Transformers: EarthSpark

Transformers: EarthSpark is an American computer-animated television series based on the Transformers toyline by Hasbro and Takara Tomy and developed by Dale Malinowski, Ant Ward and Nicole Dubuc for the streaming service Paramount+. The series is owned and distributed by Hasbro,[2][3] and is a co-production between Hasbro's Entertainment One and Nickelodeon Animation Studio, with animation services provided by Icon Creative Studio. It debuted on Paramount+ with its first 10 episodes on November 11, 2022.[1][4][5][6] The second batch of season one episodes, bringing the total episode count to eighteen, began streaming on Paramount+ on March 3, 2023.[7] The series has been renewed for a second season.

Transformers: EarthSpark
Genre
Based onTransformers
by Hasbro and Takara Tomy
Developed by
Voices of
ComposerCrush Effect
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes18
Production
Executive producers
Running time23–45 minutes
Production companies
Release
Original networkParamount+[1]
Original releaseNovember 11, 2022 (2022-11-11) –
present

The show received fairly positive reception upon release.[8] In May 2023, it became the target of criticism from conservative news outlets for its inclusion of a non-binary character.

Premise

Fifteen years after the space bridge to Cybertron is destroyed, ending the civil war between the Autobots and the Decepticons, the Malto family relocates from Philadelphia to the small town of Witwicky, Pennsylvania. There, young Robby and Mo Malto witness the birth of a new breed of Earth-born Transformers called Terrans, who become emotionally bonded to the two via special cyber-sleeves on their arms. Now adopted into the family and being mentored by Bumblebee, the Terrans work with the Autobots, the former Decepticon leader Megatron, the organization G.H.O.S.T., and the children to protect their new life from the remaining rogue Decepticons and other villains while finding their place in the world.[9]

Characters

Terrans
  • Twitch Malto (voiced by Kathreen Khavari) – An inquisitive and competitive Terran Transformer and Robby's partner. She transforms into a flying Cybertronian drone.[10]
  • Thrash Malto (voiced by Zeno Robinson) – A fun-loving and impulsive Terran Transformer and Mo's partner. He transforms into a motorcycle with a sidecar named "Rosinante", Mo's former motorcycle.[10]
  • Hashtag Malto (voiced by Stephanie Lemelin) – An excitable media-savvy second-generation Terran Transformer. She transforms into a G.H.O.S.T. surveillance Hummer H2 van.
  • Jawbreaker Malto (voiced by Cyrus Arnold) – A sensitive second-generation Terran Transformer. He transforms into a Pachycephalosaurus making him the Dinobot of the group.
  • Nightshade Malto (voiced by Z Infante) – A creative and scientifically-minded second-generation Terran Transformer. Nightshade is the first character in a Transformers cartoon to be identified as non-binary.[11] They transform into a Northern hawk-owl after scanning a nearby statue of one.

Autobots
  • Optimus Prime (voiced by Alan Tudyk) – The leader of the Autobots. He transforms into a Western Star 5700 OP semi-trailer truck.[10]
  • Bumblebee (voiced by Danny Pudi) – A former Autobot scout and currently AutoBot veteran in hiding who becomes the Terrans' mentor. He transforms into a yellow fourth generation Chevrolet Camaro with black racing stripes,[10] though it was shown he originally scanned a similarly colored Volkswagen Beetle-like Compact car.
  • Elita-1 (voiced by Cissy Jones) – The Autobots' second-in-command. She transforms into an all-terrain SUV.[10]
  • Wheeljack (voiced by Michael T. Downey) – An Autobot mechanic and scientist. He transforms into a rally car.[12] Wheeljack was responsible for the drones that were scanned by Twitch who would later nickname him "Dad2"
  • Arcee (voiced by Martha Marion) – An Autobot soldier. She transforms into a muscle car.[12]
  • Grimlock (voiced by Keith David) – A Dinobot warrior who transforms into a Tyrannosaurus. In the first part of the episode "Home", Grimlock was mind-controlled by Mandroid in fighting in an illegal Bot Brawl.

