MediaWiki - User contributions [en]

The Agenda (Part III)

2010-07-06T20:51:07Z

201.83.146.4:

{{episode
|series=BWtoon
|ep=39
|image=G1Prime BWMegs.jpg
|caption=Head ''off''.
|title="The Agenda" (Part III)
|production company=[[Mainframe Entertainment]]
|airdate=[[March 12]], 1998
|written by=[[Bob Forward]]
|directed by=[[Asaph Fipke]] [[Colin Davies]]
|animation studio=[[Mainframe Entertainment]]
|continuity=[[Beast Wars continuity]]
}}
'''His plans crumbling, Megatron takes a final stab at winning the Beast Wars and changing history.'''

:''French-Canadian title:'' '''Le Programme 3''' ("The Program 3")
:''Japanese title:'' むか～しむかし (''Muka~shi Mukashi'', "Once Upon a Time")
:''Spanish title:'' '''El Agente (Parte 3)'''
:''Latin-American title:'' '''El Programa Tercera Parte'''
:''Italian title:'' '''Il coraggio di Grifo - Parte 3''' ("Silverbolt's courage - Part Three")
:''Brazilian name:'' '''Os Planos Parte 3''' ("The Plans Part 3")

==Synopsis==
With [[Ravage (G1)|Ravage]] and his [[transwarp cruiser]] backing them up, the [[Predacon (BW)|Predacons]] unleash a full assault on the [[Maximal]] [[Axalon (BW)|base]]. [[Rattrap]] changes to beast mode and jumps onto the back of the transwarp cruiser, where he begins cutting into the ship's hull. On the battlefield, [[Optimus Primal|Optimus]] and [[Cheetor (BW)|Cheetor]] are pinned down by the Predacons' firepower, but the autoguns manage to knock [[Quickstrike (BW)|Quickstrike]] from his perch atop [[Rampage (BW)|Rampage]] and a short time later the larger Predacon runs him over.

[[Image:Agenda 3 Rampage axalon.jpg|left|200px|thumb|Who decided to give the experiment awesome firepower?]]
It's not long before Ravage and Rampage bring down the base's shield, and [[Rhinox (BW)|Rhinox]] emerges to fire on Rampage. Ravage has [[Tarantulas]] transfer all the cruiser's power into one enormous missile. Before it can fire, [[Rattrap]] bursts into the ship's weapons hold and tosses a pair of magnetic bombs that adhere to Tarantulas's hands. The bombs obliterate [[Tarantulas]], the ship's interior, and Ravage—who faces the onrushing fireball with a stoic cry of "[[Decepticon|Decepticons]] forever!" The cruiser falls out of the sky, coming to rest mere feet from Rampage—who is then blasted by the still-armed missile.

With the cruiser destroyed and his minions out of commission, Megatron flees. Optimus notes that he's not headed back to base, realizes where he's probably going, and orders the Maximals to pursue.

[[Image:Ark BWAgenda1.jpg|right|200px|thumb|OK, remember where we parked.]]
Meanwhile, [[Blackarachnia (BW)|Blackarachnia]] and [[Silverbolt (BW)|Silverbolt]] make their way into the caves of the volcano, uncovering the object of Blackarachnia's quest—the [[Ark (G1)|Ark]]. Blackarachnia explains to Silverbolt that the ship was launched long ago, containing the Autobots' "finest heroes", and was shot down by Decepticons. The ship has members of both factions stored inside, who will awaken in the distant future to re-start the [[Great War (G1)|Great War]]. Blackarachnia is concerned only with the power it possesses—but Megatron arrives just then, blasting Silverbolt offline and sealing the entrance to the caves behind him.

[[Image:Agenda 3 Blackarachnia codes.jpg|left|200px|thumb|What's it like to see things like Neo?]]
The Maximals arrive hot on his heels, find the sealed entrance, and start digging their way in. Inside, Megatron threatens to vaporize Silverbolt, convincing Blackarachnia to use the access codes to gain access to the Ark (though she vehemently maintains it's only so they'll have some cover in the face of the imminent Maximal attack). The Maximals burst through in time to see the two Predacons sealing the Ark behind them.

Blackarachnia activates the ship's defenses to hold off the Maximals, while Megatron goes to "effect a more permanent solution." Entering the main bridge of the ship, he hovers among the fallen Autobots and Decepticons, eulogizing the Decepticons and cursing the Autobots, until he comes face to face with his intended target—[[Optimus Prime (G1)|Optimus Prime]], the original [[Prime (rank)|leader]] of the [[Autobot|Autobots]], who kept the Decepticons from victory (and therefore left their Predacon descendants in a subservient position to the dominant Maximals). Though the risk is incredible, Megatron decides to carry out [[Megatron (G1)|his namesake's]] instructions, charges his main weapon, and prepares to fire.

[[Image:Agenda3 MegatronOptimusPrime.jpg|right|200px|thumb|Don't worry, we know [[The many deaths of Optimus Prime|the drill]].]]
In the caves, the Maximals are pelted by fire from the ship's cannon, until Rattrap manages to force a backblast that deactivates the cannon and shields. [[Rhinox (BW)|Rhinox]] struggles to open the mighty doors of the Ark. But the Maximals are too late—Megatron unleashes a full-power blast at Optimus Prime's head, destroying it.

A time storm immediately wells up, spreading outward from the Ark and into space. The Maximals find themselves phasing in and out of past bodies—as well as out of existence—as Megatron emerges from the Ark, triumphant.

==Featured characters==
{{featuredcharacters
|h1=[[Maximal]]s|c1=
*[[Optimus Primal]] (2)
*[[Cheetor (BW)|Cheetor]] (3)
*[[Rattrap]] (6)
*[[Rhinox (BW)|Rhinox]] (7)
*[[Silverbolt (BW)|Silverbolt]](10)
|h2=[[Predacon (BW)|Predacons]]|c2=
*[[Megatron (BW)|Megatron]] (1)
*[[Quickstrike (BW)|Quickstrike]] (4)
*[[Rampage (BW)|Rampage]] (5)
*[[Ravage (G1)|Ravage]] (8)
*[[Tarantulas]] (9)
*[[Blackarachnia (BW)|Blackarachnia]] (11)
|h3=[[Autobots]]|c3=
*[[Prowl (G1)|Prowl]] [Flashback] (12)
*[[Optimus Prime (G1)|Optimus Prime]] (13)
*[[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] (14)
*[[Jazz (G1)|Jazz]] [Flashback] (15)
*[[Ratchet (G1)|Ratchet]] (16)
*[[Bumblebee (G1)|Bumblebee]] (18)
|h4=[[Decepticons]]|c4=
*[[Megatron (G1)|Megatron]] (17)
*[[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]] (19)
*[[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]] (20)
*[[Soundwave (G1)|Soundwave]] (21)
*[[Thundercracker]](1)

}}

==Quotes==
"Decepticons forever!"
:—'''Ravage''''s last words

"What're you looking at?" 
"That star. Well, planet, actually. Venus. It reminds me of you." 
"You mean hot, poisonous, and deadly? Aww, you're sweet." 
:—'''Blackarachnia''' and '''Silverbolt''', with a ref to the former's [[Venus Terzo|voice actress]]

"Stay with the group. When Megatron lands, we'll need all our firepower." 
"Where's he headed, Big Bot?" 
"To the beginning of everything, Cheetor, and quite possibly the end."
:—'''Optimus Primal''' and '''Cheetor'''

"I think we're almost through." 
"Then, stand back." 
"Wait, we just—" 
''Silverbolt blows the rocks away'' 
"Uh, never mind. What is it with guys and high explosives?" 
:—'''Blackarachnia''' and '''Silverbolt'''. ([[Michael Bay|Guys]] really don't know either.)

"Aw, man! That ship wasn't built, it was poured!" 
"[[Die-cast]] construction!" [''He [[wikipedia:Breaking_the_fourth_wall|looks at the audience]]''] "It's a lost art."
:—'''Rattrap''' and '''Optimus Primal''' comment on the sturdiness of the Ark.

"Now I enter these hallowed halls...a conquerer...yesss. Autobots and Decepticons, still frozen in emergency stasis, awaiting the moment, four million years hence, when they will awaken to start the Great War. Hmmm, a Great War, when the Autobots defeated the Decepticons, and thus their descendants, the Maximals, rule we Predacons. Archaic energon [[guzzler]]s! How ''dare'' they? Unwilling though I was to follow my namesake's instructions, it has all come down to this: the ultimate risk, for the ultimate prize. A day of reckoning with ''those'' who made ''us'' slaves!"
:—'''Megatron''' enters the command bridge of the Ark.

"So, we are now face to face, Optimus ''Prime''. In one future, you awaken and become the great leader of the Autobots. But time shall take a different track, now. Computer! All available power to primary weapon! ... And now, Optimus Prime, in memory of the Decepticons...for the glory of the Predacons...for the Cybertron that is rightfully ours—and ''mine''—to rule! ...I unleash the storm of vengeance...''farewell!''"
:—'''Megatron''' rewrites history

"Say goodbye to the universe, Maximals! The future has changed. Yessssss. The Autobots lose! Evil ''triumphs!'' And you...''YOU'' NO LONGER EXIST!"
:—'''Megatron'''

==Notes==
[[Image:Agenda3 opening.JPG|right|180px|thumb|Yes, "Part Eye-Eye-Eye".]]
*Despite every other multi-part episode in ''Beast Wars'' using Arabic numerals in its title (including the first two parts of "The Agenda"), this episode opts for the Roman numeral for whatever reason.
* Megatron, to no one's surprise, is perfectly willing to sacrifice most of his team to defeat the Maximals. Blackarachnia, Inferno, Quickstrike, and Rampage were all originally Maximal protoforms (or, in Rampage's case, the product of Maximal science). If his plan to destroy the Autobots and Maximals retroactively had worked, he would have been left with a team consisting of Waspinator and Tarantulas. (Tarantulas's precise origins are unclear, but he's definitely not a descendant of the Autobots.)
*In any event, Megatron's plan would seem to be [[wikipedia:Temporal_paradox|temporally problematic]], since such a drastic change could've wiped out the Predacons (and himself) just as easily as the Maximals. Small wonder he "was reluctant to follow my namesake's instructions" and regards it as "the ultimate risk". Megatron's ending in the ''[[Transformers: Beast Wars Transmetals (N64)|Beast Wars Transmetals]]'' video game further elaborates on this, stating that with Optimus Prime dead, there would be no [[Matrix of Leadership|Matrix]], and, as such, nothing to [[The Transformers: The Movie|stop Unicron from destroying Cybertron]], an act that would wipe out Autobots and Decepticons.
*Apparently, Rhinox is afraid of heights. While sitting on Primal's hoverboard, he looks straight ahead, occasionally looking down and immediately snapping straight up with what looks like pure horror on his face.
*This episode marks the commencement of an ongoing error, whereby [[Teletraan I (G1)|Teletraan I]] is frequently pronounced "Tele''tron'' 1". The issue is resolved with [[Rattrap|extreme subtlety]] in "[[Nemesis Part 2]]".
*The word "suckers" is written on the giant missile in [[Cybertronix]].

===Technical/animation glitches===
* During the opening battle scene, Optimus Primal takes several shots to the chest, leaving it blackened and dented. In the shot of the Maximals watching Ravage's ship explode, his chest is undamaged-and then it goes back to damaged as he talks about why Ravage betrayed them.
* After Ravage's ship goes down and the Maximals decide to chase after Megatron, Optimus transforms to flight mode. His front, back, and upper torso are all messed up, to the point that he has to spin around a few times after transforming. (While this is happening, the scene mostly switches to Rattrap climbing on Cheetor.) Optimus is normal again when he tells Rhinox to "Get on."
* In the first close-up of Megatron's face in the volcano (after he shoots Silverbolt and Blackarachnia), his face is very dark-almost black.
* After Megatron blasts the entrance shut and the Maximals get off and find it covered, for a split second, the colors on Rattrap's wheels (on his back) and his rat legs are reversed.

===Continuity errors===
* This episode called into sudden question the location of the Maximal and Predacon bases. The events of "[[Code of Hero]]" seem to place the series firmly somewhere in Africa, where early Humanity evolved; the templates for the Maximals' beast modes (gorillas, cheetahs, rhinos) would seem to back this up. However, the Ark is traditionally seen to have crashed in the Pacific Northwest of the United States. If this is the case, the Maximals pursued Megatron across the Atlantic Ocean and over an entire continent! Even if the Ark touched down in Africa in this continuity, in "[[Possession]]", [[Starscream (G1)|Starscream's]] spark is ''clearly'' shown landing in the southwest United States. Also, the early humans still appear after any theoretical "crossing of the Atlantic" took place.
* Either way, it doesn't make much sense that the Maximals make ''no'' attempt to shoot down Megatron while he's still on the run, rather than waiting till he reaches his destination. In his defense, Optimus may have thought that they were at a disadvantage during the chase: Only Rattrap is in any position to attack (Optimus and Cheetor being in flight mode and Rhinox probably having enough problems balancing on Optimus's hoverboard), and Megatron would be hard to hit (he's pretty far away, and not presenting much of a target from Rattrap's position). Of course, that still doesn't explain why Optimus doesn't just let Cheetor and Rattrap fly ahead and get a better shot—after all, [[Changing of the Guard|a later episode]] would prove that the espionage expert has pretty good aim even when hitching a flight.
* At the end of the previous episode, Megatron was standing on the "back" of Ravage's ship as it opened fire on the Maximals, but at the start of this one, he's hovering above it as it attacks (of course, it is possible that a few moments have passed, and Megatron simply took to the air).
* Ravage was in his cassette mode in the ship at the end of last episode, but is piloting it from the cockpit in this one. Given the nature of the former mode as essentially [[GEEWUN|fanservice]], this may not be terribly surprising.

===Transformers references===
[[Image:Agenda3-AutobotsonArkattack.jpg|right|thumb|300px|At the time, these guys hadn't gotten any work in a while.]]
*In reference to the strength of the Ark, Rattrap claims, "That ship wasn't built, it was poured!" Primal replies "Die-cast construction. It's a lost art," in homage to the original Transformer toys, which featured some [[die-cast]] parts.

*We get to see the Ark launch from Cybertron, along with a brief glimpse of Optimus Prime, [[Prowl (G1)|Prowl]], [[Jazz (G1)|Jazz]], [[Ratchet (G1)|Ratchet]] and [[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] moving about, as well as a glimpse of the ''Nemesis'' attacking the Ark.

*The final act features a bonanza of cameo appearances by the original Generation 1 Transformers, including Prowl, Optimus Prime, [[Megatron (G1)|Megatron]], Ironhide, [[Thundercracker (G1)|Thundercracker]], [[Soundwave (G1)|Soundwave]], and [[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]].

===Real-world references===
*Rattrap refers to his vehicle mode as Knievel mode, a reference to [[wikipedia:Evel_Knievel|Evel Knievel]].
*As Rattrap rides the missile connected with Ravage's ship, he lets out a cowboy yell. This is an homage to Stanley Kubrick's ''[[wikipedia:Dr._Strangelove|Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb]]''.
* When Rattrap's torch goes out and he has to break through the ship with his beast mode's teeth, he calls himself the [[wikipedia:The_Stainless_Steel_Rat|Stainless Steel Rat]].
* Blackarachnia refers to Silverbolt as "Jo-Jo", possibly in reference to [[wikipedia:Fedor_Jeftichew|Jo-Jo the Dog-Faced Boy]].

==Home video releases==
{{homevidnote}}
;VHS
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 2000 — ''Beast Wars: Super Lifeform Transformers: Metals'' — I Do Love You! ([[Geneon Universal Entertainment|Pioneer LDC]]) — Japanese audio only. 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2001 — ''Beast Wars: Transformers'' — Volume 8 ([[Universal]])
;DVD
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 2000 — ''Beast Wars: Transformers: Metals'' — DVD Box 1 (Pioneer LDC) — English and Japanese audio. 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2004 — ''Beast Wars: Transformers'' — The Complete Second Season ([[Rhino Entertainment|Rhinomation]]) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2004 — ''Beast Wars: Transformers'' — Vol. 1 (Universal) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2006 — ''Beast Wars: Transformers'' — Season 2 ([[Madman Entertainment]]) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2009 — ''The Transformers: Beast Wars'' — Complete Collection (Madman Entertainment)

{{DEFAULTSORT:Agenda part 3}}
[[Category:Beast Wars episodes]]

Transformers (2010 toyline)

2010-07-06T13:37:04Z

201.83.146.4:

{{disambig3|Transformers}}
'''Transformers''' is a toyline launched in [[2010]] with the intention of re-envisioning the [[Movie (toyline)|live action movie toyline]] into a broader celebration of the history of the brand. The line now features many characters who had not appeared in the movies, but at the same time [[Hasbro]] is able to plausibly present it as a movie tie-in to retailers who (naturally) are very eager to stock merchandise related to the highly popular and successful films.

It also includes the [[Hunt for the Decepticons]] promotion.

==Toyline==
===Action figures "main line"===
====Legends Class====
[[Image:TF2010-toy Legends Rampage.jpg|thumb|300px|]]
'''Wave 1'''
*[[Bumblebee (Movie)/toys#Transformers (2010)|Cyberfire Bumblebee]] (redeco)
*[[Optimus Prime (Movie)/toys#Transformers (2010)|Fireburst Optimus Prime]] (redeco)
*[[Rampage (ROTF)#Transformers (2010)|Rampage]]
*[[Ravage (ROTF)#Transformers (2010)|Ravage]]

'''Wave 2'''
*[[Long Haul (ROTF)#Transformers (2010)|Long Haul]]
*[[Override (TF 2010)|Override]] (ROTF [[Sideways (ROTF)#Legends Class toys|Sideways]] redeco)
*[[Sandstorm (TF 2010)|Sandstorm]] (Classics [[Beachcomber (G1)#G1 Series|Beachcomber]] redeco)
*[[Hound (TF 2010)|Tracker Hound]] (Classics [[Hound (G1)#Classic Series|Autobot Hound]] redeco)

{{comingsoontoy}}

'''Future Waves'''
*[[Dust Storm]] (ROTF [[Springer (ROTF) #Legends Class toys|Springer]] redeco)
*[[Skids (ROTF)|Tuner Skids]] (ROTF [[Skids (ROTF) #Legends Class toys|Skids]] redeco)
*[[Optimus Prime (G1)|Optimus Prime]]
*[[Megatron (G1)|Megatron]]
*[[Prowl (G1)|Prowl]]
*[[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]]
{{comingsoontoy}}
{{-}}

====Scouts====
[[Image:TF 2010 Hubcap toy.jpg|thumb|300px|]]
'''Wave 1'''
*[[Backfire (TF 2010)|Backfire]] (Autobot Knock-Out redeco)
*[[Brimstone (TF 2010)|Brimstone]] (Decepticon chopper cycle)
*[[Crankstart]] (Decepticon Dune Runner redeco)
*[[Hubcap (TF 2010)|Hubcap]] (Autobot muscle car)

'''Wave 2'''
*[[Breacher]] (SWAT vehicle who fits on Sea Spray)
*[[Insecticon (Movie)|Insecticon]] (insect thing from movie)
*[[Oil Pan]] (redeco of [[Brakedown (ROTF)|Brakedown]])
{{comingsoontoy}}

'''Future waves'''
*[[Firetrap]] (Scattorshot redeco)
*[[Sunspot]] (Skystalker redeco)
*[[Windcharger (TF 2010)|Windcharger]]
{{comingsoontoy}}
{{-}}

====Deluxe====
[[Image:TF2010toy-RavageSeaAttack.jpg|thumb|300px|]]
'''Wave 1'''
*[[Bumblebee (Movie)/toys#Transformers (2010)|Battle Blade Bumblebee]] (all new)
*[[Ironhide (Movie)#Transformers (2010)|Ironhide]] w/ drone unit
*[[Jetblade]] (redeco of [[Dirge (ROTF)|Dirge]])
*[[Ravage (ROTF)|Sea Attack Ravage]]

'''Wave 2'''
*[[Elita-1 (ROTF)|Elita-1]] ([[Chromia (ROTF)|Chromia]] redeco, instructions for combination will be online)
*[[Hailstorm (TF 2010)|Hailstorm]] (he's [[Mindset]])
*[[Skids (ROTF)|Tuner Skids]] (redeco of ROTF [[Skids (ROTF)|Skids]])
*[[Sideswipe (ROTF)#Transformers (2010)|Sidearm Sideswipe]] (new mold with guns instead of swords)
{{comingsoontoy}}

'''Wave 3'''
*[[Jolt (ROTF)|Electrostatic Jolt]] (redeco of [[Jolt (ROTF)|Jolt]])
*[[Terradive (TF 2010)|Terradive]] (Yellow jet)
*[[Tomahawk (TF 2010)|Tomahawk]] (Dark blue Apache helicoptor)
{{comingsoontoy}}

'''Future waves'''
*[[Axor]] (White redeco of [[Lockdown (ROTF)]] with a retooled head)
*[[Ratchet (Movie)|Rescue Ratchet]] (G1 inspired redeco)
*[[Fallback (TF 2010)|Fallback]] (a redeco of [[Brawn (ROTF)|Brawn]] with a new head.)
*[[Mindset (TF 2010)|Mindset]] (A retool of Hailstorm as... Mindset)
{{comingsoontoy}}
{{-}}

====Voyager====
[[Image:TF2010Payload toy.jpg|thumb|300px|]]
'''Wave 1'''
*[[Ratchet (Movie)#Transformers (2010)|Night Ops Ratchet]] (redeco)
*[[Payload (Movie)|Payload]] (yellow redeco of [[Long Haul (ROTF)|Long Haul]])
*[[Sea Spray]]

'''Wave 2'''
*[[Banzai-Tron (TF 2010)|Banzai-Tron]] (redeco of [[Bludgeon (ROTF)|Bludgeon]])
*[[Optimus Prime (Movie)/toys#Transformers (2010)|Battle Blades Optimus Prime]] (new mold with [[Matrix of Leadership|Matrix]])
{{comingsoontoy}}
'''Future waves'''

*[[The Fallen]] (Blue and turquoise retool of The Fallen with a removable face and a staff)
*[[Strafe (TF 2010)|Strafe]]
*[[Lugnut (TF 2010)|Lugnut]]
*[[Grapple (TF 2010)|Grapple]]
*[[Highbrow (TF 2010)|Highbrow]]
{{comingsoontoy}}
{{-}}

====Leader====
[[Image:ROTF-toy leader Starscream.jpg|thumb|300px|]]
'''Wave 1'''
*[[Optimus Prime (Movie)/toys#Transformers (2010)|Optimus Prime]] with hooks and battle damage and mouth face
*[[Starscream (Movie)/toys#Transformers (2010)|Starscream]]

{{-}}

====Human Alliance====
'''Wave 1'''
*[[Jazz (Movie)|Autobot Jazz]] w/ [[William Lennox|Captain Lennox]] (shielded blaster becomes motorcycle)

====Battle Ops Bumblebee====
*[[Bumblebee (Movie)/toys#Transformers (2010)|Battle Ops Bumblebee]]
{{comingsoontoy}}

====Activators====
'''Wave 1'''
*[[Bumblebee (Movie)/toys#Transformers (2010)|Bumblebee]]
*[[Megatron (Movie)/toys#Transformers (2010)|Megatron]]
*[[Optimus Prime (Movie)/toys#Transformers (2010)|Optimus Prime]]

====Wave 2====

*[[Starscream]]
*[[Ironhide]]
*[[Slipstream]]
*[[Skids]]
*[[Soundwave]]

====Powerbots====
'''Wave 1'''
*[[Optimus Prime (Movie)/toys#Transformers (2010)|Optimus Prime]]
*[[Bumblebee (Movie)/toys#Transformers (2010)|Stealth Bumblebee]]

{{comingsoontoy}}

===Roleplay===
[[Image:TF2010_roleplay_OpCyberSword.jpg|thumb|300px|]]
*[[Optimus Prime (Movie)|Optimus Prime]] [[Dual Energon Swords|Cyber Sword]]

{{-}}
{{comingsoontoy}}

===Speed Stars<ref>The [[Robot Powered Machines]] range is being renamed, but while the Toy Fair ''Transformers'' press release rechristened the line "Action Fleet", the packaging at Toy Fair featured the name "Speed Stars". An [http://www.hasbro.com/common/documents/dad2613e1c4311ddbd0b0800200c9a66/45C7096619B9F3691067135C264C241F.pdf online instruction sheet] gives the name "Speed Stars."</ref>===
{{stub}}
*[[Bumblebee (Movie)|Bumblebee]] Track Set
{{comingsoontoy}}

===Store exclusives===
{{Note|The stores that these are exclusive to are currently not known.}}

*"Sideways Sneak Attack" four pack includes:
:*[[Sideways (ROTF)|Sideways (Deluxe class)]], battle damaged deco based upon his death scene.
:*[[Arcee (Movie)|Arcee (Legends class)]]
:*[[Elita-1 (ROTF)|Elita-1 (Legends class)]]
:*[[Chromia (ROTF)|Chromia (Legends class)]]

{{comingsoontoy}}

*"Bombing Run Battle"
:*[[Bumblebee (Movie)/toys|Bumblebee (Deluxe class Cannon Bumblebee redeco)]]
:*[[Grindor (ROTF)|Grindor (Legends class)]], desert deco
{{comingsoontoy}}

*"Desert Brawl Ruins" two pack includes:
:*[[Brawl (Movie)|Decepticon Brawl (Deluxe class)]], desert deco
:*[[Jolt (ROTF)|Jolt (Legends class)]], grey and blue deco
{{comingsoontoy}}

*"Rampage Among The Ruins"
:*[[Rampage (ROTF)|Rampage (Deluxe class)]], redeco based upon [[TakaraTomy]]'s Decepticon Rampage Desert Combat redeco of Rampage.
:*[[Bumblebee (Movie)/toys|Bumblebee (Deluxe class Cannon Bumblebee redeco)]]
:*[[Ravage (ROTF)|Ravage (Deluxe class) redeco]]
{{comingsoontoy}}

*[[Devastator (ROTF)|Constructicon Devastator]] (Legends class), based upon TakaraTomy's green and purple "G1 Colours Version".
:*[[Scavenger (ROTF)|Scavenger]]
:*[[Hightower (ROTF)|Hightower]]
:*[[Long Haul (ROTF)|Long Haul]]
:*[[Mixmaster (ROTF)|Mixmaster]]
:*[[Rampage (ROTF)|Rampage]]
:*[[Scrapper (ROTF)|Scrapper]]
{{comingsoontoy}}

==References==
<references/>

==External links==
*[http://toyfair10.asmzine.com/gallery/hasbro/hasbro-transformers-press-kit/index.html ASMZine.com's Toy Fair 2010 Hasbro Transformers press kit gallery]
*[http://toyfair10.asmzine.com/gallery/hasbro/hasbro-transformers/index.html ASMZine.com's Toy Fair 2010 Transformers booth gallery]

[[Category:Live-action film series]]
[[Category:Toys]]

Transformers: Generations (toyline)

2010-07-06T13:23:37Z

201.83.146.4:

{{disambig3|Generations}}
'''''Generations''''' is a line of Deluxe Class figures launched in 2010. Its ancestors are the 2006 ''[[Classics (2006)|Classics]]'' and 2008 [[Universe (2008)|''Universe'']] lines in that it, too, aims to recreate older Transformers characters as new toys and celebrate the history of the brand. Unlike ''Classics'' and ''Universe'', there will be no larger pricepoints. The range also includes designs from the video game ''[[War for Cybertron]].''

