The Energon Pub

fenrir72 wrote:I like what you did to MP Shockwave

Thanks! As soon as the Throne got revealed back in July, I immediately had the idea to do this.

JelZe GoldRabbit wrote:Walmart stopped carrying Leader Class, my Targets are stuck with Wave 2 with the occasional regular Rodimus. I won't be seeing Optimal Optimus any time soon.

Same here. Walmart doesn't have Leaders anymore, and my Target just got some Wave 2 Leaders for the first time. As far as distribution goes, I've seen
Prime Masters: Wave 1
Legends, Deluxes, and Voyagers: Waves 1, 2, and 3
Leaders: Waves 1 and 2
Considering that distribution here in WV usually sucks, I'm impressed that I've seen this much.

Ugh. Speaking of the Legends class...
I think quite possibly the absolute worst Power of the Primes toy has to be Skrapnel. Reissue a Thrilling 30 toy minus an accessory and without retooling him to have any real interactivity with the current line's gimmicks? BRILLIANT move there, Hasbro! Brilliant!

Every. Single. Other. Legends. Figure. In. The. Line.
Has been a scarce sight for me on my hunts.
Because that stupid bloody stag beetle has been clogging the pegs unwanted.

ZeldaTheSwordsman wrote:Ugh. Speaking of the Legends class...
I think quite possibly the absolute worst Power of the Primes toy has to be Skrapnel. Reissue a Thrilling 30 toy minus an accessory and without retooling him to have any real interactivity with the current line's gimmicks? BRILLIANT move there, Hasbro! Brilliant!

Every. Single. Other. Legends. Figure. In. The. Line.
Has been a scarce sight for me on my hunts.
Because that stupid bloody stag beetle has been clogging the pegs unwanted.

One of my Walmarts has Battletrap pegwarming. No joke!

JelZe GoldRabbit wrote:

ZeldaTheSwordsman wrote:Ugh. Speaking of the Legends class...
I think quite possibly the absolute worst Power of the Primes toy has to be Skrapnel. Reissue a Thrilling 30 toy minus an accessory and without retooling him to have any real interactivity with the current line's gimmicks? BRILLIANT move there, Hasbro! Brilliant!

Every. Single. Other. Legends. Figure. In. The. Line.
Has been a scarce sight for me on my hunts.
Because that stupid bloody stag beetle has been clogging the pegs unwanted.

One of my Walmarts has Battletrap pegwarming. No joke!

I think pegwarming often differs from region to region. I don't see many Battletraps or Skrapnels about, but have seen my fair share of Liege Maximi.

And back in TR, it was Nightbeat. Seriously, at one point, my local Target had so many Nightbeats that I could have bought one every day and it would take a month to get rid of them all.

Autobot N wrote:

JelZe GoldRabbit wrote:

ZeldaTheSwordsman wrote:Ugh. Speaking of the Legends class...
I think quite possibly the absolute worst Power of the Primes toy has to be Skrapnel. Reissue a Thrilling 30 toy minus an accessory and without retooling him to have any real interactivity with the current line's gimmicks? BRILLIANT move there, Hasbro! Brilliant!

Every. Single. Other. Legends. Figure. In. The. Line.
Has been a scarce sight for me on my hunts.
Because that stupid bloody stag beetle has been clogging the pegs unwanted.

One of my Walmarts has Battletrap pegwarming. No joke!

I think pegwarming often differs from region to region. I don't see many Battletraps or Skrapnels about, but have seen my fair share of Liege Maximi.

And back in TR, it was Nightbeat. Seriously, at one point, my local Target had so many Nightbeats that I could have bought one every day and it would take a month to get rid of them all.

That thing with NIghtbeat happened to many of us since he was in a revision wave

Autobot N wrote:

JelZe GoldRabbit wrote:

ZeldaTheSwordsman wrote:Ugh. Speaking of the Legends class...
I think quite possibly the absolute worst Power of the Primes toy has to be Skrapnel. Reissue a Thrilling 30 toy minus an accessory and without retooling him to have any real interactivity with the current line's gimmicks? BRILLIANT move there, Hasbro! Brilliant!