Decepticons
  • Megatron (voiced by Rory McCann) – The former leader of the Decepticons who has renounced his evil ways (putting him at odds with some of the Decepticons) and has occasionally collaborated with Dorothy Malto. He transforms into an armored tiltrotor which pays homage to "Animated".[10]
  • Swindle and Hardtop (both voiced by Nolan North) – A pair of criminal Decepticon brothers. They transform into an SUV and a dune buggy respectively.[12] Swindle was detained and Hardtop's right arm was modified by Mandroid into a prosthetic replacement for his own. When Mandroid got away after his first fight with the Autobots, Hardtop was among those detained as he claims to Megatron that he was not himself. Swindle would later try to dupe Thrash and Mo into helping find Hardtop by stealing the Energon Scanner only to be repelled by Bumblebee.
  • Skullcruncher  – A Croctobot who is in the possession of Mandroid and can transform into a crocodile. He was later put into G.H.O.S.T. custody after his defeat by the Maltos and Autobots.
  • Soundwave (voiced by Sean Kenin) – A Decepticon who works with his cassette-bots minions. He transforms into a stealth Cybertronian aircraft and has a particular grudge against Megatron, believing he has abandoned the Decepticons.[12]
    • Ravage - One of Soundwave's mini-cassette minions, taking on a black panther-like robot mode.
    • Laserbeak (voiced by Jake Green) - One of Soundwave's mini-cassette minions, taking on a bird-like robot mode.
    • Frenzy (voiced by Tiana Camacho) - One of Soundwave's mini-cassette minions and the only one with a traditionally humanoid robot mode.
  • Starscream (voiced by Steve Blum) – A Decepticon who transforms into a jet, formerly serving as the faction's Air Commander in the great war. After the war ended, Starscream was seen in the custody of G.H.O.S.T. by the time Soundwave was incarcerated. Blum reprises his role from Transformers: Prime and Robots in Disguise.
  • Skywarp and Nova Storm (both voiced by Nicole Dubuc) – A pair of Decepticon Seekers forced to work for Mandroid. They both transform into jets. Skywarp can teleport. Nova Storm wanted to be an Autobot but Skywarp talked her out of it. [12]
  • Tarantulas (voiced by Alfie Allen) – A Decepticon scientist who transforms into a tarantula. Residing under a Witwicky cemetery, Tarantulas wants to be left alone and is shown to be caring when it comes to protoforms. He even gives Nightshade some advice regarding alt-modes. Tarantulas' look in this show is based on his Transmetal form from Beast Wars: Transformers.
  • Breakdown (voiced by Roger Craig Smith) – A Stunticon who is one of a few Decepticons to renounce his evil ways and is close friends with Bumblebee. He transforms into a race car.
  • Shockwave (voiced by Troy Baker) – The Decepticons' former chief scientist who has a vendetta against Megatron. He transforms into a Cybertronian 4-legged walking tank.
  • Brawl – A Decepticon who was forced to fight in an illegal Bot Brawl for Energon to survive. He was later found to have been drained of his Energon alongside the other captive Cybertronians. This was caused by Mandroid who took his left arm.

Insecticons
  • Shrapnel – An Insecticon who is in the possession of Mandroid and can transform into a stag beetle. He was later put into G.H.O.S.T. custody after his defeat by the Maltos and the Autobots.
  • Bombshell – An Insecticon who is in the possession of Mandroid and can transform into a Japanese rhinoceros beetle. He was later put into G.H.O.S.T. custody after his defeat by the Maltos and the Autobots.

Humans
  • Robby Malto (voiced by Sydney Mikayla) – A 13-year-old boy adjusting to his new life after being forced to move to a small town.[10]
  • Morgan Violet "Mo" Malto (voiced by Zion Broadnax) – Robby's optimistic 9-year-old sister.[10]
  • Dorothy "Dot" Malto (voiced by Benni Latham) – Robby and Mo's mother, who is a park ranger and ex-soldier. In "Age of Evolution" Pt. 1, it's revealed she has lost her right leg in the great Cybertronian war.[10]
  • Dr. Alex Malto (portrayed by Jon Jon Briones) – Robby and Mo's father who is a college professor with a Ph.D. in Cybertronian History.[10]
  • Mandroid / Dr. Meridian (voiced by Diedrich Bader) – A mad scientist and roboticist who seeks to destroy all Cybertronians. His real name is Dr. Meridian and was given the nickname "Mandroid" against his wishes by Thrash.[10] Mandroid had lost his original right arm in the Cybertronian war back when he used to work for G.H.O.S.T., and begins replacing his body parts with those of the Transformers he captures.
    • Arachnamechs - The spider-like creations of Mandroid.
  • Mr. Smelt (voiced by Daran Norris) – A teacher at Witwicky Charter School.[12]

G.H.O.S.T.

