Shout! Factory Enters Distribution Agreement for the Unicron Trilogy and Transformers Animated
Friday, August 23rd, 2013 9:32AM CDT
Category: Cartoon NewsPosted by: El Duque Views: 35,157
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This multi-year, multi-property alliance provides Shout! Factory exclusive rights to My Little Pony animated family adventures My Little Pony: The Princess Promenade, My Little Pony: A Very Minty Christmas, My Little Pony: Runaway Rainbow, My Little Pony: Dancing in the Clouds, My Little Pony: Friends are Never Far Away. The deal also includes TV properties Transformers Animated (2007-2009 TV series), Transformers: Armada (2002 TV series), Transformers: Energon (2004 TV series), and Transformers: Cybertron (2005 TV series).
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Posted by sixshot20 on August 23rd, 2013 @ 10:10am CDT
Posted by Flux Convoy on August 23rd, 2013 @ 10:18am CDT
Posted by Sabrblade on August 23rd, 2013 @ 10:18am CDT
The bonus content will also be a big factor in my deciding to double dip on these as I have for G1 and Beast Wars (but not JG1, as I haven't yet bough the Shout! DVDs of those).
There was no season 4 made.sixshot20 wrote:Was season 4 of animated cancelled before it was made or was it made and then cancelled?
Posted by Dead Metal on August 23rd, 2013 @ 11:24am CDT
sixshot20 wrote:Was season 4 of animated cancelled before it was made or was it made and then cancelled?
It was canceled before it was made, while they where making season 3, so most of the stuff that was meant to lead into season 4 was removed from season 3.
Animated is an instant import.
Posted by xRotorstormx on August 23rd, 2013 @ 11:36am CDT
Flux Convoy wrote:This is hopefully great news for Season 3 of Animated finally getting released. It'd be great if we could get RID and the Japanese Beast Wars series as well. Wishful thinking I know. It'd be nice though.
I would love to see RID finally get released... Still one of my favorite series
Posted by kirbenvost on August 23rd, 2013 @ 11:41am CDT
Posted by Mirage22 on August 23rd, 2013 @ 1:50pm CDT
Posted by Bumblevivisector on August 23rd, 2013 @ 3:11pm CDT
I'd love the Japanese Beast Wars stuff too, but is BWII a no-go because of the Mexican stereotype jokes from the Jointrons? Considering how mutilated the subs on Shout!s Japanese G1 stuff ended up, I've gone from patient to pessimistic on it and Neo.
And I love Animated so much that I already bought season 3 on DVD...from my local bootlegger, partly to force him to stock it for others. But that was before the HUB reruns; please release it all in widescreen on BluRay and make my copy obsolete, SF!
Posted by gothsaurus on August 23rd, 2013 @ 3:21pm CDT
Posted by Dead Metal on August 23rd, 2013 @ 3:39pm CDT
Damn, my mouth is watering right now
Posted by gothsaurus on August 23rd, 2013 @ 3:45pm CDT
Posted by Deathscythetransform on August 23rd, 2013 @ 6:27pm CDT
BUT TO GET MY HANDS ON ARMADA, INSTANT BUY!!!!!!!!!!!
Posted by VirusCarnage on August 23rd, 2013 @ 8:28pm CDT
I will be getting this for sure,
Posted by Sabrblade on August 23rd, 2013 @ 8:54pm CDT
For RiD, it's still in business limbo since the last ones to own it were Disney and Saban didn't buy it back, so Disney could still have it.
For BWII and BWNeo, the only reason Shout! Factory was able to release the subbed versions of the three JG1 series is because Metrodome had already done so several years ago. Thus, there were already existing subtitle scripts available for them to use. BWII and BWNeo have never received any full subtitle treatment all the way through, and thus have no subs readily available for Shout! to use.
The reason for these two having never been fully subbed is mostly because of how hard these two were to come by for many years. Neither was released on DVD until 14 years after each's original broadcast, leaving no high quality digital copies of the original masters available to use during those 14 years. The only things that were available (of you can call it that) during that period were VHS tapes of the shows that have since become long out of print and exceedingly hard to come by on the secondary market (you'd have better luck finding the Fountain of Youth before finding complete, good quality video sources for these two shows back then). But now that we have DVDs for both, that's one step in the right direction. But, the DVDs themselves are EXTREMELY expensive (being worth roughly $300 USD each).
