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「それらすべて」


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as well as for the original, non-Transformers-branded versions of such toys as Jetfire and the Mini-spies; all of which originally made up the entirety of the original Transformers toyline for (roughly) the first two years of its run.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

Micro Change "MC-01 Micross"—the predecessor mold that eventually led to Frenzy, Rumble, and Enemy.
  • Toybox — "Super Change Robo Mechabot-1" (Omega Supreme) and Sky Lynx (never actually released prior to the Transformers version)


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 these versions as well!).

United States

  • Takara — Diakron (featuring Diaclone figures, including the Powerdashers that were first named as such here)
  • RadioShack — "Galactic Man" (a version of Shockwave)
  • Village Toys — Convert-A-Bots (featuring "N-4-SR", another version of Shockwave in two different color schemes)
  • Select — Convertors (featuring "Wheels" and "Chopper", plastic versions of Roadbuster and Whirl, respectively)

United Kingdom

  • Grandstand — Convertors (unrelated to Select's US line of the same name; featuring "Omegatron", a version of Omega Supreme 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)

Germany

  • GAMA — "Trans Robot" (a version of Omega Supreme 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!)

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)

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)

Honorable mentions

  • 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.

Notes

  • The act of licensing out Japanese transforming robot toys (and robot toys in general) to Western markets appears to have started with the toy manufacturer, 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 Kamen Rider franchise, and the 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 Shogun Warriors franchise in the 70s. Popy is also credited by many as being the first to create transforming robot toys, with the creation of the titular character of the Brave Raideen franchise in 1977, which was also licensed out to Mattel. All of this would eventually lead to the creation of the 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 Robo Machine and Robo Machines lines in Europe; the Machine Men and Robot Machine Men lines in America and Canada, respectively; and the (unrelated) Machine Men line in Australia—all of which had varying degrees of success, and ran concurrently with one another.



「ダイアクロン」



The name or term "Diaclone" refers to more than one character or idea. For a list of other meanings, see Diaclone (disambiguation).
Di...a...cloooooooone!!!

Diaclone (ダイアクロン Daiakuron) was one of two Takara toy lines (the other being Micro Change) from which the earliest Generation 1 Transformers toys came. The line began as a thinly sketched space-age Starship Troopers riff as the heroic human pilots of the "Diaclone" force and the invading forces of the insectoid "Waruder" menace did battle in old-fashioned 60s-style super robots over the mysterious energy source known as "Freezone." The toyline made a hard pivot to real-world vehicles with some mumbling about the war entering a covert phase on Earth when robots that doubled as toy cars proved a hit with kids, and the rest is history. Diaclone has proven perhaps the most enduring of the various pre-Transformer brands, subject to a variety of remixes and revivals both within the Transformers brand and without.

Overview

Original toyline

You thought the cartoon made up the flying thing, didn't you.

The Diaclone toyline was first introduced in 1980 with a focus on various piloted robots that could transform into various abstract sci-fi vehicles, bases, and creatures. However, in March 1982 toys with alt modes based on realistic, present-day vehicles that many Transformers are known for today began to appear as part of the "Car Robots" sub-line. The first one was the Diaclone predecessor of Sunstreaker, whom Hasbro now considers the first fully-fledged transforming car-to-robot toy ever designed.[1] Its vehicle form was based on an older Takara toy, the "Cosmo Countach" from the Microman "Micro Command" sub-line released in 1978, which transformed into a half-robot, half-car hybrid.[2]

Before the Transformers brand was introduced, Takara directly exported some Diaclone toys to North America under the brand names Diakron and Kronoform, but those lines met with very little success. French toy company Joustra also released various Diaclone figures in Europe under the original Japanese name (sporting unique box art), a few exclusive Revell model kits and even an accompanying mini-comic series, but these also faded into obscurity.

In 1983, Hasbro representatives discovered Diaclone and Micro Change toys at the Tokyo Toy Show, and soon struck a deal to create the Transformers brand.

The 1984 and 1985 Autobot Cars, 1984 Decepticon Planes, 1985 Dinobots, 1985 Constructicons, "standard" Insecticons, Trainbots, Omnibots, Powerdashers, Jumpstarters, Blitzwing, 1984 Optimus Prime, and 1986 Ultra Magnus toys all originated from Diaclone. The reason why many of these toys feature opening cockpits, hatches, or seats is that Diaclone had presented them as lifeless mecha for small driver figures, which were no longer included in their Transformers incarnation.

When Transformers proved an unqualified success, plans for a 1985 Diaclone line were scrapped, and Transformers was imported to Japan in its place. These aborted toys, which would have been part of a sub-line called Jizai Gattai (自在合体, "Limitless Combination") were then incorporated into the Transformers toyline in 1986 as the Aerialbots, Stunticons, Combaticons, Protectobots, and Metroplex.

Diaclone in Transformers

In Japan

Everyone say "Thank you, Diaclone."

In 2002, TakaraTomy's Collector's Edition line branched out from straight-laced Generation 1 re-issues to something that would become a longstanding tradition of the Transformers brand: the plumbing of unused Diaclone decoes of Transformers molds to create new characters. Beginning with a two-pack of Crosscut and Road Rage, this first generation of Diaclone refugees were roundabout one-to-one recreations of the original Diaclone toys exclusive to TakaraTomy's boutique retailer e-HOBBY, using the already queued up Generation 1 molds. Each character received a whimsical bio from ascended superfan and all-around franchise renaissance man Hirofumi Ichikawa casting them as "missing" Generation 1 characters in the style of franchise architect Bob Budiansky's original character profiles.

This practice made the jump to the big leagues in 2013, when the big-budget Masterpiece line built up enough Car Robots molds to begin fishing for redecoes, beginning with former mail-away exclusive Diaclone derivative Tigertrack. Things really kicked into gear two years later with the release of a blue Diaclone version of Bluestreak, whose bio established a longstanding mystery plot as story elements from the Diaclone toyline's scant fiction began leaking into the world of the Transformers. This storyline (again by Ichikawa)[3] reached a fever pitch with the release of Masterpiece Spin-Out in 2020, whose bio textually identified him as a Diaclone mecha brought to life as a Cybertronian by mysterious alien technology!

In the United States

Insert your own Alien reference.

The return of Diaclone to Hasbro markets began with Hasbro's equivalent to e-HOBBY, Fun Publications, finding their own use for Diaclone decoes as characters in their topsy turvy Shattered Glass franchise where the heroic Decepticons battled the evil forces of the Autobots, beginning in 2009 with Shattered Glass Ironhide. As Fun Publications' stories ballooned in scope in the years to come, it was revealed that the "Transcendent Technomorphs," impassive observers at the heart of the Transformers multiverse, had charted out a distant cluster of universes that they named "Cymond," wherein the settings of the various pre-Transformers toylines, Diaclone included, were theoretically imported wholesale into Fun Publications' metafictional in-universe constellation of Transformers franchises.

Fun Publications put their money where their mouth was with "Cybertron's Most Wanted" the 2015 theme of BotCon, Hasbro's official Transformers convention. This year's convention exclusive comic chronicled the incursion of Diaclone's Waruder antagonists straight into the TransTech homeworld of Axiom Nexus and the subsequent collaboration between Diaclone's heroic Dianaut pilots and the inhabitants of Axiom Nexus to repel the Waruder invaders. Accordingly, BotCon 2015's grab bag of exclusive figures included redecoes of existing Transformers toys into the first toys of the original Waruder and Diaclone factions in nearly thirty years! Fun Publications continued to produce the odd bit of Diaclone fiction here and there right up until the very last day of their stewardship of the Transformers license in 2016, with the King Waruder included in their final batch of character profiles.

Going worldwide

The Mother, the Maiden, and the Skeletor.

Following the realization of Hasbro and TakaraTomy's initiative to standardize the global presence of the Transformers brand in 2018, Generations Selects, the exclusive-oriented arm of the the Generations super-brand, picked up where e-HOBBY and Fun Publications left off. Since its inception Generations Selects has placed a noticeable focus on updates of pre-existing Diaclone-inspired characters, as well as fresh Diaclone remixes of their own, albeit with somewhat less elaborate characterizations. Perhaps the most fantastical Diaclone-related feat thus far in this new era has sprung from the adjacent Shattered Glass Collection subline, with the announcement of a 2022 Leader class figure triple billed as a Shattered Glass, a Masterpiece, and an e-HOBBY character, all three of which were inspired by a single Diaclone toy!

The return

We're Back! A Diaclone Story

The Diaclone brand proper was revived by TakaraTomy in 2016 as a boutique property aimed at adult collectors with a strong focus on re-imaginings of toys from the original line. Proceeding more or less chronologically through Diaclone history, the first overlap with the Transformers brand came in 2019 with a wave centered around the Dashers, the ancestors of Transformers' Powerdasher trio. In 2021, a new version of Battle Convoy, the toy that became Optimus Prime, was released. This was followed in short order with a new iteration of Powered Convoy, the ancestor of Ultra Magnus, in 2022. Will this lead to more re-imaginings of Car Robots toys? And how does Takara's Masterpiece plotline fit in to all this? Only time will tell.

Toy range (incomplete)

The following list covers all Diaclone releases that were later rereleased as Transformers toys or otherwise inspired Transformers concepts. Diaclone molds with no Transformers relation are generally not listed as they fall outside the purview of this site.

Early Diaclone

A handful of the more fantastical toys from Diaclone's early years that were passed over for the Transformers toyline have inspired fiction-only characters, mostly in the form of background easter eggs.

1980
"I've connected the two dots."
"You didn't connect scrap."
"I've connected them."
(Statue of The One pictured left, Robot Base and Dimicron Prime pictured right. Click through for more info.)
  • Dia-Battles — Used as inspiration for Stormbringer.
    • DA-01 Dia Battles V2 (2016) — itself inspired by the original Dia-Battles, this toy from the 2016 Diaclone reboot was used as inspiration for the Beast Wars: Uprising incarnation of Magmatron.
  • Diaclone Pilots/"Dianauts" — the heroic human pilot minifigures packaged with various Diaclone mecha were used as inspiration for the subtly named toy characters Dia, Cline, and Diac, as well as the fiction-only character Chifumi Takahashi.
  • Robot Base — The Diaclone franchise mascot and guy in the logo, this famous (in Japan) toy better known as "Great Robot Base" was used as inspiration for Dimicron Prime, the Town Commander representing TakaraTomy themselves in the Cybertron Satellite promotion.


1981
  • Warudaros — Used as inspiration for the Storm Rider toy, which was itself then repurposed as King Waruder, a riff on the Diaclone character "Emperor Waruder." We've come full circle or something.
  • Waruder Pilots — The insectoid opposite number of the heroic Diaclone pilots packed with the Insector Robo, Warudaros, and others, these minifigures were used as inspiration for the Beet-Chit, Ripper, Thrasher, Crusher, and Buzzer toys, as well as their leader, a Thrasher repurpose named Daros.
1982
  • Fortress Robot X — Used as inspiration for, ah, Fortress X.


