Knockoff

Super Combination Robot B/O 17-in-1. His knees are happy to see you.

A knockoff is a product similar or identical to a product of one company, but made by another without the authorization of the original maker. In the Transformers fandom, the term is commonly abbreviated KO. The term bootleg is also used by fans as a synonym, though in common use it refers more to recordings than to consumer goods.

Not all transforming robots from makers other than Hasbro, Takaratomy, Bandai, or other major toy makers are knockoffs, but those toys which wholly or partly duplicate pre-existing designs are well-qualified for the term. The term is also applied by fans, however, to some robots whose design was entirely original with the manufacturer, if said manufacturer is commonly associated with knockoffs -- or if this maker's products are often sold in company with knockoffs.

Original design, modified, or slavishly copied, knockoffs are often cheaper than the products of major toymakers. Unfortunately, though they can be quite good at times, the quality of knockoffs is often poor. Bright colors, odd resizings, and quirky modifications are common. The world of knockoffs is a strange land of gigantic chromed swords, Gundam card art, and wacky translated packaging.

The legality of knockoffs is often questioned. Few Transformer mechanical designs are thoroughly and completely original enough to warrant a patent; assemblies of well-proven technology, however skilled or well-executed, are not usually patentable. Decorative design patents can be issued; a toy protected by one of these may not be duplicated in appearance until the patent expires (after which all is fair game). Mechanically-identical copies with altered decorations may be quite legal. Names and symbols may also be protected by trademark, preventing their use on similar-looking knockoffs, but again, with enough changes this barrier may be surmounted.

It is probably safe to assume that knockoffs available in stores are quite legally produced and sold, and for those fans who collect them, this is fortunate: they provide a bizarre variety that is (with good reason) not to be found in official products.

Due to the sometimes dubious nature of foreign trademarks, patents, and copyrights, some countries are conspicuously rife with knockoffs of all varieties. Notable countries include but are not limited to China, Taiwan, and Mexico. South Korea was also among the knockoff capitols of the world until some time in the mid-1990s, when Korean laws were amended and many companies legitimized themselves by buying the rights to produce official Korean versions of the toys they had long been copying. It was not uncommon in South Korea for there to even be animated series that incorporated multiple knocked-off properties, such as Reflector fighting a Gundam or any other number of famous characters. Hilariously, "Gundam" was so embedded in the South Korean public psyche as a synonym for "giant robot" via these different bootleg outlets that the Gundam property owner Sunrise's attempts to trademark the word were entirely rejected by the courts^[1].

Certain knockoff companies have earned reputations via their rather distinctive ways of altering the original product:

Four Star - Known during the 1980s for taking any number of Diaclone-descendant G1 molds and making massive retools of them, usually changing 75% of the mold or more. They are especially known for "Mr. Hardhat", a Devastator bootleg that is made up of six entirely changed Constructicons that combine in an entirely different way. The fully combined form uses Jetfire's head.

Tek Toys - A North American company that appeared in the early to mid-1990s and did business almost exclusively through Toys 'R' Us. They pioneered the combination card/windowless box design used by many, many bootlegs to this day. Tek Toys also used a distinctively plain graphics style on their packaging, eschewing the usual random Gundam and G1 graphics for new airbrushed art or, surprising for a knockoff company, CGI models, almost always against a plain white background. Tek Toys also worked in extremes, either having recolored copies of existing figures or all new original figures that may or may not have been procured from smaller Asian companies (often times Leader Shine). In a bold move, Tek Toys' had their office address printed on later boxes. Their new box graphics are still recycled by other knockoff companies to this day.

Leader Shine (AKA Champion Crown) - Known during the 1990s for bootlegging the living hell out of the Jumpstarter molds, producing clones, minor retools, major retools, and almost unrecognizable retools. They also produce "original" toys whose transformation schemes are derived from either Transformers, the Brave series, and Power Rangers. They still release new and varied Jumpstarters to this day. Leader Shine is also responsible for the very Godzilla-themed knockoff of Grimlock that reappears every few years. They also have an amusing habit of putting "Pat. P." (Patent Pending) on almost all of their packages in spite of whether their product is a direct copy or completely changed. It is not known how many, if any, patents Leader Shine actually holds.

Happy Well - Currently the most well known knockoff company, Happy Well was bold enough to strike a contract with Wal*Mart, CVS Pharmacies, and Walgreens, making them possibly the first company to have a knockoff "name brand", namely the "Galaxy Defender" series. Happy Well uses relatively high quality materials and most of their products are boxed. Some even come with sticker sheets and die-cast parts. Their "Roadbots" line is the only direct competitor to the Alternators line of licensed scale transforming cars.

Starting around 2005, extremely high quality Generation 1 knockoffs began to appear on various internet auction sites. Originating from China, these particular imitations run for remarkably high prices, often $20-30 for a two-pack of cassettes. At first, the knockoffs seemed to be perfect clones right down to the packaging, but later branched into various new colors and opacities. The clones remain extremely controversial as they are virtually indistinguishable from the originals, even in terms of toy quality, especially in the cases where rare convention exclusives such as the black Optimus Prime or highly valued figures such as Swoop have been reproduced. This situation raises concerns about unscrupulous dealers selling bootlegs as genuine articles and scrupulous ones unknowingly doing the same.