Transformers: Animated

Transformers(1984) is still the jewel of the Transformers franchise, but Transformers: Animated is not a bad show at all and one of the better recent incarnations, better than the Unicron Trilogy at any rate. Of the recent incarnations, Transformers: Prime may be the better animated and written show, has more depth and also has the advantage of having Peter Cullen and Frank Welker as Optimus and Megatron. But what Transformers: Animated does better is that none of the main characters are annoying(Prime had Miko), Bumblebee is much closer in characterisation to the original show, in Prime he was bland, and it is one of the better recent incarnations in terms of recreating the spirit of the original show. Transformers: Animated is not without its problems. The character designs do take some getting used to, in the action sequences they could have done with much more finesse and being less hurried-looking. The human villains could have been better developed and verge on bizarre sometimes. And some of the dialogue- mostly it's fine though- is a little stretched and slap-sticky sometimes, the humans' dialogue at times is not that much of an improvement on that of Prime. The colours and backgrounds though are very nice and detailed, the style is also the closest any of the recent series in the franchise have gotten to the original show too. The music is energetic with some haunting moments, enhancing the action sequences and any of the scenes that require any depth. The dialogue mostly is smart and thoughtful with some funny moments(getting even better once the show found its feet), while the stories are fun and engrossing, taking care also in fleshing out the characters and their back stories. Those for Waspinator and Blackarachnia are particularly well done. The action sequences are thrilling and fun to watch. Optimus and Megatron are still memorable characters, Starscream is a hoot and Sari is thankfully not another Miko, she's interesting and is far from useless. The voice acting is great, you do miss the original voices but these voice actors still do worthy jobs, actually sounding committed and involved in the drama. Standing out are David Kaye, Corey Burton(though these two did have big shoes to fill) and Tom Kenny. Overall, not mind blowing but highly entertaining still, while some of the complaints are somewhat valid Transformers: Animated is not really that deserving of the hate it's gotten. 7/10 Bethany Cox

It seems that to the majority of the Transformers fan base, Transformers isn't Hasbro's biggest financial success, which must be refreshed for each new generation, but a sacred relic from their childhood which must never be tampered with. Transformers: Animated proves that Generation 1 can live on in the modern day, whilst giving us a solid, fun, modern cartoon. Firstly, there is the fact that almost every robot in this series is a veteran from the original 1980's cartoons. Optimus Prime, Bumblebee, Ratchet, Prowl, Arcee, Jazz, Ultra Magnus, Grimlock, Megatron, Wreck-Gar, Starscream, Blitzwing and Blurr are among just a few of the cast of robots in this series. We are also introduced to a few newcomers to the series; Lugnut and Lockdown, who are both fantastic characters. All of these characters are perfectly fleshed out, with great personalities and a look which stays true to their G1 counterparts, whilst being modern and dynamic. The voice actors do a great job bringing these characters to life. The development in this series is also fantastic. We get glimpses of the character's back stories, and really begin to understand why these characters are who they are. Another great thing about this show is all the G1 references that are presented. The transforming sound-effect, cameos from the Witwickys, lines of dialogue and so forth. So far, I'd say my favourite episode would have to be "A fistful of Energon". If you haven't seen it, I highly recommend it. Then again, I recommend this entire series. The only bad thing about it is the bizarre human villains, but once the Decepticons get their place in the spotlight, they don't cause any problems. All in all, and awesome show, and I am highly anticipating the third season

9/10

This is garbage, what is wrong with animators today. Lazy jag-offs. Teen Titans, and hundreds of more American Anime" garbage. The figures look fine, tho the show is some wimpy stuff, sleep overs? come on. I was a fan of all the series up to Beast Wars and even beast machines ( some really interesting effects in the latter). But with the downhill art style they are teaching in schools today. The voices are fine, except for the stewie headed girl and her WB chuck jones designed dad. Ah, this is horrible. I could even sit through one show. What is wrong with cartoons today.

"I am a G1 fan, and proud of it"

Being a G1 die-hard, I was naturally skeptical about this new series (especially after catching glimpses of the questionable character design). But I have to say that after watching the first 3 episodes (or was it a full 1 1/2 hour mini-movie?), I think this new series is pretty good. Not great, but good.

The high points: They kept the original transforming sound (which is more than I can say for that damn live-action movie). The storyline vaguely follows in G1's footsteps (it's not exactly the same, but it's close enough). Oh, and you won't even notice the funky character design after a while...it's not actually THAT bad after all, once you start watching.

The one low point: Most of the characters have changed significantly. A lot of these new Transformers seem to be combinations of different G1 characters. Ratchet in particular is a perfect 50/50 hybrid of Ironhide and Kup, Optimus seems more like Rodimus, Megatron has vague traces of Unicron, and so on. However, it must be said that the writers/producers had the good sense to keep at least a few key characters perfectly intact...namely Bumblebee and Starscream.

For somebody who loved the original so dearly, this series doesn't disappoint. It's an entertaining take on the cartoon that defined my childhood. If nothing else, it's definitely fun to watch!

I was a kid when the first generation of Transformers came out, and it swept me off my feet. Later came umpteen different incarnations of Transformers and none of them managed to interest me. Either the stories were too far fetched and impossible to follow, or the animations were so clunky I just couldn't watch it.

Transformers Animated is different. Some people don't like the light hearted animation style but it's a fresh approach to the franchise. Also the story line actually makes sense, and it's easy to follow without feeding you with a tea spoon.

All in all, a great reboot, with lots of content for new fans and old ones alike.