Beast Wars Episode 3 - The Web

 

The show's opening two parter established that Cheetor was the young and impulsive member of the Maximal's group, essentially making him the surrogate for the show's primary target audience ofk children. Naturally, it makes sense that the first episode following the opening episode is a Cheetor focused one. While, like a lot of the first season, it's clear that the show's still trying to find it's footing, this is a pretty fun episode for the most part.

When testing a new portable communications device invented by Rhinox, Cheetor has a run in with Predecons Scorponok and Tarantulus, who have found a mega cannon that fell from one of the ships during the opening episode. Cheetor tries to ambush them, only to get offlined by one of Scorponok's missiles. When he gets back online, he's scolded by his fellow Maximals for trashing Rhinox's communicator, costing the Maximals an advantage. After further taunting by Rattrap, Cheetor impulsively runs off to take back the cannon from the Predacons only to be captured by Tarantulus. This leaves it up to Rattrap to rescue Cheetor before it's too late.

Plot wise, this isn't one of the stronger episodes. It's a pretty basic plot where Cheetor has to learn that rushing in headlong and treating combat like a game is reckless and has dire consequences. However, much like a lot of early Beast Wars, what makes this episode enjoyable is the characters and their interactions with each other.

First up - we finally get some characterisation for the Predacons (well, two of them anyway) outside of Megatron. Scorponok is established as being Megatron's second in command, and appears to be loyal to his commander (spoiler alert - this is about as much characterisation as Scorponok gets for the duration of his time on the show). However, the one that steals the show is Tarantulus. From this episode alone, we can tell that Tarantulus, much like Megatron, truly relishes being evil. Unlike Megatron, who's love for being evil comes from a place of fun, Tarantulus appears to take a more sadistic pleasure in doing evil deeds. 

In this episode, he captures Cheetor, and attaches him to a web that will drain him of his energy. Once Cheetor is drained of energy, Tarantulus plans to feed on his body. This is a pretty dark and messed up idea to put in any show, let alone one for children, since when you get down to it, it's essentially cannibalism. What makes it more disturbing is that Tarantulus seems to take such pleasure in the act, to the extent that he could drain Cheetor's energy faster, but chooses to do it slower so that Cheetor suffers.

Cheetor gets the most focus this time around, with the episode being mostly seen from his perspective. His arc in this episode resolves around him basically treating the war like a game, and learning how that could potentially have fatal consequences. He starts the episode excitedly rushing in to test out Rhinox's new device, and upon discovering Predecon activity, he decides to deal with the situation alone rather than waiting for backup to arrive. Then later in the episode, after Rattrap provokes him, he rushes off to take out the Predacon's cannon only to be caught by Tarantulus. If it wasn't for Rattrap, he would have been done for, putting into perspective for Cheetor what could potentially happen if he doesn't think things through.

Rattrap also gets some focus this time around. Very true to his character, he's very reluctant to go after Cheetor after he runs off, having to be talked into it by Rhinox. Then at the end of the episode, rather than telling Optimus the truth about what happened to Cheetor, he lies and says that the two were just hanging out together. Cheetor takes this to mean that he was looking out for him, but Rattraps motivations for lying were more selfish and more about wanting to avoid getting on Primal's bad side.

The rest of the Maximals don't get much to do asides from little moments here and there. The idea of Rhinox inventing a communicator establishes his tech savvy nature, and during the scene where the Maximals are coming up with a plan to deal with the new Predacon cannon, Dinobot's suggestion is to just rush in all guns blazing. I like this as it shows his previous Predacon alleigience shining through, and of course that is going to cause tension between his new comrades who feel that a more strategic approach is required.

There's a couple of cool moments in this episode. The first is a dream sequence that Cheetor has while he's offline. This dream is set on Cybertron, the Transformers home planet, and features a shoot out between him and the Predecons. This ends with Cheetor gettng surprised attacked by Tarantulus, foreshadowing what's going to happen later in the episode. The sequence also starts with a shot of a jet fighter flying past, which can be identified as the treaturous Decepticon Starscream from the original Transformers series. This is the earliest link between Beast Wars and the original Generation 1 Transformers, an element that becomes more prevelant as the show goes on.

We also get a cool shoot out between Rattrap and Tarantulus at the end of the episode. What makes this fight so fun is the cinematography used. It's filmed as if it's a live action sequence, and it makes for a fun and dynamic action sequence to end the episode with a bang. 

While this isn't the strongest episode of the series, it is still an enjoyable watch with some great moments between the characters, fun action sequences and a flirtation with some slightly darker ideas.

