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"Let's take a trip to the moon baby ..." -Godsmack
IN THIS EPISODE ...
In this week's episode of the Seibertron.com Twincast / Podcast, we are locked and loaded for Transformers 3: Dark of the Moon. Your host Counterpunch, and regular panel consisting of Tigertracks 24, Razorclaw, Jon3.0, and Seibertron himself discuss the good, the bad, and the ugly of the latest piece of Bayhem.
Here are this episode's topics:
General thoughts on the film
Voice-actor-palooza
New characters, or how the Wreckers didn't suck
Editing, or lack thereof
Groundbreaking visual effects
The Elephant in the room - Prime's characterization
Bragging Rights
Just a few reminders, though. This episode features light editing and contains language inappropriate for minors. Also, the episode is one giant spoiler for the movie, so if you haven't seen it yet, please wait to listen.
We're featuring our first ever "Listen To Win" Seibertron.com Twincast / Podcast contest! There are two secret keywords in the podcast. When you hear us mention them, head on over to our new Podcast Contest page and enter the keyword. You must be a registered member and signed in to enter the contest. We're giving away five IMAX 3D tickets for the first keyword, and one BotCon exclusive Kre-O poster for the second keyword. This contest is only open to Seibertron.com memberes located in the United States and Canada.
Seibertron.com and IMAX have teamed up to bring you "The Seibertron.com Enter To Win Sweepstakes". One lucky Transformers fan will win an awesome "Transformers Dark of the Moon" prize package from IMAX and Seibertron.com which includes:
- "Transformers Chronicles: G1 Optimus Prime and DOTM Optimus Prime" set from Takara Tomy
- a TF3 IMAX T-Shirt
- 2 IMAX pass vouchers
- and a trio of IMAX one-sheets (one from each TF IMAX release)
To enter this contest, please click here. All you have to do is be a member of Seibertron.com to enter!
Transformers: Dark of the Moon: An IMAX 3D Experience
Opening Date: June 29, 2011. Rated: PG-13. Runtime: 153 min.
Sam Witwicky (LaBeouf) taking his first tenuous steps into adulthood while remaining a reluctant human ally of Optimus Prime. The film centers around the space race between the U.S.S.R. and the USA, suggesting there was a hidden Transformers role in it all that remains one of the planet's most dangerous secrets. The villain of the third film will be Shockwave. Presented in IMAX® 3D, this film has been digitally re-mastered into the image and sound quality of The IMAX Experience®.
* This contest is only open to residents of the United States and Canada. If you are chosen as the winner of this prize package, you must be able to provide Seibertron.com and IMAX.com with your shipping information in order to receive the package from IMAX.
The deadline for entry is July 14th, 2011 by 11:59pm Central. Only one entry allowed per person. The winner will be drawn shortly thereafter and announced on Seibertron.com view our news section and Twitter and Facebook accounts.
IMAX tickets for Transfomers 3 can be purchased here.
Seibertron.com's review of Transformers Dark of the Moon: A Fan Perspective
Dark Side of the Moon
I saw Transformers Dark of the Moon tonight. I am not a professional reviewer. In fact, I strongly dislike writing reviews of any sort. Yet from time-to-time I am strongly inclined to share my thoughts in hopes that some of you might want to hear what the owner of one of the largest Transformers fansites has to say. So without further ado, here's what I've been writing for the past 5 hours.
First and foremost, if you don't want to read any spoilers, just stop reading this review. I don't hold back anything in my reviews. It's all here that I was able to jot down since midnight. If you want to be spoiled, please be my guest and read on ...
I'll cut to the chase right off the bat before I go into comments that only us Seibertronians will enjoy reading. If you're looking for the next Academy Award winner or Oscar winner for best picture, go see something else so we don't have to hear you complain about Transformers Dark of the Moon. If you are just looking for a great, fun summer blockbuster with TONS of action, lots of special effects, a pretty girl, some very cool cars (and robots too), and destruction galore -- you should, without a doubt, see this film. If you're a Transformers fan, then this is 100% required watching in my book.
Is this the best film in the world? No. Is it another very enjoyable summer blockbuster? Of course it is. Are there some problems with the storytelling? Yep. But hey … it's Transformers, it's not Revenge of the Fallen, and it was a fun couple of hours watching exciting craziness unfold before my very 3d weary eyes. While Transformers Dark of the Moon didn't surpass the first Transformers film from Michael Bay, it was better than Revenge of the Fallen. However, it shared some of the same flaws from which the previous movie suffered.
As I have said for the past four or five years, I think Michael Bay was the perfect person to be the director of the first Transformers live action film franchise. I liked some of his previous movies such as Bad Boys and Armageddon. Michael Bay is well known for delivering what he promises. He makes larger than life fun movies that appeal to a very large audience. I truly believe that it was his vision that helped introduce our beloved Transformers to people not as passionate about them as are we. The Transformers are a toy line that have overcome many obstacles over the years and have reached the point of becoming a household name and a billion dollar film franchise.
The special effects were absolutely truly amazing. I hope nothing I say in this fanboy "review" plays down the fact that this movie is an amazing feat of technology. The destruction of Chicago is an incredible technological achievement. It looked like they destroyed the city. And it wasn't far away or brief shots like Battle: Los Angeles. It was complex digitally animated (?) extremely detailed and extremely believable mass destruction bestowed upon the city I've called home for the past 9 years. It was truly amazing to see what they did to this city. The Transformers themselves seemed to be more detailed, but in a good way. I didn't have much difficulty telling who was who, even when they were fighting. There even seemed to be some improvements to the facial expressions on some of the robots. There was a moment with Optimus Prime's face that I remember seeing that I thought, hey that's cool that they got him to make that face, and the same with Ratchet in another scene. Academy Award winning movie or not, I think the special effects teams on this movie should get all sorts of awards. Kudos to all of the people who worked on special effects for this film.
If you wish to read the rest of my thoughts, simply highlight all of the text below by using your mouse, touchpad or by clicking "ctrl" + "a" on your keyboard to highlight all of the text.
Houston, we have a problem
A lot of the problems I had with this film was the fact that there was just too much going on. You shouldn't have to read the novel adaptation to understand what exactly was happening during the film. I think the overall story was good. It just needed to be tightened up, and some time that was given to other scenes could have been used to develop some of the characters.
Speaking of characterization, the Transformers continue to serve more as plot devices than actual characters that you know and love. There are few scenes which show the Transformers interacting on their own without humans and many of them get little character development. I love the Transformers characters, I've grown up with them, but without the bond that I have with these characters through three decades of reading the comics, watching the cartoons, and collecting the toys, I don't understand how the general movie going audience is supposed to have a bond with these characters (aside from Optimus Prime and maybe Bumblebee). It is my hope that now that the general world wide audience has been well introduced to the concept of the Transformers brand, that we can movie into a film franchise where the story can be told more from the Transformers' perspective(s) and less from the humans'.
The Chernobyl scene seemed like the they went through a lot of trouble for us, and the Autobots, to find out that the humans had a piece, or pieces, from the Ark on the moon. I get that they were trying to show us that the Russians had tried to harness the power, which caused the 1986 Chernobyl disaster, but it just came across as really forced to me and a very unnecessary scene.
Human Characters and Actors
Overall, the acting was pretty good. I don't recall thinking that anyone had any overly cheesy lines, or poor acting. The only one that really stood out to me was John Duhamel's Lennox. I wasn't a big fan of him in ROTF and I had much the same feeling about him in DOTM. It might have nothing to do with his character and is just how the writers are depicting him. I liked him in the first movie, and I've liked him in other movies that I've seen him in. Tyrese Gibson's Epps was better portrayed in DOTM than ROTF. Shia was much the same … I liked him in all three movies. I think he's a good actor. As much as I love John Turturro's "Agent" Simmons, I just felt his involvement was either too forced or unnecessary. I felt like he didn't really bring anything to the story. Yeah, he wrote a book, yeah, Bill O'Reilly interviewing Simmons because of his new book was entertaining, but not needed. If you felt his involvement was forced in ROTF, you'll definitely feel that way here.
