This guy would look so cool if he was recolored into that giant holographic Autobot warrior Hound used to fool Devastator in "Heavy Metal War"!

His design was used to become Exarchon, the main villain of the 2019's reboot of the IDW Transformers comic. The toy was actually his original form before the Quintessons experimented on him in which he became the Threefold Spark.

Diattacker looks like he's form Cybertron's ancient past, one of the first Autobot's who adopt the art of transformation.

Really loving all the Brave figures I can see in the background. So glad to see someone else who appreciates them.

@10:22 As a Macross fan it really spun me out when I read read that Shoji Kawamori also designed the original Convoy, aka Optimus Prime, toy.

diattacker got a deathsaurus vibe with his horn and the chest part

I firmly believe that a few strange incongruities such as "a truck-robot fighting a gun-robot despite their size differences" are exactly what creates great fiction that endures for a long time. That weirdness is what gives it the spark of imagination that kids don't even think twice about.

Who remembers the transformers flip changers u pulled them back and they would roll then flip up into robot

I dig giant robots. You dig giant robots. The early 80s were a pure utopia for giant transforming robots and combiner robots at Children's Palace, and Grandpa Pigeons growing up in St Louis.

I would guess that Hasbro chose the gun since it resembled an earth device. Everything in that first wave was something recognizable and you wouldn't expect it to be a "robot in disguise". Diattacker on the other hand looks like an alien ship and breaks the theme. You would kind of expect to do something extraordinary. I do kind of remember some vending company using a picture of him back in the day on some instructions that were included with a toy you would get out of those quarter crank vending machines. There were like 15 pieces of varying solid colors, maybe more, that you could collect and form a robot that sort of resembled Diattacker. Each kind of looked like an eraser but harder plastic. I only ever got one as a kid. I wish I had gotten more. Because now all it is, is a vague memory and I don't know what they called it.

I bought the Daimos cartoon (Starbirds) for $1 at a 99 cent shop long before that was normally a thing for DVD.

Imagine the alternate universe where hasbro chose Diattacker as Megatron

Really enjoyed this presentation! Very informative and thorough, insightful and I learned some stuff. Given the title I (almost) assumed you were going to spring a surprise that true transforming figures started years before Diaclones, but it landed roughly where I thought it would’ve - as the Diaclones line evolved. Great stuff. 😎

Love the Brave toys on your shelf. So cool and under appreciated. I've been collecting them since the 90's.

We had a lot of Gobots when I was a kid. They were smaller and cheaper than transformers but they were cool. Our parents budget didn't stretch to transformers prices.

Your channel is amazing, your philosophy behind what makes a good transformer is great and I absolutely agree with you, love your videos, keep up the good work and I really hope you make many more videos, I'm so happy I found your channel!

The Daimos robot was awesome. It was piloted by a man who drove a car that turbo boosted to interface with the rolling thunder in wheels size of a cruise ship transformed into Daimos controls similar to how they controlled the pacific rim bots mind you the concept went way back in the 70s!

Ironically this guys headsculpt without the horns looks more like cartoon g1 megatron than the toy of g1 megatron did.

Loved this! Had no idea about a lot of this! subscribed!

That's really cool! Lots of awesome history here, man! My wife and I now have seven grandkids (I was ten when the OG Transformers series came out) and they eyeball my collection of G1 and MP's and I'm always all; "Don't EEEEVEN think about it..." So we went and got some of the Hasbro plastic Transformers Hero toys and they love them. I looked at a couple and found that their transformation isn't too dissimilar from the G1 toys - only with rounded, lightweight plastic so you don't stab your brother or cousin safety. But I made a comment to my wife of how the kind of went olde skoole with them and they still looked good and are "real world" in appearance. Makes me kind of lament for the old days, ya know? But great video, dude! Keep up the good work!

so in vintage Japanese toys the colorways that were: red, white, blue, and yellow were often referred to as hero colors

I had never seen or heard of this toy before. Very cool looking missing piece of history. Great video. Great points also. I often refer to modern toys as "what passes for a transformer today" for exactly the reasons you gave. Looking behind you I see Fire Duke and j Dekker combined, goldran, and fighbird combined with granbird. These in my opinion are a few of the greatest transformers ever made.

