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Writers Bob Budiansky and Bryce Malek on Creating the Transformers

Date: Tuesday, January 17th 2017 3:42am CST
Categories: Cartoon News, Comic Book News, People News, Interviews
Posted by: Va'al | Credit(s): The Guardian

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After last month's appearance in UK news outlet The Guardian of the Transformers comics, in their current IDW incarnation ('Kiss me Chromedome' if you missed it), we have another article and interview - with comics writer Bob Budiansky and animated series writer Bryce Malek!

While a lot of the material is most likely not new - board admin Burn, who notified us, remembers seeing most of it previously - the fact that the Transformers are in mainstream news coverage once more is worth celebrating enough, especially as we lead into a Paramount movie year and this has little to with it at all, being about the origins of the franchise's fiction. Check out some snippets below, and the whole piece here!

Bob Budiansky [...]

A lot of the names came from my own experiences of pop culture. Ratchet, a medical robot, was inspired by Nurse Ratched from the film One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. Ironhide came from the old TV show Ironside. I was trying to humanise them, give them relatable qualities, such as “this guy likes jazz”. People ask how I came up with so many personalities in a weekend, but at Marvel we were creating new characters every day. That was the job.

One name I’m proud of is Megatron. Back in 1983, the threat of nuclear war felt very real – and destructive force was talked about in megatons. At first, Hasbro rejected it for sounding too scary. Gently I said to them: “Well, he’s the main bad guy. He’s supposed to be scary.” Luckily, they changed their minds.

Bryce Malek [...]

Some writers pitched really inappropriate stuff for a kids’ show, such as the Transformers meeting space prostitutes. Oddly enough, no one ever provided us with any of the toys – we worked from photocopies of designs. I actually went out and bought a few but I never got Optimus Prime. He was too popular. You could never find one.

Shout! Factory '30 Years in 3 Days' Live Stream and BotCon Events

Date: Wednesday, June 18th 2014 1:26pm CDT
Categories: Cartoon News, Event News, Press Releases, Company News, Collector's Club News
Posted by: Va'al | Credit(s): Shout! Factory

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SHOUT! FACTORY CELEBRATES THE 30th ANNIVERSARY OF TRANSFORMERS WITH A TREASURE TROVE OF ENTERTAINMENT SPANNING THREE DECADES, “30 YEARS IN 3 DAYS – SHOUT! FACTORY LIVE AT BOTCON 2014” LIVE STREAM EVENT AND MORE!

Since 1984, the thrills of the TRANSFORMERS saga, the action of epic battles between the AUTOBOTS and the DECEPTICONS, and the memorable ROBOTS IN DISGUISE characters continue to spark the imagination of millions worldwide. The TRANSFORMERS brand is a global pop-culture phenomenon, bringing entertainment and excitement to kids and fans through countless collectible toys, animated series, films, comic books, video games and a convention dedicated to TRANSFORMERS collectors.

In honor of the year-long celebration of the TRANSFORMERS 30th Anniversary, Shout! Factory, in collaboration with Hasbro Studios, salutes the beloved TRANSFORMERS franchise by broadcasting from the floor of BotCon and by placing emphasis behind its uniquely diverse home entertainment offerings of TRANSFORMERS animated series (spanning 1984 – 2013). As part of the “THRILLING 30” festivities, the multi-faceted campaign from Shout! Factory includes TRANSFORMERS 30th Anniversary branded product highlights, gift-with-purchase ecommerce opportunities, special digital live stream event “30 YEARS IN 3 DAYS –SHOUT! FACTORY LIVE AT BOTCON 2014” – featuring TRANSFORMERS series marathon with special coverage from BotCon 2014 – and many more surprises to further engage fans and collectors.

For continuing updates on the TRANSFORMERS 30th Anniversary celebration from Shout! Factory, please follow us on Twitter @ShoutFactory, hashtag #BotCon2014.

“30 YEARS IN 3 DAYS – SHOUT! FACTORY LIVE AT BOTCON 2014” DIGITAL LIVE STREAM EVENT

Shout! Factory, in collaboration with Hasbro Studios, presents “30 YEARS IN 3 DAYS LIVE AT BOTCON 2014,” a three-day digital live stream takeover featuring marathon of TRANSFORMERS series episodes, exclusive digital segments and highlights from BotCon 2014. Viewers can tune in to this special marathon event on Friday, June 20 through Sunday, June 22, exclusively on http://www.TF30years.com and Shout! Factory’s YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/shoutfactory).

The live stream will originate from the BotCon floor at the Pasadena Convention Center. Viewers and fans are encouraged to share their passion for the TRANSFORMERS via Twitter using the hashtag #TF30years, #BotCon2014 and @shoutfactory.

Content and times are approximate and subject to change.
All times are listed in PDT (Pacific Daylight Time).

TUNE-IN to “30 YEARS IN 3 DAYS – SHOUT! FACTORY LIVE AT BOTCON 2014” DIGITAL LIVE STREAM EVENT” at http://www.TF30years.com and Shout! Factory’s YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/shoutfactory).

Friday, June 20:

11:00 AM "Triple Changer: From Toy to Comic to Screen"

11:30 AM The TRANSFORMERS (Generational 1): "More Than Meets the Eye, Part 1"

12:00 PM The TRANSFORMERS (Generational 1): "More Than Meets the Eye, Part 2"

12:30 PM "The Combiner: Forming the TRANSFORMERS Animated Series"

12:45 PM The TRANSFORMERS (Generational 1): "More than Meets the Eye, Part 3"

1:15 PM "The Headmasters: Voicing the Robots in Disguise"

1:45 PM "Into the Creation Matrix: A Conversation with Bob Budiansky"

Saturday, June 21:

10:00 AM The TRANSFORMERS (Generational 1): "S.O.S. Dinobot"

10:30 AM Panel: James Roberts Storyteller

10:45 AM The TRANSFORMERS (Generational 1): "Ghost in the Machine"

11:15 AM The TRANSFORMERS (Generational 1): "The Return of Optimus Prime, Part 1"

11:45 PM The TRANSFORMERS (Generational 1): "The Return of Optimus Prime, Part 2"

12:00 PM Panel: Rescue Bots Cast Q&A

12:15 PM TRANSFORMERS BEAST WARS: "Beast Wars, Part 1"

12:45 PM "Maximize! Creating a New Breed of Transformer"

1:00 PM Panel: 2014 Hasbro Toys

1:15 PM TRANSFORMERS BEAST WARS: "Beast Wars, Part 2"

1:45 PM "Remembering the Spark"

2:00 PM TRANSFORMERS BEAST WARS: "The Agenda, Part 1"

2:30 PM TRANSFORMERS BEAST WARS: "The Agenda, Part 2"

2:45 PM Panel: Women in Animation

3:00 PM TRANSFORMERS BEAST WARS: "The Agenda, Part 3"

3:30 PM TRANSFORMERS BEAST WARS: "Optimal Situation"

3:45 PM Saturday Highlight Reel

Sunday, June 22:

9:30 AM TRANSFORMERS BEAST WARS: "Feral Scream, Part 1"

10:00 AM Panel: 2014 Live Script Reading

10:15 AM TRANSFORMERS BEAST WARS: "Feral Scream, Part 2"

10:45 AM TRANSFORMRES BEAST MACHINES: "The Reformatting"

11:00 AM Transformers Armada: "First Encounter"

11:30 AM Transformers Energon: "Cybertron City"

11:45 AM Transformers Cybertron: "Fallen"

12:15 PM Transformers Animated: "Thrill of the Hunt"

12:45 PM Panel: Transformers Animated

1:00 PM Transformers Animated: "Garbage In, Garbage Out"

1:15 PM Transformers Animated: "Garbage In, Garbage Out" with Commentary

1:45 PM Panel: Transformers Comics: IDW

2:00 PM TRANSFORMERS Rescue Bots: "The Alien Invasion of Griffin Rock"

2:30 PM Transformers Prime: "One Shall Fall"

2:45 PM "A Look at Polygon Pictures"

3:00 PM Panel: Transformers G1 Retrospective

3:15 PM Sunday Highlight Reel

TRANSFORMERS animated series home entertainment product highlights include:

