by Chris Snellgrove
| Published
Transformers: Rise of the Monsters It was like an “automated buffet”, with lots of fan-favorite characters (Maximals, Predacons, and Unicron, oh my!) being served up in an attempt to please everyone. The film also ended with the reveal of GI Joe, which aims to set up a future crossover movie that brings together everyone's favorite transforming robots with a plucky, highly-trained American mission force. Most fans were giddy at the prospect of a movie team-up, but I'm here to throw some cold energy at the idea and warn you that this Transformers/GI Joe movie is already destined to be a Titan-sized flop.
Transformers and GI Joe go way back
These two intellectual properties have a rich history of collaboration, though this has mostly been through comics, toylines, and an old Transformers G1 episode featuring an elderly Cobra Commander (although he was called “Old Snake”). Both franchises have very disparate histories of live-action films, and the upcoming crossover will be our first chance to see our favorite Joes, Cobras, Autobots, and Decepticons sharing the big screen together. Unfortunately, the Transformers/GI Joe crossover movie is already doomed to fail as the movie will be a chaotic mess of rushed characterization and too many big names vying for screen time.
And it's fitting that a lot of the potential problems for the future film begin Transformers: Rise of the Monsters. earlier bumblebee The film was a breath of fresh air, and one of its narrative strengths was a simplified cast of characters, allowing us to focus on our 'robot'. However, some fans wanted more robots Rise of the monsters It delivered, giving us a movie filled with more Autobots while introducing new allies (Maximals), new villains (Predacons), and even a dark god driven by endless hunger (Unicron).
Too many characters
This sequel struggled because it had to introduce us to new robots like Optimus Primal and new humans like Noah Diaz, all while fleshing out existing characters like Optimus Prime, someone who only appeared briefly in bumblebeeNew continuity (this universe is separate from Michael Bay movies). At the very least, we can count on the Transformers/GI Joe movie to exacerbate this problem as it will have to balance its roster of returning “bots” and humans with an abundance of new characters. Keep in mind that this new continuity still needs to introduce Deception heavyweights like Megatron and Starscream, all while introducing entirely new teams of GI Joe and Cobra troopers.
Even in the hands of the best writer and director, it would be impossible to give all of these characters their due screen time. This means that a crossover movie will have to choose between bringing in only a few characters from each faction or bringing in a large number and giving beloved heroes and villains only one or two lines. Either option is sure to upset fans of both Transformers and GI Joe, two IPs known for their large rosters of colorful characters.
The big bad problem
Plus, I can't help but worry that a Transformers/GI Joe movie is going to have a hard time creating a convincing Big Bad for our heroes to fight and possibly have the villains join him. Rise of the monsters Optimus Prime and his sons were already fighting Unicron, a dark god who (similar to Galactus) is devouring entire planets. Not only would it be difficult to deliver a more terrifying bad guy than this, but it's fair to ask what GI Joe's squishy humans could do to fight something even more terrifying than Unicron, who was an actual extinction-level threat to humanity.
Finally, a Transformers/GI Joe movie would suffer compared to other crossovers between these IPs, including the comics currently published by Image. In Image's Energon Universe, the plots of each faction are delicately intertwined: even as the presence of Energon prompts Cobra Commander to create an army powered by deadly weapons, GI Joe is created to prevent anyone – human or robot – who might misuse this energy source. . The comics are great because they spent a lot of time working towards the crossover, and Image has published some great miniseries focusing on fan-favorite characters like Cobra Commander.
From a fan
As you can tell, I'm a huge fan of both IPs… in fact, this is being written in an office with Transformers and GI Joe toys looming as I work. I love these characters and their complex stories, but their crossovers have always worked best through long form comic book storytelling. The Transformers/GI Joe live-action movie is sure to be a crowded, congested mess that will disappoint critics and audiences alike and leave us all saying that famous phrase of resigned misery: “Well, that's just a major movie!”
