Yearbook Pictures 1984 - 1993 G1 and G2. ----------HAPPY 30TH GUYS!!!!!-----------

Discussion in 'Transformers Collection Showcase' started by heraldofunicron, Dec 5, 2014.

  1. heraldofunicron

    heraldofunicron Well-Known Member

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    After seeing Heroicdecepticons' blogs/posts and beautiful group shots, we got to talking a little and I decided to do the entire run of the G1 and G2 toys in their US packages. I know most of the seasoned collectors already know which toys came out in each year, but I thought this would be a cool opportunity to showcase the entire year and let people see every toy all in one shot.

    So, since it’s the end of the 30th anniversary of the brand and December, lets go for a 12 days of christmas motif. I’ll post one year a day for 11 days (should be 10, but I managed to stretch it out to 11. Sorry I couldn’t get a 12th out of it for a full “12 days”)

    Lets start out with with the original guys, the 1984 run. This is where it all started and all the classics are here. Prime, Megs, Soundwave, all the jets and cars we all remember and love. Nice diaclone inspired (or copied) artwork, hearty di-cast metal and those shitty american non-launching rocket launchers! As you can all see, the decepticons were VASTLY out-numberd when they first crashed on earth. Luckily, Hasbro would work on that with the ‘85 run.

    Growing up, I never had a Megatron. I did have a Prime (just the toy and trailer, no weapons or fists or anything). But I do remember the first time I got to hold a Megatron. I must have been 6 or 7 and a friend’s brother had one. I was so excited to get to transform it! It would be at least 8 years till I actually owned my first Megs…...so that was a long time coming!
     

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  2. mephinc

    mephinc Well-Known Member

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    This....will be epic


    ever thought of getting all of those graded?
     
  3. heraldofunicron

    heraldofunicron Well-Known Member

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    Today, we get the 1985 run. Again, almost all these toys were imported from various japanese lines. Still, we kept the nice di-cast feel from the original line. This was also the introduction of the fan favorite DINOBOTS!!!!! I only had Grimlock and Sludge as a kid, so when I first got all 5 of them, it was a good day for me. While not my favorite sub-series (we’ll get to them in a couple days) the dinobots have got quite a lot of love over the years.

    This was also the year that we got out first combiner. He too was a Diaclone import (strange that his diaclone nemesis Raiden wouldn't get an american release……..and even Japan had to wait a few years to get him!) but he’s also the ONLY combiner where each bot could only go in one spot. Every other combiner could at least switch legs and or arms. (except Lio Kaiser, I forgot about him. But we never got him in the US.....so.........eh)

    (I hate to rat myself out, but I realised after I took the pics that the cassettes are supposed to go in the 1986 pic. Eventually I might re-take the shots, but I don’t feel like spending another 3 hours to take them now!!!)

    Devastator was always one of my favorites from this year. Growing up, I had 4 of the 6 constructicons and NO weapons. So I could never actually form Devastator as a child. But the nice thing about the constructicons, each of the 6 toys was a pretty self sufficient toy. Still, having a complete one as a kid would have been nice.
     

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  4. heraldofunicron

    heraldofunicron Well-Known Member

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    Thanks and I hope people like em! Not all of them are sealed. All the carded stuff yes, but *most* of the boxed stuff has been opened and just put back in the bubble. I've got about 26 MISB TF's, but the rest have all been opened to some degree.

    But as for grading, no. I like the look, but I prefer all my things to be uniform. If I grade one, I'd have to grade them all. Also, I like to actually feel the cardboard still. Makes them seam more "real" to me then having it encased in plastic. Sorry to the AFA crowd!!!
     
  5. heraldofunicron

    heraldofunicron Well-Known Member

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    We have now reached 1986. The first time Hasbro actually had to get down and dirty and design their own toys………….and design they did. Starting with metal and rubber and then transitioning most of those parts to plastic, most of the toys in this run received a running change in production material. Even the cassettes (who again, are in the 1985 photo) changed from stickers to paint and from silver to gold weapons!!! Collecting all the variations from this year will cost you a LOT of time and money!

    We got only one diaclone toy this year (magnus). Everything else was brand new! Lots of new combiners this year too! Also, with the live action movie hitting the screen, most of our old favorites were killed off (both on screen and in the comic) to make way for the new regime.

    The Superion gift set holds a special place in my heart. YEARS ago, my mom went to a garage sale and found me a box of old old old Star Wars trading cards for $2. I pulled out 5 complete sets (which I sold about 10 years later for a couple hundred bucks since I didn’t collect Star Wars anymore at that point) and still had quite a few extras. I took all those extras to my local toy shop to trade. The owner gave me $50 in trade value for those doubles and this superion gift set was $50. So that was a very nice trade for me :)  Also, this was the first complete superion I ever owned.
     

