A media franchise , also known as a multimedia franchise , is a collection of related media in which several derivative works have been produced from an original creative work of fiction, such as a film , a work of literature , a television program , or a video game . Bob Iger , chief executive of the Walt Disney Company , defined the word franchise as "something that creates value across multiple businesses and across multiple territories over a long period of time.”
136-574: Transformers (stylised as TRANSFORMERS , alternatively titled as TransFormers , or simply abbreviated TF ), is a media franchise produced by Japanese toy company Takara Tomy and American toy company Hasbro . It primarily follows the heroic Autobots and the villainous Decepticons , two alien robot factions at war that can transform into other forms, such as vehicles and animals. The franchise encompasses toys, animation, comic books, video games and films. As of 2011, it generated more than ¥2 trillion ( $ 25 billion ) in revenue, making it one of
272-424: A live-action film based on Transformers , with Steven Spielberg serving as executive producer. It stars Shia LaBeouf , Josh Duhamel , Megan Fox , and Tyrese Gibson in the lead human cast while voice actors Peter Cullen and Hugo Weaving voice Optimus Prime and Megatron, respectively. Transformers received mixed to positive reviews and was a box office success. It is the forty-fifth highest-grossing film and
408-431: A 20-issue series from 2007 to 2014. The video games, novels, and television series contradict each other due to creative differences, miscommunications, constant team changes, and Aaron Archer being replaced with a different person that did not know the 354-page brand bible, "The Binder of Revelation". In August 2016, Machinima and Hasbro co-produced an animated series named Combiner Wars , simultaneously published on
544-418: A Autorooper built in the form resembling a Mazda RX-8 would shared the same feeling as she did though with the time they spend together their way of thinking would change throughout their relationship. While this plotline seems like a shift in demographics to little girls, it is said that this line was aimed at a much older adult male audience. The toys bear an "ages 15 and up" warning, and the subject matter of
680-460: A Transformation Cog, and along with his best friend D-16, they work in the Energon mines. They secretly enter a race organized by Cybertron's leader, Sentinel Prime, but lose. While Sentinel is impressed by their stunt, a jealous racer drags them to garbage incineration, where they meet the eccentric B-127. The three discover a chip among the junk containing a distress message from Alpha Trion, one of
816-563: A being known as the One. Transformers: Micromasters , set after the Ark' s disappearance, was also published. The real life universe was disrupted when Dreamwave went bankrupt in 2005. This left the Generation 1 story hanging and the third volume of The War Within half finished. Plans for a comic book set between Beast Wars and Beast Machines were also left unrealized. Throughout the years,
952-448: A blue body à la Rodimus Prime , his Generation 1 successor. The reason for the change was due to Director Michael Bay 's decree that mass displacement does not occur when they transform, requiring Optimus's vehicle form to have more mass to achieve the desired size in his robot form. Although the character was redesigned to some extent, like the other characters in the film, many classic design elements remain in his robot mode including
1088-588: A capital letter, sometimes not) is the preferred fuel of the Transformer race. It takes many forms, including ore, crystal, gas, and raw energy, but it is most commonly used by Transformers in its liquid state, which is stored in many different mediums, most famously the energon cube. It is ubiquitous in Cybertronian culture; in addition to being the Transformers' primary "foodstuff", it also serves as
1224-493: A collection of mini-series that re-imagine and reinterpret the G1 characters in various ways. To date, only one miniseries has been published, Hearts of Steel , placing the characters in an Industrial Revolution -era setting. The series was delayed as Hasbro did not want to confuse newcomers with too many fictional universes before the release of the live-action film . However, IDW and the original publisher Marvel Comics announced
1360-685: A comic book series titled The Transformers with a companion series known as The Transformers: Spotlight . The main series was broken up into several story arcs. Eventually, with IDW Publishing losing sales, the series was given a soft reboot. Beginning with All Hail Megatron , the series was set in a new direction, discarding the miniseries and Spotlight format with ongoing comics . By 2012 the series had split into three ongoing series; The Transformers: More Than Meets The Eye, The Transformers: Robots in Disguise (which later changed in 2015 to "The Transformers") and The Transformers: Till All Are One. In 2022, it
1496-560: A crossover in Action Force , the UK counterpart to G.I. Joe. The comic book features a resurrected Megatron, whom Furman retconned to be a clone when he took over the U.S. comic book, which depicted Megatron as still dead. The U.S. comic would last for 80 issues until 1991, and the UK comic lasted 332 issues and several annuals , until it was replaced as Dreamwave Productions , later in the 20th century. In 2009, Shout! Factory released
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#17327879324951632-539: A crossover storyline with the Avengers to coincide with the film New Avengers/Transformers . The story is set on the borders of Symkaria and Latveria , and its fictional universe is set between the first two New Avengers storylines, as well in between the Infiltration and Escalation phase of IDW's The Transformers . IDW editor-in-chief, Chris Ryall hinted at elements of it being carried over into
1768-581: A double-bladed Energon axe. He became the leader of the Autobots after Sentinel Zeta Prime fell in battle, but he is not certain he wants the responsibility. In the Transformers: Prime series, he can form bladed weapons or blasters from his hands. He has a telescopic vision and turns into a long-nose semi-trailer truck. Before the Great War, Optimus Prime was originally known as Orion Pax;
1904-401: A fire truck. Unlike the other Optimus Primes, this one is much younger. Optimus can change any part of his robotic body into a tool or gadget . He has swing lines on his wrists. His wrists can also capture bolas . His arsenal includes a grappler , a fire extinguisher, and a negative friction spray. Unlike in all the previous series, his face can almost always be seen because his mouthplate
2040-566: A follow-up to Armada/Energon . The writers attempted to change certain plot elements from the Japanese version to remedy this, although this largely added up to nothing more than references to Unicron, Primus, Primes and Minicons. Just as Marvel produced a companion comic to Generation 1 , Dreamwave Productions published the comic Transformers Armada set in a different continuity from the cartoon. At #19, it became Transformers Energon . Dreamwave went bankrupt and ceased all publications before
2176-485: A franchise can even be created, which ultimately leads to the creation of brand worlds. Since the creation of Disneyland in 1955, bringing fictional media franchises to life through the theme parks slowly became increasingly popular as the way to perfectly blend tourism and real-life involvement with media itself. Similar to transmedia, the concept of bringing fictional media into a non-fictional space where fans can immerse themselves in real-life versions of elements from