Short for Global Hazard Ordinance Strike Team, this human organization has the goal of rebuilding the relationship between humans and the Cybertronians. Besides Dot, the known members of G.H.O.S.T. are:

  • Executive Agent Croft (voiced by Kari Wahlgren) – A high-ranking member of G.H.O.S.T.[12] She is shown to be obsessed with keeping the rogue Decepticons from causing havoc where she even went far as to secretly allow Mandroid to access some of the Decepticon prisoners in one of the G.H.O.S.T. facilities as seen in "Home" Pt. 2.
  • Agent Jon Schloder (voiced by Marc Evan Jackson) – A member of G.H.O.S.T. and the brother of Agent Croft.[12]
  • Agent Bala (voiced by Krizia Bajos) – A member of G.H.O.S.T.
  • Agent Bhagheri (voiced by Kathreen Khavari) – A member of G.H.O.S.T.
  • Kwan (voiced by Sherry Cola) – A G.H.O.S.T. cadet. She is named and modeled after series storyboarder Alex Kwan.
  • Conway (voiced by Jason Marsden) – A G.H.O.S.T. cadet. He is named and modeled after series storyboarder J.J. Conway.
  • Rosato (voiced by Kaitlyn Robrock) – A G.H.O.S.T. cadet. She is named and modeled after series storyboarder Jordan Rosato.

Other characters
  • Quintus Prime (voiced by Clancy Brown) – An ancient Cybertronian and one of the original Thirteen Primes created by Primus who serves as the scientist of the group. His artifact the Emberstone is responsible for bringing the Terrans into existence as he is shown to speak through it.

