Armada stands out as a particularly interesting point in the Transformers franchise’s history. In the early 2000s this series marked a total reboot to Transformers continuity, and, along with sequels Energon and Cybertron, made up the first portion of what is known as the Unicron Trilogy.
Yet this ultimate focus on the ferocious World Eater wasn’t the property’s only major departure. The most obvious was the introduction of Mini-Cons, a diminutive third faction that could fuse to the long-warring Autobots and Decepticons to supplement the larger Transformers’ power.
Still, despite these shake-ups to the status quo, Armada both succeeded and failed in traditional Transformers fashion. Animation that is at times spectacular – the up-close shots during Megatron’s introduction make this incarnation seems even deadlier than his G1 counterpart – while at other times atrociously banal plague the series, especially in its earliest episodes. The Autobots’ human allies Carlos, Alexis and Rad (not a typo) make Spike and Sparkplug Witwicky seem like Sun Tzu by comparison, and, while the English dubbing is lackluster all around, their dialogue is particularly bad.
But that’s not to say Transformers: Armada is without its triumphs. Interesting, engaging plotlines surrounding Starscream, Megatron/Galvatron and Optimus Prime – though Gary Chalk is certainly no Peter Cullen – pepper this collection’s latter half, and its ending is particularly satisfying. In fact, even if you panned Armada back in the proverbial day, I urge you to give it a proper viewing in its entirety. You’ll likely be surprised by how much you enjoy it.
Clocking in at nearly 20 hours, this eight-disc collection from Shout Factory presents all four seasons in a beautiful single clamshell with paper slipcase. The clarity of the DVD transfer and Shout’s overall attention to detail with regard to packaging make this a great pickup at the $45 MSRP, and Amazon’s current sub-$30 price point makes it an insta-buy for younger fans of the series and us oldsters who may’ve missed it.
The only thing better, of course, would be getting it for free, and Shout Factory’s seen to that as well. Fill out the form below to win one of three free copies of Transformers: Armada. This giveaway is only open until Sunday, March 16th at 11:59 PM Eastern, so act fast to get your name in the hat.
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Giveaway rules:
Open to US residents only.
One entry per physical address.
Must be 18 or older to enter.
Winners will be chosen by random from all valid entries.
Winners will be notified via the email addresses supplied at time of entry.
Prizes are supplied by 3rd parties, and GeekDad.com cannot be held liable for items damaged or lost in shipping.
Review and promotional materials provided by: Shout Factory
I’m pretty sure peter cullen is the only reason i enjoy the michael bay movies.