2312-424: A modeling agency, several television shows ( Playboy's Penthouse , in 1959), and even its own television channel . Twenty-five years later, Playboy released private clubs and restaurants, movie theaters, a radio show , direct to video films, music and book publishing (including original works in addition to its anthologies of cartoons, photographs, recipes, advice, articles or fiction that had originally appeared in
2448-610: A new universe of annual comics adapted from Marvel, but also included elements of the animated. The Dreamwave stories followe the concept of the Autobots defeating the Decepticons on Earth, but their 1997 return journey to Cybertron on the Ark II is destroyed by Shockwave , now ruler of the planet. The story follows on from there and was told in two six-issue limited series, then a ten-issue ongoing series . The series also adds extra complexities such as not all Transformers believing in
2584-429: A predominantly red torso, primarily blue legs, the presence of windows in his chest, smoke stacks on his shoulders, and a head design influenced by the original, featuring the iconic faceplate and ear finials. The faceplate is able to retract to reveal a mouth. His weapons include his iconic ion blaster, a Barrage cannon, two retractable energon blades that extend from his forearms, which is a homage to Prime's energy axe in
2720-548: A prequel to the first film, receiving positive reviews from critics. The movie was a box-office success. A sequel to Bumblebee , directed by Steven Caple Jr. and titled Transformers: Rise of the Beasts , was released on June 9, 2023 to mixed reviews from critics. Transformers: Animated is a cartoon that was aired in early 2008 on Cartoon Network in the United States . Originally scheduled for late after 2007 under
2856-527: A public-relations arm of the revitalized organization. Additionally, Ohshima's other major contribution to Transformers at the time, the 1-page Information Administration Teletraan 15 Go! Go! comic published in Dengeki Hobby magazine, also featured several tie-ins to the Kiss Players story. These primarily served to introduce readers to the Kiss Players story and characters when the line
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#17327879324952992-644: A sub-faction of the Predacons on Earth, a potential reference to the return to the vehicle-based characters following the previous dominance of the animal-based characters of the Beast eras. It is a stand-alone universe with no ties to any other Transformers fiction, though some of the characters from Robots in Disguise did eventually make appearances in Transformers: Universe , including Optimus Prime, Ultra Magnus, Side Burn and Prowl . The show
3128-615: A visit to the Savage Land . The Transformers TV series began around the same time. Produced by Sunbow Productions and Marvel Productions , later Hasbro Productions, from the start it contradicted Budiansky's backstories. The TV series shows the Autobots looking for new energy sources, and crash landing as the Decepticons attack. Marvel interpreted the Autobots as destroying a rogue asteroid approaching Cybertron. Shockwave
3264-672: A young data clerk who worked in Iacon, under the wing of Alpha Trion. Orion was chosen by the High Council and became Optimus Prime, upon being entrusted with the Matrix of Leadership by Primus himself. In this new show, Optimus Prime serves as an agent of the organization G.H.O.S.T. (Global Hazard and Ordinance Strike Team) a government organization based in Witwicky, Pennsylvania , a union between humanity and his own kind while eliminating
3400-466: Is a spy and the latter shows compassion to both allies and enemies , and Rosanna who's the only heroic one out of the three . The group's purpose is to promote a positive relationship and friendship between humans and Transformers in the wake of the Tokyo disaster of 2005 and the subsequent rise and fall of the E.D.C.. They wear E.D.C. logos on their costumes as a group, appearing to be either sponsored by or
3536-421: Is basically the same in the third film as the previous two, and retains the same basic personality. The 2000s film series incarnation of Optimus Prime was met with a warm reception. It was named the 30th greatest movie superhero of all time by " Total Film Magazine ". In Transformers One (2024), Optimus Prime's origin story as Orion Pax is covered, voiced by Chris Hemsworth . Orion is a mining robot without
3672-437: Is later revealed to be prehistoric Earth with an artificial second moon, taking place sometime during the 4 million year period in which the Autobots and Decepticons were in suspended animation from the first episode of the original Transformers cartoon), which forces them to take organic beast forms in order to function without going into stasis lock. After writing this first episode, Bob Forward and Larry DiTillio learned of
3808-684: Is loyal to Megatron on the TV series, keeping Cybertron in a stalemate during his absence, but in the comic book, he attempts to take command of the Decepticons. The TV series would also differ wildly from the origins Budiansky had created for the Dinobots, the Decepticon turned Autobot Jetfire (known as Skyfire on TV), the Constructicons (who combine to form Devastator ), and Omega Supreme . The Marvel comic establishes early on that Prime wields
3944-441: Is planet Cybertron and fight his nemesis Unicron . Female Autobot Arcee also appeared, despite the comic book stating the Transformers had no concept of gender, with her backstory of being built by the Autobots to quell human accusations of sexism. Soundwave , Megatron's second-in-command, also breaks the fourth wall in the letters page, criticising the cartoon continuity as an inaccurate representation of history. The UK also had
4080-594: Is retractable like in the 2007 live-action film. Animated Optimus Prime, in an Earth-based fire truck mode, appears as a hidden character in the Transformers Netjet video game by Hasbro. Instead of being the leader of the Autobots, Prime was actually a washout from the Elite Guard. Despite no longer being a member, he maintains his military ranking of "Prime". The scale chart released for the series indicates Optimus Prime stands about 22 feet tall. In
4216-554: Is set in the year 2005. It introduced the Matrix as the " Autobot Matrix of Leadership ", as a fatally wounded Prime gives it to Ultra Magnus ; however, as Prime dies he drops the matrix, which is then caught by Hot Rod who subsequently becomes Rodimus Prime later on in the film. Unicron , a Transformer who devours planets, fears its power and re-creates a heavily damaged Megatron as Galvatron , as well as Bombshell or Skywarp becoming Cyclonus , Thundercracker becoming Scourge and two other Insecticons becoming Scourge's huntsmen,
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4352-468: Is shown to be a well-respected leader who treats those under his command with respect and is partnered with the Minicon Sparkplug. During the events of Cybertron , Optimus Prime is the main protagonist and shows a near- xenophobic reluctance to interact with other cultures, believing that such interaction would cause more harm than good. Consequently, he prohibits his team from mingling with
4488-503: Is stopped by Primus because it produced the evil Swarm . A new empire, neither Autobot nor Decepticon, is bringing it back, however. Though the year-long arc wrapped itself up with an alliance between Optimus Prime and Megatron , the final panel introduces the Liege Maximo, ancestor of the Decepticons. This minor cliffhanger was not resolved until 2001 and 2002's Transforce convention when writer Simon Furman concluded his story in
