M'Kyuun

Beat me to it! My Coneheads came unexpectedly this afternoon, and I took a bunch of pics figuring I'd do a quick writeup in the interim until Mike gave his full review. When I pulled up the thread- Coneheads! I'll add a few pics I took for consideration. I'm also of two minds about this mold; the Classics was well done, but it is over a decade old, and given all the articulation we got with the Siege mold, it would have been nice to get a new mold that carried over the articulation of the Siege version while improving on the shortfalls of the Classics, such as the large gaping hole between the intakes in jet mode. A step back from its predecessor, the ER version has a large hinge under the nose to allow it to split for transformation. It negates any ability to have landing gear, and spoils the sleekness that the Classics enjoys. I'm also not a fan of the chest band between the intakes in bot mode; it's both inaccurate and irrelevant, and yet it's another of the undesirable holdovers from the Classics toy. Negatives aside, given Hasbro's track record with jetformers, this could have been far worse, so choosing to upscale the Classics toy and make a few changes, for better or worse, seems a good compromise. It's not a bad toy, but having its root design in one from around 2007, it just feels a little dated. On to the toys themselves. Both of my Conies have nice crisp paint apps, and I'm especially enamored of Dirge's kneecap paint apps, which echo, and IMHO, improve upon, the G1 toy's stickers. They're not exact to the G1 toy, but I think I like this design better. The purple backdrop with small yellow and red details just looks sharp. Both of my figures were pretty tight overall in all the moving parts dept, save for Dirge's right forward winglet. It's not completely floppy, but it gives the impression that floppiness is its eventual destiny. Guess that's just part of getting old, even for toys. I'll echo Mike's sentiments here about the shin panels, as they don't lock into anything in fighter mode, and I can see much handled toys suffering from permanently deployed spoilers in their futures, just waving in the breeze. Not the best. One cool deco point is that both Dirge and Ramjet have Decepticon symbols on the tops and bottoms of their wings. The regular Seekers only have it on top. I always thought it was neat that the engineering differed on the Classics mold for the Coneheads' heads to be the nose of the planes. Of course, it made for a stubbier nose, and the face could be clearly seen from below. Tradeoffs. However, being able to hide the entire conehead inside the forward fuselage in the same manner as the regular Seekers allows for simplicity in the transformation and preserves the longer nose. Unfortunately, it does nothing for that big hinge on the bottom. C'mon Hasbro, we know you can do better. Final thoughts: while I wish they'd made more improvements in their translation from Classics to Earthrise Seeker, it's still one of the best jetformers they've produced. Since it's one of their most milked molds in any line, Coneheads were a forgone conclusion, and it's nice to see that these aren't just straight repaints, but have new chests and shins to go along with their heads and wing bits for differentiation. They didn't have to, but I appreciate that they did. I'll be happy to get Thrust, my fave of the Conies, and hopefully, should the Universe smile upon me, the Target Seeker two-pack to complete my collection.

Unfortunately, LEGO doesn't like odd numbers, so the number of odd studded parts is woefully inadequate to the demand and necessity. I agree, however, that a 5 stud diameter dish or plate would be proper. The 5 stud dish that David referred to is just too deep and the wrong shape for the AT-AT hip. I still think that plates are more apropos for the job, and what I intend to try is using macaroni bricks to line the front of them to try and add thickness to the hip as well as cover the Technic joint. I'll use macaroni tiles to create the circular exterior detail. Hopefully I'll be able to closer approximate an accurate look. And, yeah, the feet could do with another layer or so. Something else I noticed was that the sides of the new AT-AT are almost flush as they go around, but there's an obvious 'step' between the fore and aft sections of hull on the movie model. I may have to mod that as well, which may prove challenging due to the hinging system they employed for the center panels. I'm almost tempted to try adding the large teardrop shaped moving sections to which the hips themselves attach. LEGO has never even tried on any of their AT-AT models, and generally only imply they're there with subtle shaping. Might be worth trying. I really wish, after all these years, they'd just give us an ultimate UCS AT-AT with all the bells and whistles. I think the lackluster choice of joints is what's preventing them from doing so. With so much focus on mecha these days, it's a glaring disparity that, Mixel small ball joints aside, they've made no new joints since the ratcheting(Exo-Force) series in 2004, and the large(Bionicle) ball joint system in 2007, with few to no additions since. I wish they'd make a larger more robust set of ratcheting joints that are up to the task of supporting larger mecha builds. As a mecha MOC builder, I can attest they're sorely needed.

