This is a list containing the episodes of ''
The Transformers
''Transformers'' is a media franchise produced by American toy company Hasbro and Japanese toy company Tomy, Takara Tomy. It primarily follows the heroic Autobots and the villainous Decepticons, two Extraterrestrials in fiction, alien robot fac ...
'', an
animated television series
An animated series, or a cartoon series, is a set of Animation, animated films with a common title, usually related to one another. These episodes typically share the same main heroes, some different secondary characters and a basic theme. Series ...
depicting a war among the
Autobot
The Autobots are a fictional faction of sentient robots in the ''Transformers'' multimedia franchise. The Autobots are living robots from the planet Cybertron who, like most Transformers, are each imbued with a unique "life force" known as a " ...
s and
Decepticon
The Decepticons are a fictional faction of sentient robots in the ''Transformers'' multimedia franchise. Serving as the main antagonists in the franchise, their goals include conquering their fictional homeworld planet Cybertron, defeating ...
s who could transform into vehicles, other objects and animals. Written and recorded in America, the series was animated in
Japan
Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
and later
South Korea
South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...
. The entire series was based upon the line of transforming toys originally created by Japanese toy manufacturer
Takara
was a Japanese toy company founded in 1955. In March 2006, the company merged with Tomy, Tomy Company, Ltd. to form Tomy, Takara Tomy. The Takara motto was("playing is culture").
The company focused on traditional toys and board games. They cr ...
, which were developed into the ''Transformers'' line by American company
Hasbro
Hasbro, Inc. (; a syllabic abbreviation of its original name, Hassenfeld Brothers) is an American multinational corporation, multinational toy manufacturing and entertainment holding company founded on December 6, 1923 by Henry, Hillel and Herma ...
.
In the United States, the show aired a total of 98 episodes between September 17, 1984 and November 11, 1987. The episodes are ordered chronologically by broadcast date. Order # is the correct chronological story order for the episodes, which aired out of order.
Series overview
Generation 1
Season 1 (1984)
Season 2 (1985–86)
''The Transformers: The Movie'' (1986)
''The Transformers: The Movie'' is a 1986 animated feature film. It was released in North America on August 8, 1986. Set to an upbeat rock music soundtrack, the movie has a decidedly darker tone than the television series, with detailed visuals in
Toei Animation
is a Japanese animation studio primarily controlled by its namesake Toei Company. It has produced numerous series, including '' Sally the Witch'', '' GeGeGe no Kitarō'', '' Mazinger Z'', '' Galaxy Express 999'', '' Cutie Honey'', '' Dr. Slu ...
's typical animated feature film styling. The film features several grand battles in which a handful of major characters die.
Season 3 (1986–87)
Season 4 (1987)
Season 4's title sequence was made of parts from the others and TV commercials with Season 3 music.
Epilogue
Season 4 is the end of the American series. ''The Transformers'' continued in Japan as ''
Transformers: The Headmasters'' with 35 new episodes, however, it ignores the events of "The Rebirth" and is set in a different continuity. A fifth season was aired in the United States, but consisted entirely of re-runs of previous episodes being told as stories by Powermaster
Optimus Prime
Optimus Prime, also known in Japan as is a fictional character and the main protagonist of the ''Transformers'' franchise. Generally depicted as a brave and noble leader, Optimus Prime is the supreme commander of the Autobots in their fight ag ...
.
Japanese seasons
In Japan, the first two seasons of the show were collectively released as a single season entitled , then rebranded as for season 3 (season 2 there), with all seasons aired on
Nippon TV
JOAX-DTV (channel 4), branded as (NTV) or Nippon TV, is a Japanese television station serving the Kantō region as the flagship station of the Nippon News Network and the Nippon Television Network System, owned and operated by the , a sub ...
. Following the conclusion of the third season, Japan opted not to import the fourth season, but instead created a series of new animated shows to continue the story, beginning with ''
Transformers: The Headmasters'' in 1987, and continuing into ''
Transformers: Super-God Masterforce'' in 1988, ''
Transformers: Victory'' in 1989, and the single-episode
direct-to-video
Direct-to-video or straight-to-video refers to the release of a film, television series, short or special to the public immediately on home video formats rather than an initial theatrical release or television premiere. This distribution strat ...
OVA
, abbreviated as OVA and sometimes as OAV (original animation video), are Japanese animated films and special episodes of a series made specially for release in home video formats without prior showings on television or in theaters, though the ...
''
Transformers: Zone'' in 1990.
''Scramble City''
''
Scramble City'' was a special
direct-to-video
Direct-to-video or straight-to-video refers to the release of a film, television series, short or special to the public immediately on home video formats rather than an initial theatrical release or television premiere. This distribution strat ...
episode produced for the
Japan
Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
ese market, released in April 1986. It served to further promote the new "combiner" figures who had been introduced at the end of season 2, and a few other figures from the 1986 product line (like
Ultra Magnus
Ultra Magnus is a fictional character from the ''Transformers'' franchise. Ultra Magnus is based on the Diaclone figure Powered Convoy, which is a modified version of the preexisting Battle Convoy figure. He is usually depicted as a car carrie ...
, Metroplex and Trypticon) who had not yet appeared in the American cartoon, which were all being released in Japan with the sub-branding of "Scramble City."
Set soon after the end of the second season, the episode focuses on the Autobots' efforts to construct a new mobile fortress, the titular "Scramble City." When the Decepticons learn of this, their combiner robots are deployed to attack, and a battle between them and their Autobot counterparts ensues, focusing on their "Scramble Power" – the interchangeability of the individual limbs – to the extent that at one point, Breakdown of the Stunticons connects to Superion to damage him. At the episode's conclusion, Scramble City is activated and assumes its robot mode of
Metroplex to rout the Decepticons. However, from the ocean depths, the Decepticons' own city, Trypticon, rises.
Generation 2
Generation 2 episodes were all taken from the
Generation 1 television series which had been previously produced, but with added effects and editing. These episodes aired between 1993 and 1995.
See also
*
List of Transformers animated series
Launched in 1984, the Transformers toyline by Takara Tomy and Hasbro was promoted through both a comic book by Marvel Comics and an animated series produced by Sunbow Productions and Marvel Productions with Toei Animation. Although the comic ou ...
References
External links
*
*
Transformersat Cartoon Encyclopedia
Transformers current version of the guideScreen captures from the Transformers Cartoono
Seibertron.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Transformers Episodes, List Of The
Lists of American children's animated television series episodes
Transformers episodes