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M'Kyuun

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About M'Kyuun

  • Birthday 07/05/1971

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    mcquownw@hotmail.com

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  • Gender
    Male
  • Location
    Spokane, Wa
  • Interests
    Robots, especially those that transform; LEGO; sci-fi; well-engineered toys

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  1. M'Kyuun
    And for what, honestly, is not that good a figure, especially when compared to either the ER mold or SS86. I assume these are deluxe scaled, but if they're smaller, I'll stick with my far superior Magic Square fig, thanks.
  2. M'Kyuun
    I share your POV. While I can understand the others' POVs as well and can see how a bad movie or six can ruin a franchise for some, I tend to just block the offending entries out and concentrate on my enjoyment of those parts that I like. For some, I guess that's not possible, or at the very least, very difficult.
  3. M'Kyuun
    Regarding Alien 3, it wasn't a bad film, per se, just not a good follow up to the excellent Aliens. Aliens is still one of my all-time favorite sci-fi movies and no matter who did the sequel, even Cameron himself, it would have proven to be a hard act to follow. That said, killing off Hicks and Newt right from the start after establishing them both as great characters who you care about, and whose importance to Ripley can't be overstated, was a gut punch that irrevocably tarnishes the film from the beginning. Both characters deserved a far, far better story, and certainly a better ending. The Alien franchise began its downward trajectory from there, unfortunately, which is why I don't watch post-Aliens films or give them much thought. I can compartmentalize Alien and Aliens into their own box of greatness and leave the chaff to float away on the winds of forgetfulness. As to Star Wars, I'm still a fan of the OT- great films all, although I could have lived contentedly without Ewoks. IMHO, George f'd up the franchise with the terrible prequels [except for the fight with Maul, the awesome Duel of the Fates, the lovely Naboo N-1 fighter, the Vulture Droids (yay, official Star Wars transformers!), and the collective films' laying the groundwork for both Tartakovsky's and Filoni's Clone Wars cartoons, as well as Filoni's Rebels, Bad Batch, and The Mandalorian]. IMHO, while the prequels were trash, what they inspired colors my view of SW in a positive light. YMMV, of course, but I think those shows will stand the test of time and overshadow the films that inspired them. As to the post OT sequels, The Force Awakens is merely ok, but I'd rather they had stuck closer to Timothy Zahn's Heir to the Empire storyline. Rian Johnson threw a wrench in the whole works with his terrible The Last Jedi, and Abram's attempt to salvage the wreckage of the story he had planned for all three films culminated in the lackluster The Rise of Skywalker. It's hugely lamentable that Lucas didn't make the OT sequels throughout the 90s while the principal cast was still in their prime. Zahn had a good outline of events that would have complimented the OT well, IMHO, and it's a tragedy that Lucas didn't seize the opportunity and finish off his 9-part play back then with a far, far better story to give our heroes a better send off. Alas, what could've and should've been. As to Tron, IMHO, the Tron: Uprising cartoon stands superior to both live action sequels. It was well-written, the VAs did an excellent job bringing the characters to life, the continued underdog-vs-evil governance story that started with Tron continued the OG film's legacy, Tron himself became a bit dark and gritty, which only elevated the show's maturity and appeal. So much goodness, so naturally Disney cancelled what was, and will likely remain, the best part of the Tron franchise besides the OG film itself, after only one season. It deserved at least another, and I would have loved to have seen a continuation into a third. It's just a damned good show. Alas, what could've and should've been.
  4. M'Kyuun
    Responding, too, to @mechaninac and @Big s's posts, sequels generally don't erode the enjoyment I feel for the original films. Tron, of course, looks dated; that's an inescapable fact, but it's also part of its charm and I'm not bothered by it. Same goes for many 80s movies oozing with practical effects, many of which don't look so great to the modern eye. Perhaps I've a greater tolerance than most, but I can still enjoy a lot of pre-CG sci-fi and horror films (Tron takes the prize for being one of the first heavy-CG films from the 80s, along with The Last Starfighter). I have a great deal of respect for the practical effects artists that conjured up ways to make writers' and directors' words and visions come to fruition in a tangible fashion for filming. It's becoming a rarer art these days, but there are still directors who choose to use practical effects over CG whenever possible, and I think it makes a difference when seeing a real model as opposed to a CG creation, be it a ship, a creature, a miniature cityscape, what have you. Anyway, I hope someday you'll find your way back to the OG films without the bitterness of whatever company, director, studio, etc has done to sour your view of them and simply enjoy them for their merits.
  5. M'Kyuun
    I don't collect these-yet-but I have to say the amount of articulation and the sheer detail that Dr. Wu accomplished with this tiny figure is extraordinary. I'm far more into his cassettes, of which I hope there are many more, especially the main characters like Rumble Ravage, Laserbeak, etc. However, as you pointed out, this shows improvement over earlier figs and hopefully he'll revisit some of those earlier attempts with refined versions. Always a bit of a bummer when you're collecting a line and one toy really kinda stands out, like Star Shuttle, and your left feeling disappointed and wondering why the same attention and care isn't given to every single toy. That said, at that scale, a lot can be forgiven and I think Wu's still doing a good job on these guys overall. Bring on the Datsuns! I preordered Prowl and Kickback tonight, as I'm a sucker for Prowl, and the thought of having a toy that tiny that still transforms and has a fair bit of articulation is worth picking up. I'm still enamored with Newage's take, which is pretty small, but it'll positively dwarf Dr. Wu's.
  6. M'Kyuun
    My wife and I went to see Tron: Ares this past weekend. It was neither great nor terrible, but I found it an enjoyable escape. It told its own story within the Tron universe with some nice homages to the original film and the briefest of references to Legacy. The visuals were certainly beautiful, as one would expect following Legacy. The mid-credits scene makes me hope this does well enough to justify a sequel, as what it promises has more to do with legacy than Legacy.
  7. M'Kyuun
    Brawl and Blast Off were my only two orders this time. I'm not a big fan of their homegrown Junkions either, and IMHO, they wasted what could have otherwise been a good fig by reusing a Junkion mold for Animated Wreck-Gar. I have the OG toy, which is far superior than this wannabe.
  8. M'Kyuun
    Missed the preorder window with Pulse again, so I managed to get Blast Off and Brawl through Amazon. at least I get free shipping as a Prime member. If that Brawl leg/foot transformation is legit, that's an interesting way to go, especially since they're using the frame system. I'm not complaining as it's all-in-one engineering, which is unexpected from Takara/Hasbro considering the methodology for Menasor and Superion where the vehicles are essentially accoutrements and the feet are part of the frame. I don't mind their taking the Motormaster approach with Onslaught. Both depart from their G1 toys by splitting the trailers from their cabs, but Motormaster was well-executed, IMHO, and it makes sense to use the trailer as the frame for the combined mode. Thanks to a quick demo at the MCM London TF convention, there's confirmation that the trailer enjoys a bit of swivel which should be a requisite when it comes to Onslaught's long alt mode. So few companies work it in, so I'm glad Takara did it here, even if the arc of rotation is somewhat limited. With all of the Combaticons revealed, the team and Bruticus are shaping up to be some of the best AotP releases.
  9. M'Kyuun
    There certainly does seem to be an unsettling trend of one-upmanship with Fans Toys, and I'm sure they're all too aware that they have a devoted following that they're all too happy to exploit. For my part, while I own a number of their figures, I'm not a star-struck fanboy. Actually, I'm not a devotee of any particular company, as I'm picky and patient, and I tend to fence-sit waiting for the version of a figure that most appeals to me. I will say, however, that I'm happy with the FT figs I own and I don't regret buying any of them. But their practice in light of other companies' releases is shady, especially when history tells us that a promise of a new figure often takes years to fulfill. As my collecting is tending to wane, I'm watching most of these conventions with an air of vicariousness; while some things are interesting, the increasing prices and my lack of space conspire towards cultivating an attitude of more looking, less buying, alas. I too, favor MMC for their combiners, as I'm definitely a fan of the all-in-one engineering they've come to master. I would have loved to have had their Bruticus, and I like what they're doing with their Constructicons. I think XTB are doing a great job with theirs as well. I'm especially enamored with the fact that their Long Haul's dump bed can actually dump, an unfortunate rarity. I bemoan the lack of functionality with Hasbro's latest Constructicons' alt modes although they did a good job with Devastator. I thought the Combiner Wars version was a hot mess, but this one looks appropriately G1 and, what's more, unlike its predecessor, this one is solid once combined and lends itself admirably to posing. It speaks to lessons learned, so good job, Takara. Returning to FT in regard to the above pics, once again the promise of a new Prowl figure incites my interest; however, their too-toon leanings and tendency towards over-engineering for its own sake leaves me cold. I'll be happy when the toon-slavish trend fades and toy designs favor surface details and more of the OG toys' features over the toon's plain and simplified forms. Unfortuantely, according to Evan Brooks at the MCM London Convention this past weekend, Has/Tak are adopting the toonish aesthetic more and more going forward with SS86 which doesn't inspire me. Fortunately, I already have the vast majority of G1 characters that I want from the last few years' releases, and I'm quite satisfied with them in the event they go fully toon and lose my interest completely. Agree, except I've been wanting it since 1984! 