Next week: Cheetor and Terrorsaur end up swapping bases through a freak mishap in 'Equal Measures'

Beast Wars Episode 2 - Beast Wars (Part 2)

 

Last week, we discussed the opening episode of Beast Wars - a competent opening episode that did a good job of setting up the series as a whole while leading nicely into part 2 of the story. While the second part doesn't add as much in terms of setting up the series, it manages to tell it's story well while furthering the arcs of one of the show's most important characters and sprinkling in a breadcrumb or two to hint at where the show might be going later down the line.

This episode begins where the last episode left off, with Dinobot challenging Optimus Primal to a fight to the death on a narrow ledge over a chasm, with the leader assuming command of the Maximals. While reluctant to participate, Primal ends up having no choice but to try and fend off Dinobot's attacks. The fight is observed by the Predacons, who proceed to fire at the two, hoping to destroy both the leader of the opposition and their former comrade. After the battle between the two sides, a large cache of energon is uncovered. With the predacons hoping to obtain it, the Maximals seek the aid of Dinobot to prevent the Predacons from aquiring it.

On the surface, this episode's plot is pretty simple - a case of 'stopping the bad guys getting a hold of some energon that they need to further their goals'. For the most part, it feels largely disconnected from the events of the previous episode asides from the fact that the two episodes lead into one another. However, this can be excused as we get to see more of the Maximals interacting with each other and learn more about their respective personalities, as well as fleshing out Dinobot's character.

As we'll discuss more when we get to season 2 - Dinobot has the best arc out of all the characters throughout Beast Wars. This started off in the previous episode with Dinobot defecting from the Predacons to the Maximals. What's interesting is that this defection doesn't come from realising the error of his ways - he defects as he failed to take command of the Predacons from Megatron, and now wants to destroy them. 

Initially, his aim is to take command of the Maximals through killing Optimus Primal in one on one combat. During this fight, we get to see that Dinobot has a sense of honour, as he spares Optimus after he slips and nearly falls off the narrow ledge they stand on, feeling that killing Primal in such a way wouldn't be an honourable victory. When the fight gets ambushed by the Predacons, he ends up owing Primal after he saves his life. This pays off at the end of the episode as Dinobot steps in and saves Primal from one of Megatron's missiles. However, he says himself that this doesn't indicate that he's suddenly loyal to Primal - this just made the two even in his eyes.

I like this dynamic to the character since it makes him more interesting than if he simply just joining the Maximals due to the Predacons being evil. It also adds another dynamic within the Maximals as him being a former Predacon is sure to cause tensions within the ranks.

While the rest of the Maximals are fine with Dinobot joining them, Rattrap isn't exactly thrilled with their new comrade, and is incredibly untrusting of him. This of course makes sense - Dinobot is, after all, a Predacon, and the whole reason that he and his fellow Maximals are in this predicament is because the group of Predacons that Dinobot had initially allied with had stolen the Golden Disk from Cybertron. It's understandable that Rattrap would be uneasy about aligning with a Predacon no matter where they claimed their alligience lay.

The battle at the start of the episode is also great for showcasing the personalities of the Maximals. Optimus Primal initially attempts to negotiate with Dinobot rather than engaging with him in combat, only taking up arms against him as a last resort in self defence. One thing I like about this fight is that, as it goes on, the two opponents express their admiration and respect for each other.

Cheetor's impulsive nature is shown when the fight begins, and he prepares to spring into action to assist Primal only for him to be stopped by Rattrap. Then, when the Predacons start attacking, the other Maximals are prepared to fight back asides from Rattrap - still unwilling to undertake any risks that could potentially endanger his life. However, Rhinox is able to aggressively convince him to assist.

Sadly, the Predacons still aren't as fleshed out in this episode. There is a cool moment with Megatron near the end where, after a defeat at the hands of the Maximals, fires a missile at Primal, preferring to take his opponent out with him if he is to lose. However, the remaining Predacons are shown to simply be Megatron's lackeys. While most of these Predacons do get their time to shine as the show goes on, in this episode they don't leave as much of an impression.

This episode drops an interesting breadcrumb into the series that will get expanded upon later on. On their way to the Energon Cache, Rhinox spots Stonehenge. He points out that it's unnatural, but it wasn't made by the Maximals or Predacons. This heavily hints at other intelligent life being present on the planet, adding in a sense of mystery that will be expanded upon as the show goes on.

While the plot of this episode isn't the strongest, this episode has some great character moments and allows us to get to know Dinobot a little bit better as well as planting a couple of seeds for future stories to build off of. The episode's ending does a pretty strong job of showing that, while the Maximals have won this battle - this is just the beginning...

