Transformers: The Headmasters

Transformers: The Headmasters (トランスフォーマー ザ★ヘッドマスターズ) is a Japanese anime television series.

Development
Inititally, Takara, the Japanese producers of the Transformers toyline, imported the American Transformers cartoon series from 1985 to 1986. When the series came to an end with the three-part miniseries "The Rebirth" in 1987, however, Takara decided to continue the series themselves, declining to import The Rebirth and instead creating a full-length 35-episode spin-off series, Transformers: The Headmasters (two additional clips episodes were produced after the fact for direct-to-video release). Supplanting The Rebirth's position in Japanese continuity, The Headmasters occurred one year after The Return of Optimus Prime, introducing the titular characters to the Transformers universe in a different way. Whereas in western fiction, the Headmasters result from the merging of a Transformer with an organic alien being from the planet Nebulos, the Headmasters of the Japanese series are a group of small Cybertronians who departed the planet millions of years ago and crash-landed on the inhospitable planet Master. To survive its harsh climate, a select few Cybertronians constructed larger bodies called "Transtectors", to which they connected as the heads.

Story
Six years after the decisive battle against Unicron, when a group of rebellious Headmasters led by Weirdwolf joined with Galvatron's Decepticons in an attack on Cybertron, the Autobot Headmasters, led by Fortress return to their home planet to aid in its defense. The situation soon gets worse when it is revealed that Vector Sigma, the super-computer at the planet's heart, was destabilizing, and Optimus Prime again sacrifices his life to save Cybertron. This soon proves to be only delaying the inevitable, however, when a bomb attack instigated by Scorponok turns Cybertron into a burnt-out, inhospitable husk. Rodimus Prime departs to search for a new planet for the Transformers to live on, leaving Fortress in command, operating from the planet Athenia. Meanwhile, Scorponok replaces Galvatron - who had vanished in the explosion - as Decepticon leader, constructing a personal Transtector so that he can battle Fortress's own giant form, Fortress Maximus, and redubbing himself MegaZarak.

Although populated mainly with new characters, The Headmasters featured characters from all previous seasons, including new versions of Soundwave and Blaster, rebuilt after a duel that destroyed them both as Soundblaster and Twincast. Human Daniel Witwicky and his young Autobot friend Wheelie also played major roles in the series, serving as the youthful characters for the audience to identify with. More new characters were introduced when Galvatron returned to leadership and the Decepticons embarked on a space voyage, ransacking planets in a chain of stories that introduced the Horrorcons, Autobot and Decepticon Clones. Later, the Decepticon ninja six-changer Sixshot kill Ultra Magnus, and the Autobot Headmasters finish off Galvatron. When the Decepticons then return to Master, refugees from the planet are caught in a plasma bomb accident that fuses them to the arms of several Autobots and Decepticons, creating the Targetmasters, and in a final move, Scorponok attempts the destruction of Earth, only to be foiled, thanks in part to a traitorous Sixshot.

Episodes

 * 1) Four Warriors Come Out of the Sky
 * 2) The Mystery of Planet Master
 * 3) A Dream is Born, Double Prime
 * 4) Operation: Cassette
 * 5) Rebellion on Planet Beast
 * 6) Approach of the Demon Meteorite
 * 7) The Four-Million-Year-Old Veil of Mystery
 * 8) Terror! The Six Shadows
 * 9) Cybertron Is in Grave Danger, Part 1
 * 10) Cybertron Is in Grave Danger, Part 2
 * 11) The Shadow Emperor, Scorponok
 * 12) The Dormant Volcano Mysteriously Erupts
 * 13) Head On!! Fortress Maximus
 * 14) Explosion on Mars!! Maximus Is in Danger
 * 15) Explosion on Mars!! MegaZarak Appears
 * 16) Return of the Immortal Emperor
 * 17) SOS from Planet Sandra
 * 18) Daniel Faces His Biggest Crisis Ever!!
 * 19) Fight to the Death on Planet Hive!!
 * 20) Battle for Defense of the False Planet
 * 21) Find MegaZarak's Weak Spot!!
 * 22) Head Formation of Friendship
 * 23) Mystery of the Space Pirate Ship
 * 24) Ultra Magnus Dies!!
 * 25) The Emperor of Destruction Vanishes on an Iceberg
 * 26) I Risk My Life for Earth
 * 27) Miraculous Warriors, Targetmasters, Part 1
 * 28) Miraculous Warriors, Targetmasters, Part 2
 * 29) The Master Sword Is in Danger!!
 * 30) The Zarak Shield Turns the Tide
 * 31) Operation: Destroy the Decepticons
 * 32) My Friend Sixshot!
 * 33) Duel on the Asteroid
 * 34) The Final Showdown on Earth, Part 1
 * 35) The Final Showdown on Earth, Part 2
 * 36) Heroic Legend: Optimus Prime vs. Megatron!
 * 37) Heroic Legend: 2010 Wars
 * 38) Heroic Legend: Head On! Master Warriors

Adaptations
Not professionally released in the United States until July 2011, The Headmasters was dubbed into English in Hong Kong for broadcast on the Malaysian TV channel, RTM1, and later the Singapore satellite station, StarTV, where it attained greater fame, leading it to often be referred to as the "StarTV dub". The dub is, however, infamous for its poor quality, full of mistranslations and incorrect names (Blaster becomes "Billy", Blurr becomes known as "Wally", Hot Rod is "Rodimus Prime", the Matrix becomes "the Power Pack", Spike is "Sparkle", Soundblaster is "New Soundwave", Metroplex is called "Phillip", and Fortress Maximus is known as "Spaceship Bruce"), and stilted dialog such as "I'll send you express to hell", and "Fortress Maximus has come himself". This dub has seen some DVD releases in the United Kingdom, and the entire series was released in a dual-language format on 26 September 2005. The series was broadcasted on the British Television channel AnimeCentral from September 13, 2007. The full series was released on DVD in North America by Shout! Factory on July 5, 2011, without the English dub.