Pre-Transformers

This article is about the fandom term for toys derived from lines that existed before Transformers. For the cartoon character called "Pre-Transformer" in the script, see Guardian Prime{{#switch:{{#sub:Guardian Prime|-1}}

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Pffftt, like these silly novelty gizmos will ever become a decades-long pop culture phenomenon!

In fan terminology, pre-Transformers is an umbrella term for the Diaclone and Micro Change toylines, as well as for the original, non-Transformers-branded versions of such toys as Jetfire and the Mini-spies; all of which originally made up the entirety of the original Transformers toyline for (roughly) the first two years of its run. Some of these figures also sported different color schemes than their more well-known Transformers counterparts. In many instances, future reissues of these figures or new toys of those characters would be redecoed to homage the pre-Transformers color schemes originally unused in the Transformers franchise.

By 1986, almost all of the pre-Transformers toy-molds that made up the original Transformers toyline had started to trickle out in favor of the all-new molds based on Floro Dery's concept artwork designed for The Transformers: The Movie, though, a few unutilized Diaclone concepts, as well as retools of previously-released pre-Transformers molds from Takara found their way into the mix. By 1987, the Hasbro Transformers line (1992 in the Takara line) had reached the point where only original molds were being produced.

Pre-Transformers lines

The molds released across the Generation 1 toyline — counting the original American version and its subsequent Japanese equivalent, as well as its many permutations across Latin America — add up to a bulk of figures whose roots can be traced back to a staggering twelve (or maybe even thirteen!) different toylines, produced by a total of seven (or, again; potentially eight!) different manufacturers, the majority of them based in Japan.

Molds released in Hasbro & Takara's Transformers toylines

Diaclone No. 1 Countach LP500S — the first Diaclone Car Robot and the predecessor mold that eventually led to Sunstreaker.

• From Takara:
  • Diaclone — predecessors to Optimus Prime, Autobot Cars, Seekers, Insecticons, Omnibots, Dinobots, Constructicons, Blitzwing
  • Micro Change — predecessors to Megatron, Soundwave and his Mini-Cassettes, Blaster, Mini-Vehicles

Molds released in Hasbro's Transformers toyline only

• From Takara:
  • Diaclone — predecessors to Jumpstarters, Powerdashers
  • Watch-Q — predecessors to the Kronoform figures (first released as its own toyline, later rebranded into a Transformers subline)
  • Mech Soldier — predecessors to Mini-spies

• From Takatoku Toys:
  • Armored Insect Corps Beetras — predecessors to Deluxe Insecticons
  • Special Armored Battalion Dorvack — predecessors to Deluxe Vehicles
  • Super Dimension Fortress Macross — predecessor to Jetfire

Macross 1/55 VF-1S Super Valkyrie — the predecessor mold that eventually led to Jetfire.

• From Toybox: "Super Change Robo Mechabot-1" — predecessor to Omega Supreme, and Sky Lynx (designed but only ever released as a Transformer).
• From ToyCo: "4 Changeable Astro Magnum" — predecessor to Shockwave

Molds released in Takara's Transformers toyline only

• From Takara:
  • Diaclone — predecessors to Trainbots
  • Micro Change — predecessor to Browning

Molds released in South American Transformers toylines only

• From Yonezawa Toys: "Remote Change Robo Series" — predecessors to the Eletrix

• From Asahi Corporation: "Attack Change Machine Powertron" — predecessors to Bat-Robôs

• From Best Join: "Radio Robot" — predecessor to Radio AM Robot (and, confusingly, also a knockoff)

Licensed international releases of pre-Transformers

RadioShack/Tandy's "Galactic Man" — once thought by many to be a knockoff.

Hasbro's Transformers line was originally just one of several international venues for many of these figures. It was only when Transformers became such a huge worldwide success that it completely eclipsed these other versions, resulting in weird transitional phases in many instances. Some of these are frequently mistaken for knockoffs (not helped by the fact that there are knockoffs of many of these versions as well!).

