|romaji=Tatakai no Butai wa Sekando Sensō...Bīsuto Wōzu, Henshin!!
|date=Spring [[1998]]
|packaged with=Spring 1998 Japanese ''[[Transformers: Beast Wars (Japanese toyline)|Beast Wars]]'' toy releases
|continuity=[[Micro-continuity|Its own]] (see "Continuity" below)
}}
'''''Beast Wars: Transformers''''' is a [[franchises|franchise]] that began in [[1996]], following the end of ''[[Transformers: Generation 2 (franchise)|Generation 2]]''. It was a massive reinvention of the [[Transformers brand|''Transformers'' brand]], featuring robots that changed into realistic, organically styled animals instead of the traditional vehicles or and mechanical beasts. The accompanying cartoon was another visual break, being the first fully-[[Computer-generated imagery|CGI]] ''Transformers'' series. It also did the seemingly unthinkable and replaced the original two factions, the [[Autobot]]s and [[Decepticon]]s, with the [[Maximal]]s and the [[Predacon (BW)|Predacons]]. Though originally [[Ruined FOREVER|decried by fans]], ''Beast Wars'' dramatically reinvigorated the brand, the sales of which had been flagging under the ''Generation 2'' franchise.
'''New leaders are appointed as a new war begins.'''
"Beast Wars" is also frequently used as a catchall term for the [[Beast Era]] in which [[Beast Wars continuity|''Beast Wars'' and other series]] occur.
The ''Beast Wars'' franchise features the following primary components:
*[[Beast Wars: Transformers (cartoon)|A cartoon series]] — (1996–[[1999]]) called ''Beasties'' in many Canadian markets to appear less violent (''Ha!'').
*[[Beast Wars: Transformers (video game)|A video game]] for PC and [[PlayStation]] based on the first season of the cartoon.
*[[Transformers: Beast Wars Transmetals (N64)|A video game]] for the [[Nintendo 64]] based on the [[Transmetal]] and [[Fuzor]] versions of the characters from the cartoon's second season (and some from the toyline).
*[[Transformers: Beast Wars Transmetals (PS)|A video game]] for the PlayStation, with the same name and general concept as the N64 game, but significant differences.
*Several [[List of Beast Wars comics|comic series]] that were produced both during and after the franchise's original run.
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==Synopsis==
While [[Optimus Primal (BW)/Beast Wars cartoon continuity|Optimus Primal]] and [[Megatron (BW)/Beast Wars cartoon continuity|Megatron]] are off fighting their own [[Beast Wars (event)|life-or-death struggle]], a new conflict, the "2nd War", is about to unfold on a [[Gaia|planet]] within a [[Solar System|star system]] located in a remote part of the [[Milky Way|galaxy]]. The participants of this conflict are members of the heroic [[Maximal]] Space Guard and the evil [[Predacon (BW)|Predacon]] Armored Corps, respectively. Their battle is fought over a mysterious weapon hidden in ancient ruins of the planet, a weapon known as the "[[Angolmois Energy|Great King of Angolmois]]". It is said that the victor of this conflict, be it Maximal or Predacon, will be decided in the [[July|seventh month]] of the Cosmic Year [[1999]].
==Overview==
The leaders of both sides of this new conflict are introduced by each of their immediate predecessors. Megatron introduces [[Galvatron (BW)|Galvatron]] as the [[Emperor of Destruction|New Emperor of Destruction]], and recalls a time when, back on [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]], the two once disagreed over how to conquer the universe. This led to a fight between the two, in which Galvatron bested Megatron after catching him off guard. Though he now acknowledges Galvatron's ambition and his care for those under his command, Megatron also begrudgingly admits that Galvatron may hold enough dignity to succeed him as Emperor.
[[File:OptimusPrimalVsMegatron BeastWarsWave1DeluxeCommercial.jpg|thumb|upright=1.52|''Beast Wars'' marked a revolutionary point in the ''Transformers'' brand's history, with new factions, new toy developments with organic-looking beast modes, and (at the time) cutting edge computer animation.]]
From [[1992]] to [[1995]], [[Hasbro]]'s attempt to revive the ''[[Transformers brand|Transformers]]'' brand with ''[[Transformers: Generation 2 (franchise)|Generation 2]]'' proved to be not as successful as originally hoped. With the cancelation of that franchise looming imminently, Hasbro was left with the decision of either ending ''Transformers'' for good or trying something ''dramatically'' different to revitalize the brand; ultimately, they chose the latter. The major change in direction followed organizational changes within Hasbro. The company had acquired rival toy manufacturer [[Kenner]] as part of their [[1991]] [[Tonka]] acquisition,<ref>[http://web.archive.org/web/20081102035722/http://www.hasbro.com/default.cfm?page=ci_history_hasbro The History of Hasbro] (archive copy)</ref> and in 1995 they transferred their boys' toy lines from the Hasbro headquarters in [[Rhode Island]] to Kenner's offices in Cincinnati, [[Ohio]]. Kenner was asked to revitalize the brand with new ideas and, in [[1996]], ''Beast Wars'' was the result.
Lead designer [[Chris Gross]] inadvertently kicked off the ''Beast Wars'' concept when he proposed a stylistic change from hard-edged, blocky robots to {{w|Bio Booster Armor Guyver|Guyver}}-inspired "organic" machines.<ref name="vinnie">[http://obscuretf.com/hhk/BC04interviews.html BotCon 2004 Interview with Vinnie D'Alleva], p1</ref> The "[[mutant head|Beast Masks]]" on the first few Beast Wars toy designs were conceived of as a way of easing the transition from traditional ''Transformers'' into ''Beast Wars'' by showing that there was a robot within the beast, not just an animal that transforms into some kind of monster.<ref name="vinnie"/> The ''Beast Wars'' line title was inspired by a past toyline of Kenner's, namely the ''Future War'' line of ''{{w|Terminator (franchise)|Terminator}}'' toys. It was chosen based on the idea that it portrayed a "visceral conflict".<ref name="vinnie"/> The show would not have been made unless a drastically new concept from the original ''Transformers'' was created, as Generation 1 was considered a stale property at the time.<ref name="vinnie"/>
To promote the new toyline, an animated TV series was created by [[Canada|Canadian]] production company [[Mainframe Entertainment]], who had proved themselves to be pioneers in [[computer-generated imagery]] with the success of their first animated series ''{{w|ReBoot}}''. Television writers [[Bob Forward]] and [[Larry DiTillio]] were brought in to serve as the series' story editors. Having never worked on ''Transformers'' beforehand, the two brought a fresh perspective to the series and created a whole new world and lore from the ground up. Voice talent for the show was based in Vancouver, [[British Columbia]], with such actors as [[Garry Chalk]], [[David Kaye]], [[Scott McNeil]], [[Richard Newman]], [[Venus Terzo]], and more, first joining the legacy of ''Transformers'' voice acting through ''Beast Wars''. Many would even return to ''Transformers'' to lend their voices to the main cast of later television series, such as those belonging to the [[Unicron Trilogy]] of the mid-2000s.
By [[1999]], ''Beast Wars'' had spanned four years of new toys and three seasons of the TV series, with new developments and new innovations constantly brought to the table year after year. While the cartoon ended that year, the toyline crept along passed its formal lifespan with a few final releases just making it out to retail stores and conventions in [[2000]] and [[2001]].
Meanwhile, Optimus Primal introduces the new Maximal leader, [[Lio Convoy (BW)|Lio Convoy]], who was originally an ace in the Maximal Space Guard. Optimus notes that he is strong, valiant, and even kind, but also, admittedly, a bit too frank at times. Nevertheless, Optimus considers him to be an ideal leader, and remains hopeful that he can count on Lio Convoy to do all that he can to help maintain peace throughout the universe.
==Japanese release==
==Featured characters==
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{{featuredcharacters
In Japan, the first season of the North American cartoon was aired with a markedly silly dub, full of adlibs and pop culture references meant to up the humor and appeal to a much younger audience than the English version. This dub was accompanied by releases of the concurrent toys, but only about half of the ones released in the West; mostly just those of the in-show characters. Because the second and third seasons of the show were each too short to span a year's worth of Japanese television, the Japanese release of both was held off until production of the third season was completed. In the meantime, two cel-animated series unique to Japan were created to fill in the void, with each receiving their own accompanying toys and manga series. These were ''[[Beast Wars II: Super Lifeform Transformers (cartoon)|Beast Wars II]]'' and ''[[Super Lifeform Transformers: Beast Wars Neo (cartoon)|Beast Wars Neo]]'', respectively. Once those finished, the remaining two CG-animated seasons of the North American series, along with their accompanying toys, were released under the name ''Beast Wars Metals''. Like the first season, the ''Metals'' dub was just as silly and littered with adlibs.
While the two Japanese-produced ''Beast Wars'' animated productions used cel animation, the toys' box art was rendered in a CG style similar to the original Mainframe cartoon, whereas the Western releases of the toys were the opposite, featuring hand drawn box art.
''Beast Wars'' was the first complete reinvention of the [[Transformers brand|''Transformers'' brand]], discarding the previous setting, characters, and factions to create a brand new story. [[Transformer]]s in the ''Beast Wars'' cartoon are much smaller (often [[human]]-sized) and initially transform into "fleshy" or "scaly" non-robotic animals, before introducing new concepts like [[Transmetal]]s. Initially met with [[Trukk not munky|outrage]] by many fans (for a variety of reasons) ''Beast Wars'' would eventually win over most of its decriers and become highly regarded, largely due to the exceptional quality of the [[Beast Wars: Transformers (cartoon)|cartoon series]]. It is now not unusual for even longtime fans of the 1980s [[The Transformers (franchise)|''Transformers'']] to consider ''Beast Wars'' to be their favorite of all ''Transformers'' franchises. This is perhaps best shown by the fact that, about fifteen years later, the first two fan-chosen characters to enter the [[Transformers Hall of Fame]] were ''Beast Wars'' fan-favorites [[Dinobot (BW)|Dinobot]] and [[Waspinator (BW)|Waspinator]], and again in [[2017]] when [[Optimus Primal (BW)|Optimus Primal]] [[Optimus Primal (BW)/toys#Power of the Primes|won]] the ''[[Power of the Primes (franchise)|Power of the Primes]]'' [[Fan polls#Power of the Primes Fan Vote|fan poll]].
'''Galvatron''': "Your time is over, Megatron!"
==Sequel==
{{main|Beast Machines: Transformers (franchise)}}
A direct sequel series followed ''Beast Wars'' in the form of ''[[Beast Machines: Transformers (franchise)|Beast Machines]]''. In contrast to its predecessor, ''Beast Machines'' brought back vehicular altmodes for the enemy faction, replacing the Predacons with the new [[Vehicon (BM)|Vehicon]] faction. It also utilized a more futuristic "alien" aesthetic, with the Maximals turning into "[[technorganic]]" beasts (a molecular fusion of the organic and the technological), while the Vehicons turned into "living" vehicles with robotic heads in place of driver's seats/cockpits. ''Beast Machines'' also received a [[Beast Machines: Transformers (cartoon)|cartoon series]] that continued the lives of the ''Beast Wars'' cast on their home planet of [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]], but also took a much more cerebral approach to its story, which yielded a far more polarizing reception from the fandom.
==Expanded universes==
'''Lio Convoy''': "Please leave it to me! Optimus, sir!!"
