The Energon Pub

It Is Him wrote:

First Gen wrote:the cab is two different colors.

That is hardly acceptable. I have to say, I'm disappointed if those paint apps are going to be universal and are not a result of poor QC.

I don't think the Cab is two different colors. Plastic and die-cast show up differently under various light sources. I'll defend the figure that way. I have this problem with a lot of figures because of lighting issues.

Thanks. You may have saved me $70. I was not sure I wanted it, as a collector, I almost feel obligated to buy this for a couple reasons:

1) It's a collectible with an original toy, original comic, and original 3 ep DVD. Sounds pretty good.

2) It may encourage them to create more G1 releases/re-issues and I can stop trying to bat down, and protect/defend HASBRO, when folks want to talk about the unofficial KOs that are SO accurate...because they would actually produce some re-issues like some people are asking for.

Thank you ryan I was going to get him because he was my first transformer every but now I will wait and see the gallery. The other reason I have to say thank you is because there is 6 yr old I know who wanted this for christmas he has been asking his grandma who is a friend of mine since it was first annouced but now I can tell her to look at the encore version of prime enstead.

Ryan's post all but confirmed my suspicions........another quicky fast buck scheme by Hasbro. Encore for all its faults (less glossy smooth plastics)best exemplifies the original Optimus Prime release of the 80's. IMHO TFC#0 with the energon axe would have been the best version except of course New Years Convoy with the Action Master Convoy + matrix.

I was sort of interested in this one as a MISB piece, but I will most likely pass. I think that Hasbro is doing a good enough job with the Universe line not to muck it up with half-assed Reissues.

Despite the appropriateness of this Prime for the 25th Anninversary year, personally, I think Reissues in general are getting old, and they take up time and money better spent of developing new molds. They are too expensive(remember what Hasbro TRU Reissues were priced at? No wonder they clogged shelves for 2 yrs.), and overproduced, and I see it happening all over again with this one.

I won't make a final decision on this one until I see it firsthand, but it doesn't fare very well.

This is very discouraging, but it is confirming what I've heard over the past week or two. I was so excited when initial pics were released. There was a silver roller, and since this was geared twards collectors I thought they'd be able to get away with long smoke stacks.

The hell of it is Hasbro will probably give us another Ironhide bullsh*t explanation, "It wasn't supposed to happen, it wasn't planned. Don't worry well do a 'running change'". Who knows if they'll even make good with Ironhide, but I digress.

The plain and simple fact is this reissue is not worth $70 dollars, but another loss in faith of Hasbro. I think I'm just gonna splurge and look into a TFC #0 or New Years Convoy. I'll keep Encore and KO's as an absolute last resort.

It Is Him wrote:Just for clarity, I was going to ask my dad to purchase Prime, gift wrap it, and then hand it over to me during the holidays. I selfishly want it all for myself. Mine. All mine and I'm not sharing.

My plan was to mail him a page from the HTS catalog along with a toy brochure that has the 10% off discount code. I'm warning him about it in advance, so it won't seem like I'm springing the idea on him.

Thanks for the clarification.

PorQPine wrote:Despite the appropriateness of this Prime for the 25th Anninversary year, personally, I think Reissues in general are getting old, and they take up time and money better spent of developing new molds. They are too expensive(remember what Hasbro TRU Reissues were priced at? No wonder they clogged shelves for 2 yrs.), and overproduced, and I see it happening all over again with this one.

Reissues themselves I don't mind so much. As is the case with the upcoming Cyclonus, I'd be as happy with a new mold as with a reissue (and I've been wanting headmaster/targetmaster figures for a while, so it wouldn't be fair to bitch one way or the other anyway, yes?). It isn't the fact that it's a reissue its that it sounds like Hasbro's gonna screw this one up, which isn't good because we expect better from them.

good even more of a reason not to waste my money. thanks for the heads up seibs.

Thanks Ryan for the just and honest review/report. Since I already dived in with HTS.com and preordered this at 20% discounted price, most likely I will take your suggestion and keep it MISB.

Like many others, I am so doomed and shocked. 25th year anniversary is supposed to be a milestone, how can Hasbro screw this up??? I felt like having a pineapple stuffed in my anal.

Optimist_Prime wrote:and since this was geared twards collectors I thought they'd be able to get away with long smoke stacks.

You mean make the smokestacks NOT chromed so they could be longer? No, they'll put out what they want because they know their loyal fanbase will buy it either way. May as well save 1 cent of plastic on each toy.

Hasbro is NOT Running With Scissors. Don't think for a second "the fans" matter. They're run by the mentality thay runs cigarette companies- new customers come along every day and the old ones are replacable. They only halfway pretend you exist as they know there's money to be had, enough "fans" to keep shelling money their way.

Don't believe me? Browse the TF Wiki. Idiotic comments all over every article. Run with the mentality of "this is witty". No information whatsoever. THAT is what runs this fandom. THOSE are the people that run ths fandom. Blithering idiots. And I have no problem calling them a bunch of jackasses for running such a joke of a "wiki". Poeple who blindly kiss Hasbro's butt and go out of their way to demonize Takara/Tomy/Japan, the OWNERS of the franchise.

I much doubt the combined IQ of the TF Wiki owners could even come close to reaching a triple digit mark. Michael Bay probably looks halfway intelligent when standing next to them.

Never forget that Hasbro could LOSE the brand at any time if Tomy wants to yank it away.

diosoth wrote:You mean make the smokestacks NOT chromed so they could be longer? No, they'll put out what they want because they know their loyal fanbase will buy it either way. May as well save 1 cent of plastic on each toy.

Yes the fanbase will buy it, but that does not exclude the toy itself from US safety regulations.

diosoth wrote:Hasbro is NOT Running With Scissors. Don't think for a second "the fans" matter. They're run by the mentality thay runs cigarette companies- new customers come along every day and the old ones are replacable. They only halfway pretend you exist as they know there's money to be had, enough "fans" to keep shelling money their way.

Maybe you should go to Botcon, where HASBRO addresses the public in person. Or try emailing them, you'll get a response. HASBRO has always been responsive, and most of the Universe 2.0 line was created because the fans asked for it.

diosoth wrote:Don't believe me? Browse the TF Wiki. Idiotic comments all over every article. Run with the mentality of "this is witty". No information whatsoever. THAT is what runs this fandom. THOSE are the people that run ths fandom. Blithering idiots. And I have no problem calling them a bunch of jackasses for running such a joke of a "wiki". Poeple who blindly kiss Hasbro's butt and go out of their way to demonize Takara/Tomy/Japan, the OWNERS of the franchise.

TF Wiki and HASBRO have no affiliation, so that point is moot.

diosoth wrote:I much doubt the combined IQ of the TF Wiki owners could even come close to reaching a triple digit mark. Michael Bay probably looks halfway intelligent when standing next to them.

Actually, most of the guys over at Wiki are rather intelligent, nice guys and gals. I met them at Botcon. Maybe you should know what you're talking about before making broad statements as such.

diosoth wrote:Never forget that Hasbro could LOSE the brand at any time if Tomy wants to yank it away.

Yeah, sure. And the US is gonna switch from oil based energy sources tomorrow. Are you serious? HASBRO has a market way bigger than Tomy, its the whole reason Transformers ever came to the US to begin with.

diosoth wrote:

Optimist_Prime wrote:and since this was geared twards collectors I thought they'd be able to get away with long smoke stacks.

You mean make the smokestacks NOT chromed so they could be longer? No, they'll put out what they want because they know their loyal fanbase will buy it either way. May as well save 1 cent of plastic on each toy.

Hasbro is NOT Running With Scissors. Don't think for a second "the fans" matter. They're run by the mentality thay runs cigarette companies- new customers come along every day and the old ones are replacable. They only halfway pretend you exist as they know there's money to be had, enough "fans" to keep shelling money their way.

Your comments disappoint me. Hasbro does care about their fans. Trust me. They do enough behind the scenes that I'm aware of that makes me 100% positive that they care about us. The bottom line is this: it is a business. They are here to make money. Plain and simple. If Hasbro can't stay afloat by saving money here and there during rough times, then we won't have Transformers.

diosoth wrote:Don't believe me? Browse the TF Wiki. Idiotic comments all over every article. Run with the mentality of "this is witty". No information whatsoever. THAT is what runs this fandom. THOSE are the people that run ths fandom. Blithering idiots. And I have no problem calling them a bunch of jackasses for running such a joke of a "wiki". Poeple who blindly kiss Hasbro's butt and go out of their way to demonize Takara/Tomy/Japan, the OWNERS of the franchise.

The guys at Wiki are definitely not the people that run this fandom. Sites like Seibertron, TFW, TFormers, TFClub and the AllSpark are where the majority of fans are at. What happens on those major sites is noticed by the fine folks at Hasbro.

diosoth wrote:I much doubt the combined IQ of the TF Wiki owners could even come close to reaching a triple digit mark. Michael Bay probably looks halfway intelligent when standing next to them.

What's up with the animosity to the Wiki guys? They run their website the way they want to. They don't owe you anything. If you don't like their website, simply don't go to it.

diosoth wrote:Never forget that Hasbro could LOSE the brand at any time if Tomy wants to yank it away.

Hasbro could never lose the brand. They could sell it but they wouldn't. They own "Transformers", TakaraTomy doesn't. All TakaraTomy owns are transforming robots but Hasbro owns "Autobots", "Decepticons", and the rest of the mythology that we all know and love.

Seibertron wrote:

It Is Him wrote:

First Gen wrote:the cab is two different colors.

That is hardly acceptable. I have to say, I'm disappointed if those paint apps are going to be universal and are not a result of poor QC.

I don't think the Cab is two different colors. Plastic and die-cast show up differently under various light sources. I'll defend the figure that way. I have this problem with a lot of figures because of lighting issues.

Phew.

I'm looking forward to the photo gallery a little bit more now.

diosoth wrote:Browse the TF Wiki. Idiotic comments all over every article. Run with the mentality of "this is witty". No information whatsoever. THAT is what runs this fandom. THOSE are the people that run ths fandom. Blithering idiots.

Hi Kettle, you're black.

Thanks Ryan for the heads up. It must be really bad for you to say such things. Luckyly I have 4 versions of this mold so it is not a big problem for me to miss it (even though I was looking forward to this). Just a shame for newer fans who have been looking forward to this release that they will not have the opportunity to know what a great Mold the original Prime is, or the disapointment that The next Generation of TF fans will have when they open their toys to find a pile of, Instead of what really makes Transformers and this hobby great. It is a shame that the flagship figure to celebrate their 25th anniversary is so bad. I just hope it does not put too many people off our favourite hobbie and puts the brand name in decline.

I hope Hasbro have not thought that the Next film will bring them enough revenue so to hell with the rest of the lines (quality wise) that would be a shame. In this climate I would have thought they would tighten up on Q.C problems to give a better toy to help the brand along. All I can say is very Disapointing and a great shame.

Sorry I went on a bit folks.

I had high expectation for this thing as 1) it is the spearhead of the 25th Anni line, 2) it is a reissue G1 Prime. I've seen one at a Wal-Mart store this week. It doesn't look too bad in the box.

diosoth wrote:

Optimist_Prime wrote:and since this was geared twards collectors I thought they'd be able to get away with long smoke stacks.

You mean make the smokestacks NOT chromed so they could be longer? No, they'll put out what they want because they know their loyal fanbase will buy it either way. May as well save 1 cent of plastic on each toy.

Hasbro is NOT Running With Scissors. Don't think for a second "the fans" matter. They're run by the mentality thay runs cigarette companies- new customers come along every day and the old ones are replacable. They only halfway pretend you exist as they know there's money to be had, enough "fans" to keep shelling money their way.

Don't believe me? Browse the TF Wiki. Idiotic comments all over every article. Run with the mentality of "this is witty". No information whatsoever. THAT is what runs this fandom. THOSE are the people that run ths fandom. Blithering idiots. And I have no problem calling them a bunch of jackasses for running such a joke of a "wiki". Poeple who blindly kiss Hasbro's butt and go out of their way to demonize Takara/Tomy/Japan, the OWNERS of the franchise.

I much doubt the combined IQ of the TF Wiki owners could even come close to reaching a triple digit mark. Michael Bay probably looks halfway intelligent when standing next to them.

Never forget that Hasbro could LOSE the brand at any time if Tomy wants to yank it away.

I'm sitting beside two great people from Hasbro Canada right now and they are interested at what you just wrote. They want to know where you got your damning evidence from? You're just here to stir the pot... you even put it in your sig. Go play at the Tavern and save everyone the time and energy.

That aside... I'm really sorry to hear you're let down bro. I remember you saying how pumped you were to pick this up.

Just when you think it could be worse, just remember Canada doesn't get the DVD.

I'm starting to get pissed off. While I don't have the money for this set, I'd still like to be able to pick it up and admire the quality. I guess I won't be able to do that.

I never really buy much Takara product unless it's something really cool, but Hasbro is wearing my patience thin. The paint apps have been getting steadily more splotchy and every Animated toy I've purchased had something wrong with it. Even Takara has been slipping lately.

What's sad is the best TF item I've purchased lately is City Commander. That's not even owned by Hasbro, but I can at least say that the quality is perfect and worth every penny.

Also, diosoth, go cool off. I have nothing against you, but shooting your mouth off like that only makes you look dumb.

Seibertron wrote:

diosoth wrote:

Optimist_Prime wrote:and since this was geared twards collectors I thought they'd be able to get away with long smoke stacks.

You mean make the smokestacks NOT chromed so they could be longer? No, they'll put out what they want because they know their loyal fanbase will buy it either way. May as well save 1 cent of plastic on each toy.

Hasbro is NOT Running With Scissors. Don't think for a second "the fans" matter. They're run by the mentality thay runs cigarette companies- new customers come along every day and the old ones are replacable. They only halfway pretend you exist as they know there's money to be had, enough "fans" to keep shelling money their way.

Your comments disappoint me. Hasbro does care about their fans. Trust me. They do enough behind the scenes that I'm aware of that makes me 100% positive that they care about us. The bottom line is this: it is a business. They are here to make money. Plain and simple. If Hasbro can't stay afloat by saving money here and there during rough times, then we won't have Transformers.

Ryan's right about this. I personally take Cyclonus as a sign that I'm at least being heard a little bit (because it's a new mold of Targetmaster Cyclonus, and I don't think I need to repeat myself about that at the moment). Hasbro can't just cater to my interests, though. Like Ryan said, it's a business, and if Hasbro doesn't stay afloat, no more Transformers. We don't want that.

While I wasn't gonna buy this anyway, I am still disappointed. I guess I got lucky when I bought my Encore Prime...

And while I do agree that the QC has been going down on some figures (like a few of the Animated figures for example), it is also true that the QC on other TF figures (like most of the Universe/Classics 2.0 line) has actually been quite excellent as far as I can tell so far.

And regarding Transformers Wiki: IT RULES!

Just so I'm clear on this: the problem is with the paint job not the mold itself. The toy won't fall apart or break if you do take it out of the box?

SentinelA wrote:Just so I'm clear on this: the problem is with the paint job not the mold itself. The toy won't fall apart or break if you do take it out of the box?

The right knee on my figure is loose. I haven't figured out what is wrong with it but it stands just fine. It just flops back/down when I'm holding the figure.

There was also a problem with one of the arms where part of the spring inside was sticking out between two of the plastic halves that form his arm. I carefully took his arm apart and put the spring back in properly without any problems. I imagine this problem will be limited to just mine.

thedistinctroom wrote:And regarding Transformers Wiki: IT RULES!

I second this emotion.

It Is Him wrote:

thedistinctroom wrote:And regarding Transformers Wiki: IT RULES!

I second this emotion.

They certainly do kick ass in the Botcon Battle of the Boards.

I would say that gives them some dap. (phrase not used in a long time for you young uns').

The guys at tf wiki are hillarious. I'm also a contributor so instead of huffing and puffing.......go contribute something positive in the database.

As for Universe 2.0 having no Q.C., you haven't seen Prowl yet (stcky paints erhhmm), Henkei presentation wayyyyyyyyy better than Hasbro's if you prefer chrome apps.............with the exception of Starscream with the "two" left leg syndrome(come on guys(Takara), why the slip ups?)

As for the aforementioned drop in quality of the 25th anniversary version, my heart bleeds, what a disappointment...........but given the early............ photos of the product, already noticed it was anemic in the color apps already, plus the fact that Roller is blue and the gun was malnourished (not the fat version)the voice box itself may just be the only saving grace of the set (own the original dvds,comic already)

I can't help but emphatize with Ryan's feelings on this set.

I'm optimizing the photos for this set right now. These are the following galleries that will be posted this evening:

25th Anniversary Optimus Prime
Encore Convoy
Encore Megatron
Impossible Toys Spike
Impossible Toys Sparkplug
Universe Acid Storm