Also, back when Metrodome was subbing the three JG1 cartoons, they were able to do so since the right to those three shows were included in a bundle with the G1 cartoon rights back when Metrodome got to do that series. Meanwhile, BWII and BWNeo were not made by the same company as the JG1 cartoons, so their rights belong to someone else entirely; someone whom Hasbro has never done business with.
And as for subbed versions of the Japanese Unicron Trilogy, this is unlikely since the subbed DVDs of the JG1 cartoons sold poorly and did not meet Shout! Factory's sales expectations. Subbed anime just doesn't sell well on the mainstreamm U.S. DVD market, thus it's mostly a niche appeal.
Posted by triKlops on August 23rd, 2013 @ 10:07pm CDT
Posted by Bumblevivisector on August 23rd, 2013 @ 10:15pm CDT
But would that rule out including the Japanese versions via subs and angle options on the regular box sets? Or was Micron Legend really so thoroughly redrawn that it wouldn't be practical?Sabrblade wrote:And as for subbed versions of the Japanese Unicron Trilogy, this is unlikely since the subbed DVDs of the JG1 cartoons sold poorly and did not meet Shout! Factory's sales expectations. Subbed anime just doesn't sell well on the mainstreamm U.S. DVD market, thus it's mostly a niche appeal.
Since these series have gotten western DVDs before, going that extra mile for the sake of claiming the most complete release ever might be worth it to compel anyone who already has them to double dip. There was also that one Superlink ep that was left out of Energon: if no dub track exists, they'd have to at least include a sub of it to release the complete collection.
Posted by Sabrblade on August 23rd, 2013 @ 10:26pm CDT
The three series weren't dubbed uncut, so dual-audio w/ subs wouldn't work.Bumblevivisector wrote:But would that rule out including the Japanese versions via subs and angle options on the regular box sets? Or was Micron Legend really so thoroughly redrawn that it wouldn't be practical?
Since these series have gotten western DVDs before, going that extra mile for the sake of claiming the most complete release ever might be worth it to compel anyone who already has them to double dip.
Not when the missing Super Link episode isn't counted as a part of the Energon dub.Bumblevivisector wrote:There was also that one Superlink ep that was left out of Energon: if no dub track exists, they'd have to at least include a sub of it to release the complete collection.
The Paramount DVD set was a complete collection, yet it did not contain the undubbed episode.
It's like how Scramble City isn't counted as part of the English version of the G1 cartoon despite it still existing as a part of the Japanese version of the G1 cartoon.
Posted by Bumblevivisector on August 23rd, 2013 @ 10:53pm CDT
Sabrblade wrote:The three series weren't dubbed uncut, so dual-audio w/ subs wouldn't work.
Which is why I mentioned angle options. Hasn't that been attempted with different international edits of material on the same disc, beyond just alternate openings and bumpers?
And the "lost" Superlink ep would still be a bonus feature worth pursuing. "More complete than ever," is just good press-release hype, as long as there's some truth to back it up.
Though as for past precedents, were there any improvements in Shout!s Beast Wars rerelease, or was it exactly like Rhino's? If not, we probably can't expect much beyond the glitches in the Cybertron set not reappearing.
Posted by Sabrblade on August 23rd, 2013 @ 11:12pm CDT
I don't know what that means.Bumblevivisector wrote:Which is why I mentioned angle options. Hasn't that been attempted with different international edits of material on the same disc, beyond just alternate openings and bumpers?
The masters of Beast Wars used by Shout! Factory were the same ones used by Rhino.Bumblevivisector wrote:Though as for past precedents, were there any improvements in Shout!s Beast Wars rerelease, or was it exactly like Rhino's?
What glitches?Bumblevivisector wrote:If not, we probably can't expect much beyond the glitches in the Cybertron set not reappearing.
Do you mean the missing footage of episode 3? That was fixed in later releases of Paramount's DVD box set, and those who got the faulty version were allowed to call in for replacement discs with the corrected episode.
Posted by Joetx on August 24th, 2013 @ 2:17am CDT
Posted by YRQRM0 on August 25th, 2013 @ 9:09pm CDT
Deathscythetransform wrote:i COULDN'T CARE LASS ABOUT THE CRAPPY ANIMATED SERIES
BUT TO GET MY HANDS ON ARMADA, INSTANT BUY!!!!!!!!!!!
