by Patrice Downing, Contributing Writer
I wouldn’t blame you if you hadn’t heard of Gouverneur Morris. I hadn’t either until the last time I watched the HBO miniseries John Adams. Afterwards, I went on a bit of a binge of colonial America documentary series, films, and mini docs. It introduced me to Morris, a real-life historical figure who just might be the single most unbelievably off-the-rails, bat-crap crazy, American politician to ever walk the Earth (and that’s a pretty high bar). Holy Founding Fathers! This guy was like Ben Franklin dialed up to 11. I mean, if Franklin was a carousel, Morris was the Mad Hatter’s tea cups. Sure, he helped pen, and later signed, the United States Constitution — he even implemented decimal places into the U.S. currency system — but he also lost his leg in a carriage accident while fleeing naked through the streets of New England from his lover’s raging husband. Guessing that last part may have got your attention. I know you’re tempted to Google this colonial cad and get lost in the weeds of Wikipedia, but stay with me, because that’s exactly what this piece is about…
Welcome to Fact on Fiction, a brand new series where we examine film, docuseries, webumentaries, mini-docs, podcasts, and more to find the facts behind our favorite stories. To find the truth behind everything that claims to be ‘based on a true story. Together, in each piece, we will journey down the rabbit hole, examining a new piece of media, and the history behind what made that story come to fruition. Because, at the risk of sounding corny and cliche, sometimes fact is stranger than fiction, and it can be quite a thrill ride to dive into those true life origins.
With this debut installment, we’re going to take a jocular jaunt through true life inspiration as we look at The Toys That Made Us, specifically, the episode on the Transformers toy line. We’ll learn how this niche ’80s action figure with no prior IP ties turned into a multibillion dollar media giant, culminating with its newest feature release, Transformers: Rise of the Beasts. So come along and join me on my quest to find the fact on fiction.
While Transformers have only been shifting their way into American children’s toy boxes since the mid-‘80s, they actually began their journey as toy cars in post-World War II Japan. The Toys That Made Us Season Two, Episode Two follows their evolution from Japanese toy maker Takara’s aluminum toy cars, through their development into the Micro Change and Diaclone transforming robot toy line, where they were picked up by Hasbro and built into one of the most internationally recognizable toy brands in the world today. If you are unfamiliar with this Netflix original series, boy, are you missing out. I love everything about it, from the animated opening credits and original theme song (that are surprisingly updated each season), to the sassy snark of narrator Donald Ian Black, the plethora of interviews with industry insiders, vintage commercials and news reports, and of course the cheesy opening recreations that begin each segment. Every episode highlights a single iconic toy line and follows its development from early beginnings, throughout its highs and lows, and ultimately to the powerhouse it becomes in pop culture. What makes the Transformers episode particularly intriguing is the lack of any prior IP to draw the attention of consumers.
When Hasbro purchased the rights to produce the original 26 transforming robots, that is all they were: robots that change into cars, a radio, and a very convincing Walter P38 (this thing was so realistic I only knew one kid that had a Megatron, and we weren’t allowed to play with it outside… but I had Starscream so our Decepticons got a de facto new leader for outdoor play). Throughout interviews with Bob Budianski and Jim Shooter from Marvel Comics, we learn how they had to not only create profiles, names, and personalities for each character, but develop their entire world, motives, conflicts, hierarchy, and backstory. Once the comics were turned into a cartoon series, there was no stopping the freight train (or is it Astrotrain?) that these unknown die-cast converting cars became. If you only came to know the Transformers through Michael Bay’s interpretation, or even the Beast Wars line from 1996, then you missed out on exactly how dominating a phenomenon the robots in disguise truly were in the ‘80s. The voice of Peter Cullen’s Optimus Prime, the futuristic voice of Soundwave, and of course the unmistakable sound that follows “Autobots, roll out!”
This series also helps explain why the 1986 animated feature was disappointingly structured the way it was, and why, after 1985, it was impossible to find the characters from the original cartoon series on the shelves at Toys-R-Us (for those of you that grew up with access to Amazon, you’ll never know the disappointment of finally talking your parents into taking you to the physical toys store with both the intent and resources to actually purchase a Transformer, only to find characters you’ve never heard of or don’t care about… devastating). I don’t think you necessarily have to have the childhood nostalgia link to find the content of this series interesting either.
The Toys That Made Us provides insight into why marketing and production decisions are made along the way to sustain a product line, and how those decisions can affect not only a particular toy division, but the company as a whole. I was actually surprised to see how the evolution of the film franchise has paralleled the advancement of the toy series. Just as Beast Wars was developed to revitalize their presence on the small screen, as well as retail shelves in the ‘90s following slumping sales, Maximals are being introduced to a new audience in the Transformers: Rise of the Beasts to do the same. The Toys That Made Us’ Transformers episode is a quick, 46-minute watch, and is packed to the brim with fun visuals from the past, industry insight, and quirky interviews from the creative geniuses who made an unknown overseas toy an American staple, both on screen and on a kid’s gift wish lists year round.
Thanks for hanging out, and hopefully you enjoyed this fact-finding exploration into the origins of Transformers. Join me next time as I continue my quest to traverse the truth, verify the veracity, and ultimately find The Fact on Fiction.And now, in case you somehow forgot, go nuts and Google Gouverneur Morris. I promise you won’t be disappointed, but if you’re short on time, I highly recommend hitting up the Weird History channel on YouTube. By far the wackiest and most informative nine minutes on this fascinating fellow you’ll ever see.
You can follow Patrice Downing on Twitter and Letterboxd