The Energon Pub

http://cgi.ebay.com/Transformers-animat ... 18Q2el1247

Buy it now for $400

Absolutely ridiculous. A Chinese seller offered me one of those for $200.00 (which is still terrible, but at least it's not $400.00...)

I, of course, promptly turned him down. Yowza.

I really don't get why anyone is buying any figures early on ebay for pretty much ridiculous prices...

Even if you couldn't find them in stores and had to use an online retailer, it would still be so much cheaper.
If this is your main hobby, wouldn't you want to save money so you could potentially buy more later?

I guess I don't understand how the feeling of having one/some even months early could be THAT good.

Sowndwave76 wrote:I really don't get why anyone is buying any figures early on ebay for pretty much ridiculous prices...

Even if you couldn't find them in stores and had to use an online retailer, it would still be so much cheaper.
If this is your main hobby, wouldn't you want to save money so you could potentially buy more later?

I guess I don't understand how the feeling of having one/some even months early could be THAT good.

Impatience is the biggest problem, really. Then bragging rights. The combination of the two makes a sensible person just throw their common sense out the window.

I admit, I've bought figures early because I wanted them yesterday. The thing is...Animated is the first line that's really, truly worth it in my book. Not $100's over the retail price worth it, but I'm willing to pay double to get 'em.

It's whatever you like, how you like it. As long as it doesn't affect anyone else (and that's more than possible, some people just need to make it about themselves, when clearly, it's not.) I don't see how it's so terrible.

Granted, these auctions really aren't the way to do it, but the Cinci figures, etc...yeah. I'll pay extra for 'em.

No thanks. I'll wait till HTS ships the one I paid about $36 for in July or August.

I've contemplated buying some of the animated figures early, but I held off.

Every other week I do the rounds at the various toy stores, hoping for new stock. There's still a few movieformers I'm waiting to show up.

It's such a great feeling to see the shelves flowing with new stuff that owning the stuff already would ruin it. Then it'd be a case of being stuck with possibly an even longer wait.

Hey whattayaknow ... it sold for a 'best offer' of $50. Even with the $35 shipping, that actually works out cheaper than it'll be when it finally shows up at retail over here in Europe.

i'm actually pretty bitter about that selling for 50 bucks...

the seller privately offered to sell me that leader megatron for 400 bucks and i told him no...i guess that's what i get for not asking if he'll take something else haha

Bumblethumper wrote:Hey whattayaknow ... it sold for a 'best offer' of $50. Even with the $35 shipping, that actually works out cheaper than it'll be when it finally shows up at retail over here in Europe.

optibotimus wrote:i'm actually pretty bitter about that selling for 50 bucks...

the seller privately offered to sell me that leader megatron for 400 bucks and i told him no...i guess that's what i get for not asking if he'll take something else haha

My guess is the seller and the buyer made a back door deal. There's no way he let it go for just $50.00.

Paranoid thinking? Perhaps, but it's realistic given the circumstances.

...unless the leak of Bulkhead and Megatron figures is starting to turn into a deluge and they can't move 'em.

EDIT: I was proven correct. He actually sold for $350.00
http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/showthrea ... 284&page=2

Ridiculous.

I don't get how having a figure or two early would give someone "bragging rights"...

Here's my thinking--
You want to try and rub in my face that you paid a ton of money just to get something that I'll get anyway for waaaay less????

In the end, to me, that person just ends up looking like a complete fool.
Not only am I not jealous of these people, I'm not even a tiny bit envious.

People have every right to spend their money however they want.
I get that.
What I don't get is when people waste money.

Sowndwave76 wrote:I don't get how having a figure or two early would give someone "bragging rights"...

Here's my thinking--
You want to try and rub in my face that you paid a ton of money just to get something that I'll get anyway for waaaay less????

In the end, to me, that person just ends up looking like a complete fool.
Not only am I not jealous of these people, I'm not even a tiny bit envious.

People have every right to spend their money however they want.
I get that.
What I don't get is when people waste money.

I agree with you on the bragging rights thing. I said that because a lot of people seem to have a raging hard on to be the best and first place winner all the time. (Some boards are worse than others, and no, I'm not talking about Seibertron.)

I wouldn't pay $400.00 for a figure that will be $40.00 in about four months, but I'd pay double if I wanted it right now. That's out of impatience, not prestige. Sometimes I'm willing to pay extra if I want it right now, but most times I'll wait for retail.

Another thing is, people don't want to do the shopping around thing anymore due to the cost of gas, the time wasted on fruitless searches, etc.

I finally said "to Hell with it" and started buying over the internet. I don't have the resources to waste looking for a figure or two. '08 Bumblebee taught me a valuable lesson and I vowed I'd not waste that kind of money on one figure again and so far, I haven't.

I certainly won't waste that kind of time either...countless hours down the drain for a figure I haven't picked up in over a week, and it was months before that.

Autobot032 wrote:I agree with you on the bragging rights thing. I said that because a lot of people seem to have a raging hard on to be the best and first place winner all the time. (Some boards are worse than others, and no, I'm not talking about Seibertron.)

I wouldn't pay $400.00 for a figure that will be $40.00 in about four months, but I'd pay double if I wanted it right now. That's out of impatience, not prestige. Sometimes I'm willing to pay extra if I want it right now, but most times I'll wait for retail.

Another thing is, people don't want to do the shopping around thing anymore due to the cost of gas, the time wasted on fruitless searches, etc.

I finally said "to Hell with it" and started buying over the internet. I don't have the resources to waste looking for a figure or two. '08 Bumblebee taught me a valuable lesson and I vowed I'd not waste that kind of money on one figure again and so far, I haven't.

I certainly won't waste that kind of time either...countless hours down the drain for a figure I haven't picked up in over a week, and it was months before that.

That's cool, man. If you really want something, I understand dishing out more for it.
But for me, even double of a price gets hard to justify when I plan on spending (imo) a lot of money on figures anyway starting in just over a month.

Because I wanted to try and budget some (and figure out how much I realistically want to spend from a bonus I'll be getting),
I figured out that if I buy 1 of each of the Animated figs. I want,
it'll be $340 before taxes.
And because I like to have some figs. left MISP,
I know there's at least 4 of them that I'll want 2 of, including Grimlock and Leader Megatron.
That's another $80 right there (for all 4, and I'm assuming I'll get 2 of more than that).

Not to mention, like my current Classics collection, I WILL get 2 of all of those figs. that I want from the Universe line.
That's another $190+, and that's not including if the could-be repaints like Smokescreen, Silverstreak, etc. are released.
Doesn't seem like that big of a deal, except again, I'll get 2 of each for sure.
I'm also considering getting the Target Comics 2 packs.
By then, that $40 is gonna potentially hurt the checking account.

Do I plan on using the Target coupon? Of course, as many times as I can.
But add on that I'm getting 2 City Commander sets, and those are immediately canceled out even if I can finagle using them every time I spend $25.
THEN throw in the variable that we don't even know what else will be coming out in '09 yet...

ALL of this is why there's no way I can justify going to ebay and dropping $60+ on ONE Sunstreaker.
It seriously just doesn't make sense.

Sowndwave76 wrote:

Autobot032 wrote:I agree with you on the bragging rights thing. I said that because a lot of people seem to have a raging hard on to be the best and first place winner all the time. (Some boards are worse than others, and no, I'm not talking about Seibertron.)

I wouldn't pay $400.00 for a figure that will be $40.00 in about four months, but I'd pay double if I wanted it right now. That's out of impatience, not prestige. Sometimes I'm willing to pay extra if I want it right now, but most times I'll wait for retail.

Another thing is, people don't want to do the shopping around thing anymore due to the cost of gas, the time wasted on fruitless searches, etc.

I finally said "to Hell with it" and started buying over the internet. I don't have the resources to waste looking for a figure or two. '08 Bumblebee taught me a valuable lesson and I vowed I'd not waste that kind of money on one figure again and so far, I haven't.

I certainly won't waste that kind of time either...countless hours down the drain for a figure I haven't picked up in over a week, and it was months before that.

That's cool, man. If you really want something, I understand dishing out more for it.
But for me, even double of a price gets hard to justify when I plan on spending (imo) a lot of money on figures anyway starting in just over a month.

Because I wanted to try and budget some (and figure out how much I realistically want to spend from a bonus I'll be getting),
I figured out that if I buy 1 of each of the Animated figs. I want,
it'll be $340 before taxes.
And because I like to have some figs. left MISP,
I know there's at least 4 of them that I'll want 2 of, including Grimlock and Leader Megatron.
That's another $80 right there (for all 4, and I'm assuming I'll get 2 of more than that).

Not to mention, like my current Classics collection, I WILL get 2 of all of those figs. that I want from the Universe line.
That's another $190+, and that's not including if the could-be repaints like Smokescreen, Silverstreak, etc. are released.
Doesn't seem like that big of a deal, except again, I'll get 2 of each for sure.
I'm also considering getting the Target Comics 2 packs.
By then, that $40 is gonna potentially hurt the checking account.

Do I plan on using the Target coupon? Of course, as many times as I can.
But add on that I'm getting 2 City Commander sets, and those are immediately canceled out even if I can finagle using them every time I spend $25.
THEN throw in the variable that we don't even know what else will be coming out in '09 yet...

ALL of this is why there's no way I can justify going to ebay and dropping $60+ on ONE Sunstreaker.
It seriously just doesn't make sense.

Oh, I completely understand that one. This is why I stopped getting into doubles, and stuff like that. It's costly enough as is. Other than Sunstreaker/Side Swipe, Ironhide (and perhaps Ratchet, if they make him) those will be the only repaints/remolds I plan on buying.

I don't mind buying Seekers, and brothers, but when it's a completely repainted figure to become a powered up version or something...no.

I just can't understand why people feel the need to pay $7845678947867896 just to say they have that something before everyone else! Braggin' rights are so 1985!


All the same, I think I will wait til HTS releases them all for $19.99 plus S&H...More my speed and less neener-neener involved!

I thought Hasbro was going after these asian sellers on ebay that are selling unreleased figures and prototypes?

Autobot032 wrote:Another thing is, people don't want to do the shopping around thing anymore due to the cost of gas, the time wasted on fruitless searches, etc.

I finally said "to Hell with it" and started buying over the internet. I don't have the resources to waste looking for a figure or two. '08 Bumblebee taught me a valuable lesson and I vowed I'd not waste that kind of money on one figure again and so far, I haven't.

I certainly won't waste that kind of time either...countless hours down the drain for a figure I haven't picked up in over a week, and it was months before that.

A very valid point. Depending on the value you place on your time, it can be cheaper to order online. If you live in western Europe, U.S. pricing is so cheap, and the dollar so weak that it can often be cheaper in actual money as well. I still aim to pick most things up at retail because it gives you the opportunity to pick one out carefully. Given the level of quality control.

I recently got a certain repaint over the internet, MISB, only to find it was missing a certain small part. In that case I had no choice, that store doesn't operate over here, but if I'd been able to pick it out, I wouldn't have got stuck with a dud.