Death of Optimus Prime
Nov. 10th, 2006 08:25 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
eastofthemoonToday I found and bought the 20th anniversery edition of Transformers: The Movie DVD. I've always enjoyed Transformers since I was a kid. What was interesting on the DVD is that there's a segment in which the creators talk about the death of Optimus Prime and the outcry among the public when he died.
Apparently, the reason why they killed him off was because they wanted to start a new line with all new characters and killing Optimus Prime was just their way of getting rid of the old toy line. They never imagined that Optimus's death would cause such a stir. On the DVD, they say that if they had the chance to change anything, they wouldn't have killed Optimus Prime.
However, maybe it was a good thing they did? I'm not saying I like the fact taht Optimus Prime died (that scene always made me cry) but it was really the first time in a western animated movie that a main good guy died. Yes, there's been death in Disney movies, but it was always the villans.
I can't think of any western movie before the Transformers movie in which a main character died. It was a real big step to take in western animation. For a long time, western animation was just regared as something for kids, but now it's seen as another art form that everybody can enjoy.
If Optimus Prime hadn't died, we might not have animated movies with deeper plots and characters, like the Lion King. Mufasa's death was probably one of the most emotional scenes Disney ever created.
I'm not saying the Transformers movie was the sole reason for such a big change in animation, but it certainly made a big breakthrough.
Apparently, the reason why they killed him off was because they wanted to start a new line with all new characters and killing Optimus Prime was just their way of getting rid of the old toy line. They never imagined that Optimus's death would cause such a stir. On the DVD, they say that if they had the chance to change anything, they wouldn't have killed Optimus Prime.
However, maybe it was a good thing they did? I'm not saying I like the fact taht Optimus Prime died (that scene always made me cry) but it was really the first time in a western animated movie that a main good guy died. Yes, there's been death in Disney movies, but it was always the villans.
I can't think of any western movie before the Transformers movie in which a main character died. It was a real big step to take in western animation. For a long time, western animation was just regared as something for kids, but now it's seen as another art form that everybody can enjoy.
If Optimus Prime hadn't died, we might not have animated movies with deeper plots and characters, like the Lion King. Mufasa's death was probably one of the most emotional scenes Disney ever created.
I'm not saying the Transformers movie was the sole reason for such a big change in animation, but it certainly made a big breakthrough.
