Yeager is a great character, they should had create a character like him before and not so much.

 

It takes Sam three movies to grow as a character.

It took Cade one movie to grow - but TLK ruined everyone with prejudice with its insipid storytelling.

Charlie has the benefit of having a good movie that grows her character organically without needing multiple movies to do it. Hopefully, she doesn't get the Cade treatment.

 

I don't know about Cade Yeager. I was done with movieformers by the time AoE rolled around.

Sam Witwicky was an unlikeable little prick. I hate how he treated the Autobots. He wasn't any better then Mearing or Simmons. He was demanding, rude, selfish and too full of his own self-importance. He also treated everyone around him like shit.

Charlie treated Bumblebee with compassion, patience and kindness. She threw herself against frightening odds that most adults wouldn't, and became a proper ally.

 

I think the scene that really shows how much of a self-centered dick is in TF1 when Mikaela calls Bee's alt mode a "piece of crap." Bumblebee drops them off to go scan a new alt mode, but they don't know that, and Sam immediately starts complaining and blaming Mikaela, who wasn't even trying to be mean to Bee. And it's not like Sam is upset because Bee's feelings got hurt, he's upset that "four thousand dollars just drove off."

What a tool. You just got chased by an alien monster, nearly sliced apart by a metal crackhead, whom Mikaela saved you from, and you're first thought is "oh no my car I didn't even pay the full amount for!"

That scene always really bothered me because of how out of touch with the reality of the film it is.

 

Seriously, TLK ruined his character.

 

Very strange to see how critical opinion here has changed regarding Bumblebee. While I think it was better than 2-5, character depth is not one of its strengths, nor is it a cinematic masterpiece or even a great movie (I'd say it was a good movie). Bumblebee has also settled to an IMDb score a couple points lower than TF1. I think people are automatically conflating lack of Bay with a good movie.

 

Here are my thoughts:
Sam - his character just wasn't well developed; sure he was the Autobots' first human contact, but overall he treated them much like an annoying pet (also due to how the production/writing staff regarded the Autobots and Cybertronians in general) and wasn't too kind to Michaela and Carly, and his arc (IF in fact there was one) was a little drawn-out and truncated;

Cade-While I get he was a Father-of-a-Teenage-Girl-Struggling-Inventor type, and while he was much kindler and more loyal to the Autobots, I don't recall him being able to go from being a struggling inventor to his inventions actually evolving his situation/don't recall much of an arc. Sure, he ended up using one of Lockdown's guns to help turn the tide in his favor, but his own inventions never did, and I recall a line of dialogue about him wanting to patent that sword/gun and sell it-yeah, maybe that would have changed his situation, but it wasn't his technology, much like OP told the Stanley Tucci character at KSI;

Charlie - She is an awesome character: we learn that she is dealing with the loss of her Father, as well as the aftermath of having a Stepparent, and other realistic teenage situations such as being a unique kid in school dealing with a bunch of knucklehead asshole classmates, and more importantly, Charlie is not a damsel in distress-she is a very proactive, resourceful and self-made Young Woman who always uses her intellect to handle her issues, as well as a kick-ass mechanic restoring a beautiful old-school Corvette (would be cool if the Corvette was actually a Female Autobot, but I can dream).

We also see an arc with Charlie, especially with the whole issue she had with diving. Also, her relationship with BB was refreshing-it's evident the writers instilled a great deal of care into fleshing that out, as well as BB-and I love Travis' justification behind why Charlie moved on at the end of the movie. . .If there had been more folks like Travis and Christina involved in the previous 5 TF cinematic installments, the film franchise would have fared much better and it would have been a much more memorable and highly-regarded film series. . .

 

I still don’t understand the love for Charlie I mean she is a nice girl and all but no where close to be a super complex character as people pretend that she is

 

She isnt an asshole like Sam or Cade, which I think plays a part in that.

 

I can’t speak for everyone, but I’m conflating being a good movie with being a good movie.

She’s not super complex. Her character is pretty much on the surface at all times. But she’s far better written and acted, and she actually has an emotional subplot that’s genuine.

You don’t have to be super deep or complex to be good. The whole movie is pretty surface level, but it’s quaint and earnest in that way. It’s not trying to be super complex, it’s just trying to have real characters with genuine emotions, something Bay never even attempted.

 

The fact that she isn't needlessly complex is part of why people like her. She's just well written, she's a teen grieving the loss of her father and meeting Bumblebee helps her deal with her grief and reconnect with her family and the world around her.

Simple but effective and because she had good writing and was part of the plot (hide bumblebee, save bumblebee, deactivate beacon) she's the best MC we've gotten so far.

 

Sam was too whiny, and killing two of the top Decepticons certainly did him no favor in the eyes of fans.

Cade was an abrasive dick to everyone, human and alien alike.

Charlie was the first female protagonist character in the films who isn't used for cheap butt-shots. (Discounting Isabelle)

 

I haven't been a teen for over 20 years. As the father of a teen myself, I now relate more to Charlie's parents.
That might actually make an interesting movie, a couple who end up in the midst of the TF war and whose primary goal is protecting their children from getting involved...

 

QFT! "Metal Crackhead", LMAO!!!      

 

I liked that they didn’t make Ron out to be a stereotypical, one-dimensional Douchebag Step-Dad. And the mother was likable, sympathetic figure as well (doesn’t hurt that Pamela Adlon is an outstanding actor).

Those are easy tropes for a writer to lean on. But by NOT writing them as cartoonishly mean or clueless, Charlie’s frustrations with them automatically became more nuanced.

Charlie would have been much less interesting if her mom and Ron had been written superficially.

 

Her plot, the whole clique of mean girls, not fitting in, and her rebelliousness felt like something out of your cliché 80s film…But it worked! I loved that the film itself not only took place in the 80s but it felt like an 80s film. I’m hoping they continue to have it set in the 80s because I feel like it added so much charm.

For me, she took up a lot of screen time, much like any other human character in these films, but her relationship with BumbleBee felt more genuine than Sam’s. With Sam it was all about Sam, he talked the entire time and BumbleBee would just beep sadly or happily. Now, he did the same here, but Charlie actually seemed to care about BumbleBee’s character and feelings. She was interested in him and helping him despite her dealing with her own issues. The relationship felt more like a friendship over “A boy and his car” or in some cases ‘pet’ since Sam liked to talk to BumbleBee like he was scolding a pet.

Charlie’s lack of being happy was understandable, her family wasn’t annoying ether. Sam and Cade seemed like they’re characters were looking for ‘something more’ or ‘I’m meant for greatness’ Charlie was still mourning the loss of her father and wanted to be herself again, much more human and understandable. At first, I was irritated she was this angry teenager character, but as the film went on, we saw glimpses of the real her and we learned that she was that way for a reason.
Could she have been better, yes, was she better than Sam and Cade…in my opinion absolutely. Good interaction with the robot cast is all I ask for. No one-sided conversations. I would love for Charlie to return in a sequel.

 

I think a lot of it is due to the fact she wasn't in a explosion filled robot hump fest of a farce to the franchise.

 

No please no more 80s movies one was enough we don’t need anymore nostalgia pandering what the need to do is have an establish identity

 

Time for a 90s movie!

 

Not a bad idea at all