Episodes
No.TitleWritten byStoryboard byOriginal release date [13]Nickelodeon air dateProd.
code [13]		U.S. linear viewers
(millions)
1
2		"Secret Legacy"Nicole Dubuc and Dale MalinowskiAaron Brewer, Alex Nyerges, Carl Peterson, Nathan Jones, Marvin Madrid Rodriguez & Sol Choi, Alex Kwan & Jordan Rosato (directors)November 11, 2022 (2022-11-11)November 11, 20221010.20[14]
102
The Malto family recently moves into Witwicky, though when Robby attempts to runaway for Philadelphia, the first Transformers born on planet Earth become involved in both family drama and the start of a new conflict when they run into the mysterious Mandroid who has made use of his Arachnamechs and some Decepticons.
3"Moo-ving In"Isabel GalupoIndia Swift, Meg Lloyd, Milo Gould & Veronica Liu, J.J. Conway (director)November 11, 2022 (2022-11-11)February 10, 20231030.12[15]
As Bumblebee moves in with the Maltos to train the Terrans, he quickly discovers that the task at hand is far more difficult than what he had originally expected. He then gets few lessons by other Autobots, which include: trying to scare them so they listen (from Megatron) and do what makes them happy (by Elita-1).
4"House Rules"Ian BuschCarl Peterson, Marvin Madrid Rodriguez & Sol Choi, Jordan Rosato (director)November 11, 2022 (2022-11-11)February 10, 2023104N/A
A number of incidents involving Mo and Thrash results in the pair being tricked by Swindle as he tries to find and rescue Hardtop while targeting an Energon Scanner, but the family's previous relation strains quickly comes under fire.
5"Classified"Nathan Ramos-ParkAaron Brewer & Nathan Jones, Alex Kwan (director)November 11, 2022 (2022-11-11)February 17, 20231050.18[16]
A series of nightmares from Robby results in the entire family getting involved in a number of situations involving G.H.O.S.T. including keeping the Terrans safe from their triggerhappy agents led by Agent Schloder. Upon finding out, Optimus Prime works to hide Robby, Mo, Twitch, and Thrash while Bumblebee helps Alex to stall Agent Schloder.
6"Traditions"Maasai SingletonCarl Peterson, Marvin Madrid Rodriguez, Sol Choi & Stephanie Ressler, Jordan Rosato & Matthew Humphreys (directors)November 11, 2022 (2022-11-11)February 17, 20231060.15[16]
During the day of a family tradition that involve hunting for a vampire bird called the Wakwak, Twitch discovers Wheeljack while looking for Alex as Wheeljack learns that Twitch scanned one of his drones. Though they and Robby quickly get ambushed by the Arachnamechs sent by Mandroid to find more Cybertronians as he finds difficulty operating a laser with Hardtop's arm.
7"Friends and Family"Brian HohlfeldDavid Maximo, Kevin Reed, Milo Gould, Stephanie Ressler, Veronica Liu & Zheping Xu, J.J. Conway (director)November 11, 2022 (2022-11-11)February 24, 20231070.16[17]
It is the first day of school for Robby and Mo and they are nervous about it and so are Thrash and Twitch, whom fear that they might get replaced by new friends. After a falling out, more similarities between Humans and Terrans are revealed.
8"Decoy"Isabel GalupoAaron Brewer, Alex Nyerges, Michael Nanna, Nathan Jones & Rachel Buecheler, Alex Kwan (director)November 11, 2022 (2022-11-11)February 24, 20231080.14[17]
While Optimus and Megatron bicker about the current situation regarding the treatment of former Decepticons, Bee pawns off his duties to Arcee so he can get back in the field....a decision he finds to be a very bad idea when Soundwave releases Ravage into a G.H.O.S.T. facility where some Decepticon inmates are imprisoned.
9
10		"Age of Evolution"Nicole Dubuc and Dale MalinowskiAnissa Espinosa, India Swift, Kevin Molina-Ortiz, Meg Lloyd, Milo Gould & Veronica Liu, J.J. Conway (director)November 11, 2022 (2022-11-11)March 3, 20231090.16[18]
110
The Autobots and the Maltos begin to search for the origin of the Terrans, but Mandroid sends Skywarp and Nova Storm to target Optimus Prime's left arm. This causes a hostage situation and a rescue operation is in effect....with reinforcements.
11"Hashtag: Oops"Bernard BadionKalvin Lee, Marvin Madrid Rodriguez, Byron Penaranda, Carl Peterson & Sam Syszmanski, Matthew Humphreys (director)March 3, 2023 (2023-03-03)TBA111N/A
Bumblebee charges Twitch and Thrash to help the new Terrans find their alt modes, after Twitch convinces Hashtag to pick one, she chooses a G.H.O.S.T. vehicle and inadvertently causes mischief in their headquarters. Meanwhile, Nightshade is preparing a surprise for the family.
12"Outtakes"Maasai SingletonAaron Brewer, Nathan Jones & Alex Nyerges, Alexandria Kwan (director)March 3, 2023 (2023-03-03)TBA112N/A
Jawbreaker is struggling to find an alt mode for himself and Hashtag tries to help him with the magic of cinema by interviewing other Transformers.
13"Missed Connection"Mae CattRachel Buecheler, Marvin Madrid Rodriguez, Carl Peterson, Stephanie Ressler & Samuel Syszmanski, Matthew Humphreys (director)March 3, 2023 (2023-03-03)TBA113N/A
14"Security Protocols"Lorin WilliamsJulia Braid, Jules Bridgers, Milo Gould, Karen Guo, Veronica Liu, Kevin Molina-Ortiz, Ifesinachi Orjiekwe & Nas Pasha, J.J. Conway (director)March 3, 2023 (2023-03-03)TBA114N/A
15"Bear Necessities"Isabel GalupoAaron Brewer, Nathan Jones & Alex Nyerges, Alex Kwan (director)March 3, 2023 (2023-03-03)TBA115N/A
16"Warzone"Greg JohnsonMatthew Kim, Marvin Madrid Rodriguez, Carl Peterson & Stephanie Ressler, Matthew Humphreys (director)March 3, 2023 (2023-03-03)TBA116N/A
17
18		"Home"Mae Catt, Nicole Dubuc & Dale MalinowskiAaron Brewer, Milo Gould, Nathan Jones, Veronica Liu, Kevin Molina-Ortiz, Alex Nyerges & India Swift, J.J. Conway, Alex Kwan & Sebastian Montes (directors)March 3, 2023 (2023-03-03)TBA117N/A
118

Production

In early 2021, Hasbro announced two animated series based on the Transformers brand. The first was a series based on the BotBots line for Netflix, and the other was a then-untitled series set to air on Nickelodeon in 2022.[4] The series' official title, Transformers: EarthSpark, was revealed in February 2022 with a release window set for the fall of that year.[5] On February 1, 2023, the series was renewed for a second season.[19]

Marketing

The voice cast and a sneak peek for the series was later revealed during the 2022 San Diego Comic-Con.[10]

Release

On March 24, 2022, it was announced that the series would debut on the Paramount+ streaming service in November 2022.[1] Nickelodeon previewed the premiere episodes early on the same day, but later started airing them on a regular schedule on February 3, 2023.

