The Energon Pub

[Fires_Of_Inferno]

I'm honestly not impressed by that Shockwave. I've got a G1 style modern Shockwave figure, and he can transform so I'm good.

I wasn't going to get anymore Flame Toys models because I got stung by Windblade breaking immediately on me. I barely even handled her.

However... that beast wars Megatron is looking AWESOME

and I'm gonna want that Arcee too.

Godammit, they got me.

[-Kanrabat-]

Shockwave. Y U look like some Super 7 figure, but with THRUSTING CROTCH action?


That Arcee looks amazing and I want her.

[william-james88]

Man, Flame Toys is giving us some deep cuts with their model kits. They have a Gilthor planned. For those not in the know, this was an evil clone which combined both Optimus Prime and Megatron. That always made for a cool design and now we have our chance to get an officially licensed one (if you take the time to build it). It doesn't end there, through Facebook posts from Flame Toys themselves and images taken at the Flame Toys booth at the Animation-Comic-Game Hong Kong show, we also have our first looks at the upcoming Shockwave, BW Megatron and Arcee models. Arcee is the big ticket here since this is the model kit whos preorder starts and it is the only kit where they gave us a full reveal. Those specific product details are below along with all the images mentioned.

Arcee pre-order start !

SRP : US$55
Size : ~16cm height
Material : ABS, PVC

Product introduction :
– This is an modernized and shape optimized Arcee.
– Good articulation with over 60 movable joints, you are able to set any pose easily.
– Model kit is made of hard plastic ABS, it will be good for professional model kit users to make his own coloring Arcee.
– With different injection color of runner parts and simple assembly design, it will also be suitable for model kit beginners.

[grimdragon2001]

Ok, that Arcee will be preordered as soon as she becomes available, I still need to build my Windblade though

[Fires_Of_Inferno]

That Megatron looks AWESOME!

That Arcee is bought the second the preorder goes up! Can't wait for her to be delayed for another year because puritans complain about her!

That shockwave is a pass.

[SpaceEagle]

That Gilthor looks awesome, I don't really do model kits but I am interested in picking it up because I don't think there'll probably be any other merch of it that goes for such a deep cut! I've always loved the design and was sad there wasn't something of it.
The dynamic styling already works super well for a character from a very stylised art style for its design.

Kinda wish that one was up for preorder already but I also don't mind delays to make sure it's perfect. Selling generic-anime-girl-body Arcee first is a pretty wise choice at getting the extra funding, heh.

[-Kanrabat-]

Ok, that Arcee will be preordered as soon as she becomes available, I still need to build my Windblade though

I'm in the exact same boat. That Arcee is a must. Very anime style and will looks amazing with Windblade. I expect a Nightshadow to pop in as well sooner or later.

I also have to get off my lazy ass and build both my Bumblebee and Windblade already.

[angtre]

Arcee reminds me a lot the female androids from "Phantasy Star Online".
Gilthor/Guiltaur is a strange proposal.

[primalxconvoy]

Arcee looks both interesting yet problematic at the same time. I'm surprised the full design, as-is, was greenlighted, considering that a significant amount of the community were unhappy with similar designs prior.

[-Kanrabat-]

Arcee looks both interesting yet problematic at the same time. I'm surprised the full design, as-is, was greenlighted, considering that a significant amount of the community were unhappy with similar designs prior.

If by "The community" you mean Twitter Warriors who wouldn't have spent a dime on Transformers of any kinds, you're right.

She's sooooooooooooooo problematic.

Like ham for a Muslim or shoes for someone with no legs.

[grimdragon2001]

Arcee looks both interesting yet problematic at the same time. I'm surprised the full design, as-is, was greenlighted, considering that a significant amount of the community were unhappy with similar designs prior.

If by "The community" you mean Twitter Warriors who wouldn't have spent a dime on Transformers of any kinds, you're right.

She's sooooooooooooooo problematic.

Like ham for a Muslim or shoes for someone with no legs.

This just tells me that Windblade sold exceptionally well. More than likely all the talk of her being "problematic" pushed her to everyone's view, even those who either were uninterested or never heard of Flame Toys' works and got them interested. Controversy does sell after all. I have a feeling if Arcee gets as many people talking as Windblade did, she'll sell gangbusters and Flame Toys knows it now.

[ZeroWolf]

My thing with Arcee is, she's looking very armoured really.

[griftimus prime]

man that megatron is looking dope. been thinking of some non transforming bots i might get after i stop collecting. this may make the list if price was right

[SpaceEagle]

man that megatron is looking dope. been thinking of some non transforming bots i might get after i stop collecting. this may make the list if price was right

I might get that Megs along with the more 'normal' looking Prime kit along with the Gilthor figure, they'd look pretty cool together methinks.

