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Well that's always been my thought too, but since we other Autobots manning weapons (Blaster's tower is very similar) maybe it's not?
When it comes to assumptions, I always figured any of the 1984/85 Autobots we didn't see in season 3 was there... and died. The mausoleum ship in Dark Awakening is fairly large.
It's only in the collected edition, and it's not much better than a fanfic explanation really, but it's there. And you can see a scan here: http://tfwiki.net/wiki/File:TAM_TPB_Gestalt_Fight.jpg
This has made me wonder if the current G1 collection will have a volume that includes both the Marvel and IDW adapations of TFTM. Doesn't seem to be a place for it though.
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Of course the reality is that the script for TFTM was written in 1985. Hasbro themselves probably hadn't fully developed the 1986 line up and Sunbow were just going off what toys they knew that Hasbro were planning on releasing, as well as a few figures that Hasbro were developing based on Sunbow's designs (e.g. Galvatron, Rodimus Prime, Cyclonus etc.).
And we know that there were scenes that would've showcased more 1985 characters but they were cut. Such as the scene where Ultra Magnus carries a bunch of Autobot Cars including Tracks, Red Alert, Hoist etc. in his car carrier mode before deploying them in front of an advancing Devastator. It is this attack which forces Devastator to separate into the Constructicons with Megatron close behind them, but then Megatron is stopped as Optimus Prime steps in behind him. This is why in TFTM we see Megatron turning around as he faces Prime, because he was previously watching the Constructicons pursuing Ultra Magnus and the '85 Autobot Cars (and Sideswipe). This piece of animation still made it into the final cut even though the scene before it was cut.
But yeah, I'd say the reason why a lot of 1986 toys didn't appear in the movie was because they hadn't been developed or decided yet. Writers like those who worked in the IDW adaptation have basically retconned what happened, which as Paulbot said is basically what fanfic writers do, but it certainly was never the intention of the original writers. And the retcon only exists in the IDW TFTM adaptation universe anyway - just as Ultra Magnus being drawn and quartered by the Sweeps only exists in the Marvel TFTM comic adaptation (it was also originally in the script, but Sunbow decided to change it to Ultra Magnus just blowing up -- I guess because being drawn and quartered would been too violent?).
It was the 80s. People didn't care about traumatising us. They sold us toys based on Robocop!
All of the above! They even had a cartoon, comic books and a really weird live action TV series based on it too. Talk about marketing a franchise to the totally wrong audience. As a kid Robocop was just areally cool^super violent cybernetic cop! I was way too young to properly understand and appreciate the story with all of its poignant social themes and motifs - something that a lot of critics have said are sorely missing from the new Robocop remake. The remake is fine as an action film, but as a piece of film literature it is but a shadow of its original namesake. And the over-the-top violence was a deliberate part of the story. I was a uni student when Starship Troopers came out and I was able to better understand and appreciate that story, and of course, go back and appreciate the original Robocop. Definitely things I'd buy for a dollar.
Correct, and also the same writer. And Starship Troopers starred Michael Ironside who would later go on to play Ultra Magnus in Transformers Prime. And Transformers Animated's automated police robots were clearly inspired by Robocop's ED-209.