24 years ago today the Beast Machines Transformers series premiered on the Fox Kids Saturday morning television block on the FOX network. It was a continuation of the previously syndicated Beast Wars Transformers series, but also a departure. Many of the cast members carried over from Beast Wars Transformers, as did the animation studio, Mainframe, but a new set of story editors, Robert N. Skir and Marty Isenberg had taken the helm. The Beast Wars characters returned to the Transformers’ home planet of Cybertron under mysterious circumstances, with amnesia and a virus that hindered their ability to transform. Characters who had been Transmetals at the end of Beast Wars Transformers now suddenly appeared in their season 1 beast modes. The pilot’s story was shrouded in mystery from the start, and most of season 1 was devoted to unraveling the secrets that had brought them to that point.

This first episode, though, introduced us to the Oracle computer, coining the term Allspark which is now a staple in Transformers lore. It also introduced a new faction of Transformers called Vehicons which provided the series with hordes of fodder to be battled and destroyed by the protagonists. The four formerly Transmetal Maximals are reformatted by the Oracle into technorganic beings, curing the virus with which they were infected, and giving them energy attacks in lieu of the guns they had used before. This set up a struggle between the technological nature of Cybertron and a revival of the Transformers’ planet’s extinct organic lifeforms. The series introduced personal mode scanners, now also a staple in Transformers stories, and dug back into the lore of the G1 Sunbow series with the Key to Vector Sigma (from the eponymous G1 2-part episode) and the Plasma Energy Chamber (from the Sunbow series 3-part finale The Rebirth). The Oracle itself was later revealed to be Vector Sigma, the supercomputer that gave all Transformers life in the G1 animated series.

The Oracle

For all of their references and ties to the 1984 Transformers and Beast Wars Transformers series, though, the show was very controversial to the fans. Many G1 fans took issue with the organic nature of the Maximals and their mission to restore it to Cybertron. Many Beast Wars Transformers fans were not happy with how the Maximals from the previous series had been characterized, as some, particularly Rattrap, were quite different from who they were before. The ending of the series was just as controversial. Over time, though, the opinions of many have softened toward the series, and it holds up pretty well when watched again.

Perhaps the changes it made seemed shocking back then, as nothing so drastic had come from the franchise before. Now, after more than 2 decades of distinctly different iterations and interpretations of the Transformers, it doesn’t seem so bad. Its dark and shadowy environments really stand out, and it’s easy to love the sleek designs of the Vehicons. In the nearly quarter of a century since it aired, it has proven very influential over the Transformers franchise, so we celebrate its beginning. Perhaps we will see some homages to it soon, as we look forward to its 25th anniversary is next year, coinciding with the G1 Transformers‘ 40th anniversary. The Achilles heel of the Beast Machines toy line was the lack of screen accuracy and scale, and that seems to be the strength of the newest Transformers toys. I, for one, would love to get my hands on a Commander-class Tankor. Happy 24th birthday, Beast Machines!

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Optimus Primal and Oracle Image credits: Boo’s A.I. Art