1981

Dashers

The eldest Diaclone molds in Transformers that rather noticeably predate the "in disguise" part, the Dashers were released with minor changes as the Powerdashers. Each was released solely as "Powerdasher" and the toys did not receive individual Transformers names until decades later. Said names were sourced directly from their releases in Diaclone's idiosyncratic European branch headed by French licensee Joustra.

  • Sky Dasher — Blue torso was changed to black. Also released under the name "Sky Robot" as a Revell model kit in Europe. (Cromar)
  • Drill Dasher — Released virtually unchanged. Also released under the name ""Drill Robot" as a Revell model kit in Europe. (Zetar)
  • F-1 Dasher — Blue legs were changed to black. Also released under the name "F-1 Robot" as a Revell model kit in Europe. (Aragon)

Gats Blocker

Gats Blocker's "keshi" is the white carded thing.

Gats Blocker, better known by its localized names "Multi-Force" or "Multiforce 14", is probably the most well known Diaclone toy in the western world not in the primary The Transformers assortment due to its omnipresence in Diaclone's American and European incarnations. Its path to becoming relevant to the world of Transformers was a real elaborate one:

For context, the items on this page are nowhere near the sum total of the products in the Diaclone franchise. In addition to its main line, Diaclone produced a bevvy of cheaper merchandise of many of its designs, including a series of decoy-adjacent simplified rubber figures known as "keshi." One such rubber figure of Gats Blocker was knocked off and turned into a clock(???) to produce the prolific bootleg "19-in-1 Robot Clock."[9] Somehow, some way, this bootleg then wormed its way into the 1985 Transformers slate as the enigmatic French exclusive Horloge Robot, produced in association with the Generation 1 cartoon's French broadcaster Canal.[10] The original toy separately inspired an unnamed background comic character.

1982 - Car Robots

Car Robots

Both Diaclone's only proper subline imprint and the most significant assortment to Transformers history by a wide margin, Car Robots is the source of Optimus Prime himself as well as the entirety of the 1984-1985 Autobot Cars. More abstractly, it eventually served as the inspiration for the 2000 Transformers franchise of the same name. While most of Diaclone's themed subgroups were designed by a single team, the sheer size of Car Robots necessitated more variety. Thus, figures are credited individually in this section:

Individual figures
Hey that truck guy looks familiar.
  • No. 3 Countach Patrol Car Type — Not released as a Transformer but later used as inspiration for Cordon and the white Sunstreaker clones.
  • No. 4 Onebox Ambulance Type — The Diaclone deco was virtually unchanged for release as Ratchet.
  • No. 5 4WD Hilux — The Diaclone black deco was virtually unchanged for release as Trailbreaker. The Diaclone version was also available in blue and yellow decoes; the blue deco was used as inspiration for DK-3 Breaker and Shattered Glass Trailbreaker while the yellow deco was used as inspiration for Riggorus.
  • No. 6 Honda City R — The Diaclone silver deco was virtually unchanged for release as Crosscut. The Diaclone version was also available in red, which was used as inspiration for Reboost.
  • No. 7 Fairlady Z — The Diaclone blue deco was changed to silver for release as Bluestreak. The original deco was later used as inspiration for Silverstreak, Shattered Glass Bluestreak, and a gazillion variant decoes of regular Bluestreak toys. The Diaclone version was also available in a silver deco with a black hood that inspired Bluestreak's Generation 1 cartoon character model.
  • No. 8 4WD Wrecker Type — The Diaclone red deco was changed to green for release as Hoist. The red deco was used as inspiration for Lift-Ticket and Shattered Glass Hoist. The Diaclone version was also available in lilac as part of the "Double Set" (see below).
  • No. 9 Honda City Turbo — The Diaclone blue deco was virtually unchanged for release as Skids. The Diaclone version was also available in black and red decos, the former of which was used as inspiration for Burn Out and Shattered Glass Skids.
  • No.10 Fire Engine Ladder Car for High-Rise Buildings/"Fire Truck Long Ladder Type"[A 1] — The Diaclone deco was virtually unchanged for release as Inferno.
  • No.11 Fairlady Z Racing/"Fairlady Z Racing Type 280 ZX Turbo"[A 2] — The Diaclone deco was virtually unchanged for release as Smokescreen.
  • No.12 J59 Jeep — The Diaclone deco was virtually unchanged for release as Hound.
  • No.13 Police Car Fairlady Z — The Diaclone deco was virtually unchanged for release as Prowl.
  • No.14 Porsche 935 Turbo — The Diaclone deco was virtually unchanged for release as Jazz.
  • No.15 New Countach LP500S — The Diaclone red deco was virtually unchanged for release as Sideswipe. The Diaclone version was also available in a yellow deco, which later became the basis for the Transformers figure Tigertrack. At least one recorded specimen exists of a third, super-rare black variant unlikely to have ever seen full production.[11]
  • No.16 F-1 Ligier JS11 — The Diaclone blue deco was virtually unchanged for release as Mirage. A red version of the Diaclone figure was exclusively available with the Powered Convoy DX Set (see below).
  • No.17 Battle Convoy — The Diaclone deco was virtually unchanged for release as Optimus Prime.
  • No.18 Lancia Stratos Turbo — The Diaclone deco was virtually unchanged for release as Wheeljack. The Diaclone version was also available in a different deco and head, which was used as inspiration for Exhaust.
  • No.19 New Countach LP500S Police Car Type/"New Countach Police Car LP500S"[A 3] — The Diaclone police deco was changed to a fire chief deco for release as Red Alert. The original deco was later released as Clampdown.
  • No.20 Crane Car/"Truck Crane"[A 4] — The Diaclone deco was virtually unchanged for release as Grapple.
  • No.21 Corvette Stingray — The Diaclone red deco was changed to blue for release as Tracks. The Diaclone red deco was released as Tracks in Europe and later as Road Rage, and also inspired Shattered Glass Tracks. The Diaclone version also received a Finnish exclusive black deco, which was used as inspiration for Loudpedal and the Tracks clone.
  • Powered Convoy — The Diaclone deco was (more or less) reversed for release as Ultra Magnus. The original deco was later released as "Ultra Magnus Yokokuhen Version". The more common Diaclone version was available with flat grey plastic parts for his trailer, but a rarer variant changed those to chromed parts. latter version was also available as part of the "Powered Convoy DX Set" (see below). The "Powered Buggy" (パワードバギー) accessory was excised from all Transformers releases, though it did inspire the fiction-only character Powerdrive. The original Diaclone deco was used as inspiration for Delta Magnus, Magna Convoy, and Shattered Glass Ultra Magnus.
Giftsets
  • Double Set — lilac version of No. 8 4WD Wrecker Type and silver version of No. 6 Honda City R, called "Honda City S" for this set.
  • Powered Convoy DX Set — the rarer variant of Powered Convoy with chromed parts for his trailer, along with a red version of No.16 F-1 Ligier JS11 that was exclusive to this set, and an equally exclusive variation of the rare black version of No.15 New Countach LP500S, but now with some parts in blue instead of black plastic in robot mode and additional Lamborghini badge stickers on his doors that weren't present on any previous version of the figure. This second black version of the New Countach later became the basis for the Transformers figure Deep Cover.
Notes
  1. ↑ Car Robo No. 10 is named "Fire Engine Ladder Car for High-Rise Buildings" (消防自動車高層ビル用ハシゴ車) in combined kanji/katakana on its packaging, but "Fire Truck Long Ladder Type" in English.
  2. ↑ Car Robo No. 11 is simply named "Fairlady Z Racing" (フェアレディＺ レーシング) in katakana on its packaging, but "Fairlady Z Racing Type 280 ZX Turbo" in English.
  3. ↑ Car Robo No. 19 is named "New Countach LP500S Police Car Type" (ニューカウンタックLP500S ポリスカータイプ) in katakana on its packaging, but "New Countach Police Car LP500S" in English.
  4. ↑ Car Robo No. 20 is named "Crane Car" (クレーン車) in combined katakana/kanji on its packaging, but "Truck Crane" in English.


1983 - Trains, Planes, and Insecticons

Baku-Ten Attack Robo

The final sci-fi vehicles in the original Diaclone range (give or take a dinosaur), the Baku-Ten Attack Robo (爆転アタックロボ, roughly "Explosive Flip Attack Robo") were released in the Transformers line as the Jumpstarters. As the name suggests, in its original context the Attack Robo's spring-loaded gimmick was intended as less of an autotransformation and more of a Bot Shots-esque "pullback attack" feature for harassing Waruders, pets, siblings etc. The Jumpstarters are particularly notable as the only Diaclone molds in Transformers not released in Takara's own market. Perhaps they were spooked by Hasbro's legal troubles.

  • Drill Tank Type — Available in two decoes. Dark blue limbs with grey chest or dark blue limbs with red chest. Transformers releases Twin Twist/Salt-Man Z/Robot-Man Z all utilized completely new decoes. The red deco was used as inspiration for (sigh) "Diaclone Universe Twin Twist."
  • Jet Type — Available in two decoes. Dark blue chest with red limbs or dark blue chest with grey limbs. Transformers releases Topspin/Salt-Man X/Robot-Man X all utilized completely new decoes.

Jet Plane F-15 Robo

First released in the short-lived Real & Robo rebrand of Car Robots to encompass other real-world vehicles, the F-15 Robo mold was the source for the Seekers. The black and purple deco used for Skywarp was created for the Transformers line. The decoes and remolded wings for the Coneheads were also original to The Transformers.

Insecter Robo

The only "bad guy" mechs from Diaclone to make their way into Transformers, the Waruder-piloted Insector Robo were released as the Insecticons with new purple, black, and yellow decoes. Much later, the Diaclone decos were used for the e-HOBBY exclusive Insecticon Clones.

Individual figures
Giftsets
  • Insector Robo 3 Figure Set, contains "Beetle-Type" Kabutron, "Grasshopper-Type" Battas and "Lammelicorns-Type" Kuwagatrer

Train Robo

The year's showstopper was another Real & Robo entry: the Train Robo series. The first-ever combiner as we think of them today, the Train Robo were made up of six individual train engines that could combine into a single massive robot or into, you know, a train. Modular plastic train track accessories were included with each figure to facilitate that second one that were dropped for their eventual Transformers releases. The Train Robo molds were passed up for the 1984 and 1985 assortments (likely due to the relative unpopularity of their alternate modes outside of train-tastic Japan) and did not become Transformers until the debut of the Takara-exclusive Headmasters sub-franchise in 1987.

There were two color variations released for the Diaclone line, making 12 individual trains total: Numbers 1-6 were standard retail decoes released both individually and as a gift set. It was this deco that was rereleased virtually unchanged for release as Raiden and his components the Trainbots. Numbers 7-12 are much rarer and were never released as a giftset. These decoes were used as inspiration for G Liner and the "prototype Trainbots."

