The 15 Best Transformers Ripoffs – MovieWeb

In 1984, Hasbro partnered with Takara Tomy and Marvel Comics to repurpose two existing toylines into a pop culture juggernaut. Micro Change and Diaclone, the two toys in question, featured robots that could become everyday items, weapons, and vehicles, and they acted as a launching point for Hasbro's newest venture. Marvel writer Bob Budiansky and editor-in-chief Jim Shooter created the story of two warring alien factions. These robotic characters, capable of transforming into myriad vehicles, were named the Autobots and the Decepticons, and the Transformers franchise was born.

Since the '80s, Transformers has exploded in popularity, with over two dozen animated series and movies, seven live-action films, and hundreds of toys. Given its almost 40 years of existence, many franchises have used Transformers as a foundation, producing several rip-offs and clones. Each varies in how much "inspiration" it takes from its parent series, and they all range in quality, with some standing on their own and becoming their own thing. These 15 are just some of the best (or worst, depending on your perspective) rip-offs of the Transformers franchise.

The '80s were rife with toy companies trying to match Transformers success, and while many simply copied the transforming vehicle aesthetic, some ideas were more novel. Milton-Bradley was among the latter, combining the robotic alien narrative with construction toys like the Erector Set to create Robotix. This allowed for kids to be involved in the building of powerful, motorized machines, connecting them with the story of the two warring factions.

Sunbow and Marvel Productions partnered with Milton-Bradley to create the Robotix cartoon, attempting to match their past success with The Transformers: The Animated Series. The central conflict wasn't between Autobots and Decepticons but Protectons and Terrakors. These robotic shells contain the life force of their creators, who live on the planet Skalorr V. A human space shuttle crashes on the planet, and the pilots split into two groups, each choosing a side. They had the benefit of riding the Robotix like mechs, but this didn't help it maintain the same level of popularity of Transformers.

Another benchmark of '80s toys and animation was G.I. Joe. Taking the traditional army man toys of the day and infusing them with unique stories and characters, G.I. Joe became another massive franchise in pop culture. It, too, saw many rip-offs and clones, but the most unique combined elements of various popular series at the time. M.A.S.K. took the transforming vehicles of Transformers and combined them with the military, super-soldier aesthetics of G.I. Joe, creating a franchise that, while not nearly as popular as its two inspirations, holds a level of reverence with the fan base.

M.A.S.K. follows the exploits of the "Mobile Armored Strike Kommand," an elite unit of special agents who piloted transforming vehicles. They also wore masks that granted them enhanced abilities, which they used to fight V.E.N.O.M. (Vicious Evil Network of Mayhem). These villains, led by Miles Mayhem, sought power and wealth through stealing precious artifacts and technologies. Interestingly, Hasbro has acknowledged their connection to Transformers; in the IDW Comics, M.A.S.K. bases their transforming vehicles on Cybertronian technology, meaning they are canon rip-offs of the Robots in Disguise.

Originally released in 2013, Super Wings is an ongoing Korean children's animated series following a group of transforming planes. Seemingly taking joint inspiration from both Transformers and Cars, the series is known for its cartoony aesthetics, though these have gotten more complex and interesting as new machines are added into the mix. The series has the tone of most kids educational programming, focusing heavily on travel and locations around the world, but the ideas behind the series take obvious cues from the Robots in Disguise.

Jett is a delivery plane for World Airport. Alongside his friend and supervisor, Jimbo, Jett travels the world in order to pick up and help deliver packages for children in various locales. This often ends in some mishap or problem that requires Jett to call in another Super Wing for help. Later seasons see the introduction of more complex tech, including some that give the planes elemental powers and an ally in the transforming aircraft carrier World Robot. The series has become a popular children's cartoon, which makes sense given its simple premise and similarities to the Transformers franchise.

