The Energon Pub

for real Tf's, I have to agree about pretenders..


..how about the building in the movie "Big"? lol

-thats a tom hanks movie for those that don't know

The concept of a shoeformer doesn't seem stupid to me. Quirky, yes. But in a fun way. In regards to "stupid", I prefer to take "fun" out of the equation. Except if it just utterly fails.

How about Beast Wars Mutants? From beast to beast! Yeah, no thanks. Both beasts suffer from this and there isn't even a robot.

On a related note: Animorphs. Disney Label's got nothing on the original "crossovers". I can't even imagine what they were thinking with these. With Disney, at least you get characters you care about and two modes you *might* like. Not so with Animorphs. It's a fail on every level.

It got canned, so it might not count, but how about: Chrono Label? $300 watches that transform into blocky, unimpressive 'bots. And they aren't bots anyone even cares about.

I'll toss my vote for the Pretenders as well. In fiction they were "disguised" as huge humans. In toy form the robots were overly simple and the shells not very playable. The Classic Pretenders were okay, but I don't understand the logic with some of them. Starscream looks like some sort of viking and Grimlock ... why no dino mode? We had a bear, so why couldn't Grimmy have dinosaur shell? So they fail at being toys as well as failing in fiction.

I'm going to go with that Empire State building/robot Tom Hanks was playing with in the movie Big. As he said, and I paraphrase, what kid is gonna want to play with a building?

Do fictional ideas count?

Metroplex? Fortress Maximus? They're (a collection of) buildings, and they don't suck...

Valandar wrote:Metroplex? Fortress Maximus? They're (a collection of) buildings, and they don't suck...

srly, they're grails for most TF collectors.

shonenfan4 wrote:

Valandar wrote:Metroplex? Fortress Maximus? They're (a collection of) buildings, and they don't suck...

srly, they're grails for most TF collectors.

somehow i dont see the skyscraper in "Big" being a holy grail building.... i think its arm fell off too LOL

agent1159 wrote:

shonenfan4 wrote:

Valandar wrote:Metroplex? Fortress Maximus? They're (a collection of) buildings, and they don't suck...

srly, they're grails for most TF collectors.

somehow i dont see the skyscraper in "Big" being a holy grail building.... i think its arm fell off too LOL

Yea, but the said figure wasn't a TF, though I would like to own that thing though. Come on KO peeps.

I second Actionmasters. Transformers that don't transform......yeah right. It's like G.I. Joe being Russian. The Pretenders concept wasn't properly implemented in the comics. Giant humanoid Zentraedi sized beings won't spook you that much as compared to Zentraedi sized robots?

The Masterforce series was a bit believable when they implemented mass shifting to the shells.Hey, it worked for Soundwave and Megatron right?As for the organic monster shells, well they look even scarier looking than a Giant mechanical being no? So during the Neolithic period, their appearance really spooked the bejeezus off primitive man?

Pretender vehicles on the other hand, well double the firepower, double the protection.........that is transforming shells, GunRunner and the other guy, must have been prototypes to the concept.

Kiss Players........... bastardizing the Masterforce concept of chukon power only this was was lovey dovey kawaii.......ohhh heck aside from looking really cute, I can't find a logical explanation on what a kiss from an underdressed woman can do to power an energon guzzling mechanoid to life.

fenrir72 wrote:I second Actionmasters. Transformers that don't transform......yeah right. It's like G.I. Joe being Russian.

Surely you're not dissing the brave men of the OktoberGuard!

fenrir72 wrote: I can't find a logical explanation on what a kiss from an underdressed woman can do to power an energon guzzling mechanoid to life.

Never underestimate the power of a kiss from an underdressed woman. Just be sure she's old enough. I heard that Autolooper was put away for solicitaion of a minor!

zodconvoy wrote:Never underestimate the power of a kiss from an underdressed woman. Just be sure she's old enough. I heard that Autolooper was put away for solicitaion of a minor!

I lold .

zodconvoy wrote:

fenrir72 wrote: I can't find a logical explanation on what a kiss from an underdressed woman can do to power an energon guzzling mechanoid to life.

Never underestimate the power of a kiss from an underdressed woman. Just be sure she's old enough. I heard that Autolooper was put away for solicitaion of a minor!

I watched a Youtuber give an overview of the fiction of KP. Things make more sense now but it doesn't eliminate any of the weirdness.

Convotron wrote:

zodconvoy wrote:

fenrir72 wrote: I can't find a logical explanation on what a kiss from an underdressed woman can do to power an energon guzzling mechanoid to life.

Never underestimate the power of a kiss from an underdressed woman. Just be sure she's old enough. I heard that Autolooper was put away for solicitaion of a minor!

I watched a Youtuber give an overview of the fiction of KP. Things make more sense now but it doesn't eliminate any of the weirdness.

That's nothing compared to the people who review adult videos.

a giant **** robot killing machine who can turn into a regular human-sized walkman, stereo or pistol.

all the best g1 transformers were really great toys who ended up being ludicrously shoehorned into a slightly shoddy cartoon.

shonenfan4 wrote:

Convotron wrote:

zodconvoy wrote:

fenrir72 wrote: I can't find a logical explanation on what a kiss from an underdressed woman can do to power an energon guzzling mechanoid to life.

Never underestimate the power of a kiss from an underdressed woman. Just be sure she's old enough. I heard that Autolooper was put away for solicitaion of a minor!

I watched a Youtuber give an overview of the fiction of KP. Things make more sense now but it doesn't eliminate any of the weirdness.

That's nothing compared to the people who review adult videos.

Hehe, well, there are connoisseurs for all manner of things.

ryan.j wrote:a giant **** robot killing machine who can turn into a regular human-sized walkman, stereo or pistol.

all the best g1 transformers were really great toys who ended up being ludicrously shoehorned into a slightly shoddy cartoon.