Individual figures
Giftsets
  • Train Robo 6 Figure Formation DX Set, collects No. 1 Tōkaidō 0 Series Shinkansen, No. 2 EF65-1000 Blue Train, No. 3 Tōhoku Jōetsu 200 Series Shinkansen, No. 4 Tōkaidō Main Line 153 Express Train, No. 5 L-Limited express 485 and No. 6 DE10 Diesel Locomotive.


1984 - DINOSAUR ATTACK

Construction Vehicle Robo

The original Diaclone decos featured predominantly blue combiner parts. All six received new, uniform green and purple color schemes for release in the Transformers line as the Constructicons. The figures were also available as part of the European release of the Transformers toyline in yellow instead of green, and were later also re-released in yellow as part of the Generation 2 toyline in the United States and Canada, plus rarer orange variants that were only available in the United States.

Individual figures
Giftsets
  • Build Combination 6 Figure Set, contains No. 1 Bulldozer, No. 2 Power Shovel, No. 3 Shovel-Dozer/"Shovel Tractor",[B 1] No. 4 Truck Crane, No. 5 Dump Truck and No. 6 Mixer Truck/"Concrete Mixer".[B 2] A later running change variant of the giftset changed the main color of both Truck Crane and Concrete Mixer from red to blue, while the combiner parts were changed from blue to red. These versions were only available as part of the giftset.
Notes
  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 The individually released Construction Vehicle Robo No. 3 is named "Shovel-Dozer" (ショベルドーザー) in katakana, but "Tractor Shovel" in English. The "Build Combination 6 Figure Set" giftset still calls the figure "Shovel-Dozer" in katakana, but now has reversed the order of the two parts of the English name to "Shovel Tractor".
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Construction Vehicle Robo No. 6 is named "Mixer Truck" (ミキサー車) in combined katakana/kanji, but "Concrete Mixer" in English. This is repeated with the "Build Combination 6 Figure Set" giftset.

Dinosaur Robo

The Dinosaur Robo molds became the Dinobots in Transformers. Duh. The Dinosaur Robo were the heroes of a pretty elaborate swerve in that year's storyline where the Waruder started dropping organic dinosaurs on Tokyo with time portals. Yes, really. All of the TF releases had softer plastic in certain places. There were also several differences in decoes between the Diaclone and Transformers versions, mostly the replacement of blue paint with red.

  • Tyrannosaurus (Grimlock)
  • Triceratops (Slag)
  • Brontosaurus (Sludge)
  • Stegosaurus (Snarl)
  • Pteranodon (Swoop, Diaclone deco inspired Swoop's animation model)

Double Changers

Notably peculiar as some of the only cars released outside of the Car Robots subline, the Double Changers were released as the Omnibots.


Triplechangers

Only the Jet Fighter Type Triple Changer was ever released in the Transformers line, but the Helicopter Type later inspired three fiction-only characters. Astrotrain and Octane may have been in development when the change to the Transformers brand occurred. See below for more.

  • No. 1 Jet Fighter Type — The Diaclone dark green and white deco was changed to purple and beige for release as Blitzwing. The original deco was later released as Overcharge.
  • No. 2 Helicopter Type — Not released as a Transformer, but used as inspiration for the fiction-only characters Rotorbolt, Skyklik, and Fumes.


Posthumous Diaclone

Diaclone's final contribution to the Transformers brand came in the form of the bevvy of product halfway through the pipeline when the line was shelved in favor of Transformers in 1985. This is widely postulated to be the source of the bulk of the new-mold Takara vehicle Transformers for the years of 1984 through 1986. While there is no hard delineation where Takara "stopped making Diaclone" and "started making Transformers," June 1985 can be seen as something of a "final deadline" as the month where Takara debuted The Transformers at the "Tokyo Toy Show" trade show and Hasbro began shipping design bibles full of data on the 1986 toy assortments to Marvel and Sunbow Productions.

Triplechangers Reloaded

  • A Diaclone patent of a locomotive/space shuttle robot presumably slated for a second wave of Triple Changers filed in December of 1984 is pretty unmistakably a near-finalized Astrotrain.
  • This one's pushing it, but a very early concept draft of a tanker truck/jet robot[13] with a transformation scheme that can be pegged to the earliest known prototype[14] of Octane can be dated to March 2, 1985.

The Scramble Saga

Diaclone Menasor's transparent thigh high boots were deemed too saucy by Hasbro S&P.

"Jizai Gattai" (自在合体, roughly "Limitless Combination"), later "Diaclone Scramble Combination" (ダイアクロン・スクランブル合体 Daiakuron Scramble Gattai),[15] was to be the primary theme for Diaclone's 1985 assortment, a modular play pattern consisting of smaller robots that could form arms or legs for larger torsos, all centered around one of Diaclone's trademark baseformers. This concept was refitted for Transformers and became the Scramble City subline of the Japanese Transformers toyline, also known as the "Special Teams" in the European toyline or "all those 1986 combiner guys" in the United States. The central base became Metroplex.

"Jizai Gattai" prototypes known to have been developed into specific Transformers include:

Known limb robot prototypes included five jets, four cars, two helicopters, two motorcycles, one ambulance, one racecar, and a police car,[15] though anything further would be speculative at best, particularly given specific "teams" of components did not yet exist as we know them today.

This line likely inspired the in-fiction "Free-Combination" (自由合体 Jiyū Gattai) ability of the original Special Teams' later Operation Combination redecoes.

Contemporary international Diaclone releases

  • Like Transformers itself, Diaclone was also released in other countries, in some cases licensed to other companies:

United States

Takara themselves had a short run in the U.S. market under the name Diakron, featuring three toys that were later released as Transformers in different colors. This was followed by Kronoform, which featured a fairly hefty swathe of Diaclone toys that were not released as Transformers by Hasbro.

Main article: Diakron
Main article: Kronoform

Finland

Takara themselves released toys in Finland under the name Diaclone, sharing elements of the packaging design with GiG's Trasformer line. This release is notable for a unique black version of the Corvette Stingray (pre-Loudpedal).

Italy

Italian company GiG initially released toys under the name Diaclone, but soon changed it to Trasformer [sic]. Whether GiG was copying Hasbro or the other way round is unclear; however, Trasformer did feature a blend of Diaclone toys and elements original to Hasbro's Transformers line, possibly due to production reasons.

Main article: Trasformer

France, Germany, Belgium and Netherlands

French company Joustra released the toys under the name Diaclone in France, Belgium, the Netherlands, and Germany, featuring a blend of Micro Change and Diaclone toys with unique packaging designs and origin stories, but eventually sporting factory-applied Autobot or Decepticon stickers, also due to production reasons.

Main article: Joustra


Fiction

Animated cartoon

Wyatt Toys advertised Diaclone and Microman toys for sale in the Detroit Powell Press. The AllSpark Almanac

Diaclone continuity

Transtech


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What's needed: Transformers I.Q. issue 6 Transformers I.Q. issue 12 Cybertron's Most Wanted Ask Vector Prime Axiom Nexus News King Waruder profile

Masterpiece toy bios


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What's needed: Masterpiece Spin-out bio Masterpiece Bluestreak bio Masterpiece Burn Out bio


Legacy VS500 Collection Special Comic


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What's needed: Velocitron Speedia 500 Part 1 Velocitron Speedia 500 Part 2 Velocitron Speedia 500 Part 3


Transformers × Dialect Girl

There are some editors on this wiki that actually see this image when they close their eyes at night.

In a last ditch attempt to find a point of commonality with Transformers fan Kahori Hanamura, her building's super told her about a Transformers toy he was handed down from his older brother as a child, describing it as a robot that turned into a base, with a rear elevator for tiny dolls to enter it. Kahori corrected him that this was not a Transformer, but actually the Robot Base toy from Diaclone, which thoroughly impressed her. My Toys Part 3

Notes

  • Diaclone is a portmanteau of "diamond" and "cyclone": "unbreakable as a diamond, powerful as a cyclone".[19]
    • "Cymond," the name for Diaclone's location in the in-fiction multiverse, was devised by longtime Transformers contributor Hirofumi Ichikawa as an inversion of the original portmanteau (cyclone + diamond).[20]
  • Designs from Diaclone were plagiarized for the Korean animated movie Diatron 5 (다이아트론5), which for a time haunted Walmart dollar bins as Space Transformers.
  • General Motors stopped using the "Stingray" name after the 1976 model year through 2013. Though the Corvette mold is obviously a 1980 to 1982 model year, Takara incorrectly called it a Stingray.


「ワルダー」


The Waruders are an evil faction from the Diaclone continuity family.

The Waruders have only one goal: to feed. To this end, they invade entire planets, entire systems, and even other universes in search of more material to satiate their never-ending hunger. In this pursuit, they have engineered technorganic shells piloted by various troops.

The Waruder army includes:

Fiction

TransTech


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What's needed: Transtech toy bios, particularly King Waruder
Game over, man! Game over!

When a hive of Waruders migrated to Nexus 208.0 Epsilon, they were cast back in time 20,000 years due to quantum instability. Left to their own devices, they built a highly advanced hive over the centuries, and began to feed on the Cybertonium within the planet. In the present day, the Waruders emerged from hibernation en masse, and their venom contaminated the global net, causing a planet-wide shutdown of the Transcendent Technomorphs. Their hive was stumbled upon by a group of wanted criminals, led by C-81. These intruders provoked a hostile reaction from the Waruders, and both sides soon found themselves exchanging blasts. General Optimus Prime and Sergeant Hound soon joined the fray, as well as Lift-Ticket/Cline and Burn Out/Dia, two human-operated mechs who were more familiar with the insectoid menace. The Waruders still had the upper hand nonetheless, thanks to their sheer numbers. The battle came to an end when C-81 captured Beet-Chit, the hive's leader, and forced the bug to negotiate. The Waruders agreed to leave peacefully and to provide a venom sample for the creation of an anti-toxin. In exchange, the Waruders received safe passage to another dimension's Cybertron, an abandoned planet where they would be allowed to feed unopposed. Cybertron's Most Wanted

After their attack on Axiom Nexus, considered the greatest security threat in generations, journalist Rook asked the authorities how in the Pit the Waruders had shown up at all. Rhinox explained to viewers that their home universal cluster was so far removed from that of Axiom Nexus, the Ministry of Higher Dimensional Sciences hadn't even realized it was part of the multiverse. Rook - Axiom Nexus News, 2015/06/29

Masterpiece toy bios

The mysterious Bluestreak fought giant insects on Earth. Masterpiece Bluestreak bio

Notes

  • The Waruders (ワルダー Warudā) were the villainous faction used for the original Diaclone toyline. Their name is based on waru (悪), the Japanese word for "evil", and "invader" (インベーダー inbēdā).
  • In the original Diaclone story, the Waruder leader was the "Emperor Waruder" (帝王ワルダー Teiō Warudā). Meanwhile, the race's insignia is the face of Ingham (インガム Ingamu), a Waruder general.
  • The Waruder toys sold at BotCon 2015 all have names derived from G.I. Joe, whose license was also held by Fun Publications at the time. The pilots and the Storm Rider mech are named after various Dreadnoks, while the others are named after vehicles (2 used by G.I. Joe and 1 used by Cobra).
  • In planning for the BotCon 2015 Waruder four-pack, Fun Publications considered making one of the Deluxe Class wasps a version of Generation 1 Venom, who has long suffered from a lack of any available molds with a cicada alt-mode. However, they shelved this plan upon learning that Hasbro also had that idea on the docket. Ultimately, Hasbro did produce a mass-retail toy of Venom (under the modern trademark-friendly name "Venin"), but using the small Mini-Con-sized mold rather than the Deluxe Class mold, and in different colours available from Acid Storm's sprue.



