(Original title: "Transformers" styling evolutionary history: from the box war to the explosion deformation)
Dreaming of Ravens
"Transformers" movie version, accompany us through 10 years.
However, as the "Transformers" film tenth anniversary of the work, the film's reality is not so friendly. The 15% freshness of Rotten Tomatoes, with an IMDB score of 5.4 points, is even lower than the previous "New Mummy" being trumpeted. In the North American "Transformers" only $ 15 million on the first day, is also the lowest series.
All this seems to prove that "Transformers 5" will bring this series to a low point. Is that true?
Of course not, and regardless of whether the film is in full swing in comparison with North America, Transformers is not one of the most successful commercials in the history of the film. Its extensive commercial profits are enough to support the continued development of the Transformers series. Go on. From toys to animations, from television to movies, Transformers has been carrying more than just feelings and business opportunities for more than 30 years.
Not to mention anything else, it can be seen from the characterization of the characters in the film alone. Perhaps many viewers have also discovered that the current movie version is so different from the previous animation.
In fact, the Transformers played a “microscope†state in the course of historical development. Both in terms of the robot’s technical level and the role they played in the works, they can read out the direction of the development of science and technology and the public’s understanding of future technology. determination. One of the most direct representations is probably the shape of several robots.
In general, the robot image in "Transformers" is mainly influenced by two factors: one is the design process, and the other is the aesthetic trend. And these two aspects can be completely unified under the meaning of "commercial drive."
Although the Transformers are conceptually not considered "Robot" in the traditional sense, both the designers and the general public will count them as a member of the robot army, citing the robot's image to accept them. Because since they were born, from the appearance of the design or design ideas, all represent the inherent image of the robot in the era of the trend of the big screen.
From the animated cartoons of the 1980s to today’s movie edition, this group of aliens transformed from iron jars into metal fashion models with mechanical aesthetics. This is exactly the evolution of robots on the big screen, and the styling mutations. The leap in details is closely related to the concept of human understanding of robots and the technological style in each era.
First, who gave the inspiration: Toys are the primary productivity
Do not look at today's many viewers Tucao too many ads in the movie "Transformers." But I am afraid I rarely know that Transformers itself is an advertisement. They are the first toys and have animations.
Transformers are the flagship toys owned by Hasbro, a famous toy manufacturer in the United States, but initially they did not belong to the United States.
In 1974, Hasbro’s toy soldiers series (the precursor of “Special Forcesâ€) entered the Japanese market, but they ate a closed door. Japanese players were not interested in this rough American soldier, but they let Japanese toy manufacturer Takara find inspiration. , developed the "Little Star Superman" series, about 10 cm in height moving small humanoid, the story is the two factions microfilm soldiers, can zoom in/out objects for their own use, and then popular, of course, this time "The MSI Little Superman" has nothing to do with the deformation and the robot.
Entering the 1980s, the series of "Micro-Star Superman" has evolved and evolved, and robots have appeared. They can be easily transformed into vehicles such as aircraft. They are collectively called Micro Change.
At the same time, Takara also separated the concepts of robot and deformation, and developed new series, such as a series of cars, a series of dinosaurs, and a series of small household appliances such as radios. This independent branch is called Diaclone. However, at this time, these robots all have cockpits and must be driven by people. In a sense, they are more like mechs (Takaratomy Co., Ltd. last year remade the Diaclone series, as shown below).
The two variants were not very well sold in Japan, and they were severely suppressed by another distorted animation toy “The Macross†series produced in the same period, but they gained a good reputation internationally and caused them The treasure company's attention. At the 1983 Comic Con in Tokyo, Hasbro and Takara have begun to study cooperation matters.
In 1984, Hasbro formally purchased two variants, Micro Change and Diaclone, and modified them to eliminate robots from being controlled by humans and turning them into living organisms and named "Transformers". I set up a story for myself. Marvel was responsible for brand promotion. In order to tie in with the sale of toys, I also produced three episodes of animated advertisements, that is, the first three episodes of the "Transformers" animation. I did not expect animation to be broadcast. Popularity, Hasbro made a long series of episodes, then formed a 98 episodes of animated episodes that we later saw.
Where is the source of Transformers?
About the origin of the Transformers, there are still two factions. One side believes that it was in 1983, that is, the production time of the Japanese Micro Change and Diaclone series. Without them, there would be no Transformers. This is the origin of the Transformers. The other side believes that after Hasbro purchased the copyright in 1984, it changed the setting and named it "Transformers." This is the true origin of Transformers. The current debate between the two groups has continued from the last century to the Today, it is almost ready to fight.
