Editing Beast Wars: Super Lifeform Transformers

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'''''Beast Wars: Super Lifeform Transformers''''' (ビーストウォーズ 超生命体トランスフォーマー ''Beast Wars Chō Seimeitai Transformer'') is the title given to ''[[Beast Wars: Transformers (franchise)|Beast Wars franchise]]'' in [[Japan]]. Like its [[Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers (franchise)|Generation 1 predecessor]] it was overseen by [[TakaraTomy|Takara]] directly, and saw yearly branding refreshes accompanied by additional cartoons and toys. It consists of the following components:

*A [[Transformers: Beast Wars (Japanese toyline)|toyline]].
*Various [[List of Japanese Beast Wars cartoons|cartoons]].
*An accompanying [[List of Beast Wars comics#Comic Bom Bom|comic]].
*A [[Beast Wars II: Super Lifeform Transformers Stage play|stage play]].
*And a [[Beast Wars II Sausage|sausage]].

==Continuity==
[[File:PrimalLioConvoyCatalog01.jpg|thumb|250px]]
Where Japan-exclusive seasons ''Beast Wars II'' and ''Beast Wars Neo'' are situated relative to previous ''Transformers'' continuity, the first ''Beast Wars'' series, and any contemporary Earth calendar was a source of confusion for many years. Fans in the West spent years attempting to understand two series that were never officially translated into English, which led to a number of misconceptions based on reports from people who spoke Japanese, observing visual media without the context of translated text, and so on. The [[Misconceptions and urban legends about Transformers#JBWchronology|initial understanding]] was that ''Beast Wars II'' and ''Beast Wars Neo'' starred characters who were contemporaries to the Maximals and Predacons from the American ''Beast Wars'' cartoon, who lived a mere three centuries after the end of the [[Great War (G1)|Great War]]. This was mostly a "default" assumption (as in, there was no reason NOT to think it), and it appeared to be confirmed at first by [[catalog#Beast Wars II|the first ''Beast Wars II'' toy catalog]], which depicted Lio Convoy and Galvatron directly interacting with Optimus Primal and Megatron, respectfully.

By the end of ''Beast Wars II'', however, information surfaces that refute this assumption. Like ancient [[Vok]]-occupied Earth of ''Beast Wars'', the planet Gaia of ''Beast Wars II'' is only later identified as a ''future'' version of Earth, while [[Emissary of the Fourth Planet|episode 36]], reveals that the long-vanished civilization belonged to humanity, who had left the planet behind tens of thousands of years ago, placing it in the distant future relative to both ''Beast Wars'' and other works of ''Transformers'' fiction. Indeed, during [[Lio Convoy in Imminent Danger!|the ''Beast Wars II'' movie special]], Optimus Primal is pulled out of space and time to Gaia, and Lio Convoy's crew treats him as a legendary figure from the past. The [[Beast Wars II: Super Lifeform Transformers (manga)|''Beast Wars II'' manga series]], meanwhile, sticks to the backstory as established in that early catalog and treats Lio Convoy and Optimus Primal as contemporaries [[Free the Captured Matrix!|in its third chapter]].
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==''Beast Wars: Super Lifeform Transformers''==
[[File:Transformers-Beast-Wars-Jpn-Logo.png|right|250px]]
The subtitle-less first year of the of the Japanese franchise was released in 1997, one year after its launch in [[Hasbro]] markets. It focused solely on the first year of the cartoon while combining Hasbro's 1996 and 1997 products into one large line.

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==''Beast Wars II''==
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'''''Beast Wars II: Super Lifeform Transformers''''' (ビーストウォーズII 超生命体トランスフォーマー ''Beast Wars II: Chō Seimeitai Transformer''), pronounced "Beast Wars Second", was the first Japan-only ''Beast Wars'' sub-franchise.

The ''Beast Wars II'' cartoon series aired in Japan between season one of ''Beast Wars'' and seasons two and three, in order to fill the gap until the later seasons could be dubbed into Japanese. The Cybertron (Maximal) team starts off with Lio Convoy, [[Apache]], [[Bighorn]], [[Tasmania Kid]], [[Scuba]], and [[Diver (BW)|Diver]]. The Destron (Predacon) side starts off with Galvatron, [[Megastorm]], [[Starscream (BW)|Starscream]], [[BB (BW)|BB]], [[Dirge (BW)|Dirge]], and [[Thrust (BW)|Thrust]].

