The Energon Pub

Rodimus Prime wrote:

Seibertron wrote:My $40 investment into an early batch of these Tiny Titans has turned into a good investment for our discussion. Thanks everyone for making it worth my while! Love to see all of us discussing our views on all of this.

I didn't participate, but I did learn a few things just reading through. I've been confused by the Aligned stuff since the get-go, perhaps that's why I never got into it much. I never finished either of the games, nor the Prime series. I also thought WFC would be better as a pre-G1 setting, rather than for Prime. I also have the comics mentioned earlier, and I agree that they were rather weak. Nonetheless, they are there, and the aforementioned wish for a person to edit everything together or come in and write some backstory or fill-in to connect all the dots officially, could use that comic story as a basis. But there needs to be a LOT of character development.

I always saw the WFC game as being a prequel to the G1 cartoon simply because it works. Maybe not in style, but all the key points are there. And its also works as a prequel to Prime. Both shows speak of a long war between two parties and this game is about said war, so why cant it work for both?

william-james88 wrote:I always saw the WFC game as being a prequel to the G1 cartoon simply because it works. Maybe not in style, but all the key points are there.

There are more differences between WFC and the G1 cartoon than just their looks. For one, Optimus got the Matrix from Alpha Trion in the cartoon, while he got it from the Core in the game. And Dark Energon wasn't a thing in the cartoon either. And both the Aerialbots and Breakdown existed on Cybertron in the game when they weren't born in the cartoon until 1985. And Jetfire's an Autobot in the game when he left Cybertron before the war began in the cartoon. Other differences exist as well.

I definitely think WFC (I only played the first one, "Dark Energon featuring Dark Energon with a guest appearance by Dark Energon") works fine as a prequel to Prime. I think it works, well...not at all as a prequel to the G1 cartoon (although even the G1 cartoon contradicts the early origins of the war at least).

However, as one of those people that gravitates to G1, I suppose I should attempt to defend it somewhat. I don't have a problem with other forms of continuity or what have you. I do have somewhat of a problem with radically altering a character from the "base" because what's the point of coming up with the character in the first place - it essentially becomes a name and an appearance rather than a character. I don't think it's completely verboten to do this, either. I guess it just depends. The source material for the characters varied back in the day, too...so people kind of just picked the one they liked the best. If you liked Prowl and were exposed to all the stuff that gave you information on Prowl, which interpretation served the character the best for you? Bio/Tech Spec, G1 comic fiction, or G1 cartoon? In his bio he's evidently a high ranking, very competent character - in the comic he's kind of the same, but there's not much with him (in the early US version), and in the comic he might be kind of the same but he comes off as bland, and the "logic" aspect of his character makes him come off as kind of a wet blanket. But it all fits as the "base" character. Competent? Check. Smart? Check. Not very interesting at all. Yet his visual look has always made him an appealing character. Not even getting into which continuity took "precedence", although I'd have to go with the cartoon due to simple exposure.

That's just an example that none of this is new - there just wasn't a fully developed 24 hour news cycle or internet to share these ideas across the entire planet...but they definitely existed in my neighborhood all the way back to '84.

K2vox wrote:those stickers or tampo sigils are fugly barf.. how did they think that would look good. I like the design though. Is it really too hard to give these guys elbow joints though? They'd rock with those. I do want to get the small legion class ones though if they have a complete set of the show to go along with my prime verse, but I'm not spending money on them if it's incomplete and I'm not buying the bigger ones.

Those tampos are gly, but they are designed to be QR Code-esqe. You can scan them into a game that way.

Sabrblade wrote:

william-james88 wrote:I always saw the WFC game as being a prequel to the G1 cartoon simply because it works. Maybe not in style, but all the key points are there.

There are more differences between WFC and the G1 cartoon than just their looks. For one, Optimus got the Matrix from Alpha Trion in the cartoon, while he got it from the Core in the game. And Dark Energon wasn't a thing in the cartoon either. And both the Aerialbots and Breakdown existed on Cybertron in the game when they weren't born in the cartoon until 1985. And Jetfire's an Autobot in the game when he left Cybertron before the war began in the cartoon. Other differences exist as well.

Well, technically, there's that whole Timetravel episode, maybe the Airelbots were around in the past longer than we saw...

Well, WFC/FOC can't be part of the G1 cartoon continuity as they directly contradict each other.

In the cartoon, the Dinobots are built on Earth by Wheeljack and Ratchet. In FOC the Dinobots were originally normal Autobots who got turned into monsters by Shockwave.

In the cartoon, Shockwave stayed monitoring Cybertron, whilst in FOC Grimlock kills him.

In the cartoon, the Insecticons are dropped from the wreck of the Nemesis in an escape pod and crash-land on Earth, where they take on insect modes. In FOC, the Insecticons are already insects, and the Dinobots kill them.

