The Energon Pub

That Bot wrote:

william-james88 wrote:The first Voyager Predaking is not a garbage toy like the others, hence why he didnt make it onto this list even if it was a top 25 or 50 but I didnt really know what else to pick for worst of 2013. Its not like that year was particularly bad for TFs. It had the Beast Hunter line and the Generations line wasnt at the FOC toys yet. But when you look at what came out that Voyager Predaking and Blitzwing do pop out the most simply for being very dissapointing.

Did you just say that the 2013 Generations line, which contained the tail end of FOC and the beginning of Thrilling 30, had not yet reached the FOC toys?

I had my wires crossed, I meant to write that the Generations line was past FOC, dont know how it came out so different. So yeah, 2013 wasn't such a bad year, it didnt have obvious stinkers. Kinda like last year. Sure, people dont like Motormaster and Breakdown, but these are far cries from any on this list, no?

And Beautiful List DarkEnergon!

Tells yer what, here's a list of the worst Transformers I've owned (in no particular number or order).


Energon Shockblast: This is actually a really good figure. Well articulated, great looking, nice plastic, fun gimmick, decent alt modes...but it's all for nothing because of that feeble waist. The hinge doesn't lock in anywhere and the hinge itself is too weak to support the massive weight of that cannon, so when he tries to do anything other than stand stock still he flops forward. Even worse, the hinge is so small that one false move will break him in two...which is what happened to mine.

Rest in pieces, Shockblast. Your sacrifice will not be forgotten.

Animated Ratchet: The robot mode is good. Not my favourite Animated design (that would be Oil Slick), but still good. The vehicle mode is nice looking. But dear god the transformation is AWFUL. Not because it's complex or intricate, but because the legs WILL NOT STAY TABBED TOGETHER for vehicle mode. Ever. The rear of the ambulance just loves to pop apart at the slightest provocation. On top of that the thigh swivels won't stop popping apart, and his (rather spiffy) tools have nowhere to go in vehicle mode.

Armada Hot Shot: Poor Hot Shot. He's actually fairly well articulated below the waist, and his axel cannon is kinda cool. But his arm poseability suuuuuuuucks. On the plus side, he does lose a few awful points for that headsculpt, which is absolutely hilarious. JaAm!

Beast Machines Nightscream: I got this figure off eBay as a kid when I was going through my "Must get all the bat related things!" phase (NOT inspired by Batman I hasten to add, but rather because bats are adorable). Boy was he a disappointment. He barely holds together, he's a bit of a brick and he's WAY too big to scale with anything. He's just not a good toy. At all. I love him anyway because his bat mode and his robot mode's headsculpt are kinda charming in an "ugly cute/gonk" sort of way. It probably helps I've never watched more than 4 episodes of Beast Machines (when I played with him as a kid I thought of him as a chilled, relaxed pacifist who just wanted to nibble on fruit- him being a bat and all).

Beast Hunters Lazerback: As a toy he's not that bad. His transformation is kinda lame to be sure, but his robot mode looks good and the beast mode is cool as hell. No, what damns this toy is the godawful plastic that was used. His shoulder balljoint wore out within minutes of opening him- just from regular posing mind you- and when I tried the superglue trick on the joint, a layer of plastic on the ball literally sheared off. I then hacked off the now useless balljoint and drilled a hole into his body and the socket, replacing the joint with a Revoltech joint...which worked for a while before the plastic of the body began to split apart. I've since removed the arm altogether and just used some pieces of paperclip, hot glue and purple translucent paint to make him look like he lost his arm in battle, which at least looks better than just having a cracked hole in his shoulder where his arm should be. Terrible toy or not, he wears his scars with pride!

Airachnid: I've said my piece on this toy before, so I'll just sum it up quickly. Airachnid is the worst thing I own. Or rather, the worst thing I owned, past tense, as an experiment in painting her caused her to crumble into shards of knockoff-level plastic. I'm not some LOL HASBLOW SUCKS LOLOLOLOLOL idiot, but I say without a shred of irony that Hasbro should feel ashamed for releasing this...aberration.

My poor animated ratchet also suffered because of his knee pegs, I'd barely had him 10 minutes and then the peg just broke as I was transforming him. Also whoever said about animated star scream, thanks I'd completely blanked him from my mind till you reminded me of him -_-

He could of been awesome but sadly the toy was not meant to be.

