Transformers: Prime (2010 TV Series)

Transformers: Prime, also known as Transformers: Prime - The Animated Series, is an American computer-animated tevelvision series based on the Transformers toy franchise by Hasbro. It airs on The Hub in the United States. The series broadcasted its first two episodes on Friday, November 26, 2010, at 4:00pm Eastern/3:00pm Central on The Hub television network, as a special preview. It broadcasted officially on Monday, November 29, 2010, at 6:30pm Eastern/5:30pm Central. On February 11, 2011, the series started to air new episodes, under the name of Transformers: Prime – The Animated Series. Other channels air the series internationally. The second season aired on February 18, 2012. A third season has been announced to air in the 2012–2013 season.

The first season became available for instant streaming through Netflix on April 5, 2012. The second season will be available in late 2012/early 2013.

The series has received universal acclaim, as well as a positive number of viewers. Transformers: Prime is rated TV-Y7-FV, despite its darker, more violent tone. Many references/Easter eggs to other Transformers continuities have appeared in the series, but have not been fully explained.

Season 1: (2010-11)
In Jasper Nevada, three young humans, Jack Darby, Miko Nakadai and Rafael Esquivel, are accidentally caught in the crossfire in a fight between enormous robots that transform into vehicles. They are taken to the base of the Autobots, where Autobot leader Optimus Prime explains that he and his team, Arcee, Ratchet, Bulkhead and Bumblebee, are bio-mechanical aliens from the planet Cybertron, and not long ago the Autobots had a devastating war against the warlord Megatron and his followers, the Decepticons. While this is going on, Megatron returns from a three-year-long exile in deep space, bringing with him Dark Energon, a substance able to revive dead Transformers as mindless zombies, and sets out to raise a vast army of the undead and conquer the galaxy. Later Megatron is seen in front of the spacebridge waiting for his army of the undead to come through the spacebridge, however the spacebridge explodes and Megatron is seen no more...

After Megatron's supposed death during the explosion that destroyed the Decepticon's Space Bridge, Starscream appoints himself as the new Decepticon leader but, much to his annoyance, Megatron is found barely alive in the wreckage of the Space Bridge. Megatron remains in a coma for a large portion of season 1, until he returns to power and punishes Starscream severely for his actions. Throughout the series, Jack, Miko, and Rafael develop closer bonds with the Autobots, and several new characters are introduced, including the Autobot Wheeljack, the Decepticons Airachnid, Knock Out, Breakdown, Makeshift and Skyquake, and the human terrorist group M.E.C.H. At the end of the season, the Autobots form an uneasy alliance with Megatron when the Earth is threatened by the ancient and destructive being Unicron.

Season 2: (2012-present)
Following the events of "One Shall Rise", Optimus Prime loses all memory of ever being the Autobot leader, believing that he is still the data clerk Orion Pax, and Megatron tricks "Orion" into joining the Decepticons. Distraught by this turn of events, the Autobots attempt to use the legendary super-computer Vector Sigma to restore Optimus' memories, and eventually they succeed. The main theme for the rest of the season is the discovery of ancient Cybertronian artifacts from the Vaults of Iacon buried on Earth, with the Autobots and Decepticons fighting over each new discovery. Wheeljack returns, albeit without joining the main cast, and new characters include the Decepticon Dreadwing, a sweeper train operator named Vogel, as well as Nemesis Prime, a man-made Transformer created by M.E.C.H.. Starscream loses his T-Cog (the organ that allow Transformers the ability to transform) after a brief failed allience with Silas and M.E.C.H. (who take his T-Cog for Nemesis Prime). M.E.C.H.'s leader Silas is critically injured after a defeated Nemesis Prime falls on top of him, with M.E.C.H. scientists' vowing to keep their leader alive with all the technology. Agent Fowler's superiors in the military begin to question Optimus Prime's loyality in the wake of his resent memory lose and his clone's rampage, while Agent Fowler uncovers background information on Silas and is convinced that M.E.C.H. agents may be active military. Breakdown has been killed (by Airachnid) and his body recovered by M.E.C.H., while Airachnid has been put in stasis and Megatron has gained a new army of Insecticon warriors. Bulkhead wreaks the Nemesis' power core, causing it to crash land, forcing Megatron to repair it with Dark Energon, which causes to ship to briefly gain a mind of its own, turn on its crew, and seek out the Iacon Artifacts for itself, only for it to be stopped by Jack, Miko, and Raf, who manage to retrieve recently decrypted Iacon datafiles, which reveal the location of 4 new Iacon relics, one of which is located under New York City.

Season 3: (2012-2013)
A third season is currently in early development. It is set to be released late 2012-2013.