==Toys==
===General retail===
====Wave 1====
[[Image:Generations Drift toy.jpg|right|250px|thumb|RETRIBUTION!]]
* [[Bumblebee (Prime)|Cybertronian Bumblebee]]
* [[Optimus Prime (Prime)|Cybertronian Optimus Prime]]
* [[Drift (G1)|Drift]]
* [[Thrust (G1)|Thrust]]
* [[Grapple]]
{{--}}

====Wave 2====
* [[Megatron (Prime)|Cybertronian Megatron]]
* [[Soundwave (Prime)|Cybertronian Soundwave]]
* [[Straxus (G1)|Darkmount]]
* [[Red Alert (G1)|Red Alert]]
{{--}}
{{comingsoontoy}}

====Future waves====
* [[Blurr (G1)|Blurr]]
* [[Cliffjumper (Prime)|Cybertronian Cliffjumper]] (retool/redeco of Cybertronian Bumblebee)
* [[Dirge (G1)|Dirge]]
* [[Jazz (G1)|Jazz]]
* [[Perceptor (G1)|Perceptor]]
* [[Scourge (G1)|Scourge]]
* [[Skullgrin]] (retool/redeco of Darkmount)
* [[Thunderwing (G1)|Thunderwing]]
* [[Tracks (G1)|Tracks]]

{{comingsoontoy}}

[[Category:Franchises]]
[[Category:Generations| (toyline)]]
[[Category:Toys]]

The Transformers: The Movie

2010-07-06T13:00:48Z

201.83.146.4:

{{disambig3|Transformers: The Movie}}

{{quote|Conceived in the epic tradition of ''"[[Star Wars]]"''...|[[Victor Caroli]] ain't just whistling Dixie, [[The Transformers: The Movie promo|''The Transformers: The Movie'' promo]]}}

{{episode|
|seriess=[[The Transformers (cartoon)|The Transformers]]
|prev=B.O.T. (episode)
|next=Five Faces of Darkness, Part 1
|seriess2=[[Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers (franchise)|Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers]]
|prev2=Scramble City
|title=''The Transformers: The Movie''
|image=Transformersanimatedfilmposter.jpg
|caption=Featuring the deaths of all your favorite Transformers characters.
|production code=
|production company=[[Sunbow Productions]]
|writer=[[Ron Friedman]]
|directed by=[[Nelson Shin]]
|animation studio=[[Toei]]
|release date=[[August 8]], 1986
|continuity=[[Generation 1 cartoon continuity]]
}}

'''''The Transformers: The Movie''''' is an animated feature film based on the original Transformers toyline. It was released in the United States on August 8, 1986.

The film's storyline follows the same continuity as the ''[[The Transformers (cartoon)|Transformers]]'' cartoon. It introduces a [[Scale|planet-sized Transformer]] called [[Unicron]] who eats other planets, and is approaching [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]]. As part of their continuing wars, the Autobots and Decepticons have a [[Battle of Autobot City|fierce battle]] on Earth which sees both Optimus Prime and Megatron mortally wounded. Prime passes the [[Matrix of Leadership]] to Ultra Magnus and dies, and Megatron is transformed by Unicron into [[Galvatron (G1)|Galvatron]]. [[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]] (briefly) assumes leadership of the Decepticons, but is killed when Galvatron arrives at Cybertron. Galvatron then chases the surviving Autobots on Earth across space, splitting them up and taking the Matrix. The Autobots find their way back to each other, and follow Galvatron to Cybertron just as Unicron transforms into robot mode and begins to eat their world. Travelling inside Unicron, [[Hot Rod (G1)|Hot Rod]] recovers the Matrix, transforms into Rodimus Prime, and uses the Matrix to destroy Unicron.

Often referred to by fans simply as "the movie" or "TFTM", the movie was a step up in almost every area from the television series, with a more sophisticated plot, more serious treatment of war and violence, a hugely ambitious scope and a greatly increased animation budget with well-known celebrities providing voice work. For these reasons the film remains very popular with children of the 1980s.

The film opens with characters who had been featured in the first two years of the toyline and associated media (cartoons, comic books, etc.), but quickly introduces new characters and kills many of the old ones to make room. In particular, [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]], [[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]], and [[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]] are all destroyed during the course of the film.

{{quote|The Japanese have funded a full-length animated cartoon about the doings of these toys, which is all bad outer-space stuff. I play a planet. I menace somebody called Something-or-other. Then I'm destroyed. My plan to destroy Whoever-it-is is thwarted and I tear myself apart on the screen.|Orson Welles<ref>[http://books.google.com/books?id=KlqsYy512WIC&source=gbs_navlinks_s "Orson Wells: A Biography"] page 522</ref>}}

==Synopsis==
[[Image:TFTM_Unicron_Lithone.jpg|left|200px|thumb|That's no moon.]]

A mechanical planet travels through the depths of space, attacking [[Lithone (planet)|a metal planet]] which has [[Lithone (species)|robotic inhabitants]]. Robots, vehicles, buildings, and even large chunks of rock are sucked off the surface and devoured by the monstrous planet.

It is the year 2005, and the [[Decepticon]]s are now in control of Cybertron. The [[Autobot]]s are preparing to launch an assault to retake the planet from hidden bases on two of Cybertron's moons. The Autobots launch a [[Autobot shuttle|shuttle]] to pick up a final shipment of [[Energon (fuel)|energon]] from [[Earth]] before they strike.

[[Image:Tftm1986a.jpg|right|200px|thumb|I have a bad feeling about this.]]

Plans for the attack are overheard by [[Laserbeak (G1)|Laserbeak]], who reports back to [[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]]. The Decepticons attack the Autobot shuttle en route to Earth, wiping out its crew (including [[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]], [[Prowl (G1)|Prowl]], [[Ratchet (G1)|Ratchet]] and the [[Brawn (G1)|guy in the picture over there]]). Using the Autobots' own shuttle, the Decepticons are able to get very close to the Autobots' base on Earth, [[Autobot City]], before they are detected, and begin a devastating surprise attack on the unprepared city.

During the battle at Autobot City, both [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]] and Megatron suffer mortal injuries, and a number of other characters are also killed. Eventually the Decepticons retreat, but the damage suffered by the Autobots has been severe.

{{note|For an extensive synopsis of the battle, see [[Battle of Autobot City]].}}

[[Image:Tftm1986b.jpg|left|200px|thumb|If you strike me down, I shall become more powerful than you can possibly imagine.]]

Shortly after the battle, Prime lies on his deathbed. He passes the reins of leadership to [[Ultra Magnus (G1)|Ultra Magnus]] and gives him the [[Matrix of Leadership]]. (Though Hot Rod actually touches the Matrix before Magnus does.) Prime relates a prophecy: "One day, an Autobot shall rise from our ranks, and use the power of the Matrix to light our [[darkest hour]]." He then gives the oath, "[['Til all are one]]", and [[The many deaths of Optimus Prime|dies]]. This sequence of events is observed remotely by Unicron, who appears unusually concerned by the survival of the Matrix.

The Decepticons are making their escape aboard [[Astrotrain (G1)|Astrotrain]], but are too heavy for him to get them all home under his own power. After putting the matter to a fair vote, the Decepticons decide to throw their injured members off the ship to better the chance of survival for the rest. One of the most severely injured Decepticons is Megatron. [[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]] tosses him out and claims leadership of the Decepticon army.

Megatron and the other adrift Decepticons then encounter Unicron in interstellar space. Unicron offers to rebuild Megatron and his minions in exchange for their service. Megatron agrees, and is [[Reformatting|reformatted]] into [[Galvatron (G1)|Galvatron]]. The other Decepticons are turned into [[Cyclonus (G1)|Cyclonus]], [[Scourge (G1)|Scourge]], and the [[Sweep]]s. Unicron provides them with a [[Revenge (G1)|ship]], and sends them to kill Ultra Magnus and destroy the Matrix, stating that the Matrix is the only thing which can stand in his way.

[[Image:Tftm1986c.jpg|right|200px|thumb|Don't be too proud of this technological terror you've constructed.]]
Galvatron first stops at Cybertron to take his revenge by killing Starscream and reclaiming leadership of the Decepticons. Almost immediately afterwards, Unicron arrives in Cybertron's vicinity and devours at least two moons—both of the Autobots' moon bases are destroyed. Under coercion by Unicron, Galvatron finally heads to Earth to kill Ultra Magnus, but Magnus and the other surviving Autobots flee in a pair of shuttles. Eventually Galvatron manages to cause one shuttle to crash on yet another metal planet ([[Quintessa]]), and detonates the other with a volley of missiles. However, the Autobots in the second shuttle escape unnoticed by separating the front portion of their shuttle just before impact.

The Autobots in the crashed shuttle, [[Hot Rod (G1)|Hot Rod]], [[Kup (G1)|Kup]], and the [[Dinobot (G1)|Dinobots]], find themselves separated and in a hostile environment. Hot Rod and Kup are captured by a squad of [[Allicon]]s and taken before a [[Quintesson]] [[Quintesson#Judges|judge]] and his court. While being held there, they learn the name and nature of Unicron from [[Kranix]], a survivor of the planet destroyed in the opening of the film, which he calls [[Lithone (planet)|Lithone]]. Meanwhile, the Dinobots encounter and befriend a young, wild Autobot named [[Wheelie (G1)|Wheelie]] who has been living alone on Quintessa. Together, they crash the trial just as Hot Rod and Kup are fighting losing odds against the Quintessons' [[Sharkticon (G1)|Sharkticons]]. The tide is turned, and the Autobots commandeer a [[Quintesson spacecraft#Quintesson_Cruiser|Quintesson Cruiser]].

[[Image:Tftm1986d.jpg|left|200px|thumb|What an incredible smell you've discovered!]]
The other group of Autobots has landed on the planet [[Junkion (planet)|Junkion]] to make repairs, but are attacked yet again by Galvatron, who was tipped off to their survival by Unicron. During the battle, Ultra Magnus tries to open the Matrix to use its power, but is unable to do so, and instead is killed. Galvatron absconds with the Matrix, taking it away to Unicron. The remaining Autobots—[[Perceptor (G1)|Perceptor]], [[Springer (G1)|Springer]], [[Arcee (G1)|Arcee]], and [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike's]] son [[Daniel Witwicky (G1)|Daniel]]—are then ambushed by [[Junkion (species)|Junkions]], the eponymous natives of Junkion, who are also giant transforming robots. This battle is cut short, however, by the arrival of Hot Rod's group in their Quintesson ship. After exchanging the [[universal greeting]] they all make friends, and the Junkions restore Ultra Magnus to life. Together, the whole group travels to Cybertron to try to recover the Matrix.

[[Image:TFTM Unicron smashes cybertron.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Rebel base in range. You may fire when ready.]]
Galvatron attempts to open the Matrix to use its power against Unicron, but is also unable to get it open. Unicron, not pleased with this attempted treachery, shocks Galvatron by transforming from a planet into a [[Scale|planet-sized robot]]. Unicron plucks Galvatron off his chest and swallows him, Matrix and all, and then begins attacking Cybertron itself. [[Shockwave (G1)|Shockwave]] scrambles the Decepticon forces to defend the planet, but they are ineffective against so large an enemy. Shortly the Autobots arrive from Junkion, and fly the Quintesson ship straight through Unicron's eye. This impact destroys the ship, and the Autobots fall out inside Unicron. Hot Rod, separated from the others, eventually runs into Galvatron. During their fight, Hot Rod gets his hands on the Matrix and hears Optimus's voice speak the words, "Arise, Rodimus Prime." Hot Rod grows in stature, adopts a much sterner demeanor, and quickly dispatches Galvatron by tossing him through Unicron's hull out into space. He then opens the Matrix, which fills Unicron with light and begins destroying him.

[[Image:Tftm1986e.jpg|left|200px|thumb|Use the Force, Luke.]]
In the meantime, the other Autobots inside Unicron have located some of their comrades from the moon bases who had been presumed dead, including [[Bumblebee (G1)|Bumblebee]] and Daniel's father, Spike. The Autobots, including Rodimus, escape through Unicron's remaining eye just as he begins to fall apart and explode. The scene then immediately shifts to the surface of Cybertron, where—for unclear reasons—the Autobots seem to be in charge again. Rodimus predicts an era of peace and prosperity, and the film closes with a shot of Unicron's severed head still floating in orbit around Cybertron.

[['Til all are one]].
{{-}}

==Quotes==
"Such heroic nonsense."
:—'''Megatron''' coldly finishes off Ironhide. The 'Cons always get the best lines.

"I've got better things to do tonight than die!"
:—'''Springer''', telling it like it is.

"One shall stand. One shall fall."
:—'''Optimus Prime''' uttering the most quoted line of the Movie. An ass kicker cometh.

"Until the day...'til all are one..."
:—'''Optimus Prime''''s final words

"Oh, how it ''pains'' me to do this." 
"Wait! I still function!" 
"Wanna ''bet''?"
:—'''Starscream''' fights back the tears as he throws '''Megatron''' out of Astrotrain.

"I have summoned you here for a purpose." 
"Nobody summons Megatron!" 
"Then it pleases me to be the first."
:—'''Unicron''' shows '''Megatron''' who's the boss.

"Who disrupts my coronation?" 
"Coronation, Starscream? This is bad comedy." 
"Megatron? Is that you?" 
"Here's a hint!"
:—'''Galvatron''' drops "hints" for '''Starscream''' like others drop anvils.

"Did we ''have'' to let them detonate three quarters of the ship?" 
"Seeing as how they would have detonated ''four'' quarters, I think it was a good choice."
:—'''Arcee''' and '''Springer'''

"For a time… I considered ''sparing'' your wretched little planet of Cybertron. But now... you shall witness... its ''dismemberment''!"
:—'''Unicron''' really needs to work on his anger management skills...

"Me Grimlock kick butt!" 
:—'''Grimlock''' isn't speaking figuratively.

"Destiny... You cannot... destroy... my... destiny--AAH!!" 
:—'''Unicron''''s final words

"Let this mark the end of the Cybertronian Wars as we march forward into a new era of peace and happiness! 'Til all are one!" 
:—'''Rodimus Prime''' announces the end of the [[Great War (G1)|Great War]]... yeah, right.

==Featured characters==
{{featuredcharacters
|c1=
*[[Optimus Prime (G1)|Optimus Prime]] ([[Peter Cullen]])
*[[Hot Rod (G1)|Hot Rod]]/Rodimus Prime ([[Judd Nelson]])
*[[Ultra Magnus (G1)|Ultra Magnus]] ([[Robert Stack]])
*[[Kup (G1)|Kup]] ([[Lionel Stander]])
*[[Springer (G1)|Springer]] ([[Neil Ross]])
*[[Arcee (G1)|Arcee]] ([[Susan Blu]])
*[[Blurr (G1)|Blurr]] ([[John Moschitta]])
*[[Grimlock (G1)|Grimlock]] ([[Gregg Berger]])
*[[Perceptor (G1)|Perceptor]] ([[Paul Eiding]])
*[[Blaster (G1)|Blaster]] ([[Buster Jones]])
*[[Swoop (G1)|Swoop]] ([[Michael Bell]])
*[[Slag (G1)|Slag]] ([[Neil Ross]])
*[[Sludge (G1)|Sludge]]
*[[Wheelie (G1)|Wheelie]] ([[Frank Welker]])
*[[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] ([[Peter Cullen]])
*[[Prowl (G1)|Prowl]] ([[Michael Bell]])
*[[Jazz (G1)|Jazz]] ([[Scatman Crothers]])
*[[Bumblebee (G1)|Bumblebee]] ([[Dan Gilvezan]])
*[[Cliffjumper (G1)|Cliffjumper]] ([[Casey Kasem]])
*[[Brawn (G1)|Brawn]] ([[Corey Burton]])
*[[Gears (G1)|Gears]] ([[Don Messick]])
*[[Auto-combatant]] ([[Frank Welker]])
*[[Eject]]
*[[Rewind]]
*[[Steeljaw (G1)|Steeljaw]]
*[[Ramhorn]]
*[[Wheeljack (G1)|Wheeljack]]
*[[Windcharger (G1)|Windcharger]]
*[[Ratchet (G1)|Ratchet]]
*[[Snarl (G1)|Snarl]]
*[[Grapple]]
*[[Huffer (G1)|Huffer]]
*[[Hound (G1)|Hound]]
*[[Sunstreaker (G1)|Sunstreaker]]
*[[Bluestreak]]
*[[Inferno (G1)|Inferno]]* ([[Walker Edmiston]])
*[[Beachcomber]]
*[[Powerglide]]
*[[Junkinon motorcycle guy]]
*[[Chormia]] ( flashback)
|c2=
*[[Megatron (G1)|Megatron]] ([[Frank Welker]])
*[[Galvatron (G1)|Galvatron]] ([[Leonard Nimoy]])
*[[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]] ([[Chris Latta]])
*[[Cyclonus (G1)|Cyclonus]] ([[Roger C. Carmel]])
*[[Scourge (G1)|Scourge]] ([[Stan Jones]])
*[[Soundwave (G1)|Soundwave]] ([[Frank Welker]])
*[[Devastator (G1)|Devastator]] ([[Arthur Burghardt]])
*[[Scrapper (G1)|Scrapper]] ([[Michael Bell]])
*[[Bonecrusher (G1)|Bonecrusher]] ([[Neil Ross]])
*[[Hook (G1)|Hook]] ([[Neil Ross]])
*[[Scavenger (G1)|Scavenger]] ([[Don Messick]])
*[[Mixmaster (G1)|Mixmaster]]
*[[Long Haul (G1)|Long Haul]]
*[[Shrapnel (G1)|Shrapnel]] ([[Hal Rayle]])
*[[Kickback (G1)|Kickback]] ([[Clive Revill]])
*[[Bombshell (G1)|Bombshell]]
*[[Astrotrain (G1)|Astrotrain]] ([[Jack Angel]])
*[[Shockwave (G1)|Shockwave]] ([[Corey Burton]])
*[[Seacons]]
*[[Cybertron drones]]([[Frank Welker]])
*[[Decepticon Guy]]([[Frank Welker]])
*[[ Cyclonus Guy]]([[Frank Welker]])
*[[Dirge (G1)|Dirge]] ([[Bud Davis]])
*[[Blitzwing (G1)|Blitzwing]] ([[Ed Gilbert]])
*[[Rumble (G1)|Rumble]] ([[Frank Welker]])
*[[Frenzy (G1)|Frenzy]] ([[Frank Welker]])
*[[Laserbeak (G1)|Laserbeak]] ([[Frank Welker]])
*[[Ravage (G1)|Ravage]] ([[Frank Welker]])
*[[Ratbat (G1)|Ratbat]] ([[Frank Welker]])
*[[Thrust (G1)|Thrust]]
*[[Ramjet (G1)|Ramjet]]
*[[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]]
*[[Thundercracker (G1)|Thundercracker]]
*[[Sweep]]s
*[[Cyclonus's Armada]]
|c3=
*[[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]] ([[Corey Burton]])
*[[Daniel Witwicky (G1)|Daniel Witwicky]] ([[David Mendenhall]])
|c4=
*[[Unicron]] ([[Orson Welles]])
*[[Wreck-Gar (G1)|Wreck-Gar]] ([[Eric Idle]])
*[[Kranix]] ([[Norman Alden|Norm Alden]])
*[[Junkion (species)|Junkion]] ([[Michael Bell]])
*[[Junkion (species)|Junkion]] ([[Frank Welker]])
*[[Quintesson]] leader ([[Roger C. Carmel]])
*[[Quintesson#Judges|Quintesson judge]] ([[Regis Cordic|Rege Cordic]])
*[[Arblus]] ([[Norman Alden|Norm Alden]])
*[[Sharkticon (G1)|Sharkticons]]
*[[Allicon]]s
|nonumbering=true
}}
<nowiki>*</nowiki>Credited, but did not appear.

==Animation errors==
* When Unicron is approaching Lithone at the start of the movie, at the line "Look, it's Unicron!", a [[Animation error#Sizing errors|cel stacking error]] results in Unicron's ring appearing in front of a building arch, [[Distribution|making Unicron look very tiny]] in that shot. In the next shot, it is clear that Unicron is several times larger than the entire planet of Lithone.
* The inside of one of the Lithonian ships being devoured by Unicron is visible for a couple of frames. The pilot of the ship appears to be Kranix, even though he apparently screams out Kranix's name, and Kranix appears later in the Quintesson prison.
* When the inside of Unicron is shown after he devours Lithone, the "blinking energy" effect of Unicron's innards was apparently achieved by recycling backgrounds from other animated TV shows or movies. A frame by frame viewing reveals what appear to be several images of post-apocalyptic buildings inside Unicron.
* When Optimus Prime asks Jazz to report security status, it shows both Jazz and Cliffjumper. Cliffjumper is seen twiddling knobs above the actual drawn computer, as if a section was supposed to be present.
* When the Decepticons blow a hole through the Autobot shuttle to get in, it is a clean break. However, Megatron is still shown ripping through random ship components to get in.
* Scavenger's head is white instead of black as he ducks from Prowl's shot.
* When the Decepticons are killing the Autobot shuttle crew, there is one of the common Starscream/Skywarp/Thundercracker miscolors. Megatron transforms into gun mode and Starscream catches him and kills Brawn. When they cut back to the Decepticons, Starscream is in front of the Constructicons without Megatron and is firing one of his arm rifles (this probably should have been Skywarp or Thundercracker). When they cut back to the Decepticons for the third time, Starscream has Megatron again and is finishing off the rest of the Autobots. In the shot of Starscream firing his own lasers, his wings are red instead of gray.
* When the Decepticons fly to the shuttle's controls, all of the Autobots have changed positions from when they fell—Brawn is now on his back, for example, while Prowl is now face-down. Ironhide's chest is also completely intact, despite having a bunch of holes blown in it.
* Hot Rod has at least two totally different transformation schemes during the course of the film.
* When Kup and several Autobots at the roadblock react to Hot Rod's attack on the hijacked Autobot shuttle, Bluestreak is represented by Prowl's [[Character model|animation model]], in Bluestreak's grey and black colours.
* Sunstreaker appears with Kup's group on Earth as they observe Hot Rod firing on Ironhide's shuttle. Sunstreaker later appears as Optimus Prime's co-pilot when they arrive on Earth with the Dinobots, and is seen disembarking the shuttle along with Optimus Prime and Hound.
* In a wide aerial shot of the city under attack, a Reflector flies by in Ironhide's color scheme. Shockwave also makes his only appearance in the battle; considering both his role as Cybertron's guardian and his absence from any other scenes during the battle, his presence is probably an animation error. Rumble also flies past, despite being inside Soundwave at this point.
* Blaster's forehead is red instead of white after his "look out and shout!" line, and again after he returns to robot mode.
* A laser blast that should be behind Blaster is instead layered in front of him as he acknowledges Perceptor's orders.
* In the big lineup of firing Decepticons, Soundwave's cheek guards are blue instead of white.
* When [[Soundwave (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Soundwave]] sends out his cassette troops, [[FIRRIB|Rumble is the same color as Frenzy]].
* Blaster first ejects what looks like Eject, who stays blue up until he gets to the edge of the screen. He then turns black like Rewind. Then Blaster ejects another blue cassette, which after about a second turns black. This one gets through half his transformation colored black, then turns blue for a split second then turns black again. Then, when the cassettes are fighting each other, Eject runs in from the left and jumps over Perceptor. And then he runs in from the left ''again'' to shoot Ravage. Suddenly [[Brawl (Movie)|Brawl/Devastator]] doesn't look so bad, does he?
* As Springer runs up to the launcher, Wheeljack's body is visible, but he's in red, white and blue colors.
* While Springer and Arcee are trying to move the launcher into place, Springer's face is the same color as his helmet.
* When Devastator forms in Autobot City, his chest plate is the same green as the rest of him. In the next shot, it's the usual purple. However, it promptly turns green again in the next shot.
* As Devastator lays into the walls, Shrapnel is white where he should be black.
* While Perceptor and Grapple are shooting, Swoop's lower half runs by in the foreground, long before the rest of him gets there.
* Megatron's pelvis is white instead of black as he gives the "let the slaughter begin!" order.
* Prime's dramatic transformation sequence far outlasts the transformation sound that's supposed to go with it. It's also the wrong sound (ascending pitch) for his robot-to-vehicle transformation.
* When Prime drives up behind the Decepticons, Blitzwing's head is tan instead of purple. It becomes purple when he turns it, then goes back to tan again as he turns it back.
* The gun Megatron uses to fatally injure Optimus is blue and white for most of the shots it is seen in, but when Megatron screams "Fall! FALL!" while shooting Prime again, it is black.
* Prime's antennae are white as he tries to stand after knocking Megatron off the ledge.
* Starscream's whole nosecone, rather than just the canopy, is yellow as he looms over Megatron.
* When Optimus Prime takes the Matrix out of his chest to give to Ultra Magnus, there is another Matrix beneath it in his chest. (On which note, see also ''[[Matrix of Leadership#Universe|Matrix of Leadership, Universe comic]].'')
* When Ultra Magnus accepts the Matrix, he's seen inserting it into his chest twice, or at best readjusting its "fit".
* As the other Decepticons prepare to push him out, Bombshell's chest is rendered as a shapeless gray mass, rather than with its yellow canopy.
* The voice that says "Don't!" is nowhere close to the voices of any of the five Decepticons shown getting thrown out of Astrotrain.
* Starscream's got an extra yellow segment on his canopy as he nominates himself for leadership. Man, even the A-list animation team couldn't keep this straight.
* Most of Megatron's chest emblem isn't colored in as he first speaks to Unicron. It might pass for battle damage, but a few shots later it's fully purple.
[[Image:Coronation .jpg|thumb|right|250px| *''trumpet fanfare''* ]]
* Even after the [[Battle of Autobot City]], characters who are supposedly dead continue to appear in crowd shots and battles. Shrapnel's role in the fight on [[Junkion (planet)|Junk]] is the most noticeable (and he was called for by name in the original script), but Thundercracker, Skywarp and Kickback can all be seen at Starscream's coronation. The two jets are later seen again, flying into Unicron's mouth.
* Hook has two eyes instead of a visor as he looks around in confusion during the trumpet scene.
* An early establishing shot clearly shows Cybertron with two and ''only'' two moons in low orbit. Yet a third moon is visible right after Unicron finishes eating the two Autobot bases.
* When Cyclonus is strafing the Autobot shuttle in space, he briefly flies offscreen, and during that time his laser blasts come from a point that in no way matches his flight path.
* Daniel's lips don't purse when he whistles.
* Wreck-Gar's mouth doesn't move at all during his first lines, despite the camera pushing in all close on his face.
* When Hot Rod tells the Junkions the universal greeting, the Autobot insignia on his chest is coloured black.
* Shrapnel's lower legs are white when he lands on Junk, instead of black. Must be a side effect of being dead.
* When Unicron transforms, the first hand we see (his right) is backwards relative to how the arm is shown on screen.
* Hot Rod's missing his Autobot symbol as he regains his footing inside Unicron.
* The third smelting victim doesn't fall from the conveyor belt; he simply vanishes.

== Continuity errors ==
[[Image:G1TFTM Snarl cameo.JPG|thumb|right|250px|He used to bulls-eye womp-rats in his T16 back home.]]

