In science fiction, mecha or mechs are giant robots or machines typically depicted as piloted and as humanoid walking vehicles. The term was first used in Japanese after shortening the English loanword 'mechanism' or 'mechanical', but the meaning in Japanese is more inclusive, and 'robot' or 'giant robot' is the narrower term.
The Decepticons are a fictional faction of sentient robots in the Transformers multimedia franchise. Served as the main antagonists in the franchise, their goals include conquering their fictional homeworld of Cybertron, defeating the Autobots, and achieving universal domination.
A humanoid is a non-human entity with human form or characteristics. By the 20th century, the term came to describe fossils which were morphologically similar, but not identical, to those of the human skeleton.
Masters of the Universe is a sword and planet-themed media franchise created by Mattel. The main premise revolves around the conflict between He-Man and Skeletor on the planet Eternia, with a vast lineup of supporting characters in a hybrid setting of medieval sword and sorcery, and sci-fi technology. A follow-up series, She-Ra: Princess of Power revolves around He-Man's sister She-Ra and her rebellion against The Horde on the planet Etheria. Since its initial launch, the franchise has spawned a variety of products, including multiple lines of action figures, six animated television series, several comic series, video games, books and magazines, a daily newspaper comic strip, and two feature films.
The Autobots are a fictional faction of sentient robots in the Transformers multimedia franchise. The Autobots are living robots from the planet Cybertron who, like most Transformers, are each imbued with a unique "life force" known as a "spark." Led by Optimus Prime in most stories, the Autobots believe "freedom is the right of all sentient life" and are often engaged in a civil war with the Decepticons, a faction of transformers dedicated to military conquest and usually headed by Megatron. In a mirror universe portrayed in Transformers: Shattered Glass, the Autobots are villains opposed by the heroic Decepticons.
GoBots is a line of transforming robot toys produced by Tonka from 1983 to 1987, similar to Hasbro's Transformers.
Machine Robo: Revenge of Cronos, known in France as La Revanche des GoBots, is a Japanese anime television series produced by Ashi Productions. It ran on TV Tokyo from July 3, 1986, through May 28, 1987.
Model robots are model figures with origins in the Japanese anime genre of mecha. The majority of model robots are produced by Bandai and are based on the Gundam anime metaseries. This has given rise to the hobby's common name in Japan, Gunpla. Though there are exceptions, the model robot genre is dominated by anime tie-ins, with anime series and movies frequently serving as merchandising platform.
Tomy Company, Ltd. is a Japanese toy company. It was established in 1924 by Eiichirō Tomiyama as Tomiyama Toy Manufacturing Company (富山玩具製作所), became known for creating popular toys like the B-29 friction toy and luck-based game Pop-up Pirate. In 2006, Tomy merged with another toy manufacturer, Takara, and although the English company name remained the same, it became Takara Tomy in Asia. It has its headquarters in Katsushika, Tokyo.
The Brave series is a Japanese toy and anime franchise originally produced by Sunrise, Nagoya TV, Victor Entertainment and Tokyu Agency, originally created by Takara. The franchise ran from 1990s to 2000s, producing eight official series and several side media including Original Video Animations (OVAs), toys, and several memorabilia in Japan. It was one of Sunrise's most notable productions in the 90s, and its run played a key role in the reintroduction of the Super Robot genre to the Japanese mainstream.
Machine Robo is a Japanese transforming robot toyline first released in 1982 by Popy, a division of Bandai, then later by Bandai proper. The franchise was marketed as Robo Machine in Europe and Machine Men in Australia. A large portion of these toys were exported to North America as part of Tonka's Gobots series, which began in 1983.
Robo Machine was a European transforming robot toyline released by Bandai from 1982 to 1988. Robo Machines was a short-lived revival from late 1992 to 1993. The line was initially a European release of the Machine Robo line, before gradually becoming the counterpart to Tonka’s Gobots line. The line appeared in the UK, France and Germany, amongst others.
The Transformers is an animated television series that originally aired from September 17, 1984, to November 11, 1987, in syndication based upon Hasbro and Takara's Transformers toy line. The first television series in the Transformers franchise, it depicts a war among giant robots that can transform into vehicles and other objects. The series was produced by Marvel Productions and Sunbow Productions in association with Japanese studio Toei Animation for first-run syndication. Toei co-produced the show as the main animation studio for its first two seasons, having been tasked with creating and finalizing animation models, designing transformation schemes, storyboarding some episodes, and general direction. In the third season, Toei's involvement with the production team was reduced and the animation services were shared with the South Korean studio AKOM. The show's supervising producer was also AKOM's founder. The fourth season was entirely animated by AKOM. The series was supplemented by a feature film, The Transformers: The Movie (1986), taking place between the second and third seasons. This series is also popularly known as "Generation One", a term originally coined by fans in response to the re-branding of the franchise as Transformers: Generation 2 in 1992, which eventually made its way into official use. The series was later shown in reruns on Sci-Fi Channel and The Hub / Discovery Family.
Transformers: Generation 1 is a toy line from 1984 to 1990, produced by Hasbro and Takara Tomy. It was a line of toy robots that could change into an alternate form by moving parts into other places, and it was the first line of toys produced for the successful Transformers toy and entertainment franchise. The line was originally called The Transformers, with "Generation 1" originating as a term coined by fans of the toys when the Transformers: Generation 2 toy line was released in 1992. Hasbro eventually adopted the term "Generation 1" to refer to any toy produced in that era.
Mecha, also known as giant robot or simply robot, is a genre of anime and manga that feature mecha in battle. The genre is broken down into two subcategories; "super robot", featuring super-sized, implausible robots, and "real robot", where robots are governed by realistic physics and technological limitations.
Popy (ポピー) was a Japanese toy manufacturer of the 1970s and early 1980s. The company was owned by Bandai. It was founded in 1971 and merged back into the parent company in 1983. The company is best known for its groundbreaking Chogokin robot figures.
Machine Robo Mugenbine (マシンロボムゲンバイン), also called Multiple General Node Combine System or Mu.Gen.Bine is a Japanese transforming robot toyline first released on 27 December 2003 by Bandai. Designed by PLEX, Mugenbine is the successor of the Machine Robo line of transforming toy robots.
The Convertors were a line of action figures made by Japanese toy company MARK and localized in North America by New York-based Select in the 1980s.
Boys' toys and games, as opposed to girls' toys and games, are a subset of toys and games that appeal to male children. Research suggests that this appeal may be driven by biological factors, peer pressure, parental choices, marketing, and tradition.
