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The newest action figures (and other toys) thread (NSF56k)

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Posts

  • AthenorAthenor Battle Hardened Optimist The Skies of HiigaraRegistered User regular
    I couldn't tell you. According to tfwiki, it was designed by the same person at Tomy. Looking at the wiki pictures, I can see off the bat that the landing gear are different, as is how the brain of courage slots into the body. The blade of the sword is chromed on the masterpiece - in fact, it looks like the blade is much better designed so you can have the small Saber figure carry it and be in proportion. ... Hell, the more I look at pictures of the masterpiece, the more I kind of wish I could've gone with that, even if it didn't come with the Victory Leo stuff.

    He/Him | "A boat is always safest in the harbor, but that’s not why we build boats." | "If you run, you gain one. If you move forward, you gain two." - Suletta Mercury, G-Witch
  • BetsuniBetsuni UM-R60L Talisker IVRegistered User regular
    Great, now I feel the need to go research what I need to look for on my copy. I opened the box up yesterday and the inside part fell out of the SIOC box leaving the shell cover piece stuck inside. At least at first glance it looks like everything is in there, but need to find the threads on TFW to see what I need to check.

    I was honestly hoping for a more toy Victory Saber. One I can just fiddle with and now it sounds like we got a mainline toy that you would wait for it to go on clearance rather than buy it for full price.

    I was annoyed seeing all the plastic string things holding the bots in the plastic shell to be honest. Wished they did a nicer cardboard display like the Selects line.

    oosik_betsuni.png
    Steam: betsuni7
  • Undead ScottsmanUndead Scottsman Registered User regular
    My personal speculation is this figure hit some development snags and they rushed it out to meet their 2022 deadline so it'd be getting into people's hands at the same time as the Deathsaurus campaign.

    I have mine, but I haven't opened it yet. Had some medical stuff I had to deal with over the last two days. Protip: Don't need to see a specialist when it's only a few days before Christmas; they ain't around!

  • BetsuniBetsuni UM-R60L Talisker IVRegistered User regular
    Ah, that would explain the bad QC then. Hopefully they have enough parts to swap them all out.

    Also, hope you are ok and yikes on the specialist.

    oosik_betsuni.png
    Steam: betsuni7
  • Undead ScottsmanUndead Scottsman Registered User regular
    Betsuni wrote: »
    Ah, that would explain the bad QC then. Hopefully they have enough parts to swap them all out.

    Also, hope you are ok and yikes on the specialist.

    I'm mostly recovered. Had some eye issues that were preventing me from sleeping.

  • Undead ScottsmanUndead Scottsman Registered User regular
    edited December 2022
    It's a Christmas Miracle. New store listings for Transformers hit.
    https://news.tfw2005.com/2022/12/22/new-2023-transformers-listings-found-titans-commanders-leaders-more-470667

    Highlights include

    -Confirmation for the 2023 Legacy Commander and Titan class figures
    Surprising no-one, the commander is Armada Optimus Prime and the Titan is the LOOONG hinted at Nemesis.

    -What sounds like might be a generic from the WfC game, which for a game that isn't around anymore (I'm curious if Hasbro is planning on reissuing it) seems like a left field choice

    -Shattered Glass Grimlock?

    -Studio Series is getting into the Commander class game with a new Ultra Magnus, in case you missed the last 4 releases.

    More in the link, though a lot of it is a bit unclear.

    Undead Scottsman on
  • AthenorAthenor Battle Hardened Optimist The Skies of HiigaraRegistered User regular
    I really hope the Nemesis isn't just a retooling of the Ark.

    He/Him | "A boat is always safest in the harbor, but that’s not why we build boats." | "If you run, you gain one. If you move forward, you gain two." - Suletta Mercury, G-Witch
  • AthenorAthenor Battle Hardened Optimist The Skies of HiigaraRegistered User regular
    Holy shit, I cannot believe the timing on this.

    DNA Design just announced an upgrade kit for Victory Saber!

    https://news.tfw2005.com/2022/12/23/dna-design-dk-41-upgrade-kit-for-haslab-victory-saber-472817

    Now granted, this isn't... all the stuff that I complained about. Or even most of it. but it does mean that DNA's looking at options for this set, and that's encouraging.

    The main things this adjusts is proportions. They have announced longer cannons (that are not hollow), an alternate faceplace, longer Victory Leo wings, and a longer saber blade.

    I gotta say, it makes a difference.

