Transformers: Earthspark (2022– ) User Reviews

Did all the employees come here to rate it 10?

[brodieford-80232 · 4/10 · 9 December 2022]

The art work on Optimus with the face was a horrible decision. I'm happy with everyone else so far.

It's a very childish version of Transformers so the "stories" are not very good.

The whole idea of "Ghost" and Megatron working with Optimus is laughable. How can a human have a robot arm? Way too much weight.

The two new bots and the family are fine. It's nice seeing Arcee and some of the other bots.

But again Optimus' face and the over all story sucks so bad. This is a 4-6 at most. I hate when a bunch of fake people/bots up rate crap.

So I need more words to be an official rating. Wow.. anyway I'm watching all the episodes but it hurts.

Started strong, went sour quick.

[drewmik · 5/10 · 4 March 2023]

I watched the first season back when it first released, and I was honestly fairly eager for Season 2. The characters were all decent enough, with enough familiar faces among them to hook me in.

However, upon finished said second season...woof. Things are kinda rough.

First and foremost; the new characters are a mixed back. Named cameos like Starscream, Shockwave, Tarantulas and Breakdown are highlights, stealing the show with every moment they're on screen. Grimlock and Brawl also makes appearances, but both are...short lived.

Worst yet are the new additions to the Malto family. The best by far is Nightshade. They get a good arc, are well rounded, and generally the least annoying.

Jawbreaker rides the line. His arc was...frustrating, and his overall character is the weakest of the bunch.

And then comes Hashtag...the IPad kid from another world, good grief. She's by far the worst addition to the crew, coming off as annoying, impulsive to a horrid degree even compared to the other Terrans, and just a chore to watch.

As for the overall plot and the quality of the episodes, it's still pretty mixed. The worst of the bunch is just plain boring, while everything else is passable if a bit contrived. Also, there were some very odd pacing/animation choices throughout the season, just a note.

Overall, the show is still fine, just...a little too cheesy, even by Transformers standards.

It was ok until it wasn't

[noracook · 2/10 · 20 November 2022]

I was honestly really excited when I heard about this new series coming out and couldn't wait to watch it. I was, unfortunately, very disappointed. It seemed like whoever wrote this show had come up with a somewhat ok story line and then just stared adding in random things wherever. We never got an explanation as to why Megatron switched sides, or how Autobots and Decepticons got to earth in the first place. In order for the space bridge explanation to work, they would have had to have been on earth to build to portal then their connection would have been cut off when it was destroyed.

The gloves, and twitch and thrashes origin was probably my biggest grip. The main characters just so happen to find a cave with a glowing rock, some bots come out of a pool, the kids already seem to know their name, then they leave for home and call it a day? And this cave is never brought back up again until the finale!

During a lot of fight scenes, the human character just felt really out of place. They just felt really in the way and I really started to not like them. The gloves didn't even give the kids weapons or anything to protect themselves from the Decepticons, it just connected them emotionally to some bots and that was it.

Another thing I hate is how we get introduced to characters for one episode and then never see them again. Some are only seen in flashbacks, like Ironhide. I was really hoping to see him in this series but I guess my hopes were too high. Like, what happened to them? Are they dead? Are they just somewhere else? What happened to them? It also seems like anytime there is conflict only Megatron, Optimus, and Bumblebee are there to handle it. What about Elita-1, or Arcee, or Wheeljack? They just vanished.

Rumble. Just, god what did they do to Rumble? I get taking a new spin on characters can be good if done right, but why did they have to give him bangs? It felt like they were trying to lean way too far into the Gen Z demographic with his design. Just why?

I was excited for Skywarp, but why was she pair with Novastorm? Wouldn't Thundercracker be a more obvious choice?

I could go on and on, but really this show was a massive disappointment and has really killed my hope for another good Transformers show to come out. 2/10 would not recommend.

