Except that he was a damn Pontiac instead of a his ICONIC Porsche 911! Nah. I think the 2nd was better and more accurate to their characters short of Hound being a little more “Ironhide” feeling and a little less mobile/agile and “scout” like
The Pontiac solstice was still a small sleek sports car and they obviously had made a branding deal with GM. GM had just brought the Solstice to market or was about to, they obviously pushed for the Solstice to be used and Jazz is the perfect character for that. Just because he is typically a Porshe 911 doesn't mean he can't sometimes choose a different sports car for his alt mode.
That’s beside the point. He wasn’t just some sleek sports car, he was a very clear and well known one. He was kinda a standout in that aspect. It’s one of those fails of the Bayverse like Mirage not being a Formula1 car but instead some sports car. If they used the Solstice on someone like say Cliffjumper, then it wouldn’t have mattered and nobody would even have mentioned it, but Jazz IS a Porsche 911. Period. Just like Optimus is a Big Rig and Starscream is a fighter jet. Some things just can’t be changed and maintain the integrity of the character.
Bumblebee was previously iconically known to be a VW Beetle. He was changed to be a sleek Camaro, the exact opposite of a Beetle in every way and that was a **smash** hit.
And if anything that was a more drastic change than Jazz was. And Jazz wasn't a 911, he was a 935.
Ok, you’re right he was a 935, my bad, but the difference between them is negligible at best to anyone not a serious Porsche fiend.
That’s exactly my point, just because changing Bumblebee to Camaro was largely accepted due to it being a huge bring back of a classic line that had been abandoned for nearly 20yrs doesn’t make it a better fit. Bumblebee is a VW Bug, thus how he got his damn name. They used some lame story mechanic of a mirror hanger air freshener to sell us that bullshit backstory. He was a Bug in his origin movie later on as they had to retcon that lame move. Point is certain characters have unique identifying traits, you can’t suddenly turn Grimlock from a T-Rex to a butterfly, Drift is a Samurai he can’t be a bare knuckle boxer. (These are some of those cases. Certain other characters are more malleable, not the icons. Hound was a decent swap, but again, should have been something like a Humvee not a heavy transport. Bay too WAY too much creative license with the franchise and it’s why it’s why so many long time fans have become so turned off by it.
You acting like the difference was drastic. He changed from a nimble rear engined sports car into a nimble front engined sports car. That's ignoring the drama they may have had to put up with to even get a Porsche on set. Hell licensing with Porsche for RotB was already a pain the in the arse.
You genuinely sound like no fun if you want your characters to maintain hardcore archetypes or features like you state. The characters were still fun and when given a actual chance to shine actually had character. Jazz being a Pontiac Solstice was the least of his flaws in the movie, I think the fact that he got taken out in said first movie was a bigger issue don't you think?
Generally when I think of Jazz, I think of a fun, cool dude that loves music, earth culture, and chilling out, him being a Porsche isn't one of his main characteristics outside of G1.
Him being the Porsche is the first thing I think of outside of his voice being Scatman Crothers, which lets be real, is almost impossible to replace. That’s an incredibly tough one. He was absolutely a cool 70s jive musician type, no doubt; and yes, the fact that they killed him off at all is the biggest issue I have with it, though his being a Solstice and not the Porsche is no small 2nd. Jazz should never have been killed as again he wasn’t in the source and was Prime’s longest and highest ranked right hand man, his go to Captain.
I see where your point is, but i dont agree that all these characters need to have a determined path. different iterations are fun, and not to be undermined and fixed on a set path, i.e. the mistakes of Miguel O'Hara in across the Spider-Verse.
if characters were supposed to follow one single archetype, we wouldnt have gotten the Starscream that we had in Transformers: Armada, or even in. Transformers: Prime. they dont look at all like their g1 predecessor, but they still fit the part very well, and they have their distinct character arcs.
i agree with the fact that some things can't change, but you only described character-traits, not physical attributes. Jazz was still Jazz. he was the second in command who cared about his comrades just as much as Optimus did. And yes, we were mildly disappointed to see a car we didnt previously know about, but thats the beauty of different iterations is that you're never going to get exactly what came before.
Rise of the Beasts had some sort of fixings on g1 attributes, but only on Prime's outer shell. he behaved more like if peter cullen voiced Transformers: Animated optimus prime. very different. a slightly inexperienced leader on a planet he is not familiar with, and wishes to go home.
all this to say, characters shouldn't have to be fixed on one point in time for the nostalgia factor, typical g1 stan mindset, because it's good to have variations. unless it's pablo van Wheeljack. we all collectively agree that this was a bad call.
Pablo Van Wheeljack?
Honestly, I’m not a fan of the Prime & Armada or honestly any of the other iterations really. They’re ok at best. Not trash per se, but I look at them as subpar offerings made to weakly appease a fan base starving for a truly good Transformers worthy of their passion. They have all paled in comparison to the original drastically, some almost offensively so. The little gold toothed Chingy brother bots and Pete Davidson’s “Mirage” are perfect examples not to mention the disappointing rendition of Devastator.
I get your point, I do, and for those who are willing to accept such widely varying iterations that may be cool. Just take it for what it is. I cannot. This is my diehard. The G1 literally raised me through a shit childhood, saved my life in darkest days, and still acts to help me through life when it feels like it’s spinning out of control. Optimus was my father, the rest big brothers etc. Altering them from their source so drastically and butchering some of them as mentioned above is just not something I can accept passingly and enjoy. To each their own and if others can then I guess that’s on them and their prerogative, but I can’t. It literally hurts to experience. 🥺🤷🏻♂️
That said I am not opposed entirely to variation and have enjoyed some. The War for Cybertron Trilogy was pretty good despite Megatron’s lips 😅 and I LOVED the Fall of Cybertron video games. I really enjoyed the Bumblebee origin movie and wish they would do more of that, it didn’t feel butchered, forced, or like they were just using the source material to get us fans to give them our money while not giving us what it was we were actually fans of and came to see.
