COUNTDOWN: 6 amazing Transformers: Cybertron head sculpts

I’ve mentioned before that I’m a major fan of a great head sculpt. Who isn’t?

After all, it’s the kind of thing that can truly make or break a Transformers toy (figuratively, not literally, you understand). Whereas a reasonably run-of-the-mill toy can be elevated to new heights by the presence of a captivating face design, so too can an otherwise exceptional figure be downgraded because of an unsightly noggin.

After making similar lists for Generation 1, Beast Wars and even third-party toys, we’re here to shine a spotlight on the Unicron Trilogy, one part at a time. We’ve already talked up Armada and Energon, but now it’s the final part in Cybertron (or the Japanese equivalent, Galaxy Force, given that’s what all the photos represent in this case!), showcasing some amazing examples from the 2005 line-up.

#6: Hot Shot

Once the poster boy for this era of Transformers, Hot Shot still managed to cram in his fair share of diverse looks throughout the Unicron Trilogy, and emerged with one of the most stylish releases of the entire line! This time, the design truly leans into the character’s Hot Rod archetype more than ever! It creates a more grown-up style for this release and, without a doubt, leaves it as the superior of all the character’s various iterations. Much of that is down to the head design, showcasing a classic chiselled, good-looking robot, served well. The sculpt is clean and nicely defined, the details look fabulous, the eyes are surprisingly captivating and that zinging burnt yellow helmet piece is just the final touch you wanted. Talk about your glow-ups!

#5: Sideways

Whilst we mentioned in the Armada list that many of the early head designs from the trilogy felt like they owed some influence from the Beast era of Transformers, it seemed like things had largely moved on a notch by the time Cybertron rolled around. Take examples such as Sideways here as the ultimate evidence of that! With hindsight, it comes off as a forebear to the more alien designs that were about to debut in the live-action movies through to the likes of Transformers: Prime and beyond, and, with no discernable features outside of a set of large horns and a singular light-piped screen for a face, you could almost be forgiven for thinking this came from another toy line entirely. If anything, it was a sign of what a diverse journey we were soon to go on with the franchise, but there’s still something alluring about this unusual specimen.

#4: Vector Prime

I’m sure I don’t need to wax too lyrically about why this particular example is so successful. After all, some head sculpts are so attractive that they speak for themselves! In this case, though, Vector Prime achieves more than just being a great design to admire in that it also perfectly captures the intended character and the feeling of a battle-worn ‘bot who has survived the test of time. Again, the sculpting is second to none, with expertly defined panel lines adding a welcome sense of detail and elevating the overall look. However, it’s also the finish that feels superbly served in this case, especially on the Takara release, with a gleaming blue face and piercing red eyes never failing to win your attention. It’s worth making time for.

#3: Jetfire

Returning to his Ultra class roots, it feels right that Jetfire once again received one of the most handsome toys of the line in Cybertron, despite a fairly surprising colour scheme change. Now decked out with cargo plane stylings, there’s something so immediately satisfying about this big lug that I cannot help but enjoy it from the off, and naturally, a lot of that is down to the looks as well. Though perhaps not the most immediate candidate for a standout head design, I’ve still come to really admire this one up close, not least because of some of the finer details on offer. The overall shape is fairly unusual for one, feeling almost ‘swept back’ with a large head crest proportional to the rest of the face. Then there’s the design and paintwork on the crest itself, followed by the simply beautiful moulded detail of the translucent visor section underneath (which weirdly feels like a tribute-of-sorts to the classic 1985 toy somehow, but I could be wrong). It proudly continues the longstanding tradition of great-looking Jetfire toys!

#2: Crumplezone

At this point in the franchise, the designs were certainly getting a little less traditional from time to time, as showcased by the likes of Sideways above. Crumplezone here continues that trend and ends up feeling quite distinct versus just about any year of Transformers you care to think of, with that oversized Trap Jaw-esque mouth making quite the impression! I especially adore how it looks like it’s almost pinned on from the side, giving the idea that it could actually move via some sort of action feature despite being statically moulded in place. However, the rest of the face and helmet are just as good, with a stunning gold visage and expertly light-piped baby blues underneath a more classicly styled mouth. They were in the zone for this one!

#1: Soundblaster

And finally, we come to one of the more unusual entries on this list, if only because of how surprisingly non-atypical it is! How’s that for a contradictory statement? I say that because, against the backdrop of the mid-2000s, this toy stands out for flying fairly close to the classic G1 template at a time when most other designs were doing more weird and wonderful things. Sure, there’d been a healthy dose of ’80s homages in the prior year’s 20th anniversary Energon line. However, something about Soundblaster (and obvious mouldmate Soundwave) still feels bizarrely removed from everything else happening around it, sticking to a quite traditional vibe before it came back as the overriding trend of the franchise. That said, it still comes off as distinct and is no less attractive for keeping things so straightforward. After all, you can’t improve on perfection, so when something is already so superior, why mess with it?

So that’s our list! What are some of your favourite Cybertron head sculpts?

TTFN