This so much ^^^
Posted by Sabrblade on August 25th, 2013 @ 10:08pm CDT
Posted by VirusCarnage on August 25th, 2013 @ 10:12pm CDT
Sabrblade wrote:It baffles me to no end as to how anyone could possibly consider something like Armada to be objectively superior to something like Animated.
It doesn't surprise me, if they watched Armada 10 years ago when they were a kid, it would hold a special place in their heart. This is of course assuming they are pretty young, and Armada being their first exposure to Transformers.
Posted by Deathscythetransform on August 26th, 2013 @ 1:41pm CDT
YRQRM0 wrote:Deathscythetransform wrote:i COULDN'T CARE LASS ABOUT THE CRAPPY ANIMATED SERIES
BUT TO GET MY HANDS ON ARMADA, INSTANT BUY!!!!!!!!!!!
This so much ^^^
yup
of all the unicron trilogy, armada was the best
energon wasn't a decent sequel and cybertron was a good series in itself, but lacked the tragedy Armada had...
and armada was a real cartoon, not a cgi program
Posted by Bumblevivisector on August 26th, 2013 @ 4:52pm CDT
viruscarnage wrote:Sabrblade wrote:It baffles me to no end as to how anyone could possibly consider something like Armada to be objectively superior to something like Animated.
It doesn't surprise me, if they watched Armada 10 years ago when they were a kid, it would hold a special place in their heart. This is of course assuming they are pretty young, and Armada being their first exposure to Transformers.
Yeah, when I was 5, Voltron was the only cartoon I ever (briefly) liked better than TF, so the Toonami reruns as I finished high school left me shocked at what a rushed mess it was in translation. When I was that young, I was blind to animation glitches, and weird inconsistencies made me assume it was just going over my head (the fact that Robotech genuinely did just that didn't help either), and Armada likely had a similar effect.
Watching it in my early 20s, I thought Armada's chief merit was that it started out so bad that it couldn't help but get better as it progressed, making it fun to follow. But you have to look at the bigger picture. What made Armada special was it being the one and only time since G1 that a leg of the TF franchise launched as a triple-threat, with an entirely new toyline, comic series, and cartoon, each medium charging full steam ahead onto its own blank canvas! (Note: G2's 'toon wasn't original, Energon's media were effectively rollovers of Armada, and Animated and Prime's comics are little more than appendices to their cartoons) Even if most other TF cartoons are better once the nostalgia blinders come off, that doesn't diminish the memory of the full Armada experience, of which the cartoon is just frequently the most-discussed.
This effect is multiplied further by the company Armada kept on Saturday evenings. I waxed nostalgic about that aspect back in the Armada 20 Anniversary thread, so I won't repeat all that except to clarify that it wasn't Toonami just then. I don't think any other TF 'toon was fortunate enough to be part of a block of cartoons that long and awesome (I think it was 7:00 to 1:00), not even G1. Even if you also have Justice League, HeMan, Samurai Jack, and classic G.I.Joe, there's surely some we've all forgotten, so I'll gladly buy all of Armada to help me remember.
Posted by Deathscythetransform on August 27th, 2013 @ 1:52pm CDT
Bumblevivisector wrote:viruscarnage wrote:Sabrblade wrote:It baffles me to no end as to how anyone could possibly consider something like Armada to be objectively superior to something like Animated.
and it baffles me to no end as to how anyone cant respect other peoples' opinions:
I hated Animated because to the style of the designs. I works nicely with teen titans, but giving a chin a mile long to starscreamis still a bad move for me. I've tried real hard to watch Animated, and though the stories were entertaining, and the humour nicely done, visually it was uttely ugly for me.
A lot of people loved the series and THAT IS FINE' I HAVE NO PROBLEM WITH THAT AT ALL
sure the unicron trilogy was poorly received in the west of the globe but the style of animation wasbeautifully executed, the robots well detailed and the Minicon's gimmick was well thought, though sometimes poorly executed.
I was in my 20's when armada was released, and when Energon was released, I was a bit dissapointed. As for Cybertron, its just a series into itself ans shouldn't have been included in the unicron trilogy.
its just my opinion... after all, I'm just a Transformers fan who likes different stuff...