「ミクロチェンジ」



This article is about the pre-Transformers toyline. For the Kreons with alternate modes, see Micro-Changer.
Micromasters Micro Machines Micromen!

The Micro Change Series (ミクロチェンジシリーズ) sub-line of TakaraTomy's long running Microman series was, along with Diaclone, one of the two major sources of molds for the original Transformers line.

Overview

Micro Change was a subline of Takara's successful New Microman line of the early '80s, which consisted of 3.75" action figures that were super-posable and vehicles and robots for use by them. The Microman figures, unlike all subsequent 3.75" action figures (except their Western counterpart the Micronauts, made by Mego using licensed Microman molds) were on a 1:1 scale rather than representing full-sized humans/aliens/robots, so the transforming robots and vehicles they created had ordinary household objects (such as, um, handguns) as disguise modes. Many of the Micro Change figures came in multiple color schemes, many of which were eventually used for the Transformers line.



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Toys

The following list covers all Micro Change releases that were later rereleased as Transformers toys or otherwise inspired Transformers concepts. Micro Change molds with no Transformers relation are generally not listed as they fall outside the purview of this site.

1983

Before he was our Enemy...
  • MC-01 Micross
The first version was the blue-body, grey-limb cassette used for Frenzy. A black-body, red-limb version, used for Rumble, came with Cassette Man. Towards the end of the line, a red-body, blue-limb version was released.
  • MC-02 Jaguar
The first version was used for Ravage. A blue version was released at the end of the line, and was used for the e-HOBBY figure Howlback. In 2007, Jaguar was redecoed into Glit (later repurposed as Shattered Glass Ravage) and then Stripes in 2012.
  • MC-03 Condor
The first version was used for Laserbeak. The blue second version was used for the e-HOBBY figure Garboil. Buzzsaw's and Sundor's decos were created for the Transformers line.
  • Micro Cassette Robo DX 3-Figure Set
A giftset that collects the first versions of MC-01 Micross, MC-02 Jaguar and MC-03 Condor.


  • MC-04 Mini Car Robo
We'll slip you a fiver if you tell the guy in charge of pre-Transformer redecoes at Hasbro that this is Glyph.
This small car assortment actually had two different origins. 01-03 were designed by Takara and transform into super deformed toy cars in the style of Takara's own Choro-Q line (imported to English-speaking markets as Penny Racers). They were released in red, yellow, and blue and had license plate stickers on the back of the head panel. 04-07 were initially designed as part of the little-known Mysterians toyline but left unproduced, with the tooling used by Takara for Micro Change. When they came out as part of that line, they were released in only one color scheme each. Their subsequent Transformers releases were largely identical, but "Jeep" went from olive green to forest green in becoming Brawn.
  • 01 Porsche Turbo 924 ("red body", "blue body" or "yellow body"), Pre-Cliffjumper
  • 02 Familia 1500 XG ("red body", "blue body" or "yellow body"), Pre-Bumper
  • 03 Volkswagen ("red body", "blue body" or "yellow body"), Pre-Bumblebee
  • 04 4WD Offroad, Pre-Gears
  • 05 Jeep, Pre-Brawn
  • 06 Transam, Pre-Windcharger
  • 07 American Truck, Pre-Huffer
  • MC-05 Camera Robo Microx
Pre-Reflector

  • MC-06 Watch Robo
We don't have
time
to get into this figure's whole deal right now.
Eh? Eh?
This figure transformed from a robot to a watch. It came in chrome, black, blue, and gold versions. Before appearing in Transformers, the toy was released in North America as the title character of the Kronoform toyline and in Europe as part of Joustra's rather idiosyncratic incarnation of Micro Change' sister toyline Diaclone. Each colorway met a different fate in Transformers:
  • MC-07 Gun Robo Browning M1910
Browning came either in Silver with red robot parts, or Gold with blue robot parts, in addition to a gold chromed contest piece. The version released as the Japanese exclusive Browning sported the blue parts, but with the silver body, though his animation model used in Super-God Masterforce depicted him using the gold body with the blue parts.
  • MC-08 Cassette Machine Battlebike HG90
The Battlebike transforms from a full-sized audio cassette into a motorbike vehicle for the included Microman figure. A redeco of this toy was released in the 1999 Microman line.
  • MC-09 Cassette Machine Jetheli XL120
The Jetheli transforms from a full-sized audio cassette into a helicopter for the included Microman figure. A redeco of this toy was re-released in the 1999 Microman line.
  • MC-10 Cassette Man
Pre-TF Soundwave with "Cassette Man" molded on the cassette door. He came with fake earphones and microphone that were also included in Soundwave's Japanese release, and Pre-Rumble. Likewise, the Japanese Soundwave came with Rumble instead of Buzzsaw.

Megatron and this guy go way back.
  • MC-11 Gun Robo S&W Magnum 44
This figure had a revolving chamber, and came with either a brown or gold hilt. Ask Vector Prime would establish that this figure represents the Cymond analog of Kiloton.
  • MC-12 Gun Robo Walther P-38
Pre-Japanese Megatron. This toy did not include any gun attachments (and lacked the tooling to attach them anyway), but had a gun, sword, and plastic pellets which it could fire. It came with blue inner arms and legs, and was either black with a brown grip, or grey with a black grip in gun mode. The grey version was used for all vintage Japanese Megatrons (The Goodbye Megatron set came with the U.N.C.L.E. scope and attachment bracket).
  • MC-13 Gun Robo Walther P-38 U.N.C.L.E.
This figure came with all of MC-12's parts, as well as several gun extensions, namely a scope, a silencer and a shoulder stock, which were inspired by a similarly modified version of the Walther P-38 as seen in the popular 1960s spy television series The Man from U.N.C.L.E..[21] Only one color scheme, silver with black handle in gun mode with red inner arms and legs, was released. This color scheme was used for all Hasbro releases of the original Megatron and the Japanese reissues. The toy was also released by e-HOBBY as Megaplex, using the MC-12 grey/blue deco, as well as a new "Black Megatron" deco in dark chrome, black plastic in place of grey, brown handle, and red inner sections.


1984

  • Meteor Robo (MC-14 - MC-16)
This figure transforms from a robot into a metallic ball. It came with two guns that could either be wielded in robot mode or attached to the sides in ball mode and a circular base upon which the ball mode could sit.
Two versions were available, the more common silver chrome with black plastic accessories and robot parts or the considerably rarer bluish-silver chrome with red plastic accessories and robot parts. This mold (minus accessories) didn't see release in Transformers until Beast Wars Eggbot and Dark Eggbot, where it was retooled to include a keychain. This keychain retool was later (again without accessories) used for Kiss Players Star Dust.
  • MC-15 Metal Leo
This figure transforms from a lion into a metallic ball. It came with two guns that could either be wielded in lion mode or attached to the sides in ball mode and a circular base upon which the ball mode could sit.
Two versions were available, the more common gold chrome with black plastic accessories or the considerably rarer silver chrome with red plastic accessories. This mold (minus accessories) didn't see release in Transformers until Beast Wars Eggleo and Dark Eggleo where it was retooled to include a keychain. This keychain retool was later (again without accessories) used for Kiss Players Angela.
  • MC-16 Metal Hawk
This figure transforms from a hawk into a metallic ball. It came with two guns that could either be wielded in hawk mode or attached to the sides in ball mode and a circular base upon which the ball mode could sit.
Two versions were available, the more common gold chrome with black plastic accessories or the considerably rarer silver chrome with red plastic accessories. This mold (minus accessories) didn't see release in Transformers until Beast Wars Eggbird and Dark Eggbird where it was retooled to include a keychain. This keychain retool was later (again without accessories) used for Kiss Players Zangetsu.

  • Lock Robo (MC-17 - MC-18)
This figure transforms from a working dial lock to a robot. The toy was never released in any Transformers line, but a version in a purple deco did make a cameo in the Dreamwave G1 comics as a background generic.
  • MC-18 Magneman
This figure transforms from a working key lock to a robot.

  • MC-19 Binocular Robo Scope Man
This figure transforms from a pair of working binoculars into a robot. The toy was never released in any Transformers line, but a version in a yellow deco did make a cameo in the Dreamwave G1 comics as a background generic.
  • MC-20 Micro Scope
Released in a primarily black deco, MC-20 was recolored into Perceptor. The third tank mode could be used as a vehicle for a Microman figure. The toy's Micro Change deco was used for the e-HOBBY exclusive Magnificus (and Shattered Glass Perceptor).
  • MC-21 Radi-Cassette Robo
This figure came with an AM radio in the form of a fake Micro cassette, and an earphone. One could listen to the radio through the earphone, or put the radio in the main toy's cassette deck. After moving the switch above the left (non-functional) speaker "on" and pressing "play", a pair of batteries in the toy's right leg would amplify the signal from the cassette to the functional right speaker. A knob to the right of the tape door could change the station, and a volume knob and a plug for headphones were located on the toy's left leg. Due to the speaker plug, the transforming micro cassettes could not fit in the tape door. They could, however, fit in a compartment in the toy's back. The earphone plug could also fit in the small hole on the stock of the toys gun, and the speaker could fit in the large hole at the gun's center. The toy came in either blue or red. The red deco was used for Blaster.


Unreleased

  • MC-22 Beam Robo
This figure transforms from a working flashlight into a robot. It would eventually be repurposed as a full-body physical basis of the Decepticon Hardcase.


「アメリカ」


This article is about the American import line. For the original Japanese toyline, see Diaclone.
Now, is that a rising sun or a setting sun?

Released in 1983, Diakron was a small toyline sold directly by Takara in the United States. It is notable for essentially being a direct port of Takara's Diaclone toyline, and featured several toys that would, mere months later, be released as Transformers by Hasbro.

