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Part John Wayne, part Capt. Kirk, all bad-ass, Decepticon kicking, robot-trashing power. Call him Convoy, call him Optimus, call him Big Bot, he's still one of THE heroes in mecha. Bad news is that some of the best ones have only been released in Japan and can be found in the US if you're very stubborn and have a fat wallet. Here are some of the stand-out versions of the Big Bot.
1. Star Saber-Transformers Victory; Unfortunately, Transformers from this period, such as Ginrai/Powermaster Optimus Prime weren't the best pieces. They all had mediocre detail and ok articulation. Still, this version of Convoy splits into two jet planes, merges into a giant jet, then transforms into a super-robot possessing a monster sword. Cooool.
2. Optimal Optimus- Beast Wars. What always bothered me about the Beast Wars versions of Optimus is it's just a gorilla that turned into a robot. Not very impossing. Finally, we get a fully armed, nasty version of Optimus; multiple transformations, great weapons, and best of all, this thing is huge.
3. Star Convoy. One of THE hardest pieces to find. Apparently, the umpteenth version of the Transformers was going to be released, with lots of fan-fare, toys, blah, blah, blah. Takara had a toy-line ready, and even released a few pieces, but the cartoon never came out. The line was canceled, but not before this giant version of Convoy saw very limited release. Not only did this transform from giant robot to city/headquarters to truck/trailer, but this also included a miniature version of Hot Rod as the pilot.
4. Super Fire Convoy- Transformers, Car Robots/2000. Just when it seemed like Convoy's run had come to an end, Takara busted out this awesome version of Optimus/Convoy. Ok, so the fire engine motif is rather 'eh.' However, the detailed sculpting, outstanding articulation, multiple transformations, and HUGE super-robot mode help this piece to rock on... and on.... and on.