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Every two weeks, Seibertron.com brings you a Top 5 list related to all things Transformers written by me, your fellow editor. These are my opinions (just like movie or game reviews hosted by sites are still just the opinion of one person) so what matters most is what you guys think of the topic or list, and I hope to see your own lists or comments on omissions and ranking. Let's have fun! All previous lists can be found here.


Top 10 Best G1 Characters

Oh yeah, we are going there, sparing no one, just like the writers of the original Transformers movie. If anyone cares about the criteria used (probably no one for this list), the way it was decided was by the G1 centric characters that had a greater impact on me and made me either keep coming back to the brand. This isn't a badass meter, but instead, it is a list about the characters from this era that inspire you or haunt you as you go about your day. The G1 title doesn't necessarily refer to the show (although it is usually a big factor) but instead to the era and the prominent characters stemming from it. We will keep specific modern day interpretations (like IDW) for another time though. Let me know which G1 characters you like best once you have finished reading the list. Now let's get to it!

10. Grimlock

The leader of the Dinobots needs a mention on such a list. While not the sharpest tool in the shed, in the show at least, what he adds to the fiction is huge. Firstly, he brings a more beastial warrior aspect to the War in showing how sometimes brute force is what is needed to win with him and the Dinobots essentially being weapons created by the Autobots. He then evolved from being the leader of a team that can take down Devastator into being an actual equal to the other autobots, going on their adventures (and creating Computron). I also love how he still has a nice air of childish wonder, like the War is part of his life but he can still be innocent and full of wonder within it, like when he just wants to hear more of Kup's stories. And of course, in the comics he became Leader of the Autobots.




9. Starscream

Always a fun character but for crying out loud if you want to be Leader of the Decepticons do something instead of saying you will do it. It gets infuriating sometimes to wonder why Megatron keeps this guy around but then you see what he adds, both in wit and firepower, and you can see how Megatron weighs in the pros and cons. Starscream can definitely make the difference in the War, without him we wouldn't have Bruticus. His brotherly rivalry with Megatron is also very entertaining (hence the thumbnail) and he just has great presence! Also, he has an incredible design that is, to me, even more iconic than his superior. But that will probably be fore another list.




8. Ironhide

Older transformers add so much to the Transformers mythos. They give the notion that different generations of robots exist and fight together. This adds a lot of diversity to the team, in both the show and the comics, by having contrasting opinions on certain situations depending on a soldier's experience. Ironhide, to me, is akin to DC's Wildcat from the JSA. He keeps what he saw to himself while offering as much wisdom as he deems necessary for a situation. He also always seems to have just the right weapon or tool handy, which makes for an amazing array of accessories for his masterpiece toy. I like to think it's all due to his experience that he has so many tricks up his sleeves. This is the kind of guy I want by my side if ever I would end up on the battlefield, no doubt about it.



7. Shockwave

Shockwave is just stone cold evil and his intelligence is one of the two greatest assets the Decepticons have (the other will be mentioned later) in the cartoon and in the comics. Megatron may be the leader, but it is Shockwave who ended up being the local leader of the Decepticon cause on Cybertron. While I understand that Shockwave did not do that much in the show, his appearance, demeaner and voice did stay with most of us and his G1 comics appearance really showcased the sadistic and cold bast*rd that the show only hinted to.




6. Kup

As I said above with Ironhide, these kinds of characters add a lot to the show and a lot of what I said about Ironhide applies to Kup as well. While we lost Ironhide in the show, Kup came in to take over that role but in a very different way. Kup is more of a R Lee Ermey type, who takes pride in commanding his troops and making a play. He also has awesome war stories that I always want to hear more of (me Grimlock love Kup stories).




5. Megatron and 4. Optimus

Both are very important and iconic characters, and are both as awesome as Chuck Norris riding an armoured Pegasus through the gates of hell to confront Satan (with some Blind Guardian playing in the background). However, they are also quite one note since they are more like archetypes for good and evil. Optimus has a few more nuances due to his paternal side and that gives him the edge over Megatron as far as being a great character. I still love both of these guys though and their rivalry is as iconic as can be (that will be another list, stay tuned for that).






3. Rodimus Prime

Now I am not saying that Rodimus is a better leader than Optimus was or that he was more badass, but I am far more impressed with how he kept his team morality high and how the writers actually succeeded in making him a decent leader on the show. He had an uphill battle to gain the trust of both his troop and the fans and I am impressed that the character always seems to keep his cool. Also his voice and tall stances quickly make you forget he was fishing with Daniel just a few moments ago. I can see how so many have him as their favourite.




2. Soundwave

You know who the baddest mofo in the room is when there is an earthquake and he is the only one keeping his calm (this is an analogy, not a reference to a specific scene). This is what this guy is but as a villain. His efficiency and loyalty is the other greatest asset the Decepticons have (well aside from a giant robot made up of six smaller robots). Megatron may be the leader, but it is this guy I want to mess with the least. Plus he has all his awesome friends who are just as loyal to him as his is to the cause. Decepticons Forever!




1. Galvatron

You would all be surprised as to how easy this was to pick. Megatron is my favourite for his design and legacy, but Galvatron is just INSANE! I love how the writers pulled off an incredible feat of having him be both new and old at the same time. You can tell he was Megatron once (in the fiction where that is the case), but this is a Megatron that was thrown into the Lazarus pit to be reborn unhinged. While Megatron was evil simply because that seems to be what his circuits dictated, Galvatron revels in his own evil and the chaos that he can create. I just feel this character ups the stakes so much and brings the TF world something no one else can. The Webworld episode is a true testament to that.




Honourable mentions: everyone ... except for Broadside.

I'm not so sure about this list but I can see where your coming from I would add Beachcomber personally since he was pretty darn good in the golden lagoon and it's actually my fave G1 episode for it's not standard the good guys win ending and the episode's message.

But I think we can all agree that Skids or Hauler ain't appearing on these lists anytime soon if we are going by the cartoon.

Oldtimer me: Heeeeey, ain't that there Galva-fella just that there Mega-fella...?

Me now: Sorry, old-timer. Galvatron is too insanely awesome for your logic to work.

I actually think Soundwave/Shockwave should switch places with Galvatron. Not for any particular reason and I agree with your points, I just love love LOVE Soundwave so much more.

Deadput wrote:But I think we can all agree that Skids or Hauler ain't appearing on these lists anytime soon if we are going by the cartoon.

Tbh. I don't really remember seeing Skids in the one episode w/ the Con triples trying to take over. Had to watch the episode again just to see it. (I think it was that one...)

Perhaps you should have said from the Generation 1 cartoon. Optimus and Megatron are far from "one note" in the IDW comics. They've gotten a LOT of development there.

...but even if you stick with the comics, I would still fight for G1 cartoon Optimus as being more than just "heroic good." He was a "dad" character. His troops were his family, and he treated them as such. He didn't always understand what the new kids were into, and often told jokes that were cringe worthy (just like dads do), but you can tell amused himself.

Deadput wrote:I'm not so sure about this list

It's like all the lists, Will's personal perspective, which is where the rest of us join in.

But I think we can all agree that Skids or Hauler ain't appearing on these lists anytime soon if we are going by the cartoon.

Thankfully we're not going solely by the cartoon.

Because Skids actually had a special place for me as a kid. I found a beat up Skids at the local rubbish dump. He was missing a wheel and his weapons and incredibly loose. He was the first Transformer that I attempted to restore. When you're a pre-teen and have no internet to help you, chances are, you're gonna fail, and I did.

Hence why I snapped up the Takara re-issue.

Character wise ... I also felt for him in the comics when he was shunted to limbo so that Galvatron could arrive from the future. And the subsequent story where he eventually returned from limbo gave character to this little piece of plastic I had rescued.

And let's not forget this panel that may or may not have inspired a similar scene from the first live action movie.



So yeah, Skids may not have been the best of characters, but he meant something to me.

Not having much time to come up with a Top 5 of my own (I'm supposed to be working) for me, the top would be Ultra Magnus.

He's the warrior that finds himself thrust into a position of leadership he didn't feel he was ready for. He suffered self-doubt, both in the cartoon/movie and the comics. But he never gave up. At a time in my life where I struggled to find a place I belonged, here was this character that had his own doubts but fought through them.

huehuehuehuehue the thumbnail huehuehuehue

I would still add Beachcomber in that list somewhere but that's just me.

I also like Perceptor in the show but I wouldn't say he was my fave either.

Heh, I loathe Galvatron in the tv show. I thought he was great in the movie voiced by Nimoy but found him incredibly annoying when voiced by Welker (sorry) and not helped by the poor writing of many of the episodes (Grimlock too was hurt bad when he became nothing more than Danny's giant dino toy for most of it). I far preferred the version(s) of him in the Marvel comics where he seemed like a genuine threat and didn't even need troops or even his lackeys Cyclonus and Scourge after Target: 2006. I like that you mention Shockwave's comic self though. He too was truly impressive in the comics and we all remember that iconic 'The Transformers Are All Dead' cover.

(Have to admit I always found Soundwave kinda boring, both in the tv show and the toy itself. Cool voice but he never seemed to have much of a personality in the cartoon and is someone else I preferred in comics, at least in the UK stuff)

Most of my faves would be from Marvel. Can't think of an order but they'd include at least some of Galvatron, Shockwave and Grimlock as mentioned, and Bludgeon, Carnivac, Thunderwing, Blaster (from his earlier US stories), Optimus Prime, Ratchet, Megatron, Straxus, Springer, Rodimus Prime and I'm including Death's Head cos even if he's still Marvel these days he still counts.

