Transformers Super Thread 9

[Wanzerfan]

The only Bayformer Bumblebee I liked was the beater from the first movie.

[RD Blade]

The car was cool, but the toy was kinda lousy IMO.

[mikeszekely]

I'm up for MP campaign, as it seems no one else online wants to do it. (from looking tonight, it's about 90% team deathmatch---which gets annoying when hosts constantly quit)

[Fit For Natalie]

The new Battle Blade Bumblebee is pretty awesome. Generally, most people loved the Deluxe class Camaro Concept Bumblebee toy from 2007, but this one totally blows it away. They managed to fit in a converting cannon hand, something that none of the other Bumblebee toys could do (well, the new Battle Ops Bee tries, but fails).

As far as I can tell, this mold is almost totally new, using no almost parts from previous versions. I am interested in seeing Hasbro's retool of it for Transformers 3 to reflect the changes on the prop car.

Edited July 1, 2010 by Fit For Natalie

[David Hingtgen]

I'd like to try MP campaign, as no one else online seems to want to do it.

[areaseven]

As far as I can tell, this mold is almost totally new, using no almost parts from previous versions. I am interested in seeing Hasbro's retool of it for Transformers 3 to reflect the changes on the prop car.

Yes, everything is new from the ground up on Battle Blade Bumblebee, though it does retain the leg Automorph gimmick. For a more detailed look at the figure, here's a review by peaugh:

[David Hingtgen]

Noticeable lack of car-mode paint apps compared to 07.

[areaseven]

Noticeable lack of car-mode paint apps compared to 07.

Yeah, more work for me than with the '07 version. One little detail I forgot to mention was that each door consists of two pieces instead of a single clear blue piece that's painted yellow. This means you have the option of removing the windows, which could be either a plus or minus on car mode.

[eriku]

One little detail I forgot to mention was that each door consists of two pieces instead of a single clear blue piece that's painted yellow. This means you have the option of removing the windows, which could be either a plus or minus on car mode.

That's good to hear. I've never liked clear plastic painted over for a "windows" effect. The paint never matches the surrounding plastic and is often a bit translucent. Seperate plastic for the windows is one reason that my current favorite movie Bee is the flip-out shoulder cannon version. I'll probably grab a battle blade bee and give him a try.

[the_foul_fowl]

Takara-Tomy Announces their next Masterpiece:

Movie Starscream

No no no!!!

MP Movie starscream needs to be a remold a la MP03 of a F22... not the bloated whale the Leader class starscream is...

[mikeszekely]

To anyone who's disappointed with Leader movie Starscream, perhaps this is what you were waiting for?

EDIT: the_foul_fowl beat me to it.

Edited July 1, 2010 by mikeszekely

[eriku]

Sticking Leader Starscream into the MP line? I give them an F for effort. Although it does look infinitely better without the tattoos.

[mikeszekely]

Sticking Leader Starscream into the MP line? I give them an F for effort. Although it does look infinitely better without the tattoos.

It's just a Japanese release of Leader Starscream? I wouldn't have guessed from the photo.

[SuperHobo]

MP Movie Starscream this is not. Let's just cease all the hate and call it BUSTER Starscream with an MP box. Hate fest over

[Chronocidal]

If they can manage to look like an actual F-22 (one that isn't smuggling several freight containers worth of kibble under the belly) then I'm all for it. Tattoos need to die a horrible death though.

What's funny.. in this case a real F-22 camo scheme would be both good looking AND canon (at least for the first movie, I haven't bothered with the second).

Three things I want:

- Decent landing gear (plastic circles stuck to a plate don't count)

- Removeable missiles/guns like the other MP seekers

- Make it look at least as much like a real F-22 as the older seekers look like real F-15s.

I've never cared much for how movie Starscream's robot body looks anyway, but if they can finally pull off a decent aircraft mode, I'll get it so I can have an F-22 I can put on my desk. A big reason I want it in real life colors though, I work around a lot of aircraft/military folks, and want to be able to pass it off as an actual F-22 until, SURPRISE! it's a robot!

Edit: Wait.. You mean they're reboxing one of the existing Starscreams for release in Japan? There are not enough facepalm images on the internet.

Frankly though, this doesn't make any sense to me unless it's a complete resculpt. Why would they even bother?

Edited July 1, 2010 by Chronocidal

[eriku]

Frankly though, this doesn't make any sense to me unless it's a complete resculpt. Why would they even bother?

Because they have developed an insatiable thirst for tears.

My hope is that this is just a cheap and easy way to distract us while they finish the MP Rodimus.

::EDIT:: Ha, I guess I was right. Apparently the manual that comes with El Muerto Prime reveals the next MP to be Rodimus.

http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/transformers-news-rumors/311534-secret-mp04s-manual-reveals-next-masterpiece.html

Edited July 1, 2010 by eriku

[Shin Densetsu Kai 7.0]

That's good to hear. I've never liked clear plastic painted over for a "windows" effect. The paint never matches the surrounding plastic and is often a bit translucent. Seperate plastic for the windows is one reason that my current favorite movie Bee is the flip-out shoulder cannon version. I'll probably grab a battle blade bee and give him a try.