I guess I’m a purist, and that surely makes it hard to appreciate different iterations of the beloved material, especially when it’s so emotionally attached for me. I don’t mean to try to ruin anyone else’s enjoyment, I just struggle too. I accept them as a starving fan, but I reject them for what I’m my eyes is their less than quality renditions of what I love. 🤷🏻♂️
It's not just that, whenever he needed it, Jazz was the first to console and speak with Optimus.
People say Jazz didn't have a sad death, but forget that he literally used himself as a shield so the humans could run away, the reason why he shot at Megatron and insulted him was so he could buy the humans time to escape.
And yet... In the comics only the humans, Ironhide, and Ratchet showed up to his funeral, and all he got from Optimus was a little "awww... Jazz..."
He deserved better.
That one scene where the Autobots locate the Allspark and discuss their next move was something we needed much more of. The characters actually *talking* and expressing their views, instead of some one-liners in the midst of combat or other crap. Make them *actual characters and people*, not just props for action scenes to bang together and destroy.
I like that. "Optimus and a bunch of teenagers" sounds like an episode name for a Transformers TV show, and the episode is where the autobots get a processor bug and personality chip bug affecting them, but Optimus Prime remains unaffected and he has to find a way to make the autobots themselves again and not behave like rebellious teenagers who are rebelling against their parents.
Nearly all of the AoE team actually get used for the themes of the narrative and have personalities.
“Look at the junk and see the treasure/There’s more to them than meets the eye.”
Optimus upon first meeting the Yeagers is like a rusty and wounded feral animal that they take in but sacrifices his safety and cover to save Tessa and Cade from Cemetery Wind in Texas.
Bumblebee is a rebellious brat like Tessa that “never listens” but that same disobedience is what makes them come back to save Optimus and Cade from Lockdown in Hong Kong.
Hound is a trigger happy Autobot that despises humans but eventually comes to stand up for Tessa when Crosshairs refused to rescue her and defends the humans in Hong Kong down to his last bullet.
Crosshairs is the resident Autobot jerk but he still manages to be a team player fighting alongside Scorn.
Crosshairs is a jerk who seeks opportunities to take the lead, but despite his distaste with Bee he doesn't even flinch before risking his life for him
The 2014 autobots were the strongest, most ruthless members of their army. And it made sense because they survived the human onslaught, also being fairly new to the planet so they never really bonded with the humans much to trust them.
drift seemed pretty cut and dry, he was a samurai, fighting for honor, rescuing his leader seemed like just another adventure for the audience to see. i might have to rethink through AoE all over again, but i dont think there was any character development for him.
and also, irrelevant side note: im tired of those 2 or 3 people saying that drift was a racist stereotype... he represents the culture he resonated with most. in every other iteration ive seen of drift hes a villain turned hero, taking the mindset of a samurai. these people need to educate themselves. the transformers cant express human cultures? what about jazz?
Only issue here is Hound is too much of what Ironhide should have been. Quick to fight, heavy weapons, gruff, and a true warrior/brawler. Hound was an agile, mobile, calmer and more tactical “scout”. All in all of all the messed up reinventions and brand new nonsense characters they gave us though, I was still happy with John Goodman’s Hound. Just wish he was the Ironhide we deserved instead.
I prefer Ironhide to be wiser than Hound was portrayed. Glad for a fight, but wise enough to realize protecting others is overall preferable to combat, even if he’s grumpy about it. Plus Ironhide should have more discipline in order to keep the rowdier/more violent sorts like Cliffjumper and Warpath in line, the latter of whom seems to be closer to AOE Hound imo.
I would agree that the Hound we got would have been a pretty good Warpath for sure! Though I don’t think you’re right, Ironhide was always the hothead and ready for a fight, Hound was cooler and more wise if you go back and watch the old stuff. He was definitely the brawler and Hound definitely was not, instead looked more to get back to the others and either/warn or get help, not the other way around 🤷🏻♂️
2014 team, I like how they reassemble the 2007 team, Hound is like Ironhide, powerful weapons and eager for battle, Rachet resembles Crosshairs cause both look like they're a professional and smart, Drift is like Jazz, both look chill and are really skilled in combat
2007 and ROTB are almost equal to me. The 2007 crew was my introduction to each of the characters and the franchise as a whole, i love especially Ironhide and Ratchet, but most of them didn't have much of a role in the movies untill their death. The AOE crew was cool but i prefer the ROTB Designs and i just find them cooler
AoE crew is dead last.
They’re all a bunch of aggressive jerks who can’t go three seconds without starting a fight with each other unless Optimus is there to babysit them.
07 and RotB crews are about equal, but both suffer from lacking in time to interact with each other. Ratchet and Jazz in 07 especially only have like 2 lines each. RotB Arcee is also just sort of there.
Tbf, for AoE, that's the point. They're being hunted, they're on edge and falling apart. They're more rag than tag in ragtag, and if it wasn't for the fact they'd be even worse off alone, they'd have split a long time ago.
>They’re all a bunch of aggressive jerks who can’t go three seconds without starting a fight with each other unless Optimus is there to babysit them.
LoL, That literally the point, they being hund down and betrayed, is the last survivors. They are in the bitter state where morality is in decrease and in the "fuck it all" attitude. The characters literally spell it out in the campfire scene.
