Takio Ejima
Takio Ejima (江島 多規男 Ejima Takio) (born June 6, 1964) is a designer at TakaraTomy. His first product at Takara was Crazybird from the "Flower Rock" series, and after joining the Overseas Transformers Product team in the Boys Enterprise department, he single-handedly created the all European Transformers during the period when the American Transformers line ended, until the advent of Beast Wars. After the Beast Wars Metals (the Japanese release of the Transmetals Beast Wars figures), he moved to the Girls Toy Department, but came back to Transformers during the Energon line. According to fellow designer Takashi Kunihiro, Ejima is "The man who created the most transforming robot toys in the world".
Ejima is credited with coming up with the idea of the extensive use of ball joints seen towards the end of the Generation 2 toyline as a means of making toys more durable, thus complying with more rigorous safety standards. His idea opened up possibilities of robot toys with extensive articulation.
Known design projects
Generation 1
1991
Action Master figures
Exo-Suit Action Masters
Motorized Exo-Suit Action Masters
Action Master Elites
1992
Turbomasters
Predators
1993
Obliterators
Axelerators
Skyscorchers
Aquaspeeders
Stormtroopers
Lightformers
Trakkons
Generation 2
- Smokescreen (the design he is most proud of)
Beast Wars
- Cheetor
- Transmetal Optimus Primal
- and "every one of your favorite original Beast Wars figures" according to Evan Brooks [1]
Cybertron
Classics (2006)
- Grimlock (with Eric Siebenaler)
- Optimus Prime (Voyager class) (with Don Figueroa, Eric Siebenaler and Alex Kubalsky)
- Megatron (Voyager class) (with Eric Siebenaler)
Universe (2008)
- Cheetor (with Bill Rawley)
- Powerglide (with Bill Rawley)
Revenge of the Fallen
Dark of the Moon
- Bumblebee (MechTech Deluxe)
Generations
Studio Series
- Bumblebee Autobot Ratchet[2]
- Revenge of the Fallen The Fallen[3]
Studio Series 86
Legacy
Hasbro Pulse livestream appearances
- April 12, 2022's Fan First Tuesday | BACK-TO-BACK Transformers & Power Rangers Livestream, with Isabella Weiss, Rachel Fleming, and Mark Maher.
Notes
- Fellow TakaraTomy designer Shogo Hasui was assigned to do the large Combiner Class Constructicon Devastator toy, and had completed some early sketches, but Ejima subsequently took over due to scheduling conflicts.
References
- ↑ Transformers Generations 2022 designer interviews
- ↑ Bumblebee Ratchet design notes on Sam Smith's Instagram
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 August 16, 2022's Hasbro Pulse Transformers Fanstream on YouTube, with Ben MacCrae, Delaney Norris, Sam Smith, Evan Brooks, Isabella Weiss, and Mark Maher.
