Transformers brand: Difference between revisions
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The '''''Transformers'' brand''' is the umbrella term for all products or media involving the [[Transformer|transforming alien robots]] from the planet [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]] developed in 1984 by [[Hasbro]] and [[Marvel Comics|Marvel Entertainment]] (then Marvel Entertainment Group) under license from [[TakaraTomy|Takara]], including any lineal descendants thereof. | The '''''Transformers'' brand''' is the umbrella term for all products or media involving the [[Transformer|transforming alien robots]] from the planet [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]] developed in 1984 by [[Hasbro]] and [[Marvel Comics|Marvel Entertainment]] (then Marvel Entertainment Group) under license from [[TakaraTomy|Takara]], including any lineal descendants thereof. | ||
''Transformers'' has been in almost continuous circulation since its launch | ''Transformers'' has been in almost continuous circulation since its launch 28 years ago, never absent from American toy shelves for more than 18 months. Unlike many 80s brands relaunched in the 2000s to capitalize on the 20-year nostalgia cycle, the ''Transformers'' brand is truly evergreen. As a result it has grossed Hasbro more than $1 billion [[wikipedia:United_States_dollar|USD]] since its launch.<ref>Hasbro executive [[Brian Goldner]] in the special features of the [[Transformers (2007)|''Transformers'']] DVD.</ref> | ||
Related articles: | Related articles: | ||
Revision as of 14:21, 23 February 2012
The Transformers brand is the umbrella term for all products or media involving the transforming alien robots from the planet Cybertron developed in 1984 by Hasbro and Marvel Entertainment (then Marvel Entertainment Group) under license from Takara, including any lineal descendants thereof.
Transformers has been in almost continuous circulation since its launch 28 years ago, never absent from American toy shelves for more than 18 months. Unlike many 80s brands relaunched in the 2000s to capitalize on the 20-year nostalgia cycle, the Transformers brand is truly evergreen. As a result it has grossed Hasbro more than $1 billion USD since its launch.[1]
Related articles:
Spelling and capitalization
In the various Transformers logos used over the decades, the word is often split across two lines, with no hyphen, thus suggesting (by the rules of normal punctuation) that it's two words: "Trans Formers". This is reinforced by an advert for the UK offshoot of the S.T.A.R.S. fanclub, which explicitly parses it as "TRANS FORMERS". Other logos are explicitly bicapitalized: "TransFormers". Further, when Hasbro is being strict about the word's trademark status, they write it in allcaps: "TRANSFORMERS".
Despite all that, it's generally agreed that the correct rendering is "Transformers", and that's the way it appears in this wiki.
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Recognition in the wider world
Transformers is a genuine cultural phenomenon. When the online fandom came together in the 1990s, it was fun and feasible to try and list all the appearances and references made to Transformers in popular culture, and some fans did. However, after the 80s nostalgia boom of the early 21st century brought Transformers back to the public eye and the incredibly successful live-action film series made the series a household name that was impossible to miss, Transformers are now absolutey fricking everywhere, and such a list is no longer a remotely feasible thing for TFWiki.net to try to catalog. Odds are, it would require a wiki all on its own!
Some diverse prominent examples of public figures name-dropping Transformers include UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown[2] and US Army Generals[3] commenting on one or another aspect of the brand. The brand has also made numerous appearances in other media, ranging from straight clips of the cartoon (such as in the film Léon) to original comedic sketches and parodies (the two most well-known authors of which are easily Family Guy and Robot Chicken.)
The Transformers brand has become so well known that the Oxford English Dictionary has added the following sense to its entry for TRANSFORMER n.:
Chiefly in pl. With capital initial. A proprietary name for a type of children's toy, first manufactured in Japan, consisting of a model robot which can be transformed into another toy (as a motor vehicle, gun, etc.) by manipulating its component pieces.
The specific "proprietary" note, coupled with an explicit reference to Hasbro in the name etymology, probably means this poses no threat for Hasbro's exclusive claim of the trademark (Oxford gives the same treatment to Mattel's Barbie). Since the OED's policy is to never discard material, this means that Transformers are now a permanent part of the historical record of the English language. Take that, Thundercats!
SETI have also said alien hunters should look for artificial intelligence rather than organic life. Score![4]
Footnotes
- ↑ Hasbro executive Brian Goldner in the special features of the Transformers DVD.
- ↑ The Telegraph (Jan-09-09)
- ↑ USA Today (May-20-05)
- ↑ BBC News article on the search for artificial alien life, Aug-23-2010