Posted by Dead Metal on August 28th, 2013 @ 4:00am CDT
Deathscythetransform wrote:Bumblevivisector wrote:viruscarnage wrote:Sabrblade wrote:It baffles me to no end as to how anyone could possibly consider something like Armada to be objectively superior to something like Animated.
and it baffles me to no end as to how anyone cant respect other peoples' opinions:
I hated Animated because to the style of the designs. I works nicely with teen titans, but giving a chin a mile long to starscreamis still a bad move for me. I've tried real hard to watch Animated, and though the stories were entertaining, and the humour nicely done, visually it was uttely ugly for me.
A lot of people loved the series and THAT IS FINE' I HAVE NO PROBLEM WITH THAT AT ALL
sure the unicron trilogy was poorly received in the west of the globe but the style of animation wasbeautifully executed, the robots well detailed and the Minicon's gimmick was well thought, though sometimes poorly executed.
I was in my 20's when armada was released, and when Energon was released, I was a bit dissapointed. As for Cybertron, its just a series into itself ans shouldn't have been included in the unicron trilogy.
its just my opinion... after all, I'm just a Transformers fan who likes different stuff...
Armada ... animation ... beautifully ... executed?
Wow, those are four words I never thought I would ever see so close to each other in one sentence.
Posted by Sabrblade on August 28th, 2013 @ 6:10am CDT
I used the word "objectively", meaning I wasn't referring to opinions. Had I used the word "subjectively" then I would have been, but I was not.Deathscythetransform wrote:and it baffles me to no end as to how anyone cant respect other peoples' opinions:
For example, I objectively recognize The Avengers as the best of the recent Marvel films, but I subjectively think Captain America was more enjoyable for me.
But it was the best part of the trilogy.Deathscythetransform wrote:As for Cybertron, its just a series into itself ans shouldn't have been included in the unicron trilogy.
Posted by Deathscythetransform on August 28th, 2013 @ 1:47pm CDT
and yeah armada was beautifully executed to my opinion. anyway, as I said, I'm happy these series will be distributed and I look forward to get my hands on Armada... the 1st series ever that gave us a true unicron toy
Posted by gothsaurus on August 28th, 2013 @ 3:31pm CDT
Posted by Sabrblade on August 28th, 2013 @ 4:01pm CDT
Which were filled in with additional dialogue to liven up the dead air.Deathscythetransform wrote:Cyberton was kinda annoying with the repetitive transformation sequences
Are you referring to the "art style"? Cuz that did look good.Deathscythetransform wrote:and yeah armada was beautifully executed to my opinion.
It was the "animation" (the actual movement and manipulation of the onscreen objects within the art style) that was plagued by errors and oddities consistently throughout the series run.
From the sound of your previous post, it seems like you were thinking of the former rather than the latter.
The only non-Mini-Con toy in the whole toyline that was really up to par with the levels of articulation set by the toyline's post-1994 predecessors (other toys came close, but lacked things like knees or elbows or rotating waists, etc.).Deathscythetransform wrote:the 1st series ever that gave us a true unicron toy
And how many years has it been since you watched the cartoon?gothsaurus wrote:the kids weren't annoying,
That he mostly just stood still and did nothing for.gothsaurus wrote:we got an epic battle with Unicron...
Posted by gothsaurus on August 28th, 2013 @ 4:35pm CDT
Posted by Sabrblade on August 28th, 2013 @ 4:45pm CDT
Kicker was more "spiteful" than "annoying". He evoked more feeling of hatred than mere irritation.gothsaurus wrote:well. I meant not annoying next to Kicker's whining.
But, yeah, I've actually been re-watching Armada these past few months, and it's really saying something when Fred is the best-written of the human allies.
Posted by gothsaurus on August 28th, 2013 @ 4:54pm CDT
Posted by Sabrblade on August 28th, 2013 @ 5:04pm CDT
That wasn't a complement about him from me.gothsaurus wrote:Oh yeah. I liked Fred. Guess it's time to re-watch.
"Hey come on, Billy! Wait UUUUUUP! My therapist says I shouldn't exert myself! Hey WAAAAAAIT! I can't take much more of this! I didn't even get to finish my second lunch! PLEEEEEASE! WAAAAAAH!"
Posted by Dead Metal on August 29th, 2013 @ 2:19am CDT
Man, I want to watch your Armada, where can I get that?
