Seibertron.com Energon Pub Forums

Every two weeks, Seibertron.com brings you a Top 5 list related to all things Transformers written by me, your fellow editor. These are our opinions 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 Beast Wars Toys of Non Show Characters


We don't see it as much these days, but in the 80s and 90s, the characters you saw on a Transformers show were just a subset of all the toys available. Business-wise, the shows served to advertise the toyline that you would then discover and the toys would have their own appeal based on how they looked. Growing up with Beast Wars, I remember pouring over the back of the cards and boxes of the few I got to see all the other wonderful toys of characters I did not know. And that's what we are looking back on today, the toys from the Beast era of characters that never appeared on the North American CG Beast Wars (Beasties) show.

5. B'Boom (Apache)

Apes are a perfect alt mode if you want a sleek robot mode with little kibble since both the primates and robots are humanoid. But the trick is that you still need to have enough variation between modes for it being worthwhile to play with it and Transform (something the designer of Optimus Minor did not know). B'Boom masters that concept. The Mandrill alt mode is very recognizable and he turns into one cool looking bad ass bot. He stands tall in robot mode, and reminds me of old G1 Joes especially with the heavy artillery theme he has going on and the buzz cut they give him. And that works so well with his puntastic name.










4. Transformers Beast Wars Bonecrusher (Bighorn)

Now this is a robot in disguise. The idea of the first year toys was to have toys that were disguised as real animals and this list highlights some of the best ones, like Bonecrusher. I just love how perfect he looks in alt mode, he looks just like that well known iconic american image of a buffalo that was even on the nickel at some point. He was very unique in his transformation and design where his missile firing weapon was his head, which could pop out of the buffalo body when you pulled it's tail.










3. Power Pinch

What is amazing with insects is that their anatomy doesn't give the toy designer such an easy way out, compared to mammals who have four limbs. The limbs must come from somewhere else. Limbs not serving double duty means there is no robot design or kibble found anywhere in Power Pinch's earwig mode. The great weapon (a giant pair of shears) integrates perfectly into the tail. The transformation is as complex as we will ever get for a basic class transformer thanks to a nice amount of parts count. The robot mode offers lots of new robot detail. Basically, the bottom half of his body and the head are pieces not seen in insect mode and yet there is minimal alt mode kibble to hide due to how the toy is engineered. It's a little marvel really and due to it being a toy from this era you have all the ball jointed articulation you would need along with a generous amount of painted details we could only dream of getting today.






2. Transformers Beast Wars Metals Scavenger (Transmetal Inferno)

As stated above, it's always impressive when a beast former doesn't reuse animal limbs for his robot limbs. Also, Scavenger wasn't a shell former, he had many new details for the robot mode and yet remained sleek. Not only is he sleek, he is downright unsettling in his ultimate maniac design. This guy reeks of villainy and not the fun kind, the scary kind. The kind you can have nightmares about. So not only is it a great Transformers toy objectively, when you take a look at the design it just takes it over the top. There are very little toys out there with as much personality as this one. I also love those drill hands that turn when you activate them through his shoulder.









1. Transformers Beast Wars Cybershark

An extremely efficient transformer whose body length shell serves as a great disguise to a very poseable robot. The shark mode has beautiful deco which looks as good as any plastic shark toy found in toy stores in the 90s. What is amazing is that, despite it being a shellformer, it has great alt mode integration that is very reminiscent of traditional transformers with having the head of the alt mode as the chest. A main aspect of the original toys that make up what we call G1 was the disguise component and how they could infiltrate other toylines which didn’t transform. With its phenomenal alt mode, this shark-former is a perfect example of this legacy. The deco on this toy is as masterful as that headsculpt and he comes armed to the teeth with extra shark themed projectiles (that can be stored within his back) and his pincertail. Of course, that is aside from his hammerhead shark head which he can shoot from his body!









Honourable Mentions: ALL the Transmetal II deluxe toys are great. They have super cool designs that scream the extreme of the 90s but done right. While they all look different, it is still hard to set them apart when considering which is better. Jawbreaker is cool but is he better than Iguanus? Is Prowl better than Ramulus? They are all as good (and as likely to chip) so I am mentioning them here since they stand out most as a group of awesome toys.


Transformers Beast Wars Scourge Gallery

I was wondering where the list was going with the inclusion of Bonecrusher, but 3 to 1 ensured the list was a strong one. Number one in particular. Cybershark is so underrated, especially in light of the bastardised derivative Gelshark/Sky-Byte pushed into prominence, in his stead.

