I Must Admit, I Don't Get It 0.o

[the_gneech]

Y'know, I watched Transformers back in the day; I also watched He-Man, G.I. Joe, Thundercats, and all the rest of the "30-minute toy ad" cartoons of the 1980s. As far as I've ever been able to tell, all of them were about the same level of "mildly entertaining;" they all used the same scripts and just swapped out names, so really it was just a matter of which one was your particular favorite flavor.

I have lots of friends now who are way into Transformers; there have been lots of "SQUEEE!" noises coming from my friends list about the prospect of a new live-action Transformers movie. While I'm glad they're so happy, I have to admit that I'm puzzled at the intensity of the reaction.

I mean yeah, I thought it was neat that Inspector Gadget got a movie, but it was hardly worth bouncing off the walls for.

The only common item I can see is that the friends in question all seem to be 3 - 5 years younger than I am, which would put them as being 8 - 11 years old when those shows were on. 8 - 11 was Empire Strikes Back age for me, and I certainly continue to get enjoyment out of the good parts of the Star Wars saga. Maybe by the time Transformers was on, I'd passed the point where it could be magic for me? Of course, these days I'm pretty jaded ... you could tell me a big budget Speed Racer movie was in the works and I'd respond with, "Neat, I hope it doesn't suck."

And why Transformers particularly? If you like giant robots, why not Macross/Robotech? If you like '80s cartoons, why not Thundercats? Look as I may, I just can't see anything in Transformers worthy of more than, well, being mildly entertained.

Oh well. :) My friends are nuts, I guess. But who cares? As long as they're having fun! :)

-The Gneech

Comments

[canisrufus-uk.livejournal.com]

But Transformers are like..... Transformers! The sheer awsomeness of Transformers trancends time and space!

(I was 6 at the time, Transformers was the coolest thing ever!!)

[the-gneech.livejournal.com]

So I gather!

-TG

[jim-lane.livejournal.com]

John, more than likely they're stoked about how visually cool it would look, given today's realistic digital special effects. When you think about it, there's no reason the back shop boys couldn't do a "live action" film of SJ, using digital rotoscoping of your characters over live actors, in real-world settings---and it would look REAL. Movie producers are constantly on the prowl for ideas that will attract BIG crowds, and sell TONS of tie-in merchandise. Transformers could do that. So could a well-done movie of Surburban Jungle.

Excited yet?

[the-gneech.livejournal.com]

The folks in question were going "SQUEE" about Transformers long before CGI entered the picture; the movie is just the latest incident.

FWIW, in all honesty, I'm not sure a CGI movie about furries could work without being really creepy, unless they were vastly toonified (think Sully from Monsters, Inc.).

-TG

[wbwolf.livejournal.com]

I refer you to Kaze, Ghost Warrior (http://www.kazeghostwarrior.com/) animated by former Disney CGI artist, Timothy Albee, for reference of a more realistic take on anthropomorphic animated characters.

[jim-lane.livejournal.com]

Depends. (No, not like the ones the old farts wear!)

"Furry" encompasses many kinds of anthropomorphic, John.

Your take on it (in SJ) is toony; mine (in RF) is realistic.

There are fans of both "schools", but admittedly it seems
comedy works better with toon-style, whereas some folks have
a problem with gritty-serious stories done toon-style.

Still, a "Monsters, Inc."-style SJ film would probably be a HOOT---!

Keep your ears open, my friend. Ya nevah know---!

[the-gneech.livejournal.com]

Y'know, level_head threatened to commission me to write a treatment for an animated NeverNever movie ... but to be honest, I don't know that I'm up to the task.

I'd love to be an overpaid consultant on a project like that, tho. ;)

-The Gneech

[wbwolf.livejournal.com]

I should point out that not to be outdone in the giant robot genre, a live-action Neon Genesis Evangeleon is in the works, with digital effects by WETA Workshop (Lord of The Rings).

Personally, I'm still waiting the first really good "furry" sym-thespian character to appear in a movie. Stuart Little wasn't bad, but I think they can do better.

[the-gneech.livejournal.com]

Actually, in SL2 he transcended "not bad" -- some of those sequences were absolutely brilliant. :) In particular, there was a scene of Stuart lying in bed blinking in a worried not-sleep that I thought was really effective.

-TG

[the-gneech.livejournal.com]

You're a special case. :) I was expecting you to go squee about it! ;) Just one of your many endearing qualities. (Plus, I don't expect to understand your enthusiams ... you have that whole "villain love" thing going on, for instance. I just smile and nod and look at the purty pichers...)

-TG

[kinkyturtle.livejournal.com]

A noble aspiration!