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    He/Him | "A boat is always safest in the harbor, but that’s not why we build boats." | "If you run, you gain one. If you move forward, you gain two." - Suletta Mercury, G-Witch
  • MelonTronMelonTron Registered User regular
    It's a shame about the issues since it really does have a great 80s super robot aesthetic. The transformed mode sort of reminds me of the ZZ Gundam.

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  • AthenorAthenor Battle Hardened Optimist The Skies of HiigaraRegistered User regular
    100% part of why I got it.

    In fact, I am fully planning on displaying it next to my MG ZZ, especially as I have a FAZZ on hand to show off the robot form. But... that is currently waiting on me getting off my ass and working up the courage to topcoat my ZZ.

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    (FAZZ doesn't like the weight of its gun much.)

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    He/Him | "A boat is always safest in the harbor, but that’s not why we build boats." | "If you run, you gain one. If you move forward, you gain two." - Suletta Mercury, G-Witch
  • DelduwathDelduwath Registered User regular
    Man

    if I produced a crowdfunded, premium, centerpiece collector item, and then - a few days after people actually saw it in person - there was enough disappointment that someone had to make an add-on kit to shore up the weaknesses, I would be pretty embarrassed.

    Although, in fairness, I might not feel that embarrassment so keenly in between the drinking my beach-side mojitos and going for a dip in the tropical ocean.

  • Undead ScottsmanUndead Scottsman Registered User regular
    Haslab feels less "premium" and more "too niche to sell in a store, so we included some bells and whistles to make it a little fancier to appeal to our enthusiast consumers"

    Unicron might be the only thing that was "premium," but it also cost more than half a grand.

  • DelduwathDelduwath Registered User regular
    Haslab feels less "premium" and more "too niche to sell in a store, so we included some bells and whistles to make it a little fancier to appeal to our enthusiast consumers"

    Unicron might be the only thing that was "premium," but it also cost more than half a grand.
    I guess that's a fair point, Jonathan Hasbro.

    Although, I feel like the exclusivity granted by the nature of it being a HasLab project is a kind of premiumness, no? I wonder if they will ever end up reissuing any of the HasLab projects in the future. I mean, they can say now that they won't, but who knows what'll happen in 5, 10, 15 years.

  • Undead ScottsmanUndead Scottsman Registered User regular
    I'm just saying that these seem to be bound to the same manufacturing standards that the rest of Hasbro's stuff does, being produced in the same factories overseas; so the same inconsistent paint applications, the same potential tolerance issues etc. etc. that hit the retail figures can also affect these toys.

    Which, don't get me wrong, is bad. A mass released toy having a bad paint app is one thing, but with a Haslab? You can't exactly exchange them very easily, so they should definitely be putting energy and money into ensuring a higher quality product. But, like, there's similar issue with the endless stream of exclusives. Like, it wasn't worth it to me to try and get a replacement Crasher when mine had a messed up face, so now my hope is to get a third party head replacement. (Which I was looking at doing anyway so I super lucked out there.

    The real shitty thing is this is all happening at the same time as prices going up. Kinda wish they could put that money into better quality control across the board. If the quality keeps going down and the prices keep increasing, they're going to drive people away. It's ridiculous too, as they've been putting out some of the most fanservicey figures in the entire history of the franchise (I'm still head over heels about that Jhiaxus, there is NO reason for him to be that good.)

    TL;DR I started off playing devil's advocate but really Hasbro needs to get their shit straightened out in general.

    Speaking of exclusives, Minerva is starting to show up in US stores, finally; hopefully she shows up on the website soon. Meanwhile my Galaxy Shuttle and Maverick reissue from Walmart are both delayed. I'm worried my Galaxy Shuttle is gonna get canceled. God I'm really tired chasing exclusives.

  • Undead ScottsmanUndead Scottsman Registered User regular
    Leakers are saying the Nemesis might be a fembot, so all is forgiven Hasbro!

    Seriously though, I super hope it turns out to be true.

  • AthenorAthenor Battle Hardened Optimist The Skies of HiigaraRegistered User regular
    I liked when Trypticon was Nemesis, but I am fine with this.

    As for the Haslab exclusivity aspect... Personally, it makes 0 sense to me. You have made the dies! That is where a very large chunk of the cost lies! In what world would you not use them again in the future? It isn't like you have put them through the ringer, requiring a ton of maintenance. Hell, go wild.. make some unpainted, unassembled ones and sell those. There is a REASON bandai namco rereleased their gunpla so often. But no..m you have this massive investment in Unicron production tooling, either sitting around doing nothing or being destroyed. Neither makes your company any money.

