By Jason Nimer
For the better part of this decade, Transformers fans have had more outlets
for their beloved robots than ever before. The three movies smashed box office
records (despite featuring, in parts two and three, the most annoying characters
to hit the screen since Jar Jar Binks, Skids and Mudflap), new animated shows
came out of the woodwork, as did re-issues of the 80's original, toys clogged
every store shelf and video games came out at what felt like a pace of two or
three per year. Now that the Transformers movies are done (for the moment,
anyway) and the ride has opened at Universal Studios, things have been cooling
on the Transformers front.
One Autobot/Decepticon product still going strong, though, is the
Transformers Prime CGI animated series. Currently going into its third season,
Transformers Prime has met and exceeded fans' expectations with darker, more
violent storylines, often spread out in multi-episode arcs. The first, Darkness
Rising, served as yet another tutorial on the Autobot/Decepticon battle, though
it was handled with a certain skill not seen since the original series from the
80's. The second multi-episode arc, One Shall Stand, takes the Transformers cast
in a completely new direction, providing one of the most intriguing tales I've
seen from the franchise in a long time.
First, let's discuss the DVD. We'll get to the story in just a minute. The
seven episode One Shall Stand arc is presented on DVD as one long, seamless
film, rather than seven separate half-hours, similar to how Darkness Rising was
released not too long ago. Normally I rally against any TV program being
released as anything but complete season sets, but presenting Transformers
Prime's multi-episode arcs as films, rather than separate shows, just works. The
episodes flow together seamlessly and present the story in a way that heightens
the impact; if you've ever skipped Lost or 24 for a few weeks so you could watch
a handful of episodes back-to-back, then you'll probably be just as impressed
with this DVD as I was.
My only issue with this is that these episodes fall in as season one ends and
season two begins. One Shall Stand essentially bridges the seasons together,
meaning if you spring for the Transformers Prime season-by-season DVD releases,
you'll end up with this group of episodes in your collection twice. If you
choose to go with just this release, you'll be missing the post-Darkness Rising
episodes in season one and everything past One Shall Stand in season two. It's
not Sophie's Choice or anything, just something I thought you should know before
deciding on your purchase.
With that stuff taken care of, we can finally get to One Shall Stand's plot.
Remember, these episodes fall at the end of season one, during which Megatron
has been mostly out of commission. After a mishap with the Space Bridge and
Starscream's takeover as Decepticon leader, Megatron returns to his position
shortly before the events of One Shall Stand. Understanding this is pretty
important going in, and those who get this self-contained set might not pick up
on the eluded-to past events. Anyway, in a move not seen since 'Big Jaws (points
if you get the reference),' Autobot leader Optimus Prime and Megatron must
briefly join forces to combat Unicron, the ancient bringer of destruction fans
remember from the original Transformers animated film (we all know Orson Welles
provided his original voice by now' pick up some other obscure trivia to impress
friends and fellow nerds). Of course, the Autobots and Decepticons eventually
triumph over Unicron, but this team-up ends with far-reaching consequences that
my eyes (and heart) could scarcely believe as they flashed across my TV screen.
As much as I'd love to expound on just how unexpected and awesome these turns of
event are, I'm going to leave it out. Just go get the DVD; chances are you'll be
as shocked and impressed as I was, especially if you've been a Transformers fan
for as long as some of us have.
One Shall Stand really impressed me. On paper, it had all the things that
usually lead to my personal distaste: CGI visuals over hand drawn animation,
episodes plucked from two complete, separate seasons, no Christopher Latta as
Starscream (R.I.P.)' all things that have lost points in the numerous past
Transformers DVD reviews I've put together. But One Shall Stand is something
special. It remains close to the spirit of previous Transformers triumphs while
also dragging the characters into a new and totally unexpected plotline. And its
got the fan-favorite, all-powerful Unicron as an antagonist, though who is good
and who is bad at the culmination of the battle is cause for alarm and
celebration. As a self-contained film, One Shall Stand should top the watch
lists of everyone who claims to be a Transformers fan, though after viewing this
DVD, I imagine you'll end up getting the season sets as well. Few stories are
worth paying for twice, though One Shall Stand might just be one of them.
Final Rating:
