A key Maximal design flaw is immediately improved by Transformers: Rise of the Beasts. Optimus Prime and Bumblebee are set to make their returns in the seventh installment of the Transformers movie franchise, but Transformers: Rise of the Beasts brings their Autobot descendants - the Maximals - into the cinematic realm as well. The Maximals, who made their initial debut in Beast Wars: Transformers, first appeared almost like normal animals with voices. At the time, giving Transformers an animalistic feel seemed an interesting concept, and also made them quite distinct, but in doing so came a huge problem.
The furry design of the Maximals Transformer faction in Beast Wars: Transformers made little sense given how they were also supposed to be robots from another planet. The Maximals barely changed in beast mode either, and arguably looked even worse. Their fur coats merged with robotic limbs to show the Maximals were half-machine, but this gave the animal Transformers a rather sloppy, thrown-together appearance that defied logic and stood awkwardly against the wider franchise universe.
How Rise of the Beasts Fixes The Transformers' Designs
Transformers: Rise of the Beasts features the Maximals adopting their original Beast Wars: Transformers designs, but with a key difference. This time around, the Maximals all appear more mechanical in their beast mode forms, and have little to no fur or feathers. This fresh, updated look allows the Maximals to feel more realistic and believable, while also matching them closer to the live-action aesthetic of Transformers movie Autobots such as Optimus Prime.
If the Maximals in Transformers: Rise of the Beasts had stayed the size of their counterparts in the real-world animal kingdom, they would look quite odd in comparison to the other Autobots that reach at least fifteen feet tall. Transformers: Rise of the Beasts finds a sweet spot between making its Maximals appropriately animalistic, but anchoring them to the robotic, towering Transformers already established on the big screen. The improved design of the Maximals shown in the Transformers: Rise of the Beasts first trailer provides a strong indication that the movie franchise is headed in the right direction.
The Problem With Transformers' Beast Wars Design
The original designs for many of the Transformer characters in Beast Wars proved quite strange. In a practical sense, the animated Maximals were meant to be part of the Transformers race, but having them appear no different from normal, real-life animals with fur or feathers gave their aesthetic a rather controversial look. The design also made it harder for audiences to tell whether the Maximals were actually machines from another planet, or just animals.
Even in their beast modes, the original Maximal designs showed a sloppy lack of realism. As an example, it did not feel very believable for Cheetor, who looked like a regular cheetah, to quickly morph into an alien robot that had thrusters enabling him to fly and an arm-blaster to fight with. Beast Wars: Transformers could have fixed this problem by having the Maximals appear more mechanical in their normal forms, meaning their designs would resemble actual robots when they transformed. The Transformers: Rise of the Beasts Maximals address these issues, ensuring they will enjoy a bigger impact in live-action than during their animated debut.
