For over 40 years, toy brands such as Hasbro and Takara’s Transformers have excited generations of fans and collectors. This has seen numerous collectibles revisit the classics in updated form, with this mentality inspiring some of Takara’s most recent offerings.
In a recent interview with Anime News Network, Takara Tomy CEO and President Akio Tomiyama spoke about many of the recent initiatives from the company. These include Transformers Missing Link, which began as an upgraded take on the original Optimus Prime toy. Needless to say, it’s been a massive success with fans all over the world, which has seen even more toys in this series roll out since then.
The Rebirth of the First Optimus Prime Toy Represents Takara Tomy’s ‘Asobi’ Philosophy
Meeting at the recently-held Anime Expo event, Coop Bicknell of Anime News Network spoke with Takara Tomy CEO Akio Tomiyama. The discussion began on Takara’s popular Beyblade franchise, with these spinning top toys being a frequent favorite at Anime Expos. Uniting the conversation was the concept of “asobi,” which is a word that means “the spirit of play.”
Whether they’re toys meant for kids or older collectors, the products designed by Takara are meant to embody this idea through tangible, tactile elements. Perhaps there’s no better example of this multi-generational ambition than the Transformers Missing Link line, which started off as a way to update the very first Optimus Prime toy ever made.
MISSING LINK originated as a project to commemorate the 40th anniversary of TRANSFORMERS, featuring the first generation [G1] Convoy [Optimus Prime] in a fully posable design. It was so well-received that it was turned into a series. In addition to full articulation, the figures feature highly satisfying details—such as areas that were originally covered with stickers now being reproduced with molded parts and paint—and have been very well-received not only by fans of the original generation, but also by a new generation of fans, leading to an expanding lineup.
Since then, Missing Link has expanded with toys for Autobots such as Bumblebee, Cliffjumper and Sunstreaker, with these all using the same concept of adding modern articulation to the original Generation 1 toys. The scope has expanded over time, with the line adding both Arcee (in a toy based on her unreleased prototype from The Transformers: The Movie) and Ironhide (with his recently-revealed toy breaking the mold for the line and resembling the animated series more than the unconventional original action figure), alongside the upcoming release of Soundwave as the first Decepticon in the lineup.
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Image via Takara Tomy -
Image via Takara Tomy -
Image via Takara Tomy
As noted in the article, this is amid various other permutations of the venerable brand, with the bestial Transformers Wild King offering combination-based play for young kids, while Transformers Overgear is a much more complex lineup of militaristic collectibles perfect for fans of realistic mecha model kits.
Most importantly, “asobi” is meant to create”opportunities for people to share experiences and build connections.” This can be seen in Takara’s SYNERGENEX line of collectibles, which mashes up various properties, many of which Takara owns. For instance, Shield-D Prime is an action figure that combines the Zoids mecha franchise with both Transformers and Diaclone, the latter of which was the Takara franchise that actually spawned the robots in disguise.
These mixes are born out of pre-existing ideas, but they birth exciting new ways to play and collect, even for age-old heroes such as Optimus Prime.
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