seem off....

Until I saw Transformers Prime, Welker was the odd one out for Megatron. Corey Burton in Animated killed, and Weaving did a great deep intimidating Megatron. I thought Welker was kinda weak, but Prime made him good and then TLK made him sound more like how I want a Megatron to sound.

But I still Weaving is a better live action Megatron. Welker worked better in Prime, Burton in Animated, and Kaye in just about everything else. All were good, but G1 Megs wasn't that good to me. He's definitely the weakest, I think Welker vastly improved for Prime.

[Sabrblade]

Still so sign of a 3rd Reflector. Girlfriend thought the camera was a cool idea too, she wants to see it

For one thing, he's a very young guy (**** he's younger than me! )

Fun Fact; He would have been one year old, when i attended my first Botcon in 1998 #so old.....

Wait wait wait wait wait.

stop the Car.

Everybody out.

You telling me I am 2 years older than the current voice of Optimus???

Damn. It.

I need to get my life in gear.

It's also that he has an insanely deep voice.

[ZeldaTheSwordsman]

Welker's real strength as G1 Megs is that creepy laugh.

[chuckdawg1999]

Still so sign of a 3rd Reflector. Girlfriend thought the camera was a cool idea too, she wants to see it

For one thing, he's a very young guy (**** he's younger than me! )

Fun Fact; He would have been one year old, when i attended my first Botcon in 1998 #so old.....

Wait wait wait wait wait.

stop the Car.

Everybody out.

You telling me I am 2 years older than the current voice of Optimus???

Damn. It.

I need to get my life in gear.

kind of like Hugo Weavings Megatorn, it would just seem off....

Until I saw Transformers Prime, Welker was the odd one out for Megatron. Corey Burton in Animated killed, and Weaving did a great deep intimidating Megatron. I thought Welker was kinda weak, but Prime made him good and then TLK made him sound more like how I want a Megatron to sound.

But I still Weaving is a better live action Megatron. Welker worked better in Prime, Burton in Animated, and Kaye in just about everything else. All were good, but G1 Megs wasn't that good to me. He's definitely the weakest, I think Welker vastly improved for Prime.

How old is he? Be gentle, I turned 40 today and last month was 15 years on the site.

[Sabrblade]

How old is he? Be gentle, I turned 40 today and last month was 15 years on the site.

As of May 1 this year, Jake Tillman is 22. But, as I said, his voice is absurdly deep. His voice dropped an insanely deep level when he hit 13.

[Stargrave]

Still so sign of a 3rd Reflector. Girlfriend thought the camera was a cool idea too, she wants to see it

For one thing, he's a very young guy (**** he's younger than me! )

Fun Fact; He would have been one year old, when i attended my first Botcon in 1998 #so old.....

Wait wait wait wait wait.

stop the Car.

Everybody out.

You telling me I am 2 years older than the current voice of Optimus???

Damn. It.

I need to get my life in gear.

kind of like Hugo Weavings Megatorn, it would just seem off....

Until I saw Transformers Prime, Welker was the odd one out for Megatron. Corey Burton in Animated killed, and Weaving did a great deep intimidating Megatron. I thought Welker was kinda weak, but Prime made him good and then TLK made him sound more like how I want a Megatron to sound.

But I still Weaving is a better live action Megatron. Welker worked better in Prime, Burton in Animated, and Kaye in just about everything else. All were good, but G1 Megs wasn't that good to me. He's definitely the weakest, I think Welker vastly improved for Prime.

How old is he? Be gentle, I turned 40 today and last month was 15 years on the site.

Happy birthday dude!!

[chuckdawg1999]

Thank you, but now I have to shuffle off for the 4PM early dinner.

[Ultra Markus]

exept for any of my walmarts we still have wave one

[Nathaniel Prime]

Hmmmmm, Omega looking like a snack right there.