The Energon Pub

Found this on tfw, make of it what you will, but, on top of the silence and lack of contradiction from fp, this seems tantamount to confirmation:

ciberw0lf wrote:

G.B. Blackrock wrote:

ciberw0lf wrote:I not sure this means Fupub is out. It could just be a change in the way they d membership in 2017. They could be eliminating the printed news letter since it is kinda pointless these days. Possibly changing club membership to align when FSS signup is.

As I said before, although it's all circumstantial evidence at this stage, this "change in the way they" operate explanation simply isn't plausible. All signs point to 2016 being FunPub's last year with the club/convention.

True, but the belief that whatever follows wiil be instantly better is crazy

I don't assume anything will necessarily follow....

The smoking twitter feed has been found!

william-james88 wrote:

YoungPrime wrote: No one knows what the full extent of Hasbro's plans are for that trademark so until I hear differently, it's still a possibility and it makes sense if only to save Hasbro the embarrassment of getting owned by 3rd Party companies at their own event.

Plus if it was just misplaced speculation then Funpub should've nipped this in the bud hours ago....

But we do. It was brought up in the recent google hangout with hasbro:

The "Cybertron Con" trademark was positioned as a successful convention in Asia and they wanted to protect the trademark as much as possible. Botcon 2016 is happening as planned.

I am not saying speculation for the end of TFCC is unfounded, I am pretty sure its happening, but its confirmed NOT to be related to cybertron con. That is all I meant and I would very much like it if we move on from the cybettron con stuff since it will invalidate any hypothesis presented.

The statement you're quoting actually doesn't confirm that Hasbro's acquisition of the Cybertron Con name is unrelated to the end of TFCC. It merely says that it IS related to something else. But the ideas are by no means mutually exclusive.

I sure wouldn't want to be a Hasbro staffer at BotCon next year, that's going to be a pretty tense situation with everyone knowing they killed BotCon.

What annoys me is that any of us that renew in March are going to be paying the same price but only getting five magazines instead of six since we've already paid for February 2016.

As for figure pricing, I know I'm being gouged, but I pay the price to get something that Hasbro probably wont make on their own. If you think the prices are fair then ask yourself this: How is it the US$42 subscription gets us six magazines and a figure with all shipping included, but the same figure in different colors sells for US$59 plus shipping? I'm sure they're still making money on the subscription so how can it be so "cheap"?

megatronus wrote:Look at eHobby's or similar figures - prices are just as if not more expensive on average, even in those figures' native markets.

In China, sure, for some reason Hasbro and Takara Tomy both jack up the prices on exclusives over there. But e-Hobby? Nope, not even close. Let's take a look at Deadlock. Currently Deluxe Legends figures go for MSRP 3,100JPY (US$25.63) on e-Hobby while Deadlock is 5,000JPY (US$41.33) a difference of only 1,900JPY (US$15.71). That is a huge difference compared to FunPub asking US$59 for a figure that would be US$17 were it at mass retail, a difference of US$42. They also offer flat rate shipping at 540JPY (US$4.46) and free shipping on orders over 10,000JPY (US$82.67). So really e-Hobby is an example of how exclusives can be done right and a model that FunPub should have followed.

Emerje

Emerje wrote:

megatronus wrote:Look at eHobby's or similar figures - prices are just as if not more expensive on average, even in those figures' native markets.

In China, sure, for some reason Hasbro and Takara Tomy both jack up the prices on exclusives over there. But e-Hobby? Nope, not even close. Let's take a look at Deadlock. Currently Deluxe Legends figures go for MSRP 3,100JPY (US$25.63) on e-Hobby while Deadlock is 5,000JPY (US$41.33) a difference of only 1,900JPY (US$15.71). That is a huge difference compared to FunPub asking US$59 for a figure that would be US$17 were it at mass retail, a difference of US$42. They also offer flat rate shipping at 540JPY (US$4.46) and free shipping on orders over 10,000JPY (US$82.67). So really e-Hobby is an example of how exclusives can be done right and a model that FunPub should have followed.

