WesternAnimation First Impressions Review
I'm making an early judgement. While not as great as the pinnacle that was Transformers Animated, the new Transformers: Cyberverse has potential.
It has a healthy respect for earlier incarnations while being more willing to try new things and not just rely on repetitive nostalgic fanservice (something Transformers: Prime was very guilty of).
It was a good move NOT to let Peter Cullen and Frank Welker reprise their respective roles. Yes, G1 was a classic, but those two actors get reused to the point of overexposure and boredom - give other voice talents a chance.
Plus, Optimus and Megatron's personalities would always be shoehorned into a specific niche that usually only Cullen and Welker can fill - which is alright for homages and tributes, but carrying several entire incarnations with little variation in characterization? Too much. The live-action films, along with their game adaptations, and to a certain extent even the Transformers: War for Cybertron and Transformers: Fall of Cybertron games are guilty of this. (Along with Transformers: Prime - again.)
The writers seem to have found a nice balance for Bumblebee's personality. I personally hold Animated Bee as my favorite version of the character, though I can see how his early personality might be a turn-off for others. But the overpowered asskicker from TFP and the live-action movies, along with the goody-two-shoes angel from G1 were too unrelatable for my tastes. And making Bee the leader is a big no-no. But here, Cyberverse Bee blends all of the best traits from previous Bees. He's got a sense of humour and cheekiness, while still being greatly loyal. He can hold his own in a fight, but he's not next to Optimus in terms of ability (thankfully).
Jake Foushee, strikes a nice balance between the young Optimus of TFA and the in-his-prime leader of G1. Youthful candor mixed with bold experience. Despite being only 21 years old, Jake has earned his role and I can't wait to see where he takes his own version of Optimus. The writing for Optimus himself has been stellar too. If you've seen Episode 4 already, Optimus has a sense of humour. He can make critical mistakes. He's not perfect. He's no Robo-God made incarnate for all Cybertronians to bow down and follow. Wheeljack takes a lot of visual cues from his TFA incarnation, which is welcome. He has his classic G1 personality, though it's tempered with more competence on his part. In Episode 4, he both creates and fixes a problem. Grimlock, though a new spin on the character, retains faithfulness to his G1 physical appearance, but seems to have taken on a more gentle, character-driven arc for himself. In layman's terms, he's like a more evolved version of his TFA incarnation.
If there is any negative, it's that the acting can seem a little flat and/or forced at times. But thankfully not always.
Starting Score = 8/10
WesternAnimation Easily the worst Transformers cartoon since Generation One's Season 3
There's nothing I like about Cyberverse.
- Crappy animation, half-assed character designs and CGI
- Thinly written stories, episodes are mediocre both in terms of length and quality.
- Voice cast isn't that great. Optimus Prime's new voice actor sucks, Peter Cullen was better.
WTF happened to the Transformers cartoon franchise? ANIMATED and PRIME were way better than this!
WesternAnimation Transformers: Cyberverse – Chapter 1 (aka my first review!)
(I have only 3000 characters to type, so I hope this will fit the limit...)
First of all, I do not consider myself a critic. I am just considering myself a normal person.
And now, my first review!
From Boulder Media LimitedAhem! , Hasbro Studios, and Allspark Animation (?), comes a Franchise/Transformers that's still CGI and still has 2D shades in it and is still aired on Cartoon Network.Hey!
I really like this show.
First, the story. Bumblebee is stranded on Earth with no memory of his past and with his voice box damaged. Luckily, Windblade, Bumblebee's best friend, comes to his help. They must find the Ark and the Allspark by repairing Bee's memories before the Decepticons reach first. And fast! An interesting and intriguing one... which I am really interested and invested. "Megatron Is My Hero", I've heard, is the point where the show is Growing the Beard.
Second, I like how this show builds its world (via Bumblebee's memories and perspective). And also it has Velocitron! Caminus was namedropped so far, but it's great!
Third, the visual part of the show. Yeah, actually, Xentrix Studios animated the show while Boulder Media Limited produced it. But I love the visuals. Still CGI, and also with a bit of a cel-shading in it. I just love how this show looks! It's appealing to me.
Fourth, the designs. Look cool to me. Blends Evergreen designs with G1 (the original cartoon, the US and UK Marvel comics and the IDW comics), Transformers Animated and Aligned continuities.
Fifth, the voice acting. May come stiff this New York voice cast, but I like these voice actors. At least, they are working hard for this. I don't know why is this voice cast for Transformers TV shows, and I know some are not happy with this, but I am fine with this.
Sixth, the runtime and episode order. I actually feel comfortable with 11 minutes per episode and 18 episodes are not a bad number for a show with such format. Three hours total. Not bad for me.
Seventh, the theme song. I think it's another of the classic theme. I sometimes find myself humming it. It's good.
The first season, as a result, was great! As of this writing, I can't wait for Chapter 2 this year!
Don't be shy! Feel free to comment! And I'll try to answer to the replies.