Diaclone

Di...a...cloooooooone!!!

Diaclone (ダイアクロン Daiakuron) was one of two Takara toy lines (the other being Micro Change) from which the earliest Generation 1 Transformers toys came. The line began as a thinly sketched space-age Starship Troopers riff as the heroic human pilots of the "Diaclone" force and the invading forces of the insectoid "Waruder" menace did battle in old-fashioned 60s-style super robots over the mysterious energy source known as "Freezon". The toyline made a hard pivot to real-world vehicles with some mumbling about the war entering a covert phase on Earth when robots that doubled as toy cars proved a hit with kids, and the rest is history. Diaclone has proven perhaps the most enduring of the various pre-Transformers brands, subject to a variety of remixes and revivals both within the Transformers brand and without.

Overview

Original toyline

You thought the cartoon made up the flying thing, didn't you.

The Diaclone toyline was first introduced in 1980 with a focus on various piloted robots that could transform into various abstract sci-fi vehicles, bases, and creatures. However, in March 1982 toys with alt modes based on realistic, present-day vehicles that many Transformers are known for today began to appear as part of the "Car Robots" sub-line. The first one was the Diaclone predecessor of Sunstreaker, whom Hasbro now considers the first fully-fledged transforming car-to-robot toy ever designed.^[1] Its vehicle form was based on an older Takara toy, the "Cosmo Countach" from the Microman "Micro Command" sub-line released in 1978, which transformed into a half-robot, half-car hybrid.^[2]

Before the Transformers brand was introduced, Takara directly exported some Diaclone toys to North America under the brand names Diakron and Kronoform, but those lines met with very little success. French toy company Joustra also released various Diaclone figures in Europe under the original Japanese name (sporting unique box art), a few exclusive Revell model kits and even an accompanying mini-comic series, but these also faded into obscurity.

In 1983, Hasbro representatives discovered Diaclone and Micro Change toys at the Tokyo Toy Show, and soon struck a deal to create the Transformers brand.

The 1984 and 1985 Autobot Cars, 1984 Decepticon Planes, 1985 Dinobots, 1985 Constructicons, "standard" Insecticons, Trainbots, Omnibots, Powerdashers, Jumpstarters, Blitzwing, 1984 Optimus Prime, and 1986 Ultra Magnus toys all originated from Diaclone. The reason why many of these toys feature opening cockpits, hatches, or seats is that Diaclone had presented them as lifeless mecha for small driver figures, which were no longer included in their Transformers incarnation.

When Transformers proved an unqualified success, plans for a 1985 Diaclone line were scrapped, and Transformers was imported to Japan in its place. These aborted toys, which would have been part of a sub-line called Jizai Gattai (自在合体, "Limitless Combination") were then incorporated into the Transformers toyline in 1986 as the Aerialbots, Stunticons, Combaticons, Protectobots, and Metroplex.

Diaclone in Transformers

In Japan

Everyone say "Thank you, Diaclone."

In 2002, TakaraTomy's Collector's Edition line branched out from straight-laced Generation 1 re-issues to something that would become a longstanding tradition of the Transformers brand: the plumbing of unused Diaclone decoes of Transformers molds to create new characters. Beginning with a two-pack of Crosscut and Road Rage, this first generation of Diaclone refugees were roundabout one-to-one recreations of the original Diaclone toys exclusive to TakaraTomy's boutique retailer e-HOBBY, using the already queued up Generation 1 molds. Each character received a whimsical bio from ascended superfan and all-around franchise renaissance man Hirofumi Ichikawa casting them as "missing" Generation 1 characters in the style of franchise architect Bob Budiansky's original character profiles.

This practice made the jump to the big leagues in 2013, when the big-budget Masterpiece line built up enough Car Robots molds to begin fishing for redecoes, beginning with former mail-away exclusive Diaclone derivative Tigertrack. Things really kicked into gear two years later with the release of a blue Diaclone version of Bluestreak, whose bio established a longstanding mystery plot as story elements from the Diaclone toyline's scant fiction began leaking into the world of the Transformers. This storyline (again by Ichikawa)^[3] reached a fever pitch with the release of Masterpiece Spin-Out in 2020, whose bio textually identified him as a Diaclone mecha brought to life as a Cybertronian by mysterious alien technology!

In the United States

Insert your own Alien reference.

