That small black Optimus Prime there? He costs twice as much as the one behind him these days.Being that I'm posting this on an internet forum centered around video remixes of (typically) old cartoons, it'd be at least mostly accurate to say that everybody here has experienced the thought process of "Hmm. I like that character. I would like an action figure of him". Most of the time these are characters who have existed before the concept of making toys of them was brought to light, be they cartoon, movie, comic, or even video game characters. However, Transformers (and like-minded franchises such as G.I. Joe and Bionicle) flips that prospect on it's head by creating toys, and following up with various forms of media based around them. This has earned most Transformers media the unsavory reputation of being a "glorified toy commercial" and while at times that description is apt, it serves to discredit the media itself - be it comics, cartoons etc. - which, depending on which you're talking about, can be quite excellent (see: anything involving Simon Furman). That said, since Transformers is initially a toy selling enterprise, many Transfans (we are aware of how the term sounds) indulge in recreational,- and in some cases obsessive - collecting of Hasbro's figures. The question is "Why". Why do we indulge in the blatant "This character is cool! You must buy him!" marketing Hasbro delivers on a regular basis? Well, for one it's fun.
Oh, what fun
If you're really going to tell me you don't know what Transformers are, I should smack you upside the head. The appeal of Transformers, especially for children, is that you aren't just getting a robot toy, and you aren't just getting a toy plane/car/monkey. You get both (in some cases, more than just two things), and while this is predominantly to appeal to children, adult collectors like myself also often find entertainment in shifting around all the bits and pieces to see how they fold away into another shape. In fact, in recent years, Hasbro has seen fit to release figures that are incredibly complex in their transformation schemes aimed at older fans. It is, in essence, a puzzle in the form of an action figure. The puzzle description works two ways as well since, like a puzzle, you have an idea of what the end result should be in either vehicle mode or robot mode, and Hasbro's enclosed instruction books are often (see: always) woefully lacking in detail resulting in the end user being forced to figure it out for themselves.
There's also the appeal to mecha collectors. Obviously the Transformers are robots and, for lack of a better way of putting it, robots are cool. Their ability to shapeshift into other forms also greatly influences their outward appearance as robots. A fine example is the Armada franchise's version of Megatron who Transforms into an H-Tank. The resulting robot has giant shoulders made from tank treads, and a backpack made from a turret with the cannon slung under his arm against his torso. With the coming of the Michael Bay movie franchise even more unique and bizarre robot designs came to light like the shovel-handed unicycle monstrosity that is Demolishor. There is also the small sub-sect of collectors who buy the figures for their vehicle modes (I don't get it either) and Hasbro has seen fit to cater to them with astonishingly complex, yet life-accurate vehicle modes in the Alternators and Human Alliance lines.
All different guys. I swear.Of course, not all is peachy in the world of Transformer collecting. Being mass-produced toys aimed at children, Hasbro doesn't have the time to create all new characters once the old ones have stopped selling. Instead, Hasbro will usually opt to end a line (and, in-turn, any associated media) as abruptly as possible (We miss you Animated) to make way for a new one. That's right, get ready for an all new, totally different Optimus Prime and Bumblebee (or similar substitute) with a brand-spanking new figure to boot. As such, if the newer media turns out to be really good, collectors will be compelled to buy a figure of this "new" character, resulting in owning multiple similar-looking or same-named figures (I have 9 Optimus Primes, 5 Megatrons, 3 Starscreams, 3 Demolishors, 2 Shockwaves, and 2 Ultra Magnus'). Similarly, in-between media in the same continuity characters will often "upgrade" in the form of a new paint-job, or a completely new design. The Bay-verse Megatron has had a completely new body in each different movie! This can cause headaches, or poverty, for collectors trying to get "true" version of the character.
All the same guy. I swear.There's also the concept of show-accuracy. In other words, finding the toy that most accurately represents the character's on-screen appearance. With the Japanese-created franchises like Robots In Disguise and The Unicron Trilogy this wasn't an issue given the cartoon's obsessive attention to detail in recreating the toy's appearances and features. However, the movie franchise, as well as the more recent Animated and Prime series of cartoons have delivered multiple figures of the same character, and it can be somewhat harrowing to nail down exactly which toy you feel best represents the character.
I guess some of him is better than none of him.Combiners, while awesome in theory, add a whole extra layer to the madness. Did you get a kick out of that one badass part of Fall of Cybertron where Bruticus tears through a giant Energon carrier? Did you want a figure of that guy? Well, have fun buying FIVE FIGURES to get him. Generally, figures who form components of a combiner aren't terribly expensive (buying the component figures of Combiner Wars Menasor is 75$ total) but having to hunt down multiple figures can be a daunting task in it's own right. Even worse, if you just happen to be a fan of one of the characters who simply forms a component of a combiner, the individual figure will often be inferior to a standalone character. Overload, for example, has absolutely no articulation outside of basic forward and back arm movement, but hey at least he can turn into a big ass gun to mount on Optimus Prime's shoulders (characters who combine with Optimus Prime are notorious for having bricks for figures).
Ultimately, collecting Transformers is an easy hobby to get into, but it's equally easy to fall into the nasty habit of overspending, or winding up with a figure you didn't really want. Transformers are particularly cheap as far as collectible action figures go, so the temptation is very real. If you do get into collecting Transformers as I have, I have a few bits of advice. First, avoid the notion of completing sets (unless you're hunting down one of the aforementioned combiner figures). It may sound real cool to have all of the Autobots and Decepticons from a particular series, but if there are any characters you didn't like in that series why would you buy them for the sake of completeness? Second, if you're on the fence about a figure, do research, watch reviews on YouTube (I personally would recommend peaugh or emgo), look up images. You don't want to wind up with a figure you end up hating. Lastly, if you're buying a figure from a franchise that's been over for a while now, avoid eBay or Amazon and buy directly from fellow collectors (tfw2005.com has a ton of great people to buy from). You're much more likely to find a reasonable price.
Anyway, I doubt many people are going to be persuaded into buying Transformers due to this post, but I figured I'd share my insights on the hobby, and hopefully anyone who reads this enjoys it or looks into possible collecting ventures.