History Franchise / TransformersGeneration1

The show was initially written by Marvel Productions, and later Marvel in collaboration with Sunbow. Animation was done mostly in Japan by Creator/ToeiAnimation[[note]]with assistance from Creator/AshiProductions, Creator/KanameProductions, Creator/TransArts, and Creator/TMSEntertainment; among other companies[[/note]] and in South Korea by Creator/{{AKOM}} (In one of their earlier projects), Mihahn and Creator/SeiYoung, with several by an unknown studio.

The show was initially written by Marvel Productions, and later Marvel in collaboration with Sunbow. Animation was done mostly in Japan by Creator/ToeiAnimation[[note]]with assistance from Creator/AshiProductions, Creator/KanameProductions, Creator/TransArts, and Creator/TMSEntertainment; among other companies[[/note]] and in South Korea by Creator/{{AKOM}} (In one of their earlier projects), Mihan and Creator/SeiYoung, with several by an unknown studio.

The movie would not be released in Japan until 1989, and so an {{OAV}} by the name of ''Scramble City'' was made to introduce the new characters. As a consequence of the movie not being released until 1989, several characters who died in the movie (ie Prowl, Ironhide, and Wheeljack) inexplicably show up alive in the Japanese-exclusive series ''The Headmasters'' and ''Victory'' (later fiction, though, would rectify this by saying that yes, Prowl and Wheeljack still die in the Japanese cartoon continuity, but they were replaced by their dimension-hopping counterparts from the BT World; still doesn't explain Ironhide's cameo, though).

As well as ''Diaclone'' and ''Microchange'', quite a few other, completely unrelated transforming robot toys were brought into the ''Transformers'' line by Hasbro. For example, Jetfire is easily recognisable as a Valkyrie from ''Anime/{{Macross}}'' (with the original commercial advertising him being the only time one was depicted as such in non-''Macross'' fiction). This served to make the toys even more eclectic. As part of Hasbro and Takara's distribution agreement, toys not originally made by Takara (in particular the [[Creator/BandaiNamcoEntertainment Bandai]] licensed ones) could only receive limited screentime to avoid advertising rival products at best. But most of them were simply not adapted into the show and instead were utilized in the comics.

** The ''Diaclone'' pilots were intentionally taken out of the toyline because Hasbro believed the robots themselves as sentient beings at war with each other was more marketable than the original's BadassArmy that could pilot several vehicles that can transform into ''Franchise/{{Gundam}}''-esque mechs ad at war with the Warudos, an invading alien species using their own robots (the Insecticons originated from them.

* AdaptationalVillainy: Some ''Diaclone'' and ''Microman'' figures were initially heroes in their own toyline(Starscream for example is based off of Jet Robo in the ''Diaclone'' line). Famously, the ''Microman'' gun transformer would become ''Megatron''.

What made the show really special was the incredible quality of the voice acting. The huge number of characters made it difficult to firmly establish a distinct personality for each one. However, each character had a distinct, very fitting voice, which subtly indicated their personalities without needing to devote an entire episode to them. In fact, Peter Cullen's role as Optimus Prime was so respected that, when it was announced he would be reprising his role in 2007's live-action ''Film/{{Transformers}}'' movie, fans immediately stopped complaining and started supporting the film (in fact, the SugarWiki/AndTheFandomRejoiced trope was for a short time known as The Cullen Effect due to this).

They also began publishing a new continuity, alongside stories based on ''WesternAnimation/BeastWars'', the [[Film/{{Transformers}} live-action films]] and ''[[WesternAnimation/TransformersAnimated Animated]]''. In a break with tradition, this series sees the Transformers as recent arrivals on Earth instead of having been in stasis for several million years beforehand.

This era of the IDW brand ended with an [[ComicBook/TheTransformersIDW ongoing book set]] three years after the events of "All Hail Megatron". The series was written by Mike Costa, and featured the return of Don Figueroa as artist. However, the positive fan reaction to Figueroa as an artist was quickly diminished when he revealed a new, vaguely [[Film/{{Transformers}} movie]]-ish art style that has been the subject of very violent backlash. The main series is accompanied by several concurrent mini-series, such as solo stories focusing on Bumblebee and Ironhide, ''ComicBook/TheTransformersLastStandOfTheWreckers'' and the CrossThrough ''Infestation''.

* The Spark (A cybertronian soul) was not a thing in the original G1. In the comics at least there were the Brain module that held the Transformers personality that worked more like an advanced computer chip. As such, some of the physiology does not line up with later depictions. One example is the infamous Marvel Transformers story where Optimus Prime dies. To save him a human uploads his brain into a floppy disk. This is not something you would be able to do with a spark.