    I would not be offended if these became available again. I personally hate Kickstarter exclusivity, and only play the game if I feel they are going to pull shit on me. Which... Is why it works, I guess.

    Supposedly, you can contact Hasbro and get replacement parts for Haslab projects. In reality, anyone who has tried so far has gotten confused customer support folks and nothing concrete on this one.

    He/Him | "A boat is always safest in the harbor, but that’s not why we build boats." | "If you run, you gain one. If you move forward, you gain two." - Suletta Mercury, G-Witch
  • Undead ScottsmanUndead Scottsman Registered User regular
    edited December 2022
    Athenor wrote: »
    I liked when Trypticon was Nemesis, but I am fine with this.

    As for the Haslab exclusivity aspect... Personally, it makes 0 sense to me. You have made the dies! That is where a very large chunk of the cost lies! In what world would you not use them again in the future? It isn't like you have put them through the ringer, requiring a ton of maintenance. Hell, go wild.. make some unpainted, unassembled ones and sell those. There is a REASON bandai namco rereleased their gunpla so often. But no..m you have this massive investment in Unicron production tooling, either sitting around doing nothing or being destroyed. Neither makes your company any money.

    I would not be offended if these became available again. I personally hate Kickstarter exclusivity, and only play the game if I feel they are going to pull shit on me. Which... Is why it works, I guess.

    Supposedly, you can contact Hasbro and get replacement parts for Haslab projects. In reality, anyone who has tried so far has gotten confused customer support folks and nothing concrete on this one.

    It's all FOMO. Slapping a limited time window onto these products gets people to shell out now rather than if they had the opportunity to grab it later. I can see them going back on that at some point, but only when they feel the potential money from reissues outweighs the future difficulty in getting people to buy into these campaigns. Though, again, they were specicially advertised as limited time items, so Hasbro may not a want to piss off all the fans who are going to get up in arms about their "rare" collectible being reissued.

    Personally, I have zero qualms with them making more, especially since some people overseas had their Victory Saber's canceled due to some of the product getting water damaged. And I'm not just saying that because I'd love a shot at getting a Unicron that doesn't cost two grand. :)

    Unless it's some stupid hyper-rare lucky draw toy or whatever, everyone should be able to get ahold of any Transformer they want with as little as friction as possible, and some people just weren't in a position to get on board these campaigns. Maybe they didn't have the money at the time or they weren't collecting at the time; life happens, ya know.

    Someone else being able to enjoy a thing has zero bearing on my ability to enjoy it, so by all means let them have a crack at it.

    Undead Scottsman on
  • HefflingHeffling No Pic EverRegistered User regular
    They are never going to rerelease the Unicron from a few years ago, because that would destroy the collectability of it. What I could see them doing is releasing an entirely new version as the next Titan (to go with the Armada/Energon figures we're getting). If a Unicron came out again in Haslab it will certainly be at a different price point and size.

    Also with recent price hikes they would now charge like $800.

  • Undead ScottsmanUndead Scottsman Registered User regular
    edited December 2022
    Unpacked my Victory Saber. I was all set to give it a fair shake and do a little review, but it appears they forgot to include his fuckin' sword blade so guess I get to see how Hasbro's support handles this.

    EDIT: I just realized the irony of Victory Saber missing his saber.

    Undead Scottsman on
  • Undead ScottsmanUndead Scottsman Registered User regular
    It's probably not a good sign when you're trolling ebay and going "you know, it wouldn't be THAT expensive to build a complete GoBot collection...."

  • DelduwathDelduwath Registered User regular
    Friends! Just like its namesake, Tyrannosaurus Month is unstoppable, but sometimes it takes a detour. Today we take a Tyrannosaurus Month: Interlude 1 by taking a look at:

    Masterpiece MP-43 Beast Wars Megatron

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    This is an interlude because Megatron came out years ago, and so doesn't quite fit the criteria for Tyrannosaurus Month, but it's both an awesome figure and a tyrannosaurus, so why not talk about it.

    Beast Wars was very much "my" Transformers. It aired in the second half of the '90s, when I was a pre-teen/early-teen, and was positioned squarely at the bullseye of what this show was targeting. I haven't really re-watched it as an adult (barring a couple of episodes here and there), so I can't say if it holds up or not, but at the time it felt quite sophisticated. The show had plenty of goofy slapstick and all the other things you'd expect from a children's TV show, but it explored some darker, more serious subjects as well. The dialogue was well-written, the storylines grew more over-arching and complex, and I feel like the considerably smaller cast - as compared to the G1 cartoon - allowed for much richer characterization, and few are quite as characterful as BW Megatron.

    Beast Wars opened at some unspecified time and place, and at first seemed unconnected to the Transformers media that came before it. As the show progressed, the connections to the G1 franchise grew more frequent, and more central to the plot. The time is actually some point in the future, long after the Great War between the Autobots and Decepticons. The Autobots won the war, and their descendants, the Maximals, are now kinda oppressing the Predacons, descendants of the Decepticons. The Predacon ruling body, the Tripredacus Council, was slowly working behind the scenes to bring the Predacons back into power, but Megatron (who named himself after the legendary Decepticon leader during the Great War) was too impatient and power-hungry to wait. He learned about, and stole, some kind of a potent artifact on Cybertron, and escaped into space with his crew on a stolen ship. The only Maximal ship close enough to pursue was an exploration vessel operated by explorers, not combatants. Nevertheless, they gave chase, both the spaceships tumbled through a transwarp portal and crash-landed on a planet, and so began the Beast Wars.

    If you want to get totally spoiled on key developments of the show, open the spoiler
    The planet that they crash-landed on later turned out to be Earth, and the time that they landed in later turned out to be prehistoric caveman times; crucially, this was the period of time when both the Autobot and Decepticon ships from the G1 series were stranded on Earth, with the G1 Autobots and Decepticons laying dormant on them. The artifact that Megatron stole was the Golden Disk, which as it turns out contained a hidden message from the G1 Megatron. In it, G1 Megatron gave the time and space coordinates of Earth, and instructed any Deception who found the Disk (and had access to time-travel technology) to travel back to prehistoric Earth and to kill the dormant Optimus Prime, thus preventing the Decepticons from ever losing thr Great War. BW Megatron thought this was a dandy plan, and so his stealing the transwarp ship, going through the transwarp portal, traveling back in time and crashing on prehistoric Earth were all part of his plan. The Maximals who followed him were not part of that plan, of course, and the show eventually turned into both sides attempting to protect their dormant ancestors while trying to cause/prevent temporal shenanigans.

    When they crash-landed on the planet, the Maximal ship scanned mammal forms for them to adopt as alt-modes, while the Predacon ship scanned arthropods and dinosaur fossils to generate their alt-modes. Megatron, as you can see, became a big ol' T-rex.

    I think this dinosaur mode looks really beautiful. It looks like it stepped directly out of the show. I especially love the molded scales, and the deco pattern on his skin is made to resemble a sort of digital, CGI effect rather than organic one; I'm not sure how to best describe it, just check out the edges of the stripes on his body. This same effect is present on several other Beast Wars Masterpiece figures, and I think it's very effective. He's not particularly well-articulated in this mode, but I think he has a ton of personality, and is easy to arrange in a dynamic or imposing way.
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    Size comparison with an MP Optimus (or equivalent).
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    His robot mode is maybe one of my all-time favorite designs. I find the asymmetry highly effective. I know some folks aren't fans of the organic beast mode bits being present on the robot modes, but I think that gives these characters personality, and makes them so unique. The T-Rex legs, the big and bulky frame, the unusual arms, it all makes for a powerful and threatening figure in my eyes.
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    One of his most obvious unique traits is his T-rex head-hand. It might seem like losing manual dexterity would be a disadvantage, but you make up for it by being able to chomp down on people's heads. Seems like a fair trade.
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    It also doubles as a blaster, of course.
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    If I remember correctly, they kinda played with the notion of the head having its own mind and personality, with Megatron almost regarding it as a pet. The toy includes an accessory to replicate a scene from the show: one where Megatron was brushing his dino-head-hand's teeth with a toothbrush. It's hard to find time to see a dentist when you're a mega-maniacal tyrant seeking to rule the world, so it's especially important to practice good hygiene.
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    The other arm is actually a completely normal arms, complete with a normal hand, but it is obscured by the T-rex tail, which - in robot mode - becomes a pincer-claw.
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    The face sculpt is right on the money, I think, as are the two alternate faces that you get.
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    His gun is kinda weird, and I think didn't feature on the show too much, but the one thing I like is how the handle-slash-stock looks like a piece of bone.
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    The most impressive thing about the transformation, in my opinion, is that the entire T-rex body, everything from head to tail, is basically a shell that splits into two parts, each of which breaks apart into multiple sections that they collaps and fold up on each other to make what is a comparatively small backpack. I mean, it's definitely a backpack, there's no denying the kibble, but I think it's a small miracle that they managed to pack up so much of the dinosaur into such a small and neat package. Some 3rd party company did release a non-transforming replacement kit that let you replace those wings on his back with smaller, more show-accurate wings, but I think these look just fine as-is (and I'd never sacrifice transformability, anyway.)
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    He is a pretty massive robot. Mind you, the Beast Wars MPs are super-duper not in scale with the G1 MPs, who would tower over them if scale was followed. The up side of this is that Megatron ends up as a big, beefy guy who means business.
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    Here he is facing off with his opposite number among the Maximals, Optimus Primal. He also comes with the Takara MP stand and a bunch of attachment clips, all of which I was too lazy to dig out and photograph - one for bot mode, one for dino mode, and one specifically designed to set up a scene where Optimus Primal is holding him aloft above his head, like he's Bane about to break Batman's back.
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    And, hey, let's take a look at all the Beast Wars MPs while we're at it.
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    They all have some flaws in beast mode, it's hard to tuck away all the robot bits in an animal body, but the robot modes are basically perfect; I love all of them so much.

