#and the autobots wake up 4 millions years later to peace on cybertron | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

popculturebuffet · 6 years

Text

Transformers 84: More Than Meets The Eye Part 1 Recap and Review

1984: A year of progress, a year of Gremlins, Space Whales.. and the dawn of the Transformers. Created by toy giant Hasbro in partnership with Japanese Toymakers Takara from their Diaclone lline, Transformers launched a GIANT franchise, consisting of 20 animated series, 5 live action movies of rapidly decending quality with an unpcoming spinoff that actually looks good, countless comics, and of course, as the world’s longest living toy commercial, a mountain of toys for young and old alike. While I’ve never been the most Diehard transformers fan, I’ve always had a soft spot for it: I watched Beast Wars as a kid, watched Armada as a kid/middleschooler, threw up my hands at Energon and saw the first film in theaters which lead to me watching the glorious cheese that is the original Transformers Movie on youtube, back before Youtube became the copyright hellscape it is now. I also later watched all of transformers animated. And now, as a grown ass man i’ve recently read the IDW comic “More Than Meets The Eye” and with its deep use of just about every G1 Autobot and Decepticon that’s not in use, I want to see where it all began and see all these characters in there, pardon the obvious pun, prime. So join me won’t you as I try to watch and review every episode of G1 transformers.

So for the first of COUNTLESS animated episodes and the second and most notable bit of the franchise how does transformers hold up 34 years later?

Summary:

Starting on Cybertron we get the backstory fairly quickly: For Primus knows how long, two sides have been at war: The peacenik but willing to gut a mother fucker to bring about that peace Autbots and your standard 80’s cackling Saturday morning cartoon villains, the Decepticons. But energy is running low so your hero and mine Optimus Prime decides to take a crew of Autobots to find energy and save their race. The Decepticons, suspicious as you would if your sworn enemies were packing up and leaving, pursue and board them, the insuing battle knocking them into the earth and knocking them all off line for the next 4 million years. During that time their descendants fight over wither the Autobots get to live or not but that’s a whole nother series.

One of the Decepticons awakens due to the Autobot’s ship computer, that also gives him an earth based alt mode, and revives Megatron and the rest with it. Megatron leaves the Autobots behind so we have a series and his right hand man and traitorous bastard Starscream tries to actually make sure their dead. Instead he proves why he’s not leader by accidently waking Optimus up, who brings the rest back to life and sends his top men Hound and Wheeljack to spy on the Decpticons, who are making a base outta nothing at all.

Wheeljack tries to, in a shocking move for an 80’s kids cartoon, SNIPE MEGATRON WITH A GIANT CANON. Granted their robots but jesus, he tried to headshot the bastard. At any rate he fails, hound nearly dies when they runaway, and Megatron’s men go looking for energy and find an oil rig to steal it from.

Hound undergoes repairs while the rest of the transformers roll out to hunt for Megatron. Meanwhile the Decepticons arrive at the Oil Rig and the wokers, collectively winning a Darwin award, try to fight Megatron, a giant murder robot who just showed up out of nowhere with an army equally giant less competent murder robots, BY THROWING WRENCHES AT HIM. Yes that’s a thing that happened. Megatron is merciful and instead of neutron cannoning them to death just throws a giant pipe and bowls them over. The Decepticons convert the oil into the Transformers power source, Energon.

The Autobots arrive, war were declared and a massive and surprisingly decent for the limited animation fight breaks out. But the Decepticons, having what they need, book it and blow up the derrick leaving our heroes and two random humans working it, father and sons Sparkplug and Spike Whitwhicky to die as our episode closes out. TO BE CONTINUED.

Review:

RID Part one is a damn good first episode. Despite the limited characterization outside of the faction leaders, Starscream, Hound and Wheeljack, the action is enjoyably cheesy, the conflict is compelling and most questions a person would have are actually answered. Add in the coolness that is Soundwave, Megatron’s other right hand who launches cassettes that turn into a death bird and a panther, and you have a fun, goofy action show. While I know there’s worse to come, with merman, kidnappings, and krimzeek, for now I’m excited to see more of this cheesy war for the planet earth. Until next time, courage.

12 notes · View notes