I wouldn't be suprised if they went the TFA way. What with megatrons head getting ripped off. Yep, I can see the disembodied head in a lab, secretly getting rebuilt already...

 

Based on Trilogy Baddie Archetypes given above, you win this thread....BAZINGA!!!

 

The idea of Megatron corrupting Prime sounds like a good story arc. It wouldn't get in the way of whoever the new Decepticon leader is.

I truly resisted the idea of bringing Megs back, only to be killed again, but if he's a ghost that only lingers to torment Prime, then that might work.

 

That would have been a good idea, but I can't imagine a Transformers series where someone not named Megatron/Galvatron leading the Decepticons.

I bet they go with Galvatron if they continue the current continuity and not a reboot

 

  YES! Let's have Megatron be more than just a villain but evil incarnate.

 

Yeah, might as well rename it too... GOBOTS maybe?

C'mon dude. The only way I'd like to see the movies branch off is if they did an adaptation of DRIFT which, lets be honest will never happen... sad face.

 

You have a good point - what CAN be done with him? But in a way, you kinda answered that - both of those ideas combined actually line up with the tone I was looking for in my OP, the "Megatron is back! Can anything stop him?!" tone. And it somewhat still sets him up as a key villain (not necessarily the main villain) along with an entirely new Decepticon leader.

Basically my idea of Megatron coming back would imply just how powerful he can be and set up the aforementioned tone. Coming back in "spirit" is better than him physically returning, I guess; even beyond the grave, he still functions. From there you could say one of his side goals could be to prepare a new body so that he CAN be back in physical form, but to each their own on that.

 

Ironically, the Machine Robo franchise has been way more original at times than Transformers has ever dared to be.

I dunno, I'd like to see something completely new in a franchise about change. It's worked before, it can work again. Why not take advantage of the medium and the creative staff's strengths to really make the movies stand out?

 

Don't get me wrong... that would be awesome sauce, but ditch the current continuity?

 

I don't think you'd HAVE to, I mean, the place where DOTM left off lends itself pretty well to a dramatic shift in tone or story. Sam's an adult, the earth is safe, all the main enemies are horribly murderized, you'd have to take the story someplace different than the first three movies anyway, just to justify a sequel in the first place.

Of course, these same reasons, as well as a shift in cast/director (if that happens), make it a good time for a reboot as well.

For me, though, I think that the transformers franchise over the last... say 10 or so years, let's say during and since A/E/C, has fallen into something of a rut. It's become more about "well what old characters are we going to see again in this universe?" and "Okay, Megatron is defeated, when's Unicron going to come by and make him Galvatron?" and so on. Animated managed to breathe new life into a lot of the old concepts by putting a new spin on them, and the movies have been pretty good at that as well, but I'd like to see something new. It's been a long, long time since we saw a dramatic change in what the franchise could be, like Masterforce or Beast Wars were, and I think it's time for that.

So reboot or continuation, I care more that they be willing to do something we haven't seen before.

 

This. I need to see something different from Transformers and specifically the Transformers Movieverse. Transformers has become somewhat predictable if you will. Let's not bring Megatron back AGAIN and let's breathe new life into Transformers.

 

Keep these ideas coming, Rayzilla Prime and Balder!  

And with a decision like that, there would be a great wailing and gnashing of teeth.   Actually, there'd be a great wailing and gnashing of teeth if they relied on previously-used Transformers concepts anyway. Lose-lose situation. New ideas and concepts and stories? Fan outcry on not wanting change. Tried-and-true Transformers concepts? Fan outcry on the unoriginality.

 

Hey, guys, gathering a few ideas here, I threw them together to make an idea I know a lot of you are just gonna hate. But I thought I'd share it because I'm in the mood to kick the hornets' nest around.  

A group of Decepticons still fight for their cause. One of them is knowledgeable of a plan Megatron had left to him if Megatron should not survive - he takes a small device and slaps it on the back of Optimus Prime's head. Despite the device not being any kind of explosive, attempts to remove it would prove fatal to Optimus. Before anyone can discover a way to remove it, Optimus howls in pain and convulses, then goes silent. The device then falls off on its own...

Optimus begins to rise, his eyes glowing a dark red. Then he mutters in a deep, snarling (and familiar) voice - "ALL...HAIL...MEGATRON..."

After failing to subdue him, "Megatron" runs off, taking all of Prime's equipment (his trailer and such). Megatron returns to his remaining troops, where he modifies his newly acquired body, adding new armor and weaponry. He takes this time to become accustomed to his new form. Never has he felt this kind of power. He truly knows what it feels to be a Prime.

As a result, he declares that Megatron is a thing of the past. The era of Megatron has come to a close...but a new chapter awaits the turn of the page...

"I...am NEMESIS PRIME..."

-----

Okay, I'm done screwing with you guys.