Posted by Sabrblade on August 29th, 2013 @ 6:10am CDT
The awesome one can't be "watched", only "read", for it is the Armada Dreamwave comics.Dead Metal wrote:OK, now I'm convinced that there must be two Armadas, the one you've been watching that was awesome, and the one I watched with animation that got so bad it made G1 look like Disney animation, children that made me miss Daniel, terrible plots, and fight scenes that looked like they worked on Final Fantasy "I'll patiently stand here and wait my turn to attack you" logic.
Man, I want to watch your Armada, where can I get that?
Posted by Dead Metal on August 29th, 2013 @ 6:56am CDT
Sabrblade wrote:The awesome one can't be "watched", only "read", for it is the Armada Dreamwave comics.Dead Metal wrote:OK, now I'm convinced that there must be two Armadas, the one you've been watching that was awesome, and the one I watched with animation that got so bad it made G1 look like Disney animation, children that made me miss Daniel, terrible plots, and fight scenes that looked like they worked on Final Fantasy "I'll patiently stand here and wait my turn to attack you" logic.
Man, I want to watch your Armada, where can I get that?
Yea those are pretty good, but comics aren't animated and we've heard how beautiful the animation of that awesome Armada version is so I would like to share the experience.
Posted by Sabrblade on August 29th, 2013 @ 6:59am CDT
Well, there is also the PS2 video game that was both awesome and had really good animation.Dead Metal wrote:Yea those are pretty good, but comics aren't animated and we've heard how beautiful the animation of that awesome Armada version is so I would like to share the experience.
Posted by gothsaurus on August 29th, 2013 @ 9:05am CDT
But come on. Fred had some great lines, like that one about "my mom says I have a glandular problem." Comedy gold!
Posted by Sabrblade on August 29th, 2013 @ 9:53am CDT
How is Armada better than Cybertron? The latter actually had memorable characters with personalities, multiple ongoing plotlines, definitive story arcs with clear defined objectives, a higher level of hand drawn animation, voice acting that sounded like the actors had a better grasp on their roles, writing that was competent enough to work with the material they had, and best of all, no hasty rushing to meet unreasonable deadlines.gothsaurus wrote:Yeah the game and comic do help sway in the favor of Armada out of the three. And agreed, it's only "good" taken in context of being the best of the three in the "trilogy."
I liked him better when he was Eddy in Ed, Edd, n' Eddy. He didn't whine every five minutes.gothsaurus wrote:But come on. Fred had some great lines, like that one about "my mom says I have a glandular problem." Comedy gold!
Posted by gothsaurus on August 29th, 2013 @ 10:14am CDT
Posted by Sabrblade on August 29th, 2013 @ 10:24am CDT
Hmm... Never thought to compare the Armada comics or video game to the Cybertron cartoon. Will have to think on that one.gothsaurus wrote:Well, for one ... the comics and video game were better.
But, yeah, I was referring to the Armada toon.
Posted by gothsaurus on August 29th, 2013 @ 10:34am CDT
Posted by Dead Metal on August 29th, 2013 @ 1:07pm CDT
gothsaurus wrote:Yeah, I think I was just happily surprised by the G1-ish animation ... after so many seasons less-expressive CGI. But you're right, there's a lot that was better about Cybertron. At least we can all agree Energon was NOT the best of the three (??) Ha ha ha.
Rampage had more and better expressions than any of the characters in any of the Unicron Trilogy.
Posted by Sabrblade on August 29th, 2013 @ 1:28pm CDT
Yeah, the Beast Era's CGI was very expressive. It was the CG of Energon, RobotMasters, and Cybertron that was anything but (most of the time).Dead Metal wrote:gothsaurus wrote:Yeah, I think I was just happily surprised by the G1-ish animation ... after so many seasons less-expressive CGI. But you're right, there's a lot that was better about Cybertron. At least we can all agree Energon was NOT the best of the three (??) Ha ha ha.
Rampage had more and better expressions than any of the characters in any of the Unicron Trilogy.
Observe this the scene from its beginning to its end (at the 5:00 mark) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=eIRanMWh9nE#t=186
Take notice of the facial and body feature expressions. Eye movement, mouth shapes, blinking, shoulder positions, head positions, motion and position of the arms; the overall body kinesthetics of these two is astounding for mere 1998 CG, on par with today's work.