Every. Single. Other. Legends. Figure. In. The. Line.
Has been a scarce sight for me on my hunts.
Because that stupid bloody stag beetle has been clogging the pegs unwanted.

One of my Walmarts has Battletrap pegwarming. No joke!

I think pegwarming often differs from region to region. I don't see many Battletraps or Skrapnels about, but have seen my fair share of Liege Maximi.

And back in TR, it was Nightbeat. Seriously, at one point, my local Target had so many Nightbeats that I could have bought one every day and it would take a month to get rid of them all.

Oh, I've seen Maximo shelfwarming too. I just didn't mention him in that post because I was talking about the Legends class specifically. Maximo is a Prime Master, one size down.

The Battletrap duo shelfwarming is a shame, JelZe. And it also makes me jealous because I was lucky enough to find Battleslash a while back but I've had no luck finding Roadtrap.

If Tfwiki is anything to go by, I'm not the only one who's found Skrapnel shelfwarming at every store they check. And it's not surprising because not only is he something of a ripoff (due to the omission of Reflector), he's a complete and total misfit because he hasn't been modified to work with Prime Masters at all. No cockpit, no pegs, no nothing. Plus his being a bug makes his appeal to kids less wide than, say, Cosmos'.

ZeldaTheSwordsman wrote:If Tfwiki is anything to go by, I'm not the only one who's found Skrapnel shelfwarming at every store they check. And it's not surprising because not only is he something of a ripoff (due to the omission of Reflector), he's a complete and total misfit because he hasn't been modified to work with Prime Masters at all. No cockpit, no pegs, no nothing. Plus his being a bug makes his appeal to kids less wide than, say, Cosmos'.

But none of the legends come with weapons. Does that make them all rip offs?

william-james88 wrote:

ZeldaTheSwordsman wrote:If Tfwiki is anything to go by, I'm not the only one who's found Skrapnel shelfwarming at every store they check. And it's not surprising because not only is he something of a ripoff (due to the omission of Reflector), he's a complete and total misfit because he hasn't been modified to work with Prime Masters at all. No cockpit, no pegs, no nothing. Plus his being a bug makes his appeal to kids less wide than, say, Cosmos'.

But none of the legends come with weapons. Does that make them all rip offs?

No, because they were never designed or molded with them in the first place. Skrapnel, on the other hand, was designed and created with ittybitty Reflector as part of his mold - and he's an older mold with no alterations, so Hasbro already recouped their investment on his development. So a reissue that omits Reflector kinda feels like it's missing a piece right out of the factory, which is why I consider him something of a ripoff. And if that's not sufficient grounds for you, then hey - how about the fact that he wasn't retooled to fit the line at all? Say what you will about the others, good or bad, but they actually have the promised Prime Master interactivity. These same issues apply to the Titans Return reissue of Thrilling 30 Cosmos.

ZeldaTheSwordsman wrote:

william-james88 wrote:

ZeldaTheSwordsman wrote:If Tfwiki is anything to go by, I'm not the only one who's found Skrapnel shelfwarming at every store they check. And it's not surprising because not only is he something of a ripoff (due to the omission of Reflector), he's a complete and total misfit because he hasn't been modified to work with Prime Masters at all. No cockpit, no pegs, no nothing. Plus his being a bug makes his appeal to kids less wide than, say, Cosmos'.

But none of the legends come with weapons. Does that make them all rip offs?

No, because they were never designed or molded with them in the first place. Skrapnel, on the other hand, was designed and created with ittybitty Reflector as part of his mold - and he's an older mold with no alterations, so Hasbro already recouped their investment on his development. So a reissue that omits Reflector kinda feels like it's missing a piece right out of the factory, which is why I consider him something of a ripoff. And if that's not sufficient grounds for you, then hey - how about the fact that he wasn't retooled to fit the line at all? Say what you will about the others, good or bad, but they actually have the promised Prime Master interactivity. These same issues apply to the Titans Return reissue of Thrilling 30 Cosmos.

Say what you will, it's an easy way to complete the Insecticon trio, if you managed to get CW Bombshell and TR Kickback, but skipped/missed T30 Skrapnel. Reflector's omission is a shame, but I'm not that bothered: TF Adventure Sharpnel did the same thing.

