The Energon Pub

I can understand why X-spanse’s design can be love/hate — but I think he’s going to be lots of fun.

sol magnus wrote:

AllNewSuperRobot wrote:The most iconic vehicles in Marvel are probably the Fantasticar, SHIELD Helicarrier, the Blackbird and Ghost Rider's bike.

The Fantasticar unfortunately has had so many different versions including the Dodge / Hemi movie version, that its hard to pick one to turn into a robot. Also, the Fantasticar's main feature is that it splits up into several smaller vehicles, which would make it harder to turn into a robot that does not then evoke other franchises like Power Rangers.

It would be really cool to get a megazord style Fantasticar, but its not likely to happen.

And the ghost rider motorcycle also hardly has a standard look across the comics they could draw from. The SR-71 Blackbird has the 90's Tv show to help it stand out amongst the more casual Marvel / Jet fans fan.

I'll go a step further and say that the big two don't have a whole lot of iconic vehicles between them. And that those vehicles rarely have a consistent look.

By the same token, the Fantasticar could have been a great (and apt) combiner team. Also if we're talking remolds, the Helicarrier could easily have been a repurposed Tidal Wave or Broadside. I'd say Danny Ketch's Motorbike is the most distinctive Ghost Rider bike. As the latter day ones and even Johnny Blaze's one is basically a custom bike with fire wheels.

The SR-71 is one of many X-jet designs and not even one of their better ones.
EG Points to jet design in this crossover logo, once again

As for DC, I'm struggling to think of any iconic vehicle that isn't Batman related? Lobo's bike, maybe??

Gauntlet101010 wrote:I'll go a step further and say that the big two don't have a whole lot of iconic vehicles between them. And that those vehicles rarely have a consistent look.

If Mattel/Time Warner played nice, just think how many waves you could get out of the batmobiles One thing we have to remember that this is designed to appeal to a broader section of the market as possible, so if gets people who only have fleeting memories of the 92 toon, then that's a win in their books.

But, come on Hasbro! Give us something different. Something that isn't a regular vehicle. Maybe even a little odd, perhaps?

AllNewSuperRobot wrote:As for DC, I'm struggling to think of any iconic vehicle that isn't Batman related? Lobo's bike, maybe??

Wonder Woman's Invisible Jet!

Lobo's bike definitely counts and is very consistent.

Wonder Woman has an invisible plane. There's a Jokermobile, but it's been a long time since that was used. The shuttle Superman took to Earth as a baby would count in my book. Digging a bit deeper, the Blue Beetle has his own personal "bug" which Nightowl's (from Watchmen) transport (Archemedes?) was based off of.

None of those have been very consistent.

If you want to stretch it you could make a transparant green version of Maverick and call it Green Lantern's plane, but that's a real stretch. Even if I do really want a GL TF.

AllNewSuperRobot wrote:By the same token, the Fantasticar could have been a great (and apt) combiner team. Also if we're talking remolds, the Helicarrier could easily have been a repurposed Tidal Wave or Broadside. I'd say Danny Ketch's Motorbike is the most distinctive Ghost Rider bike. As the latter day ones and even Johnny Blaze's one is basically a custom bike with fire wheels.

The SR-71 is one of many X-jet designs and not even one of their better ones.
EG Points to jet design in this crossover logo, once again

As for DC, I'm struggling to think of any iconic vehicle that isn't Batman related? Lobo's bike, maybe??

Most iconic DC vehicle ever? Superman's Super Jogger, period.

AllNewSuperRobot wrote:By the same token, the Fantasticar could have been a great (and apt) combiner team. Also if we're talking remolds, the Helicarrier could easily have been a repurposed Tidal Wave or Broadside. I'd say Danny Ketch's Motorbike is the most distinctive Ghost Rider bike. As the latter day ones and even Johnny Blaze's one is basically a custom bike with fire wheels.

The SR-71 is one of many X-jet designs and not even one of their better ones.
EG Points to jet design in this crossover logo, once again

As for DC, I'm struggling to think of any iconic vehicle that isn't Batman related? Lobo's bike, maybe??

They changed it when they could no longer use the actual image of a Blackbird, given how those legalities changed, but designs aside, it's still call the Blackbird and has the same functionality with a more stylish (and less realistic) swept forward design. Yes, it's from the TV show, but having lived through that and not looked at it as a thing from the past, I'd say not too many people gave very much thought to 'iconography' of the cartoon Blackbird. Heck, I'm just as used to it being referred to as the "X-Jet".

Your delightful comic book splash page (sans credits) of a John Byrne drawn Quinjet is the 'iconic' version of the Quinjet as presented for over a decade in the Avengers books, but I wouldn't call the Quinjet iconic, because people outside the hobby wouldn't immediately recognize.

