Introduction

I have come to realize that there are two types of boys that grew up in the 80's - Transformer fans and G.I.Joe fans. Personally, I am a G.I.Joe fan. That does not mean that I do not like the Transformers. I remember avidly watching the Transformers cartoon as a kid. After the events of Transformers: The Movie I really started digging the sci-fi feel that the show took on. Those episodes post Movie are still my favorites, introducing my second favorite character - Kup. If you're curious, Soundwave and his cassettes are my favorites.

When I was in college, I was fortunate enough to purchase a VHS copy of all of the cartoons. While the quality was pretty poor, I could still at least re-live the excitement of my childhood spent setting in front of the TV. Even still, as a casual fan, I have wanted a complete set of the cartoons on DVD. Unfortunately, the US releases have been way overpriced for someone like me who is only curious about the series.

When rumors surfaced of a boxed tin set released only in China containing all of the episodes, I was interested. Unfortunately, I was not able to find out much information on the internet about it. Mostly what I learned was that they were good quality, reasonably priced, and would work on a Region 1 DVD player.

So I did some searching on eBay, took a chance, and made a wonderful discovery.

This page is my attempt to explore the set, give everyone out there some concrete information, and hopefully show people what a great deal this is.

The Basics

I purchased my set from rainbow2004 on eBay. He is in China and I liked the fact that he sent all purchases with tracking and insurance. I paid $23.99 with a Buy It Now and shipping/delivery confirmation/insurance was $21.99. Yes, I paid a grand total of $45.98! Although rainbow2004 said that it would take approximately 12 working days to receive the package, it took right at a month. Not a big deal, I was not concerned since I had a tracking number for the item.

The set includes:

• all 98 episodes of the US cartoon series + Transformers: The Movie on 14 disk
• 1 disk of bonus materials
• a collectible key chain
• a set of 12 shinny postcards
• a metal tin with the Autobot symbol embossed

How To Find It On eBay

To find it, I did a search for "Transformers tin" on eBay. There are lots of sellers with these and all have different prices. I've seen them range from $46-$80. Nearly all of them are available through Buy It Now. If you purchase from rainbow2004, mention that cgiles6p1l sent you to him.

So Is It In English or Chinese?

This seems to be the number one question with this set. By default, the DVDs have a Chinese audio track. In the setup menu for each disk, you can choose English. This is the English track that was broadcast in the US in the 80's. The only other thing is that all of the menus are in Chinese and can not be converted into English. Oddly, the disk are printed in English and the index in the booklet is in English, although all of the other packaging is Chinese.

Are These Legit?

Yes. This boxed set was officially released in China. This is why nearly all of the sellers are overseas - it was released there.

A Closer Look

Rainbow2004 had wrapped the set in bubble wrap and then placed it in a cardboard box. These seemed to hold up really well and protect the tin.

The tin was sealed in shrink wrap, straight from the factory. A waxy ribbon surrounded the tin and featured a holographic seal.

Inside the tin, is the key chain. Nothing fancy, just a rubbery key chain with the Autobot symbol. Also, I will warn you, the foam that is inside of this tin stinks terribly. I have not noticed the smell on the DVDs or on any of the contents of the tin, though.

Removing the top layer of foam revealed the DVD slipcase. In the bottom of the tin is another piece of foam and an envelope with the postcards.

The slipcase holds a giant booklet that holds all 15 disk. The envelop holds the 12 postcards.

The envelop has the "Transformers" name embossed in silver on one side and the phrase "Freedom is the right of all sentient beings" on the other side. The postcards feature some great artwork. The cards are not foil, but they are reflective - almost like they have fine sparkles imbedded in the card stock. The card images appear to cover all of the different cartoon generations.

I love the DVD booklet. The first page gives a rundown of all of the episodes and which season they belong to.

Each page then features artwork on one side and tech specs on the other.

Inside each page, is the disk. Each disk is in a thin plastic sheath.

Each disk features the Autobot symbol, the season number, the disk number, and the episodes that are on the disk.

 

A Look At The Menu

Each disk starts out the same way. There is a title screen.

This is followed by a disk identification screen.

A warning screen in English...

...and what I assume is a warning screen in Chinese.

Unlike many US released DVDs, by hitting the menu button on your DVD remote (or Root Menu on some software players) you can bypass all of the above screens.

The main menu is an Autobot symbol. There are four areas: top is Play All, left is Language selection, bottom is Resume Play, and right is Scene Selection.

This is the language screen. On my DVD player, I have to go here each time I play a disk. Selecting the middle selection chooses English. On my PC, I can change the language with the Language button on the player. The top selection is Chinese. The bottom language I am not sure about. It may turn on the Chinese subtitles, but I'm not positive. The Autobot menu on the left functions like the Autobot menu on the main page. I have had varying degrees of success with these Autobot symbol submenus. Sometimes they work and sometimes only the top selection works - which takes you back to the main menu.

Speaking of languages, there are subtitles, but they are only in Chinese. I have been able to turn them on and off by using the Subtitle button on my DVD player.

 

On the scene selector, each episodes is divided into four parts. To choose another episode, click a number at the bottom. The episode title will always appears on the right side of the screen.

One note, on Disk 14, which feature the 3 episodes from Season 4 and Transformers: The Movie, numbers one thru three are for the three episodes. Numbers four thru eight are for the movie.

On the subject of the movie, this is the original un-color correct version. In other words, it's the SwapPan version where Hotrod is still reddish, instead of pinkish like in the 20th Anniversary Transformers: The Movie DVD.

So How Does it Look?

Animation was not super clear in the 80's. Still, these are cleaner than I remember when I was a kid. Of course, these episodes have been restored - more about that when we get to the extras disk.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Extras Disk - Disk 15

Without a doubt the Extras disk is the most confusing and strangely enjoyable disk in the set. Before I bought this tin, I had no clue what was on the extras disk. I only found one reference to it on a message board where a poster simply said something to the affect "I put it in, but I didn't really understand any of it."

The Extras disk is the only disk that is not numbered on its label. In the booklet, it is the first disk.

Part of the problem is this disk uses an entirely different menu system. It also does not help that it is all in Chinese. Even worse, there is very little explanation of what you are even watching, so at times it appears that the disk is "messed-up." Also, when one selection is done, it immediately goes to the next selection without returning to the menu. Here is my best attempt to explain this disk and its weird collection of video clips.

The DVD opens with a computerized animation going into the crashed Ark. The menu is formed from eight rotating computer screens in the center of the Arc.

 

 

 

 

Menu 1

This is the first menu to appear. You know it is menu one by the number in the upper left and right corner. It is very easy to get on the wrong menu by mistake. Here is a breakdown of each item on the menu:

• Selection 1: File Transfer Process (4:35 sec)
• Selection 2: Frame By Frame (0:46 sec)
• Selection 3: Film Transfer Digital Betacam and Original One-Inch Broadcast Master comparison (47:51 sec)
• Left Arrow at the Bottom: Go to menu 8
• Bar at the Bottom: This appears to be a "play all" starting with the first item on this menu
• Right Arrow at the Bottom: Go to menu 2

Selection 1:

This is a Star Wars-like scroll talking about the film transfer process.

 

I am not sure if this is a joke or not, but I think that it is funny that they explain that the alcohol was for cleaning purposes.

Selection 2:

This is a really neat "Frame By Frame" piece. It is really interesting to see how each frame of a gunfire blast was drawn.

Selection 3:

This is a series of comparisons of the Film Transfer Digital Betacam and the Original One-Inch Broadcast Master. The disk presents the comparisons in several different ways. It is neat to see how things were cleaned up when it was transfer to digital.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Menu 2

• Selection 1: Revised Bumpers (0:36 sec)
• Selection 2: Foreign Bumpers (1:10 sec)
• Left Arrow at the Bottom: Go to menu 1
• Bar at the Bottom: This appears to be a "play all" starting with the first item on this menu
• Right Arrow at the Bottom: Go to menu 3

Selection 1:

These are the animations that appeared before the cartoon went to commercial and when it returned. This section is just for Season 3. While they have the music, they do not have the voice over saying "We now return to the Transformers."

 

Selection 2:

These are foreign bumpers. I am not sure which series these are for. Still, it is neat to see how much more dynamic and creative they were as compared to the US bumpers.

 

 

 

Menu 3

• Selection 1: Revised Bumpers (7:59 sec)
• Selection 2: Foreign Bumpers (13:11 sec)
• Left Arrow at the Bottom: Go to menu 2
• Bar at the Bottom: This appears to be a "play all" starting with the first item on this menu
• Right Arrow at the Bottom: Go to menu 4

Selection 1:

This selection features clapboards followed by pieces of animation. There are bumpers for the early cartoons as well as the post movie cartoons. There is also a series of clips, with clapboards, that were used to make up the closing credits of Season 3.

 

 

Selection 2:

This is a series of clips that point out errors. Things such as missing characters, wrong colors, hair on the frames, film glops, and incorrect voices.

