Bot a Day: Daily Drawings

Finishing off the month of January with the scariest techno-organic flying squirrel this side of Cybertron, Dark Scream. In Japan, he was released as Guildo, but renamed Dark Scream for his American release as part of Robots in Disguise Predacons . His design is a reuse of Nightglider , a 1999 Beast Wars Transmetal 2 toy. 

Beginning a run of Predacon enemies -- Robots in Disguise had the distinction of two bad guy factions, the Decepticons and the Predacons, with the latter having animalistic alt-modes. Bruticus is a gnarly looking monstrosity of a robot with three faces, that turns into a three-headed hound, like the mythological Cerberus. In fact, Bruticus was intended to be part of the Beast Machines line and named Cerberus, but that line ended before he could be produced.

Doing a bit of a shortcut today simply because I didn't want to use up three days doing a multi-part character design I've drawn twice before. The Fortress Maximus design from Generation One (1987) was redeco'ed for the Car Robots Japanese line to become Brave Maximus in 2000 (the design had been redeco'ed before as a Japanese exclusive, 1988's Grand Maximus ).  This version has the same multi-tiered Headmaster gimmick where a small human-sized figure (Spike, or Grand) turns into the head of a mid-sized figure (Cerebros) and then becomes the head of Maximus. In this incarnation, the smallest figure is Cerebros (but also known as Plasma), who becomes the head of a nameless robot known as the Emissary (though sometimes known as Brave), who then becomes the head of Brave Maximus. It's a bit confusing. Adding to the confusion is that the Brave Maximus toy never made it into the Robots in Disguise line because it failed updated safety standards for a North American...

Ultra Magnus and Optimus Prime were built to be combiners, and this is the end result: Omega Prime. In Japan, the math goes Super Fire Convoy + God Magnus = God Fire Convoy. Adding a bit of drama to the mix is that in this storyline, Ultra Magnus kinda hates Prime and covets his power. 

This incarnation of Optimus Prime turns into a fire truck, a first for the Autobot leader but certainly not the last time for the heroic figure. Prime's cab turns into a basic robot (Fire Convoy, in Japan) which can combine with the trailer to form a larger sized robot (Super Fire Convoy). I drew the smaller bot as a sign-off to the last year of daily drawings, 2021, here.  

The Robots in Disguise incarnation of Ultra Magnus is not so much the stoic warrior and loyal follower of Optimus Prime portrayed by Robert Stack in Transformers: The Movie. This version is Optimus Prime's petulant brother who never quite got over living in his sibling's shadow. Like the earlier version of this character, Ultra Magnus turns into a huge car carrier truck. In Japan, he was named God Magnus when released there in 2000. He was available in the 2001 launch of Robots in Disguise. 

The JRX Store called -- they're running out of bullet trains. JRX was the Japanese name for this combined form of Team Bullet Train. In North America, he was known as Rail Racer. The three members of team (Midnight Express, Rapid Run and Railspike) could link up in train modes (though they're all engines), or connect as a larger 'bot. This helps explain while Midnight Express had such large legs; they're scaled to work as a third of a larger robot.   

Here's the third and final member of Team Bullet Train, Midnight Express, the only Autobot to share a name with a 1978 thriller written by Oliver Stone. The other two train-bots have relatively slim builds because of their particular body designs, while Midnight Express takes a very different shape with enormously chunky legs that form the body of the train. Midnight Express turns into an E4 Series Max Japanese bullet train. In Japan, he was released under the name J-Four.   

Next in Team Bullet Train is Rapid Run (originally known as J-Seven in his Japanese release). Rapid Run turns into a 700 series Shinkansen high speed train. 

This week starts with a run of Team Bullet Train, an Autobot subgroup that reflects Japan's celebration of their high speed rail. Railspike is the leader of the trio, and turns into a 500-series Nozomi bullet train. In his original 2000 Japanese release, he was named J-Five. For his 2001 Robots in Disguise release, he was rechristened Railspike. 

