The Transformers thread - new CG animated series announced

Talk about everything but gaming in here!

Moderators: pilonv1, Juzbuffa

Post Reply
User avatar
Pariah
Street Fighter HD Remix Champ
Street Fighter HD Remix Champ
Posts: 7695
Joined: 05 Apr 2007 04:40 pm

Post by Pariah »

skids more like the halo xbox 1... :lol:

devastator looks fucking cool though..
[img]http://i30.tinypic.com/5as8eq.gif[/img]
User avatar
AgOnNy
Late onset ADHD
Late onset ADHD
Posts: 4665
Joined: 05 Jul 2006 10:53 pm
XBL ID: AgOnNy
PSN ID: AgOnNy
Steam ID: AgOnNy
Location: The Milky Way
Contact:

Post by AgOnNy »

Is it just me or do Skids & Mudflap look like they are a couple of downers?
User avatar
GameHED
10000 words or your money back!
10000 words or your money back!
Posts: 13228
Joined: 05 Jul 2006 01:14 pm
Location: Brisbane, QLD, AU

Post by GameHED »

Megatron leader class isn't too bad as tank. Better alt mode than the flying cannon thing imo.

But his robot mode: not as big a fan of him having such a skinny arm on one side. The only leader class I bought was brawl from the last movie line.
I like the tread feet though.
Sideswipe looks cool in both modes, reminds me a little bit of wreckage with the forearm blade things. Good to see they are using the shiny silvery paint. This is what classics grimlock should have had.
"A delayed game is eventually good, but a rushed game is forever bad." -Shigeru Miyamoto
User avatar
GameHED
10000 words or your money back!
10000 words or your money back!
Posts: 13228
Joined: 05 Jul 2006 01:14 pm
Location: Brisbane, QLD, AU

Post by GameHED »

Thank you hasbro for making starscream less chunky than before!
"A delayed game is eventually good, but a rushed game is forever bad." -Shigeru Miyamoto
User avatar
GreyWizzard
Boundless Generosity
Boundless Generosity
Posts: 18671
Joined: 04 Jul 2006 07:51 am
XBL ID: GreyWizzard
PSN ID: Grey_AU
Location: Brisbane

Post by GreyWizzard »

Predacons Rising is the latest ep, but it is a reference to Beast Wars... which is still awesome :D
User avatar
GameHED
10000 words or your money back!
10000 words or your money back!
Posts: 13228
Joined: 05 Jul 2006 01:14 pm
Location: Brisbane, QLD, AU

Post by GameHED »

The angry fat mexican highlights why the TF movie is going to suck:
I agree: more character development. Give characters their own backstory and reason for being there, make the bad guys have something they can do, sometimes viewing from their POV. We barely got to see Starscream do anything in the last movie. He was just a generic warrior no.232. Maybe scenes of him plotting to become the new leader behind megatron's back with a few rogue followers would have made for an interesting twist and added some depth for those non-TF fans who totally would not have expected that? But humans had taken up lots of time from character development of the baddies.

You should see his 5 part watchmen review. Pretty spot on.
User avatar
GreyWizzard
Boundless Generosity
Boundless Generosity
Posts: 18671
Joined: 04 Jul 2006 07:51 am
XBL ID: GreyWizzard
PSN ID: Grey_AU
Location: Brisbane

Post by GreyWizzard »

It's because it wasn't about the transformers. It was Sam and his skinny arsed gf make out while their creepy helper bot watches.

If you make a film and call it transformers, than make it about the transformers. Concentrate on them and their lives and problems. Show us the good guys and the bad guys, let us understand them... otherwise it's more just random pretty cg bot v random pretty cg bot. Also if you give us little back story of the bots, then when they stand on the side of a building and wax lyrical it just comes of laughable.
User avatar
GameHED
10000 words or your money back!
10000 words or your money back!
Posts: 13228
Joined: 05 Jul 2006 01:14 pm
Location: Brisbane, QLD, AU

Post by GameHED »

Lessons for other movie directors to pay attention to for the future:
A three part analysis on why they fail.