The ever so beautiful Rosie Huntington-Whitely filled her role, and her tight dresses, perfectly. The Transformers film franchise triumphantly shows the world that all you need is some pretty t-and-a to play the out-of-his-league love interest for Sam Witwicky which could've continued to have been played by Megan Fox had she been able to keep her mouth shut. As a fan, I was happy to have Rosie onboard as Carly, who was the love interest of Spike Witwicky in the original 1980s animated cartoon series. I could've done without the gratuitous underwear/butt shot as she was walking up the stairs. Nice to look at in a men's magazine, just 100% unnecessary in a Transformers flick especially in the first ten minutes or so (though I'm sure many would argue that it's the same demographic).
I was both surprised and disappointed at how small John Malkovich's "Bruce Brazos" role was. His eccentric character went unused through the second half of the film. I thought that he and Patrick Dempsey were miscast and should have had the other's role. Malkovich could've played a perfect live action Dr. Arkeville, which would have been a very nice nod to the Transformers mythos. He even looked the part in my book. It would've even fit in perfectly with the whole "humans working for the Decepticons" plot. Patrick Dempsey's "Dylan Gould" was quite the villain surprisingly. Dempsey was definitely "McBadAss" in this film, and not so "McDreamy".
While I always enjoy the onscreen presence of Sam's parents (played by Kevin Dunn and Julie White), I felt the inclusion of Ron and Judy Witwicky was completely unnecessary for the story. Their roles were merely there for the comedic inconvenience and embarrassment that they cause their son.
Pleasant surprise "cameos": real-life Buzz Aldrin, Nixon, JFK, President Obama, and Fox News' Bill O'Reilly.
Toned Down Humor – Smaller Funny Bits
The sexual humor that many found offensive in the previous two films was significantly reduced in this movie. No more lubricating jokes, no more masturbation jokes, no more boxer jokes, no dog humping, no robot humping, no racially degrading comments. There was an oral sex innuendo from Carly to Sam, and a comment from Sam's mom about him being well-endowed, and a brief comment from Brains about Carly's panties or underwear drawer or something, but all of those comments were fairly brief and didn't seem to distract from what else was happening in the scene.
There were no words like "pussy" or "bitch" in this movie, which made me feel a little squeamish in ROTF. Either Wheelie or Brains says "dickhead" if I recall correctly, but it seemed rather appropriate.
The Sound of Music and the Music of Sound
Steve Jablonsky's music score for DOTM continued to please me. Nothing struck me as out-of-place, but at the same time nothing caught my attention emotionally like "The Arrival" from the first film's score. I was glad the "corny" music from the first and second film (cue the music from when Sam arrived at the lake in the first movie) was absent from the third. I'm looking forward to purchasing Jablonsky's score when it becomes available on CD. Linkin Park's "Iridescent" was present in the film if I recall correctly, and I think the Goo Goo Dolls "All That You Are" is as well.
The sound quality of the film seemed great. I don't recall my ears hurting nor do I feel like I was ever having difficulty understanding anything. I don't recall a G1 transformation sound, hopefully someone catches one and can point it out. No complaints here from me about the audio.
Cartoon References or Coincidence
Several elements of Dark of the Moon reminded me of the fan-favorite three part cartoon "The Ultimate Doom". In that story, the Decepticons enslave mind-controlled humans and bring Cybertron into Earth's orbit via a space bridge. In Dark of the Moon, fearful or deceived humans are working for the Decepticons who want to bring Cybertron to Earth in order to use our planet's resources to repower their homeplanet. Very similar concepts.
One other similar concept that seemed pulled from the cartoons, was the Autobots' exile from Earth. While this scene seemed huge, and the Autobot shuttle looked magnificent, I couldn't help but feel that Megatron's Master Plan pulled this exile concept off better somehow … or at least with more emotional attachment. The whole scene should've felt more powerful in my opinion.
Transformers Characters
My personal favorite character, Soundwave, is still Frank Welker's Dr Claw voice minus the voice processing we all know and love from the original cartoon. Soundwave was one of Megatron's right hand "bots", standing by his side during what will be a very memorable on screen moment that had all three big time Decepticons in the same scene standing side-by-side (Megatron, Starscream, and Soundwave). While I was initially disappointed to hear that he transformed into a Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG in DOTM, his role as Decepticon spy was served just as well by going undercover posing as Carly's car, which her Decepticon loving boss gave her as a "gift". His robot mode looked awesome and he has an awesome moment battling the Autobots before he gets slagged.
