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Sabrblade wrote:

JelZe GoldRabbit wrote:

Bass X0 wrote:The head is supposed to be a dual homage to G2 Electro, some people say that this toy will be repainted into Electro instead of Hubcap.

Very well spotted!

Indeed! I knew there was something about that head that caught my eye, but I kept thinking it was Soundwave-esque.

Say, can GDO accessories be produced stand-alone as they're separate molds (possibly gang-molded with the heads)? Electro wouldn't feel complete without a sword.

Bass X0 wrote:Botcon can't win whatever they do with Seibertronian commenters.

They create their own characters, people complain there is no attachement.

They do Shattered Glass, people complain they are too different.

They do G1 characters, people complain that they should have been done at retail.

They do Machine Wars, people complain that they are not wowed by them.

BotCon and TCC are their own worst enemy. It's because of the hype that they build up around their products that so many people seem to get their hopes up. We've known for almost 2 months that the BotCon 2013 theme was going to be Machine Wars. That's 2 months for speculation to build up in our heads about what the products will be. Those that are passionate about BotCon exclusives each has our own ideas about what would make a cool Machine Wars "revival".

The last really amazing BotCon "set" was the BotCon 2006 Beast Wars themed set. Great set. Filled in a gap in a story many of us love and wanted to know more about. The 2005 set was OK ... I give them a pass on that set because I personally like most of it (including the poor face designs on Ratchet and Ironhide), primarily because everything rides on Deszaras. It was their first set and I think it was a pretty rushed set, so I give them a pass on that one. I still think the 2007 set was really great, but understand the sensitivities that surround it. The initial Shattered Glass set was a fun idea (not my thing but I don't have to like everything) and we ended up with some decently conceived ideas (i.e. Starscream in Jetfire's colors, the Megatron with the early comic head, black Hot Rod, etc). Unfortunately, it's kind of been downhill since. Shattered Glass has been beat to death, the 2009 set was "meh" at best (especially after getting awesome retail versions of Kup and Scourge), I liked the 2010 set but I think they really missed an opportunity by doing G2 right (it should have been called G1.5 Redux, calling it G2 is misleading), the 2011 set was OK but again I think they missed a lot of opportunities, and the 2012 set was SG beaten to death with screwy looking versions of what should have been two of the most awesome BotCon figures ever (Metalhawk and Overlord).

I get the idea of building hype behind an event or product. It's a key aspect of marketing. However, when the end product doesn't end up meeting the extreme artificial hype, disappointment unfortunately ensues. The massive viral marketing scheme behind the flopped "Snakes on a Plane" flick come to mind. Having seen this happen every year since 2005, you'd think the marketing strategy would have changed at this point. Knowing how this song and dance goes every year, I think they should wait to announce the theme and figures until they had everything they wanted to reveal all in one fell swoop. This would end the early speculation that seems to simmer for weeks or months at a time which only leads to disappointment.

xyl360 wrote:

Rated X wrote:Looking at this picture in both modes, does anyone else think the Botcon 2007 Huffer mold would have been a better choice ?

Agreed, but they're probably trying to use molds they've never used before and use molds from more current lines. This is a perfect example of why the club needs the ability/permission to do more than just new heads for figures. The one they chose could somewhat work if they were able to add a peg hole to the truckbed and create a tow arm for it on the back that pegs into it. It wouldn't be that hard to kitbash (assuming you had a tow arm laying around).

You'd think that for what these things cost, they'd be willing to do more than they do (I'm sure the club is, but Hasbro probably has some pretty strict limitations on what they are willing to do for these limited exclusive releases).

Yeah I know they announced that they wouldnt be using Unicron Trilogy molds anymore. For me that sucks though. As a classics collector, I want molds I dont have on my shelf rather than repaints of molds I have that represent an important character. Since I dont really collect Unicron Trilogy, those molds are perfect for classic repaints. I dont need any more Jazz and Kup repaints.

Wolfman Jake wrote:

Rated X wrote:Not really, but the maroon is actually spot on for Machine Wars Hoist and would pass as a red. Not perfect, but the yellow/orange stripe, black paint, and faceplate scream G1 Trailbreaker (toy not cartoon) Botcon usually goes for toy accuracy. It also opens up the door for the mold being used again in the future as G1 Hoist. Just my crazy opinion.

I don't know, I'm not buying that face sculpt as "toy accurate" G1 Trailbreaker.

Im not saying it's a spot on representation, but it does have the faceplate for those who prefer G1 toy accuracy over the cartoon. TFCC always goes for the G1 toy. Plus the head sculpt was made boxy (like Trailbreaker) instead of rounded like Machine Wars Hoist. Pretty funny huh ? Thats why I think the dual purpose was intended. They knew people wouldnt be displaying Kup with their season 1 characters, so maybe they thought some might get a kick out of using the mold as Trailbreaker if they prefer. Kind of like using Energon Wheeljack as Downshift, some people will do it.

Rated X wrote:Im not saying it's a spot on representation, but it does have the faceplate for those who prefer G1 toy accuracy over the cartoon. TFCC always goes for the G1 toy. Plus the head sculpt was made boxy (like Trailbreaker) instead of rounded like Machine Wars Hoist. Pretty funny huh ? Thats why I think the dual purpose was intended. They knew people wouldnt be displaying Kup with their season 1 characters, so maybe they thought some might get a kick out of using the mold as Trailbreaker if they prefer. Kind of like using Energon Wheeljack as Downshift, some people will do it.

