Jazz was one of the first wave in the original Generation 1 lineup. While having several iterations throughout the years, Takara is again readying a reissue of the first Jazz to compliment the Encore series in 2008. This article will give some background on Jazz, as well as the figures released in relation to the G1 figure and how the Encore series may affect the value of the original.
History
Jazz began life like many other Transformers of 1984, which is as a Diaclone. His Alt mode was a Porsche 935 Racing car with Martini sponsorship. He sported the #4 on his doors and on his hood. Jazz was one of the few figures to make it to the US virtually unchanged. He was released as the first wave of Hasbro's Transformers lineup, with his US patent filed in March 1984.
Jazz, as related to the animated series on TV, was originally Optimus Prime's #2 bot, heading the Special Ops unit. Jazz would be the one to organize battle parties and to rally the troops for a mission. He also had a built-in winch in his right hand that he could retract and use. As time wore on, Jazz was seen less as a field commander and more of a music-loving and laid back warrior. Perhaps this is due to his assimilation of earth culture. One special feature he did have later on in the series was some high powered speakers that were fabricated and installed by Sparkplug Witwicky. He was also able to give a blinding light show that disrupted most Transformer's optics.
Jazz was also seen in TF:TM, stationed on Moonbase 1. He and Cliffjumper were swallowed by Unicron and were later rescued by Daniel Witwicky. Although Jazz made some cameo appearances in Season 3, he never had a speaking role after the movie. This was due to the passing of his voiceover actor, Benjamin “Scatman” Crothers. Scatman had been known for other popular voiceovers, including Hong Kong Phooey and Nate Branch (Super Globetrotters). He was also a songwriter and music artist. However, he ended up losing a battle with lung cancer in 1986. He was 76yrs old.
In the Marvel Universe, Jazz had a harder life. He suffered brain damage, was turned into a mindless zombie by Galvatron and ended up being deactivated in the Underbase Battle with Starscream. However, medic Ratchet was able to reconfigure him and turned him into a Pretender along with Grimlock and Bumblebee. While on Cybertron, he was part of the party responsible for awakening Primus and leading Unicron to Cybertron.
Figures
As mentioned above, Jazz first was issued in 1983 as a Diaclone by Takara in Japan. Hasbro acquired the license from Takara and brought him to the US in 1984. When Transformers was officially released in Japan, Jazz was known as Meister (Takara Issue C-06), which is German for “master”. In 1987, Jazz was recolored as a Targetmaster known as the Autobot Stepper (Takara Issue C-109) and was partnered with the Neublan named Nightstick, who curiously was originally partnered with Cyclonus. Jazz was released as a remolded Pretender in 1989 and had the pretender shell that resembled a human. In 1990, Jazz was redone as an Actionmaster and was paired with a skateboard that could transform into a laser blaster. Finally, in 1993, Jazz was retooled as part of the Generation 2 release. Curiously, his #4 became a #1 for the G2 series.
For awhile after this, Jazz wasn't seen in the TF universe. However, he resurfaced in 2003 when Takara reissued a select number of Transformers for their 20th Anniversary “commemorative series”. Jazz was part of Issue III that was released in April 2003. Toys R Us also reissued Jazz about this time. However, due to the name Jazz being trademarked by PepsiCo for a line of soft drink, he was named after his Japanese counterpart, Meister.
Shortly after, in 2004, Meister appeared again in the Alternators line. Originally to be a Porsche 986 (5th generation 911), he was given the alt mode of the Mazda RX-8 due to Porsche's refusal to be involved with Transformers do to it's “warlike nature”. Interesting to note that the original name for the RX-8 mold was to be Camshaft. This, however, ended up being used as a repaint of the Acura RSX mold. Although Alternator Meister did not sport any racing sponsorships or numbers, Reprolabels offers a kit that can be used to do just that.
Around the same time, Takara released Jazz's orignal 935 form as part of it's Worlds Smallest Transformers lineup. Although not a rolling model, it was nonetheless faithful to the original design. There was also the tribute to Jazz at KB Toys, using the RiD Spychanger HotShot for Jazz. Jazz is still being reissued to this day. His latest form is with his Alternators figure as a 3” die cast figurine in the Titanium series.
Trading History
When Jazz was released in 1984, he was originally retailed at $15. As Jazz was a fan favorite of many, his eBay prices were usually at a high command. It was difficult to find an immaculate Jazz, as the chrome feet usually wore and was damaged by the elements of time. There was a time where a complete Jazz with all accessories could command a price of $80 or more. A sealed and mint box containing Jazz could skyrocket the value to $250 or more.
With the recent announcement of Takara's Encore release of Jazz, the playing field has changed. Pricing can be all over for this figure. For as little as $20 on average, you can have a decent
Jazz with all accessories. However, you can have an AFA grade Jazz if you're willing to spend upwards of $300 or more. The Encore figure, to be released in March of 2008, will be priced at $35.