The show was initially written by Marvel Productions, and later Marvel in collaboration with Sunbow. Animation was done mostly in Japan by Creator/ToeiAnimation[[note]]with assistance from Creator/AshiProductions, Creator/KanameProductions, Creator/TransArts, and Creator/TMSEntertainment; among other companies[[/note]] and in South Korea by Creator/{{AKOM}} (In one of their earlier projects) and Creator/SeiYoung, with several by an unknown studio.

The show was initially written by Marvel Productions, and later Marvel in collaboration with Sunbow. Animation was done mostly in Japan by Creator/ToeiAnimation[[note]]with assistance from Creator/AshiProductions, Creator/KanameProductions, and Creator/TMSEntertainment; among other companies[[/note]] and in South Korea by Creator/{{AKOM}} (In one of their earlier projects) and Creator/SeiYoung, with several by an unknown studio.

The comic was initially set in the main MarvelUniverse, but soon moved to a separate AlternateUniverse along with the ''[[ComicBook/GIJoeARealAmericanHeroMarvel G.I. Joe]]'' comic to prevent ExecutiveMeddling from Hasbro interfering with Marvel's own characters. It was initially written by Bob Budiansky; he and his successor, Creator/SimonFurman, would end up having more influence on the overall ''Transformers'' mythos than anyone else. During this time, instead of simply telling the artists what to draw, the writers simply gave them a plot outline and let them draw a strip. Budiansky and Furman then took the strip and added SpeechBubbles; this arrangement meant that the artists had much more influence on the story than is common nowadays.

The comic was initially set in the main MarvelUniverse, but soon moved to a separate AlternateUniverse along with the ''Franchise/GIJoe'' comic to prevent ExecutiveMeddling from Hasbro interfering with Marvel's own characters. It was initially written by Bob Budiansky; he and his successor, Creator/SimonFurman, would end up having more influence on the overall ''Transformers'' mythos than anyone else. During this time, instead of simply telling the artists what to draw, the writers simply gave them a plot outline and let them draw a strip. Budiansky and Furman then took the strip and added SpeechBubbles; this arrangement meant that the artists had much more influence on the story than is common nowadays.

-->''Main Articles: ComicBook/TheTransformersMegaseries, ComicBook/TheTransformersAllHailMegatron, ComicBook/TheTransformersLastStandOfTheWreckers, Comicbook/TheTransformersIDW, ComicBook/TheTransformersRobotsInDisguise, ComicBook/TheTransformersMoreThanMeetsTheEye'', ''ComicBook/Transformers2019''

* {{Crossover}}: The ''Transformers'' comic book had several crossovers with ''Franchise/GIJoe'' and one with Comicbook/SpiderMan, not to mention the appearance of several characters in other continuities, like ComicBook/DeathsHead and Octus.

The original Japanese toys were not intelligent robots but remote controlled mechs used by human pilots. Under the ''Transformers'' brand every toy was a sentient robot, and the story was written to accommodate that. Characters were created that eventually became legend and are closely associated with further ''Transformers'' continuity lines. Such include [[TheCaptain Optimus Prime,]] [[BigBad Megatron,]] [[TheStarscream Starscream,]] [[KidAppealCharacter Bumblebee]] and others who form general character types.

The comic was initially set in the main MarvelUniverse, but soon moved to a separate AlternateUniverse along with the ''ComicBook/GIJoe'' comic to prevent ExecutiveMeddling from Hasbro interfering with Marvel's own characters. It was initially written by Bob Budiansky; he and his successor, Creator/SimonFurman, would end up having more influence on the overall ''Transformers'' mythos than anyone else. During this time, instead of simply telling the artists what to draw, the writers simply gave them a plot outline and let them draw a strip. Budiansky and Furman then took the strip and added SpeechBubbles; this arrangement meant that the artists had much more influence on the story than is common nowadays.

* {{Crossover}}: The ''Transformers'' comic book had several crossovers with ''ComicBook/GIJoe'' and one with Comicbook/SpiderMan, not to mention the appearance of several characters in other continuities, like ComicBook/DeathsHead and Octus.

* MerchandiseDriven: To an even more ludicrous degree than Toys/GIJoe. Apparently, Hasbro wanted to repeat the formula used for the latter.

The show was initially written by Marvel Productions, and later Marvel in collaboration with Sunbow. Animation was done mostly in Japan by Creator/ToeiAnimation and in South Korea by Creator/{{AKOM}} (In one of their earlier projects) and Creator/SeiYoung, with several by an unknown studio.