Next week: Cheetor gets tangled up with Tarantulus in 'The Web'

Beast Wars Episode 1 - Beast Wars (Part 1)

 

As the first original Transformers show produced since the orignal Generation 1 cartoon ended it's run in the late 80's, Beast Wars had the tumultuous task of introducing the series to a new generation of potential fans unaware of the brands legacy. Seeing as previous attempts to reinvigorate interest in the brand throughout the 90's had been met with failure, a lot was riding on the shoulders of Beast Wars to pull the brand out of the slump it was currently in. While it's by no means perfect, the opening episode does a pretty good job of setting up the show and introducing the audience to it's characters and concepts.

The episode opens in space with the Maximal and Predacon ships engaged in battle. This results in both ships taking damage, leading to both ships crashing on a nearby planet. Both vehicles are left unflightworthy, leaving the crews of both ships stranded upon the planet. Since the planet is rich in Energon, the energy source used by the Transformers, both sides are required to take on alternative animal modes to protect them from the exess Energon that would cause them to short circuit if they remained in robot mode too long. The leader of this group of Predacons, Megatron then tasks his troops to hunt for the Maximals and destroy them. 

As the show's opening episode, this is a really solid start to the show as a whole, doing a good job of establishing the status quo while not getting overly bogged down in exposition, making for an episode that is an overall engaging watch.

The episode's opening throws us right into the action, opening with a fast paced space battle between the two ships piloted by the Maximals and the Predecons. This starts the episode off on a good note as it immediately catches our attention and makes us want to know what's going on. This is similar to the opening of the original Star Wars film, which also opened with a chase between two spaceships.

This scene also helps to establish certain things to the audience with regards to the status quo. It's clear from the design of the spaceships who the good guys and who the bad guys are. The Predacon ship is darker in colour and has a somewhat more pointy and sinister/alien looking design, whereas the Maximal ship is white and more conventional looking. Dialogue in this scene also helps to establish some of the characters, with Rattrap complaining "This is ridiculous, we're an exploration ship, not a battle cruiser!", telling the audience that our heroes are out of their league, and not prepared for combat. However, Prime's response that they were the only ship able to lock onto Megatron's warp signature tells us that they had no choice but to pursue the fugitive Predacons.

The first scene with the Maximals following the crash does a great job of this as we see the four initial Maximals interact with each other. We're introduced to each Maximal in turn, with each introduction perfectly getting their characters and personalities across to the audience. We first meet Cheetor, who is incredibly enthusiastic and thrilled about his cheetah form. We then meet Rattrap, who's a bit more snarky about the situation, which leads to conflict with Cheetor which is then broken up by Rhinox, who's shown to be the voice of reason. Then we meet the Maximal's leader, Optimus Primal, who is established to be in command of this unit.

Later in the episode, we get to see another example of Cheetor's more impulsive and immature nature in comparison to the rest of the Maximals as he gets excited upon seeing two real cheetahs and decides to show off his speed by running after them. We're also shown that Rattrap is more cynical and not eager to put himself in the line of fire. He's often complaining about the situation he's ended up landing into since he wasn't prepared for combat. Then, when the Maximals and Predecons end up engaged in combat during the episodes end, he outright disobeys an order from Optimus since he doesn't want to get himself fried. 

Speaking of Optimus himself, we also get the sense that he prefers negotiation to full scale conflict, which is shown during the first meeting between the Maximals and the Predecons when he tries to talk to Megatron first, asking why he's starting the conflict up again considering that the Maximals and Predacons have been at peace. We're also shown that he's not averse to combat when forced into a situation, and that he's able to hold his own and make tactical decisions. 

This more dysfunctional dynamic between the Maximals established in this episode is welcomed as it makes the characters feel more real as opposed to cardboard cut outs. It's also understandable considering that their initial mission was one of exploration and science rather than combat and, since there's been peace between the Maximals and Predacons for years, it makes sense how none of them are particularly trained for combat of this manner. In their first battle with the Predecons, they end up forced into retreating and only manage to get away as the Predecons start to short circuit due to being in robot mode for too long - this is good for showing how these Maximals are not combat soldiers like the Transformers that were seen in Generation 1. The concept of a small group of protagonists forced into a combat situation that they're ill prepared for is one that gets utilised in 2007's 'Transformers Animated'.

While the Maximals are pretty fleshed out in this episode, the same cannot be said for their adversaries, the Predecons. We don't spend as much time with them as we do the Maximals, and the only one that we really get to know is Megatron. During the opening space battle, rather than outright obliterating the Maximal ship once the shields are lowered, Megatron decides it would be better to play with them a little more. This gives us a feel for his character and shows that he enjoys to play with his foes. We also learn what his plan is - to get a hold of a vast quantity of Energon in order to reignite a conflict known as 'The Great War'.