The lasting popularity of ''Beast Wars'' went on to ensure its place as a poignant and memorable part of ''Transformers'' history. The popularity of the cartoon alone resulted in numerous continuations, spinoffs, and other addenda. Several additional storylines that tied into both the ''Beast Wars'' and ''Beast Machines'' cartoons were produced both during and after the [[Beast Era]] ran its course, mostly in the form of comics. While these "{{w|expanded universe}}s" all contain the same ''events'' of the two cartoons—which are understood to have occurred exactly as had been portrayed onscreen—the ''context'' of said events differ with the inclusion of "extra" stories taking place "just offscreen" of the cartoons' episodic events. Though individual universes are contradictory to each other, they all coexist separately within the vast ''Transformers'' [[multiverse]]. These include:
*A series of comics, text stories, script readings, and toy bios/profiles created by [[3H Productions]] from [[1997]] to [[2004]], which also continued into the ''[[Transformers: Universe (2003 franchise)|Transformers: Universe]]'' series. Throughout [[2005]] to [[2016]], [[Fun Publications]] published a number of ''Beast Wars''-related comics and text stories also set in this [[Beast Era timeline (3H)|3H ''Beast Wars'' continuity]].
*The sprawling [[Japanese Generation 1 cartoon continuity]] that first began in [[1985]], which included the Japanese dubs of the ''Beast Wars'' and ''Beast Machines'' cartoons, as well as the two Japanese-original ''Beast Wars II'' and ''Beast Wars Neo'' series, and so much more.
*The [[Dreamwave Generation One continuity]] that launched in [[2002]], in the form of multiple comic series and [[Transformers: More than Meets the Eye|profile books]] published by [[Dreamwave Productions]]. Several concepts first introduced in the ''Beast Wars'' and ''Beast Machines'' cartoons were integrated into the Generation 1 setting of these comics, which also featured occasional references to the two cartoons meant to further reinforce their connection. [[2004]]'s ''[[Transformers: The Ultimate Guide]]'' further fleshed out this universe and treated it as the "definitive" ''Transformers'' continuity<ref>The saga has spawned many inconsistencies and divergent storylines, but now, at last, the one true history can be revealed." —''[[Transformers: The Ultimate Guide]]'', Page 8, Generation 1 introductory description</ref> occupied by the ''Beast Wars'' and ''Beast Machines'' cartoons.<ref>"The Ark and its inhabitants lay deactivated for four million years, buried under a volcano in what would become Northwest United States. Life on the planet evolved around it, disturbed only by a brief alien visitation by a race called the Vok and the commencement of the Beast Wars (''see pages 80–81'')." —''Transformers: The Ultimate Guide'', Page 17, "Awakening" section of "The Ark" two-page spread.</ref> A few short stories related to the ''Beast Wars'' and ''Beast Machines'' cartoons, and the Dreamwave comics, were also published in the ''[[Transformers Legends (book)|Transformers Legends]]'' anthology book.
*In [[2006]]–[[2008]], [[IDW Publishing]] produced two ''Beast Wars'' [[Transformers, Beast Wars: The Gathering|comic]] [[Transformers: Beast Wars: The Ascending|mini-series]] and a set of [[Transformers: Beast Wars Sourcebook|profile books]]. [[Beast Wars timeline (IDW)|This continuity]] is notable for including characters and events from the two Japanese ''Beast Wars'' series, with said events repositioned as backstory content set ''before'' the American cartoon, while the two mini-series occur during the cartoon's third season. In 2016, [[Dawn of the Predacus|one more comic story]] was published to (at least, in theory) help bridge the gap between Generation 1 and ''Beast Wars''.
*From [[2009]] to [[2014]], Fun Publications also created ''[[Transformers: Wings Universe]]'', a nearly unaltered version of the North American [[The Transformers (cartoon)|Generation 1 cartoon]] that also worked in the ''Beast Wars'' and ''Beast Machines'' cartoons with its own original stories set in and around all three cartoon series.
==Continuity==
==Continuity==
Over the course of its roughly three-and-a-half-year run (and even long afterward), the continuity of the ''Beast Wars'' franchise underwent a rather shifting evolution, with numerous changes and [[retcon]]s made to it along the way by multiple different parties.
This catalog story was originally written for the express purpose of explaining the premise of the then-upcoming Japanese-original series ''[[Beast Wars: Super Lifeform Transformers#Beast Wars II|Beast Wars II]]'', which had been created to fill the gap left by the delayed Japanese release of the second and third seasons of the American [[Beast Wars: Transformers (cartoon)|''Beast Wars'' cartoon]]. Once the first season had finished airing, it would be succeeded by the ''Beast Wars II'' [[Beast Wars II: Super Lifeform Transformers (cartoon)|animated series]], along with an accompanying [[Beast Wars II: Super Lifeform Transformers (manga)|manga series]] published by ''[[Comic BomBom]]''. This little story was released about a month ahead the ''Beast Wars II'' cartoon's debut, and attempted to explain just how ''Beast Wars II'' was supposed to fit into the continuity of the American ''Beast Wars'' cartoon.
[[File:Optimusprimalvsmegatronsplash.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.7|Before 'toon began, there was... the comic!]]
As described above in the Synopsis, it is stated that ''Beast Wars II'' is set concurrent to the [[Beast Wars (event)|Beast Wars]] fought between [[Optimus Primal (BW)/Beast Wars cartoon continuity|Optimus Primal]] and [[Megatron (BW)/Beast Wars cartoon continuity|Megatron]] on what was, at the time, not yet revealed to be prehistoric [[Earth]]<ref>At least, in Japan. By March 1998, the English version of the American cartoon had already [[Coming of the Fuzors (Part 1)|revealed]] the planet to be Earth.</ref> (in Japan, the planet was instead known as "[[Energoa]]" prior to its reveal as Earth). But, it was not initially made clear if this meant it took place during the same timeframe as the Beast Wars (since the time travel aspect had not yet been confirmed in the Japanese dub) or if took place in the far future timeframe that Optimus Primal and Megatron's crews had originally come from before traveling back in time to prehistoric Earth. Needless to say, the latter became the most widespread interpretation once it was made clear on both sides of the Pacific that the American ''Beast Wars'' cartoon was set on Earth in prehistoric times. Additional support for this interpretation came from the setting ''Beast Wars II'' itself, [[Gaia]]—a post-apocalyptic planet overrun by plant and wildlife—which bore a strong resemblance to Earth (with the manga making even more explicit hints to the planet's identity by featuring city ruins that heavily resembled [[Tokyo]]). The manga even featured guest appearances by Optimus Primal that depicted him as native to the timeframe of ''Beast Wars II''. This notion even bled back over into some American media, with the ''[[Beast Wars: Transformers (toyline)|Beast Wars]]'' toy bio for ''[[Transmetal 2|Transmetals 2]]'' [[Cybershark#TM2|Cybershark]] alluding to the ''Beast Wars II'' [[Seacon (BW)|Seacons]] as his contemporaries, while the ''[[Beast Machines: Transformers (toyline)|Beast Machines]]'' bio for ''[[Dinobot (BM)|Dinobots]]'' [[Magmatron (BW)#Beast Machines|Magmatron]] positioned the events of ''Beast Wars Neo'' as having occurred before ''Beast Machines''.
In the very beginning, when the toyline debuted in 1996, the line presented itself not only as a complete reinvention of the ''Transformers'' brand, but one that continued to be set on [[Earth]] in the present day. Numerous references to "Bio-Genetic Engineering" being the source of the Maximals' and Predacons' organic beast modes were given in the toys' packaging blurb, in a short [[Optimus Primal vs Megatron!|comic]] [[pack-in material|included]] with the very first [[Optimus Primal (BW)/toys#Beast Wars|Optimus Primal]] and [[Megatron (BW)/toys#Beast Wars|Megatron]] toys, and in many of the toys' [[bio]]s. Combined with the bio for that first Optimus toy closely paraphrasing the motto of the original [[Optimus Prime (G1)/toys#The Transformers|Optimus Prime toy]] from [[1984]] ("Freedom is the right of all sentient beings."), the original implication was that ''Beast Wars'' was simply another continuation of the [[The Transformers (franchise)|first]] [[Transformers: Generation 2 (franchise)|two]] iterations of the ''Transformers'' brand, with the Maximals and Predacons merely being genetically-enhanced Autobots and Decepticons, and Optimus Primal and Megatron being the very same individuals as their [[Optimus Prime (G1)|Generation 1]] [[Megatron (G1)|namesakes]].
Granted, the line wasn't ''explicit'' about this connection at the time (because there was no reason ''not'' to think so), but the [[1997]] release of the Maximal [[Grimlock (G1)/toys#Beast Wars|Grimlock]] toy featured a bio that made it abundantly clear that he was, indeed, the very same Autobot [[Grimlock (G1)|Grimlock]] of old, which further reinforced these implications. But after the cartoon took off and cemented itself as the dominant ''Beast Wars'' fiction, the toyline gradually shifted away from its original continuity to one closer to that of the cartoon. A number of 1997 toy bios mentioned "[[energon|energon crystals]]" (a prominent part of the cartoon's first season), while [[Drill Bit (BW)|Drill Bit]]'s bio referred to the ''Beast Wars'' setting not as "Earth" but as "the mysterious planet" (as it was known in the cartoon's first season). By [[1998]], the original toy continuity was practically dropped completely, with the packaging blurbs for the [[Transmetal]]s, [[Fuzor]]s, and [[1999]]'s [[Transmetal 2|Transmetals 2]] directly mentioning events specific to the cartoon's second and third seasons.
By the [[Emissary of the Fourth Planet|thirty-sixth episode]] of ''Beast Wars II'', it was revealed that Gaia's ancient inhabitants hadn't lived on the planet for several tens of thousands of years, which placed ''Beast Wars II'' that far into the future. Conversely, the [[Dark Designs|thirteenth episode]] of the American ''Beast Wars'' cartoon stated that the cast of that show originally hailed from only three centuries into the future.<ref>Though, a later [[Sparkwar Pt. II: The Search|episode from the ''Beast Wars'' sequel ''[[Beast Machines: Transformers (cartoon)|Beast Machines]]'' stated the future era was set "eons" later.</ref> However, the specific "three centuries" line from the English version had actually been omitted from the Japanese dub of the episode, so there was no contradiction there. That said, a few discrepancies did eventually begin to crop up in the immediate sequel series to ''Beast Wars II'', ''[[Super Lifeform Transformers: Beast Wars Neo (cartoon)|Beast Wars Neo]]''. Namely, ''Beast Wars Neo'' [[Big Convoy, Move Out|opened]] with explicit confirmation that the Maximals and Predacons were at war with each other, and had been for some time, while in the [[Beast Wars (Part 1)|first episode]] of the American cartoon, Optimus Primal stated that the Maximals and Predacons were instead at peace with each other, and had been for centuries (this line was kept faithfully in the Japanese dub). Likewise, the supercomputer [[Vector Sigma]] was shown to be a known public figure on [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]], residing in a [[Tower of Light|tower]] as the highest authority on the planet. By contrast, the [[The Reformatting|first episode]] of the American ''Beast Wars'' sequel series ''[[Beast Machines: Transformers (cartoon)|Beast Machines]]'' showed that Vector Sigma had long ago evolved into a new form called the [[Oracle (BM)|Oracle]], and presented it as a long lost legend hidden deep within the planet (though, to be fair, since ''Beast Wars Neo'' was made first, there was no way the Japanese production staff could have predicted the future developments of ''Beast Machines'').