* The Dinobot [[Snarl (G1)|Snarl]] is mysteriously absent from almost the entire movie, even though the Dinobots as a group are featured prominently. Copies of the script which have come into fans' hands repeatedly list the Dinobots, but never make mention of Snarl by name. In fact, at one point the script refers to "the four Dinobots". Despite this, Snarl does appear in three very brief shots{{m-}}in which at least one other Dinobot (Swoop in one, Sludge in another) is entirely absent. Hmm.
* Also curiously absent are the 1985 Autobot cars and Mini-Vehicles, such as Inferno, Smokescreen, Cosmos, Warpath, etc. It would seem that these characters were available at the time of the movie:
** Perceptor and Blaster both debuted at the same time in the cartoon as the 1985 cars, and both play prominent roles in the movie.
** Grapple is [[:Image:BattleAutobotCity.jpg|seen ''very'' briefly]] during the battle for Autobot City.
** The 1985 Decepticons (Astrotrain, Dirge, etc.) appear in the film.
** [[:Image:TFTM-SideswipeRedAlertTracks.jpg|Tracks]], [[:Image:TFTM-RedAlertDown.jpg|Red Alert]] and Smokescreen all appeared in storyboards but not the finished film.
* Devastator is treated as ''the'' ultimate threat, while in the cartoon, his role (and apparent power) was already being [[Starscream's Brigade|severely diminished]], presumably because several other combiners had been introduced. In story terms, the absence of these newer combiners, not to mention the mighty Omega Supreme, is inexplicable. In real-life terms, those characters didn't exist when the film commenced production. (The [[Transformers: The Animated Movie]] adaptation shows Omega Supreme, Superion and Defensor guarding the Ark against an attack by Bruticus and Menasor, attempting to [[retcon]] the problem away.)
[[Image:Cyclonus armada tftf.jpg|thumb|right|250px|We'll be safe enough once we make the jump into lightspeed.]]
* The cartoon had made it abundantly clear that Cybertron had no moons. In numerous close and distant shots of the planet throughout the first two seasons, no moon was seen. Ever. The movie promptly introduces two (and possibly a third) moons in close orbit over the planet. In continuity terms, they must have been built or brought into orbit after 1986.
* During the Battle of Autobot City, Starscream gets his leg caught. He shoots downward and gets away while screaming "My foot!", but it's his shin that's smoking while his foot looks fine. Later he kicks Megatron with the same foot. Shouldn't that hurt, according to him? Note there is a time lapse between the "foot shooting" and the kicking, leaving the option of a battlefield repair.
* So Ultra Magnus just happens to have a ready-made Matrix chamber installed in his chest cavity? Is this standard issue for all Autobots?
* The cartoon had already established that Astrotrain increases his size when he transforms to shuttle mode, being large enough to carry a pair of Decepticons in his cockpit. However, within the movie itself, his size is [[scale|noticeably inconsistent]]: When he leaves Autobot City, he's just large enough for the Decepticon army to cram themselves in; later, he's so huge that the Constructicons can quite comfortably form Devastator inside him.
* The number of minions created by Unicron changes throughout the film, with more Sweeps appearing as the story progresses. A second Cyclonus ("Cyclonus, the warrior, and [[Cyclonus's Armada|his armada]]") is shown being created but disappears shortly thereafter. At least ''seven'' new characters are shown at one point, created from only ''six'' Decepticons thrown from the shuttle.

[[Image:SSBQ.jpg|thumb|right|250px|"I've been looking forward to this for a long time." "Yes, I bet you have."]]
* [[Galvatron (G1)|Galvatron]] is capable of reducing [[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]] to ashes with a single shot from his cannon mode. Though in later episodes Galvatron is shown blowing up even small ''[[Thrull|planets]]'' with his cannon, his extraordinary killing power seems to be gone—like when he scores a direct hit in cannon mode on Ultra Magnus in "[[Five Faces of Darkness, Part 5]]" and Magnus isn't especially hurt at all, or how a similar blast against Scourge in "[[The Burden Hardest to Bear]]" only leaves the latter temporarily incapacitated. [[Marvel Comics]] bios explain this by suggesting that Galvatron had nearly limitless power through Unicron... but then again, Galvatron himself claims to be "more powerful than ever" after Unicron is dead. {{storylink|Five Faces of Darkness, Part 2}} [[To sell toys|Who knows.]]
* Why didn't anyone notice Unicron until he was within devouring distance of Cybertron's moons?
* Despite running out of energon goodies on Quintessa, Hot Rod has at least one to offer to the Junkions. Maybe he got some on the ship. It's also possible that, when he told the Allicons "No more," he meant that he wasn't going to ''feed'' them any more energon goodies, not that he didn't ''have'' anymore.
* Daniel, who was just learning how to use his exo-suit, had to knock down the acid cover inside Unicron to save his loved ones. Why couldn't the more experienced Spike do the same with his suit from above? He had both of his arms free and a clear shot at the cover. On the other hand, the clamp holding him may well disable his exo-suit's weapons and movement abilities-if it didn't, Unicron probably wouldn't have eaten half as many victims by now...
* It's not clear how Rodimus Prime (carrying two humans) and the other Autobots survived their jump out of Unicron's eye and their plunge towards the surface of Cybertron.
* It's also unclear just how the dozen or so Autobots (and one shipload of Junkions) managed to retake the whole planet of Cybertron. Did Unicron really wipe out ''that'' many Decepticons?

===Not Necessarily Errors===
* Fans have noted throughout the years that Astrotrain, in his flight through zero-gravity space, should not have needed to "jettison some weight" in the literal sense. However, since the ejected Decepticons quickly fall behind Astrotrain instead of floating alongside him, he must still have been accelerating and thus would have needed to burn a greater amount of fuel in order to push a larger payload. Perhaps he should have said "jettison some ''mass''", but then again, just being a spaceship doesn't make him a rocket scientist.
* Starscream is shown just inside Astrotrain's cargo bay when he commands him to take off, but in the next shot (Astrotrain's door closing as his rocket engines ignite), Starscream is nowhere to be seen. It's possible that he walked further in, but he should still be at least partially visible.

==Continuity notes==
* The Movie has had a huge effect in shaping the mythos:
** It was the first story to establish that Cybertron had moons.
** It introduced the Matrix as a physical object, Autobot City, Unicron, the notion of Megatron becoming Galvatron, and it killed off Optimus Prime before it was cool!

* Gadgets and powers:
** Springer deploys a small flip-out twin laser from his wrist during the Autobot City battle.
** Arcee activates a long-distance scanner of some sort by lowering a red visor from under her helmet over her eyes.
** Hot Rod uses a saw blade that extends from his retracted wrist.
** Blurr has the same kind of hooked welding tip used by various Autobots as far back as "[[More than Meets the Eye, Part 2]]".
** Arcee unleashes a nasty barbed post from her fender to fend off a Junkion.
** Grimlock shows the never-before seen ability to shoot lasers from his fists.

==Real-world references and Easter eggs==
* When Sludge gets haymakered by Devastator, his eyes pop out of their sockets in Looney Tunes fashion.
* Kup's storytelling sequence aboard the shuttle is drawn from the novel ''Of Mice and Men'', complete with Grimlock in the Lenny role asking Kup to "tell Grimlock about petrorabbits again".
* The Quintesson jail cell includes robot debris ''strongly'' resembling the RX-178 Gundam MK II and the MSZ-006 Zeta Gundam mobile suits from 1985's ''Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam''.
* The Junkions speak almost entirely in pop culture quotes and pastiches. Littered among the generic phrases like "operators are standing by!", "Film at eleven" and "eliminate even the toughest stains" are more specific references, such as:
** "Don't look behind door #2, Monty!" - a reference to the game show ''Let's Make a Deal'' and its host, Monty Hall.
** "Ger-ron-ron-doo-ron-ronny-mo!" - both the famous "Geronimo!" war cry, and the 1963 hit "Da Do Ron Ron".
** "You check in, but you don't check out" - a parody of the tagline for Roach Motel insect traps.
** "Happy motoring!" - a 1970s slogan of gas company Exxon.

* ''[[Star Wars]]'' sound effects (yes, even the high-budget Movie uses them):
** The ''Millenium Falcon'' engine burst noise is used extensively throughout the film, over and over and over, almost any time a Decepticon takes flight.

** Luke's deactivating lightsaber is used as the sound of the Quintesson ship's ramp extending.
** Clashing lightsabers are used as Unicron fires eye-blasts at the attacking Transformers.

** An igniting lightsaber is used as Rodimus opens the Matrix.
* The ''Star Trek'' sliding door sound is used as Wreck-Gar pulls out his <s>iPhone</s> mini-TV.

==Adaptations==
*[[Transformers: The Movie (Marvel Comics)|A comic adaptation of the movie]] was published by [[Marvel Comics]] in 1986, concurrently with the movie's theater run. It was based off a non-finalized version of the script, and differs in many details from the final film. Additionally, most of the major character models (and possibly their unedited original character write-ups) appear in Issue #4 of the ''[[Transformers Universe (Marvel comic)|Transformers Universe]]'' series.
* [[Transformers the Movie (Ladybird adaptation)|A storybook adaptation]] was released in the UK by [[Ladybird Books]].
*A four-part adaptation was released in 2006/2007 by [[IDW Publishing]], as part of the film's 20th anniversary celebration. It was titled ''[[Transformers: The Animated Movie]]'' to differentiate it from the [[Michael Bay]] [[Transformers (2007)|live-action film]]. Unlike its predecessor, it adheres rigidly to the script and plot of the finished movie.

==Soundtrack==
{{main|The Transformers: The Movie - Original Motion Picture Soundtrack}}

==Promotions==
* Early in the movie's production, a [[The Transformers: The Movie promo|promotional trailer]] was made to sell the project to potential investors.
* The movie was advertised on related 1986 toy packages via the [[Decipher the Decepticon]] Sweepstakes, which included a pack-in poster and contest.
* The movie was heavily advertised directly by TV [[commercial]]s, and tail-end segments on Transformer toy ads. Portions of its story were also retold in altered fashion by animation segments of commercials for the movie character toys, such as a spot showing Springer doing battle with Wreck-Gar.

==In the comic continuity==
The [[The Transformers (Marvel comic)|Marvel UK comic]] made extensive use of the Movie as the basis for a series of stories involving the Transformers in the future. However there are several differences between the events seen on screen and those referenced in the comic:

*The comic always dates the move to 2006, following the date given in a treatment that was all [[Simon Furman]] had when he wrote [[Target: 2006]].
*In Target: 2006, [[Cyclonus (G1)|Cyclonus]] states that he was previously "[[Life Spark]]".
*The Matrix is always called the "Creation Matrix" in the comic, a name that predates the "Matrix of Leadership" but which is now used for the same physical object.
*[[Brawn (G1)|Brawn]] and [[Wheeljack (G1)|Wheeljack]] both survive the events, both later appearing in [[Space Pirates!]] (set in 2008).

In addition, Shockwave definitely survives the attack by Unicron.

The US comic almost completely ignored the events of the Movie, though later in the run an alternative future is briefly shown in "[[Rhythms of Darkness!]]" and "[[A Savage Circle]]". In this timeline at least some of the events of the Movie took place such as the creation of Galvatron from Megatron, which is dated to 2005, though Prowl's death was overlooked. [[Prowl II|Wouldn't be the first time. Or the last.]]
*The US version of the future story [[The Big Broadcast of 2006 (issue)|The Big Broadcast of 2006]] implicitly has the events of the movie as part of its backstory. However, since the rest of the US series ignored the movie, this issue's place in the continuity is questionable.

==Edits==
Several English-language versions of the film exist, with the following differences in content from the American theatrical run:

* In some versions (notably the European version) the opening credits are replaced with a scrolling text ("''Star Wars'' style") which provides backstory.
* In some versions (notably the European version) the film ends with [[Victor Caroli|a narrator]] reassuring the audience that Optimus Prime will return.
* Instances of swearing in the film (there are two) were edited out; sometimes one, sometimes both. Those instances are: Spike yelling, "Oh shit, what are we gonna do now?" after the self-destructing Moon Base 2 fails to scratch Unicron, and Ultra Magnus growling, "Open, damn it, open!" while trying to open the Matrix to fend off Galvatron and the Sweeps on Junkion. The United Kingdom cinema version had the swearing included but, when it was released on VHS in the United Kingdom, Spike's line was cut ("damn" not being considered offensive in the UK). However it has been restored on all United Kingdom DVD releases.
* In some early FHE video releases, the shot of the Matrix falling out of Optimus Prime's hand and being caught by Hot Rod is edited so that it appears that Ultra Magnus simply takes the Matrix from Prime. Why this was done is not known, and the replay of the Hot Rod catch on Unicron's monitors was left intact.
*Instead of DEG, the Rank Film "gong man" appears before the film, as Rank were the United Kingdom distributors.

None of these edits significantly affect the story. They should not be confused with various other sequences which were changed before the film's final release:

* Originally, Ultra Magnus's "death sequence" on Junkion called for him to be lassoed and drawn and quartered by the Sweeps' energy beams, but this was deemed too graphic for audiences, hence the less disturbing "shot to death" sequence seen instead. There is evidence that the original sequence had been fully animated when the decision was made, however; the Sweeps still kept their solid energy lassos when they fire upon Mags, and Mags is seen visibly straining against what appears to be said lassos (edited out and replaced with laser fire) before exploding.
* A number of other sequences were illustrated as [[storyboard]]s but dropped, presumably without ever being animated. Among them were:
** A short scene showing the Autobot shuttle veering around some meteors, explaining how the Decepticons caught them unawares.
** An extended sequence with Hot Rod and Daniel outside the city.
** A sequence of Mirage blasting Bombshell and being fired on by Megatron.
** The Autobots finally bringing down Devastator with a barrage of missiles (and the Constructicons subsequently shooting Red Alert in the back).
** The Decepticons dogpiling Optimus Prime, explaining why he seems to be standing up just before his fight with Megatron.
:Some of these concepts were in earlier versions of the script, and hence made it into the comic adaptation.
* Rumors have occasionally circulated in the fandom of additional animated footage that was dropped from the film, such as ultra-violent battle scenes. No evidence has ever surfaced to back these claims; the only known edits are those listed in this section.
:{{see|Misconceptions and urban legends about Transformers#The Transformers: The Movie|Urban legends about ''The Transformers: The Movie''}}

==Reception==
{{quote|''The Transformers'', in which Orson Welles plays a planet, is pure headache material. Target audience of cartoon-watchers also will probably find the film unintelligible, noisy and unoriginal. Boxoffice prospects are dismal.|2=[http://books.google.com/books?id=DHNZAAAAMAAJ&q=Hasbro+Transformers&dq=Hasbro+Transformers&lr=&as_drrb_is=b&as_minm_is=1&as_miny_is=1983&as_maxm_is=12&as_maxy_is=2005&num=50&as_brr=0&cd=69 Variety's Film Reviews 1985-1986, Volume 19]}}

{{quote|Obnoxious animated feature about the title good guys, who defend the universe against an evil planet (which has a voice of its own... provided by Orson Welles.) That deafening rock score certainly doesn't help. Little more than a feature-length toy commercial.|Leonard Maltin, ''1987 Movie & Video Guide''}}

{{quote|While all this action may captivate young children, the animation is not spectacular enough to dazzle adults, and the Transformers have few truly human elements to lure parents along, even when their voices are supplied by well-known actors. |2=[http://www.nytimes.com/1986/08/09/movies/screen-transformers-animation-for-children.html The New York Times]}}

{{quote|Transformers -- The Movie, a feature-length animated film inspired by the syndicated TV cartoon series inspired by the Hasbro toy imported from Japan, is utterly uninspired entertainment. |2=[http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=DM&p_theme=dm&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0ED3CE8EA8D40CCA&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM The Dallas Morning News]}}

{{quote|If you can swallow, without gagging, a large measure of sentimental and offensive religiosity - lines like "Do not grieve. Soon I will be one with the Matrix," whispered by a failing hunk of Autobot metal - then you have a better than even chance of leaving the theatre on your own two feet. |2=[http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=01kiAAAAIBAJ&sjid=W6gFAAAAIBAJ&pg=2445,1286000&dq=transformers&hl=en The Montreal Gazette]}}

{{quote|Everything is poorly drawn and - when it's in focus - one dimensional. It is terribly hard to separate the robots from the backgrounds, and there is no easy way to tell the good guys from the bad guys. In an earlier movie based on the same sort of robot toys - "Go-Bots: The Battle of the Rock Lords" - the good guys were either white or colorful and the bad guys were dreary, and they had distinct personalities. Not this movie; everyone looks and sounds alike, except one pink robot who is a female good guy. Her tin voluptuousness makes her stand out. |2=[http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=kw4wAAAAIBAJ&sjid=OgMEAAAAIBAJ&pg=6957,6334152&dq=transformers&hl=en The Toledo Blade]}}

{{quote|Even with an all-star cast doing the voice overs... and a rock music score, this is still nothing more than a ripoff of a successful toy line. |2=[http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=AYckAAAAIBAJ&sjid=dtsFAAAAIBAJ&pg=4192,1494652&dq=transformers&hl=en The Palm Beach Post]}}

{{quote|The great animated villains, like the Wicked Queen in Disney's "Snow White," had motivations as compelling as any live-action character. Unicron apparently destroys entire worlds because it has nothing else to do. |2=[http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/latimes/access/57996397.html?dids=57996397:57996397&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Aug+8%2C+1986&author=CHARLES+SOLOMON&pub=Los+Angeles+Times+(pre-1997+Fulltext)&edition=&startpage=8&desc=%60THE+TRANSFORMERS%27%3A+STRETCHING+A+POINT The LA Times]}}

''The Transformers: The Movie'' was almost universally panned by professional critics upon its release.

Well-known film critic and animation enthusiast, Leonard Maltin, gave it a rating below 1 1/2 stars in his ''1987 Movie & Video Guide'', regarding it as a "bomb", then proceeded to write an unflattering blurb denouncing the film as a "feature-length toy commercial" (well, he was ''right'').

Caryn James of the ''New York Times'' admitted in the [[August 9]], 1986 edition of the paper that the film was intended for young children, pointing out that the kids in the audience were having a grand ole time with the ''Transformer'' toys and comics they brought with them to the theater, but derided the film as having little to no appeal to adults (''man-children'', on the other hand...).

''Variety's Film Reviews 1985-1986, Volume 19 '' was far less even-handed in their review, claiming the film had no appeal to adults ''or'' children. They predicted the film would perform poorly in the box office (and were correct, in that regard).

Carrie Rickey of the ''Dallas Morning News'' chided the film in the [[August 13]], 1986 issue of the paper, describing it as "essentially a cartoon ''Star Wars'' about robots from a toybox galaxy far, far away". She then went on to say that the film "never takes off" and derided it as "uninspired".

Janice Kennedy of the ''Montreal Gazette'' verbally disemboweled the film in the [[August 23]], 1986 edition of the paper, criticizing it as overly commercial, profane, loud, violent, humorless, heavy-handed in its religious messages and chaulk-full of gratuitous celebrity voice-overs. Her only compliment: "But ''The Transformers: The Movie'' does have at least one good thing going for it, a howlingly appropriate song by [["Weird Al" Yankovic]]. It's title? ''Dare to be Stupid''." ''Ouch''.

Nanciann Cherry in the August 13, 1986 edition of the ''Toledo Blade'' claimed the robots in the movie had little personality and faded into the background. She even went on to say that ''Challenge of the GoBots: Battle of the Rock Lords'' was a superior film! Her review was filled with inaccuracies, however, citing characters such as "Unicon" and claiming that the destruction of Cybertron's moons by "Unicon" is what caused the Autobots to travel to Autobot City, at which point Megatron attacked. To be fair, she readily admits, "About 20 minutes into the film, I gave up on the plot and tried to count all the ideas that were stolen from other sources. Now that kept me busy." So she wasn't really paying attention, anyway.

Kathryn Buxton in the [[August 22]], 1986 edition of the ''Palm Beach Post'' gave the film a whopping ''one'' star, calling it "a ripoff of a successful toyline", whatever ''that'' means. In the same article, she also gave David Cronenberg's ''[[Fly|The Fly]]'' one star, just for reference.

In the August 8, 1986 edition of the ''LA Times'', critic Charles Solomon made clear his dislike for the film centered primarily on the fact that none of the characters had interesting or believable motivation. He stated, "Not even the best actor can create a character out of nothing. Not one of the robots has a reason for doing what he does." Solomon then pointed to Unicron specifically as an example of the lack of deep, multi-dimensional motivations in the characters.

Over time, however, the movie has acquired something of a cult following beyond the core base of [[fandom|Transformers fans]], particularly among children of the 80s. It is sometimes screened as a midnight movie at colleges. Online, it is not hard to find amateur reviews lauding everything about it as utterly awesome, from the premise to the soundtrack, and dismissing more critical views out of hand.

To date, the budget of the film has not been disclosed—at least, not in any place the [[fandom]] has found. According to most box office tracking sites,<ref>http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=transformers.htm</ref><ref>http://www.the-numbers.com/movies/1986/0TRTM.php</ref> ''The Transformers: The Movie'' made $5,849,647 in domestic (e.g., United States) theaters. Comparing this with other animated films of 1986, the results are not particularly charitable; while it did better financially than ''[[Tonka GoBots|GoBots: Battle of the Rock Lords]]''<ref>http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=gobots.htm</ref> ($1,338,264) and ''Heathcliff: The Movie''<ref>http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=heathcliff.htm</ref> ($2,610,686), it performed worse than the ''[[My Little Pony]]'' movie<ref>http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=mylittlepony.htm</ref> ($5,958,456) and the '''second''' ''Care Bears'' movie<ref>http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=carebearsmovie2.htm</ref> ($8,540,346). Bringing up ''The Great Mouse Detective''<ref>http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=greatmousedetective.htm</ref> ($25,336,794) and ''An American Tail''<ref>http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=americantail.htm</ref> ($47,483,002) would really just be overkill.

==Significance in Transfandom==
''The Transformers: The Movie'' remains one of the most important elements of the entire Transformers brand, both within the fiction and from the perspective of the brand's popularity and "mindshare".

Fictionally, it established several story concepts that have been used repeatedly in the years since 1986, some of which—such as Unicron and the Matrix—are now central to the entire Transformers mythos. The movie is also the centerpiece of the most well-known Transformers continuity: the Generation 1 animated universe. The ''Transformers'' cartoon is split into "pre-movie" and "post-movie" sections which feature different characters and settings, and even somewhat different visual styles. (Most pre-movie episodes were animated by the studio [[Toei]], while most post-movie episodes were animated by [[AKOM]].)

On a practical note, it was widely available on videotape, and remained so long after the ''The Transformers'' cartoon had gone off the air. Only a [[Family Home Entertainment|handful of series episodes]] were available on video, making ''The Transformers: The Movie'' the logical choice for someone looking to pick up a ''Transformers'' cartoon; this made it far more well-known among fans than any particular cartoon episode.

To an entire generation of young fans, the movie was the most visually spectacular and narratively epic ''Transformers'' experience of their entire youth. Events such as the death of Optimus Prime are widely reported to have reduced many kids to tears. It is hardly a surprise that these emotional experiences embedded themselves deeply in many fans' memories.

==Criticisms==
[[Image:TFTM Ratchet dies.jpg|180px|left|thumb|Only Imperial Stormtroopers are so precise.]]

All this is not all to say that the movie is a "masterpiece", exactly. The film met with extremely harsh critical reviews on its release, and some of those criticisms still ring true today.

The film displays an arguably cynical attitude towards itself as [[To sell toys|a vehicle for advertising toys]], especially in the way beloved characters are killed—sometimes gratuitously—for sake of justifying the story's focus on a new group of toys. (Note that with the exception of Laserbeak and possibly Buzzsaw [http://www.flickr.com/photos/42232106@N06/3893688802] the poster at the top of this article features ''only'' new characters.)

Further, the two primary plot devices—[[Unicron]] and the [[Matrix of Leadership|Matrix]]—have no prior establishment in the fiction. Unicron is given no backstory or justification; he simply exists, is very dangerous, and is afraid of the Matrix, all for no adequately explained reason. The introduction of the Matrix itself is a heavy [[retcon]]. The story asks the audience to accept that this cosmically powerful artifact has been in Prime's possession all along (even though an X-ray of Optimus Prime's innards in the second season episode "[[A Prime Problem]]" show absolutely no signs of said Matrix), but has somehow never been relevant before. In fact, this lack of prior establishment is what led [[Simon Furman]] to develop the divinity backstory of Unicron and [[Primus]] in the UK comics run.

[[Image:Megatronlightsaber.jpg|right|180px|thumb|Your powers are weak, old man!]]
The movie bears many similarities to ''[[Star Wars]]'': There are several character-parallels ([[Springer (G1)|Springer]] is a [[Han Solo]]-type and [[Arcee (G1)|Arcee]] even has Princess Leia's hairdo!), the primary threat is similar (it's the [[Death Star]]... [[Unicron|but it transforms!]]), and both feature a climactic battle where the [[Hot Rod (G1)|young hero]] hears the voice of his [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|dead, wise mentor]] one last time before saving the day.

To be a bit more fair to ''The Transformers: The Movie'', however, most of these similarities are either superficial (Arcee's Leia-hair; Megatron's "lightsaber" he briefly uses in his duel against Optimus Prime) or can be seen as elements common to thousands of years worth of epic storytelling through human history, not just common to ''Star Wars''. As a simple example, the phenomenon of two charismatic leaders dealing each other mortal injuries in battle hearkens back to some versions of the "King Arthur" myth; in their final battle, [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Arthur]] and his arch-enemy [[Megatron (G1)|Sir Mordred]] deal one another lethal injuries and both apparently expire—though Arthur according to the legend will [[The Return of Optimus Prime|return]] when [[Cybertron (planet)|England's]] need [[Darkest hour|is greatest]].

==Formatting==
[[Image:Tftm widescreenesque.jpg|right|300px|thumb|The "widescreen" picture (left) actually ''cuts off'' the top and bottom of the fullscreen picture (right).]]
Although it was billed in some advertisements before its theatrical release as being "widescreen", the movie was in fact animated in a 4:3 (fullscreen) aspect ratio. For its theatrical screenings, the film was matted down in the projector by the projectionist to a 16:9 aspect ratio (widescreen), chopping the top and bottom off the picture, but all video transfers of the movie were done without mattes, meaning that there was actually more picture visible in the fullscreen video and DVD releases than there would have been in theaters. Across 2006 and 2007, new editions of the DVD of the film were released by Sony BMG and [[Metrodome]] which applied the mattes in order to replicate the original theatrical presentation of the film for the first time in home entertainment. Some fans, however, didn't realize that the film wasn't actually ''animated'' in widescreen, and, hearing that the DVD was to be in widescreen, expected to see the fullscreen image with additional footage at the sides, causing them to complain that the top and bottom were cut off, thereby totally missing the point.

