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Ok I was just thinking about this, and I can't seem to come up with any good reasons, so I thought I'd toss it out to the professional.

Why do some toys show obvious, and total mess ups in design or color, etc?

Perfect example:

the Knock Out Prime figure having BLACK wheels when it's clear as day that the character on TV has GOLD wheels!? (even the Burger King toy got it right, as one Youtube reviewer so eloquently stated)

Well????

2 reasons:

Budget constraints

People make mistakes

GuyIncognito wrote:2 reasons:

Budget constraints

People make mistakes

Budget, I can understand...

but an OOOOPS, not so much.

Here's another: prioritizing gimmicks over designs.

JelZe GoldRabbit wrote:Here's another: prioritizing gimmicks over designs.

Like most of us here, I'll take an accurate design over a kung-fu chop gimmick any day!

Budget restraints and production deadlines which need to be made are the primary reasons. Remember, these are children's toys we are talking about, not high-quality electronics (and even those often have design flaws). If it's flawed, then it's flawed: a kid's fantasy will just have to work around it.

Anyhow, on this note, I'm still annoyed by the poor design of G1 Astrotrain's arms and by G1 Broadside's completely lackluster transformations.

alldarker wrote:Budget restraints and production deadlines which need to be made are the primary reasons. Remember, these are children's toys we are talking about, not high-quality electronics (and even those often have design flaws). If it's flawed, then it's flawed: a kid's fantasy will just have to work around it.

Anyhow, on this note, I'm still annoyed by the poor design of G1 Astrotrain's arms and by G1 Broadside's completely lackluster transformations.

Hey! Kids deserve some quality control too ya know! lol

gbm wrote:

JelZe GoldRabbit wrote:Here's another: prioritizing gimmicks over designs.

Like most of us here, I'll take an accurate design over a kung-fu chop gimmick any day!

But kids, who are the primary customer targets, would rather it do something cool - and nowadays, just transforming isn't enough.

gbm wrote:the Knock Out Prime figure having BLACK wheels when it's clear as day that the character on TV has GOLD wheels!?

Because wheels are black.
Rims are gold.
And budget constraints on the initial use of a mold.

Valandar wrote:

gbm wrote:

JelZe GoldRabbit wrote:Here's another: prioritizing gimmicks over designs.

Like most of us here, I'll take an accurate design over a kung-fu chop gimmick any day!

But kids, who are the primary customer targets, would rather it do something cool - and nowadays, just transforming isn't enough.

Ive always hated any toy with an action gimmick. even when i was a kid it aggravated me to no end that i couldnt make a certain toy do a pose because he was limited because his arm/arms or waist was used for a kung fu chop or some swing attack.

Articulation is the best "gimmick" Im sure i wasnt the only one to think this way as a kid.

I think its more of them thinking kids want a gimmick to make it more fun.

as for colors...well things change during production probably comes down to price and what they think looks better. or what they think kids may think looks better.

How does one explain Leaders Ironhide and Jetfire coming out blue? Or RotF Voyager Megatron coming out green?

Mykltron wrote:How does one explain Leaders Ironhide and Jetfire coming out blue? Or RotF Voyager Megatron coming out green?

LSD

I think that has to do with their desire to keep the line visually diverse and appealing to children and parents. A lot of movie designs are metallic greyish, especially Megatron, Ironhide and Jetfire lack colour.

So rather than make screen-accurate but boring decos, they chose similar tones that give the robot some more oomph. RotF Voyager Megatron's green seems to be based on him being rusty and rotten from lying underwater.

Regardless of the reason...

I still find myself laughing at myself for letting something like NO GOLD WHEELS on Knock Out being the reason for not buying him.

Can you paint them you think? (would it look ok?)

FortMacs wrote:Articulation is the best "gimmick" Im sure i wasnt the only one to think this way as a kid.

I thought like that, too. Transformation was enough of a gimmick for me. I won't say no to something sweet like hidden weapons or the like but it hast to be well done and not compromise the other modes. If the gimmick is seriously amazing in concept and in execution I can overlook a slightly flawed robot mode but I don't know what kind of gimmick that would be. A really good combiner, maybe?

Mykltron wrote:How does one explain Leaders Ironhide and Jetfire coming out blue? Or RotF Voyager Megatron coming out green?

I'm not sure what you mean. DOTM Leader Ironhide and ROTF Leader Jetfire are both black, with some blue inside-parts. It's a design decision that you may not like, but I wouldn't call that an "OBVIOUS mess up".

To me, an obvious mess up is something more along the lines of a figure that can't stand up in bot mode because it has too much back kibble, or something like that.

GuyIncognito wrote:

Mykltron wrote:How does one explain Leaders Ironhide and Jetfire coming out blue? Or RotF Voyager Megatron coming out green?

I'm not sure what you mean. DOTM Leader Ironhide and ROTF Leader Jetfire are both black, with some blue inside-parts. It's a design decision that you may not like, but I wouldn't call that an "OBVIOUS mess up".

To me, an obvious mess up is something more along the lines of a figure that can't stand up in bot mode because it has too much back kibble, or something like that.

I agree that robots that can't stand is an obvious mess up but so is a black robot who's toy looks like he's wearing blue trousers. Go and take another look at Jetfire - he has blue external parts all over, as well as white. In the film he's black with gold parts.