Show Review - TRANSFORMERS BOT BOTS (TV series)

[GoktimusPrime]

TRANSFORMERS BOT BOTS
Platform: Netflix
Series: 1
Episodes: 10
Rating: G
Runtime: 25 min per episode
Genre: goofy kids comedy

Spoiler Free Thoughts

Bot Bots is much like Rescue Bots; it's a Transformers series aimed at infants. As such, it doesn't contain violence, but instead uses other sources of plot complications and conflicts. In this regard, it does just as well as Rescue Bots, and presents a far more well-written and coherently structured set of stories than say Bayformers or the Netflix WFC Trilogy. Sure, the stories are simple, but they have a well formed linear narrative with each episode containing a clearly defined introduction, complication, resolution and conclusion. Belonging is the central and recurring theme throughout Season 1, with the core characters embarking on a quest for inclusion. The regular human character (often referred to as "the Fleshling") is also on his personal search for inclusiveness, and with his path intersecting that of the Bot Bots. The show has a few Easter Eggs for 80s kids watching it, with lines like, "Till all have fun!" and "Freedom is the right of all sentient beings" etc. One episode even has an 80s style song in it. There's also one episode that I felt was brilliantly written (see "My favourite episode" below).

The return of proper voice acting is such a welcome relief, after hearing the atrocious amateur voicing in Cyberverse and the WFC Trilogy <shudder>. It's so good to hear Transformers using professional voice actors and actresses again, and I hope that future TF series maintain this standard. Being a Toronto-based production, I think that Bot Bots is the second TF series to be originally voiced in Canada after Beast Wars (although that was in Vancouver).

The animation feels cheap though. None of the Transformers actually transform; there's always just a blur and then they're in a different form. This is even cheaper looking than the morphing in Beast Machines or post-Age of Extinction Bayformers (although it beats the Flying Tetris transformations in AoE). The character designs are also really not terribly accurate, with none of them looking like their toys. A few looking close, such as Dimlit, Sprinkleberry and Dr. Flaskenstein, but others look way off such as Burgertron, Spud Muffin, Kikmee etc. - and others still look unrecognisable, such as Clogstopper, whose body plan is inverted from the toy. Some of these screen designs make G1 Ironhide and Ratchet's cartoon model look good in terms of toy-accuracy (heads aside, at least Ratchethide's screen models have the same basic body plan)! Bonz-Eye's screen model keeps on switch the design of her faux chest lapels. Sometimes they have a left over right appearance, other times right over left, and at other times just evenly split. However, in East Asian cultures (including Japanese), wearing traditional clothes with right over left is offensive, as it is how they dress the deceased. One might think that it might be just lazy/cheap animation by having the model drawn in one direction and then mirror flipping it, but we see other asymmetrical designs, such as the scar on Bonz-Eye's, uh, eye... which never flips. Fomo has an asymmetrical face, which is actually reversed from the toy, but it's always reversed. But overall, having screen models that look substantially different from the toys isn't going to do wonders for selling the figures.

Speaking of which, does Hasbro have plans of doing a major revival of the Bot Bots toys? Cos if not, the timing of this show seems too late for the purposes of selling toys. IMO, this show should have come out in the same year that Bot Bots debuted (2018). Because even Bot Bots itself was a latecomer, as Hasbro's attempt to compete with the highly popular Shopkins line at the time. The Shopkins fad was already in decline by 2018. I still see old Bot Bot toys shelfwarming in some stores.

SPOILERS AHEAD

The basic premise of Bot Bots is that some mysterious energy brought random things in a shopping centre to life, becoming the Bot Bots. Something that I always felt weird about Bot Bots that transform into food is their perishability and edibility... I mean, if you eat a food Bot Bot, wouldn't it die? And even if you don't, they're still perishable. The cartoon made this more confusing for me by confirming that yes, the food and drink Bot Bots can be consumed which would kill them, thus they have to take extra measures to avoid being purchased or consumed by humans! And yet the ice creams never melt, and we literally see Burgertron losing parts of his innards (cheese, lettuce), and him stating that they are actually his robot innards! I know that this is a kids show, but children aren't stupid... this would confuse me even if I were watching this as a five year old.