If you take the four Build Team Autobots from the previous days and merge them, you get Landfill, the first combiner unique to Robots in Disguise. Wedge forms the torso, while Grimlock, Hightower and Heavy Load can swap roles as individual legs or paired arms. In his initial Japan release in 2000 he was known as Build King, before being christened Landfill in 2001 for his North American release. 

Rounding out the individual Build Team members is Hightower, or Build Cyclone as he was known in Japan. He turns into a crane truck of non-specific design. His massive crane boom arm can become a heavy rifle in robot mode, or stay stowed on his back. 

His name on the American release of this toy -- Heavy Load, as part of 2001's Robots in Disguise -- emphasizes his large cumbersome build. He turns into a heavy duty dump truck. His Japanese name -- Build Typhon, as part of 2000's Car Robots -- instead emphasizes his speed. This unlikely bot is a martial arts master and as graceful as they come. He is part of the Build Team of Autobots.   

The next in the Autobot Build Team lineup is Wedge, the young leader and wunderkind of the bunch. He turns into a bulldozer. When released in Japan in 2000, he was named "Build Boy," though his Robots in Disguise 2001 release christened him Wedge. 

Starting a run of Build Team, an Autobot construction vehicle group introduced at the launch of Robots in Disguise in 2001. The classic name Grimlock is applied to this treaded backhoe design. In Japan, he is known as Build Hurricane. 

Another repurposed Machine Wars design, Tow-Line was available in a two-pack with Decepticon Skyfire in 2001. He turns into a heavy duty Kenworth W900 wrecker tow truck. This design first surfaced in 1997 as Hoist and Hubcap . In Japan, this figure was released in 2000 as a "Flipchanger" named Wrecker Hook. 

In addition to turning Generation 2 Go-Bots into Spychangers, the Robots in Disguise series also ported over some of the 1997  Machine Wars designs into new characters. Here is Skid-Z (pronounced 'Skidz', despite what the hyphen might make you think), who turns into a Indy race car. He is a reuse of the Machine Wars Prowl and Mirage design. In Japan, his debut name was Indy Heat. He was sold in a two-pack with the Decepticon Wind Sheer in the US in 2001. 

The last of the Autobot car brothers, X-Brawn is the eldest of the three. a straight-shootin', straight-talkin' cowboy type. He turns into a Mercedes-Benz ML320 SUV, and his robot mode is a peculiarly asymmetrical shape with an oversized arm that includes his entire car hood as part of the design. In the Japanese incarnation of Robots in Disguise, the original 2000 Car Robots toyline and animated series, he was called Wildride. Imported to the US, he became X-Brawn. 

Here's the regular version of Side Burn (known as Speedbreaker in Japan) -- more complex than the Spychanger incarnation I had posted earlier . Side Burn is the second of a trio of Autobot car brothers who featured prominently in the Robots in Disguise cartoon. He turns into a Dodge Viper hot rod.  

Moving beyond the Spychangers, the signature trio of the Robots in Disguise animated series and toyline were three car brothers. Prowl is the first of the three to get a daily drawing. In the Japanese Car Robots line, he was called Mach Alert. Prowl turns into a Lamborghini Diablo with Japanese police colors. The three brothers had designs that emphasized asymmetry and using large parts of the car as handheld shields or weapons.   

Since I'm concentrating on 2001 releases, this will be the last of the Spychangers for now. This is Daytonus, whose name (a reference to the Daytona 500) doesn't make too much sense given that he turns into a Porsche 962 Le Mans-style Kremer Racing 962CK6. Not exactly a NASCAR stock car.   

Side Burn is one of the major characters showcased in the Robots in Disguise animated series, warranting at least two toys in the first year of the line. Seen here is his lower priced, Spychanger incarnation, who turns into a blue flame deco'ed Dodge Viper. The toy design dates back to Generation Two Go-Bots, but the line was cancelled before the finished design ever surfaced. 

Another new design making its Spychanger debut is this modified Camaro that turns into Side Swipe, an Autobot. The design was originally developed for the Generation Two Go-Bots line and was intended to be Rumble, but the series was cancelled before it could come out. This version first appeared in 2001. 