Yeah, what saves Optimus from joining the likes of Star Saber in standard-boring-I-am-ultimate-good central is that he's not just the Autobot Leader, he's the Autobot Leader who's your friend. Your dad. Sure usually he's fighting Megatron and the Decepticons and that of course always takes priority, but when the war's cooled down for a bit he's just as comfortable playing basketball with Spike and the Dinobots. It's that little bit of 80s goofiness that I really miss and wish would be in modern interpretations of the character; Aligned Prime could benefit a lot from this.

Man, I can just tell Rodimus is going to be such an unpopular choice - ESPECIALLY when you place him right above Optimus, oh man are you asking for trouble - but I fully agree. In the cartoon he was easily the best character and the only one that could really truly be said to have character development aside from those moral-of-the-day episodes. It's just a shame that he was finally able to accept and balance both his sense of self and responsibility of leadership right before the episode he gives the Matrix back to Optimus. ... and also a shame he got that horrific episode-ending line in Fight or Flee. What that episode did for Magnus just tore down Rodimus, sheesh.
MTMTE made me fall in love with Rodimus but G1 was a pretty damn good start.

Honourable mention: Laserbeak. In the scene where the Decepticons got drunk - the BEST scene - Megatron orders the Decepticons to attack. Laserbeak flies over and then slowly spins and falls to the ground. He tried. Oh my god does he try.

(Also, shouldn't this be in cartoons and comics instead of general?)

Hmmm... guess the list got changed based on the previous comments (or was a draft). I still stand by my previous comment, though: Optimus in G1 was far more than just the "one note good guy."

Kurona wrote:(Also, shouldn't this be in cartoons and comics instead of general?)

It should! But as I'm doing things single-handedly today, as well as posting news and working, I got sidetracked.

Seriously where's Jazz?

Moody magpie wrote:Seriously where's Jazz?

What did Jazz do again outside of the three episode pilot and the episode where the Autobots go evil?

I seriously don't remember Jazz doing anything meaningful.

Deadput wrote:

Moody magpie wrote:Seriously where's Jazz?

What did Jazz do again outside of the three episode pilot and the episode where the Autobots go evil?

I seriously don't remember Jazz doing anything meaningful.

Orson Wells ate him.

It's all a matter of opinion. I agree with many choices on this list except one: Rodimus. God do I hate this character. This is probably because I never accepted him replacing Optimus. The grudge of a 7 years old is eternal (I still remember raging at Optimus's death at the movie theater as I watched Transformers the movie lol).

Moody magpie wrote:Seriously where's Jazz?

This is Will's list. We welcome everyone to post their own lists as well. Because ...

Ultra Mad wrote:It's all a matter of opinion.

Ultra Mad wrote:I agree with many choices on this list except one: Rodimus. God do I hate this character. This is probably because I never accepted him replacing Optimus. The grudge of a 7 years old is eternal (I still remember raging at Optimus's death at the movie theater as I watched Transformers the movie lol).

See this I can relate to, because it's exactly how I feel.

I agree with rodimus over optimus, saw the movie first when i was 5, so I saw rodimus first

Va'al wrote:huehuehuehuehue the thumbnail huehuehuehue

Yeah, a little bit of click-baiting there me thinks. "What?! WHEELIE?! I'm going to give this article a piece of my mind."

I'd just like to say thank you for including Rodimus and placing him so highly. By the time I was old enough to enjoy Transformers he had already taken over the mantle of leadership (so maybe I'm a bit biased), but to this day I get fed up with people hating on him because "HE GOT OPTIMUS KILLED!" His spark was in the right place, but his impulsive youthfulness got the better of him. I dare to say there isn't a person alive that hasn't done similar.

Optimus had eons of leadership experience behind him and he still made mistakes. Besides, it turned out alright in the end. And arguably, just like Jesus Christ, would Optimus have the same following if he hadn't pulled off the resurrection trick?

Sodan-1 wrote:

Va'al wrote:huehuehuehuehue the thumbnail huehuehuehue

Yeah, a little bit of click-baiting there me thinks. "What?! WHEELIE?! I'm going to give this article a piece of my mind."

Haha, that was the idea of Va'al our news admin. I am not a big fan of click bait but then again that did get you to come here so I can't be all mad

Thanks for sharing your thoughts all!

Burn wrote:And let's not forget this panel that may or may not have inspired a similar scene from the first live action movie.

