History YMMV / Bumblebee

* SugarWiki/MostWonderfulSound: Soundwave's trademark synthetic voice, much to the delight of anyone who found his Doctor Claw voice from previous films too silly to be scary.

** The trailer's use of the Bobby Bolivia quote from the [[Film/{{Transformers}} first film]] as an emotional CallForward comes across as rather chortle-worthy, since [[HonestJohnsDealership Bolivia]] said it disingenuously as a means of trying to hock what he saw as a piece-of-crap car on a gullible teenager. But for many, the use of the line works anyway, helped in no small part by the fact that Bolivia was played by the late Creator/BernieMac.

* AwardSnub: The film got several nominations for Teen Choice Awards and UsefulNotes/{{Saturn Award}}s, with Creator/HaileeSteinfeld specifically nominated for Choice Action Movie Actress and Best Supporting Actress respectfully, both of which she lost out on to MCU nominees.

* JerksAreWorseThanVillains: The most disliked character in the film is Sally, Charlie's [[ParentalNeglectful neglectful mother]], who constantly criticizes her daughter for being "mopey" (despite having lost her father not too long ago), not to mention jumping to conclusions and punishing Charlie for stuff way out of her control. This is in contrast to [[BigBadDuumvirate Shatter and Dropkick]], who are quite enjoyable to watch thanks to their EvilIsCool status, and [[AlphaBitch Tina]], who is a clear unsympathetic HateSink.

* JerksAreWorseThanVillains: The most disliked character in the film is Sally, Charlie's neglectful mother, who constantly criticizes her daughter for being "mopey", not to mention jumping to conclusions and punishing Charlie for stuff way out of her control. This is in contrast to [[BigBadDuumvirate Shatter and Dropkick]], who are quite enjoyable thanks to their EvilIsCool status, and [[AlphaBitch Tina]], who is a clear unsympathetic HateSink.

* JerksAreWorseThanVillains: The BigBadDuumvirate of Shatter and Dropkick are willing to murder innocents and take over the world, but their EvilIsCool nature makes them very enjoyable to watch. Meanwhile, Tina is a cruel AlphaBitch who constantly ridicules Charlie and has a sick KickTheDog moment by mocking her ''[[SpeakIllOfTheDead dead father]]''. Fortunately, she gets her comeuppance when she gets her car totaled by Bumblebee.

** However, ''Rise of the Beasts'' definitely marks it and ''Bumblebee'' as a reboot with one extremely major change: [[spoiler: in the Bayverse films, it's revealed that Earth is the sleeping Unicron, the Chaos Bringer. In ''RotB'', Unicron is not Earth and is awake and active elsewhere in the galaxy]].

* CommonKnowledge: As stated [[https://tfwiki.net/wiki/Misconceptions_and_urban_legends_about_Transformers#Bumblebee here]] on Website/TFWikiDotNet, many people (including on Website/ThisVeryWiki) operate under the assumption that this film and its sequel ''[[Film/TransformersRiseOfTheBeasts Rise of the Beasts]]'' are a ContinuityReboot of the original five Michael Bay films, despite no official confirmation from Hasbro or Paramount of that fact. In the lead-up to ROTB, producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura consistently referred to at as a prequel to the 2007 film, and afterwards director Steven Caple, Jr. stated he considered the [[Film/Transformers2007 first]] [[Film/TransformersRevengeOfTheFallen three]] [[Film/TransformersDarkOfTheMoon movies]] as definitive canon to his film and the last two movies as an AlternateContinuity. That being said, ''Bumblebee'' and ''Rise of the Beasts'' can certainly be considered a new universe if it makes one happy, and setting the new films so far back in the past seems like a deliberate attempt to avoid too many [[ContinuitySnarl continuity snarls]].

* CommonKnowledge: As stated [[https://tfwiki.net/wiki/Misconceptions_and_urban_legends_about_Transformers#Bumblebee here]] on Website/TFWikiDotNet, many people (including on ThisVeryWiki) operate under the assumption that this film and its sequel [[Film/TransformersRiseOfTheBeasts Rise of the Beasts]] are a ContinuityReboot of the original five Michael Bay films, despite no official confirmation from Hasbro or Paramount of that fact. In the lead-up to ROTB, producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura consistently referred to at as a prequel to the 2007 film, and afterwards director Steven Caple, Jr. stated he considered the [[Film/Transformers2007 first]] [[Film/TransformersRevengeOfTheFallen three]] [[Film/TransformersDarkOfTheMoon movies]] as definitive canon to his film and the last two movies as an AlternateContinuity. That being said, Bumblebee and Rise of the Beasts can certainly be considered a new universe if it makes one happy, and setting the new films so far back in the past seems like a deliberate attempt to avoid too many [[ContinuitySnarls continuity snarls]].