The return of Diaclone to Hasbro markets began with Hasbro's equivalent to e-HOBBY, Fun Publications, finding their own use for Diaclone decoes as characters in their topsy turvy Shattered Glass franchise where the heroic Decepticons battled the evil forces of the Autobots, beginning in 2009 with Shattered Glass Ironhide. As Fun Publications' stories ballooned in scope in the years to come, it was revealed that the "Transcendent Technomorphs," impassive observers at the heart of the Transformers multiverse, had charted out a distant cluster of universes that they named "Cymond," wherein the settings of the various pre-Transformers toylines, Diaclone included, were theoretically imported wholesale into Fun Publications' metafictional in-universe constellation of Transformers franchises.

Fun Publications put their money where their mouth was with "Cybertron's Most Wanted" the 2015 theme of BotCon, Hasbro's official Transformers convention. This year's convention exclusive comic chronicled the incursion of Diaclone's Waruder antagonists straight into the TransTech homeworld of Axiom Nexus and the subsequent collaboration between Diaclone's heroic Dianaut pilots and the inhabitants of Axiom Nexus to repel the Waruder invaders. Accordingly, BotCon 2015's grab bag of exclusive figures included redecoes of existing Transformers toys into the first toys of the original Waruder and Diaclone factions in nearly thirty years! Fun Publications continued to produce the odd bit of Diaclone fiction here and there right up until the very last day of their stewardship of the Transformers license in 2016, with the King Waruder included in their final batch of character profiles.

Going worldwide

The Mother, the Maiden, and the Skeletor.

Following the realization of Hasbro and TakaraTomy's initiative to standardize the global presence of the Transformers brand in 2018, Generations Selects, the exclusive-oriented arm of the the Generations super-brand, picked up where e-HOBBY and Fun Publications left off. Since its inception, Generations Selects has placed a noticeable focus on updates of pre-existing Diaclone-inspired characters, as well as fresh Diaclone remixes of their own, albeit with somewhat less elaborate characterizations. Perhaps the most fantastical Diaclone-related feat thus far in this new era has sprung from the adjacent Shattered Glass Collection subline, with the announcement of a 2022 Leader class figure triple billed as a Shattered Glass, a Masterpiece, and an e-HOBBY character, all three of which were inspired by a single Diaclone toy!

The return

We're Back! A Diaclone Story

The Diaclone brand proper was revived by TakaraTomy in 2016 as a boutique property aimed at adult collectors with a strong focus on re-imaginings of toys from the original line. Proceeding more or less chronologically through Diaclone history, the first overlap with the Transformers brand came in 2019 with a wave centered around the Dashers, the ancestors of Transformers' Powerdasher trio. In 2021, a new version of Battle Convoy, the toy that became Optimus Prime, was released. This was followed in short order with a new iteration of Powered Convoy, the ancestor of Ultra Magnus, in 2022. Will this lead to more re-imaginings of Car Robots toys? And how does Takara's Masterpiece plotline fit in to all this? Only time will tell.

Toy range (incomplete)

The following list covers all Diaclone releases that were later rereleased as Transformers toys or otherwise inspired Transformers concepts. Diaclone molds with no Transformers relation are generally not listed as they fall outside the purview of this site.

Early Diaclone

A handful of the more fantastical toys from Diaclone's early years that were passed over for the Transformers toyline have inspired fiction-only characters, mostly in the form of background easter eggs.

1980

"I've connected the two dots."
"You didn't connect scrap."
"I've connected them."
(Statue of The One pictured left, Robot Base and Dimicron Prime pictured right. Click through for more info.)

• Dia-Battles — Used as inspiration for Stormbringer.
  • DA-01 Dia Battles V2 (2016) — itself inspired by the original Dia-Battles, this toy from the 2016 Diaclone reboot was used as inspiration for the Beast Wars: Uprising incarnation of Magmatron.

• Known designers: Motoki Takaya (TakaraTomy)

• Diaclone Pilots/"Dianauts" — the heroic human pilot minifigures packaged with various Diaclone mecha were used as inspiration for the subtly named toy characters Dia, Cline, and Diac, as well as the fiction-only character Chifumi Takahashi.
• Robot Base — The Diaclone franchise mascot and guy in the logo, this famous (in Japan) toy better known as "Great Robot Base" was used as inspiration for Dimicron Prime, the Town Commander representing TakaraTomy themselves in the Cybertron Satellite promotion.
  • In perhaps the most esoteric pull in Diaclone history, the earliest known prototype^[4] of Great Robot Base was separately used as inspiration for an effigy of the mysterious deity known only as The One.