What if humans were the Transformers? That seems to be the central conceit that inspired the strange 1986 animated series and toyline Centurions. Similar to M.A.S.K., Centurions took the best parts about G.I. Joe and Transformers and mashed them together to create something new, equipping powerful robotic suits to specialized soldiers to give them a leg up in a battle against evil. The show was weird, but while arguments can be made as to its quality, it definitely lives up to the tagline that was shouted several times each episode: Man and Machine, Power Xtreme!

The series followed the titular heroes as they battled the villainous Doc Terror and his Doom Drones. Based in an orbiting space station, the Centurions (Max Ray, Jake Rockwell, and Ace McCloud) donned powerful exo-frame suits that allowed them to equip unique sets of weaponized armor, each specialized for a different combat scenario. The series ran for 65 episodes, adopting the typical "threat-of-the-week" structure. The action took centerstage over character and plot, which means that, sadly, this novel idea has largely been forgotten.

Let's be perfectly clear: Super Sentai, the inspiration for Power Rangers, is not a Transformers rip-off. With its first season releasing in 1975, Super Sentai preceded the Robots in Disguise by nine years, and Battle Fever J, the first season to introduce mecha combat, released in 1979. Nevertheless, Power Rangers and their brand of mecha-based combat made their way to America in 1993, nine years after Transformers, and while the Cybertronians may not have influenced the plot or overall designs, they did inspire a surge of interest in transforming robots, helping bring the teenagers with attitude to American televisions.

The '90s were a time of increased interest in Japan and Japanese storytelling. There was a massive surge in localizations of anime and live-action series from the country, with Sailor Moon, Dragon Ball Z, and other Japanese series soaring to massive popularity in the United States. Meanwhile, Transformers made fighting robots cool. Stores couldn't keep Transformers toys in stock, and this led to a tidal wave of new robotic toys. Power Rangers allowed for Saban and Fox Kids to capitalize on these two growing markets, while simultaneously saving money by reusing film from the existing Super Sentai series.

While you may have heard of many of the titles on this list, chances are Heavy Gear might have escaped your notice. Despite the popularity of the board and video games of the same name, this 3D animated series flew under many fans' radars in 2001. Due to the clunky animation and the younger intended audience, the series was far less popular than Mainframe Entertainment had hoped for, leading to a single season of 40 episodes. While the Heavy Gear franchise focuses heavily on mech combat, strategic warfare, and complex science-fiction world-building, the series solely focused on the fighting robots.

The show followed two professional fighting teams, the Vanguard of Justice and the Shadow Dragons. The pair were pitted against each other in a tournament, followed by several exhibition matches. While the series loses some of its more in-depth war narratives, the connections to Transformers come from the mecha combat. Companies were trying to find the magic formula of the Robots in Disguise, and most banked on the spectacle of giant robots fighting. Many of these copycat shows overlooked the depth of the storytelling in Transformers, creating series light on plot and heavy on action.

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Combining elements of Power Rangers and Transformers, 2010's Sym-Bionic Titan is one of the most original series on this list. Created by Genndy Tartakovsky, the series followed Ilana, Lance, and Octus, two aliens and a robot from the planet Galaluna. Ilana, a princess, was forced to flee her home after a coup. The three landed in Sherman, Illinois, where they masqueraded as typical high school students. When the monstrous Mutraddi and General Modula arrive on Earth, though, Ilana and Lance don powerful robotic battle armor, and together with Octus, they can merge to form the unstoppable Sym-Bionic Titan.

While it only aired for 20 episodes, Sym-Bionic Titan showcases the possibilities of a "rip-off." Taking elements from several mecha and alien war storylines, the story melded them together to create something distinct and interesting. The character designs harken back to those seen in Transformers, as does the general plot structure, but Tartakovsky took these similarities and twisted them into something new. For that reason, fans still hold Sym-Bionic Titan in high regard, and though it had a short lifespan, the series is still considered one of Tartakovsky's most unique.

Guillermo Del Toro's 2013 hit mecha science-fiction film Pacific Rim held all the trademarks of the director's best work. It was a dark examination with incredible monster designs, intimate storytelling, and plenty of robot-alien combat. Its sequel, Pacific Rim: Uprising, lost Del Toro's direction, and instead of breaking down genre tropes, it instead leaned heavily into them. It took inspiration from nearly every giant robot franchise, from Transformers to Robotech to Power Rangers, and while fans were less invested in this campier, fun action flick, it was still an entertaining summer blockbuster thrill ride.

Pacific Rim: Uprising is a direct sequel to Del Toro's film. After the Battle of the Breach and the closing of the Kaiju portal, the Earth has seen relative peace. Former Jaeger pilot Jake Pentecost, the son of the late Pan-Pacific Defense Corps director Stacker Pentecost, makes a living selling Jaeger parts on the black market, but after an altercation involving a young woman named Amara and her homemade Jaeger, Jake is brought back into the PPDC. He is just in time for the newest crisis, as a rogue Jaeger, classified as Obsidian Fury, has begun attacking key PPDC members and locations around the world.

Including any Asylum film on a list of rip-offs is a bit of a cheat. The company has made their name with "mock-busters," intentional rip-offs of some of the world's most popular films. Low budget and often low effort, these films are the best of the worst, leaning into their campy premises and creating some of the best "so-bad-they're-good" films in movie history. Transmorphers is the company's attempt at parodying the Transformers live-action franchise, just with far lower-quality animation, character designs, and acting.

The most interesting change of pace with Transmorphers is that it isn't the battle between two robotic alien races. Instead, it is your typical alien invasion story. Years before, the alien robots arrived on Earth and drove humanity underground. A resistance force was formed among the surviving human soldiers, under the command of General Van Ryberg. After a confrontation with a new breed of robot that can disguise themselves as parts of the terrain, the resistance decides to reinstate a disgraced officer, Warren Mitchell, to help them capture one of the aliens for study.

There are some rip-offs that take the ideas presented in the original IP and expand on them in new and unique ways, and then there are some like Gladiformers: Robos Gladiadores. This blatant, unapologetic rip-off of Transformers sees an evil empire run by the Supremobots holding a deadly gladiator tournament, capturing other transforming robot aliens from across the universe.

Julius Drive, the prince of an unnamed world (how's that for world-building?), is sold as a slave into the tournament, and forced to fight for the entertainment of Locutor's forces.

The series suffers from stunted animation and plenty of clichs throughout. Produced by Video Brinquedo who have made their name with cheap knockoffs of popular franchises (looking at you, Little Panda Fighter and Ratatoing), the plot is somewhat original, with the robot coliseum leading to some fun fights and interesting characters, but the film's horrendously low budget and overall aesthetic make it one of the worst rip-offs of Transformers. Despite all of this, the film did receive a sequel in 2009, so if you are somehow invested in the adventures of Julius Drive, there is more to see.

Transformers is about so much more than giant robots at war. While the live-action films focus mostly on the explosions and the intense action of the Autobots vs. the Decepticons, the films ignore the deeper narratives and more complex characterizations that made the Robots in Disguise famous.

1993's Exosquad was another in the long-line of rip-offs that focused on giant robots fighting an alien menace, but it came the closest to matching the magic of Transformers in its overall narrative. The story had a darker tone, exploring concepts like slavery, PTSD, and the general horrors of war.

Exosquad takes place in the 22nd century. Terrans have expanded beyond Earth, terraforming Venus, Mars, and beyond with the help of genetically altered Neosapiens. The Neosapiens of Mars stage a revolution, taking over the Terran territories, while Earth's Exofleet is sent to deal with a space pirate threat. Unhappy with their years of slave labor, the Neosapiens have decided to take back their rights by any means necessary. With war now raging on the homeworlds, the series follow Able Squad, a group of Exosuit pilots, as they undertook operations to undermine the Neosapien resistance.