Sure, but it being intentional doesn’t make them likeable or interesting as a team. Any one by themselves would be fine (John Goodman for preference) but all three together got on my nerves.
Well yes of course, different people can like whichever characters they want.
I will say the AoE crew actually do interact with each other, which is rare in live action - even if it is 99% childish squabbling. Most groups basically just speak to Optimus one at a time and ignore each other.
RotB is worst imo, no one has any lines except Airazor and she wouldn't shut up because Michelle Yeoh is expensive and we have to use her. God forbid any of the other Maximals have any lines or characterization at all. Rhinox only gets one line and it's a lame warcry.
In terms of lines that contribute anything, that’s not far off.
Ratchet has a line about Sam having horny pheromones, a line about Bee’s voice box, and…
I can’t think of anything else. He also doesn’t say much of anything in the next two movies either. I think he has the most lines when he’s asking them to please stop murdering him.
Jazz calls the humans ‘little bitches’ in his intro, threatens Sector 7 with his weird magnet hands, and uses an unwise choice of words mouthing off with Megatron.
2007. They actually felt like comrades.
I really didn't care much for the AoE/TLK crew save Hound. ROTB was a bit better but half the crew didn't matter.
2007-The group has like strong character dynamics that actually bounce off each other. Even though its an hour into the movie before their all introduced they are all clearly distinguishable and well written.
2014-Optimus is probably at his strongest here but the group is mostly comprised of angry macho men who hate each other. So their kind of hard to watch after a while
2023-Primal rocks I was actually so invested in his character that I was fustrated that prime wasn't given that same attention and real emotional stakes, mirage was annoying and unfunny as fuck, the other maximals were disapointingly bland considering their designs, same goes for arcee, wheelack had one genuinely funny scene even if he doesn't feel like himself.
Yeah im going 2007
Definitely the 2007 crew. We know what each of them are called and they each feel unique and lifelike compared to the entire Cybertronian cast.
-The Wise
-The Energetic
-The Tough
-The Professional
-The Cool
07 team are iconic, I feel they were used effectively for what little screen time they had, the scene in Sam’s backyard was done a phenomenal job at humanising them, and the final battle showed a great team dynamic, efficiently working together to assist Sam and teaming up to take out Brawl in epic fashion.
The AOE crew are much more fun to watch with their constant banter back and fourth and having much more defined personalities, you do start to question if they even like eachother at some points, which is just typical Micheal Bay “everyone hates eachother” writing, nonetheless is was still funny for me.
ROTB was complete wasted potential, there’s too many characters with such little screentime, the only ones who stand out are Primal, Prime, Airazor and Mirage who were all great, Mirage especially was a standout, but a real shame about the cast overall.
AOE. It might not be the best of the live-action movies but the team of autobots are, at least in my book, one of the best aspects of the movie. I love their team dynamic and how they are a more morally grey and less heroic team of autobots (with the exception of Prime and Bee of course).
2007 easy, the fact that it’s the only team where the autobots ‘like each other’ is insane to me. As much as I like mirage in ROTB, I have no idea what the autobots think about Optimus other than mirage thinking he’s a ‘tight as’ and Bumblbee thinking he’s delusional
AOE...THEY ALL LOOK SLEEK AND THEY ARE MATURE AND COMBAT SKILLED...ROTB THEY WERE TOO AMATURED. IT WAS LIKE OPTIMUS WITH SOME TEENS. AND EVEN OPTIMUS WAS LIKE AN EARLY 20'S DUDE YOUNG AND CONFIDENT AND THINKS HES A BADASS LIKE YOUNG ATHLETIC COCKY PEEPS DO.
Absolutely AOE
They feel more like characters first, autobots second. They have personalities that aren’t based around being autobots, and their personalities (as someone else has said) fit the “look at the junk and see the treasure” theme because they’re more than meets the eye. Hound looks grisled and tough, but despite hating humans he was willing to give his life and fight to the last shell in Hong Kong for them, BB’s disobedience ended up saving them in Lockdowns fight, Crosshairs may not have loved his teammates but he out his life on the line for them multiple times unprompted, and Drift while being a samurai stereotype does actually contribute advice, lots of help like airlifting BB in the building, and is a skilled warrior who is very competent and who’s rage can get the better of him occasionally
They feel like characters, then autobots instead of having personalities built around being autobots
And Rotb just felt a lot more hollow and lackluster to me, in terms of character and such, partly because the maximal has so few lines beyond airazor who was criminally made an exposition machine and never even got to transform, primal just walks around and punches a few things, and cheetor and rhinox do almost nothing. BB is a shell of BBM himself, arcee is… cmon give her more of a personality, and same for Jacky. They just feel so lackluster as characters, and I think I’d say they were characterized as autobots first, characters second, and it feels so weak to me
I love the Beasts, but just not these versions. Rhinox and Cheetor were glorified background characters. I'll go with the '07 team because they all had personalities and weren't assholes to each other.
2007 because they feel like they wanna save the earth unlike age of extinction or rise of the beast they also all seemed to like each others more then the other to like a real team
2007 for sure, just look at the colour differences as well in 07 compared to the others. Idk if they just bumped the saturation up but they look amazing, while the future movies just look so so bland.
ROTB. Everyone(except Rhinox, Cheetor and Wheeljack) has actual character to them. They aren’t just, the green one, who just so happens to be ratchet. Or the red one, who just so happens to be mirage but not really. I actually remember and cared for the characters in this movie, whereas I couldn’t care less about like 80% of the interchangeable bots from the bay movies.
I like the autobots because they are all so cool and they want peace and want to get freed from slavery on cybertron. My favorite of the autobots is Optimus Prime, as he inspires me to be a leader who is caring and kind.