Man, you've nailed what it is that I love to collect and motivated me. I loved Diaclone, Microman, and Micro-Change years before I met the Transformers. It's why I've chosen to mostly focus on Diaclone, because of the quality, the connection to the past, it's sophistication, and liberation from having to peg itself to characters.

My dude, the current Legacy/Studio Series line is not for kids. The kids toys are still out there! Did you even try out the Smash Changer Optimus Primal?? That thing is rad!

Dude, one of my babysitters had that. Was worried I might break it lol

Very nice video. I had the first Diaclone vehicle you showed. Neat little toy. Never knew of thos guy. Just beautiful.

This is a great video. Interesting toy and your passion comes through. This is why we collect toys. I look forward to seeing more videos from you.

I had that same transformer when I was 9

G1 actually looked real in both forms, with transformations that were POSSIBLE, and didn't require turning into mechanical mush as in those films

When I was a kid, my favorite toyline and show wasn't Transformers, it was M.A.S.K.!

Awesome and informative video!

That's why I buy a lot of Cybertron stuff. The Cybertron figures are often more complex than G1, but have that chunky transformation. I think some officially licenced figures are still great like the SS dinobots. Interesting video for sure, never heard of this figure before. 1960s - 1980s Japanese robots had this great aesthetic no one can replicate for some reason!

The demon horns, to me, resemble some samurai helmets which would explain why it was put on a hero figurine sense it came from Japan.

I did recently dip into the new diaclone toys. really fun. something really fun about those dianaut pilots subscribed

Very nice presentation and information…subscribed

9:43 I very much see where Bayverse Starscream got his inspiration from! Very informative video!

The best designs are by Shoji Kawamori (he did Optimus Prime and VF-1 Valkyrie mecha in SDF Macross) because he tries to keep the transform as close to a mech as possible. For example if a human was riding inside the cockpit of the robot when that robot transforms the pilot of the robot doesn't get killed during the transformation. You see this design philosophy in Star Scream and Optimus Prime where you could be the guy inside the robot and control it but if you had to transform back to vehicle mode you don't have to move because the stuff transforms around that pilot meaning it would be considered a mecha as well as autonomous robot. Let us say Starscream was just an AI controlled machine and had no spark in him? A GI Joe could just control the machine as if it were a regular vehicle and not have to die when converting to different modes. Why is Shoji Kawamori significant? He designs it to be realistic enough that we as adult could imagine it to exist. If you like Transformers you owe it to yourself to check out Macross (a whole science fiction show based on transforming space mecha). The same philosophy behind Optimus Prime and StarScream is applied to the transforming valkyrie fighter where the pilot will never get dizzy since the cockpit is the centre-of-mass and so when flying if the pilot transform quickly to robot mode he doesn't have to move. Instead the parts around the cockpit shift and turn and twist to get the robot. All the pilot does is sit in upright position where the chair faces up when going into robot mode. (it sits horizontaly when in space fighter mode) I think Optimus Primes simple transformation is why he is so iconic. The realistic designs have always been my fave transformers over the "robots sitting in fetal position inside a shell of a vehicle" designs. The latter is very lazy and not as pleasing as the simpler and more mecha style transformers. This is why I think I would like to see Transformers rebooted as a mecha show where the aliens are not really aliens but drone AI we sent out to fight on other planets. So for example Optimus Prime is just a rover that delivers cargo but we can take control over the vehicle to manually control it. There is no war between decepticons and autobots, there is just humans using transformers as mecha. (it's as common as using a gun in modern times for self defence. The robot form is how we deal with harsh environments which are not pleasant to walk about in so the robot mecha mode is like an armored spacesuit which is useful for when you have to attack at extremely close range. IE space monster rushes you down very fast to close the distance and you want to punch its face in with an armored fist or cut him up with a lightsaber type weapon)

That head is very much Megatron. Damn.

Very cool!

The gun was chosen because he's an earth mode. "Robots in Disguise" It should be mentioned that the first car Diaclone was the countach LP500S (later becoming Sunstreaker) Great video, love your collection!

I've always loved the Decepticons more than the Autobots. The bad guys are just more interesting.

transformers was going for a "robots in disguise" thing obviously... but yeah, this seems more like an upgraded megatron than Galvatron was. Hell, its even just megatrons head with "technically" a crown on it. Its funny because future iterations of Megatron... I guess starting with Beast Machines, ditched staying in disguise for more otherworldly alt modes... so this is a glimpse of what might have been. Another thing I should look into, Derrick J. Wyatt loved this stuff... i should go back through the art books to see if he ever considered putting or "hid" stuff like this in animated.

I recently got back into collecting Transformers and, yeah, you are 100% correct. Those 84/85 toys were a league of their own. The design philosophy was on the detail of the vehicle mode and how to male that a robot and that robot did not conform to a pre-established esthetic. I miss that. Now it's all panel forming to make a car look like a specific character that has to look a specific way for a brand. Anyway, really enjoyable stuff. I am envious of your Dia Atlus. His treads in good shape? The ones I find online are usually sans treads (and literally anything else, really 😂😂) He's on my grail list.

Dude thank you. THANK you for summing up so succinctly why I love G1 Transformers so much. I love being able to pick up say, Skids as a Honda and have a robot 15 seconds later. You legit need an engineering degree to operate many of the newer toys. Like I have Studio Series Bumblebee from the Bumblebee movie and it took me 20 minutes to compact him into his VW mode (and that's with watching transformation tutorials on KZfaq!). Guess what? He's still in VW mode! I haven't touched him since. The G1 toys to me are much more fun to actually mess with, although that feeling of quality may be a bit of a facade. My original 1986 Smokescreen that I broke within a week of getting him as a kid will certainly attest to that.

14:32 call him devilbot the hellish Autobot warrior.

Diaclone? I had one and it's Trailblazer. The metal on that toy ruined the plastic leg.

You are so right. Dicast Metal makes the best toys. I got a working gold colored metal lighter, that transforms into a robot. Found it in an NYC pawn shop back in the 80s.

Honestly thought this was going to be about Cosmo Countach from 1978.

I recognize two of those diecast robot toys behind you that I was gifted as a kid, the Goggle V and the Daiturn 3.

I am sorry, I missed a lot of what you said cause my jaws was on the floor while staring at your Brave collection. Oh and that Goggle Robo, Combatler V, achine Dolphin, and other vintage sentai and Godaikin stuff are cool too I guess. Lol I personally only have King Exkaizer, GaoGaiGar, and Goldymarg. Original Brave stuff are just extremely expensive nowadays to collect.

On the topic of combiners: I only really like combiners if the combining happens in space in a zero G environment. I think the concept of docking with a spaceship (like a ship joins up to another ship to become one bigger ship makes a lot of sense in space, but not on land imo). I never like combination on ground. It just feels like it works best in space.

As a newer Transformers collector, I have been fascinated by the story of Transformers and vintage designs. Not as vintage as Diaclone, but the Armada-Energon-Cybertron era which is my favourite overall. as I consider the last true callback to the glory of the G1 figures. Energon and Cybertron figures are chunky, heavy duty and tough efigies, that contrast with the more abbreviated and complex figures of today. I wish we could get those older figures with the engineering and articulation that is standard nowadays. Imagine Dia Attacker with the gimmicked "automorph" bu with the articulation of a Legacy figure. There are so many designs I would love to see them revisit with modern sensibilities. I knew of Dia Attacker by a 2019 comic, but I never knew it was designed by the same guy that made the Veritechs.

