The toys of
Generation 1 have seven series by year.
Series 1 The first series features twenty-eight characters in all; eighteen Autobots and ten Decepticons. The five Decepticon microcassettes are Buzzsaw, Frenzy, Laserbeak, Ravage, and Rumble. Although in a broad sense, forty-three of these new toys are Autobots, and thirty-one of them are Decepticons, the branding for the toy line became much more specific during this series, as various subgroups began to be introduced. As such, only thirty-five of these new toys are standard Autobots and only eighteen of them are standard Decepticons. Of the other new toys, five are branded as "Dinobots", three are branded as "Omnibots", six are branded as "Constructicons", and seven are branded as "Insecticons"; the Dinobots and the Omnibots are both subgroups of the Autobots, while the Constructicons and the Insecticons are both subgroups of the Decepticons. Each following series of Generation 1 introduced more subgroups to the toy line and continued the practice established by Series 2 of aligning those with names ending in the suffix "-bot" with the Autobots, and those with names ending in the suffix "-con" with the Decepticons. Rounding out the seventy-six new toys of the series, are the first two accessories of the toy line to be individually sold.
Can you find the black square label on your Transformer? Rub the label-Watch the robot face appear! It is your evidence that this robot is a "true" Transformer! was operating explanation for the heat-sensitive rub signs, as found in the instruction booklets for toys that were new to Series 2, and in brochures that were included with the reissued Series 1 toys. All of the toys released during Series 2, both those that were new to the series, as well as the reissued versions of Series 1 toys, featured heat-sensitive rub signs. These would reveal either the Autobot logo or the Decepticon logo upon being rubbed. Intended as a means of authentication, they were introduced in response to similar, though inferior, bootleg toys that were being released at the time. Series 2 features seven new Autobot Cars. They consist of Grapple, Hoist, Inferno, Red Alert, Skids, Smokescreen, and Tracks. Grapple, the
architect, transforms into a
crane; Hoist, who serves in
maintenance, transforms into a Toyota Hi-Lux 4WD
tow truck model; Inferno, who serves in
search and rescue, transforms into a
fire engine; Red Alert, the
security director, transforms into a
fire chief's Lamborghini Countach; Skids, the
theoretician, transforms into a
Honda City Turbo; Smokescreen, the
diversionary tactician, transforms into a
1979 custom Datsun 280ZX; and Tracks, a warrior, transforms into a
1980 Chevrolet Corvette. Series 2 features five new Autobot minicars. They consist of Beachcomber, Cosmos, Powerglide, Seaspray, and Warpath. Beachcomber, the
geologist, transforms into a
dune buggy; Cosmos, who serves in reconnaissance and communications, transforms into a
flying saucer; Powerglide, a warrior, transforms into an
A-10 Thunderbolt II airplane; Seaspray, who serves in naval defense, transforms into a
hovercraft; and Warpath, a warrior, transforms into a
tank. Series 2 features two Autobot Jumpstarters; Topspin and Twin Twist. Both of them transform into
spaceships. Topspin serves in land and sea assault, and Twin Twist serves in demolitions. Series 2 features two Autobot Deluxe Vehicles; Roadbuster and Whirl. Roadbuster, the Ground Assault Commander, transforms into a 4-WD vehicle, and Whirl, who serves in
aerial assault, transforms into an
AH-1 Cobra Helicopter.
1984 and 1985 The 1984-85 lines became the foundation of the Generation 1 series, with all of the classic characters introduced here. The two years were actually one single run, story-wise and thematically. This is most evident in the first and second seasons of the animated series. The toys made use of molds and designs primarily from the
Micro Change and
Diaclone lines. The 1985 toyline introduced the idea of special subgroup teams like the Dinobots,
Constructicons and
Insecticons. Toward the end of the animated series’ second season, several characters from the 1986 line were introduced, particularly the Combiner teams. Other characters were taken from different toy lines of other companies.
