So I’m standing in line at Winners this evening, the Price is Right DVD game securely under my arm, and I got to thinking about what I tend to think about when I let my mind wander. Being the beginning of the year, I was thinking specifically about calendars related to the mighty changing robots. Specifically, I was thinking how the most commonly occuring calendar selection for this year was not particularly impressive, given that it consisted of images reprinted entirely from the various comics (with more than half of the images having been featured in the 2008 calendar).
Now I’ve frequently thought how cool it would be if someone came along and put together a 365 day desktop Transformers calendar, like the ones that have been done for Hot Wheels
that (drool!) could even come with a small exclusive Transformer (say a repainted Gobot from the Generation Two era or a special mini-con set). But of course to be cool, the originator would have to put some thought into it, so that it didn’t become dozens of images of the same Transformer (as in January 1 is G1 Bumblebee, January 16 is… G1 Bumblebee?, January 27 is G1 Bumblebee?!? and so on…)
It wouldn’t have to have a lot of detail, but it would be great to actually delve a little deeper into the toy line history and actually have a fresh character for each page, with a decent image and maybe something cool to say about each one.
Then, as I tend to do when I am in a slow-moving line and getting wild ideas, I mentally put the idea on the shelf. “Oh maybe I’ll put one together for kicks that would start on January 1, 2010,” I think to myself.
That’s when the reasoned part of my brain joined the party with two thoughts. One, it is January 2, 2009, ergo why wait? And two, you have a blog, dummy, that needs content. Why not start now and do the whole thing virtually.
So I pay the nice cashier and begin to think of how to proceed. Which brings us to the present. It was the Year 2009…
Everyday for the duration of 2009 and in addition to any other blog activity I may undertake, I will upload one new Transformer page (backfilling for today and yesterday). It will consist of one artistic rendering of the character, a brief description (name, faction, era, function, and motto), one notable toy version (personal choice of course) with an applicable picture, and why I think s/he’s cool. Transformers will span different eras and, although I maintain the right to duplicate a particular character who crosses into a different characterization (e.g., Movie Jazz and Generation One Jazz) or fundamentally changes (e.g., Bumblebee to Goldbug), I won’t otherwise repeat characters who may have a more cosmetic change (e.g., Grimlock to Pretender Grimlock). I’ll also provide credit where applicable, and I’ll link all the pages under the unifying category of TF365.
Feel free to comment as I go forward. And happy anniversary.
Transformer of the Day for January 6, 2009
