Koala Gray

Koala Gray is a Beastformer from the Generation 1 continuity family.

I hate Qantas.

The King of Lapaul, Koala Gray (コアラグレー Koara Gurē) is a botanist by trade, who has dedicated his life to the understanding and preservation of planet Beast's flora. He has extensive knowledge of plant life found across the globe, including rare and endangered species. His knowledge of beneficial plant life serves him and his allies well... and also lets him make one heck of a delicious salad, his favorite meal.

His ears are especially powerful, able to pick up faint sounds and even radio waves from great distances. He can also use them to unleash jamming signals that interfere with enemy communications. He often keeps in communication with his subordinate Emperor Duck Diver when the aquatic adventurer travels deep below the ocean surface, helping to guide him. His Iron Axe (アイアンアクス Aian Akusu) MVP Weapon can be augmented with radio vibrations, giving it the power to pulverize huge boulders with a single blow.

Fiction

Beastformers comic

One of the combatants in the great war between the Beastformers' and the Laser Beasts, Koala Gray was present during the battle between the Stag Hunter and Battle Eagle. Beastformers VS Laser Beasts

Legends comic

Koala Gray took part in the final battle between the Beastformers and the Laser Beasts on Beast in 2023. He was stationed at Wood Beetle's base mode. The Road to Legends' Revival Chapter 1

Toys

Beastformers

Blinky Bill told you he was hardcore.

• Koala Gray (Beastformer, 1988)

• ID number: 55
• Pack: H
• Accessories: "Iron Axe" MVP Weapon (usually)

Released only in the post-Transformers "RPG"-themed Beastformers sequel series, Koala Gray is an anthopomorphic koala in olive robotic armor. The Battle Emblem on his chest reveals one of three symbols when warmed up; Fire, Water or Wood.

Nominally, he comes with his "Iron Axe" weapon. However, there is also a chance he could come with the weapon from one of the other Beastformers in his shipping case; matching the Beasts with their same-numbered weapons was part of the "role-playing game" attached to the line, encouraging kids to buy more of the toys.

He was sold in two similar-but-different styles of boxes. The first "H Pack" style of box had the chance for his included bio card to instead be a rare holofoil card of White Leo with a "Burstsun" rubsign in a baggie taped to the back, so you could apply it to the Beastformer of your choice. The second, seemingly more common release has a slightly different box with a peg-hole in the top flap, and a sticker on the bottom with his name and role on it.

Later in the run, the "mood ring" styled rubsigns were replaced with new rubsigns that revealed full-color Fire/Wood/Water images on black backdrops. (These rubsign variants also happened at the same time in the Hasbro Battle Beast version of the line.)

Merchandise

Candy toys

• Koala Gray (Gashapon/candy-toy Beastformer, 1988)
  • ID number: 19
  • Accessories: "Bark Spin" weapon

A 1-inch-tall, super-deformed, articulation-free version of Koala Gray that could come in red, blue or green plastic, representing the Fire, Water and Wood elements (even though he still had a rubsign). All of the SD Beastformers come with a different Beastformer's weapon attached to their left shoulder by a snippable sprue: Koala Gray came with Badshark's "Bark Spin" weapon, while Devilbat came with Koala's "Iron Axe".

This toy was sold in three different ways. First it was available as a gashapon capsule prize by Takara. Then it was sold as a candy toy from Takara, randomly-packed in a box of three with a packet of ramune-flavored candy tablets. Then again as a candy toy, this time through candy/snack company Meiji, in randomized packs of two with a packet of "chocoballs" (chocolate covered malted milk balls). The Meiji release also has much more elaborate packaging, with newly-painted box art (which sometimes shows characters not made in this assortment), and the entire interior of the box printed with game rules, character bios, chunks of lore, etc.

• Ramune Beastformers Battle Card (1988)
  • ID number: 19

A gold-foil "Battle Card" of Koala Gray, featuring painted character art of the kind found on early Transformers: Beastformers bio cards (seen at the top of this page), was available in randomly-packed sets of cards that came with ramune-flavored candy tablets. The back of the card features a severely truncated bio, with data for the game from the Meiji chocoball SD figures' packaging.

Notes

He stole it from DeathAdder.

• Koala Gray's 1987 cast poster art incorrectly shows him with a gold weapon. The 1988 version of the art corrects this mistake.
• His 1988 bio gives him the imaginative nickname "Koala" (コアラ Koara).

Foreign names

• English: Killer Koala