The Energon Pub

[Sjeng]

Thanks for all the responses guys! Very clear. Gonna see if there's a way to safely get those UW sets here somehow, hopefully avoiding taxes.

[Sabrblade]

Thanks for all the responses guys! Very clear. Gonna see if there's a way to safely get those UW sets here somehow, hopefully avoiding taxes.

One more thing about Third Party figures is that they're technically illegally-made products. Owning the figures themselves is legal, but the companies who make the figures are illegally stealing the IP owned by Hasbro and Takara to make their own figures based on said Hasbro/Takara-owned IP. You as a customer likely won't get into any trouble for buying or owning any Third Party products, but just know that the companies who create them do so through less than legal means.

[Sigma Magnus]

Thanks for all the responses guys! Very clear. Gonna see if there's a way to safely get those UW sets here somehow, hopefully avoiding taxes.

Good luck with your search!

[william-james88]

Thanks for all the responses guys! Very clear. Gonna see if there's a way to safely get those UW sets here somehow, hopefully avoiding taxes.

One more thing about Third Party figures is that they're technically illegally-made products. Owning the figures themselves is legal, but the companies who make the figures are illegally stealing the IP owned by Hasbro and Takara to make their own figures based on said Hasbro/Takara-owned IP. You as a customer likely won't get into any trouble for buying or owning any Third Party products, but just know that the companies who create them do so through less than legal means.

Not in china though. In china there is no law for this kind of copyright infringement. So while the chinese are doing something that americans would find illegal, it is legal in china. Another reason why Hasbro doesnt sue. Of course, not everything is unprotected, but there are blurred lines.

[Sjeng]

Comparing prices with the Japanese stores, would you say €140,- per set is a good price here?
(I really need to control myself, lol, spending spree alert!)

[william-james88]

Comparing prices with the Japanese stores, would you say €140,- per set is a good price here?
(I really need to control myself, lol, spending spree alert!)

Is that the total you would pay? Like including price and shipping?

Because the Japanese site you can buy from has them all for only €97 a set plus shipping.

[Ironhidensh]

Thanks for all the responses guys! Very clear. Gonna see if there's a way to safely get those UW sets here somehow, hopefully avoiding taxes.

One more thing about Third Party figures is that they're technically illegally-made products. Owning the figures themselves is legal, but the companies who make the figures are illegally stealing the IP owned by Hasbro and Takara to make their own figures based on said Hasbro/Takara-owned IP. You as a customer likely won't get into any trouble for buying or owning any Third Party products, but just know that the companies who create them do so through less than legal means.

Not in china though. In china there is no law for this kind of copyright infringement. So while the chinese are doing something that americans would find illegal, it is legal in china. Another reason why Hasbro doesnt sue. Of course, not everything is unprotected, but there are blurred lines.

Also, its only illegal if you can prove it in court, something that is far, far easier said than done with regards to IP infringement. Trademark infringement is something you see more of, because its very easy to prove. 3rd party companies are very careful to avoid that. Add this to the whole based in China thing, and the argument that 3rd party companies are illegal falls completely apart.

TLDR: 3rd party products are completely safe and legal trouble free.

[Noideaforaname]

Not like "IP infringement" isn't something the official Transformers do on a regular basis...

[Sjeng]

Comparing prices with the Japanese stores, would you say €140,- per set is a good price here?
(I really need to control myself, lol, spending spree alert!)

Is that the total you would pay? Like including price and shipping?

Because the Japanese site you can buy from has them all for only €97 a set plus shipping.

Hmm, well, the links that were posted on the previous page all have prices of 12.000 and 20.000 ish, which would make €106,- and €176,-. Plus shipping and the possible risk of import taxes (21%), made me think that €140,- might not be that far off...

Sadly, some are already sold out, such as UW01 and UW04 (Superion and Devastator). And Computron seems to be sold out even before it's released
If I could find them all for approx €100,- a pop, I'd instantly get them all. (and face the wrath of my wife I'm afraid)

[Hellscream9999]

Hmm, well, the links that were posted on the previous page all have prices of 12.000 and 20.000 ish, which would make €106,- and €176,-. Plus shipping and the possible risk of import taxes (21%), made me think that €140,- might not be that far off...

