The Unlicensed Third Party Transformers Thread

[slaginpit]

I dont think it looks horrible at all. It makes the gestalt more like a seamless combination than cars glued to the shins. I will find a way to mod and see if I can do it.

[Dio]

Just got my TFC Nemean, this thing is really impressive. Even with reviews and photos available for quite some time, I still didn't expect it to be quite so large. I'm very satisfied with it, and can't wait for the next figures.

Since most vocal forum members seem critical about the quality control on TFC figures, I was pretty cautious about this - and out of the box there were two very, very minor flaws. A little bit of excess flash on the peg that the fist attaches to kept it from going on properly, and it was actually rattling around in the box before I opened it (scary). After a quick trim, the fist went back on perfectly and has had no issues. I also had to slightly loosen a couple of the screws in the forearms (about a quarter turn each) because they were locking into place a little too firmly for the lion mode, and made transformation tough.

The quality otherwise feels great - everything feels strong and solid, and locks into place well for all 3 modes. The lion mane doesn't impede arm movement like some had worried, and the only point of articulation I think it lacks is a fully ball-jointed head for the bot mode (it's just on a swivel). The combined-mode head is on a ball joint.

Probably my only criticism at this point is that the paint apps are quite a bit more muted than the original prototype photo, and so I plan on adding some extra details to mine.

[Hikuro]

I received Planet-X Caelus(?) aka Not Swoop. I'm not big on it for the price tag. total after shipping was 88 dollars and some change, it's the equivalent of a Deluxe figure with a simplistic transformation from robot to dino mode. Most of my figure is floppy except the right fist which I can fix I suppose with a screw driver.

If it were about I'd say, 25 dollars less, this wouldn't be bad, I'd enjoy it. But it's not worth nearly a hundred dollars.

[David Hingtgen]

Gah, WTF UT?

That's FINAL COLORS. They just killed any good will they'd gotten from improving their not-Predacons. They said the earlier one wasn't final colors---this is even worse. Sadly, the box-art is spot-on------it's got "light grey and lavender" not "white and deep indigo":

(and the cannon's, you know, mostly orange)

[RD Blade]

Color choices aside, the bot mode on that thing is pretty good. Although, if they were going to sacrifice show accuracy in one mode, the other mode should have been spot on. Guess they were going for a Classic-verse Galvy.

[VF5SS]

http://oldtypenewtype.tumblr.com/post/72113553490/transformers-2010-spring-times-anime-headline

that's closer to how Galvatron was colored in most Japanese promotional artwork

[RD Blade]

The box art is dark blue like that promo. But the toy is purple.

[David Hingtgen]

http://oldtypenewtype.tumblr.com/post/72113553490/transformers-2010-spring-times-anime-headline

that's closer to how Galvatron was colored in most Japanese promotional artwork

Yeah, and Ultra Magnus was mostly navy with deep red accents in some/early promo artwork, but the final character was swapped blue/red and used much lighter blue. Doesn't mean that's what people want/expect for a figure of him.

I just finished watching Headmasters---Galvatron was colored just like he was in TF:TM and US Season 3.

That artwork frankly just doesn't even count as a color reference.

Both US and Japan saw the same-colored Galvatron, even though the shows were different.

[GU-11]

Colors aside, it's a decent Galvatron fig. The non-articulated wrists kills it for me, though.

[dizman]

That Galvatron looks great to me, course I could care less about perfect colors. The transformation looks fun, I'll probably wait for a few reviews before I pick it up just in case the QC isn't up to snuff.

[Gakken85]

They gun seems out of proportion.

[VF5SS]

Yeah, and Ultra Magnus was mostly navy with deep red accents in some/early promo artwork, but the final character was swapped blue/red and used much lighter blue. Doesn't mean that's what people want/expect for a figure of him.

I just finished watching Headmasters---Galvatron was colored just like he was in TF:TM and US Season 3.

That artwork frankly just doesn't even count as a color reference.

Both US and Japan saw the same-colored Galvatron, even though the shows were different.

Dude you are absolutely insufferable about this.

Just let it go.

I can't even browse a TFW thread for info without seeing you complain about colors.

[TCracker]

Hmmm....I will echo what I said in TFW forums, this Galvatron looks great and a nice representation of the character in toy form. I find the nitpicking of colors, although justifiable on the grounds of personal preference/taste, is still a very minor nitpick.

Glad I had him on pre-ordered.

[David Hingtgen]

Dude you are absolutely insufferable about this.

Then why bring up an obscure piece of artwork that is very atypically colored as some sort of "proof" that "the coloring's fine" in response to comments on the colors? How many TF fans would be ok with the "Autobot red" insignia shown there and a ruby-red arm cannon? Just because "it happened once" doesn't mean it's seen as expected/desired/acceptable for what is essentially going to be "the definitive figure of the last 20 years" for Galvatron.

[promethuem5]

Then why bring up an obscure piece of artwork that is very atypically colored as some sort of "proof" that "the coloring's fine" in response to comments on the colors? How many TF fans would be ok with the "Autobot red" insignia shown there and a ruby-red arm cannon? Just because "it happened once" doesn't mean it's seen as expected/desired/acceptable for what is essentially going to be "the definitive figure of the last 20 years" for Galvatron.

Dark purple.

[mikeszekely]

I do wish that Mania King's cannon was more orange and less white, and that all the white was gray. It's hard to tell from the lighting in that pic if his purple is too dark or if there's just not enough light in the photo. Even supposing that it really is that dark, I'm ok with it. Most toys, especially given that it's only Voyager-sized, have some flaws, and the fact is Mania King is indisputably the best representation of Galvatron in toy form. Cannon mode is solid, and that bot is fantastic, just the right mix of G1 animated look and the more menacing IDW-verse Galvatron. It's miles better than the crappy CHUG version. I know you can be a little particular about color, but frankly the only question I have left before I buy one is "how much?".

[Hikuro]

I don't honestly mind the colors, I do wish the gun barrel was all orange, and the white was more gray, maybe just 10%

[David Hingtgen]

Dark purple.

Not-screwed-up screencap:

(but seriously---you'll find super-oversaturated copies of TF:TM where HotRod is like burgundy, and Arcee is a deep magenta----I think the pic you posted is from one of them)

[Gakken85]

it's got more of a bright neonish purple going on in the movie. Idk the toy is too dark imo.

I back David.

I mean people bitch about skull placements on VF-1's. why can't doods bitch about colors on transformers?

[Kanedas Bike]

it's got more of a bright neonish purple going on in the movie. Idk the toy is too dark imo.

I back David.

I mean people bitch about skull placements on VF-1's. why can't doods bitch about colors on transformers?

Kind of a different set of circumstances when folks give "feedback" on what's arguably a QC issue with crooked/missing/wrong details like the Skull on a VF-1. Especially on an official product and especially on an official product that's been released and re-released.

Never purchased any of the third party TF releases but for my .02 if they're going to go thru all of the trouble to maintain the appearance of being accurate to one or more source material then go all the way and don't take liberties with the color.

And let me add, that I have NO idea what the color on this not-Galvatron is supposed to be, but since there's a discussion on this then I assume there's some room for debate on how accurate it is.

-b.

[skullmilitia]

If I'm gonna pay 3rd party prices for pirated Intellectual Property it better be damn near perfect.

The more crap that comes out from these 3P companies the more I get tired of them getting passes for

Doing it half hearted, this used to be for the fans, now it's soley for profit and Chinese manufacturing.

20$ sure, 50$ nope, 80$ seriously, frakk off.

[danth]

Dude you are absolutely insufferable about this.

Just let it go.

I can't even browse a TFW thread for info without seeing you complain about colors.

I value his opinion and enjoy reading it.

Your attacking him for sharing it, however, irks me.

[Falcon]

I find David's perceptive abilities insightful. He's certainly more aware about colours than I am. It's not just colours- little subtle pieces in designs are also spotted which could be helpful in the future when deciding whether to purchase something or not or being aware of what areas might be more fragile or accurate.

If you don't like his posts fair enough- but I think many here do appreciate some of the things he says.

[Mechapilot77]

i'm with david. the toy's colors are off. purple is way too dark/saturated. the white should be grey or even silver...but not white. it just looks off. its like someone mixed the colorants into the plastic resin as a first pass and somebody colorblind looked at a colored test sample said..."good enough", lets run it...and the whole lot was made that way. that is how off i think it is.

