It is only natural for there to be a close relationship between children’s television programming and toys. It was a marketing genius who first realized this lucrative connection and cashed in on it. Back years ago in my childhood we all had to have official Howdy Doody toys and games. The Man from U.N.C.L.E. sold spy kits and there were always lunch boxes emblazoned with your favorite characters from TV. There is one partnership between the producers of children’s television and a toy company that redefined the nature of product tie in; Takara and Hasbro. Hasbro had a toy line of robots that would change into cars that wasn’t doing very well in the stores. Takara had a project about transforming robots at war. The match was made in fiscal heaven and ‘The Transformers’ were born. For over two decades this franchise has been going strong with several different animated television series and now one of the biggest live action blockbuster films to his the movies in a long time. Before long the catch phrases ‘More Than Meets the Eye’ and ‘Robots in Disguise’ where part of the popular jargon. Although the popularity of this franchise has had its ups and downs over the years it survived and now thanks to renewed interest in the live action movie it is more popular than ever. Whether you remember one or more of the animated series from when you were a kid or your child watched them this is more than a typical cartoon. If you never got into the battling robots then this is a great chance to get to know some of the lore that makes up their incredibly complex universe. Now Paramount Pictures has the ultimate collector’s set for the Transformers Cybertron series. Even if this is your first exposure to the Transformers it is not only fun for the kids but it is a reasonably good piece of science fiction that fans of that genre, even the adults, can get into and enjoy.

Transformers Cybertron is considered to be the closing act in a trilogy. The first two parts; Transformers: Armada and Transformers: Energon are eluded to frequently here but not necessary for the understanding and enjoyment of this story line. Each part of the trilogy is a long and involved story spanning four complete seasons each. The first two parts are mostly available in season sets. As far as I can tell Armada is not fully available on region one DVD yet. This ultimate set for Cybertron is complete with the whole four seasons in one, seven disc, box set. Even for someone like myself with only a peripheral knowledge of the franchise I found myself immediately pulled into the story. The animation is typical of Japanese television. There are definite influences from the world of anime present. For the most part the animation is smooth and as realistic as possible considering the format. In order to let the kids in the audience identify better with the action there are several human characters depicted. Most are either youngsters with great intelligence or a mechanical knacks or adult authority figures.

At its core this is a story of good versus evil. The good guys are the Autobots. They typically are shown as very large robots with the ability to transform into cars, planes or over vehicles. Their sworn enemies are the evil Decepticons. They can also turn into other forms but they are out for the enslavement of the entire universal at the expenses of any and all organic life forms. The Autobots are the only thing that could prevent this from happening.

At the start of the first season the immensely huge Unicron was destroyed and it looked like the immediate danger to the universe was over. His destruction resulted in the formation of a black hole that now threatens the home planet of the Autobots and the Decepticons, Cybertron. The leader of the Autobots, Optimus Prime, is forced to evacuate his robots to Earth for safety where they can hide as regular vehicles. Optimus and a few of his most loyal soldiers is approached by an ancient Autobot leader, Vector Prime. He tells them about a device, the Cyber Planet Keys, which would be able to stop the black hole and save their planet. The four keys are now on different planets and must be reunited for their power to be realized. The map to the planets is stolen by Megatron, the leader of the Decepticons. Naturally, both sides wind up on Earth to fight over the map.

On the earth the Autobots are befriended by three human children, Coby, Bud and Lori. With their help they discover the Omega Lock, required to focus the combined powers of the keys. Using the lock the Autobots unleash new powers and abilities within themselves. They split up to locate the planets with the other keys. One is the Speed Planet where the local Transformers are ultra fast. On the Jungle Planet the native Transformers have taken on the look of animals and over the long years begun to imitate the behavior and personalities of those beasts. One of the planets, Gigantion, has fallen out of the normal time-space continuum and now exists in another strange dimension. As if there was any doubt as the Autobots move out over the galaxy the Decepticons are hot on their heels ready to destroy them and take the keys for themselves. Along the way there is more than enough action for anyone. The story moves along very well never lagging in its pacing. It is just plain exciting to watch.

Having to go to remote locations to find pieces of the required device is a time honored ploy especially in science fiction. This is the old Plot Voucher. You have to get all the pieces together and redeem the finished product for a denouement. This is well used in children’s action television most recently in a season of the rival show, Power Rangers. This method provides a natural structure for the story line. It also allows several groups to be active at once permitted the writers to move back and forth between these different aspects of the tale. It is also great if you are selling toys related to the series since the kids will have to have their parents buy all of them. This is only one example of just how well constructed this series is. It is written with intelligence and thought which is a lot more than can be said about most children’s television.

This is the set to have no matter what level of Transformers mania you are on. Paramount not only provides a great DVD box set here but they show their respect for the fans by allowing them to get all four seasons required to see the story through in one set.