The Mysterious G1 Tracks Stickers

Generation 1 Transformers are magical. Not just the toys, but everything that surrounds them, to this day. The fact that I am finding it impossible to do a straightforward stickering of a vintage or reissue G1 toy without finding some mystery, inconsistency or long-ignored point of fascination is a credit to just how mad everything being produced at the time was, and just how much this hobby and this area of Transformers collecting still has to offer even seasoned enthusiasts. This is how I came to discover that most of us have been stickering G1 Tracks incorrectly for 33 years!

Plasticos IGA G1 "Hoistbreaker" Hoist Quickie

I recently picked up another Plasticos IGA G1 Hoist, that is a Mexican Hoist with a green Trailbreaker head! This toy is from 1986 and is a famous Transformers variant; one of the finest examples of repainting an old mould instead of using the updated parts of the retool - even if it involved not updating the head, the most character-giving part of the toy! You can read in-depth analysis of the 'Hoistbreaker' from Mexico in my Mexican G1 "Trailbreaker Head" Hoist piece for this blog and also the TF-1 article.

Another Hasbro G1 "Orange Canopy" Ramjet

The Hasbro G1 Ramjet variant with the orange canopy and I seem to have an inseparable destiny. I once owned a Hasbro production sample Ramjet with a pre-rub style orange canopy but gifted it to a friend. I then found and bought a production version of the same variant, and sold that too. Now, I have what I believe to be an even later production version orange canopy G1 Hasbro Ramjet - and in all this time I'm not aware of anyone else having found another example. So what's the deal?

Ceji G1 Bombshell

I'm re-treading the past again here on Square One. I first featured the Ceji-manufactured 1986 G1 Insecticon variants from Europe a few years ago as a set. The article on the Ceji G1 "Orange Chested" Insecticons was basically what the title suggested, a look at the French-made Insecticons produced by Ceji on behalf of Hasbro Bradley for the 1986 wave of Transformers in mainland Europe. The deeper and richer orange plastic on the chest canopies was always the draw of these variants, making the toys more closely resemble their box artwork compared to Hasbro's vintage Insecticons with a much more yellow translucent plastic. So why revisit the Ceji Bombshell?

Hasbro Walmart Exclusive G1 Hot Rod

Talk about a welcome surprise. Here we have the brand new, Walmart (and Hasbro Asia?) exclusive reissue of Generation 1 Hot Rod. Completely out of the blue, a surprise listing seen from an Asian retailer, and certainly not the first time he has been reissued. Takara first reissued “Hot Rodimus” for the Japanese market in 2000 with vintage-style G1 Takara Packaging. Hasbro then released it as "Rodimus Major" for Western markets in the Commemorative Series packaging. Takara then reissued a Targetmaster version for the TF Collection reissue series in 2004. There was no Encore reissue for Hot Rod, so although fans feel like we are constantly getting Hot Rod reissues, it’s actually been fourteen years since we got the last reissue G1 Hot Rod – the exact same amount of time from Hot Rod’s vintage 1986 release to the first reissue in 2000. Fourteen years.

Joustra G1 Starscream

There's something I have missed deeply about writing vintage G1 articles, especially those that are about obscure variants, and that's the thrill of discovering something new or undocumented. I recently bought the above Starscream from a European seller, not expecting it to be anything groundbreaking; it just happened to be a good price and in highly displayable condition. Perfect for someone rebuilding their variant collection. What I found instead was a hugely significant and probably historical - yet tiny - detail. Spoiler alert, though, there may only be five of us worldwide who will care!