peaugh is doing videos on all of them this week, and honestly they don't look very good to me. Very flappy and fiddly, with fairly unimpressive robot modes and an undersized super robot mode in comparison to other third party efforts as of late. FansProject's Stunticons had similar issues, but I love the Stunticons so I was willing to look past it with them; I have no such love for the Technobots, so it's more of a turnoff here. Between that and how unimpressed I was by Maketoys' Giant, I'm probably going to wait for Warbotron's take on the Technobots for a properly huge Computron and better looking individual robots.
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Transformers |OT| Transform and roll out...
- Thread starter Mike M
- Start date
peaugh is doing videos on all of them this week, and honestly they don't look very good to me. Very flappy and fiddly, with fairly unimpressive robot modes and an undersized super robot mode in comparison to other third party efforts as of late. FansProject's Stunticons had similar issues, but I love the Stunticons so I was willing to look past it with them; I have no such love for the Technobots, so it's more of a turnoff here. Between that and how unimpressed I was by Maketoys' Giant, I'm probably going to wait for Warbotron's take on the Technobots for a properly huge Computron and better looking individual robots.
HammerOfThor
Member
I want to but I didn't buy my ticket yet. I'll probably swing by at 8am Sat. and if I can get a ticket by 9:30am at the latest and enter I'll do so. I really just want a few things.
BattleMonkey
Member
The size isn't bad for me, it's about on par with the Menasar and Giant which I both liked and think look better than the Hercules.
I did see a review video of it and the one thing I didn't like was that it seems pretty complex and hard to transform. Some of the stuff looked like it was pretty tight and could easily break. I felt same with the Menasar as well, lot of those stunticon parts jsut felt ripe to break.
GuyKazama
Member
I got mine today and I'm happy with it. Mostly bought because he's a good match with Giant, and I was really impressed with Giant's individual modes. Quality matches up well with Giant and there's a lot of great detail. I haven't tried the alt modes yet -- transformation is a bit tricky and pretty complicated -- it took me 2 hours to go from robots to Quantron. But he's more impressive in person than I expected.
Outside of Motormaster's waist hinge I didn't feel too worried about the Stunticons, they were mostly just really fiddly about getting all their panels lined up and pegged together. Watching peaugh's videos of Quantron I am just constantly reminded of how much I hated the individual robots of Giant and how much they pulled the "exploding robot pieces around central hinge fit together like a goddamn puzzle into the other mode" routine. Scrapper and Long Haul in particular were incredibly annoying. I keep Giant on my computer desk in combined mode, because I do like the beefy look he has, even if he doesn't fit in with my other combiners scale-wise (Hercules with the add-on kit is so much better looking among the official Classics it's not even funny) and he will probably never be split up into his components ever again.
So while I can overlook some similar annoyances with the Stunticons because they were one of my favorite subgroups back in the day, my lack of nostalgia for the Technobots means I'm just going to go for the biggest and coolest looking third party set, which seems to be Warbotron's at this point. I'm really hoping someone does a decent Defensor soon, since TFC's take on them is very disappointing so far.
BattleMonkey
Member
Might hold off on Quantron for a while. Any input on TFCs Uranos?
I really like their jet modes, but the combined mode is super fiddly and Silverbolt's hips are on weird ratchets that only allow straight vertical or almost 45 degree leg posing. You have to really finesse it to get any kind of normal looking "standing" pose, or you can open up Silverbolt's hips and remove the ratchet mechanism, and the joints are still strong enough to hold the super robot up. It's just extra work. Similarly, some of the limb robots (mainly Fireflight and Air Raid) may lack lubrication in their hip joints, requiring you to open them up and add a couple drops to prevent friction damage. Combined mode also doesn't really look like Superion unless you get the Wing of Uranos add-on kit that includes a G1-style chest and mouthplate for him.
As a huge fan of jet fighters, I feel like I got my money's worth due to the size and quality of the limbs' alt modes, and with enough time put in Superion is certainly passable, but of the six third party combiners I have, he is certainly the one I've had to work hardest to love. If you like the Aerialbots for their alt modes and individual robot modes, Uranos is a good deal, but if you just want a new combined robot for the shelf, expect to have to meet this one halfway and make improvements yourself. I think it's entirely fair to say that some people would expect more from figures that cost as much as they do.
LocknessMobster
Member
For those wanting a updated MP Skywarp heres good news,pricey tho
LINK: http://www.bigbadtoystore.com/bbts/product.aspx?product=TAK12001&mode=retail
Also a 3rd party MP Megatron is in the works
LINK: http://www.bigbadtoystore.com/bbts/product.aspx?product=TAK12001&mode=retail
Also a 3rd party MP Megatron is in the works
Yeah. I like that htey're meatier than the MP version's legs but they're also shorter and make him look stubbier.