==International versions==
{{main|The Transformers: The Movie/dubs}}

==Commercial Releases==
* The movie was originally released in North America on home video in 1987 by [[Family Home Entertainment]], minus Spike's swear. Not long after, it was releasd in the UK by [[Video Gems]]. This version featured the opening text crawl and closing narration inherent to the UK version of the film. In Australia, the film was releaed on video by RCA/Columbia Pictures/Hoyts. In Japan, Hillcrane released a Laserdisc version alongside a VHS copy.
*The movie was released spottily in the '90s, beginning with a budget VHS by Avid Home Entertainment in 1991. [[Malofilm]] released a VHS in Canada in 1995, notable for being the first home entertainment version to include Spike's swear. In 1998, Japanese company Pioneer produced another pair of Laserdisc and VHS releases. In 1999, things kicked off when American company [[Kid Rhino]] secured the Transformers license and released the film on VHS once again.
*The 21st century's flirtation with ''The Transformers: The Movie'' started with a UK budget VHS release of that country's version by [[Sony|Sony Wonder]], distributed by [[Maverick Entertainment]]. A Japanese company called CatCo followed this up with a VideoCD, and Malofilm—now Seville—were the first to release a DVD version of the film, though it was just a dump of their VHS version.
*In November 2000, ''The Transformers: The Movie'' got its first, full professional DVD release from Kid Rhino. This edition, labelled a "Special Collector's Edition", is the first to feature remastered video and audio, and several special features, including storyboards and an interview with [[Vince DiCola]]. Rhino concurrently released this version on VHS, sans extras.
*In 2001 in the UK, Sony Wonder released their own much-delayed DVD version of the film. It was the UK version of the film, but included Spike's swear. However, the release was burdened by badly interlaced video, though it notably included the [[Omni Productions]] dub version of the ''[[The Headmasters (cartoon)|Headmasters]]'' episode "[[Four Warriors Come out of the Sky]]" as an extra. This version (including the ''Headmasters'' episode) was simultaneously released on VHS.
*The movie was released on DVD in Australia in 2003 by [[Madman Entertainment]], using the same video as the Maverick version, but distinguished by some nifty new cover art by [[Don Figueroa]], and special features not seen on other editions, such as ''[[Stan Bush|The Touch]]'' music video and 80s TV spots.
[[Image:Tftm uk covers.jpg|right|180px|thumb|The UK poster art (left) has been the most common DVD and VHS cover in its home country, but the Ultimate Edition featured new art by Andy Wildman (right).]]
*After acquiring the license to release ''Transformers'' DVDs in the UK, [[Metrodome]] focused on completing their run of series box sets before turning their attention to the movie properly, releasing only a cheap budget DVD of the UK version through Prism Leisure with no extras, and a UMD of the same version.
*In 2005, Metrodome released ''Transformers: The Movie - Reconstructed'', a new version of the film designed to expose as much of the animated picture as possible. This, however, only resulted in exposing the rough, unfinished edges of the animation, and an overly pale remaster was compounded by excessive interlacing due to an unnecessary NTSC to PAL transfer. This, coupled with a 5.1 remix from [[Magno Sound & Video]], featuring the same extra sound effects that they added to Rhino's season box sets, made this release both controversial and disappointing to many. This was the first time that the US version of the movie was released in the UK, and the first to feature the US poster art as a cover (although a Silverscreen store exclusive version of the disc included a reversible cover with the UK poster art as well). Extras include trailers, TV spots, the character biographies from the Madman release, and a subtitled version of "[[Four Warriors Come out of the Sky]]".
[[Image:Tftm sony covers.jpg|right|180px|thumb|Sony's covers, by Don Figueroa.]]
*For the movie's 20th anniversary in 2006, new license holder [[Sony|Sony BMG]] released a two-disc special edition of the film, featuring both a high-quality widescreen remaster and the original fullscreen version, audio commentaries from crew and fans, several new featurettes interviewing those involved in the movie's production, storyboards, tv spots, American and Japanese commercials and more. Most notably, this version included the first Western release of "[[Scramble City (episode)|Scramble City]]", albeit silent and unsubtitled, featuring only audio commentary. This release featured two covers by Don Figueroa: one is of the '84-'85 cast that appear in the movie, and one is of the movie's new characters, available either as a lenticular hologram that switches between the two, or as a reversible sleeve with the images printed on either side.
[[Image:Tftm madman covers.jpg|right|180px|thumb|Madman's 2003 DVD cover (left), and their 2007 Special Edition cover (right).]]
*Delayed a bit to coincide with the hype for the 2007 [[Transformers (2007)|live-action movie]], Metrodome also released a two-disc "Ultimate Edition" with a different widescreen master. Like "Reconstructed", this version used the US edition of the film, but this time, the UK version was also included, in fullscreen, on the second disc. Extras include TV spots, commercials, the Madman biographies, storyboards, commentary, Scramble City (with audio and subtitles), featurettes with [[Flint Dille]] and [[Peter Cullen]], and more. The double-disc edition was sold in a steel case featuring new art by [[Andrew Wildman]], with the UK poster art adorning the standard case inside. Various store exclusives were available, including postcards from Play.Com, a reversible cover with the US poster art from HMV, art cards from Virgin Megastore and [[posters]] from Woolworths and [[Toys"R"Us]]. It was also available in an extra-less single-disc version. This version was premiered at the Mid Ulster Film Festival in Ireland which was the only cinema showing of the remastered version of the film to date.
*The film was released in Full HD 1080p on Blu-ray in the UK in October 2007. The Blu-ray is not region-locked, so it will play anywhere in the world. It features a 2.0 soundtrack, 5.1 Dolby Digital track, and a full bitrate DTS 5.1 track. The master used was the same used by Sony for their US DVD. The picture is quite stunning and the sound very good. Sadly, there are no extras on the DVD. The version of the film on the Blu-ray is the US one, complete with swear word.
*Madman produced their two-disc special edition through some collaboration with Metrodome, and consequently it features much of the same content, with additional extras taking the form of The Touch music video and a bonus episode of ''[[Beast Wars (cartoon)|Beast Wars]]''. This release again features cover artwork by Don Figueroa, specifically the cover of [[IDW Publishing|IDW]]'s ''[[Transformers: The Animated Movie]]'' adaptation.

==Notes==
* According to [[Buzz Dixon]], Hasbro's decision to kill off Optimus Prime was actually an attempt to maintain some brand-storytelling parity with ''[[G.I. Joe (franchise)|G.I. Joe]]'', as Dixon had just convinced them to allow the death of [[Duke (G.I. Joe)|Duke]] in ''[[wikipedia:G.I. Joe: The Movie|G.I. Joe: The Movie]]'' and both films were in production at the same time.<ref>http://www.joeheadquarters.com/interviews_dixon.shtml</ref>

* This film was the last professional performance by [[Orson Welles]], who died only a month later. According to production materials shown at [[BotCon 2000]] by Tim Finn, the voice recording sessions for ''The Transformers: The Movie'' were done on [[September 10]] and [[September 11|11]] of 1985. Welles died on [[October 10]] of that same year. It has often been speculated that Unicron's last line ("Destiny… you cannot destroy my destiny!") was recorded by another actor—possibly [[Leonard Nimoy|Nimoy]]—because it sounds different than the other lines. This speculation has been quashed by statements by Transformers voice director [[Wally Burr]].<ref>http://cybertronchronicle.freewebspace.com/60-astrominutes/wally-burr/wally_burr_3.html</ref>
[[Image:Windcharger wheeljack otp.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Uncle Owen! Aunt Beru!!]]

* With the exception of Starscream and possibly Shockwave, only the Autobots suffered fatalities in the movie. All of the other "dead" Decepticons from the Autobot City battle were rebuilt into Galvatron's new troops, and although more Decepticons were shown taking heavy damage and suffering huge casualties while fighting Unicron, their identities and their final condition are uncertain. Additionally, both Starscream and Unicron survived in the post-movie series in some form or another. Shockwave's death in the finished film is highly uncertain, although in the script it is fairly strongly implied. He does make some miscolored appearances in crowd shots in later cartoon episodes, but these are probably examples of the fairly common animation errors in those episodes.

* Somewhat ironically, though only three of the original eighteen Autobots - [[Jazz (G1)|Jazz]], [[Cliffjumper (G1)|Cliffjumper]], and [[Bumblebee (G1)|Bumblebee]] - are definitively shown to have survived the movie, two would quite literally never be heard from again: [[Scatman Crothers]] passed away (though this didn't stop Jazz from making any number of background cameos) while Casey Kasem [[Casey Kasem#Trivia|quit the show early in the third season]]. Fate's finger is fickle indeed.

*[[:Image:TFTM-MaybeBeachcomber.jpg|A robot resembling Beachcomber]] appears alongside Spike and the Autobots inside Unicron seconds before Daniel blasts the acid cover. Whether this was actually meant to be Beachcomber or just coincidental coloring is unknown, but regardless, Beachcomber shows up alive and well in "[[Five Faces of Darkness, Part 5]]".

==External links==
* [http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=transformers.htm ''The Transformers: The Movie'''s box office domestic gross.]
* [http://web.archive.org/web/20080426020409/http://www.tftm.net/ ''The Transformers: The Movie'' "Unofficial Fansite", an extremely thorough site about the movie]
* [http://www.wombatking.com/coppermine/thumbnails.php?album=4 ''The Transformers: The Movie'' deleted storyboards]

==Footnotes==
{{Reflist|2}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Transformers: The Movie}}

[[Category:Generation 1]]
[[Category:MSTF]]
[[Category:Real world films]]

The Transformers: The Movie

2010-07-06T12:58:43Z

201.83.146.4:

{{disambig3|Transformers: The Movie}}

{{quote|Conceived in the epic tradition of ''"[[Star Wars]]"''...|[[Victor Caroli]] ain't just whistling Dixie, [[The Transformers: The Movie promo|''The Transformers: The Movie'' promo]]}}

{{episode|
|seriess=[[The Transformers (cartoon)|The Transformers]]
|prev=B.O.T. (episode)
|next=Five Faces of Darkness, Part 1
|seriess2=[[Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers (franchise)|Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers]]
|prev2=Scramble City
|title=''The Transformers: The Movie''
|image=Transformersanimatedfilmposter.jpg
|caption=Featuring the deaths of all your favorite Transformers characters.
|production code=
|production company=[[Sunbow Productions]]
|writer=[[Ron Friedman]]
|directed by=[[Nelson Shin]]
|animation studio=[[Toei]]
|release date=[[August 8]], 1986
|continuity=[[Generation 1 cartoon continuity]]
}}

'''''The Transformers: The Movie''''' is an animated feature film based on the original Transformers toyline. It was released in the United States on August 8, 1986.

The film's storyline follows the same continuity as the ''[[The Transformers (cartoon)|Transformers]]'' cartoon. It introduces a [[Scale|planet-sized Transformer]] called [[Unicron]] who eats other planets, and is approaching [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]]. As part of their continuing wars, the Autobots and Decepticons have a [[Battle of Autobot City|fierce battle]] on Earth which sees both Optimus Prime and Megatron mortally wounded. Prime passes the [[Matrix of Leadership]] to Ultra Magnus and dies, and Megatron is transformed by Unicron into [[Galvatron (G1)|Galvatron]]. [[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]] (briefly) assumes leadership of the Decepticons, but is killed when Galvatron arrives at Cybertron. Galvatron then chases the surviving Autobots on Earth across space, splitting them up and taking the Matrix. The Autobots find their way back to each other, and follow Galvatron to Cybertron just as Unicron transforms into robot mode and begins to eat their world. Travelling inside Unicron, [[Hot Rod (G1)|Hot Rod]] recovers the Matrix, transforms into Rodimus Prime, and uses the Matrix to destroy Unicron.

Often referred to by fans simply as "the movie" or "TFTM", the movie was a step up in almost every area from the television series, with a more sophisticated plot, more serious treatment of war and violence, a hugely ambitious scope and a greatly increased animation budget with well-known celebrities providing voice work. For these reasons the film remains very popular with children of the 1980s.

The film opens with characters who had been featured in the first two years of the toyline and associated media (cartoons, comic books, etc.), but quickly introduces new characters and kills many of the old ones to make room. In particular, [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]], [[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]], and [[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]] are all destroyed during the course of the film.

{{quote|The Japanese have funded a full-length animated cartoon about the doings of these toys, which is all bad outer-space stuff. I play a planet. I menace somebody called Something-or-other. Then I'm destroyed. My plan to destroy Whoever-it-is is thwarted and I tear myself apart on the screen.|Orson Welles<ref>[http://books.google.com/books?id=KlqsYy512WIC&source=gbs_navlinks_s "Orson Wells: A Biography"] page 522</ref>}}

==Synopsis==
[[Image:TFTM_Unicron_Lithone.jpg|left|200px|thumb|That's no moon.]]

A mechanical planet travels through the depths of space, attacking [[Lithone (planet)|a metal planet]] which has [[Lithone (species)|robotic inhabitants]]. Robots, vehicles, buildings, and even large chunks of rock are sucked off the surface and devoured by the monstrous planet.

It is the year 2005, and the [[Decepticon]]s are now in control of Cybertron. The [[Autobot]]s are preparing to launch an assault to retake the planet from hidden bases on two of Cybertron's moons. The Autobots launch a [[Autobot shuttle|shuttle]] to pick up a final shipment of [[Energon (fuel)|energon]] from [[Earth]] before they strike.

[[Image:Tftm1986a.jpg|right|200px|thumb|I have a bad feeling about this.]]

Plans for the attack are overheard by [[Laserbeak (G1)|Laserbeak]], who reports back to [[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]]. The Decepticons attack the Autobot shuttle en route to Earth, wiping out its crew (including [[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]], [[Prowl (G1)|Prowl]], [[Ratchet (G1)|Ratchet]] and the [[Brawn (G1)|guy in the picture over there]]). Using the Autobots' own shuttle, the Decepticons are able to get very close to the Autobots' base on Earth, [[Autobot City]], before they are detected, and begin a devastating surprise attack on the unprepared city.

During the battle at Autobot City, both [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]] and Megatron suffer mortal injuries, and a number of other characters are also killed. Eventually the Decepticons retreat, but the damage suffered by the Autobots has been severe.

{{note|For an extensive synopsis of the battle, see [[Battle of Autobot City]].}}

[[Image:Tftm1986b.jpg|left|200px|thumb|If you strike me down, I shall become more powerful than you can possibly imagine.]]

Shortly after the battle, Prime lies on his deathbed. He passes the reins of leadership to [[Ultra Magnus (G1)|Ultra Magnus]] and gives him the [[Matrix of Leadership]]. (Though Hot Rod actually touches the Matrix before Magnus does.) Prime relates a prophecy: "One day, an Autobot shall rise from our ranks, and use the power of the Matrix to light our [[darkest hour]]." He then gives the oath, "[['Til all are one]]", and [[The many deaths of Optimus Prime|dies]]. This sequence of events is observed remotely by Unicron, who appears unusually concerned by the survival of the Matrix.

The Decepticons are making their escape aboard [[Astrotrain (G1)|Astrotrain]], but are too heavy for him to get them all home under his own power. After putting the matter to a fair vote, the Decepticons decide to throw their injured members off the ship to better the chance of survival for the rest. One of the most severely injured Decepticons is Megatron. [[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]] tosses him out and claims leadership of the Decepticon army.

Megatron and the other adrift Decepticons then encounter Unicron in interstellar space. Unicron offers to rebuild Megatron and his minions in exchange for their service. Megatron agrees, and is [[Reformatting|reformatted]] into [[Galvatron (G1)|Galvatron]]. The other Decepticons are turned into [[Cyclonus (G1)|Cyclonus]], [[Scourge (G1)|Scourge]], and the [[Sweep]]s. Unicron provides them with a [[Revenge (G1)|ship]], and sends them to kill Ultra Magnus and destroy the Matrix, stating that the Matrix is the only thing which can stand in his way.

[[Image:Tftm1986c.jpg|right|200px|thumb|Don't be too proud of this technological terror you've constructed.]]
Galvatron first stops at Cybertron to take his revenge by killing Starscream and reclaiming leadership of the Decepticons. Almost immediately afterwards, Unicron arrives in Cybertron's vicinity and devours at least two moons—both of the Autobots' moon bases are destroyed. Under coercion by Unicron, Galvatron finally heads to Earth to kill Ultra Magnus, but Magnus and the other surviving Autobots flee in a pair of shuttles. Eventually Galvatron manages to cause one shuttle to crash on yet another metal planet ([[Quintessa]]), and detonates the other with a volley of missiles. However, the Autobots in the second shuttle escape unnoticed by separating the front portion of their shuttle just before impact.

The Autobots in the crashed shuttle, [[Hot Rod (G1)|Hot Rod]], [[Kup (G1)|Kup]], and the [[Dinobot (G1)|Dinobots]], find themselves separated and in a hostile environment. Hot Rod and Kup are captured by a squad of [[Allicon]]s and taken before a [[Quintesson]] [[Quintesson#Judges|judge]] and his court. While being held there, they learn the name and nature of Unicron from [[Kranix]], a survivor of the planet destroyed in the opening of the film, which he calls [[Lithone (planet)|Lithone]]. Meanwhile, the Dinobots encounter and befriend a young, wild Autobot named [[Wheelie (G1)|Wheelie]] who has been living alone on Quintessa. Together, they crash the trial just as Hot Rod and Kup are fighting losing odds against the Quintessons' [[Sharkticon (G1)|Sharkticons]]. The tide is turned, and the Autobots commandeer a [[Quintesson spacecraft#Quintesson_Cruiser|Quintesson Cruiser]].

[[Image:Tftm1986d.jpg|left|200px|thumb|What an incredible smell you've discovered!]]
The other group of Autobots has landed on the planet [[Junkion (planet)|Junkion]] to make repairs, but are attacked yet again by Galvatron, who was tipped off to their survival by Unicron. During the battle, Ultra Magnus tries to open the Matrix to use its power, but is unable to do so, and instead is killed. Galvatron absconds with the Matrix, taking it away to Unicron. The remaining Autobots—[[Perceptor (G1)|Perceptor]], [[Springer (G1)|Springer]], [[Arcee (G1)|Arcee]], and [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike's]] son [[Daniel Witwicky (G1)|Daniel]]—are then ambushed by [[Junkion (species)|Junkions]], the eponymous natives of Junkion, who are also giant transforming robots. This battle is cut short, however, by the arrival of Hot Rod's group in their Quintesson ship. After exchanging the [[universal greeting]] they all make friends, and the Junkions restore Ultra Magnus to life. Together, the whole group travels to Cybertron to try to recover the Matrix.

[[Image:TFTM Unicron smashes cybertron.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Rebel base in range. You may fire when ready.]]
Galvatron attempts to open the Matrix to use its power against Unicron, but is also unable to get it open. Unicron, not pleased with this attempted treachery, shocks Galvatron by transforming from a planet into a [[Scale|planet-sized robot]]. Unicron plucks Galvatron off his chest and swallows him, Matrix and all, and then begins attacking Cybertron itself. [[Shockwave (G1)|Shockwave]] scrambles the Decepticon forces to defend the planet, but they are ineffective against so large an enemy. Shortly the Autobots arrive from Junkion, and fly the Quintesson ship straight through Unicron's eye. This impact destroys the ship, and the Autobots fall out inside Unicron. Hot Rod, separated from the others, eventually runs into Galvatron. During their fight, Hot Rod gets his hands on the Matrix and hears Optimus's voice speak the words, "Arise, Rodimus Prime." Hot Rod grows in stature, adopts a much sterner demeanor, and quickly dispatches Galvatron by tossing him through Unicron's hull out into space. He then opens the Matrix, which fills Unicron with light and begins destroying him.

[[Image:Tftm1986e.jpg|left|200px|thumb|Use the Force, Luke.]]
In the meantime, the other Autobots inside Unicron have located some of their comrades from the moon bases who had been presumed dead, including [[Bumblebee (G1)|Bumblebee]] and Daniel's father, Spike. The Autobots, including Rodimus, escape through Unicron's remaining eye just as he begins to fall apart and explode. The scene then immediately shifts to the surface of Cybertron, where—for unclear reasons—the Autobots seem to be in charge again. Rodimus predicts an era of peace and prosperity, and the film closes with a shot of Unicron's severed head still floating in orbit around Cybertron.

[['Til all are one]].
{{-}}

==Quotes==
"Such heroic nonsense."
:—'''Megatron''' coldly finishes off Ironhide. The 'Cons always get the best lines.

"I've got better things to do tonight than die!"
:—'''Springer''', telling it like it is.

"One shall stand. One shall fall."
:—'''Optimus Prime''' uttering the most quoted line of the Movie. An ass kicker cometh.

"Until the day...'til all are one..."
:—'''Optimus Prime''''s final words

"Oh, how it ''pains'' me to do this." 
"Wait! I still function!" 
"Wanna ''bet''?"
:—'''Starscream''' fights back the tears as he throws '''Megatron''' out of Astrotrain.

"I have summoned you here for a purpose." 
"Nobody summons Megatron!" 
"Then it pleases me to be the first."
:—'''Unicron''' shows '''Megatron''' who's the boss.

"Who disrupts my coronation?" 
"Coronation, Starscream? This is bad comedy." 
"Megatron? Is that you?" 
"Here's a hint!"
:—'''Galvatron''' drops "hints" for '''Starscream''' like others drop anvils.

"Did we ''have'' to let them detonate three quarters of the ship?" 
"Seeing as how they would have detonated ''four'' quarters, I think it was a good choice."
:—'''Arcee''' and '''Springer'''

"For a time… I considered ''sparing'' your wretched little planet of Cybertron. But now... you shall witness... its ''dismemberment''!"
:—'''Unicron''' really needs to work on his anger management skills...

"Me Grimlock kick butt!" 
:—'''Grimlock''' isn't speaking figuratively.

"Destiny... You cannot... destroy... my... destiny--AAH!!" 
:—'''Unicron''''s final words

"Let this mark the end of the Cybertronian Wars as we march forward into a new era of peace and happiness! 'Til all are one!" 
:—'''Rodimus Prime''' announces the end of the [[Great War (G1)|Great War]]... yeah, right.

==Featured characters==
{{featuredcharacters
|c1=
*[[Optimus Prime (G1)|Optimus Prime]] ([[Peter Cullen]])
*[[Hot Rod (G1)|Hot Rod]]/Rodimus Prime ([[Judd Nelson]])
*[[Ultra Magnus (G1)|Ultra Magnus]] ([[Robert Stack]])
*[[Kup (G1)|Kup]] ([[Lionel Stander]])
*[[Springer (G1)|Springer]] ([[Neil Ross]])
*[[Arcee (G1)|Arcee]] ([[Susan Blu]])
*[[Blurr (G1)|Blurr]] ([[John Moschitta]])
*[[Grimlock (G1)|Grimlock]] ([[Gregg Berger]])
*[[Perceptor (G1)|Perceptor]] ([[Paul Eiding]])
*[[Blaster (G1)|Blaster]] ([[Buster Jones]])
*[[Swoop (G1)|Swoop]] ([[Michael Bell]])
*[[Slag (G1)|Slag]] ([[Neil Ross]])
*[[Sludge (G1)|Sludge]]
*[[Wheelie (G1)|Wheelie]] ([[Frank Welker]])
*[[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] ([[Peter Cullen]])
*[[Prowl (G1)|Prowl]] ([[Michael Bell]])
*[[Jazz (G1)|Jazz]] ([[Scatman Crothers]])
*[[Bumblebee (G1)|Bumblebee]] ([[Dan Gilvezan]])
*[[Cliffjumper (G1)|Cliffjumper]] ([[Casey Kasem]])
*[[Brawn (G1)|Brawn]] ([[Corey Burton]])
*[[Gears (G1)|Gears]] ([[Don Messick]])
*[[Auto-combatant]] ([[Frank Welker]])
*[[Eject]]
*[[Rewind]]
*[[Steeljaw (G1)|Steeljaw]]
*[[Ramhorn]]
*[[Wheeljack (G1)|Wheeljack]]
*[[Windcharger (G1)|Windcharger]]
*[[Ratchet (G1)|Ratchet]]
*[[Snarl (G1)|Snarl]]
*[[Grapple]]
*[[Huffer (G1)|Huffer]]
*[[Hound (G1)|Hound]]
*[[Sunstreaker (G1)|Sunstreaker]]
*[[Bluestreak]]
*[[Inferno (G1)|Inferno]]* ([[Walker Edmiston]])
*[[Beachcomber]]
*[[Powerglide]]
*[[Junkinon motorcycle guy]]
*[[Chormia]] ( flashback)
|c2=
*[[Megatron (G1)|Megatron]] ([[Frank Welker]])
*[[Galvatron (G1)|Galvatron]] ([[Leonard Nimoy]])
*[[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]] ([[Chris Latta]])
*[[Cyclonus (G1)|Cyclonus]] ([[Roger C. Carmel]])
*[[Scourge (G1)|Scourge]] ([[Stan Jones]])
*[[Soundwave (G1)|Soundwave]] ([[Frank Welker]])
*[[Devastator (G1)|Devastator]] ([[Arthur Burghardt]])
*[[Scrapper (G1)|Scrapper]] ([[Michael Bell]])
*[[Bonecrusher (G1)|Bonecrusher]] ([[Neil Ross]])
*[[Hook (G1)|Hook]] ([[Neil Ross]])
*[[Scavenger (G1)|Scavenger]] ([[Don Messick]])
*[[Mixmaster (G1)|Mixmaster]]
*[[Long Haul (G1)|Long Haul]]
*[[Shrapnel (G1)|Shrapnel]] ([[Hal Rayle]])
*[[Kickback (G1)|Kickback]] ([[Clive Revill]])
*[[Bombshell (G1)|Bombshell]]
*[[Astrotrain (G1)|Astrotrain]] ([[Jack Angel]])
*[[Shockwave (G1)|Shockwave]] ([[Corey Burton]])
*[[Seacons]]
*[[Cybertron drones]]([[Frank Welker]])
*[[Decepticon Guy]]([[Frank Welker]])
*[[ Cyclonus Guy]]([[Frank Welker]])
8
*[[Dirge (G1)|Dirge]] ([[Bud Davis]])
*[[Blitzwing (G1)|Blitzwing]] ([[Ed Gilbert]])
*[[Rumble (G1)|Rumble]] ([[Frank Welker]])
*[[Frenzy (G1)|Frenzy]] ([[Frank Welker]])
*[[Laserbeak (G1)|Laserbeak]] ([[Frank Welker]])
*[[Ravage (G1)|Ravage]] ([[Frank Welker]])
*[[Ratbat (G1)|Ratbat]] ([[Frank Welker]])
*[[Thrust (G1)|Thrust]]
*[[Ramjet (G1)|Ramjet]]
*[[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]]
*[[Thundercracker (G1)|Thundercracker]]
*[[Sweep]]s
*[[Cyclonus's Armada]]
|c3=
*[[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]] ([[Corey Burton]])
*[[Daniel Witwicky (G1)|Daniel Witwicky]] ([[David Mendenhall]])
|c4=
*[[Unicron]] ([[Orson Welles]])
*[[Wreck-Gar (G1)|Wreck-Gar]] ([[Eric Idle]])
*[[Kranix]] ([[Norman Alden|Norm Alden]])
*[[Junkion (species)|Junkion]] ([[Michael Bell]])
*[[Junkion (species)|Junkion]] ([[Frank Welker]])
*[[Quintesson]] leader ([[Roger C. Carmel]])
*[[Quintesson#Judges|Quintesson judge]] ([[Regis Cordic|Rege Cordic]])
*[[Arblus]] ([[Norman Alden|Norm Alden]])
*[[Sharkticon (G1)|Sharkticons]]
*[[Allicon]]s
|nonumbering=true
}}
<nowiki>*</nowiki>Credited, but did not appear.