    I was really hesitant to buy this guy a few years ago, because he was very out-of-print, very sold out in most places, and very expensive at the places that did have him. I ended up ordering him from RoboToyBase, a Hong Kong-based retailer that seems to have infinite inventory but charges multiple arms and legs for shipping-and-handling. It was the only place I could find him at the time, and honestly? I don't really regret it. I think he's a magnificent toys, with an interesting transformation (although separating the tabs on his back to split the body-shell is a sweat-inducing experience), gorgeous deco, and robot and dinosaur modes that can fully convey the abundant personality of the character.

    The only flaws that I'd mention are the aforementioned scary back-tabs, and fiddly feet. Each of his toes is individually articulated, which is cool, but the joints are loose enough that you need to put some care into posing him if you don't want him to topple. Not that it's particularly hard, but you can't just drop him on the table and expect him to stand. Oh, and from what I've read, a common QC flaw is a mis-assembled waist, where a nut wasn't seated properly in the slot for it, and was instead turned a few degrees and so just kinda chewed into the plastic when the screw was tightened. It's the joint that connects the torso to the crotch, so you can't see it from the outside, but my understanding is that it can lead to the torso joint eventually loosening and unscrewing, and other kinds of unpleasantness. Mine doesn't seem to be affected by this.

    I'll leave you with two videos. The first, a transformation:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cNR1i4O74H0

    And second, a video that every Beast Wars fan has seen, one that showcases Megatron's #1 verbal tic:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E2t4MBhGAg8

  • BetsuniBetsuni UM-R60L Talisker IVRegistered User regular
    It's probably not a good sign when you're trolling ebay and going "you know, it wouldn't be THAT expensive to build a complete GoBot collection...."

    I've slowly started to buy all the GoBots I always wanted as a kid just because they're not that expensive.

    Ok, Megatron T-Rex is an awesome toy! I resisted getting one since I have no attachment to the show, but love the look and live vicariously through others.

    oosik_betsuni.png
    Steam: betsuni7
  • Forever ZefiroForever Zefiro cloaked in the midnight glory of an event horizonRegistered User regular
    When Beast Wars first aired, I was absolutely the target audience. I loved it and had my parents get me some of the toys.

    I rewatched it about 6 years ago and still found it quite enjoyable! Obviously the graphics are rough, but better than trying to play some blocky PS1 game. The characters are what really carry the show, and they are still fun and interesting and engaging. Obviously my nostalgia factor probably helps me push through some stuff, but I think a first time watcher would still enjoy it if they’re a TF fan in general

    2fbg9lin3kdl.jpg
    XBL - Foreverender | 3DS FC - 1418 6696 1012 | Steam ID | LoL
  • Local H JayLocal H Jay Registered User regular
    Yeah beast wars is the only Transformers show I've digested other than Armada on toonami. I remember a really shitty Beast Wars followup where they made them more animal like and I hated and stopped watching

  • AthenorAthenor Battle Hardened Optimist The Skies of HiigaraRegistered User regular
    Yeah beast wars is the only Transformers show I've digested other than Armada on toonami. I remember a really shitty Beast Wars followup where they made them more animal like and I hated and stopped watching

    You probably mean Beast Machines, where the crew went back to Cybertron, Megatron had won somehow, and the Maximals became even more techno-organic while the Predacons got turned into drones.