Good review, Mike. The GERWALK shot is pretty cool. If they're going to just make the car a shell, it'd be cool if they could somehow massage it into a trenchcoat of sorts instead of the huge backpack. It defeats the purpose of having a lithe robot mode only to be saddled with a backpack that's thicker than the fig itself. At least the forearms on this Arcee contribute to the car mode; that's more than ER Arcee. I agree with Mike's point about pricing between the WFC lines, and Cyberverse. The former , to my eyes, have always seemed the more premium- better sculpts, more complexity, better paint, etc. The Cyberverse toys have every appearance of appealing to a younger age group 6-10, I'd reckon, and the quality of those toys adjacent to the more 'mature' WFC lines bears that out, so the pricing should reflect that disparity as well, but it doesn't. I don't generally collect the Cyberverse stuff, although I may pick up a fig here or there that appeals, so the personal impact is low, but the fairness of it , or lack thereof, bugs me a little.

I'm also ok with the ratio of G1 to BW- I'd rather it were 80-20 respectively, but 60-40 is ok. At least they're still doing G1 in the next wave. I wish they'd leave BW out of it altogether and let it have its own line under the Generations banner, TBH. I don't mind their doing BW (I love BW, and I have quite a few toys from various lines over the years). However, I see WFC as Hasbro's golden opportunity to just go all out on the G1 stuff, make all the major characters so that the core groups from first season , the '86 Movie, and and whatever else they want to throw into the mix get their updates in the line, and thus make all the Geewunners happy. I think it's safe to say that's what most of us want. Once that's accomplished, move on to BW, or whatever else they want to do with Generations. I see it as a way to give G1 a rest for a while and focus on something new. Constant rehashing just creates fatigue- I think we're primed, pun unintended, for another Animated-esque sort of creative outing in the brand. I don't mean copy Animated, but a new show in the same creative spirit- a new direction, new characters, different setting, original story. Aside from the abhorred Bayverse, I think it's good to breathe new life into a franchise from time to time. Honestly, as much as I revile the Bay films, I have to acknowledge that some very creative toys and engineering approaches came from those designs that influence the way HasTak does business since '07. Moreover, the movies made a lot of revenue for Hasbro and Takara, which has kept the franchise thriving, and given the partner companies the money to keep toys across numerous lines coming. For that I'm sincerely thankful. I'm not sure the brand would be where it is today without Bayverse. Your concern about a commander class Rodimus is valid; why would he need to be that big when Optimus is a leader class with his trailer? Rodimus' battle chariot isn't even as big as Prime's trailer, even the shrunken one from ER, if Hot Rodimus is in scale with ER Prime. Well, it's just rumor for now, and hopefully that's misinformation., as it makes little sense in context. They mention concerning the unnamed "gangly" Titan as possibly being the Ark. Somehow, that doesn't track, either. Then again, I always imagine Omega Supreme from Animated whenever a transforming Ark is mentioned. That's a toy I'd love to have. That could be their next Haslab project- I'd be all in.