==Animation errors==
* When Unicron is approaching Lithone at the start of the movie, at the line "Look, it's Unicron!", a [[Animation error#Sizing errors|cel stacking error]] results in Unicron's ring appearing in front of a building arch, [[Distribution|making Unicron look very tiny]] in that shot. In the next shot, it is clear that Unicron is several times larger than the entire planet of Lithone.
* The inside of one of the Lithonian ships being devoured by Unicron is visible for a couple of frames. The pilot of the ship appears to be Kranix, even though he apparently screams out Kranix's name, and Kranix appears later in the Quintesson prison.
* When the inside of Unicron is shown after he devours Lithone, the "blinking energy" effect of Unicron's innards was apparently achieved by recycling backgrounds from other animated TV shows or movies. A frame by frame viewing reveals what appear to be several images of post-apocalyptic buildings inside Unicron.
* When Optimus Prime asks Jazz to report security status, it shows both Jazz and Cliffjumper. Cliffjumper is seen twiddling knobs above the actual drawn computer, as if a section was supposed to be present.
* When the Decepticons blow a hole through the Autobot shuttle to get in, it is a clean break. However, Megatron is still shown ripping through random ship components to get in.
* Scavenger's head is white instead of black as he ducks from Prowl's shot.
* When the Decepticons are killing the Autobot shuttle crew, there is one of the common Starscream/Skywarp/Thundercracker miscolors. Megatron transforms into gun mode and Starscream catches him and kills Brawn. When they cut back to the Decepticons, Starscream is in front of the Constructicons without Megatron and is firing one of his arm rifles (this probably should have been Skywarp or Thundercracker). When they cut back to the Decepticons for the third time, Starscream has Megatron again and is finishing off the rest of the Autobots. In the shot of Starscream firing his own lasers, his wings are red instead of gray.
* When the Decepticons fly to the shuttle's controls, all of the Autobots have changed positions from when they fell—Brawn is now on his back, for example, while Prowl is now face-down. Ironhide's chest is also completely intact, despite having a bunch of holes blown in it.
* Hot Rod has at least two totally different transformation schemes during the course of the film.
* When Kup and several Autobots at the roadblock react to Hot Rod's attack on the hijacked Autobot shuttle, Bluestreak is represented by Prowl's [[Character model|animation model]], in Bluestreak's grey and black colours.
* Sunstreaker appears with Kup's group on Earth as they observe Hot Rod firing on Ironhide's shuttle. Sunstreaker later appears as Optimus Prime's co-pilot when they arrive on Earth with the Dinobots, and is seen disembarking the shuttle along with Optimus Prime and Hound.
* In a wide aerial shot of the city under attack, a Reflector flies by in Ironhide's color scheme. Shockwave also makes his only appearance in the battle; considering both his role as Cybertron's guardian and his absence from any other scenes during the battle, his presence is probably an animation error. Rumble also flies past, despite being inside Soundwave at this point.
* Blaster's forehead is red instead of white after his "look out and shout!" line, and again after he returns to robot mode.
* A laser blast that should be behind Blaster is instead layered in front of him as he acknowledges Perceptor's orders.
* In the big lineup of firing Decepticons, Soundwave's cheek guards are blue instead of white.
* When [[Soundwave (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Soundwave]] sends out his cassette troops, [[FIRRIB|Rumble is the same color as Frenzy]].
* Blaster first ejects what looks like Eject, who stays blue up until he gets to the edge of the screen. He then turns black like Rewind. Then Blaster ejects another blue cassette, which after about a second turns black. This one gets through half his transformation colored black, then turns blue for a split second then turns black again. Then, when the cassettes are fighting each other, Eject runs in from the left and jumps over Perceptor. And then he runs in from the left ''again'' to shoot Ravage. Suddenly [[Brawl (Movie)|Brawl/Devastator]] doesn't look so bad, does he?
* As Springer runs up to the launcher, Wheeljack's body is visible, but he's in red, white and blue colors.
* While Springer and Arcee are trying to move the launcher into place, Springer's face is the same color as his helmet.
* When Devastator forms in Autobot City, his chest plate is the same green as the rest of him. In the next shot, it's the usual purple. However, it promptly turns green again in the next shot.
* As Devastator lays into the walls, Shrapnel is white where he should be black.
* While Perceptor and Grapple are shooting, Swoop's lower half runs by in the foreground, long before the rest of him gets there.
* Megatron's pelvis is white instead of black as he gives the "let the slaughter begin!" order.
* Prime's dramatic transformation sequence far outlasts the transformation sound that's supposed to go with it. It's also the wrong sound (ascending pitch) for his robot-to-vehicle transformation.
* When Prime drives up behind the Decepticons, Blitzwing's head is tan instead of purple. It becomes purple when he turns it, then goes back to tan again as he turns it back.
* The gun Megatron uses to fatally injure Optimus is blue and white for most of the shots it is seen in, but when Megatron screams "Fall! FALL!" while shooting Prime again, it is black.
* Prime's antennae are white as he tries to stand after knocking Megatron off the ledge.
* Starscream's whole nosecone, rather than just the canopy, is yellow as he looms over Megatron.
* When Optimus Prime takes the Matrix out of his chest to give to Ultra Magnus, there is another Matrix beneath it in his chest. (On which note, see also ''[[Matrix of Leadership#Universe|Matrix of Leadership, Universe comic]].'')
* When Ultra Magnus accepts the Matrix, he's seen inserting it into his chest twice, or at best readjusting its "fit".
* As the other Decepticons prepare to push him out, Bombshell's chest is rendered as a shapeless gray mass, rather than with its yellow canopy.
* The voice that says "Don't!" is nowhere close to the voices of any of the five Decepticons shown getting thrown out of Astrotrain.
* Starscream's got an extra yellow segment on his canopy as he nominates himself for leadership. Man, even the A-list animation team couldn't keep this straight.
* Most of Megatron's chest emblem isn't colored in as he first speaks to Unicron. It might pass for battle damage, but a few shots later it's fully purple.
[[Image:Coronation .jpg|thumb|right|250px| *''trumpet fanfare''* ]]
* Even after the [[Battle of Autobot City]], characters who are supposedly dead continue to appear in crowd shots and battles. Shrapnel's role in the fight on [[Junkion (planet)|Junk]] is the most noticeable (and he was called for by name in the original script), but Thundercracker, Skywarp and Kickback can all be seen at Starscream's coronation. The two jets are later seen again, flying into Unicron's mouth.
* Hook has two eyes instead of a visor as he looks around in confusion during the trumpet scene.
* An early establishing shot clearly shows Cybertron with two and ''only'' two moons in low orbit. Yet a third moon is visible right after Unicron finishes eating the two Autobot bases.
* When Cyclonus is strafing the Autobot shuttle in space, he briefly flies offscreen, and during that time his laser blasts come from a point that in no way matches his flight path.
* Daniel's lips don't purse when he whistles.
* Wreck-Gar's mouth doesn't move at all during his first lines, despite the camera pushing in all close on his face.
* When Hot Rod tells the Junkions the universal greeting, the Autobot insignia on his chest is coloured black.
* Shrapnel's lower legs are white when he lands on Junk, instead of black. Must be a side effect of being dead.
* When Unicron transforms, the first hand we see (his right) is backwards relative to how the arm is shown on screen.
* Hot Rod's missing his Autobot symbol as he regains his footing inside Unicron.
* The third smelting victim doesn't fall from the conveyor belt; he simply vanishes.

== Continuity errors ==
[[Image:G1TFTM Snarl cameo.JPG|thumb|right|250px|He used to bulls-eye womp-rats in his T16 back home.]]

* The Dinobot [[Snarl (G1)|Snarl]] is mysteriously absent from almost the entire movie, even though the Dinobots as a group are featured prominently. Copies of the script which have come into fans' hands repeatedly list the Dinobots, but never make mention of Snarl by name. In fact, at one point the script refers to "the four Dinobots". Despite this, Snarl does appear in three very brief shots{{m-}}in which at least one other Dinobot (Swoop in one, Sludge in another) is entirely absent. Hmm.
* Also curiously absent are the 1985 Autobot cars and Mini-Vehicles, such as Inferno, Smokescreen, Cosmos, Warpath, etc. It would seem that these characters were available at the time of the movie:
** Perceptor and Blaster both debuted at the same time in the cartoon as the 1985 cars, and both play prominent roles in the movie.
** Grapple is [[:Image:BattleAutobotCity.jpg|seen ''very'' briefly]] during the battle for Autobot City.
** The 1985 Decepticons (Astrotrain, Dirge, etc.) appear in the film.
** [[:Image:TFTM-SideswipeRedAlertTracks.jpg|Tracks]], [[:Image:TFTM-RedAlertDown.jpg|Red Alert]] and Smokescreen all appeared in storyboards but not the finished film.
* Devastator is treated as ''the'' ultimate threat, while in the cartoon, his role (and apparent power) was already being [[Starscream's Brigade|severely diminished]], presumably because several other combiners had been introduced. In story terms, the absence of these newer combiners, not to mention the mighty Omega Supreme, is inexplicable. In real-life terms, those characters didn't exist when the film commenced production. (The [[Transformers: The Animated Movie]] adaptation shows Omega Supreme, Superion and Defensor guarding the Ark against an attack by Bruticus and Menasor, attempting to [[retcon]] the problem away.)
[[Image:Cyclonus armada tftf.jpg|thumb|right|250px|We'll be safe enough once we make the jump into lightspeed.]]
* The cartoon had made it abundantly clear that Cybertron had no moons. In numerous close and distant shots of the planet throughout the first two seasons, no moon was seen. Ever. The movie promptly introduces two (and possibly a third) moons in close orbit over the planet. In continuity terms, they must have been built or brought into orbit after 1986.
* During the Battle of Autobot City, Starscream gets his leg caught. He shoots downward and gets away while screaming "My foot!", but it's his shin that's smoking while his foot looks fine. Later he kicks Megatron with the same foot. Shouldn't that hurt, according to him? Note there is a time lapse between the "foot shooting" and the kicking, leaving the option of a battlefield repair.
* So Ultra Magnus just happens to have a ready-made Matrix chamber installed in his chest cavity? Is this standard issue for all Autobots?
* The cartoon had already established that Astrotrain increases his size when he transforms to shuttle mode, being large enough to carry a pair of Decepticons in his cockpit. However, within the movie itself, his size is [[scale|noticeably inconsistent]]: When he leaves Autobot City, he's just large enough for the Decepticon army to cram themselves in; later, he's so huge that the Constructicons can quite comfortably form Devastator inside him.
* The number of minions created by Unicron changes throughout the film, with more Sweeps appearing as the story progresses. A second Cyclonus ("Cyclonus, the warrior, and [[Cyclonus's Armada|his armada]]") is shown being created but disappears shortly thereafter. At least ''seven'' new characters are shown at one point, created from only ''six'' Decepticons thrown from the shuttle.

[[Image:SSBQ.jpg|thumb|right|250px|"I've been looking forward to this for a long time." "Yes, I bet you have."]]
* [[Galvatron (G1)|Galvatron]] is capable of reducing [[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]] to ashes with a single shot from his cannon mode. Though in later episodes Galvatron is shown blowing up even small ''[[Thrull|planets]]'' with his cannon, his extraordinary killing power seems to be gone—like when he scores a direct hit in cannon mode on Ultra Magnus in "[[Five Faces of Darkness, Part 5]]" and Magnus isn't especially hurt at all, or how a similar blast against Scourge in "[[The Burden Hardest to Bear]]" only leaves the latter temporarily incapacitated. [[Marvel Comics]] bios explain this by suggesting that Galvatron had nearly limitless power through Unicron... but then again, Galvatron himself claims to be "more powerful than ever" after Unicron is dead. {{storylink|Five Faces of Darkness, Part 2}} [[To sell toys|Who knows.]]
* Why didn't anyone notice Unicron until he was within devouring distance of Cybertron's moons?
* Despite running out of energon goodies on Quintessa, Hot Rod has at least one to offer to the Junkions. Maybe he got some on the ship. It's also possible that, when he told the Allicons "No more," he meant that he wasn't going to ''feed'' them any more energon goodies, not that he didn't ''have'' anymore.
* Daniel, who was just learning how to use his exo-suit, had to knock down the acid cover inside Unicron to save his loved ones. Why couldn't the more experienced Spike do the same with his suit from above? He had both of his arms free and a clear shot at the cover. On the other hand, the clamp holding him may well disable his exo-suit's weapons and movement abilities-if it didn't, Unicron probably wouldn't have eaten half as many victims by now...
* It's not clear how Rodimus Prime (carrying two humans) and the other Autobots survived their jump out of Unicron's eye and their plunge towards the surface of Cybertron.
* It's also unclear just how the dozen or so Autobots (and one shipload of Junkions) managed to retake the whole planet of Cybertron. Did Unicron really wipe out ''that'' many Decepticons?

===Not Necessarily Errors===
* Fans have noted throughout the years that Astrotrain, in his flight through zero-gravity space, should not have needed to "jettison some weight" in the literal sense. However, since the ejected Decepticons quickly fall behind Astrotrain instead of floating alongside him, he must still have been accelerating and thus would have needed to burn a greater amount of fuel in order to push a larger payload. Perhaps he should have said "jettison some ''mass''", but then again, just being a spaceship doesn't make him a rocket scientist.
* Starscream is shown just inside Astrotrain's cargo bay when he commands him to take off, but in the next shot (Astrotrain's door closing as his rocket engines ignite), Starscream is nowhere to be seen. It's possible that he walked further in, but he should still be at least partially visible.

==Continuity notes==
* The Movie has had a huge effect in shaping the mythos:
** It was the first story to establish that Cybertron had moons.
** It introduced the Matrix as a physical object, Autobot City, Unicron, the notion of Megatron becoming Galvatron, and it killed off Optimus Prime before it was cool!

* Gadgets and powers:
** Springer deploys a small flip-out twin laser from his wrist during the Autobot City battle.
** Arcee activates a long-distance scanner of some sort by lowering a red visor from under her helmet over her eyes.
** Hot Rod uses a saw blade that extends from his retracted wrist.
** Blurr has the same kind of hooked welding tip used by various Autobots as far back as "[[More than Meets the Eye, Part 2]]".
** Arcee unleashes a nasty barbed post from her fender to fend off a Junkion.
** Grimlock shows the never-before seen ability to shoot lasers from his fists.

==Real-world references and Easter eggs==
* When Sludge gets haymakered by Devastator, his eyes pop out of their sockets in Looney Tunes fashion.
* Kup's storytelling sequence aboard the shuttle is drawn from the novel ''Of Mice and Men'', complete with Grimlock in the Lenny role asking Kup to "tell Grimlock about petrorabbits again".
* The Quintesson jail cell includes robot debris ''strongly'' resembling the RX-178 Gundam MK II and the MSZ-006 Zeta Gundam mobile suits from 1985's ''Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam''.
* The Junkions speak almost entirely in pop culture quotes and pastiches. Littered among the generic phrases like "operators are standing by!", "Film at eleven" and "eliminate even the toughest stains" are more specific references, such as:
** "Don't look behind door #2, Monty!" - a reference to the game show ''Let's Make a Deal'' and its host, Monty Hall.
** "Ger-ron-ron-doo-ron-ronny-mo!" - both the famous "Geronimo!" war cry, and the 1963 hit "Da Do Ron Ron".
** "You check in, but you don't check out" - a parody of the tagline for Roach Motel insect traps.
** "Happy motoring!" - a 1970s slogan of gas company Exxon.

* ''[[Star Wars]]'' sound effects (yes, even the high-budget Movie uses them):
** The ''Millenium Falcon'' engine burst noise is used extensively throughout the film, over and over and over, almost any time a Decepticon takes flight.

** Luke's deactivating lightsaber is used as the sound of the Quintesson ship's ramp extending.
** Clashing lightsabers are used as Unicron fires eye-blasts at the attacking Transformers.

** An igniting lightsaber is used as Rodimus opens the Matrix.
* The ''Star Trek'' sliding door sound is used as Wreck-Gar pulls out his <s>iPhone</s> mini-TV.

==Adaptations==
*[[Transformers: The Movie (Marvel Comics)|A comic adaptation of the movie]] was published by [[Marvel Comics]] in 1986, concurrently with the movie's theater run. It was based off a non-finalized version of the script, and differs in many details from the final film. Additionally, most of the major character models (and possibly their unedited original character write-ups) appear in Issue #4 of the ''[[Transformers Universe (Marvel comic)|Transformers Universe]]'' series.
* [[Transformers the Movie (Ladybird adaptation)|A storybook adaptation]] was released in the UK by [[Ladybird Books]].
*A four-part adaptation was released in 2006/2007 by [[IDW Publishing]], as part of the film's 20th anniversary celebration. It was titled ''[[Transformers: The Animated Movie]]'' to differentiate it from the [[Michael Bay]] [[Transformers (2007)|live-action film]]. Unlike its predecessor, it adheres rigidly to the script and plot of the finished movie.

==Soundtrack==
{{main|The Transformers: The Movie - Original Motion Picture Soundtrack}}

==Promotions==
* Early in the movie's production, a [[The Transformers: The Movie promo|promotional trailer]] was made to sell the project to potential investors.
* The movie was advertised on related 1986 toy packages via the [[Decipher the Decepticon]] Sweepstakes, which included a pack-in poster and contest.
* The movie was heavily advertised directly by TV [[commercial]]s, and tail-end segments on Transformer toy ads. Portions of its story were also retold in altered fashion by animation segments of commercials for the movie character toys, such as a spot showing Springer doing battle with Wreck-Gar.

==In the comic continuity==
The [[The Transformers (Marvel comic)|Marvel UK comic]] made extensive use of the Movie as the basis for a series of stories involving the Transformers in the future. However there are several differences between the events seen on screen and those referenced in the comic:

*The comic always dates the move to 2006, following the date given in a treatment that was all [[Simon Furman]] had when he wrote [[Target: 2006]].
*In Target: 2006, [[Cyclonus (G1)|Cyclonus]] states that he was previously "[[Life Spark]]".
*The Matrix is always called the "Creation Matrix" in the comic, a name that predates the "Matrix of Leadership" but which is now used for the same physical object.
*[[Brawn (G1)|Brawn]] and [[Wheeljack (G1)|Wheeljack]] both survive the events, both later appearing in [[Space Pirates!]] (set in 2008).

In addition, Shockwave definitely survives the attack by Unicron.

The US comic almost completely ignored the events of the Movie, though later in the run an alternative future is briefly shown in "[[Rhythms of Darkness!]]" and "[[A Savage Circle]]". In this timeline at least some of the events of the Movie took place such as the creation of Galvatron from Megatron, which is dated to 2005, though Prowl's death was overlooked. [[Prowl II|Wouldn't be the first time. Or the last.]]
*The US version of the future story [[The Big Broadcast of 2006 (issue)|The Big Broadcast of 2006]] implicitly has the events of the movie as part of its backstory. However, since the rest of the US series ignored the movie, this issue's place in the continuity is questionable.

==Edits==
Several English-language versions of the film exist, with the following differences in content from the American theatrical run:

* In some versions (notably the European version) the opening credits are replaced with a scrolling text ("''Star Wars'' style") which provides backstory.
* In some versions (notably the European version) the film ends with [[Victor Caroli|a narrator]] reassuring the audience that Optimus Prime will return.
* Instances of swearing in the film (there are two) were edited out; sometimes one, sometimes both. Those instances are: Spike yelling, "Oh shit, what are we gonna do now?" after the self-destructing Moon Base 2 fails to scratch Unicron, and Ultra Magnus growling, "Open, damn it, open!" while trying to open the Matrix to fend off Galvatron and the Sweeps on Junkion. The United Kingdom cinema version had the swearing included but, when it was released on VHS in the United Kingdom, Spike's line was cut ("damn" not being considered offensive in the UK). However it has been restored on all United Kingdom DVD releases.
* In some early FHE video releases, the shot of the Matrix falling out of Optimus Prime's hand and being caught by Hot Rod is edited so that it appears that Ultra Magnus simply takes the Matrix from Prime. Why this was done is not known, and the replay of the Hot Rod catch on Unicron's monitors was left intact.
*Instead of DEG, the Rank Film "gong man" appears before the film, as Rank were the United Kingdom distributors.

None of these edits significantly affect the story. They should not be confused with various other sequences which were changed before the film's final release:

* Originally, Ultra Magnus's "death sequence" on Junkion called for him to be lassoed and drawn and quartered by the Sweeps' energy beams, but this was deemed too graphic for audiences, hence the less disturbing "shot to death" sequence seen instead. There is evidence that the original sequence had been fully animated when the decision was made, however; the Sweeps still kept their solid energy lassos when they fire upon Mags, and Mags is seen visibly straining against what appears to be said lassos (edited out and replaced with laser fire) before exploding.
* A number of other sequences were illustrated as [[storyboard]]s but dropped, presumably without ever being animated. Among them were:
** A short scene showing the Autobot shuttle veering around some meteors, explaining how the Decepticons caught them unawares.
** An extended sequence with Hot Rod and Daniel outside the city.
** A sequence of Mirage blasting Bombshell and being fired on by Megatron.
** The Autobots finally bringing down Devastator with a barrage of missiles (and the Constructicons subsequently shooting Red Alert in the back).
** The Decepticons dogpiling Optimus Prime, explaining why he seems to be standing up just before his fight with Megatron.
:Some of these concepts were in earlier versions of the script, and hence made it into the comic adaptation.
* Rumors have occasionally circulated in the fandom of additional animated footage that was dropped from the film, such as ultra-violent battle scenes. No evidence has ever surfaced to back these claims; the only known edits are those listed in this section.
:{{see|Misconceptions and urban legends about Transformers#The Transformers: The Movie|Urban legends about ''The Transformers: The Movie''}}

==Reception==
{{quote|''The Transformers'', in which Orson Welles plays a planet, is pure headache material. Target audience of cartoon-watchers also will probably find the film unintelligible, noisy and unoriginal. Boxoffice prospects are dismal.|2=[http://books.google.com/books?id=DHNZAAAAMAAJ&q=Hasbro+Transformers&dq=Hasbro+Transformers&lr=&as_drrb_is=b&as_minm_is=1&as_miny_is=1983&as_maxm_is=12&as_maxy_is=2005&num=50&as_brr=0&cd=69 Variety's Film Reviews 1985-1986, Volume 19]}}

{{quote|Obnoxious animated feature about the title good guys, who defend the universe against an evil planet (which has a voice of its own... provided by Orson Welles.) That deafening rock score certainly doesn't help. Little more than a feature-length toy commercial.|Leonard Maltin, ''1987 Movie & Video Guide''}}

{{quote|While all this action may captivate young children, the animation is not spectacular enough to dazzle adults, and the Transformers have few truly human elements to lure parents along, even when their voices are supplied by well-known actors. |2=[http://www.nytimes.com/1986/08/09/movies/screen-transformers-animation-for-children.html The New York Times]}}

{{quote|Transformers -- The Movie, a feature-length animated film inspired by the syndicated TV cartoon series inspired by the Hasbro toy imported from Japan, is utterly uninspired entertainment. |2=[http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=DM&p_theme=dm&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0ED3CE8EA8D40CCA&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM The Dallas Morning News]}}

{{quote|If you can swallow, without gagging, a large measure of sentimental and offensive religiosity - lines like "Do not grieve. Soon I will be one with the Matrix," whispered by a failing hunk of Autobot metal - then you have a better than even chance of leaving the theatre on your own two feet. |2=[http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=01kiAAAAIBAJ&sjid=W6gFAAAAIBAJ&pg=2445,1286000&dq=transformers&hl=en The Montreal Gazette]}}

{{quote|Everything is poorly drawn and - when it's in focus - one dimensional. It is terribly hard to separate the robots from the backgrounds, and there is no easy way to tell the good guys from the bad guys. In an earlier movie based on the same sort of robot toys - "Go-Bots: The Battle of the Rock Lords" - the good guys were either white or colorful and the bad guys were dreary, and they had distinct personalities. Not this movie; everyone looks and sounds alike, except one pink robot who is a female good guy. Her tin voluptuousness makes her stand out. |2=[http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=kw4wAAAAIBAJ&sjid=OgMEAAAAIBAJ&pg=6957,6334152&dq=transformers&hl=en The Toledo Blade]}}

{{quote|Even with an all-star cast doing the voice overs... and a rock music score, this is still nothing more than a ripoff of a successful toy line. |2=[http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=AYckAAAAIBAJ&sjid=dtsFAAAAIBAJ&pg=4192,1494652&dq=transformers&hl=en The Palm Beach Post]}}

{{quote|The great animated villains, like the Wicked Queen in Disney's "Snow White," had motivations as compelling as any live-action character. Unicron apparently destroys entire worlds because it has nothing else to do. |2=[http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/latimes/access/57996397.html?dids=57996397:57996397&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Aug+8%2C+1986&author=CHARLES+SOLOMON&pub=Los+Angeles+Times+(pre-1997+Fulltext)&edition=&startpage=8&desc=%60THE+TRANSFORMERS%27%3A+STRETCHING+A+POINT The LA Times]}}

''The Transformers: The Movie'' was almost universally panned by professional critics upon its release.

Well-known film critic and animation enthusiast, Leonard Maltin, gave it a rating below 1 1/2 stars in his ''1987 Movie & Video Guide'', regarding it as a "bomb", then proceeded to write an unflattering blurb denouncing the film as a "feature-length toy commercial" (well, he was ''right'').

Caryn James of the ''New York Times'' admitted in the [[August 9]], 1986 edition of the paper that the film was intended for young children, pointing out that the kids in the audience were having a grand ole time with the ''Transformer'' toys and comics they brought with them to the theater, but derided the film as having little to no appeal to adults (''man-children'', on the other hand...).

''Variety's Film Reviews 1985-1986, Volume 19 '' was far less even-handed in their review, claiming the film had no appeal to adults ''or'' children. They predicted the film would perform poorly in the box office (and were correct, in that regard).

Carrie Rickey of the ''Dallas Morning News'' chided the film in the [[August 13]], 1986 issue of the paper, describing it as "essentially a cartoon ''Star Wars'' about robots from a toybox galaxy far, far away". She then went on to say that the film "never takes off" and derided it as "uninspired".

Janice Kennedy of the ''Montreal Gazette'' verbally disemboweled the film in the [[August 23]], 1986 edition of the paper, criticizing it as overly commercial, profane, loud, violent, humorless, heavy-handed in its religious messages and chaulk-full of gratuitous celebrity voice-overs. Her only compliment: "But ''The Transformers: The Movie'' does have at least one good thing going for it, a howlingly appropriate song by [["Weird Al" Yankovic]]. It's title? ''Dare to be Stupid''." ''Ouch''.

Nanciann Cherry in the August 13, 1986 edition of the ''Toledo Blade'' claimed the robots in the movie had little personality and faded into the background. She even went on to say that ''Challenge of the GoBots: Battle of the Rock Lords'' was a superior film! Her review was filled with inaccuracies, however, citing characters such as "Unicon" and claiming that the destruction of Cybertron's moons by "Unicon" is what caused the Autobots to travel to Autobot City, at which point Megatron attacked. To be fair, she readily admits, "About 20 minutes into the film, I gave up on the plot and tried to count all the ideas that were stolen from other sources. Now that kept me busy." So she wasn't really paying attention, anyway.

Kathryn Buxton in the [[August 22]], 1986 edition of the ''Palm Beach Post'' gave the film a whopping ''one'' star, calling it "a ripoff of a successful toyline", whatever ''that'' means. In the same article, she also gave David Cronenberg's ''[[Fly|The Fly]]'' one star, just for reference.

In the August 8, 1986 edition of the ''LA Times'', critic Charles Solomon made clear his dislike for the film centered primarily on the fact that none of the characters had interesting or believable motivation. He stated, "Not even the best actor can create a character out of nothing. Not one of the robots has a reason for doing what he does." Solomon then pointed to Unicron specifically as an example of the lack of deep, multi-dimensional motivations in the characters.

Over time, however, the movie has acquired something of a cult following beyond the core base of [[fandom|Transformers fans]], particularly among children of the 80s. It is sometimes screened as a midnight movie at colleges. Online, it is not hard to find amateur reviews lauding everything about it as utterly awesome, from the premise to the soundtrack, and dismissing more critical views out of hand.

To date, the budget of the film has not been disclosed—at least, not in any place the [[fandom]] has found. According to most box office tracking sites,<ref>http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=transformers.htm</ref><ref>http://www.the-numbers.com/movies/1986/0TRTM.php</ref> ''The Transformers: The Movie'' made $5,849,647 in domestic (e.g., United States) theaters. Comparing this with other animated films of 1986, the results are not particularly charitable; while it did better financially than ''[[Tonka GoBots|GoBots: Battle of the Rock Lords]]''<ref>http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=gobots.htm</ref> ($1,338,264) and ''Heathcliff: The Movie''<ref>http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=heathcliff.htm</ref> ($2,610,686), it performed worse than the ''[[My Little Pony]]'' movie<ref>http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=mylittlepony.htm</ref> ($5,958,456) and the '''second''' ''Care Bears'' movie<ref>http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=carebearsmovie2.htm</ref> ($8,540,346). Bringing up ''The Great Mouse Detective''<ref>http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=greatmousedetective.htm</ref> ($25,336,794) and ''An American Tail''<ref>http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=americantail.htm</ref> ($47,483,002) would really just be overkill.

==Significance in Transfandom==
''The Transformers: The Movie'' remains one of the most important elements of the entire Transformers brand, both within the fiction and from the perspective of the brand's popularity and "mindshare".

Fictionally, it established several story concepts that have been used repeatedly in the years since 1986, some of which—such as Unicron and the Matrix—are now central to the entire Transformers mythos. The movie is also the centerpiece of the most well-known Transformers continuity: the Generation 1 animated universe. The ''Transformers'' cartoon is split into "pre-movie" and "post-movie" sections which feature different characters and settings, and even somewhat different visual styles. (Most pre-movie episodes were animated by the studio [[Toei]], while most post-movie episodes were animated by [[AKOM]].)

On a practical note, it was widely available on videotape, and remained so long after the ''The Transformers'' cartoon had gone off the air. Only a [[Family Home Entertainment|handful of series episodes]] were available on video, making ''The Transformers: The Movie'' the logical choice for someone looking to pick up a ''Transformers'' cartoon; this made it far more well-known among fans than any particular cartoon episode.

To an entire generation of young fans, the movie was the most visually spectacular and narratively epic ''Transformers'' experience of their entire youth. Events such as the death of Optimus Prime are widely reported to have reduced many kids to tears. It is hardly a surprise that these emotional experiences embedded themselves deeply in many fans' memories.

==Criticisms==
[[Image:TFTM Ratchet dies.jpg|180px|left|thumb|Only Imperial Stormtroopers are so precise.]]

All this is not all to say that the movie is a "masterpiece", exactly. The film met with extremely harsh critical reviews on its release, and some of those criticisms still ring true today.