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  6. blackconvoy_D01

    blackconvoy_D01 Destronger

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    Amazing summary and dedication on keeping them preserved in the boxes!
     
  7. heraldofunicron

    heraldofunicron Well-Known Member

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    Today is kind of a “bonus round” if you will (or the shots I took to draw this out to 11 days) Not quite a full year, but something I still wanted to cover. Mail away toys! Now, not ALL the mailaway toys (mainly since I don’t have a complete sealed set of the retail shelf releases to show) but just the ones that were ONLY available with your robot points. As you know, this is a very small round up. Having the plain white boxes and the clear plastic bags were not the best way to package these guys (plain white box, yea…….sadly that happened). Much like everything else so far, these are all diaclone inspired. Except Time Warrior……...even though not a true TOY…….he was a brand new mold. Also, just to point out yes time warrior and Reflector are out of the box. But I thought two plain white boxes were kind of a bland shot.

    Other mailaway toys included; Sunstreaker, Ratchet, Wheeljack, Thundercracker, Warpath, Cosmos and Cliffjumper. All the exact same toys as the normal retail shelf releases. Also "movie" versions of Prime and Megatron (same exact toys, but they came in a plain brown box). Also, Cookie Crisp had their own version of Jazz, which was the same toy but he didn't have the "martanii" sticker on his side. There was also S.T.A.R.S, the transformer base. I did take some pics of megs, wheeljack and jazz, since those are the only "retail shelf" versions that I have in mailaway form.

    I got my Reflector at the San Diego comic con WAY back in the day for $90. I remember that since the seller was a complete and utter ASS! I must have been like 15 or so. I’ve never been someone to haggle on price. If I want it, I buy it. If it’s too much, I’ll pass on it. That being said, I don’t know what I had done to piss off the seller…….but after I bought the reflector and was starting to walk away, I heard the guy tell someone else “god I hate transformer collectors”. I turned around and said “excuse me?!?” Now I don’t know to this day if I had done something to piss this guy off or what, but he just turned red and stared at me. I asked if I had done something wrong and he just continued to stand there stuttering at me. After a few uncomfortable seconds I stormed off, but never in my life have I felt so insulted for no reason at all. I’ve never told that story before………...
     

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  8. gajedi

    gajedi Well-Known Member

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    Very cool. Where's the STARS base shots?
     
  9. heraldofunicron

    heraldofunicron Well-Known Member

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    I don't actually have a S.T.A.R.S. base yet! one of the few things I never picked up........and now it's going for over $350 now! It's really hard for me to spend that kind of money on paper :(  Eventually I might pick one up.
     
  10. LastDecepticon

    LastDecepticon Well-Known Member

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    God bless u man . I couldn't have that much TF in a Box. Id go insane . keep em Coming .
     
  11. heraldofunicron

    heraldofunicron Well-Known Member

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    Today, 1987 and my FAVORITE line of G1. Gone completely were metal parts and everyone was plastic now. Also, we are introduced the to the “partner” gimmick. headmasters and targetmasters were born! Along with the largest Tf ever (until the new Metroplex beat him by a couple inches) Fortress Maximus!

    What makes this my favorite line you might ask? It’s the headmasters. The concept of a human (or nebulan) partner in my mind is awesome (and the play value for me as a kid was the best). It’s also like getting two toys in one. In addition, the headmasters are the most poseable of all the “masters”. While they would get a completely different mythology in Japan, here in the US they were all humanoid merged with machines.

    My fun story from this year involves Fort Max. That boxed Fort Max is the one my good friend and I played with as kids. He got Fort Max and I got Scorponok. My Scorp had no weapons except for his shield (since he was a garage sale find) but Fort Max was bought by my friends mom brand new for him. Years later once he outgrew TF’s (yea, it happens) he sold/gave/traded me everything he still had, including the Fort Max (which became my first). Years after that, we were digging in his attic……..off in the corner was the Fort Max box with about 6 years of dust on it. His mom had kept the box in the attic!!!! Aside from the dust, it was in about the same condition it was the day it was taken off the shelf. No other boxed Fort Max could ever replace this one for the sentimental value he holds.

    Sadly, this was the last year we saw our beloved characters on the small screen. the 3 part “Rebirth” was the end of their animated adventures. The Transformers would continue their war in comic form for a few more years, but this year was the beginning of the end I’m sad to say.
     

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  12. heraldofunicron

    heraldofunicron Well-Known Member

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    glad you're enjoying them!!!
     
