Transformers: Cybertron

I'm loving the Cybertron series very much. I think it took some time for me to get used to some of the changes that happened. Scott McNeil not reprising his role as Jetfire, and Brent Miller not reprising his role as Hot Shot, which I think is the worst thing the writers could have ever done, and a lot of other things. I think it the thing for me was that Cybertron wasn't Energon and that's something that still have to get used to. Overall it's a good show with excellent CGI animation similar to that of Beast Wars only more Asian influenced. I think it's the best thing to come along since Beast Wars. I hope this CGI animation will continue on into the next series and hopefully it will be just as good as the other series.

I watched the original G1 series as a child, and even then it was a little too dumbed down for me.

I (like many others) ground my teeth when they released "Transformers Generation 2" which was just the original show packed with some CG transitions.

I slogged through the first boring season of Beast Wars - but then something happened: The show got good. It got so good, that it became one of my favorite television series of all time. The characters developed, the story moved ahead, and then it ended (though I think they ended it sooner than they would have liked; some things were resolved too quickly).

Despite the horrible character designs Beast Machines was even a larger step forward in terms of story, and the series ended in a way I never would have foreseen.

Then the animes started.

This is where everything Transformers started to come apart for me: The lack of animation, the re-use of the same five minute transformation sequences twelve times an episode (I'm exaggerating, but it sure feels like it), the horrible, trite and contrived Japanese-to-English localization, the introduction of anime child geniuses who you want to fall into a black hole just for opening their mouths...

I'm sorry, I just don't get it. "Cybertron" looked more interesting than previous endeavors because it had computer-modeled Transformers, but FOR PETE'S SAKE WAKE UP PEOPLE - THEY'RE BARELY ANIMATED! It's not difficult to do once the models are made, but apparently the production company doesn't have a single computer animator on staff because the Transformers' stiff, completely weightless movements give less of an impression of living machines and more of the impression of talentless animators. This may be intentional because the models don't seem to move any differently than the toys, but better Transformers shows have always compensated (do you think the "Ironhide" toy from G1 looked anything like his cartoon counterpart?).

I'm sorry, but this show is just anime cliché with some impressive-but-boring computer models and another "we gotta collect 'em all" story line.

They should just call this show "Generic Anime Cartoon-like Show Number 5: Now With Transformers!" and let it stand.

Three things redeem Cybertron somewhat, the character of Megatron, the use of the Transformers, robots in disguise line in the theme song and the dynamic voice acting of Garry Chalk and David Kaye. Apart from them, the voice work is a mix of over-compensating, uninterested under-playing and inexplicably weird accents, sad seeing as from their other work there are some talented voice actors here. The characters are not very interesting, in fact the human characters are very annoying(not exactly old news though, they were in Armada- this show is marginally better than that, Armada was a mess- and Energon). Starscream has always been an interesting character but he's bland here, and the writers clearly had no idea what to do with Scourge(shame he had potential) he is not that fearsome and the constant changing of sides got confusing and you are like make up your mind already. The animation is very little improvement either, the traditional cell animation is rather flat and sloppy and the CGI is over-saturated. Not only that, the mouth movements of the characters are far too Nutcracker-like which was very distracting, and the Transformation sequences are all flash and no subtlety. The theme song has one good line which is gone to waste by a generic hip-hop-styled tune with inane lyrics that gives the music a dated feel. The rest of the music is dull and forgettable, lacking expression or atmosphere. The dialogue is the very meaning of clunky, the light-hearted moments veer on awkwardly goofy and the more intense moments almost too grim and over-serious. It also seemed really stilted. The basic story is a good idea that is sadly also too thin structurally and too padded. The story lines just don't engage for that reason, as well as the uncompelling dialogue and characters and lack of tension and excitement in the action sequences. To conclude, Cybertron is the best of the Transformers franchise's Unicron Trilogy but that doesn't say much, it really did disappoint hugely and really not one of the franchise's finest hours. 4/10 Bethany Cox

Originally called Transformers Galaxy Force. The series loses some of the flare I got from watching the fan sub of it. Planet Keys are called Force Chips an called Planet Force, Chip Square instead of Omega Square. also the voices sorta confused me a bit...THundercracker an Scattorshot/Backpack have southern accents? When did Cybertrons have accents...not since Quickstrike on Beast Wars has any Trnasformer have an accent. I can tell you this much, watch Transformers Galaxy Force an then watch Transformers Cybertrons an see the changes. Don't get me wrong I like Cybertrons too just not as much as the originals. The Japanese do put lots of effort into there anime an it does show in the final product. Remember these were Prime Time shows in Japan so had to be good.

