The Transformers Thread (licensed) Next

[J.T. Silversmith]

From the Figure King article it only shows Super Ginrai with the G1 trailer in Robot Mode, so here are some reconstructed comparisons with Ginrai's trailer. It looks to me that Super Ginrai is a tiny bit taller than Star Convoy.

[J.T. Silversmith]

It is probably the same size as the original God Ginrai toy

[mikeszekely]

2 hours ago, J.T. Silversmith said:

It looks to me that Super Ginrai is a tiny bit taller than Star Convoy.

You had me running around comparing my Star Convoy to different figures.  Looks like Super Ginrai will be pretty close to Commander Jetfire, the original Armada Optimus in Super mode, and the original Omega Prime.  He'll be a little taller than Haslab Deathsaurus or Victory Saber, and significantly taller than Legends Super Ginrai.  He should actually be a slightly shorter than Haslab Super Optimus Prime and at least a head shorter than Haslab Omega Prime.  The top of MP-44's head (or whatever your flavor of 3P Prime) should fairly even with the bottom of the cab windows on Super Ginrai's chest, maybe a little higher.  He'll be a bit shorter than Fans Hobby's Power Baser (and way shorter than KFC's Grand Raijin).

Ginrai himself is definitely far too small to scale with previous MPs, and should be perfect for Generations/WfC/Legacy.  Super Ginrai will be a little too tall for Generations/WfC/Legacy, but way less too-big than Haslab Omega Prime (or Super Prime, or Optimus Prime), and still closer to Generations/WfC/Legacy scale than old MP.  

[J.T. Silversmith]

Nice, that is good to know.  I measured my God Ginrai and he is 11.5 inches tall or 29.2 centimeters.  So I would have to guess with his legs a little straighter at his full height MPG Super Ginrai right around 30 cm tall. I am working on creating a nice version of the Masterforce Scale guide that I will post when I finish.  On the Scale Guide Ginrai Lightfoot Ranger and RoadKing are all the same height. I think 10M

[mikeszekely]

I started collecting again when Hasbro launched the Classics line, which happened to launch in the late middle of Cybertron.  I picked up a few Cybertron figures, and they were pretty much on parity with those Classics figures.  Sure, those figures are coming up on 20 years old already, and the engineering of modern post-Siege figures has improved in the last two decades, but I don't think those older figures are all that bad.

Now, it's no secret I collect Optimus Primes.  And recently, after the Haslab Omega Prime got funded, I went on a bit of a kick buying up some of the older Primes I didn't have.  I managed to snag a sealed boxed Armada Optimus Prime, and holy cow.  I think the engineering improved more in the four years between Armada and Cybertron than in the 13 years between Cybertron and Siege.  Prime's Super Mode legs are immobile flaps for the front and outer edges (and basically nonexistent on the backs and insides), plus the pegs that are meant to hold the flaps together have a tendency to not do their job.

My kid and I have been watching Transformers before school in the morning, and we got a bit over halfway through Armada before the school year ended.  It was enough to remind that in Armada Jetfire was really a glorified pants for Prime.  I decided to buy a used on on ebay... $50, in good shape, only missing the missiles and instructions.  Jetfire kind of surprised me... was he secretly one of the best figures in the line?  His articulation is a far cry from modern figures, sure, but a huge improvement over Prime and Hot Shot (the only other Armada figure I have).  He even has ankle pivots!  And yeah, with his more solid legs and working ankles he makes for much better pants than Prime's own trailer.

I guess all of this is a roundabout way of saying I really hope Hasbro makes a Legacy Armada Jetfire.

 

[M'Kyuun]

1 hour ago, mikeszekely said:

I guess all of this is a roundabout way of saying I really hope Hasbro makes a Legacy Armada Jetfire.

 

I imagine it'll happen; they seem to be leaning into The Unicron Trilogy, and other than combiners, they're winding down on G1 characters in Legacy, so it makes sense that they're going to make figs from other continuities. Too, I think Takara has a vested interest in doing the UT given its purely Japanese roots. Just a matter of time before more of those characters get figs, methinks. They've already done Armada Prime, two variants of Hot Shot, and titan class Tidal Wave, as well as a few characters from Cybertron, most notably Hot Shot on whom Takara took lead. Pretty sure bet more are coming.

 

[JB0]

I accidentally found out this morning that Missing Link Prime has a feature of the original I just assumed was scrapped. The spring-loaded missile launchers are still sprung. Missile was safely recovered, but it makes me far more puzzled why they omitted the Roller launcher, when the latter has a significant impact on how the trailer interior LOOKS.

[Scyla]

16 hours ago, J.T. Silversmith said:

Nice, that is good to know.  I measured my God Ginrai and he is 11.5 inches tall or 29.2 centimeters.  So I would have to guess with his legs a little straighter at his full height MPG Super Ginrai right around 30 cm tall. I am working on creating a nice version of the Masterforce Scale guide that I will post when I finish.  On the Scale Guide Ginrai Lightfoot Ranger and RoadKing are all the same height. I think 10M

I compared the MPG Super Ginrai to a A4 leaflet they handed out at the show and he is roughly as tall as the leaflet (297 mm/11.7 in) so I think 30 cm it’s a good estimate.

[mikeszekely]

On 5/31/2024 at 2:55 PM, M'Kyuun said:

I imagine it'll happen; they seem to be leaning into The Unicron Trilogy, and other than combiners, they're winding down on G1 characters in Legacy, so it makes sense that they're going to make figs from other continuities. Too, I think Takara has a vested interest in doing the UT given its purely Japanese roots. Just a matter of time before more of those characters get figs, methinks. They've already done Armada Prime, two variants of Hot Shot, and titan class Tidal Wave, as well as a few characters from Cybertron, most notably Hot Shot on whom Takara took lead. Pretty sure bet more are coming.

 

Yeah... but remember, aside from what they have planned for Transformers One and a few store-exclusives, I had word for everything through the end of 2025.  No Jetfire... in fact, the only other Armada release in the works that I'm aware of (after Galvatron and Tidal Wave) is a Voyager-class Red Alert.  Energon is getting no love aside from a Galvatron repaint of the Core-class Megatron.   Nothing else is in the queue for Cybertron.  A big chunk of 2025 is going to be Aerialbots and members of the 13 Primes.

[Scyla]

On 5/30/2024 at 3:56 PM, mikeszekely said:

Re-using Ironhide for the Diaclone repaint of Ironhide makes a whole lot more sense than dumping MP for MPG.  I mean, MP made sense... these toys are the high-end, definitive (until version 2... or 3...) "masterpiece" ones for these characters.  And when MPG came out, sure, the marketing said the "G" could be "great" or "giant," but it was understood that it was really "gattai."  Raiden was a combiner.  Ginrai isn't a combiner in the Raiden sense, but the human Godmaster combines with the cab, and the cab combines with the trailer.  And eventually Super Ginrai will combine with Godbomber, so it still makes sense.

You know what doesn't make sense?  MPG Guard.  That mold doesn't combine with anything, it's not giant, and by now it's not particularly great.

I think Takara missed a big opportunity to give their collector line a unified style and scale.

The Masterpiece line was a mess in terms of scale, style, approach and quality all the way from MP-01 to MP-60 and should have been rebooted several times (MP-10 Optimus Prime, MP-29 Laserwave, MP-32 Optimus Primal).

And it housed some of the worst toys in my collection.

Yet with MPG, the first release, Raiden, was a special design to incorporate as accurate as possible trains, with realistic details that are in scale to one another.

MPG Super Ginrai is a super toon accurate version, that doesn’t fit together with Raiden and now they are releasing the Ironhide mold that doesn’t know if if wants to be full toon or follow the old MP-10 style and an obscure repaint of Trailbreaker. *sigh* 

Most of the other collector oriented lines I collect (like Metal Build Gundams or Kuro Kara Kuri Transformers) have a coherent vision and style even if they are long running lines too. With Metal Build being released since 2011 (the year MP-09 and 10 where released) and they all look good together on a shelf.

But the MP line (and all the 3rd party companies following their lead) never had something like that and it is a shame that Takara let that opportunity pass. 

Maybe I‘m an anomaly as a collector but I always imagined that consistency in a collection was key for most other collectors (otherwise why would you collect a line of toys). For example this is the reason why I don’t want the Lego Minifig to change so all my Lego sets are consistent.

[M'Kyuun]

11 hours ago, mikeszekely said:

Yeah... but remember, aside from what they have planned for Transformers One and a few store-exclusives, I had word for everything through the end of 2025.  No Jetfire... in fact, the only other Armada release in the works that I'm aware of (after Galvatron and Tidal Wave) is a Voyager-class Red Alert.  Energon is getting no love aside from a Galvatron repaint of the Core-class Megatron.   Nothing else is in the queue for Cybertron.  A big chunk of 2025 is going to be Aerialbots and members of the 13 Primes.

Well, there's 2026 and beyond, but going hand in hand with the dearth of UT figs is the accompanying lack of Prime-ish or Animated-ish figs. I was hoping at least for a Lugnut fig, hopefully fairly close to the OG. And though it's a serious reach at this point, I was hoping for an Animated Blackout, as he's one of my grails but way too pricey on secondary. An updated Legacy fig would have been nice, even if it had shades of G1 built in. Amongst all three continuities, however, there ar still many characters in need of updates and hopefully they'll get around to them. Their choices are questionable; why not pick a continuity and finish it within a year or two before moving on. Then again, by delving piecemeal, it keeps the line interesting and offers, presumptuously, something for everyone within a year's worth of offerings. I can understand the G1 fatigue, and though that's my main collecting continuity, from both fans' and Has/Tak's POV, I can understand wanting to shake up the diversity of offerings. I'm down for that approach, even if a majority of the offerings within a year's schedule aren't pertinent to my collection. 

I couldn't care one wit about the 13 Primes, as I have no knowledge of them beyond the fact that there were 13 Primes in the lore (I assume comics). I would love a good set of Aerialbots, but given Has/Tak's abysmal history with jet alts, my enthusiasm is off scale low.  My expectation is that once again we'll get cubes with airplane parts attached with out-of-scale small forward fuselages and too many other compromises to name. I want them to prove me wrong in the absolute worst way, but I've been in this hobby since the beginning, and alas I see little reason for hope. ☹️ I'd like to finally have a Superion in my collection, as I love planes and a combiner made of planes is right up my alley, but I'm dubious that this next take will be an improvement over past executions. Again, I hope I'm wrong.

4 hours ago, Scyla said:

Maybe I‘m an anomaly as a collector but I always imagined that consistency in a collection was key for most other collectors (otherwise why would you collect a line of toys). For example this is the reason why I don’t want the Lego Minifig to change so all my Lego sets are consistent.

I don't think you're an anomaly; having a unified style and design language should be part of a collectible line. If they're too disparate, it makes the collection look eclectic, as my TF shelves, absolutely crowded with figs from across nearly every continuity, and my Detolf, which contains transforming toys from numerous lines, will attest. MP is a prime case, pun intended, of varying aesthetics from MP-01 to MP-10 to MP-44. My personal preference was the Husui era, to whom I shall ever be grateful, gave me my very long-awaited and much cherished MP Prowl, my Grail amongst grails. The toon-slavish aesthetic is not my cup of java, and I'm glad that as of yet Hasbro hasn't gone in that direction with the mainline retail toys. There's a nice mix of toon and toy still evident, with molded details still happily making their presence in the bot modes. But yeah, MP is all over the place, and quite frankly, they've been hit and miss with their designs and aesthetics. MP Skyfire was the last MP fig I bought (FOMO), and before that MP Skids, and before that MP Megatron. Except for the odd fig here and there, though, I've essentially stopped collecting MP and turned my attention more to mainline and 3P legends, which, IMHO, are doing it better at a small scale than the big expensive MP figs. Too, they're maintaining a unified look (toon, of course), but at least they all look good together, at least when standing with other figs from the same company. MS, NA, and IF all have their own approaches and scales, so they don't mix and match well, but within their own company lines, there's agreement, and that makes for a nice display.

As an ardent LEGO fan for nigh 47 years, the minifig is an icon, and I wouldn't change it. Moreover, it's a testament to Jens Nygaard Knudsen's creativity and vision that changed how LEGO could be played with forever. There's no replacement. That being said, as someone who loves articulation and finds the minifig a little limited, I would mind it if LEGO introduced a new midi-figure with improved proportions and articulation aimed at older teen and adult collectors. I design mecha, and the minifig's limitations are evident all the time when trying to design around them. I think there's room for both on shelves. Just my $.02.

[Scyla]

@M'Kyuun right, and even Hasbro is trying to unify even different universes into the G1 aesthetic and style with the main line.

But somehow the premier collector line, the best Transformer possible is this hodgepodge of different elements. 

[J.T. Silversmith]

I couldn't find a good scale guide for all of the masterforce Autobots, so I had to make one.  The Robot mode scales are as correct as I can get. I have no reference for Vehicle mode sizes so they are not.  The reason I wanted to refer to the scale guide is that Ginrai's relative size to the other Godmasters is interesting. They all seem to be the same approximate height.  So the Size difference between Ginrai and the rest of his troops is much less than  the difference between G 1 Optimus Prime and his fellows.

[Scyla]

6 hours ago, J.T. Silversmith said:

I couldn't find a good scale guide for all of the masterforce Autobots, so I had to make one.  The Robot mode scales are as correct as I can get. I have no reference for Vehicle mode sizes so they are not.  The reason I wanted to refer to the scale guide is that Ginrai's relative size to the other Godmasters is interesting. They all seem to be the same approximate height.  So the Size difference between Ginrai and the rest of his troops is much less than  the difference between G 1 Optimus Prime and his fellows.

Is there a reference how big Overlord would be compared to God Ginrai?

 really want a good looking G1 Overlord but the original toy is so damn expensive. I don’t know if Takara is able to produce what I want though.

[mikeszekely]

9 minutes ago, Scyla said:

Is there a reference how big Overlord would be compared to God Ginrai?

For those that don't read katakana, it lists the following:

Ginrai - 10m
Super Ginrai - 15m
God Ginrai - 20m
King Poseidon (Piranacon) - 20m
Overlord - 20m
Black Zarak - 25m
Lightfoot (Getaway) - 10m
Ranger (Hotwire) - 10m
Roadking (Lube) - 10m
Hydra (Darkwing) - 10m
Buster (Dreadwind) - 10m

[J.T. Silversmith]

I did include the list of heights for Overlord and the others in my picture on the rightmost side with the various meter measurements but it is too small to read unless you know what to look for.

Also that picture is a little deceptive to read.  I was going to include that picture on the left of my picture, but despite being a scale guide those pictures are not to the correct scale to each other! The little lines on the left are the actual measurements, and you are supposed to scale the characters to the measurements, not take measurements from the drawing.  Lander (Landmine) is the size Ginrai should be in the picture, and he should be smaller at 8 Meters.

There is a similar problem with God Ginrai in the tiny picture.  He is considerably smaller than he should be. In the other pictures he is clearly intended to be 20 meters tall, and able to look Overlord in the eye.  But in the scale guide they show him 20 meters at the top of his wing, rather than 20 at the top of his head as they indicated in every other source. I corrected all of the scale oddities in my version.

[M'Kyuun]

On 6/2/2024 at 9:49 AM, Scyla said:

@M'Kyuun right, and even Hasbro is trying to unify even different universes into the G1 aesthetic and style with the main line.

But somehow the premier collector line, the best Transformer possible is this hodgepodge of different elements. 

I'm an unabashed G1 fan. However, I'm also a fan of Prime and Animated, each having its own specific art direction which I'd like to see purely in updated toys rather than being homogenized into a G1-ish aesthetic. I get that Hasbro wants everything to look related, but I don't think that's what fans want. I don't. It is what it is for now, and I do like the figs they're producing on the whole, but if I had my druthers, I'd rather they left out the G1 aspect when making non-G1 related figs.

If you're speaking of MP as their premier line, they have certainly taken various directions in scale, style, and engineering since big chonky beautiful MP-01 released in 2003. I'm not a fan of the toon slavish direction, but I heartily applaud their purposeful effort to really improve articulation in the MP line. To that end, I think they've succeeded marvelously (although I think it hurt Arcee, what with her low hanging chest to accommodate butterfly joints). 

[Wolf-1]

Got my copy of Gears today; just a heads up, they have placed his chest cover in the tissue paper.  Thought I had a version that someone had decided to get cute with since he is still in an open box.  

[lechuck]

MPG-10 Lift Ticket
https://hobby.dengeki.com/news/2360952/

MPG-11 DK-2 Guard (they are actually going with that name!?)
https://hobby.dengeki.com/news/2361033/

I don't really have any interest in these Diaclone variants and like to save money, but if any one of them is designated a Decepticon, then I would have to pick it up as I just kind of like the idea of "evil G1 carbot" versions.

 

Edited June 4 by lechuck

[mikeszekely]

9 minutes ago, lechuck said:

, but if any one of them is designated a Decepticon, then I would have to pick it up as I just kind of like the idea of "evil G1 carbot" versions

Both Autobots, you're in the clear.

[Black Valkyrie]

 

https://news.tfw2005.com/2024/06/04/takara-dramatic-capture-series-autobot-set-official-reveal-512826

 

 

[M'Kyuun]

51 minutes ago, Black Valkyrie said:

 

https://news.tfw2005.com/2024/06/04/takara-dramatic-capture-series-autobot-set-official-reveal-512826

 

 

I prefer my custom.

[M'Kyuun]

3 hours ago, lechuck said:

 

 

This mold raised eyebrows when it was first released, and though I own both Ironhide and Ratchet, I consider them two of the weakest figures in my MP collection. The mold hasn't aged any better and it continues to beckon for an improved toy. I wish Magic Square would upsize their version to MP scale. 

[sh9000]

I bought the Decepticon set so I might buy the Autobot set even though I already have Jazz and Optimus.