  13. doucoo

    doucoo U're an idiot Starscream!

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    Fantastic idea.

    Loving the pics and the narrative.

    Funnily enough I'm trying to collect by year just now. Completed Series 1, halfway through series 2.

    I have heaps from the further years etc but thought I'd get more focus on the way I collect.

    Just got Shockwave the other day, very pleased with myself!
     
  14. Murasame

    Murasame 村雨

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    Awesome! I love seeing these boxes! Simple but still the coolest designs!
     
  15. Chefdova

    Chefdova Nerd alert

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    Sweetness Neal. Like I already said love those Masters boxes!
     
  16. heraldofunicron

    heraldofunicron Well-Known Member

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    Enter 1988, the year of “everything smaller” and pretenders. As much as I like the smaller targetmasters and headmasters, they don’t compare to the originals. The pretenders might look cool when all decked out with their weapons, but still not exactly a highlight of the brand. More like combining G.I.Joe and transformers into one toy! But, you have to give Hasbro credit for trying. We did get some excellent toys in the powermasters this year! That and a combiner with a “targetmaster” feature was kind of a cool touch.

    One of my friends (same one who had the Fort Max) got Dreadwind one day. We both LOVED that toy. So much my mom went out to buy me one (about this time is when my parents actually started buying me new toys instead of garage sale stuff). Small problem, when she gave it to me it was Darkwing! I was still grateful, but sad it wasn’t the one I wanted (and she could tell). BUT THEN I turned the box over and saw that OUR TOYS COULD COMBINE?!?!?!? It was the greatest day ever the next time we got together and our two toys become one. Those two toys actually brought our friendship closer. Only when we hung out together could our toys make that super cool combined jet. Pretty nice stuff for a child :) 
     

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  17. Sixo

    Sixo Canonical

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    This thread is amazing! I've always loved the look of G1 figures in the box; so simple and uniform in the way they're presented. I am in complete awe!
     
  18. heraldofunicron

    heraldofunicron Well-Known Member

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    Today, 1989 marked almost the end for G1 here in the US. The pretender game was stepped up a notch to include an actual TOY and not just a stick robot. We got fan favorites Blugeon and Thunderwing this year. Who, if not for the comic……….would NOT be worth so much these days. But, they are both high up on my list for that reason, so I really can’t say anything negative about that!

    Trying something else completely new, we got MICROMASTERS! Now, I remember people hating these little guys. But I loved em! Even back in the day. I don’t think micromasters got fully recognized until Armada and the Mini-cons were introduced. But back when Micro-Machines were still on the shelves…………..these little guys were an AWESOME idea!!!

    I remember getting the battle patrol when I had my tonsils take out. I wouldn’t give them up, even as the doctors were giving me the knock out gas……….I held onto those little guys and tried to show the doctors how they transformed and how cool they were! My parents knew that giving me a new TF was the only way I would be calm enough to sit still in the doctors office while they knocked me out. I was actually given them in the waiting room! And those little guys were waiting for me on the table when I woke up.
     

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  19. BoNKerS

    BoNKerS Well-Known Member

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    Thank you for taking the time to do this!

    Nice little ride through time!!!
     
  20. heraldofunicron

    heraldofunicron Well-Known Member

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    Sadly, 1990 marked the end of G1 in the US. We got only a small slew of micromasters and the controversial Action Masters. As you can tell from the pic, Actionmasters were never my thing and I don’t even consider them true “transformers”. Therefore, I don’t have any. So, this is not a “true” yearbook photo, but in my mind it is.

    The actiomasters themselves were not horrible toys. The artwork is some of the best and the look of the toys was pretty spot on with the animation and comic books. But, the whole idea of a “transformer” is something and can change. An actionmaster is a basically a robot G.I.Joe figure that comes with a small targetmaster. I’m sorry, but that’s not a Transformer in my book. Still cool toys, but I consider them a completely separate set of “transformers”.

    Anyway, the micromasters this year continued to look awesome and we got a decent amount of them. Even had 3 that came with accessories!!!!!

    My story this year is the pretender classics. I never actually saw any of them in their pretender form on store shelves. Then one day I went to K-Mart and saw Jazz and Bumblebee carded just hanging there (this was well after TF’s were done and not being sold in stores anymore) I thought they were awesome and mom and dad bought em for me (never had either of the originals). Wasn’t till a couple years later I learned that they came with pretender shells first. Also strange that the carded versions switched their weapons for some reason.

    Just for fun, since they were all out (and since there aren’t TOO many of them). There’s the entire run shot of the micromasters as well.
     

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