Good show for a younger audience

[shivamarzooghi · 10/10 · 27 May 2023]

While TFP will always be my number one transformers show, I also recommend giving this a try. The only reason I'm giving this a 10/10 instead of an 8/10 is to balance the score with the conservative losers leaving 1 star reviews because they get very emotional over robots without genders. Robots.

You know I'd like a transformers show to last more than three seasons, let alone one, so I'm showing support to see where Earthspark will go next.

It's also nice that it seems like we're getting a mini renaissance for the franchise, with a new movie coming out and a new show, so I'd like it to stay that way.

Entertaining kids show

[sheehanjac · 7/10 · 14 May 2023]

This show is exactly what you'd expect it to be, it's a kid show with an innocent feel to it with childish humor.

In my opinion it is a well-done series, the voice acting is good, the plot is intriguing, even some of the kids humor I got a kick out of it, the fight scenes are good too.

I would definitely recommend this to parents who like Transformers and think their kids would enjoy it too without having to sit through a 2.5 hour Michael Bay Transformer movie that involve a lot of crude humor.

The show is a little bit too human-focused for my taste and some of the big name Transformers people might want to see go several episodes at a time without making an appearance but that is really my only complaint.

A sign of the times...

[Energon1 · 1/10 · 8 September 2023]

Earthspark is generic children's TV that has already been done over and over. It's boring, pretentious and unoriginal.

It didn't need to be Transformers - it has a Transformers theme, it has some characters based on Transformers characters, that's about it. It's basically about kids with superpowers and their rather juvenile robotic companions which some magical relics thrown in.

What really derails this series is all of the virtue signalling and moralising and forcible attempts to reverse gender stereotypes, worrying over identity and roles, race, etc. The series is infused with it, it's obvious, it insults the intelligence of most people and it ruins what should be solid children's entertainment.

The Generation One cartoon of the 1980s set out to entertain kids - and promote the toys - that's no longer sufficient for those intent on the re-education of the next generation. While Generation One had gender stereotypes galore, which was the norm back then, my 9 year old can watch it and filter out some of the rather dated aspects and still find it far more enjoyable compared to this latest sterile offering.

As ever, so many previously "male" Transformers have yet again been re-gendered as female. This farce began in Cyberverse and it has advanced further here, with Skywarp, Thundercracker (I think?) and Frenzy as the latest victims that spring to mind.

It doesn't seem that it was enough to introduce new female Transformers such as Windblade - existing male ones have to be changed to female in order to tick boxes - and apparently without any explanation needed.

You have to suspend disbelief to imagine Megatron and Optimus Prime working together under the direction of a human agency. It was this aspect, among others, that ruined the Michael Bay films. There you had depthless Autobot or Decepticon characters, who barely uttered a line in the whole movie, who remained in the background while we had to suffer 2/3 of the movie being about the human characters' personal/family/love life struggles. With the human military directing the Autobots on their missions into some war zone.

In Earthspark you have this same skewed focus on the Malto family and the entirely implausible "Terrans", who are all just annoying silly cartoon characters who serve no real purpose.

The series follows the tired plot device of "generic young superhero academy", which has been done over and over again.

The Decepticons are a fragmented rogue element who appear to have no discernible objectives that I can see. They provide a lesser villain element for the aforementioned plot device - in that they don't need to have any real goals except to cause some minor trouble, through their own chaotic natures. The real villains, with the clear objectives, are the human ones.

The new Transformers called the "Terrans" have to choose their alt mode, learn to transform... and we are treated to these long drawn out self discovery and identity crisis dramas.

There is the transformer who is unable to decide on his alt mode, who is then reassured that it's ok to be unsure it...

I'm glad my kids got bored and stopped watching it a few episodes in.

Good show, could be better, but still fun!

[plkackert · 7/10 · 16 November 2022]

This show is definitely a new and potentially interesting take on transformers. It's interesting how they incorporate a current plot based in a world where transformers are already a phenomenon and have their own fame.