I have:

• TF1 70's Camaro Bumblebee
  
• TF1 Concept Camaro Bumblebee
  
• TF1 Stealth Bumblebee
  
• HFTD Bumblebee(newest one)
  

The new one is by far the best. I was amazed at the fact that the only reused parts are the lower legs. Very cool figure. 2nd only to Human Alliance Bee. BUY IT MAN!

Got new Ironhide too..SMALL. Almost like a bigger scout.

[Renato]

::EDIT:: Ha, I guess I was right. Apparently the manual that comes with El Muerto Prime reveals the next MP to be Rodimus.

http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/transformers-news-rumors/311534-secret-mp04s-manual-reveals-next-masterpiece.html

OK, that was really ingenious, to have the hidden message read vertically. I never would've figured that out!

I've been wanting an MP Hotrod for quite a while, but if it doesn't look and transform just like in the movie, it's a no-deal for me.

[VF5SS]

I've been wanting an MP Hotrod for quite a while, but if it doesn't look and transform just like in the movie, it's a no-deal for me.

but he never transformed the same way twice in the movie

[Wanzerfan]

Because they have developed an insatiable thirst for tears.

My hope is that this is just a cheap and easy way to distract us while they finish the MP Rodimus.

::EDIT:: Ha, I guess I was right. Apparently the manual that comes with El Muerto Prime reveals the next MP to be Rodimus.

http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/transformers-news-rumors/311534-secret-mp04s-manual-reveals-next-masterpiece.html

Is it possible for you to post the pic for those of us here who don't have a TFW2005.com account?

[areaseven]

Is it possible for you to post the pic for those of us here who don't have a TFW2005.com account?

Why don't you go open a TFW2005 account, you lazy bum?

Edited July 2, 2010 by areaseven

[Renato]

Wanzerfan, don't worry, if you check the front news page you can see the image. That's how I saw it, I would rather not sign up either. They basically hid the message "Next Masterpiece, its name is RODIMUS" within the lines of text. Very clever, actually.

but he never transformed the same way twice in the movie

Heh. Yeah, I think I know what you mean. I would have to watch it again but I think predominantly he is shown having to rotate his arms around, which makes sense because if you look at the animation model the wheels on his shoulders are facing the rear, which no toy of him that I know of has ever recreated.

Yeah, now that I hear myself going anal over it, I guess it's not that big of a deal really.

[mikeszekely]

I'd like to try MP campaign, as no one else online seems to want to do it.

Hey, I was on from 10:00pm to midnight EDT last night. There was no sign of you, so I decided to try team Deathmatch. Mere moments in, the host gets shot and rage quits. Good times.

[eriku]

Is it possible for you to post the pic for those of us here who don't have a TFW2005.com account?

Here ya go:

http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/register.php

Edited July 2, 2010 by eriku

[David Hingtgen]

Hey, I was on from 10:00pm to midnight EDT last night. There was no sign of you, so I decided to try team Deathmatch. Mere moments in, the host gets shot and rage quits. Good times.

Sorry, didn't play at all last night. I just snagged a few easy achievements a few mins ago--annoyingly, the "beat just the final stage" trick didn't work for the harder difficulties--took down Trypticon and got nothing. If you want to set up a time tonight, I'm all for it. I have to take the game back tomorrow.

[Dangaioh]

Okay, this made me laugh... http://shortpacked.com/comic/book-11/05-sg-ravage-goes-to-botcon/epilogue/ , poor Buzzsaw.

[Wanzerfan]

Okay, so it was in the kanji, I thought the thing was written in English. That is very clever.

[mikeszekely]

Sorry, didn't play at all last night. I just snagged a few easy achievements a few mins ago--annoyingly, the "beat just the final stage" trick didn't work for the harder difficulties--took down Trypticon and got nothing. If you want to set up a time tonight, I'm all for it. I have to take the game back tomorrow.

I'll have to see. I might not be home tonight.

[Wanzerfan]

The Achievement you're looking for is to be "Smashed by Trypicon's hand as he falls in the Energon goo in 'One Shall Stand'".

[mikeszekely]

My wife wanted to eat Chinese for lunch, and there's a Chinese place right next to TRU, so I figured I swing by. On the plus side, they had War for Cybertron Optimus Prime and Bumblebee. On the minus side, no sign of Peg or Thrust, both of whom I wanted a lot more than Bee. Still, they're buy one, get one half off, so I spent less than $20 for Prime and Bee.

Prime's pretty impressive so far. Kibble is limited to a bit on his back that looks way worse in photos than in person. Transformation is a little complicated, and involves lining up a lot of panels in truck mode. I am pretty pleased that both modes are pretty game faithful (in game, Prime has a bit less back kibble, and in game truck mode doesn't show his thighs the way the toy does). Something else I like is that Prime's truck mode windows are his chest windows, which you might not have guessed from the photos. His chest grill and truck grill are different, though. If I had one complaint, it'd be that he really should have been a voyager. Bee is huge compared to Prime.

