The Energon Pub

It's crazy. Was Cybertron like this? To my memory it wasn't.

Raymond101 wrote:It's crazy.

Crazy indeed. I'm seeing stars....screams. Starscreams...

Target can go to hell. The didn't order enough, or didn't order at all. They're simply pointing the blame finger at Hasbro to get people to shut up and stop asking.

tru's and kohls and even walmart has new movie toys? how do you think i got mine?
just took a little looking and patience

D: *too sad for words*

I've been wondering why all the shelves are empty. It's kinda hard to do new customs if I can't get material.

I hate the movie toys but whipeing everything else NNNNNNNNNNNNNOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Lapse Of Reason wrote:

brimy311 wrote:I so tired of ppl complaining about "dropping the ball". They knew the movie would drawl some interest, but nothing like this for the toy line. I think it is a good sign that they are hard to find, it proves that america really still loves TF. Plus, I enjoy the hunt for toys. If every store had every one I wanted, I would not get to enjoy the feeling of finally finding the one I am looking for.

I have been really lucky though, I got my 08bb back in early July and I picked up my G1 jazz redeco last wednesday.

It is easy to be tired of complaining when you are sitting high and mighty with a few figures.



Up until now, I have been very patient and editorially supportive with Hasbro. But this is getting ridiculous. With a major movie in theaters and strong desire for their product, they should have known to step up production to meet demand. They could not have been this blind.

I wonder if there are other circumstances affecting Transformer production right now. Maybe they switched manufacturers or had to seriously investigate their Chinese manufacturers for lead paint. Maybe there is a connection with the fragility of the current movie toys and Hasbro is changing or updating their manufacturing for those reasons. Either something is up and Hasbro is exercising their right not to inform the public, or they were just plain blind to the fact that the motion picture would fuel demand for their product.

I seriously have my doubts that they did not anticipate the demand. There must be a reason. A delay until mid-October is a very significant delay.

well if you factor in the contempt that most TF fans had for the movie before it came out and..... the good folks at Hasbro probly felt the same way and ajusted their production accoringly. they thought the movie would bomb

Pretty much the same thing has been happening in my area.

Target, Meijers, and even Toys r us barely have any TF's in stock. The only thing I usually see is maybe one or two voyager Rachets and a bunch of roleplay stuff.

Hell my Meijers had a opened Leader optimus prime (no box, just the toy) just laying right on the shelf at a discount price.

Thankfully I've had luck at my Kolhs and Walmart.

D-340 wrote:Actually the opposite is true. Target is trying to pass the buck because they didn't order enough of the stock the fans are looking for. They did like they do with other movie toy tie ins, order a bunch of the first run stuff, no matter what it is, stuff the shelves, and then let it sit until it sells. No new stuff gets ordered til the old stuff is gone, regardless of what it is. In this case, No matter what it is, if it's got "Transformers" on the box, and it's sitting on the shelves, to them it's not selling, so they're not ordering anything else til it does(in this case, they think mid-october will be the magic date cuz of the holiday season).

Ask Target or any other mass retailer why they have an over abundance of other summer movie toys. It's because of what I just explained. The only reason this Target put out a sign to pass the buck on THEIR screw up is, I'm sure, the managers are tired of answering angry 8am line ups, phone calls, letter bombs, ect. It's very typical for mass retail to watch the trend on similar products. In this case, movie toys do well initially, then all but stop. They expected Transformers to do the same, and were way off. This happens. What's crappy is that they post a note saying it's Hasbro's fault, when in all actuality, THEY dropped the ball. But being the fanbase is easy to blame Hasbro for everything, we get a reaction like we have here "Oh, see, it's all Hasbro's fault. Target said so. BOOOO! HASBRO!" When this is actually Target just covering their ass.

You're WAY off base here. Maybe you haven't been reading a lot of the threads on here about this situation so I'll give you the benefit of the doubt but I have been reading this forum a lot and I've seen countless post after post from people who have either talked to managers at Target, or people who work at Target, and they're all saying the same thing. They have tried re-ordering and Hasbro is denying their orders and telling them no stock is available. Hasbro is the one who gave them the "mid-October" date, Target is simply passing along the information because Hasbro has chosen to stay silent on this matter. Target isn't stupid, their employees might not know the difference between a voice changer helmet and a deluxe BB but the computer's know and the stock managers know, they wouldn't just hold off on ordering more stock for no reason, that doesn't even make sense.