The TRANSFORMERS: The Complete Series (Generational 1)

TRANSFORMERS: BEAST WARS

TRANSFORMERS THE JAPANESE COLLECTION

TRANSFORMERS ARMADA: THE COMPLETE SERIES

TRANSFORMERS ENERGON: THE COMPLETE SERIES

TRANSFORMERS CYBERTRON: THE COMPLETE SERIES

TRANSFORMERS ANIMATED: THE COMPLETE SERIES

TRANSFORMERS PRIME Seasons One, Two and Three

TRANSFORMERS PRIME: DARKNESS RISING

TRANSFORMERS PRIME: ONE SHALL STAND

TRANSFORMERS PRIME: ULTIMATE BUMBLEBEE

TRANSFORMERS PRIME: BEAST HUNTERS – PREDACONS RISING

TRANSFORMERS RESCUE BOTS: GRIFFIN ROCK RESCUE

TRANSFORMERS RESCUE BOTS: ENERGIZE

TRANSFORMERS RESCUE BOTS: HEROES ON THE SCENE

GIFT-WITH-PURCHASE OPPORTUNITY

*Loyal fans and collectors please take note:

Available while supplies last, receive a limited-edition 18”x24” collector’s poster with any purchase of TRANSFORMERS animated series home entertainment products from ShoutFactory.com

Seibertron.com Editorial - The Truly Thrilling Thirtieth of The Transformers

Date: Thursday, May 8th 2014 5:30pm CDT
Categories: Cartoon News, Comic Book News, Site Articles, Editorials
Posted by: Va'al

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Thirty years ago on this day, 8th May, the very first issue of Marvel Comics' The Transformers #1 appeared in shops, with Bill Mantlo and Ralph Macchio plotting and planning the war on Cybertron, Frank Springer, Kim DeMulder and Nelson Yomtov bringing it to vivid page life, sounded out by Michael Higgins and Rick Parker (all overseen by the watchful Bob Budiansky). The cover? A gigantic Bill Sienkiewicz-drawn Optimus Prime.

That was all the way back in 1984, and that was in the US. Across the pond, Jerry Paris created a different cover for the first issue of something that was going to be a much longer and tortuous series, reaching 332 issues in total (compared to and including the 80 of the US run).

A series which eventually introduced British writer Simon Furman to the Transformers universe, after Bob Budiansky on writing and other duties since issue 5, left with issue 55. A series which was initially so badly received it was only meant to reach four issues. A series that introduced the Autobots and Decepticons to pop culture around the world, taking a handful of toylines and creating a loosely hanging narrative that would increase their sales. A series that was flanked by its TV counterpart in the animated The Transformers cartoon.

Fast forward to two years later, 1986, when the Transformers appeared on the big screen for the first time, still in their animated selves. Leaders were killed, moons were eaten, planets became robots, hearts were broken, fanboys and fangirls started complaining, and even more toys were produced. And comic adaptations, of course.

Marvel Comics resumed its robot stories in 1993, with Furman's revamping of the Transformers in Generation 2, as Hasbro sought to bring back the toyline again. Across the other side of the other pond, meanwhile, Japan was hard at work with the vaguely mecha-style stories of the Transformers, continuing the cartoon series where the US left off after Generation 1: The Headmasters, Super-God Masterforce, Victory, Zone. Which also had their comics and manga adaptations!

Skip forward again to 1996, and we reach a massive overhaul in the concept: the Transformers no longer become vehicles, but animals - in Beast Wars. Cue outrage, cue new influx of fans, cue growing fondness, cue cartoon series and even more toys, cue the two Japanese sequels, Beast Wars II and Beast Wars Neo. And yet we're still in the universe set by that 1984 series, both TV and comics wise.

Enter Dreamwave Productions in 2002, with a complete (well, sort of) reimagining of the Transformers universe, trying to combine elements of the Japanese manga and the well-loved Marvel and Sunbow fictions, both aesthetically and story-wise. And it included a prequel! We saw what Furman thought of what was happening on Cybertron before 'bots and 'cons disappeared into the universe, with the War Within storylines and Don Figueroa's designs and Andrew Wildman's take on them.

