'Transformers: War for Cybertron Trilogy: Siege' Review: Stunning visuals augment dark story of devastating war
Spoilers for 'Transformers: War for Cybertron Trilogy: Siege' on Netflix
The first chapter of Netflix's new 'Transformers' anime series, 'Transformers: War for Cybertron Trilogy', is here and it is a brilliant watch. Titled 'Transformers: War for Cybertron Trilogy: Siege', the six-episode series covers the final days of the war between Autobots and Decepticons on the planet Cybertron.
Compared to previous adaptations of the 'Transformers', the 'War for Cybertron Trilogy' is much darker and filled with some mature themes. The senselessness of war is seeded throughout the show and both Optimus Prime (Jake Foushee) and Megatron (Jason Marnocha) display equal amounts of stubbornness and pride.
The whole story is told through a beautiful art style that makes it feel almost like a video game, even though the series has nothing to do with the video game of the same name. There are some interesting new designs for all our favorite heroes and villains, inspired by the fan-favorite 'Generation 1' continuity.
Speaking of new designs, both Starscream (Frank Todaro) and Bumblebee (Joe Zieja) have drastically different looks and while Starscream is still a sycophant with unbridled ambition, Bumblebee is hardly recognizable when we first meet him. The 'Transformers' shows and movies have always depicted Bumblebee as a brave scout and a warrior but when we meet Bee in the show, he's little more than a scavenger and a mercenary with no interest in the philosophy of Optimus Prime.
That's pretty understandable though since this is more of an origin story than anything else. And with appearances by fan-favorite characters like Ultra Magnus (Edward Bosco), Ratchet (Rafael Goldstein), and Arcee (Sophia Isabella), there's something here for all the fans to enjoy.
Here's the official synopsis for the show: "'Transformers: War For Cybertron Trilogy: Siege' begins in the final hours of the devastating civil war between the Autobots and Decepticons. The war that has torn apart their home planet of Cybertron is at a tipping point. Two leaders, Optimus Prime and Megatron, both want to save their world and unify their people, but only on their own terms. In an attempt to end the conflict, Megatron is forced to consider using the Allspark, the source of all life and power on Cybertron, to 'reformat' the Autobots, thus 'unifying' Cybertron. Outnumbered, outgunned, and under SIEGE, the battle-weary Autobots orchestrate a desperate series of counterstrikes on a mission that, if everything somehow goes right, will end with an unthinkable choice: kill their planet in order to save it."
'Transformers: War For Cybertron Trilogy: Siege' is now available for streaming on Netflix.