Emerje

Yeah, but when was the last time you saw a retool from eHobby?

You're forgetting that many TFCC and Botcon figures feature new toolings such as weapons or non-pretooled heads. Hasbro probably isn't going to jack around with any plates that they are still going to use, so the exclusives presumably have to get their own copies of the plates made rather then having extra bits added to the originals.

Deadlock is a great-looking redeco, but he's still just a redeco.

Yeah eHOBBY doesn't pay for any new tooling. Any new tooling they've used in the past is tooling available to them via Takara (like Magnificus' head was tooled with the normal Perceptor parts).

Randy

Hellscream9999 wrote:Found this on tfw, make of it what you will, but, on top of the silence and lack of contradiction from fp, this seems tantamount to confirmation:

Yikes... Not looking good, indeed.

Randomus wrote:

YoungPrime wrote:

Randomus wrote:Seems like a lot of folks expect their limited-run, heavily-painted toys with exclusively-retooled mold plates to cost the same as retail figures.

If you're going to have expectation/reality dissonances like that, I'd advise not getting married.

Hope you didn't gather all that from me simply saying "figures could be cheaper" because the irony here could be devastating.

The point of the joke is that plenty of fans (I wasn't singling you out) seem to create unrealistic expectations, then get enraged when reality doesn't meet them.

I get it; the toys are expensive, but as Megatronus wrote, that's the nature of the exclusive market. If another company (Hasbro or TT included) took the reins, it probably wouldn't change a that.

Yeah, their system got hacked, but whose hasn't? When Target got hacked, no one demanded that Walmart or Sears buy them out.

Don't take me for their lobbyist. I only have 2 of their figures...from eBay. Price is a legitimate downside after all, and I'm rarely interested in obscure characters. When we start cheering for a company's downfall, however, we're not talking issues anymore; we're creating a villain for ourselves to scream at.

If MTMTE can make things more complex than Good vs Evil, why can't real life?

Thanks for clarifying, I agree with some of what you've stated but if Hasbro's going to take the reigns only to do the same crap that turned off collectors in the first place then the h3ll with them to...

I'm not expecting retail prices but giving fans more bang for their buck, and better options from the start shouldn't be out of the question either.

The first thing that they should put in motion is doing away with making members buy 5 or 6 figures for $400 when they're only really interested in only 2 of the lot being offered. And to peak interest make at least one them a brand new mold (to which they could eventually repaint, remold and resell the h3ll out of down the road).

Can't speak for everyone but I personally have no desire in vilifying a company just for the heck of it. I'll applaud said company when they're doing well by the fans/colllector/etc. and call them out when it's the opposite. Yet all I've been reading are nightmare stories about Funpub's staff. From racist comments by the owner to poor treatment of special needs individuals at the convention itself on other sites. So it is what it is...

Knew it would happen eventually. I really wanted to support the TFCC but they really weren't appealing.

YoungPrime wrote:I'm not expecting retail prices but giving fans more bang for their buck, and better options from the start shouldn't be out of the question either.

Like what, exactly?

YoungPrime wrote:The first thing that they should put in motion is doing away with making members buy 5 or 6 figures for $400 when they're only really interested in only 2 of the lot being offered. And to peak interest make at least one them a brand new mold (to which they could eventually repaint, remold and resell the h3ll out of down the road).

I predate the Subscription Service, and remember when it first came out. It was a big deal. I'd rather get 6 additional figures per year than 0, and if an all-in Subscription model accomplishes that, why begrudge it? Think of the Botcon box set. That set is probably only financially viable if you buy the whole thing. Same is likely true for the Subscription Service. If you have evidence to the contrary, by all means present it, but your blind bluster is getting irritating.

YoungPrime wrote:Can't speak for everyone but I personally have no desire in vilifying a company just for the heck of it.

Actually, that seems to be exactly what you've been doing.

YoungPrime wrote:I'll applaud said company when they're doing well by the fans/colllector/etc. and call them out when it's the opposite. Yet all I've been reading are nightmare stories about Funpub's staff. From racist comments by the owner to poor treatment of special needs individuals at the convention itself on other sites. So it is what it is...

