Transformers the Movie 40th Anniversary Tour

Andrusi

Lun!
Citizen
It's these kinds of people that are the reason why Saban opted to keep using the Zyuranger suits, (and bring back Tommy) for two more seasons of Power Rangers and not switch out the suits until the fourth season with Zeo. Saban understood what Hasbro didn't.
Fascinated by the implications of this statement in light of Power Rangers being an adaptation of a franchise that very much did switch out the suits every year.
 

Blot

Well-known member
Citizen
Having said all that, the Hasbro of the last 10 years is not the same Hasbro of the previous 30, which is why I said I'm not ready to jump to the conclusion that this is just further minimizing him. They're not exactly fully embracing him still, but there's been a ton more Rodimus Prime stuff available in the last 10 years than in the previous 30. On the Hasbro side of things in particular, it's worth noting that he'll be getting a second Commander-class release next year, with the design team (Evan IIRC?) having stated in the last year or two that an SS86 Rodimus would be a new mold. That will be his third new Leader+ class figure in less than a decade, and will be coming within a year after this new movie release.
It was almost a pleasant surprise that when you look at the box for the roleplay Matrix of Leadership and there's only art and screenshots of Rodimus Prime opening the Matrix, and Optimus not on the box at all.
 

Undead Scottsman

Well-known member
Citizen
The Animated one was weird because Sentinel Prime was originally Rodimus Prime, but Hasbro didn't like the idea of Rodimus Prime being a jerk, so they used the one other named Prime the franchise had at the time. You'd think they wouldn't be so protective of him if they were so willing to minimize him.

To the point, I don't think they're going to try and lock him away. They're coming out with a new SS '86 Rodimus Prime figure, who will either be a heavy retool of the Kingdom release or an all new mould. Either way, you don't roll out a new $90+ figure for a character you want to memory hole.

I guess I just feel it's worth saying that whatever Hasbro is going to tack on here, it ultimately doesn't matter. The way some people are talking, it's like Hasbro is going to seize the TFWiki servers and burn your DVDs to scrub Rodimus from existence.

Beyond that though, it's all just silly. Just enjoy the franchise in whatever way makes you happy. So much about this fandom seems to hinge on "what if the wrong people like something?" and it's like... who cares? Do you like Rodimus? Do you like the media he's in? That's great! Celebrate that. That's what should matter, how you enjoy the property.


Hot take? This isn't an ES thing, or at least not just an ES thing. People sleep on it, but James Roberts' Rodimus from MtMtE/LL is a huge peen. He...
... changes his name to Rodimus because it sounds like "Nominus," and "Optimus," two Primes, at Swindle's suggestion, ie he got played by the most obvious conman on Cybertron.
... talks about leading a crew on a grand quest to save their people, and it becomes a running gag how little progress they make.
... flies around in a spaceship shaped like his own head yelling "TIL ALL ARE ONE!"
... enables self-destructive and addictive behaviour in Chromedome to further his own personal goals.
... gets demoted to "Co-captain" of his own ship, and has to share the title with Megatron of all people.
... hands out badges with his own face on them for literally anything, is a running gag about how pointless they are.
... in a moment of frank honesty, admitted to Optimus Prime that he was a "chancer."

But he was quirky and British so I guess it was fine?

Of course, there is a level of depth here other than "lol Rodimus bad," but my point is that it's a pretty prominent example of Rodimus being shown in a less than flattering light, and it went over very well with a lot of people.

Does this mean IDW ruined Rodimus? Hardly.

That's the great thing about this franchise. You can enjoy it on your own terms, and enjoy the parts you like. If something comes along you don't like, you can let it pass you by and something else that's more your speed will come along. Permanence has never been a thing with this franchise, and it failed the one time they tried it (Aligned).

But this constant angst over a forty year old movie is just... ugh.
I don't think killing Optimus was the best move in hindsight but it's also a movie that came out before I was born. Who cares what I think, myself included? What's done is done, and it's a fun movie and a fun watch.


As a sports fan, I can say that those types of fans who riot when their teams win or lose get a lot of flack. They still act that way, sure, but there's a healthy amount of criticism from others in the same fan space for their behaviour.

And to be clear, people who have made hating on Rodimus for Optimus' death, or who have made pushing back against those folks, their whole personality in the TF fandom, are far less destructive then idiots who burn down a couple of blocks after a win.

