![]() The original Diaclone versions of Rachet and Ironhide each came with a figurine, which sat in the driving seat in both their vehicle and robot modes. We have the designer Koujin Ohno to thank for the design of these and other robots from the Diaclone Car-Robots line – you can even find the patent for his ‘reconfigurable toy’ here. The reason: Rachet and Ironhide began life as a Diaclone toy, and unlike the Transformers, the Diaclone robots were ‘operated’ by little humanoid figures. And why didn’t he look like the far cooler-looking robot in the TV series? And why didn’t he have a proper head? Sure, he looked fine in his disguise as an ambulance (or a van in Ironhide’s case), but as a robot? He could be charitably described as ungainly. Little kids receiving their first Transformers in 19 might have been a bit confused by Rachet, and his red cousin, Ironhide. Budiansky even wrote the little biographies which appeared on the back of each Transformers box – a clever means of giving personality and depth to what could have been just another toy. Most importantly, he gave each robot a memorable character quirk, such as Grimlock’s arrogance or Starscream’s constant plans to usurp Megatron as leader of the Decepticons. It was Budiansky who came up with such names as Optimus Prime, Hound and Jazz. The idea of having two opposing forces of good and evil robots came from Marvel’s editor-in-chief, Jim Shooter, while legendary comic book writer and editor Bob Budiansky was responsible for another important innovation: the Transformers’ names and personalities. Joe in 1982, Hasbro turned to Marvel to help flesh out the Transformers‘ back story. Unlike other companies, such as Joustra or the Mega Corporation, who’d previously sold Takara’s toys overseas, Hasbro did more than merely just sell the products in redesigned packaging – they united the lines under a single banner, The Transformers.Īs they had with G.I. Struck by these designs, Hasbro hatched a deal with Takara to sell them in America. Although the two ranges of toys were different, they shared a common idea: robots that could disguise themselves as vehicles or ordinary objects. Takara were showing off a range of figures from its Microman line of toys, which it called Diaclone and Micro Change. Joe action figures to sell as Combat Joe in Japan. There, they were reunited with Japanese manufacturer Takara – a company Hasbro had originally dealt with in the 1970s, when Takara licensed some of Hasbro’s G.I. That search ended in 1982, when executives from Hasbro attended the Tokyo Toy Fair. A war for the attention of America’s youngsters had begun, and Hasbro started searching around for a new toy idea to win it. Hasbro’s rival Mattel, meanwhile, had an enormous hit with its He-Man range of fantasy action figures and the animated show which promoted them. Joe figures in 1982, which was supported by an animated TV series and a comic book published by Marvel Comics. The release of Star Wars had sparked a boom in action figures and merchandise in the late 70s and early 80s, and companies including Mattel and Hasbro adopted a similar approach to selling toys in its wake.
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