followed you for lmk platonic content and tbh i wanna follow you into the void of transformers. Where would be a good starting point? The movies?
In general for anyone wanting to start watching Transformers I would sincerely recommend watching at least a few episodes of G1!
Not only is it the most frequently called-upon iteration, it also establishes a lot of groundwork that other series and movies will call upon, and not always with an explanation- a lot of TF media makes the mistake of not really explaining itself, in my opinion!
Once you have the gist of the world-building down (Autobots, Decepticons, Energon, Good Leader Oppy, Bad Leader Megatron, Little Guy Bumblebee, Backstabber Starscream, Helpful Friend Humans, etc) you can take a step back if the series isn't to your taste, and there's a ton of content you can watch for free, which is pretty cool!
Hasbro actually has an official Youtube channel dedicated to Transformers, and even for the series they don't have tidily uploaded, basically every series exists on the site in a playlist for no charge aside from having to sit through the occasional ad, which is pretty cool from a consumer perspective.
Transformers Animated and Transformer Prime are both still really popular in the fanbase long after cancellation/ending, and you'll find most fans like at least one or the other!
Transformers Prime makes a push into being grittier, more through atmosphere and aesthetics (rather than genuinely mature themes or storytelling), and the remaking of many personalities/designs to be more "mature".
YMMV on whether or not it works, but I do think this one is delightful. Knockout is a fan-favorite, and I adore him myself, and I find the redesigns (Arcee, Starscream and Soundwave especially) to be very well done!
Transformers Animated isn't as popular as TFP, but it's a wonderful time nonetheless. It suffers from having some critically panned human antagonists (and a human lead I can't stand, personally) but has some of the most unique takes on characters in the entire franchise, like turning Optimus Prime into an inexperienced fledgling leader, taking Prowl from a cop and into a cyber-space ninja, reimagining Bumblebee as a teen-adjacent snarker with a penchant for running his mouth, Megatron as a smooth, unshakeable quick-talker, etc.
It also introduced fan-favorites like Lockdown, Slipstream, Blitzwing, and Bulkhead, and it has my favorite iteration of Megatron to boot!
Also, the art-style is just lovely.
Rescue Bots is a guilty pleasure of mine. I won't pretend that it's "made for adults" or "really mature, trust me" and I'll just say outright that it's a really well made children's show that's good to throw on when you want to unwind. It's consistently well-written, well-animated, well-voice acted, and even if you don't care for humans in Transformers, I think the Burnes and Greenes are some of the best we've ever gotten. The new OCs (in particular Heatwave, Blades, and Chase) are adorable.
Cyberworld is an adorable time-killer that I do wish more people would watch. The "five minute episode" format turns a lot of people away (I understand, I wasn't sure about it myself at first) but after having kept up with it for a few months, I really do think of it as wonderful. There's lot of reference humor, and if you aren't a massive fan already a lot of it is probably gonna blow over your head, but I think the voice acting, plot line, and general quality make up for it. I won't spoil anything (except for a return to silly goofy Oppy, and god how I've been waiting), you should just go watch it!