Following the establishment of Takara's partnership with Hasbro, Diakron ceased production. It was functionally replaced by Kronoform, an American toyline from Takara that featured Diaclone and Microman toys which were not released as Transformers.

Story

The Diakron story, as related by a catalog:

Welcome to the futuristic world of the Diakron, where Diakron commanders go on secret missions to protect their civilization against enemies. To disguise their movements, the Diakron commanders ride in special vehicles that magically change shape and transform into robot warriors, space ships, lunar landers and more!

Toyline

The Diakron toyline consisted of:

Robot/Cars of the Future

Power Dashers
The Power Dashers were released with minor changes in Transformers as the Powerdashers. Each was released in the American market solely as "Powerdasher," and the Transformers characters did not receive individual names until reclaiming their Diakron designations in 2013 (Cromar) and 2015 (Zetar and Aragon).

  • Cromar — Released with minor changes as "Powerdasher." Also released under the name "Sky Robot" as a Revell model kit in Europe.
  • Zetar — Released with minor changes as "Powerdasher." Also released under the name "Drill Robot" as a Revell model kit in Europe.
  • Aragon — Released with minor changes as "Powerdasher." Also released under the name "F-1 Robot" as a Revell model kit in Europe.

Multi-Force 14 Robot — The Diaclone Gats Blocker toy, later homaged with an unnamed comic background character

Notes

  • When the molds for Aragon, Cromar, and Zetar were originally released as Diaclone toys, they were given the group name "Dashers". In the Diakron toyline, this had become "Power Dashers". By the time the molds were released in the Transformers toyline, the two words had fused into "Powerdashers".
  • The uncharacteristically creative names of the Powerdashers do not actually originate with Diakron at all, but rather Joustra's French iteration of the Diaclone franchise.
  • DK-2 Guard and DK-3 Breaker have their Diakron IDs bolted to the front of their Transformers toy names in a rather more blunt Diakron homage.


「ミクロマン」


Meeeee-ku-ro-maaaaaaan!

Microman (ミクロマン Mikuroman) is the name applied to a broad series of Takara toy lines sold in Japan from 1974 onwards. It is significant to Transformers due to it spawning the Micro Change subline and Diaclone spin-off, both of which heavily contributed toy molds that would go on to form much of the original Transformers toyline.

Outside of Transformers, Microman is also a major stepping stone in the journey from the original G.I. Joe–the first ever range of action figures–to the industry standard of 3.75-inch figures as we know it today.

Overview

Origins and Microman (1974-1980)

 
The line was mostly made up of 3.75-inch figures like M251 Robin (left). Their modular construction allowed them to interact with bases, vehicles, and mech suits such as Robotman (right), which has a yellow Microman pilot visible in its chest.

Microman's roots lie, perhaps surprisingly, with the original 12-inch G.I. Joe range of toys, which introduced the world to the term "action figure" when released in 1964. Takara imported the line in Japan in 1971 as "Combat Joe", but when the militaristic styles of "America's Moveable Fighting Man" received only a tepid market response, they instead repurposed the molds to create Henshin Cyborg. The titular character was a cybernetic superhero with a distinctive chromed head and translucent body parts that revealed his inner mechanical parts. Henshin Cyborg could "transform" by replacing his modular limbs with weaponry, or by donning separately sold costumes to embody other popular characters from the Transformers universe, like Devilman or Mazinger Z.

Then, the 1970s energy crisis happened. The increased cost of oil meant that the planned expansion of Henshin Cyborg into vehicles and playsets was untenable. These cost concerns–coupled with the acknowledgement that Japanese household space is typically too limited for a collection of such large toys–led to Takara creating the 3.75-inch scale Microman as, effectively, Henshin Cyborg shrunken down to about a third of its size. The line included bases, converting vehicles, figures, and piloted mech suits; notable highlights include 1975's Robotman, Takara's first toy that could transform (or rather, partsform) from a robot to a vehicle, and 1978's "Cosmo Countach", a primitive robot that could come apart and be reassembled into a Lamborghini supercar.[22]

In what would end up being a remarkably prescient move, American toy manufacturer Mego would choose to license the use of molds from Microman alongside other Takara lines, introducing the western world to the Micronauts franchise in 1977. Micronauts gained a tie-in comic series from Marvel in 1979, which proved popular enough to outlast the toyline. Micronauts was one of the earliest toylines in the American market to utlise the 3.75-inch figure scale (the first being 1975's Adventure People by Fisher Price); bolstered by the Kenner toyline for some space movie or other, it became the standard for many lines of the era, and a format for action toys that survives to this day. In particular, Mego's alterations to existing Microman engineering would come back around to influence G.I. Joe, resulting in the creation of its "A Real American Hero" franchise. The impact of Microman on the global boys' toy market can scarcely be overestimated, despite the fact that Microman itself is little known outside of Japan.

New Microman (1981-1984)

Takara has re-used some of Microman's parts, along with some other new parts, and has reconstructed another Microman, and renamed it New Microman.

1981 saw a shake-up for the Microman line. The transforming mecha aspect of the line was spun off into Diaclone which, like Microman before it, was a third-scale miniaturisation of its predecessor. The tiny "Dianaut" pilots inherited the bright colours and chromed heads of Henshin Cyborg that had since become a hallmark of Microman, and the Cosmo Countach served as inspiration for the "Car Robots" series toy "No. 1 Countach LSP500S"–predecessor to the Autobot Sunstreaker, and the first fully-fledged transforming car-to-robot toy ever designed, according to Hasbro.[23]

Meanwhile, Microman was rebranded as New Microman, with a renewed focus on its action figure characters. The story lore that had been building up in the Microman toy catalogues was streamlined, with renewed emphasis placed on the Microman pilots being refugees from Micro Earth, fighting against the mutated Acroyears by joining forces with human children like you–an alliance facilitated by the Microman characters being at 1:1 scale with their action figures. This unique selling point was especially evident with 1983's "Micro Change" subseries, which introduced robot figures and vehicles that could transform into ordinary household objects like Penny Racers, audio cassettes, and, um, handguns.

Takara exhibited their Diaclone and Micro Change toys at the 1983 Tokyo Toy Show, where an anonymous Hasbro representative saw the potential in these transforming robots and, in short order, the toys were reborn in Western markets as The Transformers. Takara would soon shutter the Microman and Diaclone brands in favour of reimporting The Transformers alongside its tie-in animated series (which the previous lines both lacked).

Micro Millennium (1998-2000)

Before adopting LEDs, Magne Powers made use of bishie sparkle.

Fifteen years after being taken off the market, Microman returned amidst the hype of the upcoming futuristic-sounding space year 2000 (you had to be there) in the form of two distinct series. The Replica Microman series was aimed at older collectors and consisted of reissued and redecoed molds from Microman's heyday. The other series, aimed at children, began life as Magne Powers before rebranding in its second year as LED Powers. The Microman figures in the Powers range were all-new designs, though some sets also featured strange appearances from pre-existing Transformers molds. The toyline was supported by a manga serial in Comic Bom Bom and a 52-episode anime series, with a companion short film released in Japanese cinemas alongside the Beast Wars Metals episode "Convoy's Great Transformation!" and a Super Doll Licca-chan short film as part of the 1999 Summer Toei Anime Fair anthology.

Unfortunately, the Powers range underperformed and Takara, which was dealing with financial issues, reduced the size of the line before cancelling it altogether. The Replica Microman series survived until 2003, but only in the form of limited editions and exclusives to retailers such as e-HOBBY.

Microman 2003 (2003-2007)

The invention of "Full Action Bodies" allowed Microman to become the dopest shit ever.

Another new line of figures appeared in 2003, appropriately named Microman 2003 and re-envisioned as an adult-oriented collectible. The first series of this toyline, Micro Force, established a new style of body construction proudly advertised as "Full Action Bodies", which featured over thirty points of articulation and interchangeable sets of hands. The line evidently proved enough of a success, and it dropped the 2003 from its name, expanding into subsequent years with mech suits, the "Material Force" range of blank figures for customised builds, and licensed crossover toys for popular Transformers characters like Batman, Superman, Rei Ayanami, Asuka Langley Soryu, Chun-Li, the Predator, and Godzilla (the figures actually going inside rubber monster suits!) among many others.

Following the Takara/Tomy merger in 2006, the Microman line was put on a brief hiatus. It returned in 2007 with the Wecker Signa Project, a series of toys of the characters from the low-budget tokusatsu show Jikuu Keisatsu Wecker Signa. Each release came with a DVD or CD featuring episodes or other media from the show, and heavy focus was put on the unmasked forms of the female heroes, played on the series by idols. After Wecker Signa, Microman quietly came to a close, but the design team evidently used the experience with its idol stars to resurrect the "Full Action Bodies" in Transformers GT: Mission GT-R, as you'll see below.

Microman Arts (2014-2015)

Yes, you're still on the Microman page.

With TakaraTomy having learned the lesson from the GT Sisters that moe anime girls were the way forward, the Microman brand resurfaced as Microman Arts, released by the subsidiary company TakaraTomy A.R.T.S (or T-ARTS). Microman Arts consisted entirely of highly-detailed recreations of characters from pre-existing brands, including the anime series Love Live! School Idol Project, Sega's Go! Go! 575, and TakaraTomy's own PriPara, but the most prolific subline by far featured the anthropomorphised World War II warship girls of wildly popular browser game Kantai Collection.

After two years from T-ARTS, Microman came to a close, with not a single chromed head in sight. Despite its long lifespan and history of innovation, there are no apparent plans for a return on the horizon. That said, recent years have given us a full-throated Diaclone reboot and a revival of the Micronauts in comic form – so only time will tell if these little heroes will get their big moment.

Toys

As a Transformers Wiki, a full list of all Microman toys falls rather outside our scope. However, noted below are the toys in Microman that have directly borrowed from Transformers, alongside convincing cases of the reverse happening.

Transformers in Microman

Microman: LED Powers

"Redeco" feels like a strong word.
  • Mach Speeder with Rider Arthur (Micro Bikes, May 18 2000)
    • ID number: L-14
    • Series 4: Laser Microman
    • Accessories: LED Rotor Sword
Part of the LED Powers "Micro Bikes" assortment, Mach Speeder (マッハスピーダ Mahha Supīda) is a redeco and retool of Generation 2 Laser Cycle Road Rocket, transforming into a Yamaha GTS1000 motorcycle. Mach Speeder is predominantly cast in red plastic with gold metallic flake, with black robot parts. The main gimmick of LED Powers was that each Microman featured an LED bulb in their chest; when their "Energy Pack" backpacks were attached, the bulbs would activate and pipe lighting through the rest of the figure. As such, the light-up electronics present in Road Rocket were removed for Mach Speeder, and retools were made to the toy's handlebars and buzzsaw weapon to allow Microman figures to grip them.
Mach Speeder was packaged with Rider Arthur, who could mount Mach Speeder's vehicle mode and illuminate its "LED Rotor Sword" with his own electronics. This mold was also used to make Hyper Speeder below, Robots in Disguise Sideways, and Robotmasters Road Rocket. The latter two Transformers retained the retools made for Microman compatibility (apart from the saw handle), but reinstated the mold's electronics.