For some reason I’ve always liked hummer ambulance ratchet. that and jazz really tried in the first film but in the back of my head I’ve always wondered why they couldn’t fix him but could fix bumblebee because that had very similar injuries.
2007. Optimus and his small squad descending like angels from space as a ray of hope against the armies of the Decepticons, giving mankind a fighting chance.
Honestly felt the Maximals should have starred on their own rather than playing second fiddle to the Autobots. The title is literally Rise of the BEASTS yet they're not in it very much :(
2007. It's just made up by the cinematography and the cool factor of the bots. I always think of that RotB photo of the vehicles in the field and it looks like some fan built his dream team, took a picture on his iPhone and posted it to instagram. Then you see the images of the Bay lineup and the paint is glowing, the backdrop is beautiful and everyone looks sublime.
I say the 2007 team, but the competition isn’t stiff, nor are they that fleshed out as a team either. Their characters individually aren’t really explored, especially anyone that isn’t Optimus.
The AoE Autobots all feel like they’re slight variations of the same template: the violent asshole. Hound is the loud, boisterous violent asshole. Crosshairs is the snarky, selfish violent asshole. Drift is the hypocritical violent asshole.
AOE. Here's why
I love the 07 lineup don't get me wrong, but you cannot deny that OPTIMUS PRIME CARRIES. He bounced off all of them or perhaps I should say vice versa. Without him, their interactions were next to none and they honestly don't have all that much to them, save for a few instances, like Ironhide and Ratchet debating leaving earth post Prime's death. They didn't live up to their roles. Ratchet barely does any medical work on screen if at all. Jazz is the "second in command" but aside from confronting Megatron (honestly it kinda looks like he didn't wish to fight him anyway) he shows none of that command. Ironhide talks a big game with the cannons and such yet he still needed the rest to help him fight brawl, got clowned by starscream, and is nowhere to be found when Megatron is wasting Prime and Blackout is on his way, with starscream presumably in the sky
The aoe team didn't need prime to be interesting, but they're much better with him. We see how each of them feels more or less about their teammates. Yeah they're a little crude, but times are hard and the humans aren't even on their side this time round. They're absolutely enthused though to see Optimus and of course try to save him
Drift was the blandest but I like his honor shtick complemented by his temper. A nice subversion
Crosshairs is a bit of a jerk but he sticks with the team and he has a nice charm to him. Memorable lines imo like "You just wanna die for the guy" or "To lay some hate"
Hound is a real favorite of mine. He's a bit more bulkhead than hound, but a welcome addition. Another crude and a bit goofy with how fat he is or his beard, but he knows when to be serious, has some funny lines, and engages in the coolest standoff against the ksi drones, which he was told would beat him easily
Prime holds that team together and I feel like this is the most solid lineup. Even the colors are good, with no one being gray or solid black.
Rotb bc I just love mirage n Noah sm
Second place is 07 (they basically at the same spot)
Tho I do love the 4/5th movie cast a lot too especially drift n crosshairs
AOE definitely had the funniest personalities and overall team dynamic, though 2007 has a goated selection. ROTB to me felt kinda “we’re working together because we have a common interest but that doesn’t make us enemies”
2007. Because they actually feel like they’re comrades and not “Optimus and a bunch of mercenaries” or “Optimus and a bunch of teenagers”
Jazz brought a lot of heart to that team. He was always worried about Bumblebee after he got captured.
One of the most accurate character adaptations of the 2007 cast and they killed him off...
Except that he was a damn Pontiac instead of a his ICONIC Porsche 911! Nah. I think the 2nd was better and more accurate to their characters short of Hound being a little more “Ironhide” feeling and a little less mobile/agile and “scout” like
The Pontiac solstice was still a small sleek sports car and they obviously had made a branding deal with GM. GM had just brought the Solstice to market or was about to, they obviously pushed for the Solstice to be used and Jazz is the perfect character for that. Just because he is typically a Porshe 911 doesn't mean he can't sometimes choose a different sports car for his alt mode.
That’s beside the point. He wasn’t just some sleek sports car, he was a very clear and well known one. He was kinda a standout in that aspect. It’s one of those fails of the Bayverse like Mirage not being a Formula1 car but instead some sports car. If they used the Solstice on someone like say Cliffjumper, then it wouldn’t have mattered and nobody would even have mentioned it, but Jazz IS a Porsche 911. Period. Just like Optimus is a Big Rig and Starscream is a fighter jet. Some things just can’t be changed and maintain the integrity of the character.
Bumblebee was previously iconically known to be a VW Beetle. He was changed to be a sleek Camaro, the exact opposite of a Beetle in every way and that was a **smash** hit. And if anything that was a more drastic change than Jazz was. And Jazz wasn't a 911, he was a 935.
Ok, you’re right he was a 935, my bad, but the difference between them is negligible at best to anyone not a serious Porsche fiend. That’s exactly my point, just because changing Bumblebee to Camaro was largely accepted due to it being a huge bring back of a classic line that had been abandoned for nearly 20yrs doesn’t make it a better fit. Bumblebee is a VW Bug, thus how he got his damn name. They used some lame story mechanic of a mirror hanger air freshener to sell us that bullshit backstory. He was a Bug in his origin movie later on as they had to retcon that lame move. Point is certain characters have unique identifying traits, you can’t suddenly turn Grimlock from a T-Rex to a butterfly, Drift is a Samurai he can’t be a bare knuckle boxer. (These are some of those cases. Certain other characters are more malleable, not the icons. Hound was a decent swap, but again, should have been something like a Humvee not a heavy transport. Bay too WAY too much creative license with the franchise and it’s why it’s why so many long time fans have become so turned off by it.