Dave the security guard is a goofy but interesting character. He soon learns of the Bot Bots' existence and goes on a quest to prove their existence. And when he finally finds a Bot Bot, he assures them that he is an ally and that the Bot Bots' secret will be safe with him. Only to be interrogated by a Sector Seven agent at the series' end!

My Favourite Episode
The episode which debuts the Science Alliance is my favourite, as it serves as a powerful metaphor for climate change and how people need to make lifestyle choice changes in order to "keep having fun." It teaches an important lesson in an age appropriate and easy to understand manner; the shopping centre is the Bot Bots' world, and polluting the ventilation system will destroy the environment of the shopping centre. The Science Alliance are scientists who have gathered verifiable and peer reviewed data (yes, the episode actually uses these words!), but most other Bot Bots won't listen to them, and so the episode's plot centres around persuading the rest of the Bot Bot population to see the inconvenient truth and take action. One of the Bot Bots who denies the science even says the word, "Wake up, sheeple!"; so it's not only a jab at climate science deniers, but a jab at fact deniers in general! This is one of the best Transformers screen stories I've seen that covers rational logic vs irrational thinking since the G1 episode, "The God Gambit."

OVERALL

This show has exceeded my expectations and I do recommend watching it; just bear in mind that the target audience are pre-schoolers. Can't wait to watch Season 2.

[griffin]

Actually 20 11-minute episodes.

The first two on youtube have credits showing again just after the 11 minute mark, like we would see on Cyberverse.

Speaking of which, I have seen in the last few weeks channel 9go has been slotting in single episodes of Cyberverse late at night just to fill 15 minute slots... so I expect the same would happen with Botbots too at some stage, with each episode taking up 15 minute slots.

[GoktimusPrime]

Ah okay. I only watched it on Netflix which lists it as x10 25 min eps.

[Tha_Phantom]

Speaking of which, does Hasbro have plans of doing a major revival of the Bot Bots toys? Cos if not, the timing of this show seems too late for the purposes of selling toys.

Yes, wave 6 was revealed just last week.

[GoktimusPrime]

Yes, wave 6 was revealed just last week.

Neat! Now I see that the vehicles and some of those upcoming Bot Bots have already appeared in the show. It will be interesting to see if it will help with toy sales.

[KELPIE]

I have now finished watching.

Bot Bots is much like Rescue Bots; it's a Transformers series aimed at infants.

just bear in mind that the target audience are pre-schoolers. Can't wait to watch Season 2.

I can't believe I'm asking this, because I'm sure you watch plenty of cartoons... however do you watch cartoons? I would say this is standard fare for tweens these days and not at all the Rescue Bots or pre-schooler age. While they could certainly watch and enjoy it, it's not targeted at them.

The return of proper voice acting is such a welcome relief, after hearing the atrocious amateur voicing in Cyberverse and the WFC Trilogy

The voice acting was great and a relief to be sure, however Cyberverse wasn't that bad after season 1.

The animation feels cheap though. None of the Transformers actually transform; there's always just a blur and then they're in a different form.

Kinda like TFA? The animation was fine and far more emotive than we've had for a long time. using "realistic objects" for everything but the bots and humans was an interesting choice.

The character designs are also really not terribly accurate, with none of them looking like their toys.

I'm okay with this. All the good shows don't have animation models matching their toys. In my opinion, they probably shouldn't. Why sacrifice your storytelling capabilities by constraining yourself to the limitations of plastic.

overall, having screen models that look substantially different from the toys isn't going to do wonders for selling the figures.

As a kid, I never complained that my figures didn't look like they did on the TV. Even marvel was quick to move away from the toy designs.

I thought the show was fantastic. Lots of fun and clever moments. I will say they certainly made it hard to empathise with Burgertron though. Yeesh.

[GoktimusPrime]

I can't believe I'm asking this, because I'm sure you watch plenty of cartoons... however do you watch cartoons? I would say this is standard fare for tweens these days and not at all the Rescue Bots or pre-schooler age. While they could certainly watch and enjoy it, it's not targeted at them.

