Transformers Generation 2 continues to give up its secrets as, slowly, collectors unearth more unreleased prototypes and mock-ups of items previously only seen in artwork or mentioned as legend. The G2 Stunticons and Protectobots probably remain the most desireable and recogniseable toys of such description as they were moulded in unreleased colours. But there exist mock-ups such as the yellow/turquoise "Sunset" Sideswipe, "Black Death" Starscream and the Desert-Camo Ramjet which only made it as far as the hand-painted mock-up stage. This G2 Mirage in unreleased green/pink colours belongs to this latter category of G2 mock-up prototypes.

This bright and garish colour scheme, hand-painted over a broken G1 Mirage figure, fits in perfectly with the huge departure from realistically-coloured vehicles for which G2 is well known. Fluorescent pink and bright green paint adorn all of Mirage's prominent surfaces making this concept hugely different from the original purpose of this mould, a Diaclone and later Transformers G1 depiction of the Ligier JS-11 Formula 1 car from the very late 70s.

Credit must be given to the mould, though, as even in such jarring colours it still summons the eye and makes for a stunning spectacle. The chrome front wing, wheels, vents and engine stand in stark contrast to the bright livery, but ultimately add to the overall look of the piece. Even in such a plain and undecorated state, can you really take your eyes off it? Does it even need to be embellished?

While it seems that storage and the passage of time have unfortunately taken their toll on this gem of a discovery, with paint chips evident on many parts of the figure, the brilliance of the chrome suggests that most if not all of the damage and wear endured by this G2 Mirage occured very early on in its life.

Recent or otherwise, the aforementioned damage and wear is quite considerable. In addition to the chipped and worn paint in significant areas of friction and contact, this figure suffers from that perennial Mirage problem, the snapped waist. In addition to that, the trailing edge of the left-hand sidepod has snapped off too.

While the waist snap has enough paint on it for me to believe it could have been painted after the damage, the area where the missing edge of the sidepod would have connected to the body is blue, leading me to the conclusion that it broke after painting. Clearly it is a G1 Mirage underneath, evidenced by flashes of blue visible beneath the green. Beyond that, the chrome spolier/rear wing pieces are missing also, if indeed they were ever present.

In future, the 50 ISK (Icelandic Krona) coin I used to support and help hold the two sections of this G2 Mirage together may end up being as rare as the figure itself, but for the time being it allowed for some half-decent photography.

Here are some close-ups of various details of the G2 Mirage mock-up:

Notice the cracked rubber on the tyres and the paint wear where the suspension arms rub against Mirage's chest/monocoque. It is genuinely difficult to get over the colours on this piece, even 4 years after I first saw it.

No Cybertronian Radials here, only Goodyear rubber on Mirage's rear boots. You can see the one remaining unbroken trailing sidepod edge in this shot and the paint wear on the spolier pegs.

Featuring some detailing where the original Diaclone and G1 offering did not, the G2 Mirage has a painted windshield on the cockpit section. The chrome vents are also visible here, and I'm so glad the designers decided to maintain most of the chrome sections of this mould instead of painting over all of them.

Again, thankfully the chrome engine sections have been left untouched on G2 Mirage, but you'll notice the drilled hole in the rollhoop where his handgun would have attached in vehicle mode, a feature more aggressively pursued in G2 than in early G1.

That wraps up all of the standout features of G2 Mirage's vehicle mode. As beautiful as it is, as undoubtedly special an item the G2 Mirage happens to be, it cannot be denied that the visible and inescapable damage experienced by this precious specimen has affected its displayability in vehicle mode. It desperately needs the spoiler pieces and some kind of fix for the waist breakage in order to hold together correctly.

So, what long-buried secrets does the robot mode hold?

For a start, due to the nature and haste of the paint application on this specimen (not to mention the waist issue), "transformation" is probably not the most accurate term to use. I almost had to simply stand the vehicle up on its rear just to refer to it as a robot. Exercising the necessary caution when dealing with an item as delicate as this means that full transformation may never be possible. Many sections appeared painted shut and were simply inaccessible or inseparable. Even if stupidity strikes and you decide to force joints and panels apart, you'll soon be sitting in a puddle of paint chips and your own tears.

As a brief aside, you may have noticed the copyright being visible from underneath. Now, originally the Ligier mould had a "TAKARA JAPAN" in-circle stamping (with the patent pending), then Takara with dates, with Takara + Hasbro + dates following that. This Mirage stamping with the "Japan" section blocked out indicates a very late mould. That's not entirely surprising seeing as when this prototype would have been conceived. I'll have to look into whether any iteration of G1 Mirage ever shared the same stamping as this G2 mock-up or not (just imagine if this was originally a Mexican IGA Mirage...)