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The Asylum makes it explosive return to this list, and this one is a little on the nose, even for them. In 2018, Travis Knight released Bumblebee, the sixth film in the live-action Transformers film franchise and a soft reboot of the Michael Bay era. The film was generally well-received by many fans with its more personal, character-driven story of the titular Autobot's arrival on Earth. Hornet has none of the charm of Bumblebee, relying more on the gimmick of giant robots fighting each other and its interesting character designs than actual storytelling.

Releasing three days prior to Bumblebee,Hornet is the worst kind of rip-off, capitalizing on the premise of a film without adding anything new to it. The story follows an alien invasion of Earth. These aliens are brainwashing humans, forcing them to commit terrible acts of destruction. Humanity's only hope is a high-tech, untested giant robot.

The most unique part of the movie is its filmmaking. The story is told through found-footage, switching between the recordings from the humans involved, and the live camera feeds within the giant robot's eyes, but even this unique premise couldn't save this horrible movie.

Do you know what the Transformers franchise needed? More human/robot romance. At least, that's what the producers of the 2009 Hong Kong film Metallic Attraction: Kungfu Cyborg seemed to think. The story follows De Ming, an experimental cyborg peace officer who is assigned to a small town for training. While stationed there, he encounters Su Mei, a woman who falls in love with him. De Ming must confront his lack of humanity, his Pinocchio-esque desire to be a real person, as rogue cyborg assassins begin to plague the town.

Kungfu Cyborg is bizarre, mixing such disparate genres that don't quite fit into place together. The robot designs are taken straight from the Michael Bay Transformers films, with clunky armored warriors presented in impressive CGI. Despite the oddity of the premise, the film kind of works. The story isn't anything particularly inspiring, but the unique focus on the robotic characters and their mental states is actually really interesting. Not only that, but the fight scenes, while less intense and fewer in number, take a lot of inspiration from traditional kung-fu movies, making this an interesting experience at the very least.

Given its release in 1989, Robot Jox is surprisingly ahead of its time. It most definitely feels dated, with animation that feels a bit stilted, but given its release date, this film is a technical marvel. Inspired by Transformers, director Stuart Gordon wanted to bring the giant robot combat from so many animated series and films into the real world, and he succeeded in a way that nobody could have expected. While the film was critically panned on its initial release and poor marketing kept it from box office success, the film has become a cult icon with a hugely devoted fan base.

Playing on Cold War tensions, the film was set in a futuristic, post-apocalyptic Earth that has suffered from the decimation of its population by nuclear war. With open war outlawed, disputes between the Market (America) and the Confederation (Soviet Russia) are settled with gladiatorial mech battles. With Alaska on the line, the Market sends in Achilles, one of their greatest pilots, to defeat Alexander.

However, after his first near loss against Alexander, Achilles is nearly replaced by a genetically modified pilot named Athena, and he must put his attraction to the woman aside to prove he can defeat the Confederation bot.

Many Transformers rip-offs try to hide their influences behind an interesting twist or unique character designs, but the Mark A. Reyes-directed Transmutators leans heavily into its inspirations. With a lead character that is clearly meant to be a knock-off Optimus Prime, the only real difference between the two films is that the transforming robots in this film are piloted mechs instead of sentient alien defenders. It has received nothing but poor reviews, making it one of the all-time worst Transformers rip-offs, and while the Asylum films are intentionally bad, this film is made all the worse by how seriously it takes itself.

In a far-future Earth, mutants and giant robotic aliens have taken over the planet. Humanity's last hope is a rebel group of survivors who have developed piloted mech suits from recycled machine parts, and they must battle an army of mutated humans, alien monstrosities, and horribly animated CGI robots in order to survive. This film has a horribly low budget, with costume designs on par with bad cosplay and some horrendous special effects. The film has some fun ideas, but the execution makes it one of the worst Transformers rip-offs of all time.

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The 15 Best Transformers Ripoffs - MovieWeb