Dreamwave unfortunately did not end well, and stories were interrupted mid-issue in some cases. It's 2005, and IDW Publishing picks up the license from Hasbro. We have another redesign, retake and reimagining, once again at the hands of Simon Furman and his universe spanning -ations, Stormbringer and Maximum Dinobots, followed by Shane McCarthy and Guido Guidi's earth-bound, politically paced All Hail Megatron and the arrival of the first live-action Transformers full-length cinematic feature in 2007, with Michael Bay in the director's chair - and John Barber, Andrew Griffith and Alex Milne adapting it into its comic counterpart and expanding it, too.

Come 2010, another live-action film in the bag, IDW Publishing continues its Transformers storyline more or less succesfully, redesigning its characters to capture the Michael Bay and Paramount aesthetics and potentially new readers, in Mike Costa's The Transformers ongoing series. Something clearly worked, as the series brought into the franchise talent such as James Roberts, Nick Roche, Mairghread Scott, Mike Johnson, Andrew Griffith, Alex Milne, Sarah Stone, E.J. Su, Joana Lafuente, Robby Musso, Josh Burcham, John-Paul Bove, Josh Perez, Casey Coller, Priscilla Tramontano, Ken Christiansen, Chris Mowry, Brendan Cahill, Tom Long, Shawn Lee, Matt Frank, and many many many more, all under the watchful eye of editors John Barber, Carlos Guzman, Chris Ryall, and after the 2011 final (or so we thought) film in the Bay trilogy, Optimus Prime died. Again. But not really.

Two ongoing series spawned from that moment, neither involving Earth: More Than Meets the Eye and Robots in Disguise. We looked at Cybertron's past again, after Chaos Theory, after Megatron Origin, after the Spotlights, Flint Dille, one of the original cartoon series writers, Chris Metzen, and Livio Ramondelli dug deep into the past of the planet and its leaders with Autocracy and Monstrosity, as IDW Publishing ventured into digital-first and motion comics.

Now, thirty thrilling years later, here we are. A fourth live-action movie opening in June, innumerable toys based on the same and reinvented core cast, three currently (more or less) ongoing comics series with IDW publishing with the addition of Transformers: Windblade, the last issue of the original Marvel US run hitting last March under ReGeneration One and, as far as we can tell, many many more stories to come.

This was a celebration of the Transformers comics. This was the abridged, incomplete story of some the Transformers fictions. We may have left out parts, some intentionally, some less so. There is a lot more to be found in the Transformers 30th Anniversary Collection edited by Jim Sorenson.

But all of these are also just facets of the whole story - what is yours?

Till All Are One
-The Seibertron.com team

Hasbro's press release regarding Chris Latta and Simon Furman's Hall of Fame induction

Date: Thursday, March 15th 2012 6:47pm CDT
Categories: Cartoon News, Comic Book News, Event News, Press Releases, People News
Posted by: Seibertron | Credit(s): Hasbro

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LEGENDARY VOICE ACTOR TO RECEIVE FIRST POSTHUMOUS INDUCTION INTO HASBRO’S TRANSFORMERS HALL OF FAME
Chris Latta, the Voice of Starscream, to Be Honored, Along With Prolific TRANSFORMERS Comic Writer Simon Furman and a New Crop of Robots, at Ceremony in Dallas, Texas on April 28

Pawtucket, R.I. (MARCH 9, 2012) - Hasbro, Inc. (NASDAQ: HAS) is proud to announce the induction of two legendary figures in the evolution of the iconic TRANSFORMERS franchise-comic book writer Simon Furman, and legendary voice actor Chris Latta-into the TRANSFORMERS Hall of Fame. Furman has written TRANSFORMERS comics on and off for almost 30 years, and has written more TRANSFORMERS comic books than anyone else. Chris Latta voiced ten Transformers characters in the early animated series, including STARSCREAM and WHEELJACK. Unfortunately, he passed away in 1994, however his posthumous award will be accepted by his family at the TRANSFORMERS Hall of Fame ceremony, April 28, 2012, during BOTCON, the Official TRANSFORMERS Convention, in Dallas, Texas.

Founded in 2010 to honor those influential in creating and building the iconic TRANSFORMERS franchise, as well as actual "ROBOTS IN DISGUISE," the TRANSFORMERS Hall of Fame has previously honored writer Bob Budiansky, voice of Optimus Prime Peter Cullen, original TRANSFORMERS designers Yoke Hideaki and Kojin Ohno and the Director and Executive Producer of the live-action film trilogy, Michael Bay and Steven Spielberg.

Simon Furman: Simon Furman is one of the most recognized and respected names in the world of TRANSFORMERS comic books. Furman began his run on TRANSFORMERS comics writing the first UK version of the TRANSFORMERS imprint. Later on, Furman took over the role of writer on the U.S. comic adaptation beginning with issue 56 and ending with issue 80, the final comic to be published in the series. In 1993 with the reintroduction of the TRANSFORMERS brand under the "Generation 2" banner, Furman was once again tapped to pen the 12 issue comic series. Nearly ten years later, Furman returned to the world of mainstream TRANSFORMERS comics as part of the "Dreamwave" writing staff. Simon Furman now writes for IDW comics, where in 2012 and by popular demand, he was asked to continue the story of the original TRANSFORMERS comics right where he had left off beginning with issue 81 of TRANSFORMERS ReGeneration One.

Chris Latta: The first TRANSFORMERS animated television series began to air in 1984, and as part of the original cast, voice actor Chris Latta helped breathe life into these animated robotic characters.
Chris Latta began his voice over career in the late 1970s. In 1983, Latta joined the cast of the G.I. JOE A REAL AMERICAN HERO animated series as COBRA COMMANDER, the leader of the evil mega maniacal organization COBRA. Later, on the TRANSFORMERS series, Latta pioneered the role of STARSCREAM, a back handed and conniving character that constantly plotted to usurp his leader MEGATRON for control over the DECEPTICONS. Latta’s portrayal of both STARSCREAM and COBRA COMMANDER have made these characters two of the most iconic and widely recognized in their respective brands. Unfortunately, Chris Latta passed away in 1994; however his family will be on hand at the Hall of Fame event to accept the award on his behalf.

Hasbro will also induct four more iconic robot characters into the TRANSFORMERS Hall of Fame. Heroic AUTOBOT JAZZ, fan-favorite DINOBOT GRIMLOCK and evil DECEPTICON SHOCKWAVE will all be honored. In addition, TRANSFORMERS fans around the world are able to vote on TRANSFORMERS.com for a fourth robot to receive the 2012 "Fans’ Choice" honor. Fan-chosen nominees include ARCEE, MEGATRON (BEAST WARS), WHEELJACK, RODIMUS and SKY-BYTE. The winner will be revealed for the first time at the Hall of Fame induction ceremony at "BOTCON" on April 28, 2012. Voting is open from now until March 21st on TRANSFORMERS.COM

First introduced in 1984 by Hasbro and Takara as a toy line, the TRANSFORMERS brand
has provided kids with hours of MORE THAN MEETS THE EYE fun with their action figures that convert from robot to vehicles and back again. Legions of boys around the world grew up creating fantastic adventures and battles set on both the planet CYBERTRON and Earth that featured the "good-guy" AUTOBOTS and the "bad-guy" DECEPTICONS. Since then, more than 7500 robots have been introduced in countless animated TV series, comic books and three live-action feature films. For further information visit the official TRANSFORMERS Facebook page at Facebook.com/Transformers.

# # #

About Hasbro, Inc.
Hasbro (NASDAQ: HAS) is a branded play company providing children and families around the world with a wide-range of immersive entertainment offerings based on the Company’s world class brand portfolio. From toys and games, to television programming, motion pictures, video games and a comprehensive licensing program, Hasbro strives to delight its customers through the strategic leveraging of well-known and beloved brands such as TRANSFORMERS, LITTLEST PET SHOP, NERF, PLAYSKOOL, MY LITTLE PONY, G.I. JOE, MAGIC: THE GATHERING and MONOPOLY. The Hub, Hasbro’s multi-platform joint venture with Discovery Communications (NASDAQ: DISCA, DISCB, DISCK) launched on October 10, 2010. The online home of The Hub is http://www.hubworld.com. The Hub logo and name are trademarks of Hub Television Networks, LLC. All rights reserved. Come see how we inspire play through our brands at http://www.hasbro.com. © 2012 Hasbro, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

New Transformers Listings on Amazon

Date: Saturday, October 29th 2011 5:18pm CDT
Categories: Cartoon News, Comic Book News, Collectables
Posted by: El Duque | Credit(s): Amazon

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Transformers Optimus Prime: Stand-up Mover (Hasbro) [Board book]

Book Description
Series: Hasbro
Not only is this book shaped just like the Autobots leader Optimus Prime, it stands up and has movable arms for additional play value. After they finish the book, kids can act out the story and put Optimus into action poses using the movable arms. The book can be displayed on a shelf or dresser as a stand-up figure showing Optimus in his mighty robot form.

Product Details

Price: $8.99
Board book: 10 pages
Publisher: Reader's Digest; Brdbk edition (March 20, 2012)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0794424732
ISBN-13: 978-0794424732

Transformers Bumblebee Stand-up Mover (Hasbro) [Board book]

Book Description
Series: Hasbro
Not only is this book shaped just like Bumblebee, it stands up and has movable arms for additional play value. After they finish the book, kids can act out the story and put Bumblebee into action poses using the movable arms. When they’re done playing, the book can be displayed on a shelf or dresser as a stand-up figure of Bumblebee in his sleek robot form.

Product Details

Price: $8.99
Board book: 10 pages
Publisher: Reader's Digest; Brdbk edition (March 20, 2012)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0794424740
ISBN-13: 978-0794424749

Transformers: How to Draw Transformers [Paperback]

Product Details
Arthur/Artist: Nick Roche
Price: $4.99
Paperback: 32 pages
Publisher: IDW Publishing (March 6, 2012)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1613771495
ISBN-13: 978-1613771495

Transformers Classics Volume 3 [Paperback]
Bob Budiansky (Author), Steve Parkhouse (Author), Don Perlin (Author), John Ridgway (Author), Mike Collins (Author), Jose Delbo (Author)

Product Details
Price: $24.99
Paperback: 276 pages
Publisher: IDW Publishing (March 27, 2012)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1613771630
ISBN-13: 978-1613771631

Transformers Volume 6: Chaos: Police Action [Paperback]
Mike Costa (Author), Brendan Cahill (Author), E.J. Su (Author)

Product Details
Price: $17.99
Paperback: 104 pages
Publisher: IDW Publishing (February 21, 2012)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1613771649
ISBN-13: 978-1613771648

Shout! Factory's Transformers – Japanese Collection: Complete Series

Date: Thursday, April 21st 2011 5:45pm CDT
Category: Cartoon News
Posted by: El Duque | Credit(s): Shout! Factory

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Shout! Factory has listed a preorder on their website for Transformers – Japanese Collection: Complete Series. The set is listed at $89.99 + Shipping and scheduled to release on July 5th 2011.

The Complete Japanese Collection - First Time On DVD In North America!

In 1984 the world was introduced to a unique line of transforming toys designed by a Japanese toymaker. Originally created as independent action figures, the line was repackaged as The Transformers by American toy powerhouse Hasbro, who enlisted the help of advertisers Tom Griffin and Joe Bacal and comic book writer Bob Budiansky to create a comprehensive backstory of valiant Autobots and treacherous Decepticons. The franchise was an instant success, launching popular comic books and a daily animated series that spanned four stunning seasons and a theatrical motion picture.

After the events of the Transformers Gen One TV seasons, Japanese creators had more stories to tell. This trilogy steered the heroic adventures of the Autobots — known as Cybertrons in Japan — in a completely new and wild direction. Finally, for the very first time in North America, those three Japanese creations — Headmasters, Super-God Masterforce and Victory — can be seen in one deluxe 13-DVD box set!

Offered with the original Japanese Language Audio and English Subtitles. Additional bonus features include original toy commercials, art galleries including rare material and much more.

Extended Bios: Roadbuster, Deluxe Insecticons and More

Date: Tuesday, December 21st 2010 12:41pm CST
Categories: Cartoon News, Comic Book News, People News, Digital Media News
Posted by: Diem | Credit(s): Disciples of Boltax

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Older G1 fans may remember the Marvel Transformers Universe Series (Transformers A to Z in the UK) which showed Bob Budiansky's full bios for characters rather than the truncated versions seen on the Tech Specs. However a few characters slipped through the gap and never had their bios published. Over at Jim Sorenson's blog, Disciples of Boltax the full bios for Swerve, Roadbuster, Hubcap and the Deluxe Insecticons can finally be seen!

The bios can be seen here.

For the latest in Transformers news stick with Seibertron.com!

Transformers Hall of Fame Videos Available on Hasbro.com

Date: Thursday, August 5th 2010 10:56am CDT
Categories: Cartoon News, Comic Book News, People News
Posted by: Razorclaw0000 | Credit(s): Hasbro.com

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Hasbro.com has updated it's videos section with all of the short "highlight" videos for each Hall of Fame Inductee, both Robot and Human.

Optimus Prime

Megatron

Bumblebee

Starscream

Dinobot

Hideaki Yoke

Peter Cullen

Kohjin Ohno

Bob Budiansky

Seibertron.com, your source for all the latest Transformers news!

Transformers "Matrix of Leadership Edition" DVD boxset review

Date: Thursday, August 13th 2009 12:38pm CDT
Categories: Cartoon News, Reviews, Site Articles, Digital Media News
Posted by: First Gen | Credit(s): Supreme Convoy

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Seibertron.com Site Moderator Supreme Convoy has been kind enough to draft a detailed review of the Shout! Factory Transformers Matrix of Leadership DVD Boxet for your reading pleasure. You can purchase this set at transformerscollectorsset.com.

Hitting on all the fine points and comparisons between previous releases of the Generation 1 series cartoons, this informative review is a must read for any Seibertronian considering buying the set.

Without further ado, here's the review:

I originally set my San Diego Comic-Con 2009 budget to $300 on merchandise. Last year’s budget was around the same price so I figured it was a good number. However, on the first hour on the floor I destroyed that budget. I saw the Transformers and GI Joe boxsets for $150 and $155 respectively. A number of thoughts went through my mind as I stared at these beautiful looking DVDs.

"I can save money on shipping now and pick these up."

"I already have the Rhino sets. Hell, I just paid $140 to get Season 2 Part 2 and Season 3 Part 2/Season 4. Do I really want to double dip?"

"Where the hell am I going to put these?"

"OCD collector Supreme Convoy needs these."

"Shiny!"

The Shout employee wanders over to me and says they include a GI Joe poster and Megatron poster signed by Frank Welker with purchase at San Diego. Needless to say, I gave him my credit card immediately. Of course, I had to increase the budget during Comic-Con as the weekend went on.

On to the set ...

Video & Audio
The video quality is practically identical to the Rhino release. I couldn’t spot any differences between the two. However, Shout didn’t include the extra sound effects that Rhino made for the previous release. While this didn’t necessarily bother me, Shout does a great job on presenting what the cartoon would’ve been like during the 80’s without any artificial alterations.

The greatest improvement that Shout made is the simple menu screens. Rhino had a complicated menu screen when you wanted to pick individual episodes where you slowly had to move the cursor to start the episode. With the Shout release, all you have to do is go down a list and pick an episode.

Packaging
I absolute love how the box pulls open like the actual Matrix of Leadership. The set includes a souvenir book and magnets with the Autobot and Decepticon logos. The souvenir book is a bit misleading. It’s mostly an episode listing for the entire series; it also includes bios for characters like Optimus Prime and Megatron. These bonus items aren’t exactly a draw for me.