That VFX fighter incarnated to Jet Fire or Sky Fire

Fantastic video and thanks for telling me about this particular Diaclone figure I knew the history of diaclone but as you said even this guy gets overlooked I saw some brave series figures in the background, that's so cool It makes me sad that other TF fans are just unaware of or just have no interest in the brave series considering the history and connection it has There's tons of transforming robot anime from the 80s and 90s like Galvion, Megazone 23, Gold Lightan, Baldios, Brave series etc Definitely subscribing. Hope you cover more Diaclone, Chogokin (new and old) and other transforming robots. Personally i only have the chogokin Leopardon from the japanese spiderman series and it can transform from the Marveller ship into the actual Leopardon robot itself It's a newer show but you might wanna check out Bang Bravern which is releasing its titular transforming robot toy in 2025 lol

My dad sent me some toys when he was stationed in Okinawa in the 70's, one was an orange and black vehicle that came with a 4 inch figure in green and gray armor I think, it had a spring loaded eject seat on the back and I think one of the stickers said Don Hakka or something?

Vintage Star Wars R2-D2 was my "first" Transformer. As a kid, I used to put him in a 90 degree tilt and pretend that he was a cannon. It worked because the bottom of him was an opened barrel. LOL!!

On a side note combattler's popy figure looked more like individiual vehicles as compared to voltes v which lookes more like body parts split into smaller pieces. Also daimos is pronounced more like die-mows as opposed to day-mos however great video i enjoyed! 👍

Great video I miss when transfromers came with the little guys with magnet feet. Im curious have you made a or know of a video about displaying transformers,I got back into collecting transformers then went back into my old collection and remembered they display poorly,it always looks like a cluttered mess to me no matter what.It seems like less is more with transformers when it come to display.

there is also Tatsunoko's Gold Lightan as in a sentient robot that turns into a golden cigarette lighter and his friends who turns into tools and stationary, the toys are made by Bandai.

His vehicle mode kinda looks like Starsaber

Diaclone and Microman are 2 awesome toy lines. Their transformable robot series were the stuff Hasbro got to create their TF brand. Solid die-cast toys, beautifully mades, with detailed vehicle/tiny object modes and powerful robot design. 1984-85 series 1 &2, for me are the BEST toys in all the history of this brand. From 1986 the new toys specifically made for the toy brand became cheaper and less interesting, with notable exceptions.

The heft thing definitely applies more to S1 figures, more than S2, or thereafter. But yeah, the heft with a lot of the G1 stuff was partly what made it feel special. I sometimes think, what if I brought back a TF from today, back to 1984? I used to think that kids would be in awe, but now I'm not so sure. Maybe we would still find the original G1 figures more appealing? I know if I brought back my SoC GX-71 that that would get their attention.

Nowadays the joy is in some Tobots (Young Toys) and Metal Cardbots (MGA Entertainment). Bandai and Takara have some fun stuff too, but it's japanese exclusive, which is shame.

I really hate how modern basically lost the plot on transformation. It's become a game of more complicated=good and chasing show accuracy to the point the robot mode veneers are largely fake alt-mode bits. The satisfaction of finding how this vehicle part becomes a robot part isn't their anymore.

Oh... Oh my god! I had one of those!

Sold this guy years back love diaclone

I could surmise that Diattacker may also be a "Parts-former" considering that it has detachable two vehicles, fists, and horns. I also agree that collectors should buy Diaclone whenever Takara releases as this line have limited figures being sold.

I think there's something to be said about Transformers, early Transformers, what one would consider to be the first Transformers needing to be a realistic alternate mode. I will say though that this figure you showed could be an excellent figure to revive in the likes of the Japanese late 80's early 90's Transformers. I'd certainly buy a modern interpretation for sure.

I hope Takara has plans to release a new Dia-Attacker as part of their Diaclone reboot in the near future. Also, I was going to mention the Exarchon thing but a quick skim through the comments and it seems someone already has. Clearly you aren’t the only one who thinks Dia-Attacker’s design is worthy of villainy since someone working on the Transformers comics similarly had the idea.

5:45 Voltes 5!!! That's the National Robot of the Philippines

It was simply Hasbro's "fault". Here in Italy, I remember well, at the beginning of the eighties, the toy company GiG imported the complete Diaclone series and between 1983 and 1984 its sub-brand Car Robots renamed "Auto Robot - Trasformer" (without the N and S). The latter had a resounding success and despite coexisting with the traditional Diaclone it was immediately understood that this line was selling more. So Hasbro then merged this line with those of other companies (from which, for example, those that would have been Soundwave, Megatron or the Insecticons) and created the Transformers brand, which also arrived here in Europe as we know it today. It was a shame because the Diaclone - Micro Man line was really quality, interesting, playable, beautiful but was then forgotten for a long time.

In the Alex Irvine book he talks about the golden age of Cybertron and that the reason the cybertronians have cockpits is a long-forgotten reason that even the Cybertonians don't know why but the truth is at one point in the long distant past Cybertonians were part of a larger alliance of other alien beings due to spacebridge technology. The spacebridge allowed them to venture further into the galaxy and share technology and knowledge with other alien races who the Transformers would accommodate their alt modes to allow humanoids of alien races to ride inside of them. It completely just dawned on me that that was probably that writers way of paying homage to Diaclone and toys like this.

That big guy sure does resemble Overlord.....

I hope Takara does a new version for their Diaclone reboot line. I already got Diabattles, Big Powered, and Great Robot Base.

Wow...

To make a real comment this is a good video and thank you for showing me a cool toy I've never seen

Deathsaurus is that you?

I thought some of the toys that made up the eventual transformers line dated back to the mid 70s?? I remember seeing dates like 1974 on my old transformers.

Does intuitive mean something else in murica?

is that a combattler v or voltes v displayed on the background?

I hear ya and agree. Gen 1 transformers or tankar before they joined Hasbro. I also like the older generation of video games

Now I want an alternate universe where this guy was the villain and not Megatron.

"Heft" is not a attributes of Transformers. As long as it's quality make, that's all that matters.

Transformers don’t use diecast anymore because diecast is more expensive than plastic

Adult with kids mind, nuh uh more like kid with a adult body

I think my brothers and I had this as kids

1. Delegitimizing Raideen as the first transformable robot is hard to excuse. 2. Voltes V is pronounced "Vol-tess," not "Volts." 3. Daimos is pronounced "Die-mohs," not "Day-mohs."

Diaclone

13:59 so... basically you push his own long dee so hard into him, hes tee jumps up... I believe it's "a great design" modern toy makers trying to void.

I think you need to go here in Asia or talk to collectors. I think you missed Micronauts that was imported from Japan in the late 70's. that toyline was under the Microchange

I had the horikawa monster robot, walking robot and the heads pop up into monster/animal

I do Gundam kit cross over builds....love how to make character cross a line.....felt the star wars cross over wasn't true it was star wars character's

i would disagree on heft of diecast metal being something we need back given almost every time its been brought back it rarely goes well

If transformers cartoon was made after the toys … I don’t know why they made pistol gun as a leader opposite to a truck . It should have been shock wave (toy base I mean ) at least we kids can play with it and they look cool next to each other .

The "Changeman" isn't a transformer. He just has a gimmick to remove his helmet. Not the same thing.

Magnetic boots, yo. Use your imagination

love this video, i want to buy that transformer, whats the spelling of this first transformer?

If transformers cartoon was made after the toys … I don’t know why they made pistol gun as a leader opposite to a truck . It should have been shock wave (toy base I mean ) at least we kids can play with it and they look cool next to each other .Megatron toy looks like he took viagra before fighting the autobots.

Isn't that Wheeljack gen 1?

Wheeljack body. Without the head and arms.