The Transformers franchise began in 1984 with a toy line and expanded exponentially to include animation, comic books, video games and films. As an adult, I was an outsider looking in at the time, but my boys, aged five and seven, became total Transformers toy fans. They were ubiquitous on store shelves and every birthday and Christmas for a couple of years had to include at least some configuration of Transformer toys for presents.

I come by way of this picture only because it was an IMDb Top 250 selection in 1996, otherwise I wouldn't have any interest in it. Following the story line well enough, I was baffled by how the Autobot heroes were so easily and arbitrarily disposed of, like Optimus Prime (there's one I remember in my kids' collection),and Ultra Magnus, with the character Hot Rod finishing out the picture as Rodimus Prime. Another reviewer here makes sense of all this by stating that the merchandising for successive toy lines required new characters, so that kind of makes sense, but gee, what would have happened to Superman and Spider-Man if the comic book folks dispatched them that quickly. It took half a century for Superman to die and then he was brought back again!

What really floored me about the picture was some of the big name talent that signed on to voice the characters here - Orson Welles, Leonard Nimoy, Robert Stack. Even Scatman Crothers! Holy cow, I wonder what these guys were thinking when they signed on for the gig. It couldn't be for lack of money. I'd really like to have been a fly on the wall when they brought Orson Welles in to pitch the idea. That must have been some show.

As for the picture, I guess it's OK for a kids' product. The story moves along at a blistering pace, with colorful backgrounds and an almost anime-like quality. Keeping track of the characters can be an exercise in futility, with names like Megatron, Unicron, Galvatron, the Decepticons and Constructicons. Sounds like they'd need a panel discussion at the San Diego Comic-Con to put it all in perspective. If it all sounds like a lot of beryllium baloney, well I guess you just had to be there back in the day watching the TV show and movies. For my part, I'd be interested in a story about the Shrikebots on Dometron.

The Autobots must stop a colossal planet consuming robot who goes after the Autobot Matrix of Leadership. At the same time, they must defend themselves against an all-out attack from the Decepticons.

One of the odd quirks about cartoons in the 1980s was the use of various shows to sell toys. "Masters of the Universe", for example, was notorious for making toys first and introducing them as cartoons after. According to director Nelson Shin, the decisions on which Transformers characters to include or kill off in the movie were made by Hasbro, the toy company. "They created the story using characters that could best be merchandised for the film. Only with that consideration could I have freedom to change the storyline." And yet, within that restraint, Shin has created an iconic film.

"Transformers: The Movie" is arguably the greatest cartoon movie of the 1980s. First of all, it features some of the most iconic characters of the decade, who have a longevity that continues more than thirty years later. The only others who can claim that are, maybe, the characters from My Little Pony. And second, the voice cast is epic. Even in an age when the word "epic" is overused, this is an epic cast: Orson Welles, Judd Nelson, Leonard Nimoy, Eric Idle, Robert Stack. Today, an A-list cast is not unusual in cartoons, but can any compete with these icons?

What's more, the movie remains memorable years after viewing it because of some oddities. We have a kid's movie with the "S-word" being dropped. Just one, and at a very appropriate time, but who decided that was a good idea? Even more strange is the prominent use of Weird Al's "Dare to be Stupid" on the soundtrack. This is a strange song for any movie, but one about battling robots? This makes no sense.

In honor of the 30th anniversary, Shout! Factory is offering the film on blu-ray with some very nice bonus features in September 2016. They have ported over previous features, such as the audio commentary with director Nelson Shin, story consultant Flint Dille and star Susan Blu (Arcee). But we also have "Transformers: The Restoration" showcasing the new 4K upgrade, and a brand new documentary with interviews from Flint Dille, cast members Gregg Berger (Grimlock),Susan Blu, Neil Ross (Springer),Dan Gilvezan (Bumblebee),singer / songwriter Stan Bush, composer Vince DiCola and others. A must-have? Heck yeah!

It's 2005. Unicron is a planet-sized robot devouring robot planets. The evil Decepticons are in control of their home planet Cybertron while the Autobots try to mount an attack. The Decepticons ambush an Autobot shuttle. The Autobots are drawn into an all-out fight from the Autobot City. Optimus Prime and the Dinobots arrive. Optimus is killed in an ultimate battle with Decepticon leader Megatron. Megatron is severely damaged and Starscream takes over command of the Decepticons. Optimus passes the Autobot Matrix of Leadership to the new leader Ultra Magnus. Megatron is casted off and found by Unicron which transforms him into Galvatron. Galvatron travels back to Cybertron where he destroys Starscream and takes back command of the Decepticons.

This is basically the Saturday morning cartoon extended into an hour and a half while killing off a lot of the Autobots. I'm going to be a little bit cynical and a lot realistic. They wanted to get rid of the old characters so that the kids could buy the new toy figures. The story is a mess with very specific goals. It's out with the old and in with the new. The story doesn't flow as much as rambles on and on introducing new characters or new forms of old characters. It's an important film but only for fans of the show.