[the-gneech.livejournal.com]

Actually, it was a candy first. 0.o

-TG

[kylet.livejournal.com]

Well, some of those bears were extremely unnatural colors ;-)


V.

[vverevvolf.livejournal.com]

This also explains the insects that are the size of a Buick in Transformers: Beast Wars.

---------------------------------------------

Dashing and daring, courageous and caring
Faithful and friendly with stories to share
All through the forest they sing out in chorus
Marching along as their song fills the air

Gummi Bears, bouncing here and there and everywhere
High adventure that's beyond compare.
They are the Gummi Bears

Magic and mystery are part of their history
Along with the secret of Gummi Berry Juice
The legend is growing they take part in knowing
They fight for what's right in whatever they do

Gummi Bears, bouncing here and there and everywhere
High adventure that's beyond compare.
They are the Gummi Bears

-------------------------------------------

Yeah I wonder when Disney will realize they can make money off releasing some of thier older series on DVD... Gummi Bears, Aladin, Gargoles...

Anyone know if they're planning on releaseing Thundercats on DVD anytime soon ?

[the-gneech.livejournal.com]

I'm hoping on Tale Spin, myself.

-The Gneech

[kylet.livejournal.com]

Beast Wars had some completely independent explanation...I don't remember what, but something about how the environment was unhealthy to them and they had to "shield" themselves in organic material to survive, hence the animal forms. Exactly where they GOT the organic material, don't ask.

And yeah...they had crummy little 2-episode videocassettes of the Dis Afternoon, I want the real deal!


V.

[rhanlav.livejournal.com]

I've heard Gargoyles is finally going to show up on DVD, something near the end of this year. Heck only knows all the Gargoyle fans I know. That show just rocked. Except for the 3rd season, which wasn't written by the original writer, so I'm gonna forget that one happened.

[kylet.livejournal.com]

All you'd have to do is ask any Transfan; the robots crash-landed on Earth and were pretty much destroyed by the impact. Their ship repaired everyone, but logically concluded it made more sense to utilize local shapes than their original ones, given that 30-foot tall robots would would already attract too much attention.

From the corporate point of view, none of the first few years of toys were made from scratch; they were bought or licensed from Japanese toymakers. Why the hell Japan decided microscope robots would be fun is beyond me. Once Hasbro and Takara began producing original molds, the household items mostly disappeared.


V.

[kylet.livejournal.com]

I'll admit I'm reserving judgment on the movie, since I think there's too many ways it can be done wrong (admittedly signing Spielberg perked my interest greatly)--I'm almost in the "neat, I hope it doesn't suck" mindset also, plus I remember the other non-CGI movie, which was no Academy Award winner.

But FYI, Macross/Robotech didn't involve *sentient* robots, and Thundercats haven't been around in one form or another for 18 out of the past 20 years.

I mean, you remember the fanfervor when Episode I was announced, and I can't tell you how uninterested *I* was, so I guess I know how you feel. Nothing appeals to everyone ;-)


V.

[the-gneech.livejournal.com]

Heehee. :) FWIW, I felt about Episode I the way you feel about the Transformers movie ... and it lived down to my expectations. >.<

-TG

[eddie-baker.livejournal.com]

Hey, I always tell people to watch the Star Wars Holiday Special before watching Episode I or II. They won't seem so bad afterwards. ;)

And Episode III: "Revenge of the Sith" I have no hopes for. At least it's a better title then the last two, which were so corny I thought the next one should be "Space Nazis Must Die" to continue the theme.

[kylet.livejournal.com]

Just no more kids. Spike was cool. The rest...weren't...


V.

[vverevvolf.livejournal.com]

I remember the other non-CGI movie, which was no Academy Award winner.

I still say the highlight of that movie was the fact that they used a 'Weird Al' Yankovic song in it.

[torakiyoshi.livejournal.com]

Eh, it'll only be good if they get Casey Casem to do 60% of the voices...

-=TK

[kylet.livejournal.com]

Frank Welker can do the other 40% ;-)

V.

[rhanlav.livejournal.com]

I know a lot of Transformer fans. Actually, I own all the original TF series, and the first two seasons of Beast Wars. I think the thing about it is... well, its a fandom.

No, really, its no different than Star Trek in that respect. The original series was what... 74 episodes total? The original TF series, all 4 seasons, is easily that much. The only difference is Transformers had cool toys to buy. ;)

In the end, someone will go "SQUEE!" if there's any hint of a fan out there, for something in general. Heck, I'm sure someone would go "SQUEE!" if you said... Sienfeld The Movie.

Oh, and the reason folks don't go "SQUEE!" about Thundercats is... uh, they didn't make anything after the series. :( The bastards! They need to make Thundercats The Movie! SQUEEEEEEE!!!!

