Transformers : Headmasters [1987-1988]
For the 1987 toyline, Takara decided to go in a slightly different
direction to that taken by its American sister company Hasbro.
Helped partially by the ongoing success of the Transformers line in
Japan, as opposed to the dwindling interest in the line in the
United States, Takara commissioned a 35-episode series, named
"Headmasters" after the principle toy gimmick of the 1987 toy line.
The series ignored the 'Rebirth' serial, continuing instead from
the end of Transformers 2010, the Japanese equivalent of season 3.
A recap was given at the start of the first episode, 'Four Warriors
from the Sky', which recalled the
battle of the Transformers so far, including the death and
resurrection of Convoy, and the replacement of Megatron with
Galvatron.
Set in the year 2011, rather than being robots binary-bonded to
Nebulans, the Headmasters are small robots who have built
themselves large exo-suits which transform. The Cybertron
Headmasters are Chromedome, Hardhead, Highbrow, Brainstorm and
Fortress. Chromedome and Fortress are the principal characters, and
both were redesigned for the show. Chromedome's visor was replaced
with two eyes, while Fortress was based more directly on the
Cerebros toy. Brainstorm and Highbrow both also had their heads
redesigned, the former having a mouth and nose instead of a
faceplate, and the latter getting a recolour. Galvatron also has
three Headmasters in his service as the story starts, Weirdwolf,
Skull and Wipe. These used the same character designs as
'Rebirth'.
The series started off with Galvatron launching an attack on
Seibertron. Convoy heads for the battle from the Cybertrons' base
on Signia, while Ultra Magnus leads reinforcements from Earth via
the spacebridge, including the Trainbots, based on an old Diaclone
combining robot who predated the Transformers toyline. Also
introduced this episode was Sixshot, a Destron ninja. Thoughout the
series, but especially in these opening episodes, existing Fight!
Super Robot Lifeforms characters get cameo appearances, such as
Meistar, Lambor, Hound, Prowl, Inferno and Tracks. The battle is
turned when the Cybertron Headmasters appear. In the second episode
Blaster and Soundwave had a big showdown which resulted in both
being blown apart, though they were rebuilt as Twincast and
Soundblaster respectively to tie in with repaints of their toys. In
the third episode Convoy dies once again, allowing his energy to
save Seibertron, and Hot Rodimus again becomes Rodimus Convoy. More
new characters were introduced in the fifth episode, namely the
Monsterbots and Battle Beasts. Battle Beasts were released as a
seperate toyline to Transformers in most countries, but in Japan
Takara decided to tie the two together.
The series was much more action-orientated, and as the Japanese
television networks allowed the series to be shown in order, an
ongoing story arc was able to be developed. This really began to
gather speed as Scorponok arrived, and blew Seibertron up. Later
on, Fortress displayed his ability to merge with his ship and
become the mighty Fortress Maximus, while Scorponok does the same,
becoming Megazarak. And then Mars gets blown up. In episode 24,
Ultra Magnus was slain by Sixshot, while new characters were
introduced: the Clones [Cybertron and Destron], the Doubletrons and
the Horrorcons. Just an episode after the death of Ultra Magnus,
Galvatron was removed from the series, buried under the ice by the
Cybertron Headmasters. The next few episodes concentrated on the
search for Megazarak's weak spot, and the introduction of the
Cyberton and Destron Targetmasters. Then Sixshot began to doubt his
allegiance and befriended Daniel Witwicky. The series ended with a
massive battle in the Arctic. The Destrons are beaten, with a
little help from Sixshot, and Megazarak is destroyed by Fortress
Maximus.
The accompanying toyline was the last with any great similarity to
the Western one, though there were significant differences. The
Trainbots were issued in Japan only, as were the repaints of
Blaster and Soundwave and four new Cybertron cassettes. Also
several Destron cassettes were reissued, and Fortress Maximus was
issued with a large sword.
Headmasters was a success, and a follow-up series, Masterforce, was
commissioned. The series has never aired in America, though Star TV
[badly] dubbed it into English for airing in Hong Kong. It receives
mixed feelings from fans, however, and while its epic plot and high
points are revered, its low points and seemingly purposeful attempt
to follow the style of the US series often see this rated as the
poorest of the Japanese series.
