Transformers: What the Soundtrack Could Have Been

[@tylerwardle4854]

The reason for the autobot leitmotif playing during the navy scene is that it’s not the autobot’s, it’s the good guys, and Michael Bay really likes the military.

[@awesomedonut8228]

Timothy Lei I thought Megatron did.

[@TurpGrain43]

Flaming Homosexual though in the 4th movie human soldiers hunting transformers did attack and badly damaged him which he was then killed by Lockdown

[@Jamooson_]

@Timothy Lei Nah, that was lockdown. Not to mention, if we're being real, the eradication of all transformers would be better for earth in the long run. Then again, just shipping them off in a space ship could also do, but we already know how that turned out.

[@dojokonojo]

The whole movie and Transformers 2 (never saw past those) felt like US Military recruitment videos

[@notnormalyet]

@@dojokonojo The movies literally receive funding from the government. They ARE recruitment videos.

[@flores5420]

Autobots leitmotif: epic horns and heroic strings Decepticons leitmotif: epic villain choir with strings Sam’s leitmotif: *BONGOS INTENSIFIES*

[@OathBoy_562]

Apollo X Sins gold

[@spidermonkey2903]

Bingo Bongo Dingo Clongo

[@TheAgentAPM]

Now playing: human music

[@maddenboseroy4074]

@@spidermonkey2903 Ping Pong, Lippy Tahppy Too-Tah.

[@joseph0098]

Sam's Leitmotif: Thomas Newman's American Beauty score

[@albom.2744]

you resisted 39 seconds before saying leitmotif! proud of you!

[@jamjox9922]

At this point, Sideways' "Leitmotif" is the word itself.

[@Agos226]

He should write a leitmotif leitmotif for his videos

[@derdurstbursch]

It's so weird too see it spelt "wrong" and not as Leitmotiv 😬

[@nataliecameron]

I got kinda nostalgic hearing this music, those movies made 8 year old me very happy

[@dodo3441]

Same!

[@dadevilfuss8616]

How old r you now

[@tannlknin6926]

Same I loved transformers toys and cartoons as a kid, and when this movie came out it instantly became 7 year old me's favorite movie, and it stayed that way for years

[@imaltux]

the today me cried a bit

[@kobef6862]

man I remember I had just turned seven when this came out and wanted a bumblebee toy so bad lol

[@nurselaykan3721]

I actually think it makes perfect sense for that sad track to be called Optimus, and here’s why: every time we hear that theme, it’s playing after a character has had to make some sort of sacrifice. It plays when Optimus has to choose to let Bumblebee get captured because he can’t rescue him without hurting anyone. Then it plays again when Optimus has to choose to go after the Allspark instead of saving Bee, not realizing the two are in the same place. We hear it when Sam is about to try and get the Allspark to the helicopter, knowing that he could die. And then we hear it after Sam saved Optimus and killed Megatron, but destroyed the Allspark in the process. The reason the title of Optimus makes sense is that this leitmotif is tied to one of Optimus Prime’s key character traits: sacrifice, whether it be sacrificing yourself, or sacrificing the choice you want to make for what you know has to be done for the greater good.

[@skittybug6937]

No sacrifice, no victory.

[@Alzeal07]

Steve Jablonsky did nothing wrong

[@Betito1171]

No u right. Michael Bay just doesn’t know how to make movies

[@Noobnormality]

It's not steve who was wrong here, it was michael bay!

[@sebastiancintron29]

His soundtrack was the best thing from this series.

[@dominikbradvica9406]

@@sebastiancintron29 i find it amusing that several retards in this comments section love to bash and hate Michael Bay, but never apreaciate how he alongside Gulimero Del Toro, Peter Jackson or Zack Snyder actually cares and wants to apease audiances with soundtracks made by Steve Jablonsky with Linkin Park and awesome battle scenes he directed, unlike J.J Abrams, Rian Johnson or D/D with Star Wars Seguel Trilogy or Game of Thrones who have shown that they have no idea how to direct a good film or tv show with original story and great soundtracks to apease fans

[@robertgalt4008]

ΔL·ZΞΔL he was the only one who really knew what he was doing the whole time

[@BoarhideGaming]

Honestly, the Transformers I & II soundtracks have filled the ranks of my reading playlist for nearly a decade, and they’re absolutely fantastic for that. Heroic or sad, always uncomplicated and not too distracting. The way they’re used in the movies is absolutely nonsensical though

[@samwallaceart288]

BoarhideGaming My theory is that the composer handed the soundtrack to the director; then the editors haphazardly put the music wherever it “sounded good” regardless of context.

[@TheGeorgeD13]

Jablonsky is a brilliant composer, so of course he’s going to compose great pieces of music. But it’s clear he didn’t have any say where the music went into the movie (which is usually the case most of the time).

[@CameronM1138]

@SamWallace Artisan Pretty sure you're right, that happens with a lot of blockbusters, and Transformers is far from the worst example of it (*cough cough the lazy-ass POTC 4 soundtrack reusing the Davy Jones and Cutler Beckett themes as generic action themes*). For instance I'm pretty sure that's what's going on here at 1:18, the Autobot theme there is just a repeat of the track used for the opening titles.