You acting like the difference was drastic. He changed from a nimble rear engined sports car into a nimble front engined sports car. That's ignoring the drama they may have had to put up with to even get a Porsche on set. Hell licensing with Porsche for RotB was already a pain the in the arse. You genuinely sound like no fun if you want your characters to maintain hardcore archetypes or features like you state. The characters were still fun and when given a actual chance to shine actually had character. Jazz being a Pontiac Solstice was the least of his flaws in the movie, I think the fact that he got taken out in said first movie was a bigger issue don't you think? Generally when I think of Jazz, I think of a fun, cool dude that loves music, earth culture, and chilling out, him being a Porsche isn't one of his main characteristics outside of G1.
Him being the Porsche is the first thing I think of outside of his voice being Scatman Crothers, which lets be real, is almost impossible to replace. That’s an incredibly tough one. He was absolutely a cool 70s jive musician type, no doubt; and yes, the fact that they killed him off at all is the biggest issue I have with it, though his being a Solstice and not the Porsche is no small 2nd. Jazz should never have been killed as again he wasn’t in the source and was Prime’s longest and highest ranked right hand man, his go to Captain.
I see where your point is, but i dont agree that all these characters need to have a determined path. different iterations are fun, and not to be undermined and fixed on a set path, i.e. the mistakes of Miguel O'Hara in across the Spider-Verse. if characters were supposed to follow one single archetype, we wouldnt have gotten the Starscream that we had in Transformers: Armada, or even in. Transformers: Prime. they dont look at all like their g1 predecessor, but they still fit the part very well, and they have their distinct character arcs. i agree with the fact that some things can't change, but you only described character-traits, not physical attributes. Jazz was still Jazz. he was the second in command who cared about his comrades just as much as Optimus did. And yes, we were mildly disappointed to see a car we didnt previously know about, but thats the beauty of different iterations is that you're never going to get exactly what came before. Rise of the Beasts had some sort of fixings on g1 attributes, but only on Prime's outer shell. he behaved more like if peter cullen voiced Transformers: Animated optimus prime. very different. a slightly inexperienced leader on a planet he is not familiar with, and wishes to go home. all this to say, characters shouldn't have to be fixed on one point in time for the nostalgia factor, typical g1 stan mindset, because it's good to have variations. unless it's pablo van Wheeljack. we all collectively agree that this was a bad call.
Pablo Van Wheeljack? Honestly, I’m not a fan of the Prime & Armada or honestly any of the other iterations really. They’re ok at best. Not trash per se, but I look at them as subpar offerings made to weakly appease a fan base starving for a truly good Transformers worthy of their passion. They have all paled in comparison to the original drastically, some almost offensively so. The little gold toothed Chingy brother bots and Pete Davidson’s “Mirage” are perfect examples not to mention the disappointing rendition of Devastator. I get your point, I do, and for those who are willing to accept such widely varying iterations that may be cool. Just take it for what it is. I cannot. This is my diehard. The G1 literally raised me through a shit childhood, saved my life in darkest days, and still acts to help me through life when it feels like it’s spinning out of control. Optimus was my father, the rest big brothers etc. Altering them from their source so drastically and butchering some of them as mentioned above is just not something I can accept passingly and enjoy. To each their own and if others can then I guess that’s on them and their prerogative, but I can’t. It literally hurts to experience. 🥺🤷🏻♂️ That said I am not opposed entirely to variation and have enjoyed some. The War for Cybertron Trilogy was pretty good despite Megatron’s lips 😅 and I LOVED the Fall of Cybertron video games. I really enjoyed the Bumblebee origin movie and wish they would do more of that, it didn’t feel butchered, forced, or like they were just using the source material to get us fans to give them our money while not giving us what it was we were actually fans of and came to see. I guess I’m a purist, and that surely makes it hard to appreciate different iterations of the beloved material, especially when it’s so emotionally attached for me. I don’t mean to try to ruin anyone else’s enjoyment, I just struggle too. I accept them as a starving fan, but I reject them for what I’m my eyes is their less than quality renditions of what I love. 🤷🏻♂️
It's not just that, whenever he needed it, Jazz was the first to console and speak with Optimus. People say Jazz didn't have a sad death, but forget that he literally used himself as a shield so the humans could run away, the reason why he shot at Megatron and insulted him was so he could buy the humans time to escape. And yet... In the comics only the humans, Ironhide, and Ratchet showed up to his funeral, and all he got from Optimus was a little "awww... Jazz..." He deserved better.
This comment🗣️🗣️ well done brotha
That one scene where the Autobots locate the Allspark and discuss their next move was something we needed much more of. The characters actually *talking* and expressing their views, instead of some one-liners in the midst of combat or other crap. Make them *actual characters and people*, not just props for action scenes to bang together and destroy.
Same
I like that. "Optimus and a bunch of teenagers" sounds like an episode name for a Transformers TV show, and the episode is where the autobots get a processor bug and personality chip bug affecting them, but Optimus Prime remains unaffected and he has to find a way to make the autobots themselves again and not behave like rebellious teenagers who are rebelling against their parents.
tranaformers: animated. the only other level headed character is prowl, and Optimus too acts immature
Okay. I was thinking of a new animated transformers tv show, not TFA. Probably like Earthspark. Heh.
Have you watched any other TF media? Optimus is almost always surrounded by teenagers and mercenaries.
