What Transformer were you most excited to get?

[grahamthomson]

What Transformer were you most excited to get?

For me, it was getting Galvatron. Purely by chance we came across a pile of Galvatron's in WHSmith in 1987 reduced down to £11.50.

And since I'd been banging on about the character for months previously due to his appearances in the UK comic, my mum knew full well how much I wanted to get him.

The best part was it wasn't even close to Christmas or my birthday and, apart from the likes of the Mini-Autobots, getting a Transformer during the year was completely unheard of. I'd had £5 saved up pocket money (ten weeks of 50p a week!), so we went halves on it.

That was the Transformers I was most excited to get.

[chrisl]

Either the original Megatron - after watching the cartoon and reading the Argos, my parents decided they would take the 2 year old me to Argos in Southport and let me choose my first transformer. I originally wanted one of the Autobots but the only toy in stock was Megatron so he became my first transformer

[Dezzeh]

Mine was Computron, my parents got me all 5 for Christmas and my dad spent about 2 hours setting him up for me. I had been going on for months at them I needed that for my life to be complete..
Ofcourse, my brother broke it and lost parts for it in January but nevermind

[blueshift]

I think it was Superion. I'd had Silverbolt for ages and the combined form in the instructions seemed like an impossible dream. But I saved up my money and got all of the Aerialbots (yay Classics) from ASDA!

[Stomski]

Metroplex!!

[Gav]

Ultra Magnus, definitely. I was very much a Masters of the Universe fan in my youth - Transformers was a secondary infatuation, but I clearly remember opening U.M up and being really excited on Christmas morning. Of course, using him as Optimus Prime's ghost was the biggest novelty factor.

[Bogatan]

I alway think back on getting the Constructicons with a lot of fondness. Finding them in Woolworths and me and my bother getting one each was thrilling. Then going on holiday to the south of England and our parents putting up with us going into seemingly every Woolworths we passed. A day in Strattford on Avon doing the historical stuff finding another one or two constructicons and seeing Robin Hood Prince of Thieves is is one of those memories that always comes back when I think of summer holidays. I think it was also the year I first saw my new baby cousin. At the end of the week we had the excitement of getting home and building Devastator.

Andy

[dyrl]

Oh Devastator - definitely Devastator.

Similar story to Graham's, just in America, not the UK. Our apartment building was next to a pond, with a walk way around it that stretch two miles, and on the other side there was a big busy street and a strip mall with a Zayres (long gone chain of stores - shows how old I am). They had a Devastator Gift-pack for 12 dollars.

I saved and I saved and I saved. My allowance, if I remember correctly, was $1,25 a week for cleaning my room - that made $5 a month! So it only took me two months and two weeks to save up for Devastator.

And I went with mum to Zayres.

And he was gone

And man did I cry.

So later, when we went to downtown cambridge (outside of Boston) a few days later, there was another toy shop where all six of the Constructicons were there in their individual packages for something like 5 or 6 dollars each.

Well - my Mum was always a good mum, and she saw how hard I'd saved for that gift pack only to see it had been sold out (probably was on clearance or something).... so she covered 2/3 of the purchase of all six of the Constructicons.

Gosh was I happy. The Constructicons! Devastator!

If only Takara would reissue them.

Pete

[blueshift]

Aaaw thats a lovely story dryl

Stuff seemed to be on the shelves forever in those days. I dont know how kids are supposed to lust after and save up for toys, since they're blink and you miss them nowadays...

[Bogatan]

Was it really any different though? Bw toys were turning up as late as 2001, TRU only recently got rid of the last of hte Cybertron toys. I dont know how long Devastator was available from Woolworths when I got mine but I don't think I saw all 6 available at the same time in the same store because they seemed to sell fast.

Andy

[Dark Stranger]

Getting Hook was a big thrill for me, as I had an incomplete Devastator for several years. I was so chuffed to finally complete him, this being in the days before ebay.

Getting G1 Megatron was great too, and finding out his trigger clicked, brilliant!!

[dyrl]

Stuff seemed to be on the shelves forever in those days.

I think part of the reason was that we actually would check shelves those day

I don't know about the rest of you lot, but the only time I ever go into a physical store with Transformers anymore is:

a) by accident when at a Tesco's or the equivalent, where I'd venture into the toy isle while others shop for food etc

b) on purpose once in a while to see how much the physical toy stores are selling products which my internet shop sells for.

I imagine with the growth of the internet, kids don't really lust after toys on the shelves anymore - and even if they have to wait a long time for something, they don't care if it's on the shelf or not - they'll just "find it on line" when they need it...

So - we are all a lost generation; our tale is a unique one. We were the first generation to have shelves bursting with so much cult classic giant robot and super hero toys - never before in the history of the universe did kids have it as good as us on that front.

But we were also the last - because the inernet appeared and killed the charm and anticipation of shelf gawking/lusting...

Oh - this is such an electrifyingly nostalgic subject

Pete

[blueshift]

Well maybe it is the availability of products then. In the olden days stores could order various figures ages after they came out. Now it is like, a window of a few months and BANG gone forever.

The internet has made the world too fast

[grahamthomson]

I do remember being disappointed that, suddenly, the 1984-1986 seemed to be cleared out to make room for the Headmasters in 1987.

In fact, while visiting relatives, I'd been given £20 to spend in Jolly Giant in Glasgow, and was hoping to get some Transformers. But, all they had were Headmasters and Targetmasters. I think I grudgingly bought a Chromedome just to prove a point.

[The Doctor]

Feb 26, 2009 13:20:50 GMT blueshift said:

Well maybe it is the availability of products then. In the olden days stores could order various figures ages after they came out. Now it is like, a window of a few months and BANG gone forever.

The internet has made the world too fast

Round my way, figures could be picked up for years. Literally. There was never any rush to get one. But figures do tend to have a much shorter shelf life now. Not uncommon to see figures only on shelf for a few weeks. So sometimes I've passed on a figure as I didn't have cash that week and the following week it was gone and another wave was out. With the demise of Woolies the only place I see TF's on a shelf anymore is the meagre display in ASDA. Most of my future toy-buying will probably be on-line or through mates.

-Ralph

[Andy Turnbull]

Optimus Prime was the one for me, simply because he had sold out in our area and I didn't get him at Christmas I had to wait a few extra weeks and it made the toy all the more appreciated.

Andy

[Grand Moff Muffin]

Feb 26, 2009 17:04:31 GMT Andy Turnbull said:

Optimus Prime was the one for me, simply because he had sold out in our area and I didn't get him at Christmas I had to wait a few extra weeks and it made the toy all the more appreciated.

Thank you!

I hadn't planned on posting in this thread, since I assumed the majority of people on the Hub would give the same answer, namely Optimus Prime, Christmas 1985. He was officially the most wanted toy in the UK that year, they were sold out, and I was on a waiting list.

I had played with a friend's Optimus Prime, and it, together with the 2-page intro to the Autobots in the 1985 annual, were what made me a convert. It had blown my mind. The damage was for life.

The shop called to tell my dad they had him in, and off he went. Typical for him, he found Prime in another shop on the way slightly cheaper and so came back with a tale of how he had got a bargain. He loves bargains, but that's the one in my life that stuck in my mind.

My sister got Tracks so she wouldn't be (too) envious.

Martin

[The Doctor]

Metroplex gave young Ralph the most joy, at Chrimbo 1986. It's the only TF that survived the teenage years purge (minus accessories). I'd love to pick up a nice shiny new Encore version, though it's hard to tell apart from the identical packaged knock-off that came out at the same time.

