M'Kyuun

I tend to forget how many of these figs are exclusives, SS86, and other lines and technically don't fall under the mainline umbrella. They're all the same scale and aesthetically made to work with each other hence my inclination to lump them all, or many at least, under mainline. Anyway, regarding your nitpicks: 1. The front end is too angular, kind of reminds me of Bumper as much as it does Bumblebee. I concur. It's an obvious concession to eventual retooling as Cliffjumper, but it would have been nice had it been executed a little better to homogenize the shape of the entire hood/feet. alas, no. 2. I wish the tires folded under his feet the way Netflix Bee does. Honestly, I hadn't noticed, which is weird b/c I share the same preference anytime feet are made from a chunk of vehicle with wheels. 3. The dark windows. I just have this funny feeling that another version will come in a year or two, maybe as another store-exclusive, with blue windows. Most likely, as they'll find some way to repackage it with subtle changes to milk both the mold and the fandom. The black windows don't bother me that much, but yeah, the blue looks better and matches the animation. Odd that since this is Studio series and that's the whole point of this line.😒 Guess you don't want to wait until I have one in-hand and do a review, since I don't have those Vietnamese factory connections. But I'll still hook ya up. Good find, and thanks. Yeah, I like that. I can live without the other sword, hammer, and the catapult shell. Of course, the shell has meaning from that one scene in the film, but honestly, it'll just stay in the box for perpetuity. I just want his rifle and prop-sword. It would have been nice had they retooled his legs a bit to be able to rotate the tires 180 degrees to manifest the round bumps like the animation. All their retooling focus was on the upper body, but that would've been a nice touch for the legs. Gotta say, we've come a looong way from this (Credit to Brave Fortress from whom I shamelessly copied pics): I still have my G1 Springer, and he was a bit disappointing back in the day, although I still think he has a pretty good helicopter mode. Bot and car modes, though, leave somewhat to be desired. Obviously, a lot of creative license was taken with his animated bot mode for the film, and between Siege and SS86, we're only just now getting figs that even come close nigh 40 years after the film. Both versions are a bit lean compared to his chunkier toon model, but honestly, I prefer the look of the Siege/SS86 versions. Too bad they couldn't make those tires on his arms disappear into the body, but otherwise, looking pretty good.

Well, we like what we like. personally, I dig SS86 Bee; I've been wanting a mainline Bee that resembles his chibi G1 car mode for some time. I like the Netflix version, too, with its realistic car mode, though I'm not crazy about the partsforming aspect shared by Bee and Cliffjumper. At least the partsforming bits can attach to their backs and look like they're part of the bot mode instead of some awkward shield or weird weapon that neither of them ever had in the toon. As for non-partsforming chibi Beetle SS86, I'm looking forward to him and his obvious retooled moldmate, Cliffjumper, to add to the collection. The Missing Link Bee and Cliffy just aren't doing much for me, as the OG toys just weren't that great, and even with articulation, the proportions are odd, especially the arms. SS86 manages to give us the Chibi Beetle and a better proportioned bot mode, and that's the stuff of awesome. I busted out my Siege Springer and ran through the transformations yesterday all while looking at the new SS86 retool. Def some improvements towards toon accuracy. I'm also glad they made his sword transform into the main rotor, although it's odd that there are no stock shots of him holding it-- just the other non-transforming sword he comes with. I wish they'd done more to cover his front tire in heli mode, and his faux landing skid should have been yellow. Otherwise, the majority of the changes look good and the new shoulders may even give him more range of motion, as they're a little limited on the Siege version. I ususally try not to double dip on figs, especially when they're as well done as I feel Siege Springer is, but the improvements look to be just that, and IMHO, worth picking up his somewhat new and improved self.

Thanks Mike. SS86 Bee wasn't showing up when I searched for it on Amazon, so I appreciate the link. Scored a copy! My humble thanks. 🙏 I also got Steelpom and Springer on Pulse. Rather fecally inclined that they didn't put Bee on there too. Kind of a slap in the face to members.

