Michael Bay’s Transformers movies became a huge cinematic spectacle and one of the biggest blockbuster universes ever seen on the big screen. However, the franchise’s latest film feels like the first time we’ve seen the real Transformers since the inception of the Bayverse, and while it was a breath of fresh air, the movie still faced one major issue. Despite their polarizing nature, there’s no doubt Michael Bay’s films gave us some of the best Transformers battles and delivered high-octane action that hooked audiences. The series simply felt unmissable during its peak, hence why it found so much cinematic success.

Even though the reviews were never particularly kind to the Bayverse – both from audiences and critics – Michael Bay’s Transformers movies became box office juggernauts and earned an obscene amount of money. The director’s unorthodox take on the Autobots was certainly an acquired taste, but he won over a loyal fan base and proved he could maintain their interest with each installment. Unfortunately, the live-action projects have failed to make the same kind of impression since Bay’s departure, but Transformers‘ most recent animated outing was a welcome change of pace and felt extremely authentic, despite facing one major challenge.

Transformers One Felt More Like Transformers Than Any Of The Live-Action Movies

The Transformers’ Strong Personalities & Interesting Relationships Shined In Transformers One

Based on its reviews, it’s safe to say Transformers One is easily the most beloved Transformers movie in years, with the animated project becoming one of 2024’s most underrated films. While this can be attributed to its great storytelling and vibrant personality, Transformers One‘s success also comes down to it feeling like a true Transformers movie. Bay’s films were undoubtedly effective in generating a large audience, but at times they seemed to be missing the core aspects of the franchise, with most outings focusing on human protagonists and failing to give the Autobots overly distinct traits.

Transformers One fixed this problem by being purely about the Transformers themselves, adding a light-hearted tone to the story while still producing a compelling narrative. The comradery between the central characters feels much more in line with what we expect when it comes to the Autobots, and there is also a healthy blend of humor mixed in there. Additionally, Transformers One has better villains than the live-action movies, adding a more personable tension to the conflict, as opposed to the Bayverse, which often relied on an even more world-threatening enemy than the last, a trope that quickly became old.

There is no denying Michael Bay’s Transformers movies did an excellent job of taking this iconic franchise and making people interested, but Transformers One truly understands what makes these characters so memorable and delivers a fun tone that still allows for a serious plot, culminating in my favorite Transformers movie of all time.

Transformers One Was Not Nearly As Successful As The Michael Bay Movies

Despite Its Positive Critical Reception, Transformers One Couldn’t Match The Financial Success Of The Bayverse

Despite absolutely thriving critically, Transformers One still fell a long way short of the Bayverse financially. While cinematic success isn’t simply defined by how profitable a movie is, it remains a critical factor, especially for studios. Although many of Michael Bay’s Transformers movies were panned by critics and audiences, numerous projects earned over $1 billion at the box office and helped make Transformers one of the highest-grossing movie franchises of all time. As a result, Bay’s series continued to get sequels and had a decade of longevity, something that Transformers One will have a tough time replicating.

Its financial struggles don’t take away from its unquestionable quality and unique charm, but Transformers One is sadly one of the worst-performing Transformers movies at the box office. While I’d love to see Paramount continue to invest in this fantastic animated movie series and give it a real chance to grow, Transformers One simply didn’t come close to having the same sort of financial impact as Bay’s huge blockbusters, suggesting a sequel would have to perform exceptionally well to warrant the story continuing.

Few people would have expected the animated project to exceed the live-action movies’ box office success, but it earned just under $130 million, making it the lowest-grossing Transformers movie of the 21st century. I’m still a huge fan of the animated hit and I think it deserves all the praise it gets, but this shortcoming will undoubtedly impact the franchise’s future. Still, I’m hopeful this won’t be the last Transformers One movie.

There Should Be Room For All Kinds Of Transformers Movies In The Franchise

Transformers One Proved The Franchise Needs Fun Animated Movies Just As Much As Live-Action Blockbusters

Although Transformers One didn’t quite make the box office splash that has been ᴀssociated with the franchise in recent years, its overwhelming popularity suggests there is room for all kinds of Transformers movies. Michael Bay’s films will always be the most lucrative projects financially, as they have that blockbuster appeal that hasn’t been replicated since. Even if they don’t always capture the essence of Transformers, the Bayverse still produced plenty of fun moments, and if the director ever wanted to come back, there is undoubtedly still an audience for his take on the Autobots.

Alternatively, while Bumblebee wasn’t a mᴀssive financial draw, it followed a similar path to Transformers One in terms of being universally loved among critics and fans. Therefore, interesting one-off stories should also be considered for Transformers, as despite Bumblebee having connections to the Bayverse, it acted as a self-contained narrative. Transformers One also proved there can be a popular animated movie series alongside a live-action one, confirming there is room to do both simultaneously.

Although having the Bayverse, an animated universe, and a new live-action movie series may seem like overkill, they could all help one another and make Transformers one of the most active movie series out there. As a result, I hope the franchise doesn’t sacrifice one project for the other and gives all kinds of films a chance to shine, as Transformers still has plenty to offer despite its recent box-office difficulties.

Transformers

Created by

Hasbro

First Film

Transformers

Latest Film

Transformers: Rise of the Beasts

Upcoming Films

Transformers One

First TV Show

The Transformers

Latest TV Show

Transformers: EarthSpark

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