[@The_Wosh]

Imagine reading with some good ambiental music and then linkin park comes in

[@derrickwoods1595]

All the movies have amazing soundtracks. But the director sucked at adding them

[@holdencazes5208]

The only music i remember from transformers is linkin park

[@youngman850]

IN THE END

[@Betito1171]

WHAAT IVE DONE

[@theitalianstallion973]

RIP Chester Bennington 🤘🏻🤘🏻🤘🏻

[@weakenbest516]

New divide

[@iaani_]

I discovered Linkin Park because of Transformers, still listen every day :)

[@seannotconnery8191]

The scene where the little girl asks Optimus if he’s the Tooth Fairy is always my favorite part. It’s just perfect with the musical piece in the background.

[@thecollector4332]

That was ironhide tho. Still a really cute moment.

[@Protosilver97]

@@thecollector4332 I always thought it was Jazz.

[@bluejaysymphony8374]

It’s Ironhide, he later scans that huge pickup truck that her parents own

[@anautobotnameddutchdalmati7713]

Ironhide's mind when the child asks if hes the tooth fairy: What

[@kevmclarty]

Me watching this having zero musical understanding: Ah yes, melody.

[@akshaytati]

Ah melody..i have it too

[@arthurgarcia887]

Ah yes sound, it good

[@drawnwithlove3499]

n o t e s

[@ramiro_echeverria]

Ah yes my favorite, sound waves travelling through the air, reaching my ear. I love music, yes.

[@mooliciousmaul6514]

Ah yes, music

[@KylanHarv]

Well, here's the thing. Jablonsky is known for creating themes ahead of time prior to compositing the full soundtrack. Meaning: he probably had the track "Optimus" already made for Optimus, but Michael Bay had it designated for sad scenes. Then, it happened that in DotM, Michael wanted something fresh and darker, so Jablonsky had to rework and start some other things from scratch, and it made it more accurate.

[@petri7057]

Damn, give this dude an orchestra and he will turn any movie into a blockbuster

[@winstonsallet9541]

Turn ‘the room’ into a blockbuster lol

[@goldenj4085]

True that

[@duchessedeberne3909]

And Coolcat saves the kids

[@metawarp7446]

I haven't heard any of his music though

[@TheDeathmail]

Not true. Criticism is easier than creation. It's easier to speak of theory than to execute it... most composers know this stuff after all.

[@Sam-do4oj]

Wagner: let's have a leitmotif for every character Transformers: ok but how about we take two leitmotifs for one character and use a bunch of others mostly at random?

[@harryrees627]

*Micheal Bay would like to know your location*

[@erindenman4104]

It's actually very funny that Sideways mentioned Optimus's theme sounded sad, because any die-hard Optimus fan or Transformers fan (like myself) will reply some variation of: "Yep. That's our depressed and mentally unstable Bayverse boi."

[@toddfortune8797]

Sam’s leitmotif sounds like “human music”

[@Wrathu]

Brilliant.

[@Bounsingonbongos1]

*I ATE THE WHOLE PLATE*

[@andreasfrost-blade4689]

Ben Filsinger the whole plate! That’s because I’m innocent!

[@bsamaniac305]

*ARE YOU PLAYING THOSE VIDEO GAMES AGAIN???*

[@10232255]

Fheroah ladies an gentleman we gottem

[@tmachine979]

Fheroah *GRANDMAMMA DRINK YOUR PRUNE JUICE*

[@XenoTronusWeePoo850]

*_"SHUT UP, GRANDMAAAAAAA!!!!!!"_* (By the way, I misread *Ben Filsinger's* comment as *"I ATE THE WHOLE PLANET".* Sorry, my bad)

[@SeanMather]

It seems like Optimus is more of a sadmotif than a leitmotif...

[@photonicpizza1466]

Hevymotif

[@andreasfrost-blade4689]

Sean Mather it seems to represent the classic character of Optimus rather than Optimus himself

[@andreasfrost-blade4689]

LittleRedRhuari I get the joke, I was saying the way it was used seemed to be less of a character peace and one for certain moments, one where his character could be represented without forcing him into every scene

[@highground7923]

Thicmotif

[@J_Caban]

High Ground chungusmotif

[@MediaMotifs]

It's such a shame that Transformers didn't live up to its full-music potential. If done correctly, Transformers could have rivaled Star Wars in terms of its leitmotif-usage.

[@PickyPeeves]

I feel like Bumblebee's a course correction musically, as well as for everything else. I recall hearing a sillier twist of Bumblebee's theme when he's in the house breaking stuff, as well as the Autobots' theme on synth during the scene on Cybertron.

[@OliverHeikkinen]

Go watch bumblebee!!

[@AlienRockPictures]

@@PickyPeeves Personally not a fan of Bumblebee's music. Too unmemorable and loud. Even had the annoying generic bloop bloop comedy music during comedy scenes. A bit generic. While the Bay films had generic Hans Zimmer-y epic music, Bumblebee had music that tried to be old school orchestra but failed.

[@PickyPeeves]

@@AlienRockPictures Well, you are entitled to your own opinion. I personally thought that the only two pieces in the five previous ones that were memorable and I'd enjoy listening to on my own time outside of the context of the movie were "Arrival to Earth" and "Autobots Reunite" from Age of Extinction. However, given Bumblebee itself is a strange hybrid between prequel and reboot, letting itself have that musical identity while subtly hinting at motifs from the previous films, like their origins before they became the sweeping orchestral Hans Zimmer-type stuff Jablonsky gave us with the others. While I admittedly didn't hear the score when I first watched the movie, as my movie-consumption experiences tend to be an "absorb the final product as a whole, then go back and find the details like the music." I got an uncharacteristic burst of elated energy hearing the Autobots' leitmotif during the tracks supposedly for when they're on Cybertron.

[@ScisaacFisaac]

Lockdown had a motif in AoE. Really seemed to glue the movie together.

[@roi-77]

Its kind of like the last two movies don’t belong in the series

[@Cody-ru1cz]

The fourth was enjoyable for a lot of parts but the fifth is just annoying

[@jwines2000]

@@Cody-ru1cz exactly, the 4th film asked loads of questions that the 5th film didn't even bother trying to answer.

[@roi-77]

Cody agreed

[@makutamiserix5612]

They are 2 trilogies. Dark of the Moon ended the first trilogy and Age of Extinction started the second one. Sadly the last of the second trilogy was cancelled.

[@BlueRaynOfficial]

What about Bumblebee?

[@jan-lukas]

Problem with "bad" film soundtracks is, that they often are good music which gives you the right feeling, but they're not used as leitmotif in the right way

[@619corac]

I'd pay to watch a film called Sam And The Adventures Of His Magical Car tbh

[@derpydino1915]

same

[@defiantaichi]

Isn’t that bumblebee basically ? But better

[@shapetick4096]

@@defiantaichi that's kinda the point

[@AimeeRose1997]

A part of "Optimus" was used in Age of Extinction during the scene where Marky Mark tries to convince Optimus to not lose faith in humanity.

[@imwrongyoureright.3890]

It's used in all 5 movies.

[@theitalianstallion973]

To be honest I love the movies in a way there really cool

[@gruntpocalypsenow]

Is that before or after he turns to the audience and tells them to buy bud light?

[@pandora8940]

“...You probably think of arrival to earth...” *Thinking of Arrival To Earth since the video started* Me: How did he...I...But...okay then....

[@maniacmcgee5992]

You missed the best musical moment in the series: during Arrival to Earth when the music cuts and choir music starts playing, letting us know- before we actually see him in recognizable Peterbilt form- that Big Daddy Optimus has arrived.

[@sunburstmusic5693]

My opinion: the series went downhill after Dark of the Moon.

[@BluishFeel]

It's not your opinion, it's a fact

[@aim-9sidewinder550]

I thought the 4th one was pretty good, or better than the 5th one. The 5th one was just confusing and half of the time made no sense.

[@jauzaafaishalahmadpadmadis3846]

To me the 2-3 is trash but i still enjoy it, 4-5 is also trash but i couldn't find myself to enjoy it

[@connorasbury7568]

Logan Trautwein of all the bay films, my favourite was number 2. But only because I was able to see a similar storyline to the 80’s film. And that plot made sense in my head

[@akrfilms511]

I agree but I still have a fun time watching all 5 regardless if they have a good story or not.

[@meeknez]

damn you really watched all 5 of these for one video... i respect that

[@dominiks.1258]

@Sasuke especially the first 3 are very "easy to watch"

[@Garry_Combine]

@@dominiks.1258 my right hand agrees... 😉👌

[@dominikbradvica9406]

@@Garry_Combine the entire 5 Transformers films are better than all 3 Star Wars Seguel Trilogy alltoghtere

[@Garry_Combine]

@@dominikbradvica9406 true. Like, no jokes, the Transformers films are better than the sequel trilogy.

[@geekforeverpixelgamingsurl5007]

@ْ Not for everyone... Not for everyone.

[@joshuanabizadeh2043]

Sideways: When you think of the movie to transformers you probably think of Arrival to Earth Me: L I N K I N P A R K

[@sparkfireprime978]

Thank you I'm not the only one thinking that!

[@Sapphire_Reacts]

facts, when i think of those movies i think of the LP song that plays at the end with Optimus prime narrating at the end

[@Superultramegaa19]

I commented this before so I'll just briefly rundown what the confusing leitmotives actually mean. "Optimus" - theme for Autobot & Human relationship, named after the hoover dam scene/possible original thematic idea. Reduced, film version of the track "Optimus" - this only contains slow choir and strings. Plays in the hoover dam scene, and "Arrival to Earth". It's inverted when Megatron dies in the 1st film as Optimus calls him his brother. It shows up again in the 2nd movie as a full leitmotif for Optimus himself, and plays in descending chords when he dies. It also shows up briefly in 3, 4, and 5. "The AllSpark/Bumblebee" - represents the characters' journeys throughout the films. Plays for these 2 tracks as they're integral to the journey. "Arrival to Earth" - the relation the Autobots have in Earth (arriving/leaving/saving) "Prime" - represents the title it's based on. Relates to the Autobots & Humans leitmotif as the Primes are directly connected to that concept. The rest of the themes in the series are pretty accurate, but this should clear up any confusion on the first 2 film's themes.

[@peacexd3475]

Good shit Mate👍

[@TheSimmr001]

I thought Optimus was meant to represent the sacrifices made in his name. like Sam trying to make a life for himself every time but the autobots are in the background. or the sad scenes are people going through hardship to fullfill his vision.

[@Superultramegaa19]

@@TheSimmr001 But it also plays several times for Sam and Megan Fox's romance (because it was started by Bumblebee), and Sam and Carly, conveying the impact the Autobots are having on their relationship. It also plays for Cade's conversation with Optimus in 4, Izzy's conversation with Cade about her dead Autobot friend, Optimus' return in TF5, and the ending of the series. It's meant to be the heart of the series, to appear when the relationship between Autobots and humans is altered, grown, or diminished.

[@jft2nd]

This sounds crazy, tbh but this series went downhill when Shia left.

[@noob7220]

Yeah pretty much

[@J07911]

That's universally agreed upon

[@river9960]

I enjoyed Bumblebee though

[@jft2nd]

@@river9960 I don't see bumblebee with this series tbh since Micheal bay and the shit writers from age of extinction and the last knight.

[@clivevii2231]

For me it went down when Megan Fox was fired

[@jaybreezy9927]

Most of the themes use the "Arrival to Earth" sample. They're just modified to be there own theme. I love the transformers score. I listen to it damn near everyday.

[@NoodIndigo]

All that and they never played the actual transformers theme

[@choo-choo4269]

But arrival to earth and autobots are actually good

[@86Fallowcp]

They never got an actual theme.

[@Jormyyy]

@@86Fallowcp But they do. The original cartoon ya know? Also "You got the touch" from the original movie.

[@derrickwoods1595]

@@86Fallowcp Transformers Theme song...look it up

[@86Fallowcp]

@@derrickwoods1595 I thought he was talking about the main theme from the movies (which there isn't).

[@ironcladnomad5639]

I unabashedly love the Autobots theme. I have since I first heard it opening night in 2007 and I got chills when I heard it again in The Last Knight.

[@kiyohshi6827]

I remember walking into the parking lot after the theaters with my family and getting into the car as if life would never be the same.

[@anotherbloodyfebruary3435]

Dark of the Moon is in my opinion the best soundtrack out of the first three films with megatrons theme and the badass sentinal prime and im just a messenger tracks were amazing and lastly shockwave and drillers theme is one of the most haunting ost's in a good way

[@mtndrew7854]

Fireballin88 Yes! Thank You!

[@AriknotErik]

Agreed

[@reelkyrie]

"Sir, We're out of soundtrack for this part..." "You just play Optimus"

[@strangescottvoiceacting5351]

I feel like that the theming for "Optimus" and how it was used in those sad scenes was more during the scenes that show examples of self-sacrifice. Scenes like Bumblebee catching Sam and Mikayla yet getting caught by Sector 7, or Sam running the rooftops are when those characters are putting themselves at risk, which is the kind of attribute that Optimus or any Prime should have. I feel like maybe they were trying to find a way to build this them and Prime to put the two together, but it just didn't work. Music talk aside, I remember being a teen and loving the first two movies endlessly. The first one I genuinely believe is a solid film, the second one is more of a guilty pleasure. The third and fourth films are where I got really disappointed with how they used the series. I personally think 4 was the worst one as a real betrayal of Optimus' character. I haven't seen TLK as of yet but I want to see BumbleBee, since I hear it's significantly better than the last few.

[@bluejaysymphony8374]

Omg Bumblebee is SO GOOD

[@AstroBeingSteven]

Bumblebee being captured by humans in TF1: “Oh no! I don’t wanna hurt these creatures! I can’t do anything Im helpless!” Bumblebee being captured by humans in BUMBLEBEE: *”Imma wreck these bitches up!”*

[@thereeferchiefer34]

Bruh just say fuck instead of wreak

[@Peanut_Butter_Jelly_Time]

The Reefer Chiefer bruh just type wreck instead of wreak

[@braincube013]

I’m sorry but the music is 10/10 there’s no changing it.

[@lasemanamayor9396]

Braincube 013 Pretty sure you didnt watch the video He isnt saying its bad,he is just saying it was poorly integrated

[@thatonegoblin7051]

not as good as the 1986

[@sweetchildomusicians4621]

I agree with you to an extent. I actually love the melodic tracks. It’s one of the better sides of the bayformer movies. But the rest of it is bland and forgettable. Take the Star Wars ep III soundtrack for example: even the non climactic scenes had memorable tracks. So I’d give the bayformer music a 7/10.

[@highground7923]

@Braincube 013 for all the movies except AOE

[@crimsontheworld772]

@@thatonegoblin7051 No...

[@warrenmcdonald8170]

"It could have been amazing, but just fell short" Pretty much sums up the entire Transformers franchise. Hopefully, in 10 years or so, it will be time to reboot them and they'll do it better.

[@wingedbluj1674]

The Bumblebee movie is the start of a rebooted universe

[@YokiDokiPanic]

@@wingedbluj1674 And thank fuck for that! It's so good, I honestly can't stand watching the Bayformer movies anymore.

[@comicscodeauthority3920]

These themes kind of represent, well “themes”, environments and the groups of people in those environments, rather than specific characters. Every time the Sam “theme” plays for example it’s when he’s living a relatively normal life (which is always about to go to shit) with his parents or friends. It’s not really catered to a specific character, more to contents of the scene as a whole.

