Unicron History
     Welcome to the webs most comprehensive look into the history of the Unicron toys from 1986-Present. We
will at the toys and visit on small functions of the toys and I hope to answer several questions that have cropped
up about these toys over the years. To begin, click on the Unicron Patent link below and download the original
designs for the Unicron toy from 1986. It'll also be the first toy we go over.
Now let's step forward a few years into the
mid 90's. In Japan the cartoon Beast Wars
Neo was in full swing and Unicron was an
important part. He was now redesigned with
a retro viking feel.
There was a pamphlet
showing the toy as it was going to be made.
The
Micromaster Hot Rod is used for size
comparison. In planet mode it had the
trademark clamping jaws, the shell would
open up for an attack mode,and also kept
itself upright with peg/spikes on the bottom
(it is now thought that Cybertron Primus
borrowed heavily from this toy). In
robot
mode it had a moveable jaw, an attack
mode, with claws, missiles in the legs, and a
wide range of movement. This toy was
shown at several conventions and it's fate
beyond that is highly undocumented.
Rumors of a private sale, bribery at a
convention and even some think an
executive still has it. Either way this is
considered by many to be the best TF toy
never made, and the demand for one has
only gone up over the years.
       So there you have it, what
might be one of the best toys
never made and one of the
hottest topics on most TF
message boards. Beast Wars
Neo Unicron was a hint of what
they could do with larger
transformers but never s
een
until Armada.
In 2003 after 17 years Unicron finally saw
himself as a toy! At the end of Transformers
Armada, Unicron revealed himself and a new
wave of fans got to enjoy the world eater, this
time they had an amazing toy to go with the
show! Standing around 18 inches high Unicron
is one of the largest TF's ever made. The body
stayed very true to the 1986 movie, down to
the smallest details. Unicron is able to hold 29
mini-cons and has room in his legs and
stomach for 3 more! This can add over a full
pound to his weight! He came with one
mini-con named Dead-End that transformed
into a small moon with a gun. When attached
to his back a chest missile would fire out. The
mini-con could also fire the three missiles
found on each leg.
A shot with the chest missile being launched. In the
Universe comics the time travel ship fired from Unicron
looks a lot like this missile. A small button on top of
Unicrons head would light up his eyes and the right hand.
Not visible are the mini-con ports on his shoulders, they
could rotate to accommodate for nearly any mini-con. The
shoulder horns and head hors can be rotated and moved.
Even the head could be turned!
A back view showing Unicrons trouble area...his wings. Over 90% of the toys made seemed to have a defect that The
two large clear things are the top haves of the planet. The can be removed (although this can be very tough on the toy)
and reversed to form a second pair of wings. You can also leave them be from transformation and let them hang at the
sides. Mini-Cons can not be attached as well to the wings in robot mode.

In planet mode (not shown) Unicrons wings become the planets ring and he is in reality only a half-planet and sits flat on
his back (jaws and mouth facing up). The huge planet horns/jaws can be clamped inward and the planets mouth opens
and shuts. The Mini-Con has spot to sit in planet mode, just underneath the jaws. In planet mode Unicron can hold
Dead-End and 24 other mini-cons.
There are several Unicron prototypes and hard copies on the net and seems to go anywhere from $200-$400+ on
eBay. The mold was used a second time In Transformers Energon and re-colored in a black and yellow energon mode.
The toy was still the same, and makes Unicron a rather easy piece to get for any collection going for $25-$50 on eBay
depending on version and condition.
I'll end this section with some
phoitos from the
TFW2005 boards
of Cybertron Unicron, a strange
smaller toy, it seems a mix between
Armada Megatrons tank mode and
even a hint of a Star Wars tank
from Episode 1.
There you have it folks! The largest toy history of the great Unicron on the net. I have had more help from all over than I
ever thought I could get when i started this project. People sending me links, pics, info and more. You can find links and
names at the bottom of this page and do yourself a favor and go checkthose links out!
A huge thanks to BWTF, Robot Japan, and TFTM for the use of your
pictures! Also thank you to everyone else that let me use pictures and
Unicron knowledge!
Unicron 1986
       Unicron, the name invokes images of
Transformers the movie, the voice of Orson
Wells and a slight bit of sadness at the lack
of a toy. Look further and a Transformer fan
will find there was a Unicron toy made!
These pictures are what once was: Unicron
the toy!
       Plans were made for a toy along with a
single prototype. This very large toy was
shown at a few conventions and at one was
unpacked and found to be a tad difficult to
transform. What resulted was a showing
where one of his arms was not transformed
the way it should have been (this was done
due to insurance concerns if the toy broke).
The toy was hollow inside and with the help
of a 9 volt battery it would have had lights
and sounds.
       The large gun transformed into a stand
for the planet and one of his shell pieces
became a small shield. I'm still not sure what
the hole at the top of his chest was for,
possibly a missile or maybe some sort of
light? His transformation overall was simple.
His arms would fold out to form the rings, the
legs would chest cavity (the whole back lifted
up for this part) and his head would slide
down into the upper chest.
       Now in Japan they had decided to alter the
first mold, add some extras and change the
transformation some. We can see the heavily
re-modeled the chest and shoulders. The hole in
the chest is now a larger and solid black piece,
again maybe for a screen of some sort? I believe
that the two chest spots that are silver are a form of
speaker for the sounds of the toy. It is hard to tell is
the open chest is a result of sliding pieces or a
smaller piece that was removed for transformation.
       Another feature added to the Japanese
version of the Unicron toy was a smaller moon with
a wire leading to it. I've been told this small moon
either had a mini viewer in it showing scenes from
the movie or it was a projection or projectile device.
Either way it was attached to a small base to hold
the planet. A neat feature is that the Armada
Unicron featured a Mini-Con based on this moon.
       The only two pictures of the
Japanese Unicron are from a
salesman catalog from what I was
told and the actual toy has not
been seen and it's fate is
unknown. These two toys have
become a form of a legend.
Rumors spread of what happened
to them, where they are, or why
they were never produced. I thank
George Hubert for his very
exclusive behind the scenes
photos and info he helped provide.
       Below are two pictures of an inflatable
Unicron used to promote Transformers the Movie
in Japan. Thanks to Alex Brickmore of Super Toy
Archive for allowing me to show these pictures
here.
Neo Unicron
        Thanks to many avid fans,
there are tons of pictures to look
at and even better are all the
angles provided for us to see the
details. Die hard Transformer fans
will see a few familiar joins and
pieces used in other
Transformers but that about
where the similarities end.
Showing detail on almost every
piece, even the underside of his
"backpack" has gears, wires and
other details. How he transformed
is up in the air but a majority of
people think it was a simple
process of folding in his legs and
arms, much like the Primus or
modern Unicron toys.
       The claws in his shell could
be deployed and controlled by two
levers on the backpack (wihch
could fold up for this feature).
Again we can see the Armada
Unicron borrowed from a
prototype toy by using the leg
missiles. We can see that the side
"rings" seen in the promo
pamphlet are not seen on Unicron
in robot mode. It looks like they
were on a ball joint but why they
were removed is not known.
       The Micromaster Hot Rod toy
was another mystery and might
have been made to go with this
toy or to mirror the older promo
shots of the G1 Unicron toy.
       Since Beast Wars Neo was
only shown in Japan, few
Transformer fans are even aware
there was another prototype toy
made! His only other mentioning
between Transformers the movie
and Neo was a short bit during
Beast Wars.
Armada Unicron
Cybertron Unicron