Review and Impressions Roundup of the BotBots Netflix Show

Friday, April 1st, 2022 12:58PM CDT

Categories: Cartoon News, Reviews
Posted by: william-james88 Views: 73,611

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The new BotBots show on Netflix has been up for around a week and many fans have commented on the show. While it is obviously a comedy show aimed for kids and not older fans, the worst fans have said is that it's not for them, as any other kid show like Amazing World of Gumball or Teen Titans would not be for them (although there are links to the Movieverse in the final episode). But no one has said it was bad, quite the contrary. Here are some takes from the community:

Sabrblade wrote:I found myself really enjoying it, more than I thought I would. The writing was really charming, clever, and at times downright hilarious. My favorite funny moment has got to be when Kikmee increased Dave's robot-dinosaur order quantity to 1000 right before he was instantly charged for that many. I lost it at his tidal wave of panicked reactions.

I was also very surprised to see that there was an actual ongoing storyline with various plot threads continuing from episode-to-episode. The Lost Bots' quest to get back in good graces with the other tribes, Dave's attempts to uncover the truth of the BotBots' existence, Spud Muffin's gradual descent from arrogant jock to villainous schemer, all of these were given room to grow and develop over the course of the season. That really kept my attention and made me want to see where the story would go and what the payoff would be. Of course, the end result was predictable, but also apropos to the kind of message this show was trying to convey.

Overall, this was a fun show.

RotorstormNZ wrote:I watched the first two and a half episodes before deciding my wife might like it too - we ended up binging the first five last night. It's so great to share something TF with her. I really like it and will definitely be getting into the toys.

Beast_Megatron wrote:This show is really charming and genuinely witty. It’s harmless at its worst and hilarious at its best. I recommend it if you’re an open-minded Transformers fan who wants a quick laugh.

william-james88 wrote:I had a great time watching this with my 4 year old. Some jokes were more for him, like the Clogstopper jokes, while others were more for me. I especially liked the episode when they find a cell phone and look at all the apps. That one really worked for me, as we rarely have up to the minute modern jokes like this in a kid's show, at least the ones we'd compare this show to. Also, I really liked the character models. As with the original G1 show, they used the toys as a starting point and came up with better proportioned characters. The changes made to Bonsai were especially fun and welcome for me, that was by far my favourite character. The only thing I found off, and my 4 year old pointed it out too, was how they would show the botbots from afar. They were all just rectangles of different colours, which just looked off. They could have at least done a variety of shapes. Aside from that, the show was very fun. It just adds a new layer to the brand we all love so much while taking nothing away.

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Re: Review and Impressions Roundup of the BotBots Netflix Show (2130426)
Posted by cloudballoon on April 1st, 2022 @ 4:42pm CDT

As a comdey show, it's fine. More than fine for TF fans really, 'cause there's something for everyone in every episodes.

My only major gripe is the art direction. Namely the use of stock image cutups art style for the pizza cart, gamepad hovecraft & things. They stood out like sore thumbs against the foreground characters AND the CG/cell-shaded/painted backgrounds. Very odd. That pulls me out of the show all the time. But lets be real, that gripe meant nothing for the kiddies.

What a fresh and positive change to pace against the dark, dull, and sloooooooooooooooooooooowness of the WFC trilogy. I think the overall budget feel far smaller to produce BotBots vs WFC, yet the right investment on writers & voice actors make for a better animated show.

And for once the show came BEFORE the toys, that gotta be nice too. However, the way Hasbro pack so many Botbots into expensive sets is preventing me from getting the (show's 1st wave?) toys....

Re: Review and Impressions Roundup of the BotBots Netflix Show (2130427)
Posted by primalxconvoy on April 1st, 2022 @ 4:50pm CDT

Please note: - For people new to this thread, Botbots has been Geoblocked by Netflix in some areas, such as Japan. If you want to watch it, you'll probably need to "hoist the Jolly Roger" and look for a suitable "bay" online to find your "Botbots Booty", ahrrrr...