The show was initially written by Marvel Productions, and later Marvel in collaboration with Sunbow. Animation was done mostly in Japan by Creator/ToeiAnimation and in South Korea by Creator/{{AKOM}} (In one of their earlier projects), with several by an unknown studio.

** The original 1984 characters had a lot of "superpowers" that were inherent to them and not the property of a weapon they had -- Frenzy [[MakeMeWannaShout had devastating sonic powers]], Skywarp could [[VillainTeleportation teleport]], Windcharger had MagnetismManipulation, etc. As the line (and overall franchise) continued, these became rarer among characters.

* AdaptationalVillainy: Some ''Diaclone'' and ''Microman'' figures were initially heroes in their own toyline. Famously, the ''Microman'' gun transformer would become ''Megatron''.

The first season was broadcast on {{Saturday morning|Cartoon}}s, and followed the above formula to a T. When it proved extremely popular, the show was given a weekday afternoon timeslot for the second season . This season still followed established conventions, but also mixed things up occasionally with excursions to alien worlds. A large number of new characters were introduced in this season, with the result that very few episodes featured all the characters. Instead, each episode focused on a few Autobots and Decepticons as a way of giving exposure to all the toys without making the episodes confusing. During this period, many characters had DayInTheLimelight episodes; these are often considered to be the best episodes made.

After this, the American and Japanese continuities diverged. In America, a fourth season began, and pretty much ended, with a three-part episode entitled "The Rebirth". During these episodes, the action moved to the planet Nebulos and introduced the new Headmaster and Targetmaster toys as partnerships between Transformers and the native Nebulans. However, this season was aborted after the introduction despite some promising new characters and plot details, primarily due to waning interest in the cartoon and ''WesternAnimation/TeenageMutantNinjaTurtles1987'' poised to catastrophically cut into ''Transformers''' market share.

The comic has so far consisted of a series of [[ComicBook/TheTransformersMegaseries Limited Series]], primarily written by Simon Furman. In this continuity, the disguise aspect of transformation is emphasised for once, as Transformers use it to infiltrate the societies of other planets and manipulate governments to their own ends. Combat is much more cloak-and-dagger than usual, with both sides going to great measures to avoid detection - at least, that's the plan.

The current main series is an [[ComicBook/TheTransformersIDW ongoing book set]] three years after the events of "All Hail Megatron". The series is written by Mike Costa, and features the return of Don Figueroa as artist. However, the positive fan reaction to Figueroa as an artist was quickly diminished when he revealed a new, vaguely [[Film/{{Transformers}} movie]]-ish art style that has been the subject of very violent backlash. The main series is accompanied by several concurrent mini-series, such as solo stories focusing on Bumblebee and Ironhide, ''ComicBook/TheTransformersLastStandOfTheWreckers'' and the CrossThrough ''Infestation''.

* {{Frankenslation}}: The original toyline rebranded the unrelated ''Microchange'' and ''Diaclone'' toylines. ''[[RecursiveImport Transformers]]'' was soon re-imported to Japan, where ir proved much more popular than the source toys.

In June 2023, Skybound Entertainment released thru Creator/ImageComics ''ComicBook/VoidRivals'', a highly anticipated sci-fi comic written by Creator/RobertKirkman about two hostile alien races trapped on the same planet. Midway thru the first issue it is discovered that they share the planet with Jetfire, and the issue's back matter announced that the book is set in the Energon Universe alongside an upcoming TF book and two ''G.I. Joe''-based titles.

In June 2023, Skybound Entertainment released thru Creator/ImageComics ''ComicBook/VoidRivals'', a highly anticipated sci-fi comic written by Creator/RobertKirkman about two hostile alien races trapped on the same planet. Midway thru the first issue it is discovered that they share the planet with Jetfire, and the issue's back matter announced that the book is set in the Energon Universe alongside an upcoming [[ComicBook/Transformers2023 TF book]] and two ''G.I. Joe''-based titles.

In 2023, Skybound Entertainment released thru Creator/ImageComics ''ComicBook/VoidRivals'', a highly anticipated sci-fi comic written by Creator/RobertKirkman about two hostile alien races trapped on the same planet. Midway thru the first issue it is discovered that they share the planet with Jetfire, and the issue's back matter announced that the book is set in the Energon Universe as well as an upcoming [[ComicBook/Transformers2023 ''Transformers'' book]] and two ''G.I. Joe''-based titles.