Editing Computer-generated imagery

'''Computer-generated imagery''' (CGI) in Transformers media has gone through six phases thus far.

==Generation 2 (1993-1994)==
[[Image:Cybernet Spacecube.JPG|right|150px|thumb|Cube 4: Superdupercube]]
The [[Generation 2 (cartoon)|''Generation 2'' "cartoon"]] was simply the [[The Transformers (cartoon)|Generation 1 cartoon]] with a new CGI opening, and new scene-transitions featuring the nefarious [[Cybernet Space Cube]].  These segments added nothing but glitz (and annoyance) to the cartoon, and are mostly forgotten.

CGI was used more extensively in ''Generation 2'''s [[Commercial|commercials]].  Entire segments were computer animated for early commercials advertising the toys and the comic.  Initially the CGI was quite primitive.  Later, more advanced techniques were used to allow computer-animated characters to interact with live-action actors. 
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==The Beast Era (1996-2000)==
[[Image:BWPart1 beastmodes.jpg|left|300px|thumb|"Tarantulas!  Find us some mood lighting, too!"]]
Both ''[[Beast Wars (cartoon)|Beast Wars]]'' and ''[[Beast Machines (cartoon)|Beast Machines]]'' were fully CGI, created by [[Mainframe Entertainment]] of Canada.  ''Beast Wars'' was a bit primitive, even in its day.  (It is notorious for lacking shadows except when vital.)  Its animation quality improved steadily over time, most obviously in comparisons of the landscape between first and third seasons.  ''Beast Machines'' was a further step forward, and holds up reasonably well even by modern standards.  Both are praised for their good use of facial expressions and body language. {{-}}

==''Robots in Disguise'' (2000-2002)==

The [[Global Space Bridge]] was generally animated in CGI, except [[Landfill (episode)|when it wasn't]].

The [[Honō no Overdrive: Car Robot Cybertron|''Car Robots'' opening]] was done partially in CGI; [[Optimus Prime (RID)|Optimus Prime]] and [[Megatron (RID)|Megatron]] battling and the transformations of [[X-Brawn]], [[Side Burn (RID)|Side Burn]], and [[Prowl (RID)|Prowl]] were all computer generated. In addition, a brief shot of the Autobots driving through the [[Global Space Bridge]], and [[Team Bullet Train]] driving around on some tracks, were done the same way. In keeping with the show's slightly obsessive [[toy accuracy]], these CGI models look almost identical to the toys, which unfortunately makes the battle itself look a bit dodgy.

The [[Theme_song#Robots_In_Disguise|English version of the opening]] was almost entirely cel-animated, using a mixture of the traditionally animated parts of the Japanese opening and clips from various episodes. However, it did retain a short computer generated shot of the Global Space Bridge.

In addition, the American version used CGI for its [[scene transition]]s. Shiny 3D models of the Autobot, Predacon, and Decepticon [[insignia]] retreated a short distance and flipped to reveal which faction the next scene would focus on.

==''Energon'' and ''Cybertron'' (2004-2006)==
[[Image:CobyLoriWedding.jpg|right|300px|thumb|"Well, a firetruck is bigger.  Much, much bigger."]]
The last two-thirds of the [[Unicron Trilogy]], ''[[Energon (cartoon)|Energon]]'' and ''[[Cybertron (cartoon)|Cybertron]]'', both used shaded CGI for the Transformer characters, and traditional cel animation for almost everything else (humans, backgrounds, etc.).  Some episodes (e.g., "[[City]]") used CGI for doing complex environments, particularly when the camera needed to be able to move through the environment quickly.

In comparison to the Beast Era, the character animation in ''Energon'' and ''Cybertron'' is generally unimpressive.  For an extensive discussion of its flaws, see ''[[Energon (cartoon)|Energon, Production flaws]]''.

On the positive side, the character models are [[Toy-accuracy|toy-accurate]] to a fault, reproducing the design and transformations of the toys in detail.
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==The live-action films (2007-2011)==
[[Image:Movie Scorponok leapsout.jpg|left|300px|thumb|"Oh, crap!  He's got 5,000 pieces of geometry, and over 1,000,000 polygons!  Run!"]]
The [[live-action film series]], obviously, uses CGI extensively, most spectacularly for almost all appearances of the Transformer characters in robot mode. The lion's share of CG work on the films was rendered by [[Industrial Light & Magic]], with [[Digital Domain]] and other companies doing the rest.
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==''Transformers: Prime'' (2010-)==
[[Image:DarknessRising5-BulkheadMiko.jpg|right|250px|thumb|"Miko, ain't you stubbies s'posed to be cel animated?  [[Energon (cartoon)|Or was that a bad dream I had?]]"]]
The ''[[Transformers: Prime (cartoon)|Transformers: Prime]]'' TV series is a return to fully-CG animation for the brand. After over a decade of technical evolution and a more than 100-fold increase in computer processing power, it is comparable to ''Beast Machines'' in visual quality. The show is animated by [[Polygon Pictures]], rendering realistic textures for the cartoonish models.
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==Fiction==
===Marvel Comics Generation 1 continuity===
[[Image:Protectobots-marvel24.jpg|right|200px|thumb|]]
The video-game [[Multi-World]] uses advanced computer-generated imagery to project life like simulations for players. Robotic lifeforms that have their minds uploaded into the game can participate in the action like it was real. {{storylink|Afterdeath!}} 

[[Image:Hyper-fax.jpg|left|200px|thumb|Computer interfaces actually looked like this in 1988.]]
The simulated world of [[Hyper-Fax]] is entirely the creation of computer-generated imagery. {{storylink|Pretender to the Throne!}}

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==Notes==
* If one includes the Generation 2 cartoon, then of the ten Transformers TV shows that have aired in the U.S., more than half have used CGI, and half have used it extensively.
* A [[Toys"R"Us]] Big Book ad airing in late 2009 briefly featured CGI versions of the movie [[Optimus Prime (Movie)|Optimus Prime]] and [[Bumblebee (Movie)|Bumblebee]] not animated by [[Industrial Light & Magic|ILM]] [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Lqn_H0uPL8]. The CGI models appear to be based on the 2009 [[Optimus Prime (Movie)/toys#Leader Class toys 2|Leader Class Optimus Prime]] and [[Bumblebee (Movie)/toys#Deluxe Class toys 2|Deluxe Class Bumblebee]] toys and utilize the same transformations as the toys without any apparent morphing (essentially computer rendered versions of the toys and their transformations).

[[Category:Media]]