• Known designers: Tsutomu Inoue and Ken Ichikawa (TakaraTomy),^[5] Kazutaka Miyatake and Shōji Kawamori (Studio Nue)^[6]

• Power Base — modular bases inspired the flight stand in Masterpiece named TF Power Base.

1981

• Big Powered — Loosely inspired the combined mode of the same name in late Generation 1 subline Transformers: Zone.^[7]
• Dia-Attacker — Used as inspiration for the original form of Exarchon, arch-villain of the 2019-2022 IDW comics.

• Known designers: Kazutaka Miyatake and Shōji Kawamori (Studio Nue)^[8]

• Warudaros — Used as inspiration for the Storm Rider toy, which was itself then repurposed as King Waruder, a riff on the Diaclone character "Emperor Waruder." We've come full circle or something.
• Waruder Pilots — The insectoid opposite number of the heroic Diaclone pilots packed with the Insector Robo, Warudaros, and others, these minifigures were used as inspiration for the Beet-Chit, Ripper, Thrasher, Crusher, and Buzzer toys, as well as their leader, a Thrasher repurpose named Daros.

1982

• Fortress Robot X — Used as inspiration for, ah, Fortress X.

• Known designers: Kazutaka Miyatake and Shōji Kawamori (Studio Nue)^[8]

1981

Dashers

The eldest Diaclone molds in Transformers that rather noticeably predate the "in disguise" part, the Dashers were released with minor changes as the Powerdashers. Each was released solely as "Powerdasher" and the toys did not receive individual Transformers names until decades later. Said names were sourced directly from their releases in Diaclone's idiosyncratic European branch headed by French licensee Joustra.

• Sky Dasher — Blue torso was changed to black. Also released under the name "Sky Robot" as a Revell model kit in Europe. (Cromar)
• Drill Dasher — Released virtually unchanged. Also released under the name "Drill Robot" as a Revell model kit in Europe. (Zetar)
• F-1 Dasher — Blue legs were changed to black. Also released under the name "F-1 Robot" as a Revell model kit in Europe. (Aragon)

Gats Blocker

Gats Blocker's "keshi" is the white carded thing.

Gats Blocker, better known by its localized names "Multi-Force" or "Multiforce 14", is probably the most well known Diaclone toy in the western world not in the primary The Transformers assortment due to its omnipresence in Diaclone's American and European incarnations. Its path to becoming relevant to the world of Transformers was a real elaborate one:

For context, the items on this page are nowhere near the sum total of the products in the Diaclone franchise. In addition to its main line, Diaclone produced a bevvy of cheaper merchandise of many of its designs, including a series of decoy-adjacent simplified rubber figures known as "keshi." One such rubber figure of Gats Blocker was knocked off and turned into a clock(???) to produce the prolific bootleg "19-in-1 Robot Clock."^[9] Somehow, some way, this bootleg then wormed its way into the 1985 Transformers slate as the enigmatic French exclusive Horloge Robot, produced in association with the Generation 1 cartoon's French broadcaster Canal.^[10] The original toy separately inspired an unnamed background comic character.

1982 - Car Robots

Car Robots

Both Diaclone's only proper subline imprint and the most significant assortment to Transformers history by a wide margin, Car Robots is the source of Optimus Prime himself as well as the entirety of the 1984-1985 Autobot Cars. More abstractly, it eventually served as the inspiration for the 2000 Transformers franchise of the same name. While most of Diaclone's themed subgroups were designed by a single team, the sheer size of Car Robots necessitated more variety. Thus, figures are credited individually in this section:

Individual figures

Hey that truck guy looks familiar.

• No. 1 Countach LP500S — The Diaclone red deco was changed to yellow for release as Sunstreaker. The red deco was used as inspiration for Spin-Out and the red Sunstreaker clones.

• Known designers: Kōjin Ōno (TakaraTomy)

• No. 2 Onebox Cherry Vanette — The Diaclone black deco was changed to red for release as Ironhide. The original deco was later released as "Ironhide Protect Black" and was used as inspiration for Shattered Glass Ironhide and the DK-2 Guard.

