Transformers (2007 toyline)

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Transformers (2007) »
These ain't your daddy's toys, kids.

The 2007 Transformers film was accompanied by one of the largest product blitzes in the history of the Transformers brand. The prominence of the movie allowed Hasbro to push the toy line to new levels of complexity and diversity.

In addition to the standard "main line" figures, several sub-lines were developed. Some, such as the Fast Action Battlers and Cyber Slammers, are aimed at younger users. Others, such as Real Gear Robots and the various role play toys, expand on the plot and concepts of the movie. Furthermore, many stores received various exclusive redecos and multi-packs. Other markets, such as Japan and even Europe, also had their own exclusives.

Virtually all characters of the movie cast received multiple toy incarnations at various price points, from the tiny $4 Legends versions and two-for-$5 Robot Heroes PVCs up to the massive, complex, electronic $80 Ultimate Bumblebee. Given the limited number of Transformers featured in the movie, the toyline naturally contains many additional characters. Many of these are featured in alternate movie-related media, such as prequel comics and video games.

Following the success of the movie toyline, it was expanded with the AllSpark Power and Premium Series sub-lines, while the subsequent toyline, Transformers Animated, was officially pushed back from late 2007/early 2008 to July 2008.

Toyline

Action figures ("main" line)

Bonecrusher hates being a Deluxe.

The main line movie figures attempt to emulate the complex, multi-faceted appearance of the screen characters, succeeding to a remarkable degree given the radical style shift. Robot modes integrate and hide their vehicle mode kibble very well, avoiding most of the parts-clearance problems seen in many "shellformer" style designs. Even non-film characters match the overall aesthetic. Most alternate forms are realistically styled contemporary Earth vehicles, many of which are licensed replicas.

The main line figures feature an above-average design complexity, packing an amazing number of moving parts into a small package. Transformations are fairly complex, and tend to capture the movie's visual spectacle of a vehicle flying apart into a thousand pieces as the robots transform. The primary gimmick of the main line is "Automorph Technology", a gimmick by which moving one piece of a toy will in turn move other pieces into their designated positions via hidden gears, furthering the parallel with the movie's visuals.

File:Bumblebeemovietoydeluxe67.jpg
Float like a butterfly and sting like a......wait- what's my name again?.

Another major aspect of the line is its heavy focus on "core cast", making sure most of the film Autobots and Decepticons were available at multiple price points, especially the budget-minded Legends size class, which was once again available at all major retailers (instead of just at specialty and convenience stores). While the newly-created bots in the film were left out, the concept was represented by the Real Gear Robots. Even major human characters got toys (rare for a Transformers toyline) in the "Screen Battles" diorama sets.

Unfortunately, due to issues of vehicle mode licensing and the fact that the robot designs are the shared intellectual property of Paramount, the movie series toys were not available to be redecoed in non-film-based lines, not even as convention exclusives. (This rule would later be relaxed slightly to allow "offscreen" character molds to be used, but that's not til the next movie-based line....)


Legends Class

Wave 1 Wave 2 Wave 3
File:Movie Legends Jazz toy.jpg
Legends Jazz


Allspark Battles 2-packs

"Allspark Battles" are two-packs that contain two Legends Class figures each. On the North American market, they replaced the Legends Class single packs in late 2007, coinciding with the launch of the "AllSpark Power" sub-line (see below), whereas other markets continued getting some of the toys included in these two-packs as single packs instead.

Wave 1 Wave 2 Wave 3


Real Gear Robots

Real Gear Robots are a sub-set based on modern electronic items which convert to miniscule robots.

Wave 1 Wave 2 Wave 3 Wave 4
File:Longview robot.jpg
Longview
Wave 5 Wave 6


Deluxe Class

Wave 1 (Movie Preview) Wave 2 Wave 3 Wave 4
Deluxe Wreckage
Wave 5 Wave 6 Wave 7 (AllSpark Power) Wave 7.5 (AllSpark Power)
Wave 8 (AllSpark Power) Wave 9 (AllSpark Power) Wave 10 (Premium Series)


Screen Battles

"Screen Battles" are minor redecos of Deluxe Class toys in more movie-accurate decos based on specific moments from the movie. They come packaged in nifty diorama boxes and include PVC figurines of both human and Transformers screen characters. The assortment was named "Battle Scenes" in international markets, simply using the English language name for European packaging and translated French and Spanish versions of the name alongside the United States market name "Screen Battles" for the trilingual packaging used for Canada and Latin America.

