Truthfully, because he's the main Autobot who got the most focus in the original film. He was the catalyst to everything and the film spent more time on him.

 

I'm not really a fan, but I'm not someone who wants to see him burn alive. *Cough Aimless Missfire Cough* I think his design is pretty cool, and he gets the nice and cool looking kill shots. I'm still watching the film however.

 

This is one of those things where fans and the general public see things very differently. Frankly, I see things very differently from the fans as well.

With kids and teens and what not, Bumblebee is very popular. Even my parents, who are in their mid sixties and low seventies, found Bumblebee memorable from the film or two they saw.

Honestly, my only issue with the guy is his unexplained voice abilities and "breaking apart ability" in TLK. Otherwise he's fine. I like his usage of the radio clips in the place of a voice, his relationship with Sam in the first movie, his warnings to Sam about Alice and talking to Sam around the fire in RotF, and his rivalry with Drift and immaturity and insecurity in AoE, and some of his fights.

Get shrekt!

 

Girls and kids love him.

 

He was the most attainable car.

 

Personally, I like how expressive he is despite not having a voice or a visible mouth. The movie design is very animate, and you can tell from his eyes and the movement of his door kibble what he's feeling at any given time. We are given time with Bumblebee and we get to know his personality, even though he's mute.

This could just be me, something else I like about Movie (and Prime) Bumblebee that was never really touched upon in the movies is that he can be an example that some injuries can't be easily recovered from.

 

Yeah, just noticed too how sad his eyes were when he's captured by sector 7 in TF1. Never noticed the door kibble too.

I now think that he's also an example that "action is more important than words"

 

(Cracks knuckles) here we go..

People like Bumblebee because he's the best transformer ever! Bumblebee represents what's best about the Autobots: he's friendly, loyal, and trustworthy; everything a best friend should be. He also understands the meaning of 'No Sacrifice, No Victory' better than anyone. He was tortured by Sector 7 after risking his own safety to save Sam. He's had his legs blown off protecting the Allspark. He was almost destroyed by Soundwave while fighting to protect the humans. He risked his life again to remind Optimus he's a good guy. He even lost his own voice in the line of duty! That's a hero, something you can't say about Crosshairs or Drift.

Bumblebee not only cares about humans, but he tries to make friends with them as well. He was only required to protect Sam, but Bumblebee goes out of his way to help him get the girl, rescans so Sam looks cool, and stays with him even after the job is done, like a true friend. He represents the bond between humans and Autobots. Sure, he can act immature sometimes, but only when someone picks on him or his friends directly. While he's had to threaten people before, he never means to hurt them.

Bumblebee is also awesome- he turns into a cool car, and kicks considerable butt as well. I never had a favorite transformer until I saw Transformers (2007), and right then I knew it was Bumblebee. I've purchased countless Bumblebee toys, took a picture with him at Universal Studios, and chose my car because it looks like him.

I think the hatred for Bumblebee in the fandom results more from the over- saturation of Bumblebee merchandise, or a a result of fans wanting to see more of other characters. That or his lack of voice, but that is to show his bond with Sam going beyond words. Plus, they fixed that now. But I don't think the hate comes too much from the character himself.

The popularity of the movies have really made Bumblebee a household name, and he's become kind of a pop culture icon to many people, even outside the fandom. I'm sure a lot of people feel the same way as I do about him.

 

Very good explanation

 

He's been a fan favorite since the G1 days who grew up into a total badass!

 

I like Bumblebee, but he was never my favorite. I think they overrated him.

 

Great post overall, but I do consider Drift and Crosshairs heroes in their own ways, because the Pathetic Dirty Foursome come through in the end despite their flaws.

Perhaps some of them are anti-heroic, but they're no less noble than any other Autobots in my book.

While I think this is largely true, I also think it's true the fandom for the most part wants robot rosters dominated by the same overused robots anyway.

What are the most common complaints about the more recent films? That certain characters are dead or changed too much from what they were. The bulk of this fandom doesn't want casts dominated by underused or brand new characters. They want more focus on the likes of Ratchet, Starscream, Soundwave, Sideswipe, Ironhide, and Shockwave: Transformers that are just as overused in the brand as many fans would argue Bumblebee is. The fandom for the most part prefers recreation and regurgitation of previous fiction over continuations of existing fiction. I happen to prefer the latter by a long shot, which is why my views are often at odds with both fans of previous continuities and the earlier Bay films even if I happen to like both.

Still, I'd rather they continue the focus with Bee for the simply fact that he is undeniably popular with the general public, and that is what is important. We hardcore fans are a tiny, trivial minority. It's the general public's interests that are far more important.

 

Bumblebee was a sidekick like the Wonder Twins or Snarf. Nobody really liked him, we just tolerated him in the story. He did/said the dumb stuff so the real bots didn't have to, and thus created/paced a story.

In later years, the job was passed to Wheelie.

That Bumblebee is somehow seen as the face of TFs is ridiculous. The new incarnation is overdone due to Hasbro and Bay. There are many, many more interesting bots out there. But then, Bay wasn't really interested in telling stories anyway.