The Transformers Thread (licensed) Next

[M'Kyuun]

1 hour ago, mikeszekely said:

All the PotP limbs come with a hand, though, leaving you with two extra hands.  While it looks like the extras fill out the torso on Volcanicus, the PotP feet have holes in the back.  I've seen people plug the hands with the fingers folded in and the dual thumbs bent around so they're pointing in the same direction as the wrist peg, then plugged into the PotP feet to make them larger/give them heels.

Anyway, Perfect Effect makes lots of combiner hand/foot upgrades, but I think they're a little pricey for what they are.

 

EDIT: Oh, yeah, I was so busy replying to Scyla that I almost forgot I had a question.  Now, I've seen reviews starting to pop up for MPM-05 Barricade, at Emgo's at the very least was a Hasbro version with the Toys 'R' Us exclusive badge.  Have any of you guys seen him in any of your stores?  I've checked my local store twice and haven't seen him, but I can't even find him online.  It's been my experience that even when TRU blows out of their online inventory it'll still have a page for the toy I can show to an employee to have them check if they have any in the back.

It's been about two weeks since my last TRU visit, and I don't recall any MPMs there. I've only seen MPM Prime there once a few months back. They do get them here, but it seems like a blink-and-you'll-miss-it opportunity, and I don't go out there too often.

Finally got all the PotP Dinobots and assembled them into Volcanicus. I'm with Scyla; the supplied feet are too small (might have to dig out the extra hands and try them). I'm using Slag as his right leg, and the foot pegs in securely, but it rotates easily under the weight, which makes just a standing pose tricky. I really hate how they did his legs- it would have worked much better and been more stable had they enabled Grimlock's thighs to absorb one way or the other into his lower legs. It would have shortened his gestalt a little, but the added stability, as well as more natural point of hip rotation and thigh length, would have improved him overall, IMHO. I appreciate that they tried, but the end result is a less than fun combiner. But I still like the individual Dinos, so the combining element is just a nice extra. Now Hun-grrr makes an excellent torso, with his ratcheted arms forming the gestalt's thighs, they're perfect length and situated naturally on the body. Looking forward to assembling Abominus, as I think he'll be a far better combined bot.

As well as picking up Snarl and Sludge this past weekend, I also got Moonracer and Rippersnapper. I was a little disappointed that Sludge's back feet aren't hinged- even a limited ball joint would've been nice. Ripper's pretty nice; the only issue I have is that his legs clamshell open a little too easily and his knees also unpeg very easily, so his legs come apart with minimal handling. I'm a fan of the trapeze linkage for leg foreshortening- I think it's an elegant design. However, it's completely dependent upon those leg halves firmly snapping together to be effective, and in this case, it's weakness is manifested. Hopefully I got a bum toy, and the rest hold together better. I think he's a fun little figure otherwise and I dig his odd land-shark alt mode.  I picked up Moonracer b/c I found her interesting as a toy; I have no familiarity with her as a character.  She's half shellformer, with half her backpack covering her legs and forming the central cabin section of her car mode. Her feet rotate up to become the hood and partial windshield of her car mode, and panels on her forearms fill in her back fenders to complete her transformation. In bot mode her feet are hinged to allow fore and aft and also hinged to enable a little bit of ankle rock inwards- if you hit the small sweet spot due to the small flared bit of molded detail at the base of her shins. Had that been smooth and rounded, she'd likely have ankle rocker regardless of foot position. It's one of those smack-your-forehead kind of designs. So close to effective... but not. She does, however, have double jointed knees, so that's nice. Her car mode is long and thin, and despite being a Cybertronian alt, I like it. Her hands are clearly visible at the rear of the car, however, so there's that.  This is a design that I think was hampered by the necessity of making her a combiner, not to mention giving her humanly feminine proportions. Had that combiner peg been omitted, they could have eliminated half of the backpack and perhaps integrated more of the shell section. Despite the shortcomings, I like her. She has disproportionally large feet which offer good stability and poseability, and she's a femmebot, which is rare. Moreover, I dig her color scheme- it's rare we get a light green TF car, and it works for her all around. One other negative I'll mention is that there are two tabs molded into the white section around the combiner peg that end up directly under her back wheels and sit flush with the ground. They look like deliberate parts of the mold rather than flashing, but the tabs serve no purpose- they don't tab into anything. The shell section rests against them in bot mode, so they appear to create clearance between the shell and the frame. It seems an odd unnecessary part of the mold to me.