😄 Even as a kid when Transformers were shiny and new as a Western concept, I found the toys extremely lacking for their limitations, chief among them, articulation. When Classics was coming on the scene, I hoped for more G1 designs, but nope- just G1-ish with liberties. That said, I love Classics Mirage, Bumblebee, Hound and Ravage, all designed by Alex Kubalsky. They're still some of my absolute favorite TF figures. I think that was the early allure of MP- the designs skewed towards the toon look well before the main line stuff did and it took them a long, long time to realize maybe the main line should follow suit. I'm glad they arrived at the realization, and the toys have been good to excellent for the most part, but it's lamentable that they didn't come a couple decades ago when prices were cheaper and the toys enjoyed greater parts counts at smaller scales. Imagine had they done SS86 or the current main line in 2007. Somewhere in the back of my mind I'm vaguely familiar with the Prowl as a part of Devastator storyline. I haven't seen or read it myself, but over the years, I remember its being mentioned in some fashion or other, likely here on this forum, the one I frequent most. As to DST's take, oh my, the liberties! I fear it's not for me, but in the interest of completing that story in toy form, it's cool that DST has you covered, in their singular fashion, of course.
  10. M'Kyuun
    S'all good. 😁 FWIW, The FT figs, and the two Dream Star figs I own, are a bit too fiddly for my liking. I've never transformed either back to its plane mode, and while I do like how they look in their bot modes, I honestly wouldn't miss them if I sold them off. Twenty or so years ago, I championed increasingly complex transformations; however, as I get older and my threshold for patience stretches ever the more taught, there never being much to begin with, I find my enjoyment of the fiddlier transforming toys wanes. I think the CHUG+ toys strike an excellent balance for me, and while I still enjoy picking up the odd third-party fig here and there, mostly legends but sometimes MP or thereabouts, or the odd Macross fig (I've only this year begun collecting a few HMR Macross figs and I very much enjoy them), I find I grow weary at times with some of their transformations. Thus said, I can certainly empathize with your frustration with oft over-complex engineering. As much as I really like transforming toys in general, when it comes to Transformers, perhaps the tenacious lure of nostalgia has me in its grip more so than other properties, as I'm unabashedly a G1 fan, although I don't subscribe to the plain cartoon look as so many other fans do. I do applaud the artistic license employed by any number of artists and toy makers over the decades, as they keep the franchise fresh, and lines like Beast Wars, Prime, and Animated resonate with me. However, when it comes to stuff like what Cang Toys, Dream Star Toys, or Iron Factory are doing as opposed to the more faithful G1 takes by FT, XTB, Magic Square, New Age, etc, I'm generally moved by the latter over the former, even if I can appreciate what the former are doing. But, I do own two Dream Star Aerialbots and eight IF figs, so I'm not above dipping my toes into the pool of toys with liberties taken. Sometimes variety is nice for its own sake. Anyway, I hope you derive a goodly bit of joy from your DST Constructicons, as they definitely give the old designs a proper shake-up, and while I'm not compelled to have them myself, I can certainly appreciate the direction and outcome of their creativity. As to what I'm assuming is a reference to DX9's take on a MP scaled Prowl, while I was initially interested, I'm not wholly enamored by the toon-slavish elongated shin-dows or their lack of sublime mechanical details ensconced within, one of my favorite aspects of the original Fairlady Z TF design. Too, I'm not a fan of the toonish three-toes details nor the odd oddly zig-zag rear edges of the doors which lack the subtle upsweep on the rear upper tips. The rest of the design looks OK to me otherwise, but for my taste, I'm still over the moon for MP-17 Prowl, one of my top favorite TF toys of all time. It's a dated design at this point (2013- hard to believe!), but it delivers everything I ever wanted from a Prowl figure since I picked up my G1 copy when I was thirteen or so and it continues to enthrall. However, I get that many a fan likes the extreme toon look so, for those fans wanting that in a Prowl figure, this should be the toy they've been waiting for. I hope it turns out to be an excellent figure, as the milking will be epic, and that too is good all around. If it is indeed so, I may even succumb to FOMO and get a copy in spite of myself. I do love me a good Prowl figure. Cheers!