    He/Him | "A boat is always safest in the harbor, but that’s not why we build boats." | "If you run, you gain one. If you move forward, you gain two." - Suletta Mercury, G-Witch
  • Undead ScottsmanUndead Scottsman Registered User regular
    edited January 2023
    Athenor wrote: »
    Yeah beast wars is the only Transformers show I've digested other than Armada on toonami. I remember a really shitty Beast Wars followup where they made them more animal like and I hated and stopped watching

    You probably mean Beast Machines, where the crew went back to Cybertron, Megatron had won somehow, and the Maximals became even more techno-organic while the Predacons got turned into drones.

    Beast Wars mostly takes place in the distant past, so at the end when the maximals go back to the present (circa 300 years into OUR future), Megatron, who was tied to the roof of the ship like a hunting kill, gets loose in transwarp and winds up showing up on cybertron a lot earlier in the timestream, with enough time to succeed in deploying a virus leaving the population helpless while his automated drone army took over the planet. When the Maximals finally show up, Megatron had already won.

    Undead Scottsman on
  • DelduwathDelduwath Registered User regular
    Beast Machines got a ton of flack when it came out (I certainly wasn't a fan at the start), I think in large part because it really swept existing Beast Wars characters, characterization, plot, and even themes off the table in order to tell the story that the creative team felt like telling - even if it didn't line up with the previous series. Like the thing about Megatron losing at the end of Beast Wars and then extremely winning before the start of Beast Machines - any BW fan would feel extremely cheated, but I'm sure the BM team was like "We want to mess around with a guerilla resistance story, how do we get from the end of BW to here? OK, let's just hand-wave some plot events in the in-between-stories period to set ourselves up".

    I was EXTREMELY amused to learn that the exec at Mainframe who told the team it was fine to ignore any and all elements of Beast Wars when writing Beast Machines was Dan DiDio; the reason I found this amusing was because for a certain period of time, the Graphic Violence subforum (and the broader online comic book community) talked an incredible amount of trash about Dan DiDio because he was the exec at DC Comics who... told the team it was fine to ignore any and all past DC stories/characterizations when writing new DC stories.

    Anyway, the reason he made this decision about Beast Machines was because he felt Beast Wars was too continuity-heavy. As a younger man, I of course bristled and fumed at this notion. As an older man, short of time and weak of brain, I think maybe... maybe he wasn't so far off the mark? At any rate, when I think back to Beast Machines, I think it was a much better - or, at least, much more interesting - show than it got credit for at the time. It explored some really sophisticated and mature themes, both general and Transformers-specific. It was a story about resistance against a fascistic tyrant. It was a machines-vs-organics story, and it started off being very pro-organics, and then later re-centered to being pro-balance-of-techno-and-organic (so I guess it started more like eco-terrorist, and then weakened its stance to a centrist position; might have been more interesting if it was unapologetically eco-terrorist, but I suppose where it ended up was still good). On the Transformers front, it dove pretty deeply into the more religious/spiritual aspects of the world. It apparently introduced most of the lore about sparks and their nature to the Transformers canon. It reframed transformation - at least, for the techno-organic protagonists - not as a purely mechanical reflex that can be performed effortlessly, but as an intentional action that is only possible when one is centered enough, comfortable with themselves enough, understands themselves enough to be able to do it. Rattrap's inability to master transformation leads to more frustration and blows to his confidence, which makes it even harder for him to transform, and like... I find that incredibly relatable.

    So, you know, definitely a show with its flaws, but I think it maybe deserved better than it got.

  • Undead ScottsmanUndead Scottsman Registered User regular
    edited January 2023
    Yeah, the real problem with Beast Machines is that they dropped the creatives from Beast Wars and the new ones were told to not even watch Beast Wars episodes as the continuity didn't matter. A lot of the wildly out of place elements might have been lessed or outright eliminated if the series was crafted with the intent to continue the characterizations from Beast Wars.

    The "Continuity BAAAD" thing they were saddled with is laughable given Beast Machines was probably the most serialized and continuity heavy Transformers series at the time.

