It's 1984 and you're too young to remember The Transformers. It's 1986 and you've seen "Arrival from Cybertron" on television and VHS many times. You are moved by Starscream's traitorous behaviour and Mirage's heroism. Your parents take you, your older brother and cousin to the biggest Toys 'R' Us around. While you're looking at Teddy Ruxpin bears your mother says "Your brother and cousin have already found the Transformers". Your life will never be the same again.
(Soundtrack: Love Me Do - The Beatles)
Your first toy is Starscream, while your brother buys Tracks and your cousin has Skywarp (which you never get to play with). You love the jets, you love the cars, but strangely you never feel drawn to the leaders. The television cartoon is everything. Your second toy is Bumblebee, but for some reason his face is red, he looks different and the card says "Hub Cap". He is broken and lost soon after, as is your first Autobot car "Smokescreen" who you never saw on the TV, but Argos didn't have Jazz in stock.
1986 Argos catalogue |
Rodimus Prime, TM Scourge and Cyclonus - Birthday 87 |
It's 1990, your first loves are now football and your Commodore Amiga. On a family holiday in Cyprus you spot a Transformers Sunstreaker which you had never owned, your mother says "yes" for a change and Sideswipe finally has a brother, it's a shame he disintegrated years before. After a few Micromasters, your connection with Transformers is lost and for an age, they are forgotten.
Classic Heroes Sunstreaker |
It's 1998 and you're at University, with proper access to the Internet for the first time. After becoming disillusioned with 'adult life', a day spent looking up all of your childhood favourites online reignites a curiosity about Transformers. You see toys that neither you nor your friends had as children; Swoop, Blaster, Shockwave, Bluestreak...and you cannot ever imagine what kind of person spends $150 on a sealed Transformers toy. You are surprised they even exist.
(Soundtrack: Things Behind The Sun - Nick Drake)
It's 1999 and you have started spending noticeable amounts of money buying Transformers from old collector's shops and from websites like Digital Toys. "I want to buy all those Transformers I didn't have as a kid" - yep, that old chestnut. One particular trip to a South London shop with a couple of close friends and £400 later yields a boxed Jetfire, a boxed Megatron and a Mexican Devastator giftset. Your friend buys a Hot Rod, you ask him to bring it with him every time you meet up, what a great toy.
1986 Hot Rod |
It's 2000, you've discovered eBay and met a UK collector who introduces you to the online community. Your rate of purchases increases exponentially with access to toys at prices previously unthinkable from UK collector stores or dealers. Swoop, Shockwave, Springer, Prowl, Predaking, this is now a serious and time-consuming hobby. Someone you speak to on Napster informs you of impending reissues.
(Soundtrack: Alabama Song - The Doors)
It's 2001 and you have co-created an active forum, met Dutch and American collectors and learnt about 'variants', Mexican and Japanese Transformers through the Yahoo Diaclone Group, TFToys UK Group and ArtfireStepper's gallery website. You also learn about pre-Transformers and the rainbow of pre-Autobot Diaclone cars. Suddenly you are no longer interested in completing your G1 collection, nostalgia is forgotten and you become a variant and pre-TF collector. You attend your first toy show at Transforce 2001 and meet the people you have gotten to know online for the first time. They're as 'normal' as you.
Mexican Black Prowl |
It's 2002 and you've written your first online toy review (Hot Rod!), and begun contributing to various community websites. You are now a fully-fledged variant and Diaclone collector, chasing obscure and rare toys that most people do not own, and yet you've still never had a Defensor, Blaster, Skids or Bruticus to name but a few. Spending multiple hundreds on a toy has become acceptable to you as your circle of collecting friends becomes ever wider, diverse and influential on your tastes and habits. You start taking notice of and making scans of copyrights.
(Soundtrack: Sail To The Moon - Radiohead)
It's 2003 and life has dealt you a few painful episodes. You start praying when things become serious and sell your collection for the first time in a prolonged act of catharsis and sacrifice. You hand over control of your forum to friends who still own it to this day.