However, the other Predacons don't really do anything asides from act as Megatron's lackeys. The only other Preadcon asides from Megatron that we really get to spend time with is Dinobot, but even then, he defects very early on in the episode due to Megatron's percieved incompetence, and doesn't show up again until the very end of the episode where he challenges Optimus to a fight to the death with the victor assuming command of the Maximals. However, the remaining Predecons do get their chances to shine (for the most part) in future episodes. 

One thing that I like about the Maximals and Predacons is that they are easily distinguished by the types of animals that each side turns into. This is determined by the creatures local to where each side's respective spaceship crashed. The Maximals all turn into animals such as gorillas, cheetahs, rats, and rhinos, and then the Predacons take on reptillian and insect forms, with some taking their forms from dinosaur fossils that they had scanned. This gives both sides a distinct look which boils down to their character design.

Unlike the original Transformers series which had a surplus of characters on each team, the Beast Wars cast is significantly smaller with both sides only having a handful of characters. This was primarily done due to the complexities of the CG animation and needing to build multiple characters (with the amount of characters doubled due to each one needing an alternate animal mode). This change ended up being a positive for the series as a whole, since it meant that the writers could focus more on the characterisation of the core cast of characters.

The story manages to convey bits of information to the audience that will become important over the course of the show very well. After the exciting space battle at the start of the episode, we then get drip fed tid bits of information that flesh out the world of the show and convey that information to the audience very well. We learn that the Maximals and Predecons have largely been at peace, and that Megatron's group of Predacons wish to restart a conflict known as the 'Great War'. We also learn that Megatron stole something from Cybertron called the 'Golden Disk'. We're not told too much about it, but it's importance is made clear to the audience with Optimus referring to it as 'Cybertron's most sacred artefact'. 

The origin of the planet they're on is also up in the air, with it being established by Dinobot that they are supposedly not on Earth (Megatron's intended destination) - this being the main point of contention with him that lead to him defecting from Megatron's ranks. Likewise, Rhinox establishes that they travelled through both space and time, so they could not only be anywhere in the galaxy, but at any point in time. This is something that will get played out throughout the course of the season.

At the start of the episode, when the ship begins to crash, Optimus orders his crew to eject Statis Pods from the craft which then stay in orbit around the planet. This is something that comes into play a lot in later stories, especially when the show needs to introduce new characters to the cast. This was something that was initially included to appease Hasbro who weren't happy about the show using only a handful of characters per side as opposed to using all 20 characters from the first wave of toys. The idea of the statis pods was that, when Mainframe had time in the schedule, a stasis pod would come down into the show and a new character would be introduced. Hasbro ended up liking this idea since it was a great way of them introducing their new toys they wanted to promote into the show.

The excess of Energon plot point is good for giving the characters a reason to transform into their animal modes. Since they're on a planet with seemingly no intelligent life, there's no reason for the characters to disguise themselves. The idea that the animal alt modes are a neccessity to shield the characters from the excess Energon that would cause their robot modes to short circuit if exposed for prolonged periods of time is a clever way around this.

However, this episode isn't quite perfect. For one, there's some pretty ropey dialogue in places (normally coming from Cheetor). Plus it's heavily implied that the characters name themselves after the animal forms they take is a little confusing since they only took on these forms after they crashed - leading to the question of 'what did they call themselves beforehand?'

The animation is also a little hit and miss in places. While the characters look fine in their robot modes, some of the animal modes haven't held up super well. However, this is due to the fact that they're supposed to look like actual animals, and the CGI at the time wasn't quite able to realise that. I'm not someone who is averse to primitive looking CGI as I find it to be quite charming, but I do understand how it can be a barrier to some people who find it too janky and off puttting. 

Likewise, the backgrounds this season are mostly pretty barren. This is due to most the budget being spent on making the characters. In spite of this, the CGI is pretty impressive for it's time, and gets better as the show goes on. It's certainly a lot better than the Donkey Kong Country cartoon from around the sime time which looks considerablly worse.

In spite of my handful of gripes, I think this is an entertaining start to the series even if it doesn't quite hit the highs that the show will hit later on. It manages to get a lot of things across to the audience without letting up on the action and intrigue, allowing the audience to get hooked and see where the show will head from here, ending on a cliffhanger with Dinobot challenging Prime to a fight to the death over command of the Maximals. Will the episode's second part be able to live up to the promise set up by this one?