United States

• Takara
  • Diakron (featuring Diaclone figures, including the Powerdashers that were first named as such here)
  • Kronoform (again, later rebranded into a Transformers subline)

• RadioShack — "Galactic Man" (a version of Shockwave's mold)
• Village Toys — Convert-A-Bots, featuring "N-4-SR" (another version of Shockwave's mold in two different color schemes) and Pow-R-Bots (featuring Turbo Z, Porsche, and Jeep as versions of Esporte, Porsche, and Jipe's molds)
• Select — Convertors (featuring "Wheels" and "Chopper", plastic versions of Roadbuster and Whirl's molds, respectively)
• Ertl Company - Pow-R-Trons (featuring Zoomer and Turboid as versions of Turbo's mold and Distroid and Fy-Ton as versions of Pick-Up's mold)

United Kingdom

• Grandstand — Convertors (unrelated to Select's US line of the same name; featuring "Omegatron", a version of Omega Supreme's mold in its original Mechabot-1 colors)
• Tandy — "Galactic Man" (almost identical to RadioShack's version, due to both being owned by the same parent company)

Italy

• GiG — Trasformer (featuring Diaclone and Micro Change figures, some of them already in their unique Transformers colors; as well as "Megarobot", a version of Omega Supreme's mold)

Toybox's Super Change Robo Mechabot-1 — featuring the color scheme that'd also be seen on its GAMA and Grandstand versions.

Germany

• GAMA — "Trans Robot" (a version of Omega Supreme's mold very similar to Grandstand's "Omegatron", with the packaging design being close to Toybox's original Mechabot-1 version, but with the "Trans Robot" logo taking some cues from Hasbro's "Transformers" logo, also replacing the tank's long barrel with a radar dish because no war toys for you, German kids!)

France

• Joustra — Diaclone (featuring Takara Diaclone and Micro Change figures, some of them already sporting Autobot and Decepticon insignia stickers)
• Orli Jouet — "Robotrack" (featuring "Mecabot", a nigh-identical version of Omega Supreme in Hasbro colors, possibly produced as part of a partnership with GiG, with the TV commercial even featuring footage from the Transformers cartoon)

Finland

• Takara — Diaclone (featuring Diaclone figures, including a unique black version of Tracks's mold)

Honorable mentions

A mystery indeed.

• There is a credible case that the unreleased Mysterians toyline from American company Knickerbocker Toys was the origin point for the not-Choro-Q-inspired figures in the first wave of Generation 1 Mini-Vehicles - those being Brawn, Gears, Huffer, and Windcharger. These designs were shown in internal Knickerbocker documents in 1982, then Hasbro purchased Knickerbocker in 1983 and the molds were released in Micro Change in 1983. But the chronology is not entirely clear, because Takara designer Masaki Maruyama is typically credited as designing these figures (as well as the other Mini-Vehicles). Perhaps Knickerbocker designed the toys and Maruyama's attributed credits are wrong... or early Takara designs were at first licensed to Knickerbocker for a release that never happened... or the two companies were designing them in tandem. Conclusive details about who gets full credit for such obscure unreleased products from a long-defunct company are likely lost to time.
  • Notably, the other non-pre-Transformers Mysterians designs would eventually get released by a different company called Marchon (also under the Mysterians name), although it is unknown what (if any) deal they cut with Hasbro and/or the late Knickerbocker.

Post-Generation 1 releases

As Hasbro and Takara would eventually make newer Transformers toylines throughout the following decades, they would also overwhelmingly rely on all-new original toy designs, with both companies therefore mostly leaving the old pre-Transformers molds to the realm of occasional commemorative reissue toylines (and neither company ever again releasing rebranded non-Hasbro / Takara toys as Transformers, like Hasbro had formerly done with Macross, Dorvack, and Beetras). Nonetheless, there would still be a few instances of figures and decos from pre-Transformers Takara toylines making their way into future Transformers toylines after the end of Generation 1.

Pre-Transformers figures released after Generation 1

Beast Wars Dark Eggleo, based on MC-15 Metal Leo.

Oddly, a few extra Micro Change toys would only be released as Transformers for the first time during the 90s:

• • MC-06 Watch Robo — Autobot, released in 1993 under the Transformers: Generation 2 toyline
  • Meteor Robos — Egg Beasts, retooled and released in 1998 under the Japanese Transformers: Beast Wars toyline

Pre-Transformers decos released after Generation 1

Some decos for the classic molds in some of the aforementioned reissue toylines would be directly taken from their Diaclone and Micro Change equivalents.