Though for $5 more, the GI Joe complete boxset is made of metal and plastic and includes a dogtag flashdrive with two comics on it (the comics are very brief but the flashdrive itself is pretty neat!). That set is classier looking and feels more durable. I’m concerned about damaging the cardboard Matrix box. Though there is a charm to opening the Matrix box like Rodimus Prime

Bonus Features
For me the highlight of Shout’s release are the documentaries, each running about 30 minutes:

1. Triple Changer: From Toy to Comic to Screen - The Origins of The Transformers
2. The Combiner: Forming The Transformers Animated Series
3. The Headmasters: Voicing The Robots in Disguise
4. The Autobots, The Decepticons & The Fans
5. Into the Creation Matrix: A Conversation with Bob Budiansky

The documentaries are fascinating and go into details that I don’t believe have been covered before in either the Rhino DVD’s or even Michael Bay’s Transformers bonus features. We learn things such as a Hasbro executive’s son named the toyline Transformers and created the Autobot and Decepticon fraction names. The documentary even goes into how the Marvel Comics did the heavy lifting on the Transformers back story. Bob Budiansky even presents original documents and treatments he used to create profiles such as Starscream and Megatron.

While the Rhino sets has interviews from different actors and creators, they always felt like the filmmakers took out the interview tapes and edited down to 10 minutes. It’s serviceable but doesn’t go too in depth and frankly boring to watch. Shout Factory has created compelling documentaries that are entertaining yet informative.

The most bizarre thing is that commercials for the toyline blur out the child actors. I suppose Shout could not secure the likeness rights to those children. It’s a bit distracting while watching the commercials but I’m sure you can find those easily on YouTube. (Note: I also did not realize that the faces were blurred out on Sony’s release of Transformers: The Movie).

The voice actor roundtable doesn’t include Peter Cullen but it’s still pretty fun. It’s great when the actors go on a tangent and talk about other things such as old time radio shows and the process on voice acting.

The greatest bonus materials for me? The original scripts! The DVD includes PDFs of the Transformers series bible, scripts, and and dialogue scripts. For someone who wants to know the pre-production side of a cartoon, this is an incredible look!

Of course, I love the Transformers fans documentary ... mostly because it features Seibertron.com and my screen name is featured for a few seconds

Closing Thoughts
My main focus while tearing through the boxset was to look at the brand new extras and check out the quality on the episodes. I didn’t really feel the need to review the series as a whole because most of us have seen them all. Though in my case, I still haven’t seen a handful of them so it’s a treat to watch them and feel like a kid again.

Once I’m completely through watching the series, I will be jealous of the people that have never seen the original Transformers cartoon and will watch it for the first time through this set.

Since the video and audio qualities are almost identical to the Rhino release, this would be a cautious purchase for those that already own them. I went in wanting the extras and actual Matrix box. For those who never owned the Rhino DVDs and want a better deal, I believe the individual season sets might be cheaper to purchase as opposed to the Matrix boxset. Even though I love the GI Joe box better, this packaging is still excellent and will look spectacular on a collector’s shelf amongst toys. I highly recommend the Shout's Transformers sets and the Matrix set for the hardcore fans.

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Transformers – Matrix of Leadership edition DVD boxset review

Title, Details and Release Date Revealed for Shout! Factory's Transformers Complete Collection

Date: Friday, April 17th 2009 11:47pm CDT
Categories: Cartoon News, Digital Media News
Posted by: Darth Bombshell | Credit(s): Home Media Magazine

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Home Media Magazine has revealed a number of details about the upcoming release of the complete Generation 1 Transformers series on DVD by Shout! Factory. It will be known as "The Transformers: 25th Anniversary “Matrix of Leadership” Edition Collector’s Set", with the packaging designed in the likeness of the fabled Autobot artifact. which will open to reveal the digistack trays that will contain the 16 DVD's that will make up the set.

In addition to that, the report states that in addition to the special features contained within the individual season sets, the complete series package will include two exclusive features: an interview with Marvel Comics writer Bob Budiansky, and a rountable discussion with eight of the voice actors involved with the show, including Frank Welker. They also reveal that the Animated Movie is not to be included with the set.

Finally, they have revealed that the set, along with the GI Joe Complete Collection, will be first released during this year's San Diego Comic-Con, from July 23-26, 2009, whereafter they will be made available online before being released to the general public.

Click here for the complete information.