I agree with your print argument, especially for the price point of these sets. A little history: out of five large minifig scaled AT-AT sets, only the original 2003 set and the 2007 sets had 6-wide dishes for the hips and 4-wide dishes for the knees, both of which were printed. The 2010, 2014, and 2020 sets have no printing and use the same 4-wide dishes for both hips and knees. The prints definitely added to the look of those first two sets, and it's a trend I wish they'd have continued, especially when we see all sorts of prints appear in other themes. Additionally, I think the 6-wide dishes looked better, and are more accurate for the hips. Those printed dishes can still be found on Bricklink, but they're a little pricey. Honestly, though, for accuracy's sake, the rounded areas of both knees and hips should be made with plates and detailed with tiles, with maybe some stickers to add the necessary mechanical detail, as well as some better shaping for the upper leg to give it a bit of an angle and blend better with the joint. The hip area on the 2020 version looks incomplete, like a large truck with undersized wheels mounted. The top of the hip could definitely benefit from some filling out to cover the Technic hinge, both on the leg itself, and the structure supporting it. i think I'll be doing some modding when I get a copy.

Stumbled on a list of rumors for the Kingdom wave of WFC and thought I'd post it. If these prove true, I'm not feeling the skeletal stuff. I'd much rather they give us a full team of voyager scaled Dinobots. Anyway, just rumors for now, so take it with a grain.

Or a lot of Kragle.

I wonder why a whole plethora of useful and practical parts haven't been produced, but I digress. I haven't got the new AT-AT set yet, but I intend to once they become available (usually 1 Aug is the release date for fall sets here in the US, but due to Covid, I believe it was pushed back a month. All new SW sets on LEGO's site say "Coming Soon"). In the meantime, I've watched a couple reviews; my impression is that the head design, long time coming, is superior to any other AT-AT thus released, as it can accurately hold two drivers side by side, as well as Gen Veers commanding from behind the drivers. It's rather cramped, but I give kudos aplenty for the effort. No reviewer I watched had the head hatch criticism. Since it's not structural, but is basically a lid, I guess that was enough for it to pass LEGO's internal testing. From the pic, it looks as if that 1 stud wide plate is held on by a 1 stud wide cross plate and a 1x2 cheese slope. That's not much surface area, but again, it's just a lid. Of course, this is LEGO, so you can mod it as you like. My criticisms align with yours: the dishes on the legs would have greatly benefited from printing (they used to print them, but quit about three AT-AT sets back. Another discrepancy that I think they got right with early AT-AT models, chief among them and still my personal favorite, 4483, is the use of larger dishes for the hip joints and smaller ones for the knees. That's accurate to the movie model, and looks better than the 4 stud wide all around dishes LEGO's been using on the last few releases. The legs strike me as too narrow on this new set as well. Again, I look at 4483's and to my eyes, they look right, relative to the whole. YMMV I don't care for the Technic joint at the hip being exposed, either. Some plates to cover it (or a 6 wide dish) would have helped the aesthetic. A plus for this set is that the legs are spaced wider enabling the internal fourth toe on each foot, an accuracy that has only been represented on the Technic Motorized AT-AT set from 2007, and the 2020 set. Of course, I'm referring only to the large minifig compatible sets. The inclusion of a speeder bike, which can stow in the posterior of the AT-AT, and has featured in a number of AT-AT sets over the years, harkens back to the SW: Incredible Cross Sections book from 1998, a year before LEGO acquired the SW license, and five years before my beloved 4483. One feature I wish they'd include is a second deck within the main body. The central structure of most of the AT-AT sets has been tall enough to allow for it, but LEGO never seems inclined to want to do it. It doesn't help, either, that there are usually empty seats in every AT-AT set, and this one, unfortunately, maintains that trend. Hopefully, there will be a Snowtrooper battle pack in next years lineup to help fill the seats in the newest version. One point of contention with the AT-AT has always been the method of ingress/egress for the intrepid Imperial troops who man it. LEGO doesn't give us any answers. Hasbro, however, did with their glorious 174 Imperial All Terrain Armored Transport , which solved the problem by having an inverted T-bar for the troopers to stand on attached to a winch. It's simple but effective. It's something that could be be modded into a set relatively easily, but I wonder that LEGO haven't thought to do it themselves. They did, however, build in a winch to re-enact the scene where Luke winches up to toss a thermal detonator into the AT-AT's belly. There's even a hinged belly plate to simulate Luke's cutting it open. For the few things it gets wrong, my overall impression of the 75288 AT-AT is that it's the most accurate set to date. The play features are relevant and look fun. I wish it had more Imperial Snowtroopers, but isn't that always the wish with large troop carriers in LEGO? looking forward to its availability here in the US, as I'll likely be picking up a few of these.

Skycrow is my only Maketoys Seeker, and I think it's a really nice figure overall. But you're not wrong about those hinges on the stabs- they're fidgety and weak, requiring exhaustive repositioning to try and get them straight. It's not much of an issue for me, as he stays in bot mode 99% of the time. But every now and again, I get the urge to transform him and the hinge by the head and the stabs both give grief. I'd rather Takara just fold the stabs up flat behind the wings in lieu of splitting them open to encase them. With few exceptions, I agree for both Siege and Earthrise. Finally getting a proper Skyfire (wish they would've used the name) was a wonderful surprise, something I honestly never thought we'd get. While it's not as polished as FT's Phoenix, it's still a great effort by HasTak. ER Prime exceeds my expectations for a main line Optimus. It's a briiliant figure. The only weaknesses of the mold are the wheels folded on his butt, and elbows that only bend to 90 degrees ( I would have liked more range, but it's easily forgivable for everything else it does right). It's the G1 update in the main line that I've longed for since 1985. It's also one of the most fun OP toys I've ever owned- I just can't bring myself to put it on the CHUG shelf- it begs to played with and posed. Aside from Arcee, I think my biggest disappointment in the line is Astrotrain. The bot mode looks great, but both alt modes have too many concessions, and they ruin the figure for me. Overall, though, HasTak have given us some really nice G1 homages in the line.

Thus far I haven't had any issues with the alt modes, save maybe Megatron. Due to all the origami in his upper torso, the gun looks like a puzzle, and the upper torso doesn't have the proper shape of the gun slide. The third party versions all retained it. Heck, even my New Age Megatron has a properly shaped upper torso. To me, that has always been an iconic part of his look, and it was spoiled due to to the way Takara engineered it. I appreciate the extra bit of butterfly articulation at the shoulders, but I almost think I'd rather have the nice rounded upper torso. The legs on that figure are brilliant, though. Back to Dobber's statement, I think the alt modes have been done well, but I'm not a car guy, so my eye for little details specific to each make and model is lacking. Now, Starscream will be a different story. If things are off with his F-15 mode, I'm more apt to notice. From the CAD, his design is one of those that I wish paid homage to the toy design at least so far as including the shin thrusters, which, to me, are again, iconic to the look of the Seekers. I'm not at all a fan of the flat trapezoidal panels they used instead. It would be nice if they included optional shin thrusters so you can have either look, depending on your preference. I'm also not feeling the back plate extending below his crotch. The Seeker is a pretty clean and simple design; the arm transformation is the greatest departure from the original toy, and getting them to tuck in cleanly while maintaining proper fuselage shaping is the biggest challenge. At this point, it's been done about the same way officially and unofficially for over a decade, so there's good precedent (Takara were first to the solution with both the Classics Seeker and with MP3; it works, and everybody else has pretty much followed the formula with little changes here and there. As the old adage goes, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it). I guess what I'm saying is, it doesn't need Saturn V levels of engineering. I'm still a fan of the Maketoys design, and the New Age Seeker is just a brilliant toy. If we're interpreting the CAD correctly, I don't feel that the wings need to split apart, or why the stabs can't somehow fold into the legs. All those additional moving parts on a large structural piece are concerning, as issues from alignment to stressed pivots/joints can be potential problem areas as time goes on. To my way of thinking, it's an unnecessary bit of engineering. I guess we'll see once they roll out a proto. Going OT, I watched Prime vs Prime's review of ER Bumblebee, a heavy remold of Cliffjumper. While it retains the partsforming aspect for the rear of the car, the VW Beetle mode is a thing of beauty. At first glance, it looks like V1 MP Bee. The entire car is painted in a metallic yellow, with trans-blue windows that are unobstructed by robot kibble. Moreover, the back window is an insert, rather than a single trans-blue piece with yellow paint. as a result, everything looks very uniform, at least on PvP's version. The bot modes share virtually all the same parts, except, of course, for the heads. As remolds go, it looks really good. I hope it's not another exclusive. I'd like to know who PvP's supplier is- guy gets everything early. I'm jelly.

