The Energon Pub

Every two weeks, Seibertron.com brings you a Top 5 list related to all things Transformers written by me, your fellow editor. These are my opinions (just like movie or game reviews hosted by sites are still just the opinion of one person) so what matters most is what you guys think of the topic or list, and I hope to see your own lists or comments on omissions and ranking. Let's have fun! All previous lists can be found here.


Top 5 Best Movie Toys for Off Screen Characters (first trilogy)


Last time, we looked at the top 5 best Transformers movie toys of on screen characters, so this week we are looking at the toys of characters who didn't show up. My only rule is that the molds must be original for the movies. While Big Daddy is an awesome looking TF (dont have him, but wish I did), I can't count him since he is just a redeco of a pre-existing mold. I also won't count the toys that fell in the cracks of the 2010 Transformers line and werent clearly identified as being linked to the movie line. In the end, the lines that were looked at for this list are: Dark of the Moon (DOTM), Revenge of the Fallen (ROTF), Hunt for the Decepticons (HFTD) the initial 2007 movie line.


5. Hunt For The Decepticons Breacher

One of the best Scout class toys of all time. He is beautifully sculpted and more complex than any deluxe that has come out in the past two years. I love that meaty satisfying transformation that is intuitive and not annoying. The articulation is superb and he can even interact with others, like Seaspray, or use other toys' c-clip weapons. What really seals the deal though is the look. You will see this theme repeated often in this list but he feels like the perfect marriage between the clean and traditional autobot aesthetic and the more detailed movie designs. He still has the pistons and layered armour, but there are also smooth panels and alt mode integrations and a beutiful little autobot headsculpt. Just writing about him, I feel like replacing my number one entry with this guy.



4. Hunt For The Decepticons Terradive

Sometimes, Hasbro and Takara will just decide to revolutionize the way to transform a typical alt mode. Jets usually go with the seeker design where the nosecone folds down and he wings are in the back. Even weird movie designs like Breawakay still go with that outline. Then you get Terradive, who just changes it all. Firstly, the nosecone chest is totally inverted and made as a more protruding design rearranging the jet pannels. Then the wings are brought down to the legs, making him look far more sleek than most other jet Transformers out there. And unlike other attempts at revolutionizing the jet transformer, Teradive keeps a nice traditional symmetric robot mode with alt mode integration all throughout. Plus he has a trident making him a sea and air double threat!



3. Dark of the Moon Skyhammer

This is the greatest helicopter Transformers toy of all time, no contest. The detail in both modes is asgood as it gets with two gorgeous molds that have little to no extraneous kibble of the other mode showing thanks to lovely alt mode integrationg in robot mode. That gives you a sleek yet powerful looking robot which merges both the detailed multiarmoured theme of the films with some sleek and smooth surfaces of more traditional designs, including a nice modernized G1 style headsculpt.



2. Revenge of the Fallen Bludgeon

What could beat the greatest Helicopter mold of all time? The greatest tank mold of all time, that's what! I will never stop marvelling at the beauty that is ROTF Bludgeon. Hasbro and Takara really went all out here, making this an amazing G1 homage in a movie line, of all places. They finally give us a robot samurai that transforms, and use the alt mode of a tank to make it work perfectly. The tank treads becoming the leather samurai armour is genius, and so is the tank roof and cannon providing weapon storage for his two swords. This is one of the most innovative designs ever done and easily the best Bludgeon toy out there.

As an aside, the other Bludgeon using a movie mold is also pretty great.