Just because something is aimed for a young audience doesn't mean it has to be bad. And I use Rescue Bots as a good example of this because that show is actually quite well written. Each episode has a clear linear narrative with defined introduction, complication, resolution and conclusion. The show is even driven by character development. Yes, the stories are simple and the show is written for an infant audience, but there's nothing I can really technically fault Rescue Bots on a literary level. For it's context, purpose and audience, Rescue Bots is really well written. It's little wonder that Rescue Bots is the longest running Transformers TV series ever. Rescue Bots is not something I enjoy, but that's because I'm not the target audience. Whenever we assess any piece of literature, we must always factor in CPA (context, purpose, audience).

So when I compare anything with Rescue Bots, this is a compliment, not an insult. Rescue Bots is freaking awesome, even if it's not my thing.
I don't judge merit solely based on whether or not I like it; I try to evaluate things on their own merit.

I'm okay with this. All the good shows don't have animation models matching their toys. In my opinion, they probably shouldn't. Why sacrifice your storytelling capabilities by constraining yourself to the limitations of plastic.


As a kid, I never complained that my figures didn't look like they did on the TV. Even marvel was quick to move away from the toy designs.

Oh, I don't personally have an issue with this. I grew up with Ironhide having a flat head with a sticker face, and I like it! But I do wonder if kids overall would be bothered by the lack of toy-accuracy on the cartoon models. I'm sure that the lack of toy-show-likeness is something that didn't help with the sales of Beast Machines toys. Again, didn't bother me. I collected Beast Machines like a champion! And I've collected plenty of Bot-Bots too. 42 Beast Machines toys and 130 Bot-Bots to be precise.

But whether or not this cartoon will make children want to buy these toys is the real test of this show's merit (as the core purpose of Transformers media is 'To Sell Toys'). I think that at best, the toys may succeed in spite of the cartoon models not resembling the toys rather than because of it. But time will tell. Poor toy sales only hurts the Transformers brand, so I would be tickled pink to be proven wrong and see future waves of Bot-Bots toys fly off store shelves.

[KELPIE]

Just because something is aimed for a young audience doesn't mean it has to be bad. And I use Rescue Bots as a good example of this because that show is actually quite well written. Each episode has a clear linear narrative with defined introduction, complication, resolution and conclusion. The show is even driven by character development. Yes, the stories are simple and the show is written for an infant audience, but there's nothing I can really technically fault Rescue Bots on a literary level. For it's context, purpose and audience, Rescue Bots is really well written. It's little wonder that Rescue Bots is the longest running Transformers TV series ever. Rescue Bots is not something I enjoy, but that's because I'm not the target audience. Whenever we assess any piece of literature, we must always factor in CPA (context, purpose, audience).

So when I compare anything with Rescue Bots, this is a compliment, not an insult. Rescue Bots is freaking awesome, even if it's not my thing.
I don't judge merit solely based on whether or not I like it; I try to evaluate things on their own merit.

I think you misunderstood me... I too like Rescue Bots and think that Bot Bots is awesome. I just don't believe that Bot Bots is aimed at pre-schoolers. In the current climate, I'd say it's aimed at 8-12 year old's.

Oh, I don't personally have an issue with this. I grew up with Ironhide having a flat head with a sticker face, and I like it! But I do wonder if kids overall would be bothered by the lack of toy-accuracy on the cartoon models. I'm sure that the lack of toy-show-likeness is something that didn't help with the sales of Beast Machines toys. Again, didn't bother me. I collected Beast Machines like a champion! And I've collected plenty of Bot-Bots too. 42 Beast Machines toys and 130 Bot-Bots to be precise.

I'd say the drastic divergence from Beast Wars and an aging demographic hurt Beast Machines.

But whether or not this cartoon will make children want to buy these toys is the real test of this show's merit (as the core purpose of Transformers media is 'To Sell Toys'). I think that at best, the toys may succeed in spite of the cartoon models not resembling the toys rather than because of it. But time will tell. Poor toy sales only hurts the Transformers brand, so I would be tickled pink to be proven wrong and see future waves of Bot-Bots toys fly off store shelves.

Given the timing, I'm not entirely sure the goal of the Bot Bots series is to sell toys. Sure we're getting a few more on the shelves at the end of the year, however I'd say this show is now primarily aimed as "content" for Netflix.

[GoktimusPrime]

I think you misunderstood me... I too like Rescue Bots and think that Bot Bots is awesome. I just don't believe that Bot Bots is aimed at pre-schoolers. In the current climate, I'd say it's aimed at 8-12 year old's.

Does this mean that content aimed at 8-12 year olds has been dumbed down recently? Because it's not as if Stage 3-4 kids have cognitively gotten any better or worse (other than due to external factors like diet, lifestyle choices etc.). Curriculum content for Stage 3-4 hasn't gotten any simpler. <shrugs>

And shows that "talk down" to their audience was a problem with a lot of other cartoons in the 80s. This is something that voice actor Michael McConnohie recounts as someone who worked on the TF cartoon in the 80s, saying that compared to a lot of other shows at the time, Transformrs didn't have that condescending tone (e.g. Challenge of the Gobots, Turbo Teen etc.). Some episodes contained complex concepts, but it inspired kids to think "up" rather than "down." He points out that children hate being "talked down to," and that kids are often much smarter than many adults give them credit for.

I'd say the drastic divergence from Beast Wars and an aging demographic hurt Beast Machines.

The divergence from BW didn't help; there were several factors behind the failure for BM to thrive, but I don't think that the lack of show-likeness in the toys helped much. A good toyline can still sell well on its own even if the show doesn't exist or engage the audience. Take Robots in Disguise (2001) for example. You may recall that when that toyline came out here, the cartoon would not have aired yet for several months, and yet those toys were flying off shelves! It took me a while to collect that series because it was often hard to find stock!

Given the timing, I'm not entirely sure the goal of the Bot Bots series is to sell toys. Sure we're getting a few more on the shelves at the end of the year, however I'd say this show is now primarily aimed as "content" for Netflix.

I wondered this too, but as Tha_Phantom has pointed out, Hasbro has revealed a new wave of Bot-Bots toys.

[KELPIE]

Does this mean that content aimed at 8-12 year olds has been dumbed down recently? Because it's not as if Stage 3-4 kids have cognitively gotten any better or worse (other than due to external factors like diet, lifestyle choices etc.). Curriculum content for Stage 3-4 hasn't gotten any simpler. <shrugs>

Sadly it does. Along with the idea that they can't concentrate/focus on things longer than 15 minutes.

And shows that "talk down" to their audience was a problem with a lot of other cartoons in the 80s. This is something that voice actor Michael McConnohie recounts as someone who worked on the TF cartoon in the 80s, saying that compared to a lot of other shows at the time, Transformrs didn't have that condescending tone (e.g. Challenge of the Gobots, Turbo Teen etc.). Some episodes contained complex concepts, but it inspired kids to think "up" rather than "down." He points out that children hate being "talked down to," and that kids are often much smarter than many adults give them credit for.

Preach it mate. I think a testament to the shows that didn't talk down to kids, is that generally they are still highly regarded. However yes, it is a problem with the majority of modern cartoons. That or forgoing a true narrative for a quick laugh.

Robots in Disguise (2001) for example. You may recall that when that toyline came out here, the cartoon would not have aired yet for several months, and yet those toys were flying off shelves! It took me a while to collect that series because it was often hard to find stock!

I always thought the toys flew off the shelf because of a combination of vehicles returning and those expensive toys to import from Japan are now right here in my local toy store for a reasonable price. Obviously I'm sure that doesn't count for all of the intended audience.

I wondered this too, but as Tha_Phantom has pointed out, Hasbro has revealed a new wave of Bot-Bots toys.

Yup, however again as we've discussed, the timing doesn't line up. Still, I'm happy to get more, especially that transforming Autobot logo and the pizza car