Wave 1 Wave 2


Voyager Class

Wave 1 Wave 2 Wave 2.5 Wave 3
File:Movie Voyager Ratchet toy.jpg
Voyager Ratchet
Wave 4 Wave 5 (AllSpark Power) Wave 5.5 (AllSpark Power) Wave 6 (Premium Series)

Leader Class

Wave 1 Wave 2 Wave 3 Wave 4 (AllSpark Power)
Leader Nightwatch Optimus Prime
Wave 5 (AllSpark Power) Wave 6 (Premium Series)

Ultimate Class

  • Wave 1


Fast Transformers Fun

This series is made more for the little ones, simpler, chunkier toys meant for smaller, less coordinated hands.

Cyber Stompin' Robots

(non-transforming)

Cyber Slammers

Wave 1 Wave 2 Wave 3 Wave 4
Patrol Barricade
Wave 5


Fast Action Battlers

Wave 1 Wave 2 Wave 3 Wave 4
Fast Action Battlers Smokescreen
Wave 5 Wave 6

Role Play

Helmet Role Play

Converting Arm Blasters Role Play

In Europe, the role-play accessory is named "Optimus Prime Big Rig Blaster" for inexplicable reasons.

Allspark Blasters

Super Soaker Gauntlet Blaster

  • Transformers Water Shooter

T.E.C.H. (Transformers Electronic Combat Hardware)

Wave 1

Also used by James Bond.

Wave 2

Wave 3

Plain Transformers Fun

Mr Potato Head Transformers

Plush Transformers

  • Softimus Prime (G1-style Prime, soft toy transforms by turning inside out, using velcro)
  • Slumblebee (ditto, for G1-styled Bumblebee)

Robot Heroes

(2-inch non-transforming cutified figurines similar to Star Wars Galactic Heroes et al. G1 cartoon characters in Movie packaging)

Wave 1 (Generation 1 characters)

Wave 2 (Generation 1 characters)

Wave 3 (Generation 1 characters)

Wave 4 (Movie characters)

Wave 5 (Movie characters)

"Our fight is on the Super-Special Edition DVD."

Wave 6 (Movie characters)

Collector

Unleashed

Turnaround Unleashed

Wave 1

Wave 2

Wave 3 (not released in the USA)

The "Autobots" and "Decepticons" sets were only released in Hong Kong, Malaysia, Australia and Mexico, but were cancelled for the US market.

Robot Replicas

Wave 1

Wave 2

Titanium Series (3")

Main article: Titanium Series

Wave 1 (Wave 8 overall)

Wave 2 (Wave 9 overall)

Wave 3 (Wave 10 overall)

Store exclusives

Scout Class (Target exclusive)

The Scout Class toys were also available as non-exclusive mass retail releases in Canada, Europe, Asia and Australia. Some European countries skipped the first wave, however, and never got any of the AllSpark Power waves either.

Wave 1

Wave 2

Coming soon to a WalMart store nearest you.

Wave 3

Wave 4 (AllSpark Power Wave 1)

Canceled wave

According to unconfirmed sources (which are directly refuted by other sources), these figures were released in Mexico. Either way, all three figures were later available in the aftermarket in large quantities unusual for "unreleased" toys, and all of them included additional instruction sheets in Spanish.

Other single-packed store exclusive redecos

Best Buy exclusives

Ratchet and Megatron were also available as non-exclusive mass retail releases in Hong Kong, Malaysia and Singapore.

Target exclusives

"I wish I looked like this in the movie."
All these toys were also available as non-exclusive mass retail releases in Hong Kong, Malaysia and Singapore. In addition, the "AllSpark Power" versions of Bumblebee, Autobot Jazz, Decepticon Brawl and Barricade were also available as Sainsbury's exclusives in the United Kingdom. Deep Space Starscream was also available as a Toyworld exclusive in New Zealand, and a Zellers exclusive in Canada.

Toys"R"Us exclusives

All those toys were also available as non-exclusive mass retail releases in Hong Kong.

Walmart exclusives

All these toys were also available as non-exclusive mass retail releases in Hong Kong, Malaysia and Singapore.
These seven toys were originally intended for the Universe line, but ended up in the extended Movie line due to retailer demand instead.