1. Revenge of the Fallen Mindwipe and Skystalker

This duo is the cream of the crop. Firstly, the alt modes are perfect. It is amazing how unintrusive their combining gimmick is. More of a fun option than something crammed down our throats. Both are phenominal toys with both of them being stellar examples of the most recent golden age of Transformers and kings in their size classes. I love how these toys use the best aspect of the movie lines to give us new designs that can be appreciated independently of the movie line. They merge the complexity and intricate panelling of the movie lines but make it more streamlined, making the transformation pleasant rather than frustrating. Mindwipe especially. He feels great with nice big chuncks that fit perfectly together, like a refined version of a Cybertron toy made using all that was learnt since. And there is even a slight G1 homage with his winged robot mode along with the theme of stealth, radars, blindness and bats all coming together. He is also just striking as a figure with a sleek and kibble free robot mode filled with personality and unique features, like those folded automorph wings and energon daggers he is holding ala X-men's Warpath. To me, a perfect Transformer is very hard to do since it must have a striking robot mode with new robot mode detail and no extraneous vehicle kibble, and a clean vehicle mode, all while haiving a fun transformation. To achieve this, they usually have to repurpose parts from one mode to the next and this toy does it like no other with having his cockpit/nosecone seperate into his two feet and daggers. Him being turned into "classics" Strafe is a testament to how his design crosses that gap in easthetics which would be futher expanded upon in the Prime line. All these toys in this list do that in a way, but I really feel Midwipe does it best.








Honourable Mentions: Transformers Hunt For The Decepticons Sea Spray and Revenge of the Fallen Lockdown. Both of these are awesome, I just thought the others were a tad bit better and more linked to the movies while these two seem to be more in line with the "classics" theme, especially Lockdown which works more as a companion to Reveal the Shield Lugnut as a classics reinterpretation of the animated aesthetic (and plus there is a new movie Lockdown which is far more linked to the movie-verse).

Does the Reveal The Shield Voyager Lugnut count as a movie toy? If yes, then it was a huge omission!

alex1986lunatic wrote:Does the Reveal The Shield Voyager Lugnut count as a movie toy? If yes, then it was a huge omission!

He doesnt. It was mentioned at the end. And the lines used for this list is written in the intro. He was part of Reveal the Shield, which isnt a movie line.

Great list but I honestly never considered Seaspray, Breacher or Terradive Movie figures. Transformers 2010 line was a weird one because a lot of the toys don't look like movie toys and have the regular autobot and Decepticon symbols instead of the movie versions and characters like Breacher and Seaspray had more or less non movie looking faces. I guess it's me, I just don't consider them movie toys. Just pre-reveal the shield figures(even though none have rub signs) Almost all of them. I actually count them as CHUG figures like Seaspray and I have Breacher and Terradive in my classics collection.

Again great list! I own all of them except mindwipe. Terradive is one of my favorite deluxe figures. 6 years later and he still gets taken off the shelf and played with now and then.

I've been waiting for this list for awhile now and I was not disappointed. It was a great list, wish I had more of the figures on it but they are all on my catch up list.
I do think the DotM Space Case redeco of Terradive is better than the original though. I like the deco and headsculpt more on him. I think he would have to be my number one.

How dare you claim there is a greater helicopter Transformer than Alpha Bravo!

Nik Hero wrote:How dare you claim there is a greater helicopter Transformer than Alpha Bravo!

http://www.seibertron.com/transformers/ ... oys/34612/

Nice list.

I love Skyhammer. As an added bonus he has similarities to Beast Wars Silverbolt. He would make an excellent pre-Beast Wars alt mode for Silverbolt. ubertenorman had the same idea and painted Skyhammer to look even more so.

http://www.seibertron.com/energonpub/dotm-classics-bw-silverbolt-t81502s400.php

Excellent list! I really love the offscreen movie toys. I don't own as many as I'd like to but I do love the ones I own.

In terms of some of my favourites that I don't own but like the look of, I think I'd put forward (in no particular order):
ROTF Ransack- He's a goddamn biplane! That's just awesome! Plus he has a really unique looking robot mode.
HFTD Highbrow- I'm actually tempted to pick this up instead of the new TR version. It turns into a (stylized) P-38 Lightning, which is a plane I adore, and the robot mode is just gorgeous.
2007 Wreckage- he's just cool, end of. Cool APC mode, cool robot mode (which would fit in well with a Classics shelf IMO) and AWESOME weapons.
ROTF Dirt Boss- He's a forklift, which I don't think any actual Transformers have ever turned into. Sadly his fork doesn't lift, but his robot mode is completely adorable.
ROTF Brawn- I don't know if he's as good as he looks, but by god he looks good.