Re: Review and Impressions Roundup of the BotBots Netflix Show (2130428)
Posted by Sabrblade on April 1st, 2022 @ 5:13pm CDT

cloudballoon wrote:My only major gripe is the art direction. Namely the use of stock image cutups art style for the pizza cart, gamepad hovecraft & things. They stood out like sore thumbs against the foreground characters AND the CG/cell-shaded/painted backgrounds. Very odd. That pulls me out of the show all the time. But lets be real, that gripe meant nothing for the kiddies.

That didn't bother me because it reminded me of my favorite 1980s cartoon, Muppet Babies, which did that sort of "live action stock footage and backgrounds blended with 2D characters" all the time, and often to similar comedic effect as in this show, so it really took me back to a familiar feeling of my childhood.

Re: Review and Impressions Roundup of the BotBots Netflix Show (2130441)
Posted by Tigertrack on April 1st, 2022 @ 7:51pm CDT

My boys have been waiting a long time for this show! Botbots are really the only Transformers that they are really interested in. And when the toys stopped being produced, there wasn’t any fiction to keep their interest going (except what they had made themselves). The interest waned and they moved on.

They have really enjoyed the Botbots show which has rekindled their interest. We keep looking for guest appearances by our favorites. Still waiting for non-humanoid Botbots to join, but we’re enjoying what we have. The saddest things are only 8 episodes in the first season and a year wait on the new toys…

Hooray for the creation of a fun, witty, and silly show.

Re: Review and Impressions Roundup of the BotBots Netflix Show (2130442)
Posted by Tigertrack on April 1st, 2022 @ 7:52pm CDT

Sabrblade wrote:
cloudballoon wrote:My only major gripe is the art direction. Namely the use of stock image cutups art style for the pizza cart, gamepad hovecraft & things. They stood out like sore thumbs against the foreground characters AND the CG/cell-shaded/painted backgrounds. Very odd. That pulls me out of the show all the time. But lets be real, that gripe meant nothing for the kiddies.
That didn't bother me because it reminded me of my favorite 1980s cartoon, Muppet Babies, which did that sort of "live action stock footage and backgrounds blended with 2D characters" all the time, and often to similar comedic effect as in this show, so it really took me back to a familiar feeling of my childhood.

Agree on this. It added a charm to the show for me too.

Re: Review and Impressions Roundup of the BotBots Netflix Show (2130444)
Posted by primalxconvoy on April 1st, 2022 @ 8:07pm CDT

The other "odd" aesthetic (but not really a gripe) was the "cake colour sticks" that they used for aerial/panned-out shots (and the cute way they hopped around instead of walked/ran).

That, and all the cybertronian text Easter eggs.

I really do wish they had stuck to the idea that all of the "gross" stuff was really just something else. In the animated toy trailer, they state that the "poo" bot is really just chocolate.

I still think they should have made all of them be made out of plastic/hard, synthetic materials, as that would have been more "realistic", meant that they couldn't "die" if eaten and also would have still given them a reason not to get caught (because the humans would know something was odd but trying to eat a hamburger that looked normal but was hard).

Re: Review and Impressions Roundup of the BotBots Netflix Show (2130600)
Posted by Sabrblade on April 4th, 2022 @ 11:45am CDT

Sooooo, got some bad news for ya, Primal.

Apparently, out of all of the regions that Netflix is available in, it's only Japan that's the only one in which BotBots is currently unavailable to watch.

Re: Review and Impressions Roundup of the BotBots Netflix Show (2130636)
Posted by primalxconvoy on April 4th, 2022 @ 7:33pm CDT

Sabrblade wrote:Sooooo, got some bad news for ya, Primal.

Apparently, out of all of the regions that Netflix is available in, it's only Japan that's the only one in which BotBots is currently unavailable to watch.

Thanks for the info. It seems Takara and Netflix are up to their old tricks again. Good thing the "bay of pirates" offers free booty to those willing to visit, eh readers?

Re: Review and Impressions Roundup of the BotBots Netflix Show (2130649)
Posted by Sabrblade on April 4th, 2022 @ 10:39pm CDT

primalxconvoy wrote:
Sabrblade wrote:Sooooo, got some bad news for ya, Primal.

