Transformers fans are being spoiled today, as Hasbro Pulse Con 2023 ignited the fires of the fandom with the upcoming Transformers: Legacy – United Wave 1 Reveals! Alongside returning characters from across the Transformers multiverse, we also got the Toy of the Year and the Transformers: Hall of Fame inductees, marking our entry into the 40th Anniversary of Transformers!
Shall we start with the toy reveals? Just to preface, all figures will be available for Pre-Order starting at 4 PM EST for Pulse Premium Members and 5 PM EST for everyone on Hasbro Pulse, Amazon, and wherever Transformers toys are sold.
TRANSFORMERS: LEGACY – UNITED Wave One Announced!
Kicking off the reveals, we got the announcement of the third year of Transformers: Legacy. Legacy is the current “Generations” toy line, bringing characters from every Transformers continuity, from G1 to Beast Wars to the Unicron Trilogy and beyond, even venturing heavily into the Japanese-exclusive continuities!
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Legacy launched in 2022, bringing characters from all over into the line, using the previous toyline’s, Transformers: War For Cybertron Trilogy, as a basis to reintroduce these fan-favorite characters with a new G1-inspired aesthetic made so that each figure can fit seamlessly into your Generations collection.
For 2024, Transformers: Legacy is United, with Wave 1 bringing in characters from even more obscure continuities! So, let’s get started with Core Class!
Core Class “Energon Universe” Megatron – $11.99
Based on his appearance in the 2004 CGI/Animated Series Transformers: Energon, Core Class Megatron is Legacy’s first foray into the “Energon Universe”. Highly articulated, the figure is the perfect desk toy for a Transformers fan of the early 2000s! Accessories for the figure include his infamous Tank/Sword that combined on the original toy and was seen in the show! The wings are articulated and the Shoulder Cannons are able to move up and down, just like the original toy.
Core Class “Beast Wars II Universe” Tasmania Kid/Snarl – $11.99
Hailing from the Japanese-exclusive Anime Beast Wars II, Tasmania Kid (colloquially known to American Audiences as Snarl) brings the character to Western Audiences for the first time in the Transformers mainline. The figure features a removable tail with a 5mm port to make it compatible with larger transformers figures.
Core Class “Infernac Universe” Bouldercrash – $11.99
Hailing from the universe of the GoBots comes the first Rock Lord Transformer, Bouldercrash! Like the Junkion figures that released last year in Legacy – Evolution, Bouldercrash has the ability to connect to larger figures using a 5mm port. Bouldercrash is able to convert into three modes: a rock-based motorcycle (roll with it), a robot with a swing-out sword, and a “Rock Weapon” that can be wielded by the larger figures.
Deluxe Class “Infernac Universe” Magneous – $24.99
Another creature inspired by the Rock Lords comes the Obsidian-based Magneous! Similar to the Legacy – Evolution Deluxe Class Junkion Scraphook, Magneous is able to disassemble into core pieces that are able to combine with other Generations Transformers figures! Made specifically with a hollow chest to represent the character’s depiction as a creature, Magneous is also able to combine with other Infernac Universe figures into an unofficial gestalt combiner!
The figure converts into two modes, robot and truck, both of which can be converted with or without disassembling the figure.
Deluxe Class “Animated Universe” Bumblebee – $24.99
Inspired by Derrick J. Wyatt’s fan-favorite cartoon Transformers: Animated comes Bumblebee! The first mainline Bumblebee figure to be released since the end of the Prime Wars Trilogy subline Power of the Prime, this figure converts between his iconic little yellow Police Van (Captain Fanzone not included) and heavily articulated robot mode. The figure also comes with four accessories, including his two stinger weapons and a pair of rocket boosters that can attach to the figure’s back and vehicle mode like they did in the show!
Deluxe Class “Rescue Bots Universe” Autobot Chase – $24.99
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The first mainline figure to be based on Jeff Kline’s Transformers: Rescue Bots is Chase! The partner of Griffin Rock police chief Charlie Burns, Chase makes his debut into the mainline with a highly articulated and posable figure. Able to convert between Police Car vehicle mode and robot mode, Chase also includes three accessories: two hand-held blasters that plug into the arms and vehicle mode doors as well as an exclusive “Energon Claw” weapon!
Deluxe Class “Cyberverse Universe” Windblade – $24.99
She’s back! Premiering into the Generations line a decade ago in the Thrilling 30 subline comes the Fan-Created Transformer Windblade! Based on her incarnation from the Transformers: Cyberverse animated series, Windblade converts from shinobi-inspired robot mode to a VTOL Aircraft mode with her iconic Energon Sword able to plug into her exhaust port as a flame effect in flight! The figure also features articulated wings and the fan/propellers are also capable of articulation for awesome action poses!
Voyager Class “Animated Universe” Optimus Prime – $34.99
The Animated Universe gets its third figure in the likes of the Autobot “Leader” Optimus Prime! Forced to drop out of the Autobot Elite Guard after a surveillance mission gone bad, Optimus Prime lands on Earth to fight foes both human and Cybertronian alike alongside Bumblebee and Prowl!
Able to convert between Robot Mode and futuristic Firetruck alternate mode, Optimus comes with his iconic Energon Axe accessory that includes an extendable handle and a 5mm port on the back of the axe, allowing fans to add blast effects (featured heavily in the War For Cybertron Trilogy toyline), as well as a removable light bar based directly on its red and blue appearance in the show (unlike the original toy).