Still, it's annoying that 40 years out and we can't have a bit of fun with this movie without someone going "oh they're catering to those people." jfc, who cares? Let it go, enjoy the movie, have a good time.

IDW also had an Optimus that couldn't handle going back to non-wartime conditions where he couldn't just do whatever he wanted, even if he felt it was right thing to do, and wound up illegally annexing Earth and violating other cybertronian laws because of it.
 

Undead Scottsman

Well-known member
Citizen
As for what the tease is for, at first I was certain it was somw kind of '86 follow-up or tie-in, but now I think it's just going to be a preview for the Energon Universe show. It's been just over a year since we started hearing rumors about that thing so they could potentially have a trailer ready for it by September.
 

Sabrblade

Continuity Nutcase
Citizen
Fascinated by the implications of this statement in light of Power Rangers being an adaptation of a franchise that very much did switch out the suits every year.
Similarly, because of shows like Super Sentai where the heroes get swapped out and replaced by new ones every year, Japanese kids had already properly moved on from Convoy to Rodimus Convoy, and were confused by Convoy's permanent return at the end of Season 3. So, Takara killed him off again in the third episode of The Headmasters to get back to Rodimus Convoy so that he could pass the torch over to Fortress Maximus a few episodes later, getting back on track with the traditional pattern of new heroes succeeding old heroes that Japanese kids were familiar with. This is likewise why Powermaster Optimus Prime's toy became new-character Ginrai since Convoy was supposed to still be perma-dead at that point and not come back for a third time (by the time they did bring him back as Star Convoy, enough years had passed for Convoy nostalgia to kick in after having gone through Rodimus Convoy, Fortress Maximus, Metalhawk, Ginrai, Star Saber, and Dai Atlas; bringing him back during Rodimus Convoy's tenure was too soon for the Japanese).

It was almost a pleasant surprise that when you look at the box for the roleplay Matrix of Leadership and there's only art and screenshots of Rodimus Prime opening the Matrix, and Optimus not on the box at all.
Sounds like someone at Hasbro remembered Optimus saying he wasn't worthy of the Matrix in the movie. :LOL:
 

Princess Viola

Dumbass Asexual
Citizen
I don't feel like quoting people rn but my distaste for this has nothing specifically to do with them (potentially) minimizing Rodimus Prime or whatever, it's just part of my broader dislike of when franchises come off like they're pandering to the most whiny parts of the fanbase?

I know it's not like remotely similar at all in terms of what is actually happening but it's kinda like how people complained so much about the original design of Sonic for the Sonic the Hedgehog movie, to the point where Paramount delayed the film by a few months to completely redesign Sonic so he'd look closer to his game appearance, and now people think if they complain enough, that's just something they can make happen when any movie or TV show starts getting promoted with designs they don't like (see also: people desperately trying to get Dreamworks to change the designs of Shrek et al for Shrek 5).

Honestly speaking usually my thoughts on the (rare) times where I do encounter someone who is still genuinely upset that they killed Optimus Prime and hates Rodimus Prime is basically the same as my response when I see people unironically spouting trukk not munky in the big 2026: why are you still complaining over this stuff decades later? Who cares, move on.
 

LordGigaIce

Another babka?
Citizen
IDW also had an Optimus that couldn't handle going back to non-wartime conditions where he couldn't just do whatever he wanted, even if he felt it was right thing to do, and wound up illegally annexing Earth and violating other cybertronian laws because of it.

"When you became Optimus Prime—when you assumed the title—the world didn't know the truth about Nova and Nominus and the rest. Back then, being a Prime meant demonstrating—no, actually—embodying certain standards of behavior... it meant decency and integrity and—and morality—and all sorts of things that chancers like me pretend are unfashionable because deep down they scare us... and they scare us because we try to live our lives by them but we can't. Well, guess what? You can. You can and you do—every day. Thanks to you, the word Prime still means decency and integrity and morality. Listen. The world will always need a Prime... but only if that Prime is you."
Rodimus to Optimus, IDW Transformers: Robots in Disguise #26

If you break it down, it's Rodimus admitting he sucks, to Optimus, and saying that Optimus is, indeed, the most special boy.
 

