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Transformers: Villains
List Price: Unknown [Buy now and save at Amazon]
"As the earthlings say -- 'fat chance, fathead!'"
I look back fondly on the '80s, a time before fear, bitterness, and hatred consumed my childhood innocence, turning me into the nasty little fellow I am today. Like far too many other kids my age, my life once revolved around the holy triumverate -- Masters of the Universe, G.I. Joe, and the Transformers. I've never been the sort to leave my childhood behind. If it's any indication, I got bored one night in 1995 and wound up creating a site that would eventually evolve into he-man.org and bring me in touch with countless thousands of other similarly afflicted souls. While the "Masters of the Universe" animated series is still in perpetually-out-of-print-VHS-limbo, Rhino had the foresight to snag the the rights to the other two dominant series of the time. After making a killing off G.I. Joe and Transformers on video, Rhino released the sets of Transformers episodes to DVD in May 2001. I would be reviewing both "Transformers: Heroes" and "Transformers: Villains", but a duplication error led to both discs having the same three-part tale, "The Ultimate Doom". Whoops. While a new batch of "Heroes" is being pressed, it dawned upon me that perhaps I could pass the hours by writing a review of the one and only (and first of many?) collection of Transformers episodes currently available on DVD. So, Transfans, here goes...
"The Ultimate Doom" was one of just a handful of multi-part Transformers episodes and the very first, if you disregard the pilot miniseries, as Rhino apparently did. I'm not sure how much backstory I should provide, so I suppose I'll just jump straight into the plot with little-to-no setup. Actually, that would be no different from watching the episodes themselves, which provide no exposition, no set-up, and would be extraordinarily confusing to anyone who hadn't seen numerous Transformers episodes before this. Anyway, Megatron, in his never-ending quest to produce Energon cubes, enslaves a bunch of humans -- including Autobot-buddy Sparkplug -- to build a gigantic techno-lasso to ensnare Cybertron and yank it into Earth's orbit. This, not surprisingly, threatens to destroy life on Earth as we know it. Can the Autobots overcome sabotage and seemingly-insurmountable odds to save billions of lives and defeat the Decepticon scourge? If not, what'll happen in the 88 episodes and the motion picture that follow?
I hadn't seen any Transformers episodes since the brief syndicated re-release in '92 with the much-hated Cybernet Space Cube spinning around wildly between every shot. After seeing "The Ultimate Doom", I think my memories of the greatness of the Transformers outclass the real thing, with the animation, dialogue, and action all seeming much more lackluster than I remembered. Still, the three episodes presented on this disc blow most of the cartoons currently airing stateside clear out of the water, as well as setting long-forgotten memories of toys and cartoons past flooding back. Despite having less than an hour of material, a less-than-stellar visual presentation, no extra features, and a higher-than-expected price tag, "Transformers: Villains" is still a great nostalgic blast and well-worth seeing for anyone in their late teens/early twenties who look back as fondly on '80s animation as I do.
Video: Rhino, judging from the amount of dirt, specks, and damage on the prints, apparently produced new transfers of "The Ultimate Doom" for this DVD release, though the end result is barely passable. Print flaws, particularly very large chunks of dust and dirt, appear regularly and are rather distracting. The image has a tendency to jitter on occassion, frequently after horizontal black stripes drape the screen. I'm not exaggerating when I say that I doubt that the original VHS releases from the mid-'80s could look any worse. These problems are most pronounced in the first part of the story, though they appear in the remaining two episodes, to a far lesser extent. I'm surprised that a better source for these episodes wasn't available, and I hope this isn't indicative of what to expect from future Transformers releases.
Audio: Much like "Transformers: The Movie", these episodes are presented in mock-5.1 "Rhinophonic" sound, meaning every sound effect and every piece of music is spat out of every speaker. I noticed a considerable amount of hiss coming from the center speaker as well. The distraction of that background noise and the ineffective use of surrounds aside, the audio is surprisingly rich considering its age, with the music and assorted effects sounding much fuller and rich than I'd expect from a 17 year old TV cartoon. The dialogue is a little too low in the mix by comparison, occasionally becoming difficult to discern, particularly in part 2. Part 3 suffers from some occassional clipping in the dialogue. Rhino -- a good mono or stereo soundtrack beats an annoying 5.1 mix anyday. Really.
Extras: Absolutely nothing. The Japanese releases, by the way, included more episodes per disc, commercials, booklets, previously unbroadcast episodes, and assorted bonus footage. Yet, for whatever reason, "Transformers: Villains" is labeled as a collector's edition. Interesting.
Conclusion: Although $19.99 isn't a particularly high price point, it seems just a little excessive for the paltry hour of material on "Transformers: Villains". With nearly a hundred episodes to work from, having discs released in random three-episode increments is more than mildly disappointing. I also find it bizarre that Rhino would simultaneously release discs that take place on polar opposite ends of the series, with "The Ultimate End" among the first 10 episodes and "Rebirth" comprising the final three episodes of "The Transformers". Of the two episode collections currently available on DVD stateside, "Villains" features characters more recognizable to casual Transfans and isn't nearly as mired in continuity. Though the original 3-part "More Than Meets The Eye" would've made for a much more natural starting point, the episodes presented on "Villains" are sure to set memories flooding back for nostalgia-starved children of the '80s. You'd probably be best suited to save "Heroes" for a rainy day (that is, when the corrected discs hit stores), but for anyone with even the faintest interest in one of the most popular animated series of all time, "Transformers: Villains" is recommended, though this series deserves much better treatment than it's receiving from Rhino.
Just Curious: Why is Cyclonus, who didn't appear until almost two full years after the initial broadcasts of "The Ultimate Doom", prominently featured on the cover?