Second, you seem to be a little bit: the process determines the image
From the above history, it can be seen that Transformers first had the birth of toys and animation, creating a precedent for the brand to drive multi-field productivity. And the Transformers were born by the animation and even later the movie gave birth to a better toy sales, is also considered anti-off the main model, it is not difficult to understand why the King Kong was one of a boxy square.
First of all, limited to the toy production level at that time, the deformation of the toy is very simple. It is nothing more than “deformation of the arms, legs, front and chest, etc.â€. The deformation of the product defines the appearance of the robot, whether it is an automobile or an airplane. , making the latter no matter how hard it can not avoid the 80s style car / aircraft craft.
Such as Optimus Prime and Starscream, as representatives of cars and airplanes, both robot images are closely related to their deformed products. The windows of Optimus's chest and the wings behind the red spider cannot be eliminated again. Drop the iconic appearance of this car/aircraft.
Second, the animation of the year was just for the sake of matching toy sales. It did not even think that the popularity of animation exceeded that of toys, and even some animated characters could not be turned into corresponding products at the level of the time.
For example, Megatron, a deformed Walther P38 pistol, prototype robot robot modeling is not ideal, animation as a Decepticon leader, the designer of the role of a substantial modification, so that he becomes less "ugly" Therefore, if you don't tell the player that this is the same money, Megatron does not recognize it. Because of this, Megatron Toys had very little shipments at the time and it has now become the top collection on the market.
At the same time, Takara's toy series purchased by Hasbro did not have too many robotic characters. With the rapid development of Transformers, manufacturers also considered adding more robotic characters to cope with the development of animation plots and toy sales, in addition to Takara's inventory. For some toys, Hasbro has also made a lot of foreign aid, such as Skyfire and Sasser.
The prototype of Skyfire was the VF-1 fighter in "The Macross". After Hasbro bought the right to use the toy design, it found that it could not be added to the animation because the "Supersition" had first animation and then toys. , so had to reset the image in the animation.
Shockwave is a space gun belonging to Japan's Toyco, so you can also understand why in the "Transformers" animation, the image of the two is not the same as the rest of the Transformers. The two brothers originally represented other toy companies. design concept.
Why does Optimus Prime wear a mask?
This is due to the designers' incompetence. As the leader of the Autobots, Optimus Prime's positioning is an image of “righteousness, anger, and affinityâ€, but designers have found that in the design of Optimus. When the column's face, in any case can not reflect the above characteristics, simply lazy to wear a mask to him, and later in the official IDW comics, also for this question to understand, because Optimus Prime's mouth is quite ferocious, its The creator Titanium gave him an iron mask to cover his face. Obviously you can't design it, okay, fortunately, you don't have a beard on the column.
Third, the United States and Japan each playing their own home: see the wind to make the transition
When there was a huge amount of inventory, the time came to 1986. When Hasbro found out that the brand robots it purchased were finally used up, the development of the animation story went into a bottleneck. The market urgently needed a new batch of toys to replace the old characters. The Transformers Movie was born.
A large number of old characters led by Optimus Prime chose to die in the movie, the new generation took over the clothing, and appeared a large number of new robots with a full sense of the future. Their deformed products were no longer confined to the current means of transport, but they chose the space fighter. The future of science fiction products such as sports cars, and more importantly, it is not necessary to spend large sums of money for the purchase of vehicle rights from car companies.
This change is not revolutionary for robot modeling, but there have been some corresponding changes.
The shape of the robot is no longer limited to the current technology products, more futuristic design style.
First of all, according to their deformed form, the robot itself is no longer square and has more curved and streamlined design options. For example, the leader of the rebellion leader, Tian Tianshi and Jing Tian, ​​they deformed the future truck/photon cannon. The style is integrated into the robot form, so that the robot form becomes more in line with the characteristics of human body dynamics. At the very least, the windshield of the car on the body of Skyse is missing, and in the case of a broken sky, the streamlined silhouette replaces the square face of Megatron.
But these two toys are eye-catching, because after the big movie Transformers toy design Hasbro was entrusted to the design of Takara Corporation in Japan, in order to prevent the plot of the film leaked, Hasbro made the TianTians and astounding When the case was handed over to Takara, they did not tell each other that these two characters were the new generation of leaders. As a result, the designers did not invest much effort in designing the toys in accordance with the image of the leaders. As a result, many players were disappointed after the toys were released.
After 1986, the United States lost interest in animation production and put the focus on cartoons. Takara Corporation of Japan bought the right to use the Transformers brand and animation rights, and continued to make animations. The 1987-1989 "Headed Fighters" "Hidden "Fighters" "Fight for Victory" Three animations represent the Japanese version of Transformers and introduce related toys.
