Transformers: EarthSpark explained

Composer:Crush Effect
Language:English
Num Seasons:3
Num Episodes:44
Runtime:23–45 minutes
Network:Nickelodeon
Paramount+
Last Aired:present

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. A third season premiered on October 25, 2024.[1]

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, siblings 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.

Season 3 starts right where Season 2 left off. The stakes get higher when the Quintessons get involved and threaten the Maltos and Earth.

Characters

Terrans

Autobots

Decepticons

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.

Quintessons

Other

Episodes

Season 3 (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. The animated series' official title, Transformers: EarthSpark, was revealed one year later with a release window set for the fourth quarter of 2022.[6] In March 2022, it was announced that the series would debut on the Paramount+ streaming service in November 2022.[7] 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,[8] [9] 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.[10]

Release

The series consists of twenty-six episodes, the first ten of which debuted on Paramount+ in the U.S. on November 11, 2022.[11] [12] [13] The second batch of episodes began streaming on March 3, 2023, bringing the total episode count to eighteen.[14] The remaining episodes of season 1 were released on July 28, 2023.[15] In February 2023, the series was renewed for a second season, which premired on June 7, 2024.[16] [17] The series was licensed to Netflix internationally in June 2023.[18] The first ten episodes were released on DVD on May 16, 2023, by Paramount Home Entertainment.[19] The rest of the sixteen episodes was released on DVD on February 13, 2024.[20]

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.[21] [22] [23] 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.

Reception

Controversy

In May 2023, the character Nightshade and their designation as non-binary received backlash.[24] 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.[25] Laura Ingraham likewise panned the show on The Ingraham Angle for teaching children about being non-binary and because she thought incredibly ham-fisted and forced.[26] In Japan, there was controversy surrounding Nightshade being referred to as a female.[27] The scene with Nightshade explaining their gender was later edited out of the BBC airing of the episode.[28]

Accolades

YearAwardCategoryRecipientResult
2023Golden Reel AwardsOutstanding Achievement in Sound Editing – Sound Effects, Foley, Music, Dialogue and ADR for Short Form Animation Broadcast Media"Age of Revolution" - Brad Meyer (supervising sound editor); Natalia Saavedra Brychcy (sound effects editor); Christine Gamache (dialogue editor); Carol Ma (foley editor)[29]
2024Golden Reel AwardsOutstanding Achievement in Sound Editing – Sound Effects, Foley, Music, Dialogue and ADR for Short Form Animation Broadcast Media"Security Protocols" – Brad Meyer (supervising sound editor); Natalia Saavedra Brychcy (sound effects editor); Christine Gamache (dialogue editor); Carol Ma (foley editor) [30]
GLAAD Media AwardsOutstanding Kids and Family ProgrammingTransformers: EarthSpark[31]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Parlevliet. Mirko. Paramount+ October 2024 Movies, TV Shows, and Sports. Vital Thrills. September 24, 2024.
  2. Web site: Paramount+ Expands Kids' Slate with New 'Transformers,' 'Dora,' 'TMNT,' 'SpongeBob' & More from Nickelodeon. 15 February 2022. Animation Magazine.
  3. Web site: 'Transformers: EarthSpark': Paramount+ Series Sets Voice Cast, Teaser Trailer  - Comic-Con. Deadline Hollywood. Petski. Denise. July 22, 2022. July 22, 2022.
  4. Web site: New Transformers Series Introduces Its First Nonbinary Robot [Update]]. Alyssa. Mercante. Kotaku. November 14, 2022. November 14, 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20221127021144/https://kotaku.com/transformers-earthspark-nightshade-nonbinary-robot-lgbt-1849781910. November 27, 2022. live.
  5. Web site: 'Transformers: EarthSpark' Official Trailer Debuts at NYCC. 9 October 2022.
  6. Web site: Transformers: EarthSpark Animated Series Rolling Out on Nickelodeon. Dominguez. Noah. February 17, 2022. CBR.com. June 25, 2023.
  7. Web site: Nickelodeon Expands Franchises in Upfront In-Person Return. Adweek. Jason. Lynch. March 24, 2022.
  8. Web site: Hasbro, Inc. trademark for Transformers: Earthspark. February 15, 2022.
  9. Web site: eOne Family Brands Distribution Catalogue. WorldScreen. April 2022.
  10. Milligan. Mercedes. July 22, 2022. Sneak Peek: Nickelodeon, eOne Set 'Transformers: EarthSpark' Cast. Animation Magazine. June 25, 2023.
  11. Web site: Nickelodeon Orders Transformers Animated Comedy Series Based On Hasbro Franchise. Deadline Hollywood. Petski. Denise. February 25, 2021. February 25, 2021.
  12. Web site: Petski. Denise. 'Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles' Villain Movies, 'Transformers' Series & More Heading To Paramount+ & Nickelodeon. Deadline Hollywood. February 15, 2022. February 15, 2022.
  13. Web site: Milligan. Mercedes. Nick, Paramount+ Set 'Transformers: EarthSpark' Premiere and NYCC Plans. Animation Magazine. September 12, 2022. September 12, 2022.
  14. Web site: February 5, 2023 . Transformers: Earthspark New Trailer Debuts Grimlock and Reveals Return Date . February 5, 2023 . denofgeek.
  15. Web site: Milligan . Mercedes . 2023-07-10 . 'Transformers: EarthSpark' Final S1 Episodes Premiere July 28 . 2023-06-19 . Animation Magazine . en.
  16. Paramount+ Announces Greenlight for Second Season of Original Animated Series "Transformers: EarthSpark". CBS. The Futon Critic. February 1, 2023. February 1, 2023.
  17. Video: Paramount+ Reveals the Official Trailer and Key Art for Season Two of "Transformers: EarthSpark," Premiering Friday, June 7. CBS. The Futon Critic. May 13, 2024. May 13, 2024.
  18. Web site: Moore . Kasey . 2023-06-19 . 'Transformers: EarthSpark' Licensed to Netflix Internationally; Renewed for Season 2 . 2023-06-19 . What's on Netflix . en.
  19. Web site: Transformers: EarthSpark: Season 1 – Episodes 1-10. Amazon. 16 May 2023 .
  20. Web site: Transformers: EarthSpark - Season One Episodes 11-26 [DVD]]. Amazon. 13 February 2024 .
  21. Web site: Transformers: Earthspark - Expedition Game Launches for Xbox, PS4, PS5, Switch, PC in Fall 2023. Hazra. Adriana. June 23, 2023. Anime News Network. June 25, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20230623230619/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2023-06-23/transformers-earthspark-expedition-game-launches-for-xbox-ps4-ps5-switch-pc-in-fall-2023/.199549. June 23, 2023. live.
  22. Web site: Transformers: Earthspark - Expedition to offer a Bumblebee adventure this October. Lyons. Ben. June 22, 2023. Gamereactor. June 25, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20230625194228/https://www.gamereactor.eu/transformers-earthspark-expedition-to-offer-a-bumblebee-adventure-this-october-1279043. June 25, 2023. live.
  23. Web site: Transformers: EarthSpark – Expedition announced for PS5, Xbox Series, PS4, Xbox One, Switch, and PC. Romano. Sal. June 22, 2023. Gematsu. June 25, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20230622231309/https://www.gematsu.com/2023/06/transformers-earthspark-expedition-announced-for-ps5-xbox-series-ps4-xbox-one-switch-and-pc. June 22, 2023. live.
  24. Web site: Transformers' first non-binary character sparks backlash. Chloe. Mayer. May 13, 2023. Newsweek.
  25. Web site: Shannon Thaler . 5 May 2023 . Megyn Kelly slams Transformers kids' show with non-binary characters as 'disgusting' . 13 May 2023 . NEW YORK POST . en-US.
  26. Web site: Laura Ingraham torches woke 'Transformers': 'Shoving' pronouns down kids' 'throats' with 'corrosive lies'. Kayla. Bailey. May 13, 2023. Fox News.
  27. Web site: Peters. Megan. Transformers: New Dub Sparks Debate Over Nightshade's Apparent Misgendering. ComicBook.com. February 12, 2024. February 17, 2024.
  28. News: Huffpo . Reference To Non-Binary Character's Gender Identity Is Edited Out Of Transformers Cartoon On BBC iPlayer.
  29. Web site: Tangcay . Jazz . 2023-01-09 . 'Everything Everywhere All At Once' Leads Motion Picture Sound Editors Golden Reel Awards Nominations . 2024-01-25 . Variety . en-US.
  30. Web site: Giardina . Carolyn . 2024-01-16 . 'Oppenheimer' Leads Feature Noms of MPSE Sound Editors Golden Reel Awards . 2024-01-25 . The Hollywood Reporter . en-US.
  31. Web site: 2024-01-17 . AwardsWatch - GLAAD Media Awards Nominations: 'All of Us Strangers,' "Bottoms,' 'Our Flag Means Death' and More . 2024-01-25 . AwardsWatch . en-US.