I don't know how Kohl's is getting movie toys in stock all of the sudden and I've heard from a few people that Wal-Marts and TRU's and their areas have new movie toys but ALL of the Wal-Marts and TRU's in my city have been dry just as long as Target has. This isn't an issue with Target, this is a Hasbro issue.

Target has been empty for over a month now, but I still seem to find the exclusives every now and again. Even if just for them ... I'll continue searching there.

I picked up 2 G1 repaint movie SS's just today. There's no point in getting angry over something that we can't control.

Complaining to these people is pointless, their asses are WELL covered.

I got lucky today, my local target had one box of movie Deluxes, 2 Ultimate Bumblebees, and 2 Leader Brawls.

This is the most I've seen on their shelves ever.

Phenotype wrote:

D-340 wrote: I don't know how Kohl's is getting movie toys in stock all of the sudden and I've heard from a few people that Wal-Marts and TRU's and their areas have new movie toys but ALL of the Wal-Marts and TRU's in my city have been dry just as long as Target has. This isn't an issue with Target, this is a Hasbro issue.

Yea, that's pretty much the deal where I'm at. My Wal Mart has been dried out for about a whole month now (aside from old lines and those darn protoforms nobody wants.) My TRU has been empty of transformers aside from one day when somebody was able to get me Voyager Prime there. My OTHER Wal Mart has had NO transformers at all for about a month and a half. The last time I was at my Kohl's, all they had were some Bonechrushers and Brawls. I joined here because I loved the sightings system, and note: I haven't been able to do ONE sighting since I joined!


I don't want to blame anybody really. I think it's half Hasbro's fault, half the store's fault, and scalpers just aren't helping. Really I think it was just doomed to be a draught from the start.

Hey, who's going to be putting up "I survived the Transformers Draught of 07'" T-Shirts on Cafe Press?

Dude the Target over here has the same damn sign. And the TRU right across the street said that they wont be getting any shipments until september. Man this sucks! Unless KB drops there prices i wont be getting any TFs for a while. I think i may go insane. Do you think KB will price match?

Megatron_Wolf wrote: Do you think KB will price match?

Dont count on it, but if you got a flyer from TRU'S with TF prices, Kohls will! Kohls and kb are the same price $12.99


blkbitcloud1

Most of the stores in my area are empty as well. Some have moved the TF sections to less than 36 inches of shelf space. Many places are also including the Star Wars TF line in the same area so they can transition between the two.

I am including a pic of a Walmart here in Phoenix. Target, Toys-R-Us, are much the same...

texan_eagle_scout wrote:Most of the stores in my area are empty as well. Some have moved the TF sections to less than 36 inches of shelf space. Many places are also including the Star Wars TF line in the same area so they can transition between the two.

I am including a pic of a Walmart here in Phoenix. Target, Toys-R-Us, are much the same...

Hey, you got Voyagers there. That's more than a lot of stores can say.

I wonder when they'll start giving away Voice Changer Helmets with every $10 purchase of ground beef.

Autobot032 wrote:
Hey, you got Voyagers there. That's more than a lot of stores can say.

Yea. Other than the Voyager Optimus Prime I got and the ones I have, I haven't actully SEEN any voyagers with my own eyes for like two or three weeks now. And I've been going to the stores ALOT.


That's what it feels like Hasbro is doing to me right about now.

It's actually kind of ironic that most of the people who have 08 BB got him from a Kohl's you know myself included. Couldn't beleive my eyes when I saw the last one on their shelf. I asked about another shipment, just for kicks, they said they weren't sure.

If its hasbros fault that target doesnt have any figures, then why do some tru's have new figures, Kohl have new figures up the wazoo in some places, some people have found new figures at wal mart. So how is hasbro to blame when all of these other retailers seem to be getting at least some stock of some sort in?

I'm thinking each Kohls only received a couple cases. The only reason we've all found our beloved BBs there is because anyone that doesn't read these forums didn't think to look there.

Places like TRU and Target go through cases a lot more quickly.

texan_eagle_scout wrote:Most of the stores in my area are empty as well. Some have moved the TF sections to less than 36 inches of shelf space. Many places are also including the Star Wars TF line in the same area so they can transition between the two.

I am including a pic of a Walmart here in Phoenix. Target, Toys-R-Us, are much the same...

ironically i've seen the same pic too many times
hey man, check out our sightings forum, we got an az thread and it will help you find the goods. they are comming in, slowly but surely.

