The Unlicensed Third Party Transformers Thread

[Convectuoso]

1 hour ago, derex3592 said:

@Convectuoso - Does the MS Megs scale well with the NA seekers in bot mode? Anybody got pics? 

There you go

[derex3592]

Nice! Looks good together! 

[technoblue]

On 4/4/2021 at 5:44 PM, Convectuoso said:

Magic Square's Perceptor:

Magic Square's Perceptor is looking good to me. Their Bee and Cliffjumper...not so much. I'll stick with NA for those two.

I'm already in for NA Prime. That prototype is looking good too, and I'm really looking forward to pairing the white version with their Magnus armor.

[Bobby]

Just wanted to say I am pretty pleased with the proportions of the MA Thunder Warrior SX-01 in alt mode.

Zeta Toys ZV-02 Flash

Mechanical Alliance Thunder Warrior EX-01

and another fun gerwalker...

[Convectuoso]

https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=1079522259235296

Pretty cool video on the upcoming NewAge Shockwave

[technoblue]

5 minutes ago, Convectuoso said:

https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=1079522259235296

Pretty cool video on the upcoming NewAge Shockwave

Sweet! It looks like you can't go wrong with either NewAge or Magic Square for Shockwave. I think I prefer how NewAge shaped the legs, though.

Oof. Will I be double dipping on Shockwave like I did with Optimus and Megatron?

And is that H-13EX I spy in the background? Toy Starscream is looking good too.

[Scyla]

12 minutes ago, technoblue said:

Sweet! It looks like you can't go wrong with either NewAge or Magic Square for Shockwave. I think I prefer how NewAge shaped the legs, though.

Oof. Will I be double dipping on Shockwave like I did with Optimus and Megatron?

And is that H-13EX I spy in the background? Toy Starscream is looking good too.

My opinion on Shockwave: 

[technoblue]

HaHa! Truly. Getting both Shockwaves is a given now.

[derex3592]

Well sh*t.  There's another New Age figure I HAVE to have! 

[Convectuoso]

I got this one today: 

NewAge's Harry (Prowl)

Prowl looks great on both modes, transformation is simple and enjoyable. I do find it a bit small, especially when compared to the Decepticons (Starscream and Soundwave) at least.

Doesn't come with a lot of accessories, just his gun and those gun-like things you attach to the back of his head:

I'm really happy with this figure. Looking forward to securing a Jazz once it's reissued to go with this one.

Edited April 9, 2021 by Convectuoso
I forgot to include the name

[tekering]

1 hour ago, Convectuoso said:

I got this one today: 

By not identifying the figure, determining the scale, or even providing the name of the manufacturer, were you just hoping somebody was going to ask...? 

Or is everyone reading this thread already capable of recognizing New Age's "Harry," despite my reservations?

1 hour ago, Convectuoso said:

I do find it a bit small, especially when compared to the Decepticons (Starscream and Soundwave) at least.

After their inaugural Bumblebee release, "Flipper," was very well-received, New Age obviously decided that establishing their own scale was the way to go, ignoring what Iron Factory, DX9's "War in Pocket" figures, Magic Square's "Brobdingnag" series, Generation Toy's GT-model, and the official Legends/Legion/Cyberverse/Core-class had already established. 

Can you tell I'm still salty about it two years later? 

Honestly, I stopped buying anything from New Age at that point, fearing it wouldn't scale with any of the existing figures in my collection... but with Hot Soldiers and MechFanToys further muddying the waters, it's become really difficult to determine which figures from any company are likely to be compatible.

I just wish there were more reviewers like Mike (or EmGo) buying figures at this size class, so I'd have a better idea of what I should buy. 

[M'Kyuun]

I recognized 'Harry' b/c I have him, but yeah, I hate it when folks post pics of stuff without clarification. FWIW, I concur wholeheartedly with Convectuoso's assessment: he's a great little fig, and as a huge fan of Prowl's design, a very satisfying figure for its size.  Thus far, aside from IGear's Huffer and Cosmos, I've only bought a handful of legends figs from Magic Square and New Age, although I PO'd a few upcoming Iron Factory figs, so I'll be broadening my collection with those later this year. 

As for reviewers, Kuma's a good source, as he's pretty deep into Iron Factory, and he collects other legends as well.  

Scale does seem to be all over the place from company to company, which makes mixing and matching a PITA. Since my collection is so small, I don't really care, but for someone who's heavily invested in a legends collection, it's a nuisance. 

