TFW's Official History of Transformers - 1984-2014

Discussion in 'Transformers General Discussion' started by Sol Fury, Apr 8, 2014.

  1. Necro Prime

    Necro Prime Necrobot

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    Thank you. A great way to wake up. I am so excited for the anniversary. My favorite franchise and I are the same age, and its been an honor to grow along with it. TRANSFORMERS! 30 YEARS!! !WOOT!!!
     
  2. O.Supreme

    O.Supreme Defender of the Ark

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    Yes I remember the first commercial for the first issue of the Marvel comics @ April/May of 1984. My family moved across town, so when I started 3rd grade in a new school in September, most kids had the toys, so I'm guessing they came out during the summer sometime. That was truly a fun time in life. Cant believe it was 30 years ago. I remember seeing early issues of the comic from friends, (particularly 4,5, & 8 ) I started purchasing them for myself with #9. The first episode of the animated seies i saw was "The Ultime Doom" part 1, but was able to quickly catch the entire first season in reruns.
     
  3. Underwear

    Underwear Banned

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    Awesome article! Looking forward to the next instalment :) 
     
  4. Smokescreen

    Smokescreen The Ultimate Gambler

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    That was an awesome read. Good job, Simon! :thumb 

    I remember being in Toys R' Us back in '84 looking at some Go-bots when my eyes were drawn to a Transformers box sitting on a nearby shelf. It was Trailbreaker and I was so impressed by not only the size of the toy but by the bio and tech specs on the back that I asked my mom to buy it for me. Once I was out in our van I opened the box up and looked at the pamphlet that showed all of the other Transformers that were available and from that moment on I was hooked. My parents' wallets would never be the same!
     
  5. The Wombat King

    The Wombat King Ruler of a distant land

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    Nice read. Some good memories. :thumb 
     
  6. archieboy

    archieboy Well-Known Member

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    Well done sir!
     
  7. Stygian360

    Stygian360 Well-Known Member

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    Great writeup and kick-off to the start of the 30th!

    My journey with Transformers began IIRC with the comic book. I believe I may have been vaguely aware of the toys because I spent so much time at TRU looking for GI Joe's, but the comics and later the cartoon are what really cemented TF in my mind as something special. I will admit the toys rarely lived up to the awesomeness that they displayed- both in modes and personality- in their cartoon and comic book incarnations, with the Dinobots a rare exception, but I certainly desperately wanted them all the same. I recall Optimus Prime being a treasured possession given to me by my grandparents one Christmas, that thing went with me everywhere.

    Lots of great memories with this brand over the years, so thanks for getting the ball rolling with this thread.
     
  8. Trailbreaker77

    Trailbreaker77 Camaro Club! Veteran TFW2005 Supporter

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    Wow, I never knew that first season ended on my Birthday, I turned 7 and I got my first Transformer that day.

    Trailbreaker!
     
    Last edited: Apr 8, 2014
  9. charsdc2

    charsdc2 Well-Known Member

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    These bad boys to the MP line, man, TFs have come a long, long way!
     
  10. revlimiter

    revlimiter Bot Hacker

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    FANTASTIC read. It really brought me back. I was suddenly 7, watching MTMTE air after school. It was so different than anything I'd seen before. So exciting. I was immediately hooked.

    It hardly seems like 30 years have passed...

    Can't wait for the next 29 articles!
     
  11. Autoborst

    Autoborst Well-Known Member

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    Very impressive editorial, Sol. That was a lot of history covered in one article, I can't wait to read the rest.
     
  12. mrdecepticon

    mrdecepticon Decepticon Leader

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    Wonderful article. Great. Looking forward to the next one.
     
  13. Darkspeed

    Darkspeed Avatar Freak

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    Wonderful work Sol, informative and fun to read! Many thanks for doing this, it's gonna be a great rundown to the 30th!

    I was more into the cartoon myself, my mum used to rent the videos for us from the local store over and over, because we never could find them on TV (I think they had them on over Easter and Summer holidays in the UK, but don't quote me on that.) But I had the annuals they released and a few select single issues - My first one was the story involving Flame and the Zombie Impactor! ;) 
     
  14. CyclonuS_ZerO

    CyclonuS_ZerO Uni-con

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    Very cool retrospective. Looking forward to the overall arc of the 30 year history.
     
  15. Akumaxv

    Akumaxv Well-Known Member

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    Great article. Has it really been 30 years??

    I vaguely remember seeing Kronoform and Diakron toys, especially in the Asian owned toy and Candy stores around Queens (Flushing/Jackson Heights/Corona) and thinking "What are these fake Transformers doing here??". I distinctly remember Soundwaves tapes and getting the "fake" set of those. Man was I upset.

    If I only had the foresight to have held on to those and the boxes they came in, who knows how much they'd be worth today. Never mind the fact that I had a REAL piece of Transformers history.

    If I only knew...
     
  16. grimlock1972

    grimlock1972 Optimus, serving up the primest of ribs since 1984

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    awesome read, very much looking forward to the other 29 parts.
     
  17. Swoop Dogg

    Swoop Dogg Hi Yukio!

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    I was wondering about the toy dates as well. I remember getting Thundercracker (my first Transformer ever) during the summer. I know it was the summer because my dad bought Thundercracker for me and I went to the store with him because he needed some stuff for the garden outside.

    I had no idea (until now) that the cartoon didn't come out till the fall - so I have no idea how I even knew what a Transformer was in the summer when the cartoon didn't even come out until the fall. I had no exposure to the Marvel comic as a kid. I guess I saw a toy commercial first. I don't know.
     
  18. charles_242

    charles_242 Well-Known Member

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    Nice to read the texts. Thank you for remembering all those good years, cartoons and toys !
     
  19. Shortwave

    Shortwave Autobot fembot

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    Big 30.. man im old.
     
  20. reave

    reave Well-Known Member

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    Great stuff. Looking forward to all thirty years. It's been fun ride.

    *Obsessive nerd G1 expert note*
    The toys listed as the "...selection of the Transformers toys released in 1984", are clearly (mainly) from 1985.
    :wink: