The Energon Pub

Alex Kingdom wrote:

Seibertron wrote:

Powermaster Jazz wrote:The movie Transformers are the best Transformers ever! If you don't think so, then whatever...

I own them and I'm not sure if I agree with your statement. If Ratchet was colored something other than puke green and had a recognizable "Ratchet" head, then I would agree. The toy itself is a really awesome figure. It's very poseable. It has a very nice alt-mode. But it doesn't represent the character that I've grown to love over the past 23 years. AS much as I like this figure, it's not Ratchet.

Agreed. It looks like a pretty cool figure, and if it were a new character in a new continuity I'd love it. However it's not Ratchet, and this movie is meant to be at least loosely based on G1, this design isn't even close. A better head design and a better colours and I'd be more inclined to sing its praises. As it stands it a nice figure designed to accompany what's looking to be a crap movie. Hasbro clearly did their best in designing this figure but it was too little too late, the damage has already been done. They should have put their foot down in when the movie designs were being made, made it clear how important it was that the character remain recognisable, that's my opinion anyway.

Yours AK

My biggest complaint is simply the heads. I don't understand why all of them had to receive such alien looking faces. Yes, I understand that these are alien machines. However, no one questions the fact that Han Solo and Luke Skywalker look human even though they're aliens. We just accept it. It seems like heads that resembled more traditional looking Transformers would have been a huge step for me.

I don't want anyone to misconstrue what it is that I'm saying. I really like these toys. I actually like the designs. It's just they're not the characters that I had hoped we would see on the big screen. Optimus is the exception. Bumblebee is a close exception.

I really hope that for the 2nd movie, assuming there is one, that the Transformers take on more human characteristics the longer they're here on Earth around humans. I think that would be a great way to introduce some of the more familiar characteristics that were used to about Transformers. ** crosses fingers **

I agree Seibs. I'd love to see more humanoid faces in the second movie.

Daxmajor wrote:

Seibertron wrote: wrote:
I own them and I'm not sure if I agree with your statement. If Ratchet was colored something other than puke green and had a recognizable "Ratchet" head, then I would agree. The toy itself is a really awesome figure. It's very poseable. It has a very nice alt-mode. But it doesn't represent the character that I've grown to love over the past 23 years. AS much as I like this figure, it's not Ratchet.

I think the key to happiness with the Movie line is to not see it as another Classics or homage line but rather as a fresh take on things. The Movie is clearly only very loosely based on G1, so it shouldn't matter so much if reused names represent radical new designs. Heck, it's not all that different from what they did with Armada except this time the toys seem to be well engineered.

Very true but at what point does 'loosely based on' become 'barely recognisable as'? There's a fine line between re-imagining and re-inventing, you can only change something so much before it comes something else. As we've seem with other franchises made into movies you can change a few things and retain the spirit of the franchise but change too much and you run the risk of loosing what made it special in the first place. This movie, it's designs and therefore the toy designs are in danger of being so far removed from the source material that the only thing identifying than as Transformers is the title and character names on the boxes. I'm a fan of Transformers not Hollywood invasion movies with transforming generic alien/monsters.

Yours AK

Nice stuff, Ryan!

I looked at the other auctions from the seller you bought Ratchet from Ryan, and it looks like he has Wreckage, Jazz, Brawl and Barricade too!

It would be sweet if you could get your hands on Jazz, we haven't even seen pics of his *actual* non-airbrushed robot mode yet.

*bumpity*

I noticed the guy's auctions for MOC Jazz & others have ended. Did you manage to snag any Ryan? I saw that you had bid on a couple... I would have been neat to get a MOC Jazz so early.