In the cartoon, Starscream in on the Nemesis with the rest of the Decepticons. In FOC, he seemingly dies.

In the cartoon, the Combaticons were Decepticon criminals that Starscream liberated and gave new bodies. In FOC they were a perfectly loyal team of Decepticons who was on the Nemesis until his battle with Jazz sent him spiralling into the void (or possibly back to Cybertron).

I could go on, but regardless, I think it's obvious that G1 and WFC/FOC are separate continuities. That said I agree that the Aligned concept makes absolutely no sense, and in my book the WFC/FOC and Prime universes should be kept separate.

Delta Magnus wrote:In the cartoon, Shockwave stayed monitoring Cybertron, whilst in FOC Grimlock kills him.

Grilock doesn't kill him, he just defeats him.

Delta Magnus wrote:In the cartoon, the Insecticons are dropped from the wreck of the Nemesis in an escape pod and crash-land on Earth, where they take on insect modes. In FOC, the Insecticons are already insects, and the Dinobots kill them.

They don't kill all of the Insecticons, just a lot of them. Hardshell, Sharpshot, and Kickback were all beaten, but not killed.

Delta Magnus wrote:In the cartoon, Starscream in on the Nemesis with the rest of the Decepticons. In FOC, he seemingly dies.

He's knocked aside, but not killed. The books account for his being aboard the Nemesis.

Delta Magnus wrote:In the cartoon, the Combaticons were Decepticon criminals that Starscream liberated and gave new bodies. In FOC they were a perfectly loyal team of Decepticons who was on the Nemesis until his battle with Jazz sent him spiralling into the void (or possibly back to Cybertron).

The latter. They do make it back to Cybertron.

Delta Magnus wrote:I could go on, but regardless, I think it's obvious that G1 and WFC/FOC are separate continuities.

Yeah, Rise of the Dark Spark even cements G1 as a separate reality from WFC/FOC.

All I know is I'm counting the WfC/FoC figures as their G1 versions on my shelves.


... and that the Tiny Titan things look really cheap. I get that's the point, but still not anything I'd want.
I have to wonder how the "regular" toy of Bisk will handle the face. Neither the Kreon or this one even bother with the eyestalks, though obviously those two figures are very tiny.

We brought you a video review over the weekend of the second wave of Transformers: Robots in Disguise Legion class figures, featuring Grimlock and Sideswipe - but why not take a second look at both of them, alongside the three-step Hyperchange Optimus Prime?

Click on any of the images below to access the full galleries for Grimlock, Sideswipe and Optimus Prime, each with simplified transformation, symbol to be scanned with the RID mobile device app, and more to be discovered - below.

Transformers: Robots In Disguise (2015) Grimlock








Transformers: Robots In Disguise (2015) Sideswipe








Transformers: Robots In Disguise (2015) Optimus Prime

great galleries (as usual).. seriously.. i don't think you get thanked enough for how wonderful your galleries are. they're the greatest service you provide this fanbase. truly fantastic.

anyways.. if i had grown up with these as a kid.. there's no way i'd be collecting them now as an adult.

TimothyR wrote:anyways.. if i had grown up with these as a kid.. there's no way i'd be collecting them now as an adult.

Sadly, this is true.

RhA wrote:

TimothyR wrote:anyways.. if i had grown up with these as a kid.. there's no way i'd be collecting them now as an adult.

Sadly, this is true.

I bet if they repaint that grimlock as G1 will sell more and faster... G1 is still all they have.

BERSEKAEL wrote:

RhA wrote:

TimothyR wrote:anyways.. if i had grown up with these as a kid.. there's no way i'd be collecting them now as an adult.

Sadly, this is true.

I bet if they repaint that grimlock as G1 will sell more and faster... G1 is still all they have.

G1 isn't the only thing that got fans on this site and there are heaps of people who don't like it at all. But it's just that all these 1- 2- 3 step magic toys aren't exactly thrilling stuff. Sure we had simple toys back when, but at least those where new characters. These days there must not only be an Optimus for each line, but also for each gimmick. It just dulls everything down to a game of Optimus, Bumblebee and a handfull of characters who happen to be the main cast. It's hard to see myself getting nostalgic over the 2015 RID lineup in 10 years.

RhA wrote:

BERSEKAEL wrote:

RhA wrote:

TimothyR wrote:anyways.. if i had grown up with these as a kid.. there's no way i'd be collecting them now as an adult.

Sadly, this is true.

I bet if they repaint that grimlock as G1 will sell more and faster... G1 is still all they have.