Pros: Fun cameos, some REALLY good one-liners, and I loved Megatron & his development. You really get to see the dynamic between two leaders who have banded together under a promise of equality, but only one is truly being treated as an equal.

I thought there were definitely some really good concepts that could potentially be explored in the future.

Cons: It was a little bit too cheesy sometimes for me, and I definitely cringed a couple times.

I felt like most of the middle episodes were just fluff, you honestly could skip them after the first two and then resume on ep 7 or 8 and be perfectly okay.

Overall, it definitely has some re-watch value, though not a lot. I really hope they dig more into the Decepticon side in the future.

Watch only if you ran out of Transformer episodes to watch

[Hippie629 · 1/10 · 15 November 2022]

The tone of the show switches from kid friendly Rescue Bots to super serious Prime

It references the 80's era but is not the same continuity.

It has a preestablish history with events that should've been shown.

Somehow Megatron teams up with the Autobots and is not in command of the Decepticons Bumble was thought dead and was in hiding Humans and Transformers are keeping secrets from each other

The list goes on.

All of the characters talk about more interesting events that have already happened, then the story that is happening now.

The plot about the new bots doesn't go anywhere interesting and the Gloves the kids get are never explained.

The animation goes from ok, to bad during action scenes by trying too hard with weird camera work, like barrel rolls when someone is running.

The facial models have an uncanny valley look to them.

The voice acting is bad, there are good actors here so it must be the directing.

The music is forgettable

The writing can be awful In the first episode the kids are riding their bikes until vehicles on the road get attacked by robots and the kids are completely detach from this and pay the robots or the crash any mind and just into a cave.

Sometimes the robots are a threat to humans sometimes they can be beaten with sticks.

The human characters are unmemorable and could be replaced with any of the humans from the past shows.

The bots are either ok or completely different from previous versions.

There are less than a dozen bots for most of the show.

The villain is a human who doesn't like transformers because of the stuff they vaguely did in the past.

There is a Transformer named Hashtag.

Overall pretty solid

[graciehanson · 8/10 · 22 May 2023]

I really loved this show. Granted it's not my favorite but it still is one of my favorites. I enjoyed the characters and the story as a whole. Since it's been released I've rewatched it at least 3 times. I think it's a great starter show for anyone getting into transformers. It has a lot of funny moments and is honestly overhated. It does have its flaws and awkward moments but that will be true for any show. So far there have not been any inaccuracies in the show that would contradict the already established lore. If you love transformers and want to watch more of it i highly suggest earthspark.

A Breath Of Fresh Air!

[lapisdragon · 10/10 · 17 November 2022]

Hello! On the day EarthSpark aired, I watched every single episode available! I went in a bit skeptical, as I've been a huge Transformers fan since I was very young, but I came out with the biggest smile on my face! Transformers: EarthSpark is a fantastic show! I love the story, the characters, and the art style! The writing is phenomenal, and the story is really interesting! I love getting the chance to see a Megatron that wants to actually help others someone other than in the comics! It truly is a breath of fresh air! He might even be my favorite version of Megatron. Over all, I highly recommend this show!

SUPER FUN WATCH

[itseilaff · 7/10 · 15 May 2023]

People are complaining about this show being way too different. I disagree. This is the very thing that made me love it! More on my opinion, spoilers incoming:

There new characters, lovely takes on old ones, and exciting villains. For characters: Tarantulas got to be on a tv again finally! The malto bots are lovely and while the first two got more development and are my favorite, they've been around the longest and I see potential and future development being set up for the rest. The human characters are alright, the malto family is endearing but my absolute favorite has to be the villain. Of course things have to be toned down for a kids show but if you like the horrors of mixing mechanoid and organic together... then you'll love the concept behind Dr. Meridian. I enjoyed Silas's character from Tf: Prime. If you liked that one you'll enjoy this slightly different revisiting of that concept!