LUCAS, SCHUMACHER AND BAY ANALYSIS! PART 1 LUCAS
LUCAS, SCHUMACHER AND BAY ANALYSIS! PART 2 SCHUMACHER
LUCAS, SCHUMACHER AND BAY ANALYSIS! PART 3 BAY
"A delayed game is eventually good, but a rushed game is forever bad." -Shigeru Miyamoto
User avatar
Ekin
Regular Member
Regular Member
Posts: 1180
Joined: 05 Jul 2006 09:30 pm
Location: Melbourne

Post by Ekin »

TF was garbage. We could have got some nice dialog between Megatron and Starscream that would set up TF2 or anything to build the transformers as real characters but instead we got:

anthony anderson
sector 7
retarded hackers
'black' jazz
hot ass blonde hacker (no one believed a word that she was saying)
"MY BAD"
30 mins of transformers total
"no mass changing" (but the fuckin cube went from 10 story building size to spike running it up a 10 story building?!)
transformers themselves looks like ASS
hugo weaving - whats the point? no one recognised him. save the money by hiring welker instead and spend the money on more dialog for the TF's.

Had the TFs been real characters i might have cared when Jazz died. At the end i thought Optimus was going to throw him away like a piece of trash. In fact an episode of the cartoons gave them more character than the entire movie.
User avatar
GameHED
10000 words or your money back!
10000 words or your money back!
Posts: 13228
Joined: 05 Jul 2006 01:14 pm
Location: Brisbane, QLD, AU

Post by GameHED »

Also in a semi-related topic:

to understand where all the anger, hate, and cynicism comes from you only have to look at the treatment hollywood has given to the original creators of the works the movies were based on:
http://www.movieretriever.com/blog/278/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; ... -blame-him

It's important to understand that if you want to make good movies, try to take the feedback seriously and do treat the movie as if you were trying to make a classic that can truly stand the test of time. Not just think about $ it will make and how it does commercially. Some of the best ones are still watchable today as they were when originally released.

If it ever gets out of control and really shitty movies manage to still make a lot of profit; encouraging bad people to make bad decisions and not put effort into the making of them, you will see a mass boycott of those from the fanbase as punishment. The virals will be able to pose as excited fans, and there will be a false sense of security for a time, but at some point the masses will wake up eventually and stop wanting to pay money to see the crap stuff as their taste has time to mature.

There is this danger that just because something makes profit "we don't have to care whether the feedback from fans is good or not". That's why it's important for future directors: don't make the mistakes of these others.
User avatar
GreyWizzard
Boundless Generosity
Boundless Generosity
Posts: 18671
Joined: 04 Jul 2006 07:51 am
XBL ID: GreyWizzard
PSN ID: Grey_AU
Location: Brisbane

Post by GreyWizzard »

Int the two parter Human Error, Soundwave gets to show off Laserbeak and Ratbat. They are guitars... Ratbat is a Keytar :D

Almost near the end off the current season, and the story is a bit all over the place. I wonder what where they are going to take it.
User avatar
GameHED
10000 words or your money back!
10000 words or your money back!
Posts: 13228
Joined: 05 Jul 2006 01:14 pm
Location: Brisbane, QLD, AU

Post by GameHED »

BTW for anyone who is still looking for TFA toys I thought I would mention that I spotted *Target chermside having a sale a few days ago on leader classes.

$50.

Unfortunately they only had Ulta Magnus which I didn't like as much as megatron. So I passed. But that's a pretty good bargain. For those fans who could never find that character anywhere and wanted one for yourself cheap, or to sell off to someone else online who would pay more for it, now would be a good time to check it out.

The reviews for him are all positive. I've noticed that leader class versions of characters seem more serious and slightly less cartoony in form for some reason. eg bulkheads weapons and stuff. So despite the simpler cartoon design of TFA, you are still getting more detailed figure than what you'd find on voyagers.

*if not there, check big w or kmart, one of these also had a sale, but leaders were $60 there. Westfield shopping centre. Still that's close to half price.