[@Luey_Luey]

that was what i thought too, especially for sams theme

[@joshp1688]

The real sin is that they didn’t add in “dare” or “you got the touch” playing on a radio somewhere in any of the movies as a reference to the cartoon movie

[@isaiahphillip4112]

Transformers was made back in an era where for some reason comic/cartoon based movies did everything they possibly could to distance themselves from their source material. Honestly it worked for the first Transformers (2007), though a little nod would still have been nice.

[@ChefBrownSauce]

They did have Bumblebee first show up and park next to an old yellow Volkswagen Beetle which is a nice reference. Surely they could’ve fit You Got the Touch somewhere in there

[@blackout_ct1013]

That would have been golden!!

[@Protosilver97]

That isn't a sin, doing what you say is doing the sin of repetiveness. God, they made hate G1.

[@kingslayerx1716]

Because they don’t have to constantly suck g1’s d*ck like the 40 yr olds constantly do?

[@Tsukiko.97]

Lindsay Ellis - Auteur theory EveryFrameAPainting - What is Bayhem Patrick H Williams - Understanding Michael Bay And now to complete it all Sideways - Transformers

[@Br0wnEyedQueen]

and that concludes our current semester at KZbinU, where there are no grades - just discussions, thank you. Remember to subscribe to PewDiePie before you pack up. Don't worry, the periodical playlist syllabus, detailing all the uploads you missed, will be emailed out to you before we come together again, enjoy your break.

[@nyramakani9091]

Abyssinia Empire xdx

[@daanwilmer]

It's the whole plate

[@paddylloyd8671]

Sideways is in no way on the same level as these guys

[@najrenchelf2751]

Popo Pipi, I actually think the first three sit on a scale of quality - and Sideways sits in between! 😊

[@dereknicholson3322]

what I find interesting that out of all the things people can find to complain about with the Transformers movies, most people don't complain about the music. It may not make sense from movie to movie, but it's not "bad" music.

[@YayaFeiLong]

The music itself is _phenomenal._ The problem is that it's in a Michael Bay film....

[@granmastersword]

@@YayaFeiLong a we know what Michael Bay loves to have in his movie: Lots of action, explosions, sex appeal and patriotism

[@Ramseas119]

@@granmastersword those things in and of themselves are not the problem. he does those things very well, to be honest, and there is nothing inherently wrong with them for a film. it's everything else he sucks at as a result. the humor is garbage, the emotion is crap, and continuity is non-existent even within individual films.

[@ReneBrain]

is this a reupload or do i have a deja vu? i thought i saw this video already O.o

[@happi-entity]

description

[@radugrosu9445]

i think he reupload it beacause it only got like 30k views

[@CVRSEDCORNER]

- _CAIOWORLD_ - that’s January’s meme get with the times 😂

[@klorgmakthesmasher6446]

Are... you... watching it... again...?

[@jomkraft4070]

I would say that sad "optimus" track represents a good-bye, or a sad parting. In each of those clips someone is going/being taken away supposedly with no return

[@themiddleman1670]

The only moment this whole series give me chills.. When optimus prime slowly transform at front of sam, and when they arrived to earth.. That music was soo beautifully correct

[@ChipeloAndCrew]

They played Arrival to Earth in a sad way bc they’re leaving Earth, and it returns in the final fight scene bc everyone thought they were gone and they were really still on Earth. It’s more of an Autobts arriving to wherever than just Earth specifically

[@blakemcnally9256]

Me: ima watch some gaming vids KZbin: how about the soundtrack for transformers? Me: ok

[@BloodyFlowerFilms]

Lol. It’s ironic because while the Decepticons are literally treated like nothing and are barely characters or resembling who they were in the original lore, Jablonsky gave each of them their own unique themes. The Decepticons and Megatron had their own themes in the first film. The Fallen has his own theme (that was barely used) in the second film. Sentinel Prime, Shockwave, and even Megatron each had their own unique themes. Lockdown had a very specific theme. And the soundtrack for the 5th film.... just the music in general was shit. No one had a theme.

[@astrastudios3343]

God... My favorite theme of the series is “Lockdown”, it’s so intimidating

[@andresacosta4832]

I didn't notice a Megatron theme (though listening through a bootleg expanded score I have a feeling "Deciphering the Signal" was supposed to be the Decepticon theme and "Decepticons" was actually the Megatron theme

[@gilscharf]

As someone who has no idea about music but loves movie soundtracks I can say I absolutely love the transformers movies. Yes they could have changed many things but I still get goosebumps when I rewatch one of the movies. There aren't many movie soundtracks that give you that hard to explain epic feeling like Transformers do.

[@Meme_Lord]

4 and 5 were supposed to be essentially a reboot/clean slate (even though they're still in the main storyline), so it makes sense they'd try a whole new score

[@jayzedd_]

Sam's leitmotif sounds like a ringtone from the mid 2000s

[@anakinskywalker700]

I haven't watched these movies in ages and didn't realize it until now, but the lighting is atrocious

[@a-mellowtea]

It is and it _hurts._

[@JohnnyLouisXIX]

MY EYES

[@shelby4355]

@Joshua Fancher Michael Bay likes to use very saturated filters in his films that I think become a bit of an eyesore after a while. Combining that with his _extremely dynamic_ camerawork kind of exacerbates it too, I feel.

