So in the original Transformers cartoon, the Transformers were shown to be capable of flight, even if they weren't a jet/helicopter/etc. I guess I just always assumed that they using some sort of boosters in in their bodies to allow them to fly. However, I recently came to wonder if perhaps they were just somehow naturally able to defy gravity, kind of like Superman does. What do you think? Were they using technology to fly, or were they just somehow naturally able to do it? EDIT: Well, clearly this was a little one sided. I must be the only person who ever made room for the possibility that the Transformer's flight capability was supposed to be a super hero type thing.
The pilot seems to be of two minds about the idea. In early parts, the Autobots are flying around like it's no big deal. But in the last episode of MTMtE, Optimus needs to borrow Sideswipe's flight pack. After the pilot, the Autobots are grounded without technology. So, I'm guessing that it's all technology based, including the Decepticons...using some kind of repulsor tech would be my guess, though it's never really explained, IIRC.
I think in one of the episodes in the G1 cartoon it showed Megatron flying by using thrusters in his pedes. But I can't remember which episode it was.
Anti-grav abilities or Iron Man repulsor type tech always seemed a normal sort of thing for giant Alien Robots to have. I think the Autobots lost that after the first two episodes because the writers wanted the distinction between Bot's and Cons to grow and to differentiate Flyers as having natural advantages to groundpounders. It did at times seem nonsensical that the likes of Soundwave and the tapes could fly just as fast as the Seekers as Jets. Seeing as how Optimus seemed at times to have odd built in weapons/powers that never got repeated or explained (like energy manipulation and blasts in that duel with Megatron) I just put it down to yet another bout of inconsistency in a fairly inconsistent cartoon.
The cartoon showed Swoop was created specifically to add air born power to the Autobots, then they turned around and showed all the dinobots flying around anyways.
This. Offhand I would think the Decepticons just had default flight technology that the Autobots didn't, so naturally technological. I don't ever recall the Autobots having their own space bridge back in the day either, so it wouldn't be that far-fetched to believe that the factions have secret proprietary tech that isn't shared between sides. Also, robots. So technically nothing is "natural."
Yeah, if you're thinking of what I'm thinking of, it was towards the end of the episode "Roll For It". That shot seemed to be the exception to the rule. Normally that wasn't the way that their ability to fly was portrayed. No, because I mean that they're using technology to fly. As opposed to the way that Superman flies.
That's kind of a disingenuous comparison. An *Autobot* flying in G1 would be using technology to fly, because those jetpacks aren't integral to their bodies - they weren't constructed with their flight devices, and they're clearly separate and external tools. But as far as I know every Decepticon can fly just because they're Decepticons. If that's not natural (in as much as a robot can have anything natural), I don't know what is.
It's a shame they had it in the pilot and then dropped this ability. I wish they thought it out more, but I get it that it's just a toy commercial.
I'm not a fan at all of any Transformer flying, "Because". I don't care about factions, no Transformer should fly IMHO without a means of doing so. Much like the G1 comics, no one flew unless they had a means of doing so, Starscream could fly in both modes for example, because he had thrusters to act as jet boots. Laserbeak can fly in condor mode, but not as a cassette. Shockwave had rocket boots that were in his handle in space gun mode. G2 Megatron and Galvatron could fly in robot mode due to the aformentioned rocket boots, but not in alt mode. Megatron on the other hand, was flightless, and had to catch a ride.
I hated that the autobots flew in the first few episodes then ceased... i loved g1 but that was just dumb. I also didn't like that any bot could fly without the means to do so. but I say it was done with magic...
Nope. I have constantly referred to it as "Supermanning" and don't believe all the jazz everyone throws at me trying to justify the fact that these massive bots just up, up and away without a care in he world. It was actually the first thread I posted here, I believe, asking the same question. I think the first reply I got was the best.