Binaltech |
It's 2004 and the discovery of a Finnish Diaclone Black Tracks plus the arrival of Alternators/Binaltech brings you back to the hobby. You find room in your life for work, a number of pointless relationships and Transformers again. You create your own website at last and collect together all the articles you had ever written for other people. It's 2006 and one particularly messy break up finally causes you to break down and buy your first Joustra Diaclone, redefining for you what it means to fall in love with a toy line.
(Soundtrack: Pressure Suit - Aqualung)
It's 2007 and you have attended your second BotCon in the USA, toured Hasbro and become intoxicated by the fever surrounding the first Michael Bay Transformers movie attending both UK and US advance screenings. You are now dabbling in many more niches of the hobby including expensive G1 and modern protoypes, original artwork, pre-production rarities while maintaining an interest in current product and contributing to hobby publications. On your way home from BotCon 2007 via New York you meet the girl who will become your wife.
Mock-up prototype G2 Mirage |
It's 2008 and flying back and forth between Iceland, the USA and the UK to maintain your long distance relationship has an effect on your finances and your interest in Transformers. Your desire to become a top racing simulation gamer overshadows any other hobbies you had. You sell the bulk of your collection again, but keep your Joustra Diaclones, Movie toys, Binaltech and a few choice Japanese and prototype pieces. As the Bay movies come and go you buy the odd imported US figure in Iceland from Classics, Animated and Movie lines. It's 2009 and you read out the best man speech at the wedding of a friend who you met through Transformers collecting. You make an eBay joke which goes down well.
(Soundtrack: Life In Technicolour II - Coldplay)
It's 2011 and you're married. The discovery of a boxed Joustra Diaclone red Tracks drags you back to the hobby again and you explore the possibility of resuming your old quest to complete that toy line. You are shocked at the relative price of Diaclones and pre-Transformers compared to just 3 years ago when you last sold your toys. You instantly regret every exit you made from the hobby. You meet 3 European-based collectors that renew your faith in the humanity of people you've never met and spark a new inspiration and enthusiasm for collecting and writing articles again. You resurrect your website and start selling your non-central toys to fund your new-found acceptance of 4-figure sums for the toys you love. Your interest in sim-racing fades as toy collecting becomes your primary hobby again.
Joustra Diaclone Corvette and MB Red Tracks |
It's 2012, and you've sold practically all of your Classics, Movie, Alternators, prototype, variant and G1 Transformers in order to fund your expensive pursuit of the Diaclones you once sold and a complete Joustra Diaclone collection. In addition to your European brothers, you become friends with 2 Asian collectors who buck the trend of greed and selfishness in a hobby that seems rife with it, further enriching your experience. You finally purchase a Finnish Diaclone Black Tracks and a number of pre-TFs that had not previously been photographed together, or in some cases individually, ever before. Your collection is once again what you want it to be, but you own fewer toys than ever before.
You are now a father, and 9 toys away from your collecting goal of a complete Joustra Diaclone run. You own carded moulding variants, boxed copyright stamping variants, factory shipping cases, paperwork in multiple languages, catalogues, trade fair listings and toy industry publications for the same toy line. You take pride in owning European variants of Diaclone toys that nobody else you know does in the most competitive and expensive era of pre-Transformers collecting. The most sought-after items on your wants list most recently have been a particular styrofoam insert and a Joustra Diaclone toy with a 3-line copyright as opposed to the more common circle-copyright. You own 3 vintage "Transformers".
You won't be leaving by the same road that you came by.
Joustra Diaclone Toyota fist variants |
Diaclone Ligiers |
It's 2014 and you have been writing weekly Transformers articles for TFSource for over 2 years. Transformers has become far less about owning toys and more about community. You've discovered the IDW Transformers comics that bring fresh vigour to your enjoyment of the hobby, dip your toe in vintage Macross, finally achieve the goal of completing a collection of any Transformers category and have embraced the phenomenon of Masterpiece and 3rd Party Transformers products. You have become part of a growing group of local UK collectors and enthusiasts who meet regularly and remind you of why pursuits such as this are rewarding, and worthy of your time and affection. The pub landlord likes you and your friends. He also likes Transformers.
