One thing that just doesn't sit well with me is when I see Beast Wars characters put into series with Autobots and Decepticons. For example Black Arachnia, Waspinator, Cheetor, and Rattrap in Animated. I don't get angry or anything, I just kind of sigh at it.

And I think I realized a good analogy as to why I dislike this. I've always seen the Beast Wars characters as Transformers: The Next Generation. Putting these characters into the Great War era is analogous to putting Data, Picard, Worf, or the Borg into the original Star Trek series. Yeah they are great characters but they aren't needed in that time frame.

I just thought I'd share this wonderful analogy I realized.

 

I find it odd, but not enough to have lasting problems with it.

I'd still personally be inclined to relegate Beast-era characters to the future of whatever continuity is being represented and then use them as "guest stars", for lack of a better term, having traveled back in time to either change history (Predacons) or prevent history from being changed (Maximals).

 

Exactly how I would prefer to see them as well.

 

Dunno, they have to have interacted with Autobots and Decepticons in some universe even if it is not the G1 Continuity (no telling how it will be in the new aligned continuity).

Besides - I see it the same as having the Dinobots, Ravage etc in there except the beast modes would be easier to hide on modern earth then giant metal kitties...

 

Yeah, putting next-gen characters into original universe situations is a terrib-



... Nevermind

 

A time travel episode is fine.

What rubs me wrong is say having Data be a permanent crew member in the JJ Abrams reboot of the Original series.

But this isn't a big issue for me. Just something slightly bugs me.

 

I get where you're coming from. The thing is though the situation that lead to TNG taking place a century after TOS, and DS9 taking place on a space station or any of the other large change in set ups in ST came about from the necessities of writing. You can only mine a single set up for so long before you run out of ideas, so sooner or latter you create a new status-quo.

However well I don't need to tell you that TF exists for toy selling first writing, some where further down on the list. The radical changes seen in BW, right down to new faction names, was because they HAD to. No studio was going to do Autobots vs Decepticons. not when the last new episode involving that set up had been nine years ago, and the recent "re-mastered" reruns hadn't done well AND the toys had also under performed.

But now? the brand is stronger then ever! their not going to throw away the brand strength of the names Autobots and Decepticons by having a show were they're replaced, and they might be even hesitant to say it happens in a series. Similarly having a show in the far future where Optimus Prime is retried and the original Megatron has probably been kiled for his war crimes? Potential brand suicide! And again they might feel the same about having characters form such a future show up.

 

I also sometimes feel like something is "off" with Beast Era characters in a different series, but it's not because they're appearing alongside the usual Autobots and Decepticons. No, it's because they have vehicle alt-modes. Feels a little weird seeing them without a beast mode, even though I know that wasn't their original form.

 

If they were to do it in a Cabel/Bishop/Target 2006 manner, that would be cool, but then Beast wars worked so well because it was a complete reinvention.

Homages like Rattletrap in Animated are nice to see since it shows hasbro on't ignore it completely.

 

Not to mention TFCC Cheetor! Not quite the same thing I know, but I'll take whatever I can get  

 

Wish I could be that optimistic. I feel that that doesn't say anything about Hasbro, seems more to be reflection of the writers of Animated.

Honestly at the moment I don't think Hasbro has the time for BW. The animal alt-modes alone really go against the current vehicle based brand image. I'm sure they're keeping an eye on them, in case the tide should ever turn against the brand again. But I think that might be about it, "open in case of emergency" as it were.

 

I don't expect any sort of Beast Wars series for the foreseeable future. I just don't care for the characters being put into "past".

I would LOVE however if on Transformers Prime a time travel story occurred where we see a glimpse of the Beast Wars. Like an issue of Batman where they visit the future and see Terry flying around. (If you get this reference please join me in a bro-fist.)

 

Like said I severely doubt we'd see even that. Animal alt-modes under any circumstances are in simply not wanted at the moment.

 

I guess I'm in the minority but I liked that Blackarachnia showed up in Animated. However, I think Hasbro seems to have changed it's mind towards that, IMO that's why Airachnid is called that and not BA

 

I don't see it that way. Airachnid is nothing like Black Arachnia. I'm very glad they didn't name her Black Arachnia because the character we have isn't a good Black Arachnia.

 

Unless an odd little man is going to show up in a blue police box to tell Waspinator do you want to see something cool then I agree it just seems really weird having Beast Wars characters pop up in other shows. It would be like watching a World War II movie and all of a sudden George Washington shows up on his horse and starts beating the snot out of Nazis.

In an ideal world maybe Beast Wars one of these days will end up like something they did with Thundercats. A new series with nods to the past that lets the original series stand on it's own. I mean Hasbro does have a lot of time slots to fill if they want more new programing in the future instead of reruns of past series.

 

Great, now I want to see George Washington on horseback fighting Nazi with a lightsaber.  

 

Will this do for now?



I think TF: Animated showed us that BW characters can be integrated into a normal cars and planes TF series and still work. I mean, there were insecticons and animal transformers even in G1, so why not some of the beast wars characters. It's important not to have the same characterizations over and over, rehashing beast wars in that regard, however. But then the same could be said for every iconic characterization in TF history.

 

I admire your optimism. Well there are tons of ways to deal with a Beast modes based show, that could both call back to the original greatly or go in a whole new direction, (Hell if done right beast modes on modern day earth would gave a radically different feel to that common set up!) I can't see it happing in the next oh,anytime soon unless something HUGE happens.

 

i'd prefer to see more of the beast era TF in anyway i can but would prefer they stayed in their own ear, with it being a mix of autobot and maximal. you know something like a "universe" type deal