So, the vast majority of what was shown held little interest for me. I'm mostly into the G1 stuff, so Steelpom, er Steeljaw , SS86 Bee, and SS86 Springer have my attention more than anything. I already have Netflix Soundwave, and I'll not buy another copy even if it does come with Buzzsaw. I'm holding out hope that Dr. Wu will get around to making all these mainline cassettes eventually. Anyway, I already have Siege Springer, and an excellent fig is he; however, the SS86 looks to have enough improvements that I may double dip- this version lacks the battle damage of the Siege, has the angled shoulders, and I love that they worked in his integrated wrist gun. I'm a sucker for features like that, and I wish more bots came with them. SS86 bee is probably the biggest surprise, and I love the direction they took. I like the ER version a lot, partsforming notwithstanding, but I like how they're leaning into the "penny racer" look of the OG minibots for Bee. Of course, you know there'll be a Cliffjumper and other repaints/retools- this is Hasbro we're talking about, and that's just fine. As long as I get Bee and Cliffy, I'm happy. Not happy that SS86 Bee's not going to be on Pulse. One additional thought: I prefer this approach over the Missing Link; most of those old toys just don't enthrall me, and honestly lost their appeal for me back in the 80s. I pined for what we have today, and I'm just glad the franchise hung on long enough for technology and passion to give us what we wished the toys would have been. YMMV, of course, but that's my outlook. With the upcoming leader class SS86 Optimus, this G1 toy-inspired version is curious, especially with Missing Link now available, which is as close to the OG toy as you can get with modern articulation. Is this going to be a happy medium between something like ER prime and '84 Prime? It's definitely a headscratcher, but I'm curious. Right now, I'm more interested in SS86 Prime. ER Prime is such an excellent figure; for me, he's the mainline Prime to beat so we'll see. So, I'm a Soundwave/cassette fan and let's be honest, the Netflix/Walmart-exclusive Soundwave, a retool of the abysmally terrible Siege figure with the nondescript whatever-the-heck-it-is alt mode beggars for a completely new figure from the bottom up. If I had my druthers, he'd be rescaled to accommodate the G1 cassettes, allowing them to be universally swapped between lines. Moreover, the larger scale for the cassettes would permit better engineering than this crappy smaller scale (although Dr. Wu is doing a much better job within this scale than Has/Tak). However, even keeping within the current scale, Netflix Soundwave's leg transformation to recorder mode bends the knees the wrong way leaving the specifically shaped kneecaps, which filled in a gap in the facade of his G1 recorder mode, just hanging out weirdly. I still have my OG Soundwave, and those kneecaps, that decision to turn the Netflix version's the wrong way, just annoys the hell out of me. Takara did a great job on MP Soundwave, so why isn't that attention to detail being applied to the mainline? Or at least with consistency, as some figs are just amazing. Third parties are nailing this sort of stuff (I type as I look at my Magic Square Soundwave and his little minions, which are all better than the Hasbro figs at a much more diminutive scale). Anyway, I'm hugely disappointed that HasTak didn't avail themselves of the opportunity to completely redesign Soundwave and his minions for the better in an SS86 leader scaled release. ☹️

Well, it's better than Ravage, but still pretty underwhelming, especially those stubby non-articulated legs. Looks more like a Pomeranian than a lion. The head, mane and upper body and integrated weapons are a plus, though. If they'd put more of the budget into the figure instead of that superfluous speaker accessory, perhaps they could have figured out how to give him longer legs with at least knees. The G1 toy was more articulated and just looked better, flatness notwithstanding. Modern figs should manifest progression; this is a step backwards IMHO. Too, would it have killed them to apply some grey paint to the other reel? This just looks weird. I desperately hope Dr. Wu does improved versions of all these cassette bots. Well, the reveal I was most looking forward to is out there now. That and the toy itself are a bit disappointing. Still planning on getting Steelpom, but man, I was really hoping for better from an SS86 release- more Eject and less...this.

