The Energon Pub

Just of curiosity, what is it about the Ratchet mold that people don't like? Or is it more that it could've been the Breakdown one, so this one feels lessened in comparison?

ScottyP wrote:

Counterpunch wrote:Oddly enough, I think we discussed the possibility of this figure being done as Cannonball in the not yet posted Episode 85.

I think...I think my comment was, "They better not..."

^_^"

Yeah you guys were getting excited and I said something like "It'll probably just be the Ratchet mold". Then we all groaned.

Due to this, I also laughed heartily when I saw this announcement this morning.

Isn't it great to be right , we all have those moments of doh.

I agree with Seibertron that they should just announce all of the figures at once. I wonder if they think it will hurt sales.

Va'al wrote:Just of curiosity, what is it about the Ratchet mold that people don't like? Or is it more that it could've been the Breakdown one, so this one feels lessened in comparison?

I love that mold actually.

But it's so close to the Cybertron Ratchet mold in looks that I am really uninterested.

I would have preferred the Arms Micron Breakdown mold for something really interesting. Especially the Silas version with the messed up eye.

I like it.

not in love with the mold, but it looks pretty good.

1 for 1 so far ... that's way better than the last few years for me.

Va'al wrote:Just of curiosity, what is it about the Ratchet mold that people don't like? Or is it more that it could've been the Breakdown one, so this one feels lessened in comparison?

The Ratchet mold is just too... it fits too well in the whole scheme of things, it doesn't feel right, yet it does. Plus, do you realise how desired the Prime Breakdown is, given its exclusive nature?

njb902 wrote:I agree with Seibertron that they should just announce all of the figures at once. I wonder if they think it will hurt sales.

I have a feeling it actually would. Building up hype is a great strategy to fetch and keep interest in the shape of (false) hope of something good or at the very least redeeming Think of it this way: with everything out in the open from the start you're less likely to jump on an offer, which is exactly what the club doesn't want.

JelZe GoldRabbit wrote:

Va'al wrote:Just of curiosity, what is it about the Ratchet mold that people don't like? Or is it more that it could've been the Breakdown one, so this one feels lessened in comparison?

The Ratchet mold is just too... it fits too well in the whole scheme of things, it doesn't feel right, yet it does. Plus, do you realise how desired the Prime Breakdown is, given its exclusive nature?

njb902 wrote:I agree with Seibertron that they should just announce all of the figures at once. I wonder if they think it will hurt sales.

I have a feeling it actually would. Building up hype is a great strategy to fetch and keep interest in the shape of (false) hope of something good or at the very least redeeming Think of it this way: with everything out in the open from the start you're less likely to jump on an offer, which is exactly what the club doesn't want.

Just speaking for myself. I'm kinda dumb, I like transparency and for things to be spelled out for me.

Well it's not too bad. I think they couldn't done better with the BH version, that decoed in black and teal would look evil

I see. Well, yes, Breakdown could've been a lot of fun, I agree.

But I do like this figure too! I think it removes the kibble/bulk of the original figure, without removing the personality - because of the similarity with the Cybertron mold.

I'm not sure I want to make the effort to look into getting this set, but as I've said, I'm intrigued to see what the other announcements will bring!

I think this guy looks pretty good. Of course I won't be going to botcon nor buying him off of ebay, so my opinion is worth squat.

I do like the fact though that they released the picture to the internet since my last couple collectors club issues came about 2 weeks after everyone else seemed to have received theirs.

I'm rather intrigued by the idea of making the new head resemble Red Alert rather than something more original or a recycling of the BH noggin. Possible repaint as Red Alert anyone?

Ok. Looks good. I like the head. Still gonna wait for the rest before I declare myself sold or not.

Va'al wrote:

Rated X wrote:Edit....special thanks to El Duque for letting us see the image. You are the man ! I wish you made all the decisions for this site.

You know what? I've had enough of your negativity, passive-aggressive remarks and constant underminining of our work on here.



Just so we're clear: all news is discussed via staff emails or forums. We check on what news we post. El Duque actually said, and I quote, "Looks like a winner to me!" when I asked about the previous news post for approval. We always ask each other to help us out and look over news.

Also, El Duque did not 'let us see the image', TCC did. Via Twitter. That's why we can show it.

Do you know how much time everyone on the staff dedicates to this site, only to be received by the likes of you, spewing uninformed, non-factual, devious comments? How do you think it feels? Do you think we post news in such a way as to piss the fandom off intentionally?

No.

We post it according to what and how the staff self-polices itself, and based on whatever external factors exert their influence on us. Would you rather have a teaser of what's to come, until the holders of the information release it, or none at all? Because that's what would happen if we ignored the requests of those external parties.

So please, please read this carefully: If you can't be bothered to inform yourself, read the whole news post or article and then offer a comment based on the content, rather than the author or your skewered interpretation of it - don't bother. It's become tiring.

Seibertron wrote:

Va'al wrote:

Rated X wrote:Edit....special thanks to El Duque for letting us see the image. You are the man ! I wish you made all the decisions for this site.

You know what? I've had enough of your negativity, passive-aggressive remarks and constant underminining of our work on here.

Rated X, that's enough, man. You know us personally from past BotCons. You could easily send us an email or a private message and say "hey man, what's the reason you guys did this or that?" or something personal along those lines instead of taking dibs at the rest of the staff. That's not cool.

Youre point is understood. Some of your staff takes offense to opposing stances. But everybody ive met in person has been pretty damn cool. You dont see me getting into arguments with the people ive met, just the ones who dont know me. Sometimes I come off too harsh, but sometimes some of your guys pick fights too, so its all good. The only thing I try to stress is that whats best for business isnt always the most popular choice among the fans. And this is a fan site. Without the fans there would be no business.

Mindmaster wrote:

Va'al wrote:

Rated X wrote:Edit....special thanks to El Duque for letting us see the image. You are the man ! I wish you made all the decisions for this site.

You know what? I've had enough of your negativity, passive-aggressive remarks and constant underminining of our work on here.



Just so we're clear: all news is discussed via staff emails or forums. We check on what news we post. El Duque actually said, and I quote, "Looks like a winner to me!" when I asked about the previous news post for approval. We always ask each other to help us out and look over news.

Also, El Duque did not 'let us see the image', TCC did. Via Twitter. That's why we can show it.

Do you know how much time everyone on the staff dedicates to this site, only to be received by the likes of you, spewing uninformed, non-factual, devious comments? How do you think it feels? Do you think we post news in such a way as to piss the fandom off intentionally?

No.

We post it according to what and how the staff self-polices itself, and based on whatever external factors exert their influence on us. Would you rather have a teaser of what's to come, until the holders of the information release it, or none at all? Because that's what would happen if we ignored the requests of those external parties.

So please, please read this carefully: If you can't be bothered to inform yourself, read the whole news post or article and then offer a comment based on the content, rather than the author or your skewered interpretation of it - don't bother. It's become tiring.

Bless this post

I proudly concur.

Onto the figure:

Looks like I'm going to BotCon this year. This guy will be re-purposed as my Prime Cannonball. Wonder if/how they're going to do Brimstone and Sandstorm...

ScottyP wrote:

Counterpunch wrote:Oddly enough, I think we discussed the possibility of this figure being done as Cannonball in the not yet posted Episode 85.

I think...I think my comment was, "They better not..."

^_^"

Yeah you guys were getting excited and I said something like "It'll probably just be the Ratchet mold". Then we all groaned.

Due to this, I also laughed heartily when I saw this announcement this morning.

On that note, I thought I'd take advantage of the timeliness of this announcement by posting podcast #85 "Pirates vs Twincast".



Hope I came up with something OK for the spotlight image!

njb902 wrote:I agree with Seibertron that they should just announce all of the figures at once. I wonder if they think it will hurt sales.

Normally I would agree with the business model of slow releases to build up anticipation and excitement. I think that would work if they were using new molds. However, with this being Fun Pub's 10th roll out with BotCon sets, I think it's pretty obvious that the anticipation build-up from repaints with or without new heads just causes wild speculation that leads to disappointment, frustration and negative comments all around. It seems to have the opposite effect than what is desired with BotCon roll outs. It would be very interesting to see them try the other approach one year just to be able to contrast the fandom's reaction as well as Primus package sales and BotCon attendance.

I don't quite understand BotCon's model because they seem very content with low attendance numbers. It seems like rather than going after trying to attract more people, they've decided to go the route of making more money per person by increasing costs and/or available products. Without being able to see the numbers, it's hard to gauge the financial side of all of this. I strongly believe in the business model of making less money per person but serving more customers over making more money per person and serving less customers. Word of mouth bringing in new customers will more than make up for whatever initial profits were lost.

Rated X wrote:Without the fans there would be no business.