I don't think anyone here is *defending* their behavior, and if you have legitimate grievances, that's fine. But if you don't buy the figures, don't want the figures, or don't interact with the Club in any way, then it's best to step off. Especially if your only real complaint is price, well... the point was never to make affordable figures - that's what Hasbro's mainline is all about.

megatronus wrote:

YoungPrime wrote:I'm not expecting retail prices but giving fans more bang for their buck, and better options from the start shouldn't be out of the question either.

Like what, exactly?

YoungPrime wrote:The first thing that they should put in motion is doing away with making members buy 5 or 6 figures for $400 when they're only really interested in only 2 of the lot being offered. And to peak interest make at least one them a brand new mold (to which they could eventually repaint, remold and resell the h3ll out of down the road).

I predate the Subscription Service, and remember when it first came out. It was a big deal. I'd rather get 6 additional figures per year than 0, and if an all-in Subscription model accomplishes that, why begrudge it? Think of the Botcon box set. That set is probably only financially viable if you buy the whole thing. Same is likely true for the Subscription Service. If you have evidence to the contrary, by all means present it, but your blind bluster is getting irritating.

YoungPrime wrote:Can't speak for everyone but I personally have no desire in vilifying a company just for the heck of it.

Actually, that seems to be exactly what you've been doing.

YoungPrime wrote:I'll applaud said company when they're doing well by the fans/colllector/etc. and call them out when it's the opposite. Yet all I've been reading are nightmare stories about Funpub's staff. From racist comments by the owner to poor treatment of special needs individuals at the convention itself on other sites. So it is what it is...

I don't think anyone here is *defending* their behavior, and if you have legitimate grievances, that's fine. But if you don't buy the figures, don't want the figures, or don't interact with the Club in any way, then it's best to step off. Especially if your only real complaint is price, well... the point was never to make affordable figures - that's what Hasbro's mainline is all about.

Well it's clear which side of the line drawn in the sand you're on but ultimately it's irrelevant. Those issues and request are likely part the reason for Funpub's downfall so nit pick all you like, my feelings on the matter stands.

And unless you're a soon to be former employee of that company, which part of my requests wouldn't be beneficial to anyone interested? No one in they're right mind wants to pay ridiculous amounts for this hobby so take a breather on that Kool-aid.

This company has turned many people off for various reasons and it sounds like they're calling it a night next year. So if you don't like how I come across then tough! Too many other collectors feel the same way so make note of mine and don't read them anymore if it's that much of an issue.

YoungPrime wrote:Well it's clear which side of the line drawn in the sand you're on but ultimately it's irrelevant. Those issues and request are likely part the reason for Funpub's downfall so nit pick all you like, my feelings on the matter stands.

And unless you're a soon to be former employee of that company, which part of my requests wouldn't be beneficial to anyone interested? No one in they're right mind wants to pay ridiculous amounts for this hobby so take a breather on that Kool-aid.

This company has turned many people off for various reasons and it sounds like they're calling it a night next year. So if you don't like how I come across then tough! Too many other collectors feel the same way so make note of mine and don't read them anymore if it's that much of an issue.

You're completely missing the point.

It's not about being for the Club or being against the Club. That's a gross, binary simplification anyway. I purchase plenty of Club product, but it's not like I have any inherent loyalty to their organization. In fact, I dislike a great deal of what they put out (Shattered Glass - ewww), but I do think it's nice that there's a US-based company run by fans that produces exclusive content and product for people who choose to consume it. Whether that's FunPub or some other organization is largely irrelevant.

Really, my problem with your posts is that you don't even pretend to know what you're talking about. You have no affiliation with the Club, no affection for their product, and no knowledge of how much work goes into these exclusive or how much things cost (or what they reasonably should cost). These half-formed opinions that boil down to 'it's too expensive so to h3ll with them!' detract from the conversation.

At any rate. I don't avoid people who bother me. I troll them. That's what message boards are about.