Single-packed non-redecoed store exclusives with bonus content

Kmart exclusives

Walmart exclusives

Store exclusive multi-packs with redecos

Target exclusives

  • "Evolution of a Hero" two-pack (regular Deluxe Class "Classic Camaro" Bumblebee & battle damaged "Camaro Concept" Bumblebee)
This two-pack was also available as a non-exclusive mass retail release in Hong Kong and Europe.
  • Screen Battles "Freeway Brawl" (contains a minor redeco of Voyager Class Optimus Prime and an unchanged Deluxe Class Bonecrusher)
  • Screen Battles "Battle Over Mission City" (contains a redeco of Voyager Class Megatron and an unchanged Deluxe Class Final Battle Jazz, the latter named "Autobot Jazz" for this pack)
These two-packs were also available as a non-exclusive mass retail releases in Singapore.

Sam's Club exclusives

  • Voyager/Deluxe three-pack (battle damaged Voyager Class Optimus Prime, battle damaged Deluxe Class Arcee & regular Voyager Class Starscream)
This three-pack was also available as a mass retail release in Hong Kong, as a Toys'R'Us exclusive in Canada, and as a Kmart exclusive in Australia.

Walmart exclusives

This three-pack was also available in New Zealand, possibly exclusive to Farmers stores.

Store exclusive multi-packs without redecos

BJ's Wholesale Club exclusives

  • Cyber Stompin' Optimus Prime with Bonus Robot Heroes Rodimus & Insecticon
  • Cyber Stompin' Optimus Prime with Bonus Robot Heroes Starscream & Mirage
  • Cyber Stompin' Optimus Prime with Bonus Robot Heroes Shockwave & Grimlock
  • Cyber Stompin' Optimus Prime with Bonus Robot Heroes Ravage & Optimus Prime
At least some of the Optimus Prime combos were also available as Argos exclusives in the United Kingdom and as Kmart exclusives in Australia.
  • Cyber Stompin' Bumblebee with Bonus Robot Heroes Rodimus & Insecticon
Official stock photos of the Bumblebee combo have been seen; but unlike the various Optimus Prime combos, it's unclear whether this one has ever actually been released.

Costco exclusives

  • Leader Class Optimus Prime with bonus figures (Legends Class Bumblebee & Autobot Jazz)
  • Ultimate Bumblebee with "Special Value" bonus Titanium Series 3" Bumblebee figure
This bonus pack was also available as a non-exclusive mass retail release in Hong Kong.

Sam's Club exclusives

  • Deluxe three-pack (Decepticon Brawl, Bonecrusher & Autobot Jazz)
This three-pack was also available as a non-exclusive mass retail release in Hong Kong.

Target exclusives

  • "Generations Legends" four-pack (Movie Legends Class Optimus Prime, Legends of Cybertron Optimus Prime, Movie Legends Class Megatron & Legends of Cybertron Megatron)
  • "Ultimate Optimus Prime 3-Pack" (contains Titanium Series 3" "Robot Mode" Optimus Prime, "Vehicle Mode" Optimus Prime and Protoform Optimus Prime)
Both multi-packs were also available as non-exclusive mass retail releases in Hong Kong.

Toys"R"Us exclusives

  • "Decepticon Desert Attack" two-pack (Voyager Class Blackout & Deluxe Class Scorponok)
  • "Battle for the Allspark" Legends six-pack (Bumblebee, Autobot Jazz, Optimus Prime, Megatron, Barricade & Starscream)
Both multi-packs were also available as non-exclusive mass retail releases in Hong Kong.

Walmart exclusives

  • "First Encounter" two-pack (Deluxe Class Bumblebee & Deluxe Class Barricade)
  • "Leader for the Ages" two-pack (Fast Action Battler Optimus Prime as "2007 Optimus Prime" & "1984 Optimus Prime" Classics "The Ultimate Battle" two-pack)
Both multi-packs were also available as non-exclusive mass retail releases in Hong Kong.
  • "Mass Media Battle" two-pack (Real Gear Robots Speed Dial 800 & Booster X10)
  • "Robo Recon Team" two-pack (Real Gear Robots Spy Shot 6 & Longview)
  • "Brain Scrambler Team" two-pack (Real Gear Robots Power Up VT6 & Zoom Out 25X)
  • Ultimate Bumblebee three-pack (Ultimate Bumblebee, Deluxe Scorponok & Deluxe Decepticon Brawl)
  • Cyber Stompin' Optimus Prime with Bonus Cyber Slammers Bumblebee (Classic Camaro)
  • Cyber Stompin' Bumblebee with Bonus Cyber Slammers Barricade

Sub-lines

AllSpark Power

Main article: AllSpark Power

Premium Series

Main article: Premium Series

Notable international variants

Even though the Movie toyline differed from previous Transformers toylines insofar as TakaraTomy's Japanese versions of the toys were almost identical to their Hasbro counterparts (as a matter of fact, the Japanese "mainline" toys even came in Hasbro packaging, with additional Japanese stickers on the packaging identifying them as the Japanese versions), there were a few genuine variants - and on top of that, one of those variants was also released in the United Kingdom, making it the first shared Japanese/European "variant" toy since red Armada Powerlinx Thrust.

