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Transformer of the Day for November 10, 2009

DEPTH CHARGE

-Faction: Maximal
-Era: Beast Wars (1996-1998)
-Function: Aquatic Forces Commander
-Motto: “Follow My Orders or Get Out of My Face“
-Notable Toy: Ultra (Hasbro, 1998)

Notes: Other than saying I am not going to make any Dark Knight comments, I am not going to make any Dark Knight comments. Instead I want to talk about the name. Because Depth Charge was only the second Maximal whose name did not instantly tell you his transformation. Oh, it’s pretty easy to figure out that he’s a water-based mammal, but nonetheless, it is not automatic. A nice change I think.

Transformer of the Day for November 9, 2009

SPINISTER

-Faction: Decepticon (Targetmaster)
-Era: Generation One (1984-1992)
-Function: Aerial Assault
-Motto: “Respect Your Foes Abilities As You Would Your Own“
-Notable Toy: Deluxe (Hasbro, 1988)

Notes: Early on in Generation One, Hasbro fell into a pattern with its Decepticon forces. Each year, it would release a series of three deluxe jets to round out the battle force. Starscream, Thundercracker and Skywarp arrived in 1984. Dirge, Ramjet and Thrust arrived in 1985. For the 1986 movie, there were only two fighters in Cyclonus and Scourge, and very space-based in terms of vehicle modes, but they were quickly followed in 1987 by Triggerhappy, Misfire and Slugslinger. But 1988 saw the break in this pattern. Oh there was still a trio of reinforcements, just this time only one was a jet (Needlenose), while Quake was forced to ground and Spinister took advantage of his helicopter mode. Still, it is nice to do things in threes.

Transformer of the Day for November 8, 2009

HEATWAVE

-Faction: Decepticon
-Era: Shattered Verse (2008-Present)
-Function: Weapons / Systems Design
-Motto: “This is Quantum Hexi-crypto, Totally Unbreakable; I’ll need Three Minutes.“
-Notable Toy: Exclusive (Hasbro, 2009)

Notes: You will have to forgive me but I don’t know how to classify Heatwave. He’s clearly of two worlds, being part of the Universe line of toys that have been part of the Transformers Collectors’ Club official annual premium (and the leader of the group of combiners now certainly known as Nexus Prime). But he is also an officer from the Shattered Glass universe, a heroic Decepticon uniting two Autobots and two Decepticons who are all something more. Gotta say though, I personally would have preferred the solid colours of the prototype (as shown above) to the translucent colours of the actual release.

(Apologies and thanks to transformersclub.com for the toy pics.)

Transformer of the Day for November 7, 2009

BRUSHGUARD

-Faction: Decepticon
-Era: Armada-Energon-Cyberton (2002-2006)
-Function: Scientist
-Motto: “Toxins are the Weapons I Wield“
-Notable Toy: Basic (Hasbro, 2005)

Notes: Resembling an evil Brawn, with Wolverine-style claws, Brushguard is a pretty sturdy toy given the era from which he originates. I really had to go with the Universe carded figure that was available through discount store Dollar General, just because it really highlights the pale blue in a way that the original packaging does not.

Apologies and thanks to shmax.com for the toy image.)

Transformer of the Day for October 6, 2009

CHEETOR

-Faction: Autobot
-Era: Beast Wars (1996-1998), Beast Machines (1999-2000)
-Function: Jungle Warrior
-Motto: “Attack with Quickness and Leave the Enemy No Time to Think“
-Notable Toy: Titanium (Hasbro, 2007)

Notes: While Cheetor got terribly serious and became a bit of a spoilsport in Beast Machines, it was nonetheless great to watch his evolution over 78 episodes in Beast Wars and Beast Machines. So many good toy choices too, but in the end I went with the much missed (by me at least) Titanium version for the big reason that it was the both the only Beast Machines release in this format and the first official release of swords. And no Night Slash Cheetor doesn’t count!

Transformer of the Day for November 5, 2009

ONSLAUGHT

-Faction: Decepticon
-Era: Generation One (1984-1992)
-Function: Combaticon Leader
-Motto: “The Mind is the Greatest Weapon“
-Notable Toy: Voyager (Takara, 2008)

Notes: I opted to use the Universe reissue for the featured toy, if for no other reason than the original deluxe 1986 mould has been redone to death. Onslaught in 1986, Great Cannon (for Japan) in 1992, Classics Onslaught (in Europe) in 1992, neon Onslaught in 1994 (for G2), Mega-Octane in 2001, Exclusive Mega-Octane in 2003 and Universe Mega-Octane in 2004. Plus, it’s really cool to see Monzo getting some love. That said, I love this rendering of Octane from the old Marvel comic. A fitting sub-commander pose indeed.

Transformer of the Day for November 4, 2009

CROSSWISE

-Faction: Autobot (Spy Changer)
-Era: Robots in Disguise / Car Robots (2000-2001)
-Function: Gravity Ninja
-Motto: “Lighten Up”
-Notable Toy: Single-Card (Hasbro, 2003)

Notes: X-Car in Japan, Crosswise makes the list because he’s my favourite of the first six Spy Chargers mold, which were adopted from the first six Generation Two Gobots. His is the same form as G2 Highbeam, Botcon Nightracer and G2 Goldbug Bumblebee. And given the multitude of package and colour variants for him, he nonetheless just looks so sharp on this single card release.

Transformer of the Day for November 3, 2009

PREDITRON

-Faction: Go-Bots
-Era: Playskool Gobots (2002-2005)
-Function: Aerialbot Leader
-Motto: “There is Freedom in My Loss of Control”
-Notable Toy: Go-Bots (Playskool, 2004)

Notes: Preditron is a Go-Bot gone bad. He is a transformed Beast Bot who makes mischief across the universe. Released at the tail-end of the Go-Bot’s line as a modified Cheetor, he has clear plastic limbs that make him stand out in the crowd. Plus, evil. In a Go-Bot kind of way of course.

(Apologies and thanks to tfu.info for the toy image.)

Transformer of the Day for November 2, 2009

RAV

-Faction: Maximal (Deployer)
-Era: Beast Machine (1999-2000)
-Function: Evacuation
-Motto: “Keep To Yourself, Protect From Enemies“
-Notable Toy: Basic Repaint (Hasbro, 2000)

Notes: If minicons can get love, then why not Deployers. Particularly when they represent that rare occasions when Transformer accessories were sold without being packaged with Transformers. It’s a shame that no one opted to take advantage of the moulds to do some kind of exclusive, in the vein of the odd partnership frequently implied between Rav (Chro) and Cryoteck. Although Rav will always be a hero in my books.

(Apologies and thanks to shmax.com for the toy image.)