Wait, is that Throttle?
  • Road Bison with Rider Walt (Micro Bikes, May 18 2000)
    • ID number: L-15
    • Series 4: Laser Microman
    • Accessories: LED Muffler Cannon
The other release in the "Micro Bikes" assortment, Road Bison (ロードバイソン Rōdo Baison) is a redeco and retool of the other Generation 2 Laser Cycle, Road Pig, transforming into a Harley-Davidson Electra Glide touring motorcycle. Road Bison is predominantly silver with red and black highlights and, as with Mach Speeder, features gutted electronics and altered handlebars to allow compatibility with its partner, Rider Walt.
This mold was also used to make Tornado Bison below, Robots in Disguise Axer, and Robotmasters Double Face. Again, the latter two Transformers retained the retooling and reinstated the mold's electronic innards.

"I was hired to take photos, not apply stickers."
  • Micro Trailer with Pilot Edison (Micro Trailer, July 19 2000)
    • ID number: L-20
    • Series 5: Secret Breaster
    • Accessories: 2 blasters, gun barrel piece, 4 cannons, 2 smokestacks, rifle
The centrepiece of the "Secret Breaster" theme, the Micro Trailer is a redeco of the Action Master vehicle Armored Convoy. The trailer is cast predominantly in pearl white and translucent green, with black tyres and mostly gold accessories; a sticker sheet is provided for additional detail. The Micro Trailer retains all of the functionality of the original Armored Convoy; its cab transforms into a "Stealth Jet" mode that can seat one pilot and a gunner, and the trailer unfolds into "Battle HQ Base" mode, revealing battlement positions for more figures. Naturally, the set no longer includes Optimus Prime, instead coming with Pilot Edison; since Action Masters were about 3.75-inch scale anyway, the vehicle is a good fit for Microman, but even better is that the 2 mm holes in Microman figures' feet are the same size as those in the Action Masters' soles, allowing them to be pegged into place on the trailer's mounting points.
Two additional Micro Trailers were available in limited quantities; see below.

Mmm, citrus!
  • Hyper Speeder with Master Microman Laser Arthur and Tornado Bison with Laser Shakunetsu (multi-pack, August 2000)
    • ID number:
    • Series 5: Secret Breaster[citation needed]
    • Accessories: LED Rotor Sword, LED Muffler Cannon
Released during the "Secret Breaster" portion of LED Powers, this is a multi-pack gift set exclusive to Toys"R"Us. It contains: "Hyper Speeder" (ハイパースピーダ Haipā Supīda, misspelled as "Hiper Speeder" on the toy), a redeco of Mach Speeder in predominantly translucent lemon yellow with black and translucent orange robot parts and a green-tinted Rotor Sword; Master Microman Laser Arthur, a variant on Mach Speeder's partner Rider Arthur; Tornado Bison (トルネードバイソン Torunēdo Baison), a redeco of Road Bison in predominantly translucent orange with yellow and gold robot parts and a green-tinted Muffler Cannon; and Laser Shakunetsu, a new character created from a combination of winning entries to a Comic Bom Bom competition. The two Micro Bikes retain all the functionality of their previous releases.

  • Dark Trailer with Laser Dark (September 2000)
    • ID number: L-20
    • Series 5: Secret Breaster
This special "Lucky Draw" version of the Micro Trailer was available as a campaign promotion via Takara. Limited to 100 competition prizes worldwide, the "Dark Trailer" is a monochromatic version of the Micro Trailer, replacing the translucent green with opaque black, the other plastics with various shades of grey, and altering the paint applications to more fitting colours; the gold plastic used for most of the weapons remains the same, as does the sticker sheet. Pilot Edison is replaced with an eeeevil repaint, Laser Dark.
The set might have come in a plain white box with a small explanatory sticker on the side.[24]

Anybody got $3500?
  • Flame Trailer with Laser Edison (September 2000)
    • ID number: L-20
    • Series 5: Secret Breaster
Another Lucky Draw version of the Micro Trailer, the "Flame Trailer" was limited to 50 competition prizes and, other than replacing the translucent green plastic with translucent red, was much the same as the regular Micro Trailer, down to including the same stickers, the same pilot (under the name "Laser Edison"), and even the same box (if this eBay auction is to be believed[25]).

Not really compatible, but they're making a damn good go of it.
  • Micro Rocket Base with Shining Edison (Micro Base, October 27 2000)
    • ID number: L-26
    • Series 6: Shining Tector
Part of the final series of this iteration of Microman, the Micro Rocket Base is a redeco of the Micromaster Rocket Base, omitting that set's pack-in partner Countdown as well as the mechanical grabber arm accessory. The Micro Rocket Base is decked out in a striking black, grey, and gold colour scheme, the rocket itself is painted silver with a smokey translucent booster section, and a new sheet of gold, Microman-themed stickers is provided for details.
The base transforms from a comparatively compact launching pad modelled on the Space Shuttle crawlers, with a gantry tower and a large rocket ship. Both rocket and base unfold into multiple ramps, platforms, and "buildings", along with a small "scout vehicle". Though originally designed for Micromasters, the various seats can accommodate Microman figures, though no concessions are made to make the set more compatible with the rest of the line. The set is bundled with a green Microman named Shining Edison.

Seriously, this is the best photo we could get of this thing.
  • Gold Rocket Base? (Micro Base, November 2000)
    • ID number: L-26
    • Series 6: Shining Tector
A Lucky Draw version of the base, possibly known as "Gold Rocket Base"[26], was available as a campaign prize, limited to 50 pieces. Presented in an unchanged box from the original release, this version of the Rocket Base replaced the black plastic with white, and presumably featured other changes. Information is really scarce.
If you build it, they will play.

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Microman in Transformers

Beast Wars (Japan)

The dimensional adventure game of pitfalls and perils!
  • Volcano Showdown: Armor VS Snapper (Vs Playset, 1997)
    • ID number: VS-X1
    • Accessories: Scenery mat, red ball (x8), cannon, cannon platform, cage segments, back panel
Available only in the Japanese version of the Beast Wars toyline, the Volcano Base is part of the "Volcano Showdown" (火山の対決 Kazan no Taiketsu) versus set also containing Armor and Snapper.
The volcano itself has a battery operated feature; when loaded with the included red balls, the volcano has an "erupting" feature where it causes the red balls to pop out the top of it and roll down the molded cascading slides on its face. A constructible cage can attach to the side of the volcano in addition to a large cannon platform which can also launch the included red balls. Also included is a thin plastic mat with earthen scenery printed on it that is intended to be placed underneath the whole set.
Due to the scale of various sculpted details on the Volcano Base and its general incompatibility with the two figures it comes with, it has been hypothesised that this playset was originally slated for an abandoned Microman line.

Beast Wars II

  • Diver & Niagara Base (March 1998)
    • ID number: X-2
    • Accessories: Two cannons, missiles (x5), leaves (x7), play mat
Released exclusively as part of Beast Wars II with Diver, the Niagara Base is a playset of a plastic mountain. It has multiple tree plumes, two projectile-launching cannons and a Venus fly-trap (with a pressure panel that causes it to snap shut when pressed) that can be attached in various ports on the mountain. Also included with the playset is a plastic play mat with water and Earth terrain printed on it to place underneath the playset. An identical play mat was included with the Volcano Base playset.
The mountain itself has no molded water details or paint operations, but instead has a divot on top which is intended to be filled with actual water which collects in a molded basin at the bottom of the mountain, to emulate an actual waterfall.
Though we lack official confirmation, the Niagara Base has long been reported to be a recommissioned toy from a Microman line. At the very least, it clearly wasn't designed with contemporary Transformers toys in mind, not even Basic-sized ones, as the base interior is designed around a considerably smaller scale of figure.
You know about the Octorok, right? All you have to do is deflect that rock it spits out.
  • Ikard & Tako Tank (October 1998)
    • ID number: X-5
    • Accessories: motorcycle, 6 missiles, pump
Part of the ninth wave of Beast Wars II toys, the Tako Tank is a large mechanical octopus, packaged with its pilot, Ikard. Twin puppet-rods in the back give control of the front two tentacles, which are made of a soft rubbery plastic, and are also one of the most fun play-features in Transformers ever. A plunger in the back runs through the body, which activates a removable pump in the tank's "mouth". A small wheel behind each "eye" allows them to spin in concert, though for what purpose is unknown.
The tank-head splits open to reveal a removable motorcycle Basic-scaled toys can ride. This bike has two flip-around spring-loaded missile launchers, featuring small pegs that are compatible with the Claw Jaw/Scuba mold's tentacle-hands. The wheel assembly can serve as either a traditional land-based vehicle or swivel and tilt to perform as a hoverbike. The launchers fold up into the bike's rider compartment for storage inside the Tako Tank, so the Tank cannot be "piloted" in this form; however, once the bike is deployed, there is room to seat a Basic-scaled figure in the left-over socket to pilot the tank body, plus a nice window for them to look out of.
Like the Niagara Base, there is speculation that the Tako Tank was originally an unreleased Microman concept. This may explain the bike's dubious-at-best compatibility with its pilots and why – uncharacteristically for Transformers toys by that time – there was no mode that could store all the missiles at once.
KICKER KICKER YOUR ELBOWS KICKER
  • Kicker (March 25 2004)
  • SL Grand Convoy and Kicker (2004)
  • Kicker Energon Edition (2004)
    • ID number: SC-14 (Kicker), SS-03 (SL Grand Convoy set)
    • Accessories: Energon Sword, chestplate, backpack, belt, Destron Clone Sword (SL Grand Convoy set only)
Part of the fourth wave of Takara's Super Link toyline, the first Kicker toy is based on the Microman 2003 body construction. He is super-posable, and his parts are fully interchangeable with other Microman figures. He is armed with a small, non-transforming silver version of the Energon Saber (which is also compatible with 5 mm post-holes), plus his torso armor and belt are removable.
A second version of Kicker (pictured) was available as part of the limited-edition "Transformer X Microman Anniversary Set", celebrating the 30th anniversary of Microman and the 20th anniversary of Transformers in Japan, alongside an exclusive variant of Optimus Prime. This set also includes a pale-gold-chromed version of the Energon Saber accessory, as well as a chromed "Destron Clone Sword" exclusive to this set.
A third and final Kicker was available as part of a Lucky Draw competition, limited to 100 pieces. He also comes with a red-chromed Energon Saber accessory. Contest entries were found in the Super Link soundtrack CD and the first three volumes of the Super Link DVD and the prize winners were announced in August 2004.
This toy is notorious for being incredibly breakable, with the knee and elbow joints in particular made up of thin pieces of hard plastic. The two-pack version uses clear-black plastic rather than opaque for these pieces, making it even more susceptible to breaking with even moderate pressure. The "Energon Edition" version is also cast in translucent plastic, in this case red with orange paint applications. With reports of even the standard version already having been broken when mint in box, let's hope you didn't pay aftermarket prices for the Lucky Draw figure.