I'm primarily a CHUG collector, and I personally wish that either A) a third party would take the risk and make CHUG scale stuff, or B) upscale some of these legends figs to CHUG scale, whatever class that may entail.  It'd be great to have another option when something like ER Astrotrain comes along and there's a legends fig out there that's better. Too, G1 Megatron, as we'll never again see a Megatron toy that turns into a gun in the US, and third party could provide that.  I think there's definitely a market for upscaled figs, but I think fear of litigation or police raids are keeping most of these companies in their legends or MP scaled comfort zones, with no-one even attempting to infringe on Hasbro's main line. Sad for us, the collectors.

[mikeszekely]

I recognized Harry, too.  I mean, I forgot his name was Harry, but I knew it was NewAge.

At this point, I think if you're doing Legends the only safe assumption is that if you stick to one company you're alright.  The only problems with that are that sometimes Newage does something that's clearly better than Magic Square (like the Seekers) while sometimes Magic Square is the clear winner (Megatron), plus Iron Factory makes some very good not-G1 figures.  However, Newage and Magic Square seem both prolific, with like half the G1 cast done already, and determined to release competing designs so if you do go all-in on one you don't have to worry that you're missing out on a character by passing on the other company.

Now, I'm probably not the best person to be giving advice on the subject as I bought a handful and kind of stopped when I realized I don't want another full cast in a third scale (although given how many of you guys are buying them I'm half tempted to pick up more just to review something you're into).  But, if I were going to jump in I'd probably go all Magic Square.  I wish they used more paint and better materials, but I like that Magic Square's are slightly larger and use more hinges and swivels and less ball joints.

[technoblue]

Man, I need to get some sleep. @Convectuoso makes two subsequent complimentary posts about NewAge and now it’s the end of the world in here.

Peaugh did review Harry, though, and stands him next to Flipper in case seeing how they look together is important.

 

Edited April 9, 2021 by technoblue
too tired

[Convectuoso]

I just forgot to add the name. It's been corrected now

[M'Kyuun]

6 hours ago, mikeszekely said:

I recognized Harry, too.  I mean, I forgot his name was Harry, but I knew it was NewAge.

At this point, I think if you're doing Legends the only safe assumption is that if you stick to one company you're alright.  The only problems with that are that sometimes Newage does something that's clearly better than Magic Square (like the Seekers) while sometimes Magic Square is the clear winner (Megatron), plus Iron Factory makes some very good not-G1 figures.  However, Newage and Magic Square seem both prolific, with like half the G1 cast done already, and determined to release competing designs so if you do go all-in on one you don't have to worry that you're missing out on a character by passing on the other company.

Now, I'm probably not the best person to be giving advice on the subject as I bought a handful and kind of stopped when I realized I don't want another full cast in a third scale (although given how many of you guys are buying them I'm half tempted to pick up more just to review something you're into).  But, if I were going to jump in I'd probably go all Magic Square.  I wish they used more paint and better materials, but I like that Magic Square's are slightly larger and use more hinges and swivels and less ball joints.

I'll add to that and say IMHO, Magic Square generally has the more toon accurate sculpts. Their Megatron is the best example- just a gorgeous little figure. Incidentally, I have both NA's and MS' Megatrons standing side by side on my desk, so the differences are readily apparent. 

That doesn't mean they're perfect: comparing their recent takes on Cliffjumper and Bumblebee, both took different approaches, and personally, I think New Age did a far better job of capturing the Choro-Q appearance of the G1 toys in their car modes, while managing a decent take on the toonish bot modes. Magic Square's car modes look off a bit, but it's enough to sway me towards the New Age if I indeed order any. The New Age bot modes' chest sculpts are broken up, as they're apparently part of the transformation, and I've seen a number of complaints against that, The MS figs' chests are solid, so they look better from that POV. Of course it's all subjective, and I'm glad they took different approaches- more options are better. I also personally thought NA did a better job overall with their Seekers. Speaking of legends figs we'd like to have upscaled- those little Seeker figs so outclass the crappy Earthrise figs that I wish someone would do upscaled KOs of them to fit CHUG scale. 

6 hours ago, technoblue said:

Man, I need to get some sleep. @Convectuoso makes two subsequent complimentary posts about NewAge and now it’s the end of the world in here.

 

 

I wouldn't say end of the world. If I gave the impression that I was upset in my earlier post, then I gave a mistaken impression, and I tender my sincere apology. On the contrary, I'm glad @Convectuoso showcased New Age's Harry in a couple of posts- I love the fig, and it's nice to share someone else's joy. I also think @tekering had a valid point when he pointed out the lack of identification of the fig in Convectuoso's post, which he has since fixed. So it's a positive all the way around. 