Do you remember that possible bout of stupidity I referred to just a little earlier? Well it took 4 years, but it finally struck. While photographing this Mirage for this article I had forgotten precisely what areas were inaccessible due to the paint and what actually was moveable or extendable. As a result, I managed to fully extend his left arm/shoulder out and immediately realised I had never done that before. I subsequently set about trying to get this mock-up into as respectable a robot mode as I possibly could, including unscrewing the panel above to coax the (painted) legs out of their home of the last 17 years.

Occasionally, prototypes like this are designed to be presented in one mode only, and a different mock-up used for its alternate mode. Sure they can be made to transform, but that's sometimes not the intention of the mock-up. In lieu of its robot mode counterpart (if there even was one), this specimen had to be pushed to transform.

There were creaks, squeaks and some awkward moments. The end result, I'm sure you'll agree, was rather worth it...

Quite incredible. You knew it was going to be pink and green, you knew there were chrome sections, you knew roughly what it looked like as a robot when you saw the underside of the vehicle mode. None of that prepared me for the sight of a fully transformed G2 Mirage. Missing chrome feet aside (easily remedied), this mould has always had excellent upper-body proportions with its wide shoulders and wing-like wheels. The thin legs are a slight departure from that upper-body physique, but the wide shins and lower section make up for it. A surprisingly successful blend of pink, green and generous amounts of chrome. It's suitably hideous and beautiful at the same time.

The top photograph in this above set has come out nicely, with the robot head a little shadowed, a certain sadness in its features due to the missing splendour of shiny chrome feet, a full array of weapons and of course the now-disguised waist damage. Can you imagine, with full paint application, all accessories and no wear...this would be quite the looker.

Some close-ups of standout robot mode features:

The robot head on this G2 Mirage could almost be the Sphinx! However, instead of an ancient hidden history buried beneath the surface, the real story and history here is the top layer of green paint. An almighty chip betrays the figure's origins, revealing yet more G1 blue underneath.

So, was this piece really intended as just a recoloured, gaudy, yet charming version of the much-loved Mirage character of G1 mythos, or was he supposed to be something else entirely? Possibly the only thing more shocking and jaw-dropping than the figure itself, the one thing that could top what must already have been a surprise for most, is this mock-up's prototype artwork...

Thanks to the Transformers Vault book this prototype finally has the widespread recognition it deserves. The original art is annotated with 'NEW "MIRAGE" '94' and signed by original Optimus Prime artist Jeffery Mangiat. The fact that prototype artwork was produced means that there must be more mock-ups of this unreleased toy out there somewhere with varying degrees of completion. Karl Hartman has also kindly provided me with the provisional assortment number for the G2 Mirage which would have been 80124, in the 80121 assortment. Look at the brand spanking new #188 designation, add into the mix the crocodile decals on the sidepod and scaly green skin on the robot shins, and what do you have? A genuine G2 Mirage concept? Swamp-Camo Mirage? Skullcruncher?!

That last possibility is a little too coincidental to ignore. Both figures share the rather signature and unmistakable green/pink motif, both are depicted as crocodiles or alligators...if nothing else, the G2 Mirage concept was surely directly inspired by G1 Skullcruncher.

Of course, we know that after Generation 1 "Mirage", this mould never saw further official release or reissue due to rumours of damaged moulds. Whether that had anything to do with the G2 concept for this mould never making it beyond the artwork stage is not known for sure, but since the Desert Camo Ramjet and Sunset Yellow/Turquoise Sideswipe never saw release despite fully operational moulds, the true reason for the concepts being buried probably lies more with the state of the Transformers franchise at the time and the direction Hasbro wanted to go with the toyline.

This fascinating relic is so very special as a a part of Transformers history. It is a glimpse into a possible direction the G2 line could have taken with existing G1 moulds and characters, and this figure is so very G2. The specimen itself has of course not aged particularly well, but while the damage has had an effect on its displayability, its charm remains completely undiminished. I've enjoyed every moment that I have spent in the company of this awe-inspiring item. It has been completely unforgettable, and with its newfound immortality secured in print, long may this figure remain so.

Anonymous credit goes to the provider of the picture of the original artwork found at the Allspark forums.

All the best
Maz