The Energon Pub

News Credits: 1 · by **Lucky Logician** » Tue Apr 20, 2021 8:35 pm

Has anyone else seen the live-action Cutie Honey movie? Transmutate reminds me of when Scarlet Claw opens her mouth to shoot a laser out of it.

News Credits: 101 · by **-Kanrabat-** » Tue Apr 20, 2021 8:40 pm

Lucky Logician wrote:Has anyone else seen the live-action Cutie Honey movie? Transmutate reminds me of when Scarlet Claw opens her mouth to shoot a laser out of it.

Good catch!
And not only did I saw the movie, I saw it at the Fantasia festival in Montreal aeons ago. I even got the director to sign the page of the festival brochure where there was an article about that movie!

Ah, good times...

News Credits: 19 · by **blackeyedprime** » Wed Apr 21, 2021 5:16 pm

Mouth open reminds me of a halo spartan helmet.

News Credits: 56 · by **o.supreme** » Wed Apr 21, 2021 8:47 pm

I made the comparison a while back to newborn alien from Alien Resurrection, but it scares me too much to dig up the pictures

News Credits: 101 · by **-Kanrabat-** » Thu Apr 22, 2021 10:14 am

Greetings Seibertronians!
Prime VS Prime have just released the video review of Generations SELECTS Abominus! This version come with different paint aps than the original Power of the Primes original, and some new accessories notably a brand new chest part. The paint apps also hew more closely to the animation accuracy that Takara is known for.

Do you have this combiner on preorder? Are you thinking about getting it? Or is it just a "been there, done that"?

Let us know what you think!

News Credits: 56 · by **o.supreme** » Thu Apr 22, 2021 11:39 am

When the announcement was made about Volcanicus, it was extremely disappointing, not because I dislike the toy or character, but because it was a wasted opportunity for something new. Same goes for Abominus. I mean, I am all for Giftbox packaging (though these pale in comparison to the beautiful UW Boxes). I'm also all for Animation accurate decos. But this all just doesn't sit well with me. Yet, here I am, hypocritically with them BOTH on pre-order...I hate myself sometimes. Also. I know the track record of TT selects getting delayed by many months is to be expected, but if PvP has Abominus NOW, you would think it would be released via TT in about a month or so, then shortly after via Pulse. Currently the estimated release date for Abominus is 7/6/21 (this is the 2nd delay). *Was originally scheduled for end of March, then beginning of June.

I guess it will be a miracle if Volcanicus actually gets released on 5/6/21 PvP reviewed it about a month ago, but I'm not sure if it has been released via TT Mall yet.

News Credits: 23 · by **aronjlove** » Thu Apr 22, 2021 11:51 am

I had both pre-ordered but with all the other new stuff being released I have little incentive to buy these again. If Black Zarack wasn't released I'd still have the new Volcanicus on pre-order, but I have two titans coming so there went the combiner money as the Ark took the money for Abominus. I really like how they updated Hun-Gurr with the removable chest plate.

News Credits: 42 · by **TF-fan kev777** » Thu Apr 22, 2021 12:21 pm

o.supreme wrote:if PvP has Abominus NOW, you would think it would be released via TT in about a month or so, then shortly after via Pulse.

I think there is something else at play here. Every single Takara release (Selects or MP) has been delayed additionally a minimum of almost 2 months between when Takara releases them and when Pulse releases them going all the way back to the seacons.

It is almost like this may be intentional to give Takara a little bit of a head start on their own releases that Hasbro Pulse just facilitates. Either that or Pulse pays for the slowest shipping possible for Takara releases.

Forget container ships, rowboats are where its at.

News Credits: 101 · by **-Kanrabat-** » Thu Apr 22, 2021 12:26 pm

Personally, I would have been all over that Select Abominus set if I didn't already had the PotP original.

But since I do have it, I'm good. Especially for that premium price.

News Credits: 1350 · by **ZeroWolf** » Thu Apr 22, 2021 12:27 pm

PrimeVsPrime may have gotten him from here to be fair:

https://lm.facebook.com/l.php?u=https%3 ... o0b2VT_rCE

News Credits: 56 · by **o.supreme** » Thu Apr 22, 2021 1:18 pm

That's cool. I knew he was not a sample stealer, I never put him in that category, since he has talked about some other sites that have provided him product early. But I was not aware of which sites were able to get official product before the "home" company, for lack of a better term.

News Credits: 1350 · by **ZeroWolf** » Thu Apr 22, 2021 1:40 pm

o.supreme wrote:That's cool. I knew he was not a sample stealer, I never put him in that category, since he has talked about some other sites that have provided him product early. But I was not aware of which sites were able to get official product before the "home" company, for lack of a better term.

In Demand Toys is quite good like that apparently, as last year they were sending Skylynx, Scorponok and others out early. If I had the cash (and space) I would have preordered the Ark to see if the same rang true.

News Credits: 56 · by **o.supreme** » Thu Apr 22, 2021 2:24 pm

Yes. I remember Skylynx and Scorponok got to the UK early last year, but I thought it was just Hasbro having different distribution. I wasn't aware In Demand Toys was the source. That is a nice option to have.

MyFigureCollection.net collection · by **Emerje** » Fri Apr 23, 2021 4:25 am

I mentioned this last time it came up, but Hasbro Asia sometimes gets their stock of Takara Tomy Mall exclusives before TTM and Pulse, that's how stores outside Japan and Pulse's region (mainly North America) get them so early. Though in this case I don't think that ended up happening. Abominus did get delayed a few weeks, from March 30 to April 17 and that seems to be when InDemand Toys and Robot Japan started shipping theirs out. 3 month delays seem to be what Hasbro Pulse is dealing with and have been since last year like they did with the Seacons and Super Megatron.

