The Energon Pub

Ah, the dreaded and usually hated shellformer. Many TF purists say shellforming is a sin, an aberration that should never happen. But sometime, the bot mode is so different from the vehicle mode, shellforming is mandatory.

Shellforming is there since G1. Usually, it's only partial shellforming, using panels to hide robot parts and said panels are integral for the vehicle mode. Best examples of partial shellforming are the car doors, hood, and rooftop. Leader ROTF Optimus Prime have a bit of shellforming on the arms. The panels unforld to make the truck's front.

Still, some TFs are PURE shellformers. Meaning that, like a turtle, a TF will shed off his shell to reveal the bot inside. Most extreme example are the G1 Pretenders. Often the Pure Shellformer will have a gigantic backpack made out of it's shell, or the shell would be "exploded" with shell shrapnel hanging off the bot's body. Many Beast Wars figures are guilty of that last category.

Despite the usual bad of the pure shellformers, sometime, a shellformer pull off it's shellforming with brilliance, making a great looking toy in all modes. Bonus points if that shellformer is fun to play with and transform too. So, here we go, my
TOP FIVE BEST SHELLFORMERS:

#5, ARMADA UNICRON

Starting the list is the perfect example of a "partial" shellformer who do it right. In planet mode, the shell make 1/4 of the ensemble.Those shell parts are HUGE, but store neatly in robot mode as bug wings of some sort. Plus, Unicron himself is imposing and intimidating in both modes. Sure, the 2010 or Amazon version are better, but the original have a special place in my heart. It's also the original, so there.




#4, GENERATIONS ARCEE

Before her, there was Cybertron Thunderblast as the shellforming queen. However, Gen Arcee took her title by folding up her shell in a tighter backpack. That's one damn sexy girl who turn into one damn sexy future car!




#3, ANIMATED WRECKGAR

Animated Werckgar pull off the shellforiming backpack to a whole new level... by making his shell kibble into an actual backpack! Both with the toy version and in the show. He's also very fun looking and fun to fiddle with.



No Seibertron gallery? For shame.

#2, AOE VOYAGER GALVATRON

This sonnova is just amazing. Looking at the bot mode, you would never guess that he transform into a truck. Especially because his shell collapse onto itself to form a pair of wings. For all we know, he could be another alien spaceship! But no. A truck. And a very fine one at that. AOE Galvatron is a marvel of engeneering and very fun to play with.




#1, DOTM LEADER SENTINEL PRIME

OMFG. This Tf. THIS TF. It's take shellforming to the next level. The vehicle mode and robot mode are extremely different from each other. The robot look like a noble knight and the vehicle is a very square box on wheels. So, how did they pull it off? The shell is made out of panels that hide or are being re-used for the bot mode! Most of it sepparate into his glorious cape. Plus, many panels completely DISSAPEAR into his legs and feet!




Do you agree with my list? What are your top five shellformers? Please post a comment below!

I won't comment on mot, but Galvatron is a horrendous Transformer. When pretty much the entire cab is the backpack and when there is next to no integration between robot and alternate mode, that is a failure on multiple levels.

I think you just pissed in william-james's pool.

Nonetheless, there are quite a few shellformers out there, I couldn't even begin to pick out the worst 5.

In no particular order:

AoE voyager Galvatron
AoE leader Optimus Prime
DoTM Ultimate Optimus Prime (and the YoTD variant)
Titanium War Within Grimlock
Armada Red Alert

RK_Striker_JK_5 wrote:I won't comment on mot, but Galvatron is a horrendous Transformer. When pretty much the entire cab is the backpack and when there is next to no integration between robot and alternate mode, that is a failure on multiple levels.

But I like galvatron...
Seriously though, while he's not amazing by any means, galvy is a pretty fun figure, and I like the sculpting of the wires on his robot mode.

The only shell-formers I like are the ones that use all that kibble for something, not just "wings" or a backpack or whatever. Bots like RotF Mixmaster or the Fuzor Terrorgator:

I forgot my honorable mention: G1 Powermaster Prime/Super Ginrai and all its variants.

Noideaforaname wrote:The only shell-formers I like are the ones that use all that kibble for something, not just "wings" or a backpack or whatever. Bots like RotF Mixmaster or the Fuzor Terrorgator:

Gaaaahhh! That's so clever, why didn't I think of that?!?!
(Probably didn't think of it because I'm not really a BW fan.... Please don't kill me!!!)

Rodimus Prime wrote:I think you just pissed in william-james's pool.

Nonetheless, there are quite a few shellformers out there, I couldn't even begin to pick out the worst 5.

In no particular order:

AoE voyager Galvatron
AoE leader Optimus Prime
DoTM Ultimate Optimus Prime (and the YoTD variant)
Titanium War Within Grimlock
Armada Red Alert

Is that a "top best" or "top worst"?

Because the point of the tread is to find some GOOD in some shellformers. Not to just go and make the usual whining.

Noideaforaname wrote:The only shell-formers I like are the ones that use all that kibble for something, not just "wings" or a backpack or whatever. Bots like RotF Mixmaster or the Fuzor Terrorgator:

Oooohhhh. Me likey!
That is a clever way to use the shell as a kick-ass sheild! You make me want that thing.

I agree that a perfect integration of the shell into the baot mode in anything but a backpack is always amazing. That's why DOTM Sentinel Prime is #1.

My undoubted favourite is Big Convoy/Ultra Mammoth, an exceptional shellformer IMO.

-Kanrabat- wrote:

Rodimus Prime wrote:I think you just pissed in william-james's pool.

Nonetheless, there are quite a few shellformers out there, I couldn't even begin to pick out the worst 5.