    The really funny thing is after mostly anime redubs in the 2000's, then the michael bay movies, then the crappy Machinima Prime Wars trilogy, then the also not great War for Cybertron trilogy, Beast Machines actually doesn't even rate as "bad" Transformers. It's just off the beaten path Transformers.

    I do find it amusing that, since Beast Wars is technically G1 canon, the final G1 story is the planet becoming a technorganic utopia. Like, that feels wrong to me, but in a way I love. It's sacrilicious!

    Undead Scottsman on
  • NobodyNobody Registered User regular
    I freely admit that Beast Wars wasn't my thing, but I didn't hate it for "trukk not munkey" (mine was the Action Masters). I did give a few episodes a try, and did see Code of Hero, but honestly it just never grabbed me.

  • DelduwathDelduwath Registered User regular
    I think a lot of it for these types of show is just "Are you an impressionable young person at the right place/at the right time for this extended toy commercial to hit your weak spot for massive damage?"

    I'm not trying to say that they don't have their own merits that adults can appreciate, or that they can't be executed at a high degree of quality; the very best and most memorable of these shows are obviously all those things. I just think that a lot of these shows can hook us when we're kids in a way that can't work at any other time.

  • AthenorAthenor Battle Hardened Optimist The Skies of HiigaraRegistered User regular
    As I was getting ready for work this morning, I received notice that DHL had left a package for me. A package from Hong Kong. A package I was very happy to see.

    I've never bought a Harmony Gold/Robotech branded toy before. Until today.

    Bb7wG6mh.jpg


    This is so wild. It's technically a Macross toy, in 1:72 scale.. but using Jetfire's G1 color scheme! They even threw in an acrylic standee and a keychain.

    Given that it was before work, I didn't have time to do much beyond unboxing, so.

    Inside were two boxes: The veritech fighter itself, and the fast pack. At this time I didn't realize that I was looking at the back of the packaging.

    GaDuOXUh.jpg

    A moment of realization later, as well as removing some of the packing material... There is a second tray with the stand in it as well.

    8UDNLwkh.jpg

    I think Heffling alluded to this when we were first talking about it, but this is definitely not the same as the Arcadia/Yamato one. It is considerably lighter, almost like a model kit in how the plastic feels. Also, due to the transformation gimmicks.. it is very hollow on the inside. I don't know if the fast packs will hide any of that.

    hCHzE2rh.jpg

    I will give it credit, though: It is GORGEOUS. The fast packs even moreso.

    CavcsKFh.jpg

    Now I can't wait to get home and explore this in more detail.

    He/Him | "A boat is always safest in the harbor, but that’s not why we build boats." | "If you run, you gain one. If you move forward, you gain two." - Suletta Mercury, G-Witch
  • DelzhandDelzhand Hard to miss. Registered User regular
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UtZLlFyqJcA

    I had forgotten the body horror of this scene. Optimus Primal writhing on the ground as mechanical parts sprout asymmetrically from this body is pretty raw.

  • AthenorAthenor Battle Hardened Optimist The Skies of HiigaraRegistered User regular
    Still figuring this guy out, trying to be gentle... But I guess my complaint about the big gaps on the side was kind of unfounded.

    Those were side filler pieces after all!

    47yGLFwh.jpg

    ScWG85Yh.jpg


    It's definitely the "1.5" version of the figure, as discussed here:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zAFq_3wWPIs

    I'm trying my best not to damage the paint while I curse at the getting the nose cone open so I can put in the batteries.

    He/Him | "A boat is always safest in the harbor, but that’s not why we build boats." | "If you run, you gain one. If you move forward, you gain two." - Suletta Mercury, G-Witch
  • AthenorAthenor Battle Hardened Optimist The Skies of HiigaraRegistered User regular
    Whelp.

    Good news is, after getting over how fragile it all seemed, and figuring out how to attach everything (and not worrying about some of the paint scuffing), I got it into Super mode.

    Bad news is, once I did that, I discovered that one of the light-up gimmicks in the engine doesn't work right. I suspect a loose cable, but I'm gonna write to the company anyways. This kind of LE shouldn't have that problem.

    Still badass though. (Only Jetfire I own that is not on display here is the Titanium Jetfire, as I'm not sure where I stuck those.)

