Transformers Animated (cartoon)

2008-02-14T21:16:13Z

142.68.65.81: a bit of enhancement

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'''''Transformers Animated''''' is a cartoon series which debuted in early 2008, in support of the [[franchise]] of [[Transformers Animated|the same name]].

The cartoon is produced by [[Cartoon Network]], scripted in the United States, with character and background designs by the crews behind shows like ''[[wikipedia:Teen Titans (TV series)|Teen Titans]]'' and ''[[wikipedia:Ben 10|Ben 10]]'', while animation is being provided by Japanese studios [[Mook]], [[The Answer Studio]] (the Japanese studio who animated ''[[wikipedia:Super Robot Monkey Team Hyper Force Go!|Super Robot Monkey Team Hyper Force Go!]]''), and [[Studio 4C]] {{fact}}.

''Animated'' is notable for the fact it sees several G1 voice actors reprise their old roles ([[Susan Blu]], [[Corey Burton]], [[John Moschitta]], etc.), and for the fact this is the first Transformers show featuring [[David Kaye]] where he won't be voicing [[Megatron (Animated)|Megatron]].

==Series details==
[[Image:TransformersAnimatedPoster.jpg||thumb|250px|left|"When there's trouble you know who to call..."]]
The series eschews the ever-continuing space opera storylines of the past few anime to return to the episodic approach of ''[[Beast Wars (cartoon)|Beast Wars]]''; each episode will be a standalone story, but with an overall story arc that stretches through the whole season. The focus is being put firmly on characterization, dynamic action, and humor.

The episodes center not only on the war between the [[Autobot]]s and the [[Decepticon]]s, but also on the Autobots' interactions with many of [[Detroit]]'s [[human]] supervillain denizens, including a [[Angry Archer|maladjusted marksman]], a [[Nanosec|speedy racer]], and a guy who [[Prometheus Black|looks good in a pimp suit]]. The idea is to present the Decepticons as more of an ongoing background threat instead of having them be repeatedly defeated each episode and look like bumbling fools. Rather, the arrival of a Decepticon in battle is supposed to be a big deal, requiring multiple Autobots working together to stop even a single one. The human villains will give the Autobots "everyday" threats--and no doubt their schemes will turn out to be the result of Decepticon treachery. Note that [[Doctor Arkeville|human]] [[Lord Chumley|adversaries]] [[Circuit Breaker|are]] [[Cobra Commander|not]] [[Abdul Fakkadi|new]] [[Lazarus|in]] ''Transformers'' continuity. However, humans as [[Hydra and Buster|major]] [[Overlord|threats]] is very uncommon.

Season 2 is already in the works, and seasons 3 and 4 are quite possible.

While the series is not a sequel to the recent [[Transformers (2007)|live-action movie]], they have many thematic elements in common, most notably the central role of the [[All Spark (Animated)|All Spark cube]] and the revelation that all modern technology has been reverse-engineered from the dormant body of [[Megatron (Animated)|Megatron]]. Hasbro also carried over some design elements from the live-action movie into Animated designs, including not just the aforementioned cube but also [[Ratchet (Animated)|Ratchet]]'s medical readout striped deco and [[Megatron (Animated)|Megatron]]'s helmet. These are meant to be "[[Hardpoint|connection points]]," helping kids who had seen the theatrical film but had no prior Transformers experience ease into understanding the new series.

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==Cast==
===Autobots===
*[[Optimus Prime (Animated)|Optimus Prime]] ([[David Kaye]])
*[[Bumblebee (Animated)|Bumblebee]] ([[Bumper Robinson]])
*[[Ratchet (Animated)|Ratchet]] ([[Corey Burton]])
*[[Bulkhead (Animated)|Bulkhead]] ([[Bill Fagerbakke]])
*[[Prowl (Animated)|Prowl]] ([[Jeff Bennett]])
*[[Arcee (Animated)|Arcee]] ([[Susan Blu]])
*[[Blurr (Animated)|Blurr]] ([[John Moschitta]])
*[[Wreck-Gar (Animated)|Wreck-Gar]] ([["Weird Al" Yankovic]])
*[[Dinobot (Animated)|Dinobots]]
**[[Grimlock (Animated)|Grimlock]] ([[David Kaye]])
**[[Swoop (Animated)|Swoop]]
**[[Slag (Animated)|Slag]]
*[[Cybertron Elite Guard]]
**[[Ultra Magnus (Animated)|Ultra Magnus]] ([[Jeff Bennett]])
**[[Sentinel Prime (Animated)|Sentinel Prime]] ([[Townsend Coleman]])
**[[Ironhide (Animated)|Ironhide]]
**[[Jazz (Animated)|Jazz]] ([[Phil LaMarr]])

===Decepticons===
*[[Megatron (Animated)|Megatron]] ([[Corey Burton]])
*[[Starscream (Animated)|Starscream]] ([[Tom Kenny]])
*[[Blackarachnia (Animated)|Blackarachnia]] ([[Cree Summer]])
*[[Blitzwing (Animated)|Blitzwing]] ([[Bumper Robinson]])
*[[Lugnut]] ([[David Kaye]])
*[[Lockdown]] ([[Lance Henriksen]])
*[[Shockwave (Animated)|Shockwave]] ([[Corey Burton]])
*[[Soundwave (Animated)|Soundwave]] ([[Jeff Bennett]])
*[[Laserbeak (Animated)|Laserbeak]]
*[[Constructicon (Animated)|Constructicons]]
**[[Scrapper (Animated)|Scrapper]]

===Humans===
*[[Sari Sumdac]] ([[Tara Strong]])
*[[Isaac Sumdac]] ([[Tom Kenny]])
*[[Angry Archer]] ([[Jeff Bennett]])
*[[Captain Fanzone]] ([[Jeff Bennett]])
*[[Nanosec]] ([[Brian Posehn]])
*[[Prometheus Black| Meltdown / Prometheus Black]] ([[Peter Stormare]])
*[[Headmaster (Animated)|The Headmaster]] ([[Alexander Polinsky]])
*[[Colossus Rhodes]] ([[Corey Burton]])
*[[Porter C. Powell]] ([[Bumper Robinson]])
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==Episodes==
{{see|List of Transformers Animated episodes}}

==Reception==
''Transformers Animated'' debuted January 5, 2008, at 10:30am EST as the number one television show among boys 6-11 in both cable and network television. In addition, the strength of the showing helped lift the ratings of all its neighboring shows in Cartoon Network's "Dynamite Action" scheduling block. <ref>http://www.timewarner.com/corp/newsroom/pr/0,20812,1701434,00.html</ref>

==Trivia==
* ''Transformers: Animated'' reunites Jeff Bennett, Bill Fagerbakke and Cree Summer as regular cast members. Respectively, they have previously voiced [[wikipedia:Manhattan_Clan#Brooklyn|Brooklyn]], [[wikipedia:Manhattan_Clan#Broadway|Broadway]] and Hyena from the [[wikipedia:Gargoyles (TV series)|Gargoyles]] series, three characters not unlike their Transformers counterparts.

==Footnotes==
<references/>

[[Category:Animated]]
[[Category:Television series]]
[[Category:Continuities]]<div id="wikia-credits"><br /><br /><small>From [http://transformers.wikia.com Teletraan I: The Transformers Wiki], a [http://www.wikia.com Wikia] wiki.</small></div>

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Transformers Animated (cartoon)