Opinion: Man, I'm missing Animated
Posted: Wed May 21, 2014 10:10 pmAfter the news from the other day that season three of Transformers Animated will be released along with a box set of all three seasons, I revisited that show and toyline. Looking through Seibertron's wonderfully extensive photo guide I grew really nostalgic for the standards of that toyline.
I've been a collector and fan of Transformers since they first appeared. I have followed them in many of their incarnations and have collected them over the years. I never really got serious until the 20th anniversary. After I got MP-01 I started to really pay attention to what was being done to my beloved franchise. I collected Alternators during this time and stayed away from Armada. It wasn't until 2006 when Classics hit that I really wanted to get everything a line had to offer. I was really excited for Transformers again and the movie seemed like a great shot to the arm. The brand was booming again and a new cartoon was in the works. Even at this time, I was only casually concerned about a new series. I didn't catch the premier. Instead I watched it in a rerun the next week. I knew they aesthetics were not to everyone's taste and I got that. Honestly, the cheap and fast look didn't really hook me either.
No, what did hook me was the earnest storytelling and the writers obvious love and respect for what came before. There is some silly stuff in the show, primarily the constructicons and Wreck-gar, both of which have some cringe-worthy moments. The Dinobots were handled very well as was re-imagining the entire story of the transformers. Gone was the stalemate war and in its place a bloated false peace. Gone was the experienced Optimus Prime, the first and best, and instead we have leader whose greatness is thrust upon him. Gone is the maniacal Megatron and in his place is a truly fearsome and calculating version. This new universe was very different, but that was a fresh jolt of story telling.
Not only did we see fresh versions of fan-favorites but we were introduced to Lockdown as voiced by Lance Henrikson, one of the coolest characters created for the show. Honestly, I was disappointed that Lance would not be voicing him in the movie.
While the show deserves praise, I think the toyline deserves it even more so. Hasbro had a tough job on it's hands to bring these exaggerated characters to life. They did and incredible job. Not only was the cartoon form kept, but the transformations were smooth.
Many TFA transformers are my default representation for the character. Generations may have seen a new version of Waspinator but for me, the definitive Waspinator came out in TFA.
The show and toyline have their faults but I can't help but wish I could walk down a toy isle and see Transformers Animated than much of what I see today.
I've been a collector and fan of Transformers since they first appeared. I have followed them in many of their incarnations and have collected them over the years. I never really got serious until the 20th anniversary. After I got MP-01 I started to really pay attention to what was being done to my beloved franchise. I collected Alternators during this time and stayed away from Armada. It wasn't until 2006 when Classics hit that I really wanted to get everything a line had to offer. I was really excited for Transformers again and the movie seemed like a great shot to the arm. The brand was booming again and a new cartoon was in the works. Even at this time, I was only casually concerned about a new series. I didn't catch the premier. Instead I watched it in a rerun the next week. I knew they aesthetics were not to everyone's taste and I got that. Honestly, the cheap and fast look didn't really hook me either.
No, what did hook me was the earnest storytelling and the writers obvious love and respect for what came before. There is some silly stuff in the show, primarily the constructicons and Wreck-gar, both of which have some cringe-worthy moments. The Dinobots were handled very well as was re-imagining the entire story of the transformers. Gone was the stalemate war and in its place a bloated false peace. Gone was the experienced Optimus Prime, the first and best, and instead we have leader whose greatness is thrust upon him. Gone is the maniacal Megatron and in his place is a truly fearsome and calculating version. This new universe was very different, but that was a fresh jolt of story telling.
Not only did we see fresh versions of fan-favorites but we were introduced to Lockdown as voiced by Lance Henrikson, one of the coolest characters created for the show. Honestly, I was disappointed that Lance would not be voicing him in the movie.
While the show deserves praise, I think the toyline deserves it even more so. Hasbro had a tough job on it's hands to bring these exaggerated characters to life. They did and incredible job. Not only was the cartoon form kept, but the transformations were smooth.
Many TFA transformers are my default representation for the character. Generations may have seen a new version of Waspinator but for me, the definitive Waspinator came out in TFA.
The show and toyline have their faults but I can't help but wish I could walk down a toy isle and see Transformers Animated than much of what I see today.