4624-622: Is that the heroic Optimus Prime , the villainous Megatron , and their finest soldiers crash-land on prehistoric Earth in the Ark and the Nemesis before awakening in 1985, Cybertron hurtling through the Neutral zone as an effect of the war. The Marvel comic was originally part of the main Marvel Universe , with appearances from Spider-Man and Nick Fury , plus some cameos, as well as
4760-428: Is the Japanese term for a transmedia franchise. The term media mix gained its circulation in late 1980s and is first used to describe adaptations of Sakyo Komatsu 's Japan Sinks , but the origins of the strategy can be traced back to the 1960s with the proliferation of anime , with its interconnection of media and commodity goods. Some of the earlier popular Japanese franchises such as Vampire Hunter D in
4896-494: Is the leader of the heroic autobots. He often converted to his super combat mode. In all three series, Optimus' English voice actor is Garry Chalk , who previously voiced Optimus Primal in Beast Wars: Transformers and Beast Machines . During the events of Armada , Optimus looks similar to the original G1 Optimus Prime until he copies himself with a semi-truck, and his design in robot mode changes. He
5032-464: Is the leader of the main group of Autobots in the iteration of the Transformers franchise primarily marked by the 2010 animated series Transformers: Prime on The Hub . Optimus Prime was created as the last of the Thirteen Primes, the first generation of Transformers, each created directly by Primus as a band of unique warriors to combat and defeat Unicron. Upon his creation, Optimus united
5168-491: The Generation 2 comic book and Beast Wars TV series, which became its own mini-universe . Generation 1 characters have been rebooted multiple times in the 21st century in comics from Dreamwave Productions (starting 2001), IDW Publishing (starting in 2005 and again in 2019), and Skybound Entertainment (beginning in 2023). There have been other incarnations of the story based on different toy lines during and after
5304-542: The Creation Matrix , which gives life to machines. In the second season, the two-part episode The Key to Vector Sigma introduced the ancient Vector Sigma computer, which served the same original purpose as the Creation Matrix (giving life to Transformers), and its guardian Alpha Trion . Introduced to the franchise during Generation 1 is the energy source known as Energon. Energon (sometimes spelled with
5440-540: The Discovery Channel featured Optimus Prime singing part of a promotional song. Optimus also appears on the Late Show with David Letterman , giving " The Top Ten Things That Sound Cool When Spoken by a Giant Robot". Optimus Prime is primarily voiced by Peter Cullen in most of his incarnations, who voiced him in the original series. Following the production of the 2007 film, Cullen reprised his role for
5576-419: The Generation 1 animated series, and two retractable energon hooks that extend from his wrists. The trailer contains an energy axe, a shield, and flight gear. In the later IDW comics, he displays the ability to produce a holographic driver. At San Diego Comic-Con 06, it was announced that original Optimus Prime voice actor Peter Cullen would reprise his role for the third film. Cullen has commented that Prime
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5712-526: The Micro Change and Diaclone toys, and partnered with Takara . Marvel Comics was hired by Hasbro to create the backstory ; editor-in-chief Jim Shooter wrote an overall story, and gave the task of creating the characters to writer Dennis O'Neil . Unhappy with O'Neil's work (although O'Neil created the name " Optimus Prime "), Shooter chose Bob Budiansky to create the characters. The Transformers mecha were largely designed by Shōji Kawamori ,
5848-618: The Rescue Bots TV series, its sequel Transformers: Rescue Bots Academy , the Go! anime adaptation, and the 2015 series Transformers: Robots in Disguise . The video games that are part of this shared universe are Transformers: War for Cybertron (including its Nintendo DS version and the companion Transformers: Cybertron Adventures ), Transformers: Fall of Cybertron , the Prime video game adaptation , and Transformers: Rise of
5984-651: The Sweeps . Eventually, Rodimus Prime takes out the Matrix and destroys Unicron. In the United Kingdom, the weekly comic book interspliced original material to keep up with U.S. reprints, and The Movie provided much new material. Writer Simon Furman proceeded to expand the continuity with movie spin-offs involving the time travelling Galvatron. The Movie also featured guest voices from Leonard Nimoy as Galvatron , Scatman Crothers as Jazz , Casey Kasem as Cliffjumper, Orson Welles as Unicron and Eric Idle as
6120-635: The Transformers Generations: The Fall of Cybertron line in 2012. Several ideas introduced into the 2007 storyline focusing on the introduction of Primus into the Japanese cartoon's timeline have been revisited and expanded upon, which shares Kiss Players storytelling while attempting to fill in gaps of the timeline in the Japanese Generation 1 cartoon continuity. The Transformers Legends manga, while featuring lewd content and new stories and characters, also has
6256-491: The fantasy and science fiction genres. Similarly, fantasy, science fiction films and television shows are frequently adapted into animated television series , video games, or both. A media franchise does not have to include the same characters or theme, as the brand identity can be the franchise, like Square Enix 's Final Fantasy or the National Lampoon series , and can suffer from critical failures even if
6392-479: The fifth highest-grossing film of 2007 , grossing approximately $ 709 million worldwide. The film won four awards from the Visual Effects Society and was nominated for three Academy Awards , for Best Sound Editing , Best Sound Mixing , and Best Visual Effects . The performance of Shia LaBeouf was praised by Empire , and Peter Cullen's reprisal of Optimus Prime from the 1980s television series
6528-544: The highest-grossing media franchises of all time. The franchise began in 1984 with the Transformers toy line , comprising transforming mecha toys from Takara 's Diaclone and Micro Change toylines rebranded for Western markets. The term " Generation 1 " (G1) covers both the animated television series The Transformers and the comic book series of the same name , which are further divided into Japanese, British and Canadian spin-offs. Sequels followed, such as
6664-448: The "Creation Matrix", carried by all Autobot leaders. When Optimus transforms, his tractor cab disconnects to become a sentient robot, and his trailer opens to reveal an ion blaster, forming a combat deck. The combat deck supports a mobile battle- station and command headquarters armed with assorted artillery and beam weapons that fire automatically. The combat deck can also serve as a radio antenna for battlefield communications between
6800-416: The "Unicron Trilogy". For most of the 2010s, in an attempt to mitigate the wave of reboots, the " Aligned Continuity " was established. In 2018, Transformers: Cyberverse debuted, once again, distinct from the previous incarnations. Although a separate and competing franchise started in 1983, Tonka 's GoBots became the intellectual property of Hasbro after their buyout of Tonka in 1991. Subsequently,
6936-423: The 1980s and Pokémon in the late 1990s, acted as benchmarks in the country's transmedia dominance. The latter in particular began as a video game available on Nintendo 's Game Boy , and crossed through the media of television, film, news, and other non-media related realms, such trading cards, merchandise, and more. A number of Japanese media franchises have gained considerable global popularity, and are among