When the [[Beast Wars (Part 1)|two-part]] [[Beast Wars (Part 2)|pilot]] episodes of the ''Beast Wars'' cartoon premiered in [[April]] 1996 (five months ahead of the rest of the season as a preview airing), the two episodes showed that the cartoon had completely ignored what the toyline had originally established, continuity-wise, and created its own completely new universe from the ground up. Story editors [[Bob Forward]] and [[Larry DiTillio]] were new to ''Transformers'' at the time and, at first, paid little heed to what all had come before, fiction-wise, giving the cartoon pilot the initial impression of seeming like a new rebooted continuity unconnected to Generation 1. The only direct references to past ''Transformers'' lore in the pilot were a mention of [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]] as the Maximals' and Predacons' home planet, and the onscreen presence of [[energon]] (but which was reimagined as naturally-occurring crystals instead of the artificially-created liquid fuel substance that it had been in prior appearances).
Besides the timeframe discrepancies, there were other factors that ended up contradicting this catalog story's depiction of Optimus Primal and Megatron. The two are presented here as Maximal and Predacon authority figures in positions of power that allow them to appoint other individuals with official titles of leadership; Optimus in particular is treated as Lio Convoy's senior officer. This is in stark contrast to how, in the English version of ''Beast Wars'', Optimus was merely the captain of a science vessel, while Megatron was, indeed, originally perceived as the main leader of all Predacons in the cartoon's first season, but [[Beast Wars: Transformers (cartoon)#Megatron and the Predacons|changes]] made during the show's second season revealed that he was instead a wannabe tyrant with delusions of grandeur, and was considered a criminal on Cybertron even by his own people (but, like the Vector Sigma contradiction, there was no way the Japanese could have predicted what the second season would change after the first season). Nonetheless, the first-season depiction of Megatron as a true leader likely influenced the depictions of Predacon leaders [[Galvatron (BW)|Galvatron]] and [[Magmatron (BW)|Magmatron]] in ''Beast Wars II'' and ''Neo'', respectively. Both were the captains of their own spacefaring vessels, were known by all as fearsome emperors, and answered to no higher authorities within the Predacon ranks. This stood in contrast to how, later in ''Beast Wars'', the [[Tripredacus Council]] was revealed to be the true head of government for the Predacons, with Megatron being labeled a dangerous renegade.
[[File:G1Prime BWMegs.jpg|upright=1.4|thumb|The [[The Agenda (Part 1)|second]] [[The Agenda (Part 2)|season]] [[The Agenda (Part III)|finale]] bringing back the Autobots and Decepticons of yore was the final key that firmly placed the ''Beast Wars'' cartoon in the [[Generation 1 continuity family]].]]
The early Japanese depiction of Optimus Primal and Megatron as high-ranking Maximal and Predacon leaders seems to have stemmed from an early perception of the two that originally pegged them as being the same characters as their Generation 1 namesakes, [[Optimus Prime (G1)|Optimus Prime]] and [[Megatron (G1)|Megatron]]. When the original [[Beast Wars: Transformers (toyline)|''Beast Wars'' toyline]] started up in [[1996]], the earliest toy bios and [[Optimus Primal vs Megatron!|pack-in comic]] presented the Maximals and Predacons on present-day Earth and as just [[Autobot]]s and [[Decepticon]]s having been upgraded by "Bio-Genetic Engineering". While this idea was dropped when the ''Beast Wars'' cartoon came along, it seems Takara hadn't quite gotten the memo over in Japan, as the earliest Japanese toy bios for Optimus and Megatron were based on their earliest American toy bios, with both giving them the lofty titles of "Supreme Commander" and "Emperor of Destruction" just like their namesakes. Optimus Primal was even given the same Japanese name as Optimus Prime, "Convoy", and his toy bio treated him as if he was the same Convoy of old. Special Japanese-only redeco toys even mentioned a "trailer truck" and a "Walther P-38" as having been Primal and Megatron's previous [[alternate mode|altmodes]]. Likewise, the Maximal and Predacon factions themselves were given the same Japanese names as those of the Autobot and Decepticon faction, being "Cybertron" and "Destron", respectively, in a seeming attempt to remove as much distinction between the two sets of factions as possible.
One particular nugget of lore from the first episode that caught fans' attention was a mention by Optimus of a past event known as the "Great War". Originally, Bob Forward had thrown this in as a nebulous bit of history to vaguely explain why the Maximals and Predacons were presently in conflict with each other. But as the passionate fandom was wont to do at the time, it took that reference to more specifically refer to the [[Cybertronian Civil Wars|civil wars]] that had been fought between the Autobots and Decepticons in previous ''Transformers'' fiction.<ref name="Forward">Bob Forward interview from the [[Rhino Entertainment]] DVD release of ''Beast Wars: Transformers'' — The Complete First Season, [[August 12]], [[2003]]</ref> Forward and DiTillio got wind of this fan-initiated idea and completely embraced it, with every later mention of the "[[Great War (G1)|Great War]]" in the show unquestionably referring to the Autobot-Decepticon conflict of Generation 1. And even as early as the [[The Web|third episode]], an [[Easter egg]] cameo appearance of the Decepticon [[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]] was inserted into a dream sequence.
As the first season continued, more references to Generation 1 were added in, such as a mention of the Decepticon [[Shrapnel (G1)|Shrapnel]] in "[[Dark Designs]]", or imagery of [[Unicron]] in both "[[Possession]]" and "[[Other Voices, Part 1]]". But arguably the biggest example came in the aforementioned "Possession", wherein the ghost of Starscream actually guest-starred in person, directly calling back to events from the [[The Transformers (cartoon)|Generation 1 cartoon]]'s [[Starscream's Ghost|third]] [[Ghost in the Machine (G1)|season]] and [[The Transformers: The Movie|movie]]. Said episode even confirmed that the Autobots and Decepticons of Generation 1 were the ancestors of the Maximals and Predacons.<ref name="Possession">'''Blackarachnia:''' "But you're ancient history."<br>'''Starscream:''' "Ancient, yes. History, no!"<br>'''Scorponok:''' "What's he talking about?"<br>'''Blackarachnia:''' "The Decepticons were our ancestors. For centuries, they warred with the Autobots."<br>'''Megatron:''' "The ancient ancestors of the Maximals." —"[[Possession]]"</ref> And by the [[The Agenda (Part III)|end]] of the ''Beast Wars'' cartoon's second season, said ancestors were finally seen alongside their descendants aboard the crashed Autobot vessel, the ''[[Ark (G1)|Ark]]'', showing that the Maximals and Predacons were practically human-sized compared to the giant-sized Autobots and Decepticons, and solidified the fact that the ''Beast Wars'' cast had indeed traveled back in time from the future to ancient Earth long before the 1980s setting of Generation 1.
This perception even appeared to bleed over into other Japanese ''Beast Wars'' media: The [[Free the Captured Matrix!|third chapter]] of the ''Beast Wars II'' manga featured a short bio for Optimus Primal that described him as "A fierce fighter who has fought against the Destron army for thousands of years."<ref>数千年にわたり、デストロン軍と戦いつづけで猛者。コンボイの称号を与える軍の評議会の一員でもある。エネルゴン探索の任務遂行中に消息をたったともいわれていたが...!?</ref> And when he later guest-starred in the [[Lio Convoy in Imminent Danger!|''Beast Wars II'' movie]], he was depicted as a "legendary Supreme Commander" that everyone knew and was in awe of, complete with his own [[Energon Matrix|Matrix]]. That same movie also had [[Galvatron (BW)|Galvatron]] refer to a "Megatron" as "the greatest and most vicious legendary Transformer in history." But, it was never clarified if this grandiose description was in reference to Generation 1 or ''Beast Wars'' Megatron... likely because, at the time, the movie treated the two as if they were the same person, just as it seemed to do for Optimus (Although, when Lio Convoy and Optimus Primal first interacted with each other in the movie, Lio Convoy at one point asks "Please forgive me. But, who are you?" when looking directly at Optimus, casting some doubt over whether they actually knew each other beforehand like this catalog story claimed).
====The "cartoon vs. comics" debate====
'''''BUT''''', within the Japanese dub of the ''Beast Wars'' cartoon's first season itself, this perception was ''not'' the case. While the dub did insert references to Optimus being a Supreme Commander and Megatron being Emperor of Destruction, the dub was more or less accurate on the matter to the original English version. The two were ''never'' described as being the same characters as their Generation 1 namesakes, and even when the Decepticon [[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]] made his [[Possession|famous guest appearance]], the episode's Japanese dub made it even ''more'' explicit than the English version that Megatron had ''no'' familiarity with him at all.<ref>In the Japanese dub of "[[Possession]]", when hearing [[Blackarachnia (BW)|Blackarachnia]] describe Starscream's history, Megatron actually says "I've never heard of him."</ref> Consequently, this show of restraint by the dub turned out to be fortuitous in the long run, as the later two seasons of the series made it [[The Agenda (Part III)|abundantly clear]] that Optimus Primal and Megatron were completely separate individuals from Optimus Prime and the original Megatron.
[[File:Starscream ghost BW.jpg|upright=1.4|left|thumb|Starscream's ghost from the Sunbow cartoon, but with a Marvel comics-colored blue face.]]
A question often debated by the fandom was, exactly, ''which'' version of Generation 1 the ''Beast Wars'' cartoon was meant to be in-continuity with. At the time, the two major continuities of Generation 1 were the [[Sunbow Productions|Sunbow]] [[The Transformers (cartoon)|cartoon]] and the [[Marvel Comics|Marvel]] [[The Transformers (Marvel comic)|comics]], both of which were strongly defended by their respective fanbases as to which was considered the "[[true fan|true]]" version of Generation 1. Across its three seasons, the ''Beast Wars'' cartoon made references to both the Sunbow cartoon and the Marvel comics (though, admittedly, more from the former than the latter), resulting in a unique continuity that was more like a mixture of the two.
But, said references had mainly been gleaned by Forward and DiTillio from online interaction with fandom rather than direct exposure to the source material. The two were actually more interested in creating their own brand new [[canon]] for ''Beast Wars'';<ref name="DiTillio">Larry DiTillio interview from the [[Rhino Entertainment]] DVD release of ''Beast Wars: Transformers'' — The Complete First Season, [[August 12]], [[2003]]</ref> the references were merely sprinkled in to add flavor.<ref name="Forward"/> In a 1997 interview, DiTillio even stated, "In a sense I treat ''Transformers'' like the [[King Arthur]] tales. It's one vast canon, with a lot of variations..."<ref>[http://web.archive.org/web/20030410135115/http://www.bwtf.com/interviews/ld997.shtml Larry DiTillio Interview (September 1997), on BWTF.com] (archived)</ref> This abstention from picking one continuity over the other was likely to give the ''Beast Wars'' writers more creative freedom, unrestricted to either version of Generation 1 (and likely to avoid upsetting any fans who favored one over the other).
===The Great King of Angolmois===
One last contradiction in this catalog story is the fact that it refers to a "weapon" called the "Great King of Angolmois" (アンゴルモアの大王 ''Angorumoa no Daiō'') that lies within ancient ruins of the planet. In both the cartoon and manga, it was instead a lava-like substance called "[[Angolmois Energy]]". Evidently, this was an early concept for the main plot device that was to be fought over by the forces of Lio Convoy and Galvatron, and even made it into the bio for [[Megastorm (BW)#Toys|Megastorm's toy]]; bios for later toys would instead reflect the cartoon and manga by referring to "Angolmois Energy".
That said, additional media external to the cartoon written to tie into it would make their own decisions about which G1 continuity the show was a part of. In [[BotCon 1999|1999]]–[[BotCon 2000|2000]], the official ''Transformers'' convention [[BotCon]] published a multi-part story titled ''[[Reaching the Omega Point]]'', written by Marvel Comics writer [[Simon Furman]] (who would also write the [[Nemesis Part 2|final episode]] of ''Beast Wars''). Tying directly into the cartoon's third season, ''Omega Point'' also made blatant use of the Marvel continuity (plus the events of ''[[The Transformers: The Movie]]'') as its Generation 1 backstory, in an attempt to fully and strictly connect ''Beast Wars'' to the [[Marvel Comics continuity]]. The [[The Last Days of Optimus Prime|two]] [[Alignment|stories]] Furman also wrote for [[unofficial conventions|Transforce]] in [[2000]]–[[2002]] even sought to close the gap between the [[Transformers: Generation 2 (Marvel)|Marvel ''Generation 2'' comics]] and ''Beast Wars'', with Furman even once declaring ''Beast Wars'' and ''Omega Point'' (but not ''Beast Machines'') to be fully part of the comics universe (in [[personal canon|his mind]], at least).<ref>{{citesocial|link=https://groups.google.com/d/msg/alt.toys.transformers/mMaaTA90sUc/n-q9ZLE0XvEJ|site=alt.toys.transformers|name=Andrew Crane|month=05|day=30|year=2000|quote=Simon Furman regards Beast Wars as taking place in his comic universe (according to an interview in the Transforce 2000 magazine, he ignores Beast Machines entirely). His own post-BW storyline is Reaching the Omega Point (the BotCon stories).}}</ref>
Interestingly, the concept of a powerful weapon hidden deep within ancient ruins on Earth would later be recycled wholesale and fully utilized just two years later in the [[Transformers: Robots in Disguise (2001 cartoon)|''Car Robots'' cartoon]], with [[Fortress Maximus (RID)|Brave Maximus]] being said weapon.
However, when ''Beast Machines'' started up in late 1999 and carried on the world of the ''Beast Wars'' cartoon, it too made references to Generation 1, but ''only'' from the Sunbow cartoon and ''none'' from the comics. What's more, the next BotCon storyline, ''[[Transformers: The Wreckers]]'', was both a direct tie-in to ''Beast Machines'' and a direct follow-up to ''Omega Point''. But like ''Beast Machines'', ''The Wreckers'' used the Sunbow cartoon (plus Marvel's [[Primus]]/Unicron myth) as its Generation 1 backstory, despite following the more Marvel-based ''Omega Point''. As a result, this made the [[Beast Era timeline (3H)|combined continuity]] of ''Beast Wars'', ''Omega Point'', ''Beast Machines'', and ''The Wreckers'' (and the next series ''[[Transformers: Universe (comic)|Transformers: Universe]]'') as much of a mixture of Sunbow and Marvel lore as ''Beast Wars'' alone had originally been. And when the [[Dreamwave Generation One continuity]], the [[2006]] [[Beast Wars timeline (IDW)|IDW ''Beast Wars'' comics]], and ''[[Transformers: Wings Universe]]'' all created their own Generation 1 backstories for the ''Beast Wars'' cartoom, each of them likewise combined elements from both Marvel and Sunbow.
===Conclusion===
In the mid-2000s, [[TakaraTomy|Takara]] began to make some serious efforts to organize the ever-growing [[Japanese Generation 1 cartoon timeline]] that included all of the cartoons from the [[Beast Era]]. Due to all of the contradictions laid out above, Takara made the decision to ignore this catalog story entirely, throwing out every claim and character-depiction it made in order to clean up all of the issues between the American and Japanese cartoons. Opting to lean into "several tens of thousands of years" statement given by ''Beast Wars II'', it was decided to relocate the two American cartoons away from the two Japanese ones, by acknowledging the "three centuries" statement given by the English version of ''Beast Wars'' that the Japanese dub had originally omitted. When fans in the west first learned of this timeline, the placement of ''Beast Wars II'' and ''Neo'' being set so long ''after'' the ''Beast Machines'' cartoon came as quite a startling shock, having long since taken both this catalog story and the ''Beast Machines'' Magmatron toy bio as gospel, since all the continuity issues described above were virtually unknown to anyone outside of Japan due to ''Beast Wars II'' and ''Neo'' having not yet been fully translated into English at the time.
Over in Japan, meanwhile, there was no such contention over which G1 continuity ''Beast Wars'' (specifically, the [[Beast Wars: Super Lifeform Transformers|Japanese-dubbed version]]) was a part of. Since the Marvel ''Transformers'' comics had not been formally released in Japan during their original run in the West, the [[The Transformers (cartoon)#Japanese release|Sunbow cartoon's Japanese dub]] had long since been established as the [[Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers (franchise)|primary ''Transformers'' 1 continuity in Japan]], with nearly all Japanese ''Transformers'' material released up to that point having had some relation to the cartoon. When ''Beast Wars'' was introduced to Japan, it had always been considered part of the sprawling [[Japanese Generation 1 cartoon continuity]], since there was no other major ''Transformers'' continuity in Japan at that point. This perception even extended to the Japanese guidebook ''[[Beast Wars Universe]]'', which focused squarely on the original English version rather than the Japanese-dubbed version, and was written from the perspective that ''Beast Wars'' took place solely and specifically in the [[Generation 1 cartoon continuity]] instead of the unique Sunbow/Marvel mixture universe that it actually was.
There was, however, one ''more'' discrepancy created by this attempt to fix all of the others: With the relocation of ''Beast Machines'' set before ''Beast Wars II'' and ''Neo'', this now placed the [[Great Transformation|technorganic reformatting]] Cybertron underwent at the end of ''Beast Machines'' as happening ''before'' its appearances in ''Beast Wars Neo'' as a metallic planet. This last hole would be filled in [[2019]] by a ''[[Transformers Legends (comic)|Transformers Legends]]'' [[LG-EX Blue Big Convoy|pack-in comic]], which explained how and why Cybertron was turned back into a metallic world several eons after the end of ''Beast Machines''.
===Prehistoric setting===
Thus, with the discarding of this catalog story from the [[Japanese Generation 1 cartoon continuity]], its events have since been relegated to a little [[micro-continuity]] all unto itself. If anything, it still somewhat fits with the ''Beast Wars II'' and ''[[Super Lifeform Transformers: Beast Wars Neo (manga)|Beast Wars Neo]]'' manga, which stuck to the catalog story's placing all the characters in the same timeframe. Though, the subsequent ''[[Super Lifeform Transformers: Beast Wars Metals (manga)|Beast Wars Metals]]'' manga still treats Optimus Primal and Megatron as separate individuals from Optimus Prime and G1 Megatron, meaning they'd just be high-ranking Maximals and Predacons all on their own without any inherent ties to their namesakes.
====The planet's identity====
[[Image:Possession_BWPlanet.jpg|thumb|upright=1.08|To be Earth, or not to be Earth. That was the question.]]
With the ''Beast Wars'' cartoon ignoring the present-day Earth setting of the early toy bios and pack-in comic, the cartoon's setting for the [[Beast Wars (event)|Beast Wars]] was initially an uncertain one. The first episode noted that Megatron's crew of Predacons had intended to travel from Cybertron to Earth, but also included a line from [[Dinobot (BW)|Dinobot]] stating, "It's all wrong. This cannot be Earth." While the planet certainly resembled a primitive version of Earth, it had two moons. This initial ambiguity largely stemmed from what went on behind-the-scenes of the show. Forward and DiTillio were originally unsure if the series was going to be set on Earth in the past or on just a similar but still completely different planet.<ref name="Forward"/> At the time, they assumed it was going to be Earth,<ref name="TFConVok">[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4oSaFcWEVuI Who are The Vok in Beast Wars? Transformers writer Bob Forward has all the details!], from the [https://www.youtube.com/@TFcon TFCon] YouTube channel; [[May 30]], 2023. Recorded at the Bob Forward panel of [[unofficial conventions|TFCon Los Angeles 2023]] on [[March 9]].</ref> but added a second moon to make it less obvious.<ref name="Forward"/>
Since Hasbro's marketing department was equally unsure of just what to do with the show,<ref name="Forward"/><ref name="TFConVok"/> Forward and DiTillio were given mostly free reign to do whatever they wished with it.<ref name="DiTillio"/> Ultimately, they decided to reveal the planet as Earth after all, with the [[Planet Buster|second moon]] blown up in the first season's [[Other Voices, Part 2|finale]], and the planet's identity confirmed in-show just [[Coming of the Fuzors (Part 1)|two episodes later]]. With this revelation also came further developments to help flesh out the prehistoric setting of the series, such the introduction of humanity's unevolved [[anthropoid|ancestors]] in "[[Code of Hero]]", and the second season [[The Agenda (Part III)|finale]] uncovering the ancient Autobot starship, ''[[Ark (G1)|Ark]]'', that had crash-landed on Earth four million years ago in the ''Transformers'' fiction of the 1980s.
==Notes==
===Transformers references===
====Dating the Beast Wars====
*The "Maximize" in the title of this story is actually "Henshin" (変身), a Japanese word for "transformation" that was used in the Japanese dub of the [[Beast Wars: Transformers (cartoon)|''Beast Wars'' cartoon]] as the Japanese equivalent/replacement for both "Maximize" and "Terrorize" in the original English version. "Maximize", rather than "Transform", is used here to reflect that dubbing decision, and also because ''Beast Wars II'' would distinguish "Henshin" from "Transform" by specifically using the former for those with [[beast mode]]s, while the latter would be used by those with mechanical vehicle modes.
Once the planet was established as prehistoric Earth, there still remained the question of just how long ago in the past the events of the cartoon were set. When, exactly, did the Beast Wars happen in the history of this fictional universe? The discovery of the ''Ark'' in "[[The Agenda (Part III)]]" led several characters to make casual comments about there being "four million years",<ref>'''Megatron:''' "Autobots and Decepticons, still frozen in emergency stasis. Awaiting the moment, four million years hence, when they will awaken to start the Great War." —"[[The Agenda (Part III)]]"</ref><ref>'''Optimus Primal:''' "We'd have four million years to clean you off the walls, Megatron. I might risk it." —[[Optimal Situation]]</ref> "the next couple million years",<ref>'''Rattrap:''' "Yeah. And now all we gotta do is keep it that way for the next couple million years." —[[Optimal Situation]]</ref> and "a few million [[units of time|stellar cycles]]"<ref>'''Rhinox:''' "[[Depth Charge (BW)|You've]] traveled back in time."<br>'''Rattrap:''' "Yeah a few million stellar cycles back in time." —"[[Deep Metal]]"</ref> until the awakening of the Autobots and Decepticon aboard the Ark in 1984, which suggested the Beast Wars took place not long after the ''Ark'' had first crash-landed on the planet.
