Look, raising a teen is tough. You know, it's always been hard to be a teenager and it's always been hard to raise a teenager.

I think a lot of parents feel like their kid has broken up with them.

But this school year can be different, with Life Kids guide on supporting your teenager.

Listen to the Life Kit podcast from NPR. The Transformers franchise has been around for decades and it's brought us many toys, TV shows and movies.

Now in the new animated film Transformers 1, the origin story of

Optimus Prime and Megatron finally gets told. The movie has a voice cast that includes

Chris Hemsworth and Brian Tyree Henry,

and it hopes to offer a fresh entry point for the long-running franchise.

I'm Stephen Thompson, and today we are talking about Transformers 1 on Pop Culture Happy Hour from NPR.

Joining me today is Jordan Cruciola.

She's a writer and producer and the host of the podcast Feeling Scene on Maximum Fun.

Hey Jordan.

Hello, thank you for having me back.

It is always a pleasure.

Also with us is Ronald Young Jr.

He is the host of the film and television review podcast,

Leaving the Theater and the Podcast podcast wait for it.

Hi Ronald.

Hello Stephen.

It is great to have you both.

So the story of the Transformers can be complex.

There is a ton of deep lore that stretches across a whole bunch of TV shows and movies,

...