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#17327879324957072-525: The 20th century. The first was the Robots in Disguise series, followed by three shows ( Armada , Energon , and Cybertron ) that constitute a single universe called the "Unicron Trilogy". A live-action film series started in 2007, again distinct from previous incarnations, while the Transformers: Animated series merged concepts from the G1 continuity, the 2007 live-action film and
7208-580: The Autobot Academy. However, Ultra Magnus pulls some strings so that Optimus Prime can be captain of a strange Space Bridge repair crew composed of a war vet named Ratchet, a fledgling cadet named Bumblebee , and his fellow cadet Bulkhead . Optimus is given command of the starship, the vehicle mode of Omega Supreme . Optimus Prime appears among the characters in Re-Unification , the 2010 TFCon voice actor play prelude comic. Optimus Prime
7344-596: The Autobots and Decepticons discovering the powerful Mini-Cons on Earth, which are revealed by the end to be weapons of Unicron . Energon , set ten years later, followed the Autobots and the Omnicons in their fight to stop the Decepticons and the Terrorcons from resurrecting Unicron with energon. In Japan, the series Transformers: Cybertron showed no ties to the previous two series, telling its own story. This caused continuity problems when Hasbro sold Cybertron as
7480-481: The Autobots. The combat deck also included "Roller", a mobile scout buggy meant to scout behind enemy lines. When Roller is deployed, Optimus can see and hear what Roller sees and hears. Injury to one component is felt by each of the others. If the combat deck or Roller were to be destroyed, Prime could survive. However, despite the slight degree of autonomy they possess, the combat deck and Roller would not be able to survive without Optimus. The original specification of
7616-687: The Dark Spark , that serves as a conclusion of the Cybertron series and crossover with the live-action film video game series. Four novels set within the continuity have been published: Transformers: Exodus , Transformers: Exiles , Transformers: Retribution , and Transformers: The Covenant of Primus . The first three were published by Del Rey Books , while Covenant of Primus was published by 47North . In addition, IDW Publishing has published several comic books, including graphic novels, while Titan Magazines published Transformers Comic UK ,
7752-493: The Decepticons led by his former friend, Megatron, igniting the Great War on Cybertron. While his origins and persona may vary across different storylines, this depiction remains consistent throughout iterations of the Transformers universe. The first-generation Optimus Prime transforms into a Freightliner FL86 cab over semi truck . Within his chest is a mystic talisman, known as the Autobot Matrix of Leadership or
7888-462: The Decepticons. (Note: This appears to contradict background presented in the first two seasons of the series.) It is the Autobots who develop transformation. Due to popular demand, Optimus Prime is resurrected at the conclusion of the third season, and the series ended with a three-episode story arc. However, the Japanese broadcast of the series was supplemented with a newly produced OVA , Scramble City , before creating entirely new series to continue
8024-567: The G1 Transformers and began to use elements of it as a historical backstory to their scripts, establishing Beast Wars as a part of the Generation 1 universe through numerous callbacks to both the cartoon and the Marvel comic. By the end of the first season, the second moon and the Energon are revealed to have been constructed by a mysterious alien race known as the Vok . The destruction of
8160-416: The G1 characters have also starred in crossovers with fellow Hasbro property G.I. Joe , but whereas those crossovers published by Marvel were in continuity with their larger storyline, those released by Dreamwave and G.I. Joe publisher Devil's Due Publishing occupy their own separate real life universes. In Devil's Due, the terrorist organization COBRA Command is responsible for finding and reactivating
8296-521: The Generation 1 Optimus Prime specifies that Optimus Prime consists of three components: the humanoid "Brain Center" (which transforms into the truck cab), the "Combat Deck" (which transforms into the truck trailer), and the "Scout Car", a non-transforming six-wheeled buggy called Roller, which can ride inside the truck trailer. All three components can function independently, but injury to one is felt by
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#17327879324958432-488: The Plasma Energy Chamber and Key to Vector Sigma. The naming of the Transformer ship, the Ark (and reference to 1984, the year the Transformers on board are revived), the character Ravage being shown as intelligent, and Cybertron having an organic core are elements taken from the comics. In 2011, Shout! Factory released the complete series of Beast Wars on DVD. In 2001, Dreamwave Productions began
8568-523: The Primes bestow Orion with the Matrix of Leadership, reviving him as "Optimus Prime". Optimus then defeats Megatron before exiling him and the High Guard, who become the Decepticons. As Cybertron's new leader, Optimus, holding the Matrix in his hands, restores Cybertron's dried-up Energon rivers and givs the miners transformation cogs. Optimus christens his followers as Autobots and sends a message warning
8704-469: The Primes, revealing coordinates to his location on the surface. Accidentally taking Elita, their supervisor, with them, they find Alpha Trion in a cave alongside the corpses of the other Primes. Trion shows them the truth that Sentinel betrayed the Primes and has been secretly working for the Quintessons, giving them regular supplies of Energon in exchange for letting him rule Cybertron while removing
8840-610: The Quintessons to stay away. In the online CGI cartoon Cyber Missions produced by TG Studios for Hasbro's website, Optimus is once again seen fighting Megatron, this time with some help from Sideswipe . Optimus also helps Ironhide against Mindwipe. During the promotion of the Transformers films, Optimus Prime appears in several commercials. Optimus Prime, along with other Transformers, were featured in several commercials for General Motors . Scenes with Optimus Prime were used in several General Motors commercials. A commercial for
8976-528: The Thirteen by his greeting All are one. While all of the other members of the Thirteen each possessed unique abilities and artifacts, Optimus wielded no special powers or weapons. It was only his vision and courage that allowed the Thirteen to finally defeat Unicron. Reborn through the Well of All Sparks, Orion Pax became Optimus Prime, a veteran military commander and second in command who wields an ion blaster and
9112-643: The Transformer's story, Optimus Prime, also known as Orion Pax , embodies strong moral values, exceptional leadership, and strategic prowess. Equipped with advanced weaponry and martial arts skills, he champions justice and peaceful coexistence with humans. As the bearer of the Matrix of Leadership, he leads the Autobots, engaged in an eternal conflict against the Decepticons. Originating from the ancient Dynasty of Primes, Optimus Prime's selfless sacrifice and rallying cry of "Till All are One" were pivotal in defeating Unicron. Reborn as Orion Pax, he embraced his new identity, only to reclaim his role as Optimus Prime to confront
9248-475: The Transformers. Dreamwave's version reimagines the familiar G1 and G.I. Joe characters in a World War II setting, and a second limited series was released set in the present day, though Dreamwave's bankruptcy meant it was cancelled after a single issue. Devil's Due had Cobra re-engineer the Transformers to turn into familiar Cobra vehicles, and released further mini-series that sent the characters travelling through time, battling Serpentor and being faced with