Sabrblade

Continuity Nutcase
Citizen
I know it's not like remotely similar at all in terms of what is actually happening but it's kinda like how people complained so much about the original design of Sonic for the Sonic the Hedgehog movie, to the point where Paramount delayed the film by a few months to completely redesign Sonic so he'd look closer to his game appearance, and now people think if they complain enough, that's just something they can make happen when any movie or TV show starts getting promoted with designs they don't like (see also: people desperately trying to get Dreamworks to change the designs of Shrek et al for Shrek 5).
Eh, even regardless of how different it looked from the game design, that first movie Sonic design really did look hideous.
 

Sabrblade

Continuity Nutcase
Citizen
Not just any fandom is going to be able to get a studio to backpedal that hard. The Sonic fandom is something special.
Yeah, y'all remember the initial reactions to seeing the 2007 movie designs? Hasbro and Paramount stuck to their guns and doubled down on those designs in spite of the backlash.
 

Undead Scottsman

Well-known member
Citizen
Yeah, y'all remember the initial reactions to seeing the 2007 movie designs? Hasbro and Paramount stuck to their guns and doubled down on those designs in spite of the backlash.

Didn't Megatron get a design change based on fan feedback?

The prototype photographs on the back of Fast Action Battler, Leader, and Voyager class Megatron's packaging show him with a completely different head based upon an earlier version of CGI design (seen on the right) that was dropped after much negative fan reaction. Legends class Megatron retains this head shape, as do a few children's picture books.

 

Sabrblade

Continuity Nutcase
Citizen
Okay, yeah, that one change happened. But compared to the backlash of every other design, that was one minor thing.
 

CoffeeHorse

Hanging in there
Staff member
Council of Elders
Citizen
In hindsight, I'm not 100% sure we had anything to do with that, since Hasbro got burned by last minute character redesigns with every single film.
 

Undead Scottsman

Well-known member
Citizen
"When you became Optimus Prime—when you assumed the title—the world didn't know the truth about Nova and Nominus and the rest. Back then, being a Prime meant demonstrating—no, actually—embodying certain standards of behavior... it meant decency and integrity and—and morality—and all sorts of things that chancers like me pretend are unfashionable because deep down they scare us... and they scare us because we try to live our lives by them but we can't. Well, guess what? You can. You can and you do—every day. Thanks to you, the word Prime still means decency and integrity and morality. Listen. The world will always need a Prime... but only if that Prime is you."
Rodimus to Optimus, IDW Transformers: Robots in Disguise #26

If you break it down, it's Rodimus admitting he sucks, to Optimus, and saying that Optimus is, indeed, the most special boy.

Firstly that doesn't negate what I said regarding to how the IDW comics themselves portrayed post-war Optimus. (Seriously, they had a whole story-arc blatently called 'All Hail Optimus Prime' just in case the subject matter was too subtle for readers) Secondly, Hot Rod / Rodimus putting Prime on a pedestal and comparing himself unfavorable to him is right out of G1.

Actually, a lot of the things you ding IDW's portrayal of Hot Rod for stems directly from G1 where he's an impatient hot head with an inferiority complex whose leadership style is far less stoic and composed than Optimus. Hot Rod is not Optimus and a big part of his character is coming to terms with that and being his own kind of leader.

....and then getting dumped back to turbo-revving young punk becuase kids freaked out in the theaters and Hasbro had to bring Optimus back. :p
 

LordGigaIce

Another babka?
Citizen
Firstly that doesn't negate what I said regarding to how the IDW comics themselves portrayed post-war Optimus. (Seriously, they had a whole story-arc blatently called 'All Hail Optimus Prime' just in case the subject matter was too subtle for readers)
Because it's not relevant. How IDW chose to depict Optimus has little bearing on how it chose to depict Hot Rod/Rodimus.

Secondly, Hot Rod / Rodimus putting Prime on a pedestal and comparing himself unfavorable to him is right out of G1.
You're (mostly) not wrong. I'm merely pointing out that Hot Rod being the butt of the joke happened in IDW, and I find it really interesting to see how some examples of that get the "they disrespected my boy" reactions vs "beloved modern classic" reactions.

Thing is whereas Eastman's Deviations just read like a 1996 bitter fanfic where Optimus survives '86 and everyone tells Hot Rod he sucks at every opportunity, Roberts made Hot Rod/Rodimus interesting even as he kicked him in the metaphorical nads. I suppose presentation goes a long way.

My main objection to the points you raised is I don't see G1 Rodimus knowingly pushing a subordinate into addictive and self-destructive behaviour. That was an IDW original.
 
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