New Galleries: G1 1988 Headmasters and Masterforce Headmaster Juniors

Posted by Va'al Oct 16, 2014 at 3:00am CDT 65,342 views

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Today we have a set of galleries seven years in the making, due to their continuity and toyline issues in terms of categorisation: feast your eyes on Generation 1 1988 Headmasters and Masterforce Headmaster Juniors. These new additions to Seibertron.com's repository feature a number of repurposed US releases, including Cab, Wilder, Bullhorn and Cancer, along with Go-Shooter and updated Minerva with her Transtector. Why have both the US and the Japan releases all in the same group shots and comparisons, you ask? Well, they're such a small exception to the rule where the character is the same toy, and yet so radically different - this was the best way to handle them.

You may recognise this rationale from the Japanese Generations book from 2001, in which the same shots were used of toys who were different characters under Takara than they were for Hasbro, specifically the Headmaster Juniors and the Seacons. What really changes are the poses, but the figure is the same. But why not check it out for yourself by clicking on any of the images below?

Super God Masterforce Go Shooter (Transtector)

Transformers News: New Galleries: G1 1988 Headmasters and Masterforce Headmaster Juniors

Super God Masterforce Go Shooter

Super God Masterforce Cab (Transtector)

Super God Masterforce Cab

Super God Masterforce Wilder (Transtector)

Super God Masterforce Wilder

Super God Masterforce Cancer (Transtector)

Super God Masterforce Cancer

Super God Masterforce Bullhorn (Transtector)

Super God Masterforce Bullhorn

G1 1988 Nightbeat

G1 1988 Siren

G1 1988 Hosehead

G1 1988 Fangry

G1 1988 Horri-Bull

G1 1988 Squeezeplay

G1 1988 Muzzle

G1 1988 Quig

G1 1988 Lug

G1 1988 Brisko

G1 1988 Kreb

G1 1988 Lokos

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Re: New Galleries: G1 1988 Headmasters and Masterforce Headmaster Juniors (view post)

Comment by RhA Oct 16, 2014

Glorious. Just glorious.

Re: New Galleries: G1 1988 Headmasters and Masterforce Headmaster Juniors (view post)

Comment by frogbat Oct 16, 2014

i remember these guys and the 2nd batch of targetmasters not enthralling me as a kid. You know you'd spend hours perusing the catalogues eying potential acquisitions... that year wasn't my favourite.. pretenders were sucky too for me... think the powermasters were the only subgroup from that year I drooled over.

I have squeezeplay though and he had good articulation and i think he's one of the few from my collection that is almost intact.

Re: New Galleries: G1 1988 Headmasters and Masterforce Headmaster Juniors (view post)

Comment by Sabrblade Oct 16, 2014

Technically, the little Headmaster dude for Goshooter is named "Shūta Gō", unless it was intentional to parse his name in the Japanese order of "last name first, first name last".

Re: New Galleries: G1 1988 Headmasters and Masterforce Headmaster Juniors (view post)

Comment by Noideaforaname Oct 16, 2014

Monster robots who's heads pop off and turn into little robots (one of which appears to be a fly-man hybrid)... oh how I wish these would get a modern update.

Re: New Galleries: G1 1988 Headmasters and Masterforce Headmaster Juniors (view post)

Comment by Convoy Nov 3, 2014

Noideaforaname wrote:Monster robots who's heads pop off and turn into little robots (one of which appears to be a fly-man hybrid)... oh how I wish these would get a modern update.

Hell, I'd settle for reissues... of any Headmaster. (Including Juniors.)

Re: New Galleries: G1 1988 Headmasters and Masterforce Headmaster Juniors (view post)

Comment by Va'al Jan 13, 2015

Given the recent release and coverage of the latest Takara Tomy offering in the Masterpiece line - MP-22 Ultra Magnus - here at Seibertron.com we've taken the opportunity to look back on some older toys deserving of gallery treatment: the G1 Reissue Ultra Magnus, Movie Preview Version Ultra Magnus and Matrix Glow (Shining) Magnus!

