"Transformers" Topic

While I'm waiting for some software to update, I might as well review Transformers – yes, I finally saw the movie.

I was never into the toys or the cartoon show, as I was born too early , so I had little idea what Transformers was all about. (Though I do have some of the click models around here somewhere…)

I thought the movie was pretty decent. It's obviously aimed at a teenage market, starts off slow and gets to much action eventually. It feels like a long movie, but not too long.

I thought Shia LaBeouf was solid as the kid who is descended from an arctic explorer (he was only 17 when cast). Megan Fox plays his love interest – she just didn't look like a high school student to me, never had any chemistry with Shia, didn't impress me. Lots of good performances by lots of minor players, too. Jon Voight was especially good as Secretary of Defense.

There are some annoying plot problems/super-coincidences, but it's a movie based on toys, so why get too picky? There are some other touches that are kind of cool (Hoover Dam???).

The movie could have done a better job of helping viewers identify the different bots; they all get confusing after a while. On the other hand, the movie did a good job of making the action seem chaotic, yet showing the viewer what they needed to see.

A lot of the combat was glossed over, movie style – I doubt they had a wargaming background. LOL The idea that the same infantry squad fought from the Middle East, then back in the U.S., and somehow figured out to be somewhat effective… was really silly, but fun.

The one thing I didn't get: Why PG-13? Shouldn't Transformers be for the kids? And did we really need the funny sex-talk scene? Seems like the wrong audience for the movie. Was the idea to make Transformers cool to teenagers???

For the kind of movie it is, I'm giving it an 8 out of 10. (Guess I'll have to watch the sequels now…) LOL

Can you wargame anything like the movie? I've never seen giant robots doing leaps and rolls through an urban landscape, but maybe someone has pulled this off? They certainly shouldn't fight like lumbering Battlemechs.

Aren't there some licensed rules/boardgame, and is it any good? (Excuse my ignorance, I'm more of a BattleTech guy…)

Jovian chronicles is the only thing that comes to mind as far as games go. Not much of a market and a hard thing to write rules for to be honest.

Heavy Gear, especially the RPG rules; see DP 9s website:

link

Giant Monster Rampage and Samurai Robots Battle Royale both give a more tokusatsu, anime, martial arts film type game. I use GMR for one on one fights and Samurai Robots for three-a-side battles with 5 inch Mecha and 15mm urban terrain, and no lumbering.

Heavy Gear
Jovian Chronicles

Robotech RPG Tactics has the transforming down.

…But all of the tragic 80s power metal balladry …

Not that that was a good thing.

I was too busy figuring out how to get stuff to go "*foom*" (High school chemistry class) when that cartoon movie came out (wrong target market, too old).

The bay movies are what they are – a glossy refinement of the 80s cartoon – which was an animated commercial to sell toys to kids – except now it's to sell toys to those adults who were kids at that time …

I've watched most of the series – passable junk. I never really got transformers as a kid – too old, too young? Some of the mech combat was pretty good IMO – though clearly the humans should have ended up a thin smear of jam. A nice midpoint to the 'lumbering mech' and those anime mechs that behave like members of the Bolshoi with missile racks!