Transformers: Cybertron (toyline)

Unicron Trilogy continuity family « Cybertron Toyline Cartoon Manga Commercials

Optimus Prime, an example of how complex toys got.

The final act of the "Unicron Trilogy", Transformers: Cybertron vastly expanded the scope of the Transformers universe, bringing in the theme of "lost colonies" with different styles, while still unifying the toyline under a central play-gimmick, the Cyber Planet Keys.

Overview

File:Cyb Override toy.jpg

Speed Planet Override

After Energon's rather muddled gimmick/theme presentation, Hasbro dialed it back for Cybertron by sticking with a single unifying play gimmick: the Cyber Keys. These large discs, with designs based on the planet of their origin, unlocked pop-out weapons and action features in each toy once plugged into the key slot. Any planet's key would work with any toy. With the spring-loaded gimmicks less complex than those in Armada, they freed up the designs to allow for more robot-mode posability.

Where Cybertron gets its diversity is in its aesthetics, through the different planets each Transformer could hail from. Each planet has its own theme, with the toy designs reflecting the culture of each world.

• Cybertron and Earth toys are the most traditional of the series, with future-tech-vehicle and close-to-real-life vehicles respectively, and more "traditional" proportions and detailing.
• The Speed Planet toys are naturally all about the fastness. The vehicle modes are futuristic and fantastical, with transparent plastic tires and other accents. Even the bulkier vehicle modes at least look like they were built for raw horsepower. Colors are bright and clashing, the robot modes themselves streamlined. The Cyber Key gimmicks are typically tied to their swing-out blaster weapons.
• The brutal Jungle Planet is full of robotic beasts, with deeply-complex, nigh-organic sculpting that brings to mind the Transmetal IIs of Beast Wars or the technorganic Beast Machines Maximal toys. Robot modes feature limbs made from beast-bits, clawed hands, and fanged mouths. Melee weapons rule the land, with most Cyber Key gimmicks focused on pop-out blades.
• The Giant Planet is about heavy machinery. Very heavy machinery. Though few in number compared to the rest of the planets, they live up to their planet's name by being some of the largest toys in the line. These heavy construction (or destruction) vehicles are bulky and industrial, plus each one has a tiny Mini-Con partner to operate a work station somewhere on each bot's vehicle or robot mode.
• Planet X bots are similarly few in number. Their only real unifying style is "futuristic danger". The vehicle modes are sleek and deadly-looking, robot modes vicious and pointy.

The tail-end of the line was again heavy on the redecoes (by then a practice that had become expected and largely accepted), but also brought micro-play back into the line. Mini-Con two-packs were released to bolster the ranks of the still-popular Mini-Con class. But the history-making addition to the Transformers franchise was in the Legends Class toys. These sub-basic, simple and above all inexpensive toys were based on the larger toys of popular/major characters, giving kids the chance to own an Optimus Prime or Megatron they could keep in their pocket. From this point on, Legends-sized toys would continue on through every major Transformers toyline.

Hasbro Cybertron toyline

For Hasbro's line, every Cyber Key (packaged with every toy Basic Class or larger) has a short alphanumeric code printed on its back. These Cyber Key Codes, when plugged into the official Cybertron website (now defunct), unlocked design sketches and extra biographical info on each toy.

General retail

Mini-Con Class

Wave 1 (Sky Attack Team vs. Air Defense Team) Razorclaw vs. Steamhammer Shockwave vs. Tankor Sky Lynx vs. Thunderblast

Wave 2 (Lunar Assault Team vs. Exploration Team) Kobushi vs. Landslide Payload vs. Ascentor Scattorbrain vs. Monocle

Wave 3 (Sky Terror Team vs. Council of Sages) Ramjet vs. Scythe Sunstorm vs. Checkpoint Thrust vs. Anti-Blaze

Wave 4 (Deep Space Team vs. Street Action Team) Scrap Iron vs. Grindor Blastcharge vs. High Wire Backblast vs. Sureshock

Air Defense Team

Legends of Cybertron

Wave 1 Hot Shot Megatron Optimus Prime Starscream

Wave 2 Evac Jetfire Leobreaker Scourge

Wave 3 Galvatron Red Alert Soundwave Vector Prime

Wave 4 Hot Shot (red) Optimus Prime (red/black) Sunstorm Thundercracker

Legends Optimus Prime (black version)

Waves 1 and 2 were only available at smaller retailers and specialty stores. Waves 3 (including carry-overs from wave 2) and 4 were also available at ToysЯUs and Kmart.