• Diaclone
  • Powered Convoy — Ultra Magnus Yokokuhen Version, released in the 2001 Toy Festival
  • No.21 Corvette Stingray — Road Rage, released in 2002 by e-HOBBY
  • No. 6 Honda City R — Crosscut, released in 2002 by e-HOBBY
  • No.19 New Countach LP500S Police Car Type — Clampdown, released in 2003 by e-HOBBY

    File:G1tigertrack toy.jpg

    Figure Ō Tigertrack, featuring the deco of New Countach LP500S' yellow version.

  • Powered Convoy DX Set — Deep Cover, released in 2003 by e-HOBBY
  • Finnish Diaclone Corvette Stingray — Black Tracks, released in 2003 as a Lucky Draw prize
  • No.15 New Countach LP500S — Tigertrack, released in 2003 as a Figure Ō magazine mail order item
  • Insecter Robos — Zaptrap, Salvo, and Shothole, released in 2004 by e-HOBBY
  • No. 1 Jet Fighter Type — Overcharge, released in 2005 by e-HOBBY
• Micro Change
  • MC-13 Gun Robo Walther P-38 U.N.C.L.E. — Megatron Black Version, released in 2001 by e-HOBBY
  • MC-20 Micro Scope — Magnificus, released in 2005 by e-HOBBY

Notably, most of these releases would canonize said decos as new characters, a good portion of which would later get all-new toys in modern toylines like Masterpiece and the "CHUG" ensemble!

Notes

• The act of licensing out Japanese transforming robot toys (and robot toys in general) to Western markets appears to have started with toy manufacturer [[wikipedia:{{#if:|:}}Popy|{{#if:||Popy}}]] (ポピー). Popy started off as a part of Bandai, but separated from them in 1971 to explore other avenues, creating lines such as the Popynica line, which made toys for the [[wikipedia:{{#if:|:}}Kamen Rider|{{#if:||Kamen Rider}}]] franchise, and the [[wikipedia:{{#if:|:}}Chogokin|{{#if:||Chogokin}}]] line, which made toys for franchises such as Mazinger Z. The toys released in these two lines ended up being licensed out to Mattel as part of their popular [[wikipedia:{{#if:|:}}Shogun Warriors (toys)|{{#if:Shogun Warriors|Shogun Warriors|Shogun Warriors (toys)}}]] franchise in the 70s. Popy is also credited by many as being the inventors of robot-to-vehicle transforming toys (although not the inventors of transforming robots as a genre, as that honor would belong to Yonezawa's quirky battery-powered "Space Explorer" toy with its TV set alternate mode instead), with their figure of the titular character of [[wikipedia:{{#if:|:}}Brave Raideen|{{#if:||Brave Raideen}}]] in 1975 which was also licensed out to Mattel. All of this would eventually lead to the creation of the {{#if:||Machine Robo}} toyline—but due to the declining popularity of robot toys in the very early-80s—Popy was reintegrated into Bandai in 1983, which thus led to the partnership between Bandai and Tonka, that created GoBots.
• As mentioned above, Hasbro's once-rival, Tonka, teamed up with Bandai in 1983, to create the GoBots franchise using licensed-out Machine Robo toys. Much like Takara's attempts at releasing their products in Western markets through the Diakron and Kronoform lines, Bandai attempted the same thing with Machine Robo, releasing the {{#if:||Robo Machine}} and {{#if:||Robo Machines}} lines in Europe; the {{#if:Machine Men and Robot Machine Men|Machine Men and Robot Machine Men|Machine Men (North American franchise)}} lines in America and Canada, respectively; and the (unrelated) {{#if:Machine Men|Machine Men|Machine Men (franchise)}} line in Australia—all of which had varying degrees of success, and ran concurrently with one another.
• The Action Master Treadshot's design was inspired by a toy originally manufactured by Sunmayor Ohkawa (サンマーヤ大川) Co., Ltd., the "357 Magnum Robo" (357マグナムロボ). It was later called the "Highway Patrol Robo" and released in GiG's Trasformer line in Italy. It was even covered in Takara's Takara SF Land Collection Complete Works toy book for unknown reasons.

External links

• Pre-Transformers!
• The Pre Transformer Page