True, but with Hasbro being well able to shut us down should we cross lines we shouldn't cross, well... A site needs its fans, but the fans need their site more.

Seibertron wrote:

ScottyP wrote:

Counterpunch wrote:Oddly enough, I think we discussed the possibility of this figure being done as Cannonball in the not yet posted Episode 85.

I think...I think my comment was, "They better not..."

^_^"

Yeah you guys were getting excited and I said something like "It'll probably just be the Ratchet mold". Then we all groaned.

Due to this, I also laughed heartily when I saw this announcement this morning.

On that note, I thought I'd take advantage of the timeliness of this announcement by posting podcast #85 "Pirates vs Twincast".



Hope I came up with something OK for the spotlight image!

njb902 wrote:I agree with Seibertron that they should just announce all of the figures at once. I wonder if they think it will hurt sales.

Normally I would agree with the business model of slow releases to build up anticipation and excitement. I think that would work if they were using new molds. However, with this being Fun Pub's 10th roll out with BotCon sets, I think it's pretty obvious that the anticipation build-up from repaints with or without new heads just causes wild speculation that leads to disappointment, frustration and negative comments all around. It seems to have the opposite effect than what is desired. It would be very interesting to see them try the other approach one year just to be able to contrast the fandom's reaction as well as Primus package sales and BotCon attendance.

I'm not sure one year would be enough of a indicator, but I agree with your premise.

njb902 wrote:I'm not sure one year would be enough of a indicator, but I agree with your premise.

I completely agree because there are too many variables involved but it'd be nice to see them try it once in order to gain a strong positive reaction from the fandom instead of a drawn out negative reaction.

Counterpunch wrote:

Va'al wrote:Just of curiosity, what is it about the Ratchet mold that people don't like? Or is it more that it could've been the Breakdown one, so this one feels lessened in comparison?

I love that mold actually.

But it's so close to the Cybertron Ratchet mold in looks that I am really uninterested.

I would have preferred the Arms Micron Breakdown mold for something really interesting. Especially the Silas version with the messed up eye.

yup. I like the Ratchet mold. A lot. I like the BH version a lot too. This is a pretty spiffing reuse of that mold and I like it a lot. This bodes well for the set (and bad for my wallet) but AM Silas Breakdown could have been a lot cooler. One of the things in Cannonball's bio suggests he's not the first bot to use the name and piratey schtick, right? Little Silas inside could have been this Cannonball's Minimus Ambus.

Counterpunch wrote:

Va'al wrote:Just of curiosity, what is it about the Ratchet mold that people don't like? Or is it more that it could've been the Breakdown one, so this one feels lessened in comparison?

I love that mold actually.

But it's so close to the Cybertron Ratchet mold in looks that I am really uninterested.

There was a Ratchet in Transformers: Cybertron?

I think the whole deal with the Ratchet mold in its early revealings is that people were upset we didn't get a Voyager Ratchet. On top of that, the Deluxe was lacking in a lot of paint detail. I don't think a lot of people have a problem with the mold itself.

Damn it, I really wanted to make it across the pond to Botcon this year, it's the first time I can afford to. But I just can't get excited about this stuff. And what with this being a movie year, there is nothing product-wise I am interested in. I would love to meet you guys (even Rated X, seems like a cool guy underneath the narkiness, LOL) Maybe next year...

JelZe GoldRabbit wrote:

Rated X wrote:Without the fans there would be no business.

True, but with Hasbro being well able to shut us down should we cross lines we shouldn't cross, well... A site needs its fans, but the fans need their site more.

I dont think hasbro would ever shut this site or tfw2005 down because its free promotion for their brand. All the factors made on how either site is run is based on the logic of those who run it. Both sites seem to apply a different logic. The fans opinion on which logic is superior will forever be split. Ethics will forever divide different types of fans and collectors. Just my opinion. But I personally dont think funpub has earned the right to garner the respect of any fan site. They make all these stupid requests for fan sites not to post their stuff early when it is already all over facebook. I kind of like the stance smaller fan sites take. They are non profit so they post what ever they feel like. Its the whole business thing that doesnt mesh well for some fans.

This is what I was hoping they'd use for Cannonball. Though the Beast Hunters version is what was in my mind. Anyway, this looks great. As one of the few Prime figures to have a swiveling waist, Ratchet was a very good figure. The mold was just too small for him.

AS good as Cannonball looks, it is nice to know that this is the only Prime mold being used.