For those wondering how the toys of jet storm and jet fire combine in robot modes here is a transformation vid:
Looks like it has Popeye forearms.

lil kids who are too young to know what I'm talking about
classic 30s toon violence
Juzbuffa
Arse Surgery By Shotgun
Arse Surgery By Shotgun
Posts: 965
Joined: 04 Jul 2006 12:39 am
XBL ID: Juzbuffa1
Location: Melbourne

Post by Juzbuffa »

NEW TRAILER OUT FOR TF2!!!!
You wouldn't believe the things I've seen through your eyes...

Image
User avatar
GameHED
10000 words or your money back!
10000 words or your money back!
Posts: 13228
Joined: 05 Jul 2006 01:14 pm
Location: Brisbane, QLD, AU

Post by GameHED »

GameHED sighting:

Saw that finally they have wave 4 (I think that what it is) TF universe characters Hound and Cyclonus at Chermside target.

I only got Cyclonus for now because I already spent money for Universe Inferno earlier. I hope to one day buy him at sale price. Remember: the ravage that hound comes with can fit into the G1 soundwave's chest! So if you ever want to own an updated ravage for your G1 soundwave toy I would highly recommend collectors get universe hound! Updated ravage looks better and the G1 ravage's missiles can fit into the sides of this new ravage's body. Why does Ravage come with Hound: there was an episode where Hound captured Ravage that's why. Great G1 homage.


Also I saw the re-release of starscream in different paintscheme where instead of his body having greyish tone it is painted white to make it more cartoony. This new classics starscream looks better than the older release imo. Might be of interest for those who missed out on the original classics starscream that had come out earlier.

Repaints of prowl were also available: smokesceen and silverstreak. Smokescreen looks cool. It's a good mold to base his character from. I wonder why hasbro don't just release all the variations at the same time though? Would be much better that way imo.

GameHED review of Universe Cyclonus:

Bot mode:
Appears extremely tall and skinny like a basketball player. The molded dark purple and grey plastic is very fitting to his cartoon character. Unlike starscream his wings fold backward neatly so as to not obstruct his elbow movement. (one thing I like about this character and his transformation is how much more practical bot mode is)

Some articulation that is missing:

no balljoints for hands. No bicep swivel. No hip swivel. Head can only move left or right.

But his leg armour detailing looks really good. He is like a macross valk but with a gundam samurai helmet and humanoid faceplate. :D

One thing I don't like is how beefy the forearms appear in proportion to the rest of his body though. He suffers from the "popeye the sailor man" disease. But apart from that, his bot mode hides the fighter parts well by tucking a lot of shit into hollow cavities to hide stuff. (This is the one thing that seperates transformers from mechs - their transformations don't have to make sense since it's a disguise and they have some shapeshifting warping going on inside them.)

The weapon he comes with is nightstick who can transform into a robot. But it's just a simple "sucks his own balls", folded-robot transformation lol

Fighter mode:

This is the reason I bought him. With the exception of the stupid knee armor not being able to push further closer into the fighter's body for a slimmer profile, the fighter looks sleek and reasonably suited for speed and agility. Every body part of the robot is very well hidden in this mode too and anyone looking at it would never suspect that the fighter is in fact a transformer unlike say with many of the car robot toys that when you turn them upside down you can clearly see parts of the robot's face and stuff appear underneath.

Visually it looks threatening too. Lots of forward fixed-firing weapons along both sides as well as the ability to add more firepower when you transform nightstick into gun mode and place him on top as a turret cannon. The cannon is suitably large and beefy enough to deal with heavier, more-armored enemies, and can rotate 360 degrees. I like to think of it as an antiship weapon. Use it at close range, then run away before defenses can have time to shoot you down.

One thing that surprised me in this fighter mode: the landing gear allows the fighter to sit with just enough clearance so that the silly knee armor that hangs low doesn't scrape the ground. Very happy with that.