Anyway, I'm interested to hear others' experiences/ opinions on these figures, and hope my mini-critiques are helpful.

 

[locidm]

I got MP Megatron back in April 2017, almost a year ago. Finally found time and gathered the interest to transform him for the first time today. Gotta day I’m impressed. Turning from gun mode to robot mode was especially rewarding. 

Now if I could gather enough energy to do SV-262 next!

Edited February 22, 2018 by locidm

[M'Kyuun]

MP Megs is a little involved, especially figuring out the arms, but once you've got it, it really comes together into a lovely figure with insane poseability. The upper torso/chest is the only criticism I have- that's iconic to Megatron, and it just doesn't look right due to all the folded bits comprising it with a flat plate slapped on the front. But, it's still an amazing little work of engineering-those legs and feet are brilliant. Due to his complexity, it's a rewarding experience to get him transformed.

The 262 is less complex than Megatron. Those back hinges are a PITA, though, esp due to the lack of clearance. If you can transform MP Megatron, you shouldn't have too much trouble with the 262. Like anything else of its nature, take your time and you'll get it.  I don't see how anyone can own a transforming toy and never transform it- defeats the purpose. I will say, though, some transforming toys are more fun than others, and after transforming the more difficult ones at least once, they often remain in bot mode for long spans of time until I get an urge to try it again. To that end, I empathize.

[locidm]

Ya these days it’s tough to find time and energy. Kids and work completely consume both on a daily basis. 

Which is why I appreciate intuitive transformation like the VF-1 and VF-31. On the other hand, I hate spending time on transforming YF-29 just because I spend 90% of the time trying to get the arms in place in frustration . 

MP Meg though, I think after the first transformation shouldn’t be too hard to do it again. It’s not difficult, just lots of steps. Fun ones at that. Fun is the most important factor. Why the heck waste time doing something frustrating? It’s a toy at the end of the day. It’s purpose is to provide entertainment. 

[JB0]

1 hour ago, M'Kyuun said:

Finally got all the PotP Dinobots and assembled them into Volcanicus.

If I ever find the other two Dinobots, they're going onto Combiner Wars Sky Lynx. I have zero interest in Primes Grimlock.

 

The idea ran around long enough in my head to have a plot and combiner name: Dino-soar.

Sky Lynx hates the name. He was outvoted 4-1. This is what happens when you let dinobots name a combiner.

[vlenhoff]

They should just base the transformers movies in the 80s and just sell the masterpiece line for a just price in AMERICA, and the rest of the world. The toys are already made, and the movie would just sell them.

[mikeszekely]

I'm still waiting on the wave 2 Deluxes to show up around here. I'll load on Moonracer and the jet, but I want the Dinobots and Rippersnapper.

[M'Kyuun]

8 hours ago, locidm said:

Ya these days it’s tough to find time and energy. Kids and work completely consume both on a daily basis. 

Which is why I appreciate intuitive transformation like the VF-1 and VF-31. On the other hand, I hate spending time on transforming YF-29 just because I spend 90% of the time trying to get the arms in place in frustration . 

MP Meg though, I think after the first transformation shouldn’t be too hard to do it again. It’s not difficult, just lots of steps. Fun ones at that. Fun is the most important factor. Why the heck waste time doing something frustrating? It’s a toy at the end of the day. It’s purpose is to provide entertainment. 

I have no kids, and I'm retired military, so I have lots of time to dedicate to hobbies. But, I have friends, and have had coworkers, with kids, so I can understand how work and family can monopolize one's time. Even with time on your hands, there's nothing wrong with preferring the simpler, more intuitive transforming toys; they are fun, and as you said so eloquently, that's ultimately what it's all about. I like the complex toys for the challenge, but I rarely transform them b/c they usually are frustrating. And then there are toys like XTransbot's Eligos ( MP scaled Cyclonus) which is a beautiful figure, both bot and alt. But the transformation is an exercise in frustration due to poor clearances and some ill-designed tabs. The transformation itself isn't too complicated, sharing cues from the recent CW and TR figures, just scaled up. But I hate transforming him b/c of those clearances, so in lovely bot mode he stays, unless I get a masochistic urge.

 

3 hours ago, vlenhoff said:

They should just base the transformers movies in the 80s and just sell the masterpiece line for a just price in AMERICA, and the rest of the world. The toys are already made, and the movie would just sell them.

Y'know, as much as I like the G1 characters, I'm not opposed to just letting nostalgia drive sales of the MP line. Would I like to see those old characters on the big screen, perhaps with an EJ Su aesthetic - yeah, part of me would. But again, I think that's nostalgia. I also think it'd be neat if they redid the G1 cartoon with CG, and just used the old voice/sound tracks with some necessary remastering. I'd buy that. For a complete reboot of the cinema franchise, though, I think it should be just that- all new everything. New crew of bots, their own story, new settings- fresh from the bottom up. Of course, they can keep some mainstays- Cybertron, the Primes, taking on Earth alt modes (and maybe actually use the 'disguise' element , as they did in TF: Prime). There's so much they can do with this franchise to reinvigorate it, but I think they need to let go of the old and create a new story for this generation, with the inevitable homages to the G1 here and there. They did this brilliantly in Animated, although they were a mix of old and new with a lot of homages. I just hope we never get metallic skeletons coated with shards of metal as Transformers ever again- make them look more like the toys with some industrial design thrown in for realism.

However, I do think it's a crap move on Hasbro's part not to be more active in selling the MP line here in the West. I guess it's good for TRU to have them as exclusives, but they don't seem to get a great deal of stock. Moreover, they price gouge b/c they have that monopoly, which sucks for us as fans and consumers who desire these figures. And, there's nothing G1 currently out there promoting them, so sales are driven entirely by 30 years of nostalgia. So Hasbro, reskin the old show in CG loveliness, remaster the tracks, and see if that reignites interest in the old show enough to justify selling the MP line domestically.

[Scyla]

13 hours ago, mikeszekely said:

All the PotP limbs come with a hand, though, leaving you with two extra hands.  While it looks like the extras fill out the torso on Volcanicus, the PotP feet have holes in the back.  I've seen people plug the hands with the fingers folded in and the dual thumbs bent around so they're pointing in the same direction as the wrist peg, then plugged into the PotP feet to make them larger/give them heels.

Anyway, Perfect Effect makes lots of combiner hand/foot upgrades, but I think they're a little pricey for what they are.

 

EDIT: Oh, yeah, I was so busy replying to Scyla that I almost forgot I had a question.  Now, I've seen reviews starting to pop up for MPM-05 Barricade, at Emgo's at the very least was a Hasbro version with the Toys 'R' Us exclusive badge.  Have any of you guys seen him in any of your stores?  I've checked my local store twice and haven't seen him, but I can't even find him online.  It's been my experience that even when TRU blows out of their online inventory it'll still have a page for the toy I can show to an employee to have them check if they have any in the back.

I actually meant what other two limb bots from PotP would go well with the CW Cyclonus.

But yeah, I probably toss in a PE set with my next order.

[mikeszekely]

1 hour ago, Scyla said:

I actually meant what other two limb bots from PotP would go well with the CW Cyclonus.

But yeah, I probably toss in a PE set with my next order.

Ooooooh.

Well, if you picked up any of the May Mayhem releases you might have some leftover limbs. My Cyclonus currently has Alpha Bravo, Rook, and Offroad after picking up the May Mayhem Wildrider, Slingshot, and Deluxe Groove. This year we're even supposed to get the Unite Warriors version of Blast Off, so I'll have an extra brown jet if I pick him up.

If you're limited to PotP, though, looks like your choices are limited to Dinobots, Terrorcons, Fembots, or Jazz, since I'm hearing that Wave 3 will be a Moonracer repaint and the rest of the Terrorcons and PotP is ending early after that. If you're not getting Elita-1 you could go with the Fembots. Or you could go with Swoop and Cutthroat for a team of flyers.