Other than pushing Jetstorm into the place of Bonecrusher (similar head gimmick, but Jetstorm's doesn't really hinder the poseability of his figure) there isn't really much I would change in this list. I'd probably have extended it to Top 10 and included the Wolfang mold, TM Waspinator, Transquito and a couple others. But great job, as usual.

I really loved Insecticon and Spittor.

you forgot to mention the part where b'boom has an entire third mode with its own dedicated head and space for a basic figure to ride.

Nice list, but I consider BWII and Neo as Canon, so really only #2 and #1 are valid. #3 was also Scissor Boy in BW II. Pretty much all my favorites showed up in one way or another. As much as I like Tigatron, I really wish Polar Claw could have been that character, but oh well.

Cybershark being a shellformer is a bit unfair, as his kibble form and placement remind me more of the likes of G1 Prowl as it form the robot chest and 'wings' on its back. Much like Cheetor, he's a good example of the classic 'hood chest car' transformation scheme applied to an animal.

My collection is so focussed on G1 and it's offshoots I forget I have Beast Warriors.

I know Terrorsaur was in the show but I love his repaints. They're the Beast Era Seekers to me and the basic toy is my favourite BW mold.

I'm fond of the Basic class such as Iguanus, Insecticon and Slapper. I also like Scourge, one of the first non G1 Transformers I bought.

The Universe repaints Reptilion and Frostbite look great too.

Btw I just realized I own the nearly complete list, safe for Scavenger.

o.supreme wrote:Nice list, but I consider BWII and Neo as Canon, so really only #2 and #1 are valid. #3 was also Scissor Boy in BW II. Pretty much all my favorites showed up in one way or another. As much as I like Tigatron, I really wish Polar Claw could have been that character, but oh well.

Wolfang or Polar Claw were considered as Tigatron, initially. I think either of those would have been preferable. By the same token, anyone would have been better than Airazor...

As quaint as the Takara BW shows were, they don't really apply to this list. Bonecrusher, B'Boom and Powerpinch were never in any show. The derivatives used in Second/Neo were not based on these characters, via their names or bios.

Windsweeper wrote:My collection is so focused on G1 and it's offshoots I forget I have Beast Warriors.

I know Terrorsaur was in the show but I love his repaints. They're the Beast Era Seekers to me and the basic toy is my favourite BW mold.

I'm fond of the Basic class such as Iguanus, Insecticon and Slapper. I also like Scourge, one of the first non G1 Transformers I bought.

The Universe repaints Reptilion and Frostbite look great too.

When you put all of the TM Terrorsaur repaints together, they do look really impressive as a set of "Seekers". It is a shame all of the Fliers, aside from Waspinator, were axed from the show by 'Other Visits'. I would really have loved to see that design in motion.

Skritz wrote:Cybershark being a shellformer is a bit unfair, as his kibble form and placement remind me more of the likes of G1 Prowl as it form the robot chest and 'wings' on its back. Much like Cheetor, he's a good example of the classic 'hood chest car' transformation scheme applied to an animal.

Indeed. Shellformer has some negative connotation that I don't think Cybershark deserves. To me, Shellformer implies excess kibble in either mode. Which the Shark-Bot doesn't really have. No overt backpack that hinders his poseability or anything to impede his limbs at all, really.

Yeah I really missed Terrorsaur and Scorponok after they were written out.

...and Tigatron and Airazor although they returned as Tigahawk

Scorponok I will always look on as the most disappointing character in Beast Wars. Terrorsaur was the real loss of the two as he at least had potential for character growth and wasn't just written as a one note jobber.

AllNewSuperRobot wrote:Scorponok I will always look on as the most disappointing character in Beast Wars. Terrorsaur was the real loss of the two as he at least had potential for character growth and wasn't just written as a one note jobber.

Yeah his treacherous ways were replaced with more blackarachania and tarantulas such a shame.
I get what you're saying with scorponok but I loved his loyalty to the cause and to Megatron just never had a chance to truly shine.

That's just it. As soon as Inferno was introduced, Scorponok was completely redundant. That said, much like the concept art of Transmetal Dinobot, I would really have been curious to see what design they would have given TM Scorponok. TM Tigatron I'd envisioned as a larger recolour of TM Cheetor (inkeeping as a Cat-Bot mold variant). Just as I saw TM Blackarachnia as a redeco of Tarantulas with a different head and torso sculpt. Exactly the same Third Mode's for both sets of characters, just with minor colour variations.

Great list, and no real arguments from me. I have all but #3 on that list in some capacity, though i would argue I like Apache more than Bighorn.

Inferno is really good though, and I can't argue that Cybershark mold is really cool (I have Sharpedge in that mold and it's awesome too)

TulioDude wrote:One of the most fun parts is coming up with a story for them.

To look at the first line of Beast Wars (pre-Transmetal) and read through the bios, it is quite impressive to see the overarching narrative they tell. A really grim and brutal guerrilla warfare scenario. Fought across the jungles, swamps, deserts and oceans of the world. Far darker than any Beast Wars story ever told.

I wish I could have gotten all of these robots, but I was a little kid when Beast Wars came out.

o.supreme wrote:Nice list, but I consider BWII and Neo as Canon, so really only #2 and #1 are valid. #3 was also Scissor Boy in BW II. Pretty much all my favorites showed up in one way or another.

That wasn't the point of the list.

william-james88 wrote:And that's what we are looking back on today, the toys from the Beast era of characters that never appeared on the North American CG Beast Wars (Beasties) show.

I'm fine with the top 3, but I was never a huge fan of B'boom (figure just never did much for me) or Bonecrusher (fine in concept, but really should have been a Mega, as should Rhinox have).

My 5 would have to be Sky Shadow. I love how much cool stuff they were able to squeeze into the figure from the double tail missiles to the water squirting mouth. They also did some neat paint apps on his insect legs and tail and I like how they got creative with the wings instead of just sticking them on his back.



Number 4 goes to Torca. He has such a great look in both modes, those massive tusks, and yet another water squirter. Yeah, he could have stood being bigger, too, but unlike Bonecrusher and Rhinox he has full articulation in beast mode to make up for it. Shame about the GPS.



Plus I love how much Torca's face looks like a Gaiking homage.




Emerje

Emerje wrote:My 5 would have to be Sky Shadow. I love how much cool stuff they were able to squeeze into the figure from the double tail missiles to the water squirting mouth. They also did some neat paint apps on his insect legs and tail and I like how they got creative with the wings instead of just sticking them on his back.

That would be Jetstorm (also named in the link), a personal favourite I still own to this day. This is Sky Shadow...





Also a very cool design that would have made an infinitely superior addition to the show than ...Quickstrike

AllNewSuperRobot wrote::???: That would be Jetstorm (also named in the link), a personal favourite I still own to this day. This is Sky Shadow...

Heh, I accidentally wrote Sky Shadow and then realized I mixed the names up when I looked for a pic and forgot to change it to Jetstorm. I obviously had it figured out, otherwise I wouldn't have been able to find the pic. Sky Shadow is a great figure, I used to like to snap off his claw hand to use a drone since it has eyes.

Emerje

Emerje wrote:Heh, I accidentally wrote Sky Shadow and then realized I mixed the names up when I looked for a pic and forgot to change it to Jetstorm. I obviously had it figured out, otherwise I wouldn't have been able to find the pic. Sky Shadow is a great figure, I used to like to snap off his claw hand to use a drone since it has eyes.

Emerje

Of course. If anything, it just gave me an excuse to throw a spotlight on one of the other underrated Fuzors. I also liked the design link between him and Jetstorm via the wing placement in Bot Mode. It was a nice stylistic choice that I really appreciated.

AllNewSuperRobot wrote:That's just it. As soon as Inferno was introduced, Scorponok was completely redundant. That said, much like the concept art of Transmetal Dinobot, I would really have been curious to see what design they would have given TM Scorponok. TM Tigatron I'd envisioned as a larger recolour of TM Cheetor (inkeeping as a Cat-Bot mold variant). Just as I saw TM Blackarachnia as a redeco of Tarantulas with a different head and torso sculpt. Exactly the same Third Mode's for both sets of characters, just with minor colour variations.

Yeah very true Inferno took his spot. Would've been great to have seen relationship between Scorponok and Inferno develop into something (good or bad).

I loved Beast Wars but I have a lot of hindsight with it now when I look back at it. They over did the starscream trope by having Terrorsaur, Blackarachnia and Tarantulas having the similar storylines.

Don't get me started on how pointless Ravage was

Ravage was a nice bit of Geewun fan service (as most of The Agenda was). Another tiny look behind the curtain of how Predacon society differed from the Maximal equivalent. Unfortunately, you never got that much more insight beyond that.

I think Tarantulas worked a bit better than Terrorsaur or Blackarachnia, as his goals were not quite as limited as theirs. Terrorsaur had potential to transcend the Starscream trope, as Megatron did enjoy the noted character growth of Season Two. Alas he never reached that point.

Beast Wars is my favorite toy line. There's Just something about it that appeals to me. It would probably take me a bit to come up with my top 5.