That makes two of us. And from there it's easy to extrapolate to so many other cassettes. I want them all. I was going to mention the snail's pace of MMC releases, but it got lost in the shuffle of my thoughts. But yeah, unfortunately their releases come at a trickle rather than a deluge, and as you mentioned, their success with combiners overshadows the cassettes, which I assume are probably seen more as novelties by comparison. I think the same for Dr. Wu comparing his mini-takes on the mainline characters and his mini-micro-cassettes. In either case if I was to hazard a guess on which are the more popular products, the cassettes would finish last. That sucks for cassette fans like me, but hopefully in the case of both companies they're seeing enough sales of their cassettes to warrant continuing production. Mentioning MMC's Bruticus, my favorite of the combiners, I put up a strong resistance to getting them, as I love the all-in-one direction they took and I thought they all turned out looking pretty good; Onslaught suffered the most IMO, but considering everything he has to do without the amelioration of add-on parts, he's more than acceptable. Moreover, if I did get the team, I have no idea where I would put them as I have so little space for stuff in my house. Eventually I want to install a decent sized building in my backyard for storage/shop/ and display, but I'll probably have to wait a year or two. I stand corrected. I got my copies of Eject and Rewind well before my Steeljaw, as I had the version with chrome gold paint POed from showz for a long time and finally FOMO made me settle for the regular gold painted version instead. The time lapse between acquisitions owed to the disparity in my mind. I wasn't aware that MMC was working on Ramhorn or Ratbat, but that's favorable news indeed. Perhaps we'll see at least one of them release this year. I'm still happy that they led with Ravage, my all-time favorite cassette. Still brilliant and still gives me the warm and fuzzies when I see him in my Detolf.

Agree with the crossover consensus: let this be its own thing detached from prior shows. Divorcing it from any other continuity allows for more creative freedom with the characters, and that's the most interesting aspect of this show thus far. Heck, they could even change Bruce's origin story or his motivation for becoming the Batman; maybe his parents are still alive but some other tragedy touched his life at a young age leaving a profound impression. Perhaps changing the family dynamic such that Bruce's parents are cold and aloof businessmen and social elites who alienate their precocious son who finds solace in a fatherly Alfred. Alfred is murdered while protecting his young charge during an outing (ironically with Bruce buying a Christmas gift for his detached parents to try and curry attention and favor). Bruce grows up with that void and an ever-growing separation from his family but uses his genius to make his own way forging a rival company to his parents, eventually surpassing them. But Alfred's loss remains heavy on Bruce and the Batman is born out of that grief. Perhaps his parents are the first corrupt people the Batman takes down. With his parents in prison, Bruce then takes over the Wayne Foundation, the manor, and establishes his Batcave. I just made all this up off the cuff, but I wouldn't mind seeing this revised story in a new telling of the Batman story.