For the plot: the war can't go on forever. I appreciate the show presenting a bold new idea and leading the war to what feels like a natural conclusion, especially since it's taking place on earth. What I love about the plot is that it's showing what it's like after the war is over. Humans are not going to be welcoming to the very same aliens who destroyed their cities. This doesn't mean the hatred is always justified and while it does draw real world parallels with prejudice, it felt natural to me and like something that would happen in this hypothetical scenario.

The decepticons have turned from a fearsome force to scavenging and prowling in the dark, being hunted down and collected. The autobots aren't doing much better, because they have no other choice but to comply and is that really freedom at that point? It's bits and pieces of interesting and compelling stories that are hiding just around the corner and they hit you when you least expect it. It's about the malto bots trying to make the best out of the broken world left behind by their cybertronian predecessors.

And Megatron! Some don't like that he's an autobot now, but I think the show justifies it well enough. After a certain point, you tire from fighting and when you lose... You lose. It brings forth the very interesting conflict between him and Soundwave, Shockwave as well as Starscream who's been hinted at but hasn't made a move yet and I can't wait until he does!!

Im so excited for the next season. There are only so many times we can re-tell the same story again and again. Earthspark is the new story I've been looking for. I think it's definitely worth checking out!!

The Spark has Died

[jason_thorpe · 2/10 · 16 August 2023]

After the great series Cyberverse, Earthspark has dimmed to a new low in just about every category.

Let's start with the most famous antagonist, Megatron. He is now a good guy? And he is absent most of the episodes.

The story is boring. Who cares about a new race of robots called the Terrans. The story since GEN1 has always been the struggle between autobots and decepticons, which this series fails to tell.

The writers clearly have an agenda pushing their forced non gendered robot. When did robots start having genders in the first place?

Do not waste your time with this pile of spent energon.

A Fun New Take on Transformers

[frog_wizards · 10/10 · 21 May 2023]

I've been slowly working through the existing Transformers shows and this one might actually be my favourite yet!

The animation is absolutely gorgeous. It's very fluid and the use of 2D animation for effects like spiderverse is fantastic. I've also been really enjoying the colours and lighting so far! I know there have been some complaints about character designs, but honestly I think they look much better in motion than as stills.

The soundtrack has also been banger after banger. I am waiting with bated breath for it to release on Spotify.

I've also really been enjoying the world, characters, and story! The fact that it's set post war I think gives the story more room to explore narratives that they haven't previously been able to.

All the new characters (terran and human alike) have also been delightful! Their interactions are fun and endearing and the humans have more agency in the plot than they have in past and can hold their own (within reason) against most threats, which I have been enjoying immensely. It's also really nice to see representation of minority groups that haven't previously been seen in (animated) Transformers media (as far as I know).

Some of the ways it presents the themes or certain topics can be a little awkward at times, but I'm also not the intended audience so I think that for the target age group it's right in the ballpark.

If I had one complaint it would be that the show does a lot of time jumping from episode to episode. Watching Missed Connections I had to stop for a moment to double check I hadn't skipped an episode by mistake.

This show has been a delight so far and I can't wait to see what the rest of the first season and the second season will bring! If you're looking for a new Transformers show to watch or are looking to get into transformers this one is definitely worth checking out!

Doesn't always land but it's got heart

[Sw1ndle · 6/10 · 15 October 2023]

Earthspark uses the new characters as a metaphor for mixed-race children growing up in land away from their parents' traditions and culture. To grow as their own person but not forget their roots. It has heart albeit the writing is sometimes boring and unfunny.

Character cameos were fun and appreciated. A lot of callbacks from different continuities in the franchise like the Swindle and Hardtop from Unicron Trilogy and Megatron and Tarantulas reminiscent of IDW. The obvious G1 comic appearances.