Sadly, some are already sold out, such as UW01 and UW04 (Superion and Devastator). And Computron seems to be sold out even before it's released
If I could find them all for approx €100,- a pop, I'd instantly get them all. (and face the wrath of my wife I'm afraid)

Yeah, they came out early last year, and most, if not all TT tf's are produced in smaller quantities, thus, they tend to sell out quicker, especially as they cater so heavily to the G1 cartoon (in these instances) Not really sure what else to say, other than to keep looking. I don't think you'll be able to get the price down as low as you would like, so you might have to settle on price, so, perhaps, you should buy the one you really want, and go from there.

[King Kuuga]

To hit on a point nobody else has...

But I also noticed CW sometimes has more bots! Menasor has 6 bots instead of 5... I've even spotted a blog that talked about 7!

Each combiner other than Devastator is made of five essential characters: a larger (voyager class) character to form the torso, head, and thighs; and four smaller characters who form the arms and legs. In the cartoon of course, this was all there was to it, but since Hasbro chose to brand ALL the Generations line figures coming out in 2015-early 2016 as Combiner Wars, they gave select Legends class (really small) characters the ability to augment the combiners by forming weapons or armor. The ones who can do this are:
Powerglide can form a gun, primarily for Superion, but any character can hold him


Transformers Generations Combiner Wars Powerglide Gallery

He was redecoed into G2 Powerglide for the G2 Superion set and retooled/redecoed into Viper, a GI Joe homage, primarily for use with Galvatronus.

Blackjack forms chest armor specifically for the Motormaster/Optimus Prime molds, his intended placement is on Menasor to emulate the car on the chest of the original.

Transformers Generations Combiner Wars Blackjack Gallery

Transformers Generations Combiner Wars Menasor Gallery
He was redecoed into a G2 Blackjack inspired by G2 Menasor's chest car colors since there was no G2 Blackjack, and retooled/redecoed into Rodimus primarily for use with Optimus Maximus.

Groove forms chest armor specifically for the fire truck version of the Hot Spot/Pyra Magna/Onslaught mold, his intended placement is on Defensor.

Transformers Generations Combiner Wars Groove Gallery

Transformers Generations Combiner Wars Defensor Gallery
(pardon Seibertron's minor mistransformation there, the windshield is supposed to sit flush with the rest of the steering block so you don't see Groove's head poking through there)
He was redecoed into Rust Dust for the fan-built Victorion combiner set, and retooled/redecoed into Wreck-Gar, nominally for use with Sky Reign but his affiliation with that team was removed before release because there was no way to combine him with Sky Lynx, though fans have come up with their own configurations.

Shockwave forms a gun, primarily for Bruticus, but like Powerglide, almost anybody with 5mm hands can hold him. He can also be mounted on the back of the assault truck version of the Hot Spot/Pyra Magna/Onslaught mold in both alt mode and combined mode.




Transformers Generations Combiner Wars Shockwave Gallery
He was redecoed into Action Master Shockwave for the G2 Bruticus set because there is no existing G2 deco of Shockwave to pull from.

All of these guys have been retooled and/or redecoed and released as part of Takara's Adventure or Legends lines with no connection to Unite Warriors or mention of their ability to combine, but I haven't the time or energy to list all of those uses on top of the ones above.

The one with "Seven characters" you heard mention of is the Hasbro version of Computron, who includes a retooled Cosmos and Payload as Scrounge and Cybaxx, respectively.

Hasbro still considers this a six-figure set.

I hope this helps clear up who, how, and why the Hasbro releases have six characters to Takara's five.

Overall, it seems Takara has the colour schemes that most/best fit the original series, and even better choices for the bots.

I contest this point. Takara adheres closely to the colors of the cartoon, even to the detriment of the sculpt of the toys. For example, UW Dragstrip as a solid yellow mass looks worse to me than with the maroon accents of the Hasbro version; UW Bruticus's color-coded feet on Brawl and Swindle look very odd; and I like the hints of purple and black on Hasbro's Devastator that are absent on Takara's, although I picked up UW Devy because of his overall better articulation.

