Warning: watching this G-Shock X Transformers promotional video may cause watch lovers of a particular age to wet their pants. Casio has confirmed to aBlogtoWatch that the G-Shock X Transformers Optimus Prime “set” that includes a bespoke transforming toy plus G-Shock watch will only be available (officially that is) in Japan. It comes out on December 8, 2018, and is likely to be as hard to get as any hot toy which is debuted during the holiday season. Only rather than kids getting these Transformers, it will likely be us “bigger kids” who gobble up these rather wonderful creations.
Casio states that the emphasis of the reference DW-6900TF-SET is to jointly celebrate the 35th anniversary of G-Shock as well as the 35th anniversary of Transformers – both staples of 1980s pop culture that have endured surprisingly well today. Perhaps more fitting is that the people who created G-Shock, as well as the engineers and designers who continue to improve upon them today, are all fans of Transformers and the legacy of futuristic Japanese cartoons and animation which so many people around the world have fallen in love with. I wrote about this more here after visiting Casio’s prestigious watch factory in Japan. Just look at the design of many G-Shock timepieces and it doesn’t require much imagination to see where anime and other Japanese pop culture influence has made a real mark on the world’s most popular sports watch.
The Casio DW-6900TF-SET includes the reference DW-6900TF-4 wristwatch as well as a Master Optimus Prime transforming robot toy. Like all good Transformers, this toy goes from an Optimus Prime figurine into something else. Rather than a big rig truck, here Master Optimus Prime turns into a presentation base (pedestal mode) for the watch. Further, there is a detachable “shield” that goes over the watch which allows the toy to look like your standard fun Autobot or a really neat frame for a G-Shock timepiece. Just check out the images of the various forms the toy and watch set can come in. It has been a while since I’ve really gotten down and dirty with some action figures but this G-Shock X Transformers toy makes me seriously consider spending a few days in a pre-adolescent mindset.
Casio chose to use a base G-Shock DW6900 collection timepiece for this toy plus watch set. The DW6900 is a classic and still a great watch, but for enthusiasts has been overshadowed to a degree by a slew of much fancier G-Shock watches that could easily be considered more modern. Casio did a nice job with the reference DW-6900TF-4 watch in regard to the Optimus Prime colors and Autobots logo on the dial. With that said, I do sort of wish Casio experimented a bit more with making special edition versions of some of their more modern/fancier watches. A lot of G-Shock collectors love stuff like this, but also agree that there are only so many DW6900 watches they can have in their collection. While the G-Shock X Transformers set is fantastic, I do hope that in the future Casio will select some other G-Shock watches as the base for these lovely collaborations.
Price for the G-Shock X Transformers set isn’t too bad if you consider that it includes a limited production timepiece as well as a complicated toy. The official retail price is ¥29,000, which is about $255 USD at current exchange rates. Good luck getting one though (or at that price). Learn more from Casio Japan here