Laserbeak speaks, to which I feel indifferent about it. I kept having moments of nostalgia from the Japanese version of the original Transformers cartoons when Laserbeak and Ravage would speak. He's a cool little character that really kicks some butt in this film (albeit mostly humans, more about that later). He transforms into a multitude of objects in the movie. It'd be neat to see Hasbro come up with some other toy versions of Laserbeak. He even transformed into a small human sized red Bumblebee-looking robot to pose as a playmate to a daughter of one of his victims. There was an awesome nostalgic moment when Laserbeak rested/landed upon Soundwave's right arm. While he doesn't look exactly like the Laserbeak of old, I think this is a great representation of this character in live action form.
Mirage was named Dino (pronounced "dee-no"), who looked very awesome. I mean, what Transformers fan doesn't love having an Autobot that transforms into a sexy, red Ferrari 458 Italia? Sucked seeing him share onscreen time with Sideswipe, who's basically the same character, when a red sports car should have been Sideswipe all along.
Wheeljack was named Q (Cue? Que?), who was a very disappointing addition to the Autobot roster. It wasn't so much the characterization (or lack thereof; who's onscreen role could've easily been given to the Autobot weapons specialist Ironhide), but the head design basically looked like a robotic skull with Albert Einstein's facial features and hair. I'm assuming they were trying to convey that this is an Autobot scientist or a really smart Transformer, but I'd like to think that most of the movie going audience is above having things shoved in their faces like that. The original Wheeljack has such a unique head design that it was a shame to not see that translate to the big screen. If you didn't like him either, don't worry, Soundwave executes him later in the film during a rather tense moment when it seems like all is lost to the Autobots.
For as big of a deal as it seems everyone has made about the Autobot subgroup known as the "Wreckers" (Leadfoot, Roadbuster, and Topspin), they really had minor roles for the most part. They were part of the crew working alongside the humans on the Autobots ship which they were exiled in, and the other major part they had was going with Bumblebee into the city when they ripped apart a Decepticon pilot who had crashed, and saving Optimus Prime when he got tangled in some wires after battling the Driller that was attacking the falling skyscraper Sam and the other humans were trapped in. I didn't think I'd like how Leadfoot looked onscreen, but he was easily one of my favorite product placements in the film. While I couldn't pinpoint any connection with the Wreckers voices, I can assure all of you that they did NOT have redneck voices which was a huge relief to me.
Ratchet was in it considerably more than ROTF, however he still had few lines. Same voice actor as far as I could tell from the first film. He also seemed to have a modified face, but I'd have to get another look at it. He was with Optimus when they went to the Ark.
Sideswipe had at least one line, perhaps more. I felt like his onscreen time was replaced with that of Mirage Dino.
Sentinel Prime, voiced by Star Trek's Leonary Nimoy (who also voice Galvatron in the 1986 animated Transformers film), was one of the few Transformers to receive some characterization. His character underwent a harsh transformation from being Optimus Prime's predecessor and hero to being one of the major antagonists in the film. His ideals seemed to align more with that of Megatron and his Decepticons than with the heroic Autobots. He seemed far more concerned with saving the Cybertronian race and planet, which seems like all movie Megatron has wanted. There was no foreshadowing of Sentinel's betrayal. After bringing Sentinel back online, there was a nice moment where Optimus tried to give the Matrix to Sentinel, but oddly Sentinel declined. It seems like if he was inevitably going to betray the Autobots, that he should have taken the Matrix. His death at the end of the movie was very fitting, though I think it sucked seeing the heroic Optimus Prime killing his Autobot mentor.
Sentinel's betrayal wasn't the moment that I wasn't expecting. It was how Sentinel viciously attacked the Autobots, and killed Ironhide! I didn't see that coming. I hadn't even heard any rumors of that happening. It was the only moment during the film that I was shocked at. I was especially shocked since Hasbro has heavily promoted Ironhide by having at least five toys of this character available at retail by the release date of the film.