EDIT: Finally played with Bee. I wonder if I'm playing with the same toy as Blitzwing (at tformers.com) or David Willis (Shortpacked!). For one, both reviewers thought the transformation was overly complicated. For two, Blitzwing seems to think that Bee is the stronger of the WFC figures so far, and I really couldn't disagree more. Prime isn't perfect, but I don't think I've ever had a better Deluxe Prime (yes, I like him even better than Animated). If he'd been a Voyager, he might have been my favorite Prime period. Bee, on the other hand, has these spindly arms and legs and a squat body. The ball joints on his shoulders are set in such a way that his arms always stick out a bit. There's not a lot you can do with his feet. Frankly, I just don't feel he's as poseable as Prime is.

I'm not sure why Blitzwing is so impressed with Bee's size it alt-mode, either. In his words "the size of the vehicle might fool you into thinking this is a scout class." He's maybe a cm shorter than Classics Bee, but 1.5cm wider and slightly taller at his highest point. When you park them together, my instinct is actually to say that WFC Bee is bigger than Classics Bee. Honestly, he looks pretty good in alt mode. Like Prime, there's a lot of panels that need to be aligned, but the direction of the lines seems fairly natural, as if such a vehicle would have those panel lines even if it didn't turn into a robot.

As for transformation, Bee's tricky at times, but I think Prime's harder. Prime involves inverting his chest and moving his back kibble to his front side and moving panels on his arms, shoulders, and legs. Bee is really about stretching his torso out and tucking his arms and legs in to fill the gaps. The hardest part is actually figuring out what to do with his legs, since the directions aren't entirely clear, and then lining the panels up at the end, which you'll do about as perfectly as Death Star Darth Vader. It's obvious where most of his pieces go, and I only looked at the directions to figure out his legs, while I had to refer to Prime's directions even on the second time I transformed him.

Edited July 4, 2010 by mikeszekely

[promethuem5]

WFC Bee is awesome... my favorite Bee figure ever. Having a blast with the game proper as well, and cannot wait for Prime!

All the news we've heard for this year is also awesome... Hot Rod, and pure G1 lovin' in Generations is all sorts of fanboy fantasies all at once.

I also managed to find the 25th Anni Perceptor and Insecticons still at my TRU. Both great quality releases, but did anyone else get Perceptor? I grabbed it for my little brother, and there's some kind of grease lubricating the head, and it's a bit gross... anyone else notice this?

[David Hingtgen]

It's not lube, it's mold-release oil. Almost (but not entirely) unheard of for Takara/Hasbro products.

[Fit For Natalie]

Something that's been lost in the hyperbole and rage of the MP Movie Starscream news is that the designer of Binaltech, Alternity and Masterpiece also designed Leader Movie Starscream.

So the mold does have the pedigree of the Masterpiece designer.

[Chronocidal]

Perhaps. But just because Ford made the Mustang doesn't mean they also didn't make the Pinto.

Designed by a masterpiece designer or not, that movie starscream just doesn't look like it was designed with the same market in mind. I mean, while the US did get simplified versions of the Japanese MP Starscream with less markings and such, you can't do that process in reverse and make Leader Starscream worth $100.

It's just a completely different approach to what features are important in a figure. The older Starscream has an opening radar, a cockpit with a figure, optional missiles or guns for the wings, opening panels to see the engines, and that sort of thing.

In contrast, I see a little kid getting this one and seeing how it has lights and sounds ("Look! It's laser light ups!"), firing missiles via a goofy bulky launcher ("Cool! It really shoots!"), pop out concealed weapons ("Wow, more guns!"), and a nutcracker jaw that opens and shuts when you pull a panel ("Umm... cool?").

I just can't see a figure with these types of kid-oriented gimmicks selling well with the people the Masterpiece line is targeted at. It's like Toynami adding the LED to a Valk's visor.. it'll make kids go "OOH IT LIGHTS UP! COOL!," but the people who are actually interested in a high quality figure will just scoff at how gimmicky it is.

Edited July 4, 2010 by Chronocidal

[Shin Densetsu Kai 7.0]

Something that's been lost in the hyperbole and rage of the MP Movie Starscream news is that the designer of Binaltech, Alternity and Masterpiece also designed Leader Movie Starscream.

So the mold does have the pedigree of the Masterpiece designer.

Designed within the budget limitations of the mass market movie line. It's not a true Masterpiece. The same guy, if it's the same one I am thinking of, designed Armada deluxe bendy Prime but he is nothing like Binalternasterpiece quality; he's a mass market toy just like Movie Masterpiece Starscream but in a not as nifty box.

Not to say that Leader screamer is a bad toy at all, it isn't; it's the best of the 3 F-22 moviescream molds released so far, but not a Masterpiece-level Transformer. I wouldn't expect the most realistic F-22 mode but at least a lack of a huge underside and better ways to hide robot mode parts.

Edited July 4, 2010 by Shin Densetsu Kai 7.0