Transformers G1 Characters: Which Figures Collectors Want

The best-known G1 character figures are the 1984 leaders, Optimus Prime and Megatron, along with Starscream, Soundwave and his cassettes, Bumblebee and Jazz. The 1985 wave added Jetfire, Shockwave, Grimlock and the Constructicons that form Devastator, and the 1986 movie brought Hot Rod, Ultra Magnus and Galvatron.

This branch sits under our Transformers G1 hub, which covers the toy line as a whole: where the molds came from and how to spot reissues or knockoffs. Here the question is narrower: which first figure each main character had, and what that figure needs to count as complete.

Which Autobot figures do collectors look for?

Optimus Prime leads the list. His 1984 figure is a semi cab with a trailer that opens into a combat deck and a small scout car called Roller. The rockets and fists, plus three small fuel pieces, give it more separate parts to track than a typical car figure.

Bumblebee and Jazz both arrived in 1984. Bumblebee was a minibot, one of the small figures sold on cards, while Jazz was one of the full-size Autobot cars. Hasbro reissued Bumblebee in its Vintage G1 line in 2018, the first time the figure was identified as a licensed Volkswagen product on the packaging.

Jetfire followed in 1985, the same year as Omega Supreme and the Dinobots. Blaster also belongs to the 1985 Autobot wave, as does Perceptor. Ultra Magnus and Hot Rod joined in 1986 with the movie wave, and Hot Rod’s later form, Rodimus Prime, was sold as a separate 1986 figure.

Which Decepticons are the key figures?

Megatron is the Decepticon leader, and his toy stands apart from the rest of the line. His 1984 figure, from Takara’s Micro Change line, turns into a replica Walther P38 pistol, and it came with a silencer, stock, scope and a separate cannon. His page covers why that design shaped his reissue history.

Starscream is the best known of the 1984 Decepticon jets; Skywarp and Thundercracker came out the same year. Shockwave came in 1985. Galvatron, Megatron’s reformatted self in the film, was a 1986 figure.

Dinobots and combiners

The five Dinobots, led by Grimlock, came out in 1985 along with the six Constructicons. The Constructicons combine into Devastator, so a complete Devastator means six complete robots plus their combining parts.

The Constructicons were also sold as single figures, so a loose Devastator may have been assembled from several sources. Check that each member matches the others in color and plastic.

Soundwave and the cassettes

Soundwave was a 1984 figure that turns into a cassette player. The small cassette figures were sold separately: Ravage and Rumble, along with Frenzy, Laserbeak and Buzzsaw, all appear in the 1984 wave. Hasbro’s Vintage G1 line reissued Rumble with Ravage and Frenzy with Laserbeak as carded two-packs in 2019, so check markings before you buy a loose cassette as an original.

Cassettes are small and easy to separate from their weapons, so check each one on its own. The Transformers hub also has a slot for G1 minibots and cassettes.

Vintage G1 character figures on eBay

Shop vintage G1 Transformers→

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• AutobotsBrowse →
• DecepticonsBrowse →
• DinobotsBrowse →
• StarscreamBrowse →
• SoundwaveBrowse →

The 1986 movie characters

The Transformers: The Movie opened on August 8, 1986. Hasbro wanted the story built around characters it could sell, so the film introduced a new cast of characters with matching toys. Beyond the three leads named above, the 1986 figures included Kup, Blurr, Wreck-Gar, Cyclonus and Scourge. The movie page covers that wave in detail, along with posters and home video.

Which characters have been reissued in the US?

Reissues matter on a character page because a loose reissue can pass for an original at a glance. Two Hasbro reissue lines cover most of the characters above.

The Generation One Commemorative Series, a Toys R Us exclusive at launch in 2002, reissued figures including Optimus Prime and Ultra Magnus, along with Starscream and Jazz. Later releases came in book-box packaging styled after Takara’s own reissues.

Vintage G1, sold mostly at Walmart in the US and Canada, ran in waves:

• 2018: Bumblebee and other minibots on cards, plus boxed Hot Rod and Starscream, with Devastator as a boxed set
• 2019: Optimus Prime (cab only), Soundwave with Buzzsaw, Astrotrain, and two cassette two-packs
• 2020: Blaster

Megatron is the notable gap. TFWiki says toy safety rules on replica firearms have kept his pistol figure from being reissued in the US, while Takara has reissued it in Japan several times. Each reissue carries its own company markings, which is the first thing to check on a loose figure.

For tips that apply across every 80s and 90s line, from copyright stamps to storage, see our vintage action figures guide. For another 80s cast list with first figure waves, see our He-Man characters guide.