Bot a Day: Daily Drawings

Kicking off a run of Trainbots. Japan loves their trains, as is evidence by this group of exclusive Transformers that celebrates a variety of Japanese train styles. Getsuei here turns into a blue and white EF65-1000 Electric Locomotive. He was available individually or as part of a gift set of Trainbots in Japan in 1987.

This drawing is of the Japanese exclusive Twincast, an evolution of Blaster, Autobot communicator, with a blue color scheme, and an enlarged chest compartment that can hold two cassettes. Twincast turns into a ghetto blaster, and was first available in Japan in 1987.    

This 2019 drawing is of Legout, an Autobot, who is the result of combining Dile and Zaur, two microcassette dinosaurs that were sold together. This set was only available in Japan in 1987.

From 2019 is this drawing of Zaur. Zaur is a Japanese release from 1987, an Autobot who turns from a microcassette to a sauropod of some sort. If I may say so myself, his feet are adorable in this drawing. 

This next drawing is from 2019, and is of Dile, an Autobot microcassette released in Japan in 1987. Based more on the card art than the toy itself, Dile is an iguanodon, and I've given him thumb spikes accordingly.   

This drawing from 2019 is of Decibel, the combined form of Graphy and Noise. These two cassette Autobots were released as a pair in 1987 in Japan, and in addition to their robotic forms of an allosaurus and pteranadon, they could merge into the humanoid robot seen below. 

Graphy, an Autobot cassette that was sold in Japan in 1987 in a two-pack with Noise (posted yesterday). Graphy turns from a microcassette to a pteranadon. 

From 2019 is this drawing of Noise, an Autobot microcassette available in Japan in 1987. According to his Japanese bio, he's a "forest investigator." He turns from a microcassette to a well-armed allosaurus, and is scaled to fit inside Autobot communicator Blaster (and, by extension, Soundwave).  

This drawing from 2019 is probably my best one to date, in terms of coming out just as I had pictured it. This is Stepper, an Autobot gunner released exclusively in Japan. He is a recolor and retooling of 1984's Jazz, and thus transforms into a Porsche 935. He'd eventually be released in US markets years later renamed Ricochet. He is a Targetmaster, meaning his primary pistol can transform into a small sidekick, Nebulon. 

This is Artfire, an Autobot fire truck only available in Japan starting in 1987. He is a reuse of the 1985 Inferno design, but in a white and red finish. He turns into a Mitsubishi Fuso fire engine. He is a Targetmaster, meaning his weapon turns into a little humanoid sidekick. Pictured with him here is Nightstick, his gun.   

Here is the last of the three Playskool 'First Transformers' toys released in 1986 for toddlers. This dump-truck had no name in the US, but when released in Japan the following year, he was known as Dump-Kun. 

From 1986, is the jet from Playskool's First Transformers line for toddlers. In Japan, he was named Jet-Kun. 

On the lighter side of things is Racer-Kun, or at least that was the name given to him in Japan in 1987. The previous year, he had been released in the US from Playskool branded as "First Transformer," and aimed at kids aged 1-3. He turns into a colorful Le Mans-style race car.  F

This drawing is from the Kronoform collection of transforming watches. Here's 1985's Deceptor, who turns from a watch to some sort of flying craft to this robot. Despite how his name sounds, he is an Autobot. 

From 1984, here is Autoceptor. He is from Takara's Kronoform collection but is branded a Transformer. Turns from a watch to a car to an oddly proportioned robot. 

This is Kaltor. Released in 1984, he is a functional calculator watch that turns into a robot. He's an unusual release, because it was a Takara US release, not Hasbro, but branded as Transformers as through a licensee. Takara had an existing Kronoform toy line of transforming watches (presumably not deemed a competitive product to their partner Hasbro for a number of reason, including that watches were typically found in a different department than toys). So Kaltor was there from the first year, but is usually not included in checklists of Transformers toys.  And finally, from my first batch of 2017 drawings is Bluestreak, Autobot gunner, part of the initial 1984 line of toys. He turns into a Datsun 280ZX Turbo.

