The Energon Pub

Due diligence isn't an issue with what Hasbro is accused of not doing. Hasbro didn't violate any terms of agreement. Hasbro didn't commit any wrong doing. At this point, they are behaving "better" than Don Figueroa who is making a business matter into a personal matter on a public forum.

By Don Figueroa's logic, he is owed a phone call/e-mail/pat on the back/everything else he stated in his DA comments every time Hasbro uses a design he made during his tenure as a TF artist.

Don himself can't keep his story straight. He begins his airing of grievances by talking about how he perceives Hasbro "took" his work and didn't provide owed notice/acknowledgement/compensation.

Don Figueroa wrote:wow, and I thought only 3rd party companies take stuff without giving any notice, acknowledgement or compensation..

If you read his subsequent comments in his DA page with the Megatron art, you'll see him change his tone. He later admits Hasbro is within their rights to use the IDW Megatron stealth bomber design. He asks why he couldn't be included as he was when Hasbro developed the Titanium War Within Grimlock toy. For a person who so dislikes Hasbro's current administration, he seems to really want to work with them or be acknowledged by them.

He seems to be living in the past, wishing he would be treated today as he was when Aaron Archer was with Hasbro.

Convotron wrote:Rather than giving Hasbro a chance to say "Wow, you know what? We're sorry. Let us try to make amends.", Don is playing the victim and singing the anthem of creator's rights and corporate/big business injustice towards the "little guy".

And given he's trying to start up his own little universe which will most likely compete against the TF universe ... it just makes it sound even worse.

Actually I did a bit of thinking on this and remembered a few things.

There was this interview with him from a while ago, I think it was the one in which we saw the prototype of the Classics Voyager Optimus Prime design, just in Deluxe scale (alluding somewhat to that that was the original before it was later blown up to Voayger scale). In that interview he was asked how he felt about some of his designs being turned into toys or being the basis of toys, and he said that he feels kinda exited and cool about it but is mostly disappointing when the finished toy shows up.
he then cited instances of Hasbro toy designers excitedly telling him that they where basing Cybertron Starscream and Primus on his WW work. And those weren't official statements, but more in the sense that it was the guys actually working on the toys themselves that told him at Conventions and meetings in private.

Then of course he actually did work for Hasbro designing a few toys, like the entire Titanium transforming line, in some of those meetings he was approached by other designers who stated they where using his comic work as an inspiration for their toys.

Coupled with the fact that at the time he was like the hottest and greatest thing in our community since the beginning of the online fandom, well he was treated kinda like a god back then. Due to his amazing talent and success.

So I think he just got used to that and does indeed live in the past, and is now weirded out that he's treated just like anyone else of his profession. Kind alike I still have to get used to the fact that I no-longer have mod privileges and can't do half the stuff I'm used to doing on the boards. Like move threads to the right forum.

D@mn carbon based organic creatures.....how easy they forget their previous Golden Goose