Hot Rod

It really has been a while since I have done a classic toy spotlight. What better way to kick off this blog relaunch than with a spotlight on the younger version of Rodimus Prime before he became the leader of the Autobots...Hot Rod! The toy was originally released in 1986 around the time of the release of Transformers: The Movie. Hot Rod made his animated debut in the film where he also became the new Autobot commander.

Hot Rod has a really slick looking vehicle mode. He transforms from a robot to a futuristic sports car. The car mode has chromed exhaust pipes on both sides of the back of the car, a huge yellow spoiler, a big engine, flames on the hood...it was every young kid's dream car. The transformation was pretty simple: pull the rear of car back, flip down the feet, flip out the arms, pull the front portion of the car forward, flip down the hood, rotate the spoiler and windshield, and rotate the arms. Hot Rod had a well designed robot mode as well. As with most Generation One toys, his articulation was limited. He only could move at the elbows and below the shoulders. However, kids of the 1980's only needed that little bit of movement to have a lot of adventures with the future Autobot leader.

Hot Rod became Rodimus Prime when he took possession of the Autobot Matrix of Leadership. The energy inside the Matrix made him stronger. He also absorbed the wisdom of the former Autobot leaders to coincide with his own wisdom and courage, the same as Optimus Prime had apparently done. As Rodimus Prime, he led the Autobots in the third season of the animated series. By the end of season three, Optimus Prime was rebuilt, and he once again became Autobot leader. Hot Rod would then become a Target Master. In Japan however, he would not. He would instead become Rodimus Prime again after Optimus sacrificed himself to save Cybertron.