The latest movie within the Transformers franchise, Transformers One, doesn’t have the very best title for what the film is — a prequel. (Transformers Minus One, within the custom of the very best Godzilla film so far, might need been extra correct.) Transformers One is, nonetheless, a rousing, humorous, and superbly animated journey that crafts an in depth backstory for the franchise’s core hero and villain, Optimus Prime and Megatron.
It is usually, surprisingly, a love story. A tragic love story. Between these two robots I discussed simply now.
I’m not a crackpot.
[Editor’s note: The following contains spoilers for Transformers One.]
Transformers One begins by introducing the characters of Orion Pax (voiced by Chris Hemsworth) and D-16 (voiced by Brian Tyree Henry), who’re finest buddies working aspect by aspect within the mines of Cybertron. Orion and D-16 are the sorts of besties the place they do virtually every little thing collectively. Orion will get D-16 little presents. D-16 helps Orion escape potential bother. Orion’s extra of a risk-taker, whereas D-16 performs by the foundations. They’re an excellent match!
When Orion pulls D-16 right into a city-wide race that’s sometimes reserved for Transformers who’re really able to remodeling… Oh, I assume I ought to point out {that a} huge a part of Transformers One is the truth that most residents of Cybertron are denied the cogs that may grant them remodeling capabilities. It’s all a part of the evil conspiracy headed up by their supposed chief Sentinel Prime (voiced by Jon Hamm), whose energy has been constructed on the backs of hard-working miners like Orion and D-16.
In any case, after the race, Orion and D-16 — with some assist from a nascent Bumblebee (Keegan-Michael Key) and girl Transformer Elita-1 (Scarlett Johansson) — finally expose Sentinel Prime’s evil doings, and by the tip of the movie, each Orion and D-16 have obtained cogs, remodeling into their extra acquainted identities.
Enhanced by the “Matrix of Management” (there are a variety of phrases for issues in Transformers-land), Orion turns into Optimus Prime, the newly anointed chief of the Cybertrons who declare themselves to be Autobots. In the meantime, D-16 copes with an existential disaster because the movie progresses, feeling betrayed by Sentinel Prime and now not keen to serve any chief besides himself — he renames himself Megatron, and dubs the Transformers now loyal to him as Decepticons. (Critically, that is probably the most prequel-y prequel to ever prequel.)
And sure, it’s very Professor X and Magneto, as a result of alongside the way in which, this friendship is torn aside and it’s fairly unhappy. Full credit score to each Chris Hemsworth and Brian Tyree Henry for promoting this relationship so properly as voice actors — when Megatron chooses to betray Optimus in spite of everything they’ve been by collectively, one would possibly shed a tear. That’s as a result of Transformers One treats the connection between the soon-to-be Optimus and Megatron because the movie’s emotional core, with its central narrative monitoring that accordingly.
The publicity supplies for Transformers One describe them as being “buddies bonded like brothers,” although this spin is truthfully a bit foolish, given the nuances that exist between friendship and brotherhood: Like, inherent to a sibling relationship is a standard bond by a shared upbringing and/or genetic heritage, whereas friendship can overlap however originates elsewhere…
Look, it feels protected to look at that Cybertron society is made up of people who reproduce asexually, in the event that they reproduce in any respect. (Let’s not get an excessive amount of into the confusion that comes with Transformers reproducing asexually however nonetheless acknowledging the idea of gender, a minimum of through the existence of feminine Transformers like Elita-1 and Vanessa Liguori’s Airachnid. However know that when you’ve got not learn this 6,000-word Wiki article on Transformers replica, you’re actually lacking out.)
So if you happen to’re attempting to promote a youngsters film to youngsters and oldsters, “buddies bonded like brothers” is simple sufficient to know in that context. Nonetheless, come on — these are two characters who love one another, which is why it’s tragic when their relationship ends.
Including an entire different stage to that is the soundtrack’s authentic tune “If I Fall,” by Quavo, Ty Dolla $ign, and Transformers One composer Brian Tyler (Tyler performing below the banner ARE WE DREAMING). The facility ballad (with rapping!) is clearly a tune about Optimus and Megatron’s relationship, particularly these lyrics from the refrain: “And if I so occur to fall/ I hope you’re proper there to catch me/ ‘Trigger for you, I threat all of it/ And all I want is all inside me.”
(A giant a part of the Orion/D-16 relationship is Orion practically falling to his demise on a regular basis and D-16 usually saving him. “If I Fall” is perhaps fairly literal in its interpretation of the movie’s themes.)
To be clear, I’m not attempting to sexualize the 2 robots from a franchise initially created to promote plastic toys with this argument. I’m merely saying is that in a society that features the way in which that Cybertron does, it’s thus pure that the very best stage of affection could be a platonic one, and it’s truthfully fairly cool, how laborious the film leans into that for its emotional impression, with none distractions.
For instance, the character of Elita isn’t handled as a possible love curiosity for anybody — which might be a traditional technique for a undertaking decided to scream “no homo!” about its fundamental characters. As an alternative, Transformers One by no means loses focus, and on the finish of the day… Love is love. Even when it doesn’t win.
Transformers One is in theaters now.