Next week: The Maximals gain an unlikely ally in 'Beast Wars (Part 2)'

Introduction

This year marks the 25th anniversary of Beast Wars, the 90's iteration of the Transformers franchise which reinviograted the brand, preventing it from fading away into oblivion after a massive decline following the franchise's dominance throughout the 80's. To tie in with this anniversary, the characters of Beast Wars are set to appear in the final chapter of Netflix's War for Cybertron series. 

Titled 'Kingdom', this chapter will feature the Autobots and Decepticons joining the Maximals and Predecons of Beast Wars. Hasbro has also released new toys of the Beast Wars characters, creating figures that look pretty close to the characters seen in the Beast Wars show back in 1996:

As well as this, IDW Publishing, notable for their various Transformers comics that they have been publishing since 2005, are releasing a new Beast Wars comic book series, featuring a reimagining of the conflict between the Maximals and Predecons.

So, what purpose does this blog serve? Well, I'm going to be using this blog primarily to review every episode of both Beast Wars and it's sequel series Beast Machines, with the aim to have a new post up every week. I may then go on to discuss other Transformers media, but we have a long way to go before we get to that point.

I thought I'd start with a brief introduction to the series, talking about how the series came about and why the decision was made to make such a radical change to the series:

Going into the 90's, Transformers was no longer the giant that it was in the toy aisles, eventually leading to the line getting completely cancelled. Two years later, Hasbro tried to bring the brand back with the short lived Transformers: Generation 2 toy line. This was met with a "new" (i.e. episodes of the original 'Generation 1' Transformers cartoon combined with CGI opening credits and transitions) cartoon series and a short lived comic book series published by Marvel and written by longtime Transformers comic writer Simon Furman. 

When this failed to catch on, Hasbro were met with two options - either throw in the towel and end the franchise for good, or revamp the concept drastically in order to cater for a new audience who hadn't grown up with the likes of Optimus Prime, Megatron, Bumblebee, and Starscream. Ultimately, the latter was chosen, and Hasbro tasked their newly aquired divison Kenner, who were famous for bringing Star Wars toys to the masses throughout the 70's and 80's, with this reinvention.

Kenner's idea was simple - take the concept of two warring factions of robots who transform into vehicles, but instead of vehicles, the robots transform into animals. While Transformers had taken on animal forms before in the form of the Dinobots and the Insecticons, they were still primarily robotic animals rather than the organic looking forms that Beast Wars adopted.

With the toy line underway, Hasbro's next step was to create a TV series in order to sell their toys. This task was appointed to the Canadian studio Mainframe Entertainment, who had recently made a name for themselves by creating the world's first full length CGI animated TV series, ReBoot.

Hasbro approached Mainframe with a box containing the first wave of Beast Wars figures, and asked them to make a show about the toys. Mainframe accepted, taking on the show primarily as a creative excersise. To write the show, Hasbro got writers Larry DiTillio and Bob Foreward to act as the show's story editors. While the gig was primarily work for hire, Mainframe collaborated with Hasbro as well as DiTillio and Foreward in order to create the show.

While the backstory for the Beast Wars toyline was under the impression that this was merely a continuation of the original conflict between the Autobots and Decepticons (as depicted within the comic book that came packaged with the 'Optimus Primal VS Megatron two pack) with the leaders of the Maximals and Predacons Optimus Primal and Megatron being the same characters from the original Transformers series (albiet now taking the forms of a bat and an alligator), the cartoon took a different approach with the Maximals and Predacons being ancestors of the Autobots and Decepticons and Optimus Primal and Megatron being completely new characters separate from their Generation 1 counterparts.

Initially, existing Transformers fans who had grown up with the original cartoon. comic book and toyline were not receptive towards Beast Wars, primarily because of the change from vehicle alt modes to animal alt modes. A lot of this controversy mainly seemed to centre around Optimus Primal due to him being a gorilla rather than a truck, leading to what could be considered an early meme in the form of the phrase 'TRUKK NOT MUNKY!'. However, both DiTillio and Foreward, who had no knowledge of Transformers prior to taking on the job, paid attention to all the Transformers message boards and, upon coming across various pieces of Transformers lore, began adding existing lore into Beast Wars, leading to the show's naysayers dwindling and the show has gone on to become one of the more beloved entries in the Transformers franchise.

Interestingly, however, in Canada, the show had a different name. Due to some kind of stipulation that prevented shows made for children having the word 'war' in the title, the show was instead given the rather bizarre and nonsensical name 'Beasties'. 

This seems like a good place to round things off for this week. Join me next week when I discuss the first episode: Beast Wars Part 1.