All three appear in 2000/2001, sharing the same basic mold (the classic Diaclone redeco of Powered Convoy) with an Optimus Prime/Convoy basic robot-truck, and a trailer that becomes its armour. What the Reissue differed in from the original toy was mostly in the package, and included all the same accessories, from guns to missile launcher to fists. The other two, however, while coming with all the same parts, showed off very different decos (as you can see below): 'Shining' Magnus in its yellow translucent plastic, was somehow meant to show the Matrix glowing moment at the death of Optimus Prime in the 1986 movie, and the Movie Preview Magnus was a nod to promotional material of the animated feature, showing the red, black and blue deco (like its Diaclone predecessor) to the character rather than its final colours. Find out more about them in the galleries by clicking on the images below!

Generation One Movie Preview Version Ultra Magnus

Generation One Matrix Glow Magnus

Generation One Ultra Magnus

Re: New Galleries: G1 1988 Headmasters and Masterforce Headmaster Juniors (view post)

Comment by steve2275 Jan 13, 2015

pretty cool

Re: New Galleries: G1 1988 Headmasters and Masterforce Headmaster Juniors (view post)

Comment by YRQRM0 Jan 13, 2015

There's something beautiful about repaints standing next to each other man... :BOWDOWN:

Re: New Galleries: G1 1988 Headmasters and Masterforce Headmaster Juniors (view post)

Comment by dragons Jan 14, 2015

Yellow Magnus look better if it was blue and white yellow no comment what it looks like

Re: New Galleries: G1 1988 Headmasters and Masterforce Headmaster Juniors (view post)

Comment by ScottyP Jan 14, 2015

The Matrix Glow Magnus is one of my favorite Transformers ever. Something about it is just too cool. Never looks good in pictures but in hand it's a thing to behold.

Re: New Galleries: G1 1988 Headmasters and Masterforce Headmaster Juniors (view post)

Comment by Mindmaster Jan 14, 2015

We here at Seibertron.com are pleased to present to the general public a trio of updates to our ever-expanding galleries; ladies and gentlemen, enter Generation One Million Publishing Skids and Screech and Encore Skids! Skids and Screech, redecoes of the original Skids and Crosscut respectively in decoes evocative of Revenge of the Fallen Skids and Mudflap, were released in 2009 as a mail-away exclusive to those who purchased Transformers Generations 2009 Volume 3. Encore Skids, also a 2009 release, features a slightly tweaked deco and a handful of tampographs in addition to stickers. As usual, if you would like to be taken to each full gallery, click either the links or the images themselves to be taken to them!

Transformers Encore Skids

Generation One Skids

Generation One Screech

Re: New Galleries: G1 1988 Headmasters and Masterforce Headmaster Juniors (view post)

Comment by Sabrblade Jan 14, 2015

Trivia about Screech. His bio reveals that he is actually another version of Skids (but using a different name, likely to avoid confusion with the other Skids) who accidentally got pulled into the green Skids's world by an experiment that the green Skids was working on.

As Screech's bio was written by Simon Furman, and since the Marvel UK comics not only had G1 Skids lost in limbo for a few years before he finally got out, but also had Skids drawn with the Crosscut/Screech head for some reason (after skids got freed, that is), it is loosely implied (but NOT factually stated) that Screech might possibly be Marvel UK G1 Skids (with the green Skids being the cartoon version).

Re: New Galleries: G1 1988 Headmasters and Masterforce Headmaster Juniors (view post)

Comment by ishigoto Jan 14, 2015

Right, because geewunners want to for homages to Bayformers. :michaelbay:

Re: New Galleries: G1 1988 Headmasters and Masterforce Headmaster Juniors (view post)

Comment by Shockwave7 Jan 14, 2015

Looking at all the pix of these G1 reissues makes me realize just how crummy some of them were. I know it was 80s tech, which just doesn't hold a candle to modern figures, but YUCK. It really seemed towards the end of the 80s there that the toy designers just phoned it in, and they weren't bothering to make them even look halfway decent. None of them look to have separated legs, they all seem to transform by flipping out the back end to form both legs as one solid piece. Even the ones that LOOK like separate legs are really just one leg with metal rods stabbed through them both so they can't be moved independently.

Keep your G1's. I'll take the newer figures. Sure there's no metal and no chrome on them, but they are light years ahead of the G1 figures in terms of appearance, poseability and fun.