About Selects releases of Volcanicus and Abominus (and to a lesser degree God Neptune), Takara Tomy usually does stuff like this to help fund something else down the road. Seeing as how these two share a lot of parts I'm hoping these will help fund Dinoking and/or Monstructor who we know has at least a few parts in these molds already, but would require two new bots to be done properly.

Emerje

News Credits: 101 · by **-Kanrabat-** » Fri Apr 23, 2021 4:45 am

Emerje wrote:About Selects releases of Volcanicus and Abominus (and to a lesser degree God Neptune), Takara Tomy usually does stuff like this to help fund something else down the road. Seeing as how these two share a lot of parts I'm hoping these will help fund Dinoking and/or Monstructor who we know has at least a few parts in these molds already, but would require two new bots to be done properly.

Emerje

Well, if they do release some more "original" combiners, I do hope they will finally bother to give the combiner legs STRONG and HEAVY ratchet joints so that the big robots don't flop around like ragdolls.

News Credits: 2 · by **partholon** » Fri Apr 23, 2021 7:50 am

i like the new paint apps and heads but TBH im glad i got the POTP version instead.

i agree with the notion of a missed opertunity to do a new fig too. i'd love to see a monstructor that scales with the other lads for once .

News Credits: 42 · by **TF-fan kev777** » Fri Apr 23, 2021 8:45 am

I'm sticking with my PotP verisons. There just isn't enough new for me to want to get these and sell off the PotP versions. It is really a shame, if these were available during PotP, I would have gone for these, but have no desire now with other things coming our way.

News Credits: 22 · by **Rodimus Prime** » Tue Apr 27, 2021 10:35 am

I'm struggling with a fundamental question.

Why should I get Black Zarak?

When Titan Scorponok was announced, I was overjoyed. Not because I love Titans, which I don't really. But because i loved the character from the Marvel comics. I know the toy represents the citybot from Rebirth, but I always wanted a proper Scorponok to go with my G1 Fort Max. And last year I finally got him.

I was never a huge fan of the Japanese G1 cartoons, the only one I like is Masterforce. And now the villain of the series is finally getting a well-deserved figure, a repaint of the best Titan figure we're going to get, IMO. So I would love to have him.

But if I get Black Zarak I will need to get Grand Maximus as well. For the first time ever, I actually have the means to buy a G1 Grand Max. But do I want to spend all that money when I won't be handling the figures all that much? I transform the Titans once in a while, but not nearly as much as the smaller ones. Or should I get Legends Grand Max, who is cheaper, but not screen-accurate?

Or should I bother getting them at all, since most of the time they'll be just standing on top of the book shelf, staring at me?

The Titan Scorponok mold is great, but I have very little attachment to the Black Zarak character, other than he was my favorite to watch in a show that I consider to be the least boring in the Japanese G1 trilogy. If I got him, my OCD demands I get a version of Grand Max to go with him. So is he really worth it?

News Credits: 456 · by **Sabrblade** » Tue Apr 27, 2021 10:53 am

IMHO, the G1 Fort Max mold is superior to the TR Fort Max mold. I got the Legends Grand Max figure after missing out on all versions of the TR/Legends Fort Max, and it was honestly the first Titan mold I was ever really disappointed with.

By contrast, I own both Encore Fort Max and Car Robots Brave Max, both of which use the G1 mold, and like both of them very much. But, with my having both (and with the Encore featuring all of Fort Max's accessories, including the two swords the Hasbro version lacked), I actually have no desire to own the 1988 G1 Grand Max. While the Pretender shell is cool, I also got that too via the last Fun Pub subscription service with Pretender Megatron.

In all honesty, Grand Max is probably the least interesting, character-wise, of the three. And he really wasn't much a rival for Black Zarak since it was God Ginrai who fought him more. Still, if the Titan class Scorponok mold is as good as people say it is (I still need to get it, myself), I'd say go for Black Zarak regardless of any Grand Maximus-shaped hole in your collection.

News Credits: 42 · by **TF-fan kev777** » Tue Apr 27, 2021 10:59 am

I had Legends Grand Max and sold him off last year. Had I known about Black Zarak coming out, I still would have sold him off, and I'm getting Black Zarak anyway.

The reason is simple, the TR Fort Max/Legends Grand Max mold is the weakest of all the titan citybots, and 1 (Fort Max) is enough for me. The Scorponok mold is the best of the titan molds, so I don't mind another.

News Credits: 101 · by **-Kanrabat-** » Tue Apr 27, 2021 11:03 am

Rodimus Prime wrote:I'm struggling with a fundamental question.

Why should I get Black Zarak?

If you ask the question at all you already know your answer: don't.
Especially for a 150$+ figure that will take lot of room.

As for me, there was no question. Only an INSTANT GET!

News Credits: 56 · by **o.supreme** » Tue Apr 27, 2021 11:49 am

I'm just a fan of the Japanese animated series all around. Black Zarak is a dream come true, and basically completes the Modernization of the Original Series Citybots for me. When I got Legends Grand Max, Black Zarak was an unlikely dream/hope, now its a reality, and I don't intend to miss out. My Titan Shelf will be effectively 100% complete. Metrotitan would be the icing on the cake, but I don't expect it.