Feel free to never read the below, it serves me as a reminder more than anything, about how to restrict this website to just relevant characters. I need these rules to function, you see. Or if you are really bored (but not in any way suicidal), have a read.
The Three Laws of Inclusion
I have had to be quite strict with what constitutes a 'G1' character while putting this collection together, as I didn't want to flood it with loads of new characters which have come into existence since the original line from many years ago. Therefore, any characters I include have to fulfil at least 1 of the following criteria:
1) Was featured in either the (original) UK or US G1 Comic
2) Was featured in the US G1 Cartoon
3) Was available as a toy in Europe or the US within the G1 toyline
This is why Black Shadow has been removed from this collection, because he did not exist outside of Japan. Events after the Movie split into a completely different continuity in Japan, with too many differences to rectify it back into G1 proper. I do enjoy some of the Japanese cartoon episodes, but in my 'personal canon' I do not strictly see the (Japanese) post-movie events as 'Geewun'.
Drift sucks anyway, which is why I smashed him to bits and used various bits of his anatomy to make customs out of; but even if he wasn't the single worst character ever, he would not be viable for inclusion because he did not exist in any form until IDW made him up, years after G1 was over.
With the criteria above in mind, Roadbuster makes it in on points 1 and 3. Straxus on point 1. Dion on point 2. Overlord makes it in on point 3, by the skin of his metal teeth, because he got a European toy release in the early 1990's. That said, the majority of the figures make it in on all 3 criteria.
I have also decided to exclude Acid Storm. Why? Because he was not referred to by name in any contemporary media and was only retconned into the continuity. I'm not a big fan of retconning and my disdain for Drift only cements that. He also bears no resemblance to the character's paintjob. Using the 3 rules above, he does not meet the criteria for either rule 1 or 3. As far as rule 2 is concerned, he wasn't featured in the US cartoon either, considering he was never even named until 2008 - some 25 years after the episode he was in. He is simply a modern character based (rather loosely) on a generic who was fleetingly seen in a single episode. So bye bye Acid Storm. Dion still gets to stay because he is a named character from the cartoon, which also means if I can get my hands on Ariel or Orion Pax I will do. But, alas, the Rainmakers do not have a place in this database.
Tech Specs
I got the vast majority of tech spec from tfu.info, which has been a monumentally great resource to plunder. I do use some rules to help me keep my posts consistent, though.
1) The earliest available examples of the tech spec are the ones I will use* (eg. G1 Sideswipe over Universe Sideswipe)
2) I will not use the earliest available example of the tech spec if it relates to a toyline NOT considered to be part of the G1 continuity**
3) In the cases where a character has one '.5' value (eg. 6.5) I will round that number down, for the purpose of searches (eg. 'Firepower 6.5' will become 'Firepower 6' as a label)
4) In the cases where a character has one '.5' value (eg. 6.5) I will round the overall total down. If there are 2 '.5' values, this balances out, and I will add them to the overall total.
* I did elect to use an obscure bust version of Arcee over the spider Arcee, simply because she was a bloody spider. I also ignored G1 Hot Rod's initial stats as they were clearly wrong (WAY too powerful), and used targetmaster Hot Rod's instead.
** I used Armada Unicron's stats, although technically this is correct, since there is only one Unicron, who can move between any universe at will!
First/Last Appearances
I got most of this data from the excellent tfwiki.net, with some original research when I couldn't get the info I needed (or was too dumb to find it) Please let me know if any of the info I have is incorrect, and I will update it. A couple of other things to point out here is that the 'First/Last Comic Appearance (UK)' is the first/last UK-unique appearance. Also, I have disregarded the Transformers Movie adaptation released in the US because as far as I know it does not exist in the same universe as the rest of the US continuity. With 'First Toy appearance', I use the European/US year rather than the Japanese, for the same reason that I omit Japan only figures.
I am also ommitting Regeneration One for the time being, at least until the entire comic is finished. It's quite unique in that it is the only direct continuation of Generation 1 left. I may or may not include the events of that comic in a couple of years' time.
Factions
For simplicity's sake, I made every character either an Autobot or Decepticon. I know that the Junkions aren't initially Autobots, but they are by the end of the film, and they even sport faction symbols. However, Unicron is listed under 'misc' since he would happily annihilate Autobot and Decepticon alike.