9384-412: The accompanying manga is far from child-friendly. The franchise itself consists of a toyline, a weekly radio drama series (featuring voice acting by Lyrian as Marissa, Yui Kano as Shaoshao, Satomi Akesaka as Atari, and Keiji Hirai as Ne-04 among others), and a three part manga, which together tell the story of the line in which the toys and manga all of which were also created by Ohshima. Following
9520-477: The animated series, Optimus Prime was originally in the Autobot Academy and friends with Sentinel Prime and Elita One. When Elita is lost on a planet dominated by a giant spider -like aliens, he blames himself for leaving her behind, where she supposedly dies in the explosion of a wrecked Decepticon warship loaded with Energon. Sentinel doesn't forgive him for losing her, and Optimus takes full responsibility for Elita's demise. This caused Optimus Prime to wash out of
9656-479: The cells and gained Kiss Player fusion abilities to partner with them. The three central characters were a younger version of Marissa Faireborn as a resistance fighter against the EDC partnered with Optimus Prime who while having died in the movie, his body body was recovered and restored to life in a new body resembling that of a Dodge Ram pickup by the same organization. Rodimus devastated by his guilt in his role of
9792-493: The character of the same name, Prime once again leads the autobots against the Decepticons. His voice actor, Neil Kaplan , does his voice in a style reminiscent of that of Peter Cullen , the voice of the original Optimus Prime. Wired Magazine nominated Fire Convoy as one 12 most ridiculous Transformers ideas of all time. Hidden on Earth as common, everyday vehicles, the Autobots are forced to emerge when Megatron and his Predacons arrive and wreak havoc in their attempts to attain
9928-504: The combined menace of Cobra-La and Unicron . During this time, Cobra teams up with the Decepticons . IDW Publishing has expressed interest in their own crossover. The following year, IDW Publishing rebooted the G1 series from scratch within various limited series and one shots . This allowed long-time writer of Marvel and Dreamwave comics, Simon Furman , to create his own universe without continuity hindrance, similar to Ultimate Marvel . This new continuity originally consisted of
10064-409: The conclusion of its first storyline in late 2007, Kiss Players moved into its second (and apparently final) phase, Kiss Players Position , which shifted focus to a distinctly more PG-rated theme, though it was still heavy on the "cute girls" theme. The Kiss Players this time are a pop idol singing group made up of the three girls and three original mini-cassette Transformers Glit, Sundor the former
10200-719: The creator of the Japanese mecha anime franchise Macross (which was adapted into the Robotech franchise in North America). Kawamori came up with the idea of transforming mechs while working on the Diaclone and Macross franchises in the early 1980s (such as the VF-1 Valkyrie in Macross and Robotech ), with his Diaclone mechs later providing the basis for Transformers . The primary concept of Generation 1
10336-462: The day-in-the-life episodes of the many different Real Housewives series. Documentaries and docuseries are other highlights of the non-fiction branch of media franchises, such as the popular Planet Earth series, which serves as both a film and television transmedia franchise. Optimus Prime Japanese : Optimus Prime , also known in Japan as Convoy , is a fictional character and
10472-441: The default power source for their machines and weapons, and is even used as a currency, a catch-all fuel of life, technology, war and commerce on Cybertron and beyond. This widespread use also comes in defiance of its extreme volatility: energon is prone to detonating explosively if mishandled, and is even used as ammunition in order to exploit this attribute. In 1986, the cartoon became the film The Transformers: The Movie , which
10608-461: The destruction of Tokyo stepped down as the then leader of the Autobots reverting to the previous name of Hot Rod in order to return to Earth to atone for his mistake. He's refitted into a vehicle resembling a Ford GT by his headstrong partner Shaoshao Li, a girl of Chinese descent and an estranged friend of Marissa and used to be one of the EDC's top Kiss Players until realizing that the EDC was conducting experiments behind her back on other girls. She
10744-428: The entire G1 series in a 16-DVD box set called the Matrix of Leadership Edition. They also released the same content as individual seasons. It was five issues of the G.I. Joe comic in 1993 that would springboard a return for Marvel's Transformers, with the new twelve-issue series Transformers: Generation 2 , to market a new toy line. This story reveals that the Transformers originally breed asexually , though it
10880-661: The eponymous "Kiss Players" - who fuse with the robots and share their adventures. The plot starts with the Earth Defense Command being formed in 2003 as part of a cooperative human/Autobot effort. When a virus called the Cosmic Rust critically struck the Autobots later that year, the EDC kicked off the Binaltech Project to shore up its defenses. When Galvatron was hurled out of Unicron by Rodimus Prime in 2005, rather than immediately crashing onto
11016-481: The exclusive novella Alignment . The story focuses on a small group of Maximals (the new Autobots), led by Optimus Primal , and Predacons , led by Megatron , 300 years after the "Great War". After a dangerous pursuit through transwarp space , both the Maximal and Predacon factions end up crash landing on a primitive, uncivilized planet similar to Earth , but with two moons and a dangerous level of Energon (which
11152-429: The existence of Primus, corruption in the Cybertronian government that first led Megatron to begin his war, and Earth having an unknown relevance to Cybertron. Three Transformers: The War Within limited series were also published. These are set at the beginning of the Great War, and identify Prime as once being a clerk named Optronix. Beast Wars was also retroactively stated as the future of this continuity, with
11288-725: The fictional worlds they love, adds to the overall narrative the franchise creates through its other media. Marvel's Avenger's Campus park is one of the many franchise-based theme parks created in recent times, following the creation of The Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Studio's Islands of Adventure and Star Wars' Galaxy's Edge at Disneyland and Disney World . Media franchises tend to cross over from their original media to other forms. Literary franchises are often transported to film, such as Nancy Drew , Miss Marple , and other popular detectives , as well as popular comic book superheroes . Television and film franchises are often expanded upon in novels , particularly those in
11424-417: The film The Matrix Reloaded and the video game Enter the Matrix were produced at the same time, using the same actors on the same sets, and released on the same day. Transmedia franchises occasionally release content through certain media that is not canon to the main or greater story that the franchise is built around, meaning that the elements of said content do not truly exist in the main timeline of