Why aren't you watching Transformers Cybertron? Still mad at how Armada and Energon turned out? Well, forget everything you've seen from those shows, because Cybertron is definitely the best Transformers show since Beast Wars.

Transformers Cybertron is the dubbed version of the recent anime series "Galaxy Force" currently airing in Japan. Quite honestly, Cybertron is my least favorite visually of the Transformers (The TF's stand out a bit too much visually compared to the hand-drawn animation), but the animation is miles better than anything seen in Armada and Energon. Like Energon, the Transformers are also computer animated, although this time done by the more professional anime studio Gonzo. Unlike the stiff and cheap movements on Energon, the characters have much more fluidly quick movement and expression. Not to mention the action scenes are very fast-paced, well-animated, choreographed and exciting to watch. Unlike the "Zoids" stylings of Energon, the TF's look a lot closer to Mainframe's work on "Beast Wars." Cybertron certainly has the best writing out of the three recent TF shows. The Dub uses a lot more self-referential humor and there are also a lot of sly references to earlier Transformers shows that really made me smile. Not to mention the Transformers have a lot more personality and depth compared to the stale clichés of Armada and Energon. Hot Shot's character really works the best as a youthful and learning hero, and he, like a lot of characters on this show grow and change throughout it's progression. I never really felt for any of the characters like this ever since Beast Wars. A lot of people may find the idea of using different accents for the characters strange, but I think it makes the characters stand out much more. (And I'm sure people will remember the G1 characters also having accents) Thundercracker's "hillbilly" accent made him a humorous character and the comic relief of Decepticon cronies Ransack and Crumplezone have a lot of shades of "Laurel and Hardy." Optimus Prime is much more likable a character in this show, and actually proves himself as a reliable leader, and Starscream, well without spoiling anything, kicks MUCH more butt than even his G1 counterpart could hope to do. Megatron tends to get his butt kicked too many times, but that changes later on in the show. Even the humans, which have been a main complaint that many Transformers fans had with the recent shows are handled much better here. Unlike the irritating Armada children and the angsty Kicker, they feel more like real people and have a lot of character development as well, and actually do a lot to help the Autobots. And at least these Autobots have enough sense to keep them out of trouble. They have much more of a purpose on this show. Overall, the character interaction is great, while not quite up to the brilliance of Beast Wars, but it still comes very close.

The show actually has a lot of original elements too. A lot of the Transformers on this show are factionless, and there's some genuine intrigue on which side the new characters will join. Also, the show has a much more realistic touch compared to past shows. In Cybertron, the Autobots do their best to keep themselves disguised from humans, and unlike the past shows, the humans don't conveniently disappear during a major battle. Sometimes humans actually notice what's going on, changing the plans of the Autobots. This shows much more actual direction.

Also, the show's pace is very different from the past two shows. But there's a LOT more going on in a single episode of Cybertron. A lot of the episodes tackle multiple subplots at a time during an story arc. While some might not like this sporadic pacing, I think it keeps the show exciting and full of activity. Its a definite improvement over the dragged out single-minded plot arcs of the last two aforementioned shows. As the story progress people change, new alliances are forged and stuff actually happens. Safe to say, I think Cybertron is the best Trasformers show that no one is watching. Forget Armada and Energon, this show is the real deal. And it makes me happy to be a Transformers fan again. I actually look forward to the next episode.

* A Side note: Don't try connecting Cybertron to Armada and Energon storywise, this is a completely different universe.