Bumblebee updates himself into a new style of Camaro in Transformers.
Die-hard fans of Transformers were worried for more than a year about the drastic changes being made with the characters they love.
However, even if you only saw the cartoon once, or if you only had the little VW bug guy as a kid and you can’t even remember his name, you may have noticed just how different this movie is from what you remember.
Here are five of the classic characters and what's been tweaked about them.
5. Optimus Prime
The wise and noble leader of the Autobots and the linchpin of any Transformers permutation, this is the guy they had to get right, or there would be an uproar from every corner of the internet. This would be why they got Peter Cullen, the man who voiced him in the original ’80s cartoon, to reprise his role. But that's not to say that everything is the same:
Old School: Optimus Prime's original truck form was modeled after a 1978 flat-faced tractor style cab-over Peterbilt 352, with a flat face that became his entire torso. You could look at him and know instantly what he was going to be, because he looked like a walking truck with a head. He was also solid-colored red, gray and blue design, and he had his cool face-mask thing going all the time.
New School: Now he's a more standard Peterbilt 379, which is more commonly used now because it's more aerodynamic and has better fuel economy. Plus, it's bigger, which allows the movie Optimus to be a lot taller in robot-mode. He's also got crazy redneck flame decals, and robo-lips.
4. Megatron
The ruthless commander of the evil Decepticons was a cackling gravel-voiced schemer, as treacherous as Optimus Prime was stalwart. He's undergone some significant changes, to the point where he's nearly unrecognizable to those who knew him.
Old School: The original Megatron transformed and shrunk down to hand-held size as a Walther P-38 handgun. The toy looked real enough that it was once able to fool real cops. Also, legendary voice-over actor Frank Welker, who was Megatron in the cartoon, auditioned for the role in this movie, but he apparently didn't fit the new interpretation of the character.
New School: The big-screen Megatron can turn himself into a fancy space-jet. He never took on an land-based form - he's too good to touch the Earth! His movie voice is supplied by V for Vendetta star Hugo Weaving, who has a deeper, more erudite tone that's seemingly modeled after the version of Megatron from the spin-off cartoon series “Beast Wars.”
3. Bumblebee
The Autobots' little brother, Bumblebee was always a bit of a twerp, but he was also the best friend of the young Witwicky boy on the cartoon, just like he is with Shia LaBeouf in the movie. But even he doesn't survive the transition to live-action movie intact.
Old School: Bumblebee used to be a classic Volkswagen bug, which explains why he's named Bumblebee. He was also the smallest and weakest of the Autobots, which is probably why he hung around with humans all the time – to feel like a tough guy.
New School: When we first see him, he's in the form of a beat-up 1974 Camaro, and he later updates himself into a new style of Camaro that isn't even on the market yet. Also, something's happened to Bumblebee's vocal circuitry (which is revealed in a comic-book prequel to the film), so he doesn't have a voice of his own. Instead, he communicates almost entirely through song lyrics and sound bites from his radio (which is likely more advanced than an iPhone, his being a crazy alien robot and all). He's also quite willing to help his human friend get some action with the girl of his dreams. Just think of him as the ultimate wingman.
2. Ironhide
A hard-as-nails Autobot warrior, Ironhide has some limited relation to the original, but he has to be one of the most significantly different characters in the film.
Old School: Ironhide was gruff and cantankerous in the cartoon, like a friendly uncle who's rough around the edges, but worried about saving humanity. He turned into a big ol' sputtering red minivan (and he was also voiced by Cullen).
New School: His character is now aloof and kind of snooty and feels that humans are primitive. He turns into a big black GMC TopKick C4500 pickup truck, now, too. You'll see that GMC logo a lot in this movie. (Those product placement guys deserve a raise! It’s hard to look at a new GM car now without thinking about this movie.)
1. Frenzy
Here's a guy who was really in need of some updating. Frenzy was a little fellow who used to transform into a cassette tape so he could fit into the chest of Soundwave, the Decepticon who turned into a tape deck. It was one of the coolest gimmicks of the ’80s show, but it doesn't quite work in the iPod age.
Old School: Frenzy was a little wisecracking street-punk sort of guy. He could turn his arms into pile-drivers and smack the ground hard enough to make earthquakes.
New School: He's no longer a cassette, but rather a boom box CD-player himself, which means he can hide under chairs, in department stores or anywhere in plain sight. He also shifts his form to be a number of other gadgets, too, including a cell phone. A weird cross between a Gremlin and Number Five from “Short Circuit,” he's a shaky, spastic little creepy-crawly robot-monkey in the film. He's more like the Decepticons' pet.
Plus, The Newcomers:
Despite the hundreds of characters available to feature in this film, several of the Transformers are actually newly invented for this story:
Blackout, the Decepticon chopper. A Transformers character named Vortex who would have fit this bill for the chopper, they decided to name him Blackout instead.
There's also a Decepticon tank that shows up towards the end to wreak some serious havoc. It could have been Brawl or Blitzwing, both established characters, but for some reason they gave him the name Devastator instead, which was actually a name taken from a completely different guy.
Barricade, the Decepticon police cruiser. This new character makes sense, as it's certainly creepier to have an evil robot in disguise as a keeper of the peace. Cop cars have been mostly the province of the Autobots. You know, good guys and all.
Fans are notoriously resistant to these kinds of differences, but change can sometimes work out for the best and the movie has already won over a whole legion of fans for the Transformers toys.
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