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Transformers: EarthSpark

Transformers: EarthSpark is an animated children's television series based on the Transformers toyline by Hasbro. It was developed by Dale Malinowski, Ant Ward and Nicole Dubuc for the streaming service Paramount+ and sister cable network Nickelodeon. The series premiered on November 11, 2022 and was produced by Entertainment One in partnership with Nickelodeon Animation Studio, with animation services provided by Icon Creative Studio. A second season, produced by Hasbro Entertainment, premiered on June 7, 2024.

Premise

Fifteen years after the space bridge to Cybertron is destroyed, ending the civil war between the Autobots and the Decepticons, the Malto family relocates from Philadelphia to the small town of Witwicky, Pennsylvania. There, young Robby and Mo Malto witness the birth of a new breed of Earth-born Transformers called Terrans, who become emotionally bonded to the two via special cyber-sleeves on their arms. Now adopted into the family and being mentored by Bumblebee, the Terrans work with the Autobots, the former Decepticon leader Megatron, the organization G.H.O.S.T., and the children to protect their new life from the remaining rogue Decepticons and other villains while finding their place in the world.[2]

Season 2 starts one year later. A group of Decepticons led by Starscream goes rogue sometime after the shattering of the Emberstone. It is up to the Terrans, the Autobots, the humans, and those Decepticons on their side (namely Megatron) to collect the shards before those Decepticons that sided with Starscream do. This leads to the creation of the Chaos Terrans and the discovery of some secrets about Witwicky itself.

Characters

Terrans

Autobots

Decepticons

Insecticons

The Insecticons are Cybertronians that have insect-based beast modes and can create holographic clones.

Chaos Terrans

The Chaos Terrans are Earth-based Transformers created by corrupted Emberstone shards and have no leader.

Humans

G.H.O.S.T.

Short for Global Hazard Ordinance Strike Team, this human organization has the goal of rebuilding the relationship between humans and the Cybertronians.

Besides Dot, the known members of G.H.O.S.T. are:

Other

Episodes

Season 1 (2022–23)

Season 2 (2024)

Production

In February 2021, Hasbro announced two animated series based on the Transformers brand. The first was a series based on the BotBots line for Netflix, and the other was a then-untitled series set to air on Nickelodeon in 2022.[19] The animated series' official title, Transformers: EarthSpark, was revealed one year later with a release window set for the fourth quarter of 2022.[20][21] In March 2022, it was announced that the series would debut on the Paramount+ streaming service in November 2022.[1] The voice cast and a preview for the series was later revealed during the 2022 San Diego Comic-Con.[3] Owned and distributed by Hasbro,[22][23] the series is a co-production between Nickelodeon Animation Studio and Entertainment One (later Hasbro Entertainment), for which Mikiel Houser and Kari Rosenberg, respectively, oversaw the production. It is executive-produced by Ant Ward, Nicole Dubuc and co-executive-produced by developer Dale Malinowski. Claudia Spinelli of Nickelodeon developed the series for television.[24][25]

Release

The series consists of twenty-six episodes, the first ten of which debuted on Paramount+ in the U.S. on November 11, 2022.[19][21][26] The second batch of episodes began streaming on March 3, 2023, bringing the total episode count to eighteen.[27] The remaining episodes of season 1 were released on July 28, 2023.[28] In February 2023, the series was renewed for a second season, which will premiere on June 7, 2024.[29][30] The series was licensed to Netflix internationally in June 2023.[31] The first ten episodes were released on DVD on May 16, 2023, by Paramount Home Entertainment.[32] The rest of the sixteen episodes was released on DVD on February 13, 2024.[33]

Video game

An action-adventure game developed by Tessera Studios, titled Transformers: EarthSpark – Expedition, was revealed in June 2023 by its publisher Outright Games. The game received a North and South American release on October 13, 2023 for the Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows via Steam, Xbox One, Xbox Series X and Series S.[24][34][35] A single-player video game, the player controls Bumblebee and can explore three biomes in a three-dimensional environment with the goal of defeating the villain Mandroid. Bumblebee uses physical attacks and attack combos to defeat enemies and enhance his skills.[34]

Reception

Controversy

In May 2023, the character Nightshade and their designation as non-binary received backlash.[36] The controversy arose on Twitter, where the account Libs of TikTok shared a clip from the episode "Home" which showed Nightshade talking to a human character named Sam (voiced by Alisha Mullally), who uses she/they pronouns. During the conversation, Sam addressed Nightshade as "non-binary", leading to Nightshade's confusion as they didn't know the term. Sam apologized and explained that non-binary people identify as neither male nor female, to which Nightshade expressed gratitude and excitement on learning a word that accurately describes their experience.