I look back fondly on the '80s, a time before fear, bitterness, and hatred consumed my childhood innocence, turning me into the nasty little fellow I am today. Like far too many other kids my age, my life once revolved around the holy triumverate -- Masters of the Universe, G.I. Joe, and the Transformers. I've never been the sort to leave my childhood behind. If it's any indication, I got bored one night in 1995 and wound up creating a site that would eventually evolve into he-man.org and bring me in touch with countless thousands of other similarly afflicted souls. While the "Masters of the Universe" animated series is still in perpetually-out-of-print-VHS-limbo, Rhino had the foresight to snag the the rights to the other two dominant series of the time. After making a killing off G.I. Joe and Transformers on video, Rhino released the sets of Transformers episodes to DVD in May 2001. I would be reviewing both "Transformers: Heroes" and "Transformers: Villains", but a duplication error led to both discs having the same three-part tale, "The Ultimate Doom". Whoops. While a new batch of "Heroes" is being pressed, it dawned upon me that perhaps I could pass the hours by writing a review of the one and only (and first of many?) collection of Transformers episodes currently available on DVD. So, Transfans, here goes...
"The Ultimate Doom" was one of just a handful of multi-part Transformers episodes and the very first, if you disregard the pilot miniseries, as Rhino apparently did. I'm not sure how much backstory I should provide, so I suppose I'll just jump straight into the plot with little-to-no setup. Actually, that would be no different from watching the episodes themselves, which provide no exposition, no set-up, and would be extraordinarily confusing to anyone who hadn't seen numerous Transformers episodes before this. Anyway, Megatron, in his never-ending quest to produce Energon cubes, enslaves a bunch of humans -- including Autobot-buddy Sparkplug -- to build a gigantic techno-lasso to ensnare Cybertron and yank it into Earth's orbit. This, not surprisingly, threatens to destroy life on Earth as we know it. Can the Autobots overcome sabotage and seemingly-insurmountable odds to save billions of lives and defeat the Decepticon scourge? If not, what'll happen in the 88 episodes and the motion picture that follow?
I hadn't seen any Transformers episodes since the brief syndicated re-release in '92 with the much-hated Cybernet Space Cube spinning around wildly between every shot. After seeing "The Ultimate Doom", I think my memories of the greatness of the Transformers outclass the real thing, with the animation, dialogue, and action all seeming much more lackluster than I remembered. Still, the three episodes presented on this disc blow most of the cartoons currently airing stateside clear out of the water, as well as setting long-forgotten memories of toys and cartoons past flooding back. Despite having less than an hour of material, a less-than-stellar visual presentation, no extra features, and a higher-than-expected price tag, "Transformers: Villains" is still a great nostalgic blast and well-worth seeing for anyone in their late teens/early twenties who look back as fondly on '80s animation as I do.
Video: Rhino, judging from the amount of dirt, specks, and damage on the prints, apparently produced new transfers of "The Ultimate Doom" for this DVD release, though the end result is barely passable. Print flaws, particularly very large chunks of dust and dirt, appear regularly and are rather distracting. The image has a tendency to jitter on occassion, frequently after horizontal black stripes drape the screen. I'm not exaggerating when I say that I doubt that the original VHS releases from the mid-'80s could look any worse. These problems are most pronounced in the first part of the story, though they appear in the remaining two episodes, to a far lesser extent. I'm surprised that a better source for these episodes wasn't available, and I hope this isn't indicative of what to expect from future Transformers releases.
Audio: Much like "Transformers: The Movie", these episodes are presented in mock-5.1 "Rhinophonic" sound, meaning every sound effect and every piece of music is spat out of every speaker. I noticed a considerable amount of hiss coming from the center speaker as well. The distraction of that background noise and the ineffective use of surrounds aside, the audio is surprisingly rich considering its age, with the music and assorted effects sounding much fuller and rich than I'd expect from a 17 year old TV cartoon. The dialogue is a little too low in the mix by comparison, occasionally becoming difficult to discern, particularly in part 2. Part 3 suffers from some occassional clipping in the dialogue. Rhino -- a good mono or stereo soundtrack beats an annoying 5.1 mix anyday. Really.
Extras: Absolutely nothing. The Japanese releases, by the way, included more episodes per disc, commercials, booklets, previously unbroadcast episodes, and assorted bonus footage. Yet, for whatever reason, "Transformers: Villains" is labeled as a collector's edition. Interesting.
Conclusion: Although $19.99 isn't a particularly high price point, it seems just a little excessive for the paltry hour of material on "Transformers: Villains". With nearly a hundred episodes to work from, having discs released in random three-episode increments is more than mildly disappointing. I also find it bizarre that Rhino would simultaneously release discs that take place on polar opposite ends of the series, with "The Ultimate End" among the first 10 episodes and "Rebirth" comprising the final three episodes of "The Transformers". Of the two episode collections currently available on DVD stateside, "Villains" features characters more recognizable to casual Transfans and isn't nearly as mired in continuity. Though the original 3-part "More Than Meets The Eye" would've made for a much more natural starting point, the episodes presented on "Villains" are sure to set memories flooding back for nostalgia-starved children of the '80s. You'd probably be best suited to save "Heroes" for a rainy day (that is, when the corrected discs hit stores), but for anyone with even the faintest interest in one of the most popular animated series of all time, "Transformers: Villains" is recommended, though this series deserves much better treatment than it's receiving from Rhino.
Just Curious: Why is Cyclonus, who didn't appear until almost two full years after the initial broadcasts of "The Ultimate Doom", prominently featured on the cover?
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