  11. M'Kyuun
    Hey Mike, I noticed this in the last sentence of your second paragraph. I think you meant to say, " Bonecrusher's shovel chest". "The vertical green "straps" flanking the purple on his chest with the red details do a rather good job of recalling G1 Hook's shovel chest." I appreciate the look at these guys, although I must confess that my interest is minimal. While I commend DST for their innovative takes, my inclination is heavily towards the G1 look. I will say, however, that objectively, I think this is a superior design over the G1 designs, as the bots tend to be cleaner, the alt modes more realistic, and I assume the full combined mode will likely be clean, highly pose able, and more visually interesting. I figure subjectivity and a heavy dose of nostalgia color my tendency towards the G1 look, but I'll give credit where it's due. I went in on DST's takes on Slingshot and Skydive, as both had better than average Harrier and F-16 modes, an extreme rarity with Transformers figures. Granted, like their Constructicons, DST took a fair amount of liberty with the robot designs, but I like how they look. I stopped with those two, although I think DST did a good job with their takes on Air Raid and Fireflight which gave me hope for their Silverbolt. Unfortunately, the latter fared no better than the vast majority of other companies' takes on the character. To date, I think Fans Toys have made the best version and yet its Concorde mode had its share of flaws, too. However, at least it used the majority of fuselage to form the bot instead of concentrating it all into a giant cube underneath. In the end, I grew disenchanted with DST and once again abandoned any interest I may have had of owning a decent set of Aerialbots. Part of me regrets not going in on the FT Aerialbots, but with lack of space becoming my greatest hurdle in collecting, I'm hoping that either Magic Square or New Age will rise to the challenge. Honestly, I don't have much hope that either would take a different avenue with their Aerialbot designs, but I'd very much love to be proven wrong.
  12. M'Kyuun
    I have long entertained the opinion that the Minifigure, iconic and beloved as it is, is an anachronism, nonetheless. Its limitations are manifest when compared to Mega Blok's stylized but highly articulated figures whose pose ability make them far more fun to play with, IMHO. I have long thought that LEGO should develop a new improved figure to enhance some of their action-oriented lines, at the least. I'm not saying get rid of the Minifig, but incorporate a new more pose-able fig to accentuate and compliment certain lines where a far more dynamic figure might enhance the playability of certain themes and sets. And, yeah, LEGO's unofficial retirement of Castle and Space, the latter my favorite theme, two of the three original Minifigure-based themes released in 1979 that drove LEGO to meteoric success is, I won't say disgraceful, but certainly dismaying and disappointing. It's analogous to Disney's retiring Mickey Mouse by just fading him out of existence except for an anniversary or the infrequent special occasion.
  13. M'Kyuun
    This looks excellent and I'll likely get a copy when it releases. Yes to an HMR, although I wonder how much partsforming would be involved. I'm liking the chunky proportions of the Moderoid.
  14. M'Kyuun
    Indeed I do. The heli dude is reminiscent of a couple figs released in the past, although I forget their names. I have the toys, though. I'm curious if this is going to be its own line disconnected from existing lines or if there's going to be some sort of tie-in. The former offers more freedom for Takara to explore ideas without having to conform to preexisting designs, and I like that approach. I believe the Takara designers are a very imaginative and capable bunch and it'd be cool to see, in an experimental line, just what they could cook up untethered from any previous notions or expectations. I do wish, however, that they'd create new identities for them instead of leaning on preexisting character references. I look forward to seeing how this line develops, however, I check my expectations if they decide to do a jet, as I fear their usual lackluster approach will spoil any attempts. I'm jaded, but not without decades of poorly executed reasons.
  15. M'Kyuun
    His art is a form of immortality, but it's folks like this that contribute something beautiful to the world that one wishes had an extended lease on life. RIP Mr. Struzan
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