Several conservative commentators, such as Megyn Kelly slammed the series for the show's LGBT message.[37] Laura Ingraham likewise panned the show on The Ingraham Angle for teaching children about being non-binary and it feeling incredibly ham-fisted and forced.[38] In Japan, there was controversy surrounding Nightshade being referred to as a female.[39] The scene with Nightshade explaining their gender was later edited out of the BBC airing of the episode.[40]

Accolades

References

  1. ^ a b Lynch, Jason (March 24, 2022). "Nickelodeon Expands Franchises in Upfront In-Person Return". Adweek.
  2. ^ "Paramount+ Expands Kids' Slate with New 'Transformers,' 'Dora,' 'TMNT,' 'SpongeBob' & More from Nickelodeon". Animation Magazine. 15 February 2022.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Petski, Denise (July 22, 2022). "'Transformers: EarthSpark': Paramount+ Series Sets Voice Cast, Teaser Trailer – Comic-Con". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved July 22, 2022.
  4. ^ Mercante, Alyssa (November 14, 2022). "New Transformers Series Introduces Its First Nonbinary Robot [Update]". Kotaku. Archived from the original on November 27, 2022. Retrieved November 14, 2022.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h "'Transformers: EarthSpark' Official Trailer Debuts at NYCC". 9 October 2022.
  6. ^ a b c d "Transformers: EarthSpark Episode Listings". The Futon Critic.
  7. ^ a b c d "Transformers: EarthSpark Episode Guide". Zap2it.
  8. ^ Mitch Salem (November 14, 2022). "Friday 11.11.2022 Top 150 Cable Originals & Network Finals". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved November 14, 2022.
  9. ^ Mitch Metcalf (February 13, 2023). "Friday 2.10.2023 Top 150 Cable Originals & Network Finals". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved February 13, 2023.
  10. ^ a b Mitch Salem (February 21, 2023). "Friday 2.17.2023 Top 150 Cable Originals & Network Finals". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved February 21, 2023.
  11. ^ a b Mitch Metcalf (February 27, 2023). "Friday 2.24.2023 Top 150 Cable Originals & Network Finals". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved February 27, 2023.
  12. ^ Mitch Salem (March 6, 2023). "Friday 3.3.2023 Top 150 Cable Originals & Network Finals". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved March 6, 2023.
  13. ^ Mitch Metcalf (June 13, 2023). "Monday 6.12.2023 Top 150 Cable Originals & Network Finals". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved June 13, 2023.
  14. ^ Mitch Salem (June 14, 2023). "Tuesday 6.13.2023 Top 150 Cable Originals & Network Finals". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved June 14, 2023.
  15. ^ Mitch Salem (June 16, 2023). "Thursday 6.15.2023 Top 150 Cable Originals & Network Finals". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved June 16, 2023.
  16. ^ a b c d e "Transformers: EarthSpark". USTVDB. 26 August 2023. Retrieved September 14, 2023.
  17. ^ "Nickelodeon Ratings Report (April 8-14, 2024)". Nielsen Media Research. April 16, 2024.
  18. ^ a b "Nickelodeon Ratings Report (April 15-21, 2024)". Nielsen Media Research. April 23, 2024.
  19. ^ a b Petski, Denise (February 25, 2021). "Nickelodeon Orders Transformers Animated Comedy Series Based On Hasbro Franchise". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved February 25, 2021.
  20. ^ Dominguez, Noah (February 17, 2022). "Transformers: EarthSpark Animated Series Rolling Out on Nickelodeon". CBR.com. Retrieved June 25, 2023.