** Bumblebee, who gets his voice and memory ripped out by a Decepticon, hunted by the government, and mercilessly tortured by Shatter and Dropkick.

* JerksAreWorseThanVillains: The BigBadDuumvirate of Shatter and Dropkick are willing to murder innocents and take over the world, but their EvilIsCool nature makes them very enjoyable to watch. Meanwhile, Tina is a cruel AlphaBitch who constantly ridicules Charlie and has a sick KickTheDog moment of mocking her ''[[SpeakIllOfTheDead dead father]]''. Fortunately, she gets her comeuppance when she gets her car totaled by Bumblebee.

* MoralEventHorizon: Shatter and Dropkick cross the line early in the film [[ColdBloodedTorture with their vicious murder]] of [[spoiler:Cliffjumper]].

** [[spoiler: Shatter and Dropkick finding the message that Optimus Prime's message, they state their intentions to call an army to Earth. Dropkick gleefully comments that they "Burn this whole planet to a cinder" while the normally comedic Dr. Powell is scared out of his wits and tries to warn Burns that the Decepticons plan to wipe all life on Earth.]]

* AndYouThoughtItWouldFail: The idea of a ''Transformers'' film focusing solely on Bumblebee, a character many had begun to see as a CreatorsPet, coming out only a year after ''Film/TransformersTheLastKnight'' was critically lambasted, [[BoxOfficeBomb a financial failure]], and seemingly [[FranchiseKiller killed the film series]], which was suffering {{Sequelitis}} ever since ''[[Film/TransformersRevengeOfTheFallen Revenge of the Fallen]]''. While the movie has a promising director by the name of Travis Knight, who directed ''WesternAnimation/KuboAndTheTwoStrings'', the writer has only written two other movies, ''Film/ShutIn'' and ''Film/Unforgettable2017'', both of which were poorly received. However, this began to fade out when more and more info about the movie started to come out, and by the time of release, people were outright optimistic. In the end, the film not only received mostly positive reviews, but it also has a ''much'' better score than ''WesternAnimation/TheTransformersTheMovie'', the movie that established ''most'' of the cinematic Transformers lore. As a result, after years of people hoping for the franchise to end, many are now clamoring for more Transformers movies along the lines of ''Bumblebee''.

** [[https://tfwiki.net/wiki/Transformers:_Bumblebee_Movie_Prequel Prequel comic]]: [[TheChessmaster Malignus]] is a Mini-Con whose small size belies his [[OmnicidalManiac apocalyptic ambitions]]. Leading a cabal of Decepticons during the UsefulNotes/ColdWar, Malignus intends to provoke a [[WorldWarIII nuclear conflict]] that would wipe out the human race, allowing him to plunder the planet for its Cybertronian treasures. Throughout the globe, Malignus organizes {{False Flag Operation}}s and assassinations of top officials from both Eastern and Western Blocs, raising tensions between the two sides. When Bumblebee and his human companions raid the Decepticons' base, Malignus tries to have them fed to his Sharkticons, and then fires a nuclear warhead directly at the Soviet Union when they escape and nearly foil his scheme.

* ClicheStorm: So far the biggest complaint from viewers is (like Christina Hodson's [[Film/ShutIn prior]] [[Film/Unforgettable2017 films]]) that the plot is rather predictable and has been done before, particularly in films like ''Film/ETTheExtraTerrestrial'' and ''WesternAnimation/TheIronGiant''. This is considered a case of Administrivia/TropesAreNotBad, though; many feel that even though the plot is predictable, it's coherent, straightforward, and understandable, with characters that the audience can get invested in, whereas the past films' plots were incredibly off-the-rails and impossible to follow with characters that were either unlikable, uninteresting, or just there for fanservice. As well as this, many of these clichés help to give the movie an 80s feel, fitting with its setting and the films' status as a love letter to the Transformers' original era.