In the case of Ironhide/Ratchet, I'll let the toon versions slide- so much better than the toys. What was Kawamori thinking? But, as far as a greater marriage of alt mode with bot mode, I'm there with you. I will say, however, I have Magic Square's Light of Freedom, and I love how they tuck the wheels away seamlessly in the legs. The overall design takes any number of cues from MP-10, but improves upon that design, IMHO, in various ways. It captures the toon look, but still has a satisfying level of detail in bot mode. I'm really happy with it. I've been passing on Takara's MP figs since Sunstreaker, as there were things about them, beyond just the toon aesthetic, that I didn't care for. Between the feet and the huge backpack, V2 Bee looked terrible to me. I wasn't a fan of Hound's floating head ( I realize Jeep made them resort to it, but I wasn't crazy about it). Arcee's odd shaped chest and disorganized backpack, like v2 Bee's, just detract from what is an otherwise decent looking figure. Regardless, I think MMC did a much better job on the bot mode, while still giving Azalea a passable vehicle mode. Since I favor the bot mode, the Takara was an easy pass. The engineering has become very complex with these latest figs. That's not a bad thing if there's a logical flow to the transformation and everything proceeds smoothly from one step to another. When it becomes an effort to transform the toy, or there are extremely fragile bits that will break with the slightest misstep, then a lot of the fun is eroded, since the transformation is a large part of why many of us are into these toys. Too, Takara has to introduce many more concessions into the engineering for the sake of converting a realistic, often licensed alt mode into a plain bot that resembles the cartoon. These concessions are often the reason behind faux parts, shell-forming, or just a lot of panel-forming to try and hide all the vehicle detail. That's part of the reason I liked the original approach to MP; many of those engineering concessions were unnecessary. Alas Despite my contrary view, I'm happy for you, and all the other fans who've longed to have toys that looked like they stepped off the screen. I get it; it's just not for me. MP Prowl, designed by Hasui-san (I believe it was his favorite character, hence his extensive work on the design), was and is my dream Transformer toy. G1 Prowl was my first Transformer back in '84, and MP Prowl was the culmination of 30 years of hopes and wishes for a modern update. My reaction isn't so much shock as dismay. However, I'm resigned that this is the direction for the foreseeable future. I'm still willing to give each release the benefit of the doubt. I'm curious to see the new Seeker mold, even if my expectations are a little grim. Regardless, I'm still hoping that more of the first season roster gets an official MP figure. I'll judge each on its own merits as to whether it appeals to me or not. At the very least, I hope they can reach some sort of agreement with Porche so we can finally get Jazz in this line.

Rather than the specific CAD drawings for the MP figs, what I meant was that Hasbro and Takara-Tomy should have generalized pieces of art of each of the characters as references for pretty much all their toys. Perhaps they do. IDK. Then again, with each iteration of the characters, I suppose generalized art needs to be created. I don't believe Takara bases an entire design on cartoon stills, but I definitely believe they reference them to try and nail the toon look. I suppose I may have come across as harsh or condescending. It wasn't my intention, but rereading my comments hours after I posted them, I cede the point and apologize. Transformers is my second favorite hobby, and I maintain long-nurtured biases. Believe it, or don't, but I generally strive to maintain a positive outlook when I post. Too many things that strike me as negatives within the hobby are happening currently, and I let my emotions color my commentary. Again, I meant no offense. I certainly don't consider fans that like the current MP aesthetic "morons"; it's not to my taste, but there are certainly many who do like it, and that's their prerogative. I'm just glad that third parties afford us other options. I'm a battroid guy, so I don't mind a chubby fighter if the YF-21's B-mode looks close to the lineart, which is admittedly, replete with concessions. A little hypocritical, I know, but there it is. And landing gear on most valks should be white, as the majority are inspired by American military jets, and that's the standard. As for VF-1 collars, I got nothin'.

