After the high of Armada, and the low of Energon, the third chapter in the "Unicron Trilogy" was Cybertron... which ended up being between the two in terms of popularity, but probably would have done better as a stand-alone series. The Cybertron series went from mid 2005 to the end of 2006, just before the first of the Live-Action movie toys came out... which gave us the short-lived Classics series to fill the gap.
In Japan, Cybertron was called Galaxy Force, and was indeed treated as a stand-alone series (until TakaraTomy tried to retcon it back into the Unicron Trilogy on their DVDs and in Kissplay).
Details of the Cybertron series can be read here.
The gimmick with Cybertron was hidden features, released by Cyber-Keys, similar to the Armada series having the toy features released by the Minicons.
The other gimmick, or theme, was having groups of characters/toys, in addition to the two allegiances. These groups were designated by Planet, depending on where they were from, or what theme their alt-mode was...
Earth
Speed Planet
Jungle Planet
Giant Planet
Planet X
Cybertron
Some standouts in the Cybertron toyline...
- This series gave us our first mass-released Primus toy, that actually transformed into a sphere (the Planet Cybertron), as advances in Transformers engineering had finally made it possible (noting past efforts with various Unicron toys and prototypes).
- Thundercracker was not a mere redeco of Starscream. It had its own mould. Unfortunately for Skywarp, he was still just a redeco of Thundercracker.
- The Legends class was introduced, as a way for kids (and budgeting parents) could get the more significant characters for just a few dollars. The success of this concept has seen it continue to this day, with Legends and Cyberverse toys.
- We still had Minicons... good or bad... but it allowed Hasbro to keep/renew their ownership of a lot of Generation 1 names. Unfortunately for old-time fans, it was a bit insulting to have classic names slapped onto tiny toys that didn't even homage them in any way (colour or form, or even allegiance).
- A Soundwave with a launching Laserbeak, and a new Metroplex, both of which were homaging their classic counterparts.
- We also had some creative characters tagged to the toys, which showed that people at Hasbro were starting to put more thought into the bios. Cannonball was a pirate, Hardtop was a comic collector, Brushguard was a fan of Scifi movies, Shortround collects toys, as a few examples. Plus several characters were noted as being relatives to each other (brothers, cousins, etc), but usually it was just to explain redecos looking similar.
After delayed starts of Armada and Energon in Australia, we had a premiere release of Cybertron toys at the same time as America. And on top of that, the Cybertron toyline holds the record as being the most completely released series in Australia, with just one out of the 104 regular release figures not making it here (Galaxy Force Optimus). In that respect, Cybertron ended up being our most successful line with retailers, as the turnover of stock must have been enough to warrant enough re-ordering for us to get almost every toy produced. No other mainline series before or after has had anywhere near that release rate in Australia.
Cybertron retail prices in Australia (AU$1 = US$0.72-0.75)
Supreme - $90-150
Super - $70-$100
Ultra - $50-$60
Voyager/Mega - $40-$50
Deluxe - $24-$30
Scout/Basic - $15-$18
Mini-Con 2-packs - $10-13
Legends - $6-8
July 2005 Assortment (Jun05-Aug05)
CYBERTRON (1st wave) (19 packs)
Starscream - Supreme Decepticon - released here August.
Megatron - Leader/Super Decepticon - released here June.
Optimus Prime - Leader/Super Autobot - released here June.
Jetfire - Ultra Autobot - released here June.
Scourge - Ultra Decepticon - released here June.
Crumplezone - Voyager/Mega Decepticon - released here June.
Vector Prime with Safeguard - Voyager/Mega Autobot - released here June.
Dirt Boss - Deluxe Decepticon - released here June.
Hot Shot - Deluxe Autobot - released here June.
Landmine - Deluxe Autobot - released here June.
Thundercracker - Deluxe Decepticon - released here June.
*Override - Deluxe Autobot - released here September
*Red Alert - Deluxe Autobot - released here September
Overhaul - Scout/Basic Autobot - released here June.
Ransack - Scout/Basic Decepticon - released here June.
Scattorshot - Scout/Basic Autobot - released here June.
*Clocker - Scout/Basic Autobot - released here July.
*Hardtop - Scout/Basic Decepticon - released here July.
*Recon Team (Jolt, Reverb, Six Speed) - Scout/Basic Mini-Con - released here July.
LEGENDS / ALL STARS (1st wave) (4 packs)
Hot Shot - Autobot - AUS Toyworld/BigW - released here June.