JelZe GoldRabbit wrote:

ZeldaTheSwordsman wrote:

william-james88 wrote:

ZeldaTheSwordsman wrote:If Tfwiki is anything to go by, I'm not the only one who's found Skrapnel shelfwarming at every store they check. And it's not surprising because not only is he something of a ripoff (due to the omission of Reflector), he's a complete and total misfit because he hasn't been modified to work with Prime Masters at all. No cockpit, no pegs, no nothing. Plus his being a bug makes his appeal to kids less wide than, say, Cosmos'.

But none of the legends come with weapons. Does that make them all rip offs?

No, because they were never designed or molded with them in the first place. Skrapnel, on the other hand, was designed and created with ittybitty Reflector as part of his mold - and he's an older mold with no alterations, so Hasbro already recouped their investment on his development. So a reissue that omits Reflector kinda feels like it's missing a piece right out of the factory, which is why I consider him something of a ripoff. And if that's not sufficient grounds for you, then hey - how about the fact that he wasn't retooled to fit the line at all? Say what you will about the others, good or bad, but they actually have the promised Prime Master interactivity. These same issues apply to the Titans Return reissue of Thrilling 30 Cosmos.

Say what you will, it's an easy way to complete the Insecticon trio, if you managed to get CW Bombshell and TR Kickback, but skipped/missed T30 Skrapnel. Reflector's omission is a shame, but I'm not that bothered: TF Adventure Sharpnel did the same thing.

And I'm sure that was Hasbro's thought, but it's not like the T30 version was or is really rare or insanely expensive on eBay or anything (and that's complete with Reflector even) so I don't know that it was all that necessary to reissue him. The shelfwarming compounds the problem, because it means he ends up crowding out the truly new stuff that was actually made for PotP. Say what you will, you can't deny that Skrapnel is a blatant misfit in this line. Like, if they had so much as given him a couple of the little pegs for Titan/Prime Master and Decoy Armor feet, that would be something (and possibly help him sell better). I might give in and buy one or two the next time I see him packing the pegs... The Generations Insecticons might not be a big priority for me and it wouldn't make much of a dent, but it would at least contribute towards that slightly.

Emerje wrote:

ScottyP wrote:Conspiracy theory: between Jazz's alt mode and Counterpunch having a not-quite-Titan Master sized hole behind the chest plate, at one point these molds were going to be re-something'd into Laster and Braver.

Jazz started that theory rolling back when he was first revealed and there was speculation about what the next Deluxes in the line would look like was an unknown. It was looking like we weren't going to get another car, but I can definitely see Punch filling that role now. So where would the third figure, Blacker, come from?

Emerje

It just occurred to me that we're getting a new Mirage in Siege so there's our potential Blacker pretool.

Emerje

fenrir72 wrote:Just receive Punch a few hours ago and got to fix his "shoulders" (yup, mine's misassembled too)

<snip>

5. Oddity I noticed, his front hood panels that would be his shoulders, has an orange color stripe. Not sure if it is orange plastic painted over blue or blue painted over orange

<snip>

Thank you Hb/Takara for finally giving him this modern version from an already amazing concept back in the tail end of the original toy run

I noticed that oddity too. When I was perusing TFWiki on Punch, I noticed this image from the Japanese Headmasters:


(If no hotlinking is allowed, here's the Wiki entry.)

It looks to me to be an homage to the Japanese cartoon model.

[Edit] And as far as I can tell, looking at the slots that tab in on the shoulder, it appears to be orange paint on blue plastic...

(Also, I completely agree with your final statement there!

I will say that there is one thing I do like about PotP "Skrapnel": The blurb on the Alpha Trion version of his card. Moving on from him for now (though I do have an experiment I plan to try with G1 Shrapnel), here's a proof of concept:


On the subject of Prime Masters and Decoy Armor, here's a customization idea I wonder if anyone else has pondered: Making accessories based on the original Pretender toy's weapons (or fiction-only weapons associated with them), and making them alternate weapon tips where possible.

