[FAN EDIT] Transformers (1986) - Prime lives!

Comics, cartoons, movies and fan stuff.
Post Reply
OrderlyRoddyPiper
Protoform
Posts: 7
Joined: Sat May 29, 2021 8:17 am

[FAN EDIT] Transformers (1986) - Prime lives!

Post by OrderlyRoddyPiper »

Long time lurker, first time poster here. Just putting it out that, after many, many hours, I completed a fan edit of Transformers: the movie (1986) where Prime survives and saves the day -- "Transformers: The Prime Cut." Believe it or not, the movie isn't all that different.

I'm no Orson Welles, but using re-purposed footage and audio clips, it's a semi-convincing edit. I probably did this as therapy to get over my 35-year trauma from Prime's death. There may be no demand for this whatsoever, but I hope people who wanted something like this enjoy it.

Either way, I posted it on the internet archive because, I figured, since Transformers (1986) was already posted and streaming on that site, it's hopefully legal. Google drive link also below.

https://archive.org/details/prime-cut_202105

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1759ZVY ... sp=sharing

Any comments/suggestions are welcomed of course. Thanks.
User avatar
Denyer
Posts: 33028
Joined: Sun Sep 17, 2000 4:00 am
Location: Perfidious Albion
Contact:

Re: [FAN EDIT] Transformers (1986) - Prime lives!

Post by Denyer »

Archive.org isn't much different from any other file host in that respect, it just happens to keep abandonware and public interest content up longer through general acceptance. The film's reissued regularly these days and it's unlikely that relatively short edits would count as transformative fair use. You might find that the content and possibly the Google account disappear.

Including Prime for longer is an interesting idea, but with TF:TM being heavily Star Wars inspired and a coming of age tale it doesn't particularly fit thematically; whereas in Marvel US it segues in naturally for him to be the one still in charge, calling a truce with the Decepticons, going up against Unicron, etc. Maybe one day people might have a go at animating parts of that.
OrderlyRoddyPiper
Protoform
Posts: 7
Joined: Sat May 29, 2021 8:17 am

Re: [FAN EDIT] Transformers (1986) - Prime lives!

Post by OrderlyRoddyPiper »

I agree 1000%. That’s a very keen observation. Prime’s survival comes at the expense of Hot Rod’s hero’s journey arc. If you felt the film worked perfectly before and weren’t shattered as a youngster by Prime’s death, this edit probably isn’t for you. I was never sold on Hot Rod, who is the core of the film. I probably resented him as a child.
User avatar
Denyer
Posts: 33028
Joined: Sun Sep 17, 2000 4:00 am
Location: Perfidious Albion
Contact:

Re: [FAN EDIT] Transformers (1986) - Prime lives!

Post by Denyer »

First experience probably counts for a lot. I think I may have seen the Ladybird book adaptation first, which doesn't have the same impact, followed by the UK home video release that has a Victor Caroli voiceover promising that the story isn't over and Prime will return. Even the film as released has a voiceover from Optimus when Hot Rod upgrades to Rodimus. There were also the UK annuals and comics, and those who encountered it later knew about Powermaster Prime, The Return of Optimus Prime S4 episodes, etc. In the G.I. Joe movie they learnt from their robot movie counterpart and reports of sobbing kids in cinemas and stuck in an explanation that the lead good guy (Duke) who'd clearly been meant to die was okay. In the 80s films were more willing to traumatise kids, but even then comic book death was well-embedded and cartoons usually had reset-button plots with little or no continuity so that they suited syndication.

I love the movie and particularly the soundtrack, but it can't be descriped as perfect/good from any kind of objective standpoint. Killing a majority of the cast kids were familiar with within twenty minutes or so, in fairly brutal ways including burning from the inside out and with shot up corpses, was ballsy even if the characters are robots who could potentially come back. It couldn't have done much more to alienate audiences if it'd tried.

A problem with Hot Rod and all of the other new characters is they have to be established in film shorthand. It almost has to rely on viewers already having had the opportunity to see some toys, read some bios, etc and that the movie would join the dots for characters they were somewhat excited for. Notwithstanding that a lot of the the movie toy designs were bulky futuristic crap compared to what kids had been getting previously.
OrderlyRoddyPiper
Protoform
Posts: 7
Joined: Sat May 29, 2021 8:17 am

Re: [FAN EDIT] Transformers (1986) - Prime lives!

Post by OrderlyRoddyPiper »

Definitely! I saw the film in ‘86 in the States. I was 7 years old and I recall the commercials basically spoiling that Prime will die. It asked, “will Optimus Prime die?” and featured Megatron’s quote, “It’s over, Prime.” I vaguely remember leaning over to my brother during the film, and asking, after each death, “they can repair him, right?”

Many months passed before they began advertising Prime’s return in season 3. So I didn’t have that peace of mind going in to the film.
Post Reply