Truly Transformative

 I missed “Transformers,” the cartoon and accompanying toys, back in the day. I was too old. So while I was dimly aware of it as something that kids were into, I didn’t really come into contact with it until recently, via the 2007 movie. I saw it at an outdoor screening with a large, enthusiastic crowd; despite (or maybe in some tiny part because of) the crowd, I found it witlessly atrocious. Or atrociously witless -- it’s a fine line. Anyway, I certainly didn’t go to see the remake, which many said was even worse, when it arrived this year.

So I thought of the whole Transformers oeuvre (just wanted to get that word into a discussion of Transformers somewhere) as simply another piece of kidsploitation, a creepy example of merchandise marketing presented in the guise of children’s entertainment.

I was likely right about this. I’m sharp that way.

But one person’s trash is another one’s treasure, and so, I now know, it is with Transformers. Not just economic treasure for its purveyors (though I don’t need to do any research to know it is that also), but something that can affect the course of a child’s life in a way that is, well, transformative.

What forced me to revise my view was this feature on NPR’s arts program, Studio 360. It’s the story of an actual man named Optimus Prime.

If that name is familiar, it’s because, in a surprising coincidence, it’s also the name of the hero/leader of the Transformers. And it may surprise you to know that Optimus is actually the most popular first name among people with the surname Prime.

That fact, while fascinating, is probably not actually true. And the coincidental names, while amazing, are also not coincidental. For Mr. Prime was born Scott Edward Noll , and changed his name to Optimus Prime for his 30th birthday.

He took the name because Optimus Prime (the cartoon character) was not just a favorite character, but the father who had passed away. He tells the story of being given his first Transformer toy, Blue Streak, and entering into a transformed fantasy world far removed from the fatherless life he experienced at home. Optimus Prime stepped into the void he felt, providing an idealized father who exhorted him to courage, leadership, honor.

Which is sweet, and indeed poignant because of the absence of his own father, but most of us don’t change our names to honor our cartoon heroes, however noble they were. Sure, “Mushmouth” or “Jughead” might follow us around well into adulthood as a nickname. But probably over our protests.

But Optimus Prime (the real person) is now Optimus Prime, a member of Ohio's 5694th National Guard Unit from Mansfield, Ohio and has served in Iraq. He attributes his decision to serve his nation to the lessons he learned as a child from the other Optimus Prime.

“My father Edward passing away was very traumatic. [Optimus Prime] stood like my dad, he sounded like him. He was filling a void in my childhood. I didn’t have any other males in my life… I took the philosophies from Transformers to heart and kept them my whole life: watch out for your fellow man. Do something when you can do something instead of just standing there and watching things happens… We need to show our children that we’re willing to sweat, cry and bleed to make the world a better place.”

None of us – surely including Mr. Prime – think a cartoon character is an adequate substitute for a father. But in the case of this one person, it somehow made the difference.

No one can predict the potential positive impact of even the crassest commercial creation, when launched into mass culture for countless individuals to encounter, as individuals. Whoever created Transformers made the choice to include a character who represented some genuine virtues. It’s a reminder of the power, and responsibility, of artists and culture creators – even those who work in settings where depicting beauty and goodness is pretty far down the agenda.

Optimus Prime also teaches us the importance of looking for virtue even in unlikely places – and training the next generation to do so as well. As I may have signaled at the beginning of this piece, I don’t find much value in this particular genre (the ‘exploding stuff’ genre) of cultural expression. Or in many others, for that matter, and I’ll bet you have your own list too, perhaps with a bit of generational bias to it. (For ‘perhaps,’ read ‘certainly.’)

Of course, it helps to remember that my treasure, or yours, is someone else’s trash too.

So it’s a bit humbling, but here goes: Optimus Prime and Optimus Prime, I salute you both.

P.S. We’re counting on you both to handle this guy.


TOM WALSH lives in DC where he watches dialogue-driven films, often made in foreign lands, in which machines seldom turn into superheroes unless strictly necessary to give the viewer insight into the character’s inner conflict.