In terms of ones I actually own, ranked from worst to best...

Dropkick- He LOOKS cool but he's not my favourite. Not bad by any stretch but not the greatest. His "pliars" weapon is a bit weird and his leg articulation is awkward. Superb details though.
2007 Payload- He's actually really cool, but that claw gimmick (addictive though it is) gets in the way sooooo much. If the rod hinged up against his back it'd be fine, but as is it drags an otherwise fantastic toy down.
ROTF Detour/Dead End- I love this toy. The robot mode is creepy as hell and the car mode is like an evil Wheelie. Unfortunately mine had HORRENDOUS QC, with a warped pin and black paint that will not stop flaking off.
2007 Swindle- Neat vehicle mode, great robot mode, and one of my favourite car transformations ever. Makes a great generic troop builder IMO. I might be tempted to buy three or so to replace my (badly customized, somewhat knackered) original figure.
2007 Dreadwing- He turns into a MiG-29 which is an instant win in my book (gotta love Russian jets). His robot mode is like a movie version of Armada Thrust, which is another win. Sadly mine needs replacing after his inner mechanisms crumbled to bits and his shoulder became incurably loose.
2007 Stockade- Easily one of my favourite Transformers ever. His gimmick is great, his robot mode is intimidating and fits in with Classics as well as movie stuff, and his vehicle mode is stylish. If he had proper ankle articulation he would literally be perfect.

Surprised Terra dive got chosen over Space Case, mostly because of Space Case's infinitely superior personally preferable colors. Shame I lost the head to him

Randomhero wrote:Great list but I honestly never considered Seaspray, Breacher or Terradive Movie figures. Transformers 2010 line was a weird one because a lot of the toys don't look like movie toys and have the regular autobot and Decepticon symbols instead of the movie versions and characters like Breacher and Seaspray had more or less non movie looking faces. I guess it's me, I just don't consider them movie toys. Just pre-reveal the shield figures(even though none have rub signs) Almost all of them. I actually count them as CHUG figures like Seaspray and I have Breacher and Terradive in my classics collection.

Again great list! I own all of them except mindwipe. Terradive is one of my favorite deluxe figures. 6 years later and he still gets taken off the shelf and played with now and then.

I think technically they're considered movie figures but surely Hasbro was aware that people would place figures like Sea Spray and Bludgeon in whatever lineup they wanted. I placed a lot of these guys in my Classics list and will probably repurpose more as time goes on.

Though, since we have an official Mindwipe, I'll make movie Mindwipe stand in for Bomb Burst

Awesome list!

though, I personally would not put Mindwipe as #1 because of his forearms/hand area. It feels funky and doesn't look too good to me. I feel Skyhammer should be #1. I love that mold

SureShot18 wrote:I've been waiting for this list for awhile now and I was not disappointed. It was a great list, wish I had more of the figures on it but they are all on my catch up list.
I do think the DotM Space Case redeco of Terradive is better than the original though. I like the deco and headsculpt more on him. I think he would have to be my number one.

Spacecase is a great toy too. Once I saw a retool of terradive I leapt on him. I know he's a G2 homage but I have him my own fanon about him being a Decepticon Mneumosurgeon. Mostly due to the the open hands that look like claws and he just has a weird scientist look going for him to me.

I must be one of the few people who wasn't overly fussed with Terradive and just didn't give a rats bottom about Bludgeon.

Breacher and Skyhammer though.