Hellscream9999 wrote:Found this on tfw, make of it what you will, but, on top of the silence and lack of contradiction from fp, this seems tantamount to confirmation:

So does this mean we should go to Botcon this year?

mooncake623 wrote:

Hellscream9999 wrote:Found this on tfw, make of it what you will, but, on top of the silence and lack of contradiction from fp, this seems tantamount to confirmation:

So does this mean we should go to Botcon this year?

It would be amazing (and ironic) if the failure of the Club reversed the trend of flagging attendance.

Well, first 3H productions and now FunPub. Hoo boy, it has been an...interesting ride.

On the one hand, they've produced some pretty cool stuff, and the fact that there is (was?) an officially sanctioned Transformers convention is awesome.

On the other hand they've also produced some...not so cool stuff. Including, I might add, some of the goddamn ugliest headsculpts in the universe.

Delta Magnus wrote:Well, first 3H productions and now FunPub. Hoo boy, it has been an...interesting ride.

On the one hand, they've produced some pretty cool stuff, and the fact that there is (was?) an officially sanctioned Transformers convention is awesome.

On the other hand they've also produced some...not so cool stuff. Including, I might add, some of the goddamn ugliest headsculpts in the universe.

Only ones I'm disagreeing with here are Punch/Counterpunch and like half of Devcon and Metalhawk. The last two could be better with a better chin (Devcon) and slightly improved paint apps (Metalhawk). Guess you could throw in Punch/Counterpunch in that last one, too. Besides that, yeah.

megatronus wrote:

YoungPrime wrote:Well it's clear which side of the line drawn in the sand you're on but ultimately it's irrelevant. Those issues and request are likely part the reason for Funpub's downfall so nit pick all you like, my feelings on the matter stands.

And unless you're a soon to be former employee of that company, which part of my requests wouldn't be beneficial to anyone interested? No one in they're right mind wants to pay ridiculous amounts for this hobby so take a breather on that Kool-aid.

This company has turned many people off for various reasons and it sounds like they're calling it a night next year. So if you don't like how I come across then tough! Too many other collectors feel the same way so make note of mine and don't read them anymore if it's that much of an issue.

You're completely missing the point.

I stopped reading right there. You're point once again is irrelevant to me. You get my point and just don't like it. SO WHAT!

Meanwhile....Funpub is apparently ending and if so, then most people are hoping for a better replacement. DEAL WITH IT!

YoungPrime wrote:

megatronus wrote:You're completely missing the point.

I stopped reading right there. You're point once again is irrelevant to me. You get my point and just don't like it. SO WHAT!

Meanwhile....Funpub is apparently ending and if so, then most people are hoping for a better replacement. DEAL WITH IT!

My point is: you don't have a point.

WHINING! IGNORANCE! EXCLAMATION POINTS! DEAL WITH IT!!!

I like how all the people bitching are assuming the alternative is hasbro taking control of the fanclub and ignoring the possibility that there will be no more fanclub.

durroth wrote:I like how all the people bitching are assuming the alternative is hasbro taking control of the fanclub and ignoring the possibility that there will be no more fanclub.

Agreed. Perhaps without the "like".

Personally I hope FP enjoys that cold dead fish biotch slap from Karma.

Now i will bet you all that FP starts this PR spin that they are going to carry their "comics" in comic stores and try to do some yearly or quarter comic that will try to take over from the Crap they pawned off as membership comics that we received as part of the yearly membership subscription.

If botcon is done...so is the TFSS plan as hasbro is not going to just license the IP to FP to still crank out random repaints and new head sculpts.

i just can't see FP continuing to offer transformers after this goes down.

Can someone point me in the direction where it clearly states that FunPub have lost the license?

Because I can't see it, but apparently some of you guys can ...

Burn wrote:Can someone point me in the direction where it clearly states that FunPub have lost the license?

Because I can't see it, but apparently some of you guys can ...

You seem to want an official statement. None exists. None can exist, most likely, given the probability of non-disclosure agreements and such.

But look at threads on Facebook like the one on Pete Sinclair's account, or the non-responses given even when certain people in the know HAVE said anything at all since the rumors broke, and it really becomes an Occam's Razor thing.