(Soundtrack: Lazuli - Beach House)
You have sold a majority of your non-European Diaclone collection once more as well as nearly all of your variant G1 Transformers for significant amounts, realising you will probably never own them again, as you and your family are looking to buy a home and grow. You take an unused vintage boxed G1 Jetfire in trade towards one of your sales a decade after selling your first one as a final souvenir.
You start a blog.
Matsushiro Jetfire |
All the best
Maz
Love the story man. Love it. A life of adventure and a life well lived!
ReplyDeleteThe most important thing the hobby brought you is this, I'd think "On your way home from BotCon 2007 via New York you meet the girl who will become your wife". Someday, when we meet, you gotta tell me more.
Oh and PS, thanks for the call out!
Thank you B, you're absolutely right, I certainly will, and you are most welcome :)
ReplyDeleteAll the best
Maz
Terrific story! It's deeply personal, as these stories should be for all collectors who love transformers. This is also very well written. Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteThanks so much Steve, my pleasure :)
DeleteAll the best
Maz
Great story! It's deeply personal, as many such stories are for those who love transformers. It's also very well written. Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteMy pleasure!
DeleteYeah...good sharing...we have the same hobby..☺
ReplyDeleteThank you, it's a great hobby :)
DeleteAll the best
Maz
Great story and excellent writing! Love your Instagram page!
ReplyDeleteThank you so much, that is greatly appreciated!
DeleteAll the best
Maz
Great story! I've been collecting since 1996. Had my up's and downs as well sold some and had to buy them again.
ReplyDeleteThey sold Joustra/Ceji Diaclone toys here in Norway as well in 1984 and 1985. I had the Red Turbo 2000 with a Diaclone driver. So don't know if this was the Joustra version, bootleg or a Finish version. Sadly it's long gone. But I know the Joustra Diaclone were sold in Norway as I've seen them in Norwegian toy catalogs, but they were branded under Revell.
Thank you!
DeleteIf your Turbo 2000 had the Diaclone driver, it would not have been Joustra. Possibly proper Takara or even Finnish Takara, so that's awesome!
Do you have any of the catalogues or images including the Revell branded Joustra?
I believe Joustra were also sold in R-Kioski stalls in Finland too.
All the best
Maz
What a story. Love it. Mine's nothing like as interesting...
DeleteYou loved TFs as a kid, but they killed OP and the toys stopped looking cool in '87. In about 2000 you discover ebay and do that thing we've all done - getting the ones you didn't have in childhood.
You raid your parent's loft and find out the 'loads' you had as a kids was actually 16. You discover Jazz and Prowl book boxes on BBTS and order G1 TFs from America. It feels otherworldly.
You spend your student loan on a few choice pieces with no idea what you're doing. You buy RID and Armada. Then get a job that pays less than the loan...
You stop collecting, park your figures in your parent's loft for another 15 years. Then you meet your wife who thinks your collection is cool. You start collecting again, only this time you do your research. You discover first releases, variant moulds... You set a moderate goal - a complete set of '84-'86 Japanese originals. You sell your boxed Armadas and some RIDs. You stumble upon a blog post about a Thundercracker with hand-cut wings. You start following a bloke called Maz...
It's all downhill from there haha
DeleteGreat to see your dedication hasn't sloughed off a bit, Maz - even during all the madness of late. Haven't been on Diaclone hunts in a bit, but the quarantine and the Netflix show got me surfin again, and reminded me to say hello. Cheers from the old Autocon group - Justinrhyme / PlasticMissile.com
ReplyDeleteOh wow great to hear from you, Justin! I was actually trying to find your contact details a couple of years ago! Yeah, the enthusiasm does vary based on circumstances, but I do a podcast with 2 friends now called Triple Takeover, so I guess it's full steam ahead for now :)
Delete