Nice review, Mike. 'Preciate the shout-out. As you and anyone who 's been reading my posts for a while knows, I'm a cassette bot fan. I love your wording: Dr. Wu is most certainly doing us a service, as most of these non-main character cassette bots wouldn't see the light of day under Hasbro, and moreover, not at the levels of articulation that Dr. Wu gives them. They're not perfect; most of them lack the reel holes that are the signature feature of a cassette as well as any cassette deco. However, they are rectangular wafers resembling the basic shape of a mini microcassette (since Hasbro made the stupid decision to make the Legacy cassettes smaller than the real-world scaled microcassettes from G1 and the MP line) that, as Mike demonstrated, can fit in either the most recent mainline Blaster's or Soundwave's chest cavities. Given their scales, and the fact that most of us generally keep our cassettes in their bot/vehicle modes, it's forgivable. Moreover, there's a dearth of options here, so for now it's Dr. Wu or bust if you desire to have these other cassette characters in your collection. For my money, they could certainly be worse (ahem Hasbro's official cassettes) so I'm glad that these exist and I vehemently hope that Dr. Wu will continue to work his way through all these peripheral cassette characters and eventually get to the core cast of Ravage, Rumble, Laserbeak, Frenzy, Buzzsaw, Ramhorn, Steeljaw, Rewind, and Eject. I will say, however, despite my criticism of Hasbro's cassettes thus far, Eject was done well and I hope the upcoming SS86 Steeljaw turns out well, too. Regardless, at this point I feel that Wu's would be superior to Hasbro's takes. On the flip side, I've been collecting MMC's full-sized cassette bots and I've been pretty impressed with most of them (their condors were so-so, mostly b/c of the way the outer wings are overlapping panels that hold together via magnets). One of the coolest aspects of these figures is that the old chrome add-on weapons are generally integrated into the cassette mode either by transformation engineering or just tucking away seamlessly. Articulation is excellent, presentation in cassette mode holds true (they all have their requisite reels) although some are a little light on deco. The most recent release was their take on Steeljaw, which once again cemented MMC's reputation as masters of plastic origami at this scale. I'm hopeful for a Ramhorn to follow, and honestly, all the cassette figs from core to peripheral. The only drawback to these guys at this scale is the lack of a Soundwave or Blaster that can accommodate them in cassette mode, but that would require those figs to be larger than current MP scale. However, for what MMC brings to the table in the form of these detailed, transformable, highly-articulated versions of the old G1 cassette bots, which scale well with current MP figs in their bot modes, the lack of a similarly scaled Blaster or Soundwave is easily overlooked.

He was recently, and may even still be, doing the tourist thing in California, posting pics on Instagram. In pretty much every pic, he's throwing up the Dyson YF-19 hand sign. Next thing you know, he'll be wearing a life-sized pendant made from a cast of his own hand doing the -19, carry an inkpad in his pocket, and use the pendant to sign autographs, and well, anything requiring his signature. It'll be his Prince move. 😁

Looks to be inspired by the F-16. Kawamori has totally embraced the Isamu Dyson YF-19 pantomime. I wonder if he has that trademarked?

I stand corrected, and appreciate the info, Lechuck. In that case, kudos to Takara for being openminded and embracing collabs. I hope it results in some cool figs, stuff we wouldn't normally see from them or, as in my Seeker suggestion, better executed stuff than they've been doing. That would be cool. The fact that obvious sci-fi ray guns can't even be realized in Hasbro's lines is just ludicrous. A realistic looking Walther P-38 is understandable, but Shockwave's alt stretches the argument's credibility. I miss the days when nearly anything was fair game as an alt mode.

Bot mode is pretty sharp but I'm not too crazy about the car mode. MMC had a version of this guy as well. I find it interesting that Hasbro is starting to relent on their no-transformation restriction for other parties making Transformers figures: Robosen, LEGO, and now this collaborative approach with other toymakers. With all the talented third parties out there who've been doing it as well or better than Takara, there's a lot of potential for some really cool official toys to come out of this collab. Hopefully a really well-executed Seeker will come of this, something along the lines of Touch Toys' Carefray, which is one of the most accurate transforming fighter figures to date, an incredible feat of engineering. It sets the bar high, and I'd love to see the same approach with an F-15, an F-35B (complete with lift fan and rotating nozzle for VTOL), or an F-22. I'd really, really love to see a YF-23 done this well, but now I'm just dreaming bigly.

Oh, well, in that case, interest piqued. Thanks. I'll definitely try to tune in.

Not at all surprised that Delta resonated with a younger, mostly female crowd, especially in Japan. It definitely did not resonate with me, an American retired Veteran in his forties at the time of release. Macross Plus hit home in a big way, as did SDF:M, Macross Zero (those dogfights!), and Frontier for its more mature storytelling, good use of the music/singers, and the lovely VF-25 and variants. M7 didn't really grab me like the others, and not until I was already halfway through. Couldn't stand useless Basara and hated most of his songs. The VF-19 was wasted on him. I also didn't like that Max and Milia were split up- such a good team; putting those two characters from the OG series in that situation was just gas on the fire. I hope the next series is more like Plus or Frontier and less like Delta or M7 with at least three new valk designs to salivate over. I like the stories when they're good, but I'm in it for the awesome transforming jets. Today's kids' focus on electronics and heavily on social media as opposed to collecting toys and figures is just sad. Toy loving nerds need to take back the world! When the internet goes down, I have plenty of toys to keep myself occupied; I don't need likes and subscribers to give me a sense of purpose or validation. Alas, the situation doesn't bode well for toymakers down the road after all of us 80s kids are gone.

Thanks for posting these, Mike, as otherwise I'd have no idea. That said, more and more, less and less is appealing to me as they move further into Armada and Bayverse. Little sad on the collecting front, but good for my wallet. It's a really good LEGO year, so my funds won't be as stretched. Speaking of which, there's a rumored LEGO Bumblebee coming which I imagine, like Prime, will be based on his G1 toy. No pics yet, unfortunately.

Well, I believe Takara are taking lead on these so they're not under the same restrictions as we and other countries so far as toy gun restrictions go. We would simply have to buy it from Takara directly or another overseas store. I imagine Takara will get around to updating his old G1 self eventually.

The additional articulation would have made me very happy back in the 80s, but I've been spoiled by any number of modern takes on these characters. The old G1 toys just don't look that great to me, even with the added articulation. If they get around to doing Megatron, I might bite, as I never owned G1 Megs. Too, the G1 cassettes if they were to trick them out with better articulation. For the most part, though, I'm happy to leave the G1 toys in the past and embrace modern figs with what I feel are better aesthetics and engineering. However, nostalgia is a powerful draw; I get that. I'm far more drawn to vintage LEGO sets than vintage Transformers, but that passion is the same. There's definitely an audience for these and I hope they're fun and fulfilling as they fill a certain niche in the collection.

The DX Sv-262 is a PITA to transform. I managed to transform it to battroid and that's how it has remained. I don't think I ever reattempted going back to fighter. The majority of it wasn't too bad, but those wing armatures were no fun. Since I display my valks in battroid, I'm good. I venture the opinion that Macross Plus is more popular than Delta (will ever be), and so, too, the two primary valks (although I have a soft spot for the VF-11, a lovely design in its own right and a valk that gets too little love). If initial sales of the YF-21 are good, I think Max and Milia versions will follow at a minimum. However, we already know this toy is going to be a mixed bag, as we've already exhausted many pages airing our grievances of which Bandai seemingly did little to nothing to fix since the unveiling in 2019. Desperation for a new toy is driving the acquisition of the YF-21 for many, myself included, but I'm not blind to its faults, either. If it's a solid toy with a non-frustrating transformation, good tolerances, and overall good quality, I think it'll soften some the more questionable design flaws, at least make them a little more tolerable. However, given the amount of critique this thing has already suffered, any misstep in quality or build is going to deep six this toy due to the umbrage onslaught. I'm sure Bandai's fully aware of the criticisms, but they're betting on the fandom's desperation. The fact that all this feedback is out there and yet nothing really changed for the better indicates that they're happy to one-and-done with this mold. FWIW, I hope it's a solid toy. Shitty backpack design aside, I've been pretty content with the battroid mode since the proto was unveiled in '19, so for my display purposes, it does the job. That said, I don't really handle my high-end toys, but for those who like to mess with them, the build quality, tolerances, and aesthetics are going to be far more meaningful; failing these criteria, I don't see much of an afterlife for this toy in repaints. If it sucks, the internet won't hold back. I was very much hoping that Bandai's DX would inspire Arcadia to take another crack at the YF-21. Even if they only did a partial retool of the Yamato to bulk up the legs, it would be the improvement I desperately desire. In all other regards, it's about as close to perfect as humanly possible. I'll take a chubbier jet mode if it means the battroid is more proportional, and hopefully the hips would be on ratchets this time around. The best thing about Arcadia is their genuine passion for Macross; it comes through in their toys, the little touches. I think a new YF-21 release from them would smoke Bandai's DX. Shame they didn't capitalize on the opportunity. In that absence, I feel we the fans lose.

Considering there's money to be made from milking a mold, I'm sure we'll see every possible variant. Sorry to hear about your Yammie's breakage. At least you can display it in fighter, which is its best mode.

Stoked for the B:TAS Batmobile,, another grail realized. The choice of dark blue as opposed to black is unexpected, but I can live with it. I wish the Batmobile itself had some pop-out gadgetry of some sort, even the hood guns like the '89 Batmobile, but as far as capturing the look of the car from the show, it's pretty dead on. The only Batmobile left that I'd love to see in an official set is the Arkham Knight version. Oh, and perhaps the Batman Beyond version as well. Fingers crossed. Glad to see villains other than the Joker in this set; however, given how large a role Joker played throughout the series, I hope we'll get a B:TAS Batwing with Joker, Penguin, and Catwoman. Nightwing and Batgirl sets would also be welcome with Poison Ivy, Two-Face, and Scarecrow. Needless to say, I hope they're just getting started with Animated Series sets. The Nolan Batman with Batpod is another pleasant surprise. There was a limited edition Batpod set released a few years back which sold out very quickly; I missed out on it and have lamented it since. There have been no other Batpod sets released until now and I'm itching to get a copy. I love that the buildable Batman can ride it. If they make a Dark Knight Rises Catwoman, that'll be pretty cool, too. There've been a lot of summer sets revealed. Some notables: City has been expanding beyond its boring focus on Police and Fire sets with some interesting and inventive sets, and this one stands out notably for its inclusion of a scaled down but instantly recognizable version of the Exo-Force Stealth Hunter from 2006. Admittedly, the set as a whole doesn't interest me much, but man would I love to have a whole series of those mini-EF mecha as stand-alone sets. For some reason, car transport tractor trailers have always fascinated me. This set really hits home for me, as it's just so well executed both aesthetically and functionally. However, while I'm not a car guy, that tricked-out 50s car kinda steals the show. Speaking of aesthetics and functionality, construction makes a return this year: While the mobile crane is impressive, I intend to pass on it; however, that excavator is a must! Love all the faux hydraulics (even simulated hoses running over the top of the main boom) throughout all three parts of the digger arm. The cab is beautifully realized, and the cabin window even has safety bars. I hope there are more like this coming in the fall wave. This beggars for an articulated dump truck and perhaps a heavy bulldozer or an articulated front-end loader. Cargo is one of my favorite City subthemes and I've enjoyed collecting a number of cargo ship sets over the years. However, this set is a departure from previous sets as the ship's hull is not a large single hull piece that floats, but a return to brick-built like the old 80s and 90s sets. The ship is also quite small relative to previous cargo ship sets. However, what the ship lacks in scale, the entirety of the set makes up for in atmosphere and charm. While I prefer the boats to float, I have to admit this set is warming my heart. This year's City Jungle Explorer subtheme sees the return of Johnny Thunder, LEGO's answer to Indiana Jones in the Adventurers series which ran from 1998-2003 and saw Johnny tackling everything from mummies in Egypt, scorpions, dragons, and yetis in the Orient, to Dinosaurs. Johnny's return is a little more grounded as he explores the jungle. Notable this year are the introduction of an adult and baby gorilla as well as a red panda. I'm quite taken with that helicopter, especially the cockpit section. Nice-looking Chinook-inspired heli. Space is ever popular and LEGO is leaning into it this year: Not only did the designers capture the look of the Apollo rover with all of its instruments bristling, but it even folds up like the real vehicle to fit in the Lunar Module. Too bad there's not a scaled version of the LM to squeeze this into. Now that would be a big, impressive set. Speed Champions returns this summer with three new sets: I saved the best for last. While the first two I pictured are just meh to me, the Lamborghini V12 Vision from the 2020 Gran Turismo Sport game is such a stunningly beautiful and complex design. I had my doubts they'd tackle it, but I'm sure glad they did. It's not perfectly accurate, especially the shape and size of the front part of the canopy but considering the medium and the scale they're working in, it's a really good capture. I'd love to see Speed Champions tackle other media like tv cars (K.I.T.T.) and anime: The Mach 5 and the Asurada from Future GPX Cyber Formula. As they've been doing for the last couple of years, LEGO's releasing yet another large elaborate Marvel set that's both playset and display piece. And in the mecha realm, these two have caught my eye. The first is Cole's Titan Dragon Mech. Once again, Ninjago gives us a large, lovely anime-styled mech with decent articulation (even knees!). The second mech of note has a completely different aesthetic, but no less interesting (at least to me). From LEGO's Dreamzzz theme, this is Mateo and Z-Blob the Knight Battle Mech. For those who've not seen Dreamzzz, Z-Blob is a gelatinous dream creature created by a kid named Mateo. With Mateo's creative power in the Dream World, Z-Blob can change forms, usually adopting a robot suit. This new mecha is a nice upgrade. Moreover, most Dreamzzz sets have a 3-1 feature where the main model is partially rebuilt or modded, and the same is true for this one. My only gripe is that the articulation suffers due to the use of those round curvy trans yellowish-green elements which are meant to represent Z-Blob's exposed extremities between the armor bits. It makes for a cool look but hinders the pose-ability. Nevertheless, I find all the models appealing, and though I rarely do so, I may end up building all three configurations. There are so many more sets coming; I just picked a few that appealed to me. Looking forward to picking these and others up as summer approaches. Lots to look forward to.