11560-467: The financial logic of cost-recovery for expensive productions by identifying that a single medium launch is a lost opportunity, the timeliness of the production and release is more important than its integrity, the releases should raise brand awareness and the cross-ability of the work is critical for its success. American Idol was a transmedia franchise from its beginnings, with the first season winner Kelly Clarkson signing with RCA Records and having
11696-487: The first season of Beast Wars (comprising 26 episodes) aired in Japan, the Japanese were faced with a problem. The second Canadian season was only 13 episodes long, not enough to warrant airing on Japanese TV. While they waited for the third Canadian season to be completed (thereby making 26 episodes in total when added to season 2), they produced two exclusive cel-animated series of their own, Beast Wars II (also called Beast Wars Second ) and Beast Wars Neo , to fill in
11832-468: The first three films, he is able to transform into a long-nosed conventional Peterbilt 379 semi-truck rather than the cab over design of his original Generation 1 body. In Transformers: Age of Extinction , he gains a first generation-style trailer form before changing into 2014 Western Star 5700 Concept . Also straying from the G1 design, Prime's vehicle mode is now decorated with red flames painted onto
11968-555: The focus on the content of the commodity to "overlapping the commodity image with the character image". The book Anime's Media Mix: Franchising Toys and Characters in Japan, by Marc Steinberg, details the evolution of the media mix in Japan. Long-running franchises were common in the early studio era, when Hollywood studios had actors and directors under long-term contract. In such cases, even lead actors are often replaced as they age, lose interest, or their characters are killed. Spin-offs and adaptations of popular pieces of media within
12104-433: The franchise's characters and settings. As one author explains, "For the studios, a home-run is a film from which a multimedia 'franchise' can be generated; the colossally expensive creation of cross-media conglomerates predicated on synergistic rewards provides an obvious imperative to develop such products." The trend later developed wherein franchises would be launched in multiple forms of media simultaneously; for instance,
12240-415: The franchise. Canon content often times breaks continuity, leading fans to speculate or seek to confirm which media are canon and which are not, which can get confusing if the franchise does not provide an answer themselves since entire media can be non-canon to the greater story, with a popular example occurring. On the other hand, specific episodes, volumes or parts of a series can be canon while others in
12376-600: The gap. Dreamwave retroactively revealed Beast Wars to be the future of their G1 universe, and the 2006 IDW comic book Beast Wars: The Gathering eventually confirmed the Japanese series to be canon within a story set during Season 3. Beast Wars contained elements from both the G1 cartoon series and comics. Attributes taken from the cartoon include Transformers that were female, the appearance of Starscream (who mentions being killed off by Galvatron in The Transformers: The Movie ), and appearances of
12512-436: The intended target of the planet Thrull, he instead hurtled toward Earth. Landing in Tokyo, Japan, the Decepticon leader's impact decimated the city and scattered his Unicron-mutated cells throughout Earth's atmosphere. Following this catastrophe, the EDC was reborn as an organization dedicated to driving all Transformers off Earth. The organization built an anti-electron field (previously referred to as an Energon field) to make
12648-568: The intent to unify every Transformers media into one continuity. The name of this continuity however, is not official; it was adopted by the fans after Hasbro referred to it as an "Aligned Continuity". The toy lines derived from this continuity are Transformers: Generations , Transformers: Rescue Bots , and Transformers Go! The television series belonging to the Aligned Universe include Transformers: Prime (including its concluding film Prime Beast Hunters: Predacons Rising ),
12784-515: The leader of the Junkions (Wreck-Gar, though unnamed in the movie). The Transformers theme tune for the film was performed by Lion with "Weird Al" Yankovic adding a song to the soundtrack. The third season followed up The Movie , with the revelation of the Quintessons having used Cybertron as a factory. Their robots rebel, and in time the workers become the Autobots and the soldiers become
12920-739: The locals of Earth , Velocitron, and the Jungle Planet during their search for the Cyber Planet Keys . This attitude was drastically changed when Prime realized that the only way to acquire the Cyber Planet Keys from Velocitron and Animatros was to play by their laws. Optimus Prime appears in the Transformers Animated series in 2008 as a red semi-trailer truck , able to be fitted with many "trailer" attachments, most notably one that effectively makes him
13056-473: The magazine), footwear, clothing of every kind, jewelry, housewares (lamps, clocks, bedding, glassware), guitars and gambling, playing cards, pinball machines and pet accessories, billiard balls, bedroom appurtenances, enhancements, plus countless other items of merchandise. Non-fiction media franchises also exist in the television and film media, with reality TV being one of the most well-known examples; ranging from competition shows like The Amazing Race to
13192-510: The main continuities, and that a sequel is possible. In June 2018 it was announced there would be Star Trek and Transformers Crossover being released in September 2018. Transformers: Kiss Players [ ja ] (トランスフォーマー キスぷれ, Toransufōmā Kisu Pure ), shortened to Kiss Players (キスぷれ, Kisu Pure ), is a Japanese Transformers franchise which began in 2006 to 2007 as was helmed by artist and writer Yuki Ohshima. By virtue of being
13328-400: The media fictional material is unrelated. Non-fiction literary franchises include the ...For Dummies and The Complete Idiot's Guide to... reference books . An enduring and comprehensive example of a media franchise is Playboy Enterprises , which began expanding well beyond its successful magazine, Playboy , within a few years after its first publication, into such enterprises as
13464-453: The miners' cogs to keep them subservient. Orion receives his cog to transform into a truck and a chip containing evidence of Sentinel's betrayal. Orion and his group manage to escape from Sentinel's guards, but they are captured by the High Guard, the Primes' loyal soldiers in rebellion against Sentinel. While D-16 takes command of them by defeating their leader, Starscream, Orion grows concerned by his friend's increasing aggression since learning
13600-544: The only Transformers toyline and fiction released in Japan by Takara between the conclusion of Transformers: Cybertron and the live-action movie , it was also effectively the main Transformers line in the country for that time. It takes place in the Generation 1 cartoon continuity, specifically in the five-year milieu between The Transformers: The Movie and Transformers 2010 . The series derives its name from its controversial gimmick, which involves Transformers getting "power-ups" when they are kissed by human girls -
13736-407: The original Transformers cartoon and 1986 animated movie, as well as characters only seen in comics and such, make special appearances and cameos throughout the show, with various voice actors (including Corey Burton , John Moschitta, Jr. , Susan Blu , and Judd Nelson ) reprising their roles. Hasbro, in an attempt to stop the wave of reboots that started in 2001, created the Aligned Universe, with