As Japanese animation and American comics are very different in design style and story, different styles of toys have appeared. In fact, compared with the difference between the United States and Japan cars will find that the American design style pays attention to the overall, prominent strong and durable, while the Japanese design is concerned with the details, highlighting the structural and sophisticated.
Soon after, the U.S. version of the Japanese version of the toy broke up completely.
The above is known as the Transformers G1 era.
Although the movie version of Transformers has become the mainstream of toys today, neither Hasbro nor Takaratmy can forget the image of the former animated version of Transformers, but also took care of the old players and introduced MP series toys.
MP, the name is called Transformers Masterpiece, translated, is "Master Masterpiece", is the 20th anniversary of the Transformers Japanese version of the series, the main is the retro animation. With the advancement of today's toy craftsmanship, MP-class toys will be able to restore the animated image of toys, to achieve the ultimate reduction.
The most typical example is Megatron. Now the image of MP3 Megatron is not the same as G1 Megatron that year. The MP toy almost completely restores the shape of the animation, and can also be turned into a P38 pistol with perfection. Of course, this brings with it an innovative design and a high price (the market price is RMB 1600).
Fourth, the pursuit of high precision process: the sense of the future of the King Kong
In 1992, the Transformers was re-launched in the United States under the name of “Transformers' Second Generation†(G2). In addition to the brighter color configuration, the toy first appeared “ball-occlusion jointsâ€. This technique is called “Father of Transformersâ€. - Takara Yu Jiaying Zhao, the designer of Megatron and Sonic, was invented by Takara.
Transformers are no longer hard brick legs. With the increase and decrease of metal parts, spherical joints increase, making the toy shape more full three-dimensional, and better mobility.
At about this time, whether it is the toy itself or the animation based on the new toy, Transformers has initially got rid of the square image of the time.
It is believed that most people will not have feelings of resistance to objects with excellent texture and lines, so in the history of Transformers' image development in the future, whether it is the "Beastmaster" series that was later transformed into animals, or the joint launch of the US-Japan producer. Although the "Fleet" and "Galaxy Force" series still have the appearance of "deformation form determines shape", robots that pursue a sense of the future have become the design concept that continues until today, and as time passes, the Transformers Toys not only have further changes in technology, but their audience has also undergone corresponding changes.
"Transformers" was one of the earliest foreign animations introduced in China in the 1980s. Hasbro's foreigners sold the "Transformers" cartoons at the Shanghai Fine Arts Studio because the asking price was too high. "Transformers" all free to Shanghai TV broadcast, free who do not? After the results of the broadcast, it triggered a frenzy of watching.
However, the "free lunch" also ends here. With a fiery state, Hasbro's Transformers toys have entered the Chinese market, and the profits have been countless, and it has been alive today. The Chinese market is using such money. Animation attracted toys for money.
V. Explosive Deformation: Leap of Movie Quality
"Transformers" as a brand from the 1980s to the new century, many fans of Transformers had grown from children to adults, their audience is no longer limited to the child level, but for more adult players. On the one hand, it can continue to serve the loyalty of the year. On the other hand, toys for toys of different ages are also introduced.
For example, the "D-grade" for younger children is similar to the toys of the 1980s and is easily deformed. There are also advanced "V-levels", suitable for adult players, larger in size, more prominent in detail, and somewhat more difficult to transform; there are also "L-level" and "U-level" customized for collectors, etc., and Transformers animation Or the restoration of the movie's form and model to a realistic level, and also added optoelectronic sound effects, the deformation is extremely complex, such as L-class noise in the 2007 movie version, advanced toys want to be completely into the tank / robot form, no Half an hour is not a task.
The 2007 movie version is an innovation for Transformers. The film style is not in the same dimension as the traditional Transformers. This change has made many old players angry, and has launched a campaign to boycott the film version. .
However, Hasbro's move is in order to use the global reputation of the film to further promote its own brand. The new Transformers are uniquely shaped, completely out of the old style of design, is to break the Transformers more than 20 years, "deformation limit The design concept of "shape" first conforms to the trend of the times and the current aesthetic taste of the robot form, and then turns it into various transportation/military tools. At this time, the level of toy design has made great progress, and it can satisfy those complicated in the movie. Deformation requirements.
This breakthrough has brought Transformers' design style to a new height. The Transformers have no longer the four-square shape of the past and become a very American super hero animated style. This change has also attracted A large number of new generation players, more to meet the consumer needs of the new century.
For toys, it means design subversion and start again. In the age of "Transformers" movie, toy craftsmanship and technology have made great progress. The introduction of technologies such as spring gears, trapezoidal buckles, and articulated joints has increased the stability and playability of toys, and has allowed the distortion design to be further developed.
Takashi Takayuki, a designer from Takaratomy, based on Optimus Prime's human concept map and the existing models, his eyes are blackened, and the “explosive†deformation is designed using only the Optimus Prime toy. It is a miracle to think that it is very similar to the Optimus Prime's metamorphic concept in the movie.
This kind of explosive deformation, in addition to the new era of aesthetics, compared to the previous block-type "block movement", is a large number of toy parts increased, resulting in increased costs and soaring prices.
For example, in 2009, the L-class Optimus Prime was once soared to 2,000 yuan, and the Hornet was even more exotic. Behind all this is the drive of commercial interests.
At this point, the shape of the Transformers has completed the transformation, the future development of the King Kong brand will also be closer to the times.
Why did the later Megatron not become a pistol?
Deformed into a pistol form, Megatron appeared only in the first generation of Transformers. Since then, no matter what other animations and toys or movies, no matter whether it is a cannon, a tank, or an airplane, the old Wei classmate never appeared in the form of a pistol.
This is due to the fact that in the early 1990s, the United States established a new "Toys Safety Laws and Regulations", one of which stipulates that "simulation of firearms is prohibited in toy production".
At this point, Megatron completely prayed with the pistol, and coupled with the peculiar shape of the pistol as a robot, it was estimated that this one was very much supported by Transformers toy manufacturers.
Six, science and technology determine the industry: the era of aesthetics and robot manufacturing
The sense of the times is an element that has to be said. The development of the Transformers has gone through a 30-year history. From their modeling changes, they represent a period of people’s perception of the robot’s image and they reflect for a period of time. Cultural features and aesthetic perspectives.
In the 1980s, sci-fi movies were surging. The image of robots on the screen suddenly increased, and a group of stylists specialized in mechanical design were born. They were deeply influenced by hard-core industrial machinery. In the same period, Murphy in “Mechanical Police†The T-800 image in "Terminator" all reflects the industrialized design image.
These robots often highlight the material beauty of the machine itself, and pursue a strong form, size, strength, and cold texture. The shape of the robot of Transformers also has such a characteristic. The fight is full of sparks and impact.
Moreover, the Transformers' design features incorporate the characteristics of Japan's popular mech costumes, such as "Gunda" and "Superwealth". They focus on the decomposition, deformation and combination of the body. For instance, Hercules and other combination robots are inspired by Japanese. The train combination robot evolved. The shape of these robots has a very high demand for the designer's industrial design. There is no lack of rigorous structural engineering and ergonomic knowledge in the design.
With the passage of time, the robot design gradually converged, and a large number of homogenized robot images were filled with screens, and the freshness was not enough. The period when the Transformers’ history was lowest started from this period. The robot disappeared on the big screen. time.
At this time, robots such as the "liquid humanoid" and "soft mech" represented by the "Terminator 2" T-1000 and the Japanese animated "Neon Evangelion" etc. appeared, indicating that the shape of the robot was greatly affected. Change.
The newly appointed designers have paid more attention to trendy technology, robot modeling pursues alienation, personality and fashion, reducing the taste of many machinery and steel, and increasing the biological, genetic, bionic and even humanistic components. It was during this period that the Transformers became an animal and other organism in Super Warrior.
In the new century, artificial intelligence, cloning, and other new terms are increasingly riddled with science fiction movies. At this time, high-intelligence robots that mix humanoid and robotic creatures emerged. The Japanese animated "Ghost Attack Mobile Team" and the American film "I In Robotics, the artificial humanoid robot is used as the carrier of the machine, human-machine integration, biological robots, and artificial human models, which shifts the center of gravity and aesthetic interest set by the robot to the “human†level, making the audience feel familiar Unfamiliar, full of temptation and fear of unknown technology.
At this time, the movie version of "Transformers" is considered heterogeneous, as a product of animation and toys that year, Transformers design concept, combined with different periods of design. Including the industrial design of the 1980s, the machine is complex in shape, with various parts protruding from the surface, and the metal texture is strong. There are also software and bionic design in the 1990s, such as the second concentration of degenerate King Kong. It also joins the times and joins a new era of bionics. The concept of robots has emerged from robots that completely simulate humans. These symbols all show that the most representative form design of Transformers has been a model of art and technology.
With the release of “Transformers 5′′, perhaps with the aesthetic fatigue caused by the inflexible style of the film version, when relating to the fourth part, the viewers whistled at the movies and waved money to queue up to buy tickets. Reappear.
In fact, the charm of Transformers is here. The cultural impact and commercial charm brought about by robot modeling make it a highly specialized subject, which includes reflections on the entire history of science fiction development, including Transformers. "Represents the process of robot modeling transformation that spanned more than 30 years from the 1980s to today, and it is the representative of the largest scale, brand, and influence in the history of science fiction development. It is also one of the most direct representations of science fiction robots.
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