Event Review: Transformers 40th Anniversary Event

So I went along to see this tonight with my brother - I wasn't sure if it would be any good or not, but felt oddly obligated to go, considering everything Transformers has added to my life over the years.

It was......okay. Seeing the old animation in 4:3 format on a cinema screen works about as well as you'd think, but with some slightly distracting animated 'Teletran 1' filler on the side kind of like the old G2 cartoon rerelease. I think the biggest disappointment was that they only did the table read for the first episode. I knew that going in but even so, it would have been great if they could have kept it going for the whole of the first 3 episodes - because it was good fun, and really impressive to hear how well some of these guys can still perform. Peter Cullen is getting a little too old, but Frank Welker and Dan Gilvezan were immaculate.

While the replacement voices were understandable, I'm not sure if there's a story behind Corey Burton being absent - given what a prolific voice actor he has been over the years it was a shame to not see him.

So after that first episode it was just a little....meh. And it was particularly weird that they chose to go the first 4 episodes, and not just stop after 3 - it was like they felt the runtime needed to be a certain length to be a good value proposition. Strangely, the visual and audio cleanup on Episode 4 was also noticeably worse than the first 3. The end of it was particularly jarring too - after the last epsiode, they jumped to one of the public safety announcements (Bumblebee saying 'don't run away from home, kids!') and then a quick screen of 'in memoriam' with the deceased voice actors listed, and then....over, lights on, get out of the cinema.

If they'd done the table read for the first 3 episodes, with a little more time interviewing these old legends, then it would be a must-see for diehard fans. But as it is, the whole thing felt really low effort and I find it hard to recommend to anyone on the fence about going.

I think sitting down and paying full attention to the four episodes of the original cartoon in a row isn't something I'll do again. It felt an episode too long, starting to feel like a chore and the flaws were jarring to me. There were also a couple of times by the last episode where it just felt too loud (I'm showing my 40+ age maybe).

I didn't mind the framing, although I liked it more subtle on the non-voice over eps.

More time with the original cast would have been good, the outtakes were nice but an unedited (or less edited) record would be a nice thing to see.

I had a great time watching these classic eps on the big screen. Enjoyed being able to recite all the lines, like when I would rewatch these eps over and over again on the VHS. How good is Frank Todaro as Starscream? I also like how he wore his Decepticon badges inverted on his grey jacket lapels; a nice reference to Starscream's wings. :) Does anyone know why Corey Burton wasn't able to join in the live reading? Shockwave just doesn't sound right with an American accent. I thought the use of "Teletraan-1" was a clever way to show the old TV screen ratio with images of the voice actors doing their live reading. Sure beats that G2 Cybernet Space Cube (and at least it serves a practical purpose).

Sydney George St cinemas was also where I watched The Transformers The Movie back in '86, although it was a Hoyts/Greater Union back then, but now is an Event Cinema. Some photos...

Soundwave box art standee.
https://i.ibb.co/Fm4vJpG/001.jpg

Buzzsaw and Ravage card art standees.
https://i.ibb.co/7JcNfpS/002.jpg

Bumblebee card art standee
https://i.ibb.co/92fYRZP/003.jpg

Megatron box art standee
https://i.ibb.co/vst3LxT/004.jpg

Me in front of the TF wallpaper holding my G1 and Studio Series 86 Hot Rods
https://i.ibb.co/0DtgvcK/005.jpg

I put my G1 Hot Rod in this glass cabinet for public display. This is my childhood toy that I got for my birthday in 1986 - you can see the rubber band holding the toy together. :D
https://i.ibb.co/jhNXby8/006.jpg

Got this TF One poster which I put on my classroom window.
https://i.ibb.co/hH0L2mD/007.jpg

It was interesting seeing how many young people and kids were in the audience; not just children of G1 fans being dragged along, but teens and people in their 20s coming on their own (heck, people in their early 30s now would have no lived memories of G1). It's an interesting case of amenoia - fondness for things that were before your time. As someone who grew up with G1, it's not something I personally feel, so I find it fascinating observing it in others. :)

We all also got a free toy. Mine was a Legacy Sludge. I'm not collecting the Legacy Dinobots (except Skar, cos he's a new character), so I'm leaving mine sealed.

Watched it for a second time today. :)
https://i.ibb.co/9ZLxHH2/008-small.jpg