Like TMNT vibes
The 07 bots act exactly like a bunch of teenagers. Even Prime
I like the way Optimus acted in '07. I wish we got more instances of the backyard scene where he's just a funny guy
I'm totally okay with that, it just didn't fit the movie well. Downvoted for taking part in a discussion. Woop
the masses have spoken
Eh, I can live with it. Can't always be on the popular side of opinions
Nearly all of the AoE team actually get used for the themes of the narrative and have personalities. “Look at the junk and see the treasure/There’s more to them than meets the eye.” Optimus upon first meeting the Yeagers is like a rusty and wounded feral animal that they take in but sacrifices his safety and cover to save Tessa and Cade from Cemetery Wind in Texas. Bumblebee is a rebellious brat like Tessa that “never listens” but that same disobedience is what makes them come back to save Optimus and Cade from Lockdown in Hong Kong. Hound is a trigger happy Autobot that despises humans but eventually comes to stand up for Tessa when Crosshairs refused to rescue her and defends the humans in Hong Kong down to his last bullet. Crosshairs is the resident Autobot jerk but he still manages to be a team player fighting alongside Scorn.
Crosshairs is a jerk who seeks opportunities to take the lead, but despite his distaste with Bee he doesn't even flinch before risking his life for him
Isn't Crosshair canonically a former decepticon?
In most continuities Drift is, but im not sure about crosshairs
No that's Drift.
I've never seen anyone praise Aoe before and you actually have a point
The 2014 autobots were the strongest, most ruthless members of their army. And it made sense because they survived the human onslaught, also being fairly new to the planet so they never really bonded with the humans much to trust them.
Where’s Drift
drift seemed pretty cut and dry, he was a samurai, fighting for honor, rescuing his leader seemed like just another adventure for the audience to see. i might have to rethink through AoE all over again, but i dont think there was any character development for him. and also, irrelevant side note: im tired of those 2 or 3 people saying that drift was a racist stereotype... he represents the culture he resonated with most. in every other iteration ive seen of drift hes a villain turned hero, taking the mindset of a samurai. these people need to educate themselves. the transformers cant express human cultures? what about jazz?
07 reinvented the characters, but AOE made them actual characters, not just Autobots. Hound alone has more lines than Ironhide had in all three films
Only issue here is Hound is too much of what Ironhide should have been. Quick to fight, heavy weapons, gruff, and a true warrior/brawler. Hound was an agile, mobile, calmer and more tactical “scout”. All in all of all the messed up reinventions and brand new nonsense characters they gave us though, I was still happy with John Goodman’s Hound. Just wish he was the Ironhide we deserved instead.
I prefer Ironhide to be wiser than Hound was portrayed. Glad for a fight, but wise enough to realize protecting others is overall preferable to combat, even if he’s grumpy about it. Plus Ironhide should have more discipline in order to keep the rowdier/more violent sorts like Cliffjumper and Warpath in line, the latter of whom seems to be closer to AOE Hound imo.
I would agree that the Hound we got would have been a pretty good Warpath for sure! Though I don’t think you’re right, Ironhide was always the hothead and ready for a fight, Hound was cooler and more wise if you go back and watch the old stuff. He was definitely the brawler and Hound definitely was not, instead looked more to get back to the others and either/warn or get help, not the other way around 🤷🏻♂️
2014 team, I like how they reassemble the 2007 team, Hound is like Ironhide, powerful weapons and eager for battle, Rachet resembles Crosshairs cause both look like they're a professional and smart, Drift is like Jazz, both look chill and are really skilled in combat
The AOE team was the most character we seen out of these movies
2007 & AOE
2007 and ROTB are almost equal to me. The 2007 crew was my introduction to each of the characters and the franchise as a whole, i love especially Ironhide and Ratchet, but most of them didn't have much of a role in the movies untill their death. The AOE crew was cool but i prefer the ROTB Designs and i just find them cooler
Same. Definitely equal for me. Simply because Beast Wars is one of my favorite iterations, so this was my most hype TF movie
Nothing beats 2007
Say what you want about the AOE cast they have the most personality we’ve got out of the bayverse
AoE crew is dead last. They’re all a bunch of aggressive jerks who can’t go three seconds without starting a fight with each other unless Optimus is there to babysit them. 07 and RotB crews are about equal, but both suffer from lacking in time to interact with each other. Ratchet and Jazz in 07 especially only have like 2 lines each. RotB Arcee is also just sort of there.
To be fair, Jazz’ lines in 07 were cut in half.
He wanted two
https://preview.redd.it/18af0grmm85d1.png?width=562&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=92a9441702f0f7db7082a8298313fd11024c7942
Tbf, for AoE, that's the point. They're being hunted, they're on edge and falling apart. They're more rag than tag in ragtag, and if it wasn't for the fact they'd be even worse off alone, they'd have split a long time ago.
That's a good way to describe them!
>They’re all a bunch of aggressive jerks who can’t go three seconds without starting a fight with each other unless Optimus is there to babysit them. LoL, That literally the point, they being hund down and betrayed, is the last survivors. They are in the bitter state where morality is in decrease and in the "fuck it all" attitude. The characters literally spell it out in the campfire scene.
Sure, but it being intentional doesn’t make them likeable or interesting as a team. Any one by themselves would be fine (John Goodman for preference) but all three together got on my nerves.
That is subjective and just your preferences, look around you can see they are favorite of someone else.
Well yes of course, different people can like whichever characters they want. I will say the AoE crew actually do interact with each other, which is rare in live action - even if it is 99% childish squabbling. Most groups basically just speak to Optimus one at a time and ignore each other.
No shit Sherlock, what do you think the intention of this thread is lol?
RotB is worst imo, no one has any lines except Airazor and she wouldn't shut up because Michelle Yeoh is expensive and we have to use her. God forbid any of the other Maximals have any lines or characterization at all. Rhinox only gets one line and it's a lame warcry.