[william-james88]

Comparing prices with the Japanese stores, would you say €140,- per set is a good price here?
(I really need to control myself, lol, spending spree alert!)

Is that the total you would pay? Like including price and shipping?

Because the Japanese site you can buy from has them all for only €97 a set plus shipping.

Hmm, well, the links that were posted on the previous page all have prices of 12.000 and 20.000 ish, which would make €106,- and €176,-. Plus shipping and the possible risk of import taxes (21%), made me think that €140,- might not be that far off...

Sadly, some are already sold out, such as UW01 and UW04 (Superion and Devastator). And Computron seems to be sold out even before it's released
If I could find them all for approx €100,- a pop, I'd instantly get them all. (and face the wrath of my wife I'm afraid)

UW Superion is still available for 97 euros

https://www.nippon-yasan.com/figures/11 ... erion.html

And write them an e-mail asking if they could write a lower umber for declared amount and mark it as a gift. That way wld could avoid duty fee.

[Sjeng]

Thanks again for your answers! I love how helpful this forum is


So, am I right in assuming, sice Hasbro sells all the Combiner Wars figures seperately too, I could pick up the UW Takara sets, and perhaps pick up these 6th bots later, seperately?

In the case of Bruticus, Menasor, Grand Prime and Superion, that'd be a nice addition. Simply pick up the Hasbro Shockwave, Blackjack, Rodimus and Powerglide, which are nice models and cool characters.

Even if I manage to get a UW Computron, I could get a seperate Cosmos and Payload. In the original colours even!



In the case of UW Defensor, it would add a second, different Groove, which is weird, unless I'd also buy that new swat car (which, strangely enough, is NOT listed on Hasbro's website here. They placed Groove as an arm there...

Hasbro "chestpiece" Groove:


Compared to Takara's Groove:


Unite Warriors Defensor:


I dislike the grey colour of the policecar, but I love the Groove leg.

Combiner Wars Defensor:


I prefer the colouring of the Hasbro one in this case, and the SWAT bot is cool, but I'd be missing the bigger Groove
BTW: is the smaller Hasbro Groove included in the CW Defensor box? Or are these always sold seperately?
In this case I may be inclined to go for Hasbro's Defensor, but how would I be able to pick up a seperate
Takara Groove? Worst case: I don't. It'd be a shame though. Even though 2 different Grooves may seem strange, and the Takara Groove is out of proportion compared to the cars.



On to Optimus Maximus versus Grand Prime:

Hasbro CW: O/P is white here??


Hasbro CW: Original O/P colouring. I love the colouring here. Much better.


Takara UW: also good.

A close one, I prefer O/P being red/blue over white, but both seem to have that option. And Hot Rod / Rodimus being a seperate figure, I take it he can be picked up seperately?


Then there's Galvatronus versus Grand Galvatron. That one is very strange. First Takara:


Am I right that Galvatron is a recoloured Starstream (with crown)? The left leg of Grand Galva seems to be the same model as Defensor's First Aid? Ghost Starscream and <the other arm> also seem to be the same model, in different colours. A lot of recycled molds...


Then Hasbro:


One of the legs looks like the yellow formula one car from the Stunticons, and the other is the Lambourghini (?) from the Stunticons. The arms both look like Aerialbots. Did they even bother to recolour these??

I found another take on the CW Galvatronus:

Strangely enough, quite different from the other image...

It seems to me they just thought up two more new Combiners, as I don't recall ever seeing O/P and Galvatron forming into a Combiner in the cartoons. At least with Optimus Maximus/Grand Prime you get some original autobots, even though O/P seems to have borrowed quite a lot from Motormaster. But Galvatronus looks like they just took a Starscream recolour + 2 stunticons + 2 aerialbots and voila: a new Combiner... In that sense, Grand Galvatron seems to be better, in the way that you get a bit more variation in models. Apparently, Galvatron can take any transformer as his limbs, and so people bought CW Galvatron and simply started adding random limbs because he didn't seem to have a fixed set of decepticons to combine with, but it would have been nice if they had added some Decepticons from the cartoons that weren't done yet, such as regular Starscream, and those other jet cronies (Dirge, err... man I can't remember all those names!)
In that light, I may pass on him, unless there are some cool Combiner Wars seperate Decepticons that aren't yet found in other combiners, which can be used with CW Galvatron... More research!

