A Guide to the Transform Jr. Series
Mistakenly viewed as knock-offs before they became well known in the fandom, the Transform Jr. series by Takara licensee Seven was
actually a low-cost alternative to the main line, which let children not blessed with parents
who would shell out for the larger toys enjoy somewhat simpler likenesses of their favorites. Much of the line consisted of leader characters
such as Convoy, Chromedome, Ginrai, Star Saber, and others, but there were also some surprising entries like Soundwave and Raiden. Generally it
was these secondary characters that became the most difficult for collectors to find. Since Seven also manufactured
a variety of low-cost Transformers merchandise such as toy guns, vinyl figures, and die-cast figurines, these also sometimes came packed as extras
with the figures. Notable is the "Samurai Camera," a pellet shooting replica camera that was packed with Star Saber. Chromedome, Convoy, and Fortress
Maximus were also assembled into a 3-pack set, probably the Jr. item that tends to show up most often.
Comprehensive Jr. List
The Headmasters:
Convoy
Ultra Magnus (a white Convoy)
Soundwave
Soundblaster
Chromedome
Fortress Maximus
Metroplex
Trypticon
Rodimus Convoy
Shouki and Seizan
Yukikaze and Suiken
Getsuei and Kaen (Trainbots were 2 to a pack, and could combine into Raiden)
Convoy, Chromedome, and Fortress Maximus 3-pack
Super God Masterforce:
Jinrai
Super Jinrai (just the Super Jinrai body, could combine with Jinrai)
God Jinrai (contained the above 2 and Godbomber parts)
Grand Maximus
Victory:
Star Saber
Although the figures were certainly smaller and lower cost than their normal release counterparts, they were relatively well constructed. A few of the
figures had metal chests, surprising in the case of Chromedome, whose full-size Transformer contained no metal! Reportedly die-cast was fairly
cheap to produce until the late 80's. Although not a Transform Jr, Sunstreaker was released in indentical packaging with the designation "Transform
Block." Instead of fully transforming, it was a rubber toy in about the same size as the Jr's that could be reassembled to change modes. This was actually
first released for the Diaclone series along with a similar Skids.
Below are pictures of several Jr's I had on hand, including the prize of my Jr collection, Raiden. If you have any pictures of other Jr's, please
feel free to contribute by sending them to hydra@blackgears.com ! I would greatly appreciate it.
Metroplex and Trypticon, released during Headmasters. Both are good likenesses of their larger figures, but are no longer triplechangers
due to their simpler design and fewer accessories.
The normal version of Ginrai, who in all his incarnations accounts for three of the four Masterforce-era Jr's
By far the most difficult to find of all Juniors, the Raiden combiners, which I have discovered (and purchased) precisely
once during over a decade of active collecting. The other most sought-after figure is Grand Maximus, although he was
simply a recolor of Fortress Maximus.
I come across Juniors frequently during the course of my collecting, so if there are any you are searching for, don't hesitate
to contact me at
| 
