The Energon Pub

Sun Jan 10, 2016 7:00 pm

Fun fact: This body was used for Bumblebee in the Evangelion crossover. That means you can have a toy to represent that particular piece of fiction without spending ludicrous amounts of cash on yet another MP-10 redeco! Everyone wins!

News Credits: 3 · Sun Jan 10, 2016 8:15 pm

Microraptor wrote:Fun fact: This body was used for Bumblebee in the Evangelion crossover. That means you can have a toy to represent that particular piece of fiction without spending ludicrous amounts of cash on yet another MP-10 redeco! Everyone wins!

Neat now all we need is an Mazinger Z and Getter robo MP-10 redecos/repaints to add on top also we need an MP Bumblebee in some EVA-02. Color scheme also a repainted of MP Bumblebee as Boss Barot idk if it's pointless and unneeded but I want it XD

MyFigureCollection.net collection · Sun Jan 10, 2016 9:00 pm

Gearslide wrote:I kinda like how "Rumblebee" for Red Bumblebee sounds,

Then I'd want a blue one we can call Frenzybee and really confuse the RIBFIR/RIRFIB debate.

As for the galleries, none of Clampdown with Prowl?

Emerje

Sun Jan 10, 2016 9:07 pm

Emerje wrote:Then I'd want a blue one we can call Frenzybee and really confuse the RIBFIR/RIRFIB debate.

Don't start that sh*t again

News Credits: 462 · Sun Jan 10, 2016 10:48 pm

Microraptor wrote:Fun fact: This body was used for Bumblebee in the Evangelion crossover.

No it wasn't. The lighting just made Bee look red. Optimus and Sideswipe, who were also in that pic, were unquestionably red. Bee wasn't the same shade as them, and he would have been had he been red, but he wasn't.

Takara is beholden to accuracy in most everything they do. They wouldn't randomly color Bumblebee red in something that featured everyone else in their regular, standard MP toy colors. At least not without fictional justification (like when Prime got his EVA Unit-01 colors in his upgrade).

Not trying to sound harsh, but this a rumor/misconception that greatly needs to be dispelled. :PEACE:

News Credits: 6188 · Tue Jan 12, 2016 4:08 pm

We recently brought you the latest release in the Takara Tomy Transformers Masterpiece line in the plastic form of Road Rage, but it is now time to step back one place, and focus on the first iteration of the mold: MP-25 Tracks!

Inlcuding pretty much all of the same accessories as its successor, the figure features the Chevrolet Corvette Stingray vehicle mode in luscious blue, red and yellow (for the flames), plus some added white for the robot features and 'flight mode' - and the inclusion of a Raoul minifigure and Blaster in boombox mode to boot. But if that is not enough, this gallery update also brings you an addition to the Q Transformers galleries in its superdeformed Q-17 Tracks. Throw in some comparison shots with pretty much every Tracks that Seibertron.com could find, and you have more blue dandies than you can shake a rose at. Click on any of the images below to view the full works!

Q-Transformers Tracks

Transformers Masterpiece Tracks

Transformers Masterpiece Raoul

Sun Jan 17, 2016 6:49 pm

I quite like the flame pattern on the q-tracks. It would be perfect on the deluxe.

News Credits: 6188 · Fri Feb 05, 2016 2:47 am

We are proud to present, you young nut-bolters, a new addition to the Seibertron.com gallery database, venturing back into the Transformers Masterpiece toy line from Takara Tomy with MP-27 Ironhide! From its first odd toy incarnation, through some less than excellent toys in the years, Ironhide seems to have always received the odd end of the axle - does this latest product of engineering and design make up for it though?

Find out by clicking on any of the images below, as the toy is shown in both its Cherry Vanette vehicle and glossy red robot mode, along with all its accessories (which can be stored in the battle sled) such as his Laser pistol, Static Laser Gun, missile launcher, and wrist sonodar. If those still don't convince you, change his demeanour with two extra alternate hands, four nozzles, chest screen, and two additional facial expressions!

Transformers Masterpiece Ironhide

News Credits: 462 · Fri Feb 05, 2016 10:11 am

Wait a sec, his weapons platform doesn't have any treads or anything to prop it up off the ground? It seriously just sits there like a legless table?

:BANG_HEAD:

News Credits: 3646 · Fri Feb 05, 2016 11:45 am

Sabrblade wrote:Wait a sec, his weapons platform doesn't have any treads or anything to prop it up off the ground? It seriously just sits there like a legless table?

Yep, you can add that to the small list of other major issues with the hip panels, rear butt wheels, and the severe lack of a side torso that screws up his silhouette. Had they figured out those 3 things, Ironhide would be right up there with Prowl and Wheeljack.