[Gakken85]

If I'm gonna pay 3rd party prices for pirated Intellectual Property it better be damn near perfect.

The more crap that comes out from these 3P companies the more I get tired of them getting passes for

Doing it half hearted, this used to be for the fans, now it's soley for profit and Chinese manufacturing.

20$ sure, 50$ nope, 80$ seriously, frakk off.

Agree.

[Twoducks]

If I'm gonna pay 3rd party prices for pirated Intellectual Property it better be damn near perfect.

The more crap that comes out from these 3P companies the more I get tired of them getting passes for

Doing it half hearted, this used to be for the fans, now it's soley for profit and Chinese manufacturing.

20$ sure, 50$ nope, 80$ seriously, frakk off.

Totally agree.

As for David, the man knows what he likes and I envy him for having such clear convictions. I would not have such an eye clutter of a collection if I had had his resolve. Plus you can learn things (I have learned a lot about colors and to respect color composition from him actually)… that said, wouldn't it be funny if he was actually color blind and was just trolling people

[Uxi]

Gun is pretty gay. Needs to be translucent orange like the G1

[David Hingtgen]

My idea (as the whole cannon assembly seems to be molded in one piece) was to paint the whole thing silver. Then the clear orange parts attached over that would look much nicer/deeper than putting them over off-white. (same reason car taillights are colored lenses over silver chrome, and not over plain white plastic)

Then, paint clear orange (or candy metallic clear orange etc) over the remaining "exposed" silver areas. That would look very cool, and still have some "contrast" and truly clear-orange bits. All without requiring re-molds or modified materials etc. Just gotta paint it "not off-white" to start with.

[skullmilitia]

All it takes is a damn google search, or god forbid, putting a DVD in and watching to understand what colors Galvatron has to be in order to be accurate. The fact that it wasn't done is basically the laziest and sad attempt by a company to make what the majority of fans want. We're not buying from you because you get it mostly right.

Look, if you're not gonna do it right, don't frakking bother!

The only good out of this crap is HasTak upping their game.

Also, whatever happened to just being upgrades for existing figures?

This is total Anarchy and a good example of why IP laws exist.

[Scyla]

I will add to this conversation that I find it kinda difficult to judge colors on images that where made with a cell pone (of by people who don't know what they're doing) and that I view on a non-calibrated non-true color monitor.

However for my tastes I agree with David on the color choices so I'm hoping for a MP Galvatron that gets it right. Even if most MP figures are a let-down quality wise they usually get stuff right (i.e. a good color composition). In addition they get the face sculpt right.

On the other hand I can understand VF5SS' frustration about the topic because David has some exquisite tastes about the coloring of his toys that most companies are not able to satisfy (see also the gray color on the VF-25S Renewal). So the issue of colored plastic pops up more often then no. However there are other people on the Internet that post much more aggravating stuff. I know what I'm talking about after reading every single post about a minor damage of an elbow joint over 500+ pages.

[VF5SS]

Galvatron also looked like this just as much (if not longer) than he did in the cartoon. Why bring up Japanese promotional artwork (in where he was colored like that more than once)? Well this is a toy being engineered by a Japanese sculptor whose basis for a this unlicensed figure is just as valid as the periwinkle blue crazy bot. 3rd parties have no rules but their own.

[Gakken85]

That doesn't look like the toy on offer either.

And hey, 3rd parties don't have to have rules... we don't have to buy it either haha.

If you want people to be nuts about your figures be exacting and have a high level of quality like Fantoys.

[anime52k8]

Maybe they thought changing up the colors would make him look less like a sex toy. Although in that case the black dong sticking up behind his head isn't helping.

[Gakken85]

Or maybe they just had an off color of plastic laying around and said screw it, these TF fans will buy anything!

Edited January 8, 2014 by Gakken85

[David Hingtgen]

GalvatronII.jpg

3rd parties have no rules but their own.

True, but if they want to sell their wares to a lot of people, making something look "off" or "exactly like the least-well-known, least-liked version" isn't the best move.

How many people truly prefer the comic versions of anybody for colors? I mean, really, how well would MP-13 have sold looking like this?