Well, you're not wrong. I didn't care for it back then either, but b/c I didn't know anything different, I was was far more accepting. And, it's not like we really had anything much better to compare to. I think we were spoiled throughout the early to mid 2000s, as most TF toys in the mainline had 'perfect transformation'. Articulation was usually dicey, though. I'm not sure why there has to be a tradeoff. If anything, we should see an evolution in design moving away from all the 'undesirable' traits of toy design in the past. I think they call it 'progress'. That would be my goal as a designer; to eschew and improve upon what has already been done. As someone who has been a fan of toys, transforming robots in particular, I would always be trying to create the ideal versions of these things. I've tried to do so with my LEGO Macross MOCs. My VF-4 has shoulder rotation and some limited butterfly motion at the shoulder because it makes no sense to me to have the shoulders stationary on a combat machine. It also has waist rotation.. My VB-6 has waist rotation and ankle tilts, as well as retractable gear in shuttle mode. In short, I tried to impart a few little improvements that never appeared on the official toys. That's the sort of progress I'd like to see in the main line. But, Hasbro's all about 'budget first', whereas Takara seemed to try to make the best toy they could and consider pricing afterwards. But Hasbro's in the driver's seat these days, with a firm hand on the franchise. Don't get me wrong, I think the majority of the WFC has been pretty good, even back to TR and PotP. We got a lot of G1 love from these lines, and I'm extremely grateful. But stuff like ER Arcee and Ironhide, and even Cliffjumper/Bee just shouldn't happen these days with all the advancements. It's jarring when you put Arcee next to Sideswipe, Wheeljack, or the Datsun Bros. It's like two different companies designed them- one that's competent, and one that's not. Anyway, I've ranted about this too much. It's obviously the direction they're taking, sadly, with more frequency. I'll take what enjoyment I can.

Been too many years since I watched the original show, so I'd forgotten about the skull plate. The wrist communicator- that was the hotness in the 80's; today he'd probably have a Bluetooth in his ear at all times. In my head version, Michael's comm gear would be built-in. Funny they never sprayed the bullet-proof stuff on Michael's leather jacket. IIRC, in the original pilot, KITT was made from some super-alloy. Later in the series, they just sprayed the super sauce on whatever to make it indestructible. I believe that's how they made Goliath indestructible. Then we got KITT 2.0 with his super pursuit mode (which looked like ass, IMHO). YMMV The real question is, what kind of car would KITT be in the future, as the Pontiac Trans Am is a bit of an anachronism by today's standards. There are a few cool concepts on the interwebs. The more I give thought to a possible film, I think I'd like to see Chris Nolan's take on it.

I hope it's not more exclusives; I still haven't been able to get the Target Seeker two-pack, or ER Soundwave from Walmart. I set up to receive notifications of availability, and I've heard nary a peep from either retailer. It irritates me to no end that these are main characters, rather than side characters. Anyway, I'm hoping once September comes, which seems to be the street date for Target, maybe availability will improve. Thanks for posting that, Mike. I'll have to see if I can catch 'em when they broadcast. So I watched the review of ER Ironhide and Prowl. Pretty egregious use of parts-forming for Ironhide; it's not as bad as Arcee, but the entire roof, along with side front windows, pops off to become a giant riot shield that I somehow don't recall ever being a salient feature of IH's character, like ever. As another poster, either here or on the TFW boards mentioned (IDR), I'd rather they'd at least made an effort to turn that into his battle sled, a la the G1 toy. As Prime vs Prime said in his review, ER Ironhide would have been better served with his own mold, rather than this clumsy reuse of the Siege mold. I guess HasTak have just given up on putting effort into these things and parts-forming is ever more the way forward. Making weapons parts form is one thing, but whole chunks of vehicle is just unacceptable. What if you lose one of those chunks?; You can never transform your figure again completely. It's anathema to the point of these toys. It's already a chore to even try and find Transformers anymore, be it online or in stores. They complicate the scarcity and the benefit to scalpers with their exclusivity shenanigans, thus eroding the joy of trying to complete a collection. Once they give up on the transformations altogether and just make them all shell formers like Arcee, I think I'll call it quits on Hasbro. Hopefully third party will rise to the occasion.

