In the thirty-seventh episode of The Pop Culture Lens podcast, Christopher Olson and I welcome friend of the podcast Jef Burnham of CadaverCast to discuss the classic toy line, Transformers.

In this episode, the three recall with fondness how these toys impacted their lives, but in doing so, they also focus on the relationship between nostaglia and brand longevity. The Transformers franchise has survived for over 30 years by being, like its core toys, able to transform as the market changes. In their conversation about this brand’s adaptability, they also consider whether or not fan nostalgia helps or hurts the brand, and to what extent it has hidden its Japanese origins, some of which you can see in this collection of Diaclone commercials.

As always, you are encouraged to become a part of this conversation by visiting any of the podcast’s social media sites. You can also talk with Christopher Olson on Twitter (@chrstphrolson) and at his academic blog seemsobvioustome.wordpress.com. And you can talk to CarrieLynn Reinhard on Twitter (@mediaoracle).