Scout Class

Wave 1 Overhaul Ransack Scattorshot		Wave 2 Clocker Hardtop Recon Mini-Con Team (Jolt, Six-Speed, Reverb)		Wave 3 Armorhide Brakedown Undermine		Wave 4 Backstop Brushguard Wreckloose Street Speed Mini-Con Team (Backtrack, Oval, Spiral)		Hardtop
Wave 5 Swerve Swindle		Wave 6 Lugnutz Scrapmetal (red)		Wave 7 Repugnus Shortround		Wave 8 Giant Planet Mini-Con Team (Longarm, Deepdive, Overcast) Ransack GTS
Wave 9 Brakedown GTS Scrapmetal (yellow)		Wave 10 Hightail Shadow Recon Mini-Con Team (Jolt, Six-Speed, Reverb)

Deluxe Class

Wave 1 Hot Shot Dirt Boss Landmine Thundercracker		Wave 2 Override Red Alert		Wave 3 Sideways Snarl		Wave 3.5 Blurr Buzzsaw Longrack Runamuck		File:Hotshotcybertrontoy.jpg Hot Shot
Wave 4 Brimstone Crosswise Thunderblast		Wave 5 Cybertron Defense Hot Shot Downshift		Wave 6 Excellion Override GTS		Wave 7 Cannonball Skywarp
Wave 8 Demolishor Optimus Prime Unicron		Wave 9 Megatron Optimus Prime Smokescreen

Voyager Class

Wave 1 Crumplezone Vector Prime (w/ Safeguard)		Wave 2 Leobreaker Mudflap		Wave 3 Evac		Wave 4 Cybertron Defense Scattorshot Dark Crumplezone		Giant Planet Quickmix & Stripmine
Wave 5 Soundwave (w/ Laserbeak)		Wave 6 Nemesis Breaker		Wave 7 Quickmix (w/ Stripmine)		Wave 8 Galaxy Force Vector Prime (w/ Safeguard)

Ultra Class

Wave 1 Jetfire Scourge		Wave 2 Dark Scorponok		Wave 3 Cybertron Defense Red Alert		Wave 4 Sky Shadow Wing Saber		File:Scourge cybertron toy.jpg Jungle Planet Scourge
Wave 5 Menasor w/ Heavy Load		Wave 6 Cryo Scourge

Leader Class

Wave 1 Megatron Optimus Prime

Wave 2 Galvatron

Wave 3 Metroplex (w/ Drill Bit)

Wave 4 Galaxy Force Optimus Prime

Supreme Class

Wave 1 Starscream

Wave 2 Cybertron Primus (w/ Unicron head)

Wave 3 Cybertron Primus

We're calling these "waves" for the sake of convenience. Unlike the other size classes, Starscream and Primus (without the Unicron head) both shipped in their own assortments, and Primus with the Unicron head wasn't officially part of any assortment at all.

Exclusives

BotCon 2005 Ramjet		Costco Optimus Prime & Ultra Magnus Optimus Prime & Wing Saber		San Diego Comic-Con 2005 Skywarp		ToysЯUs Landmine, Snarl & Dirt Boss Sideways, Brimstone & Thunderblast Starscream vs. Vector Prime (w/ Safeguard)		San Diego Comic-Con Skywarp
Target "Critical Path Pack" (Red Alert & Sideways) "Drag Race Pack" (Hot Shot & Override) "Ground to Air Blast Pack" (Crosswise & Thundercracker) "Legends 4-Pack" (Megatron, Soundwave, Jetfire, Optimus Prime)		Evac w/ Razorclaw & Steamhammer Mudflap w/ Shockwave & Tankor Leobreaker w/ Sky Lynx & Thunderblast		Walmart Dirt Boss w/ Downshift Hot Shot w/ Mirage Landmine w/ Dirt Boss Override w/ Mirage Red Alert w/ Dirt Boss Thundercracker w/ Downshift Cybertron Primus w/ Mini-Cons (Strongarm, Offshoot, Knockdown, Nightscream)

Hasbro European market-only releases

As with Energon before it, the European Cybertron line was mostly just the US line outlined above. However, two sets of KB Toys-exclusive toys from the 2003 Universe toyline (which was never officially distributed as such in Europe) got released under the Cybertron banner.