--Rhan/Salen

[eddie-baker.livejournal.com]

They just recently put out a new Thundercats comic book series; as with the new GI Joe comics it is aimed at their fans who have grown up.

[rhanlav.livejournal.com]

*nods* I've seen it. I picked up a few of the comics, and I know that they did the same with Voltron a while ago as well. Its not a bad idea really. Some folks will want to go back and see what they've done with the comic, and if they like what they see, they'll keep buying it. Name recognition is a big part of it.

Transformers is just one of those series that managed to pull a 'Star Trek' and produce a few new series and comics after they were gone. Helps get new fans, and older ones.

[huskyteer.livejournal.com]

I was obsessed with Thundercats for many, many years - long after all my little friends had moved on to the next toy-commercial-toon craze. It's said new action figures are in the works; if they do get released, you'll hear my SQUEE!! clear across the Atlantic.

Mmm....Tygra...

[the-gneech.livejournal.com]

My guess is, "the smaller the teapot, the bigger the tempest." ;)

-TG

[bauske.livejournal.com]

I'm with you, Gneech. I don't get it either. I'm in that same age bracket and I don't like the series at all, no offense to those who do. I tried watching the new series as well that was on Cartoon Network a while back, and I almost found the show offensive. The animation was horrible and the voices and story were just... ugh. So as for a movie? I'll pass, thankyouverymuch. :p

[vverevvolf.livejournal.com]

I tried watching the new series as well that was on Cartoon Network a while back, and I almost found the show offensive.

The first season of that was offensive... It was like Transformer's Pokemon for cryin' out loud.

[exatron.livejournal.com]

The two newest Transformers series are almost nothing like the original or Beast Wars and occupy a seperate universe. Armada and Energon both suffer from poor translations, horrendous animation (it doesn't help that the episodes aired in the US are often unfinished to boot), and waste an otherwise talented cast. Thankfully, the new movie will be based on the original cartoon and Marvel comic.

G1 didn't always have the best animation or writing, but it did have some interesting stories that most of its contemporaries weren't allowed to tell. Heck, the whole idea of "living" robots hadn't really been done before.

Much of G1 is silly, campy fun, but there are some really good episodes mixed in there: "Fire in the Sky", "The Golden Lagoon", "The Secret of Omega Supreme", "War Dawn","Dark Awakening", "Fight or Flee", "The Ultimate Weapon", and "The Burden Hardest to Bear" come to mind.

I don't know a lot about the Marvel comic, but it's usually regarded as having a much more serious tone, particularly once Simon Furman became the writer.

As long as the movie is treated like it's real science fiction rather than a feature-length ad, it should end up being watchable. I can almost guarantee that it won't be the best film ever made, but it also can't be much worse than Gili or the Star Wars prequels.

[usagiweaver.livejournal.com]

Um... I read somewhere that there IS a Speed Racer movie in the works with Vince Vaughn as "Racer X". 'Course, that could just be the rumor mill sucking me in. You know how everything you read on the internet is TRUE!

As for why Transformers and not the other mentioned titles... I bet the rights to Transformers were easier to get. And the fact that the toys are STILL in production means you've got built-in marketing already going.

>.>

[kailucidricwolf.livejournal.com]

over 50 comments about Transformers.

i get like.... 4. >.>

*ENVY!*

^~Kai

Re: >.>

[torakiyoshi.livejournal.com]

*Patpats* Would you like cheese with that whine?

-=TK

<.<

[kailucidricwolf.livejournal.com]

Pftt!

^~Kai

[carlfox.livejournal.com]

Transformers, feh.

Bring back Galaxy Rangers...now, *that* was a kick-ass animated series. :)

[exatron.livejournal.com]

The appeal of Transformers is that they aren't just giant robots, they're also alive. That really hadn't been done before, and the writers approached the series as if it were a science fiction show first and an ad second.

Most of the time, the demands of having to sell toys created archetypes rather than actual characters and stories that were so campy they make the Adam West Batman series look serious, but underneath all of that was a show that tried to take itself seriously and create engaging stories. We got to see the villains in a social setting, stories with morals that weren't blatantly beaten into the viewer's head, a few well developed characters (a miracle itself considering the size of the cast), and neither faction was depicted as absolutely good or evil- some of the Autobots would have made better Decepticons, some characters would have been friends if they weren't on opposing factions, and at least one 'Con switched sides.

Some of that love is Star Trek-like nostalgia, some of it is purely a desire to be entertained, and some of it is people perceiving a bit of depth in what is otherwise a purely commercial product.

One more thing. Technically, Transformers and its contemporaries are twenty-two minute toy commercials. Toy manufacturers weren't, and still aren't IIRC, allowed to air commercials for a toy line during the same timeslot as the show based on those toys.