I added Salt-Man Z to the growing gallery of international Transformers releases. He is partner to yesterday's Salt-Man X -- a Twin-Twist repaint available in Brazil and Argentina in the mid 1980s. 

From 2019, another "trust me, this is a different character" drawing only really defined as distinct through absent color. This is Salt-Man X, the name given to a repainted Topspin character in Brazil and Argentina. His name derives from the Spanish / Portuguese word for "Jump", as the toy jumps automatically from vehicle mode to robot mode. Released sometime in the mid 80s in South America. 

From Brazil is the second of the unusual Bat-Robô self-transforming toys. Pick-Up turns into a Ford F100 pick-up truck, in either orange or green finish. Was available from Estrela Toys in 1985. This drawing is from 2019. 

Here we have a sketch of Turbo, part of the exclusives found in Brazil from Estrela Toys. He is from a small subset of two figures called Bat-Robôs, imported designs from a Japanese company called Fushijo. The Bat-Robôs have friction motors in car mode that pop them into robot mode as they travel. He turns into a Plymouth Superbird race car. 

I drew this bizarre monstrosity in 2019, and though I'm not doing it any favors with my rendition, the toy itself is ugly. The last of the three Eletrix cars released in Brazil in 1985: Eletrix Porsche, who turns into (fittingly) a Porsche via a wired remote control and two AA batteries.

Another from Brazil's "Eletrix" series of remote control auto-transforming toys. This is Jipe, who turns into a jeep, released in 1985.

Here is another oddity from Brazil. In 1985, Estrala Toys took a design from Yonezawa Toys in Japan and packaged it as a Transformer named Esporte, part of a subset of "Eletrix" characters that were battery-powered to transform at a press of a remote control button. Such functionality resulted in some rather oddly shaped characters.   For 2021 we have Skram, whose bio lists him as Autobot Crack Patrol, whatever that means. He was released in the US as the Generation Two line in 1993. Turns into a blue Chevrolet Stingray-style Corvette. The exposed chromed engine becomes his hand weapon in robot mode. 

Volks is a unique variation of Bumblebee released in Brazil by Estrela Toys in 1985. He is part of the Optimus faction, and has the unique sigil on his chest. Was available in either red or orange finish.  Turns into a Volkswagen Beetle, of course. 

Jipe is an oddity available in Brazil from Estrela Toys in 1985. A recolor of Autobot Brawn, Jipe is part of the "Malignus" faction, and has a unique logo decal denoting as much. He turns into a Suzuki Jimny SJ20 jeep. 

The Gears mold was repurposed in Brazil in 1985 for the character Pick-Up, said to be of the Malignus faction, a group unique to the Brazil toyline. He therefore has a unique faction symbol. Still turns into a pick-up truck. 

Camaro was a reuse of the Windcharger design available in Brazil in 1987, with a different paint job, and a different insignia (Camaro is a villain from the 'Malignus' faction).  

This is Carrera, a variation on the Cliffjumper design. Carrera was released in 1985 in Brazil by toy company Estrela. The same mold as Cliffjumper, Carrera was available in either blue or white, and had unique decals as finishing details. He is of the "Optimus" faction, a heroic Transformer team unique to the Brazilian releases, and had a unique logo as a decal. 

Natron. Autobot race car paired with the Decepticon Freezon in 1985's Transformers Electric Racing Set from Tyco. Like Freezon, Natron's name is not evident in the set itself and is only said in the TV commercial for the product. Turns into a stock car -- and specifically a slot car that is compatible with Tyco's popular slot car playsets.   

Freezon. A Decepticon race car included in 1985's electric slot car racing set from Tyco Toys. Her name is not identified at all in the set, but is said in the TV commercial for the toy. She was retroactively identified as a female Decepticon by a sourcebook published decades after the toy release, so she is from that point of view the first female Transformers character available as a toy. 

Here is Bumper. An oddity from the original 84 assortment - he was a yellow Mazda Familia 1500 XG mini-car that would sometimes end up on Cliffjumper card-backs. Collectors took to calling him "Bumblejumper," or more simply, Bumper, a name that was worked into more modern storytelling thus making a possibly mispackaged toy into an actual character.