eriku Posted March 21, 2009 Posted March 21, 2009 I'm glad I'm still not buying movie toys and not even excited about TF2 at this point... I'm with you there. I'm already anxious for the whole thing to be done with so Hasbro can divert their focus back to non-Bay Transformers.
Vermillion21 Posted March 21, 2009 Posted March 21, 2009 Here: http://www.allspark.com/index.php?set_albu...=view_album.php Or here: http://www.otca.com.au/boards/showthread.p...88913#post88913 Thanks for the links David!! Looks interesting ... will have to wait and see it in person.
JB0 Posted March 21, 2009 Posted March 21, 2009 *sigh* I may have to get Jetfire. I'm a sucker for the Blackbird. Even a Blackbird with a robot hanging under it and a gun strapped to the nose, which in my opinion just shouldn't happen on a leader-class figure. ... Now, if they wanted to be REALLY awesome, they would've modeled him after a YF-12 and had the gun go in the missile bay. I admit they lose a bit of marketing potential there, since the SR-71 IS the best-known. They probably would've called it a SR-71 even if it was a YF-12.
promethuem5 Posted March 21, 2009 Posted March 21, 2009 They probably would've called it a SR-71 even if it was a YF-12. Not a terrible idea, but I think DH actually would have stroked out!
David Hingtgen Posted March 21, 2009 Posted March 21, 2009 Wow, they're STILL making new posts at TFW2005 saying my scale comparison between Jetfire and Prime is wrong.
promethuem5 Posted March 21, 2009 Posted March 21, 2009 I just actually noticed the cane thing, and I am just engorged with nerd rage at this point... that's the stupidest thing I've ever seen! How can anyone stand behind this bastardization of everything us transfans loved?
RD Blade Posted March 21, 2009 Posted March 21, 2009 Wow, they're STILL making new posts at TFW2005 saying my scale comparison between Jetfire and Prime is wrong.Haven't seen it. Link?
David Hingtgen Posted March 21, 2009 Posted March 21, 2009 http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/transformers...tml#post3419701
Chindenathus Posted March 21, 2009 Posted March 21, 2009 http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/transformers...tml#post3419701 Yeah folks don't grasp so well how titannic any jet fighter is. I like the pic below it gives a good example of the scale issue between Optimus and Jetfire.
Shin Densetsu Kai 7.0 Posted March 22, 2009 Posted March 22, 2009 Wow, they're STILL making new posts at TFW2005 saying my scale comparison between Jetfire and Prime is wrong.Feel free to enlighten them. Saw more pics of Devastator from the Australian Toy Fair coverage. I don't care for the toy...disappointing for the size, and especially for the price. Maybe FansProject can engineer attachment pieces for the non-combining Constructicons, which actually enable them to combine and look a ton better than the actual Devastator figure. So far the only Constructicon figure to catch my eye is Rampage.
Dangard Ace Posted March 22, 2009 Posted March 22, 2009 Wow. I get a Gaogaigar vibe from that SD Prime/Jetfire combo toy.
M'Kyuun Posted March 22, 2009 Posted March 22, 2009 Looking at Leader Jetfire, and TF1 Starscream, not to mention nearly every other Tf with an aircraft alt, I have to wonder why Takara can't, or won't, design a kibble-less aircraft Transformer, but they can make damn near any land vehicle with no or nearly no kibble. Kawamori has spoiled me when it comes to transforming aircraft. I was hoping for a really well done SR-71, even in the movie aesthetic. I should have known better to raise my expectations. I dig the shape of Jetfire's legs, but, on the whole and like 95% of the movie figures, I don't like it. The only movie figs I intend to buy are Leader Prime, Starscream (much improved over the original, but the hands sticking out the back in alt really stand out), and Sideswipe.
RD Blade Posted March 22, 2009 Posted March 22, 2009 I'll definitely be picking up Sideswipe and Leader Optimus. Jetfire (even though his design is trash IMO) is a possibility solely because he combines with Prime.
Shin Densetsu Kai 7.0 Posted March 22, 2009 Posted March 22, 2009 (edited) Wow. I get a Gaogaigar vibe from that SD Prime/Jetfire combo toy.Some of the Takara designers on the current lines worked on the old GaoGaiGar toys, so it's possible that the combo itself is a reference to GaoGaiGar. I've found homages to other Brave figures in the Classics line too, like Classics Jetfire, resembles a gestalt component of one Braves robot, forgot the name though. The repaint, Treadbolt looks like another Braves robot too. Edited March 22, 2009 by Shin Densetsu Kai 7.0
Fit For Natalie Posted March 22, 2009 Posted March 22, 2009 I just actually noticed the cane thing, and I am just engorged with nerd rage at this point... that's the stupidest thing I've ever seen! How can anyone stand behind this bastardization of everything us transfans loved? Don't be so melodramatic. Looking at Leader Jetfire, and TF1 Starscream, not to mention nearly every other Tf with an aircraft alt, I have to wonder why Takara can't, or won't, design a kibble-less aircraft Transformer, but they can make damn near any land vehicle with no or nearly no kibble. Kawamori has spoiled me when it comes to transforming aircraft. I was hoping for a really well done SR-71, even in the movie aesthetic. I should have known better to raise my expectations. I dig the shape of Jetfire's legs, but, on the whole and like 95% of the movie figures, I don't like it. The only movie figs I intend to buy are Leader Prime, Starscream (much improved over the original, but the hands sticking out the back in alt really stand out), and Sideswipe. From what I understand of Transformers design, they usually take a vehicle and then figure out a vague transformation of the vehicle into the robot look that they want. They are under no obligation to stay true to the proportions of the real-world equivalent vehicle, or even use all the vehicle mode parts to form sections of the robot mode (hence times when roof chests and hoods are faked). A theory I have is that since the Transformers are characters, and not just mecha, they prefer to keep the robot mode true to their vision of the character's look, personality and symbolism at the compromise of the aircraft modes. Traditionally, TFs are "big and tough". From what I've seen of Japanese transforming fighter-mecha, they are comparatively lithe and slender. Then there's also toy safety. TFs that are designed to represent flying characters are tested extra-rigourously with the knowledge that kids will most likely fly the toy and throw it around. Some of the Takara designers on the current lines worked on the old GaoGaiGar toys, so it's possible that the combo itself is a reference to GaoGaiGar. I've found homages to other Brave figures in the Classics line too, like Classics Jetfire, resembles a gestalt component of one Braves robot, forgot the name though. The repaint, Treadbolt looks like another Braves robot too. Hasbro designers look to past Takara robot lines for inspiration, too. Hence Cybertron Prime's various combinations.
Vermillion21 Posted March 22, 2009 Posted March 22, 2009 Thought I'd post a couple of pics of TF Universe Hot Shot and Ratchet - for those of you on the fence about them, they are AWESOME. Highly recommended additions to your TF Classics collection IMO.
Letigre Posted March 22, 2009 Posted March 22, 2009 Looking at Leader Jetfire, and TF1 Starscream, not to mention nearly every other Tf with an aircraft alt, I have to wonder why Takara can't, or won't, design a kibble-less aircraft Transformer, but they can make damn near any land vehicle with no or nearly no kibble. Kawamori has spoiled me when it comes to transforming aircraft. I was hoping for a really well done SR-71, even in the movie aesthetic. I should have known better to raise my expectations. What kills me is if you look at the Star Wars crossover fighters, their alt-modes are essentially kibble free. Granted their design aesthetic might grant more leeway in accomplishing it...
RichterX Posted March 22, 2009 Posted March 22, 2009 got a Safeguard today, it is sad when the cheapest place to get it is toysrus. had a little fun with animated megatron
RavenHawk Posted March 22, 2009 Posted March 22, 2009 What kills me is if you look at the Star Wars crossover fighters, their alt-modes are essentially kibble free. Granted their design aesthetic might grant more leeway in accomplishing it... I think that's the difference between designing a vehicle and then figuring out how to make it into a robot, and designing the robot first, then trying to figure out how to make it look like a vehicle.
Shin Densetsu Kai 7.0 Posted March 23, 2009 Posted March 23, 2009 What kills me is if you look at the Star Wars crossover fighters, their alt-modes are essentially kibble free. Granted their design aesthetic might grant more leeway in accomplishing it...Yes but most have downright disappointing robot modes, and some even have bad vehicle modes too(X-Wing Skywalker). The best SWTF by far is the Death Star Vader. Every other figure is compromised in at least one way. The Marvel TF designers at Hasbro right now are doing a far better job on their Marvel Transformers.
mikeszekely Posted March 23, 2009 Posted March 23, 2009 Yes but most have downright disappointing robot modes, and some even have bad vehicle modes too(X-Wing Skywalker). The best SWTF by far is the Death Star Vader. Every other figure is compromised in at least one way. The Marvel TF designers at Hasbro right now are doing a far better job on their Marvel Transformers. Speaking of, have you picked up any of the Marvel crossovers? I only did Venom, because my Universe Autobots sorely outnumber the Decepticons, and I could see a symbiote taking over a Transformer.
promethuem5 Posted March 23, 2009 Posted March 23, 2009 I dug Crossover Iron Man, and am waiting for the combiner with Spidey so I can enjoy another IM fig and leave Spiderman in the box!
Vermillion21 Posted March 23, 2009 Posted March 23, 2009 I only own Marvel Crossover TF Venom and was pretty disappointed ... might get Wolverine ...
Alex Posted March 24, 2009 Posted March 24, 2009 Jay-zus. Just making my way through the japanese dub of "Beast Wars". The comedy is really off-putting. Silverbolt with his SUPER formal, overly-polite Japanese screeching, Rattrap breaking the fourth wall every minute to ask what the Yamanaka family in Osaka are having for dinner and Depthcharge with his "Ito Maki Maki!" every time he transforms. Unfortunately, this is considered perectly acceptable.
Shin Densetsu Kai 7.0 Posted March 24, 2009 Posted March 24, 2009 Speaking of, have you picked up any of the Marvel crossovers? I only did Venom, because my Universe Autobots sorely outnumber the Decepticons, and I could see a symbiote taking over a Transformer. Yes, I have the Iron Man repaint that's in War Machine colors, and Captain America. My Captain America has 2 right feet, I can overlook that, but the bad thing is, there is no way in hell to tell unless you transform him. Overall these blow away the SWTF's. Iron Man has flaws, like the shoulder articulation which makes poses look a bit weird, and his legs should have closer detents. Other than that he is one of the most stable Transformers I have bought in recent memory, and his transformation is impressive. Captain America is awesome but make sure to lock the shoulder connections into place, it's a hard fit but when done, the shoulders are secure and will hold any position, as the connections are detented(just make sure to push all the way into place before moving, if not the shoulders will wobble loosely). Articulation is great on Captain America but the knee joints should have been higher, he has double knees and the lower knee joints are too low. Other than that he is huge and stable. Textured chain mail looked cool too. I'm waiting for the brown Wolverine repaint(looks more balanced color wise), and will probably buy Venom and green Hulk. Also anticipating the combiner Iron Man and Spidey. Hope they repaint Thor in ultimate colors, or his current costume colors, as it would make the plane look more realistic, instead of off-putting like the current one.
Hoptimus Posted March 24, 2009 Posted March 24, 2009 Jay-zus. Just making my way through the japanese dub of "Beast Wars". The comedy is really off-putting. Silverbolt with his SUPER formal, overly-polite Japanese screeching, Rattrap breaking the fourth wall every minute to ask what the Yamanaka family in Osaka are having for dinner and Depthcharge with his "Ito Maki Maki!" every time he transforms. Unfortunately, this is considered perectly acceptable. 0_o Yeah they went silly on that dub and the Japanese made BW shows are just as bad.
Alex Posted March 25, 2009 Posted March 25, 2009 (edited) Just picked up MP Grimlock. Haven't had a chance to open him up yet but the box is HUGE. Maybe twice the depth of any other MP (besides the perfect edition Convoy). Feels pretty light though for such a big box. Edited March 25, 2009 by Alex
eriku Posted March 25, 2009 Posted March 25, 2009 Can't wait to hear your thoughts on Grimlock. Anime-Export should be shipping mine out soon, I can't wait!
Shin Densetsu Kai 7.0 Posted March 26, 2009 Posted March 26, 2009 Just picked up Ratchet and Hot Shot. Was debating waiting for the Henkei Hot Shot since it has the 2 guns, then decided not to because it would cost double or more, and I have the Energon Star Saber somewhere around here for him to use instead. Anyways Hot Shot has back kibble that hinders shoulder movement significantly, the instructions don't really show what to do with it. Jolt does not attach very securely. The leg articulation is good, but the swivels are loose. Overall the detail is good, and the toy looks a ton better then the original Hot Shot figure from Armada, and is much more articulated, However the chest cavity is hollow, and does not secure well to shoulder plates, and overall the kibble on the back is very annoying, has anyone found a way to get around this? Ratchet turned out very well, a retool of Ironhide, but does not suffer from cheap looking plastic. Wish the head could be positioned higher, the hinge definitely looks like it can go up further, but the transformation makes this difficult.