Breacher is a fantastic little figure. And Skyhammer is easily hands down the best helicopter out there (and I'm not saying that because of my anti-Alpha Bravo stance)

Burn wrote:I must be one of the few people who wasn't overly fussed with Terradive and just didn't give a rats bottom about Bludgeon.

Breacher and Skyhammer though.

Breacher is a fantastic little figure. And Skyhammer is easily hands down the best helicopter out there (and I'm not saying that because of my anti-Alpha Bravo stance)

And yet, a character named Stalker made the list and there is no oopla from you over it? I'm surprised

D-Maximus_Primal wrote:And yet, a character named Stalker made the list and there is no oopla from you over it? I'm surprised

There's no character named Stalker on that list. Lay off whatever Va'al is feeding you guys, it's clearly messing with your head.

Burn wrote:

D-Maximus_Primal wrote:And yet, a character named Stalker made the list and there is no oopla from you over it? I'm surprised

There's no character named Stalker on that list. Lay off whatever Va'al is feeding you guys, it's clearly messing with your head.

There's a Skystalker, isn't that close enough?

D-Maximus_Primal wrote:

Burn wrote:

D-Maximus_Primal wrote:And yet, a character named Stalker made the list and there is no oopla from you over it? I'm surprised

There's no character named Stalker on that list. Lay off whatever Va'al is feeding you guys, it's clearly messing with your head.

There's a Skystalker, isn't that close enough?

No where near.

Burn wrote:

D-Maximus_Primal wrote:

Burn wrote:

D-Maximus_Primal wrote:And yet, a character named Stalker made the list and there is no oopla from you over it? I'm surprised

There's no character named Stalker on that list. Lay off whatever Va'al is feeding you guys, it's clearly messing with your head.

There's a Skystalker, isn't that close enough?

No where near.

I tried, oh well

Great list, I actually have two of these, mindwipe and tarradive, and they still are grat even to this day.

'09-'10 was a magical time for Transformers.

... and there's Skyhammer.
(personally I don't care for him as much due to the knees, but he has a killer helicopter mode)



I'm not even sure how I'd narrow it down to just five. Besides the ones mentioned, there's Highbrow, Wreckage, Hailstorm, effectively the entire RotF Scout line....

SureShot18 wrote:I like the deco and headsculpt more on him. I think he would have to be my number one.

Never did like that head sculpt, or at least the way it was painted up. Didn't stop me from wanting him, but I never did find him at Target.

My own list, in no particular order, would consist of Wreckage, Longarm, Stratosphere (ski feet and all), Stockade, and Fracture.

Emerje

I agree with Emerge, that headsculpt isn't so great. Especially not compared to this:


Transformers Hunt For The Decepticons Terradive Gallery

I also like how Terradive is pretty much his own thing. Sure, the name is not original, but there isnt much of an homage going on, especially compared with Space Case. I do like how many of these movie toys were also an opportunity to insert some fresh blood and make something new.

Wreckage is a good example too, I love that guy. And I did mention that mold in my list under the Bludgeon paragraph since that mold served for (another) ROTF Bludgeon as well.


Transformers Revenge of the Fallen Bludgeon Gallery

Its a damn good mold.

To each his own I guess. I don't think it's a bad headsculpt. Who knows, maybe I'd say the same thing about Terradive if I had him instead.
I do agree about how it was cool that the movie lines gave us a lot of new characters that didn't really homage any thing in particular.

I agree with this list 100%.

Maybe 90% Because I'd switch some orders around. Also, you kinda cheated with #1 because it's TWO figures. So, you should have cheated a bit more and include Sea Spr.... Reveal The Shield... Sigh...

Anyway, my personal #1 is defenitely Terradive. It was the first not-Optimus and Not-Starscream TF toy I bought along Generations Drift. I was so blown away that he openned the floodgate to my ever varied collection.

I'm a bit sad that the 2007 line was ignored because Gears and Stockade are both freaking AMAZING! Great bot modes, perfect altmodes, and a very fun transformation. A cheap TF well worth owning.