BattleMonkey
Member
Think it shows that it's not really possible to make a realistic looking Megatron without it's gun mode being totally goofy sized. The MP had to make the legs super skinny to make the gun mode manageable, when you beef em up, it doesn't really work.
Think the proportions look fine, could be little longer in the bottom portion of the legs I think but it seems it would then be out of scale with the MP prime
Think the proportions look fine, could be little longer in the bottom portion of the legs I think but it seems it would then be out of scale with the MP prime
HammerOfThor
Member
As long as the QC on that Megatron is good I'll pick it up.
A different company also announced a triple changer Megatron that turns into a gun and tank, but I can't find the images for it
A different company also announced a triple changer Megatron that turns into a gun and tank, but I can't find the images for it
HammerOfThor
Member
Out of curiosity, who are you in relation to TFcon?
I went Sat and Sun...finally got a Mania King and Hegemon along with few other figures like MP10 Hasbro Asia reissue and a 3rd party RC.
I really hope it comes back to Chicago next year! It was like I was 12 again and it was amazing. Seeing boxed G2 and Beast Wars brought back some awesome memories!
I'd love to know what this is as well.
Head of staff. Only one guy above me, the head organizer/funds sponsor.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CPhqJNNfEvA (Daniel "Protoman" Arseneault)
HammerOfThor
Member
Holy shit man that's awesome!
Well if your back in Chicago next year and need some help gimme a shout
Junior Asparagus
Member
Hmm, to order a Masterpiece Bumblebee or wait and see if Hasbro puts it out in the US...
Holy shit man that's awesome!
Well if your back in Chicago next year and need some help gimme a shout
Let's just say due to Botcon's recent "power move" we are talking about all kinds of things every second day.
Stay tuned.
Wait it out, it never hurts to wait 3-5 months to see what happens. The days of after market 300-500 MP Grimlocks are over.
I wouldn't agree with this. TRU's distribution on MPs is still piss poor, and you are never guaranteed to find a non-Seeker in the wild without dedicating some serious time to it. I have seen exactly one MP Prowl in any TRU, and never saw a Grimlock even once. Considering how ridiculously overpriced the Hasbro MP cars are, importing a Takara Bumblebee is probably only going to be about $10 more than buying it at TRU anyway, and you can preorder a Takara one without worrying about TRU's lack of stock or preorder system screwing you over. Yeah, MP Bumblebee will probably still be in stock later, but why wait when a Hasbro release is just going to be exponentially more trouble and not cheap enough to justify the extra effort?
BattleMonkey
Member
Want a MP, just preorderone from a site like TFsource or something. The US masterpiece prices are just going up too, its kinda not worth waiting anymore.
itchy. tasty
Member
Bah-weep-graaaaagnah wheep nini bong?
HammerOfThor
Member
What was their "power move"? Sorry I'm not really up to date on these lol
artorias the abysswalker
Member
reeeeeeeeeeeeeally upset with how expensive that new Skywarp is...UG. I really want that new mould to go with his seeker brothers, Thundercracker and Coronation Starscream...but that price...I would have to ebay my old Skywarp to try and offset some of the cost, any takers??
Open, but I still have the box and all accessories!
Open, but I still have the box and all accessories!
Junior Asparagus
Member
I actually got my MP Grimlock from a TRU.
Right now I have MP-03 Greenscream, MP-05 Megatron, MP-11 New mold Starscream imported from Japan. I also have Hasbro 20th Anniversary Prime (battle damage, short stacks), Grimlock, and Soundwave all from TRU.
Would like to get Bumblebee even though I don't love how it looks. Just gotta decide whether to order an import or wait and see if it's released here.
Right now I have MP-03 Greenscream, MP-05 Megatron, MP-11 New mold Starscream imported from Japan. I also have Hasbro 20th Anniversary Prime (battle damage, short stacks), Grimlock, and Soundwave all from TRU.
Would like to get Bumblebee even though I don't love how it looks. Just gotta decide whether to order an import or wait and see if it's released here.
BattleMonkey
Member
Yea the price is ridiculous, no idea why it's so high. Coronation Starscream goes for about as much and that has extra accessories.
You are talking as if you rely on US releases to get your Masterpiece toys.
The likes of Prowl in his Japanese release can be bought at TFcon or Botcon for 60-70 bucks easy instead Toys R Us prices of $69.99 plus any local taxes and your gas of you driving around like a nut case (Not to mention, the Japanese releases always are a little nicer)
They got worried about TFcon being in the USA and having big attendance and guest lists so they sent one of their head of staff to TFcon, announced that Botcon was going to be in Chicago next year and started to hand out flyers with the dates and information.
More or less they are trying to keep TFcon from returning to that location (Cause it would be silly to have 2 Transformers conventions in the same location and in the summer).
Let's just say we have to meditate on this one and think up our next move
HammerOfThor
Member
Well I hope what doesn't stop you guys from coming back next year. I mean, we get to comic conventions, Wizard World and C2E2
On a toy related note Mania King is fucking amazing.
It's a release being done by Hasbro Asia, who's known for doing low-run, collector focused, but stupidly high price items. It was the same way with the re-release of Energon Bruitcus in G1 colors, the reissue of Movie 1 Leader Brawl or any of the classic re-issue multipacks. The price will be around the same MSRP as the other seekers if Takara or Hasbro US ever gets their asses in gear and finish the set.
Er, no I'm not. I'm specifically disagreeing with the notion that it's worth waiting around to see if a Hasbro release happens rather than just buying the Takara versions when they're released. The US MP distribution is so sketchy that it's never worth the extra effort and gas money in comparison to the Japanese releases, except possibly in the case of Soundwave coming with all the tapes.
That's pretty much what I said, although I disagree that the Japanese releases are nicer. Aside from Takara Soundwave having the proper red eyes, recent MP releases have been identical on both sides of the ocean. And should Sideswipe get a Hasbro release, hopefully they'll be a little better about the paint QA than Takara was. I buy the Takara releases specifically because I don't trust Hasbro/TRU to allow me to buy one in a reasonable manner, not because they're somehow better than the domestic versions.
Soundwave is the only exception to the rule due to value, you get 5 cassettes AND Soundwave of equal quality as a way cheaper price then the base 21,000 yen ($240) that Takara Soundwave gave with only Laserbeak, but mind you....... the visor color could be seen as a snag for some.
Outside of that, I can't really find a Hasbro release that was better then the Takara counterpart
Barrow Roll
Member
Well at the time I think many would argue that this:
was better than this:
Of course Japan eventually got it as a USA Edition, but it's moot now.
Also, a lot of people prefer the lighter blue and the eyes on Hasbro's MP-10 Prime.
HammerOfThor
Member
WTF Takara released that as Starscream?
Yeah. They gave the designer a lot of freedom and he decided that Starscream's old colorscheme wasn't good.
Actually the Hasbro version have "weathering" and battle damage, the Takara USA version was the straight up good one with G1, then of course we got the better Takara version after with cape and crown.
Barrow Roll
Member
Both of them had weathering, the USA edition just didn't have it as heavily. Still, at the time of the Hasbro versions release, it was more preferable than Takara's, and the USA edition likely only came out as a result of the Hasbro release. I agree for the most part that Hasbro's MPs have been a weaker showing, I hate pretty much every other deco they've put on their Seekers. But then you've got Grimlock which is so similar in many respects and even comes with crown that was only available in King Grimlock set, and from what I understand Prowl is nearly identical to Takara's release. Of course their Soundwave release was a much better value proposition that Takara's. Gotta give Hasbro their dues when they do right.
TangoAlphaLima
Member
You clearly aren't factoring in Toys R Us discounts. I used a 20% off coupon on MP10 and got him for $80 (before they increased regular price from $100 to $120), used a $100 gift card I bought for $80 on Grimlock, used a 20% off coupon on Prowl, and ponied up full retail for Soundwave, but that was already a great value at $140. Also, except for Soundwave, they were all easy enough to find, and are often available briefly at toysrus.com.
A rare exception, because I doubt a lot of those listed were even seen by people in retail before being scalped (MP-10 and Soundwave come to mind)
Barrow Roll
Member
The MP situation in Vancouver, BC:
The MP situation in Vancouver, BC:
Fucker >: (
BattleMonkey
Member
wtf
artorias the abysswalker
Member
omg...that hope...please happen...would love Hasbro or someone to release it stateside like Thundercracker and allow me to buy it for like $80!
The MP situation in Vancouver, BC:
Holy shit. Fucking Scalpers, man.
The MP situation in Vancouver, BC:
Ugh. Fuck these people.
Tizoc
Member
Man the latest issue of More than meets the eyes once again solidifies it as my fav. comic ever.
You can see how 1984 inspired the ideas Roberts' is incorporating in his run
The last page is interesting
You can see how 1984 inspired the ideas Roberts' is incorporating in his run
like Trepan attempting to alter Megs' thoughts
could Brainstorm have had a hand in proofreading, etc. of Megs' books?
Scalping only happens if people then are willing to pay his upselling.
But if you let him choke on his $120 per unit investment, he won't ever do it again.
Problem is.................. too many people don't listen to that advice.
I really wonder what Brainstorm's deal is.
Yeah, and not just in the Transformers figure scene. But the problem doesn't seem as endemic as in the transformers scene, probably because in other high-end figure scenes such as SOC it would be too expensive for a person to have the figures shipped to them as they're difficult to get a hold of in the US and the risk would be insane to just buy dozens of figures including their shipping.