As far as DC goes, it's mainly Batman vehicles, the Invisible Jet/Plane (which aren't always the same), I guess you could say Blue Beetle's Bug (and that's a reach) and maybe the Supermobile which only sometimes even exists.

As I think up these things, it seems the definition of what's "iconic" would have to appear on TV to be deemed legitimate by most folks around here.

Sabrblade wrote:

AllNewSuperRobot wrote:As for DC, I'm struggling to think of any iconic vehicle that isn't Batman related? Lobo's bike, maybe??

Wonder Woman's Invisible Jet!

Whoops, oh yeah
But by the same token, a wholly transclearent jet? No thank you

With the multiple mentions of Ghost Rider bikes being inconsistent, theoretically they could have done Robbie Reyes' Hell Charger from the comics and Agents of Shield, as that hasn't been around long enough to have fluctuations in design and gives you more mass to use for transformation as a muscle car compared to a bike, but the other side of that is that since it's a more recent addition to the comics, it hasn't been around long enough to play on the nostalgia factor that these crossover figures and the current design team in general heavily bank on.

AllNewSuperRobot wrote:But, come on Hasbro! Give us something different. Something that isn't a regular vehicle. Maybe even a little odd, perhaps?

If they did a crossover comic they'd have to find a way for the Autobots to push the bleeding heart narrative.

Burn wrote:

AllNewSuperRobot wrote:But, come on Hasbro! Give us something different. Something that isn't a regular vehicle. Maybe even a little odd, perhaps?

If they did a crossover comic they'd have to find a way for the Autobots to push the bleeding heart narrative.

Actually wouldn't the crossover be the current doctor waving her sonic screwdriver around and solve the 6 million year civil war in the span of an hour episode?

ZeroWolf wrote:Actually wouldn't the crossover be the current doctor waving her sonic screwdriver around and solve the 6 million year civil war in the span of an hour episode?

Done in 30 with the remainder of the episode re-writing Primus' origins.

So, apprarently, the photographer for these stock images put the wings on backwards since, on the back-of-the-box image on Hasbro Pulse, the wings are forward-swept Cyclonus-style like they were in the cartoon.

Thankfully, the wings come detached in the package so we're left to choose what direction we want the wings to face when we first put them on.

AllNewSuperRobot wrote:By the same token, the Fantasticar could have been a great (and apt) combiner team.

That's what I was thinking, I don't know why Overcracker thought it would look like a Zord (besides, Hasbro owns Power Rangers so it's all good). Give each of the smaller cars their own bot modes and also let them combine to form a larger bot.

I think people are getting way, way too hung up on "iconic" looks of superhero vehicles. Comic fans are used to different artists making their own little twists on things just like we're used to Hasbro revamping Transformer alt modes. It's all about the character(s) associated with them. It doesn't have to be any specific Ghost Rider bike, it just has to look like a bike a Ghost Rider would ride. It just has to look like a Quinn Jet, doesn't have to be any specific one.

Still don't get how we've gotten this far with crossovers and they still haven't done G.I. Joe. Bonus points if they can make it compatible with 4" Joes, but fail that they've got a bunch of recent military vehicles they can borrow transformations from like Hound, Megatron, or Starscream. Heck they could even use Skytread to make a Mauler and Sky Striker Duocon (or I guess Duobot).

Emerje

Emerje wrote:

AllNewSuperRobot wrote:By the same token, the Fantasticar could have been a great (and apt) combiner team.

That's what I was thinking, I don't know why Overcracker thought it would look like a Zord (besides, Hasbro owns Power Rangers so it's all good). Give each of the smaller cars their own bot modes and also let them combine to form a larger bot.

I think people are getting way, way too hung up on "iconic" looks of superhero vehicles. Comic fans are used to different artists making their own little twists on things just like we're used to Hasbro revamping Transformer alt modes. It's all about the character(s) associated with them. It doesn't have to be any specific Ghost Rider bike, it just has to look like a bike a Ghost Rider would ride. It just has to look like a Quinn Jet, doesn't have to be any specific one.

Still don't get how we've gotten this far with crossovers and they still haven't done G.I. Joe. Bonus points if they can make it compatible with 4" Joes, but fail that they've got a bunch of recent military vehicles they can borrow transformations from like Hound, Megatron, or Starscream. Heck they could even use Skytread to make a Mauler and Sky Striker Duocon (or I guess Duobot).

Emerje

Hasbro has always been hesitant to cross the streams between those two brands. I've asked everyone you could imagine why and they couldn't give me an answer. The closest we've gotten was a prototype from the early 90s.

Could be because they think that GI Joe is only really big in the states, so not the best financial gamble to take. GI Joe is largely forgotten now here in the UK in the general populace even when using it's UKanized name, Action Force.

We have gotten GI Joe crossovers. Not as a line unto themselves, but they do exist. Hell, Viper was in Combiner Wars and the first Titanium Megatron, sucky as he may be, was also a mainstream release.





Non - mainstream saw FunPub Serpentor and there were a few crossover vehicles as part of a SDCC set (Starscream, Shockwave, and Jetfire) along with JI Joe styled figures of Ravage, Bludgeon, and more from Fun Pub.

Deadput wrote:

Jelze Bunnycat wrote:

Deadput wrote:

Immortal Starscream wrote:there are parts of him that scream ss jetfire. mostly the wings and the panels over his shoulders.

That's because it's a remold of SS Jetfire.

I will give you the fuselage up the first "neck" section, but the rest like the nacelles are all new. Typical

I never said it didn't have a lot of new parts.

It's still a retool/remold or whatever the word is that people use.


Edit: Which reminds me here is a comparison between the two for those who want to compare side by side.

Yeah man, he's a identical. I see exactly what you mean. This is a lazy repaint of Studio Series Jetfire. My gods Hasbro get your act together. Why not just repaint Dark of the Moon Bumblebee grey and call him Batman sheesh.



I like this man. He's a frankenstein looking shoulder guy with a silly name but I love 90's cartoon X-Men and will get this brother. I really hope they make more with more minifigures or just spam the minifigures in blind bags or whatever.
It looks pretty decent from a more objective perspective. The Star Wars crossovers had silly proportions. I do want to get a Plant Darth Vader at some point. Planets are cool.

Good try from Hasbro, I like the colors and that they chose to put multiple mutants in there instead of just one.

Hope to see more.

Gauntlet101010 wrote:We have gotten GI Joe crossovers. Not as a line unto themselves, but they do exist. Hell, Viper was in Combiner Wars and the first Titanium Megatron, sucky as he may be, was also a mainstream release.





Non - mainstream saw FunPub Serpentor and there were a few crossover vehicles as part of a SDCC set (Starscream, Shockwave, and Jetfire) along with JI Joe styled figures of Ravage, Bludgeon, and more from Fun Pub.

Dear Gods, is that Wild Weasel???

I'm in the middle of GI Joe's cartoon and collecting. I need that Powerglide retool now!

They attacked with Warthogs in Season 1 GI Joe . It's obvious they would do this, I never understood the Powerglide retooled head, things are starting to make sense. Unlike 2020, what a dumpsterfire.

Gauntlet101010 wrote:We have gotten GI Joe crossovers. Not as a line unto themselves, but they do exist. Hell, Viper was in Combiner Wars and the first Titanium Megatron, sucky as he may be, was also a mainstream release.

Non - mainstream saw FunPub Serpentor and there were a few crossover vehicles as part of a SDCC set (Starscream, Shockwave, and Jetfire) along with JI Joe styled figures of Ravage, Bludgeon, and more from Fun Pub.

Yes, and there was also Snowcat in Energon, but those are just homages. Snowcat isn't quite a Snowcat, he just has a strong resemblance to one. Viper is a tiny repainted Powerglide, doesn't really scale with anything. Titanium Megatron is only a Cobra tank in name, he isn't based on anything. The SDCC stuff and the Marisa with Afterburn set don't Transform so it isn't nearly as satisfying as other Transformers crossovers. Serpentor is really the closest to doing it right, but it's just repaint of Ratbat who himself is a retooled Scourge so it was a pretty effortless transition just like the Old Snake with BATS set. We really deserve something new and unique, not repaints and homages, but a purpose built figure (that parts shares with something existing).

Emerje

Anyway, when trying to come up with some better names for this thing, someone brought up one and I fully endorse it as what should have been the name for this guy.

A name that not only keeps the "X-" pun as a nod to the X-Men but also audibly sounds like it could work as a Cybertronian name in a 1990s sort of way, and even pays tribute to Stan Lee himself:

X-Celsior!

Sabrblade wrote:

AllNewSuperRobot wrote:As for DC, I'm struggling to think of any iconic vehicle that isn't Batman related? Lobo's bike, maybe??

Wonder Woman's Invisible Jet!

Blue Beetles Bug...prior to them kiling him anyways. 80's Justice league of idiots still some of my fondest light hearted DC reading especially the one with Joker trying to kill the Justice League off and him running after the Batmobile pleading Batman to save him.

Marvel had spider mans buggy, way more iconic and still gets a toy every so often so that no one can unsee it.