The ''Beast Wars II'' toyline consisted almost entirely of [[redeco]]es (and the occasional [[retool]]) of [[The Transformers (toyline)|Generation 1]], ''[[Transformers: Generation 2 (toyline)|Generation 2]]'', ''[[Machine Wars: Transformers|Machine Wars]]'', and American [[Beast Wars: Transformers (toyline)|''Beast Wars'' toys]], although all new molds were created for the two faction leaders: [[Lio Convoy]], a white lion, [[Galvatron (BW)|Galvatron]], a purple dragon, and [[Moon (BW)|Moon]] an oft-abused robot space bunny anime mascot. Most of the [[Predacon (BW)|Predacons]] are mechanical while the [[Maximal]]s all have beast modes. 

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==''Beast Wars Neo''==
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'''''Beast Wars Neo: Super Lifeform Transformers''''' (ビーストウォーズネオ 超生命体トランスフォーマー ''Beast Wars Neo Chō Seimeitai Transformer'') was the second Japanese exclusive sub-franchise.

''Beast Wars Neo'' followed (and was a semi-sequel to) ''Beast Wars II''. Of note is the fact that the ''Beast Wars Neo'' manga was considerably more different from its anime counterpart than ''Beast Wars II'''s had been.

Unlike the [[Transformers: Beast Wars (Japanese toyline)#1998 (Beast Wars II)|''Beast Wars II'' toyline]], which consisted almost entirely of [[redeco]]es (and the occasional [[retool]]), '''Beast Wars Neo''' was largely composed of all new original [[mold]]s with only a few reused American [[Beast Wars: Transformers (toyline)|''Beast Wars'' toys]] to fill them out. The [[Maximal]]s have organic beast modes of mostly present day animals (with the exception of the Mammoth [[Big Convoy]]), while the [[Predacon (BW)|Predacons]] featured mainly extinct/prehistoric animals such as dinosaurs.
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==''Beast Wars Metals''==
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'''Super Lifeform Transformers: Beast Wars Metals''' (超生命体トランスフォーマー ビーストウォーズメタルス ''Chō Seimeitai Transformers Beast Wars Metals'') is the third and final Japanese sub-franchise of ''Beast Wars'' released in 1999.

The ''Beast Wars Metals'' cartoon consisted of the North American season 2 and 3 episodes. While Beast Wars had been fairly judicious in its self-referential humor, even in its last stretch of episodes, Beast Wars Metals was an unrestrained self-parody, constantly breaking the fourth wall and demonstrating awareness of its own status as a TV series.

Ad libbing was done to the extreme and characters all received major personality adjustments to reflect the aggressively comedic nature of the series. For example, Depth Charge was turned into a goofy old man who enjoyed singing fishing songs while transforming, Silverbolt was now psychotically polite with an obnoxious happy-go-lucky attitude, and Rampage now talked in the rough-and-tumble dialect of a cartoon street punk. The show was incessantly self-aware, regularly acknowledging the camera, the TV channel and, in one of the more oppressive gags, Rattrap would constantly smell what the audience was eating (making remarks to the effect of, "Oh, that's Sato-san's curry" as he sniffed). Yoshikazu's dubbing style would become synonymous with all imported Western Transformers cartoons in Japan, as he would be placed in charge of localizing every series through Prime, all with the same overbearingly satirical attitude.

Metals was a smaller line than its predecessors, sticking entirely with characters who appeared in the show (even if not in Transmetal bodies). The first wave of toys had different, more "show-accurate" decoes and, notably, name tampographs were replaced with generic "CYBERTRON" and "DESTRON" markings. However, toys in later waves were functionally the same as Hasbro releases (other than minor changes to Optimal Optimus/Powered Convoy). The line also included a Takara-only retool of Transmetal Cheetor into Ravage (a character that appeared on the show in that design), which was quickly a very sought-after item outside Japan. 
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==Post-series media==
===''Telemocha''===
Ten years after the release of the cartoon, the ''Beast Wars'' characters were revisited with the ''[[Transformers: Beast Wars Telemocha Series|Beast Wars Telemocha Series]]'' toys, [[redeco]]es of ''Beast Wars'' figures packaged with DVDs of first-season episodes.
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===IDW Publishing===
[[IDW Publishing]]'s ''Beast Wars'' comics from [[2006]]–[[2008]] incorporates a series of events similar to both ''Beast Wars II'' and its immediate sequel, ''Beast Wars Neo'', into its [[Beast Wars timeline (IDW)|rebooted ''Beast Wars'' timeline]]. In this series of events, however, they take place in the ''past'', at some point before the end of hostilities between the Maximals and Predacons.
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[[Category:Beast Era]]
[[Category:Beast Wars| Beast Wars (Japanese franchise)]]
[[Category:Beast Wars II| ]]
[[Category:Beast Wars Neo| ]]
[[Category:Japanese franchises]]