[@elton6031]

yeah, I just noticed it now after all these years

[@Turok1134]

This video is a bad encode. The contrast is way off.

[@tigerlau8593]

I love that “Arrival to Earth” was reused for the “Till All Are One” track for Transformers: Rise of the Beasts. Hearing it in theaters again literally made me tear up

[@ghostphoenix666]

Same it was one of the best parts in the movie

[@elimoody9626]

Sideways: who’s up for a philosophical debate about music? Me: slowly raises hand...sees no one else is raising hand...puts hand down

[@EtherealDoomed]

*Grabs your hand and puts it back up, along with my own*

[@Bananapig9]

There’s a lot wrong with the transformers movie. The soundtrack wasn’t one of them

[@turdmanjones5797]

miko begaye I have to agree.

[@PuddleStew]

Whilst yes it's good, if you want an amazing Transformers soundtrack that doesn't feel dated, look up the Fall of Cybertron theme.

[@nuggi12347]

Public_Safety1/34TM To me the soundtracks in the movies are some of the most gorgeous tracks I’ve heard.

[@hideofreakingkojima5457]

Don't forget about the VFX from Industrial Light and Magic.

[@drawnwithlove3499]

Schaffrillas and Filmento does a good review of this movie hellhole

[@PogieJoe]

Why is the KZbin community suddenly fascinated in an academic perspective on these movies? I've never seen a single film in the franchise, yet I still watch all of these videos anyway. Lol

[@awesomedonut8228]

PogieJoe You haven’t seen any of the Transformers movie from Bay? Good, stay that way!

[@PogieJoe]

@@awesomedonut8228 I definitely have no plans of changing that status. Haha

[@derrickwoods1595]

@@PogieJoe Watch Bumblebee

[@drdandy5680]

PogieJoe never watched Transformer? Is there a reason for it or ya just don’t feel like watching the movie.

[@louiswebtser]

Bumblebee, 1, and 3 are the only good ones. 2 & 5 are the Horrible ones. 4 is a wildcard because it's good but at the same it's bad. It's not horrible thouh...

[@ABCD-nq3uf]

10:04 the soundtrack that plays in the shuttle scene is called “There Is No Plan”.

[@zente3003]

Personally, the disconnect between DoTM and AoE makes sense thematically to me, and here is why: By the 4th film the statuts quo is practically destroyed. The autobots are no longer regarded as heroic allies, and are running from two different groups that want them dead, so the fact that music wise the atmosphere feels almost alien to the main group is a nice touch to me at leats, with the old track returning in the time where Optimus is gaining hope once more.

[@movieblocks9164]

the best transformers score is still angry birds: Transformers

[@charmyzard]

Thought only I enjoyed that one.

[@Maxking321_]

@@charmyzard Nah you are not the only one

[@kavindrums]

i was looking for this comment

[@flaccidpancake4334]

I needed this thank you

[@shapetick4096]

Holy shit that sound track it's fire

[@Matrim42]

“When you think of the music to Transformers you probably think of ‘Arrival to Earth,” No, I think of The Touch.

[@ChristianFerragut]

When I think about Transformers I think about “Transformers! More than meets the eye!”

[@151monka]

Yeah... The first film was pretty good, but these films did NOT do justice to the level of majestic world-building that was done by the cartoons over literal DECADES. They didnt even include a single song from the original Transformers. (Not that Jablonsky did a bad job, as I think his music was VERY epic.)

[@RANDOMstuffanimation]

The movies are not that great, but you gotta admit, the have some damn good soundtracks and sound effects...

[@Gamerhero45]

Still listen to this soundtrack when I read the fantastic IDW Transformers comic books

[@warvinsroom9364]

The first one is pretty good not amazing but enjoyable the rest however Also, the Bee movie is probably the best live action Transformers film

[@Monody512]

Seems to me like the “Optimus” motif represents loss. At least in the first few films it seems to always play when someone is separated/dying, or there’s otherwise fear of not seeing them again.

[@SitriUvali]

Nostalgia hits me whenever I hear 'Arrival To Earth' and watch the Autobots' first appear. Literally goosebumps. Side note: i barely remember the music from the last two films, lol.

[@ShayBowskill]

Transformers 2007 has an insanely good score. It's just thoughtlessly thrown into the film.

[@oliverwilliams9207]

The soundtrack for Transformers is great. Arrival to earth, atuobots, deception, bumblebee. They’re all great.

[@danielbland1951]

How I like to see it is that each piece of music tells its own story. For example, I believe that the track "Optimus" not only represents him, but also the years of suffering and loss he has endured as a leader so that is why it's a sad song. I could go through all of the music tracks (even TFP and Bumblebee) but I don't feel like typing an essay.

[@DATFilms]

Well, I think that sad motif is like a "No Sacrifice, No Victory" theme (and that sentence is related to Optimus). I really enjoy these scores, the fifth film has some really orchestral theme that is beautiful. Pretty sure the fourth film was meant to be a Reboot... But the idea was recycled for the fifth.