-Ralph

[Bogatan]

I missed the chaos of Christmas 1985, not getting my first Transformers till nine months later. I do however remember very clearly being at my my friends house down the street and staring in awe at Ultra Magnus in the GUS (or similar) catalogue. For some reason I remember the catalogue stating the number of wheels (I always think it was 18 but it must have been 10). This information was very exciting. Was Magnus a Christmas 86 or 87 toy? I get those two mixed up or I got a lot more that first Christmas than I realise.

I also remember being very excited when Mum told me At Cost had Optimus Prime in stock. It turned out to be Powermaster Prime, but it was still awesome.

Andy

[legios]

Funnily enough Optimus Prime never even entered my mind - perhaps because by the time I got the reissue of the original toy I was too old to quite recapture the overwhelming feeling of new-toy excitement of my youth. (And also perhaps because the Prime I did have as a child - the Powermaster version always suffered from being the consolation prize for the original Prime my parents didn't buy me when we were in the Netherlands so I wasn't quite as excited about that as I might have been).

Soundwave. I didn't manage to get Soundwave until slightly later than I would have hoped - mostly because he was one of the few toys that didn't seem to hang around where I lived.

What it did mean however was that by the time I managed to lay my hands on Soundwave I had already read both Dinobot Hunt and Crisis of Command. As a result Soundwave had made the biggest impression on me that any of the Decepticon Leaders we were able to buy in this country had (I was never aware of Shockwave or the other releases of that toy being available here until much, much later). In fact so significant was the impact that he had made on me that even when I owned what might have seemed to be more logical candidates for the slot - Galvatron, Skorpornok - I always considered Soundwave to be the leader of my small band of Decepticons.

The toy was also one of my favourites in its own right. It turned into an actual thing, and I have always had a soft-spot for the (near) 1:1 scale toys.

Actually, Soundwave is still one of my favourite early toys and was one of the ones I was absolutely determined to reacquire when I started my current collection.

Karl

[Kingoji]

You guys must have a few years on me, because I really can't remember who I was most excited to get, nor who my first toy was.
I do recall getting the Devastator gift set for a birthday, and the Superion and Menasor ones the following birthday. They were the only combiners I ever completed...
I also seem to fondly remember getting Powermaster Optimus Prime one christmas, and Overlord a couple years later.

[The Doctor]

Didn't have Optimus as a kiddy. Didn't get one until the 2002 New Year Special edition and was blown away by the quality of the toy and the many fun features. Hope to pick up the Encore edition one to have one in the original colours (2002 version was slightly tweaked).

-Ralph

[Shockprowl]

So many that I've been excited about over the years! As a kiddie, Metroplex, Prowl, Astrotrain, Optimus and Megatron prob top of the list. As an older Kiddie lots and lots have gotten me excited. Often Prowl based (Titanium, Classics, Alternator), but I also got very excited 'bout (nearly) completing Predaking. Completing Abominus. And I got rather excited 'bout some of the Beast Wars toys I got, partic Magnaboss, Grrr!

[KoshNaranek]

When I was a kid, there were three that gave me the most excitment to get:

1. Metroplex for Christmas 1987 as I didn't think I even had a remote chance of getting anything that big. He was my favourite Transformer as a nipper.

2. Hook on a day trip to Dublin as he was the last piece I needed to complete Devastator. I was even more sweet as I could afford him myself as he only cost a fiver. I had just been to Roche's departmet store where they had a huge display of all the new stuff like Pretenders and Powermasters that I couldn't afford and left with none. We then went to a small convenience store in a side street and Hook was there waiting for me!

3. Powermaster Optimus Prime that I got for Christmas 1989 as he was my first Prime. I also got Ultra Magnus that year and as I'd received Galvatron the year before there were many historic battles recreated in my bedroom.

As for more recent times, Breve Maximus. 'Nuff said!

- Tony

[The Doctor]

More recently, I was most pleased to get a complete Pretender Bomb-Burst as I like the Masterforce character (Blood) and complete AM Megatron as I'd been after one for years.

-Ralph

[Hero]

A toss-up between Optimus Prime and Megatron for me.