Phenotype wrote:

D-340 wrote:Actually the opposite is true. Target is trying to pass the buck because they didn't order enough of the stock the fans are looking for. They did like they do with other movie toy tie ins, order a bunch of the first run stuff, no matter what it is, stuff the shelves, and then let it sit until it sells. No new stuff gets ordered til the old stuff is gone, regardless of what it is. In this case, No matter what it is, if it's got "Transformers" on the box, and it's sitting on the shelves, to them it's not selling, so they're not ordering anything else til it does(in this case, they think mid-october will be the magic date cuz of the holiday season).

Ask Target or any other mass retailer why they have an over abundance of other summer movie toys. It's because of what I just explained. The only reason this Target put out a sign to pass the buck on THEIR screw up is, I'm sure, the managers are tired of answering angry 8am line ups, phone calls, letter bombs, ect. It's very typical for mass retail to watch the trend on similar products. In this case, movie toys do well initially, then all but stop. They expected Transformers to do the same, and were way off. This happens. What's crappy is that they post a note saying it's Hasbro's fault, when in all actuality, THEY dropped the ball. But being the fanbase is easy to blame Hasbro for everything, we get a reaction like we have here "Oh, see, it's all Hasbro's fault. Target said so. BOOOO! HASBRO!" When this is actually Target just covering their ass.

You're WAY off base here. Maybe you haven't been reading a lot of the threads on here about this situation so I'll give you the benefit of the doubt but I have been reading this forum a lot and I've seen countless post after post from people who have either talked to managers at Target, or people who work at Target, and they're all saying the same thing. They have tried re-ordering and Hasbro is denying their orders and telling them no stock is available. Hasbro is the one who gave them the "mid-October" date, Target is simply passing along the information because Hasbro has chosen to stay silent on this matter. Target isn't stupid, their employees might not know the difference between a voice changer helmet and a deluxe BB but the computer's know and the stock managers know, they wouldn't just hold off on ordering more stock for no reason, that doesn't even make sense.

I don't know how Kohl's is getting movie toys in stock all of the sudden and I've heard from a few people that Wal-Marts and TRU's and their areas have new movie toys but ALL of the Wal-Marts and TRU's in my city have been dry just as long as Target has. This isn't an issue with Target, this is a Hasbro issue.

If you are gonna quote me and try and take apart my argument, at least quote my full post. Especially the part were I said I was a manager, and I've done this before myself. I'm not making this up, I speak with some experience. But, if that's not good enough an explanation, I qoute this and ask a question:

Robinson wrote:If its hasbros fault that target doesnt have any figures, then why do some tru's have new figures, Kohl have new figures up the wazoo in some places, some people have found new figures at wal mart. So how is hasbro to blame when all of these other retailers seem to be getting at least some stock of some sort in?

I've seen this myself. My local TRU has Voyager Megatron(which is where I bought it) out the wazoo. The local Kohls in my area has all the new deluxes. How is that possible, if according to your logic, Hasbro hasn't manufactured enough product to meet demand? The answer: it's not. How could some have plenty of stock to go around, and others don't if there isn't enough product? If there isn't enough product, it's not possible. Everyone would be out if there were a shortage, but obviously there isn't a shortage if some do and some don't.

Let me put it another way. If you, or anyone else who has, spoke to the managers at Target, Walmart, ect. and got the truth, would you continue to shop there? If the manager had said "Look, we have enough Transformers movie products out there, if it's not what you want, go shop somewhere else. It's our policy not to order new product until the old product is gone, no matter what it is." instead of "Look, Hasbro isn't shipping enough product, it's their fault." I guarantee you would at least think twice about it. I'm sure these manager are sick and tired of answering the same question over, and over, and over. The easy(and most common) way of dealing with it is to push the blame elsewhere, so the company saves face and keeps it's business. It is in the managers interest to save face for the company. It's the company that pays them, not the consumer, not the distributor, not anyone else but the company. If said manager lost the company business, said manager would loose his job. It's the way of business in general, not just mass retail.

And, again, I speak from experience. I was a store manager for 4 years. I've done this before myself. I do know how this works. If you wanna blame Hasbro, if it makes you feel better, go ahead, I won't stop you. But, it's not Hasbro screw up. Mass retail dropped the ball.

Pretty much that pic is what I see each time I go to a Meijer (worst toy dept. in a store In my opinion) roleplay stuff, keychains and the 3 inch tits (yes TEH TITS), those tech gear stuff and real gear bots. I went to 2 Targets and a TRU when I read about the Cybertron n Classics outbreak, all I saw at TRU was the deluxe Cybertron Tardimus Primal I mean Optimus Primal.