The Hollywood blockbuster was a very different beast back in 2007. Comic book movies existed, but they weren't the industry titans they are today. There was a certain kind of PG-13 movie that ruled the box office, and Michael Bay was its patron saint.
Sure, you could argue that "Transformers" didn't provide a lot of material to start with. It's a franchise that only ever existed to sell toys. But within the capitalist exoskeleton that surrounds the brand, there are glimmers of fun: the grandiose sci-fi setting, the focus on ancient lore, and the classic brother vs. brother narrative of Optimus Prime and Megatron's relationship. Slim? Sure, but it's something — something that made tons of kids fall in love with "Transformers" over the two decades before the first live-action movie.
But Bay and Paramount Pictures didn't want anything to do with that. "Transformers" isn't a fun sci-fi story that plays in the epic fantasy space. It's a regular old government conspiracy action movie with a lot of green screens. Blend that with an obnoxious brand of comedy that never, ever knows when to shut up, and you've got the blueprint that guided every "Transformers" movie for years. In essence, Bay created a whole new brand that had little in common tonally with the rest of the franchise. More often than not, his movies take on an almost antagonistic tone toward the source material — a kind of jock writing that makes fun of the very things fans love about "Transformers." The last two entries are much better on those last two fronts, but they still don't solve the core problem.