• Known designers: Kōjin Ōno (TakaraTomy)

• No. 3 Countach Patrol Car Type — Not released as a Transformer but later used as inspiration for Cordon and the white Sunstreaker clones.
• No. 4 Onebox Ambulance Type — The Diaclone deco was virtually unchanged for release as Ratchet.
• No. 5 4WD Hilux — The Diaclone black deco was virtually unchanged for release as Trailbreaker. The Diaclone version was also available in blue and yellow decoes; the blue deco was used as inspiration for DK-3 Breaker and Shattered Glass Trailbreaker while the yellow deco was used as inspiration for Riggorus.

• Known designers: Kōjin Ōno (TakaraTomy)

• No. 6 Honda City R — The Diaclone silver deco was virtually unchanged for release as Crosscut. The Diaclone version was also available in red, which was used as inspiration for Reboost.

• Known designers: Shōji Kawamori (Studio Nue)

• No. 7 Fairlady Z — The Diaclone blue deco was changed to silver for release as Bluestreak. The original deco was later used as inspiration for Silverstreak, Shattered Glass Bluestreak, and a gazillion variant decoes of regular Bluestreak toys. The Diaclone version was also available in a silver deco with a black hood that inspired Bluestreak's Generation 1 cartoon character model.

• Known designers: Kōjin Ōno (TakaraTomy)

• No. 8 4WD Wrecker Type — The Diaclone red deco was changed to green for release as Hoist. The red deco was used as inspiration for Lift-Ticket and Shattered Glass Hoist. The Diaclone version was also available in blue as part of the "Double Set" (see below).
• No. 9 Honda City Turbo — The Diaclone blue deco was virtually unchanged for release as Skids. The Diaclone version was also available in black and red decos, the former of which was used as inspiration for Burn Out and Shattered Glass Skids.

• Known designers: Kōjin Ōno (TakaraTomy), Shōji Kawamori (Studio Nue)

• No.10 Fire Engine Ladder Car for High-Rise Buildings/"Fire Truck Long Ladder Type"^{[A 1]} — The Diaclone deco was virtually unchanged for release as Inferno.

• Known designers: Kōjin Ōno (TakaraTomy), Shōji Kawamori (Studio Nue)

• No.11 Fairlady Z Racing/"Fairlady Z Racing Type 280 ZX Turbo"^{[A 2]} — The Diaclone deco was virtually unchanged for release as Smokescreen.
• No.12 J59 Jeep — The Diaclone deco was virtually unchanged for release as Hound.

• Known designers: Kōjin Ōno (TakaraTomy)

• No.13 Police Car Fairlady Z — The Diaclone deco was virtually unchanged for release as Prowl.

• Known designers: Kōjin Ōno (TakaraTomy)

• No.14 Porsche 935 Turbo — The Diaclone deco was virtually unchanged for release as Jazz.

• Known designers: Kōjin Ōno (TakaraTomy)

• No.15 New Countach LP500S — The Diaclone red deco was virtually unchanged for release as Sideswipe. The Diaclone version was also available in a yellow deco, which later became the basis for the Transformers figure Tigertrack. At least one recorded specimen exists of a third, super-rare black variant unlikely to have ever seen full production.^[11]

• Known designers: Kōjin Ōno (TakaraTomy)

• No.16 F-1 Ligier JS11 — The Diaclone blue deco was virtually unchanged for release as Mirage. A red version of the Diaclone figure was exclusively available with the Powered Convoy DX Set (see below).

• Known designers: Kōjin Ōno (TakaraTomy), Shōji Kawamori (Studio Nue)

• No.17 Battle Convoy — The Diaclone deco was virtually unchanged for release as Optimus Prime.

• Known designers: Hiroyuki Obara (TakaraTomy), Shōji Kawamori (Studio Nue)

• No.18 Lancia Stratos Turbo — The Diaclone deco was virtually unchanged for release as Wheeljack. The Diaclone version was also available in a different deco and head, which was used as inspiration for Exhaust.