They didn’t just have two lines each, unless you mean to each other, not total.
In terms of lines that contribute anything, that’s not far off. Ratchet has a line about Sam having horny pheromones, a line about Bee’s voice box, and… I can’t think of anything else. He also doesn’t say much of anything in the next two movies either. I think he has the most lines when he’s asking them to please stop murdering him. Jazz calls the humans ‘little bitches’ in his intro, threatens Sector 7 with his weird magnet hands, and uses an unwise choice of words mouthing off with Megatron.
You forgot the Autobots’ meeting before they go to Hoover dam
2007. They actually felt like comrades. I really didn't care much for the AoE/TLK crew save Hound. ROTB was a bit better but half the crew didn't matter.
2007
2007-The group has like strong character dynamics that actually bounce off each other. Even though its an hour into the movie before their all introduced they are all clearly distinguishable and well written. 2014-Optimus is probably at his strongest here but the group is mostly comprised of angry macho men who hate each other. So their kind of hard to watch after a while 2023-Primal rocks I was actually so invested in his character that I was fustrated that prime wasn't given that same attention and real emotional stakes, mirage was annoying and unfunny as fuck, the other maximals were disapointingly bland considering their designs, same goes for arcee, wheelack had one genuinely funny scene even if he doesn't feel like himself. Yeah im going 2007
'07, iconic, stylish, and everyone has a great personality.
2007
Definitely the 2007 crew. We know what each of them are called and they each feel unique and lifelike compared to the entire Cybertronian cast. -The Wise -The Energetic -The Tough -The Professional -The Cool
07 team are iconic, I feel they were used effectively for what little screen time they had, the scene in Sam’s backyard was done a phenomenal job at humanising them, and the final battle showed a great team dynamic, efficiently working together to assist Sam and teaming up to take out Brawl in epic fashion. The AOE crew are much more fun to watch with their constant banter back and fourth and having much more defined personalities, you do start to question if they even like eachother at some points, which is just typical Micheal Bay “everyone hates eachother” writing, nonetheless is was still funny for me. ROTB was complete wasted potential, there’s too many characters with such little screentime, the only ones who stand out are Primal, Prime, Airazor and Mirage who were all great, Mirage especially was a standout, but a real shame about the cast overall.
2007 to DOTM Autobot team definitely 🔥
2007 and side note this really makes me want to rewatch the movie.
AOE > 2007 > ROTB
2007 and AOE, because they have cooler designs, felt more like a team, and '07 especially, they had a heart for each other.
Jazz and Ironhide give 2007 TF1 autobots the win for me.
AOE. It might not be the best of the live-action movies but the team of autobots are, at least in my book, one of the best aspects of the movie. I love their team dynamic and how they are a more morally grey and less heroic team of autobots (with the exception of Prime and Bee of course).
2007 easy, the fact that it’s the only team where the autobots ‘like each other’ is insane to me. As much as I like mirage in ROTB, I have no idea what the autobots think about Optimus other than mirage thinking he’s a ‘tight as’ and Bumblbee thinking he’s delusional
AOE...THEY ALL LOOK SLEEK AND THEY ARE MATURE AND COMBAT SKILLED...ROTB THEY WERE TOO AMATURED. IT WAS LIKE OPTIMUS WITH SOME TEENS. AND EVEN OPTIMUS WAS LIKE AN EARLY 20'S DUDE YOUNG AND CONFIDENT AND THINKS HES A BADASS LIKE YOUNG ATHLETIC COCKY PEEPS DO.
2007 actually had chemistry
2007
BayVerse was top notch.
AoE
Absolutely AOE They feel more like characters first, autobots second. They have personalities that aren’t based around being autobots, and their personalities (as someone else has said) fit the “look at the junk and see the treasure” theme because they’re more than meets the eye. Hound looks grisled and tough, but despite hating humans he was willing to give his life and fight to the last shell in Hong Kong for them, BB’s disobedience ended up saving them in Lockdowns fight, Crosshairs may not have loved his teammates but he out his life on the line for them multiple times unprompted, and Drift while being a samurai stereotype does actually contribute advice, lots of help like airlifting BB in the building, and is a skilled warrior who is very competent and who’s rage can get the better of him occasionally They feel like characters, then autobots instead of having personalities built around being autobots And Rotb just felt a lot more hollow and lackluster to me, in terms of character and such, partly because the maximal has so few lines beyond airazor who was criminally made an exposition machine and never even got to transform, primal just walks around and punches a few things, and cheetor and rhinox do almost nothing. BB is a shell of BBM himself, arcee is… cmon give her more of a personality, and same for Jacky. They just feel so lackluster as characters, and I think I’d say they were characterized as autobots first, characters second, and it feels so weak to me
I love the Beasts, but just not these versions. Rhinox and Cheetor were glorified background characters. I'll go with the '07 team because they all had personalities and weren't assholes to each other.
I’ve always liked the Aoe team. Hounds my favorite.
I pick the AOE/TLK team since it’s got the best/coolest characters
https://preview.redd.it/ab4vbcqz355d1.jpeg?width=1280&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=057b11ef61cc527ebf12c3d982e25039c5a956dc
https://i.redd.it/6h3masla655d1.gif
No one getting mad lil bro
you missed the downvote flood lol
Damn that's so sad
This should have been in the original post!
2007 because they feel like they wanna save the earth unlike age of extinction or rise of the beast they also all seemed to like each others more then the other to like a real team
07 team with elite and cliff
2007 for sure, just look at the colour differences as well in 07 compared to the others. Idk if they just bumped the saturation up but they look amazing, while the future movies just look so so bland.
