The Transformers (TV series)

This article is about the original Transformers animated series. For information on others, see List of Transformers animated series.

The Transformers
Genre
Created by
Based onTransformers
by Hasbro & Takara
Developed byDick Robbins (seasons 1–2)
Bryce Malek (seasons 1–2)
Flint Dille (seasons 3–4)
Marv Wolfman (seasons 3–4)
Steve Gerber (seasons 3–4)
Creative directorJay Bacal
Voices of
Narrated byVictor Caroli
Composers
Country of origin
  • United States
  • Japan (seasons 1–2)
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons4
No. of episodes98[1] (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producers
Producers
  • Gwen Wetzler (seasons 1–2)
  • John Walker (seasons 1–2)
  • George Singer (seasons 2–4)
  • Gerald Moeller (season 3–4)
  • Roger Slifer (season 3)
Running time23–24 minutes
Production companies
Original release
NetworkFirst-run syndication[2]
ReleaseSeptember 17, 1984 (1984-09-17) –
November 11, 1987 (1987-11-11)
Related
Japanese-exclusive seasons
  1. Transformers: The Headmasters
  2. Transformers: Super-God Masterforce
  3. Transformers: Victory
Manga
Written byMasumi Kaneda
Illustrated byBan Magami
Published byKodansha (Japan)
Viz Media (United States)
MagazineTV Magazine
Original runMay 1985 – July 1987
Volumes3
Infobox instructions (only shown in preview)

The Transformers is an animated television series that originally aired from September 17, 1984, to November 11, 1987, in syndication based upon Hasbro and Takara's Transformers toy line. The first television series in the Transformers franchise, it depicts a war among giant robots that can transform into vehicles and other objects.[3] The series was produced by Marvel Productions and Sunbow Productions in association with Japanese studio Toei Animation[4] for first-run syndication. Toei co-produced the show as the main animation studio for its first two seasons, having been tasked with creating and finalizing animation models, designing transformation schemes, storyboarding some episodes, and general direction. In the third season, Toei's involvement with the production team was reduced and the animation services were shared with the South Korean studio AKOM. The show's supervising producer (Nelson Shin) was also AKOM's founder.[5] The fourth season was entirely animated by AKOM. The series was supplemented by a feature film, The Transformers: The Movie (1986), taking place between the second and third seasons. This series is also popularly known as "Generation One", a term originally coined by fans in response to the re-branding of the franchise as Transformers: Generation 2 in 1992, which eventually made its way into official use.[6][7] The series was later shown in reruns on Sci-Fi Channel and The Hub / Discovery Family.

  1. ^ Pirrello, Phil (July 22, 2009). "Transformers: The Complete Series DVD Review". IGN. IGN Entertainment. Retrieved February 23, 2013.
  2. ^ Schine, Cathleen (October 30, 1988). "From Lassie to Pee-Wee". The New York Times Magazine. Retrieved February 23, 2013.
  3. ^ Janson, Tim (June 18, 2009). "DVD Review: Transformers The Complete First Season 25th Anniversary". Mania.com. Archived from the original on June 20, 2009. Retrieved February 23, 2013.
  4. ^ "東映アニメーション［オールディーズ］". January 6, 2003. Archived from the original on January 6, 2003. Retrieved November 17, 2017.
  5. ^ "Akom Production Co. OEM Works". Akomkorea.com. Archived from the original on September 30, 2020. Retrieved March 5, 2020.
  6. ^ Donohoo, Timothy (April 1, 2022). "Transformers: Beast Wars Was Initially More Aligned With Generation 1". CBR.
  7. ^ Meenan, Devin (December 2, 2022). "Everything You Need To Know About Beast Wars To Be Ready For Transformers: Rise Of The Beasts". /Film.