Triple Combination: Transformers Go! (franchise)
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Triple Combination: Transformers Go! (参乗合体 トランスフォーマーGo! Sanjō Gattai Toransufōmā Gō!) is a TakaraTomy franchise launched in 2013.
It is a sequel to Transformers: Prime, with the story set after the events of the second season of the Prime cartoon, willfully ignoring the events of the third season (which, to date, has not been released in Japan), stemming instead from a truncated cliffhanger created specifically for the final episode of the Japanese dub of Prime, which left everyone's fate ambiguous instead of ending on the Decepticons' victory from the English version. Go! primarily follows two new Japanese-exclusive teams of Autobot combiners called Swordbots, three bots per team, who can each combine into three different forms of super-robot. These six warriors are tasked with hunting down the remaining Predacons on Earth after Optimus Prime and company have headed off into deep space.
Overview
The backstory for the series was set up in a prologue described in the Triple Combination: Transformers Go! Visual Story Book, as well as in a video advert that introduced the first wave of Go! toys.[1] Prior to the series' beginning, the Autobots and Decepticons had shifted their battles away from Earth into outer space. The Decepticon Shockwave had created an army of a new faction called Predacons, who then broke away from the Decepticons and scattered across the universe by the hundreds. In response to this, the Autobots and Decepticons both used Preda-Armor to upgrade their bodies into a new form called Hunter Mode. Then, a group of Predacons led by the Demon Emperor Dragotron arrived on both Earth and specific points in the universe with the intent of invading them, but the Autobots and Decepticons followed them back to Earth and, together, succeeded in sealing away Dragotron deep underground using the power of a Legendisc. Afterwards, Optimus Prime and his Autobots departed Earth once more to hunt down the remaining Predacons throughout the universe. Should any Predacons on Earth return, however, Optimus had entrusted two teams of Autobot combiners called Swordbots with the task of dealing with them. That day has now come, as the Predacons have reawakened and once again threaten the Earth, aiming to revive their master Dragotron.
Franchise elements
Notes
- This series is very, very, very Japanese, moreso than any prior Transformers series. The story takes place in Japan. Virtually all of the characters introduced in it have Japanese names. The six Swordbots are split between being designed as samurai and ninja (as are their two human kid sidekicks), and the major Predacons they face have been given new head designs patterned after Japanese oni demons. The protagonists travel through time, meeting heroes from Japanese history and folklore.
- Go! was written well before the Prime show had finished production, so its "Autobots go out into space to hunt the Predacons imprisoned on Earth" backstory diverges significantly from the events of Beast Hunters, to the point that, combined with the Japanese broadcast of Prime ending on its unique cliffhanger, ultimately creates another Headmasters contra Rebirth deal.
Translation notes
TFWIKI's English translation for Sanjō Gattai Toransufōmā Gō! is purposefully simple and utilitarian, as the title is full of that kind of mostly-untranslatable wordplay Japan loves, largely centered around the series's "feudal Japan" theme.
- Sanjō, using different kanji (参上), is also a phrase meaning roughly "I am here!", a dramatic pronouncement often used in samurai-period pieces.
- The 参 "san" used is a more formal kanji for "three", typically used in legal documents, than the commonplace "三". Think of it as writing with an accent.
- "Sanjō" can also mean "to the third power" 三乗, but within the specific context of the series's "gattai" ("combination"), that's a bit... obtuse, as the three-bot teams can only combine three ways. But it does invoke power, doesn't it?
- While "GO!" is presented in English lettering because it's a powerful, positive-sounding English word that sounds cool and actiony, "gō" has quite a few meanings in Japanese depending on the kanji used. "合" can mean "merge/unite/combine", while "剛" can mean "strong/hard/manly".
- "Go" meaning "five" is right out.
