COLLECTING THOUGHTS: Yet more custom G1 Action Masters

Wait, Action Masters? Didn’t they kill the franchise?

Amazingly, this is still a reaction that the mere mention of the infamous 1990 robots (not) in disguise line can garner today, even after over three decades. So notorious are these non-transforming Transformers that they remain vastly overlooked by huge swathes of the fandom.

Anyway, no, they didn’t tank the brand back in the day, but that aside, I’ll always make the case for these toys boasting a true innate charm all of their own. I can see why they’re not for everyone, but for me, there’s something about their simple, almost goofy style that just works and still feels unique even after all this time.

The official roster of characters may be finite, although as I’ve mentioned before, I’ve recently been on a bit of a trip down a customer Action Master rabbit hole! Well, I’m happy to report that I’ve dug myself even deeper since then…

So here’s today other exciting new arrival – Botcon 2004 Action Master G2 Breakdown! pic.twitter.com/NFJ94aDAtl

— Sixo (@SixoTF) September 26, 2023

First up is a longtime grail I most certainly did not plan on acquiring any time soon, but sometimes opportunity knocks when you least expect it! This convention exclusive was produced for the unofficial Botcon 2004 as a celebration of the original Generation 2 Breakdown from ten years prior.

I had only ever seen this thing in photos before, so finally assessing it up close is a strange prospect, to say the least! It’s a fantastic interpretation of the character done up in a largely quite cartooinsh style, though with some clear nods to the classic G2 release at the same time.

True, the colours used are not quite 1:1, with the 1994 toy having a distinctly more vibrant and lively purply pink instead of a straightforward purple, but it’s immediately apparent what the intended homage is here, and I don’t believe it was designed with making it ultra slavish as a top priority, somehow. As an unofficial fan convention nod, it works amazingly well.

This is a re-use of the Action Master Sideswipe mould from 1991, which is immediately apparent once you stand them side-by-side. Of course, Breakdown has a newly moulded head, but otherwise, the body remains unchanged in terms of sculpting. Considering Breakdown also turns into a Lamborghini Countach, though, this feels appropriate.

The new noggin does wonders at bringing the classic feeling of the character to life, too, especially as it has all the stark angular vibes you could want when portraying a 1986 Scramble City limb lad in a new form. It makes this figure feel superbly retro in a weird way.

In any case, Breakdown looks superb alongside an ever-expanding roster of Action Master bad guys and represents a major tick on my ongoing list of grails. Considering I never really thought I’d get the chance to own this guy, it’s a true thrill to add him to the collection.

Next, it’s time to look at some new pieces from top-tier Transformers customiser Blueshift, who I’ve already highlighted regarding Action Masters, of course (as well as in my recent summary from TFNation 2023). I have quite a few examples of his work on my shelves now and they’re incredible, but knowing they also help support a great cause – Mary’s Meals – as part of Blueshift’s work with legendary UK outfit Toy-Fu, makes it all the better. First up is Tigertrack!

I’m sure most fans may be aware of this character by now, but essentially it’s a ‘yellow Sideswipe’ homage to that toy’s pre-Transformers Diaclone roots, where the classic design was indeed also available in this colour. The name ‘Tigertrack’ was coined when he officially came under the Transformers banner for a re-use of the G1 toy in 2003. However, the 2013 Masterpiece effort arguably cemented his fame amongst collectors. I love both those efforts, so seeing an Action Master take is lovely, too!

Blueshift’s use of cast moulds to recreate these designs is unparalleled, meaning that the result looks and feels like an official release, unlike a more typical custom where a retail figure is covered by extra paint. With a top-notch finish and beautifully painted details, this is as close as I’ll ever come to owning a legit Action Master Tigertrack!

Picture c/o Andy Couzens

But wait, there’s more! If we go back to this last TFNation once again, we were treated to a special sneak peek at some unused European Action Master designs from the early 1990s care of Andy Couzens of Hasbro Europe. Various weird and wonderful colour schemes for existing moulds were seemingly considered, and Toy-Fu once again remained on hand to offer quite a few of these as charity-supporting custom exclusives.

The two I picked up were made available for online auction after the convention itself, and I couldn’t be more thrilled with them! First up is this green and orange take on Tracks, which is rather unconventional but somehow manages to catch the eye in all the right ways, and the presentation on offer from Blueshift is second to none.

It’s bizarre to think this could well have been a retail Transformers release back in 1991-2 had it come to fruition, and although we don’t know if it would have been marketed as a new version of Tracks himself or another character entirely, it’s still great fun to see it finally made real somehow. The colours are very striking indeed!

It even uses a newly-recreated version of the vintage Action Master’s chest decal, with the paint and finish easily rivalling the legit product, in this case. It’s terrific work all round and a real curio for the collection.

As if ‘green Tracks’ wasn’t enough, I also picked up this guy – an orange Sideswipe! Again, I have no clue if it was intended as a new character or just a simple repurposing of the classic Autobot car, but either way, it’s amazing to see and super colourful.

The blue and orange are just gorgeous together and help to make this figure stand out even from the custom Tigertrack shown above. It’s a real shame these ideas were never brought to fruition back in the day.

Again, ‘Orangeswipe’ was listed for auction after the con, with the proceeds raised from these two toys alone enough to feed approximately twenty starving children for one whole year thanks to the amazing work of Mary’s Meals.

Anyway, as customs go, these are about as good as it gets, and they look simply incredible next to my official Action Masters and last year’s TFNation efforts, too. What a line-up! I know it might sound bizarre to some, but this is one of my most anticipated and enjoyable areas of collecting now, so I truly hope to add more examples to the shelf before too long.

Until that day, it’s great to know the action remains alive, even after all these years.

TTFN