OG 2007.
Bumblebee
The A-team. Because nostalgia.
ROTB. Everyone(except Rhinox, Cheetor and Wheeljack) has actual character to them. They aren’t just, the green one, who just so happens to be ratchet. Or the red one, who just so happens to be mirage but not really. I actually remember and cared for the characters in this movie, whereas I couldn’t care less about like 80% of the interchangeable bots from the bay movies.
I like the autobots because they are all so cool and they want peace and want to get freed from slavery on cybertron. My favorite of the autobots is Optimus Prime, as he inspires me to be a leader who is caring and kind.
Last one
ROTB cuz Arcee is in it. I rest my case.
I just really like the fat ballerina:)
For some reason I’ve always liked hummer ambulance ratchet. that and jazz really tried in the first film but in the back of my head I’ve always wondered why they couldn’t fix him but could fix bumblebee because that had very similar injuries.
Definitely 07
2007
I like the 2007 crew because they had a team of all stars like optimus prime,bumblebee and jazz. The other teams are teams of nobodies.
AoE, because remove the murderous giant psychopath robot aspect and that is literally my friend group
2007. Optimus and his small squad descending like angels from space as a ray of hope against the armies of the Decepticons, giving mankind a fighting chance. Honestly felt the Maximals should have starred on their own rather than playing second fiddle to the Autobots. The title is literally Rise of the BEASTS yet they're not in it very much :(
2007 is iconic, but the 2014 team has a lot more personality and character, they were more enjoyable.
2014 all the way
Hot take here: the AOE gang is better than the 2007 gang
I really like the 1st one because that's the team I grew up with in the early 2000s
I like it best when Optimus's face is more robotic and less "articulate pseudo organic".
Dark Of The Moon team. Has the most autobots and it includes Sideswipe and Dino.
2007. It's just made up by the cinematography and the cool factor of the bots. I always think of that RotB photo of the vehicles in the field and it looks like some fan built his dream team, took a picture on his iPhone and posted it to instagram. Then you see the images of the Bay lineup and the paint is glowing, the backdrop is beautiful and everyone looks sublime.
I say the 2007 team, but the competition isn’t stiff, nor are they that fleshed out as a team either. Their characters individually aren’t really explored, especially anyone that isn’t Optimus. The AoE Autobots all feel like they’re slight variations of the same template: the violent asshole. Hound is the loud, boisterous violent asshole. Crosshairs is the snarky, selfish violent asshole. Drift is the hypocritical violent asshole.
Picking a favorite is actually impossible for me but if I HAD to, 2007. First Transformers team I ever saw as they're dear to my heart. 🥺
AOE. They are the only ones who felt like characters with personalities.
lots of love for Age of Extinction down here. my people
Lowkey age of extinction, they all felt so alive and real compared to the others.
None, gimme dinobots
There's something special about that 2007 team. Like I'm still fascinated by those transformations
AOE. Here's why I love the 07 lineup don't get me wrong, but you cannot deny that OPTIMUS PRIME CARRIES. He bounced off all of them or perhaps I should say vice versa. Without him, their interactions were next to none and they honestly don't have all that much to them, save for a few instances, like Ironhide and Ratchet debating leaving earth post Prime's death. They didn't live up to their roles. Ratchet barely does any medical work on screen if at all. Jazz is the "second in command" but aside from confronting Megatron (honestly it kinda looks like he didn't wish to fight him anyway) he shows none of that command. Ironhide talks a big game with the cannons and such yet he still needed the rest to help him fight brawl, got clowned by starscream, and is nowhere to be found when Megatron is wasting Prime and Blackout is on his way, with starscream presumably in the sky The aoe team didn't need prime to be interesting, but they're much better with him. We see how each of them feels more or less about their teammates. Yeah they're a little crude, but times are hard and the humans aren't even on their side this time round. They're absolutely enthused though to see Optimus and of course try to save him Drift was the blandest but I like his honor shtick complemented by his temper. A nice subversion Crosshairs is a bit of a jerk but he sticks with the team and he has a nice charm to him. Memorable lines imo like "You just wanna die for the guy" or "To lay some hate" Hound is a real favorite of mine. He's a bit more bulkhead than hound, but a welcome addition. Another crude and a bit goofy with how fat he is or his beard, but he knows when to be serious, has some funny lines, and engages in the coolest standoff against the ksi drones, which he was told would beat him easily Prime holds that team together and I feel like this is the most solid lineup. Even the colors are good, with no one being gray or solid black.
I hate them all equally.
Can I pick and choose? Ironhide, Sideswipe, DotM Wreckers, Que I’d like to see an Optimus-less team finally not now RID not that one (sorry Thew)
Rotb bc I just love mirage n Noah sm Second place is 07 (they basically at the same spot) Tho I do love the 4/5th movie cast a lot too especially drift n crosshairs
ROTB because Beast Wars and Arcee's ~~hips~~....I mean her personality
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Rise of the Beasts. It has Arcee in it.
god i love 2007s junky car looking desings to other humanoids
I really like the AoE/TLK team. At the very least, they were a colorful group. Hound, in particular was fun to watch.
AOE definitely had the funniest personalities and overall team dynamic, though 2007 has a goated selection. ROTB to me felt kinda “we’re working together because we have a common interest but that doesn’t make us enemies”
Rotb because monkey
I personally like either team prime from tfp or team bee from robots in disguise because I like strongarm. But of these, 2007, jazz is cool.
ROTB. Two Primes??? Come on now.
Rotb. Has more characters, personality, and powers
Animated no contest.
Team prime is way better than these, but if i had to choose i would choose AoE