Transformers 5: 10 Changes That Need To Happen

5. Stop With The Stereotypes

Oh boy, where to start with this one? Should we begin with the obvious and talk about the potentially borderline racist stereotyping of a certain sub-culture that were Skids and Mudflap or, well, more of the same with Drift in Age Of Extinction? The former, two Autobot twins that appear in Revenge Of The Fallen caused a large amount of criticism to be thrown at the film because of a perceived racial stereotype applied to gang culture. The second, Drift, is an Autobot that has the appearence of a samurai, speaks in Haiku's and recites proverbs on a regular basis. Whether all of the above examples are racist or not is largely subjective, but it's hard to deny that they are heavy stereotypes of certain ethnicity. They don't stop there though. There's Jetfire in Revenge Of The Fallen who is a heavy stereotype of an old-timer, replete with cane and inability to control his flatulence. Then you have the wreckers, a team of Autobots that transform into NASCAR racers and all look and speak like hillbillies. Please, whoever's responsible for these abominations, just stop. If the Transformers films are to ever be taken seriously outside of young children and teenagers, the stereotypes need to stop. Not only are they insulting, but they're boring and one dimensional.
Contributor
Contributor

Joe is a freelance games journalist who, while not spending every waking minute selling himself to websites around the world, spends his free time writing. Most of it makes no sense, but when it does, he treats each article as if it were his Magnum Opus - with varying results.