    LhkmQeUh.jpg

    fkEzIcph.jpg

    0vBOoD8h.jpg

    I9iqlx3h.jpg

    He/Him | "A boat is always safest in the harbor, but that’s not why we build boats." | "If you run, you gain one. If you move forward, you gain two." - Suletta Mercury, G-Witch
  • HefflingHeffling No Pic EverRegistered User regular
    That looks amazing, and is also very obviously a retool of the Yamato/Arcadia design. It has the same god awful joint lines down the middle of the forearms. I'm still waiting on BBTS to get mine in stock.

  • BetsuniBetsuni UM-R60L Talisker IVRegistered User regular
    edited January 2023
    Athenor wrote: »
    Whelp.

    Good news is, after getting over how fragile it all seemed, and figuring out how to attach everything (and not worrying about some of the paint scuffing), I got it into Super mode.

    Bad news is, once I did that, I discovered that one of the light-up gimmicks in the engine doesn't work right. I suspect a loose cable, but I'm gonna write to the company anyways. This kind of LE shouldn't have that problem.

    Still badass though. (Only Jetfire I own that is not on display here is the Titanium Jetfire, as I'm not sure where I stuck those.)

    LhkmQeUh.jpg

    fkEzIcph.jpg

    0vBOoD8h.jpg

    I9iqlx3h.jpg

    You are also missing the Walgreens special. I got one but now trying to unload it since I got the Siege one.

    Betsuni on
    oosik_betsuni.png
    Steam: betsuni7
  • AthenorAthenor Battle Hardened Optimist The Skies of HiigaraRegistered User regular
    After an hour of messing with things, I have figured out the following:

    First, there is no way I'm going to avoid scratching the paint. Too many pieces with next to no clearances.

    Second, my word do the instructions need to be redone and made clearer. Only by studying tabs did I realize how things were supposed to go together.

    Third.. I am DEATHLY afraid of attaching the missiles, because they appear to have hooks that secure them in place and I'm afraid of snapping the wings. Maybe I'll get up more bravery.. but for now? No.

    So.. yeah.

    eZRmFGzh.jpg


    I'm quite happy.

    zPx4jOBh.jpg

    (Also this stand really does suck. Might work in standard mode, but Full Armor.. forget about it.)

    u3MJD8Sh.jpg

    So many pegs to line up, so many blind corners.

    HbVNighh.jpg

    Thankfully, the fleet is looking good.

    bLgMpV9h.jpg

    He/Him | "A boat is always safest in the harbor, but that’s not why we build boats." | "If you run, you gain one. If you move forward, you gain two." - Suletta Mercury, G-Witch
  • AthenorAthenor Battle Hardened Optimist The Skies of HiigaraRegistered User regular
    Surprising literally no one, Fans Hobby is working on Energon Wing Saber.

    l7pLR16l.jpg

    They also released a teaser video for Christmas that just makes me giddy:

    IKxxU05l.png

    He/Him | "A boat is always safest in the harbor, but that’s not why we build boats." | "If you run, you gain one. If you move forward, you gain two." - Suletta Mercury, G-Witch
  • BetsuniBetsuni UM-R60L Talisker IVRegistered User regular
    I have no idea who those are, but they look cool. Going to check the Internet to read up about Energon Wing Saber.

    oosik_betsuni.png
    Steam: betsuni7
  • AthenorAthenor Battle Hardened Optimist The Skies of HiigaraRegistered User regular
    edited January 2023
    The gimmick with Energon was combining robots - in fact, I think "Super combine" was in the Japanese name.

    Each Autobot toy above the basic size had a marking on it that designated its combination type. One was for deluxes and some voyagers, one was for the Super class where they'd combine with extra armor, one was for the 3 gestalts, and one was for Optimus and his drones. Later, Optimus got two more things he could combine with: Wing Saber and Omega Supreme. Wing Saber was essentially a brick, but it had a really cool gimmick where you could swap the arms and legs across a horizontal axis, so you could either have massive cannons on Prime's arms or you could have wings on Prime's arms. Wing Saber himself was a complete brick due to all this.

    The picture there shows the wing half of Wing Saber, acting as either the arms or the legs.

    (Side note, the Decepticon gimmick was Energon weapons and parts, so lots of translucent plastic. The small basics, above mini-cons, came with Energon weapons.)

    Athenor on
    He/Him | "A boat is always safest in the harbor, but that’s not why we build boats." | "If you run, you gain one. If you move forward, you gain two." - Suletta Mercury, G-Witch
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