1986 The year of 1986 saw Hasbro start using original designs for many characters as fewer
Microman and
Diaclone molds were recycled. This was a banner year for the toy line as the tie-in animated feature,
The Transformers: The Movie, was finally released. While the movie was not the blockbuster Hasbro hoped for, it marked a change in the direction the series in general was taking. The last use of a non-Takara toy for the Hasbro line was also in 1986: Sky Lynx, originally manufactured by ToyBox. New characters
Rodimus Prime and
Galvatron replaced Optimus Prime and Megatron in their respective roles. Subgroup teams became prevalent. The number of new characters increased from this year on. The TV series followed the movie and was now set in the future while the comics’ storyline continued to be set in the present time. Optimus Prime and Megatron were both offered as a Movie Mail Away. Both figures were identical to their original release with the exception of a more reinforced fist design for Optimus Prime. Both figures came in their standard styrofoam insert but the box was a plain brown mailer box. Each figure was accompanied with a "Movie Edition" certificate and sticker.
1987 As
Transformers went on, new characters needed new gimmicks to stand out. As the number of Combiner teams had been reduced, the
Headmasters and Targetmasters were introduced. Fortress Maximus and Scorponok became leaders of the Autobot and Decepticon forces respectively. One of the more unusual toys introduced in the year was Sixshot, a Decepticon billed as a "Solo Transformer Assault Group" ("S.T.A.G."), having as many as six modes. This number of modes was unprecedented at the time - Sixshot's instruction leaflet was even sealed shut with a sticker, challenging buyers to figure out all six modes without aid. Twenty limited edition all black versions of the Sixshot toy were produced. The animated series had one more season, but only three episodes were produced in America due to Sunbow losing its contract and its subsequent inability to renew (coinciding with the G.I. Joe cartoon's demise). Thus, only the comics supported the toy line.
1988 Transformers continued on, despite less support and still managed to introduce a plethora of new characters. New Headmaster and Targetmaster characters were introduced, but the new driving forces for the line were the Pretenders and Powermasters (which featured the return of Optimus Prime).
1989 The toy line received a new logo design for its sixth year. The subgrouping idea was changed as characters were now limited to Pretender and
Micromaster groups. These two groups were further subdivided into thematic teams. A few classic characters were revamped as Pretenders.
1990 In its final year in the US market,
Transformers' last burst was with a more expanded Micromaster line and the introduction of the Action Masters – non-transforming figures of classic characters with transformable vehicles and weapons.
International market Of the countries
Transformers was exported to, Japan and the
UK were the only ones to innovate upon the toy line in the interim between 1990 and 1993, before the launch of the next series,
Transformers: Generation 2. The UK releases, while in general following the American releases and storylines, omitted a fairly large selection of the original toys from the US line. The UK line first started branching away from the US line in 1990 with the re-releases of several early toys under the "Classics" banner. However, it was 1991 when the UK line went in its own unique direction. Though there were only a few characters introduced, they were toys that none of the US audience had ever seen. The 1991 and 1992 toys also found their way to
Asian and
Australian stores. The 1991 line did away with the Micromasters but had additional Action Master characters, in addition to re-uses of some of Takara's previously Japanese-exclusive molds. 1992 saw the release of the Autobot Turbomasters, the Decepticon Predators, yellow unnamed versions of the
Constructicons (minus the parts to make Devastator), and re-colored versions of four sixths of the Japanese-exclusive
Breastforce, simply known collectively as the
Rescue Force. In early 1993, more exclusive figures were released under the
Transformers (no subtitle) label, most notably the color-changing Stormtroopers, the Lightformers, the Trakkons, and the Autobot and Decepticon Obliterators. The heads of the Obliterators, Pyro and Clench, were the inspiration for the redesigned Autobot and Decepticon symbols that were used on this year's packaging and later used for
Transformers: Generation 2. The Japanese toy company Takara, from which
Transformers had originated, had the rights to distribute the toys in Japan. Unlike Hasbro UK, Takara had more autonomy for releases and storyline that were running concurrent with the American line. For example, several characters appeared that were only exclusive to the Japanese market and
Toei Animation continued the animated series with their own storylines. In 1989, Takara departed from the lineup of characters that Hasbro released that year, choosing instead to use a different set of characters. In 1990, the Micromaster concept was embraced wholeheartedly as the majority of the toys that year and the next were of that nature. 1991 would see more Micromasters released, including the first Micromaster combiner, alongside three larger Battlestars. One of which was Star Convoy, a reborn version of Optimus Prime. Uniquely, the 1991 range in Japan consisted of only Autobot characters. The 1992 range in Japan was the final year of Generation 1, and featured several more Micromaster combiners, recolored versions of Defensor and Bruticus, and the smaller Turbomasters and Predators which were concurrently released in Europe. ==Animated series==