Robotmasters

The Arsenal Force weapons are the new-mold, sprued-together Decepticon solitarium accessories that can combine, and are not to be confused with the new-mold, sprued-together not-solitarium Autobot weapons that don't combine, or the new-mold, not-sprued-together Decepticon solitarium accessories that combine with each other but not explicitly the rest. It's all very simple.
Main article: Solitarium#Toys
  • Wrecker Hook (ID number: RM-04, July 15, 2004)
  • Air Hunter (ID number: RM-06, July 15, 2004)
  • Wingstun (ID number: RM-08, July 15, 2004)
  • Psycho-Orb (ID number: RM-09, July 15, 2004)
Most of the Decepticons in the first wave of the Robotmasters toyline came with a solitarium (read: translucent plastic) accessory that could combine to form the Arsenal Force weapon. These toys were Wrecker Hook, Air Hunter, Wingstun, and Psycho-Orb, and they came with the Boost Hammer, Sacred-Cut Sword 'Gazan', Jamming Trident, and Calamity Defenser respectively. This is notable since all four toys were redecoes, meaning the new tooling for the Arsenal Force pieces had to come from somewhere... and since the abruptly-cancelled final portion of LED Powers, "Shining Tector", was focussed around translucent plastic weapons that could combine to form bigger weapons and armour, and the solitarium parts feature identical handles to the LED Powers accessories, it was not hard to speculate that their origin lay in Microman.
Each of these four weapons were also redecoed multiple times; see the main solitarium page for more information.
  • Ligier (ID number: RM-03, July 15, 2004)
  • R-Blade (ID number: RM-05, July 15, 2004)
  • Bound Rogue (ID number: RM-07, July 15, 2004)
Three more new-mold weapons were included with three Autobots from the first wave of the toyline. They are not explicitly referred to as being made of solitarium, but if you strip off that chrome coat they're covered in, you'll find the same translucent green plastic as the Arsenal Force weapons. Later redecoes, also listed on the main solitarium page, make clear that they must be part of the same sprue or mold set as the first four accessories. The three weapons are Ligier's JS Laser Gun, R-Blade's Flare Gun, and Bound Rogue's Type 93; all three share the same handles that suggest they were designed for Microman.
  • Smokesniper (ID number: RM-13, September 9, 2004)
  • Gigant Bomb (ID number: RM-14, September 9, 2004)
Another two solitarium weapon molds were released during Robotmasters: Smokesniper's Radial Pod and Gigant Bomb's Pulverizer. While not officially part of the Arsenal Force, they could be attached with some creativity. They also feature the same size handles as the other solitarium weapons, again suggesting a Microman heritage. These two weapons were not redecoed.

Collector's Edition

The last gasp of bishonen before Microman went moe.
  • Magnificus & Ga'mede (2005)
    • ID number: 68
    • Accessories: 2-piece "Photon Armor" bandolier, holster, gauntlet, "Magno Gun" pistol, "Photon Wave Rifle", "High Frequency Machete", six pairs of hands, hand-rack, Microman stand
Available only with the e-HOBBY exclusive Magnificus, Collector's Edition Ga'mede is a redeco of the Microman 2004 series Microman "Walter". He is a super-posable 3 3/4-inch action figure, and has six pairs of interchangeable hands for different poses and weapons (two clenched fists, two splayed palms, two flat palms, and three different pairs of gripping hands), and includes a mini "rack" to store the ten hands not plugged into the figure's wrists. Unlike regular modern Microman figures, his head is painted rather than chrome silver. Since he's roughly the same size as the 1980s Microman figures, he can pilot Magnificus's tank mode just as the original figures could.
He comes with an unchromed-black set of the weapons and wearable accessories from the Microman 2003 series MF1-01 Commander Microman: a machinegun that can attach to his bandolier's back (albeit a bit loosely), a pistol with leg-holster, and a machete that clips into a wrist-gauntlet. He also comes with a Microman stand to help him stay upright, though only one of the footpegs on it is sized to this style of Microman figure.
Much like Kicker, this set celebrates the shared history of Takara's Transformers and Microman lines, pairing a Microman toy that homages various Japanese '70s/'80s sci-fi style shows with a reproduction of a Transformer in its original Micro Change coloration.

GT

And I heard, as it were the noise of thunder, one of the four beasts saying, Come and see.
  • GT-R Prime (ID number: GT-01, May 25, 2013)
  • GT-R Saber (ID number: GT-02, May 25, 2013)
  • GT-R Megatron (ID number: GT-03, July 17, 2013)
  • GT-R Maximus (ID number: GT-04, September 28, 2013)
  • Known designers: DOGMASK (TakaraTomy)
Transformers GT: Mission GT-R was a small franchise produced by TakaraTomy in co-operation with the Super GT racing championship series. This somewhat whimsical series depicted a micro-continuity in which faction leaders from Transformers series past are reimagined as grand tourer racing cars. Each Transformer was paired with a Microman-based race queen, featuring a high amount of articulation, interchangeable sets of hands for multiple poses, and outfits based on real life race sponsors. They were retooled and redecoed from the 2005 Microman "Micro Sister" body by the mold's original Microman designer DOGMASK.[27]
GT-R Prime, Saber, Megatron, and Maximus are partnered with Misaki, Anna, Noa, and Hiiro respectively.

Honourable mentions

Microman

Straxus strikes fear into the sparks of his enemies at 0.048 kilometres per hour.
  • Escargot (Mecha-Cosmo, 1975)
    • ID number: No.1
    • Series: Project Victory
Part of the "Project Victory" series' "Mecha-Cosmo" assortment, the Escargot is spherical vehicle with battery-powered, motorised wheels. The Escargot is named after its snail-like shape when its two wheel-on-stalk accessories are pegged onto the front. Its bubble cockpit seats two Micromen (not included), and its modular construction allows it to be reconfigured into a radar tower, or a battle chariot, or whatever your creative mind can come up with.
The comic story "Cybertron Magna Convoy prequel" made use of the Escargot's design as transportation for the Precursor World version of Straxus who – in homage to his Marvel UK appearances – had been rendered a disembodied head in a jar.

Knights of the Magical Light!
  • Micro Knight (1979)
    • ID number: MC-11
    • Series: Police Keeper
    • Accessories: Pulsar Gun, Energy Backpack, Police Keeper Shield
Released as part of the "Police Keeper" series, the Micro Knights were a range of Micromen in the style of medieval suits of armour, featuring a high level of sculpted detail and almost covered in chrome, save for the characteristic Microman white gloves. Two waves of Micro Knights were produced, with each individual toy differentiated only by colour and ID number.
The Micro Knights – the second wave especially – proved difficult to find during the toyline's lifespan; like many Microman toys, they saw a reissue in the Replica Microman series in 2000, which also added a handful of new variations to the Knights' ranks.
The manga "God Neptune comic 1" repurposed the blue Micro Knight, ID number MC-11, as the original body of the drone that would be reformatted into Magna Convoy.


Not to be confused with Giant Robo G-2, which features bright colours and rap music.
  • Giant Robo G-1 (1979, cancelled)
    • Series: Rescue Team
Intended for release in the "Rescue Team" series, a resin prototype of the Giant Robo G-1 appeared for solicitation in the 1979 edition of the Takara General Catalog, the company's periodical for potential vendors and other toy industry professionals. G-1 was intended to be a line centrepiece, pulling out all the stops: in addition to the traditional cockpit for a Microman figure as expected of larger toys, it was intended to include a compartment for the pilot's accessories, a motorised walking gimmick, radio control functionality, and even a voice changer. After being passed over for Microman proper, the design bounced around the Takara offices until it saw release in 1980 (sans about half the gimmicks from the original pitch) as the Great Robot Base, the flagship release and mascot of the nascent mecha-focused spin-off line Diaclone.[29]
Starting with "Cybertron Magna Convoy prequel comic", the appearance of the Giant Robo G-1 was used as the Statue of The One, an effigy of the Precursor World's legendary creator.

New Microman

I'd love to see the face of one of the moe anime girls peering out of this.
  • Bulsonic (Blue Type) with M009 Kenji (Armored Suit DX, January 1983)
    • ID number: DX3
    • Series: Micro Robot
The third and final release in the "Micro Robot" Armored Suit range, and the only one to carry the "DX" suffix, Bulsonic is a large suit of power armour that transforms into a space jet. In robot mode, a Microman pilot can be housed in Bulsonic's chest, with their face being visible behind the clear plastic screen at the front of Bulsonic's helmet. Bulsonic was available in "Blue Type" (pictured), "Red Type" (which inverted the red/blue colour layout), and "Real Type", the latter of which was a military green version and included an additional plastic sprue with landing gear and other accoutrements for buyers to customise the toy into looking more realistic. Each Bulsonic came with a variant of the Microman M009 Kenji; Blue Type's was yellow, Red Type's was light blue, and Real Type's was dark green. Bulsonic also happens to hold the distinction of being the last Microman toy designed before the line refocussed into Micro Change.
The "Metrowars" manga depicted a minor virtual redeco of the Blue Type Bulsonic as a body for Straxus – giving him a blue helmet and more of a suggestion of a face than the clear screen of the Microman toy – in reference to a long-standing Japanese fandom theory that Straxus' original Marvel design was based on Bulsonic in the first place.

Replica Microman

Forget the teacher and the bike and the spider, this is the first toy of Arcee.
  • Arcee (2000)
    • ID number: M18X
    • Accessories: Angelic Wings
Originally released in the 1977 Microman Command line, the "Lady Command" range was an assortment of female Microman pilots in vibrant colours, each of whom had a name beginning with "A" – Ann, Alice, Annie, and Ai.[30] Being girl toys in a boy's line, the Lady Command were produced in smaller numbers than other figures; their rarity made them a perfect candidate to appear in the Replica Microman series of reissues in November 1999. As with the Micro Knights, this allowed for additional variants and new members to join the Lady Command ranks.
One such new member was produced as a Lucky Draw figure in conjunction with the publishing group Kodansha and their then-new guidebook, "The Official Guide to Takara SF Land", which paid tribute to the various sci-fi toylines by Takara over the years. In tribute to the shared history of Transformers and Microman, this new Lady Command figure was named Arcee – though whether or not she represents "our" Arcee or is simply named for her is unknown.
Arcee is a redeco of the standard Lady Command body in white, with gold chromed limbs and a silver head. She includes a pair of "Angelic Wings" which can peg into her back, though their official placement is in the sides of her thighs (just go with it). Arcee came in an all-white version of the standard Lady Command packaging: a capsule in the shape of the Statue of Liberty (again, just go with it). Only five Arcees were produced.