13872-502: The other two. However, in by far most of the fiction, the humanoid robot actually is Optimus Prime, with the other two components treated as mere accessories that disappear off the scene when Optimus Prime transforms from truck to robot mode. Optimus Prime is the fictional protagonist of the Transformers: Robots in Disguise ( Fire Convoy in the original Japanese version) branch of the Transformers universe . Based on
14008-433: The overarching story and narrative of the franchise itself. A connection between the characters, settings, and other elements of the media franchise do still exist within the different media, regardless of the fact that they are being presented in sometimes completely different ways, such as the shared, interweaving storylines and elements of Spider-Man films, television shows, comics and video games. Espen Aarseth describes
14144-490: The owners, the goal of increasing profit through diversity can extend the commercial profitability of the franchise and create strong feelings of identity and ownership in its consumers. Those large groups of dedicated consumers create the franchise's fandom , which is the community of fans that indulge in many of its media and are committed to interacting with and keeping up with other consumers. Large franchise-based fandoms have grown to be even more popular in recent years with
14280-493: The planet uninhabitable to Cybertronians, and created a team of 48 transforming robots known as Autoroopers (オートルーパー Ōtorūpā), a Japanese portmanteau of "auto" (オート ōto) and "trooper" (トルーパー torūpā) or Autotroopers (aka Autobot Troopers) in English, are a group of human-created artificial Transformers that serve the Earth Defense Command to combat any other Transformers that remained, recruiting young women who had been infected with
14416-484: The popular Twilight book series that was adapted into the five films of The Twilight Saga . Other neologisms exist to describe various franchise types including metaseries , which can be used to describe works such as Isaac Asimov 's Foundation series . Multimedia franchises usually develop through a character or fictional world becoming popular in one medium, and then expanding to others through licensing agreements , with respect to intellectual property in
14552-486: The power of Earth's various energy sources. In this universe, Optimus Prime transforms into a fire engine. This is also the first incarnation of Optimus Prime to transform into a fire engine. The " Unicron Trilogy " version of Optimus Prime is a fictional character in this branch of Transformers lore. Appearing in Transformers: Armada , Transformers: Energon and Transformers: Cybertron , Optimus
14688-431: The present day. Dinobot leader Grimlock takes over as Autobot leader. There was a G.I. Joe crossover and the limited series The Transformers: Headmasters , which further expanded the scope to the planet Nebulon. It led on to the main title resurrecting Prime as a Powermaster. In the United Kingdom, the mythology continued to grow. Primus is introduced as the creator of the Transformers, to serve his material body that
14824-563: The profile series More than Meets the Eye showing the Predacon Megatron looking at historical files detailing Dreamwave's characters and taking his name from the original Megatron. In 2004, this real life universe also inspired three novels and a Dorling Kindersley guide, which focused on Dreamwave as the "true" continuity when discussing in-universe elements of the characters. In a new twist, Primus and Unicron are siblings, formerly
14960-469: The protagonist of the Transformers franchise. Generally depicted as a brave and noble leader, Optimus Prime is the supreme commander of the Autobots in their fight against the Decepticons . The Transformers characters were developed for the American market after Hasbro representatives visited the 1983 Tokyo Toy Show. The characters were modified and the coloring was changed; notably, Optimus Prime
15096-401: The radio dramas, manga, comic, and other materials) were recovered. This material was remastered and translated into English and released via torrent for download. First broadcast in Japan in 2000, Robots in Disguise was a single animated series consisting of thirty-nine episodes. It was exported to other countries in subsequent years. In this continuity, Megatron re-creates the Decepticons as
15232-490: The radio storyline in its second week and never mentioned again. Reactions ran the gamut from outright disgust to comedic derision, with most fans agreeing that the content such be included a children's toyline was distasteful. The fact that several Japanese fans were themselves openly decrying Kiss Players , fearing that American fans would think that it was somehow accepted as normal in Japan regarding its sexually suggestive material. Oshima himself even admitted that he crafted
15368-415: The release of A Moment Like This becoming a #1 hit on Billboard Hot 100. The success resulted in a nationwide concert tour, an American Idol book that made the bestseller list and the film From Justin to Kelly . A transmedia franchise however is often referred to by the simpler term "media franchise". The term media franchise is often used to describe the popular adaptation of a work into films, like
15504-409: The rise of social media platforms, as many fans seek to interact with one another for discussion, debate and even to create their own fan-made pieces of media revolving around the franchise, on websites like tumblr , Reddit and Fandom . In the case of successful transmedia franchises, each different medium should expand the target demographic and fandom, build the interest of the consumers and add to
15640-525: The same medium are not, such as the fact that only some of the Battlestar Galactica comics are canon, with a large amount of them breaking the continuity of the main story. In Japanese culture and entertainment, media mix ( wasei-eigo : メディアミックス , mediamikkusu ) is a strategy to disperse content across multiple representations: different broadcast media , gaming technologies, cell phones, toys, amusement parks , and other methods. It
15776-466: The second moon releases mysterious energies that make some of the characters " transmetal " and the planet is revealed to be prehistoric Earth, leading to the discovery of the Ark . Megatron attempts to kill the original Optimus Prime , but at the beginning of the third season, Primal manages to preserve his spark. In the two-season follow-up series, Beast Machines , Cybertron is revealed to have organic origins, which Megatron attempts to stamp out. After
15912-565: The sequels and supporting media and would even voice Optimus in later series such as Transformers: Prime . Optimus has been voiced by several other voice actors in other series such as Neil Kaplan, Garry Chalk , David Kaye , Jake Foushee and Chris Hemsworth in the series Transformers: Robots in Disguise , the Unicron Trilogy , Transformers Animated , Transformers: Rescue Bots Academy and Transformers One respectively. At BotCon 2010, Hasbro named Optimus Prime as one of
16048-550: The series in this manner because he wanted to "make people's jaws drop." Many of its characters and ideas have made appearances in other Transformers media. The Autroopers appeared in Transformers: Animated in 2009 with an official toyline released in Botcon in 2011. The colors of white and blue used for Glit would inspire the Shattered Glass incarnation of Ravage . A new toy figure of Sundor would be released under
16184-516: The story, opposing the Decepticon leader Megatron . Due to the popularity of the Transformers franchise, Optimus Prime has remained one of the franchise's most iconic characters, and one of the greatest and most recognizable fictional characters of all time. As an established pop culture icon , his voice has been portrayed by a variety of actors, with the most common being his first, Peter Cullen . Other actors include Garry Chalk , Neil Kaplan , David Kaye , Alan Tudyk and Chris Hemsworth . In