[kanedaestes]

I know the way the line is going is controversial among us collectors (Though I for one like the cartoon accurate look as that’s how I grew up with Transformers), looks like an animation accurate MP Prime is rumored to be in the mix. 

http://news.tfw2005.com/2018/02/22/rumor-masterpiece-optimus-prime-3-0-incoming-359883

Edited February 22, 2018 by kanedaestes

[Tking22]

12 minutes ago, kanedaestes said:

I know the way the line is going is controversial among us collectors (Though I for one like the cartoon accurate look as that’s how I grew up with Transformers), looks like an animation accurate MP Prime is rumored to be in the mix. 

http://news.tfw2005.com/2018/02/22/rumor-masterpiece-optimus-prime-3-0-incoming-359883

Saw that earlier, rumored, but probably true do to the line going all out toon accuracy and nothing else, MP-10 looks awful next to MP-36, the shift in the line aesthetic is blatantly obvious in my opinion. MP-36 being the more ugly figure, MP-10 still being a perfectly fine, pretty much ideal MP Optimus. Once again, cool for those that want toon accuracy, but that's not what I wanted or liked about the MP line after the re-launch with MP-10, it's not how the majority of the line looks, and it's absolutely NOT what I am looking for in expensive MP figures. I personally see the awesome engineering as going to waste when the beginning and end result is as bland as the crappy old 80s cartoon, seems incredibly counter-intuitive, putting more engineering and money into continuously worse looking figures. All my opinion, clearly the toon look is what a lot of people want, and since Takara only polls and cares about Japanese fan's opinions, clearly it is what they want too. With this, I'm probably done with official Takara MPs, more toon accuracy is not what I want, and clearly that is where the line is heading. I can care less about Bay/Movie stuff, so I have zero interest in MPM, that said, I am still absolutely on board for everything and anything Beast Wars MP related, third party has barely touched that so Takara looks to be my only bastion there, which is fine, I feel their MP Beast Wars releases have been fantastic, G1 not so much.

[Scyla]

So I was expecting a new MP Optimus after seeing MP-36. Now I firmly believe that MakeToys Despotron is the far superior MP Megatron compared to the official. He also fit better into my Materpiece collection.

However I bought MP-36 with the intention of owning MP Optimus 3.0 as a standalone set encompassing the Transformers franchise with these two figures.

I was impressed with the engineering, articulation and finish on Megatron (not so much the issues he has when transforming him) so I'm curious what Optimus has to offer. He is a far simpler design than Megatron so I'm not sure they can impress me that much. However if the feet fold up in a box and not just hang there in alt mode. The hind wheels fold away into the lower legs, he has no fake grill and double jointed knees and elbows Takara can still win me over.

Funny this will be the first Optimus Prime/Convoy in my whole Transformers collections because up to this point I only own black repaints of him.

[dizman]

I'm pretty happy with 2.0 Prime so 3.0 is going to have to really wow me if they want me to buy. Maybe release some battle damage parts like with MP Megatron and I'll consider buying.

[mikeszekely]

24 minutes ago, dizman said:

I'm pretty happy with 2.0 Prime so 3.0 is going to have to really wow me if they want me to buy. Maybe release some battle damage parts like with MP Megatron and I'll consider buying.

I said the same thing about Op 1.0 when 2.0 was announced. If 3.0 is as big as improvement over 2.0 as 2.0 wound up being over 1.0 I'll gladly upgrade.

That being said, given Takara's penchant for super cartoon accuracy I'm not holding my breath.

[Valkyrie Hunter D]

Yeah, this 3rd MP OP will have to be something truly special in order for me triple dip.  Here I was thinking that we'd see a MP combiner before another G1 OP.

[M'Kyuun]

18 hours ago, Scyla said:

I was impressed with the engineering, articulation and finish on Megatron (not so much the issues he has when transforming him) so I'm curious what Optimus has to offer. He is a far simpler design than Megatron so I'm not sure they can impress me that much. However if the feet fold up in a box and not just hang there in alt mode. The hind wheels fold away into the lower legs, he has no fake grill and double jointed knees and elbows Takara can still win me over.

Pretty much have the same criteria. Maybe a little better proportioned, as MP-10's arms are too long. That and the fugly wheel wells hanging off his legs are what dissuaded me from buying him initially. Over time, as pics of him were circulating, though, I finally caved, and I admit I think he's a really nice figure. But, I've always thought they could do better, and I'm hoping everything you mentioned and perhaps other issues, will be addressed in a third version. I hope they keep the rubber tires, though. Using plastic tires on all the carbots is not a sign of high grade, IMHO, and quite frankly Takara's being shown up by a lot of these third parties. 

I do think a third version will see marked improvement in articulation over MP-10, as that's a stated goal for the MP line, and that's phenomenally glorious, so long as they can pull it off and still produce a believable looking truck. Hopefully the finer details will still be there, too- rivets, molded panel lines, maybe some diamond plating, etc that give it the proper fit and finish, as well as a touch of realism. Not digging the toon-centric approach as far as fine detail goes. I like that they want to make the robot look generally like he did in the toon- get the general look and proportions of the characters close to how they looked on screen, but give the final toy all the finishing touches we expect in a modern day high end toy. I find it very difficult to believe, looking across various lines of Japanese toys/figures/models, all imbued with extremely high levels of detail, that the Japanese Trans-fandom want bland undetailed robot modes in the MP line- it seems counter-culture and dubious, and just a little, dare I say, cheap.  Moreover, it's a little backwards when the level of detail on the mass retail Generations toy lines of late are equitable if not better than the last few MP figures (MY CHUG shelf is right behind me, and I've got Volcanicus, PotP Prime, Moonracer, Rippersnapper, Jazz, Hun-Grrr, Roadtrap and Battleslash hanging out on my desk, so I'm looking at these things as I write and comparing them to MP Sunstreaker and Ratchet- sadly the retail toys win hands-down in the detail department). I'm thinking this is one of those situations 10-20 years down the road when hopefully the situation has reversed, and everyone looks back and wonders 'WTF were they thinking?'. 

Hopefully by then there'll be all sorts of memory materials being used that allow for some impressive dynamism and a nearly organic ability to assume complex shapes as well as close up gaps- that's the sort of leap I'd like to see analogous to how toy tech has improved since the 80's. Fun to dream about this sort of stuff.

[Mechapilot77]

Mp-10 does a lot if things right, still my favorite transformers toy overall.  That being said, it's way possible to improve on him.  Like others have said double jointed elbows, more range of motion in knees joints, a better leg/alt mode look and maybe slightly altered proportions.  Anime accurate simplicity isn't on my list, nor is hyper detail that is made up and changes the overall design aesthetic (looking at those imaginariun statues names me sick).  Mp-36 while went slavish to toon in proportions (well if you're looking up at him like the animation guide which the designers failed to take into account),does actually have more detail to him then say inferno (which could have been brilliant, but ends up looking decidedly unpremium),and sunstreaker does lack kn added you detail he actually has more real world mechanical toy hinges and panels so again looks world's better than detail deleted inferno.... Maybe the line will wake up  learn how to combine toonishness without defaulting to detailess panels and surfaces like ironhide and inferno.  im hopeful but afraid they will pull an MP inferno move for the next prime.  

[Tking22]

43 minutes ago, Mechapilot77 said:

im hopeful but afraid they will pull an MP inferno move for the next prime.  

This is my fear as well. My love for MP-10 shouldn't come as a "he's perfect", he absolutely can be improved upon in several ways, all already mentioned, articulation, mold improvements on his legs, better looking rear end/feet in alt mode, paint the frakkING eyes Takara! Hasbro did! Aesthetically though, my fear is we will get those things, but then bland toon styling, no rivets, details, just plain areas covered in paint. The real question I have is, if this isn't just a rumor and is a real thing, will he just be a half-ass + repaint or would it actually be a new mold? That's what hasn't been answered yet among these rumors. The scan everyone is wigging out about shows some clearly different molding and proportions then MP-10, but that rumored image isn't concrete. I'd love the same styling and detail of MP-10 but with some new fancy Takara engineering making him as poseable as Sunny or MP-36, but if Takara were to do a V3 Prime I am 100% confident they will style it to go with MP-36, bland, and toon accurate.

 

[vlenhoff]

On 2/22/2018 at 10:57 AM, M'Kyuun said:

I have no kids, and I'm retired military, so I have lots of time to dedicate to hobbies. But, I have friends, and have had coworkers, with kids, so I can understand how work and family can monopolize one's time. Even with time on your hands, there's nothing wrong with preferring the simpler, more intuitive transforming toys; they are fun, and as you said so eloquently, that's ultimately what it's all about. I like the complex toys for the challenge, but I rarely transform them b/c they usually are frustrating. And then there are toys like XTransbot's Eligos ( MP scaled Cyclonus) which is a beautiful figure, both bot and alt. But the transformation is an exercise in frustration due to poor clearances and some ill-designed tabs. The transformation itself isn't too complicated, sharing cues from the recent CW and TR figures, just scaled up. But I hate transforming him b/c of those clearances, so in lovely bot mode he stays, unless I get a masochistic urge.

 

Y'know, as much as I like the G1 characters, I'm not opposed to just letting nostalgia drive sales of the MP line. Would I like to see those old characters on the big screen, perhaps with an EJ Su aesthetic - yeah, part of me would. But again, I think that's nostalgia. I also think it'd be neat if they redid the G1 cartoon with CG, and just used the old voice/sound tracks with some necessary remastering. I'd buy that. For a complete reboot of the cinema franchise, though, I think it should be just that- all new everything. New crew of bots, their own story, new settings- fresh from the bottom up. Of course, they can keep some mainstays- Cybertron, the Primes, taking on Earth alt modes (and maybe actually use the 'disguise' element , as they did in TF: Prime). There's so much they can do with this franchise to reinvigorate it, but I think they need to let go of the old and create a new story for this generation, with the inevitable homages to the G1 here and there. They did this brilliantly in Animated, although they were a mix of old and new with a lot of homages. I just hope we never get metallic skeletons coated with shards of metal as Transformers ever again- make them look more like the toys with some industrial design thrown in for realism.

However, I do think it's a crap move on Hasbro's part not to be more active in selling the MP line here in the West. I guess it's good for TRU to have them as exclusives, but they don't seem to get a great deal of stock. Moreover, they price gouge b/c they have that monopoly, which sucks for us as fans and consumers who desire these figures. And, there's nothing G1 currently out there promoting them, so sales are driven entirely by 30 years of nostalgia. So Hasbro, reskin the old show in CG loveliness, remaster the tracks, and see if that reignites interest in the old show enough to justify selling the MP line domestically.

My idea is not aimed at nostalgia. The MP line is already made, now make a major movie to sell more of it. Just like Diaclone already existed, but the cartoon sold them to a bigger audience. Make a good movie and base it in the 80s. They can get the right cars in the right colors, and sell as many toys as they can. They just need to write a clever story with good plot, and properly use the character's gimmick of disguising in plain view.

[dizman]

20 hours ago, vlenhoff said:

My idea is not aimed at nostalgia. The MP line is already made, now make a major movie to sell more of it. Just like Diaclone already existed, but the cartoon sold them to a bigger audience. Make a good movie and base it in the 80s. They can get the right cars in the right colors, and sell as many toys as they can. They just need to write a clever story with good plot, and properly use the character's gimmick of disguising in plain view.

See now that's the problem, they need to actually do that and not screw it up for the 6th or 7th time depending how poorly the Bumblebee movie goes. As for reusing the 80's designs I could see that happening for a 20 minute prologue in the movie but there's no way they would turn down easy money from car companies by not using the modern counterparts.

[M'Kyuun]

Good point- these movies are nothing if not advertisements for cars- granted the majority of which are cars most of us will never be able to afford, but there's money to be made. I think Dizman has the right idea: introduce the movie in the 80's, showing the arrival of our intrepid bots and their war over resources to return to Cybertron. Fast forward to present, and the war carries on. Win for young and old, even if the old stuff is brief.

[JB0]

11 hours ago, dizman said:

See now that's the problem, they need to actually do that and not screw it up for the 6th or 7th time depending how poorly the Bumblebee movie goes. As for reusing the 80's designs I could see that happening for a 20 minute prologue in the movie but there's no way they would turn down easy money from car companies by not using the modern counterparts.

Also, for the most part the market segment being targeted by a major motion picture doesn't want to see a movie set in the 80s. They want to see something they can relate to, set in the now.

[Dangard Ace]

Picked up almost all of the PotP toys.  Except for Rodimus, Starscream and Jazz.  Dinobots just to see if. Volcanicus looks any good and Dreadwind because I’m going to pick up Darkwing/Blackwing  cause my Fanshobby Power Baser needs someone to shoot down.   

My biggest surprise is how much fun Optimus is.  He’s toon heroic looking and Orion Pax looks like he stepped out of Wardawn.  Articulation for both bots are amazing.  

Cons with the bots are how big their backpacks are or how obvious Orion’s plugged into the back. 

But you know what?. These aren't masterpieces these are fun mess around with toys.  Love it for what it is.  Maybe I'll hate it when I try to get it into alt mode.  

[vlenhoff]

Stranger things is based in the 80s, and people like it...

Anyway, they can't even make Star wars right, so my hope for a good bot movie is non existent.

edit in: BTW they don't need money from car companies. These movies make a lot of money on their own. They made the MP line already, now they need  a movie to sell them. 

Edited March 1, 2018 by vlenhoff

[M'Kyuun]

The 80's definitely have their charm, esp when just about every facet of media and pop culture are still relevant and influential today. And yeah, Stranger Things is a fun show that taps into that decade's nostalgia very well. Since there are movies made in just about every time period, I don't think that's as much a detractor as the production values, although I think the younger crowd probably want to see more current vehicles being used for alts. That's like the only thing I think Bay got right- the guy doesn't know squat about Transformers, but he's got a great eye for cars.

5 hours ago, Dangard Ace said:

Picked up almost all of the PotP toys.  Except for Rodimus, Starscream and Jazz.  Dinobots just to see if. Volcanicus looks any good and Dreadwind because I’m going to pick up Darkwing/Blackwing  cause my Fanshobby Power Baser needs someone to shoot down.   

My biggest surprise is how much fun Optimus is.  He’s toon heroic looking and Orion Pax looks like he stepped out of Wardawn.  Articulation for both bots are amazing.  

Cons with the bots are how big their backpacks are or how obvious Orion’s plugged into the back. 

But you know what?. These aren't masterpieces these are fun mess around with toys.  Love it for what it is.  Maybe I'll hate it when I try to get it into alt mode.  

PotP Prime is a really fun figure- lots of articulation, and better proportioned than MP-10. I wish Orion had been designed to integrate a little better, but for what it is, still fun. Like Dangard Ace says, this thing isn't high end collectible- it's meant to be played with, and to that end I think Has/Tak designed him well. The truck mode is ok, excepting the obvious top of his OP cab in the front of his trailer, and Orion 's forearms are just kinda there in cab mode, not really integrated into the alt.  There's a bit of panel folding to form the trailer, but it all comes together pretty nicely. Rodimus didn't fare so well in the design department, but he still looks cool and has presence, if only because of his size. I like how they tried to integrate Hot Rod more into the larger Rodimus in a meaningful way, using his legs as the larger bot's arms, but the articulation falls woefully short and it ends up with some awkward shoulders. I also wish they'd found a better way to fold things so the back of his space Winnebago mode was cleaner and more accurate to the G1 toy/animation. It just looks bad.

[lechuck]

I'm in for a new MP Optimus. MP-10 articulation-wise is not that good compared to some of the newer releases and that irks me a lot, especially against Megatron. The main protagonist having the "weaker" toy, never sits well with me.

On a side note, it is a bit sad how the (Trans-Fan) collecting community always react to the mention of new versions, revisions or re-releases of popular characters/toys.

[Tking22]

1 hour ago, lechuck said:

I'm in for a new MP Optimus. MP-10 articulation-wise is not that good compared to some of the newer releases and that irks me a lot, especially against Megatron. The main protagonist having the "weaker" toy, never sits well with me.

On a side note, it is a bit sad how the (Trans-Fan) collecting community always react to the mention of new versions, revisions or re-releases of popular characters/toys.

Why is it sad? Some people want the line to actually continue with new figures, not just re-releases and re-paints or figures that already exist. Could there be improvements on MP-10? Of course, as mentioned above, many agree. Would I like to see them actually make a new character from the original Arc Crew, absolutely, more so then another Optimus, or Starscream, which a V3 will happen eventually for him as well and will clog up the potential for more new releases, since SW and TC will have to follow. Sad? That kind of sounds gross.

[M'Kyuun]

I understood his meaning to be that it's sad that some fans react negatively towards mention of new versions of toys, esp when the present one has a following. As for me, I like to see improvements, so the idea of version 3 MP OP brings with it potential for better articulation, integrating his back wheels into the transformation so his legs are flush, getting his proportions better (no more ape arms), all the while maintaining a realistic truck mode. What I hope doesn't happen is that they turn him into a Chinese puzzle box with panel lines criss-crossing all over him like Megs' gun mode. That's my biggest criticism of MP Megatron, well that and the fact that his upper torso doesn't look right , since it's made up of a lot of moving parts sandwiched together instead of his gun slide. That's really iconic to G1 Megatron, and I don't feel they captured it. But, on the whole, he's just a magnificent action figure- so much fun. A matching OP would be nice.

As for the next MP, I'd also like to see another of the G1 Ark characters that hasn't been made yet get the treatment. Hound and Jazz stand out as pretty big omissions. I would have preferred them over Inferno or Tracks.

[Tking22]

6 minutes ago, M'Kyuun said:

I understood his meaning to be that it's sad that some fans react negatively towards mention of new versions of toys, esp when the present one has a following.

I'm still not seeing how that's sad, overall I'd say "sad" is a bad descriptor, frustrating maybe? I just want Takara to move forward with some new characters, the more time they waste on V2, V3, etc. is less time spent on a character we don't have yet.

[JB0]

I want TakaraTomy to redo every single one of the existing MP toys in MP-1 scale.  And none of this toon-accurate crap. Luscious detailing on every single facet. AND A SHOCKWAVE WITH LIGHTS AND SOUNDS!

[Tking22]

3 minutes ago, JB0 said:

I want TakaraTomy to redo every single one of the existing MP toys in MP-1 scale.  And none of this toon-accurate crap. Luscious detailing on every single facet. AND A SHOCKWAVE WITH LIGHTS AND SOUNDS!

Or, at minimum, a dark purple "toy" colored Shockwave. How the hell has that not happened yet? Same with a silver colored with red on the legs MP-36, with a "clean" Con logo on his chest? Also, MP-1 was pretty awesome for his time.

Takara knows what will make money, I'm positive a V3 more "toon" accurate Prime will sell gang busters, it's just a bummer they are potentially stalling other releases with more re-releases and updated versions of characters.

[Scyla]

I'm excited about the new MP Convoy. I can understand that people are upset that Takara is releasing Bayformers and Beast Wars Masterpiece branded toys instead of finishing out the G1 cast. 

I agree with the notion that I would like to see more G1 MP releases especially how well Sunstreaker turned out. On the other side I always face the reality that none of the Japanese toy companies never seem to finish anything. They do the most popular characters and then stop.

Same goes for any toy line. I still want the rest of the Celestial Being suits from Gundam 00 as Metal Build releases but no. Same goes for the Gundam Wing suits besides the Wing Zero. I dread the day when Bandai decides to be finished with the SHF line without releasing the whole New Challengers cast. 

This is not just Bandai. It is Arcadia, Sentinel, Evolution Toys, Good Smile, Takara, etc.

I think it it is just a reality that Japanese toy collectors can't afford a basement full of toys so they will go for the iconic characters like Convoy and Megatron. The listed toy companies are catering to their prime market so we have to deal with that. I also could imagine that Japanese collectors are interested in more toy lines than compared to the West where I have the feeling that there are much more focused collectors. I.E. only G1 MP Transformers, only Star Wars, etc. 

So while I'm grieving about not getting the toys I want I have to accept reality and embrace what we are getting. 

[jenius]

I hope convoy three launches a new generation of masterpiece and we start all over.

[Scyla]

Just now, jenius said:

I hope convoy three launches a new generation of masterpiece and we start all over.

It would be interesting to see the fan reaction over a new MP Convoy that is a different scale than the current Masterpiece line. Maybe he is sized to scale with Masterpiece Beast Wars Convoy.

On the other hand I watched a BSF video recently where he talked about being almost finished with his MP G1 line so I'm not sure Takara needs to continue the MP line.