Fiction

DreamMix TV World Fighters

It's roomier in there than you'd think.

As part of DreamMix TV's attempt to pull in more ratings, M121 Mason was invited to battle bunches of other beings, including Optimus Prime and Megatron, on the television show World Fighters. Mason could summon the help of Robotman, and some battles even took place on Micro Earth. DreamMix TV World Fighters

2005 IDW continuity

Microman Inn was an establishment in Warsaw, Indiana, across the road from the Acroyear motel. Devastation #2 Presumably, they have something of a rivalry.

Animated cartoon

Wyatt Toys advertised Diaclone and Microman toys for sale in the Detroit Powell Press. The AllSpark Almanac

References

  1. ↑ Hasbro press release for the 2010 Transformers Hall of Fame inductees
  2. ↑ "Micro Command" toys, including the Cosmo Countach
  3. ↑ "Not all, but yes. I wrote most of Diaclone/Microchange repaints bios, except MP Tigertrack/Clamp Down/Bluestreak/Enemy & other cassettes (though I did original e-Hobby and Encore)."—Hirofumi Ichikawa, Twitter, 2022/12/18
  4. ↑ "The large robot's transformation mechanism was based on the prototype for the unreleased Microman toy, Giant Robo G-1. This robot would later evolve into Diaclone Robot Base."—Koji Igarashi in p.104 of Diaclone World Guide, translated by Necronomitron, Twitter, 2023/03/03
  5. ↑ Takara SF Land by Kōji Igarashi, p49,117.
  6. ↑ Diaclone World Guide by Kōji Igarashi, p88.
  7. ↑ "当初はソニックボン バーとダイアトラスの2体だ けの予定でしたが、開発途中 で「もう1体を追加、3体を 合体させて巨大ジェットにす 「る」という方針変更があり ました。この大型ジェットの名 前は「ビッグパワード」で巨大 なパワードマスターという意 味と、ダイアクロンのアイテム 名のダブルミーニングでした。" - TakaraTomy designer Motoki Takaya in an interview on Transformers: Zone in Takara SF Land Evolution, p 90
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 "Legend of Diaclone" feature by Kōji Igarashi and Kōji Shimada in issue 231 of Figure Ō (November 2015)
  9. ↑ "Takara made Diaclone’s Gats Blocker into keshi. It may have been sold individually, but I’ve only seen the set (which had rubber pilots). It was used to make the KO “19 in 1 Robot Clock”. I don’t know the AVI France version, but I’ve never seen the clock in a legitimate release."—Necronomitron, Twitter, 2022/09/22
  10. ↑ Photographs of 14 Pieces at the official TFWiki Twitter
  11. ↑ Discovery and authentication of "Black Sideswipe" at Transformers One
  12. ↑ Only Grimlock and Sludge are confirmed for Kawamori.
  13. ↑ Diaclone concept art of Octane at the Space Bridge Transformers Archive
  14. ↑ Diaclone(ish) Octane prototype at the Space Bridge Transformers Archive
  15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 15.2 15.3 15.4 "Diaclone Scramble Combination" trade show display taken from a December 1984 trade journal presented in The Toys That Made Us.
  16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 Takara SF Land p. 113
  17. ↑ "Hasbro designed the colors for Metroflex, and at the time I thought it was bland. Thinking about it now, the white and gray feel sophisticated. Actually, when I worked on Metrotitan, I got to pick the colors myself. The finished version is close to what I originally imagined, that's why I used colors so reminiscent of Diaclone. I tend to use a lot of metallic blue (laughs)."—Interview with Kōjin Ōno on the development of Generation 1 Metroplex in Transformers Generations 2013 by Kōji Shimada, p.95. Translated by Necronomitron on Twitter, 2023/08/14
  18. ↑ May 1985 Diaclone tank torso robot patent.
  19. ↑ "Teammates united by a bond as unbreakable as diamond, they fight with the unyielding force of a cyclone to protect our world... The Diaclone Corps, Earth's defense force!"—1980 Diaclone catalog, translated by Necronomitron, Twitter, 2023/02/24
  20. ↑ Post on the Allspark Forums by Jim Sorenson (archived)
  21. ↑ "U.N.C.L.E. Special" Carbine at CIA Museum, archived version
  22. ↑ "Micro Command" toys, including the Cosmo Countach
  23. ↑ Hasbro press release for the 2010 Transformers Hall of Fame inductees (archived)
  24. ↑ Pictures of Dark Trailer with Laser Dark from a fan's collection
  25. ↑ eBay auction for a pre-owned Flame Trailer (archived)
  26. ↑ "Shining Promotion Prize (11/00) (...) Gold Rocket Base (50 prizes)"
  27. ↑ Article on Transformers GT in Transformers Generations 2013, p. 34
  28. ↑ Takara SF Land by Kōji Igarashi, p49.
  29. ↑ "The large robot's transformation mechanism was based on the prototype for the unreleased Microman toy, Giant Robo G-1. This robot would later evolve into Diaclone Robot Base."—Koji Igarashi in p.104 of Diaclone World Guide, translated by Necronomitron, Twitter, 2023/03/03
  30. ↑ 1977 Lady Command series at micromanforever.com


「ウォッチQ」


For all time. Always.

Succeeding Diakron in 1984, the Kronoform line was Takara's second pass at engaging directly with the North American market, this time in the form of a somewhat half-hearted attempt to move various remaining Diaclone and Microman toys that Hasbro had declined to license for The Transformers franchise.

Unique to the line was the "Time Machine" series of transforming watch toys from which the line derives its name, many of which were taken from Takara's Watch-Q toyline in Japan.

Three of the watches, Autoceptor, Deceptor, and Kaltor were released directly in The Transformers packaging, (retaining a smaller Kronoform logo printed on the box) while the Robot Time Machine (as Autobot) and Scorpia toys would later see release as Transformers as part of the Transformers: Generation 2 toyline in 1993.

Decades later, the long-running Ask Vector Prime feature seized on the Kronoform's "Time Machine" schtick to conscript its toys and concepts into most of the Transformers brand's extant time-travel deep lore.

This is the Kronoform Robotic World. The originators are protectors of the universe directed by Diakron Commanders.
The Terminators are evil robots attempting to enforce their rule. Create your Kronoform Robot World with this space age concept.The entire Kronoform story[1][2]

Toy Range (Incomplete)

The following list covers all Kronoform releases that were released or later rereleased as Transformers toys or otherwise inspired Transformers concepts. Kronoform molds with no Transformers relation are generally not listed as they fall outside the purview of this site.

1984 - The Robot Time Machine

Oops! all wingwolves.

Kronoform's idiosyncratic first year consisted of a single toy: Kronoform, the Robot Time Machine. Originally released in Takara's Watch-Q as simply "Watch Robo" and rereleased in Micro Change as "MC-06 Watch Robo," Kronoform was marketed not only as a watch-to-robot transformer but as a six-changer ("and more!") with some very... creative modes, as famously immortalized in its commercial. This toy would go on to inspire a flurry of Transformers characters, mostly in the pages of the Facebook incarnation of Ask Vector Prime.


1985 - Robotic World

Deceptor is the unlabeled one between Autoceptor and Kaltor.

1985 saw Kronoform explode in size as it took on Diakron's duties as Takara's "miscellaneous" toyline for the North American market.

Diaclone refugees

The Diaclone-derived toys that made up the bulk of Kronoform's second year were recast as the central players in what could charitably be called Kronoform's "story" as they were carved up into the heroic "Originators" and the villainous "Terminators." While none of them made their way into The Transformers, some have inspired later toys or fiction-only characters.

Pilot mini-figures
  • Presumably the enigmatic "Diakron Commanders", these unnamed accessories were slight retools of Diaclone's heroic Dianaut pilots to replace their foot magnets with cheaper inert metals. Used as inspiration for the toy characters Dia, Cline, and Diac, as well as the fiction-only character Chifumi Takahashi.
Originators
  • Multi-Force - Originally the Diaclone Gats Blocker toy and pretty much a straight reissue of Diakron's Multi-Force 14 Robot. Used as inspiration for an unnamed background comic character.
Terminators
  • Attackon - Originally the Diaclone Dia-Attacker toy. Used as inspiration for the original form of Exarchon, arch-villain of the 2019-2022 IDW comics.
  • Wargon - Originally the Diaclone Warudaros toy. Used as inspiration for the Storm Rider toy.

Time Machines and the Transformers

Kronoform-the-toy, now renamed simply "Robot Time Machine," returned at the head of a whole subline of watch-themed toys sourced from Watch-Q and/or Micro Change. Most significantly, this is where Kronoform's final year saw the line pipe toys straight into Transformers proper via rebranding, following a similar trajectory to adjacent European lines such as Trasformer and Joustra's iteration of Diaclone. While the entire "Time Machine" subline hovered in the vicinity of a Transformers logo in advertising, three specific toys received explicit Transformers packaging. Transformers-relevant releases include:

Transformers-adjacent releases
  • Robot Time Machine again - see above.
  • Scorpia - Converts from watch to scorpion. Originally released as "Scorpio" in Watch-Q. Released unchanged (up to and including her name) in Generation 2.
Joint Transformers releases
  • Autoceptor - Converts from watch to car to robot. Seemingly original to Kronoform. Produced in gray, black, blue, and red. Not repurposed into a zillion characters. Sorry.
  • Deceptor - Converts from watch to jet/bird thing to robot. Seemingly original to Kronoform. Produced in gray, blue, and gold.
  • Kaltor - Converts from wrist calculator to robot. Originally released in Watch-Q as "Watch Robo Calculator.".


Maxitrek - having mastered the Satsui No Hado - unleashes their Shun Goku Satsu on an unprepared wristwatch

1986 - Maxitrek

The only known Kronoform toy solicited for 1986 was a potential fourth Transformers/Kronoform figure named "Maxitrek." The figure would have been a new mold watch Transformer with a motorized walking gimmick via a small wind-up motor. The prototype is credited to TakaraTomy designer Takashi Matsuda, who was also responsible for the original Robot Time Machine.

Fiction

The Terminators unleashed the chronal bioweapon Hytherion against the Originators in their war at the end of time as the Big Crunch loomed in Cymond 772.0 Beta. Ask Vector Prime, 2015/06/15

Notes

  • Kronoform's pilot figures were not distributed with any particular regard for the toyline's factions. What that means for the Diakron Commanders, who knows.
  • Ask Vector Prime recruited all five Transformers releases from Kronoform to form a squad of multiversal adventurers known as the Time Warriors. You get it? Because, because of the watches. You get it.
  1. ↑ 1985 Diakron catalog, source unknown. From Necronomitron on Twitter
  2. ↑ Article on Dia-Attacker's various releases at Soundwave's Oblivion
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