This 2015 rendition of Robots in Disguise is a sequel to Transformers: Prime, continuing on after the Predacons Rising animated movie. However, apart from a few references, it feels completely unrelated and not even like it is a true sequel. Viewers are able to enjoy Robots in Disguise without any prior knowledge except for the final episode. The aesthetics are now much more cartoony, with the animation brighter and simpler. This makes the show striking and works really well. The series' tone is much lighter than Prime, which works in its favor. Robots in Disguise is much more focused towards the younger audience but don't let that fool you because the humor works well and there are frequently good jokes throughout the episodes. It is not too kiddy and can be enjoyed by adults.
Unfortunately, the plot had to take a nosedive in terms of complexity to accommodate all these changes in focus and target audience. The series opens up on Cybertron, where Bumblebee is working as a patrol officer, along with Strongarm. Bumblebee sees Optimus Prime's ghost who tells him to return to Earth by finding a space bridge. Bumblebee, being the loyal bot that he is, listens to Optimus and space bridges back to Earth along with Strongarm and Sideswipe. Coincidentally at this same time, an Autobot spaceship holding Decepticon criminals had malfunctioned and crashed on Earth, with all of the Decepticons escaping. So now you have hundreds of Decepticons running rampage, and an unlikely team of Autobots, you get the idea? The core cast is comprised of Strongarm, Sideswipe, Grimlock and Fixit, and the season's whole focus is to recapture these Decepticons.
Other Autobots turn up from time to time like Jazz, Drift, Windblade and of course Optimus. Bumblebee can finally talk too, which makes a nice change from the silent character portrayed in recent media. He is still inexperienced as a leader and you can tell that straight away, although this helps stray away from the over-serious Optimus. Sideswipe is the Bumblebee replacement as the kid appeal character, bonding with the human kid and generally being rebellious. Strongarm is the female character in the cast, she's strong but follows rules to the letter, which can irk some. Fixit is the Minicon managing the Autobot spaceship and he helps in locating the Decepticons. He stutters often and while this is amusing the first few times, it can end up being quite annoying.
Grimlock is the surprise of the bunch, originally being a Decepticon. Plus, he is not the typical Dinobot that only speaks five words. While not the brightest, he is useful and is the brawn of the group. He ends up being comedic relief a few times and is the punchline of a lot of gags. The first season ends up falling into the trap of being stuck in a routine. Pretty much each episode will have a Decepticon or Decepticons appearing, and the Autobots work to recapture them. Along the way, they will learn something important like working as a team or that you have to be yourself. In a way, it reminds you of the Minicon-of-the-week style of Armada. The Decepticons themselves have an animal theme going on, which is really unique and makes it interesting whenever a new Decepticon appears.
Decepticons have inventive designs such as a combiner comprised of spiders, a snake that can transplant bodies and robots whose abilities merges their animal counterparts together like skunks with tail acids and a bat with sonic attacks. Each Decepticon has their own unique exaggerated personality which makes these episodes less boring. The two main human characters, Russell and his father, don't get in the way much. They fist into the plot of each episode well enough and isn't too awkward or in your face. While the series has good animation, there are a few scenes where the background detail is sparse. Transformation stock footage is used more frequently as the episodes go on. Perhaps the biggest flaw of this first season of Robots in Disguise is the fact that it lacks a meaty overall plot.
Throughout the whole season, you only have the mystery of Optimus Prime every few episodes or so until the finale, with the rest of the season filled out by the Decepticon hunting. It feels very simple and that the story is going nowhere. The set pieces end up being more exaggerated in the alter episodes in what the Autobots do. It's actually laughable at how they get away with the stuff they do, they would have definitely been detected by other humans by now. That being said, the final two episodes were the best of Season 1, with the mystery finally revealed and the hidden enemy appearing. The return of some characters, as well as the teamwork displayed where good triumphed over evil were great and satisfying. Overall, while there are some strong points of Robots in Disguise such as the lighthearted tone and strong humor, the plot lacks substance which makes it hard to recommend serious viewers or non-Transformers fans who expect more.
--------------------------------------------------------
For other animation reviews, including Transformers, try having a look at this page.