G1 isn't the only thing that got fans on this site and there are heaps of people who don't like it at all. But it's just that all these 1- 2- 3 step magic toys aren't exactly thrilling stuff. Sure we had simple toys back when, but at least those where new characters. These days there must not only be an Optimus for each line, but also for each gimmick. It just dulls everything down to a game of Optimus, Bumblebee and a handfull of characters who happen to be the main cast. It's hard to see myself getting nostalgic over the 2015 RID lineup in 10 years.

for me, it's not about them being G1 characters or not. it's that they're just not very good toys.. they're unfathomably cheap, they're too simple.. and not only that, but their simplicity isn't even fluid, it's annoying.

G1 toys felt like they had some gravitas. they just seemed special when i was a kid. they had metal, they looked like real cars, they were fairly well detailed, and they were fun. these don't strike me as any of that.

these one step changers for instance just seem like a toy that i would've enjoyed for a day or two changing it back and forth, then i probably would've lost it or moved on to the next toy.

as a kid i LOVED puzzles and i LOVED transformers because they were 3D puzzles.. each one was a different character that i could watch on tv. these new figures aren't puzzles, they'v been dumbed down to the point that it loses that special thing that made them so interesting to me.

lastly, on an unrelated note.. my favorite more recent cartoon was most definitely the star wars clone wars series.. i loved that show and i loved the toys as well. some of them were missing some joints, but a lot of them had decent articulation, accessories, and gorgeous sculpts. and hell, the show lasted for 5 seasons, 6 if you could the season on DVD. i wish transformers had something like that. it was both a little serious and a little kid friendly. there were tons of characters which lead to a ton of really cool toys. they didn't just focus on one group of good guys throughout the entire series. they made the universe feel large, and you got to know every character that they focused on a little better. it was really great. the stories were cool, it looked wonderful, and it lasted longer than any transformers show that i can recall from recent memory so it had to do something right.

anyways... i just wish these toys were more special.

is it me or does side-swipes alt mode resemble a Countach a tad bit but with extra spikes

Autobot tap out wrote:is it me or does side-swipes alt mode resemble a Countach a tad bit but with extra spikes

I totally thought that. I actually thought he was supposed to be a stylized lamborghini, along the lines of Cybertron Hotshot but in a totally different direction.

Lately it seems like we've been getting Grimlock in every color but G2 blue. *sigh*

Noideaforaname wrote:Lately it seems like we've been getting Grimlock in every color but G2 blue. *sigh*

maybe fun pub will listen and you will have a new Birthday present in subscription service 4.0 for G2 grimlock

william-james88 wrote:

Autobot tap out wrote:is it me or does side-swipes alt mode resemble a Countach a tad bit but with extra spikes

I totally thought that. I actually thought he was supposed to be a stylized lamborghini, along the lines of Cybertron Hotshot but in a totally different direction.

The front grill looks like a stylized Mustang- is it just me?

Metro Prime wrote:

william-james88 wrote:

Autobot tap out wrote:is it me or does side-swipes alt mode resemble a Countach a tad bit but with extra spikes

I totally thought that. I actually thought he was supposed to be a stylized lamborghini, along the lines of Cybertron Hotshot but in a totally different direction.

The front grill looks like a stylized Mustang- is it just me?

Well, not to pay any licensing, hasbro usually combines cues from a few cars together to simultaneously make it look familiar while copying an exact make. One of my favourite examples was Prime Cliffjumper who was like a combination of the Plymouth Barracuda and a 1970's Dodge Challenger.

Another day, another gallery update! Today's subjects come from the upcoming Robots in Disguise (2015) Warrior-class range, Drift and Optimus Prime!

Drift takes after his appearance in last year's blockbuster Age of Extinction, taking on the form of an orange futuristic sports car that converts into the most honorable of robo-samurais, giving Bludgeon a run for his money! Of note, the Drift featured in these galleries has a small touch-up on his face, his whiskers being Sharpie'd black for a more accurate look.

Optimus Prime transforms not only into a truck (as always), but pulls a Motormaster and transforms into the truck and trailer! His weapon of choice in his robot mode is his mighty axe which seems to be an homage to his War for Cybertron incarnation.

To be taken to each figure's full gallery, click either their links or the images themselves to be taken to them!

Transformers: Robots In Disguise (2015) Drift














Transformers: Robots In Disguise (2015) Optimus Prime

I like that Optimus.

so tiny.

some ankle joints would've been great.. too bad hasbro doesn't care about producing a quality product anymore.

I actually dig the legions figures, and I'm happy to see their return! They are cheap, and small, which is about all I can handle at this point. And they are still more advanced than those old 80s minibots.

TimothyR wrote:so tiny.

some ankle joints would've been great.. too bad hasbro doesn't care about producing a quality product anymore.

It's not like the amount of plastic is decreasing or anything.