The name on the packaging cleary says "PROWL 2" but with no explanation as to what the 2 signified. For years, fans wondered if this Prowl was supposed to be the original G1 version somehow ported into new continuity , or was he the Prowl from the Japanese Beast Wars line ? Robots in Disguise content never answered it, and it wasn't until years later that a convoluted explanation from the Japanese BinalTech series surfaced. Prowl 2 is his name, and he's his own character. He's part of the Spychanger assortment and turns into a Chevrolet Caprice police car. Unlike other Spychangers, his design is not based on a released Go-Bots toy from Generation 2 -- rather, it was a design finalized just before the toyline got cancelled, so it had to wait in the wings for years. 

Finishing off this first week of 2023 with Crosswise, Autobot Spychanger with a specialization in gravity-based weapons and combat. Crosswise turns into a concept car -- a transparent one at that! His body design first debuted as three separate 1995 Go-Bots --  High Beam , Bumblebee , and Nightracer . In Japan, Crosswise is known as X-Car. 

W.A.R.S. stands for "Wicked Attack Recon Sportcar," and he's the most belligerent of the 2001 Autobot Spychangers. His name is unchanged from his 2000 Japanese release -- except it wasn't an acronym the first time around. He turns into a Ford Thunderbird Stock Car, and is a reuse of a mold first introduced in the Generation 2 Go-Bots line as Gearhead  and Soundwave . 

A name that dates back to the 1984 original line up, this incarnation of Mirage is also an Autobot spy who turns into a Formula 1 race car - in this case, a Lola T94. His name derives from a built-in cloaking device that renders him invisible. Before this mold was used to create this Spychanger, it was part of the Go-Bots subset from Generation Two, where it formed the basis of Double Clutch and an updated version of the original Mirage  released in 1995. The Robots in Disguise version of Mirage was released in 2001; in 2000, he debuted in Japan as "Counter Arrow." 

Next in the Spychanger line up is the Robots in Disguise -incarnation of Ironhide, who turns into a Ford F150 Flareside pickup truck. This mold had previously been used as the classic Ironhide during the Generation 2 series in 1995, and as Motormouth that same year. In Japan, this toy was named Ox, a reflection of the big cattle skull deco on his hood. The story around the Spychangers refer to them as ninjas, which is hard to imagine with an alt-mode like a F150 sporting a Holstein cow paint job.  

Next in the Spychanger assortment is R.E.V., whose name is an acronym standing for "Race Exertion Vehicle," apparently. He too inherits a mold from the 1995 GoBots assortment -- turning into a Lamborghini Diablo as Firecracker , Sideswipe and Optimus Prime also did before him. In Japan, R.E.V. was first released in 2000 as "Eagle Killer," before becoming known as R.E.V. in his 2001 US release. 

In Japan, the Beast lines did not spark the same level of success as it did in the US, prompting Takara to return to basics in 2000 with Car Robots, a toy and animated series. History repeated itself as Hasbro imported the Takara line to the US as Robots in Disguise in 2001. As such, each Robots in Disguise toy is likely to have a Japanese incarnation with some differences, but not enough to warrant a separate illustration. The Robots in Disguise line had a sub-series of Spychanger cars, which were redecoed version of the Generation 2 GoBots -- small cars in scale with Hot Wheels and Matchbox cars with free-rolling wheels that gave them excellent speed when pushed. Hot Shot is an Autobot that turns into a Porsche 959 sports car with distinct flame paint job. In Japan, he was released as Artfire. Several versions of Hot Shot/Artfire were released from 2000 to 2002, but all based on the same design that had first debuted in 1995 as Blowout . 

This daily chronicle of the Transformers toyline through illustrations picks up where it left off -- in the year 2001. By then, the toyline had split into multiple series -- with Beast Machines finishing its run, and Robots in Disguise picking up a return to classic play patterns of robots into vehicles.  Also, Tonka -- now a Hasbro division -- used the Transformers brand to launch a kid-focused 1-2-3 Transformers line with Rescue Roy, a hefty robot that turns into a fire truck with loads of gimmicks and light and sound features.