Are you a huge Transformers fan who’s been let down by the movies? Based on what we saw at SDCC, Bumblebee could be the film for you.

The new Transformers spinoff/prequel movie, Bumblebee, took over Hall H at SDCC to showcase some awesome new footage! The panel included director Travis Knight and stars Hailee Steinfeld, Jorge Lendeborg Jr., and John Cena.

The panel started off by showing a brand new trailer (which isn’t yet available online) that showcased the movie’s 80s setting! Stan Bush’s “The Touch” played as bright neon colors (mostly yellow) decorated the screen with classic Transformer face designs.

Following the intro, the trailer went into short clips of Bumblebee in his true form as a bright yellow VW Beetle, 80s images like old school tape decks, and Bumblebee meeting Hailee Steinfeld’s character, Charlie Watson.

We also got to see some exclusive footage that included Agent Burns, John Cena’s character, trying to take down Bumblebee when Blitzwing takes over, and does some serious damage. The footage then transitions into Charlie discovering the VW Beetle and taking the “death trap” home before realizing that it’s a lot more than a car. Other highlights include an adorable montage of Bumblebee being clumsy in Charlie’s house.

Once the panel began, everyone seemed to be trying to drive home the fact that this is not going to be just another Transformers movie. For many fans of the original series, this could be great news, and a chance to look at the world through a different lens.

Based on what we heard at SDCC, here are five reasons why Bumblebee will be your favorite of the Transformers movies!

1. There’s a new director

The previous Transformers movies were directed by Michael Bay, who focused on big action sequences and left a lot to be desired in terms of character development. For Bumblebee, Travis Knight will be taking over.

You may not have heard of him, as this is his live-action directorial debut, but you’ve probably seen his work. He was the lead animator on Coraline and The Boxtrolls and directed the Oscar winning Kubo and the Two Strings.

He acknowledged the change by joking that Bay was known for his “very subtle, very quiet storytelling.” Knight’s goal was to tell a “more intimate and more character-driven” story that would function as a coming-of-age story for both Charlie and Bumblebee, which sounds amazing!

The Hall H audience was also treated to a great featurette about the new director, which you can watch here.

2. The exciting new cast

The cast of Bumblebee is every bit as charming as the movie promises to be. Steinfeld, Lendeborg and Cena had great chemistry on the panel, and their characters in the movie already look great.

First of all, it seems like the human at the center of the story, Charlie Watson, will be the perfect character to follow through this “coming-of-age story.” When asked about her character, Steinfeld said “we meet Charlie Watson as your typical misunderstood teenager. She has experienced a major loss in her life and she’s constantly trying to find that freedom that she craves and fill that gap of the loss with love or friendship or someone that understands her and sees her.”

It looks like Lendeborg’s character, Memo, will be fulfilling the role of the boy next-door. He’s got a major crush on Charlie, but Lendeborg also said that the character “really speaks to the inner geek within us all,” which definitely spoke to the SDCC audience.

Last, but not least, John Cena will be playing Agent Burns, who will take on a villainous role in Bumblebee. As always, Cena was a great sport at the Hall H panel and entered from the back of the room, high-fiving fans as he entered. He didn’t say too much about his character, but he did assure us that “he looks damn good in a suit.”

3. The new take on action sequences

A common complaint about Bay’s Transformers movies is the confusing action sequences. To combat this, Knight used his animation training to tailor the aesthetics of the Transformers.

He made things simpler by taking a lot of inspiration from the G1 designs of the characters. He also incorporated fewer Transformers, and attempted to give them very different silhouettes and colors, so you can always tell who’s fighting who. The fight scene shown at SDCC between Bumblebee and Blitzwing was great, and definitely much easier to follow.

4. New Transformers and a different look at Cybertron

Many fans were speculating that the jet shown in the Bumblebee trailer was Starscream, but Knight confirmed that it is, in fact, Blitzwing. Even though fans were excited to see the two characters face off, it will be fun to see a Decepticon that we haven’t yet seen on the big screen.

There are also two new Decepticons, pictured above, named Shatter and Dropkick. Knight excitedly described the “triple changers,” saying that Shatter was inspired by Nightbird and Dropkick was loosely inspired by Megatron!

Knight also confirmed that we will be visiting Cybertron in Bumblebee, and he had three simple words to say about it: “It is awesome.”

5. Your favorite characters have not been forgotten

The footage shown at SDCC revealed a holographic Optimus Prime, so we might get to see even more of our favorite Transformers in Bumblebee.

The icing on the cake was when Peter Cullen, who voices Optimus Prime, showed up in the question line at the SDCC panel! Check it out below.

Bumblebee premieres on December 21, 2018. Check out the trailer here.