Voyager Class “Prime Universe” Thundertron – $34.99
You want obscure? How about the first Transformers: Legacy figure based on a character that never appeared in any visual media? Enter: Thundertron! A character that was originally intended to appear in Season 3 of Jeff Kline’s Transformers: Prime, Thundertron was released as a figure in the toyline as the Captain of the Star Seekers, a group of Space Pirates who hunt down Cybertronians aboard their ship the Tidal Wave (no, not that one. We’ll get to him later).
Thundertron is able to convert between robot mode and a “Liger” alternate mode and comes with a sword accessory. And, for those fans who are wondering, yes, his leg does apparently have the ability to convert into a peg-leg. Yo-ho!
Leader Class “Beast Wars Universe” Tigerhawk – $54.99
To round out the new toy reveals comes Tigerhawk! The fused form of Tigertron and Airazor (known as a Fuzor), Tigerhawk is able to convert from vehicle mode to…well, a Tigerhawk alternate mode. The figure comes with two removable blasters and features design cues from the Transformers: War For Cybertron Trilogy – Kingdom Voyager Tigertron and Deluxe Airazor.
The figure also features a paint deco based directly on their appearance in the original Beast Wars cartoon, updated from the original toy’s blue color scheme.
Other figures coming!
However, with each new year of the Transformers: Legacy toy line comes a new poster depicting characters from the upcoming waves. While this year’s poster depicts every figure in Wave 1 of Legacy – United, it also depicts two upcoming figures that weren’t revealed as part of today’s PulseCon reveals.
First up, we have confirmation that Legacy – Evolution Wave 4 Leader Class “Armada Universe” Megatron is getting retooled into his Galvatron colors…yet he also has a bunch of new parts…could it be…?
Yes! It is! Hasbro releases a new Titan Class figure every year (at the ludicrous $200 price point) and 2024 will be no different with the reveal of Titan Class “Armada Universe” Tidal Wave! It will be interesting to see how the Titan Class figure interacts with the Leader Megatron/Galvatron as the figures are shown being able to combine in both the original Armada cartoon and the subsequent Armada toy line.
And, lastly, Hasbro and Takara Tomy are diving even deeper into the world of Japanese Transformers with this year’s Generations Commander Class figure, the “Beast Wars Neo Universe” Magmatron! As depicted in the Beast Wars Neo cartoon, Magmatron is the leader of the Predacons in that universe and is capable of separating into three distinct dinosaur-inspired alternate modes. It will be interesting to see how Hasbro and Takara tackle this obscure figure later next year!
The Transformers Hall of Fame Inductees
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Transformers fans are often excited by the prospect of the Hall of Fame, with many fans taking part in the yearly votes to choose which character from a specific cartoon/film/continuity gets inducted (often leading to them getting a brand new toy in the future) and this year is no different.
Hasbro began by announcing their Transformers Toy of the Year, and it comes as no surprise that the figure chosen to represent everything good to come from Legacy – Evolution was the Commander Class “Armada Universe” Optimus Prime! The figure has frequently sold out on Amazon, Hasbro Pulse, and other retailers, so fans across the world are clearly enjoying the highly anticipated update to the Armada figure.
Following that, Hasbro and Takara Tomy officially inducted Ejima Takio, a designer who helped keep Transformers afloat in the late 1980s/early 1990’s as the series entered a decline following the poor performance of Generation 2. Because of Ejima-san’s notable ability to invent new articulation for Transformers figures, Ejima-san and Takara Tomy were able to revitalize the Transformers market enough to get the Beast Wars toyline off the ground, which single-handedly saved Transformers in the 90’s. A worthy induction to the Hall of Fame.
And, finally, the Transformers Character of the Year. This year, Hasbro and Takara opted to find the fan’s favorite character from 2001’s Transformers: Robots in Disguise/Car Robots. In third place came the Autobot Bullet Train combiner Rail Racer. In second place came the Autobot supreme commander Optimus Prime.
And in first place came…well, he is the baddest shark around, the smartest shark in town, the bot to drive Scourge into the ground, and the shark that never let Megatron down, it’s SKY-BYTE! The clear fan-favorite of the bunch, Sky-Byte stuck out as RiD’01’s most iconic character for the last 22 years. Spouting haikus and leading the bumbling idiots that were the Predacons, Sky-Byte earned this distinguished title.
However, I’d be remiss not to mention the man who brought him to life: Peter Spellos. Known for his roles in Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion and Bleach, Mr. Spellos has a wide history of animated and live-action roles within 2000s media. Unfortunately, Mr. Spellos is currently battling pancreatic cancer. Personally, I am proud that he is able to see the love of the fans now more than ever.
If you wish to contribute to the GoFundMe set up to fund his battle with Cancer, donate here.
The Future of Transformers
It’s weird to say that Transformers is entering its 40th Anniversary next year. On September 17th, 1984, The Transformers premiered on American TV Screens and launched the franchise we all know and love. Hasbro has teased that later this year they will reveal the next Haslab Transformers crowdfunding campaign, saying that it will have something to do with the 40th Anniversary. While it’s too early to know what the figure will be, we can’t wait to find out what it will be.
Many more surprises are sure to come, especially with the next wave of Studio Series right on the horizon (which is likely to be revealed within the next month or so). If you want to continue to be in the know for future Transformers news, follow us on social media, we’re always watching.
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