What Are the Most Popular Transformers Arcs?

Throughout the many Transformers cartoons and continuities, numerous fan-favorite robots in disguise have been introduced. In many cases, these characters mostly occupy the screen because they happened to have toys on the shelves at that time. Despite these commercial endeavors, however, the franchise has also had numerous well-written story arcs and examples of character development.

Examples of thoughtful character development were featured in various Transformers shows, with some characters getting more growth than others. These included heroes and villains alike, with the lines sometimes being blurred between the two. From the growth of a young Maximal to the heroic death of an otherwise evil Decepticon, Transformers has been home to exciting character arcs that paid off across multiple episodes.

10 The Rebirth Paid Off an Autobot Ally’s Development

The fourth “season” of The Transformers was a truncated collection of episodes known as “The Rebirth,” wherein the Headmasters and Targetmasters were introduced. While most of these new characters were Cybertronians that were “binary-bonded” with alien Nebulans, the mighty Autobot Fortress Maximus was a more familiar hero. The organic being that comprised the head of Cerebros (who in turn transformed into Fort Max’s head) was none other than staunch Autobot ally Spike Witwicky.

Once merely a human sidekick who regularly paled around with Bumblebee, Spike was now a full-fledged Autobot who became part of a being more powerful than even Autobot leader Optimus Prime. Likewise, his partner Cerebros learned the value of defending his friends, despite otherwise being a pacifist. This made “The Rebirth” into a major arc for both of them.

9 Silverbolt Became a Dark Knight In Beast Machines

In the series Beast Wars: Transformers, Silverbolt was a Maximal Fuzor (whose beast mode combined two animals into one) who took on a noble, knight-like persona. This made him rather corny to most, but it ended up winning him the spark of the Predacon Blackarachnia. This relationship was completely upended in the sequel series, Beast Machines: Transformers, with Silverbolt being reimagined in the brooding mold of a notable comic book hero.

In that series, Silverbolt was captured by Megatron, with his spark used to create the gleefully evil Vehicon, Jetstorm. Once restored, Silverbolt was a changed Maximal and felt immense guilt over what he had done. No longer a chivalrous swashbuckler, his transformation intentionally echoed the transition of Batman’s image from the 1960s Adam West TV series to later comic book depictions such as in The Dark Knight Returns.

8 Arcee’s Rescue Redeemed Ratchet

In the series Transformers: Animated, the Autobot medic Ratchet was reimagined as a cranky old man. Much of this was actually guilt over his previous adventures, namely a run-in with the bounty hunter Lockdown. This saw Arcee sacrifice her own memories to keep vital information away from the Decepticons.

Ratchet was able to redeem himself with help from the Autobots’ ally, Sari Sumdac. She surmised how to help repair Arcee, using a technique that had once robbed her of her memories to instead restore them. Arcee immediately recognized Ratchet, bringing his guilt to an end during the show’s third and final season.

7 Hot Shot Went from a Young Kid to a Worthy Autobot

In the series Transformers: Armada, Hot Shot was featured in the role of the resident young Autobot, much like Hot Rod had been in Generation 1. Ironically, Hot Shot was originally going to be an updated version of Bumblebee. Impetuous and cocky, Hot Shot’s demeanor constantly got him and his allies in trouble.

Despite this, Optimus Prime saw potential in the young Autorbot that others — including Hot Shot — didn’t. To this end, Optimus even left him the Matrix of Leadership when he temporarily relinquished it, though Hot Shot knew not to take it. By the time of Transformers: Energon, Hot Shot had become a much calmer and more mature warrior who was a firm ally of Optimus Prime.

6 Cheetor’s Maturation In the Beast Era

Before Hot Shot or the return of Bumblebee in the franchise’s history, the biggest yellow kid-appeal Transformer was the Maximal Cheetor. Much like his beast mode, Cheetor regularly moved fast, many times without thinking. This rubbed his fellow Maximals, including leader Optimus Primal, the wrong way, though the cat robot definitely meant well.

In his Transmetal II form seen in Beast Wars‘ third season, Cheetor was now seemingly older and having a slightly rebellious streak. This reached a deeper development in the sequel, Beast Machines, where Cheetor was now the voice of reason and openly questioned Primal’s continually strange spiritual delusions. This left him as the team’s leader by the end of the series.

5 Starscream’s Ghost Kept the Decepticon Alive

The Transformers: The Movie was seemingly the end for the treacherous Starscream, but the former leader of the Seeker jets still had some fuel in the tank. He reappeared in Season 3 of The Transformers as an unread ghost that haunted the Decepticons. Seeking vengeance against Galvatron (who had formerly been Starscream’s tyrannical leader, Megatron), he possessed Cyclonus and others in an attempt to utilize the last vestiges of Unicron’s power.

Though this plan was unsuccessful, it showed that Starscream’s treachery knew no mortal bounds. It also saw him return in an episode of Beast Wars: Transformers, though that series arguably followed the continuity of the Marvel Transformers comic books. Ever since, the idea that Starscream has an immortal spark has remained consistent in the franchise.

4 Sixshot Aids the Autobots

Some of the more overlooked aspects of the Transformers franchise are the Japanese-exclusive G1 anime. These diverged from “The Rebirth” and told their own stories, sometimes giving the same characters from the American cartoon vastly different fates. Such was the case with Sixshot, who began as a crafty Decepticon ninja in the anime Transformers: The Headmasters.

Due to his allegiance and prowess, Sixshot actually killed the Autobot City Commander, Ultra Magnus. Despite this clear villainy, he became disillusioned with the Decepticons and eventually befriended Daniel Witwicky, the son of the Autobots’ human friend, Spike. This made Sixshot pivotal in saving the boy during one of the Autobots and Decepticons’ final battles. From there, he swore to never aid the Decepticons again.

3 The Return of Optimus Prime

Many children were distraught over Optimus Prime’s death in The Transformers: The Movie, and his brief return at the beginning of Season 3 of the cartoon as a Quintesson-controlled zombie didn’t help. The final storyline in that season was “The Return of Optimus Prime.” This proved how pivotal the Autobot was to his team, especially when it came to lighting their darkest hour.

Relieving the insecure and worried Rodimus Prime of his duties as leader, Optimus saved the Autobots and the entire galaxy from the Hate Plague. The episodes even saw him teaming up with Galvatron, showing how desperately things had changed. Earning the Decepticon leader’s ultimate respect, Optimus Prime led the Autobots in transforming and rolling out once more.

2 Code of Hero Was the Culmination of Dinobot’s Life

One of the most well-known and beloved episodes of Beast Wars was “Code of Hero,” which centered on the Maximal known as Dinobot. Far from the dimwitted Dinobots of G1, this Cybertronian was a noble warrior who had turned his back on the evil Predacons. In his finest hour, he stood alone against Megatron and his forces in order to keep him from killing the ancestors of humanity and rewriting history.

This episode proved how, even alone, Dinobot would fight to the very end. Likewise, he had truly taken on the Maximal ideals and stood against the Predacons’ tyrannical actions. The reaction to his death (namely in the unmade episode “Dark Glass”) and cemented Dinobot as being one of Rattrap’s best friends, despite their differences. Conversely, it made Megatron cloning him into the evil Transmetal II Dinobot (and that variant’s eventual redemption) all the more tragic.

1 Starscream’s Redemption In Transformers: Armada Was His Greatest Moment

Starscream is usually treacherous for purely vengeful reasons, but that wasn’t the case in Transformers: Armada. There, Starscream merely sought respect from Megatron, with the callous Decepticon leader never recognizing his lieutenant’s worth. At one point, he even joined the Autobots and befriended the human teenagers that helped them. Sadly, his attempts to gain Megatron’s favor resulted in his rejoining the Decepticon cause.

Near the Armada’s climax, Starscream (in his “Powerlinx Thundercracker” coloration) tried desperately to convince the now-upgraded Galvatron to join Optimus and defeat the threat of Unicron. Starscream went so far as to sacrifice himself to prove Unicron’s existence, with his final blast of power separating him from his partner Mini-Con and finally convincing Galvatron of the truth. It was easily his greatest moment, but both the Autobots and their human friends mourned the loss.