TRANSFORMERS: Revisiting the Characters of Generation 1 - HARDHEAD

TRANSFORMERS:  Revisiting the Characters of Generation 1

    "It's either my way - or NO way!" - Hardhead, 1987.

AUTOBOT

Name - HARDHEAD

Function - Ground Assault

Series Debut - 1987 / Wave 4

Sub-Group - Headmaster

BACKGROUND...

        Hardhead is a stubborn, unbending, set-in-his-ways Autobot!  He's "hardheaded" which makes him a perfectly named Transformer!  He doesn't put much stock into what anyone else says and has difficulty following orders.  His teammates have found if they want him to follow specific directions, they need to fool him into thinking the idea was his own - then he's on board!  He is generally doesn't talk much, but he always relishes the chance to jump into battle.  

    He was built to fight, literally!  Hardhead transforms into a Cybertronian tank that can reach speeds of 155 mph.  His cannon is capable of launching incendiary, sonic, or explosive, long-range shells.  In robot mode he carries two "shatterblaster" guns.  These weapons fire diamond-hard shards.

    Hardhead was among a group of Autobots that accidentally found themselves on the planet Nebulos.  When the Decepticons arrived behind them, a new fight began.  Eventually Hardhead's team allied alongside some friendly natives.  To defeat the Decepticons, an idea to merge a Nebulan and Autobot together was conceived - which led to the creation of the "Headmasters".  The Nebulan would pilot the Autobot vehicle and then when it was time to transform to robot mode - the Nebulan would become the head.  Hardhead was binary-bonded to the battle-loving Nebulan named Duros.

MY THOUGHTS...

    Hardhead never really got a lot of spotlight in either the comics or cartoons.  On top of that, I never had any of the Autobot Headmasters when I was younger.  I guess I didn't find them as interesting as the Decepticon creatures.

    That said, looking back now, I see Hardhead as a similar character to Series 1's Brawn - he was tough physically and in attitude.  This trait could be annoying (like when Brawn was treating Perceptor poorly for not being a fighter) or impressive (like when Brawn pile-drove Soundwave into the dirt).  So it would have been great to get to see more of him and how he reacted with both friends and foes.  The Headmaster's day in the sun was brief though and it just wasn't meant to be.

    The tank mode, including that of the "stand-in" from the Titans Return series, is WAY COOL!  I love the off-set cannon and the 4 sets of treads.  When we were heading out for a beach vacation in 2022, I needed some figures to take pics of out there in the sand.  Looking over the kids' Transformer collection, I eyeballed Hardhead and picked him up.  I thought that his tank mode would look fantastic cruising over the dunes, using his long-range cannon to blast Decepticons in the distance.  This was a great looking character with a lot of unused potential!

Autobot Headmasters from the 1987 catalog!

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    (Information on the character's lore was taken from the Sunbow Transformers cartoon series, including the Movie and the figure's original Tech-Spec.)