I think a lot of us, when we post something, get lost in the excitement and forget that not everyone here follows all things Transformers all the time. I completely understand it and I'm sure I'm guilty of it somewhere along the line. That said, I don't think it's offensive or asking too much of each other to identify what we're posting so that others , if said post captures their interest, can more easily do their own research. It's a courtesy, and one I try to adhere to and encourage others to as well.

@technoblue I hope you get some restful sleep, Sir.  

[technoblue]

Ha! It’s all good @M'Kyuun. No offense taken. I was just surprised.

 I do get where you guys are coming from, especially with the Datsun bros. MS and NA look very similar at a quick glance. The side panel near the door is the give away that this is NA Harry. IIRC, the MS version is clean in that location.

Sleep? Ah, I knew thee once! Too many things on my mind these days and then I got caught up in the excitement reading about the BW/HG news.

[M'Kyuun]

48 minutes ago, technoblue said:

Ha! It’s all good @M'Kyuun. No offense taken. I was just surprised.

 I do get where you guys are coming from, especially with the Datsun bros. MS and NA look very similar at a quick glance. The side panel near the door is the give away that this is NA Harry. IIRC, the MS version is clean in that location.

Sleep? Ah, I knew thee once! Too many things on my mind these days and then I got caught up in the excitement reading about the BW/HG news.

Welcome back, man! Sorry to hear that sleep is evasive, but I get where you're coming from on the very surprising but cautiously optimistic BW/HG situation. For the first time, there's hope for Western Macross fans.

As for Harry, TBH, I don't even remember what MS' version looked like; it was at first glance when I saw Harry for the first time. No regrets. Well one actually: Had I known that they would eventually release a fully decked out version with all the G1 toy deco, I would have waited for it instead. But the original version is clean and looks great on its own, so I'm still pretty happy with him.

[mikeszekely]

1 hour ago, technoblue said:

 I do get where you guys are coming from, especially with the Datsun bros. MS and NA look very similar at a quick glance. The side panel near the door is the give away that this is NA Harry. IIRC, the MS version is clean in that location.

To me the giveaway is the arms.  NA uses a ball joint for the bicep swivel and elbow, MS has a dedicated bicep swivel and pin hinges in the elbows.

[technoblue]

29 minutes ago, mikeszekely said:

To me the giveaway is the arms.  NA uses a ball joint for the bicep swivel and elbow, MS has a dedicated bicep swivel and pin hinges in the elbows.

That's a sure giveaway too. Maybe one that's even easier to observe on these smaller toys. 

[sh9000]

XTB.

[Scyla]

28 minutes ago, sh9000 said:

XTB.

But will they explode?

[slaginpit]

9 hours ago, sh9000 said:

XTB.

how much? 30000000000000 Dollars?

 

[sh9000]

On 4/6/2021 at 11:50 AM, Bobby said:

and another fun gerwalker...

Nice Gerwalk again.  

[Convectuoso]

More pictures of the upcoming Cyclops by NewAge:

[M'Kyuun]

I don't plan on getting this guy, but he looks great. It's amazing what MS and NA are pulling off at legends scale.

[Chronocidal]

Him holding a miniature version of himself amuses me for some reason.   

Just out of curiosity, is the large gray gun barrel actually folded up inside him, or a separate part?  I don't see how it would fit, but I don't see it in the pic with the accessories either.

[Convectuoso]

5 minutes ago, Chronocidal said:

Him holding a miniature version of himself amuses me for some reason.   

Just out of curiosity, is the large gray gun barrel actually folded up inside him, or a separate part?  I don't see how it would fit, but I don't see it in the pic with the accessories either.

Check this video:

https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=1079522259235296

[Chronocidal]

Ok, yeah, that's pretty awesome to see.  Thanks for the link!

[Convectuoso]

Here's a pretty cool stop motion video ok Magic Square's Shockwave

https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=535273181205772

 

 

[sh9000]

XTB Youth version Gravestone and Flipout.

[Rhubarbarian]

10 hours ago, Chronocidal said:

Him holding a miniature version of himself amuses me for some reason.   

I know it's canon in the show, but it never fails to make me laugh. I always assume it's another, smaller Shockwave, who in turn has his own small Shockwave.

[sh9000]

 

[Mechapilot77]

its a little sad that if you were to upscale either newage or MS and make the necessary changes - they'd both look better than quakewave or quakeblast in a lot of areas.  lol.  not that i don't still love those pieces but i would love for a properly sized MP shockwave that actually looks the part.  takara's is too small for me...and feels not great in hand (yes i have that one too). 

[Convectuoso]

More pictures of Magic Square's version of Shockwave: