by megatronus » Wed Jan 07, 2015 8:47 pm
- Motto: "I would have waited an eternity for this."
- Weapon: Temperature Variant H20 Gun
Okay, then... I'm going to put my hat in the ring, but I'm also going to make an effort not to repeat myself in any category. Here we go!
Offering of the Year 2014
Terminus Hexatron, Continuum version w/ Stag Cleavers. This guy is the entire package, and everything I wanted from this mold and for this character. The updated head sculpt is fierce, while the new fin molds are simple in shape, yet satisfying. The Stag Cleavers only accentuate the sense of brute force and power behind the sleek, modern design. The revised coloration is surprisingly good; even the gold line detailing, grey-blue wing handles, and chest fin paint apps hit the right notes. So much thought was put into this reissue, and this mold represents so much insofar as the fandom's raised expectations for 3rd Party figures, that it's almost impossible to pick anything else.
Favorite 2014 Add-On
Since there's only 1 category for add-ons, I'm going to give you my top 3, in descending order:
(1) Renderform Death Czar kit + Reprolabels, upgrading Beast Hunters Darksteel into Generations Deathsaurus. Both are great individually, but together, they turn an average mold and somewhat above average redeco into something truly menacing and special.
(2) Dr. Wu Bitz upgrade for Generations Blitzwing. This kit is amazing - the plastic is a near perfect match, and the options you have for Blitzwing's face, not to mention the light piping in his blaster, are touches that make this set, in my opinion, the final word on Blitzwing.
(3) SXS Weapon Set for PRID Skyquake. This upgrade truly makes Skyquake Generations-worthy. The base mold is great, but the Powerizer gimmick was awful. This is a clean & show accurate fix that makes me incapable of putting a now looming Skyquake down.
Favorite 2014 Figure
This is a bit out of left field, but I'm going to say iGear's Black Shark Leader. Admittedly, I despise, despise iGear's regular Sharkticons. The faces and differentiating red/blue/green accents combined with the 'Neo' look kills them for me. UT's have the G1 aesthetic I so adore. That said, as a Leader Shark, this mold really shines. The darkly intelligent and intimidating deco is perfectly suited for this beefy commander of mindlessly sadistic UT minions. The plastic quality is leagues better than UT's, as is the articulation, heft and overall stability. He's a handsome package, and possibility the best thing iGear's ever done. And at a $40 price point? This guy's a winner.
Favorite 2014 3rd Party
This will sound strange, but I consider the Transformers Collectors Club to be a 3rd Party. They might be an officially licensed 3rd Party, but they are a 3rd Party nonetheless - and they're my pick. I'm just so pleased I joined the Club when I did (post-credit card scandal, around the time the TFSS 1.0 figures were becoming available on the Club store). They've been putting out a ton of interesting stuff, and the steady stream of random, insanely detailed and well done releases, like Club Rampage & Depthcharge, TFSS Barricade & Ultra Mammoth, Botcon Obsidian & Fireguts Ginrai, and many, many others, are some of my most beloved figures.
Favorite 2014 Combiner
Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex. Feral Rex.
What you're looking forward to in 2015 for Transformers
I've been buying fewer and fewer full 3rd Party figures, but I do anticipate the next entries in FansProject's Function X line, or the start of MMC's DJD releases. But what I'm really looking forward to are upgrades for Combiner Wars. Perfect Effect's recently revealed upgrades for CW Superion looks amazing. 3rd Party really started as a complement to Hasbro products, and as the possibility increases that Hasbro figures' heightened competitiveness and glut of 3rd Party product converges into a perfect storm that pops the unofficial product bubble, I look forward to 3rd Parties really going back to their roots.
Cobotron wrote:Hey! You seemed to have attracted a wild Megatronus. They're hard to find, but boy are they fun when you catch one!