• Known designers: Hiroyuki Obara (TakaraTomy)

• No.19 New Countach LP500S Police Car Type/"New Countach Police Car LP500S"^{[A 3]} — The Diaclone police deco was changed to a fire chief deco for release as Red Alert. The original deco was later released as Clampdown.
• No.20 Crane Car/"Truck Crane"^{[A 4]} — The Diaclone deco was virtually unchanged for release as Grapple.
• No.21 Corvette Stingray — The Diaclone red deco was changed to blue for release as Tracks. The Diaclone red deco was released as Tracks in Europe and later as Road Rage, and also inspired Shattered Glass Tracks. The Diaclone version also received a Finnish exclusive black deco, which was used as inspiration for Loudpedal and the Tracks clone.

• Known designers: Hiroyuki Obara (TakaraTomy)

• Powered Convoy — The Diaclone deco was (more or less) reversed for release as Ultra Magnus. The original deco was later released as "Ultra Magnus Yokokuhen Version". The more common Diaclone version was available with flat grey plastic parts for his trailer, but a rarer variant changed those to chromed parts. latter version was also available as part of the "Powered Convoy DX Set" (see below). The "Powered Buggy" (パワードバギー) accessory was excised from all Transformers releases, though it did inspire the fiction-only character Powerdrive. The original Diaclone deco was used as inspiration for Delta Magnus, Magna Convoy, and Shattered Glass Ultra Magnus.

• Known designers: Hiroyuki Obara (TakaraTomy), Shōji Kawamori (Studio Nue)

Giftsets

• Double Set — blue version of No. 8 4WD Wrecker Type and silver version of No. 6 Honda City R, called "Honda City S" for this set.
• Powered Convoy DX Set — the rarer variant of Powered Convoy with chromed parts for his trailer, along with a red version of No.16 F-1 Ligier JS11 that was exclusive to this set, and an equally exclusive variation of the rare black version of No.15 New Countach LP500S, but now with some parts in blue instead of black plastic in robot mode and additional Lamborghini badge stickers on his doors that weren't present on any previous version of the figure. This second black version of the New Countach later became the basis for the Transformers figure Deep Cover.

Notes

1. ↑ Car Robo No. 10 is named "Fire Engine Ladder Car for High-Rise Buildings" (消防自動車高層ビル用ハシゴ車) in combined kanji/katakana on its packaging, but "Fire Truck Long Ladder Type" in English.
2. ↑ Car Robo No. 11 is simply named "Fairlady Z Racing" (フェアレディＺ レーシング) in katakana on its packaging, but "Fairlady Z Racing Type 280 ZX Turbo" in English.
3. ↑ Car Robo No. 19 is named "New Countach LP500S Police Car Type" (ニューカウンタックLP500S ポリスカータイプ) in katakana on its packaging, but "New Countach Police Car LP500S" in English.
4. ↑ Car Robo No. 20 is named "Crane Car" (クレーン車) in combined katakana/kanji on its packaging, but "Truck Crane" in English.

1983 - Trains, Planes, and Insecticons

Baku-Ten Attack Robo

The final sci-fi vehicles in the original Diaclone range (give or take a dinosaur), the Baku-Ten Attack Robo (爆転アタックロボ, roughly "Explosive Flip Attack Robo") were released in the Transformers line as the Jumpstarters. As the name suggests, in its original context the Attack Robo's spring-loaded gimmick was intended as less of an autotransformation and more of a Bot Shots-esque "pullback attack" feature for harassing Waruders, pets, siblings etc. The Jumpstarters are particularly notable as the only Diaclone molds in Transformers not released in Takara's own market. Perhaps they were spooked by Hasbro's legal troubles.

• Drill Tank Type — Available in two decoes. Dark blue limbs with grey chest or dark blue limbs with red chest. Transformers releases Twin Twist/Salt-Man Z/Robot-Man Z all utilized completely new decoes. The red deco was used as inspiration for (sigh) "Diaclone Universe Twin Twist."
• Jet Type — Available in two decoes. Dark blue chest with red limbs or dark blue chest with grey limbs. Transformers releases Topspin/Salt-Man X/Robot-Man X all utilized completely new decoes.

• Known designers: Takashi Matsuda (TakaraTomy)

Jet Plane F-15 Robo

First released in the short-lived Real & Robo rebrand of Car Robots to encompass other real-world vehicles, the F-15 Robo mold was the source for the Seekers. The black and purple deco used for Skywarp was created for the Transformers line. The decoes and remolded wings for the Coneheads were also original to The Transformers.