Does this guy even have a 6th weapon/armour bot? The last image seems to suggest there is one!
Same goes for Devastator and Sky Reign / Lynxmaster. Only colouring differences, and no extra bot?

Soooo much to research xD I'm gonna watch some of those comparison video's tonight.

oh PS: the 7-part combiner wasn't Computron, it was Menasor: http://www.bwtf.com/toyreviews/generati ... rs/menasor

[Kurona]

That's a lot of questions... *cracks knuckles* here we go.

Thanks again for your answers! I love how helpful this forum is


So, am I right in assuming, sice Hasbro sells all the Combiner Wars figures seperately too, I could pick up the

UW Takara sets, and perhaps pick up these 6th bots later, seperately?

In the case of Bruticus, Menasor, Grand Prime and Superion, that'd be a nice addition. Simply pick up the

Hasbro Shockwave, Blackjack, Rodimus and Powerglide, which are nice models and cool characters.

Even if I manage to get a UW Computron, I could get a seperate Cosmos and Payload. In the original colours

even!

Yes, you could indeed. Though again you don't really need them; you seem to be a pretty G1 Cartoon-accurate sort of guy so you wouldn't need to get Powerglide for Superion to 'complete' him. He's just as fine without; Powerglide is like... sort of like the custard on Apple Pie. Apple Pie's just fine on it's own, Custard just makes it sweeter.
But yeah, totally; easily an option. Also worth noting is that Shockwave being Bruticus' legends class partner is a reference to one scene in the cartoon - specifically the episode called Revenge of Bruticus - where Bruticus picked up Shockwave and used him as a gun to fire at his own drones.

In the case of UW Defensor, it would add a second, different Groove, which is weird, unless I'd also buy that

new swat car (which, strangely enough, is NOT listed on [url=http://transformers.hasbro.com/en-us/combiner-

wars/defensor]Hasbro's website here[/url]. They placed Groove as an arm there...

Yeah, it's really weird and almost certainly an error.

Hasbro "chestpiece" Groove:


Compared to Takara's Groove:


Unite Warriors Defensor:


I dislike the grey colour of the policecar, but I love the Groove leg.

Combiner Wars Defensor:


I prefer the colouring of the Hasbro one in this case, and the SWAT bot is cool, but I'd be missing the bigger

Groove
BTW: is the smaller Hasbro Groove included in the CW Defensor box? Or are these always sold seperately?
In this case I may be inclined to go for Hasbro's Defensor, but how would I be able to pick up a seperate

Takara Groove? Worst case: I don't. It'd be a shame though. Even though 2 different Grooves may seem strange, and the Takara Groove is out of proportion compared to the cars.

Well, you're in luck - Hasbro DID actually end up releasing Takara's Groove separately over here, though in relatively limited qualities. You can get him off numerous websites, but it's worth noting that there's gonna be a very big restock of him in I think October. I forget the details, someone else'll know better than me.
Also, if you don't like Takara's Streetwise (grey police car), you could always end up going with the Takara Defensor and buying Hasbro's Streetwise separately to swap in. It's what I'm personally wanting to do when I get UW Menasor, swap in CW Drag Strip.

On to Optimus Maximus versus Grand Prime:

Hasbro CW: O/P is white here??


Takara UW: I love the colouring here.

A close one, but I prefer O/P being red/blue over white, as it appears with Hasbro. And Hot Rod / Rodimus being

a seperate figure, I take it he can be picked up seperately?

Hasbro released a Combiner Wars Optimus in two colour schemes - his original G1 red and blue, and later a white and gold version. I don't know why they done a white and gold version, but... they did. In any case you can go either way with them; but Takara's has the red and blue Optimus.
And yeah as much as the other legends figure, you can pick up Rodimus separately.

Then there's Galvatronus versus Grand Galvatron. That one is very strange. First Takara:


Am I right that Galvatron is a recoloured Starstream (with crown)? The left leg of Grand Galva seems to be the

same model as Defensor's First Aid? Ghost Starscream and <the other arm> also seem to be the same model, in

different colours. A lot of recycled molds...


Then Hasbro:


One of the legs looks like the yellow formula one car from the Stunticons, and the other is the Lambourghini

from the Stunticons. The arms both look like Aerialbots. Did they even bother to recolour these??

I found another take on the CW Galvatronus:

Strangely enough, quite different from the other image...

It seems to me they just thought up two more new Combiners, as I don't recall ever seeing O/P and Galvatron

forming into a Combiner in the cartoons. At least with Optimus Maximus/Grand Prime you get some original

autobots, even though O/P seems to have borrowed quite a lot from Motormaster. But Galvatronus looks like they

just took a Starscream recolour + 2 stunticons + 2 aerialbots and voila: a new Combiner... In that sense, Grand

Galvatron seems to be better, in the way that you get a bit more variation in models. Apparently, Galvatron can take any transformer as his limbs, and so people bought CW Galvatron and simply started adding random limbs because he didn't seem to have a fixed set of decepticons to combine with, but it would have been nice if they had added some Decepticons from the cartoons that weren't done yet, such as regular Starscream, and those other jet cronies (Dirge, err... man I can't remember all those names!)
In that light, I may pass on him, unless there are some cool Combiner Wars seperate Decepticons that aren't yet found in other combiners, which can be used with CW Galvatron... More research!

Does this guy even have a 6th weapon/armour bot? The last image seems to suggest there is one!
Same goes for Devastator and Sky Reign / Lynxmaster. Only colouring differences, and no extra bot?

Okay, now THIS is gonna take some explaining.
So in Combiner Wars Wave 3, Hasbro released the Protectobots - Hot Spot as the voyager, and Defensor's four limbs as the deluxes. But they also released another voyager; Cyclonus - a retool of Silverbolt, Superion's torso. Cyclonus transformed into a Combiner Wars torso resembling Galvatron - I don't know where they got the idea, but it's stupid and I love it - and he had no specific team. Hasbro hence advertised him as linking up with any Combiner Wars deluxes you want, just expanding the play pattern.
When Takara got a hold of him, they made four limbs specifically for him - Ghost Starscream, Thrust from Transformers: Armada, Breakdown from Transformers: Prime, and Roller from IDW's MTMTE. It's a very weird set, but very fun and very unique.
And yeah, he does technically have a 'sixth' member assigned to him - a recolour of Powerglide done up in GI Joe Cobra colours called 'Viper'.
And yeah, Optimus Maximus, Galvatron/Grand Galvatron and Sky Reign/Lynxmaster are completely made up for this toyline.

Soooo much to research xD I'm gonna watch some of those comparison video's tonight.

oh PS: the 7-part combiner wasn't Computron, it was Menasor: http://www.bwtf.com/toyreviews/generati ... rs/menasor

Menasor is still made up of six guys (including Blackjack). It's just that Brake-Neck and Offroad are both officially associated with Menasor but are interchangeable.

[Hellscream9999]

Then there's Galvatronus versus Grand Galvatron. That one is very strange. First Takara:


Am I right that Galvatron is a recoloured Starstream (with crown)? The left leg of Grand Galva seems to be the

same model as Defensor's First Aid? Ghost Starscream and <the other arm> also seem to be the same model, in

different colours. A lot of recycled molds...


Then Hasbro:

Another thing to note, is that, the Japanese market, didn't get the original uses of many of these molds, so this was TT's way of giving them the chance to own them without having to import them (which is very expensive I hear)

However, I wholeheartedly recommend the Grand Galvatronus set, the molds are excellent, and it will also be the only way to experience the seeker and conehead limbs.

[Cobotron]

Cyclonus transformed into a Combiner Wars torso resembling Galvatron - I don't know where they got the idea, but it's stupid and I love it

Couldn't have said it better myself!

[Insurgent]

Also that stars cream and thrust are different moulds. But as they are aerialbots, they share similar transformation.


And that leg is the off road mould, which is what the first aid mould came from. So similar, but there are differences. U til the ratchet comes out with skyline and that bottom version, first aid is the only way to get the retool.

And no I'm not correcting those autocorrect, I'm tired of fighting with my tablet.

[Kurona]

Cyclonus transformed into a Combiner Wars torso resembling Galvatron - I don't know where they got the idea, but it's stupid and I love it

Couldn't have said it better myself!

It's basically the best way to approach a lot of Transformers stuff I find lol. It's an inherently silly franchise; unless there's an actual flaw with the gimmick, a combining Cyclonus that turns into Galvatron and a Sentinel Prime whose head turns into a little dude is all cool with me

[Cobotron]

Cyclonus transformed into a Combiner Wars torso resembling Galvatron - I don't know where they got the idea, but it's stupid and I love it

Couldn't have said it better myself!

It's basically the best way to approach a lot of Transformers stuff I find lol. It's an inherently silly franchise; unless there's an actual flaw with the gimmick, a combining Cyclonus that turns into Galvatron and a Sentinel Prime whose head turns into a little dude is all cool with me

It's my approach to life, really.
Makes everything way more fun.

[Sjeng]

Cyclonus transformed into a Combiner Wars torso resembling Galvatron - I don't know where they got the idea, but it's stupid and I love it

Couldn't have said it better myself!

Ha! Cyclonus! Never even saw it! Thought that was Galvatron but he was a canon, not a spaceship. Doh! That IS weird xD

[Va'al]

Cyclonus transformed into a Combiner Wars torso resembling Galvatron - I don't know where they got the idea, but it's stupid and I love it

Couldn't have said it better myself!

It's basically the best way to approach a lot of Transformers stuff I find lol. It's an inherently silly franchise; unless there's an actual flaw with the gimmick, a combining Cyclonus that turns into Galvatron and a Sentinel Prime whose head turns into a little dude is all cool with me

It's my approach to life, really.
Makes everything way more fun.

...aaaaaaand signature.

[joeprime276]

Hey guys, sorry for being off topic from the current subject, but I was wondering if there is a place to get replacement weapons? I seem to have misplaced my two guns for Ultra Magnus and I want to replace them somehow. I couldn't find any on eBay. Any help would be awesome! Thanks

[Sjeng]

Been also looking for stores that sell the Combiner Wars Hasbro sets/figures, but can't seem to find any? (Defensor and Optimus Maximus).

And any other stores besides Nippon Yassan, HLJ and Tokyo Jungle?

[Hellscream9999]

Been also looking for stores that sell the Combiner Wars Hasbro sets/figures, but can't seem to find any? (Defensor and Optimus Maximus).

And any other stores besides Nippon Yassan, HLJ and Tokyo Jungle?

Those came out third and fourth quarter of last year respectively, so, you're likely not going to come across them too easily. Some of them are shelf-warming around parts, but won't be for long (they're heading on over a year old after all), my best advice for that, is to go to ebay/amazon, or, set up a deal with people on here, I'm sure someone can help, maybe put it in your signature.

[william-james88]

Been also looking for stores that sell the Combiner Wars Hasbro sets/figures, but can't seem to find any? (Defensor and Optimus Maximus).

And any other stores besides Nippon Yassan, HLJ and Tokyo Jungle?

Sorry to sound so negative but this is the worst time to get into Hasbro's Combiner Wars figures. We are one year after their release and they are now sold out with the scalpers finally able to sell them at the premium prices they were always hoping to get since they arent found in stores anymore. And fans are still playing with them or still have them in their collection so there isnt much on the secondary market aside from scalpers.

As for other stores, there is TFSource: http://tfsource.com/search/view/status/ ... 0warriors/

They still have the optimus maximus deluxes in stock too : http://tfsource.com/search/view/status/ ... er%20wars/

There is also big bad toy store: http://www.bigbadtoystore.com/bbts/sear ... 20warriors

And here is what they have for the Hasbro versions: http://www.bigbadtoystore.com/bbts/sear ... ner%20wars