Plot: What’s it about?
The distant planet of Cybertron is home to sentient robots, huge mechanized beings who can transform from robot into other things, from vehicles to weapons. But Cybertron isn’t a peaceful locale, as rival factions have engaged in a brutal conflict over the limited resources that shows no signs of a conclusion. The Autobots are led by Optimus Prime and seek to bring about a serene Cybertron, while the Decepticons and their leader Megatron want to rule it with a violent, iron fist. The war between them takes them even beyond their own planet, when a group of both sides crash lands on Earth. After four million years, the robots awaken and discover that Earth is ripe with all kinds of resources. The Decepticons plan to extract the resources and demolish Earth, but the Autobots will protect even this foreign planet from such evil.
This is where it all began and twenty-five years later, this original animated series is still the best incarnation of Transformers you’ll find. Some of the shows that followed were watchable, but this remains the cream of the crop. We all know the Michael Bay helmed films were so bad, even the cast & crew damned them, but forget about how the world’s weakest director sullied the good name of the Transformers. As a show designed to sell children’s toys, Transformers isn’t complex, but it is fun and features some excellent voice performances. The animation is crude, but shines at times and even now the transformations look quite cool. This release from Shout Factory restores some animation that was removed in the Rhino editions, so you’ll see the episodes in full here. This is a fun piece of 80s magic, an iconic show that is still cool to watch. So if you want to revisit Optimus Prime, Megatron, Starscream, and the others, Transformers: The Complete First Season is recommended.
Video: How does it look?
The episodes are presented in full frame, as intended. This looks the same as the the Rhino release, which means a little rough, but more than acceptable. I should note the re-inserted animation is much rougher than the rest, but that is to expected given the circumstances. The show’s bright color scheme holds up well, contrast is stable, and detail is reasonable. So there are some issues, but these episodes still look quite good.
Audio: How does it sound?
The audio here is passable, taken from the original tapes. This means that while a little rough, this is probably as good as it gets for this material. Which is fine, since the audio performs well, it is just not remarkable. There are some signs of the production era as well, but for fans of the show, this will sound good. The iconic music comes through well, while the voice work is clear and the sound effects are good too. Not all that memorable, but the audio here is solid.
Supplements: What are the extras?
This release includes Triple Changer, a look back at not just the show, but the entire Transformers franchise. The shows, the toys, the comic books, and the movies, all looked at in this piece. A solid watch, but of course it could have been longer and gone more in depth. You’ll also find some vintage toy commercials, and a public service announcement.