UK variants

  • Nightwatch Optimus Prime (Leader Class; missing the US version's "AllSpark Power" blue paint and coming in slightly different packaging)
This toy was available exclusively at Argos stores in the United Kingdom several months before the US version came out. Apparently this had originally been intended for the United States market, since the packaging sports various US market-specific logos and English-only texts.

Japanese variants

  • Most of the initial decos of the Real Gear Robots (Speed Dial 800, Spy Shot 6, Power Up VT6, Longview and Zoom Out 25X) featured different stickers in Japan, depicting scenes involving the Movie cast rather than screenshots from the Cybertron cartoon, and replacing the time index "7:47" (hinting at the US release date of the movie, July 4) with "8:04" (as the movie wasn't released in Japan until August 4).
  • MA-03 Bumblebee (Deluxe Class Classic Camaro; using clear blue plastic for the windows with painted over yellow car parts, instead of the US version's yellow plastic with tampographed blue windows)
  • MA-18 Nightwatch Optimus Prime (Leader Class; identical to the UK version)
  • MA-19 Landmine (different shade than the Hasbro version, and features tires made of rubber instead of plastic)
  • MA-21 Battle Mode Optimus Prime (same mold as Hasbro's Leader Class Premium Series Optimus Prime, but features vacuum metallized rims, bumper/grill and gas tanks/toolboxes. His overall paint deco in robot mode is also slightly more detailed.)
  • MD-22 Incinerator (Voyager Class; sporting black as the main colour and a slightly different deco than the US version; also comes with a small AllSpark cube accessory)

International exclusives

Even though European countries got some of the US toyline's store exclusives (such as various Toys'R'Us exclusive releases) as well, some of them even at mass retail (such as the Target exclusive Scout Class redecos of Energon and Cybertron toys, or the "Evolution of a Hero" two-pack with the Deluxe Class Classic and Concept Camaro Bumblebee toys), and some toys that were released as store exclusives in Japan (such as Leader Class Decepticon Brawl) were available at general retail in the USA, there were also some multi-packs and redecos that were genuine exclusives to European countries or Japan.

Non-US market Legends Class single packs

Wave 4 (AllSpark Power Wave 1)

The toys themselves are identical to those released as part of the "Allspark Battles" two-packs in the USA. However, these versions come on European-style single cards. They were available in various European markets, Hasbro's Asian markets, Australia and New Zealand.

Non-US market Hasbro multi-packs

These two-packs have only been released in Mexico.
This three-pack has only been available as a mass retail release in the United Kingdom.
This two-pack has been available as a mass retail release in Hong Kong, as an Argos exclusive in the United Kingdom, as a Kmart exclusive in Australia, and with undetermined distribution in France. Apparently this had originally been intended for the United States market, since the packaging sports various logos and design elements usually only found on North American packaging, as well as English-only texts.
  • "Towed to Safety" two-pack (Deluxe Class Longarm & Deluxe Class Classic Camaro Bumblebee)
This two-pack has only been available as a mass retail release in the United Kingdom.

Non-US market Hasbro "special" single packs

  • Autobot Optimus Prime (battle damaged redeco of Voyager Class Optimus Prime, identical to the one from the Sam's Club exclusive three-pack)
  • Arcee (battle damaged redeco of Deluxe Class Arcee, identical to the one from the Sam's Club exclusive three-pack)
These toys have only been released in Asia, but were also stocked by US-based online retailers. "Autobot Optimus Prime" comes in the same packaging style and sports the same assortment number as the Best Buy exclusive "Premium Series" redecos of Autobot Ratchet and Megatron, while Arcee comes on the same cardback as the regular release, with the only difference being an additional "exclusive battle damage" sticker on the blister bubble and a different barcode. An isolated sighting for Arcee has been reported from a Walmart store in the USA, which might or might not have been a fluke.[1]

Japanese exclusive molds

  • TS-01 Trans Scanning Optimus Prime (an articulated "Protoform"-esque figure with snap-on vehicle mode parts)
  • TS-02 Trans Scanning Bumblebee (an articulated "Protoform"-esque figure with snap-on vehicle mode parts)