Or, as Bass X0 pointed out, the head is meant for a redeco of this figure into G2 Electro (who also had a pickup truck altmode):

He looks not bad overall but his head looks awesome.

Anyone who owns any version of Cybertron Armorhide can do this with this new Hoist figure:




Photos courtesy of NightViper from Allspark.com

Sabrblade wrote:

Rated X wrote:Im not saying it's a spot on representation, but it does have the faceplate for those who prefer G1 toy accuracy over the cartoon. TFCC always goes for the G1 toy. Plus the head sculpt was made boxy (like Trailbreaker) instead of rounded like Machine Wars Hoist. Pretty funny huh ? Thats why I think the dual purpose was intended. They knew people wouldnt be displaying Kup with their season 1 characters, so maybe they thought some might get a kick out of using the mold as Trailbreaker if they prefer. Kind of like using Energon Wheeljack as Downshift, some people will do it.

Or, as Bass X0 pointed out, the head is meant for a redeco of this figure into G2 Electro (who also had a pickup truck altmode):

So why make him look like Electro ? TFCC is getting cheap...

Rated X wrote:

Sabrblade wrote:

Rated X wrote:Im not saying it's a spot on representation, but it does have the faceplate for those who prefer G1 toy accuracy over the cartoon. TFCC always goes for the G1 toy. Plus the head sculpt was made boxy (like Trailbreaker) instead of rounded like Machine Wars Hoist. Pretty funny huh ? Thats why I think the dual purpose was intended. They knew people wouldnt be displaying Kup with their season 1 characters, so maybe they thought some might get a kick out of using the mold as Trailbreaker if they prefer. Kind of like using Energon Wheeljack as Downshift, some people will do it.

Or, as Bass X0 pointed out, the head is meant for a redeco of this figure into G2 Electro (who also had a pickup truck altmode):

So why make him look like Electro ? TFCC is getting cheap...

Because Electro is planned to make an appearance I'm guessing, and they only have... *counts* 4 new head molds across 12 or so figures in total, not counting the unused alternate heads in the standard mold (as was the case with Treadshot, Ultra Magnus and Spinister last year). So some heads have to do double duty.

I saw the picture before I read the headline and given the colours and headsculpt I thought it was a vehicle-form Tarantulas.

I was going to ask if this was shattered Glass then I remembered it is Machine Wars. I weould still like to see this in G1 colors.

The supreme irony is that the colours make it a perfect Trailbreaker.

Ah, Trailbreaker. How I miss you...

The BotCon 2013 website has posted official images of their recently revealed convention exclusive Machine Wars Hoist. The figure is a reuse of Generations Sargeant Kup with a new head and deco. Images of the figure in both robot and vehicle mode have been mirrored below.

Botcon 2013 is in San Diego this year from June 27-30. Check out BotCon.com for more information.

Yup, I still like it. Alt mode looks nice and clean. The striping pops nicely. I assume W&S references Witwicky & Son.

Flux Convoy wrote:Yup, I still like it. Alt mode looks nice and clean. The striping pops nicely. I assume W&S references Witwicky & Son.

Close. It actually references Wilk and Son Towing on the original toy:

W&S Towing with what crane ? I hope somebody does an add on crane. I still say this deco is meant to stand in as Trailbreaker until they get around to a real one.

Rated X wrote:W&S Towing with what crane ? I hope somebody does an add on crane. I still say this deco is meant to stand in as Trailbreaker until they get around to a real one.

Yeah, I don't think this thing will go long without some 3rd party figuring out that they can sell a simple tow crane add on for this thing and make a fast buck. Somebody will get around to it (if not, there's always Shapeways).

Rated X wrote:W&S Towing with what crane ?

It's a magic invisible crane!
Magic and invisible like FunPub's business ethics.

The crane will be this years Soundwaves headband..5 bucks and a total POS..

I was willing to give this guys a slight benefit of the doubt- until I saw that we're getting a tow truck with no actual towing hook. I know they don't go with new molds, but seriously, would sculpting a new weapon that turned into an appropriately sized tow hook REALLY have killed them? Epic fail.

Repainting movie Longarm would have made more sense to me but thats just me.

It almost works as Trailbreaker.

A little parts swapping with Swerve (which would be a pain because he has a TON of pins) and you'd have a passable Trailbreaker.

I was really hoping they'd make an extra molded bit to stick into the bed of the truck so it would be a makeshift tow truck at least. Doesn't make much sense as MW Hoist, as is xD

STngAR wrote:Repainting movie Longarm would have made more sense to me but thats just me.

Nope, it isn't just you; I couldn't agree more!

STngAR wrote:Repainting movie Longarm would have made more sense to me but thats just me.

You're preaching to the choir here :

Bowspearer wrote:The other thing is that Kup ideally isn't the best mould choice here. Honestly, as much as i detest movie toys, I was honestly expecting them to draw on the Longarm mould if they did go this way for both Hoist and Hubcap as it is an actual tow truck. Hopefully the other reveals are better fits.