Yeah, I love G1 but there's no denying the oddness of some of the concepts.

ryan.j wrote:a giant **** robot killing machine who can turn into a regular human-sized walkman, stereo or pistol.

all the best g1 transformers were really great toys who ended up being ludicrously shoehorned into a slightly shoddy cartoon.

The Takara G1 Browning is the most screen-accurate TF, because he was 1:1 with his toy size.

@zodconvoy yeah I know, but when you say "G.I.Joe, it is synonymous to good old Apple pie U.S. of A!.........Yo Joe! Like Oktober Guard (alright an American creation) is like well Russian beluga caviar or Vodka.

As for KissPlayers of which I own the complete set (except for the Sparkabots and Atariscream), which I so much thoroughly love and got trashed defending in another site is a vey amusing retcon on how Unicron's/Galvatron's power spread all over the earth and got absorbed into human females.

As for the power of cute, scantily clad or overexposed pantsu bearing ladies powering up mechbeings, well I know what power they hold over me

I find the hybrid concept of the Magical Girl and human/non-human "team-up" in KP interesting. I also think the way that Marissa Faireborn is worked into the fiction is neat.

The fan service aspect of KP is understandably eyebrow raising, though. Even as a reader of manga and watcher of anime for most of my life, that aspect of KP gives me pause.

Even so, the Autolooper/rooper is on my hunt list. I really like the base mold(that isn't saying much since I pretty much love all the figures of the Alternators/Binaltech line). It comes with a traffic cone gun and Kremzeek. How can I not get the figure?

If KP had featured more "adult" characters (hey, FF can get away with it), and Legion didn't have Henticles, it wouldn't have been NEARLY as creepy...

Valandar wrote:If KP had featured more "adult" characters (hey, FF can get away with it), and Legion didn't have Henticles, it wouldn't have been NEARLY as creepy...

^That I agree with.

One of Unicron's anti-bodies used "tentacles" to get try to get rid of Arcee and the gang(1986), well they weren't that creepy then , for the hentaicles, we should also lay the blame (thank YOU) on good old John Carpenter for it, but after "The Thing", it gave Toshio Maeda lot's of nasty ideas with them tentacles (okay not discounting the old Japanese folklore woodcut with the Octupus)and the rest is history..........(begining with the "Wandering KId",La Blue Girl etc)

I think it's the sum of the different odd aspects of KP that make things weird. The tentacles, the idea of kissing robots, the appearance of the female characters(saying they're 18 or older doesn't change the very youthful appearance of the characters due to the artist's style), various fan service/cheesecake-ish scenes, and anything else I'm unaware of. Any one of these things will make the average person react with an "Ah...okay...". All of them together prompts the more common reaction of uncomfortable awkwardness at the sight of the material.

No back on the topic, I'm more of the view of looking at some Transformers not as "stupid" in its idea or concept but more of a situation of poor design and/or execution.

Universe Classics Galvatron, for example, seems to be a mediocre Transformer at best for most people, myself included.

The alt mode is uninspired and doesn't suit the character background very well as it's a mundane vehicle while the character was originally a "space cannon".

The robot mode displays unappealing proportions with its legs taking up a fair bit of the mode and poor articulation in the arms and cannon.

The transformation design is fairly troublesome for many people due to the requirement of precise part movement. A lot of people report issues with the ball joints popping out of place during transformation.

In my opinion, the figure should have been a Voyager class toy rather than Deluxe. Simply increasing the size class could have reduced or eliminated many of its mechanical design issues.

fenrir72 wrote:One of Unicron's anti-bodies used "tentacles" to get try to get rid of Arcee and the gang(1986), well they weren't that creepy then , for the hentaicles, we should also lay the blame (thank YOU) on good old John Carpenter for it, but after "The Thing", it gave Toshio Maeda lot's of nasty ideas with them tentacles (okay not discounting the old Japanese folklore woodcut with the Octupus)and the rest is history..........(begining with the "Wandering KId",La Blue Girl etc)

Those aren't really tentacles per se, they're more like "small clips on metal ropes"

And there's a BIG difference between tentacles and hentacles.

Is it pretty much an arm? Tentacle.

Is it a tongue, or coming from the critters crotch, or tipped with a bulbous end that has a slit in it? Hentacle.

Henkei galvatron SHOULD have been a Voyager or leader.........period. And yet Powerglide gets the blown up size?

shonenfan4 wrote:

ryan.j wrote:a giant **** robot killing machine who can turn into a regular human-sized walkman, stereo or pistol.

all the best g1 transformers were really great toys who ended up being ludicrously shoehorned into a slightly shoddy cartoon.

The Takara G1 Browning is the most screen-accurate TF, because he was 1:1 with his toy size.

except his alt-mode which is 1:500 (or something).

The fault lies with the cartoon not the toys, which were clearly designed for ze kiddies to run around shooting mum, dad, the cat and anything else unfortunate enough to suffer Megatron's plastic wrath when he wasn't being a robot. That's a freaking cool toy, but makes absolutely no sense when replicated as-is on-screen! at least subsequent series realized this and made him a tank which is 70% less cool, but 100% less confusing.

Hasbro's scramble for any transforming toy they could lay their sweaty hands on has left g1 transformers with a mind-bending sense of scale that has stuck with the line ever since confusing artists and fans alike. as much as i love the old G1 cartoon, it was pretty much awful

i'm going to watch heavy metal wars and the girl who loved powerglide* again when i get home



*they both came on the same VHS way back when, and i've had to watch these two episodes back-to-back ever since. Nostalgic OCD or something i guess, plus they are both unintentionally hilarious.