ZeldaTheSwordsman wrote:On the subject of Prime Masters and Decoy Armor, here's a customization idea I wonder if anyone else has pondered: Making accessories based on the original Pretender toy's weapons (or fiction-only weapons associated with them), and making them alternate weapon tips where possible.

Ranged weapons, do so! For melee like swords and whips, you should keep them standalone.

Speaking of Quintus, do any others have ones with loose arm joints on the Master itself?

Agamemnon wrote:

fenrir72 wrote:Just receive Punch a few hours ago and got to fix his "shoulders" (yup, mine's misassembled too)

<snip>

5. Oddity I noticed, his front hood panels that would be his shoulders, has an orange color stripe. Not sure if it is orange plastic painted over blue or blue painted over orange

<snip>

Thank you Hb/Takara for finally giving him this modern version from an already amazing concept back in the tail end of the original toy run

I noticed that oddity too. When I was perusing TFWiki on Punch, I noticed this image from the Japanese Headmasters:


(If no hotlinking is allowed, here's the Wiki entry.)

It looks to me to be an homage to the Japanese cartoon model.

[Edit] And as far as I can tell, looking at the slots that tab in on the shoulder, it appears to be orange paint on blue plastic...

(Also, I completely agree with your final statement there!

Well what do you know? A homage! Even the little things, quite a premium release indeed!

I got Punch/Counterpunch today, and he is pretty dang nifty! I did the shoulder fix, and the transformation is much smoother. I love the double spy, and now I have a version of both Dealer/Doubledealer and Punch/Counterpunch, so both double spies done!

The car mode is super seeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeexy!

Also, Prima went to Throne Optimal, so now I have all 16 Prime Masters with the Halo and Sceptor full!

I'm going to miss out on having at least one variant of all of the Prime Masters since I have no need for Predaking in my current collection.

Debating on whether or not to open my Optimal Optimus.

Rysquad wrote:I'm going to miss out on having at least one variant of all of the Prime Masters since I have no need for Predaking in my current collection.

Debating on whether or not to open my Optimal Optimus.

Release him from his plastic bondage! Toys are meant to be enjoyed with!

fenrir72 wrote:

Rysquad wrote:I'm going to miss out on having at least one variant of all of the Prime Masters since I have no need for Predaking in my current collection.

Debating on whether or not to open my Optimal Optimus.

Release him from his plastic bondage! Toys are meant to be enjoyed with!

Agreed!

mantra...
mustbepatient
mustbepatient
mustbepatient
mustbepatient
mustbepatient
mustbepatient
MUST!
BE!
PATIENT!!!!!

mustbepatient

Wolfman Jake wrote:

fenrir72 wrote:

Rysquad wrote:I'm going to miss out on having at least one variant of all of the Prime Masters since I have no need for Predaking in my current collection.

Debating on whether or not to open my Optimal Optimus.

Release him from his plastic bondage! Toys are meant to be enjoyed with!

Agreed!

here-here!

have u never seen Toy Story 2?

Counter/Punch has arrived!

Transforming him from Autobot to Decepticon is simplicity itself. Cool gimmick for sure. The hands are my favourite part.

But transforming him to a car, sheesh, almost impossible. So I did the "shoulder fix." I think it helped. But something is still a bit off with the tabbing, and therefore with the clearance.

Plastic of the the weird jetpack would have definitely been more appreciated as a "countergun." But the little guy with the spider face on his back, I can use, I guess.

Nice box.

Cyberpath wrote:But transforming him to a car, sheesh, almost impossible. So I did the "shoulder fix." I think it helped. But something is still a bit off with the tabbing, and therefore with the clearance.

Have you tried flipping the panel with the decepticon down when you put him in car mode? I found that helps greatly with clearance.

I found Blackwing in store today but sad like many his 2 rear wings are bent. Hasbro enough with the damn rubber!

Was anyone lucky to get one without this eyesore??

Nemesis Destron wrote:I found Blackwing in store today but sad like many his 2 rear wings are bent. Hasbro enough with the damn rubber!

Was anyone lucky to get one without this eyesore??

I've had mine for a while, but seem to recall mine were also bent initially right out of the package. The good news is that they seem to recover pretty easily, as mine are nice and straight now, and I haven't done a thing to straighten them.