[@-jyqub7942]

Well technically the autobots leaving is called “there is no plan”

[@nataliaborys1554]

Sideways: When you think of music from Transformers you probably think of Rival To Earth Me, the person who's 90% of watched media is animated: _The Transformers! More than meets the eye, Autobots waged in battle to destroy! the evil! forces of! The Decepeticons! The Transformers! Robots in disguise~ The Transformers! More than meets the eye, the Transformers!_

[@pandora8940]

I’ve seen these movies so much that I know practically all the leitmotifs. Idek what the main theme is anymore 😂

[@QuotePilgrim]

4:42 Uh, Beethoven's 5th Symphony?

[@stormpants1638]

QuotePilgrim YEP

[@Hetios_Dels]

Who doesn't know that...

[@1953-j3x]

@@Hetios_Dels people born before Beethoven composed it

[@iotu450]

Watching it again just to hear you say "leitmotif"

[@kyracaral1804]

I always thought that the “Optimus” theme was more of a “call to action” kind of piece. While it rarely plays during scenes with Optimus himself, the theme pops up during moments that evoke the thought of the things Optimus stands for, sort of a “what would HE want me to do, what would HE do in this situation, HE would never support this”, kind of thing. Whenever the letimotif played for Sam, I interpreted the Optimus theme as a sort of siren call for making tough choices (which are practically synonymous with any Autobot adventure).

[@DeadShot1307]

Dude steve jablonsky did one of my favourite film scores with Dark of The Moon. The fight will be your own is beautiful. But ive always seen the full arrival to earth segment as the theme, including the Autobots part.

[@eltontan4340]

The score is probably one of the best thing from these films

[@aaronbissonnette]

2:01 on the soundtrack that is called “bumblebee captured” so yeah thats what it represents

[@Mezelenja]

The Score for Transformers is (mostly) amazing. It fills me with so much nostalgia, especially Arrival to Earth.

[@sanjayraju988]

Steve Jablonsky’s score is iconic!

[@EnderLord007]

The first film laying a foundation that the sequels fail to build upon successfully is a major theme with the Transformers movies.

[@JLWorkshops]

I became a fan of the Transformers in 2006. That Christmas, the first teaser trailer came out. Although I’ve hated the movies for a LOT of reasons, the Score was never one of them. It was always something that I really liked, and Jablonsky’s work always had me wanting more. But, I’m no musician, and I was intrigued to see/hear what you had to say. I was very impressed. You make a lot of very good arguments, and there’s plenty to unpack & think about. Great Job! You Good Sir, Just Earned Yourself Sub!

[@iReiGNxx]

Only thing that I have to dispute is that in the second movie, Optimus’s theme does play in reference to Optimus, in almost every scene you showed. It plays when they were sad, because they were mourning him. It plays with the plane that was holding his body. Those musical moments fit as far as I’m concerned. And yes, the 4th one was supposed to be a soft reboot.

[@PickyPeeves]

Also, if these movies haven't tarnished your enjoyment of giant robots, I'd love to hear your analysis of the Pacific Rim score. I've listened to it myself more times than I'd care to admit, but I've picked up on individual leitmotifs for Mako, Pentecost, Hannibal Chau (Ron Perlman's character), and Newt, as well as individual leitmotifs for all the Jaegers, and a single leitmotif for the Kaiju, which I've interpreted as musically representing the hive-mind they have. And that's not even counting the main theme. Granted, that's all from listening to the score on its own, I've had trouble hearing the leitmotifs over the SFX and dialogue outside of a few key moments.

[@animehearthd5469]

I'd love for him to analyze the pacific rim score!

[@tristanr7477]

THIS

[@Jedimasterwp2]

I must say. Your videos have been hella informational and fun to listen to cause it shows how what all is needed to make a film work. For the transformers theme arrival to Earth and the auto bots theme are the ones that stick out to me when I think of it, but when it comes to unforgettable moments that one goes to the decepticons theme in the first movie and lock downs theme in 4, and punch slide repeat cause I love that scene a lot for the dope in sync moments with the gun ships.

[@logiprime]

I think the soundtrack kinda evolved building on the music of the last films, that’s the way I see it.

[@benlapin2089]

Random theory from seeing all the scenes with the Optimus track: It is the theme that plays in scenarios when the heroes might yell Optimus's name?

[@mitchelmcarthur1662]

When does Spiderverse soundtrack review come out.

[@Dimas5]

Sideways: You can hear the same motif here here and here. Me: These don’t sound the same to me

[@tjr_music]

I actually find it quite interesting how the music seems to "die out" in Age of Extinction. I mean, just considering the title alone, it would kind of make sense. I agree that the music is a little bit all over the place and random at times, but personally, I feel it makes sense that the only themes to 'survive' the 'extinction' are "Optimus," "Prime" and the "sad theme." Someone in the comment section pointed out that the "sad theme" is actually the "sacrifice" theme, because it is played after everytime a character has to make a sacrifice of some sorts and I like that those themes don't go 'extinct.' and ofcourse Arrival to Earth bcoz that's just simply iconic and is the one theme connecting the autobots to this little planet.