Edited June 7 by sh9000

[mikeszekely]

Oof.  Not loving the Autobot Dramatic Capture set.  If there's a difference between that Jazz and the regular SS86 release it's so minimal that I'm not seeing it- it even still has "14" instead of "4" on the side.  Prime looks good, arguably what he should have looked like in the first place... except we're supposedly getting an even better Commander-class SS86 Optimus this year.  And Mainframe is definitely colored a lot closer the original Action Master toy... but who gives a crap about Mainframe?  Maybe if they ditched Mainframe for a Prowl with the paint and mold tweaks they used on the dead one, but made him not dead and actually fixed Jazz's number, but as it stands I'll pass.

[M'Kyuun]

On 6/4/2024 at 7:20 PM, mikeszekely said:

Oof.  Not loving the Autobot Dramatic Capture set.  If there's a difference between that Jazz and the regular SS86 release it's so minimal that I'm not seeing it- it even still has "14" instead of "4" on the side.  Prime looks good, arguably what he should have looked like in the first place... except we're supposedly getting an even better Commander-class SS86 Optimus this year.  And Mainframe is definitely colored a lot closer the original Action Master toy... but who gives a crap about Mainframe?  Maybe if they ditched Mainframe for a Prowl with the paint and mold tweaks they used on the dead one, but made him not dead and actually fixed Jazz's number, but as it stands I'll pass.

Likewise; nothing about this set is remotely exciting. It's a purely shameless cash grab.  TBH, I thought Mainframe was just a made-up character to justify his appearance in The Ark. Regardless, he's such a low-tier level character that just about any other character would have been more enticing.

[mikeszekely]

It's a shame that four good-to-great figures is all we're likely to get out of Transformers: Reactivate.  Word on the street is that it's been canceled.  Honestly, I'm not surprised.  I mentioned months ago that they said they were scrapping what they had and starting over with a new engine.  From what I know of the game industry, "canceled" comes after "started over with a new engine" way more often than "released to universal acclaim."

[Raikkonen]

Lego Bumble Bee leak.

[JB0]

Bee's lookin' a little buff there. I'm worried he might've been overclocking.

[Chronocidal]

And.. oof.  Those giant stacks of plates for legs do not look even remotely conducive to any sort of ability to pose.  Looks like we're getting another action torso.  

[M'Kyuun]

33 minutes ago, Chronocidal said:

And.. oof.  Those giant stacks of plates for legs do not look even remotely conducive to any sort of ability to pose.  Looks like we're getting another action torso.  

Well, par for the course with LEGO. They could have easily built in some clicky-hinges that would likely be strong enough to manage the weight, but stability is their primary concern, not articulation.  Stability is good, but yeah, I'd prefer this thing had better articulation. The way they made the hood panels fold just confounds me: why not follow the pattern of regular Transformers Bee figs and just have the panel where the legs go move out of the way instead of breaking up the iconic Beetle front end? I'm assuming Joe Kyde, former Transformers designer at Hasbro-cum-LEGO designer designed this (he designed LEGO Optimus), and one would think he'd try to preserve the Beetle front end for Bee's feet. He is a little chunky on top, but I think that's an artifact of this being LEGO. The face is an improvement over Prime's, but I'm guessing the entire thing isa print on the same piece they developed for Prime's mask.  I'm hoping the crest, the face, and the Autobot symbol are all prints. The legs are likely stickers, just like Prime's.

I'm guessing the windshield is on his back or somehow folds into the body. Looks like the pelvis bends 90 degrees forward for transformation, as I doubt very much they gave him an ab crunch. Most Bee TF toys rely on the knees to help fold the legs, but obviously that wasn't an option here, so I'm curious how they're going to manage the transformation. Prime's was pretty straightforward, following the G1 toy's schema. This guy looks a little more complex.  My birthday's in July, so this'll make for a nice b-day present. 😉

[mikeszekely]

BMac posted on Instagram that they'll be doing some kind of reveals all week long, including the "final wave of Legacy United this year." (My sources tell me there is one more wave, but it's technically scheduled for early 2025 while the first part of the new post-Legacy trilogy will be condensed to three waves, sort of like the transition from Kingdom to Legacy).  I don't know if that means press releases, Instagram stuff, or if there will be a stream/streams on Pulse's Youtube channel, but the important thing to know is that preorders will open Thursday at 1:00pm EST.

[Tking22]

I'm so in for that LEGO Bee, he'll look good with Prime. My cousin's thirteenth birthday is in two weeks, I'll be grabbing him his first MP Transformer for his gift, probably MP Grapple, he really likes Grapple. 

[sh9000]

Quake.

Slipstream.

[mikeszekely]

Slipstream is exactly what I expected. I'm not sure what to make of Quake. It's a more extensive remold of Skullgrin than I thought, but despite that it's still kind of an awkward tank and the bot mode has some wrong colors.