COUNTDOWN: Could we be about to see these new Transformers Legacy toys?

The Transformers Legacy line continues to explore the deepest, darkest depths of the franchise’s history, but there’s always more to go!

With rampant speculation regarding which characters are next in line, we may have at least a clue as to what the powers might be working on in the future. Hasbro was in attendance at San Diego Comic-Con last week, and the folks at TFW2005 were there to ask them some questions, one of which pertained to the Legacy characters they’d most like to tackle, including one name from each ‘universe’.

You’ll find a breakdown of their answer below, and I’m sure you’ll agree there are some exciting prospects here! Will they come to pass? Time will tell.

#8: IDW Pharma

More Than Meets The Eye #5, artwork credit: Milne / Burcham

We’ve seen numerous IDW nods in the Legacy line already, especially with recent toys such as Senator Shockwave referencing the events of fan-favourite series More Than Meets The Eye. When pressed on the matter, the character Hasbro suggested they’d like to work on in the future was the evil Autobot medic, Pharma, which would be a real thrill to see in toy form! After all, he’s a jet with a distinctive colour scheme, has chainsaws for hands, and boasts some wicked pop-out shoulder cannons! What more could you want?

Funnily enough, we did suggest this character for a Legacy figure in a previous article not so long ago, so here’s hoping Hasbro were being serious with their answer!

#7: G1 Omnibots

If you ask fans which Generation 1 characters they’d most like to see given Legacy updates, there’s a reasonably concise yet consistent list doing the rounds. Chief amongst those suggestions is frequently the Omnibots, which Hasbro even acknowledged during the Q&A when they highlighted that this trio of triple-changing good guys would be fun to tackle. The original toys of Camshaft, Downshift and Overdrive were mailaway exclusives during the ’80s and, thus, have always sat on the periphery of Transformers to some extent. Could now be the time for their Legacy star to rise? Let’s hope they keep those cool car modes intact if so!

#6: Beast Wars Quickstrike

The Beast Wars Fuzors may have been a relatively finite subline of toys, but that hasn’t stopped it from being hugely memorable to boot! True, the toy-only characters have faded into obscurity since the ’90s. Still, cartoon names like Quickstrike and his do-gooder counterpart, Silverbolt, have endured much better in fans’ imaginations, even if not in media. There’s certainly an appetite for updated figures of the pair, especially as the Predacon has never had another faithful take on his classic guise in toy form since the first. Funnily enough, we suggested Quickstrike for a potential new toy to the Hasbro crew when they were guests on our recent Triple Takeover chat, so here’s hoping they were picking up what we were putting down!

#5: Beast Machines Cheetor

Despite all the obscure corners of Transformers history brought to light in Legacy, there remains one ominous absence, and it just so happens to be amongst the most controversial, too. Yes, we’re talking about Beast Machines! Despite its distinctly mixed stock amongst fans, plenty of collectors would be only too happy to see the 2000 series revisited with modern toys, but thus far, there’s been not even a whiff of it. Could that be about to change? Well, Hasbro did at least indicate that it would be fun to do an updated (and more screen-accurate) Cheetor design, so potentially so! Again, there was some conversation on this topic during the Triple Takeover discussion, with Mark Maher singing the praises of the Vehicon designs in particular, so watch this space, perhaps.

#4: RID 2001 Rail Racer & Landfill

We’ve seen a few hints towards 2001’s Robots in Disguise line during Legacy, including an updated Scourge and a fairly obvious potential pretool for Sideburn. However, assuming it comes to fruition, the best may yet be around the corner, as Hasbro indicated the projects they’d most enjoy working on from this series are Team Bullet Train, the three-bot unit that merges to form the almighty locomotive-themed Rail Racer, or failing that, the Build Team, who combine into Landfill. Both of these could potentially be sensational new toys that, again, would shine a light on a hugely underappreciated part of the franchise’s history. At the risk of repeating myself, the train team was another one that was mentioned enthusiastically during our Triple Takeover chat, so fingers, toes and whatever else crossed that Hasbro gets aboard the idea.

#3: Armada Red Alert

One previous line that has had a lot of Legacy love of late is Armada, with characters such as Optimus Prime, Megatron, Hot Shot and Starscream all brought to life thus far. There may yet be more on the way, though, as the name Hasbro provided for the 2002 series was none other than Red Alert, which it’s fair to say would be a welcome sight in many fans’ minds! As well as transforming into a medical SUV, the original figure is positively loaded with gimmicks, and features a memorable Mini-Con partner to boot, so here’s hoping a potential Legacy effort would do it justice.

#2: Energon Optimus Prime

With both Aramda and Cybertron Optimus Prime represented in Generations form of late, it’s no great shock to learn that Hasbro may soon be turning their attention to the middle child-of-sorts! Energon Optimus’ design is certainly a unique toy of the Autobot leader, featuring four smaller drones that can make up the limbs of a larger combined mode effort. It’s goofy as anything but still packs in tons of charm and a whole bucket load of play value, so there could be a lot of fun in seeing an overhauled effort come to life. Plus, it’s Optimus, so chances are it’ll happen at some point!

#1: Cybertron Megatron

Whilst Optimus is typically a truck more often than not, Megatron toys have been mixing it up for years. He’s been a gun, a tank, a jet, a helicopter, a Megadrive and, let’s not forget, a Batmobile-style racing car! Yep, 2004’s Cybertron spin on the Decepticon leader is about as creative as they come, eschewing the classic sultry grey tonesfor something a little more colour-popping and eye-catching, whilst the triple-changing alternate modes are fairly distinct, too. With Armada now ticked off, could this be on the way soon? Seems like Hasbro would be into the idea, and we can’t say it wouldn’t be a real thrill!

So that’s our list! Which of these would you be most excited about?

TTFN