[@juliawertz5282]

Take a second to think about how many times Sideways had to watch not only the first movie, but ALL of them, and sift through so many hours of a sonic landscape of constant exploding robot noises to pay attention to and track the music, to make this video. I think that would have killed some people

[@geraldkiing1904]

Just like to point a few things that I think you missed out. If you listen to "Autobots Reunite" from Age of Extinction, it's actually a variation of the "Arrival to Earth" theme. And also if you listen to "Sacrifice" carefully which appears in the opening medieval battle of The Last Knight, it actually has similarities in terms of melody and chord progression to the score that plays when Optimus enters Mission City in the first movie (the name of the track is "You're A Soldier Now", the leitmotif appears at the end of the track). What I think the 4th and 5th films did was bringing in a few of the themes from the first 3 films and at the same time introducing new themes because those 2 movies aimed to steered the franchise towards new directions. From what I see, Steve Jablonsky isn't really that deep into developing the themes complicatedly like John Williams and Howard Shore, and I don't think he is that bothered if the themes aren't used accurately to the characters as long as it compliments the tone and mood of the scene (of which I'm also not bothered by to be honest). Also you mentioned something about the themes not treated equally because some of them did not have well-developed melodies. Here is my personal philosophy about themes, they do not need to have a concrete melody to be considered a proper theme. For me as long as it is recognisable and well-associated with a certain character(s) or mood, then I consider it as a theme. Take the Decepticons theme for example, sure it doesn't have a well-developed melody but what makes it memorable for me is the sound and the distinct tone it has. The moment it appears you know that shit is going down and that the stakes are raised for the protagonists. I guarantee you in almost every soundtrack where the Decepticon theme or variations of it appear (at least in the first movie), these are the common features: haunting vocals, staccato vocals, vocals with a slight airy quality, repetition of the tonic note ("la"), and repetition of "do-la" (minor third interval). I also love the instrumentation and those organic electric sounds incorporated into those themes which make their impact more effective (which was done very well in the first movie). And this might sound ridiculous, but I do consider the Decepticon's theme as one of the best villain themes in the world of film music. The Decepticon's theme was prominently featured in the first movie, but its appearance declined in the 2nd and 3rd instalment ("Seal Off The City" from Dark Of The Moon was a pretty cool version of the Decepticon's theme though). Unfortunately, I think it was completely put aside in the 4th and 5th instalments. But your video was a good analysis of how the soundtrack could have developed further, and it's really a shame that the soundtracks are better than the movies themselves (except the first one). And it was the soundtrack of the first movie that introduced me to the world of film music when I was 7. Keep up the the good work, looking forward to your future videos. 👏👏

[@Xenadroid]

I’ve literally never seen any of these transformers movies but i love ‘arrival to earth’ and the first sound track

[@AnneleenRoesems]

I haven't even seen any of the transformers films but I just have to watch every sideways video

[@hihelo5131]

If u want to watch a transformer movie watch bumblebee the first one but not the last 2 or 3

[@weakenbest516]

Watch all 5 transformers movies except bumblebee. unless you like cringe

[@Sacha_8976]

Weakenbest are you on crack?

[@Sacha_8976]

Star Destoyer but I simply asked him if he was on crack. Not salty, just curious

[@AnneleenRoesems]

Guys I have very little interest in watching transformers, sorry

[@yadude_log]

Interestingly, the track “Soccent Attack” is kind of a more developed version of the deception theme, and even features a sort of melody at the beginning. A melody which sounds like it could be an inverse to that of the autobots theme. And yet for whatever reason it’s never used again

[@thecianinator]

These are not leitmotifs, they're just melodies. Leitmotifs represent characters, these tunes just represent moods.

[@BuffDaddySmoove]

MR FREEZE-98 okay but no why?

[@shapetick4096]

I disagree

[@cloakedflame4135]

What a mood

[@eyecii2665]

Shut up

[@Spinbassflipbassfly]

This. OP is right. These aren’t real leitmotifs, they’re used because it makes sense to use them in the moment. The Transformers films don’t care much about the individual robot characters and that translates into the music as well.

[@joebailey8294]

You should make something about the DOOM 2016 soundtrack.

[@TRSleekZ12]

Hello fellow doom fan

[@JacopoSkydweller]

Rip AnD TEEAAARRR *Proceeds to kill everything*

[@theitalianstallion973]

*Mick Gordon has entered the chat*

[@Ziomaletto]

*Satan leaves the chat*

[@5Mega8Thinker93]

Resooooooooolve

[@Athena_Ready]

Honestly, nothing about this music confused me.If the music catches the mood, I'm good...plain and simple.

[@the_real_Kurt_Yarish]

The Autobot leitmotif likely appears over that scene showing the military preparing for action to associate the Autobots (the forces of good) with the US military. These movies (or the early ones, at least) have an underlying theme of glorifying the US military to a degree. Which makes sense, as the US military will only loan it's vehicles for use in your movie if it portrays them in a positive light. Otherwise, you'd have to pay out the ass to get access to said vehicles, and the budget for these movies are already bloated enough. Either that, or they just thought it sounded cool over that part, I dunno.

[@umproducciones1293]

As somebody who grew up with this saga, having been 6 when I first saw T1, I believe that the soundtrack is really memorable and it adds to the scale of the story

[@jacliffh9221]

The fourth film actually had some neat new themes and I like the part where the a slow piano version of the Optimus theme is mixed with the new 'Decision' theme, but all of them are ditched in the fifth one.