Another gimmick is how the nose rifle can telescope outwards and retracts. Whjen telescoped you can see the targeting sensor emerge from the top of the nose which is cool to see. Although it is done in such a way that means there is an ugly hollow slit that can be seen from above which spoils the overall fighter's apperance from outside.

Something else I want to add: I found a new VTOL alternate mode that I made up as a third confirguration which looks pretty cool. In this mode he can act as a type of hover vehicle which can shoot from a hidden location emerging suddenly from cover, with the rotating gun turret as the main weapon. I'm happy for coming up with that one. It doesn't look goofy like the stupid "tank with legs" siege mode that people came up with for universe galvatron.

Summary:

Great in both modes (alt mode is superior to many car robots because there are no ugly gaps or hollow bits hanging off it) and I am happy with the transformation complexity between the two modes. It's simple enough to be a fast and practical transformation, yet not 'lazy' as some characters are; for example universe silverbolt which is just a robot with a plane on its back lol I would give this a solid 9.

I took a point off for articulation and because in robot mode there are gaps in the wrist where the hands emerge from. Looks really ugly. This is why I liked universe Inferno so much: everything is solid all around. Not an empty easter egg which only has robot skin supporting its body. But as a small deluxe sized figure, this is one of my top picks. No ugly seams in alt mode (like what happened with ironhide), not too much open gaps or robot parts being exposed in fighter mode, good choice of *colours, and overall the character itself is appealing historically in the TF universe because of what he is: some kind of amalgamation of the original Seekers and Insecticons (or parts of them at least) but now more-suited for space. Maybe they should do that with Jetfire in future and make him 'die' and the scraps are used as materials so he can to be remade in a better form?

Anyway when you get the chance to see him, get Cyclonus. And remember he is really a triple-changer if you can figure out a way to make him a futuristic VTOL jet. (ie kinda like the Raiden fighters that shift into that mode in end-of-level boss fights :) )

*this is very important to me: I hate the fluro paint used sometimes by hasbro, and also the fakeness of having the "body painted over clear plastic" trick they've been using lately on these toys such as prowl, and ironhide. My ironhide paint has started to smudge off the side and now you can see through his door. argh. Makes the toy look cheap. Better to have it molded in the colour instead.

EDIT: I also noticed his hover mode that I made up, also can be used to attack ground targets while high in the air, because the barrel of the turret canon can be tiled at low angles. Not even galvatron can tilt the barrel. I don't think he would be able to beat Cyclonus in a one-on-one duel provdied it was a fight of only alt mode vs alt mode. Galvatron is a sitting duck.
Froggy
BLD4LBE
BLD4LBE
Posts: 4996
Joined: 04 Jul 2006 10:54 am

Post by Froggy »

GameHED wrote:GameHED sighting:

Saw that finally they have wave 4 (I think that what it is) TF universe characters Hound and Cyclonus at Chermside target.

I only got Cyclonus for now because I already spent money for Universe Inferno earlier. I hope to one day buy him at sale price. Remember: the ravage that hound comes with can fit into the G1 soundwave's chest! So if you ever want to own an updated ravage for your G1 soundwave toy I would highly recommend collectors get universe hound! Updated ravage looks better and the G1 ravage's missiles can fit into the sides of this new ravage's body. Why does Ravage come with Hound: there was an episode where Hound captured Ravage that's why. Great G1 homage.
Ah sweet, mmm tempted to get that due to the ravage. They also had 25th anniversary release Optimus Prime, sunstreaker and Prowl I think which Optimus was like G1 optimus but with a bit of plastic but same mould but the other two were slighty updated but plastic.
Vzzzbx, you lose again!
User avatar
GameHED
10000 words or your money back!
10000 words or your money back!
Posts: 13228
Joined: 05 Jul 2006 01:14 pm
Location: Brisbane, QLD, AU

Post by GameHED »

Here are some pics of cyclonus btw:

http://plasticcrack.net/archives/2009/0" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; ... nightstick

Tall bastard!
"A delayed game is eventually good, but a rushed game is forever bad." -Shigeru Miyamoto
User avatar
GameHED
10000 words or your money back!
10000 words or your money back!
Posts: 13228
Joined: 05 Jul 2006 01:14 pm
Location: Brisbane, QLD, AU

Post by GameHED »

This guy reckons everywhere he has seen the 3rd mode for TF Universe Galvatron done is incorrect, so he's showing how it should really look:
Good try at making him a triple changer, but I think galvy needed to be voyager size at least. Especially if it will mean no hollow bits. TF Movie leader class brawl for example is so much cooler than his deluxe version thanks to the larger class size allowing for a more detailed transformation.
Should have made galvatron one of the bigger sizes..

Check out this custom blitzwing:
looks like some classic starscream and deluxe movie brawl toy parts were used for the experiment. Plane mode looks like it suffers.
User avatar
GameHED
10000 words or your money back!
10000 words or your money back!
Posts: 13228
Joined: 05 Jul 2006 01:14 pm
Location: Brisbane, QLD, AU

Post by GameHED »

For those of you who thought the faces of the michael bay live action movie looked fugly and too insectoid I wish to post this video showing the alien robot civilisation that gets eaten by unicron at the begining of transformers the movie (animated) played to the vince dicola music.
The Arcee live action movie figure and the movie Brawl, clearly has a face that looks just like the ones in this animation. :shock:
What I believe is that all the transformers we see in micheal bays movie should be robots that think they are transformers but are not. That would be a really interesting twist to make fans happy.

What happened was the ones that we see in michael bay universe are in fact the descendants of the robot civilisation that got destroyed at the start of the 80s animated movie and were made to think they were transformers. They could not allow themselves to admit their powerful civilisation could ever be defeated by some ball that floats around absorbing energy or they would be thelaughing stock of all other robot alien races. Nobody would believe it anyway. So they posed as transformers hiding on other planets to see if they could start all over again, fraudulently claiming that the race others accuse them of being were completely wiped out. (when truthfully they are descended from survivors who escaped the cataclysm - 1000s of years worth of history destroyed in a flash; forcing them to become nomads)

They were once a proud and knowledgable race, and so admitting it had weaknesses and was caught napping, would be a blow to their reputation.

The live action movie robots are transformers in name yes, but only that they are alien and can transform, a technique which they needed to copy from the original transformers. That's why their faces look so different and nobody recognises them as the ones from the 80s cartoon. (apart from prime) They are actually from the race of robots that almost became extinct as we see at the start of the 80s animated movie.
Or they could say that what we see in the live action movie is all just a dream that an alien robot is having while asleep. It never happens like that, they are just various confusing images strung togather randomly as the mind wanders from one thing to another and none of it has to make sense.
Last edited by GameHED on 12 May 2009 11:41 pm, edited 2 times in total.
User avatar
GreyWizzard
Boundless Generosity
Boundless Generosity
Posts: 18671
Joined: 04 Jul 2006 07:51 am
XBL ID: GreyWizzard
PSN ID: Grey_AU
Location: Brisbane

Post by GreyWizzard »

But look at Alpha Trion and also footage of the Autobots before Trion created Optimus Prime. His face is very similar to the bots we see at the start of the TF animated movie.

Also, the Consumer Goods robots never used to be able to transform, it was an ability they later gave themselves, which helped win the civil war and get them into the golden age.
User avatar
Lepo5
Kyber Felted
Kyber Felted
Posts: 2841
Joined: 04 Jul 2006 12:46 pm

Post by Lepo5 »

Oh yeah, sooo true.
User avatar
GreyWizzard
Boundless Generosity
Boundless Generosity
Posts: 18671
Joined: 04 Jul 2006 07:51 am
XBL ID: GreyWizzard
PSN ID: Grey_AU
Location: Brisbane

Post by GreyWizzard »

Season 3 of Transformers Animated has just wrapped up. Dust some how got into my eyes during a few scenes...

You could finish the series there altogether but I really do hope it gets picked up for another season. It really is a fantastic show. It has so much love and respect for the original series, and never poos all over it like some of the japanese series.

:up: :up: :up: :up: :up:
User avatar
GameHED
10000 words or your money back!
10000 words or your money back!
Posts: 13228
Joined: 05 Jul 2006 01:14 pm
Location: Brisbane, QLD, AU

Post by GameHED »

Sightings post:

Managed to spot masterpiece starscreams ([url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aYxHo1g3vY8]hasbro release in the cartoony white paint style[/youtube].) at mr toys chermside. $90

For those who were looking around for masterpiece starscream and had not yet found one or bothered about it for ages you might want to check it out.

Forget the transformer live action stuff and go for this instead. :up:

Oh and yeah I do think TFA is the best TF cartoon only I'll be honest with you: I do wonder what it'd be like if they started a whole new series again that rivalled G1 in its scope (and number of characters) yet actually aimed at a a teen audience this time with actual robots dying all the time and the tone was more serious. (ie if for example a guy get shot in the face he would have that damage for the rest of the series and some part of his body irreparable. He then be allowed to hold a grudge or something for a whole series and maybe this develops into a whole change for the character psychologically)

And make prime the focus not bumblebee. Bumblebee appeals to kids because he is like the 'little brother' and is closest to human size and isn't threatening looking. But primes the guy who can haul heavy loads and carry the cars in his trailer. Remember how reliant on prime all the other autobots were in g1, and how basically useless they are without the leader? That's what they'd need to do again to make the character seem more legendary and heroic. ie he's abnormally good at everything with all the stats near 10 and he is always 'optimistic' and confident, not in self-doubt like rodimus. There is no 'personal growth' story to tell for prime which makes him gain power over time like some kid in pokemon - he is just good at everything.

But one thing I liked from TFA: the kept the decepticons naturally larger as robots which I like. I don't want optimus prime to be as big as megatron if megatron is a larger vehicle. If the robot is a larger alt mode, then they should stay large as a robot too. If optimus = an astrotrain-sized shuttle in alt mode or something, then he should NOT be allowed to fit into a small room with the others and his energy requirments would be larger too. He should be forced to stay parked outside. The toys don't have to be to scale but at least do it for the cartoons.
User avatar
GreyWizzard
Boundless Generosity
Boundless Generosity
Posts: 18671
Joined: 04 Jul 2006 07:51 am
XBL ID: GreyWizzard
PSN ID: Grey_AU
Location: Brisbane

Post by GreyWizzard »

Here is a look at the new TFA toys. Which gives us a hint of what they are doing for season 3 of TFA.
It's Rodimus Minor, Arcee, Bumblebee with armour, Ratchet Cybertron form, and a repaint of Grimlock.

I wonder if the appearence of Rodimus means a change of leadership...

bugger just having a listen to botcon, and it seems like they are ending TFA. Maybe we get a forth series... but they pretty much wrapped it up with Optimus getting the Matrix of leadership.

more pics of TFA toys here, have to go to about the 6 min mark though...
---edit---

It's confirmed TFA has finished. :talezcry:
Juzbuffa
Arse Surgery By Shotgun
Arse Surgery By Shotgun
Posts: 965
Joined: 04 Jul 2006 12:39 am
XBL ID: Juzbuffa1
Location: Melbourne

Post by Juzbuffa »

Thats a shame, I thought TFA was one of the better TF series of late. Much better than RID, Armada, Energon etc.
You wouldn't believe the things I've seen through your eyes...

Image
User avatar
GameHED
10000 words or your money back!
10000 words or your money back!
Posts: 13228
Joined: 05 Jul 2006 01:14 pm
Location: Brisbane, QLD, AU

Post by GameHED »

I agree. I wish this would continue.
This is like opposite of what bay formers are: simple and easy to look at from a distance.
characters that are unique in style and colours so they are immediately identifiable from one another.
Proper stories involving the robots, not just humans vs decepticons.

And bumblebee can talk....a lot. The only thing I can see some people having issue with: they might be turned off by the artstyle without giving the show a chance. (thinking it just enjoyable for little kids only and dismissing it due to being used to seeing ultra-busy designs from live action figures :( )
Post Reply