Controversy

In May 2023, the character Nightshade and their designation as non-binary received harsh criticism from conservatives.[20] The controversy arose on Twitter, where the right-wing account Libs of TikTok shared a clip from the episode "Home" which showed Nightshade talking to a human character named Sam (voiced by Alisha Mullally), who like Nightshade, uses they/them pronouns as Nightshade helped emphasizes Sam's identity. Sam makes comments about feeling unsafe around people who aren't non-binary or friends. Several conservative figures, such as Megyn Kelly slammed the series for the show's LGBT message.[21] Laura Ingraham likewise panned the show on The Ingraham Angle, for its belief about teaching children about being non-binary.[22]

Home media

The first ten episodes will be released on DVD on May 16, 2023, by Paramount Home Entertainment.[23]

References
  1. Lynch, Jason (March 24, 2022). "Nickelodeon Expands Franchises in Upfront In-Person Return". Adweek.
  2. "Hasbro, Inc. trademark for Transformers: Earthspark". February 15, 2022.
  3. "eOne Family Brands Distribution Catalogue". WorldScreen. April 2022.
  4. Petski, Denise (February 25, 2021). "Nickelodeon Orders Transformers Animated Comedy Series Based On Hasbro Franchise". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved February 25, 2021.
  5. Petski, Denise (February 15, 2022). "'Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles' Villain Movies, 'Transformers' Series & More Heading To Paramount+ & Nickelodeon". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved February 15, 2022.
  6. Milligan, Mercedes (September 12, 2022). "Nick, Paramount+ Set 'Transformers: EarthSpark' Premiere and NYCC Plans". Animation Magazine. Retrieved September 12, 2022.
  7. "Transformers: Earthspark New Trailer Debuts Grimlock and Reveals Return Date". denofgeek. February 5, 2023. Retrieved February 5, 2023.
  8. Transformers: Earthspark (TV Series 2022– ) - IMDb, retrieved 2023-05-13
  9. "Paramount+ Expands Kids' Slate with New 'Transformers,' 'Dora,' 'TMNT,' 'SpongeBob' & More from Nickelodeon". Animation Magazine. 15 February 2022.
  10. Petski, Denise (July 22, 2022). "'Transformers: EarthSpark': Paramount+ Series Sets Voice Cast, Teaser Trailer – Comic-Con". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved July 22, 2022.
  11. Mercante, Alyssa (November 14, 2022). "New Transformers Series Introduces Its First Nonbinary Robot [Update]". Kotaku. Archived from the original on November 27, 2022. Retrieved November 14, 2022.
  12. "'Transformers: EarthSpark' Official Trailer Debuts at NYCC". 9 October 2022.
  13. "Transformers: EarthSpark Episode Listings". The Futon Critic.
  14. Mitch Salem (November 14, 2022). "Friday 11.11.2022 Top 150 Cable Originals & Network Finals". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved November 14, 2022.
  15. Mitch Metcalf (February 13, 2023). "Friday 2.10.2023 Top 150 Cable Originals & Network Finals". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved February 13, 2023.
  16. Mitch Salem (February 21, 2023). "Friday 2.17.2023 Top 150 Cable Originals & Network Finals". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved February 21, 2023.
  17. Mitch Metcalf (February 27, 2023). "Friday 2.24.2023 Top 150 Cable Originals & Network Finals". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved February 27, 2023.
  18. Mitch Salem (March 6, 2023). "Friday 3.3.2023 Top 150 Cable Originals & Network Finals". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved March 6, 2023.
  19. "Paramount+ Announces Greenlight for Second Season of Original Animated Series "Transformers: EarthSpark"" (Press release). CBS. February 1, 2023. Retrieved February 1, 2023 – via The Futon Critic.
  20. Mayer, Chloe (May 13, 2023). "Transformers' first non-binary character sparks backlash". Newsweek.
  21. Shannon Thaler (5 May 2023). "Megyn Kelly slams Transformers kids' show with non-binary characters as 'disgusting'". NEW YORK POST. Retrieved 13 May 2023.
  22. Bailey, Kayla (May 13, 2023). "Laura Ingraham torches woke 'Transformers': 'Shoving' pronouns down kids' 'throats' with 'corrosive lies'". Fox News.
  23. "Transformers: EarthSpark: Season 1 – Episodes 1-10". Amazon.
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