Still no voice for Bumblebee! If you're wondering why he's holding his hands up to his head in the trailer, it's not because the sound is too loud … it's because his holding his hands up before he's almost executed by Soundwave and the Decepticons. Very tense, cool scene.
Shockwave's character was a waste to me. He looked awesome. He looked evil. But without even a full line (he said something at the Chernobyl scene but I think it was just "Optimus Prime" or something very basic), there was zero characterization. He could've just been another drone for all we know, well, a drone leading other drones. I was hoping for just a couple of lines to Megatron about something being logical or illogical, something that says that this is the character we've known and loved over the past 27 years. He was killed during the Chicago battle.
I wasn't sure what to make of Starscream in this film. His character had been reduced to the worst traits of Starscream. Cowardly, whiny (?). He had two moments in the film that should have been more monumental and awe-inspiring … when he single handedly takes out the exiled Autobots' shuttle and when he takes on the sky divers by the Willis tower in the skies over Chicago. One of my favorite scenes in the Transformers film franchise is in the first movie during the final battle when Starscream takes on the other F-22 Raptors going back and forth between his robot mode and jet mode. That scene is one of the best uses of their ability to transform in the film. I was waiting for that "wow, that's so cool" moment to hit me with either of those scenes but that moment never happened.
The rumors about the cowardly villain Starscream meeting his maker were unfortunately true. Thankfully, he didn't get taken down singlehandedly by one of Epps buddies, which was the rumor we heard last summer. Disappointingly, he was taken down by Sam, who used a grappling hook device given to him by Q. Sam used the weapon to attach the hook to one of Starscream's eyes, which damages it. Starscream is ranting about his eyes and not being able to see. All I kept thinking during this scene is … can't Transformers "see" without their eyes. Seriously … how else would they "see" when they're in their vehicle modes if they didn't have alternative methods to see? If Starscream had just transformed into jet mode, would he have been able to "see" again? Starscream deserves a much better death scene than this. Fortunately, we have his far superior death courtesy of Galvatron in the 1986 film.
Ever wonder what happened to my favorite police car Decepticon Barricade? He went M.I.A., literally, during the final quarter of the first film, was M.I.A. for the entirety of ROTF, but finally makes a miraculous return during the Chicago battle scene. I was very happy to see him return. If I saw correctly, it looks like he received an update or two to his character model. It'd be nice to see some comparison shots of this. My happiness at Barricade's return lasted only momentarily as he was destroyed shortly thereafter.
Skids and Mudflap were indeed missing from the film. I didn't even see them as additional robots during the scene where the Autobots were exiled from Earth. I didn't miss them though I do think they would have served as great cannon fodder.
Optimus Prime gets the movie version of his battle axe that reminded me of the axe he had during the Hoover dam battle against Megatron in a G1 "More Than Meets The Eye" cartoon episode.
Megatron says something to the affect of "what would you be without me" to which Optimus replies "Let's find out." and he proceeds to kill Megatron.
Random Scenes and Thoughts
The scene on the highway en route to Chicago turned out very cool. You might remember this as the scene where the infamous accident happened last summer in Hammond, Indiana that left Gabriela Cedillo, an extra in the film, permanently brain damaged and paralyzed. I meant to see if there was any mention of her in the credits, I'll have to look again tomorrow night. The "Dreads" were a very cool group of Decepticons. I really like their overall look, which is odd because I'm not a big fan of dreadlocks. Their unified and unique look just really stands out to me. I wasn't sure what to make of their "Mexican stand-off" with Ironhide and Sideswipe, but they seemed pretty cool in my book.
I felt confused as to why the Decepticons space bridged to Washington, D.C. then proceed to travel to invade Chicago. Why not either space bridge directly to Chicago or invade D.C. instead? The D.C. scene did give us a nice moment at the Lincoln Memorial where Megatron blows off President Lincoln's head, and the proceeds to remove Lincoln's statue so that Megatron could sit in his chair. One of the Decepticons scans a WM garbage truck after arriving in DC (I want this Transformer!).