Posted by Seibertron on January 8th, 2014 @ 11:37pm CST
Transformers Animated Box Set
Beast Wars II
Beast Wars Neo
Robots In Disguise (I've already got the UK DVDs, but it would be awesome for everyone to get this too)
Posted by Sabrblade on January 8th, 2014 @ 11:54pm CST
The first I could see happening very easily.Seibertron wrote:Ryan's wishlist:
Transformers Animated Box Set
Beast Wars II
Beast Wars Neo
Robots In Disguise (I've already got the UK DVDs, but it would be awesome for everyone to get this too)
The second two are a whole different can of worms.
The last one is... also a can of worms (of the Disney variety), but probably has a far better chance of happening than the two Beast Wars series.
Primarily, the biggest factor in how Shout! Factory was able to release the three Japanese G1 series is because the UK (and Australian) subtitled DVD releases for those three already existed. The Shout! versions just used those as a based to work off of.
Whereas neither of the two Japanese Beast series have had any subtitled DVD release for Shout! to use as a base. A major reason for this is due to neither having ever been released in Japan on DVD until just a couple of years ago, along with these two series being owned by a different company from Toei (who was the studio who made the three JG1 cartoons). Said company, Production Reed, is also one that has never done business with Hasbro before, even.
I think our best hope for ever seeing these two officially released in subtitled DVD form would be to generate enough interest and desire for them since anyone whose ever been willing to watch them, or even subtitle them unofficially, lost interest in them over time for how silly and childish they were. I myself would even just be happy if some unofficial fansubbing group could get them subbed all the way through, as has happened for the likes of Super Link and Galaxy Force.
Posted by Seibertron on January 8th, 2014 @ 11:58pm CST
Sabrblade wrote:Yeah, the Beast Era's CGI was very expressive. It was the CG of Energon, RobotMasters, and Cybertron that was anything but (most of the time).Dead Metal wrote:gothsaurus wrote:Yeah, I think I was just happily surprised by the G1-ish animation ... after so many seasons less-expressive CGI. But you're right, there's a lot that was better about Cybertron. At least we can all agree Energon was NOT the best of the three (??) Ha ha ha.
Rampage had more and better expressions than any of the characters in any of the Unicron Trilogy.
Observe this the scene from its beginning to its end (at the 5:00 mark) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=eIRanMWh9nE#t=186
Take notice of the facial and body feature expressions. Eye movement, mouth shapes, blinking, shoulder positions, head positions, motion and position of the arms; the overall body kinesthetics of these two is astounding for mere 1998 CG, on par with today's work.
I've always assumed that the Beast Wars cartoon was very expensive, which is why it could only do 52 episodes over 3 years whereas they went with cheaper animation for the Unicron Trilogy, but were able to produce 52 episodes for one season (basically 3 times as many episodes for the same time period). I'm assuming that this approach was to allow more characters to be featured instead of having a smaller cast of characters which means less products featured. I like the Transformers Prime approach better with cameo appearances but am aware that they still had limitations with cost which still restricted the number of characters that could be in the show (hence why Beast Hunters was only 13 episodes instead of 26 ... again, an assumption, but probably correct considering the history of Transformers cartoons).
Posted by Sabrblade on January 9th, 2014 @ 12:11am CST
Interesting theory.Seibertron wrote:I've always assumed that the Beast Wars cartoon was very expensive, which is why it could only do 52 episodes over 3 years whereas they went with cheaper animation for the Unicron Trilogy, but were able to produce 52 episodes for one season (basically 3 times as many episodes for the same time period). I'm assuming that this approach was to allow more characters to be featured instead of having a smaller cast of characters which means less products featured.
On another note, regardless of CGI, there's a lot of anime out there that tend to run for 52 episodes, as that's something of a standard procedure for anime in general, with story arcs that run either 13 or 26 episodes in length. Formats of four 13-episode arcs or two 26-episode arcs, bringing the total episode count to 52, seem to be quite popular choices for anime companies.
Whereas Beast Wars's 52-episode length was something of happy coincidence since they made each season with an uncertainty of whether they'd get another season or not, and the decision to end the show happened to fall in late in the development for season 3, explaining the rather quick feeling of the last three episodes (like introducing and then quickly killing off Tigerhawk after they'd just introduced Megatron's new dragon form).