That panel will be making another appearance in an upcoming list, so stay tuned

Black Bumblebee wrote:Hmmm... guess the list got changed based on the previous comments (or was a draft).

While I thought it was fine, Seibertron saw it more as a draft that needed some refinement, he was right

Hmmm. Surprisingly, I have nothing negative to say about this list.

Ultra Mad wrote:I agree with many choices on this list except one: Rodimus. God do I hate this character. This is probably because I never accepted him replacing Optimus. The grudge of a 7 years old is eternal (I still remember raging at Optimus's death at the movie theater as I watched Transformers the movie lol).

I posted my comment before reading everyone else's, but perfect case in point.

Have to say I'm very glad Ironhide and Kup made the list. If Optimus was a father figure then these guys were the grandfathers.

I also liked being presented with a new spin on Grimlock. I had always seen him as a big dumbass. The child-like innocence actually makes more sense.

Sodan-1 wrote:
I also liked being presented with a new spin on Grimlock. I had always seen him as a big dumbass. The child-like innocence actually makes more sense.

Thanks man! And yeah I saw it that way because unlike all the other bots in G1, the Dinobots had just been made and thus were more like kids that had not matured yet, brought into a world or war.

Also, having Kup and Ironhide was a real must for me. Like with you, those guys really resonated with me. You really felt better having them by your side.

Kurona wrote:Yeah, what saves Optimus from joining the likes of Star Saber in standard-boring-I-am-ultimate-good central is that he's not just the Autobot Leader, he's the Autobot Leader who's your friend. Your dad. Sure usually he's fighting Megatron and the Decepticons and that of course always takes priority, but when the war's cooled down for a bit he's just as comfortable playing basketball with Spike and the Dinobots. It's that little bit of 80s goofiness that I really miss and wish would be in modern interpretations of the character; Aligned Prime could benefit a lot from this.

Man, I can just tell Rodimus is going to be such an unpopular choice - ESPECIALLY when you place him right above Optimus, oh man are you asking for trouble - but I fully agree. In the cartoon he was easily the best character and the only one that could really truly be said to have character development aside from those moral-of-the-day episodes. It's just a shame that he was finally able to accept and balance both his sense of self and responsibility of leadership right before the episode he gives the Matrix back to Optimus. ... and also a shame he got that horrific episode-ending line in Fight or Flee. What that episode did for Magnus just tore down Rodimus, sheesh.
MTMTE made me fall in love with Rodimus but G1 was a pretty damn good start.

Honourable mention: Laserbeak. In the scene where the Decepticons got drunk - the BEST scene - Megatron orders the Decepticons to attack. Laserbeak flies over and then slowly spins and falls to the ground. He tried. Oh my god does he try.

Keep in mind that Star is a dad. Of a human. Adopted human but still,you don't see Optimus having a relationship like that. Mention Kiss Players and I'll send Death's Head after you.

Burn wrote:

Deadput wrote:I'm not so sure about this list

It's like all the lists, Will's personal perspective, which is where the rest of us join in.

But I think we can all agree that Skids or Hauler ain't appearing on these lists anytime soon if we are going by the cartoon.

Thankfully we're not going solely by the cartoon.

Because Skids actually had a special place for me as a kid. I found a beat up Skids at the local rubbish dump. He was missing a wheel and his weapons and incredibly loose. He was the first Transformer that I attempted to restore. When you're a pre-teen and have no internet to help you, chances are, you're gonna fail, and I did.

Hence why I snapped up the Takara re-issue.

Character wise ... I also felt for him in the comics when he was shunted to limbo so that Galvatron could arrive from the future. And the subsequent story where he eventually returned from limbo gave character to this little piece of plastic I had rescued.

And let's not forget this panel that may or may not have inspired a similar scene from the first live action movie.



So yeah, Skids may not have been the best of characters, but he meant something to me.

Not having much time to come up with a Top 5 of my own (I'm supposed to be working) for me, the top would be Ultra Magnus.

He's the warrior that finds himself thrust into a position of leadership he didn't feel he was ready for. He suffered self-doubt, both in the cartoon/movie and the comics. But he never gave up. At a time in my life where I struggled to find a place I belonged, here was this character that had his own doubts but fought through them.

And according to Flint Dille, he was a character meant to fail, a space filler for Rodimus. Sad.

Given his capabilities,he is one awesome leader, especially with his fight to the death with Sixshot.

Webworld? Loved how Galvatron was portrayed in that episode. Very funny when he built a lethal weapon from those therapy legos.

I'd have included Jazz and Mirage and Cliffjumper too.

Starscream should have been number uno! If not for his spiteful act of firing into the Ark which caused Optimus to have fallen into Teletram -1's CR beam, the history of the 3rd Cybertron War might have been waaaaaaaaaay different.