• Ultrafast fighter type (Starscream)
• Acrobat type (Thundercracker)

• Known designers: Kōjin Ōno (TakaraTomy)

Insecter Robo

The only "bad guy" mechs from Diaclone to make their way into Transformers, the Waruder-piloted Insector Robo were released as the Insecticons with new purple, black, and yellow decoes. Much later, the Diaclone decos were used for the e-HOBBY exclusive Insecticon Clones.

Individual figures

• Kabutron/"Beetle-Type" (Bombshell/Salvo)
• Battas/"Grasshopper-Type" (Kickback/Shothole)
• Kuwagatrer/"Lammelicorns-Type" (Shrapnel/Zaptrap)

• Known designers: Takashi Matsuda (TakaraTomy)

Giftsets

• Insector Robo 3 Figure Set, contains "Beetle-Type" Kabutron, "Grasshopper-Type" Battas and "Lammelicorns-Type" Kuwagatrer

Train Robo

The year's showstopper was another Real & Robo entry: the Train Robo series. The first-ever combiner as we think of them today, the Train Robo were made up of six individual train engines that could combine into a single massive robot or into, you know, a train. Modular plastic train track accessories were included with each figure to facilitate that second one that were dropped for their eventual Transformers releases. The Train Robo molds were passed up for the 1984 and 1985 assortments (likely due to the relative unpopularity of their alternate modes outside of train-tastic Japan) and did not become Transformers until the debut of the Takara-exclusive Headmasters sub-franchise in 1987.

There were two color variations released for the Diaclone line, making 12 individual trains total: Numbers 1-6 were standard retail decoes released both individually and as a gift set. It was this deco that was rereleased virtually unchanged for release as Raiden and his components the Trainbots. Numbers 7-12 are much rarer and were never released as a giftset. These decoes were used as inspiration for G Liner and the "prototype Trainbots." The profoundly off-model Diaclone catalog artwork seen right separately inspired Raiden's "Special Formation Shiden" produced via the scrambling of the two teams.

Individual figures

• No. 1 Tōkaidō Shinkansen ("Machliner", Shouki)
• No. 2 Class EF65 Blue Train ("Nightliner", Getsuei)
• No. 3 Tōhoku-Jōetsu Shinkansen ("Snowliner", Yukikaze)
• No. 4 Tokai Type 153 Series Express Train ("Stormliner", Suiken)
• No. 5 L-Limited Express 485 Series Limited Express Train ("Plainliner", Seizan)
• No. 6 Class DE10 Diesel Locomotive ("Powerliner", Kaen)
• No. 7 Tōkaidō Shinkansen, Metallic Type ("Silverliner", Ginou)
• No. 8 ED76, Blue Train-Towing Train ("Battleliner", "Battle")
• No. 9 Dr. Yellow Shinkansen, Comprehensive Rail Inspection" ("Yellowliner", Yamabuki)
• No. 10 KuHa 111 Type Express Train ("Miracleliner", "Miracle")
• No. 11 L-Limited Express 583 Series Sleeper Train ("Thunderliner", "Thunder")
• No. 12 DE10, Diesel Locomotive, Crystal Type ("Crystalliner", "Crystal")

• Known designers: Kōjin Ōno (TakaraTomy)

Giftsets

• Train Robo 6 Figure Formation DX Set, collects No. 1 Tōkaidō 0 Series Shinkansen, No. 2 EF65-1000 Blue Train, No. 3 Tōhoku Jōetsu 200 Series Shinkansen, No. 4 Tōkaidō Main Line 153 Express Train, No. 5 L-Limited express 485 and No. 6 DE10 Diesel Locomotive.

1984 - DINOSAUR ATTACK

Construction Vehicle Robo

The original Diaclone decos featured predominantly blue combiner parts. All six received new, uniform green and purple color schemes for release in the Transformers line as the Constructicons. The figures were also available as part of the European release of the Transformers toyline in yellow instead of green, and were later also re-released in yellow as part of the Generation 2 toyline in the United States and Canada, plus rarer orange variants that were only available in the United States.

Individual figures

• No. 1 Bulldozer — orange. (Bonecrusher)
• No. 2 Power Shovel — orange. (Scavenger)
• No. 3 Shovel-Dozer/"Tractor Shovel"^{[B 1]} — orange. (Scrapper)
• No. 4 Truck Crane — red. (Hook)
• No. 5 Dump Truck — red. (Long Haul)
• No. 6 Mixer Truck/"Concrete Mixer"^{[B 2]}— red. (Mixmaster)

• Known designers: Kōjin Ōno (TakaraTomy)

Giftsets

• Build Combination 6 Figure Set, contains No. 1 Bulldozer, No. 2 Power Shovel, No. 3 Shovel-Dozer/"Shovel Tractor",^{[B 1]} No. 4 Truck Crane, No. 5 Dump Truck and No. 6 Mixer Truck/"Concrete Mixer".^{[B 2]} A later running change variant of the giftset changed the main color of both Truck Crane and Concrete Mixer from red to blue, while the combiner parts were changed from blue to red. These versions were only available as part of the giftset.

Notes

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1} The individually released Construction Vehicle Robo No. 3 is named "Shovel-Dozer" (ショベルドーザー) in katakana, but "Tractor Shovel" in English. The "Build Combination 6 Figure Set" giftset still calls the figure "Shovel-Dozer" in katakana, but now has reversed the order of the two parts of the English name to "Shovel Tractor".
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1} Construction Vehicle Robo No. 6 is named "Mixer Truck" (ミキサー車) in combined katakana/kanji, but "Concrete Mixer" in English. This is repeated with the "Build Combination 6 Figure Set" giftset.

Dinosaur Robo

The Dinosaur Robo molds became the Dinobots in Transformers. Duh. The Dinosaur Robo were the heroes of a pretty elaborate swerve in that year's storyline where the Waruder started dropping organic dinosaurs on Tokyo with time portals. Yes, really. All of the TF releases had softer plastic in certain places. There were also several differences in decoes between the Diaclone and Transformers versions, mostly the replacement of blue paint with red.

• Tyrannosaurus (Grimlock)
• Triceratops (Slag)
• Brontosaurus (Sludge)
• Stegosaurus (Snarl)
• Pteranodon (Swoop, Diaclone deco inspired Swoop's animation model)

• Known designers: Kōjin Ōno (TakaraTomy), Shōji Kawamori (Studio Nue)^[12]

Double Changers

Notably peculiar as some of the only cars released outside of the Car Robots subline, the Double Changers were released as the Omnibots.

• No.1 Savanna RX-7 (Camshaft)
• No.2 Ferrari BB (Overdrive)
• No.3 Celica XX (Downshift)

• Known designers: Kōjin Ōno (TakaraTomy)

Triplechangers

Only the Jet Fighter Type Triple Changer was ever released in the Transformers line, but the Helicopter Type later inspired three fiction-only characters. Astrotrain and Octane may have been in development when the change to the Transformers brand occurred. See below for more.

• No. 1 Jet Fighter Type — The Diaclone dark green and white deco was changed to purple and beige for release as Blitzwing. The original deco was later released as Overcharge.
• No. 2 Helicopter Type — Not released as a Transformer, but used as inspiration for the fiction-only characters Rotorbolt, Skyklik, and Fumes.

• Known designers: Kōjin Ōno (TakaraTomy)

Posthumous Diaclone

Diaclone's final contribution to the Transformers brand came in the form of the bevvy of product halfway through the pipeline when the line was shelved in favor of Transformers in 1985. This is widely postulated to be the source of the bulk of the new-mold Takara vehicle Transformers for the years of 1984 through 1986. While there is no hard delineation where Takara "stopped making Diaclone" and "started making Transformers," June 1985 can be seen as something of a "final deadline" as the month where Takara debuted The Transformers at the "Tokyo Toy Show" trade show and Hasbro began shipping design bibles full of data on the 1986 toy assortments to Marvel and Sunbow Productions.

Triplechangers Reloaded

• A Diaclone patent of a locomotive/space shuttle robot presumably slated for a second wave of Triple Changers filed in December 1984 is pretty unmistakably a near-finalized Astrotrain.
• This one's pushing it, but a very early concept draft of a tanker truck/jet robot^[13] with a transformation scheme that can be pegged to the earliest known prototype^[14] of Octane can be dated to March 2, 1985.

The Scramble Saga

Diaclone Menasor's transparent thigh high boots were deemed too saucy by Hasbro S&P.

"Jizai Gattai" (自在合体, roughly "Limitless Combination"), later "Diaclone Scramble Combination" (ダイアクロン・スクランブル合体 Daiakuron Scramble Gattai),^[15] was to be the primary theme for Diaclone's 1985 assortment, a modular play pattern consisting of smaller robots that could form arms or legs for larger torsos, all centered around one of Diaclone's trademark baseformers. This concept was refitted for Transformers and became the Scramble City subline of the Japanese Transformers toyline, also known as the "Special Teams" in the European toyline or "all those 1986 combiner guys" in the United States. The central base became Metroplex.

"Jizai Gattai" prototypes known to have been developed into specific Transformers include:

• New Robot Base — developed into Metroplex.^[16] Pre-production Diaclone deco later recycled into Metrotitan.^[17]

• Known designers: Kōjin Ōno (TakaraTomy)

• Jizai Gattai Trailer Robo — developed into Motormaster / Menasor.^[16]
• Concorde torso robot — Silverbolt / Superion^[15]

• Known designers: Kōjin Ōno (TakaraTomy)

• Fire truck torso robot — Hot Spot / Defensor^[15]
• Tank torso robot — Onslaught / Bruticus^[15][18]

Known limb robot prototypes included five jets, four cars, two helicopters, two motorcycles, one ambulance, one racecar, and a police car,^[15] though anything further would be speculative at best, particularly given specific "teams" of components did not yet exist as we know them today.

This line likely inspired the in-fiction "Free-Combination" (自由合体 Jiyū Gattai) ability of the original Special Teams' later Operation Combination redecoes.

Contemporary international Diaclone releases

• Like Transformers itself, Diaclone was also released in other countries, in some cases licensed to other companies:

United States

Takara themselves had a short run in the U.S. market under the name Diakron, featuring three toys that were later released as Transformers in different colors. This was followed by Kronoform, which featured a fairly hefty swathe of Diaclone toys that were not released as Transformers by Hasbro.

Main article: Diakron

Main article: Kronoform

Finland

Takara themselves released toys in Finland under the name Diaclone, sharing elements of the packaging design with GiG's Trasformer line. This release is notable for a unique black version of the Corvette Stingray (pre-Loudpedal).

Italy

Italian company GiG initially released toys under the name Diaclone, but soon changed it to Trasformer [sic]. Whether GiG was copying Hasbro or the other way round is unclear; however, Trasformer did feature a blend of Diaclone toys and elements original to Hasbro's Transformers line, possibly due to production reasons.

Main article: Trasformer

France, Germany, Belgium and Netherlands

French company Joustra released the toys under the name Diaclone in France, Belgium, the Netherlands, and Germany, featuring a blend of Micro Change and Diaclone toys with unique packaging designs and origin stories, but eventually sporting factory-applied Autobot or Decepticon stickers, also due to production reasons.

Main article: Joustra

Fiction

Animated cartoon

Wyatt Toys advertised Diaclone and Microman toys for sale in the Detroit Powell Press. The AllSpark Almanac

Diaclone continuity

Transtech

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Masterpiece toy bios

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Legacy VS500 Collection Special Comic

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Transformers × Dialect Girl

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In a last ditch attempt to find a point of commonality with Transformers fan Kahori Hanamura, her building's super told her about a Transformers toy he was handed down from his older brother as a child, describing it as a robot that turned into a base, with a rear elevator for tiny dolls to enter it. Kahori corrected him that this was not a Transformer, but actually the Robot Base toy from Diaclone, which thoroughly impressed her. My Toys Part 3

Notes

• Diaclone is a portmanteau of "diamond" and "cyclone": "unbreakable as a diamond, powerful as a cyclone".^[19]
  • "Cymond," the name for Diaclone's location in the in-fiction multiverse, was devised by longtime Transformers contributor Hirofumi Ichikawa as an inversion of the original portmanteau (cyclone + diamond).^[20]
• Designs from Diaclone were plagiarized for the Korean animated movie Diatron 5 (다이아트론5), which for a time haunted Walmart dollar bins as Space Transformers.
• General Motors stopped using the "Stingray" name after the 1976 model year through 2013. Though the Corvette mold is obviously a 1980 to 1982 model year, Takara incorrectly called it a Stingray.

References

External links

• Diaclone at Japanese Wikipedia
• Diaclone.Net fansite
• Diaclone at the Pre-Transformers Page
• Diaclone® Action Figure Collectors' Guide At TransFormerLand
• Diaclone's modern incarnation at the TakaraTomy website