*Also included in this catalog is a brief recap of the final events of "[[Other Voices, Part 2]]", which had, at the time, recently aired in Japan on [[March 25]], [[1998]]. Said recap is given the title of '''~Convoy's Great Explosion~''' (〜コンボイ大爆発編〜 ''~Konboi Dai Bakuhatsu-hen~''). At the bottom of this recap is also an ad for the then-new ''Beast Wars II'' [[Beast Wars II: Super Lifeform Transformers (cartoon)|animated series]] and [[Beast Wars II: Super Lifeform Transformers (manga)|manga series]].
Outside the cartoon, the various ''Beast Wars'' tie-in media attempted to provide more precise dates for when the show's events were set:
*The first was given in [[2003]], in the [[Sixtrain! Activate Red Mode!!|fifth chapter]] of the Japanese ''[[The Transformers: Micromaster|Micromaster]]'' prose series. In this story, artifacts of the Beast Wars found by Autobot [[Micromaster]]s in the early 1980s were dated to have first arrived on Earth "three million years ago."
*In [[2004]], the [[Primeval Dawn Part 2|second]] and [[Primeval Dawn Part 3|third]] chapters (both written by [[Simon Furman]]) of ''[[Primeval Dawn]]''—a short-lived comic series printed as back-up strips for the 2001–2004 ''[[Transformers: The Wreckers]]'' series, set not long after the [[Nemesis Part 2|final episode]] of the ''Beast Wars'' cartoon—provided a most specific date for the time period of the Beast Wars, that being "180,000 Years BC".
*From [[2006]] to [[2008]], IDW Publishing's two ''Beast Wars'' comic mini-series, ''[[Transformers, Beast Wars: The Gathering|The Gathering]]'' and ''[[Transformers: Beast Wars: The Ascending|The Ascending]]'' (also both written by Simon Furman) both took place during the third season of the cartoon, and dated the Beast Wars to "70,000 Years BC". However, the glossary entry for the ''[[Nemesis (G1)|Nemesis]]'' found in the back of the collected edition of the ''Beast Wars Sourcebook'' claimed that the ship was found during the Great War "millions of years later" from the Beast Wars,<ref>"Through the valiant efforts of the Maximals, the plan was thwarted and the Nemesis disabled. Millions of years later, the Nemesis was uncovered again. This time the original Megatron mined the ship for its power core, known as '[[Heart of Cybertron|The Heart of Cybertron]].'" —Beast Wars Glossary "Nemesis" entry; ''[[Transformers: Beast Wars Sourcebook|Beast Wars Sourcebook]]''</ref> leaning more towards the cartoon's original statements. But the glossary's entries for [[Optimus Prime (G1)]] and [[Megatron (G1)]] both reflected the comics' timeframe by stated they awoke on modern-day Earth "thousands of years later" from the Beast Wars.<ref>"For a time, the Predacon Commander of the same name used Megatron's Spark to bolster his own power. That Megatron was ultimately defeated and the Spark of his Decepticon namesake was returned to its rightful owner. Thousands of years later, Megatron would emerge on Earth to start his war anew." —Beast Wars Glossary "Megatron (G1)" entry; ''Beast Wars Sourcebook''</ref><ref>"Optimus Prime would reawaken thousands of years later on modern day Earth where his conflict with Megatron began anew." —Beast Wars Glossary "Optimus Prime (G1)" entry; ''Beast Wars Sourcebook''</ref>
While these different dates remain contradictory to each other, they each belong to a different expanded-media continuity for the ''Beast Wars'' cartoon (see "Expanded universes" above); respectively, the [[Japanese Generation 1 cartoon continuity]], the [[Beast Era timeline (3H)|Beast Era continuity]] created by [[3H Productions]], and the [[Beast Wars timeline (IDW)|IDW ''Beast Wars'' continuity]].
===Future setting===
====Distance from the Great War====
[[Image:The Probe Cybertropolis.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.3|Apparently, the future is [[neon]]-lit.]]
As the ''Beast Wars'' cartoon continued its world-building, once it became clear that the Maximals and Predacons were not only the distant descendants of the Autobots and Decepticons, but also originally from a future time set long after the age of said ancestors, questions arose about just how far into the future they originally came from. The show never actually addressed when the [[Great War (G1)|Great War]] between the Autobots and Decepticons ended, but did provide some hints about how long after the war the future era of ''Beast Wars'' was set.
In the first season, the [[Beast Wars (Part 1)|first episode]] stated that the Maximals and Predacons were currently at peace, and had been "for centuries."<ref>'''Optimus Primal:''' "There has been peace between the Maximals and Predacons for centuries." —"[[Beast Wars (Part 1)]]"</ref> In the episode "[[Dark Designs]]", it was stated that the Maximals and Predacons hailed from a future set "three centuries" after that war.<ref>'''Blackarachnia:''' "[[Shrapnel (G1)|Shrapnel]]? That was a Decepticon from the Great Wars three centuries ago." —"[[Dark Designs]]"</ref> And in "[[Law of the Jungle]]", it was said that only "hundreds of [[units of time|stellar cycles]]" had passed since the Autobots and Decepticons first ''began'' the Great War.<ref>'''Dinobot:''' "It has been this way for hundreds of stellar cycles, ever since Autobot and Decepticon first began the Great War." —"[[Law of the Jungle]]"</ref> Collectively, this presented a relatively short time span (for a race with lifespans that can stretch up to ''millions'' of years) between the age of the Autobots and Decepticon and that of the Maximals and Predacons.
'''''HOWEVER''''', outside of these first-season references, the rest of the show would instead imply a much greater gap of time since the end the Great War. In the series' [[production bible]], the backstory written for the series notes that knowledge of the Maximals and Predacons descending from the Autobots and Decepticons came from "Cybertron Mythology"<ref>[https://www2.unicron.com/1996-transformers/media/4377-backstory.html ''Beast Wars'' Series Story Bible "Backstory" excerpt at Unicron.com]</ref> In "[[Possession]]", the Autobots and Decepticons were described not only as the Maximals' and Predacons' "ancestors", but specifically their "''ancient'' ancestors",<ref name="Possession"/> And in the same episode, despite the guest-starring Decepticon [[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]] having garnered quite the infamous reputation in 1980s ''Transformers'' fiction, [[Optimus Primal (BW)/Beast Wars cartoon continuity|Optimus Primal]], [[Blackarachnia (BW)|Blackarachnia]], and [[Dinobot (BW)|Dinobot]] were the only ones among the cast who had ever heard of him. And much later, in "[[The Agenda (Part III)]]", upon first locating the ''Ark'', the Maximal [[Silverbolt (Fuzor)|Silverbolt]] revealed that he thought the ship's existence was only a legend.<ref>'''Silverbolt:''' "I've heard only legends."<br>'''Blackarachnia:''' "Oh, it's no legend, JoJo. Eons before Maximals and Predacons even existed, your ancestors, the Autobots, launched this ''Ark'' containing their finest heroes. But it was attacked by Decepticons and crashed here, on Earth." —"[[The Agenda (Part III)]]"</ref>
In the sequel series ''[[Beast Machines: Transformers (cartoon)|Beast Machines]]'', other Generation 1 elements (namely [[Vector Sigma]],<ref name="Oracle">'''Optimus Primal:''' "The [[Oracle (BM)|Oracle]]. The Oracle computer that foretold the coming of the first Transformers to Cybertron. That's what's been calling me!"<br>'''Rattrap:''' "But, that's just a legend... Isn't it?" —"[[The Reformatting]]"</ref><ref>'''Tankor-Rhinox:''' "The legends are true... The Oracle exists."</ref><ref name="Vector Sigma">'''Tankor-Rhinox:''' The old Autobot [[datatrax]] refer to a powerful spheroid computer called Vector Sigma."<br>'''Diagnostic Drone:''' "And you believe the Oracle to be this 'Vector Sigma'?" —"[[The Key]]"</ref> its [[Key to Vector Sigma]],<ref>'''Tankor-Rhinox:''' "You enjoy history, Optimus. Ever hear of the [[Key to Vector Sigma]]"?<br>'''Optimus Primal:''' "An old Autobot legend."<br>'''Tankor-Rhinox:''' "Guess again. Cold hard reality!" —"The Key"</ref> and the [[Plasma Energy Chamber]]<ref>'''Megatron:''' "[[Optimus Primal (BW)/Beast Wars cartoon continuity|He]] found WHAT?! The Plasma Energy Chamber is only a legend!"<br>'''Diagnostic Drone:''' "As was the Key to Vector Sigma. Do you detect a pattern forming, here?"</ref>) were all likewise regarded by the characters as mere legends before their existences were fully realized. The original story treatment for the series even claimed "what little is known" about the Autobots and Decepticons is known mostly from legend, and that the era of the Maximals and Predacons was set a ''whopping'' "millions of years later".<ref>{{citesocial|quote=@walruslaw @DaGrimBo I've acquired the Beast Machines series bible and Marv Wolfman's original treatment. First off, "Beast Hunters"|link=https://twitter.com/20thDan/status/1695541111421583425|name=Check your sources.|site=Twitter|year=2023|month=August|day=26}}<br>"IMAGINE... the planet CYBERTRON, where legend says THE TRANSFORMERS have lived for tens of millions of years. while little is known about the early tribes, wheat is known is that ages ago, Autobots fought like stainless steel knights against the malevolent world- destroying Decepticons. Their great battle ended with the Autobots' victory.<br>IMAGINE... millions of years later, a tension filled cold war has long been brewing between the Autobots' successors, the strong and valiant MAXIMALS and the Decepticons descendants, the dark, feral PREDACONS. Until now the spark of war has not ignited."</ref> And when both Optimus and fellow Maximal [[Nightscream (BM)|Nightscream]] stumbled upon the ruins of the Autobot city [[Iacon (polity)|Iacon]], in "[[Sparkwar Pt. II: The Search]]", it was stated that the Great War had ended not "three centuries ago" (as originally given in "Dark Designs"), but rather "''eons'' ago",<ref>'''Nightscream:''' "[[Iacon (polity)|This city]] was lost ''eons'' ago after the [[Great War (G1)|Great War]] between the Autobots and the Decepticons."<br>'''Optimus Primal:''' "Not lost, merely replaced, during the [[Great Upgrade|great upgrade from Autobot to Maximal]]." —"[[Sparkwar Pt. II: The Search]]"</ref> which fits ''much'' better with the amount of time needed for the ''vast'' Autobot/Decepticon history to have all faded into myth and legend by the time of the Maximals' and Predacons' future setting.