I never wanted my figs to look like they did in the cartoon, per se; rather, I wanted them to have the articulation, first and foremost, and maybe share some of the idealized anthropomorphism while keeping all the real world elements of their alt modes, as well as other molded details in their bot modes. I think that's the look Hasui-san was aiming to capture when he was running the line, and I was good with it. In the toon, the bots were always drawn misshapenly, disproportionately, inconsistently, plainly, and often with all sorts of other errors that make using those images as a basis for a premium line a terrible idea, and it amazes me how many people embrace it. I believe the last G1 MP I bought was Sunstreaker. Since then, every subsequent release has had elements of its design that I just didn't care for, and I've turned to third party to get figs much closer to what I want in the MP line. The CAD for Starscream isn't alleviating my disenchantment with Takara's design philosophy, and I'm hoping Maketoys will rerelease Meteor and Lightning. I just have a feeling that MP V3 Screamer is going to be $200+ of disappointment.

Honestly, I always thought the original concept was lacking in that you had this marvelous feat of technology driven by an ordinary man, if you can call the Hoff ordinary. I'd love to see the concept reimagined in a more Cyberpunk setting, where not only the car is highly modified, but also the driver, similar to Jensen from the Deus Ex games. Maybe not as extensively modified as that, but certainly with some enhancements that give him some advantages over the majority of bad guys. Or go full cyborg. Either way, make it clear that that level of technology is rather restricted, and that while many people have implants, most of them innocuous, at this point in time, Michael Knight is a bit of a singularity for all his capabilities. And give the writing more gravitas and dial down the cringeworthy cheese. A good writer can instill humor without resorting to cheesiness.

Indeed. I don't get it.

Logically, one would think a toy company would instantly discount a poorly animated show from the Eighties due to its gross inconsistencies and errors throughout, and instead produce official base models to work from for the sake of consistency. Guess Takara, and Hasbro by extension, haven't figured that out yet. I wish they'd get over their toon centric kick, at least in the MP line. I dig all the detail they're putting into the WFC line. Nice to know they still know how.

Well, even in the Bumblebee Movie, he essentially had two personalities; in the opening on Cybertron, he's a brash, mature, and competent warrior; thanks to plotting, he conveniently experiences amnesia, and becomes a meek, childlike, emotionally needy bot who only resumes his former personality when he's fighting. I realize Travis Knight wanted to make him accessible to audiences as a buddy character, but I think they handled that relationship far better in the characterization and dialog of G1 first season between Spike and Bee (and Hound) without condescending to making the Autobots meek and puerile in Spike's presence. Spike himself was portrayed with more gravitas, considering he was a teenager. Then again, he was working with his father on an oil rig, which is no place for incompetence. I think rendering Bee mute throughout nearly the entire movie also helps to dissociate his actual maturity. Too, the slapstick living room and beach scenes don't help. I find it difficult to associate the Bee from the movie's first few minutes to the Bee we see in these and other scenes where Bee is portrayed in a more clownish light. I will forever harbor a grain of disdain for Orci and Kurtzman for their galactically stupid idea of making Bumblebee mute; it seems to have become the favored method of portraying him for no good reason. It's annoying and pointless, and speaking via the radio even more so. That Yolopark hyperarticulated Bee Movie Prime is crazy expensive, especially for a non-transforming figure. No interest here, but if you've got the disposable income, and it floats your boat, more power to ya.