Lots of humans get killed in this film. The Decepticons have a weapon that just kind of vaporizes a human after it blasts apart. In one scene, we see a human skull roll toward someone's foot after they were killed. Pretty graphic and intense. Not something I'd recommend for the kiddies to see.
I felt very uncomfortable when the Wreckers tore apart a Decepticon pilot. I just kept thinking "Autobots wouldn't do that!" Kind of reminded me of some of the Abu Ghraib situation a few years back.
The Autobot ship did indeed look awesome. Massive. They missed the opportunity to call the ship something like "Omega Supreme", maybe Hasbro will give us an Omega Supreme toy out of it just yet, but I wouldn't count on it. Someone in the film mentions that there are 9 Autobots, but I can't 11 if you count Wheelie and Brains (Optimus Prime, Bumblebee, Ratchet, Sideswipe, Topspin, Roadbuster, Leadfoot, Dino, and Que) who were aboard the ship if I recall correctly. The shuttle scene was a good scene, it just seemed to lack the emotion that such an important scene should have … especially when Starscream takes out the ship after it launches and apparently kills all of the Autobots aboard.
The whole Cybertron coming to Earth plot seemed a little much to me for the general movie going audience to understand. Without showing the full planet of Cybertron in DOTM, it seemed like it was a lot to ask people to understand that "Cybertron", the Transformers planet which much of the audience has never seen before, was being transported to our orbit. As a fan, I had a very difficult time seeing the large object that was coming through the space bridge portal as Cybertron. It seemed so unmonumental and so unnecessary to a Decepticon invasion of Earth that I felt distracted by that entire plot element (though it's what united Sentinel with Megatron). In addition, I couldn't tell what Cybertron's fate was. It looked as if Cybertron had imploded upon itself when the space bridge was destroyed yet without any dialogue in the film or concern from any of the Transformers, it's fate was left uncertain to me.
After seeing more of the same storytelling problems from ROTF creep into DOTM, I can't help but feel that it's time for Michael Bay, Shia, and the rest of the crew to move onto other projects and make way for some new, fresh ideas to brought into the life of the Transformers films. I'd like to see what someone else can do with the Transformers now that they have proven that it's a successful toy-to-film franchise. I'd also like to see what other types of films Michael Bay wants to make as I can't believe that he would want to be best known for making the Transformers films. I think the movies are very entertaining films for what they are. No one claimed these would, or should, be Oscar award winning movies. The people who have worked on these films have done an amazing job, considering the source material started out as a toy line so many years ago.
No need to stay until the very end of the credits.
Honorable 3D Mention
Why no mention from me about 3D yet? To be blunt: I'm not a fan of 3D. Not at all. I see it for what it is … a ploy to give people something special at the theater that they can't get elsewhere and to make it more difficult for the bootleg "market". I'm looking forward to seeing DOTM in good ol' fashioned 2D. When I watch a 3D movie, I feel like I'm staring at those posters that doctor offices had back in the early 90s where you have to cross your eyes to see the hidden image in the picture. I also can't stand wearing glasses in the theater. It's just not my thing. Did this movie seem like a technical achievement in the 3D field? I can't judge that as I haven't seen any other movie in 3D except for James Cameron's Avatar.
3D doesn't make me feel like I'm part of the movie at all, if anything, it makes me feel disjointed from the film because of how many times I notice the "3D" layers. It's extremely distracting and I don't recall ever thinking when viewing a 2D movie that I wished it had been in 3D. I keep thinking of that Best Buy "buy back" commercial where the girl is calling the guy a "silly head" because he bought a 3D TV instead of a 4D TV. I'm hoping 4D gets here soon because I can't stand this very "forced" 3D craze.
I hope someone important in the movie industry read my thoughts about 3D.
Meet The Press
I wanted to take a moment to personally thank Paramount for hooking me up with a Press pass for tonight's show at the AMC River East in downtown Chicago. I had the pleasure of meeting famed movie critic Roger Ebert this evening, who sat directly behind my wife at tonight's showing. It was a great experience and quite an honor. It was also a very fitting moment since Roger Ebert had mentioned Seibertron.com in his explanation about his review of Revenge of the Fallen.