The old fans are sour cuz it's not the nonsensical saturday morning cartoon they grew up with where the "big bad" Megatron lost every episode. Megatron is a good guy now and one of the robots use they/them pronouns. Harmless stuff that's fleshed out in the show but it isn't what their rose tinted childhood lenses remember.

Watch it, it's really good

[fryevie · 10/10 · 22 May 2023]

It's a decent cartoon. From the plot line to world setting/character build up it's one of the best transformers cartoon I saw in RECENT YEARs (similar to cyberverse).

Personally I love the plot line. I love how the writer add in some elements similar to idw plot line but still keep it as a kid show. I feel like this choice provide kid audience with a not out of the line kid show and the adult audience room for their imagination to work in.

General really love this show, can't wait for the remaining episode to come out!

(Spoiler

I 1000% want to see more plot line/change of character similar to MTMTE and Shattered Glass.

Good, but flawed

[megamatt · 6/10 · 8 September 2023]

Last fall I gave this series a 7. Now that the first season is over, I had to lower my score. I still maintain that the series is overall decent, but it has some serious flaws.

The writing is mostly solid, especially with the episodes written by Mae Catt. Though there are some issues with plot repetition. One episode has a Decepticon distract GHOST to protect the heroes from being discovered, and is followed by an episode where the Decepticon sacrifices himself so that Bumblebee can escape GHOST. There's also too much emphasis on talking about feelings to resolve the conflict of the day. That's not inherently a bad way to write a story, but when done too much it just comes off as preachy and lazy.

We could have gone without the second batch of Terrans. There wasn't anything really wrong with them as characters, but it just swelled the cast way too much and we were only ten episodes in. Adding three new characters to the main cast THAT soon was too big a change to the status quo when the status quo was still forming. The dynamic between the Maltos and Twitch & Thrash was still being established and it would have been nice to see how things developed before adding more bots to the mix.

The sound design is fantastic and the mix of 2D effects with the 3D animation during action scenes makes for some pretty neat visuals. The animation and character designs are pretty good for the most part, though some of the human models look like they could have spent more time in the oven.

Voice acting is pretty good, but there are some notable exceptions. Alan Tudyk gives a surprisingly bland performance as Optimus Prime, Danny Pudi is uneven as Bumblebee, and Keith David's Grimlock is appallingly disinterested. That last one really hurt.

On the other hand, Rory McCann is great as Megatron. Zeno Robinson, Kari Wahlgren, Diedrich Bader, Stephanie Lemelin, Marc Evan Jackson, and Steve Blum all give exemplary performances too.

On to the elephant in the room. When it comes to the issue of there being a non-binary character, I really don't think it's a make or break issue. It's only brought up twice and not for very long. Overall, the inclusion of such a character doesn't have any impact on the quality of the series, and I think it's a bit much for people to dismiss the show simply based on one thing.

My biggest issue with the series is that this isn't a transformers show about Autobots and Decepticons. This is a postwar transformers show about the consequences of the conflict where Autobots and Decepticons more or less are regulated to guest star status.

The issue with the Decepticons is they're more or less written as not evil, just misunderstood. It feels as though the writers are ignoring that the Decepticons trashed the planet and one of their most recurring traits is their hatred of organic life. They're more or less treated as though they shouldn't be held accountable for that. Megatron defects, so that makes sense why he gets a pass, but the show treats the Decepticons as the victims of GHOST's persecution even though for the most part they're just being imprisoned when they attack people. We're supposed to view ghost as the bad guys for this when they aren't acting particularly evil for it. Nevertheless, they actually do come across as shady and unethical in other regards, and that evens it out.

Our main antagonist for the first season, Mandroid, is also a pretty good villain. He consistently poses a credible threat and never comes across as something to be taken lightly.

I was a little disappointed with how the season ends. It really feels like a Deus ex Machina.

I don't think that the show is bad. I think it's an imperfect show that has a lot of potential but has just made a few mistakes in an inaugural season but could be redeemed by the next one.

The Dora version of the Transformers; not very intelligent, and a bit of a waste of time.

[storminormin · 2/10 · 17 October 2023]

I only made it to episode 5, then skipped to the end of the series to see if the finale had any substance and gave up halfway through that, so take this review with a grain of salt.

And I am very salty about this.

***MINOR SPOILERS

I try to watch children's shows with two metrics in mind; the demographic, and the overall quality. Children's shows CAN be more simplistic, although I am of the opinion that they should be written just as cleverly as shows for adults. The overall quality includes the writing quality, animation quality, characters, etcetera.

Perhaps it is because I came here from Transformers: Prime that this show disappointed me.

CHARACTERS:

The human characters were generic and pretty unmemorable. The children's homesick plotline was introduced and then dropped so fast it gave me whiplash, when it could have been a really great way to give the characters more depth. (if you want a good show for children's media that tackles the supernatural + the loneliness of missing home, watch HILDA). The parents were there, in a generic girlboss and malewife trope, which has been really done a lot already, so it's kinda eh. Maybe if it had been done 5 years ago.

The beloved transformer characters are quite different from what we know, and while I understand universal differences (I am of the Rise of the TMNT lover crowd, believe me I know.) it is a bit hard to watch bots like Bumblebee and Optimus fumble through arcs that should have happened eons ago in this timeline.

The villain is similarly there; vaguely threatening and quite ugly (his design makes me laugh).

ANIMATION:

It's fine. A bit jank, but I get budget constraints. I have no praise for the show's style choice, as the meshing of hyperrealistic backgrounds with the simple, geometric characters does not really work for me.

WRITING:

Dear heaven the writing.

This is where I understand that this show is a children's show, and that sometimes the plots are going to be quite simple. But at the same time, I feel like this would be somewhat insulting to most 9-13 year olds. It goes over generic life lessons like we're watching Dora again and trying to tell us how to be patient or how to listen.

This wasn't the show's most egregious sin, dear reader. No. It is how the show writes the characters and dynamics-

In almost all Transformers lore the most influential characters to the plot are Optimus and Megatron, hands down. Optimus is the symbol of the Autobots, and Megatron is the symbol of the Decepticons. The whole Autobot/Decepticon war hinges on their relationship. In some universes, they end up reconciling in the end, and I do like those universes, I have no problem with them. Earthspark decided to tackle this section of the timeline, with Megs and Optimus working together.

BUT.

YOU Don't frikking get any of their dynamic from how this show portrays their relationship. That is almost criminal. That is the most fun, interesting dynamic to have, all this rich history, old wounds, past allegiances. Earthspark decides to use none of it. Megatron and Optimus have the most bland, coworker-core, Frank Welker's Freddy Milk-and-Toast voice RELATIONSHIP in the world. And it kills me.

So then you end up with these transformer characters acting like robotic cutouts of themselves. The reaction to finding out that their species is possibly NOT DEAD. After HALF THE WAR on EARTH being over this specific thing??? Saving CYBERTRON AND THEIR RACE? Barely memorable?? I legit do not remember their being any touch of emotion beyond the generic, "ooo baby cybertronians, wow isnt that incredible?" Any immense guilt over almost destroying the human race for that very thing? Bumblebee no longer being the youngest in their race?

I would have loved to see Megatron's slow turn from evil. HONESTLY. I would watch a show that took place a decade back in the timeline with Dot and Megatron as law & order/crime partners. Mo being so in hate with Megs. Like THAT WOULD BE SO FUN.

It could have been really amazing. But somehow the writers fumbled it.

TL:DR Their new characters were flimsy, their episode plots were inane (Wild Kratts levels; no offence meant to the Kratt's and full offence to Earthspark), and they had like 500 opportunities for interesting character dynamics and took NONE OF THEM. I gave up halfway through the show.

Put it on for your 5 year old as a substitute for Dora the Explorer. Or don't. Watch Wild Kratts instead so they'll learn about cool animals.

An entertaining, interesting and very adorable show

[splintersonleonardo · 9/10 · 22 May 2023]

I watched all the episodes of this show that came out so far with my little nephew, thanks to that I was able to introduce him to the world of transformers, he loved it very much and I also saw that in some episodes they teach some values that children should have.

I found good the interaction of these Terrans with their biological parents, in fact it is very interesting how their family ties are handled.

As for the Autobots, I liked Bumblebee's role as a guardian, it shows that he really loves these new Transformers as his family.

What I loved the most is the fact that Megatron is now one of the good guys, something that was only seen in the comics so far, they can even develop it better.

As for the villains I liked that they are putting together this conspiracy in secret, I will not say details because it would be Spoilers but I think some things are innovative.

Do not be guided by the negative reviews that instead of talking about the series talk about some indoctrination to children that is not even in the series, that is pure Hate.

Cute Show

[anneree-75948 · 10/10 · 14 May 2023]

My son, daughter, and I all enjoyed it. It is not too scary for my kids which is always a plus. (If something is scary, we talk and work through it, so they will not be as afraid in the future.) I hope they have spinoff children's books of this series that I could buy for my children. My son loved the Transformers Rescue Bots books, and I bought several of them. I hope they also come out with the easy to Transform Transformers for this series. It's a cute series, and I love how diverse it is without being overly explicit. It's really educational and appropriate for kids in that way. People exist.

Bland Nothingburger

[heavyaxe · 4/10 · 25 February 2024]

TF Earthspark is the most mediocre Transformers series produced in years, and perfectly encapsulates how creatively bankrupt both Hasbro and Nickelodeon are.

The series is a cliché "kid hates the new town they move to" slice-of-life show with a Transformers texture pack applied. The series tries to have epic, nuanced lore mixed with Teletubbies-tier ploit conflicts.

The Decepticons aren't even the main villains. Instead, we get a human scientist who hates Transformers as the main villain. (Wow, how original!)

In closing, TF Earthspark is a bland robot cartoon for toddlers. You're better off watching the Machinima Trilogy.

Bigots can leave

[libbylatimer · 10/10 · 14 May 2023]

I love this show it has such good messages and characters, and anyone who is all angry at Nightshade's pronouns are just bigoted and don't know transformers lore. They are an amazing character and addition to the transformers universe and I hope to see more of them in the future!

To the directors and everyone working on the show I want to give you all a big hug for the rep shown in it, not just with Nightshade but with the entire Malto family. Please don't end this show just because the transphobic Fox News stands are messing up everything, this show deserves its proper run time and ending please we don't need another Owl House situation.

It's different, but THIS is Transformers

[tjjoy-79653 · 8/10 · 18 November 2022]

I've been a Transformers fan since childhood, and since then I myself have transformed (ha ha) into a boring office worker working a 9-5 (send help).

In all those years I've seen everything from comics, games, movies. And yeah...the fanbase is "hard to please" (putting it lightly). I won't pretend that I'm not one of the pickier ones.

But Transformers Earthspark is almost everything I've always wanted as a fan.

To be fair, I'll start with the 'Cons:

It's true that not all the jokes land, not all the characters are equally interesting right now (looking at two of the main characters Robby and Thrash and the villain, Dr. Mandroid). Not all the diversity is gracefully woven into the narrative, and not all the coolest story-telling opportunities are taken (it's only been 10 episodes though so I'll chill out. Still, hire me, Hasbro please PLEASE.)

Also Mo has the jankiest anime eyes I've ever seen.

BUT on the flip side It's taking the Transformers story in an entirely new direction that hooks you along. The fight scenes are awesome (i.e. Think of a shuriken coming at you but that shuriken is a 52 ton Osprey helicopter, yeah that's what's happening in this show), the structure and writing of each episode sans the pilot and some parts of the finale are pretty tight, and it's FUNNY as hell even when it's being weird.

