Sophia Michaels
It’s almost hard to believe it, but the live-action Transformers franchise has been around for a decade and change. The latest installment of the sci-fi property is Transformers: Rise of the Beasts, which just arrived on Blu-ray. The 1994-set blockbuster broke new ground by bringing in the Maximals from the Beast Wars animated series. I like Rise of the Beasts, but as a Beast Wars fan one thing drove me crazy. Autobots, transform and roll out!
Full disclosure: I’m really not that huge of a Transformers aficionado. But as a ‘90s kid I ended up really loving Beasts Wars, collecting the action figures and watching the animated series religiously. So when I learned they were making their way to live-action, I was definitely excited. But there was something missing: the Maximals just didn’t actually transform all that much.
I mean, the franchise as a whole is titled Transformers for a reason, right? But for the majority of the runtime for Rise of the Beasts, Maximals like Optimus Primal (Ron Perlman) and Airazor (Michelle Yeoh) and Cheetor (Tongayhi Chirisa) stayed in their animal forms. It wasn’t until the final battle with the Terrorcons that we finally see them take their robot fighter form and get into the action in that way. And it just feels like a missed opportunity in my opinion.
Part of the reason why the live-action franchise became such a sensation was because of the visual effects and Bayhem involved in the Transformers action. Seeing the transformations play out, complete with complex visuals and interconned machinery, was thrilling. So why wouldn’t we want to see the Maximals do the same, just as they did throughout the Beast Wars franchise.
It should be interesting to see if the Maximals end up returning to the big screen, allowing for more actual transformations in the process. The twist ending of Transformers: Rise of the Beasts revealed a connection to G.I. Joe, seemingly setting up a crossover in the making. Whether or not that forthcoming narrative includes the Beast Wars characters remains to be seen, but the door was definitely left open narratively. That is, if more ‘90s-set stories are coming down the line.
If we get more Maximals in the Transformers franchise, it would also open the door for more characters from Beast Wars to get in on the explosive Bayhem. Anthony Ramos’ character Noah Diaz is seemingly going to serve as the link between the Transformers and G.I. Joe. Although technically there’s been no announcements from the studio about another live-action movie.
Transformers: Rise of the Beasts is streaming now on Paramount+ and the Blu-ray is available now. Be sure to check out the 2023 movie release dates to plan your next movie experience.