On a personal note, I think I'd prefer seeing a movie like DOTM with a regular audience any day. The press guys didn't laugh or gasp or anything during the movie. Either they thought DOTM sucked or they were all way too busy writing down notes on their pads of paper. To me, a big part of going opening night for a movie, or even some time during the opening week, is to catch the buzz that radiates through a movie theater that is excited about a film. I think it's unfortunate that the press people didn't get to experience this movie with the regular movie going audience. I'm looking forward to seeing DOTM on Tuesday night with family and friends and people from Seibertron.com who I know will be geeked and excited about seeing this film ... and are there to have fun and have a great time.
Wrap-Up
So you might be wondering exactly what I thought of this movie and what my recommendations are. I know I picked apart a lot of the movie above. I'm very, very passionate about Transformers. I'm also very protective of how we, the fans, see our Transformers. I just want our experience to be shared by everyone else. I want people to know why we like and love these Transformers characters. I gave it a 4 out of 5 on my Netflix account just now. If it wasn't a Transformers flick, I'd give it a 3 out of 5 mainly due to feeling that the story was confusing at times or incoherent. The special effects and technical achievements in this film were simply amazing … stunning even! They should win awards left and right for what pulled off with Chicago and for making huge leaps with the computer animation for the robots which continue to look better and better.
As I said at the beginning of this review, if you're a Transformers fan, you've got to go see this film so that you can tell the rest of us what you think about it. Don't base whether or not you see this movie based on my review. It's a fun movie. Go see it. You be the judge and tell us what you think after you see it.
The latest installment of Seibertron's Twincast/Podcast is now available for your listening pleasure! In this fun filled episode titled "Judgement Day" our podcast crew of Counterpunch, Seibertron, Tigertracks24, Razorclaw0000, and Jon3.0 tackle the following exciting topics:
Seibertron proudly presents the latest two entries into our ever expanding galleries, Takara's Transformers United Rumble and Frenzy! Soundwave's dynamic duo of minions have ditched their dated cassette alt modes and opted for something a little more destructive in the form of matching dual barrel tanks.
The Transformers United galleries just keep coming! In Seibertron's epic quest to reach 2500 galleries we bring you seven new galleries from the e-Hobby Autobot and Decepticon three packs.
The Decepticon set contains translucent versions of Galvatron, Scourge, and Cyclonus meant to represent the scene from the 1986 animated movie in which Unicron reformatted a dying Megatron and crew into their powerful new bodies. Even though Cyclonus' Targetmaster partner Nightstick wasn't actually there for that historic scene he still managed to get the translucent makeover.
The Autobot set also features a translucent figure, a blue clear version of Hot Rod, who is meant to to represent the moment he opened the Autobot Matrix of Leadership and became Rodimus Prime! The e-Hobby Kup has a deco closer to his G1 counterpart and battle damage paint applications. Last but definitely not least we have the Junkion warrior Scrapheap! Possibly the most anticipated figure in the set, Scrapheap is only figure to not only receive a new deco, but also a new head mold.
We have a couple of brand new updates to the ever expanding famous Seibertron Galleries. This addition includes two more Takara United figures. We have galleries of the wise old adventure telling United Kup and United Scourge who is a merciless hunter created from the wreckage of the Decepticons. So sit back and enjoy because Kup has another story to tell you.
Three shiny new additions to the world famous Seibertron.com galleries! This round of entries boldly steps into Takara's world of Transformers United with high quality galleries of Bumblebee, Tracks, and Wreck-Gar! Stay tuned for galleries of the e-Hobby United Autobot and Decepticon three packs coming online soon!
Podcast now available in RSS format so that you can subscribe to it
The Twincast should be integrated into iTunes by Wednesday (keeps fingers crossed)
The latest Podcast can be found in the site's footer
New spotlight images created for all podcasts that didn't have one before
New twincast "logo" now appears in spotlight images
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Hall of fame 2011 nominees sent from fansites to Hasbro - the Twincast/Podcast crew share their thoughts about the Hall of Fame event as well as some of the choices nominated by the various Transformers fansites.
As you know an incredibly violent earthquake hit the north of Japan, killing hundreds and devastating land, houses and crops. Many people have had their friends, families, possessions and property ripped away from them. Right now, aid and support are streaming in from all over the world.
