In the summer of 2003, Hasbro decided to do something a little different. Alongside the mainstream Transformers toy line of the time, they also started up an all-repaint toyline called Transformers: Universe. But this was more than just a superfluous set of repaint toys made to fatten their pocketbooks a little- this repaint toyline had a storyline behind it. An indepth, mature storyline aimed at long-time Transformers fans who wanted to find out what the heck happened in the "original" Transformers canon after Beast Machines. Robots in Disguise and Armada was all well and good, but fans wanted to know if Beast Machines was indeed the end, or..?
Well, it turns out Beast Machines is NOT the end. Backed by a quarterly OTFCC-backed comic book and a CD included with the toys, Transformers: Universe tells of a tale after Beast Machines, in which all the different past universes, genres, and timelines of Transformers history converge on a single prominent figure- UNICRON. Following a rich backstory, Universe became the official canon of OTFCC before the convention's demise in 2005. Also, many of the name re-uses ARE the original characters they were before, and not just name reuses because Hasbro was too lazy to come up with new ones- Silverbolt is SILVERBOLT, Tankor is TANKOR, etc.
As for the "universal line gimmick", Hasbro needed something that wouldn't depend on whether the Transformer was vehicle or beast, technorganic or mechanical, G1-styled or Beast Wars-styled. The answer? Make the "gimmick" the paint applications! All Universe figures all have "energon radiation" patterns on them, which are essentially multi-layered paint apps that cut a jagged line through a part of the figure. And they look VERY beautiful. Kudos to whoever came up with that idea. (Well, except for the TFs who have realistic vehicle alt modes. For some reason, they don't seem to have the radiation patterns...)
After petering down to just a few store-exclusive toys a year, Universe finally saw its last release in late 2006, with the KB Toys Exclusive Micromaster Aerialbots.

(NOTE: All OTFCC Exclusives under the "Transformers: Universe" banner are still reviewed in the OTFCC Exclusive section, not here.)
 

Autobots

Air Raid
Autobot Ratchet
Autobot Whirl w/ Makeshift & Gunbarrel
Crystal Widow (K-Mart Exclusive)
Defensor Combiner Set (Micromasters; KB Toys Exclusives)
Depthcharge
Dinobot Striker
Dinobot Triceradon
Downshift (KB Toys Exclusive)
Fireflight w/ Firebot & Thunderwing
Inferno
King Atlas
Longhorn
Magna Stampede & Stockade w/ Prowl & Terradive
Night Slash Cheetor
Optimus Primal
Optimus Prime (Super; Sam's Club Exclusive)
Optimus Prime (Basic) w/ Prowl Spychanger (Wal-Mart Exclusive)
Prowl (Deluxe) (Wal-Mart Exclusive)
Rail Racer Combiner Set (Micromasters; KB Toys Exclusives)
Repugnus (Target Exclusive)
Side Burn (Wal-Mart Exclusive)
Silverbolt
Skydive
Smokescreen w/ Liftor (Secondary Retailer Exclusive)
Snarl
Superion Combiner Set (Micromasters; KB Toys Exclusives)
Swerve w/ Roadhandler
Ultra Magnus (Super; Sam's Club Exclusive)
Ultra Magnus (Basic) w/ Ironhide Spychanger (Wal-Mart Exclusive)
Ultra Magnus w/ Over-Run (Secondary Retailer Exclusive)
 

Decepticons

Blackarachnia
Blastcharge
Bonecrusher & Scavenger (with review of Constructicon Devastator; Target Exclusive)
Constructicon Devastator Combiner Set (Micromasters; KB Toys Exclusive)
Frostbite
Long Haul & Hightower
Nemesis Prime (Target Exclusive)
Nemesis Strika
Oil Slick w/ Robot Drone (K-Mart Exclusive)
Overbite (Target Exclusive)
Ramjet w/ Thunderclash and Air Military Minicon Team (Toys "R" Us Exclusive)
Ransack w/ Refute (Secondary Retailer Exclusive)
Razorclaw
Reptilion
Ruination Giftset (Wal-Mart Exclusive)
Skywarp
Snow Cat (KB Toys Exclusive)*
Soundwave & Space Case
Sunstorm w/ Inferno and Street Action Minicon Team (Wal-Mart Exclusive)
Tankor & Obsidian
Treadshot w/ Nightbeat (Secondary Retailer Exclusive)
Wind Sheer
 

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