StrangePlanet

I only watched the movie later on as an adult, and yeah, it was pretty striking how much they were wanting to swipe on the popularity of Star Wars. Hey, Star Wars influenced a lot of things. You pointed out the major plot points and the whole Hot Rod, Springer, and Arcee Luke, Han, and Leia, which seemed so obvious especially Springer and Arcee are just Han and Leia. Heck, Arcee has Leia's hair buns, and she's a robot.

Well, if you look closely to the original G1 cartoon renders, you'll notice that Megatron IS pretty lean... and not at all as bulky as some of the recent Megatrons have turned out. That's all fine and dandy if you want your MPs to look like the cartoon. I for one do not. I'd rather them look more like MP-10 Optimus. MP-10 has all the defining characteristics of the cartoon design, but is a much better, cooler-looking detailed mid-range super-articulated robot toy. Luckily, there are options out there for peoples' differing tastes and wants.

I have no nostalgia receptors, but I still like G1, season 1. That's when they told an ongoing story. It's crazy, crude and silly, but it has an undeniable charm and the characters were very strong. I loved whenever they went to Cybertron or explored the history of the Transformers. But Transformers Prime was a great show. I find every other show almost unwatchable. Great animation, killer voice acting, adult, serious situations, interesting characters, and even though I wanted Miko to get torn to pieces and burned alive every time she was a selfish little b!tch and put everyone else in danger for no reason, I still thought it was a very strong show overall.

It's always been Soundwave. Like a lot of people, Soundwave was the perennial badass to me. Stoic, informed, loyal, with his own little army of dudes, and with a great look and a killer voice. Plus a total badass. First episode, the Autobots flee Cybertron in the Ark but the Decepticons catch them in the Nemesis. The Decepticons board the Ark and a fight ensues. Soundwave is attacked by Jazz, Sideswipe and Prowl. Soundwave punches Jazz in the face. He's down. Soundwave throws Prowl over his shoulder. He's out. Soundwave kicks the hell out of Sideswipe. He's done. This all happen in 3 seconds. In 3 seconds Soundwave has put down 3 Autobots. Then Ironhide sucker dropkicks Soundwave in the back and knocks him down. Soundwave then beats the living hell out of Ratchet just because. Because Soundwave.

Great pics there, Maestro! It's neat top see a bunch of 3rd Party figures in there, and how well a lot of them mix right in. Devilbat, there is only one MP Galvatron out right now and that's DX9's Tryant. I have it and it's really great, but it's a whole head taller than MP-10 Optimus, which I think makes it look too big. otherwise really great piece. FansToys' Sovereign looks to be pretty close to done, looks great but the alt mode is for crap, however it also looks smaller, more in line with how I think it should be, closer to MP-10's height. For that reason alone I think I'll pick it up. I'm nuts about scale like that. The one that X-Transbots is making, called Abaddon, is nothing but a render right now. I have some reservations about the quality of their products. DX9 and FansToys makes solid solid toys, but X-Trans has made some real clunkers. Sovereign looks really great, and is pretty bulky and tough as nails looking. And it's because I will likely get it that I don't think the recently leaked MP Megatron, if real, will work for me, because it looks so thin and scrawny. But the MakeToys version, Despotron that is dropping right now, that one looks like a badass, and I really think that the two of them will look great together and match the style of MP-10. I'm a huge fan of Galvatron, moreso that Megatron, so I'm keeping a close eye on what happening on that front. I just want what I want and don't really care who makes it as long as they make it well, so I'll certainly get a 3rd party toy if I like it better. I happen to love Maketoys' version of Hound, GunDog, and there's no way I'm replacing it with anything, official or otherwise. I am also pretty darn sure that Takara will make a Galvatron eventually and I'll happily consider it, but if I end up liking FansToys Sovereign more, as I suspect I will, then that's my boy. There's a LOT of stuff being made right now and it's kinda cool how I have a few choices of even which MP Hoist appeals to me - how crazy is that?

As a kid I watched the cartoon. Loved it right up until the time when Season 3 started and all of a sudden, all new characters, all new settings, no explanation. ( I didn't see the movie ) Stopped watching immediately. Later I went back and read the comics, and they were much much better imo. I went back and watched the cartoon recently and laughed my way through the whole thing. It's all ridiculous, (although the first season was pretty cool). I came to the conclusion that all Transformers were driven completely insane by 4 million years of non stop civil war, and that their only answer to any problem, ANY problem, was pwew pwew pwew pwew.

Well I certainly like Grapple better than Inferno. Sure, I think the deco carries the mold a bit better, but more than that, I really like the extra molded details on the arms and legs, while Inferno's complete lack of visual interest in those areas is a real buzzkill. Plus I don't have a whole lot of golden yellow on my Transformers shelf. Will be some nice variety in a sea of red and white Autobots.

Shaak Ti

MP Cheetor is an example of if you make a cool toy, people will want it. To my eye, Cheetor looks really cool. As in, a really cool toy. And I like toys. I have no real affinity for the cartoons, the characters, all that. I have no nostalgia receptors. Cheetor... Fave character? No. Favorite design from BW?? Not even close. Cool toy? You betcha. And that'll get me every time. Passing on Primal, Inferno, every MP since Wheeljack basically, but Cheetor, hell yes. And that's a genuine surprise to me.

Now that we've seen the alt mode for Inferno - I am underwhelmed. This whole thing Takara is doing with making the Masterpiece toys more and more accurate to the old cartoon means a serious loss of detail and more and more simplified and blocky designs. This has really affected the alt mode here - that doesn't look like a cool firetruck. It doesn't even really look like a realistic firetruck at all. it just looks simplified, blocky and cartoonish - just like they are making all the robot modes. And I think it's a licensed Fuso truck, but it really doesn't look like it beyond the cab and grill. The body, back and tops all just look like whatever. Hey, I know not everyone really gives a damn about the cars and trucks, but some of us really do. I like that they are expanding the budgets to gives us accessories and stuff, that's great, but the new cartoony simplified art direction is starting to make MPs that don't really go with MP-10 - MP-21. MP-10 Optimus has an alt mode that is compromised to get a nice robot, but it still may turn out that Inferno here will look out of place next to it. We will see.

A very exciting time to be into MPs! Beast Wars coming, and not just a one-off like Star Saber is turning out to be for Victory. Guys like Inferno, who is a nobody character and doesn't have a very sexy sportscar alt mode although I think firetrucks are cool enough to be a draw in itself - he's getting made. I love seeing more obscure US G1 guys, but it's more exciting to see how far they can go with other stuff. Do other people find that as exciting as I do? Do you guys want to see more guys outside US G1, like Primal and Star Saber? Wanna see more stuff like Head- and other -masters ... Zone guys, all those guys?

There was a lot to love in that series. I'm a huge fan of the first 25 issues of Avengers, and they followed all that pretty closely. Which is a real soap opera of members coming and going, plus lots of Enchantress and Executioner. Really good stuff. Came to really like the art style too. The New Avengers episode was great fun. They hit a lot of other big storylines from the comics too, and worked the Kree/Skrull war into it, with Ms Marvel and everything. Huge nods to old time Avengers fans all around. I miss it and agree that the new show is very much dumbed down.

Here's where I am at with MP (or MP-like) Transformers: Optimus Prime Hot Rod Inferno (MT Hellfire) Prowl Sideswipe Hound (MT Gundog) Wheeljack Bumblebee (modified Classics) Jetfire (modified Generations) Galvatron (DX9 Tyrant) Soundwave + minions Starscream Shockwave Shrapnel (modifed FP Thundershred) Waspinator (Generations) Black Arachnia (Generations) And here's where I'd like add in: Jazz Arcee Ratchet Omega Supreme Blitzwing Cyclonus Scorponok (not city-sized, Perfect Effect Deathstalker might fit the bill) Bludgeon (although my modified ROTF Bludgeon is doing well at that job) Devastator

I'm happy to see MP Inferno happening, even though I picked up the 3rd Party Maketoys figure Hellfire, and I love it and I don't think it's going anywhere. Who knows, maybe the MP will knock my socks off and I'll have to replace it. I just kinda love the idea of a fire truck transformer and Hellfire is an awesome toy. But I'm happy to see it happening because it means they are more likely to make characters that are not popular and don't have sexy sports car alt modes (as long as there is really good repaint potential!)

Takara has sold through their run of MP Red Alert. They made all the money they can make. Then the secondary market drives up the price too high, but that's nothing to do with Takara. It's simple supply and demand. You shouldn't have to pay $100 for Red Alert. So someone is gonna find a way to fill that need. Needs to be handled on a case-by-case basis. MP Starscream is a $60 toy. No wonder people are making a KO if it's going for over $200 on the secondary market. This happens in other toylines too. The price for the Sword Art Online Figmas got too high, so the KOs started to appear. Why would Figma care? They sold out.

Beautiful. The deco they put on MP-09 there is so nice, and I don't even know that that's a character but I am excited for the inevitable black deco of MP-28 Hot Rod. I am having some great fun with that one and how fun and easy it is to transform (unlike MP-09) and as huge a fan as i am of that car, it'll look supah-sweet in the black deco too.

You may have already made up your mind about MakeToys, but I have a few of their ReMaster line and they are all knockouts. Some of my all-time favorites, TF or otherwise. The Hound they made is spectacular, and the Inferno they made is amazing. The Chromedome and Hardhead are awesome. The quality of the production is second to none. I wish my official Masterpieces were made so well. I recently picked up a DX9 toy as well, their take on MP Galvatron, and it's pretty great. Very well made, durable, looks great, fun transform.

It's a very strong wave. Phoenix, Kitty Pride,the Rogue that we've all been dying for, even Cable, all pretty big deal characters. And Deadpool? All I know is it's impossible to keep him on the shelves. I don't have nor want one, but every time one gets made it flies off the shelf like they're giving it away. And that's before the movie.

That would be too bad, because to me, the really cool designs came out around Transmetal time. I'll buy a bunch of MP Beast Wars characters, but I want the cool ones, not the big name characters. Yeah, I know, good luck with that.

Do my eyes deceive me or is that knock off Bumble a nice canary yellow?? The actual Bumble is a really warm, orange-ish goldenrod yellow. Which I never liked. It's the only Bumblebee toy ever made in that color. Apparently VW specified that color, but it does not look like Bumble to me at all. Heck, it looks more canary than the photo on the box it's standing in front of. It matches the movie B. OK, I need to research this a bit. if I can get one in a 'proper' yellow I'll totally buy one.

In many ways, it's MP-1, Masterpiece Convoy. I adore the modern MPs, and MP-10 Optimus and MP-13 Soundwave are toys I will never part with, but big ol' MP-1 is a real work of art. All around amazing piece of work that is like nothing else I own. Value, rarity and nostalgia mean nothing to me, but something designed so smart and built so well, it is one hell of a toy that I really can't bring myself to even refer to as a toy.

Same thing as every year - I'll pick what I feel is the best. In 2015 that meant 5 Transformers purchases. Mostly 3rd party Masterpiece scale stuff, but not always.

Hound. He's the guy who really likes Earth, and I could show him around and it'd be a fun time.

I dunno, I only buy maybe 4 Transformers a year, but sometimes those are like $100 each, or more. The hard part for me then, is playing this quality over quantity game and having to exercise a LOT of patience.

So now I gotta wonder what the actual exclusive Diaclone repaint will be?? Black Tracks already?? And if so, does he finally get his toy battle mask??