I, a (mostly) grown person, have literally laughed out loud over the dumbest things. The show is just plain fun.

Sure, there are those who dislike the "wokeness" of Earthspark, whatever that's fine, but I gotta say it: 1) it's a new generation. You don't know how much it means to some people. And 2) each episode STILL goes out of its way to teach kids timeless values like "hey, stop being a gamer for a sec and spend time with your family" or "know your roots" and "not all rules are put in place to restrict you just for the sake of restricting you" which I found endearing.

Overall: the show's got heart.

It's got the opposite schtick of Bayverse where everyone hates each other for no reason: here there's an abundance of love. It's got positivity, deep bonds, robots, and I feel like a tiny kid again when I watch it. To me, THAT'S Transformers.

This show is different. It isn't perfect or meant for everyone, but I enjoyed it a LOT!

Digestible themes and cool visuals fit for all ages

[haidenjay · 8/10 · 19 May 2023]

Earthspark has wheedled its way into my heart, it being the cataylst for my descent into watching all the Transformers media I can get my grubby hands on. By far, Earthspark has been one of the better shows. I've watched the show through at least 3 times total on my lonesome, as well as with friends.

I hold the opinion that this show has been unrightfully bombed with negative and transphobic views. It has also been compared to other predecessors, when in reality, it should be treated as a stand alone. Comparing a mixed media tv show created in 2022-23, to a hand drawn tv show created in the 80's, is not fair to either show.

Earthspark doesn't have bad animation; I've not spotted an animation error once. The fact that the animators blend the 3d assets and the 2d effects/techniques (reminiscent of movies like Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, Puss in Boots: The Last Wish and The Mitchells vs. The Machines) is incredible and fills me with child-like joy.

The models of the characters are goregous too! They are a mixture of what I would call "updated G1 designs," which are reminiscent of the iconic/nostalgic designs we had in the 80's, but updated for a modern audience. The last time they turned Transformers' design on it's head in such a way, was back when Prime was airing. I won't lie, I'm not the biggest fan of Optimus' face, but it's grown on me.

Even though it's a slow start, like most shows, Earthspark melds the importance of family, communication, and understanding. In addition, there is also a heavy emphasis on the theme of second chances. It uses some of my favourite aspects from the first generation IDW comics, such as the designs of Megatron and Tarantulas, Megatron's swap to the Autobots, and the introduction of the Spark/ Cybertronian Remembrance flowers.

So much fun and so refreshing

[sugarlonghorn · 9/10 · 18 November 2022]

Transformers media has been disappointing and soulless these past few years. But this show is so much fun and so cute to boot. Although there's only a few episodes so far, this has so much PROMISE! There are lots of new characters and new concepts that make this so refreshing. The two new main bots are adorable and super promising as characters. And new takes on old characters are fantastic. If you're going into this show, you should try and detach yourself from the idea that every TF should be the same in every continuity! The writing is a little silly in some places, but it is also fun, funny, and heartfelt. The action scenes are SO MUCH FUN! New and old TF fans will have a great time with this show.

Don't listen to all the hate

[andrewschulingkamp · 9/10 · 14 May 2023]

So many people here are complaining about the non-binary character in this show, who haven't even watched any of it and are completely missing the more important messages of acceptance, family, and understanding because they're so focused on the fact that an alien robot species doesn't conform to their ideas of gender. Is this series for everyone? No. If you don't like it, don't watch it. If you want to leave a review, at least watch the whole series before judging it. As a lifelong fan of the Transformers, I found this an enjoyable watch. The characterizations, the story, and the acting are fairly good, if you look at this with the mindset of a show aimed at children. I know I'm not the target demographic, and I still enjoyed it. Optimus Prime's motto is "Freedom is the right of all sentient beings." That means everyone deserves to be free to be who they are. If you don't like it, then that's you're prerogative.