* AuthorsSavingThrow:
** The character designs are less cluttered, have more definition, and resemble their G1 appearances more closely, but still keep the movie aesthetic. Specifically the designs are overall more solid and colourful, with recurring franchise characters bearing more traditional designs and looking less cluttered, but they still keep the level of mechanical detailing, fluid transformation schemes, and more "alien" aesthetic to the Transformers that the 2007 film first established.
** '''Many''' consider Creator/MichaelBay's lack of involvement[[note]]He's only executive producer here.[[/note]] with the film to be this, coupled with the fact that he's been replaced by Travis Knight as director. On a happier note, many expressed they felt this was a better role for Bay as his position put him in a space to offer advice and critique without having the pressure of directing also on top of him. And given Knight's glowing praise of Bay being able to shield him from outside meddling, seems to have worked out.
** Having a female protagonist and a female screenwriter was a relief considering the past films' sexist reputation. In the film itself, Charlie is treated as a three-dimensional character instead of EyeCandy and never subjected to MaleGaze, and what little sexual fanservice the film has is incredibly minor.
** The first trailer has solidified people's interest in this movie, based on how it dumps many of the problems fans had with earlier installments when Bay was in charge:
*** The trailer overall eschews explosions, sexual fanservice, and cheap humor, three of the biggest complaints fans and critics had about the series. Instead, it highlights Charlie and Bee's relationship along with the more classic character designs.
*** The transformation sequences and action scenes flow much better and are easier to follow, in contrast to the visual [[{{Pun}} Bay-os]] of the previous movies.
*** Bee is only about 12 feet tall in the first trailer, which much more believably matches the mass of a Volkswagen beetle-sized robot and addresses the franchise's omnipresent problems with scale [[https://tfwiki.net/wiki/Scale being all out of whack]] and the robots' sizes [[YourSizeMayVary being inconsistent]].[[note]]Bear in mind, though, that Starscream's original film design looked so awkward ''because'' his alt-mode was so large, he would tower over every other character in the films.[[/note]]
*** Similarly, Blitzwing's design greatly resembles a classic Seeker, with a reasonably shaped torso and with well-balanced proportions. To compensate for the mass, rather than follow Starscream's previous awkward design (that is to say make him as tall as he is wide with spindly limbs so that the mass of the jet would have somewhere to go at his chosen size), they just make him a ''giant'' compared to Bumblebee, which makes him genuinely terrifying.
** Charlie and Bee have a genuine, developing friendship, and the movie actually focuses on this. Sam mostly treated Bumblebee as something between a pet or a bodyguard, and what friendship moments they had were few and far between across three films (the first actually skipping past any kind of bonding to them being thrust into the quest for the Allspark). Due to the more relaxed nature of ''Bumblebee'''s plot, they have more time spent just being friends, allowing a greater degree of characterization.
** The film only has three Decepticons in major roles and the bad guys actually get some characterization and personality beyond the [[FlatCharacter blandly evil genericons]] and CannonFodder of every previous film. The Deceptions in general are depicted in a threatening manner, with even Optimus Prime having an OhCrap moment when Soundwave, Shockwave, and Starscream show up on the battlefield in the prologue and Shatter and Dropkick summoning the rest of the Decepticons to Earth is treated InstantWinCondition for the villains, whereas the previous films seemed to gradually lower how threatening the Decepticons are perceived over time. Even Blitzwing, who only shows up for a brief time, proves himself extremely dangerous and powerful, beating Bumblebee so badly it effects him for most of the film and takes his voice. Bumblebee only ''barely'' manages to kill him with a desperation move while his guard is down.
** While the film has a PG-13 rating like the other films, it's [[http://news.tfw2005.com/2018/11/13/transformers-bumblebee-movie-rated-pg-13-376496 only for violence]]. The sexual humor and general raunchiness of the original series isn't present. Charlie remains sensibly dressed throughout the film, and the skin she shows is in the typical 80s clothes that teens wore then; the only particularly sexualized characters in the movie are also completely OutOfFocus and greatly toned down.
** Many fans had become upset with the Bay films for turning Transformers into fodder for human soldiers, making it difficult to see the Decepticons as a legitimate threat to Earth and causing them to get overshadowed by the humans. In this movie, the only time the military ever gets the upper hand on a Transformer is when Bumblebee doesn't really want to hurt them and doesn't fight back. The moment he stops holding back, it's a CurbStompBattle. By extension, this shows how much of a threat the Decepticons will be if they get to Earth, especially since Bumblebee is one of the physically weakest Transformers.
** One semi-frequent complaint about the original ''Transformers'' movies was that Sam was a weak VanillaProtagonist whose main role was being TheChosenOne, while Mikaela's skillset, backstory, and arc [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter would have made her a much more interesting main character]]. Charlie completely forgoes [[TheChosenOne the 'special' backstory]] so she and Bumblebee have a more organic friendship, and though not exactly re-hashing Mikaela, Charlie is a mechanic like her, similarly taught by her father, and goes through an arc of overcoming her anxieties relating to her troubled family life and the loss of her father. In general, as far as human characters go, Charlie is generally considered a large step up from the past.
** In general, human characters tend to be TheScrappy in a lot of Transformers fiction (both the prior movies and many of the cartoons), due to either being the SpotlightStealingSquad or being [[TheLoad useless]]. While humans ''do'' outnumber the robots in the movie, they're generally only in a supporting capacity (meaning that compared to the vast majority of the human cast, Bumblebee, Shatter, and Dropkick both get far more focus and personality), with the only human characters receiving any real focus being Charlie and Burns, both of whom have received a great deal of praise. Charlie's close friendship with Bee, her useful skillset as a mechanic, and her genuinely likeable personality have made her one of the most popular human companions in the entire franchise and reaffirms ''why'' Autobots work with humans. Meanwhile, Burns's badassery, entertaining LargeHam disposition, and his HeroAntagonist role earned him a great deal of respect, as he manages to be effective in battle without overshadowing the Transformers or being useless.
** When the film was close to release and some time after, there were fan debates on if the movie was a prequel to the Michael Bay-directed ''Transformers'' movies, as it was initially developed as, or a complete reboot, as many wished it to be. Fortunately, putting an end to the debates, [[https://news.tfw2005.com/2019/02/16/transformers-brand-info-from-new-york-toy-fair-2019-fan-media-panel-hasbrotoyfair-383106#more-383106 Hasbro confirmed]] the movie was in fact the start of a new storytelling universe, something that--after much back and forth--producer Lorenzo Di Bonaventura later confirmed, making it the start of a reboot for the franchise.
** Many felt the Bay films had become fairly formulaic and cookie cutter in their plots, with there always being some macguffin or another important thing on Earth specifically the Decepticons or villain want. In this movie, there's nothing particularly special about Earth other than Optimus wanting the Autobots to hide out there, so the drama comes from the heroes trying to stop Shatter and Dropkick from signaling the Decepticons, who would undoubtedly curbstomp humanity in short order.
** Aside from trained combatants, a [[AssholeVictim cheating husband]], and [[spoiler:Dr. Powell]], very few humans die in this movie, with several fight scenes often taking place in locations with as few people as possible rather than a large city, likely to get around complaints about prior movies [[InferredHolocaust glossing over]] the mass civilian deaths and property damage that are due to humanity getting caught in the crossfire between the Autobots and Decepticons.

** The film only has three Decepticons in major roles and the bad guys actually get some characterization and personality beyond the [[FlatCharacter blandly evil genericons]] and CannonFodder of every previous film. The Deceptions in general are depicted in a threatening manner, with even Optimus Prime having an OhCrap moment when Soundwave, Shockwave, and Starscream show up on the battlefield in the prologue and Shatter and Dropkick summoning the rest of the Decepticons to Earth is treated InstantWinCondition for the villains, whereas the previous films seemed to gradually lower how threatening the Decepticons are perceived over time. Even Blitzwing, who only shows up for a brief time, proves himself extremely dangerous and powerful, beating Bumblebee so badly it effects him for most of the film and Bumblebee only ''barely'' kills him with a last second desperation attack while his guard is down.

** The film only has three Decepticons in major roles and the bad guys actually get some characterization and personality beyond the [[FlatCharacter blandly evil genericons]] and CannonFodder of every previous film. The Deceptions in general are depicted in a threatening manner, with even Optimus Prime having an OhCrap moment when Soundwave, Shockwave, and Starscream show up on the battlefield in the prologue and Shatter and Dropkick summoning the rest of the Decepticons to Earth is treated InstantWinCondition for the villains, whereas the previous films seemed to gradually lower how threatening the Decepticons are perceived over time.