Alex Posted March 26, 2009 Posted March 26, 2009 (edited) Grimlock......really glad I bought him. First the gimmicks- Wagging the tail causes Grimmy to shake his head from side to side. The instructions list this feature as "SHAKE ONE'S HEAD". Um.....yeah. When the jaw is fully opened, pushing a button on the side of the head snaps the jaw shut. The light up sword/gun gimmick has already been reported. This is very nice. The gun is pretty much standard but the sword has a sort of internal, ridged structure which looks very nice. Kind of like an internal power element. The eye-colour is nice. Very easy to change. No skinning knuckles like on MP SS. Also, when you transform the chest to dino mode, the Autobot symbol dissapears. Build Die-cast content is actually much more than I relaised when I played with the sample a few weeks ago. The crotch is metal which I knew about but also the claws which are pretty heavy duty. The main frame within the torso is also die-cast. Articulation is very nice. ball-joints for the shoulders/dino-legs. The hands are both articulated. The wrists spin on both. The right hand has only thumb articulation. The left has thumb and finger articulation but on last three digits are fused as one piece. Do be careful as the thumbs can fly off if you push them in the wrong way. it only happened twice to me and I was being a little rough. Should be ok for you. Dino-arms are very articulated, on ball-joints also and individually articulated fingers. There's shoulder, elbow and wrist articulation on these. Does it hold poses well? Oh yes. It has very tight joints and a lot of clearance for the head so you can pose him in some very Grimlocky poses. Transformation Transformation is actually very straight forward. The legs need a lot of flipping and pulling. Flipping the torso up or down for transformation automorphs a little. There's very little that can go wrong in this transformation scheme. Everything worked for me first time without having to use the instructions. Going back to the other mode was just as easy. It's not fiddly like Megs or SS. Can't think of anything to warn you about here. Nothing feels weak or likely to break when transforming. Wish I coukd say more but it's everyhting you would expect from the Grimlock transformation. Other stuffs The weapons are designed to be hald in the glowing hand but DO attach to the left hand, but more sort of clip on to the top of the hand with a teeny plug. Unfortunately, I haven't found anyway of storing these weapons on the dino-mode but i've heard a RUMOUR that it can be done. Not sure though. The sword and Gun are nice but there's no extra add on to give them actual handles. They just have the pegs. And I am not much of a fan of the red chrome they used on the sword. It feels a little cheap, maybe a little OTT. Sigh....onto the other....things. The bow-tie, apron, tray, energon goodies..............hell, let some other poor fool review these. I ain't gots no time for these. Now, the brain-wave transfer helmet is reallt nice. Has a sucker on one end so I currently have Grimmy trying to increase the intelligence of my iPod. It has clips that keep it on snuggly. It is very nicely detailed and one accessory I like. Not much competition there though. The booklet is nice, nothing to write home about. Same as every other MP booklet. Robot and Dino-ala modes Grimmy's dino mode is just pure love. It is a great combination of the toy and cartoon representations. He has some very unobtrusive gimmicks (mentioned above) so he is really nnice to just go stomping about your room with. He solid. The wagging tail feature leaves a large section of the tail a little loose. But you can lock this by movin g the robot feet up into a tighter position. His Mouth has all the detail on the inside, even a teeny poseable flame-thrower. His had is nicelt articualted but the wagging tail/moving head gimmick means the head is ratched at the neck but will favour one side unless you position it correctly. There's as much articualtion in this mode as you'd expect. Tails wags, head moves up/down and side-to-side. Arms are very articualted. Robot moxde is really nice, the gold is a little weal for me. Would have preferred a warmer gold than the pale we have here. Again, it's nice to see the mix of toy and cartoon. it works very well. The dino had is designed to clip on the back but the clip doesn't really work. No matter though as it holds in place well anyway. the kibble is only that and the wings which are not technically kibble anyway. The waist has articualtion and disconnecting the waist a little can give you a little more movement to help him look down at the puny humans (read CMs mac figs) that he reets in his job at the restaurant....shudder (see Other stuffs above) Verdict Very nice toy. Very nice representation of Grimlock and the most faithful toy you'll get ina long time. Nothing lets it down but as I pointed out, less campy accessories would have been nice. This and the Toynami Tread are probably the two things that impressed me the most this year. So Grimmy is in good company there Edited March 26, 2009 by Alex
promethuem5 Posted March 26, 2009 Posted March 26, 2009 (edited) Thanks for the review... I can't wait for BBTS to fill my order... gonna have to have it shipped to me here at school! Glad to hear there's some well placed die-cast the and build is solid. Edited March 26, 2009 by promethuem5
Alex Posted March 26, 2009 Posted March 26, 2009 Thanks. I'm not really good at doing reviews. Mine are more observations. Or is that the same thing?
Shin Densetsu Kai 7.0 Posted March 26, 2009 Posted March 26, 2009 Thanks. I'm not really good at doing reviews. Mine are more observations. Or is that the same thing?Yeah it was a good review man, it would be cool if you added pics. It sounds like it turned out well, I'm just waiting to hear if Hasbro will be bringing this sucker over, news of that is usually saved for Botcon which is in 2 months. If not, I'll import this sucker.
Alex Posted March 26, 2009 Posted March 26, 2009 (edited) Yeah it was a good review man, it would be cool if you added pics. It sounds like it turned out well, I'm just waiting to hear if Hasbro will be bringing this sucker over, news of that is usually saved for Botcon which is in 2 months. If not, I'll import this sucker. To be honest though, Grimlock more than any other MP was the least difficult to realise. He's more an update of the G1 toy anyway. Edited March 26, 2009 by Alex
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