While others are doing their part to help, Transformers fans have an especially strong connection to Japan. Without Diaclone and Microchange toys our hobby wouldn't even exist and many of us have a Masterpiece, Binaltech or United figure on our shelves right now. Red Cross is taking donations and putting it towards relief and support for the survivors. Contributions can be made by credit card or by Amazon payments. Donators can go here to make a contribution. If you're unable to make a donation, that's OK too. We're not posting this to guilt people into donating, we just want to do our part to help and let all of you know that the Red Cross is taking donations.
If you prefer, the Red Cross is accepting donations via text message. Sending the word REDCROSS to 90999 will automatically donate $10 to the fund, with the $10 being added to your next cell phone bill.
American Red Cross wrote:JAPAN EARTHQUAKE AND PACIFIC TSUNAMI
Your gift to the American Red Cross will support our disaster relief efforts to help those affected by the earthquake in Japan and tsunami throughout the Pacific. On those rare occasions when donations exceed American Red Cross expenses for a specific disaster, contributions are used to prepare for and serve victims of other disasters.
Financial contributions to the American Red Cross are tax-deductible.
For Seibertronians outside of America, or for those who want to contribute to a different charity other than the American Red Cross, please Google for the charity service nearest you. As always, please make sure that the organization to which you are donating money is a trustworthy organization. Here are a couple of Google search examples: japan tsunami charity, japan tsunami donations
Our thoughts and prayers go out to everyone who is suffering from this natural disaster.
American Red Cross wrote:American Red Cross Responds to Japan Earthquake and Pacific Tsunami
Contact: Public Affairs Desk
FOR MEDIA ONLY
Phone: (202) 303 5551
WASHINGTON, Friday, March 11, 2011 — The American Red Cross stands ready and willing to assist following a magnitude 8.9 earthquake in Japan and the resulting tsunami that affected other countries in the Pacific region.
The Japanese Red Cross Society has extraordinary disaster response capabilities, and has mobilized eleven teams to heavily-damaged communities to provide assessments and first aid and prepare to supply emotional support and relief. The American Red Cross is in communication through its global partners with the Pacific nations that sustained the most damage, and stands ready to provide assistance as needed. To date, the Red Cross has not received any requests for blood from the Japanese Red Cross, the Japanese government or the U.S. State Department.
With potential danger headed to the west coast of the United States, Red Cross chapters are on alert and stand ready to provide assistance as needed in their communities in coordination with local and federal response partners. Red Cross warehouses in Saipan (Northern Mariana Islands), California, Washington and Hawaii are mobilizing resources; and approximately 100 mobile feeding vehicles are on standby. Evacuation shelters are open with additional locations on standby in Oregon, Washington and California.
The Red Cross does not collect blood in Hawaii but has reached out to other blood collection agencies to offer services and is on standby to support any blood needs across the mainland as well.
The best way to contact or locate U.S. citizens living or traveling in Japan is to contact the U.S. Department of State, Office of Overseas Citizens Services, at 1-888-407-4747 or (202) 647-5225. The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has offered to assist Japan with restoring family links.
In addition, with ongoing evacuations in the United States, the Red Cross Safe and Well website is a secure and easy-to-use online tool that helps families connect during emergencies like tsunamis. There are several easy ways to register yourself or search for a loved one on the Safe and Well website: from a computer, visit http://www.redcross.org, from a smartphone visit http://www.redcross.org/safeandwell or from any phone, call 1-800-RED CROSS (1-800-733-2767) for help registering.
Those who want to help can go to http://www.redcross.org and donate to Japan Earthquake and Pacific Tsunami. People can also text REDCROSS to 90999 to make a $10 donation to help those affected by the earthquake in Japan and tsunami throughout the Pacific.
About the American Red Cross:
The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and provides emotional support to victims of disasters; supplies nearly half of the nation's blood; teaches lifesaving skills; provides international humanitarian aid; and supports military members and their families. The Red Cross is a charitable organization — not a government agency — and depends on volunteers and the generosity of the American public to perform its mission. For more information, please visit http://www.redcross.org or join our blog at http://blog.redcross.org.
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