Great review, Mike. One correction: JBO mentioned the lack of the verniers on the nose, not me. I acknowledged all the molded detail, much of it stylized (for instance, SL has a hatch on both sides, whereas the actual orbiter only has one on the port side), as well as the inaccurate OMS pod shaping. But, at least it has the suggestion of OMS pods. With scalloped leading edges, misshapen OMS pods, and huge grey hinges interrupting the blended wing, the obvious departures from real world accuracy spoil any attempt at believability. That said, I don't think Takara was under any illusion either, in spite of using the official NASA logo, and just went for it when designing all the sculpted details. I think the toy is better for it. I have been a fan of Sky Lynx neither as a character nor a toy since the 80's. He just never really appealed to me. But this toy does so much right. I've never paid attention to third party Sky Lynxes, so to my eyes, this is the best version of him. Or at least the best official version. I'm looking forward to getting him.

HasTak did a lovely job with Sky Lynx. The only real improvement I would have liked is for the toes on his bird feet to be able to spread out. It would have helped with posing and balance, not to mention it would have looked more natural. They took a bit of license with the shuttle mode, but it's still recognizable as such, and I like the sheer amount of detail they put into it, even if all the details aren't real world accurate. By all accounts, it's a good figure in hand, and I'm patiently waiting for my PO to be fulfilled.

I've got a copy PO'd with Target, but if ER prime is any indication, they probably street dated it for 1 Sept. Toy Galaxy pretty much summed up my frustration with buying toys these days. Rated R for language.

Man, I forgot about the soundtrack for the '86 film. Definitely a high point, especially "Dare" and "The Touch", not to mention all of Vince DiCola's background music, the awesomeness of which has faded nary one iota in all these years. Great stuff! Prime and Animated also took the animation style in different directions, and the toys were pretty sweet as well. Both broke the mold, so to speak, and enriched the franchise in different ways. Very good ways, IMHO. After they're done with WFC: ER and Kingdom, I hope they make another departure from the 'norm'.

I disagree with the '86 film being the best; even when I saw it as a kid, there were any number of things I didn't care for, and still don't, about it. Overall, I enjoy it, and there are any number of remarkable things that came out of it, too. The most noteworthy things are the verbal exchange and fight between OP and Megs, which has been quoted ad nauseum ever since, Unicron (in a world of transforming robots, what can possibly outcool a transforming planet that eats other planets for energy? ), the world-building, the introduction of Cyclonus (biased- love his design), "Soundwave superior", and other funny moments like this. I never cared for the Quintessons- they were so out of left field, and without any prehistory, they just didn't seem to fit. However, the whole mock trial was intriguing, and gave us a cool action scene with Kup and Hot Rod taking on the Sharkticons. Slag''s "'Scuse me" towards the end of the Quint scene still makes me chuckle. On the whole, I still think Beast Wars is one of the best Transformer shows. They did a brilliant job of character building, the VAs gave phenomenal performances, and the dialog was generally very well done throughout. Too, most eps are just enjoyable for what they are. And Dinobot's last episode still brings a tear. Personally, I'd rather my bots turn into vehicles or mechanisms of some sort, but alt modes aside, everything else about BW was top notch, and unless Hasbro feels like taking another big leap into the unknown, I doubt we'll ever see anything like it again. Transformers: Prime, written by Kurtzman and Orci, the scribes for Bay's abysmally loathsome films, turned out to be an excellent show, despite my initial prejudice b/c of of who was writing it. Eventually, I began watching more eps, and found that, while they did keep annoying traits like Bee's inability to talk, and Prime's oft pedantic delivery, and annoying humans (Miko), overall, the show was great. Animated was a love letter to G1, but in many ways, to me anyway, better, in most regards. I never cared for the G1 cartoon beyond first season, and as I said, there are things about the '86 film that just didn't grab me either. But, everyone likes what they like. I'm just glad that Transformers as a brand is still relevant 35 years on. It's such a great concept- the whole puzzle aspect, with two toys-in-one (sometimes more). Marry that to good character and world-building, a cool backstory, and you've got a winning combination.