And yet, despite all of that, the more miniscule time gap of "three centuries" is the one that more people have taken to heart in the years since, making its way into other licensed works and even creator commentary. [[3H Productions]]' ''[[Apelinq's War Journals]]'' (which was set both right before and during ''Beast Machines'' gave the specific future date of "316 [[AU]]", as in "316 stellar cycles" into the future. [[Departure|Issue #1]] of ''[[Transformers: The Wreckers|The Wreckers]]'' (which was also set both during and right after ''Beast Machines'') clarified that this was "some three hundred years after the destruction of the Chaos-Bringer, [[Unicron]]."<ref>"[[Departure]]"</ref> This was in reference to ''[[The Transformers: The Movie]]'', which was set in [[2005]]. The previous ''[[Reaching the Omega Point]]'' story "[[Covenant (story)|Covenant]]" had also referred to Unicron's defeat in 2005, so it matched up. [[Betrayal|''The Wreckers'' #2]] also reiterated the "over three hundred years" time gap,<ref>'''Glyph:''' "We have been awaiting the rescue effort for quite some time. Though I must admit, over three hundred years is a bit longer than we had expected!" —"[[Betrayal]]"</ref> while both [[Disclosure|Issue #3]] and the unpublished [[The Wreckers: Finale Part 1|Issue #4]] together actually claimed that the amount of time passed in the future between the disappearance of Optimus Primal's crew and their return to Cybertron from the Beast Wars was a total of two stellar cycles.<ref>'''Apelinq:''' "The last time I saw circuitry patterns like this was in a research facility back on Cybertron, two stellar cycles ago." —"[[Disclosure]]"<br>And in the script for [[The Wreckers: Finale Part 1|Issue #4]], Apelinq deduces that these circuitry patterns were the work of [[Cryotek (RID)|Cryotek]], whom Apelinq says, "disappeared a few stellar cycles ago – not long after [Optimus Primal] and his crew went after Megatron and the Golden Disc."</ref>
''[[Beast Wars Universe]]'',<ref name="BWU">旧アニメからBWまでの空白期間はおよそ300~500年(スタッフ談)、グレートウォー終結から300年後とされている。よって、“ザ・リバース”のラストから本格的終戦までは、大きく見積って200年を要した事になる。—''[[Beast Wars Universe]]'' Page 3, "Chronicles of Cybertron"</ref> an interview with Larry DiTillio on the [[Rhino Entertainment]] DVD set of the ''Beast Wars'' cartoon's first season,<ref name="DiTillio"/> and ''[[Transformers: The Ultimate Guide]]''<ref>"Beast Wars introduced fans to the next era of TRANSFORMERS, set some 300 years after the Great War on Cybertron and Earth." —''Transfomers: The Ultimate Guide'', Page 78, Beast Wars introductory description</ref> all likewise mentioned the span of "300 years". Meanwhile, IDW Publishing's ''The Gathering'', ''The Ascending'', and ''Beast Wars Sourcebook'' gave no timeframe for how long after the Great War the future era of ''Beast Wars'' was set, but in promotion of the standalone prequel story "[[Dawn of the Predacus]]", author [[John-Paul Bove]] had tweeted that the story was set "30 years after [[The Transformers: The Movie|The Battle for Autobot City]], 300 years before The Beast Wars".<ref name="Bove">{{citesocial|quote=Next week find out what happened after G1 and before Beast Wars @BotCon... #transformers #G1 #beastwars|link=https://twitter.com/wordmongerer/status/716433907621736448|name=John-Paul Bove @wordmongerer|site=Twitter|year=2016|month=April|day=2}}</ref>
====Distance from the present day====
With most ''Beast Wars'' media accepting the "three centuries" claim, there still remained the question ''when'' in the future these three centuries occurred. As stated before, the cartoon never said when the Great War ended, so other related media opted to provide their own different answers. ''Reaching the Omega Point'' introduced a dark alternate future ruled by a tyrant named [[Shokaract]], which "[[Terminus (issue)|Terminus]]" stated was set in the 32nd Century. A preceding story, "[[Schism (story)|Schism]]", stated that this dark future was set "two hundred years" after the first chapter of ''Omega Point'', "Covenant", which itself was set during the normal future setting of ''Beast Wars'' and ''Beast Machines''. Logically, 200 years before the 32nd Century would place said normal future setting in the 30th Century, which would then place the end of the Great War three centuries earlier in the 27th Century. The related apocryphal story "[[Alignment]]" even seemed to support this notion with its own events being set "several hundred years" after the destruction of Unicron.
However, as noted above, the ''Omega Point'' sequel series ''The Wreckers'' explicitly and repeatedly placed the future setting of ''Beast Wars'' and ''Beast Machines'' "some three hundred years" after Unicron's destruction in 2005, which would be the 24th Century, essentially [[retcon]]ning away the 30th Century implication. Although, in the [[Escape (Universe)|second issue]] of the next series, ''[[Transformers: Universe (comic)|Universe]]'', the inside-cover recap of the [[Abduction|first issue's]] events instead claimed this future setting was in the 23rd Century (but this was likely an error). The ''[[Transformers: Wings Universe|Wing Universe]]'' story "[[A Common Foe]]" saw the civil wars between the Autobots, Decepticons, and all other related parties finally brought to their formal conclusion in the year [[2013]], so three centuries later from then would again be the 24th Century. Likewise, IDW Publishing's "Dawn of the Predacus" featured its own take on the end of the [[Great War (G1)|Great War]], which the aforementioned tweet by John-Paul Bove dated to thirty years after 2005 and three hundred years before the future setting of ''Beast Wars'', placing that story in [[2035]] and the future once again in the 24th Century.
Aside from these, there was one thing that initially did not adhere to the "three centuries" notion, that being the Japanese version. In the Japanese dub of "[[Dark Designs]]", the specific line of dialogue from the English version was not retained, instead changed to pop culture reference joke. And when the first Japanese-original spinoff series ''[[Beast Wars II: Super Lifeform Transformers (cartoon)|Beast Wars II]]'' started up, it was originally billed as taking place during the same future setting of the American ''Beast Wars'' cartoon. The main setting of ''Beast Wars II'' was the planet [[Gaia]], which was all but stated outright to be a post-apocalyptic version of Earth. In its [[Emissary of the Fourth Planet|thirty-sixth episode]], it was revealed that Gaia's ancient inhabitants (in other words, humankind) had abandoned the planet "several tens of thousands of years ago", a significantly greater time gap than just "three centuries ago".
At first, there was no contradiction, since, as mentioned, the "three centuries" line was left out of the Japanese dub of "Dark Designs". But when the theatrical feature "[[Lio Convoy in Imminent Danger!]]" and the sequel series, ''[[Super Lifeform Transformers: Beast Wars Neo (cartoon)|Beast Wars Neo]]'' both came along, a number of contradictions arose between both them and the American ''Beast Wars'' and ''Beast Machines'' cartoons. To rectify this, when [[TakaraTomy]] began to properly assemble the [[Japanese Generation 1 cartoon timeline]] in the mid-2000s, they opted to acknowledge the "three centuries" mention from the English version of "Dark Designs" and use both it and the "several tens of thousands of years" mention from ''Beast Wars II'' to relocate both it and ''Beast Wars Neo'' to take place many millennia after ''Beast Machines''. Also, vintage Generation 1 and Generation 2 media released in Japan had also placed the end of the Autobot/Decepticon wars in the 21st Century, so once again, the future setting of ''Beast Wars'' was placed in the 24th Century.
And finally, another exception was given in ''Beast Wars Universe'', which treated the end of the American Generation 1 cartoon, "[[The Rebirth]]", as the last known event of the Great War in the book's chronology for ''Beast Wars'', titled "Chronicles of Cybertron". It also claimed that the full amount of time between "The Rebirth" and the future setting of ''Beast Wars'' was estimated (by the ''Beast Wars'' series' staff) to be "about 300–500 years", with the Great War having apparently gone on for another two centuries after "The Rebirth",<ref name="BWU"/> before reaching its end in the 23rd Century, which would place the future of ''Beast Wars'' in the 26th Century. But none of these staff-related statements have been realized in any canonical fiction, and thus remain only [[pseudocanon]] at best.
==Anniversaries==
===10th Anniversary===
[[2006]] marked the tenth anniversary of ''Beast Wars'', and many parties sought to celebrate the occasion in different ways. From Hasbro came ''[[Transformers: Beast Wars 10th Anniversary|Beast Wars 10th Anniversary]]'', a small line consisting primarily of reissues of eight toys from the original 1996 toyline, [[redeco]]ed in more [[show-accuracy|show-accurate]] color schemes. Six of these reissues were Deluxe class toys and included both a [[pack-in material|packed-in]] DVD containing a single episode from the cartoon (each episode being one themed around the character whose toy they came packaged with) and an all-new [[Build a Figure|build-a-figure]] of [[Transmutate (BW)|Trans-Mutate]], a show-original [[Transmutate (episode)|single-episode]] character who had never received a toy beforehand. Additionally, two brand new Deluxe class molds of [[Optimus Primal (BW)/toys#Beast Wars 10th Anniversary|Optimus Primal]] and [[Megatron (BW)/toys#Beast Wars 10th Anniversary|Megatron]] were released as part of the line, and had built-in compatibility with the [[Cyber Key]] gimmick of the then-contemporary ''[[Transformers: Cybertron (toyline)|Transformers: Cybertron]]'' line.
For [[BotCon 2006]], Fun Publications created what is, arguably, their most famous and well-received set of BotCon [[exclusive]]s, "Dawn of Future's Past", a set of mostly ''Cybertron'' toy molds redecoed/[[retool]]ed into most of the main cast of the ''Beast Wars'' cartoon in forms representing the Cybertronian bodies they had before they first came to Earth and scanned their [[beast mode]]s. An accompanying [[Dawn of Future's Past|comic story of the same title]] was published that served as an immediate prequel to the cartoon, telling the story of what all happened right before the [[Beast Wars (Part 1)|first episode]]. The following year, an additional prequel to ''that'' prequel was released at [[BotCon 2007]] in the form of an animated short titled "[[Theft of the Golden Disk]]", which even had [[David Kaye]] reprise his role of Megatron.
[[TakaraTomy]] also celebrated the anniversary with two new developments of their own. First was ''[[Beast Wars Reborn]]'', a special two-pack release of the original Ultra class [[Optimus Primal (BW)/toys#Beast Wars Reborn|Optimus Primal]] and [[Megatron (BW)/toys#Beast Wars Reborn|Megatron]] toys in new show-accurate colors and tooling. A four-part ''Beast Wars Reborn'' prose story, set after the events of the Japanese dub of ''Beast Machines'', was published in issues #97-100 of ''[[Figure Ō]]'' magazine from March to June, 2006. In [[2007]], the tenth anniversary of the [[Beast Wars: Super Lifeform Transformers|Japanese release of ''Beast Wars'']], TakaraTomy released ''[[Transformers: Beast Wars Telemocha Series|Beast Wars Telemocha Series]]'', a proper line of ''Beast Wars'' reissues very similar to Hasbro's ''Beast Wars 10th Anniversary'' line, complete with pack-in DVDs and show-accurate redecos (even ''more'' accurate than those of the Hasbro line).
===20th Anniversary===
===Real-world references===
[[File:BW20.png|190px|right|]]
*The "seventh month of the Cosmic Year 1999" and "Great King of Angolmois" are both derived from ''{{w|Les Prophéties|The Prophecies}}'' of [[France|French]] seer {{w|Nostradamus}},<ref>[http://web.archive.org/web/20170430004120/http://www.maar.us/tenth_century_nostradamus_quatrains.html The text of Nostradamus's ''Prophecies'', Century X, in the original French with an English translation.] See Quatrain 72.</ref> whose prophecies were popular in [[Japan]] at the time. What these two bits actually ''mean'', however, is a ''lot'' to unpack, but most interpretations basically boil down to either a prophecy of doom brought about by either a tyrannical warlord like {{w|Genghis Khan}} or by terrorism, or a prophecy of prosperity brought about by either a rich philanthropist or a king like {{w|Francis I of France}}, occurring at some point in [[July]]–[[September]] of the year [[1999]].<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=PSiN-CVROJYC&q=Angolmois+mongolian&pg=PA67#v=snippet&q=Angolmois%20mongolian&f=false ''Saint Germain's Prophecy for the New Millennium: Includes Dramatic Prophecies from Nostradamus, Edgar Cayce and Mother Mary''] at Google Books</ref> In reality, it is still not entirely certain what, if anything, this prophecy referred to.
After the attention ''Beast Wars'' had received from Hasbro for the tenth anniversary in 2006, as well the ''bombastic'' celebration for the [[Transformers brand|''Transformers'']] brand's 30th anniversary, the '''''[[Thrilling 30]]''''', which Hasbro threw in [[2014]]... the [[fandom]] waited with bated breath to see how Hasbro would handle [[2016]], the 20th anniversary of ''Beast Wars''. Alas, there was little fanfare from Hasbro proper, who opted to instead focus their attention more on the 30th anniversary of ''[[The Transformers: The Movie]]''. The one nod to the ''Beast Wars'' anniversary from Hasbro was the ''[[Transformers: Platinum Edition|Platinum Edition]]'' release of the [[Optimus Primal (BW)/toys#Platinum Edition|Year of the Monkey Optimus Primal]], which did sport a celebratory logo (pictured right), but said release was more of a Hasbro ''Asia'' initiative rather than Hasbro proper. All in all, it was a rather lackluster showing from Hasbro for the line which reinvigorated the brand.
*[[Lio Convoy (BW)|Lio Convoy]] addresses [[Optimus Primal (BW)/Beast Wars cartoon continuity|Optimus Primal]] with the honorific of "{{w|Senpai and kōhai|senpai}}", which is used to refer to a person of senior experience, hierarchy, level, and/or age, who offers guidance, friendship, and general assistance to a newer, younger, and/or inexperienced person (known as the "{{w|Senpai and kōhai|kōhai}}") belonging to the same group, like a personal mentor. It is commonly used in the Japanese education system to refer to older students of higher grades by younger students of lower grades. In this case, it is used to indicate that Optimus Primal is Lio Convoy's personal mentor/superior (and is translated in the Quotes section above as "sir").
For [[BotCon 2016]], Fun Publications paid more heed. Much like 2006, the convention was themed around another ''Beast Wars'' prequel, with a majority of the exclusive toys representing ''Beast Wars'' characters in pre-beast bodies they had on Cybertron before the [[Beast Wars (event)|Beast Wars]]. The convention comic, "[[Dawn of the Predacus]]", was made by IDW and tied its story to both their 2006–2008 ''Beast Wars'' comics and Fun Publications' "Dawn of Future's Past" comic from 2006. Throughout 2016, Fun Publications also produced several prose stories for ''[[Beast Wars: Uprising]]'', a completely different, dystopian-themed ''Beast Wars'' series that was largely unconnected to the TV series. One of these prose stories, "[[Intersectionality]]", even included its own '''Chilling 20''' anniversary logo (pictured left) as a joke.
*Galvatron is depicted here mostly in shadow because, at the time, the color scheme for his toy had not yet been finalized. Indeed, his toy pictured elsewhere in the catalog is represented by an unpainted gray [[prototype|hardcopy]].
TakaraTomy also released a bit of ''Beast Wars''-themed product in 2016. Exclusive versions of [[Rattrap (BW)/toys#LGEX|Rattrap]], [[Rhinox (BW)#Legends|Rhinox]], and [[Waspinator (BW)/toys#Legends|Waspinator]] were made available at Transformers Fes2016, as part of the ''[[Transformers Legends (franchise)|Legends]]'' toyline. These three were show-accurate redecos of [[Rattrap (BW)/toys#Generations|their]] ''[[Rhinox (BW)#Generations|Generations]]'' [[Waspinator (BW)/toys#Generations|toys]] originally released during the aforementioned ''Thrilling 30'' range. TakaraTomy also released a ''[[The Transformers: Masterpiece|Masterpiece]]'' version of [[Optimus Primal (BW)/toys#Masterpiece|Optimus Primal]] for October 2016, which led to several more ''Beast Wars'' characters receiving ''Masterpiece'' toys in the years to come. [[E-HOBBY]] also released ''Legends'' [[Convobat#Legends|Convobat]] in December 2016, a reuse of the ''[[Titans Return (toyline)|Titans Return]]'' [[Mindwipe (G1)#Titans Return|Mindwipe]] toy as a modern update of the original [[Optimus Primal (BW)/toys#Beast Wars|bat Optimus Primal]] toy from 1996.
The twenty-fifth anniversary in [[2021]] was met with significantly more fanfare from Hasbro with the debut of ''[[War for Cybertron: Kingdom|Kingdom]]'', the ''Beast Wars''-themed third chapter of the ''[[War for Cybertron Trilogy (franchise)|War for Cybertron Trilogy]]'' toyline and [[Transformers: War for Cybertron Trilogy (cartoon)|cartoon]]. The success of the ''Kingdom'' toyline led to releases of more ''Beast Wars'' characters continuing into the subsequent ''[[Transformers: Legacy|Legacy]]'' line of [[2022]]. 2021 also saw the release of a brand new [[Transformers: Beast Wars|ongoing ''Beast Wars'' comic]] from IDW Publishing, which served as a complete reimagining of the 1996 cartoon's premise, setting, and characters, and whose issues sported a 25th anniversary logo (pictured right). The then-upcoming film ''[[Transformers: Rise of the Beasts (film)|Transformers: Rise of the Beasts]]'', which featured new live-action interpretations of a few ''Beast Wars'' characters, was also announced this year. Both the film and its [[Transformers: Rise of the Beasts (toyline)|heavily beast-themed toyline]] were originally scheduled for release the following year in [[2022]], but delays pushed back both to release in [[2023]] instead.
==Notes==
*On April 4, 2019, [[Lorenzo di Bonaventura]] listed a live-action adaptation to ''Beast Wars'' as a potential future entry to the [[live-action film series]].<ref>[https://www.slashfilm.com/lorenzo-di-bonaventura-pet-sematary-interview/3/ 'Pet Sematary' Producer Lorenzo Di Bonaventura On Making Big Changes To Stephen King's Book And The Current Status Of 'Snake Eyes,' 'McClane,' And 'Transformers' [Interview]]</ref> This would eventually manifest as ''[[Transformers: Rise of the Beasts (film)|Transformers: Rise of the Beasts]]''.
==References==
==References==
{{reflist|2}}
{{reflist}}
<nowiki>[[Category:Beast Era]]
<nowiki>[[Category:Beast Wars II media]]
[[Category:Beast Wars| ]]
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==Origin==
==Origin==
How the Beast Era came about.
How the Beast Era came about.
==Franchises of the Beast Era==
==Franchises of the Beast Era==
===''Beast Wars: Transformers'' (1996–2001)===
===''Beast Wars: Transformers'' (1996–2001)===
[[File:Optimusprimalvsmegatronsplash.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.8|Before 'toon began, there was... the comic!]]
In the very beginning, when the toyline debuted in 1996, the line presented itself as a complete reinvention of the ''Transformers'' brand, but one that was still set on [[Earth]] in the present day. Numerous references to "Bio-Genetic Engineering" being the source of the Maximals' and Predacons' organic [[beast mode]]s were given in the toys' packaging blurb, in a short [[Optimus Primal vs Megatron!|comic]] [[pack-in material|included]] with the very first [[Optimus Primal (BW)/toys#Beast Wars|Optimus Primal]] and [[Megatron (BW)/toys#Beast Wars|Megatron]] toys, and in many of the toys' [[bio]]s. Combined with the bio for that first Optimus Primal toy closely paraphrasing the motto of the original [[Optimus Prime (G1)/toys#The Transformers|Optimus Prime toy]] from [[1984]] ("Freedom is the right of all sentient beings."), the original implication was that ''Beast Wars'' was simply another continuation of the [[The Transformers (franchise)|first]] [[Transformers: Generation 2 (franchise)|two]] iterations of the ''Transformers'' brand, with the Maximals and Predacons merely being genetically-enhanced Autobots and Decepticons, and Optimus Primal and Megatron being the very same individuals as their [[Optimus Prime (G1)|Generation 1]] [[Megatron (G1)|namesakes]].
Granted, the line wasn't ''explicit'' about this connection at the time, but there was no reason ''not'' to think so. Plus, the [[1997]] release of the Maximal [[Grimlock (G1)/toys#Beast Wars|Grimlock]] toy featured a bio that made it abundantly clear that he was, indeed, the very same Autobot [[Grimlock (G1)|Grimlock]] of old, which further reinforced these implications. But after the cartoon took off and cemented itself as the dominant ''Beast Wars'' fiction, the toyline gradually shifted away from its original continuity to one more closely resembling that of the cartoon. A number of 1997 toy bios mentioned "[[energon crystal]]s" (a prominent part of the cartoon's first season), while [[Drill Bit (BW)|Drill Bit]]'s bio referred to the ''Beast Wars'' setting not as "Earth" but instead "the mysterious planet" (as it was known in the cartoon's first season). By [[1998]], the original toy continuity was practically dropped entirely, with the packaging blurbs for the [[Transmetal]]s, [[Fuzor]]s, and [[1999]]'s [[Transmetal 2|Transmetals 2]] directly mentioning events specific to the cartoon's second and third seasons.
====Toyline====
====Toyline====
====Cartoon====
====Cartoon====
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<nowiki>[[Category:Beast Era| ]]
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[[Category:Fan terminology]]</nowiki>--!>
[[Category:Fan terminology]]</nowiki>-->
Latest revision as of 19:45, 7 May 2026
The Stage of Battle is the 2nd War... Beast Wars, Maximize!!
While Optimus Primal and Megatron are off fighting their own life-or-death struggle, a new conflict, the "2nd War", is about to unfold on a planet within a star system located in a remote part of the galaxy. The participants of this conflict are members of the heroic Maximal Space Guard and the evil Predacon Armored Corps, respectively. Their battle is fought over a mysterious weapon hidden in ancient ruins of the planet, a weapon known as the "Great King of Angolmois". It is said that the victor of this conflict, be it Maximal or Predacon, will be decided in the seventh month of the Cosmic Year 1999.
The leaders of both sides of this new conflict are introduced by each of their immediate predecessors. Megatron introduces Galvatron as the New Emperor of Destruction, and recalls a time when, back on Cybertron, the two once disagreed over how to conquer the universe. This led to a fight between the two, in which Galvatron bested Megatron after catching him off guard. Though he now acknowledges Galvatron's ambition and his care for those under his command, Megatron also begrudgingly admits that Galvatron may hold enough dignity to succeed him as Emperor.
Meanwhile, Optimus Primal introduces the new Maximal leader, Lio Convoy, who was originally an ace in the Maximal Space Guard. Optimus notes that he is strong, valiant, and even kind, but also, admittedly, a bit too frank at times. Nevertheless, Optimus considers him to be an ideal leader, and remains hopeful that he can count on Lio Convoy to do all that he can to help maintain peace throughout the universe.
This catalog story was originally written for the express purpose of explaining the premise of the then-upcoming Japanese-original series Beast Wars II, which had been created to fill the gap left by the delayed Japanese release of the second and third seasons of the American Beast Wars cartoon. Once the first season had finished airing, it would be succeeded by the Beast Wars IIanimated series, along with an accompanying manga series published by Comic BomBom. This little story was released about a month ahead the Beast Wars II cartoon's debut, and attempted to explain just how Beast Wars II was supposed to fit into the continuity of the American Beast Wars cartoon.
As described above in the Synopsis, it is stated that Beast Wars II is set concurrent to the Beast Wars fought between Optimus Primal and Megatron on what was, at the time, not yet revealed to be prehistoric Earth[1] (in Japan, the planet was instead known as "Energoa" prior to its reveal as Earth). But, it was not initially made clear if this meant it took place during the same timeframe as the Beast Wars (since the time travel aspect had not yet been confirmed in the Japanese dub) or if took place in the far future timeframe that Optimus Primal and Megatron's crews had originally come from before traveling back in time to prehistoric Earth. Needless to say, the latter became the most widespread interpretation once it was made clear on both sides of the Pacific that the American Beast Wars cartoon was set on Earth in prehistoric times. Additional support for this interpretation came from the setting Beast Wars II itself, Gaia—a post-apocalyptic planet overrun by plant and wildlife—which bore a strong resemblance to Earth (with the manga making even more explicit hints to the planet's identity by featuring city ruins that heavily resembled Tokyo). The manga even featured guest appearances by Optimus Primal that depicted him as native to the timeframe of Beast Wars II. This notion even bled back over into some American media, with the Beast Wars toy bio for Transmetals 2Cybershark alluding to the Beast Wars IISeacons as his contemporaries, while the Beast Machines bio for DinobotsMagmatron positioned the events of Beast Wars Neo as having occurred before Beast Machines.
By the thirty-sixth episode of Beast Wars II, it was revealed that Gaia's ancient inhabitants hadn't lived on the planet for several tens of thousands of years, which placed Beast Wars II that far into the future. Conversely, the thirteenth episode of the American Beast Wars cartoon stated that the cast of that show originally hailed from only three centuries into the future.[2] However, the specific "three centuries" line from the English version had actually been omitted from the Japanese dub of the episode, so there was no contradiction there. That said, a few discrepancies did eventually begin to crop up in the immediate sequel series to Beast Wars II, Beast Wars Neo. Namely, Beast Wars Neoopened with explicit confirmation that the Maximals and Predacons were at war with each other, and had been for some time, while in the first episode of the American cartoon, Optimus Primal stated that the Maximals and Predacons were instead at peace with each other, and had been for centuries (this line was kept faithfully in the Japanese dub). Likewise, the supercomputer Vector Sigma was shown to be a known public figure on Cybertron, residing in a tower as the highest authority on the planet. By contrast, the first episode of the American Beast Wars sequel series Beast Machines showed that Vector Sigma had long ago evolved into a new form called the Oracle, and presented it as a long lost legend hidden deep within the planet (though, to be fair, since Beast Wars Neo was made first, there was no way the Japanese production staff could have predicted the future developments of Beast Machines).
Besides the timeframe discrepancies, there were other factors that ended up contradicting this catalog story's depiction of Optimus Primal and Megatron. The two are presented here as Maximal and Predacon authority figures in positions of power that allow them to appoint other individuals with official titles of leadership; Optimus in particular is treated as Lio Convoy's senior officer. This is in stark contrast to how, in the English version of Beast Wars, Optimus was merely the captain of a science vessel, while Megatron was, indeed, originally perceived as the main leader of all Predacons in the cartoon's first season, but changes made during the show's second season revealed that he was instead a wannabe tyrant with delusions of grandeur, and was considered a criminal on Cybertron even by his own people (but, like the Vector Sigma contradiction, there was no way the Japanese could have predicted what the second season would change after the first season). Nonetheless, the first-season depiction of Megatron as a true leader likely influenced the depictions of Predacon leaders Galvatron and Magmatron in Beast Wars II and Neo, respectively. Both were the captains of their own spacefaring vessels, were known by all as fearsome emperors, and answered to no higher authorities within the Predacon ranks. This stood in contrast to how, later in Beast Wars, the Tripredacus Council was revealed to be the true head of government for the Predacons, with Megatron being labeled a dangerous renegade.
The early Japanese depiction of Optimus Primal and Megatron as high-ranking Maximal and Predacon leaders seems to have stemmed from an early perception of the two that originally pegged them as being the same characters as their Generation 1 namesakes, Optimus Prime and Megatron. When the original Beast Wars toyline started up in 1996, the earliest toy bios and pack-in comic presented the Maximals and Predacons on present-day Earth and as just Autobots and Decepticons having been upgraded by "Bio-Genetic Engineering". While this idea was dropped when the Beast Wars cartoon came along, it seems Takara hadn't quite gotten the memo over in Japan, as the earliest Japanese toy bios for Optimus and Megatron were based on their earliest American toy bios, with both giving them the lofty titles of "Supreme Commander" and "Emperor of Destruction" just like their namesakes. Optimus Primal was even given the same Japanese name as Optimus Prime, "Convoy", and his toy bio treated him as if he was the same Convoy of old. Special Japanese-only redeco toys even mentioned a "trailer truck" and a "Walther P-38" as having been Primal and Megatron's previous altmodes. Likewise, the Maximal and Predacon factions themselves were given the same Japanese names as those of the Autobot and Decepticon faction, being "Cybertron" and "Destron", respectively, in a seeming attempt to remove as much distinction between the two sets of factions as possible.
This perception even appeared to bleed over into other Japanese Beast Wars media: The third chapter of the Beast Wars II manga featured a short bio for Optimus Primal that described him as "A fierce fighter who has fought against the Destron army for thousands of years."[3] And when he later guest-starred in the Beast Wars II movie, he was depicted as a "legendary Supreme Commander" that everyone knew and was in awe of, complete with his own Matrix. That same movie also had Galvatron refer to a "Megatron" as "the greatest and most vicious legendary Transformer in history." But, it was never clarified if this grandiose description was in reference to Generation 1 or Beast Wars Megatron... likely because, at the time, the movie treated the two as if they were the same person, just as it seemed to do for Optimus (Although, when Lio Convoy and Optimus Primal first interacted with each other in the movie, Lio Convoy at one point asks "Please forgive me. But, who are you?" when looking directly at Optimus, casting some doubt over whether they actually knew each other beforehand like this catalog story claimed).
BUT, within the Japanese dub of the Beast Wars cartoon's first season itself, this perception was not the case. While the dub did insert references to Optimus being a Supreme Commander and Megatron being Emperor of Destruction, the dub was more or less accurate on the matter to the original English version. The two were never described as being the same characters as their Generation 1 namesakes, and even when the Decepticon Starscream made his famous guest appearance, the episode's Japanese dub made it even more explicit than the English version that Megatron had no familiarity with him at all.[4] Consequently, this show of restraint by the dub turned out to be fortuitous in the long run, as the later two seasons of the series made it abundantly clear that Optimus Primal and Megatron were completely separate individuals from Optimus Prime and the original Megatron.
One last contradiction in this catalog story is the fact that it refers to a "weapon" called the "Great King of Angolmois" (アンゴルモアの大王 Angorumoa no Daiō) that lies within ancient ruins of the planet. In both the cartoon and manga, it was instead a lava-like substance called "Angolmois Energy". Evidently, this was an early concept for the main plot device that was to be fought over by the forces of Lio Convoy and Galvatron, and even made it into the bio for Megastorm's toy; bios for later toys would instead reflect the cartoon and manga by referring to "Angolmois Energy".
Interestingly, the concept of a powerful weapon hidden deep within ancient ruins on Earth would later be recycled wholesale and fully utilized just two years later in the Car Robots cartoon, with Brave Maximus being said weapon.
In the mid-2000s, Takara began to make some serious efforts to organize the ever-growing Japanese Generation 1 cartoon timeline that included all of the cartoons from the Beast Era. Due to all of the contradictions laid out above, Takara made the decision to ignore this catalog story entirely, throwing out every claim and character-depiction it made in order to clean up all of the issues between the American and Japanese cartoons. Opting to lean into "several tens of thousands of years" statement given by Beast Wars II, it was decided to relocate the two American cartoons away from the two Japanese ones, by acknowledging the "three centuries" statement given by the English version of Beast Wars that the Japanese dub had originally omitted. When fans in the west first learned of this timeline, the placement of Beast Wars II and Neo being set so long after the Beast Machines cartoon came as quite a startling shock, having long since taken both this catalog story and the Beast Machines Magmatron toy bio as gospel, since all the continuity issues described above were virtually unknown to anyone outside of Japan due to Beast Wars II and Neo having not yet been fully translated into English at the time.
There was, however, one more discrepancy created by this attempt to fix all of the others: With the relocation of Beast Machines set before Beast Wars II and Neo, this now placed the technorganic reformatting Cybertron underwent at the end of Beast Machines as happening before its appearances in Beast Wars Neo as a metallic planet. This last hole would be filled in 2019 by a Transformers Legendspack-in comic, which explained how and why Cybertron was turned back into a metallic world several eons after the end of Beast Machines.
Thus, with the discarding of this catalog story from the Japanese Generation 1 cartoon continuity, its events have since been relegated to a little micro-continuity all unto itself. If anything, it still somewhat fits with the Beast Wars II and Beast Wars Neo manga, which stuck to the catalog story's placing all the characters in the same timeframe. Though, the subsequent Beast Wars Metals manga still treats Optimus Primal and Megatron as separate individuals from Optimus Prime and G1 Megatron, meaning they'd just be high-ranking Maximals and Predacons all on their own without any inherent ties to their namesakes.
The "Maximize" in the title of this story is actually "Henshin" (変身), a Japanese word for "transformation" that was used in the Japanese dub of the Beast Wars cartoon as the Japanese equivalent/replacement for both "Maximize" and "Terrorize" in the original English version. "Maximize", rather than "Transform", is used here to reflect that dubbing decision, and also because Beast Wars II would distinguish "Henshin" from "Transform" by specifically using the former for those with beast modes, while the latter would be used by those with mechanical vehicle modes.
Also included in this catalog is a brief recap of the final events of "Other Voices, Part 2", which had, at the time, recently aired in Japan on March 25, 1998. Said recap is given the title of ~Convoy's Great Explosion~ (〜コンボイ大爆発編〜 ~Konboi Dai Bakuhatsu-hen~). At the bottom of this recap is also an ad for the then-new Beast Wars IIanimated series and manga series.
The "seventh month of the Cosmic Year 1999" and "Great King of Angolmois" are both derived from The Prophecies of French seer Nostradamus,[5] whose prophecies were popular in Japan at the time. What these two bits actually mean, however, is a lot to unpack, but most interpretations basically boil down to either a prophecy of doom brought about by either a tyrannical warlord like Genghis Khan or by terrorism, or a prophecy of prosperity brought about by either a rich philanthropist or a king like Francis I of France, occurring at some point in July–September of the year 1999.[6] In reality, it is still not entirely certain what, if anything, this prophecy referred to.
Lio Convoy addresses Optimus Primal with the honorific of "senpai", which is used to refer to a person of senior experience, hierarchy, level, and/or age, who offers guidance, friendship, and general assistance to a newer, younger, and/or inexperienced person (known as the "kōhai") belonging to the same group, like a personal mentor. It is commonly used in the Japanese education system to refer to older students of higher grades by younger students of lower grades. In this case, it is used to indicate that Optimus Primal is Lio Convoy's personal mentor/superior (and is translated in the Quotes section above as "sir").
Galvatron is depicted here mostly in shadow because, at the time, the color scheme for his toy had not yet been finalized. Indeed, his toy pictured elsewhere in the catalog is represented by an unpainted gray hardcopy.