Japanese exclusive redecos

  • EZ Collection Bumblebee "scanning version" (a clear redeco of Legends Class Bumblebee, exclusively available with the August 2007 edition of Hyper Hobby magazine)
  • Bumblebee "limited metallic color version" (a redeco of the first Deluxe Class Bumblebee toy with a shiny gold metallic finish, exclusively available at Lawson stores)
  • Protoform Optimus Prime "Fusion Cluster Edition" (a redeco of Deluxe Class Protoform Optimus Prime in "entry mode" colors, exclusively available at the C3xHobby Convention and later also from e-HOBBY)
  • Protoform Starscream "Fusion Cluster Edition" (a redeco of Deluxe Class Protoform Starscream in "entry mode" colors, exclusively available at the C3xHobby Convention and later also from e-HOBBY)
  • Optimus Prime (a Movie-esque redeco of the 2001 Robots in Disguise Spychanger Scourge mold, available at pretty much every store for purchase of the Transformers Movie DVD)
  • EZ Collection Bumblebee metallic version (a metallic redeco of Legends Class Bumblebee, exclusively available at Tsutaya Records stores for purchase of the Transformers Movie DVD)
  • Blackout "4500x version" (a more movie-accurate redeco of Voyager Class Blackout and his little Scorponok companion, exclusively available at Lawson stores; based on the same paint mask as Hasbro's "Premium Series" redeco of Blackout, with very minor differences)
  • Starscream Vardia Red Model (a red-ish redeco of Voyager Starscream, exclusively available at Toshiba stores for purchase of the Toshiba RD-A301 HD-DVD player)
  • MA-20 Black Arcee (black redeco of Deluxe Class Arcee, based on the motorcycle used by William Lennox during the final battle of the Movie; the only explicit redeco of a movie toy available at mass retail in Japan with no US counterpart)
  • Arcee G1 color edition (a pink and white redeco of Deluxe Class Arcee, limited to 1000 pieces, exclusively available at Wonder Festival 2008 Winter)

Merchandise

Notes

  • The "Scout" size class was made exclusive to Target stores for the run of the Movie toyline (although it was available as a mass retail assortment in other countries), and consisted solely of redecos of toys from the Energon and Cybertron toylines. The Animated and Universe lines didn't revisit this price point at all, but the Scout price point returned with the Revenge of the Fallen toyline, this time with entirely new molds.
  • Likewise, the "Ultra" size class was originally not used during the Movie toyline's run either. Eventually, the only two "Ultra Class" releases were redecos of Cybertron toys that were exclusively available at Toys"R"Us stores. The 2008 Universe line brought the price point back as a mass retail assortment.
  • The Fracture, Crankcase, and Getaway exclusive toys were originally meant to be part of the 2008 Universe line, but Wal*Mart insisted that they be placed into the Movie line instead. (The logic being that the old Universe line eventually failed in the market, while the Movie line was a dramatic hit.)

"Drought"

File:Movie Deluxe 2009 Bumblebee toy.jpg
Oh well. Better luck with the sequel toys!

For the remainder of 2007 following the movie's premiere, many fans complained of a severe toy shortage in most markets, particularly the U.S. Mainline figures had proven to be more difficult to locate at retail than in many years, if not ever. This was due to the convergence of several factors:

  • The tremendous success and high profile of the movie has vastly broadened the toy-buying audience, with many more kids, adult collectors, and scalpers seeking out product.
  • Major retailers such as Wal-Mart and Target placed orders for TF movie product based on their sales records for Cybertron and Classics figures, as well as movie-related toylines in general, which tend not to do well (as the Spider-Man 3 figures still warming shelves for many months can attest).
  • Unusual congestion at Chinese factories and shipping docks lengthened the time necessary to produce and ship new figures to the West.

Ironically for much of 2008, as supply began to overtake demand, the movie toys became shelf-warmers, appearing not to sell in huge numbers, and often to the detriment of shelf-space for the newer Animated and Universe toylines.

Legacy

  • While previous lines had occasionally featured multiple toys of the same character in different sizes, the Movie line considerably increased their number, with nearly all characters from the primary fiction getting a multitude of toys in various sizes and with different gimmicks, many of which were released around the same time.
  • The Movie line also took the concept of auto-transforming parts and sections, which had occasionally been used by a few toys from previous lines, and made it a line-wide gimmick, here named "Automorph Technology".

References

  1. ↑ [1]
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