Also, there's a design flaw with his guns, at least the laser pistols. You can't get them in or out of his hand without causing some minor damage to the handle of those guns. Basically mine have a dented groove where his thumb or fingers were now from taking them in and out of his hands. It's a minor issue because you'd never see it in robot mode while he's holding that weapon. He unfortunately has the opposite issue of some of the Masterpiece figures who have trouble keeping their weapons in their hands, his are difficult to get out.

There are a lot of things that I really like about this figure. The transformation is amazing (and you can transform those two panels with the clips that are a little too big without damaging the plastic, you just have to finesse them). The amount of accessories is incredible for an official toy. The posability is fantastic. The head sculpt is much better in person than it appeared in pictures. He looks great from the side. He looks great from the back, butt wheels aside. He looks pretty good from the front. I would argue that his blocky panels need some more detail, cartoon accurate or not ... I made the same argument about Ultra Magnus. Overall, he's a good figure but there are some major issues keeping him from truly being a "masterpiece" to me. Prowl and Wheeljack continue to be the best Masterpiece figures to date in my book.

Fri Feb 05, 2016 1:54 pm

The pics with Streak just make me feel worse about the fact that mine had his door snap off at the hinge. :-(

News Credits: 3646 · Fri Feb 05, 2016 7:12 pm

Sabrblade wrote:Wait a sec, his weapons platform doesn't have any treads or anything to prop it up off the ground? It seriously just sits there like a legless table?

Out of curiosity, did anyone catch that he can have a cartoon accurate chest as well?

Fri Feb 05, 2016 7:55 pm

Those Ironhide pictures look excellent

Fri Feb 05, 2016 10:25 pm

fix for the sideskirts, wheelcheeks and lack of torso sides, cut the sideskirts where they connect to the waist(leave the wheels attached to them) and glue to the chest(the fron of the vehicle where they should be in vehicle mode) because of the way it transforms, they will end up on the sides, so no need to partsform them or make any complicated joint, the wheels will still be connected to the panels so they at least could be angles downwards(just over where the side skirts originally were, and the best thing, is, still will retain the waist articulation, although a bit hindered, but not much more than it was

News Credits: 462 · Fri Feb 05, 2016 10:28 pm

Seibertron wrote:
Sabrblade wrote:Wait a sec, his weapons platform doesn't have any treads or anything to prop it up off the ground? It seriously just sits there like a legless table?

Out of curiosity, did anyone catch that he can have a cartoon accurate chest as well?

Tis not shaped cartoon-accurate, though, which was one of the things that gets me about this figure since the trapezoidal windshield helps make him look fat.

News Credits: 2 · Fri Feb 05, 2016 11:55 pm

I've had this guy now a few days and from seeing pictures I wasn't that excited about getting one of my most beloved characters in mp form. The face in pictures looked flat, the window forearms looked really bad and the hips were a pure eyesore. I wasn't a huge fan of his chest either because his cartoon model had a very tight rectangular chest. I do believe with the lack of van and indeed Ironhide figures produced by hasbro and takara that this had a knock on effect no practice before making this figure made it far from perfect.

But....I got him in my hands and I forgot about these details I just fell in love. The head sculpt and face were infinitely better in person than I had expected, no picture has done his head and face justice believe me, and the shade of red used was beautiful. I'm in love with the figure and certain poses make him look incredible. He can look like he's convincingly shaking his fist ready to bust some deceptichops. The range of movement for the head is astounding and makes him so expressive. Is he perfect? No. Am I glad that I picked up one of my all time favourite characters? Yes.

I like him that much I'm most likely going to buy ratchet.

Sat Feb 06, 2016 1:26 am

Sabrblade wrote:
Seibertron wrote:
Sabrblade wrote:Wait a sec, his weapons platform doesn't have any treads or anything to prop it up off the ground? It seriously just sits there like a legless table?

Out of curiosity, did anyone catch that he can have a cartoon accurate chest as well?
Tis not shaped cartoon-accurate, though, which was one of the things that gets me about this figure since the trapezoidal windshield helps make him look fat.

I agree it's not show accurate but Ironhide looks fine for the most part

News Credits: 23 · Sat Feb 06, 2016 3:37 pm

Seibertron wrote:
Sabrblade wrote:Wait a sec, his weapons platform doesn't have any treads or anything to prop it up off the ground? It seriously just sits there like a legless table?

Out of curiosity, did anyone catch that he can have a cartoon accurate chest as well?

How

News Credits: 4877 · Thu Mar 03, 2016 10:11 am

Another month rolls in, another Takara Masterpiece figure comes out and you can be sure Seibertron will give you a gallery. This time it is for Takara's Masterpiece MP-28 Hot Rodimus, or as well call him in the west, Hot Rod.

