RID2015 - W.W.O.D - Review

If you want to read my reviews for previous Transformers shows, click here: neoyi.deviantart.com/journal/A…

PREVIOUS SEASON ONE REVIEWS:
1+2. Pilot
3. Trust Exercises
4. More than Meets the Eye


As always, SPOILERS!









”My team doesn’t listen to me and it makes me wonder if I’m cut out to be their leader.”

A staple in nostalgia-ladled Transformers lore is the lure that which Peter Cullen carries with his voice. I’ve chided the Aligned Continuity Optimus many times for his pretentiousness and seemingly dues ex machina nature in Rescue Bots alone (seriously, he pops up friggin’ everywhere like a daisy with a convenient answer), but I can’t say a single bad thing about his voice. It is perfect for the kind of character he is. The gravelly, soft-spoken, deep baritone voice that oozes out of Optimus defines and enhances him as a commanding leader to the Autobots. It is a worthy, godly voice. It is infamously beloved among fans, but rarely has it been an actual subject worth discussing in-universe. Bumblebee thinks the key to great leadership is imitating Optimus and what better way than to channel his booming presence with a voice only angels could comprehend without falling in awe? It works…for a while. Unfortunately this isn't who Bumblebee is.

He’s  been in doubt over his role, stuck under Optimus’ shadow when he knows—OP knows—that he has to be his own. But doing that doesn’t seem to be doing a whole lot of good, so Bee tries to be someone else. Obviously it fails, so he finds his own methods to capture the latest Con and all is right for the time being. It’s a fairly straight, simple insight into Bee’s dilemma, but an appropriate one nonetheless. That’s largely been the case with the current set of episodes. The characters’ personalities lend themselves to the kind of problems you’d expect, but I’m not saying this as a bad thing. Character development is character development and I won’t mince on that. I especially like that it was Bee’s enthusiasm and knowledge of Earth culture that inspired his plans. It’s not just a character tic, but something that he can actively use.  It’s also hilarious when Bee pulls dramatic gesture every time he plays Optimus. He tries so hard.

Bee mentions his team never gave OP a hard time and it shows a big difference between his time during Prime and now. but I think a part of that is because they were at war. The perspective amongst everyone was grim; their home was a barren wasteland and the bots separated throughout the galaxies. Being happy were rare pleasures you took in. Robots in Disguise serves a nice contrast of what happens when you’re in charge of a group of kids who didn’t grow up or face such traumatizing times. They didn’t know the hardship and sacrifices the older generations had to make to ensure their future would be intact. So they act more impulsive and there’s more laughs around. On the grand scheme, this is a good thing because the future is bright, but it means Bee has to work extra hard to install the sense of leadership and background he grew up in.



But as amusing as Bee was, “W.W.O.D” is a fairly standard episode. Actually, I think it kind of drags. Bee’s issue is straightforward enough that it left plenty of room for  Terroshock to run around in all his stupid glory. It’s a weird thing for me to say given this is Transformers, but I tend to drown out when the action overtakes the story longer than it should and “W.W.O.D” does exactly that.

They’re good action, mind you, and the car chase scene in the last act is damn exciting. At the same time, it’s also kind of anti-climatic because you know, at episode five, the show isn’t going to remove the “disguise” portion of “Robots in Disguise” (if we’re even getting to that at all.) I’d be more excited that Bee accidentally exposed himself to the public if it wasn’t so early into the show for a major plot twist. So Denny and Russell managed to produce a decent lie. I admit a part of this is ridiculous because of the extravagance of the car chase scene that really calls to question how dumb these people are, but then again, this Earth is presumably several years older than Present Time Period Transformers Prime, so maybe they do have animatronics that are convincing enough to fool the local denizens. But I’m kind of hoping at some point in the future, some human actually will take this scene and be all “ALIENS ARE AMONG US!” With its lighthearted tone, may I suggest a goody UFO conspiracist?

This episode totally answered my question from the last review: Denny and Russell can go to Crown City whenever they damn well please, so that invites my previous grievance on why it’s such A Big Deal that Russell can’t go. This kid.

Okay, I admit, Denny is growing on me. I stated in my review of the first two episodes how much I detest manchild paternal figures. They’re always portrayed negatively or hardly taken seriously that I’ve dismissed him from the start. But I am really starting to dig Denny. Partially, this is due to Russell’s lacking personality (when he’s not being a sourpuss.) The other is that Denny’s enthusiasm is oddly infectious without the annoyance. He is actually good at helping the Autobots instead of being a needless burden (for that matter, Russell is good about this, too), providing that human factor the Bots need whenever they need to sneak into a public area. Keep it up, Denny, you might end up in my Favorite Character List yet. Can’t say much on his subplot with Russell though; it’s fairly low-key and easily solved with just a whiff of the hand.
OUT OF FIVE STARS





”OKIE DOKEY, DR. JONES, HOLD ONTO YOUR POTATOES!” The Indiana Jones reference is obvious, but I am legitimately surprised they went far to give Russell the exact same clothing Shortround wore in The Temple of Doom.

Shortround and I have a long, complicated history. Imagine being a little Asian girl who barely had any Asian role models to look up to. Shortround is…well…he’s…a product of the 80s which in itself is a product of 1930s pulp adventure which in itself was far more racist than the 80s which was also more racist than we are now. But I…I kind of like Shortround? People say he’s annoying, but I don’t see it. Yeah, he yaps like an energetic puppy, but Shortround is portrayed pretty positively for a possibly unfortunate stereotype. He’s brave, useful, and clever. He is sympathetically portrayed as Indy’s “adopted” son (which I like more than The Beef as his actual son—didn’t Indiana actually have a daughter?) and he’s the one who ultimately saves Indy after he’s been brainwashed (though as much as Shortround can be seen as stereotypical, he’s got nothing on the unfortunate implication of how the movie portrayed Indians.) I guess you can say it was “as good as I could get” at that time and age, but I still retain something of a soft spot for that kid even now. After all, you don’t forget your first Asian role model. …Okay, that was actually Trini from Power Rangers, but shut up.

BEST LINE: ”That’s the worst Starscream imitation ever!”

To be fair, Bee, you were waving your whole body around dramatically; Starscream did that a lot in Prime.
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Discovery (A Transformers Animated Fancomic): Read the entire thing here. Placed there for archival purpose. Recently cancelled.



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