16320-635: The storyline could be completed at #30. However, the Transformers Fan Club published a few stories set in the Cybertron era. The storyline of Transformers: Universe , mainly set following Beast Machines , sees characters from many assorted alternate continuities, including existing and new ones, encountering each other. The story was told in an unfinished comic book exclusive to the Official Transformers Collectors' Convention. In 2007, Michael Bay directed
16456-428: The storyline, ignoring the 1987 end of the American series. The extended Japanese run consisted of The Headmasters , Super-God Masterforce , Victory and Zone , then in illustrated magazine form as Battlestars: Return of Convoy and Operation: Combination . Just as the TV series was wrapping up, Marvel continued to expand its continuity. It follows The Movie' s example by killing Prime and Megatron, albeit in
16592-413: The straggling Decepticons with the help of Elita-1 and the repentant Megatron. With the arrival of a new generation of Earth-born Transformers called "Terrans", created by brothers Robby and Mo Malto, it could be the first step on the road to permanent peace. Japanese : Optimus Prime appears in the Transformers live-action film series as the leader of the Autobots and one of the main protagonists. In
16728-558: The title of Transformers: Heroes , Transformers Animated is set in 2050 Detroit (after crash landing 50 years earlier), when robots and humans live side by side. The Autobots come to Earth and assume superhero roles, battling evil humans, with the Decepticons having a smaller role until Megatron resurfaces. Main characters include Autobots Optimus Prime, Bumblebee, Bulkhead, Prowl, and Ratchet; Decepticons Megatron, Starscream, Blitzwing, Lugnut, and Blackarachnia; and humans Professor Sumdac and Sari Sumdac. Several characters that were in
16864-401: The truth and inciting the citizens to rebel, but after defeating Sentinel, Orion and D-16 argue over whether to execute him, resulting in the latter accidentally shooting the former. While initially horrified, D-16 ultimately lets Orion fall to his death, before he kills Sentinel and then, calling himself "Megatron", commands the High Guard to destroy Iacon. The spirit of Primus, the planet, and
17000-407: The truth. Following an attack by Sentinel's guards and capturing D-16, B-127 and half of the High Guard, Orion and Elita fall unconscious after being buried under some rubble and, in the process, the chip is destroyed. Orion, encouraged by Elita, rallies the remaining High Guard members and returns to Iacon to rescue their comrades. They display evidence of Sentinel's actions all over the city, exposing
17136-416: The two returning and older characters of Atari and Shaoshao. Possibly as a result of the majority of fans trying to distance themselves from the series combined with the then general inaccessibility of the radio show to an English audience, there was minimal awareness of the specific details of the Kiss Players storyline in the Japanese fandom. However, on July 19, 2022, most of the original media (including
17272-648: The universe depicted in the animated series Challenge of the GoBots and follow-up film GoBots: Battle of the Rock Lords was retroactively established as an alternate universe within the Transformers multiverse. Generation 1 is a retroactive term for the Transformers characters that appeared between 1984 and 1993. The Transformers began with the 1980s Japanese toy lines Micro Change and Diaclone . They presented robots able to transform into everyday vehicles, electronic items or weapons. Hasbro bought
17408-553: The website Go90 and YouTube . This was followed by two further installments, Titans Return and Power of the Primes . Eric Calderon was executive producer of the trilogy. The events of the series take place 40 years after the end of the Autobot/Decepticon civil war, with the Transformers having returned to Cybertron and now being threatened by ancient technology. Media franchise A media franchise often consists of cross-marketing across more than one medium. For
17544-421: The world's highest-grossing media franchises . For example, Pokémon 's penetration into the American market of the franchise along with others of Japanese origin, such as Yu-Gi-Oh! , gave rise to the recognition of what is variously called transmedia storytelling , crossmedia, transmediation , media synergy, etc. Researchers argue that the 1963 Tetsuwan Atomu marked a shift in Japanese marketing from
17680-696: Was announced that IDW lost the publishing rights to Transformers. In January 2006, the Hasbro Transformers Collectors' Club comic wrote a story based on the Transformers Classics toy line, set in the Marvel Comics universe, but excluding the Generation 2 comic. Fifteen years after Megatron crash-lands in the Ark with Ratchet, the war continues with the characters in their Classics bodies. IDW Publishing introduced The Transformers: Evolutions in 2006,
17816-414: Was colored red, chrome, and dark blue. The popularity of the Transformers toys resulted in comics, movies, and a TV series. In the Transformers mythology, Optimus Prime is a Cybertronian, a member of an extraterrestrial species of sentient self-configuring modular robotic lifeforms (e.g., cars and other objects), a blend of biological evolution and technological engineering. He is the primary hero of
17952-583: Was heavily censored in the U.S. due to its content of buildings being destroyed and terrorism references after the September 11 attacks on the United States and three episodes were cut altogether. These three lines, launched in 2002 and dubbed the " Unicron Trilogy " by Transformers designer Aaron Archer , are co-productions between Takara and (lesser extent) Hasbro, simultaneously released in both countries, each lasting 52 episodes. Armada followed
18088-516: Was launched, and then later, to summarize the final few radio dramas when both series were drawing to a close. Information Administration Teletraan 15 Go! Go! also featured the first part of a story in which Starscream 's ghost possessed Atari (which was continued in the radio drama), and in the second year, notably incorporated the further adventures of the Kiss Players Position cassette trio, who were rather confusingly dropped from
18224-400: Was released on June 27, 2014, which also grossed over $ 1 billion, though it received generally negative reviews. A fifth film, Transformers: The Last Knight was released on June 23, 2017 to similarly negative reviews. Unlike its predecessors, the movie failed to recoup its costs for the studio. Bumblebee , directed by Laika 's Travis Knight , was released on December 21, 2018, serving as
18360-409: Was then rescued by Hot Rod and joins the resistance to combat the EDC and make amends with her former friend. Lastly, Atari Hitotonari of Japanese descent, who "recruited" into the EDC after the death of her parents while suffering from survivor's guilt . She would shortly become depressed and self-destructive. As she spoke aloud about her nihilistic feelings she would meet her partner by the name Ne-04,
18496-530: Was well received by fans. A sequel, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen , was released on June 24, 2009. It received mostly negative reviews, but was a commercial success and grossed more than its predecessor. A third film, Transformers: Dark of the Moon , was released on June 29, 2011, in 3-D and went on to gross over $ 1 billion, despite receiving mixed reviews. A fourth film, Transformers: Age of Extinction ,
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