Honestly, out of the first 3, this is my favorite.

This franchise is by no means a masterful work. Even by blockbuster standards, there are many films that deliver huge thrills and spectacle while ALSO delivering strong scripts with great characters.

But it is weird, because while many just say 'Oh, the Transformers movies suck'. Which, they aren't great. But they are a lot of fun to watch, they are entertaining. The action is kinetic and intense, the spectacle is huge, and the gals are good looking.

However, even among those that find something to like about these movies, the common mantra is 'The first was actually good, the other two are horrendous'

Well, I recently watched the first 3...and honestly, I'd say Dark of the Moon is the strongest of the bunch, followed by the first, then the 2nd.

You don't enjoy these films for characters, or for complex narratives. The things I enjoy the most about these movies in particular, since they lack in other departments, ARE the action and effects.

Dark of the Moon is far and away the strongest of the first 3 in that regard. When these films stop to make jokes about masturbating or robot testicles is where they flounder.

The 3rd has far and away the least amount of ridiculous, childish humor that bogs the first two down, and far and away has the most spectacular action sequences and the strongest presence of the autobots and decepticons.

As bad as the 2nd film was, I think it just became really cool to hate these films as a whole...when the 3rd really is the strongest of the initial trilogy.

I'll be watching the 4th tomorrow, and frankly, I'm actually looking forward to seeing if it is as enjoyable as the 3rd, or if it is more like the 2nd.

"My genius level IQ says my logic bests your logic."