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You know, I've been meaning to do this for quite a while, but never got around to it. I've always dimly wondered about molds that were only released by ONE of the TF daddies, Hasbro or Takara, as part of the TF line. As in, which company never used which mold. And the last year or so's arguments over the two companies' "takes" got me to wonder which company really did do more unique stuff the other never got/used. So, I added them up. I always figured Hasbro had more molds Takara never used than vice-versa, but, well...after adding them up, my response could only be summed up properly as HOLY SHIT!!! Now, I should note what I did and did not count. I went by molds, not individual toys. Both sides got the Nightbeat/Minerva mold, even though Hasbro never got Minerva. Takara DID release Nightbeat as a mail-order toy, interestingly enough, which brings me to note that I deleted any toys that were available by mail-order by one company and retail in the other. I also didn't include "altered molds", like Thunderwing/Black Shadow (including extansive retools like Wolfang/K9/Max B). And I didn't include any of the molds Takara had no legal right to release as TFs like Jetfire or the Deluxe Insecticons. I also didn't include stuff like the watches, Penbots, Mini-Spies, TF Juniors, McDonald's Happy Meal toys or Kabaya candy toys. Nor did I count anything sold only in a set with somehting else, like individual Micromasters. Nor stuff like the Takotank or Micro Combiner Transports which are just large accessories attached to recolored toys. Dividing by generation...oh, and feel free to remind me of any I missed... HASBRO-EXCLUSIVE G1 MOLDS: Gears, Topspin, Twin Twist, Powersasher Sky, Powersasher Drill, Powersasher F-1, Warpath, Cosmos, Runabout, Runamuck, Sky High, Groundbreaker, Finback, Bugly, Iguanus, Catilla, Chainclaw, Carnivac, Snarler, Gunrunner, Roadgrabber, Quickmix, Scoop, Landfill, Quake, Needlenose, Spinister, Dogfight, Override, Backstreet, Crankcase, Ruckus, Windsweeper, Vroom, Skyhammer, Roadblock, Pincher, Longtooth, Doubleheader, Bludgeon, Octopunch, Stranglehold, Full-Barrel & Overflow, Blackout & Spaceshot, Jazz (AM), Rad, Jackpot, Blaster (AM), Bumblebee (AM), Mainframe, Skyfall, Snarl (AM), Kick-Off, Inferno (AM), Grimlock (AM), Rollout, Treadshot, Soundwave (AM), Devastator (AM), Shockwave (AM), Krok, Banzai-Tron, Prowl (AM), Over-Run, Starscream (AM), Axer, Wheeljack (AM), Sprocket, Gutcruncher, Megatron (AM), Optimus Prime (AM), Sideswipe (AM), Tracks (AM), Powerflash, Bombshell (AM), Charger, Take-Off, Omega Spreem, Windmill, Double-Punch, Turbo-Master, Rotorstorm, Stalker TOTAL : 83 TAKARA-EXCLUSIVE G1 MOLDS: Graphy, Noise, Dial, Zaur, Shouki, Getsuei, Yukikaze, Suiken, Seizan, Kaen, Kaku, Rodney, Loafer, Lione, Trizer, Shuffler, Metalhawk, Godbomber, Browning, Wing Waver, Dash Tacker, Mach Tackle, Gaihawk, Hellbat, Star Saber, DeathSaurus, Galaxy Shuttle, Victory Leo, Sonic Bomber, Dai Atlas, Road Fire, Sixliner, Grandus, Star Convoy, Sixbuilder, Sixwing, Sixturbo TOTAL : 37 Ouch. (I'd just like to point out here that Ironhide apparently was never released in G1 in Japan. Ratchet was, as a mail-order-only toy, but NO IRONHIDE. Why? It makes no sense. I suppose that's why they're doing a PVC of him.) HASBRO-EXCLUSIVE G2 MOLDS: Pyro, Clench, Ironfist, Deftwing, Calcar, Fearswoop, Rage, Deluge (E), Drench (E), Hydradread, Gobots, Drench, Deluge, Jetstorm, Rapido, Skram, Turbofire, Windbreaker, Windrazor, Terradive, Eagle Eye, Afterburner, Manta Ray, Leadfoot, Ransack, Powerdive, Ironhide, Meanstreak, Bulletbike, Staxx TOTAL : 43 What Takara-exclusive G2 molds? They almost released the six new-mold Go-Bots as part of Block Town (which would also have been the first releases of six of the Axelerators & Skyscorchers), but that was canned... HABRO-EXCLUSIVE BW MOLDS: Airhammer, Noctorro, Bantor, Buzzclaw, Terragator, Optimus Minor, Sonar, Scarem, Prowl (TM2), Jawbreaker, Iguanus (TM2), Scourge, Ramulus, Razor Claw, Poison Bite, Icebird, Soundwave TOTAL : 17 Now, I have heard that most of the US BW line (as in toys as they appeared in the US, packaging and all) was available in Japan...but only in TRUs, and apparently they had NOTHING to do with Takara. It sounds like TRU managed to import Hasbro stock, slapped a sticker on the card and sold it straight at a marked-up price. Curious. Though this doesn't seem much different from Rugby Starbase importing Takara's TF line, besides the scale of the operation. TAKARA-EXCLUSIVE BW MOLDS: Eggbot, Eggbird, Eggleo, Autolauncher, Autojetter, Moon, Break, Sling, Dead End, Bazooka, Heinrad, Big Convoy TOTAL : 12 And then there's Beast Machines and Robots in Disguise. BM has 37 new molds to it (not including Supreme Primal, whose release is iffy), and RiD from all indications is beefing up the Car Robots lineup (where all the formerly Takara only toys are now being released by Hasbro) with 7 new molds, the formerly-BM Cerberus and the 6 twice-canned G2 new-mold Go-Bots. These guys are, well...their future as Hasbro-exclusive toys is unclear. It all depends on what Takara plans to do once Web Divers finally dies pitifully, wheezing and whimpering. Will Takara do their version of BM? Who knows, though I've heard rumblings that they won't, or at least really don't wanna. Will any future TF line in Japan use the extra RiD stuff, or any formerly Hasbro only stuff for that matter? We'll see. Well, there's also Animorphs. I've heard that Animorphs actually has a cult following in the Japanese TF fandom (the toys, I mean) just because they're so fraking DIFFERENT from pretty much everything TF since it began. But for now, let's not worry about that, despite the fact that I think they're pretty decent toys marred only by them trying to be turning into humans. (They work wonderfully if you ignore the human bit and pretend they're robots.) But still, it's interesting to see how the companies compare when it comes to who didn't get what toys.
M "No BLUDGEON?! No QUAKE?! No *VROOM?!?!?!?*" Sipher |