The Energon Pub

"Mini Masterpiece" or not that plane mode is unforgivable and the tank mode. though "screen accurate", is ugly as sin.

Wild Rider looks excellent. Been pondering the idea of cancelling my Dragstrip pre-order, since Amazon is taking their sweet time to ship it, but seeing Willd Rider now I think I'll wait. Also Motormaster looks excellent in vehicle mode. I guess I'll bite the bullet and and keep pre-ordering Meansor parts even if I'm not completely sold on the "skeleton with cars slapped on it" method of combining.


Blitzwing....

Hopefully you can finagle those lower panels into something less awkward for Jet mode. Tank mode and robot mode look great.

The last lingering question Is... What do those red Energon hulk hands go to exactly? Do we know if there's some other figure that will use them? I'm sure they aren't meant for Blitzwing directly even if they come with him. I think it's something like the core class sword parts there's likely some other use for those hands with parts from other leader class figures.

Overcracker wrote:Wild Rider looks excellent. Been pondering the idea of cancelling my Dragstrip pre-order, since Amazon is taking their sweet time to ship it, but seeing Willd Rider now I think I'll wait. Also Motormaster looks excellent in vehicle mode. I guess I'll bite the bullet and and keep pre-ordering Meansor parts even if I'm not completely sold on the "skeleton with cars slapped on it" method of combining.


Blitzwing....

Hopefully you can finagle those lower panels into something less awkward for Jet mode. Tank mode and robot mode look great.

Yeah, I'm still getting Blitzwing, but there's no helping the jet mode.

Wildrider looks ANAZING.
I'm looking forward all the Legacy Stunticons.


That Blitzwing again.
The bot is fantastic but that "pregnant" jet...
That tank with its "dick" out...

Blitzwings still nothing like the cartoon look for both of his alt modes. Every picture makes him easier to pass on.

Wild rider looks really good, maybe his back bits could have folded away more in bot mode but the main thing is Hasbro has finally learned how to make deluxe cars with out mismatched panelling yayayyayayayayayay! Still really not keen on Drag Strip but I think I'd pick up wild rider with out feeling the need to complete the stunticons as car mode is probably a stand out over the last three plus years of car bots.

Nice Legend Blitzwing photos. Still, 43 steps to convert to tank - and they STILL couldn't be bothered to add a couple more steps, in order to hide the jet cockpit? Even if it wasn't jutting out AS MUCH, that would be better than this.

No gripes about Wildrider yet. Though I'm wondering what they're trying to hide by not showing what he looks like from behind...

DeathReviews wrote:No gripes about Wildrider yet. Though I'm wondering what they're trying to hide by not showing what he looks like from behind...

When do they ever show what any figure looks like from behind?

sol magnus wrote:

DeathReviews wrote:No gripes about Wildrider yet. Though I'm wondering what they're trying to hide by not showing what he looks like from behind...

When do they ever show what any figure looks like from behind?

Yeah, that's more a Takara thing than a Hasbro

DeathReviews wrote:Nice Legend Blitzwing photos. Still, 43 steps to convert to tank - and they STILL couldn't be bothered to add a couple more steps, in order to hide the jet cockpit? Even if it wasn't jutting out AS MUCH, that would be better than this.

No gripes about Wildrider yet. Though I'm wondering what they're trying to hide by not showing what he looks like from behind...

Aa the article states, the jet mode cockpit in tank mode is part of this being a mini mp, trying to recreate the look on the show. So the extra steps are actually to make it look like this.
It's a feature, not a flaw

william-james88 wrote:

Munkky wrote:Wildrider does look nice, I'm still not 100% sold on the Stunticons, but they're shaping up to be at least a bit better than the Combiner Wars ones. The more I see of Blitzwing the less I feel like getting one, he's now at the very bottom of my maybe pile. Here's hoping we see the whole of Wave 2 tomorrow, or at least a decent chunk of it.

I gotta say, that jet mode looks really unapealing in Hasbro's professional photography.

Crazy, right? These photos make the issues with both alt modes look worse than the ones we've seen previously. Its like they chose the absolute worse possible angle for jet mode.

I'm by no means defending Blitzwing's jet mode... It's not good unless viewed from almost directly above.
My thought though, is how many people are buying this figure for the jet mode? Especially with that mode as a first priority?
My next thought, is how many people are truly planning on displaying him in jet mode?
I get it, $55+ for a triple-changer and of course ideally all 3 modes are on point.
It is unfortunate that they packed in really lame accessories that pushed it up to leader class price.
But that robot mode is really good. I have to give Hastak credit for getting these proportions done so well. The same can be said about Wild Rider.
Also, those head/face sculpts are incredible. Which unfortunately (and somewhat surprisingly) can't be said for all recent figures, including Dragstrip.

I do understand if those alt modes were that important for some. And that disappointment could make that price a real turn-off.

But I'm looking forward to him as much as any other figure this year (after SS86 Sludge)!

Sowndwave76 wrote:I'm by no means defending Blitzwing's jet mode... It's not good unless viewed from almost directly above.
My thought though, is how many people are buying this figure for the jet mode? Especially with that mode as a first priority?
My next thought, is how many people are truly planning on displaying him in jet mode?
I get it, $55+ for a triple-changer and of course ideally all 3 modes are on point.
It is unfortunate that they packed in really lame accessories that pushed it up to leader class price.
But that robot mode is really good. I have to give Hastak credit for getting these proportions done so well. The same can be said about Wild Rider.
Also, those head/face sculpts are incredible. Which unfortunately (and somewhat surprisingly) can't be said for all recent figures, including Dragstrip.

I do understand if those alt modes were that important for some. And that disappointment could make that price a real turn-off.

But I'm looking forward to him as much as any other figure this year (after SS86 Sludge)!

It was the complexity and parts count that pushed it past the Voyager price point.

william-james88 wrote:

DeathReviews wrote:Nice Legend Blitzwing photos. Still, 43 steps to convert to tank - and they STILL couldn't be bothered to add a couple more steps, in order to hide the jet cockpit? Even if it wasn't jutting out AS MUCH, that would be better than this.

No gripes about Wildrider yet. Though I'm wondering what they're trying to hide by not showing what he looks like from behind...

Aa the article states, the jet mode cockpit in tank mode is part of this being a mini mp, trying to recreate the look on the show. So the extra steps are actually to make it look like this.
It's a feature, not a flaw

And here I thought it was only a thing among software developers to deliberately perpetuate mistakes, flaws and imperfections as 'features', and then charge you extra for them...

Sowndwave76 wrote:I'm by no means defending Blitzwing's jet mode... It's not good unless viewed from almost directly above.
My thought though, is how many people are buying this figure for the jet mode? Especially with that mode as a first priority?

Daft thing is, I have TR Blitzwing mold in display in all three forms, Megatron as a jet to represent him borrowing the decepticons powers fighting Optimus. Blitzwing and G2 Megs in bot mode, Vega/M Bison and a Megatron to be repainted as action master tank in tank mode. I wouldnt want Legacy Blitzwing for any mode (he's a bit of a shrimp in comparison with TR bots and I kept TR astrotrain over WFCs astro train voyager with plastic).

blackeyedprime wrote:I wouldnt want Legacy Blitzwing for any mode (he's a bit of a shrimp in comparison with TR bots and I kept TR astrotrain over WFCs astro train voyager with plastic).

I get it. However, I completely disagree with anyone who wants to claim the Legacy version's robot mode is bad (I'm not saying you specifically implied this).
For what it's trying to achieve especially in terms of cartoon-like appearance, it's nowhere even close to "bad".
If we're getting the ER Ironhide mold for SS86, this Blitzwing most definitely could have been in that subline based on the bot mode alone.

Can't wait for Wildrider to get retooled as K.I.T.T.!

Ahem. Anyway.

From the box art, Blitz's jet nose in tank mode kinda looks like a canon...

Sowndwave76 wrote:

blackeyedprime wrote:I wouldnt want Legacy Blitzwing for any mode (he's a bit of a shrimp in comparison with TR bots and I kept TR astrotrain over WFCs astro train voyager with plastic).

I get it. However, I completely disagree with anyone who wants to claim the Legacy version's robot mode is bad (I'm not saying you specifically implied this).
For what it's trying to achieve especially in terms of cartoon-like appearance, it's nowhere even close to "bad".
If we're getting the ER Ironhide mold for SS86, this Blitzwing most definitely could have been in that subline based on the bot mode alone.

Blitzwing was probably in legacy because of slot availability.

That's a lot more kibble on Wild Rider than I expected, but he does look veeeeerrrrey damn good otherwise. Probably kibble that you can fiddle with to look nicer. Still definitely getting both of these figures.

ZeroWolf wrote:

Sowndwave76 wrote:

blackeyedprime wrote:I wouldnt want Legacy Blitzwing for any mode (he's a bit of a shrimp in comparison with TR bots and I kept TR astrotrain over WFCs astro train voyager with plastic).

I get it. However, I completely disagree with anyone who wants to claim the Legacy version's robot mode is bad (I'm not saying you specifically implied this).
For what it's trying to achieve especially in terms of cartoon-like appearance, it's nowhere even close to "bad".
If we're getting the ER Ironhide mold for SS86, this Blitzwing most definitely could have been in that subline based on the bot mode alone.

Blitzwing was probably in legacy because of slot availability.

Or a question of budget. Like he worked within the allocated budget left for Legacy leaders and not SS leaders.

palmcd wrote:"Mini Masterpiece" or not that plane mode is unforgivable and the tank mode. though "screen accurate", is ugly as sin.

Yeah, but that just means the eventual MP from Takara will also be ugly as sin in tank mode.

SpaceEagle wrote:That's a lot more kibble on Wild Rider than I expected, but he does look veeeeerrrrey damn good otherwise. Probably kibble that you can fiddle with to look nicer. Still definitely getting both of these figures.

Having looked at Wild Rider some more, I am not as enthusiastic as before. While what they are doing with Blitzwing goes with their Mini MP mentality they've been touting, they do some really odd choices with the stunticons. Dragstrip had those odd shoulder pylons and now Wild Rider loses the shoulder wheels which are present on the G1 toy and animation model. Since there is very little compromising this figure in theory for him to combine, I have no clue why Hasbro didn't just do a transformation that would have the wheels end up in the proper position. Plus, it would help lessen the back kibble (which aside from the wheels, is accurate to either the toy or the cartoon).
Plus, I hate clear plastic hinges, and that's what Wild Rider has for the car front connecting to the robot.

Also, I read the facebook comments on the official facebook page for hasbro where they revealed this themselves and the comments are mostly positive with lots of excitement. So hasbro must be feeling pretty good about this output.

william-james88 wrote:Also, I read the facebook comments on the official facebook page for hasbro where they revealed this themselves and the comments are mostly positive with lots of excitement. So hasbro must be feeling pretty good about this output.

Well, it's Facebook. It's full of "Geewun yes-men" who like anything that looks enough like 1980s G1. The same crowd also praised the Machimina Prime Wars Trilogy cartoon and the Siege and Earthrise seasons of the War For Cybertron Trilogy cartoon.

Sabrblade wrote:

william-james88 wrote:Also, I read the facebook comments on the official facebook page for hasbro where they revealed this themselves and the comments are mostly positive with lots of excitement. So hasbro must be feeling pretty good about this output.

Well, it's Facebook. It's full of "Geewun yes-men" who like anything that looks enough like 1980s G1. The same crowd also praised the Machimina Prime Wars Trilogy cartoon and the Siege and Earthrise seasons of the War For Cybertron Trilogy cartoon.

"Geewun yes-men?" I didn't know we were elitist around here...

william-james88 wrote:

ZeroWolf wrote:

Sowndwave76 wrote:

blackeyedprime wrote:I wouldnt want Legacy Blitzwing for any mode (he's a bit of a shrimp in comparison with TR bots and I kept TR astrotrain over WFCs astro train voyager with plastic).

I get it. However, I completely disagree with anyone who wants to claim the Legacy version's robot mode is bad (I'm not saying you specifically implied this).
For what it's trying to achieve especially in terms of cartoon-like appearance, it's nowhere even close to "bad".
If we're getting the ER Ironhide mold for SS86, this Blitzwing most definitely could have been in that subline based on the bot mode alone.

Blitzwing was probably in legacy because of slot availability.

Or a question of budget. Like he worked within the allocated budget left for Legacy leaders and not SS leaders.

Ah yes, forgot that could differ between lines

sol magnus wrote:

Sabrblade wrote:

william-james88 wrote:Also, I read the facebook comments on the official facebook page for hasbro where they revealed this themselves and the comments are mostly positive with lots of excitement. So hasbro must be feeling pretty good about this output.

Well, it's Facebook. It's full of "Geewun yes-men" who like anything that looks enough like 1980s G1. The same crowd also praised the Machimina Prime Wars Trilogy cartoon and the Siege and Earthrise seasons of the War For Cybertron Trilogy cartoon.

"Geewun yes-men?" I didn't know we were elitist around here...

I'm talking about the specific group who only goes for G1-related stuff and blindly so, not the kind of fans who like G1 but are of sound enough mind to recognize that anything G1-related is neither a flawless masterpiece nor the only good thing about Transformers. Hence my mentioning the Facebook crowd's blind acclaim of both the Machinima Prime Wars Trilogy and the Siege and Earthrise seasons of the WFCT cartoon, which around these parts received much more level-headed criticism for their very obvious flaws and few genuinely well-done aspects (like Jason Marnocha's entertaining performance as Megatron in both, for example).

I mean, it's 2022. How is it that after all these years, I still have to explain the difference between "G1" and "Geewun"?

Sabrblade wrote:I mean, it's 2022. How is it that after all these years, I still have to explain the difference between "G1" and "Geewun"?

Because the goalposts get moved a lot, brother.