Transformersis an unusual brand in modern IP-driven Hollywood. It occupies a perfect level of popularity that will guarantee its survival through thick and thin, but it’s not so iconic that it can compete with Marvel orStar Wars. Its closest stablemate is probably theTeenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Like that classic franchise, animated series keep the fans happy while hit-or-miss movies flummox the wider public. Like Jeff Rowe and Kyler Spears' recentMutant Mayhem,Transformers Onemight be the ideal new frontier for the long-suffering franchise.
Paramount Pictures owns thefilm rights toTransformers, just as they do forTeenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Their relationship with the brand has been questionable. Paramount saw success with severalTransformersfilms, eventually prompting them to assemble a writers' room to propagate new projects. Someone finally suggestedTransformers One, a film fans have been requesting for years.
Revenge of the Fallen
Dark of the Moon
Rise of the Beasts
57%
20%
35%
17%
16%
91%
52%
TheTransformersmovies occupiedan important position in Hollywood for almost a decade. Over ten years and five films, no viewer, critic, or cultural commentator could easily pull the shorthand example of the current “Worst Film Ever.” Was the never-ending condemnation somewhat hyperbolic? Barely. A glance at any screenshot from the first five entries reveals failure on every level. The films are truly insufferable. The lowest bar for success would be mindless action fun, but every visual element of this franchise looks like acataclysmic mess of overdesigned garbage. It’s like watching sped-up footage of cars being crushed in a junkyard. Above the awful action,Transformersdelivers the worst writing, character arcs, storytelling, and comedy in the business. There’s nothing they do well, aside from raking in cash from half-interested 11-year-olds and their parents. It’s a suitable punching bag that has only recently attained moderate levels of success.
Bumblebeewas the first live-actionTransformersmovie without Michael Bay in the director’s chair. It was rewarded for its new talent with a shower of money and mild critical approval. It’s a fun 80s-inspired action movie without any of the overwhelming baggage that dragged down the first five entries. Unfortunately, its follow-up,Rise of the Beasts, reinstituted many of its predecessor’s problems. Paramount has produced seven live-actionTransformersfilms over the last 16 years. In total, the films cost around $1.4 billion to make and raked in $5.286 billion at the box office. That rousing success guarantees future outings, but the studio has seen diminishing returns.Rise of the Beastswas the lowest-grossing entryin the franchise, falling short of its break-even point. This fortuitous failure will push Paramount to try new things.Transformers Onecould be its savior.
Transformers OneIs a Return to Form
Transformers Onewill be the first animated feature from the franchise since 1986. The media empire built its foundation through cartoons in the 1980s and stayed alivethrough non-stop animated seriesthat run on several channels to the modern day. Though the live-action adaptations may be the most iconic versions of these characters, almost every fan will name an animated example as their favorite. It’s always been celebrated for its cartoons, without which the films wouldn’t exist. The first film adaptation wasThe Transformers: The Movie, released in 1986. Though viewed as a classic today,The Transformers: The Moviestruggled at the box office and earned puzzled reviews from critics. Modern animation enjoys a very different cultural position.Transformers Onewill enjoy the benefitof its 1986 predecessor’s reevaluationand the modern audience’s desire for animated action projects.
Transformers OneWill Depict Long-Requested Parts of the Franchise
When trailers forBumblebeedropped, fans delighted in the brief depictions of war on Cybertron. The battle for the Transformers' home planet remains a critical piece of backstory without ever appearing in the live-action films. Fans love the epic conflict for several reasons. Muchof the best media in the franchisedepicts that era, including theWar for Cybertronvideo game and several recent novels. It also eschews the human characters that are often the target of widespread hatred. Far from the pop-culture references, terrible jokes, subpar acting, and dull, gray action set pieces,Transformers Oneallows the franchise’s science fiction elements to stand out.
Transformers Oneseems like a godsend for the long-sufferingTransformersfan. Every entry layers its script with a few oblique references for cheap fanservice, but simply slapping a familiar name on an unrelated MacGuffin or bringing back more obscure machines can’t work forever.Rise of the Beastsdemonstratesthe losing strategy by dredging up the big names fromBeast Warsfor an uncaring crowd. Instead of packing a terrible film with callbacks or cameos,Transformers Onecan appeal to fans by putting the franchise’s best moments on the big screen in a glorious new form. There’s no guarantee of quality, even without Michael Bay’s direct involvement, butTransformers Onesuggests a newfound understanding of what fans love about the Robots in Disguise.