This is a hotly anticipated figure since it is Takara's second take on this character in the Masterpiece line, and a chance to make up for the previous figure which a majority of fans found underwhelming. While this is similar to how Takara did an MP redux on Optimus Prime and Starscream, this figure differs in the fact that it is clearly an interpretation of the Hot Rod character from the 1986 Transformers film and not the Rodimus character he becomes later. The previous Masterpiece toy tried to represent both and thus a lot was sacrificed, leaving a gap in everyone's Masterpiece collection for an actual Hot Rod toy which could scale better with the newer Masterpiece figures post MP 10 (Optimus Prime).

You can be the judge of how well this toy answers your needs with the pictures in the gallery, which contain an extensive amount fo comparison pictures with the toys mentionned above and Ultra Magnus, among others. About Ultra Magnus, early pictures showed the capability for Hot Rod's car mode to fit on Ultra Magnus' trailer. While he can, Hot Rod's car mode is too wide to enter the trailer via the ramps. Let us know if you spot anything else in the gallery that you were unaware of before and if anything you see helps you make up your mind on whether or not this toy is for you.

Enjoy!

Transformers Masterpiece Hot Rodimus

News Credits: 3 · Thu Mar 03, 2016 11:03 am

He looks really great. Glad to see the comparisons with the original MP Rodimus. People just keep showing comparison that 3rd party garbage figure. He's really tempting but I'm saving my Master Piece purchasing for Shockwave

Thu Mar 03, 2016 11:31 am

This new Hotrod is definitely more fun to play with, and scale better, but it got its own issues. The ground clearance in alt mode, the comparative lack of details (vs. Hasbro's toy accurate red lower legs with paint apps), the flat chest, the overall body proportion, etc. are a turn off to me. As a shelf display piece, IMO the old MP is still better.

Guess I'm the lucky few since my old MP Rodimus doesn't have any major QC issues as so many others have, so I never hated the toy.

I'd surely trade the old for the new though if I get the opportunity just for that new toy smell. :-D

News Credits: 4877 · Thu Mar 03, 2016 11:45 am

cloudballoon wrote: The ground clearance in alt mode

Yours has ground clearance issues? It was debunked when people started to get him that any gound clearance issue was due to mistransformation.

News Credits: 3646 · Thu Mar 03, 2016 12:43 pm

william-james88 wrote:
cloudballoon wrote: The ground clearance in alt mode

Yours has ground clearance issues? It was debunked when people started to get him that any gound clearance issue was due to mistransformation.

There are two things that cause the ground clearance issue ... when his lower legs are not properly pegged into the two tabs on the underside of where the spoiler is located and when the orange collar is not properly positioned. Once those two areas are properly adjusted, he just barely has ground clearance, but isn't that kind of typical of fancy looking sports cars in the real world?

Thu Mar 03, 2016 1:32 pm

I bet even real world super cars got better clearance than this Hotrod .... besides, no car owner really care the underside of their car other than the mechanics :lol:

I'm getting evermore selective in my purchases. As shelf space is more "premium" even than the cost of the purchase sometimes. Hard for me to justify buying another figure with basically the same look. What's why I don't mind trading the old one for the new... if someone bites :-D

News Credits: 3646 · Thu Mar 03, 2016 1:44 pm

Some other thoughts on this figure ...

I like him a lot better in hand, but I still have issues with him. Legs and groin area are not wide enough, legs are a little too long, but those things can be chalked up to style choice. My biggest gripe, even more so than the flat chest, is the very obnxious red pieces that stick up behind his head and interfere with his silhouette with regards to the yellow spoiler behind his head. For a Masterpiece figure, that should have been resolved by rotating those pieces 180 degrees or by having a couple of extra panels that fold down, which would also help fill in the gap behind his head. I even figured out an alternate chest transformation that bulks him up a little more and gives some additional dimension to his awkward chest. The backpack isn't quite as obnoxious as it appears in pictures online either.

Hot Rodimus is better than Tracks (though both suffer from being too thin) but not as good as Wheeljack (who is currently my personal "this one is perfect" Masterpiece figure, with Prowl being an extremely close second). I have issues with Ultra Magnus as well, though he has some clever transformations. The unique transformation on Hot Rod is his upper arms which you'll see when you get him.

Transformation is enjoyable and good and most everything has a place to peg into. Face sculpt is great, head shape is great, visor implementation is great. Hands are great for holding weapons, but his middle finger is sculpted weird and the joints that are seen on many Transformers fingers are too large so they look like he's wearing multiple rings on each finger.

One other thing that irks me on him ... his upper legs connect to his pelvis via ball joints which I'm not a fan of on a Masterpiece figure. It kind of makes him seem like he could have been a really nicely done Generations figure had he been downsized a bit to fit in scale with those figures.

It's a good figure, it just needed a few more things done to make him a true Masterpiece.