The Transformers (TV series) facts for kids

Quick facts for kids The Transformers
Genre	Science fiction Action Adventure
Created by	Hasbro Takara
Developed by	Dick Robbins (seasons 1-2) Bryce Malek (seasons 1-2) Flint Dille (season 3) Marv Wolfman (season 3) Steve Gerber (season 3)
Directed by	Nelson Shin
Voices of	Frank Welker Peter Cullen Christopher Collins Corey Burton Dan Gilvezan
Narrated by	Victor Caroli
Composer(s)	Johnny Douglas Robert J. Walsh
Country of origin	United States
No. of seasons	4
No. of episodes	98 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producer(s)	Joe Bacal Margaret Loesch Tom Griffin
Producer(s)	Gwen Wetzler Nelson Shin John Walker George Singer Gerald Moeller Kenichi Morohashi Atsushi Shimizu Tim Spiedel
Animator(s)	Toei Animation (seasons 1–3) AKOM (seasons 3–4)
Running time	23–24 minutes
Production company(s)	Sunbow Productions Marvel Productions
Distributor	Claster Television (United States) Sunbow Productions International (Internationally)
Release
Original network	First-run syndication
Audio format	Stereo
Original release	September 17, 1984 (1984-09-17) – November 11, 1987 (1987-11-11)
Chronology
Followed by	The Headmasters (Japan) Transformers: Generation 2 (U.S.) Beast Wars: Transformers (Canada)
Manga
Written by	Masumi Kaneda
Illustrated by	Ban Magami
Published by	Kodansha
Demographic	Children
Magazine	TV Magazine
Original run	May 1985 – July 1987

The Transformers is an American animated TV show. It first aired from September 17, 1984, to November 11, 1987. This show was the very first in the popular Transformers series.

It was based on the Transformers toy line from Hasbro. The story is about a big war between giant robots. These robots can change into vehicles and other objects.

Marvel Productions and Sunbow Productions worked together to make the show. The animation was done by Toei Animation in Japan and later by AKOM in South Korea. A movie, The Transformers: The Movie, was released in 1986. It took place between the second and third seasons of the show.

Fans often call this series "Generation 1." This name came about when the franchise was updated to Transformers: Generation 2 in 1992. The "Generation 1" name later became official.

How the Transformers Show Was Made

The idea for the Transformers toys and TV show came from a Japanese toy line called Microman. This toy line was made by Takara. In 1980, a spin-off called Diaclone came out. It had small human-like figures that could sit inside toy vehicles. These vehicles could then change into robot bodies.

Later, in 1983, another Microman line called MicroChange was released. These toys looked like everyday items, such as cassette tapes or toy cars, but they could transform into robots.

Bringing Transformers to America

In 1983, a product developer from Hasbro toy company, Henry Orenstein, saw the Diaclone and MicroChange toys in Japan. He thought they were a great idea. Hasbro decided to combine toys from both lines into one new toy line for their markets. They even changed some of the toy colors to match the new cartoon.

By 1984, rules about showing ads in kids' TV shows had changed. This made it easier to create TV shows based on toys. Hasbro had already done this successfully with G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero. They worked with Marvel Comics to make toys, comic books, and a cartoon mini-series.

Creating the Story and Characters

Hasbro decided to use the same plan for their new robot series. They called it "Transformers." Jim Shooter, who was in charge at Marvel Comics, came up with the main idea. He created the two groups of alien robots: the good Autobots and the evil Decepticons.

Another editor, Bob Budiansky, was asked to create names and backstories for the characters. His ideas were a big hit with Hasbro. Soon, a comic book series and a TV pilot were made. Both the comic and the cartoon continued for many years. They used Budiansky's ideas as a starting point.

Japanese designer Shōhei Kohara drew the first character models for the Transformers. He made the toy designs look more like human-like robots for the comic and cartoon. Later, Floro Dery simplified these designs. He became the main designer for the show.

What the Story is About

The show is all about the Transformers. They are split into two groups that are always fighting. The good guys are the Autobots. The bad guys are the Decepticons. Their long war brings them to Earth, where their conflict continues.

Special Parts of the Show

Each of the first three seasons had its own unique opening. These openings featured new animation and a special version of the theme song. The fourth season used clips from the third season's opening and toy commercials.

The show had a special way of changing scenes. The Autobot and Decepticon symbols would "flip" from one to the other. This was a famous part of the series. Short animated clips with a voice-over from narrator Victor Caroli were used for commercial breaks.

Extra Features and Messages

Some short public service announcements (PSAs) were made for the second season. These PSAs used scripts from the G.I. Joe show. They even used the famous line "...and knowing is half the battle!" These PSAs were not shown on TV. However, they later appeared as bonus features on DVDs.

For the third season, episodes ended with "The Secret Files of Teletraan II." These were short features that used clips from the show. New narration by Victor Caroli explained the history of the Autobots, Decepticons, and other characters.

Transformers in Japan

In Japan, the first two seasons of the show were called Fight! Super Robot Life-Form Transformers (戦え！超ロボット生命体トランスフォーマー, Tatakae! Chō Robotto Seimeitai Toransufōmā). The third season was renamed Transformers 2010 (トランスフォーマー2010, Toransufōmā Tsūōwanō). All seasons were shown on Nippon TV.

After the third season, Japan decided to create their own new shows to continue the story. These included Transformers: The Headmasters (1987), Transformers: Super-God Masterforce (1988), and Transformers: Victory (1989). A single-episode video called Transformers: Zone came out in 1990. Manga comics were also released alongside each series.

Home Video Releases

Over the years, The Transformers TV show has been released on various home video formats.

Releases in North America (Region 1)

In the 1980s, some episodes were released on VHS and Betamax tapes. Later, between 2002 and 2004, Rhino Entertainment Company released Seasons 1-4 on DVD in the U.S.. Some of these early DVD sets had small animation errors because of the old master tapes.

In 2009, Shout! Factory took over the license to release Transformers on DVD. They released the complete first season, then the second season in two parts, and finally seasons three and four together. These releases fixed most of the animation errors from the earlier DVDs.

On October 20, 2009, Shout! Factory released a big box set. It was called Transformers: The Complete Series - The Matrix of Leadership Collector's Set. This set included all 98 remastered episodes and new bonus features.

Releases in Europe (Region 2)

In the U.K., Maverick released Season 1 on DVD in 2001. Metrodome Distribution later released Seasons 1-4 between 2003 and 2004. Their releases used the remastered versions, which included some of the errors from the Rhino DVDs.

Releases in Australia and New Zealand (Region 4)

Madman Entertainment released the four seasons in six box sets in Australia and New Zealand. They later released the remastered Shout! Factory version. In 2007, Madman Entertainment released a big 17-disc collection.

Other Ways to Watch

A special collector's tin box set was released in Asia. It included the whole series, The Transformers: The Movie, postcards, and a book. In July 2009, Transformers G1 Season 1 became available for digital download on the PlayStation Network.

On October 10, 2010, The Hub (now Discovery Family) started showing the original Transformers G1 episodes on TV again.

Images for kids

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  A robot for kids.

See also

In Spanish: The Transformers (serie de televisión) para niños