Apparently, out of all of the regions that Netflix is available in, it's only Japan that's the only one in which BotBots is currently unavailable to watch.

Thanks for the info. It seems Takara and Netflix are up to their old tricks again.

Yeah, even Korea got a BotBots dub.

primalxconvoy wrote:Good thing the "bay of pirates" offers free booty to those willing to visit, eh readers?

There's always KimCartoon.

Re: Review and Impressions Roundup of the BotBots Netflix Show (2130652)
Posted by primalxconvoy on April 4th, 2022 @ 10:58pm CDT

Sabrblade wrote:
primalxconvoy wrote:
Sabrblade wrote:Sooooo, got some bad news for ya, Primal.

Apparently, out of all of the regions that Netflix is available in, it's only Japan that's the only one in which BotBots is currently unavailable to watch.

Thanks for the info. It seems Takara and Netflix are up to their old tricks again.
Yeah, even Korea got a BotBots dub.

primalxconvoy wrote:Good thing the "bay of pirates" offers free booty to those willing to visit, eh readers?
There's always KimCartoon.

I just checked that site. Cheers. Bit too many redirected ads for me to recommend it to the average person with kids in Japan that like TFs (I know a few families here that would be interested) but it's still a site to bookmark at least.

Re: Review and Impressions Roundup of the BotBots Netflix Show (2130654)
Posted by Sabrblade on April 4th, 2022 @ 11:12pm CDT

primalxconvoy wrote:I just checked that site. Cheers. Bit too many redirected ads for me to recommend it to the average person with kids in Japan that like TFs (I know a few families here that would be interested) but it's still a site to bookmark at least.

Though, despite what that site claims, it is best to access it with AdBlock (or the like) turned ON, lest you be bombarded with annoying ads. A message asking you to turn it off will appear, but it can be easily closed and the site is still very usable with Adblock turned on. They also periodically change their URL, so keep that in mind.

Anyway, back to BotBots.

Apparently, these first ten episodes are not Part 1 of the first season, but are the entirety of Season 1. Each episode features two segments, so it's one season consisting of 20 segments.

Re: Review and Impressions Roundup of the BotBots Netflix Show (2130769)
Posted by william-james88 on April 6th, 2022 @ 11:18pm CDT

Please stop with the sharing of pirating links. It goes against site rules. Any reply or further questions regarding this can be sent directly to admins by using the "contact us" form at the top of the site. Any further discussion here will be removed.

Re: Review and Impressions Roundup of the BotBots Netflix Show (2130978)
Posted by D-Maximal_Primal on April 10th, 2022 @ 12:02pm CDT

rewatched the show, and it was just as enjoyable the 2nd time the whole way through. There is just so much to love with this show. They really did a good job with it. It makes me very happy

Re: Review and Impressions Roundup of the BotBots Netflix Show (2131325)
Posted by bluecatcinema on April 13th, 2022 @ 2:20pm CDT

Just finished watching the first season. I have to say, it was pretty good. Some nice jokes and decent laughs, with an ongoing storyline that got some major payoff in the final episode. It'll be interesting to see where they take things next season.

Re: Review and Impressions Roundup of the BotBots Netflix Show (2131326)
Posted by Sabrblade on April 13th, 2022 @ 2:23pm CDT

I can imagine the status quo eventually shifting to where Dave tries to protect the BotBots from being found and captured by Sector 7 agents.

Re: Review and Impressions Roundup of the BotBots Netflix Show (2131342)
Posted by D-Maximal_Primal on April 13th, 2022 @ 7:01pm CDT

Sabrblade wrote:I can imagine the status quo eventually shifting to where Dave tries to protect the BotBots from being found and captured by Sector 7 agents.

There's a really fun direction they can go! I hope we get a 2nd season

Re: Review and Impressions Roundup of the BotBots Netflix Show (2131636)
Posted by Tigerhawk7109 on April 18th, 2022 @ 3:18pm CDT

This was a surprisingly fun show! I wouldn't call it spectacular, but it's an easy watch with mile-a-minute jokes. (Most of them even land!)

:SG-CONS: