The Energon Pub

[Cyberseven]

I was 11 when Transformers came out. One of my older brothers friends worked at Toys R Us.

We didn't have much money back then, but I was hooked on Transformers. So my older siblings would hook me up every once in a while. I got Brawn and Bumblebee 1st. I still have all my originals in mint condition. They all are marked Takara, from before Hasbro got a piece of the pie.

[Atomatron]

sideswipe, skywarp, megatron 10 yo yeah g1 ftw

[FellintoOblivion]

First TF I remember having was Seaspray which is from 85. I was born in 1980 though so I might just not remember if I had any from 84.

[Starwave Prime]

I don't remember my first, but I remember having Soundwave, Shockwave and Optimus and a few of the jets and cars, but I don't remember who, I remember having alot of the scouts too, like bumblebee and seaspray, I also had the big die cast Voltron!

[Skyfire77]

I never found Prime as a kid. I remember going to Service Merchandise (anyone else remember that store?) to try and track him down. He was sold out and I wound up getting Megatron instead.

Oh yeah, many a Christmas present came from SM, though more came from Hills, plus a few from TRU.

[bvzxa]

My dad caught walking pneumonia in 1984 when he was living in Atlanta. He was in the hospital when he called my grandmother in New York and asked her to pick up a Transformer. Well on December 26, 1984 I got my first official TF, it was Megatron. I don't remember if she got it from TRU or Sam Solomon, but she had to have gotten it from a store because I got it the day after Christmas. To be truthful TF's were sold out everywhere back in 1984. All my other TF's came in 1985 and beyond.

[RhA]

I was 3 years old back when. I never got a TF for my own untill '87. But I played with soo many at school with the other kids. Sandbox Contructicons where awesome. We could only wonder about the majesty of a fully combined Devastator.

[MightyMagnus78]

I'm pretty sure that Transformers toys weren't released in the UK until '85?

My first TF's, were Prime, Blitzwing and Thrust which I got on my 7Th birthday in the November of that year.

[Jelze Bunnycat]

I was born in the year of Transformers, what are the odds?

Couple that I live in Europe where we're behind a year or two, so it's obvious I didn't get any first year toys. In fact, the oldest toy I have is a G1 Ramjet, 2nd hand. My Wheeljack is a 1991 reissue, so he doesn't count. The first catalog images I saw were of Pretenders, both Mega and Classic, and Micromasters in 1989 and 1990.

[MightyMagnus78]

I was born in the year of Transformers, what are the odds?

Couple that I live in Europe where we're behind a year or two, so it's obvious I didn't get any first year toys. In fact, the oldest toy I have is a G1 Ramjet, 2nd hand. My Wheeljack is a 1991 reissue, so he doesn't count.

My G1 Wheeljack was also a '91 reissue, I guess his mold wasn't broken then!

[decepta-scott]

I got my first in 84. I was 5 yrs old and in the hospital due to spinal miningitis. I had to have a spinal tap and it was very traumatic. My family was worried that I may not live and so I was showered with gifts.
So Im laying in a hospital bed and my aunt and uncil walk in and lay a blue streak toy on me. I had seen the toons and loved em. I had no idea there were toys up to that point though so I was thrilled to see blue streak.
I remember thinking that the red plastic that came with the fig so that you could read the spec tech bio was the coolest thing ever.
So after seeing my response to blue streak my granny and mom promptly went out and returned with prime, megs,sound wave and B.B. After that the next batch I recieved was x-mas. I cant recal exactly who I got then because I was also a die hard MOTU fan and got alot of them as well but I remember getting thunder cracker,starscream and skywarp for xmas. I think that may also have been the year I recieved shockwave.
As for remembering service merchandise Hell yeah I remember!!! I always loved getting the new S.M. catalogue because it came a few months before x mas and I could look at the new toys they had in stock to order. It always showcased new transformers and MOTU figures.
There is still a service merchandise down dixie hwy a bit. They are not as big a power house as they were back in the day but they still exist. I remember my granny and mom taking me in there as a child and telling me that was where santa did his shopping for the toys the elves couldnt create. They had all their merchandise behiend locked glass cases so that you could only look.(Does anyone else remember that? did all S.M. have their wares behiend glass or just mine?) That is why I believed that santa shopped there. That and the fact that they had a santa workshop set up just outside the door durring dec.
That was such a magical time to be alive. I truley love those memories. I aprieciate all the work my granny and mom put in to make x mas so magical for me. I know now that they were having almost as much fun doing all that stuff for me as I was having being on the recieving end.

Supercool story!

Thank you. I also remember getting the predicon head strong as an easter present. I had never gotten an easter present before or after so that was a novelty.
Anywho I saw in head strongs instruction book how he could combine with the others to make prediking and the "no known weakness" claim couppled with the way he didnt look like a bunch of robots stuck to each other made me go nuts to have him. My granny took me to seven different stores looking for all the other predicons. I had problems finding the one I wanted most which was razer claw but I finally found him. I recall being disappointed with how short his arms were.
So when I got them all home I was finally able to make prediking!!! If you have never seen prediking he is a great looking combiner. He is unique in that the four bots that form his limbs are all the same big size as the center bot. This makes for one huge robot.
He has a big ol set of wings that fix to his back that double as dive bombs wings in bird mode, his feet aretn those little sheild things that so many of the other combiners had. He instead used two duel cannons, barrels forward where his toes would be that doubled as the cannons that fix to the backs of head strong and tantrum when in their animal modes.
His hands were two big fists that had four big spikes on each nuckle, his head was huge and cool, he had a lions head in the center of his chest that ofcourse doubled as razer claws head in lion form and finally he had a huge cannon that fixed to his arm that could also be used on razer claws arm in bot mode, or on his back in lion mode.
He is IMO the only combiner that does not look like a bunch of vehicles stuck together. (im sure that is due in no small part to the fact that the predicons are animals and not vehicles) Im not saying I disliked the look of the limbs easily being identified as vehicles on the other combiners I just think pred king looked smoother.
Yeah though. Pred king ruled the roost for a long while until razer claw broke at the waist. Then he became handiking and all the predicons got to park closest to the toy chest.

[Giant Purple Griffin]

I was born in 1981, but I had a Prowl even in my earliest memories, but I don't remember getting him. I also had a Windcharger from the 84 cast. I also had a few 85 guys, but most of my G1 guys came from 86 until the Action-Master era .

Also, as to Service Merchandise, I remember them having all the big-ticket ones (Jetfire, Skylynx, Omega Supreme and other base-bots, etc.)

[Motorthing]

I'm pretty sure that Transformers toys weren't released in the UK until '85?

My first TF's, were Prime, Blitzwing and Thrust which I got on my 7Th birthday in the November of that year.

Late August/early September 84. I bought Starscream the day the Football season began that year, Watched Wimbledon draw 2-2 with Man City and went home full of excitement about Screamer - excitement that tapered off when you got past the great Alt-mode to the slightly less-great Robot.

Got Soundwave next and the Cassettes (loved Raveage for some reason) and Prowl was my first Autobot, but it wasn't until mid-85 that I had saved enough pocket money to get Optimus and Megatron from Argos.

Went off anymore purchases until Jetfire and the Dinos turned up in summer 85 - that was a good summer.

[FellintoOblivion]

I had a girlfriend who worked at the Service Merchandise in Swansea, Massachusetts when I was in high school. I used to love that store as a kid. That and Ann & Hope.

[Dagon]

I never found Prime as a kid. I remember going to Service Merchandise (anyone else remember that store?) to try and track him down. He was sold out and I wound up getting Megatron instead.

Yep. That's where I got my first Transformer. Sunstreaker.

[blotbot]

It was purchased for me, I was 8, but I'm pretty sure I got a Soundwave w/Buzzsaw in 1984. However, I'm not positive. I'd have to dig my old one out to see if has a rubsign. I'm pretty sure though, cuz it was a little while until I also got my grubby mits on Cosmos, Seaspray, Topspin, Powerglide, and then Omega Supreme.

[Vanishing Point]

Gears pre rubsign - TRU near Windsor Park Mall in San Antonio TX, the TRU is gone, the Mall is gone, still have the grumpy lil guy

[Random]

Wow, I remember this. I was heading to the public pool on my birthday to have fun for a bit before my step dad got home for the party.

I went to cross at an intersection when I had the right of way, and I got hit by some guy making a left turn on a red. It didn't really do anything but scare the living crap outta me. I was so freaked out I simply went back to the house. I didn't say anything to Mom. A little later, before my Step dad got home, the police came by our apartment. They told mom everything that happened and that the guy filed a report and they were doing a followup.

Mom freaked out and took me to the emergency room. There was nothing wrong with me. Heck there was barely a scratch on my bike. The guy just knocked me over. But anyway, there we were when my Step dad showed up later. He had my gift with him. I got to open it, it was the Soundwave/Buzzsaw set. Then I was grounded from playing with it for not being forthcoming with what had happened.

Man, that was so long ago...

[necr0blivion]

I think I was the right age when Transformers appeared in the US. It was a golden time of 30 minute cartoons/commercials for several different properties, but I loved these Robots in Disguise.

I think my first figure was Optimus, but really not sure. I do remember wandering through the aisles at K-Mart and Lionel Playworld for figures, and getting the Constructicon giftset from Sears. That Sears' Christmas catalog used to be so drool-worthy.

I really wish I would've focused mainly on the TFs (and maybe kept up better with the ones I did own), but I've very grateful for the reissues we've seen in the past 10 years. Out of all the figures I had when I was a kid, I miss my Stunticons the most.

[MGrotusque]

My mom didn't give into my rants and raves about getting TF's till 85 when she realized it wasn't just a little fad with me. I was 6 at the time.

Then in 85 she went out and finally bought me some.

Autobots: Seaspray,Grimlock, Twintwist and Topspin and a Powerglide i think.

Decepticons: Astrotrain and Venom (loved him!.

We were pretty poor when i was growing up and i didn't get any other new transformers till 87. I had to play with my friends TF's instead of really having my own.

[donnie_707]

yep...we were living in san jose at the time. but i remember my dad buying me optimus prime. i was about 4 years old.....if only i knew they were going to be worth so much today.....i would have bought 5 of them and kept them in the box

[Fragmare]

Think I got Sunstreaker and Megatron back in '84. I've still got Megatron in my collection (in great shape too), though he's missing his silencer connector piece. I think I got Thundercracker as well, but that might not have been until '85. Still have Thundercracker too, but I only have the jet body. :/ These were all birthday/Christmas gifts mind you. I was only 6 back in '84.

[jets]

Wow, after all these years I have struggled to remember what my first TF was back in '84. I was 8 at that time. I am 99% sure that my first was Soundwave with buzzsaw. I remember wondering why all the other kids had lazerbeak a why I had this similar looking nobody that was never even in the show. I also remember the day I realized I could slide open his back and pop in his guns. Cooooooool I thought. Took my until now to realize they were meant to mimic batteries

I also pined for Optimus and never found him. Heck the only seeker I could find was Thrust. Good times.

[iguanabytes]

my favorite story, although not my first transformers purchase was about looking for tracks; we did a lot of calling around and finally got someone who said he ahd a "blue transformer toy" on the shelf at a dinky little five and dime in a little town west of denver; my sister trucked me out there(tolerant soul that she is) and we found not tracks but skids...

we bought him, and I ended up getting g1 tracks later at service merchandise from my brother in law

my g1 tracks got lost during my adult years(probably when I split with Ex-wife) but I still have that skids toy and the memory of that trip with my sister

the same siste, this year, asked me for help on a dollhouse-a house for her son and daughter in law-to-be's hopes and dreams as part of wedding ceremony- in addition to my sweat and talent I contributed a spare cannon bumblebee to the project- my nephew should get a kick out of that

[mesh]

my first ever transformer was G1 Sea Spray. I still have it in it's original packaging because my parents thought it was too small for me to play with. It was later believed to be lost somewhere in the house so never had a chance to open it.

***keep the above memory in mind*****


within that same year my parents bought me G1 Optimus Prime which to this day I still have. The box and foam are all gone but I still have all the parts and the paint is perfect with the exception of the smoke stacks.

now fast track to 2007. this is when my father passed away.
so a week after we cleaned out his closet i opened his filing cabinet to sort out his paper work. the very last file folder, at the very back, i find my lost relic.

yup i found my Sea Spray. That figure is in great condition with a little bit of dust. I will never part with that figure until i die. so out of the tf's that i had when i was kid (sea spray, twintwist, trailbreaker, sideswipe, sandstorm, soundwave, optimus prime, grimlock, and others), i managed to keep Sea spray and optimus prime.