The only reissue that MAY be of interest to me is Trypticon.

Re: New Galleries: G1 1988 Headmasters and Masterforce Headmaster Juniors (view post)

Comment by Noideaforaname Jan 14, 2015

Not going to lie, I'd LOVE G1 versions of some of the good Movieverse characters. Bad cop Barricade out of Prowl? Yes please!

Re: New Galleries: G1 1988 Headmasters and Masterforce Headmaster Juniors (view post)

Comment by ScottyP Jan 14, 2015

Shockwave7 wrote:It really seemed towards the end of the 80s there that the toy designers just phoned it in, and they weren't bothering to make them even look halfway decent.

You bring up fair points and I'm not here to debate your valid feelings towards G1 toys, but I do feel the need to go a little bit Turbo-Nerd here and point out that the Diaclone mold used for Skids was originally released in Japan in 1982, and therefore was probably designed in '80 or '81, which is very much not the "end of the 80s".

Re: New Galleries: G1 1988 Headmasters and Masterforce Headmaster Juniors (view post)

Comment by Metroplex79 Jan 14, 2015

Shockwave7 wrote:Looking at all the pix of these G1 reissues makes me realize just how crummy some of them were. I know it was 80s tech, which just doesn't hold a candle to modern figures, but YUCK. It really seemed towards the end of the 80s there that the toy designers just phoned it in, and they weren't bothering to make them even look halfway decent. None of them look to have separated legs, they all seem to transform by flipping out the back end to form both legs as one solid piece. Even the ones that LOOK like separate legs are really just one leg with metal rods stabbed through them both so they can't be moved independently.

Keep your G1's. I'll take the newer figures. Sure there's no metal and no chrome on them, but they are light years ahead of the G1 figures in terms of appearance, poseability and fun.

The only reissue that MAY be of interest to me is Trypticon.

Ahem, many of the early G1s were from mid-late 70s designs. The 80s just slapped G1 names on them.

Re: New Galleries: G1 1988 Headmasters and Masterforce Headmaster Juniors (view post)

Comment by RhA Jan 14, 2015

Those two look great.

Re: New Galleries: G1 1988 Headmasters and Masterforce Headmaster Juniors (view post)

Comment by Jelze Bunnycat Jan 14, 2015

Metroplex79 wrote:
Shockwave7 wrote:Looking at all the pix of these G1 reissues makes me realize just how crummy some of them were. I know it was 80s tech, which just doesn't hold a candle to modern figures, but YUCK. It really seemed towards the end of the 80s there that the toy designers just phoned it in, and they weren't bothering to make them even look halfway decent. None of them look to have separated legs, they all seem to transform by flipping out the back end to form both legs as one solid piece. Even the ones that LOOK like separate legs are really just one leg with metal rods stabbed through them both so they can't be moved independently.

Keep your G1's. I'll take the newer figures. Sure there's no metal and no chrome on them, but they are light years ahead of the G1 figures in terms of appearance, poseability and fun.

The only reissue that MAY be of interest to me is Trypticon.

Ahem, many of the early G1s were from mid-late 70s designs. The 80s just slapped G1 names on them.

Nope, still early 80's for both Microman and Diaclone, think 1982-1984. Microman started in the 70's, and in accordance with Japanese law at the time, that year was stamped on the toys even though the toys were created a decade later.

Re: New Galleries: G1 1988 Headmasters and Masterforce Headmaster Juniors (view post)

Comment by Autobot032 Jan 14, 2015

Seibertron's camera has been on fire lately, new galleries left and right, it seems. You've seen some of our newest galleries in our news feed this week and we're going to keep on trucking with our newest G1 galleries featuring the Hasbro Commemorative Series line.

Seibertron.com is proud to present our newest galleries: Commemorative Series Perceptor, Skids, and Ultra Magnus

Speaking of Ultra Magnus, if you haven't seen our gallery of the newly released MP-22 Ultra Magnus, you can see it by clicking right here.

Without further ado, we present the Commemorative Series galleries, and you can see more of each figure by clicking on the pictures below:

G1 Commemorative Series Ultra Magnus