Megatron - Decepticon - AUS Toyworld/BigW - released here June.
Optimus Prime - Autobot - AUS Toyworld/BigW - released here June.
Starscream - Decepticon - AUS Toyworld/BigW - released here June.
September 2005 Assortment (Aug05-Oct05)
CYBERTRON (2nd wave) (6 packs)
Dark Scorponok - Ultra Decepticon - released here September.
Mudflap - Voyager/Mega Decepticon - released here October.
Leobreaker - Voyager/Mega Autobot - released here October.
Armorhide - Scout/Basic Autobot - released here September.
Brakedown - Scout/Basic Autobot - released here September.
Undermine - Scout/Basic Decepticon - released here September.
LEGENDS / ALL STARS (2nd wave) (4 packs)
Evac - Autobot - AUS Toyworld/BigW - released here August.
Jetfire - Autobot - AUS Toyworld/BigW - released here August.
Leobreaker - Autobot - AUS Toyworld/BigW - released here August.
Scourge - Decepticon - AUS Toyworld/BigW - released here August.
November 2005 Assortment (Oct05-Dec05)
CYBERTRON (3rd wave) (21 packs)
Galvatron - Super Decepticon - released here April.
Cybertron Defense Red Alert - Ultra Autobot - released here December.
Evac - Voyager/Mega Autobot - released here November.
Sideways - Deluxe Auto/Dece - released here November.
Snarl - Deluxe Autobot - released here November.
Blurr - Deluxe Autobot - released here November.
Buzzsaw - Deluxe Decepticon - released here November.
Longrack - Deluxe Autobot - released here November.
Runamuck - Deluxe Decepticon - released here November.
*Brimstone - Deluxe Decepticon - released here September 06.
*Crosswise - Deluxe Autobot - released here May.
*Thunderblast - Deluxe Decepticon - released here May.
Backstop - Scout/Basic Autobot - released here February
Street Speed Team (Oval, Spiral, Backtrack) - Scout/Basic Mini-Con - released here February
Wreckloose - Scout/Basic Decepticon - released here February
Brushguard - Scout/Basic Decepticon - released here February
*Swerve - Scout/Basic Autobot - released here February
*Swindle - Scout/Basic Decepticon - released here February
Shockwave verses Tankor - Decep Vs Auto Mini-Con Battle Pack - released here January
Razorclaw verses Steamhammer- Decep Vs Auto Mini-Con Battle Pack - released here January
Sky Lynx verses Thunderblast - Decep Vs Auto Mini-Con Battle Pack - released here January
STORE EXCLUSIVES/SPECIALS
Starscream and Vector Prime with Safeguard - 'Super' Decep and Auto - US TRU Excl - released here October - TRU $80.
Dirt Boss with Downshift - Deluxe Decep with Minicon - US Walmart Excl - Not released here.
Hot Shot with Mirage - Deluxe Auto with Minicon - US Walmart Excl - Not released here.
Landmine with Dirt Boss - Deluxe Auto with Minicon - US Walmart Excl - Not released here.
Thundercracker with Downshift - Deluxe Decep with Minicon - US Walmart Excl - Not released here.
Red Alert with Dirt Boss - Deluxe Auto with Minicon - US Walmart Excl - Not released here.
Override with Mirage - Deluxe Auto with Minicon - US Walmart Excl - Not released here.
February 2006 Assortment (Jan06-Mar06)
CYBERTRON (4th wave) (9 packs)
Cybertron Defense Scattorshot - Voyager/Mega Autobot - released here March
Dark Crumplezone - Voyager/Mega Decepticon - released here March
Cybertron Defense Hot Shot - Deluxe Autobot - released here March
Downshift - Deluxe Autobot - released here March
Lugnutz - Scout/Basic Decepticon - released here March
Scrapmetal (red) - Scout/Basic Decepticon - released here March
Scattorbrain verses Monocle - Decep Vs Auto Mini-Con Battle Pack - released here January
Payload verses Ascentor - Decep Vs Auto Mini-Con Battle Pack - released here January
Kobushi verses Landslide - Decep Vs Auto Mini-Con Battle Pack - released here January
STORE EXCLUSIVES/SPECIALS
Hot Shot and Override (Drag Race pack) - 2xDeluxe Auto - US Target Excl - released here March (not excl) $30.
Red Alert Vs Sideways (Critical Path pack) - 2xDeluxe Auto Vs Decep - US Target Excl - released here March (not excl) $30.