In no particular order:

AoE voyager Galvatron
AoE leader Optimus Prime
DoTM Ultimate Optimus Prime (and the YoTD variant)
Titanium War Within Grimlock
Armada Red Alert

Is that a "top best" or "top worst"?

Because the point of the tread is to find some GOOD in some shellformers. Not to just go and make the usual whining.

Honestly, I posted the 1st 5 figures I thought of as shellformers, regardless of whether I thought they were good or bad. Out of those, I think only Red Alert was a turd.

No G1 Scourge?

And I'm willing to grant some leeway to AOE Galvatron. Only because they had to make a workable figure out of an impossible concept. On it's own, it's very cheaty, but they were limited by the character to begin with.

Rodimus Prime wrote:

-Kanrabat- wrote:

Rodimus Prime wrote:I think you just pissed in william-james's pool.

Nonetheless, there are quite a few shellformers out there, I couldn't even begin to pick out the worst 5.

In no particular order:

AoE voyager Galvatron
AoE leader Optimus Prime
DoTM Ultimate Optimus Prime (and the YoTD variant)
Titanium War Within Grimlock
Armada Red Alert

Is that a "top best" or "top worst"?

Because the point of the tread is to find some GOOD in some shellformers. Not to just go and make the usual whining.

Honestly, I posted the 1st 5 figures I thought of as shellformers, regardless of whether I thought they were good or bad. Out of those, I think only Red Alert was a turd.

Overquoting that I Googled Armada Red Alert and, man, does he look WEIRD! If I ever come accroe him for cheap, I may buy just out of curiosity.

-Kanrabat- wrote:Overquoting that I Googled Armada Red Alert and, man, does he look WEIRD! If I ever come accroe him for cheap, I may buy just out of curiosity.

The mold was also used for Inferno in the 2007 movie line.

i think RID15 Strongarm would deserve an honorable mention at least. Making a decent build female into a big bulky truck is quite a feat, and the backpack dosnt even look bad in robot mode

grimdragon2001 wrote:i think RID15 Strongarm would deserve an honorable mention at least. Making a decent build female into a big bulky truck is quite a feat, and the backpack dosnt even look bad in robot mode

Oh yeah, her. She IS a shellformer. Her vehicle mode is quite hollow but it IS big. So, that's some clever engeneering there. Plus, the chestplate come down specefically for weapon storage. You don't even have to put it down for vehicle mode!
The only thing I don't like about her bot mode is her "hand guards". Maybe it's a way to reduce the number of transformation steps.

No mention of Cybertron Thunderblast or BW Neo Dead End?

Many hates her, but I do love Cybertron Thunderblast. I'd like a voyager version with show accurate... hmmmm.... details.

I just wish she had a less generic name- Storm Surge would be a better name IMO. Or perhaps Whirlpool.

Delta Magnus wrote:I just wish she had a less generic name- Storm Surge would be a better name IMO. Or perhaps Whirlpool.

Whirlpool?



Make sense. She IS a woman afterall.


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I don't got 5 but I can offer 3...United Megatron (Henkei reissue), TFs Go! Bulkhead, and just for fun I toss into this ring Star Wars/TFs Death Star Vader.

Nemesis Destron wrote:I don't got 5 but I can offer 3...United Megatron (Henkei reissue), TFs Go! Bulkhead, and just for fun I toss into this ring Star Wars/TFs Death Star Vader.

Oh yeah, Deth Star Darth Vader! I own him and even though he's a bit annoying to transform, both modes look awesome.

Here's Big Convoy standing next to his beastmode.

zodconvoy wrote:Here's Big Convoy standing next to his beastmode.

Your point?

-Kanrabat- wrote:#5, ARMADA UNICRON

Funny. Although you are absolutely right that he is one, for some reason I never thought of him as one until now. I guess because he does it so well.

I like to use the shell pieces to support his skeletal wing things made from the planet mode's ring. Positioned correctly, the shell sticks out just enough that you can rest them on it in a nice position:



And yet the shell continues to be unobtrusive from the front:

-Kanrabat- wrote:
#4, GENERATIONS ARCEE

She is a thing of beauty! Especially if you manage to get your hands on a Takara version, without all of that unnecessary black. (Or, if the coloring doesn't bother you, more power to you!)

I don't own any of the others on your list, so I am afraid I cannot comment on them.

Rodimus Prime wrote:I forgot my honorable mention: G1 Powermaster Prime/Super Ginrai and all its variants.

I am confused. How exactly is he a shellformer? At most, if you throw Godbomber into the mix, one could say that partsforming is involved. But shellforming? I don't see it.

Two I would have on my own list:

Classics Megatron




Many people knocked this figure, but I was thrilled when he came out, and he continues to be my collection's main Megatron to this day. He was a new Megatron, sold in the U.S., that transformed into a gun! Yes, some kind of Nerf-like gun, but he was still a gun! Never thought I'd see the day!

Yes, there have been a few Japanese versions of this mold with better coloring, but unlike with Arcee, I'm satisfied with the domestic version. I suppose part of it is that in 2006, I was less knowledgeable about import figures, and since then I've just gotten used to this mold in this coloring. But whatever, I'm happy with him!

Break

I don't actually own this toy. Beast Wars came out in the period when I had outgrown Transformers as a youth, and hadn't yet grown back into them as an adult, so for the most part I give Beast Wars figures (or their modern equivalents) a pass, as I have no nostalgia for them. But if there was one I was going to get, and may someday get, it would be Break.

Why?

'Cause he's a mother fraking penguin, that's why!




Also, he forms a gun that poops at you. Poop gun!



(Break photos from TFU.info.)