 

 

At the end of selection 2, there is another track that is supposedly the Transformers theme in Japanese. I have not found a way to access this from the menu system, though. There is no video, just the audio. It last for 0:58 seconds.

 

Menu 4

• Selection 1: In The Beginning (0:48 sec)
• Selection 2: Season 2 End Credits video (0:42 sec)
• Selection 3: Season 1 End Credits video (0:41 sec)
• Selection 4: Season 3 Opening Theme version 1 (0:35 sec)
• Selection 5: Season 3 Opening Theme version 2 (0:36 sec)
• Left Arrow at the Bottom: Go to menu 3
• Bar at the Bottom: This appears to be a "play all" starting with the first item on this menu
• Right Arrow at the Bottom: Go to menu 5

Selection 1: This is the first 0:48 seconds of the first episode of the Transformers. Basically setting up the story of the Transformers.

Selection 2: This is the video that ran behind the closing credits at the end of Season 2. There are no credits, however.

Selection 3: This is the video that ran behind the closing credits at the end of Season 1. There are no credits, however.

Selection 4: This is the opening theme for Season 3.

Selection 5: This is the opening theme for Season 3. Apparently there were two themes.

 

Menu 5

• Selection 1: Season 2 opening theme (0:33 sec)
• Selection 2: Foreign opening theme (1:25 sec)
• Selection 3: Foreign opening theme with a bumper (1:42 sec)
• Selection 4: Recap of what has been happening in a foreign episode (0:28 sec)
• Selection 5: Foreign clip of Optimus crashing (0:33 sec)
• Left Arrow at the Bottom: Go to menu 3 (this is not a typo, it skips menu 4)
• Bar at the Bottom: This appears to be a "play all" starting with the first item on this menu
• Right Arrow at the Bottom: Go to menu 6

Selection 1: This is the opening theme for Season 2.

 

 

Selection 2: This is a foreign opening theme that features what I think are Power Masters.

 

Selection 3: This is the same opening theme as Selection 2, but it has an additional bumper at the end.

Selection 4: This is an English recap of what has been happening in the story. There is no video other than a picture with some text.

Selection 5: This is a foreign clip of Optimus Prime driving off of a clip and what appears to be a Power Master jumping out of his cab in mid-air.

 

Menu 6

• Left Arrow at the Bottom: Go to menu 5
• Bar at the Bottom: This appears to be a "play all" starting with the first item on this menu
• Right Arrow at the Bottom: Go to menu 7

Play All Section: shows the script pages for "Transport To Oblivion." If you play this, it runs for 4:58 seconds.

 

At the end, it shows a collection of scenes featuring a made up computer language.

 

 

 

Menu 7

• Selection 1: BotCon 2001 "Above and Beyond" (6:29 sec)
• Selection 2: Glen Hallit (5:00 sec)
• Left Arrow at the Bottom: Go to menu 6
• Bar at the Bottom: This appears to be a "play all" starting with the first item on this menu
• Right Arrow at the Bottom: Go to menu 8

Selection 1: A mini documentary of BotCon 2001. It features a few interviews with some outlandish fans.

 

 

Selection 2: An interview with Glen Hallit about the business of running BotCon.

 

Menu 8

• Selection 1: Flash Cartoon of Season 1 Opening (0:49 sec)
• Selection 2: Flash Cartoon of 80's Robots (1:44 sec)
• Selection 2: Flash Cartoon of 80's Robots (5:00 sec)
• Left Arrow at the Bottom: Go to menu 7
• Bar at the Bottom: This appears to be a "play all" starting with the first item on this menu
• Right Arrow at the Bottom: Go to menu 1

Selection 1: A Flash cartoon animation from http://zzone.myrice.com. This side does not appear to be around anymore. the animation is a cartoony version of the Season 1 opening.

 

 

Selection 2: A really neat Flash cartoon animation set to some rocking music featuring robots from the 80's.

Selection 3: Apparently this is a sequel to the above animation. It features even more robots from the 80's.

 

At the end of selection 3, there is another track that is a 6:10 second piece of images of the characters from the animation. I have not found a way to access this from the menu system, though.

Conclusion

Personally, I think that this is a wonderful set full of lots of great extras. Even if it has been a cardboard box with just the episodes, it would have been a tremendous deal. The bonus items are simply icing on the cake. I highly recommend this set to the causal Transformers fans like myself.

If you found this review helpful, send me an email at sidewinder@christophergiles.com. I would love to know who all around the world has seen this.