The film displays an arguably cynical attitude towards itself as [[To sell toys|a vehicle for advertising toys]], especially in the way beloved characters are killed—sometimes gratuitously—for sake of justifying the story's focus on a new group of toys. (Note that with the exception of Laserbeak and possibly Buzzsaw [http://www.flickr.com/photos/42232106@N06/3893688802] the poster at the top of this article features ''only'' new characters.)

Further, the two primary plot devices—[[Unicron]] and the [[Matrix of Leadership|Matrix]]—have no prior establishment in the fiction. Unicron is given no backstory or justification; he simply exists, is very dangerous, and is afraid of the Matrix, all for no adequately explained reason. The introduction of the Matrix itself is a heavy [[retcon]]. The story asks the audience to accept that this cosmically powerful artifact has been in Prime's possession all along (even though an X-ray of Optimus Prime's innards in the second season episode "[[A Prime Problem]]" show absolutely no signs of said Matrix), but has somehow never been relevant before. In fact, this lack of prior establishment is what led [[Simon Furman]] to develop the divinity backstory of Unicron and [[Primus]] in the UK comics run.

[[Image:Megatronlightsaber.jpg|right|180px|thumb|Your powers are weak, old man!]]
The movie bears many similarities to ''[[Star Wars]]'': There are several character-parallels ([[Springer (G1)|Springer]] is a [[Han Solo]]-type and [[Arcee (G1)|Arcee]] even has Princess Leia's hairdo!), the primary threat is similar (it's the [[Death Star]]... [[Unicron|but it transforms!]]), and both feature a climactic battle where the [[Hot Rod (G1)|young hero]] hears the voice of his [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|dead, wise mentor]] one last time before saving the day.

To be a bit more fair to ''The Transformers: The Movie'', however, most of these similarities are either superficial (Arcee's Leia-hair; Megatron's "lightsaber" he briefly uses in his duel against Optimus Prime) or can be seen as elements common to thousands of years worth of epic storytelling through human history, not just common to ''Star Wars''. As a simple example, the phenomenon of two charismatic leaders dealing each other mortal injuries in battle hearkens back to some versions of the "King Arthur" myth; in their final battle, [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Arthur]] and his arch-enemy [[Megatron (G1)|Sir Mordred]] deal one another lethal injuries and both apparently expire—though Arthur according to the legend will [[The Return of Optimus Prime|return]] when [[Cybertron (planet)|England's]] need [[Darkest hour|is greatest]].

==Formatting==
[[Image:Tftm widescreenesque.jpg|right|300px|thumb|The "widescreen" picture (left) actually ''cuts off'' the top and bottom of the fullscreen picture (right).]]
Although it was billed in some advertisements before its theatrical release as being "widescreen", the movie was in fact animated in a 4:3 (fullscreen) aspect ratio. For its theatrical screenings, the film was matted down in the projector by the projectionist to a 16:9 aspect ratio (widescreen), chopping the top and bottom off the picture, but all video transfers of the movie were done without mattes, meaning that there was actually more picture visible in the fullscreen video and DVD releases than there would have been in theaters. Across 2006 and 2007, new editions of the DVD of the film were released by Sony BMG and [[Metrodome]] which applied the mattes in order to replicate the original theatrical presentation of the film for the first time in home entertainment. Some fans, however, didn't realize that the film wasn't actually ''animated'' in widescreen, and, hearing that the DVD was to be in widescreen, expected to see the fullscreen image with additional footage at the sides, causing them to complain that the top and bottom were cut off, thereby totally missing the point.

==International versions==
{{main|The Transformers: The Movie/dubs}}

==Commercial Releases==
* The movie was originally released in North America on home video in 1987 by [[Family Home Entertainment]], minus Spike's swear. Not long after, it was releasd in the UK by [[Video Gems]]. This version featured the opening text crawl and closing narration inherent to the UK version of the film. In Australia, the film was releaed on video by RCA/Columbia Pictures/Hoyts. In Japan, Hillcrane released a Laserdisc version alongside a VHS copy.
*The movie was released spottily in the '90s, beginning with a budget VHS by Avid Home Entertainment in 1991. [[Malofilm]] released a VHS in Canada in 1995, notable for being the first home entertainment version to include Spike's swear. In 1998, Japanese company Pioneer produced another pair of Laserdisc and VHS releases. In 1999, things kicked off when American company [[Kid Rhino]] secured the Transformers license and released the film on VHS once again.
*The 21st century's flirtation with ''The Transformers: The Movie'' started with a UK budget VHS release of that country's version by [[Sony|Sony Wonder]], distributed by [[Maverick Entertainment]]. A Japanese company called CatCo followed this up with a VideoCD, and Malofilm—now Seville—were the first to release a DVD version of the film, though it was just a dump of their VHS version.
*In November 2000, ''The Transformers: The Movie'' got its first, full professional DVD release from Kid Rhino. This edition, labelled a "Special Collector's Edition", is the first to feature remastered video and audio, and several special features, including storyboards and an interview with [[Vince DiCola]]. Rhino concurrently released this version on VHS, sans extras.
*In 2001 in the UK, Sony Wonder released their own much-delayed DVD version of the film. It was the UK version of the film, but included Spike's swear. However, the release was burdened by badly interlaced video, though it notably included the [[Omni Productions]] dub version of the ''[[The Headmasters (cartoon)|Headmasters]]'' episode "[[Four Warriors Come out of the Sky]]" as an extra. This version (including the ''Headmasters'' episode) was simultaneously released on VHS.
*The movie was released on DVD in Australia in 2003 by [[Madman Entertainment]], using the same video as the Maverick version, but distinguished by some nifty new cover art by [[Don Figueroa]], and special features not seen on other editions, such as ''[[Stan Bush|The Touch]]'' music video and 80s TV spots.
[[Image:Tftm uk covers.jpg|right|180px|thumb|The UK poster art (left) has been the most common DVD and VHS cover in its home country, but the Ultimate Edition featured new art by Andy Wildman (right).]]
*After acquiring the license to release ''Transformers'' DVDs in the UK, [[Metrodome]] focused on completing their run of series box sets before turning their attention to the movie properly, releasing only a cheap budget DVD of the UK version through Prism Leisure with no extras, and a UMD of the same version.
*In 2005, Metrodome released ''Transformers: The Movie - Reconstructed'', a new version of the film designed to expose as much of the animated picture as possible. This, however, only resulted in exposing the rough, unfinished edges of the animation, and an overly pale remaster was compounded by excessive interlacing due to an unnecessary NTSC to PAL transfer. This, coupled with a 5.1 remix from [[Magno Sound & Video]], featuring the same extra sound effects that they added to Rhino's season box sets, made this release both controversial and disappointing to many. This was the first time that the US version of the movie was released in the UK, and the first to feature the US poster art as a cover (although a Silverscreen store exclusive version of the disc included a reversible cover with the UK poster art as well). Extras include trailers, TV spots, the character biographies from the Madman release, and a subtitled version of "[[Four Warriors Come out of the Sky]]".
[[Image:Tftm sony covers.jpg|right|180px|thumb|Sony's covers, by Don Figueroa.]]
*For the movie's 20th anniversary in 2006, new license holder [[Sony|Sony BMG]] released a two-disc special edition of the film, featuring both a high-quality widescreen remaster and the original fullscreen version, audio commentaries from crew and fans, several new featurettes interviewing those involved in the movie's production, storyboards, tv spots, American and Japanese commercials and more. Most notably, this version included the first Western release of "[[Scramble City (episode)|Scramble City]]", albeit silent and unsubtitled, featuring only audio commentary. This release featured two covers by Don Figueroa: one is of the '84-'85 cast that appear in the movie, and one is of the movie's new characters, available either as a lenticular hologram that switches between the two, or as a reversible sleeve with the images printed on either side.
[[Image:Tftm madman covers.jpg|right|180px|thumb|Madman's 2003 DVD cover (left), and their 2007 Special Edition cover (right).]]
*Delayed a bit to coincide with the hype for the 2007 [[Transformers (2007)|live-action movie]], Metrodome also released a two-disc "Ultimate Edition" with a different widescreen master. Like "Reconstructed", this version used the US edition of the film, but this time, the UK version was also included, in fullscreen, on the second disc. Extras include TV spots, commercials, the Madman biographies, storyboards, commentary, Scramble City (with audio and subtitles), featurettes with [[Flint Dille]] and [[Peter Cullen]], and more. The double-disc edition was sold in a steel case featuring new art by [[Andrew Wildman]], with the UK poster art adorning the standard case inside. Various store exclusives were available, including postcards from Play.Com, a reversible cover with the US poster art from HMV, art cards from Virgin Megastore and [[posters]] from Woolworths and [[Toys"R"Us]]. It was also available in an extra-less single-disc version. This version was premiered at the Mid Ulster Film Festival in Ireland which was the only cinema showing of the remastered version of the film to date.
*The film was released in Full HD 1080p on Blu-ray in the UK in October 2007. The Blu-ray is not region-locked, so it will play anywhere in the world. It features a 2.0 soundtrack, 5.1 Dolby Digital track, and a full bitrate DTS 5.1 track. The master used was the same used by Sony for their US DVD. The picture is quite stunning and the sound very good. Sadly, there are no extras on the DVD. The version of the film on the Blu-ray is the US one, complete with swear word.
*Madman produced their two-disc special edition through some collaboration with Metrodome, and consequently it features much of the same content, with additional extras taking the form of The Touch music video and a bonus episode of ''[[Beast Wars (cartoon)|Beast Wars]]''. This release again features cover artwork by Don Figueroa, specifically the cover of [[IDW Publishing|IDW]]'s ''[[Transformers: The Animated Movie]]'' adaptation.

==Notes==
* According to [[Buzz Dixon]], Hasbro's decision to kill off Optimus Prime was actually an attempt to maintain some brand-storytelling parity with ''[[G.I. Joe (franchise)|G.I. Joe]]'', as Dixon had just convinced them to allow the death of [[Duke (G.I. Joe)|Duke]] in ''[[wikipedia:G.I. Joe: The Movie|G.I. Joe: The Movie]]'' and both films were in production at the same time.<ref>http://www.joeheadquarters.com/interviews_dixon.shtml</ref>

* This film was the last professional performance by [[Orson Welles]], who died only a month later. According to production materials shown at [[BotCon 2000]] by Tim Finn, the voice recording sessions for ''The Transformers: The Movie'' were done on [[September 10]] and [[September 11|11]] of 1985. Welles died on [[October 10]] of that same year. It has often been speculated that Unicron's last line ("Destiny… you cannot destroy my destiny!") was recorded by another actor—possibly [[Leonard Nimoy|Nimoy]]—because it sounds different than the other lines. This speculation has been quashed by statements by Transformers voice director [[Wally Burr]].<ref>http://cybertronchronicle.freewebspace.com/60-astrominutes/wally-burr/wally_burr_3.html</ref>
[[Image:Windcharger wheeljack otp.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Uncle Owen! Aunt Beru!!]]

* With the exception of Starscream and possibly Shockwave, only the Autobots suffered fatalities in the movie. All of the other "dead" Decepticons from the Autobot City battle were rebuilt into Galvatron's new troops, and although more Decepticons were shown taking heavy damage and suffering huge casualties while fighting Unicron, their identities and their final condition are uncertain. Additionally, both Starscream and Unicron survived in the post-movie series in some form or another. Shockwave's death in the finished film is highly uncertain, although in the script it is fairly strongly implied. He does make some miscolored appearances in crowd shots in later cartoon episodes, but these are probably examples of the fairly common animation errors in those episodes.

* Somewhat ironically, though only three of the original eighteen Autobots - [[Jazz (G1)|Jazz]], [[Cliffjumper (G1)|Cliffjumper]], and [[Bumblebee (G1)|Bumblebee]] - are definitively shown to have survived the movie, two would quite literally never be heard from again: [[Scatman Crothers]] passed away (though this didn't stop Jazz from making any number of background cameos) while Casey Kasem [[Casey Kasem#Trivia|quit the show early in the third season]]. Fate's finger is fickle indeed.

*[[:Image:TFTM-MaybeBeachcomber.jpg|A robot resembling Beachcomber]] appears alongside Spike and the Autobots inside Unicron seconds before Daniel blasts the acid cover. Whether this was actually meant to be Beachcomber or just coincidental coloring is unknown, but regardless, Beachcomber shows up alive and well in "[[Five Faces of Darkness, Part 5]]".

==External links==
* [http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=transformers.htm ''The Transformers: The Movie'''s box office domestic gross.]
* [http://web.archive.org/web/20080426020409/http://www.tftm.net/ ''The Transformers: The Movie'' "Unofficial Fansite", an extremely thorough site about the movie]
* [http://www.wombatking.com/coppermine/thumbnails.php?album=4 ''The Transformers: The Movie'' deleted storyboards]

==Footnotes==
{{Reflist|2}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Transformers: The Movie}}

[[Category:Generation 1]]
[[Category:MSTF]]
[[Category:Real world films]]

Seacon (G1)

2010-07-06T12:51:51Z

201.83.146.4:

{{picsneeded}}
{{disambig3|Seacon}}
{{factions|decepticon}}
:''The Seacons are a [[Decepticon]] [[subgroup]] from the [[Generation 1 (franchise)|Generation 1]] [[continuity family]].''

[[Image:Club Con%21 Seacons.JPG|right|300px|thumb|Just thought we'd all show up in our character models.]]
The six '''Seacons''' are the Decepticons' undersea combat specialists. They all transform into mechanical beasts resembling (more or less) aquatic life forms from [[Earth]]. The six combine into the super warrior [[Piranacon (G1)|Piranacon]] (also spelled 'Piranhacon').

The team consists of:

* The cruel and calculating [[Snaptrap (G1)|Snaptrap]], their team leader. He transforms into a snapper turtle (sort of).

* The clumsy and insecure [[Nautilator]], who transforms into a lobster-monster.

* The vicious [[Overbite (G1)|Overbite]] (also known as '''Jawbreaker''' in the Marvel UK comic continuity). He becomes a shark with extra limbs. Truly.

* The sneaky [[Seawing (G1)|Seawing]], a manta ray. With legs.

* The unhygenic and polluting [[Skalor]], a coelacanth with arms and legs.

* The sadistic and strong [[Tentakil (G1)|Tentakil]], an upright walking squid. Walking with... yep, you've got it.

==Fiction==
===Marvel Comics continuity===
{{noteukonly}}
''The Seacons were created primarily for off-world combat on planets with water-based oceans.'' {{storylink|Pretender to the Throne!|#163's Grim Grams}}

''The Seacons were summoned to Earth by [[Shockwave (G1)|Shockwave]], who had them put their undersea abilities to use fortifying the Decepticons’ sub-aquatic island headquarters. Outfitted with Earth modes by Shockwave, the Seacons were going about their task when they met with their first challenge, which also proved to be one of their greatest—they were ordered to defend the island against the insane, time-travelling future Decepticon, [[Galvatron (G1)|Galvatron]]. The Seacons gave a good account of themselves, merging into Piranacon for extra power, but ultimately, the team was defeated by their stronger adversary, only for Galvatron to reveal that he had not planned an attack at all, merely wishing to talk. Now, however, he claimed that Shockwave had made an enemy of him—although it was all part of a plan to destabilise his leadership. {{storylink|Enemy Action!|Enemy Action!}} Seeking a weapon that could truly combat Galvatron, Shockwave sought out the former Decepticon leader, [[Megatron (G1)|Megatron]], who had been missing in action for some time. When what was believed to be his body (but was, in actuality, a [[Straxus (G1)|clone]] of him) was located in the Thames river by entrepreneur [[Richard Branson]], Overbite was dispatched with some of the Decepticon jets to bring the body to Shockwave. Snaptrap subsequently repaired the clone’s physical damage, and aided Shockwave in using the [[psycho-probe]] to brainwash it into his service. {{storylink|Salvage!}}''

Following this, the Seacons departed Shockwave’s service and joined with [[Ratbat (G1)|Ratbat]], the leader of the primary Earth-based Decepticon force. Ratbat had relocated the Decepticons’ island base to the Florida Keys, disguising it as a holiday resort named "Club Con" to allow the Seacons to search the seabed for a sunken pirate ship, the treasure chest of which contained two Autobot tapes, [[Grand Slam]] and [[Raindance]]. The recovery mission was successful, but the tapes were then stolen by the Autobot Blaster, and the holidaymakers on the island had their peace and quiet rudely interrupted as the Seacons erupted from the ocean and attacked, searching for Blaster. In the ensuing battle, Blaster sent the tapes back to the depths of the oceans, encouraging the Seacons to call off the attack and head after them. {{storylink|Club Con!}}

The tapes, it was revealed, were sent to Earth centuries ago to warn the Autobots there of the approaching threat posed by the [[Underbase]], a massive space-born information storehouse that could convey infinite power. Unfortunately, it was the Decepticon, [[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]], who managed to attain the Underbase’s power, turning on Autobot and Decepticon alike and attempting to conquer Earth. The Seacons were part of the attempted defence of [[New York City]], striking at Starscream from the East River, but were all deactivated by the cosmically-powered villain. {{storylink|Dark Star (issue)|Dark Star}}

====Generation 1 cartoon====

Shockwave when ordering residents to flee the attack Cybertron UNICRON by the seacons snap trap and are in the middle
{{The Transformers: The Movie}}

====Earthforce====
{{earthforcefiction}}
''A few years later, in the [[Earthforce]] era, Megatron found himself lacking in troops during Decepticon civil war. Seeking to acquire more warriors, he projected his mind back in time to Starscream's attack on New York, taking possession of Snaptrap in hopes of saving the Seacons from destruction so that they might serve him in the future. He was pursued by [[Prowl (G1)|Prowl]], who prevented his scheme. {{storylink|Flashback!}}''

===''G.I. Joe vs. the Transformers''===
Some time after the Decepticons were driven back to [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]]'s [[Gladiator Zone]], Nautilator got into trouble with the [[Predacon (G1)|Predacons]]. The other Seacons helped him out by forming Piranacon, but the giant was defeated by [[Predaking]] and would have been killed if not for [[Serpent O.R.]] interrupting the battle. {{storylink|The Art of War issue 2}} The Seacons had no problem with Serpent O.R. taking control of the Decepticon army, and helped capture a number of Autobots and [[G.I. Joe (team)|Joes]] who were after their new leader. {{storylink|The Art of War issue 3}} Nautilator later guarded some of the captured humans, but being Nautilator, he failed miserably with this task. {{storylink|The Art of War issue 4}}

==Toys==
===Generation 1===
[[Image:Piranacong1toy.jpg|right|200px|thumb|]]
* '''Seacons''' (1988)
** [[Nautilator]]
** [[Overbite (G1)|Overbite]]
** [[Seawing (G1)|Seawing]]
** [[Skalor]]
** [[Snaptrap (G1)|Snaptrap]]
** [[Tentakil (G1)|Tentakil]]

:The Seacons are a [[Scramble City]]-style combiner, combining to form [[Piranacon (G1)|Piranacon]], but with a twist. The leader, Snaptrap, was sold boxed at the $12 price point, along with the [[combiner]] [[kibble]]. Instead of the usual four smaller carded $5-price point robots, however, the Seacons feature ''five'' smaller bots.

:The smaller Seacons can become not only one of Piranacon's limbs, but also a hand weapon for the giant. It is for this reason that the five smaller toys also have a free-standing "weapon mode" (essentially their sea-creature mode on a stand with a gun clicked on). This makes Piranacon not only a [[combiner]], but a [[Targetmaster]].

:Much like the [[Terrorcon (G1)|Terrorcons]] before them, the Seacons are extraordinarily chunky in both modes. The team is unified by its color scheme of aqua, fuschia, lavender, purple and blue, with grey, black and chromed highlights. Eh, what can we tell ya, it was 1988.

===''Energon''===
[[Image:Piranhacons.jpg|right|200px|thumb|Alas, poor Archerbot. We hardly knew ye.]]
* '''Piranacons''' (unreleased)
** [[Nautilator]]
** [[Overbite (G1)|Overbite]]
** [[Seawing (G1)|Seawing]]
** [[Archerbot]]
** [[Snaptrap (G1)|Snaptrap]]
** [[Tentakil (G1)|Tentakil]]

:A proposed Wal-Mart ''[[Energon (toyline)|Energon]]'' exclusive redeco of the Seacons would have been called the Piranhacons. The toys were not taken by Wal-Mart and eventually made their way to the [[Transformers Collectors' Club]], who made the toys into their original characters.

===''Timelines''===
[[Image:Piranacontimelinestoy.jpg|right|200px|thumb|See that little platform under his foot? That's just a hint of how unstable he is.]]
* '''Seacons''' (2008)
** [[Nautilator]]
** [[Overbite (G1)|Overbite]]
** [[Seawing (G1)|Seawing]]
** [[Skalor]]
** [[Snaptrap (G1)|Snaptrap]]
** [[Tentakil (G1)|Tentakil]]

: The unreleased ''Energon'' redecos of the Seacons were finally released as a giftset in 2008 by the [[Official Transformers Collectors' Club]] under [[Fun Publications]].

:Fans report that some mold degradation is in evidence in this latest release.

{{-}}

==Trivia==
* Although the sub-group's name is pronounced ''"see-cons"'' in commercials for the toys, some fans occasionally ([[Misconceptions and urban legends about Transformers|incorrectly]]) opt to pronounce it ''"see-a-cons"'', in keeping with the "three-or-more-syllables" naming convention of the "-con" subgroups before them.

[[Image:MarvelUK 152 Seacons.JPG|right|250px|thumb|The Seacons do their astronaut/Reservoir Dogs walk]]
* In addition to the fairly well-known renaming of Overbite to 'Jawbreaker' in "Enemy Action!", the UK comic stories also give all six Seacons, and Piranacon, an early, abandoned color scheme (blue, orange, and silver) versus the final teal, purple, and pink of the final production version. This color scheme was also seen in the first commercial featuring the Seacons, in both animation and the physical toys advertised. [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jwyf28trZhg]

* In addition to the different colors, the UK art also sometimes omitted extraneous and intrusive arms and legs added to Seawing, Skalor, and Overbite/Jawbreaker's toy designs. The end result is that the fairly toy-accurate Seacons who turn up in "Club Con!" look markedly different from their UK predecessors... but since everyone's fantasizing over [[Jessie]] in a bikini and trying to ignore the plot in that issue anyway, who cares?

[[Category:Combiner teams]]
[[Category:Decepticon subgroups]]
[[Category:Generation 1]]
[[Category:Seacons| (G1)]]
[[Category:Timelines]]

The Transformers: The Movie

2010-07-06T12:46:00Z

201.83.146.4:

{{disambig3|Transformers: The Movie}}

{{quote|Conceived in the epic tradition of ''"[[Star Wars]]"''...|[[Victor Caroli]] ain't just whistling Dixie, [[The Transformers: The Movie promo|''The Transformers: The Movie'' promo]]}}

{{episode|
|seriess=[[The Transformers (cartoon)|The Transformers]]
|prev=B.O.T. (episode)
|next=Five Faces of Darkness, Part 1
|seriess2=[[Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers (franchise)|Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers]]
|prev2=Scramble City
|title=''The Transformers: The Movie''
|image=Transformersanimatedfilmposter.jpg
|caption=Featuring the deaths of all your favorite Transformers characters.
|production code=
|production company=[[Sunbow Productions]]
|writer=[[Ron Friedman]]
|directed by=[[Nelson Shin]]
|animation studio=[[Toei]]
|release date=[[August 8]], 1986
|continuity=[[Generation 1 cartoon continuity]]
}}

'''''The Transformers: The Movie''''' is an animated feature film based on the original Transformers toyline. It was released in the United States on August 8, 1986.

The film's storyline follows the same continuity as the ''[[The Transformers (cartoon)|Transformers]]'' cartoon. It introduces a [[Scale|planet-sized Transformer]] called [[Unicron]] who eats other planets, and is approaching [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]]. As part of their continuing wars, the Autobots and Decepticons have a [[Battle of Autobot City|fierce battle]] on Earth which sees both Optimus Prime and Megatron mortally wounded. Prime passes the [[Matrix of Leadership]] to Ultra Magnus and dies, and Megatron is transformed by Unicron into [[Galvatron (G1)|Galvatron]]. [[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]] (briefly) assumes leadership of the Decepticons, but is killed when Galvatron arrives at Cybertron. Galvatron then chases the surviving Autobots on Earth across space, splitting them up and taking the Matrix. The Autobots find their way back to each other, and follow Galvatron to Cybertron just as Unicron transforms into robot mode and begins to eat their world. Travelling inside Unicron, [[Hot Rod (G1)|Hot Rod]] recovers the Matrix, transforms into Rodimus Prime, and uses the Matrix to destroy Unicron.

Often referred to by fans simply as "the movie" or "TFTM", the movie was a step up in almost every area from the television series, with a more sophisticated plot, more serious treatment of war and violence, a hugely ambitious scope and a greatly increased animation budget with well-known celebrities providing voice work. For these reasons the film remains very popular with children of the 1980s.

The film opens with characters who had been featured in the first two years of the toyline and associated media (cartoons, comic books, etc.), but quickly introduces new characters and kills many of the old ones to make room. In particular, [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]], [[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]], and [[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]] are all destroyed during the course of the film.

{{quote|The Japanese have funded a full-length animated cartoon about the doings of these toys, which is all bad outer-space stuff. I play a planet. I menace somebody called Something-or-other. Then I'm destroyed. My plan to destroy Whoever-it-is is thwarted and I tear myself apart on the screen.|Orson Welles<ref>[http://books.google.com/books?id=KlqsYy512WIC&source=gbs_navlinks_s "Orson Wells: A Biography"] page 522</ref>}}

==Synopsis==
[[Image:TFTM_Unicron_Lithone.jpg|left|200px|thumb|That's no moon.]]

A mechanical planet travels through the depths of space, attacking [[Lithone (planet)|a metal planet]] which has [[Lithone (species)|robotic inhabitants]]. Robots, vehicles, buildings, and even large chunks of rock are sucked off the surface and devoured by the monstrous planet.

It is the year 2005, and the [[Decepticon]]s are now in control of Cybertron. The [[Autobot]]s are preparing to launch an assault to retake the planet from hidden bases on two of Cybertron's moons. The Autobots launch a [[Autobot shuttle|shuttle]] to pick up a final shipment of [[Energon (fuel)|energon]] from [[Earth]] before they strike.

[[Image:Tftm1986a.jpg|right|200px|thumb|I have a bad feeling about this.]]

Plans for the attack are overheard by [[Laserbeak (G1)|Laserbeak]], who reports back to [[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]]. The Decepticons attack the Autobot shuttle en route to Earth, wiping out its crew (including [[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]], [[Prowl (G1)|Prowl]], [[Ratchet (G1)|Ratchet]] and the [[Brawn (G1)|guy in the picture over there]]). Using the Autobots' own shuttle, the Decepticons are able to get very close to the Autobots' base on Earth, [[Autobot City]], before they are detected, and begin a devastating surprise attack on the unprepared city.

During the battle at Autobot City, both [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]] and Megatron suffer mortal injuries, and a number of other characters are also killed. Eventually the Decepticons retreat, but the damage suffered by the Autobots has been severe.

{{note|For an extensive synopsis of the battle, see [[Battle of Autobot City]].}}

[[Image:Tftm1986b.jpg|left|200px|thumb|If you strike me down, I shall become more powerful than you can possibly imagine.]]

Shortly after the battle, Prime lies on his deathbed. He passes the reins of leadership to [[Ultra Magnus (G1)|Ultra Magnus]] and gives him the [[Matrix of Leadership]]. (Though Hot Rod actually touches the Matrix before Magnus does.) Prime relates a prophecy: "One day, an Autobot shall rise from our ranks, and use the power of the Matrix to light our [[darkest hour]]." He then gives the oath, "[['Til all are one]]", and [[The many deaths of Optimus Prime|dies]]. This sequence of events is observed remotely by Unicron, who appears unusually concerned by the survival of the Matrix.

The Decepticons are making their escape aboard [[Astrotrain (G1)|Astrotrain]], but are too heavy for him to get them all home under his own power. After putting the matter to a fair vote, the Decepticons decide to throw their injured members off the ship to better the chance of survival for the rest. One of the most severely injured Decepticons is Megatron. [[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]] tosses him out and claims leadership of the Decepticon army.