Crosswise Vs Thundercracker (Ground to Air Blast pack) - 2xDeluxe Auto Vs Decep - US Target Excl - released here March (not excl) $30.
April 2006 Assortment (Mar06-May06)
CYBERTRON (5th wave) (13 packs)
Skyshadow - Ultra Decepticon - released here April.
Wing Saber - Ultra Autobot - released here April.
Soundwave with Laserbeak - Voyager/Mega Decepticon - released here May.
*Nemesis Breaker - Voyager/Mega Decepticon - released here June.
Excellion - Deluxe Autobot - released here May.
Override GTS - Deluxe Autobot - released here May.
*Cannonball - Deluxe Decepticon - released here May.
*Skywarp - Deluxe Decepticon - released here May.
Repugnus - Scout/Basic Autobot - released here May.
Shortround - Scout/Basic Decepticon- released here May.
Ramjet verses Scythe - Decep Vs Auto Mini-Con Battle Pack - released here April.
Sunstorm verses Checkpoint - Decep Vs Auto Mini-Con Battle Pack - released here April.
Thrust verses Anti-Blaze - Decep Vs Auto Mini-Con Battle Pack - released here April.
LEGENDS / ALL STARS (3rd wave) (4 packs)
Cybertron Defense Red Alert - Autobot - released here May.
Galvatron - Decepticon - released here May.
Vector Prime - Autobot - released here May.
Soundwave - Decepticon - released here May.
July 2006 Assortment (Jun06-Aug06)
CYBERTRON (6th wave) (16 packs)
Cybertron Primus - Supreme (Autobot) with Unicron head - released here July.
Cybertron Primus - Supreme (Autobot) without Unicron head - Not released here.
Metroplex with Drillbit - Super Autobot - released here June.
*Galaxy Force Optimus Prime (recolour) - Super Autobot - Not released here.
Menasor with Heavyload - Ultra Decepticon - released here June.
Quickmix with Stripmine - Voyager/Mega Autobot - released here August
Optimus Prime (Armada recolour) - Deluxe Autobot - released here July.
Demolishor (Armada recolour) - Deluxe Decepticon - released here July.
Unicron - Deluxe (Decepticon) - released here July.
Giant Planet Minicon Team (Deepdive, Longarm, Overcast) - Scout/Basic Mini-Con - released here June.
Ransack GTS - Scout/Basic Decepticon - released here June.
*Brakedown GTS - Scout/Basic Decepticon - released here August.
*Scrapmetal (yellow)- Scout/Basic Autobot - released here August.
Scrap Iron verses Grindor - Decep Vs Auto Mini-Con Battle Pack - released here June.
Blastcharge verses Highwire - Decep Vs Auto Mini-Con Battle Pack - released here June.
Backblast verses Sureshock - Decep Vs Auto Mini-Con Battle Pack - released here June.
LEGENDS / ALL STARS (4th wave) (4 packs)
Thundercracker - Decepticon - released here July.
Hot Shot (red) - Autobot - released here July.
Optimus Prime (recolour) - Autobot - released here July.
Sunstorm - Decepticon - released here July.
September 2006 Assortment (Aug06-Oct06)
CYBERTRON (7th wave) (7 packs)
Cryo Scourge - Ultra Decepticon - released here November.
Galaxy Force Vector Prime with Safeguard - Voyager/Mega Autobot - released here October.
Optimus Prime - Deluxe Autobot - released here October.
Megatron - Deluxe Decepticon - released here October.
Smokescreen - Deluxe Autobot - released here October.
Hightail - Basic/Scout Autobot - released here November.
Shadow Recon Mini-Con Team (Jolt, Reverb, Six Speed) - Scout/Basic Mini-Con - released here November.
STORE EXCLUSIVES/SPECIALS
Optimus Prime with Wingsaber - Super plus Ultra Autobot 2 pack - US Costco excl - Not released here.
November 2006 Assortment (Oct06-Dec06)
STORE EXCLUSIVES/SPECIALS
Cybertron Primus - Supreme (Autobot) with bonus 4 Minicons - US Walmart - Not released here.
Galaxy Force Optimus Prime with Brakedown - Super (Autobot) + Basic bonus pack - US Walmart - Not released here.
Metroplex with Clocker - Super (Autobot) + Basic bonus pack - US Walmart - released here December.
Megatron with Hardtop - Super (Decepticon) + Basic bonus pack - US Walmart - released here December.
What are your Best and Worst toys of this Era?
What was your first one, and when?
What ones are you currently most looking for and why?
Show us some pics of your collection of the ones you have.