  21. ^ a b Petski, Denise (February 15, 2022). "'Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles' Villain Movies, 'Transformers' Series & More Heading To Paramount+ & Nickelodeon". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved February 15, 2022.
  22. ^ "Hasbro, Inc. trademark for Transformers: Earthspark". February 15, 2022.
  23. ^ "eOne Family Brands Distribution Catalogue". WorldScreen. April 2022.
  24. ^ a b Hazra, Adriana (June 23, 2023). "Transformers: Earthspark - Expedition Game Launches for Xbox, PS4, PS5, Switch, PC in Fall 2023". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on June 23, 2023. Retrieved June 25, 2023.
  25. ^ Milligan, Mercedes (July 22, 2022). "Sneak Peek: Nickelodeon, eOne Set 'Transformers: EarthSpark' Cast". Animation Magazine. Retrieved June 25, 2023.
  26. ^ Milligan, Mercedes (September 12, 2022). "Nick, Paramount+ Set 'Transformers: EarthSpark' Premiere and NYCC Plans". Animation Magazine. Retrieved September 12, 2022.
  27. ^ "Transformers: Earthspark New Trailer Debuts Grimlock and Reveals Return Date". denofgeek. February 5, 2023. Retrieved February 5, 2023.
  28. ^ Milligan, Mercedes (2023-07-10). "'Transformers: EarthSpark' Final S1 Episodes Premiere July 28". Animation Magazine. Retrieved 2023-06-19.
  29. ^ "Paramount+ Announces Greenlight for Second Season of Original Animated Series "Transformers: EarthSpark"" (Press release). CBS. February 1, 2023. Retrieved February 1, 2023 – via The Futon Critic.
  30. ^ "Video: Paramount+ Reveals the Official Trailer and Key Art for Season Two of "Transformers: EarthSpark," Premiering Friday, June 7" (Press release). CBS. May 13, 2024. Retrieved May 13, 2024 – via The Futon Critic.
  31. ^ Moore, Kasey (2023-06-19). "'Transformers: EarthSpark' Licensed to Netflix Internationally; Renewed for Season 2". What's on Netflix. Retrieved 2023-06-19.
  32. ^ "Transformers: EarthSpark: Season 1 – Episodes 1-10". Amazon. 16 May 2023.
  33. ^ "Transformers: EarthSpark - Season One Episodes 11-26 [DVD]". Amazon. 13 February 2024.
  34. ^ a b Lyons, Ben (June 22, 2023). "Transformers: Earthspark - Expedition to offer a Bumblebee adventure this October". Gamereactor. Archived from the original on June 25, 2023. Retrieved June 25, 2023.
  35. ^ Romano, Sal (June 22, 2023). "Transformers: EarthSpark – Expedition announced for PS5, Xbox Series, PS4, Xbox One, Switch, and PC". Gematsu. Archived from the original on June 22, 2023. Retrieved June 25, 2023.
  36. ^ Mayer, Chloe (May 13, 2023). "Transformers' first non-binary character sparks backlash". Newsweek.
  37. ^ Shannon Thaler (5 May 2023). "Megyn Kelly slams Transformers kids' show with non-binary characters as 'disgusting'". NEW YORK POST. Retrieved 13 May 2023.
  38. ^ Bailey, Kayla (May 13, 2023). "Laura Ingraham torches woke 'Transformers': 'Shoving' pronouns down kids' 'throats' with 'corrosive lies'". Fox News.
  39. ^ Peters, Megan (February 12, 2024). "Transformers: New Dub Sparks Debate Over Nightshade's Apparent Misgendering". ComicBook.com. Retrieved February 17, 2024.
  40. ^ "Reference To Non-Binary Character's Gender Identity Is Edited Out Of Transformers Cartoon On BBC iPlayer". Huffpo.
  41. ^ Tangcay, Jazz (2023-01-09). "'Everything Everywhere All At Once' Leads Motion Picture Sound Editors Golden Reel Awards Nominations". Variety. Retrieved 2024-01-25.
  42. ^ Giardina, Carolyn (2024-01-16). "'Oppenheimer' Leads Feature Noms of MPSE Sound Editors Golden Reel Awards". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2024-01-25.
  43. ^ "AwardsWatch - GLAAD Media Awards Nominations: 'All of Us Strangers,' "Bottoms,' 'Our Flag Means Death' and More". AwardsWatch. 2024-01-17. Retrieved 2024-01-25.

External links