Those looking for this series to fill all their dreams of what the original 1984-1987 show was will be disappointed. Not because this show is that bad, but because the original show had the same flaws. But many don't remember the original flaws due to their "rose-colored glasses".
This show starts with a few weak elements, from the viewpoint of an older viewer. But the show was originally intended as a superhero show with the Autobots playing the role of the superheroes. Fortunately the concept was revised, but much of the initial season, with some holdovers for later, were victims of the original concept; these aspects remind me strongly of the PowerPuff Girls. However, those who were fans of the original show will be thrilled by many elements in the second season, and by almost everything in the third season, rose-colored glasses or otherwise. If they can get past the weak spots at the beginning of the series, which do still have their good points.
Transformers: Animated does have Teen Titans-influenced animation. The style is popular. Yes, this means that mechanical heroes that transform into vehicles tend to favor superheroes in tights for some reason. Remember, this was the original concept. Characters introduced later in the series do not have this problem. Early shows involved human villains. Later shows do not have this problem. Earlier shows have a human sidekick, one of the main complaints of the previous three serieses. (SPOILER) Later shows revealed this was not actually the case. And despite the unusual style (from the technological point of view), the toys are more accurate to the show, in both modes, than with any other Transformers series.
The later seasons bring in many new characters which were closely patterned after characters in the original series, though some has different personalities for plot-driven reasons (Ultra Magnus needed to be a superior officer, not a peer, and Alpha Trion also involved a plot- driven personality shift). These original-series inspired characters include Arcee (voiced by Sue Blu, the original VA and voice director for the TF:A series), Wreck-Gar (voiced by Weird Al Yankovic, the original VA), Blurr (voiced by John Moschitta Jr., the original VA), Elita One, Blackarachnia, Jazz, Shockwave, Wasp/Waspinator, and Omega Supreme. And cameos of original characters were abundant, including, but not limited to, Cliffjumper, Ironhide, Powerglide, Warpath, Beachcomber, Brawn, Wheeljack, Perceptor, Rodimus Prime, Cyclonus, and Stryka.
Oh, and for the reviewer who complained that the Allspark looked like a car key: Did you actually watch the original series, or Beast Machines for that matter? The Allspark key in TF:A is clearly patterned after the Key to Vector Sigma, a plot device in a number of shows in each series.
By the way, the Headmaster unit and Starscream clones were also ways to incorporate G1 elements without too much overhead. Headmasters were involved in a technology at the end of the series (more fully developed in the comics), and the Starscream clones were clearly colored after Decepticon jets who were not introduced in this series. This last point was amplified when at one point Lockdown gave two of the clones different helmets; the G1-era toys were designed that the jet nosecone could be positioned either way, and the animators chose to give the three face-vents and three cone-heads.
This show starts with a few weak elements, from the viewpoint of an older viewer. But the show was originally intended as a superhero show with the Autobots playing the role of the superheroes. Fortunately the concept was revised, but much of the initial season, with some holdovers for later, were victims of the original concept; these aspects remind me strongly of the PowerPuff Girls. However, those who were fans of the original show will be thrilled by many elements in the second season, and by almost everything in the third season, rose-colored glasses or otherwise. If they can get past the weak spots at the beginning of the series, which do still have their good points.
Transformers: Animated does have Teen Titans-influenced animation. The style is popular. Yes, this means that mechanical heroes that transform into vehicles tend to favor superheroes in tights for some reason. Remember, this was the original concept. Characters introduced later in the series do not have this problem. Early shows involved human villains. Later shows do not have this problem. Earlier shows have a human sidekick, one of the main complaints of the previous three serieses. (SPOILER) Later shows revealed this was not actually the case. And despite the unusual style (from the technological point of view), the toys are more accurate to the show, in both modes, than with any other Transformers series.
The later seasons bring in many new characters which were closely patterned after characters in the original series, though some has different personalities for plot-driven reasons (Ultra Magnus needed to be a superior officer, not a peer, and Alpha Trion also involved a plot- driven personality shift). These original-series inspired characters include Arcee (voiced by Sue Blu, the original VA and voice director for the TF:A series), Wreck-Gar (voiced by Weird Al Yankovic, the original VA), Blurr (voiced by John Moschitta Jr., the original VA), Elita One, Blackarachnia, Jazz, Shockwave, Wasp/Waspinator, and Omega Supreme. And cameos of original characters were abundant, including, but not limited to, Cliffjumper, Ironhide, Powerglide, Warpath, Beachcomber, Brawn, Wheeljack, Perceptor, Rodimus Prime, Cyclonus, and Stryka.
Oh, and for the reviewer who complained that the Allspark looked like a car key: Did you actually watch the original series, or Beast Machines for that matter? The Allspark key in TF:A is clearly patterned after the Key to Vector Sigma, a plot device in a number of shows in each series.
By the way, the Headmaster unit and Starscream clones were also ways to incorporate G1 elements without too much overhead. Headmasters were involved in a technology at the end of the series (more fully developed in the comics), and the Starscream clones were clearly colored after Decepticon jets who were not introduced in this series. This last point was amplified when at one point Lockdown gave two of the clones different helmets; the G1-era toys were designed that the jet nosecone could be positioned either way, and the animators chose to give the three face-vents and three cone-heads.