After 38 years of waiting, it is hard to believe that the first Transformers Film for children is finally here. The Transformers The media franchise was launched in 1984 when Japanese toymaker Takara Tomy’s mecha toys were introduced to Western markets. What began as a toy line soon got its own animated television and comic book series, turning the franchise into a cultural phenomenon. Finally, the franchise reached the medium of live-action storytelling in 2007 when Michael Bay’s first Transformers The film celebrated its worldwide premiere.

Like most of Michael Bay’s films, the film was not a huge success with critics. However, it grossed over $700 million on a budget of $150 million, proving the reach and scalability of the franchise in the live-action medium. Since then, many Transformers Live action films have seen the light of day, but Transformers One is the only animated addition to the series to be released in theaters. Although it is an extension of Michael Bay’s Transformers A classic in many ways, Transformers One changes the franchise significantly by receiving a PG rating.

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Transformers One’s PG rating confirms it’s made for kids

All Transformers live action films have a PG-13 rating

All Transformers Films of recent years have had a PG-13 rating, making teenagers and adults their target audience. The PG-13 rating of Michael Bay’s Transformers Films were full of sexual jokes and did not shy away from violent action scenes. bumblebee was relatively harmless compared to Michael Bay’s films, but could not avoid the PG-13 rating due to the moderate violence in the action sequences.

The latest film in the series, Transformers: Rise of the Beastscontained several interesting references to classic children’s cartoons. Despite this, the film was primarily intended for viewers aged 13 and over. Due to its language and science fiction action, it continued the trend of the franchise and achieved a PG-13 rating. Interestingly, Transformers One finally changes this with its PG ratingAlthough parental supervision is still recommended for the film, the “13” points out in his review that, unlike its predecessors, it was made for children.

The PG rating of Transformers One is a great sign for the film

It brings something new to the franchise

Transformers OneThe first trailers and hinted thematic elements suggested that the film would be aimed at a younger audience. Even the film’s animation format made it more suitable for a PG rating. However, since almost all Transformers Films have switched to PG-13 in recent years, it would not have been surprising that Transformers One went the same way. Fortunately, the filmmakers behind the movie realized that it would be beneficial to be more in line with the original Transformers Animated series produced for a younger audience and repeated on family cable channels such as Sci-Fi Channel and The Hub/Discovery Family.

Long before Michael Bay directed the live-action film Transformers Movies, Steven Spielberg also had it in mind as a child-friendly franchise that would revolve around a boy’s relationship with his robot car. Although Transformers One has no human characters, it honors Steven Spielberg’s vision in many ways by returning to the roots of the franchise and adopting a family-friendly tone. While Michael Bay’s take on the franchise had its own charm, it’s good that Transformers One attempts to break out of the crowd by focusing on the quirkier and lighter aspects of the overarching franchise.

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For the future, the return of Transformers to the PG movies is necessary

The Transformers films had to appeal to a wider audience

The Transformers Movies still generate huge box office numbers, but it is hard to ignore how their returns gradually decrease with each new installment. For this reason, it is good that Transformers One marks the beginning of a positive change in the franchise’s approach with the PG rating. Not only does the rating make the film more suitable for younger viewers, but it also allows it to make more room for all the elements that made the original animated series and comics so successful.

If this approach works well for Transformers Oneand it is a box office success worldwide. its success could also pave the way for future live-action films in the franchise that follow a similar PG formatFrom a franchise perspective, Hasbro would also benefit more from child-friendly films, as younger viewers would be encouraged to buy the original Transformers toys if the movies were more accessible to them. Hopefully this change in the PG rating will help to increase interest in the Transformers franchise and can thus strengthen its connection with a new generation of viewers.

Transformers One

Transformers One is an animated action-adventure film and the first animated feature film in the series in decades. The film is a prequel to the franchise and tells the story of Optimus Prime and Megatron in their early years, how they met and takes a closer look at the war on their home planet of Cybertron.

director

Josh Cooley

Release date

20 September 2024

Studio(s)

Entertainment One, Hasbro, Nickelodeon films

Sales Partner

Paramount Pictures

Authors

Andrew Barrer, Steve Desmond, Gabriel Ferrari

Continuation(s)

Transformers

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