[Hokutron]

Really liking the Arcee. Just got Windblade today, coincidentally. Only thing is I think her eyes are kinda dull in color. Could really use like a silver sticker or something in back to make ‘em pop.

[D-Maximal_Primal]

Megatron looks pretty good, and Gilthor is a very interesting inclusion that I really like, way to go

[Rodimus Knight]

Ok, that Arcee will be preordered as soon as she becomes available, I still need to build my Windblade though

Ditto.

[MaximalNui]

That BW Megatron looks really cool; very primal and bestial.

Also very pleasantly surprised by Gilthor. Maybe we'll get him as a Selects too if this sells well? Hopefully this also means they'll start betting on other, more obscure characters. I'd love to see their take on Autobot X, Halonix Maximus and Transmutate, for example.

Arcee looks both interesting yet problematic at the same time. I'm surprised the full design, as-is, was greenlighted, considering that a significant amount of the community were unhappy with similar designs prior.

If by "The community" you mean Twitter Warriors who wouldn't have spent a dime on Transformers of any kinds, you're right.

She's sooooooooooooooo problematic.

Like ham for a Muslim or shoes for someone with no legs.

This just tells me that Windblade sold exceptionally well. More than likely all the talk of her being "problematic" pushed her to everyone's view, even those who either were uninterested or never heard of Flame Toys' works and got them interested. Controversy does sell after all. I have a feeling if Arcee gets as many people talking as Windblade did, she'll sell gangbusters and Flame Toys knows it now.

I can actually point out a few issues I had with the original Windblade announcement, which I think this Arcee managed to avoid:
- Silhouette is very important to make a character distinctive by shape alone (for reference, try to picture a shadow of Batman withouth the cape or the cowl ears), and a big part of Windblade's is her wings (there's a reason why even in Cyberverse, where the wings are usually retracted, every promotional material has them deployed). So when the original model had them so minimalized, it was pretty clear they were more concerned with making a sexy robot than a (sexy or not) Windblade. Meanwhile, Arcee already had minimal kibble, and this model is perfectly sized and shaped to her usual design; the only way it could be misrepresented would be if it were smaller than her torso.
- Posing is extremely important to establish a character's personality. If I remember correctly, the male characters in that announcement all had a single generic "hip-thrust" power pose, while Windblade had two poses...a daintly walk and a literal boobs-n-butt Escher pose. So, the guys were generic strong guys, while the girl was basically eye candy. Arcee, on the other hand, has a variety of poses and while some are sexy others are clearly combat-ready, especially when using the guns, so even when emphasising her sexuality they don't ignore her capacity as a warrior.

[Nemesis Reformatted]

I'm not too happy with Arcee's price. Windblade is $50. Arcee is $65. Arcee can easily be repainted into Paradron Medic & Nightbird. Or if you just want a bunch of sexy gynoids you could repaint her into any colors you like. But at these prices buying more than 1 isn't a good idea.

I'm a huge fan of Hajime Sorayama's Sexy Robots. I've been wanting figures like these for decades. Now we finally have them & they're unaffordable. No way I can buy a bunch of them to repaint. If somebody made an entire line of sexy robot girls I would drop everything else & only collect them. But not for these insane prices.

These things don't transform which means they have less parts & less engineering. There is no reason to be charging so damn much. And they're only around 7" tall, the same size as a Masters Of The Universe Masterverse figure which are only $20-$30.

[Emerje]

These things don't transform which means they have less parts & less engineering.

I take it you've never built a model kit before because if you had you'd know this isn't true! Model kits are their own kind of engineering feats that can't be compared to off the shelf figures. The parts counts are incredibly high because they tend to break down the colors into parts rather than paint ops. Your average Transformer figure head is two or three pieces if they have light piping, but model kits like these tend to have several pieces for the face, eyes, front and back halves of the head, and any additional ornaments like antennae and fringes. Some have multiple heads or multiple faces to swap. Even unarticulated hands are often two parts. That Arcee model probably has as high or higher of a parts count as any Titan.

Emerje

[-Kanrabat-]

I'm not too happy with Arcee's price. Windblade is $50. Arcee is $65.

Blame the price increase on the current gaz price. Our hobby will be exponentially expensive. That's a fact.

So we'll have no choice but to become selective in what we buy.

[Nemesis Reformatted]

These things don't transform which means they have less parts & less engineering.

I take it you've never built a model kit before because if you had you'd know this isn't true! Model kits are their own kind of engineering feats that can't be compared to off the shelf figures. The parts counts are incredibly high because they tend to break down the colors into parts rather than paint ops. Your average Transformer figure head is two or three pieces if they have light piping, but model kits like these tend to have several pieces for the face, eyes, front and back halves of the head, and any additional ornaments like antennae and fringes. Some have multiple heads or multiple faces to swap. Even unarticulated hands are often two parts. That Arcee model probably has as high or higher of a parts count as any Titan.

Emerje

You Transformers collectors will say anything to justify your addiction. You'll make a million excuses so you never have to admit that you're getting ripped off. The 1 thing a Transformers collector can never do is admit they're getting ripped off. But no matter what you say, the end product is not worth the absolutely *STUPID* prices they're charging. If these were $200 or $300 you would still defend it.

If we were kids right now & asked our parents to buy one of these kits for $50 or $60 most of us would get laughed right out of the room. Because our parents had sense. Something most adult toy collectors these days do not have.

These prices suck balls if you want to buy multiples & repaint them. And a $15 price hike between Windblade & Arcee goes way beyond "inflation". Normal inflation doesn't jump that high that fast.

Where do you draw the line? $50 for Windblade. $65 for Arcee. $80 for the next one? When does it ever stop???

[-Kanrabat-]

Where do you draw the line? $50 for Windblade. $65 for Arcee. $80 for the next one? When does it ever stop???

You are only "ripped off" when you buy a thing for an absurd price that you could have bought elsewhere for way cheaper. Best example, buying a thing from an eBay scalper when you could just have bought it from BBTS or Amazon for example.

If a thing is at regular price in store and everywhere it's that price, you are NOT being "ripped off". It's it's price. Even if the thing is a smelly used diaper for 1000$. You want that smelly used diaper? Pay the 1000$. You don't want it? You don't buy it.

It's simple economics.

And beside, value of a thing is in the eye of the consumer. If in YOUR eye the thing is not worth the asked price, you don't buy it. But it doesn't mean that someone else shouldn't buy it.
That's a simple rule you, and we, apply to everything that cost something.

That's why a guy buy "overpriced" collectible while he won't buy any clothes outside the bargain bin. Or vice-versa. It's a matter of preferences VS your wallet.

[Emerje]

These things don't transform which means they have less parts & less engineering.

I take it you've never built a model kit before because if you had you'd know this isn't true! Model kits are their own kind of engineering feats that can't be compared to off the shelf figures. The parts counts are incredibly high because they tend to break down the colors into parts rather than paint ops. Your average Transformer figure head is two or three pieces if they have light piping, but model kits like these tend to have several pieces for the face, eyes, front and back halves of the head, and any additional ornaments like antennae and fringes. Some have multiple heads or multiple faces to swap. Even unarticulated hands are often two parts. That Arcee model probably has as high or higher of a parts count as any Titan.

Emerje

You Transformers collectors will say anything to justify your addiction. You'll make a million excuses so you never have to admit that you're getting ripped off. The 1 thing a Transformers collector can never do is admit they're getting ripped off. But no matter what you say, the end product is not worth the absolutely *STUPID* prices they're charging. If these were $200 or $300 you would still defend it.

Just because you don't like the answer doesn't make it wrong. The price they charge is in line with similar model kits and is what people are willing to pay. News flash people like to build models! Gundam has been going strong in that market for 40+ years with no sign of slowing down despite having any number of action figures representing the exact same bot designs. Some of those models cost hundreds of dollars and there isn't a single fan that thinks they're being ripped off.

If we were kids right now & asked our parents to buy one of these kits for $50 or $60 most of us would get laughed right out of the room. Because our parents had sense. Something most adult toy collectors these days do not have.

My parents would have been THRILLED if I asked for a model instead of an action figure. Most parents prefer their kids build something with their own hands, there's a whole multi-billion dollar STEM industry built around it. My parents were always buying me building toys, Playdoh, hobby kits, science kits and, yes, lots of models.

These prices suck balls if you want to buy multiples & repaint them. And a $15 price hike between Windblade & Arcee goes way beyond "inflation". Normal inflation doesn't jump that high that fast.

She's $55 MSRP. A lot of places sell Windblade for $60, but if you're going to complain about prices at least stick with the MSRP.

Where do you draw the line? $50 for Windblade. $65 for Arcee. $80 for the next one? When does it ever stop???

We've already exceeded the $80 mark in this line.

Emerje

[D-Maximal_Primal]

In response to the price point and parts count, I explicitly went looking for these photos of my Megatron ($50) and Devastator ($85) kits, both of which are fantastic and absolutely worth the price I paid and the time I spent.