The Energon Pub

So many people bought the awesome boxed set of G1 Transformers DVD's by Shout! Factory that the release of the single seasons individually tends to fly under the radar a bit, even to the Transformers community.

Long time forum member Jedi Kermit reminded us that today, Shout! Factory released the final individual season sets, this one representing Season 3 and Season 4.

Following the defeat of the planet eater known as Unicron and the end of the great Cybertronian War, the victorious Autobots, led by Rodimus Prime, finally reclaim their home world. But when Galvatron is returned to the ranks of power by his exiled Decepticons, his war against the Autobots is revived and this time, it’s fueled by vengeance! Opening with the five-part fan-favorite miniseries “The Five Faces of Darkness,” The Transformers’ explosive third season follows the valiant Autobots as they’re targeted for destruction by not only their old foes, the Decepticons, but also the mysterious and deadly creators known as the Quintessons!

This final four-disc set of the mega-popular animated series concludes with the rarely seen three-episode fourth season that introduces you to the amazing world of the Headmasters!

Some of the best and worst episodes in G1 Transformers cartoon history occur in this very set. If you don't own it, now would be a good time to pick up this season.

You can see the listing on SHOUT's website here, and check your local retailer for the set, which should be priced at around $25.



Check out the ever growing episode screen caps gallery (sorry no season 3 and 4 yet) and more at Seibertron.com.


Check for your favorite season 3 and 4 characters in the Vector Sigma Database, as well as the toy representations of these characters in the Comprehensive Photo Galleries

Check us out for your Most Recent Transformers News!

So...$80-85.00 for the entire series on DVD? Okay, I'm impressed. 98 episodes, and digitally remastered? Excellent deal.

I sure hope the extras in the Matrix set (or whatever it's called) are worth the huge difference in price. To me, I don't think so...

Autobot032 wrote:So...$80-85.00 for the entire series on DVD? Okay, I'm impressed. 98 episodes, and digitally remastered? Excellent deal.

I sure hope the extras in the Matrix set (or whatever it's called) are worth the huge difference in price. To me, I don't think so...

I do think so.

Autobot032 wrote:I sure hope the extras in the Matrix set (or whatever it's called) are worth the huge difference in price. To me, I don't think so...

Well, there's a few things you need to consider:

1). The Matrix set includes several special features (the voice actor reunion, the printable scripts for "Starscream's Bridage" and "The Revenge of Bruticus" and the Decepticon magnet) that aren't featured in the individual releases.

2). The Matrix set was originally an online exclusive before being generally released, which may be a factor in its increased price.

3). TV series collections tend to usually go for much higher prices than the individual sets, though they usually have sales prices when they are first released.

Darth Bombshell wrote:

Autobot032 wrote:I sure hope the extras in the Matrix set (or whatever it's called) are worth the huge difference in price. To me, I don't think so...

Well, there's a few things you need to consider:

1). The Matrix set includes several special features (the voice actor reunion, the printable scripts for "Starscream's Bridage" and "The Revenge of Bruticus" and the Decepticon magnet) that aren't featured in the individual releases.

2). The Matrix set was originally an online exclusive before being generally released, which may be a factor in its increased price.

3). TV series collections tend to usually go for much higher prices than the individual sets, though they usually have sales prices when they are first released.

The voice actor reunion impresses me, but not enough to fork over the dough. The printable scripts are unimportant to me. The magnet, I have absolutely no use for.

And I agree that it's an added convenience to get them all in one box.

Darth Bombshell wrote:

Autobot032 wrote:I sure hope the extras in the Matrix set (or whatever it's called) are worth the huge difference in price. To me, I don't think so...

Well, there's a few things you need to consider:

1). The Matrix set includes several special features (the voice actor reunion, the printable scripts for "Starscream's Bridage" and "The Revenge of Bruticus" and the Decepticon magnet) that aren't featured in the individual releases.

2). The Matrix set was originally an online exclusive before being generally released, which may be a factor in its increased price.

3). TV series collections tend to usually go for much higher prices than the individual sets, though they usually have sales prices when they are first released.

Agreed on all points. I got the collector set when it 1st came out. Now I see it at $50 more in stores.

Zeds wrote:Agreed on all points. I got the collector set when it 1st came out. Now I see it at $50 more in stores.

Really? Because I went into the HMV @ Coquitlam Centre today, and they had it for $169, which is forty bucks more than it was when it first came out.

Darth Bombshell wrote:

Zeds wrote:Agreed on all points. I got the collector set when it 1st came out. Now I see it at $50 more in stores.

Really? Because I went into the HMV @ Coquitlam Centre today, and they had it for $169, which is forty bucks more than it was when it first came out.

Well I picked it up for $119.99 at HMV when it came out so it was a steal. See the pic. Mispriced maybe? Je ne sais pas

Love the cover art! Looks like it did before Unicron blew up... Ya know, when Hot Rod turned tonto Rodimus Prime... and Galvatron's all like "Man, it's the dag gone Matrix! He's usin' it! Kill 'im!" And Rodimus is all like "Oh no you di-int!" and he threw him out of Unicron's eye... Yeah, I wish I didn't know so much...

You can order the whole Matrix set from Walmart for 86.86.

Or do what I did and price match the price using a printed ad at bestbuy.

Way I see it...if you paid the full price when it came out, you paid more to get more earlier. Not a bad trade off. It's to be expected. You always pay less if you wait a year or so.

ShinkenPrime wrote:You can order the whole Matrix set from Walmart for 86.86.

Or do what I did and price match the price using a printed ad at bestbuy.

Way I see it...if you paid the full price when it came out, you paid more to get more earlier. Not a bad trade off. It's to be expected. You always pay less if you wait a year or so.

Welcome on board from all those on Seibs!

I have a question for anyone who has the set already. At about the four minute mark during the episode "The Killing Jar", the picture freezes for a few moments before starting up again. Is anyone else encountering this problem? Is it because of a layer change?

Mindmaster wrote:Love the cover art! Looks like it did before Unicron blew up... Ya know, when Hot Rod turned tonto Rodimus Prime... and Galvatron's all like "Man, it's the dag gone Matrix! He's usin' it! Kill 'im!" And Rodimus is all like "Oh no you di-int!" and he threw him out of Unicron's eye... Yeah, I wish I didn't know so much...

Thanks, Mindmaster! Glad you like it. I was pretty happy with how this one turned out. And there's no shame in knowing so much about Transformers.

Darth Bombshell wrote:I have a question for anyone who has the set already. At about the four minute mark during the episode "The Killing Jar", the picture freezes for a few moments before starting up again. Is anyone else encountering this problem? Is it because of a layer change?

I don't have the set, but it does sound as though it's the layer change. It depends on the player (software or hardware), but players usually do have a slight catch/slow down when shifting. I've seen tabletop players do the same thing, sometimes worse than a computer.

I paid 86.99 for the matrix edition from amazon back in February
so i got more for my money than getting the individual sets

Autobot032 wrote:

Darth Bombshell wrote:I have a question for anyone who has the set already. At about the four minute mark during the episode "The Killing Jar", the picture freezes for a few moments before starting up again. Is anyone else encountering this problem? Is it because of a layer change?

I don't have the set, but it does sound as though it's the layer change. It depends on the player (software or hardware), but players usually do have a slight catch/slow down when shifting. I've seen tabletop players do the same thing, sometimes worse than a computer.

Maybe it's your player getting old? I've had that happen to literally every single DVD I own, but my player's a few years old and gets quite a lot of useage.

Dagon wrote:Maybe it's your player getting old? I've had that happen to literally every single DVD I own, but my player's a few years old and gets quite a lot of useage.

I don't think it's that old, as it plays a lot of other discs perfectly. In any case, I've already decided to take it back to the store tomorrow. (I gotta pick up Avatar, anyway.)

Darth Bombshell wrote:

Dagon wrote:Maybe it's your player getting old? I've had that happen to literally every single DVD I own, but my player's a few years old and gets quite a lot of useage.

I don't think it's that old, as it plays a lot of other discs perfectly. In any case, I've already decided to take it back to the store tomorrow. (I gotta pick up Avatar, anyway.)

Well, good luck with a different set of discs I guess. I just bought the set half an hour ago (and I am very, very excited!) so I'll watch most of it tonight out of excitement. I'll call it 'research' to see if we can figure out what's wrong with your player.

Dagon wrote:Well, good luck with a different set of discs I guess. I just bought the set half an hour ago (and I am very, very excited!) so I'll watch most of it tonight out of excitement. I'll call it 'research' to see if we can figure out what's wrong with your player.

Well, I guess it must be the player, since my replacement set has the same exact problem with the same exact episode at the same exact places.

Ah, well. I can just skip that episode until I can pick up a new DVD player.

My copy of Transformers Seasons 3 and 4 arrived yesterday morning. (I ordered it via Amazon.com in December.)