Micromasters Series III Midnight Express Overload Railspike Rapid Run Swindle Tankor

Micromasters Series IV Air Raid Fireflight Ro-tor Skydive Silverbolt Storm Jet

The Railbots

Takara Galaxy Force toyline

File:Galaxy force logo.jpg

Premiering roughly half a year before Cybertron (as Hasbro's lines tended to run approximately 18 months while Takara stuck with 12 months), Galaxy Force would mostly feature slight alterations from the Hasbro versions. Some of the additions to the line, like the Armada retools (sold in Vs packs in Japan) would eventually make their way to the States.

Store-promo Mini-Con giveaways returned in a big way, with full teams devoted to some of the major characters in the line.

Regular retail

Wave 1 (12-28-2004) Auto Micron Backpack Galaxy Convoy Dreadrock Exillion Jackshot		Landbullet Master Megatron Micron Team Starscream Thundercracker Vector Prime		Wave 2 (01-20-2005) Gasket Guardshell		Wave 3 (02-10-2005) Autolander First Aid Inch Up Nitro Convoy Skids		Voyager Starscream
Wave 4 (02-24-2005) Buzz Saw vs Blurr Runabout vs Longrack		Wave 5 (03-17-2005) Dino Shout Fang Wolf Flame Convoy		Wave 6 (03-31-2005) Demolishor Noisemaze		Wave 7 (04-14-2005) Saidos Terashaver
Wave 8 (04-28-2005) Ligerjack		Wave 9 (06-09-2005) Autovolt		Wave 10 (06-23-2005) Live Convoy		Wave 11 (07-14-2005) Backgild Chromia Exigeyser First Gunner Road Storm		File:Bluescrapmetaltoy.jpg Blue Rumble
Wave 12 (07-28-2005) Rumble (blue) Rumble (red) Rumble (yellow) Sonic Bomber		EZ Collection (08-25-2005) Galaxy Convoy Master Megatron Starscream		Wave 13 (08-22-2005) Master Galvatron Soundwave		Wave 14 (08-29-2005) Megalo Convoy

Exclusives

Store exclusives

JUSCO Bulge (white) Graviton Graviton (white) Quasar (white)		Hello Mac Ichibi Megalo Gritbit		Ito Yokaido Hyakurai Ichibi Quasar		Joshin Denki Megalo Zapmap Mugen		File:GF-Ransack-police.jpg ToysЯUs-exclusive Gasket Police-Type
"TF Station" affiliates Bulge Hyakurai Megalo Zigzag Micron Booster Ver.3 (Bit, Clamp, Bug Drone, Bug General, Dice, Jack, Gauge, Plier, Plug, Socket, Trigger, Wrench)		Toy's Dream Project Fang Wolf Black Version Soundblaster (w/ Hell Buzzsaw)		ToysЯUs Gasket Police Type Platinum Element Platinum Material Platinum Factor Sonic Convoy giftset (Galaxy Convoy, Sonic Bomber, Rumble Coby version

Media exclusives

Dengeki Hobby magazine Master Galvatron

Galaxy Force DVDs Exillion Red Version Chromia White Version Noisemaze Mass Production Type Version

TV Magazine Dark Nitro Convoy EZ Collection Clear Set (Galaxy Convoy, Master Megatron, Starscream) Flame Convoy Sky Lynx Edition Gold Master Galvatron

DVD pack-in Chromia White Version

Mocom Toy Galaxy Force toyline

TakaraTomy/Hasbro licensee Mocom Toy released a selection of Cybertron/Galaxy Force toys in Korea, under the name Transformers: Galaxy Force (트랜스포머 갤럭시포스).

Cybertron Autovolt Dreadrock Exillion First Aid First Aid (Ultra) Jet		Liger Livecon Metroplex Nitrocon Optimus Prime Vector Prime		Destron Dragon Master Megatron Starscream		Other Side Way
Multipacks Buzz vs. Blurr Runabout vs. Longrack

Post-Cybertron releases

Titanium Series Megatron

Universe (2008) Vector Prime with Safeguard

Kre-O Fangwolf