Megatron and the other adrift Decepticons then encounter Unicron in interstellar space. Unicron offers to rebuild Megatron and his minions in exchange for their service. Megatron agrees, and is [[Reformatting|reformatted]] into [[Galvatron (G1)|Galvatron]]. The other Decepticons are turned into [[Cyclonus (G1)|Cyclonus]], [[Scourge (G1)|Scourge]], and the [[Sweep]]s. Unicron provides them with a [[Revenge (G1)|ship]], and sends them to kill Ultra Magnus and destroy the Matrix, stating that the Matrix is the only thing which can stand in his way.

[[Image:Tftm1986c.jpg|right|200px|thumb|Don't be too proud of this technological terror you've constructed.]]
Galvatron first stops at Cybertron to take his revenge by killing Starscream and reclaiming leadership of the Decepticons. Almost immediately afterwards, Unicron arrives in Cybertron's vicinity and devours at least two moons—both of the Autobots' moon bases are destroyed. Under coercion by Unicron, Galvatron finally heads to Earth to kill Ultra Magnus, but Magnus and the other surviving Autobots flee in a pair of shuttles. Eventually Galvatron manages to cause one shuttle to crash on yet another metal planet ([[Quintessa]]), and detonates the other with a volley of missiles. However, the Autobots in the second shuttle escape unnoticed by separating the front portion of their shuttle just before impact.

The Autobots in the crashed shuttle, [[Hot Rod (G1)|Hot Rod]], [[Kup (G1)|Kup]], and the [[Dinobot (G1)|Dinobots]], find themselves separated and in a hostile environment. Hot Rod and Kup are captured by a squad of [[Allicon]]s and taken before a [[Quintesson]] [[Quintesson#Judges|judge]] and his court. While being held there, they learn the name and nature of Unicron from [[Kranix]], a survivor of the planet destroyed in the opening of the film, which he calls [[Lithone (planet)|Lithone]]. Meanwhile, the Dinobots encounter and befriend a young, wild Autobot named [[Wheelie (G1)|Wheelie]] who has been living alone on Quintessa. Together, they crash the trial just as Hot Rod and Kup are fighting losing odds against the Quintessons' [[Sharkticon (G1)|Sharkticons]]. The tide is turned, and the Autobots commandeer a [[Quintesson spacecraft#Quintesson_Cruiser|Quintesson Cruiser]].

[[Image:Tftm1986d.jpg|left|200px|thumb|What an incredible smell you've discovered!]]
The other group of Autobots has landed on the planet [[Junkion (planet)|Junkion]] to make repairs, but are attacked yet again by Galvatron, who was tipped off to their survival by Unicron. During the battle, Ultra Magnus tries to open the Matrix to use its power, but is unable to do so, and instead is killed. Galvatron absconds with the Matrix, taking it away to Unicron. The remaining Autobots—[[Perceptor (G1)|Perceptor]], [[Springer (G1)|Springer]], [[Arcee (G1)|Arcee]], and [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike's]] son [[Daniel Witwicky (G1)|Daniel]]—are then ambushed by [[Junkion (species)|Junkions]], the eponymous natives of Junkion, who are also giant transforming robots. This battle is cut short, however, by the arrival of Hot Rod's group in their Quintesson ship. After exchanging the [[universal greeting]] they all make friends, and the Junkions restore Ultra Magnus to life. Together, the whole group travels to Cybertron to try to recover the Matrix.

[[Image:TFTM Unicron smashes cybertron.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Rebel base in range. You may fire when ready.]]
Galvatron attempts to open the Matrix to use its power against Unicron, but is also unable to get it open. Unicron, not pleased with this attempted treachery, shocks Galvatron by transforming from a planet into a [[Scale|planet-sized robot]]. Unicron plucks Galvatron off his chest and swallows him, Matrix and all, and then begins attacking Cybertron itself. [[Shockwave (G1)|Shockwave]] scrambles the Decepticon forces to defend the planet, but they are ineffective against so large an enemy. Shortly the Autobots arrive from Junkion, and fly the Quintesson ship straight through Unicron's eye. This impact destroys the ship, and the Autobots fall out inside Unicron. Hot Rod, separated from the others, eventually runs into Galvatron. During their fight, Hot Rod gets his hands on the Matrix and hears Optimus's voice speak the words, "Arise, Rodimus Prime." Hot Rod grows in stature, adopts a much sterner demeanor, and quickly dispatches Galvatron by tossing him through Unicron's hull out into space. He then opens the Matrix, which fills Unicron with light and begins destroying him.

[[Image:Tftm1986e.jpg|left|200px|thumb|Use the Force, Luke.]]
In the meantime, the other Autobots inside Unicron have located some of their comrades from the moon bases who had been presumed dead, including [[Bumblebee (G1)|Bumblebee]] and Daniel's father, Spike. The Autobots, including Rodimus, escape through Unicron's remaining eye just as he begins to fall apart and explode. The scene then immediately shifts to the surface of Cybertron, where—for unclear reasons—the Autobots seem to be in charge again. Rodimus predicts an era of peace and prosperity, and the film closes with a shot of Unicron's severed head still floating in orbit around Cybertron.

[['Til all are one]].
{{-}}

==Quotes==
"Such heroic nonsense."
:—'''Megatron''' coldly finishes off Ironhide. The 'Cons always get the best lines.

"I've got better things to do tonight than die!"
:—'''Springer''', telling it like it is.

"One shall stand. One shall fall."
:—'''Optimus Prime''' uttering the most quoted line of the Movie. An ass kicker cometh.

"Until the day...'til all are one..."
:—'''Optimus Prime''''s final words

"Oh, how it ''pains'' me to do this." 
"Wait! I still function!" 
"Wanna ''bet''?"
:—'''Starscream''' fights back the tears as he throws '''Megatron''' out of Astrotrain.

"I have summoned you here for a purpose." 
"Nobody summons Megatron!" 
"Then it pleases me to be the first."
:—'''Unicron''' shows '''Megatron''' who's the boss.

"Who disrupts my coronation?" 
"Coronation, Starscream? This is bad comedy." 
"Megatron? Is that you?" 
"Here's a hint!"
:—'''Galvatron''' drops "hints" for '''Starscream''' like others drop anvils.

"Did we ''have'' to let them detonate three quarters of the ship?" 
"Seeing as how they would have detonated ''four'' quarters, I think it was a good choice."
:—'''Arcee''' and '''Springer'''

"For a time… I considered ''sparing'' your wretched little planet of Cybertron. But now... you shall witness... its ''dismemberment''!"
:—'''Unicron''' really needs to work on his anger management skills...

"Me Grimlock kick butt!" 
:—'''Grimlock''' isn't speaking figuratively.

"Destiny... You cannot... destroy... my... destiny--AAH!!" 
:—'''Unicron''''s final words

"Let this mark the end of the Cybertronian Wars as we march forward into a new era of peace and happiness! 'Til all are one!" 
:—'''Rodimus Prime''' announces the end of the [[Great War (G1)|Great War]]... yeah, right.

==Featured characters==
{{featuredcharacters
|c1=
*[[Optimus Prime (G1)|Optimus Prime]] ([[Peter Cullen]])
*[[Hot Rod (G1)|Hot Rod]]/Rodimus Prime ([[Judd Nelson]])
*[[Ultra Magnus (G1)|Ultra Magnus]] ([[Robert Stack]])
*[[Kup (G1)|Kup]] ([[Lionel Stander]])
*[[Springer (G1)|Springer]] ([[Neil Ross]])
*[[Arcee (G1)|Arcee]] ([[Susan Blu]])
*[[Blurr (G1)|Blurr]] ([[John Moschitta]])
*[[Grimlock (G1)|Grimlock]] ([[Gregg Berger]])
*[[Perceptor (G1)|Perceptor]] ([[Paul Eiding]])
*[[Blaster (G1)|Blaster]] ([[Buster Jones]])
*[[Swoop (G1)|Swoop]] ([[Michael Bell]])
*[[Slag (G1)|Slag]] ([[Neil Ross]])
*[[Sludge (G1)|Sludge]]
*[[Wheelie (G1)|Wheelie]] ([[Frank Welker]])
*[[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] ([[Peter Cullen]])
*[[Prowl (G1)|Prowl]] ([[Michael Bell]])
*[[Jazz (G1)|Jazz]] ([[Scatman Crothers]])
*[[Bumblebee (G1)|Bumblebee]] ([[Dan Gilvezan]])
*[[Cliffjumper (G1)|Cliffjumper]] ([[Casey Kasem]])
*[[Brawn (G1)|Brawn]] ([[Corey Burton]])
*[[Gears (G1)|Gears]] ([[Don Messick]])
*[[Auto-combatant]] ([[Frank Welker]])
*[[Eject]]
*[[Rewind]]
*[[Steeljaw (G1)|Steeljaw]]
*[[Ramhorn]]
*[[Wheeljack (G1)|Wheeljack]]
*[[Windcharger (G1)|Windcharger]]
*[[Ratchet (G1)|Ratchet]]
*[[Snarl (G1)|Snarl]]
*[[Grapple]]
*[[Huffer (G1)|Huffer]]
*[[Hound (G1)|Hound]]
*[[Sunstreaker (G1)|Sunstreaker]]
*[[Bluestreak]]
*[[Inferno (G1)|Inferno]]* ([[Walker Edmiston]])
*[[Chormia(flashback)]]
|c2=
*[[Megatron (G1)|Megatron]] ([[Frank Welker]])
*[[Galvatron (G1)|Galvatron]] ([[Leonard Nimoy]])
*[[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]] ([[Chris Latta]])
*[[Cyclonus (G1)|Cyclonus]] ([[Roger C. Carmel]])
*[[Scourge (G1)|Scourge]] ([[Stan Jones]])
*[[Soundwave (G1)|Soundwave]] ([[Frank Welker]])
*[[Devastator (G1)|Devastator]] ([[Arthur Burghardt]])
*[[Scrapper (G1)|Scrapper]] ([[Michael Bell]])
*[[Bonecrusher (G1)|Bonecrusher]] ([[Neil Ross]])
*[[Hook (G1)|Hook]] ([[Neil Ross]])
*[[Scavenger (G1)|Scavenger]] ([[Don Messick]])
*[[Mixmaster (G1)|Mixmaster]]
*[[Long Haul (G1)|Long Haul]]
*[[Shrapnel (G1)|Shrapnel]] ([[Hal Rayle]])
*[[Kickback (G1)|Kickback]] ([[Clive Revill]])
*[[Bombshell (G1)|Bombshell]]
*[[Astrotrain (G1)|Astrotrain]] ([[Jack Angel]])
*[[Shockwave (G1)|Shockwave]] ([[Corey Burton]])
*[[Dirge (G1)|Dirge]] ([[Bud Davis]])
*[[Blitzwing (G1)|Blitzwing]] ([[Ed Gilbert]])
*[[Seacons]]
* [[Rumble (G1)|Rumble]] ([[Frank Welker]])
*[[Frenzy (G1)|Frenzy]] ([[Frank Welker]])
*[[Laserbeak (G1)|Laserbeak]] ([[Frank Welker]])
*[[Ravage (G1)|Ravage]] ([[Frank Welker]])
*[[Ratbat (G1)|Ratbat]] ([[Frank Welker]])
*[[Thrust (G1)|Thrust]]
*[[Ramjet (G1)|Ramjet]]
*[[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]]
*[[Thundercracker (G1)|Thundercracker]]
*[[Sweep]]s
*[[Cyclonus's Armada]]
*[[Cyclonus clone guy]]
|c3=
*[[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]] ([[Corey Burton]])
*[[Daniel Witwicky (G1)|Daniel Witwicky]] ([[David Mendenhall]])
|c4=
*[[Unicron]] ([[Orson Welles]])
*[[Wreck-Gar (G1)|Wreck-Gar]] ([[Eric Idle]])
*[[Kranix]] ([[Norman Alden|Norm Alden]])
*[[Junkion (species)|Junkion]] ([[Michael Bell]])
*[[Junkion (species)|Junkion]] ([[Frank Welker]])
*[[Quintesson]] leader ([[Roger C. Carmel]])
*[[Quintesson#Judges|Quintesson judge]] ([[Regis Cordic|Rege Cordic]])
*[[Arblus]] ([[Norman Alden|Norm Alden]])
*[[Sharkticon (G1)|Sharkticons]]
*[[Allicon]]s
|nonumbering=true
}}
<nowiki>*</nowiki>Credited, but did not appear.

==Animation errors==
* When Unicron is approaching Lithone at the start of the movie, at the line "Look, it's Unicron!", a [[Animation error#Sizing errors|cel stacking error]] results in Unicron's ring appearing in front of a building arch, [[Distribution|making Unicron look very tiny]] in that shot. In the next shot, it is clear that Unicron is several times larger than the entire planet of Lithone.
* The inside of one of the Lithonian ships being devoured by Unicron is visible for a couple of frames. The pilot of the ship appears to be Kranix, even though he apparently screams out Kranix's name, and Kranix appears later in the Quintesson prison.
* When the inside of Unicron is shown after he devours Lithone, the "blinking energy" effect of Unicron's innards was apparently achieved by recycling backgrounds from other animated TV shows or movies. A frame by frame viewing reveals what appear to be several images of post-apocalyptic buildings inside Unicron.
* When Optimus Prime asks Jazz to report security status, it shows both Jazz and Cliffjumper. Cliffjumper is seen twiddling knobs above the actual drawn computer, as if a section was supposed to be present.
* When the Decepticons blow a hole through the Autobot shuttle to get in, it is a clean break. However, Megatron is still shown ripping through random ship components to get in.
* Scavenger's head is white instead of black as he ducks from Prowl's shot.
* When the Decepticons are killing the Autobot shuttle crew, there is one of the common Starscream/Skywarp/Thundercracker miscolors. Megatron transforms into gun mode and Starscream catches him and kills Brawn. When they cut back to the Decepticons, Starscream is in front of the Constructicons without Megatron and is firing one of his arm rifles (this probably should have been Skywarp or Thundercracker). When they cut back to the Decepticons for the third time, Starscream has Megatron again and is finishing off the rest of the Autobots. In the shot of Starscream firing his own lasers, his wings are red instead of gray.
* When the Decepticons fly to the shuttle's controls, all of the Autobots have changed positions from when they fell—Brawn is now on his back, for example, while Prowl is now face-down. Ironhide's chest is also completely intact, despite having a bunch of holes blown in it.
* Hot Rod has at least two totally different transformation schemes during the course of the film.
* When Kup and several Autobots at the roadblock react to Hot Rod's attack on the hijacked Autobot shuttle, Bluestreak is represented by Prowl's [[Character model|animation model]], in Bluestreak's grey and black colours.
* Sunstreaker appears with Kup's group on Earth as they observe Hot Rod firing on Ironhide's shuttle. Sunstreaker later appears as Optimus Prime's co-pilot when they arrive on Earth with the Dinobots, and is seen disembarking the shuttle along with Optimus Prime and Hound.
* In a wide aerial shot of the city under attack, a Reflector flies by in Ironhide's color scheme. Shockwave also makes his only appearance in the battle; considering both his role as Cybertron's guardian and his absence from any other scenes during the battle, his presence is probably an animation error. Rumble also flies past, despite being inside Soundwave at this point.
* Blaster's forehead is red instead of white after his "look out and shout!" line, and again after he returns to robot mode.
* A laser blast that should be behind Blaster is instead layered in front of him as he acknowledges Perceptor's orders.
* In the big lineup of firing Decepticons, Soundwave's cheek guards are blue instead of white.
* When [[Soundwave (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Soundwave]] sends out his cassette troops, [[FIRRIB|Rumble is the same color as Frenzy]].
* Blaster first ejects what looks like Eject, who stays blue up until he gets to the edge of the screen. He then turns black like Rewind. Then Blaster ejects another blue cassette, which after about a second turns black. This one gets through half his transformation colored black, then turns blue for a split second then turns black again. Then, when the cassettes are fighting each other, Eject runs in from the left and jumps over Perceptor. And then he runs in from the left ''again'' to shoot Ravage. Suddenly [[Brawl (Movie)|Brawl/Devastator]] doesn't look so bad, does he?
* As Springer runs up to the launcher, Wheeljack's body is visible, but he's in red, white and blue colors.
* While Springer and Arcee are trying to move the launcher into place, Springer's face is the same color as his helmet.
* When Devastator forms in Autobot City, his chest plate is the same green as the rest of him. In the next shot, it's the usual purple. However, it promptly turns green again in the next shot.
* As Devastator lays into the walls, Shrapnel is white where he should be black.
* While Perceptor and Grapple are shooting, Swoop's lower half runs by in the foreground, long before the rest of him gets there.
* Megatron's pelvis is white instead of black as he gives the "let the slaughter begin!" order.
* Prime's dramatic transformation sequence far outlasts the transformation sound that's supposed to go with it. It's also the wrong sound (ascending pitch) for his robot-to-vehicle transformation.
* When Prime drives up behind the Decepticons, Blitzwing's head is tan instead of purple. It becomes purple when he turns it, then goes back to tan again as he turns it back.
* The gun Megatron uses to fatally injure Optimus is blue and white for most of the shots it is seen in, but when Megatron screams "Fall! FALL!" while shooting Prime again, it is black.
* Prime's antennae are white as he tries to stand after knocking Megatron off the ledge.
* Starscream's whole nosecone, rather than just the canopy, is yellow as he looms over Megatron.
* When Optimus Prime takes the Matrix out of his chest to give to Ultra Magnus, there is another Matrix beneath it in his chest. (On which note, see also ''[[Matrix of Leadership#Universe|Matrix of Leadership, Universe comic]].'')
* When Ultra Magnus accepts the Matrix, he's seen inserting it into his chest twice, or at best readjusting its "fit".
* As the other Decepticons prepare to push him out, Bombshell's chest is rendered as a shapeless gray mass, rather than with its yellow canopy.
* The voice that says "Don't!" is nowhere close to the voices of any of the five Decepticons shown getting thrown out of Astrotrain.
* Starscream's got an extra yellow segment on his canopy as he nominates himself for leadership. Man, even the A-list animation team couldn't keep this straight.
* Most of Megatron's chest emblem isn't colored in as he first speaks to Unicron. It might pass for battle damage, but a few shots later it's fully purple.
[[Image:Coronation .jpg|thumb|right|250px| *''trumpet fanfare''* ]]
* Even after the [[Battle of Autobot City]], characters who are supposedly dead continue to appear in crowd shots and battles. Shrapnel's role in the fight on [[Junkion (planet)|Junk]] is the most noticeable (and he was called for by name in the original script), but Thundercracker, Skywarp and Kickback can all be seen at Starscream's coronation. The two jets are later seen again, flying into Unicron's mouth.
* Hook has two eyes instead of a visor as he looks around in confusion during the trumpet scene.
* An early establishing shot clearly shows Cybertron with two and ''only'' two moons in low orbit. Yet a third moon is visible right after Unicron finishes eating the two Autobot bases.
* When Cyclonus is strafing the Autobot shuttle in space, he briefly flies offscreen, and during that time his laser blasts come from a point that in no way matches his flight path.
* Daniel's lips don't purse when he whistles.
* Wreck-Gar's mouth doesn't move at all during his first lines, despite the camera pushing in all close on his face.
* When Hot Rod tells the Junkions the universal greeting, the Autobot insignia on his chest is coloured black.
* Shrapnel's lower legs are white when he lands on Junk, instead of black. Must be a side effect of being dead.
* When Unicron transforms, the first hand we see (his right) is backwards relative to how the arm is shown on screen.
* Hot Rod's missing his Autobot symbol as he regains his footing inside Unicron.
* The third smelting victim doesn't fall from the conveyor belt; he simply vanishes.

== Continuity errors ==
[[Image:G1TFTM Snarl cameo.JPG|thumb|right|250px|He used to bulls-eye womp-rats in his T16 back home.]]

* The Dinobot [[Snarl (G1)|Snarl]] is mysteriously absent from almost the entire movie, even though the Dinobots as a group are featured prominently. Copies of the script which have come into fans' hands repeatedly list the Dinobots, but never make mention of Snarl by name. In fact, at one point the script refers to "the four Dinobots". Despite this, Snarl does appear in three very brief shots{{m-}}in which at least one other Dinobot (Swoop in one, Sludge in another) is entirely absent. Hmm.
* Also curiously absent are the 1985 Autobot cars and Mini-Vehicles, such as Inferno, Smokescreen, Cosmos, Warpath, etc. It would seem that these characters were available at the time of the movie:
** Perceptor and Blaster both debuted at the same time in the cartoon as the 1985 cars, and both play prominent roles in the movie.
** Grapple is [[:Image:BattleAutobotCity.jpg|seen ''very'' briefly]] during the battle for Autobot City.
** The 1985 Decepticons (Astrotrain, Dirge, etc.) appear in the film.
** [[:Image:TFTM-SideswipeRedAlertTracks.jpg|Tracks]], [[:Image:TFTM-RedAlertDown.jpg|Red Alert]] and Smokescreen all appeared in storyboards but not the finished film.
* Devastator is treated as ''the'' ultimate threat, while in the cartoon, his role (and apparent power) was already being [[Starscream's Brigade|severely diminished]], presumably because several other combiners had been introduced. In story terms, the absence of these newer combiners, not to mention the mighty Omega Supreme, is inexplicable. In real-life terms, those characters didn't exist when the film commenced production. (The [[Transformers: The Animated Movie]] adaptation shows Omega Supreme, Superion and Defensor guarding the Ark against an attack by Bruticus and Menasor, attempting to [[retcon]] the problem away.)
[[Image:Cyclonus armada tftf.jpg|thumb|right|250px|We'll be safe enough once we make the jump into lightspeed.]]
* The cartoon had made it abundantly clear that Cybertron had no moons. In numerous close and distant shots of the planet throughout the first two seasons, no moon was seen. Ever. The movie promptly introduces two (and possibly a third) moons in close orbit over the planet. In continuity terms, they must have been built or brought into orbit after 1986.
* During the Battle of Autobot City, Starscream gets his leg caught. He shoots downward and gets away while screaming "My foot!", but it's his shin that's smoking while his foot looks fine. Later he kicks Megatron with the same foot. Shouldn't that hurt, according to him? Note there is a time lapse between the "foot shooting" and the kicking, leaving the option of a battlefield repair.
* So Ultra Magnus just happens to have a ready-made Matrix chamber installed in his chest cavity? Is this standard issue for all Autobots?
* The cartoon had already established that Astrotrain increases his size when he transforms to shuttle mode, being large enough to carry a pair of Decepticons in his cockpit. However, within the movie itself, his size is [[scale|noticeably inconsistent]]: When he leaves Autobot City, he's just large enough for the Decepticon army to cram themselves in; later, he's so huge that the Constructicons can quite comfortably form Devastator inside him.
* The number of minions created by Unicron changes throughout the film, with more Sweeps appearing as the story progresses. A second Cyclonus ("Cyclonus, the warrior, and [[Cyclonus's Armada|his armada]]") is shown being created but disappears shortly thereafter. At least ''seven'' new characters are shown at one point, created from only ''six'' Decepticons thrown from the shuttle.

[[Image:SSBQ.jpg|thumb|right|250px|"I've been looking forward to this for a long time." "Yes, I bet you have."]]
* [[Galvatron (G1)|Galvatron]] is capable of reducing [[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]] to ashes with a single shot from his cannon mode. Though in later episodes Galvatron is shown blowing up even small ''[[Thrull|planets]]'' with his cannon, his extraordinary killing power seems to be gone—like when he scores a direct hit in cannon mode on Ultra Magnus in "[[Five Faces of Darkness, Part 5]]" and Magnus isn't especially hurt at all, or how a similar blast against Scourge in "[[The Burden Hardest to Bear]]" only leaves the latter temporarily incapacitated. [[Marvel Comics]] bios explain this by suggesting that Galvatron had nearly limitless power through Unicron... but then again, Galvatron himself claims to be "more powerful than ever" after Unicron is dead. {{storylink|Five Faces of Darkness, Part 2}} [[To sell toys|Who knows.]]
* Why didn't anyone notice Unicron until he was within devouring distance of Cybertron's moons?
* Despite running out of energon goodies on Quintessa, Hot Rod has at least one to offer to the Junkions. Maybe he got some on the ship. It's also possible that, when he told the Allicons "No more," he meant that he wasn't going to ''feed'' them any more energon goodies, not that he didn't ''have'' anymore.
* Daniel, who was just learning how to use his exo-suit, had to knock down the acid cover inside Unicron to save his loved ones. Why couldn't the more experienced Spike do the same with his suit from above? He had both of his arms free and a clear shot at the cover. On the other hand, the clamp holding him may well disable his exo-suit's weapons and movement abilities-if it didn't, Unicron probably wouldn't have eaten half as many victims by now...
* It's not clear how Rodimus Prime (carrying two humans) and the other Autobots survived their jump out of Unicron's eye and their plunge towards the surface of Cybertron.
* It's also unclear just how the dozen or so Autobots (and one shipload of Junkions) managed to retake the whole planet of Cybertron. Did Unicron really wipe out ''that'' many Decepticons?

===Not Necessarily Errors===
* Fans have noted throughout the years that Astrotrain, in his flight through zero-gravity space, should not have needed to "jettison some weight" in the literal sense. However, since the ejected Decepticons quickly fall behind Astrotrain instead of floating alongside him, he must still have been accelerating and thus would have needed to burn a greater amount of fuel in order to push a larger payload. Perhaps he should have said "jettison some ''mass''", but then again, just being a spaceship doesn't make him a rocket scientist.
* Starscream is shown just inside Astrotrain's cargo bay when he commands him to take off, but in the next shot (Astrotrain's door closing as his rocket engines ignite), Starscream is nowhere to be seen. It's possible that he walked further in, but he should still be at least partially visible.

==Continuity notes==
* The Movie has had a huge effect in shaping the mythos:
** It was the first story to establish that Cybertron had moons.
** It introduced the Matrix as a physical object, Autobot City, Unicron, the notion of Megatron becoming Galvatron, and it killed off Optimus Prime before it was cool!

* Gadgets and powers:
** Springer deploys a small flip-out twin laser from his wrist during the Autobot City battle.
** Arcee activates a long-distance scanner of some sort by lowering a red visor from under her helmet over her eyes.
** Hot Rod uses a saw blade that extends from his retracted wrist.
** Blurr has the same kind of hooked welding tip used by various Autobots as far back as "[[More than Meets the Eye, Part 2]]".
** Arcee unleashes a nasty barbed post from her fender to fend off a Junkion.
** Grimlock shows the never-before seen ability to shoot lasers from his fists.

==Real-world references and Easter eggs==
* When Sludge gets haymakered by Devastator, his eyes pop out of their sockets in Looney Tunes fashion.
* Kup's storytelling sequence aboard the shuttle is drawn from the novel ''Of Mice and Men'', complete with Grimlock in the Lenny role asking Kup to "tell Grimlock about petrorabbits again".
* The Quintesson jail cell includes robot debris ''strongly'' resembling the RX-178 Gundam MK II and the MSZ-006 Zeta Gundam mobile suits from 1985's ''Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam''.
* The Junkions speak almost entirely in pop culture quotes and pastiches. Littered among the generic phrases like "operators are standing by!", "Film at eleven" and "eliminate even the toughest stains" are more specific references, such as:
** "Don't look behind door #2, Monty!" - a reference to the game show ''Let's Make a Deal'' and its host, Monty Hall.
** "Ger-ron-ron-doo-ron-ronny-mo!" - both the famous "Geronimo!" war cry, and the 1963 hit "Da Do Ron Ron".
** "You check in, but you don't check out" - a parody of the tagline for Roach Motel insect traps.
** "Happy motoring!" - a 1970s slogan of gas company Exxon.

* ''[[Star Wars]]'' sound effects (yes, even the high-budget Movie uses them):
** The ''Millenium Falcon'' engine burst noise is used extensively throughout the film, over and over and over, almost any time a Decepticon takes flight.

** Luke's deactivating lightsaber is used as the sound of the Quintesson ship's ramp extending.
** Clashing lightsabers are used as Unicron fires eye-blasts at the attacking Transformers.

** An igniting lightsaber is used as Rodimus opens the Matrix.
* The ''Star Trek'' sliding door sound is used as Wreck-Gar pulls out his <s>iPhone</s> mini-TV.

==Adaptations==
*[[Transformers: The Movie (Marvel Comics)|A comic adaptation of the movie]] was published by [[Marvel Comics]] in 1986, concurrently with the movie's theater run. It was based off a non-finalized version of the script, and differs in many details from the final film. Additionally, most of the major character models (and possibly their unedited original character write-ups) appear in Issue #4 of the ''[[Transformers Universe (Marvel comic)|Transformers Universe]]'' series.
* [[Transformers the Movie (Ladybird adaptation)|A storybook adaptation]] was released in the UK by [[Ladybird Books]].
*A four-part adaptation was released in 2006/2007 by [[IDW Publishing]], as part of the film's 20th anniversary celebration. It was titled ''[[Transformers: The Animated Movie]]'' to differentiate it from the [[Michael Bay]] [[Transformers (2007)|live-action film]]. Unlike its predecessor, it adheres rigidly to the script and plot of the finished movie.

==Soundtrack==
{{main|The Transformers: The Movie - Original Motion Picture Soundtrack}}

==Promotions==
* Early in the movie's production, a [[The Transformers: The Movie promo|promotional trailer]] was made to sell the project to potential investors.
* The movie was advertised on related 1986 toy packages via the [[Decipher the Decepticon]] Sweepstakes, which included a pack-in poster and contest.
* The movie was heavily advertised directly by TV [[commercial]]s, and tail-end segments on Transformer toy ads. Portions of its story were also retold in altered fashion by animation segments of commercials for the movie character toys, such as a spot showing Springer doing battle with Wreck-Gar.

==In the comic continuity==
The [[The Transformers (Marvel comic)|Marvel UK comic]] made extensive use of the Movie as the basis for a series of stories involving the Transformers in the future. However there are several differences between the events seen on screen and those referenced in the comic:

*The comic always dates the move to 2006, following the date given in a treatment that was all [[Simon Furman]] had when he wrote [[Target: 2006]].
*In Target: 2006, [[Cyclonus (G1)|Cyclonus]] states that he was previously "[[Life Spark]]".
*The Matrix is always called the "Creation Matrix" in the comic, a name that predates the "Matrix of Leadership" but which is now used for the same physical object.
*[[Brawn (G1)|Brawn]] and [[Wheeljack (G1)|Wheeljack]] both survive the events, both later appearing in [[Space Pirates!]] (set in 2008).

In addition, Shockwave definitely survives the attack by Unicron.

The US comic almost completely ignored the events of the Movie, though later in the run an alternative future is briefly shown in "[[Rhythms of Darkness!]]" and "[[A Savage Circle]]". In this timeline at least some of the events of the Movie took place such as the creation of Galvatron from Megatron, which is dated to 2005, though Prowl's death was overlooked. [[Prowl II|Wouldn't be the first time. Or the last.]]
*The US version of the future story [[The Big Broadcast of 2006 (issue)|The Big Broadcast of 2006]] implicitly has the events of the movie as part of its backstory. However, since the rest of the US series ignored the movie, this issue's place in the continuity is questionable.

==Edits==
Several English-language versions of the film exist, with the following differences in content from the American theatrical run:

* In some versions (notably the European version) the opening credits are replaced with a scrolling text ("''Star Wars'' style") which provides backstory.
* In some versions (notably the European version) the film ends with [[Victor Caroli|a narrator]] reassuring the audience that Optimus Prime will return.
* Instances of swearing in the film (there are two) were edited out; sometimes one, sometimes both. Those instances are: Spike yelling, "Oh shit, what are we gonna do now?" after the self-destructing Moon Base 2 fails to scratch Unicron, and Ultra Magnus growling, "Open, damn it, open!" while trying to open the Matrix to fend off Galvatron and the Sweeps on Junkion. The United Kingdom cinema version had the swearing included but, when it was released on VHS in the United Kingdom, Spike's line was cut ("damn" not being considered offensive in the UK). However it has been restored on all United Kingdom DVD releases.
* In some early FHE video releases, the shot of the Matrix falling out of Optimus Prime's hand and being caught by Hot Rod is edited so that it appears that Ultra Magnus simply takes the Matrix from Prime. Why this was done is not known, and the replay of the Hot Rod catch on Unicron's monitors was left intact.
*Instead of DEG, the Rank Film "gong man" appears before the film, as Rank were the United Kingdom distributors.

None of these edits significantly affect the story. They should not be confused with various other sequences which were changed before the film's final release:

* Originally, Ultra Magnus's "death sequence" on Junkion called for him to be lassoed and drawn and quartered by the Sweeps' energy beams, but this was deemed too graphic for audiences, hence the less disturbing "shot to death" sequence seen instead. There is evidence that the original sequence had been fully animated when the decision was made, however; the Sweeps still kept their solid energy lassos when they fire upon Mags, and Mags is seen visibly straining against what appears to be said lassos (edited out and replaced with laser fire) before exploding.
* A number of other sequences were illustrated as [[storyboard]]s but dropped, presumably without ever being animated. Among them were:
** A short scene showing the Autobot shuttle veering around some meteors, explaining how the Decepticons caught them unawares.
** An extended sequence with Hot Rod and Daniel outside the city.
** A sequence of Mirage blasting Bombshell and being fired on by Megatron.
** The Autobots finally bringing down Devastator with a barrage of missiles (and the Constructicons subsequently shooting Red Alert in the back).
** The Decepticons dogpiling Optimus Prime, explaining why he seems to be standing up just before his fight with Megatron.
:Some of these concepts were in earlier versions of the script, and hence made it into the comic adaptation.
* Rumors have occasionally circulated in the fandom of additional animated footage that was dropped from the film, such as ultra-violent battle scenes. No evidence has ever surfaced to back these claims; the only known edits are those listed in this section.
:{{see|Misconceptions and urban legends about Transformers#The Transformers: The Movie|Urban legends about ''The Transformers: The Movie''}}

==Reception==
{{quote|''The Transformers'', in which Orson Welles plays a planet, is pure headache material. Target audience of cartoon-watchers also will probably find the film unintelligible, noisy and unoriginal. Boxoffice prospects are dismal.|2=[http://books.google.com/books?id=DHNZAAAAMAAJ&q=Hasbro+Transformers&dq=Hasbro+Transformers&lr=&as_drrb_is=b&as_minm_is=1&as_miny_is=1983&as_maxm_is=12&as_maxy_is=2005&num=50&as_brr=0&cd=69 Variety's Film Reviews 1985-1986, Volume 19]}}

{{quote|Obnoxious animated feature about the title good guys, who defend the universe against an evil planet (which has a voice of its own... provided by Orson Welles.) That deafening rock score certainly doesn't help. Little more than a feature-length toy commercial.|Leonard Maltin, ''1987 Movie & Video Guide''}}

{{quote|While all this action may captivate young children, the animation is not spectacular enough to dazzle adults, and the Transformers have few truly human elements to lure parents along, even when their voices are supplied by well-known actors. |2=[http://www.nytimes.com/1986/08/09/movies/screen-transformers-animation-for-children.html The New York Times]}}

{{quote|Transformers -- The Movie, a feature-length animated film inspired by the syndicated TV cartoon series inspired by the Hasbro toy imported from Japan, is utterly uninspired entertainment. |2=[http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=DM&p_theme=dm&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0ED3CE8EA8D40CCA&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM The Dallas Morning News]}}

{{quote|If you can swallow, without gagging, a large measure of sentimental and offensive religiosity - lines like "Do not grieve. Soon I will be one with the Matrix," whispered by a failing hunk of Autobot metal - then you have a better than even chance of leaving the theatre on your own two feet. |2=[http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=01kiAAAAIBAJ&sjid=W6gFAAAAIBAJ&pg=2445,1286000&dq=transformers&hl=en The Montreal Gazette]}}

{{quote|Everything is poorly drawn and - when it's in focus - one dimensional. It is terribly hard to separate the robots from the backgrounds, and there is no easy way to tell the good guys from the bad guys. In an earlier movie based on the same sort of robot toys - "Go-Bots: The Battle of the Rock Lords" - the good guys were either white or colorful and the bad guys were dreary, and they had distinct personalities. Not this movie; everyone looks and sounds alike, except one pink robot who is a female good guy. Her tin voluptuousness makes her stand out. |2=[http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=kw4wAAAAIBAJ&sjid=OgMEAAAAIBAJ&pg=6957,6334152&dq=transformers&hl=en The Toledo Blade]}}

{{quote|Even with an all-star cast doing the voice overs... and a rock music score, this is still nothing more than a ripoff of a successful toy line. |2=[http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=AYckAAAAIBAJ&sjid=dtsFAAAAIBAJ&pg=4192,1494652&dq=transformers&hl=en The Palm Beach Post]}}

{{quote|The great animated villains, like the Wicked Queen in Disney's "Snow White," had motivations as compelling as any live-action character. Unicron apparently destroys entire worlds because it has nothing else to do. |2=[http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/latimes/access/57996397.html?dids=57996397:57996397&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Aug+8%2C+1986&author=CHARLES+SOLOMON&pub=Los+Angeles+Times+(pre-1997+Fulltext)&edition=&startpage=8&desc=%60THE+TRANSFORMERS%27%3A+STRETCHING+A+POINT The LA Times]}}

''The Transformers: The Movie'' was almost universally panned by professional critics upon its release.

Well-known film critic and animation enthusiast, Leonard Maltin, gave it a rating below 1 1/2 stars in his ''1987 Movie & Video Guide'', regarding it as a "bomb", then proceeded to write an unflattering blurb denouncing the film as a "feature-length toy commercial" (well, he was ''right'').

Caryn James of the ''New York Times'' admitted in the [[August 9]], 1986 edition of the paper that the film was intended for young children, pointing out that the kids in the audience were having a grand ole time with the ''Transformer'' toys and comics they brought with them to the theater, but derided the film as having little to no appeal to adults (''man-children'', on the other hand...).

''Variety's Film Reviews 1985-1986, Volume 19 '' was far less even-handed in their review, claiming the film had no appeal to adults ''or'' children. They predicted the film would perform poorly in the box office (and were correct, in that regard).

Carrie Rickey of the ''Dallas Morning News'' chided the film in the [[August 13]], 1986 issue of the paper, describing it as "essentially a cartoon ''Star Wars'' about robots from a toybox galaxy far, far away". She then went on to say that the film "never takes off" and derided it as "uninspired".

Janice Kennedy of the ''Montreal Gazette'' verbally disemboweled the film in the [[August 23]], 1986 edition of the paper, criticizing it as overly commercial, profane, loud, violent, humorless, heavy-handed in its religious messages and chaulk-full of gratuitous celebrity voice-overs. Her only compliment: "But ''The Transformers: The Movie'' does have at least one good thing going for it, a howlingly appropriate song by [["Weird Al" Yankovic]]. It's title? ''Dare to be Stupid''." ''Ouch''.

Nanciann Cherry in the August 13, 1986 edition of the ''Toledo Blade'' claimed the robots in the movie had little personality and faded into the background. She even went on to say that ''Challenge of the GoBots: Battle of the Rock Lords'' was a superior film! Her review was filled with inaccuracies, however, citing characters such as "Unicon" and claiming that the destruction of Cybertron's moons by "Unicon" is what caused the Autobots to travel to Autobot City, at which point Megatron attacked. To be fair, she readily admits, "About 20 minutes into the film, I gave up on the plot and tried to count all the ideas that were stolen from other sources. Now that kept me busy." So she wasn't really paying attention, anyway.

Kathryn Buxton in the [[August 22]], 1986 edition of the ''Palm Beach Post'' gave the film a whopping ''one'' star, calling it "a ripoff of a successful toyline", whatever ''that'' means. In the same article, she also gave David Cronenberg's ''[[Fly|The Fly]]'' one star, just for reference.

In the August 8, 1986 edition of the ''LA Times'', critic Charles Solomon made clear his dislike for the film centered primarily on the fact that none of the characters had interesting or believable motivation. He stated, "Not even the best actor can create a character out of nothing. Not one of the robots has a reason for doing what he does." Solomon then pointed to Unicron specifically as an example of the lack of deep, multi-dimensional motivations in the characters.

Over time, however, the movie has acquired something of a cult following beyond the core base of [[fandom|Transformers fans]], particularly among children of the 80s. It is sometimes screened as a midnight movie at colleges. Online, it is not hard to find amateur reviews lauding everything about it as utterly awesome, from the premise to the soundtrack, and dismissing more critical views out of hand.

To date, the budget of the film has not been disclosed—at least, not in any place the [[fandom]] has found. According to most box office tracking sites,<ref>http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=transformers.htm</ref><ref>http://www.the-numbers.com/movies/1986/0TRTM.php</ref> ''The Transformers: The Movie'' made $5,849,647 in domestic (e.g., United States) theaters. Comparing this with other animated films of 1986, the results are not particularly charitable; while it did better financially than ''[[Tonka GoBots|GoBots: Battle of the Rock Lords]]''<ref>http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=gobots.htm</ref> ($1,338,264) and ''Heathcliff: The Movie''<ref>http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=heathcliff.htm</ref> ($2,610,686), it performed worse than the ''[[My Little Pony]]'' movie<ref>http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=mylittlepony.htm</ref> ($5,958,456) and the '''second''' ''Care Bears'' movie<ref>http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=carebearsmovie2.htm</ref> ($8,540,346). Bringing up ''The Great Mouse Detective''<ref>http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=greatmousedetective.htm</ref> ($25,336,794) and ''An American Tail''<ref>http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=americantail.htm</ref> ($47,483,002) would really just be overkill.

==Significance in Transfandom==
''The Transformers: The Movie'' remains one of the most important elements of the entire Transformers brand, both within the fiction and from the perspective of the brand's popularity and "mindshare".

Fictionally, it established several story concepts that have been used repeatedly in the years since 1986, some of which—such as Unicron and the Matrix—are now central to the entire Transformers mythos. The movie is also the centerpiece of the most well-known Transformers continuity: the Generation 1 animated universe. The ''Transformers'' cartoon is split into "pre-movie" and "post-movie" sections which feature different characters and settings, and even somewhat different visual styles. (Most pre-movie episodes were animated by the studio [[Toei]], while most post-movie episodes were animated by [[AKOM]].)

On a practical note, it was widely available on videotape, and remained so long after the ''The Transformers'' cartoon had gone off the air. Only a [[Family Home Entertainment|handful of series episodes]] were available on video, making ''The Transformers: The Movie'' the logical choice for someone looking to pick up a ''Transformers'' cartoon; this made it far more well-known among fans than any particular cartoon episode.

To an entire generation of young fans, the movie was the most visually spectacular and narratively epic ''Transformers'' experience of their entire youth. Events such as the death of Optimus Prime are widely reported to have reduced many kids to tears. It is hardly a surprise that these emotional experiences embedded themselves deeply in many fans' memories.

==Criticisms==
[[Image:TFTM Ratchet dies.jpg|180px|left|thumb|Only Imperial Stormtroopers are so precise.]]

All this is not all to say that the movie is a "masterpiece", exactly. The film met with extremely harsh critical reviews on its release, and some of those criticisms still ring true today.

The film displays an arguably cynical attitude towards itself as [[To sell toys|a vehicle for advertising toys]], especially in the way beloved characters are killed—sometimes gratuitously—for sake of justifying the story's focus on a new group of toys. (Note that with the exception of Laserbeak and possibly Buzzsaw [http://www.flickr.com/photos/42232106@N06/3893688802] the poster at the top of this article features ''only'' new characters.)

Further, the two primary plot devices—[[Unicron]] and the [[Matrix of Leadership|Matrix]]—have no prior establishment in the fiction. Unicron is given no backstory or justification; he simply exists, is very dangerous, and is afraid of the Matrix, all for no adequately explained reason. The introduction of the Matrix itself is a heavy [[retcon]]. The story asks the audience to accept that this cosmically powerful artifact has been in Prime's possession all along (even though an X-ray of Optimus Prime's innards in the second season episode "[[A Prime Problem]]" show absolutely no signs of said Matrix), but has somehow never been relevant before. In fact, this lack of prior establishment is what led [[Simon Furman]] to develop the divinity backstory of Unicron and [[Primus]] in the UK comics run.

[[Image:Megatronlightsaber.jpg|right|180px|thumb|Your powers are weak, old man!]]
The movie bears many similarities to ''[[Star Wars]]'': There are several character-parallels ([[Springer (G1)|Springer]] is a [[Han Solo]]-type and [[Arcee (G1)|Arcee]] even has Princess Leia's hairdo!), the primary threat is similar (it's the [[Death Star]]... [[Unicron|but it transforms!]]), and both feature a climactic battle where the [[Hot Rod (G1)|young hero]] hears the voice of his [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|dead, wise mentor]] one last time before saving the day.

To be a bit more fair to ''The Transformers: The Movie'', however, most of these similarities are either superficial (Arcee's Leia-hair; Megatron's "lightsaber" he briefly uses in his duel against Optimus Prime) or can be seen as elements common to thousands of years worth of epic storytelling through human history, not just common to ''Star Wars''. As a simple example, the phenomenon of two charismatic leaders dealing each other mortal injuries in battle hearkens back to some versions of the "King Arthur" myth; in their final battle, [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Arthur]] and his arch-enemy [[Megatron (G1)|Sir Mordred]] deal one another lethal injuries and both apparently expire—though Arthur according to the legend will [[The Return of Optimus Prime|return]] when [[Cybertron (planet)|England's]] need [[Darkest hour|is greatest]].

==Formatting==
[[Image:Tftm widescreenesque.jpg|right|300px|thumb|The "widescreen" picture (left) actually ''cuts off'' the top and bottom of the fullscreen picture (right).]]
Although it was billed in some advertisements before its theatrical release as being "widescreen", the movie was in fact animated in a 4:3 (fullscreen) aspect ratio. For its theatrical screenings, the film was matted down in the projector by the projectionist to a 16:9 aspect ratio (widescreen), chopping the top and bottom off the picture, but all video transfers of the movie were done without mattes, meaning that there was actually more picture visible in the fullscreen video and DVD releases than there would have been in theaters. Across 2006 and 2007, new editions of the DVD of the film were released by Sony BMG and [[Metrodome]] which applied the mattes in order to replicate the original theatrical presentation of the film for the first time in home entertainment. Some fans, however, didn't realize that the film wasn't actually ''animated'' in widescreen, and, hearing that the DVD was to be in widescreen, expected to see the fullscreen image with additional footage at the sides, causing them to complain that the top and bottom were cut off, thereby totally missing the point.

==International versions==
{{main|The Transformers: The Movie/dubs}}

==Commercial Releases==
* The movie was originally released in North America on home video in 1987 by [[Family Home Entertainment]], minus Spike's swear. Not long after, it was releasd in the UK by [[Video Gems]]. This version featured the opening text crawl and closing narration inherent to the UK version of the film. In Australia, the film was releaed on video by RCA/Columbia Pictures/Hoyts. In Japan, Hillcrane released a Laserdisc version alongside a VHS copy.
*The movie was released spottily in the '90s, beginning with a budget VHS by Avid Home Entertainment in 1991. [[Malofilm]] released a VHS in Canada in 1995, notable for being the first home entertainment version to include Spike's swear. In 1998, Japanese company Pioneer produced another pair of Laserdisc and VHS releases. In 1999, things kicked off when American company [[Kid Rhino]] secured the Transformers license and released the film on VHS once again.
*The 21st century's flirtation with ''The Transformers: The Movie'' started with a UK budget VHS release of that country's version by [[Sony|Sony Wonder]], distributed by [[Maverick Entertainment]]. A Japanese company called CatCo followed this up with a VideoCD, and Malofilm—now Seville—were the first to release a DVD version of the film, though it was just a dump of their VHS version.
*In November 2000, ''The Transformers: The Movie'' got its first, full professional DVD release from Kid Rhino. This edition, labelled a "Special Collector's Edition", is the first to feature remastered video and audio, and several special features, including storyboards and an interview with [[Vince DiCola]]. Rhino concurrently released this version on VHS, sans extras.
*In 2001 in the UK, Sony Wonder released their own much-delayed DVD version of the film. It was the UK version of the film, but included Spike's swear. However, the release was burdened by badly interlaced video, though it notably included the [[Omni Productions]] dub version of the ''[[The Headmasters (cartoon)|Headmasters]]'' episode "[[Four Warriors Come out of the Sky]]" as an extra. This version (including the ''Headmasters'' episode) was simultaneously released on VHS.
*The movie was released on DVD in Australia in 2003 by [[Madman Entertainment]], using the same video as the Maverick version, but distinguished by some nifty new cover art by [[Don Figueroa]], and special features not seen on other editions, such as ''[[Stan Bush|The Touch]]'' music video and 80s TV spots.
[[Image:Tftm uk covers.jpg|right|180px|thumb|The UK poster art (left) has been the most common DVD and VHS cover in its home country, but the Ultimate Edition featured new art by Andy Wildman (right).]]
*After acquiring the license to release ''Transformers'' DVDs in the UK, [[Metrodome]] focused on completing their run of series box sets before turning their attention to the movie properly, releasing only a cheap budget DVD of the UK version through Prism Leisure with no extras, and a UMD of the same version.
*In 2005, Metrodome released ''Transformers: The Movie - Reconstructed'', a new version of the film designed to expose as much of the animated picture as possible. This, however, only resulted in exposing the rough, unfinished edges of the animation, and an overly pale remaster was compounded by excessive interlacing due to an unnecessary NTSC to PAL transfer. This, coupled with a 5.1 remix from [[Magno Sound & Video]], featuring the same extra sound effects that they added to Rhino's season box sets, made this release both controversial and disappointing to many. This was the first time that the US version of the movie was released in the UK, and the first to feature the US poster art as a cover (although a Silverscreen store exclusive version of the disc included a reversible cover with the UK poster art as well). Extras include trailers, TV spots, the character biographies from the Madman release, and a subtitled version of "[[Four Warriors Come out of the Sky]]".
[[Image:Tftm sony covers.jpg|right|180px|thumb|Sony's covers, by Don Figueroa.]]
*For the movie's 20th anniversary in 2006, new license holder [[Sony|Sony BMG]] released a two-disc special edition of the film, featuring both a high-quality widescreen remaster and the original fullscreen version, audio commentaries from crew and fans, several new featurettes interviewing those involved in the movie's production, storyboards, tv spots, American and Japanese commercials and more. Most notably, this version included the first Western release of "[[Scramble City (episode)|Scramble City]]", albeit silent and unsubtitled, featuring only audio commentary. This release featured two covers by Don Figueroa: one is of the '84-'85 cast that appear in the movie, and one is of the movie's new characters, available either as a lenticular hologram that switches between the two, or as a reversible sleeve with the images printed on either side.
[[Image:Tftm madman covers.jpg|right|180px|thumb|Madman's 2003 DVD cover (left), and their 2007 Special Edition cover (right).]]
*Delayed a bit to coincide with the hype for the 2007 [[Transformers (2007)|live-action movie]], Metrodome also released a two-disc "Ultimate Edition" with a different widescreen master. Like "Reconstructed", this version used the US edition of the film, but this time, the UK version was also included, in fullscreen, on the second disc. Extras include TV spots, commercials, the Madman biographies, storyboards, commentary, Scramble City (with audio and subtitles), featurettes with [[Flint Dille]] and [[Peter Cullen]], and more. The double-disc edition was sold in a steel case featuring new art by [[Andrew Wildman]], with the UK poster art adorning the standard case inside. Various store exclusives were available, including postcards from Play.Com, a reversible cover with the US poster art from HMV, art cards from Virgin Megastore and [[posters]] from Woolworths and [[Toys"R"Us]]. It was also available in an extra-less single-disc version. This version was premiered at the Mid Ulster Film Festival in Ireland which was the only cinema showing of the remastered version of the film to date.
*The film was released in Full HD 1080p on Blu-ray in the UK in October 2007. The Blu-ray is not region-locked, so it will play anywhere in the world. It features a 2.0 soundtrack, 5.1 Dolby Digital track, and a full bitrate DTS 5.1 track. The master used was the same used by Sony for their US DVD. The picture is quite stunning and the sound very good. Sadly, there are no extras on the DVD. The version of the film on the Blu-ray is the US one, complete with swear word.
*Madman produced their two-disc special edition through some collaboration with Metrodome, and consequently it features much of the same content, with additional extras taking the form of The Touch music video and a bonus episode of ''[[Beast Wars (cartoon)|Beast Wars]]''. This release again features cover artwork by Don Figueroa, specifically the cover of [[IDW Publishing|IDW]]'s ''[[Transformers: The Animated Movie]]'' adaptation.

==Notes==
* According to [[Buzz Dixon]], Hasbro's decision to kill off Optimus Prime was actually an attempt to maintain some brand-storytelling parity with ''[[G.I. Joe (franchise)|G.I. Joe]]'', as Dixon had just convinced them to allow the death of [[Duke (G.I. Joe)|Duke]] in ''[[wikipedia:G.I. Joe: The Movie|G.I. Joe: The Movie]]'' and both films were in production at the same time.<ref>http://www.joeheadquarters.com/interviews_dixon.shtml</ref>

* This film was the last professional performance by [[Orson Welles]], who died only a month later. According to production materials shown at [[BotCon 2000]] by Tim Finn, the voice recording sessions for ''The Transformers: The Movie'' were done on [[September 10]] and [[September 11|11]] of 1985. Welles died on [[October 10]] of that same year. It has often been speculated that Unicron's last line ("Destiny… you cannot destroy my destiny!") was recorded by another actor—possibly [[Leonard Nimoy|Nimoy]]—because it sounds different than the other lines. This speculation has been quashed by statements by Transformers voice director [[Wally Burr]].<ref>http://cybertronchronicle.freewebspace.com/60-astrominutes/wally-burr/wally_burr_3.html</ref>
[[Image:Windcharger wheeljack otp.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Uncle Owen! Aunt Beru!!]]

* With the exception of Starscream and possibly Shockwave, only the Autobots suffered fatalities in the movie. All of the other "dead" Decepticons from the Autobot City battle were rebuilt into Galvatron's new troops, and although more Decepticons were shown taking heavy damage and suffering huge casualties while fighting Unicron, their identities and their final condition are uncertain. Additionally, both Starscream and Unicron survived in the post-movie series in some form or another. Shockwave's death in the finished film is highly uncertain, although in the script it is fairly strongly implied. He does make some miscolored appearances in crowd shots in later cartoon episodes, but these are probably examples of the fairly common animation errors in those episodes.

* Somewhat ironically, though only three of the original eighteen Autobots - [[Jazz (G1)|Jazz]], [[Cliffjumper (G1)|Cliffjumper]], and [[Bumblebee (G1)|Bumblebee]] - are definitively shown to have survived the movie, two would quite literally never be heard from again: [[Scatman Crothers]] passed away (though this didn't stop Jazz from making any number of background cameos) while Casey Kasem [[Casey Kasem#Trivia|quit the show early in the third season]]. Fate's finger is fickle indeed.

*[[:Image:TFTM-MaybeBeachcomber.jpg|A robot resembling Beachcomber]] appears alongside Spike and the Autobots inside Unicron seconds before Daniel blasts the acid cover. Whether this was actually meant to be Beachcomber or just coincidental coloring is unknown, but regardless, Beachcomber shows up alive and well in "[[Five Faces of Darkness, Part 5]]".

==External links==
* [http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=transformers.htm ''The Transformers: The Movie'''s box office domestic gross.]
* [http://web.archive.org/web/20080426020409/http://www.tftm.net/ ''The Transformers: The Movie'' "Unofficial Fansite", an extremely thorough site about the movie]
* [http://www.wombatking.com/coppermine/thumbnails.php?album=4 ''The Transformers: The Movie'' deleted storyboards]

==Footnotes==
{{Reflist|2}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Transformers: The Movie}}

[[Category:Generation 1]]
[[Category:MSTF]]
[[Category:Real world films]]