That he does.😄

I saw this in a thumbnail advert this morning and thought it was a new take on Shockwave. Turns out it's a Bandai Spirits kit called GIG R01Provedel Type-Rex 01. Wouldn't take much customizing to make him more Shockwave-y though.

All I want out of today's announcements are Steeljaw and possibly SS86 Springer, although I think the Siege toy is pretty well done so I'm not sure I need a partial retool of an already good take. I wish they'd actually shown Steeljaw; the cassettes are a particular favorite subset of TFs for me and I really hope Steeljaw is well done. Given the precedents, I'm not holding my breath. I can hope though. Looks like they're taking a break from more Animated or Prime figs. Ah well, more money in my pocket for now.

Lucy and Maximus are important, of course. Just like in the game, Lucy, the vault dweller, provides the viewer's main frame of reference when it comes to the wasteland, and her character has the greatest growth in terms of her outlook, decisions, and actions as her story progresses. Max has a smaller arc, but after the conclusion, I get the sense his importance to the story is going to expand much more. The Ghoul is a fascinating character. He's lived a long time, seen a lot, knows a lot, and time and the wasteland have changed him. But at the core, he still holds on to some of his ideals from when he was purely human. He offers an adjacent yet seasoned view of the wasteland in stark contrast to Lucy's naive and optimistic outlook. He comes off as a bad guy, and some of his actions are ethically questionable, but he rarely does anything without a reason or purpose behind it, and he's not just killing for the sport of it. His is the most interesting viewpoint given the lens of time through which we see events unfold over a 200+ year timeline and all the machinations to which he was privy. Walton Goggins is captivating in the role. Just overall, I like all the main cast and I'm looking forward to S2.

Thanks, Mike. Welcome news, indeed. At least now I know so I can keep an eye out for them. Much appreciated.