I'd still love a continuation of that style, even if it was just in its own comic

ZeroWolf wrote:My poor animated ratchet also suffered because of his knee pegs, I'd barely had him 10 minutes and then the peg just broke as I was transforming him. Also whoever said about animated star scream, thanks I'd completely blanked him from my mind till you reminded me of him -_-

He could of been awesome but sadly the toy was not meant to be.

I'd still love a continuation of that style, even if it was just in its own comic

Also while it is in a smaller scale, the Activators starscream is a really nice toy ad a good way to have a representation fo that character in that style in one's colelction.

And thanks Delta Magnus for that awesome list. I can totally see how Airachnid would be your worse. It is shameful that a toy like that was released in 2012!

ZeroWolf wrote:My poor animated ratchet also suffered because of his knee pegs, I'd barely had him 10 minutes and then the peg just broke as I was transforming him.

Funny, Animated Ratchet i didn't like because had trouble posing him, he was a little top heavy (and those stupid half-magnet arms). But I found him very fun to transform, and had no issues with it. But, as I think others have said here before, the first wave of Animated was full of manufacturing issues.

william-james88 wrote:Also while it is in a smaller scale, the Activators starscream is a really nice toy ad a good way to have a representation fo that character in that style in one's colelction.

Yes! Those animated activators are actually great little gems. Well, 50% of them. Optimus was nothing great, either.

But activators Starscream, Ratchet and Bumblebee remain two of my most favorite toys.

Now, since we're talking about Animated, on to Animated Megatron.

I could not believe he was #1!

Then I read the bullets and I was like, well, yes, well, yes, well, yes...

but for all his issues, he looked like Animated Megatron, was not a hollow shell of a robot like rid cliffjumper, and, never ever let this trait be underestimated oh display-case collectors...

He could stand on carpet.

I think at least 75% of movie-formers can't say that.

DarkEnergon wrote:Now, since we're talking about Animated, on to Animated Megatron.

I could not believe he was #1!

Then I read the bullets and I was like, well, yes, well, yes, well, yes...

but for all his issues, he looked like Animated Megatron, was not a hollow shell of a robot like rid cliffjumper, and, never ever let this trait be underestimated oh display-case collectors...

He could stand on carpet.

I think at least 75% of movie-formers can't say that.

Excellent points sir! And I had not thought of standing on carpet as a Pro (in a sea of Cons) so thanks for that insight, since its totally true that most of those movie toys wouldnt be able to. How much that is valued as a pro is of course up to the individual, but its an interesting notion I had not considered.

william-james88 wrote:

Ultra Markus wrote:i would put legends movie starscream in that list

Your right, its so bad.

Actually, I am wondering, of all the first movie legends toys, are any of them not garbage?

Well... personally I found Scorponok not only to be a great Legends-class, but overall I like him more than the Deluxe-class.

william-james88 wrote:

DarkEnergon wrote: Excellent points sir! And I had not thought of standing on carpet as a Pro (in a sea of Cons) so thanks for that insight, since its totally true that most of those movie toys wouldnt be able to. How much that is valued as a pro is of course up to the individual, but its an interesting notion I had not considered.

well funnily i got into collecting when my kids got all into transformers, and then I very very avidly encouraged them but seeing which toys *I* like and which they liked was always fun.

The favorite toys varied a lot, but the worst ones, not so much But yeah, if kids can't stand and pose the figures on their floor, then the figures probably aren't for them.

Personally, I wouldn't have been able to keep the list to one throttlebot. Each and every one of them belongs on the list. I don't see anything worse about the one picked over the others, if I had to narrow it to one it'd be Goldbug because he's supposed to be an upgrade but instead he's a MAJOR downgrade.

Zero points of articulation = zero worth as a figure. (imo)

Here's aother list of top 10 worst TFs. But its wrong since it doesnt have Airachnid. It also does not consist of only movie toys and actually includes twice the amount of G1 toys, yikes! http://www.therobotspajamas.com/top-10- ... mers-toys/

That's a pretty lame list. "This toy is bad because I DON'T LIKE IT AND IT'S UGLY. This non-transforming transformer marketed and sold as such is bad because IT DOESN'T TRANSFORM. This simple transformer for small children is bad because it's a simple transformer for small children."

Your list is better, WJ.

What an odd list, the arcee entry seems to be confusing itself between the 07 movie version and the rotf 09 version. Also I was expecting worse g1 choices...

Also odd armada prime was on there

That Bot wrote:That's a pretty lame list. "This toy is bad because I DON'T LIKE IT AND IT'S UGLY. This non-transforming transformer marketed and sold as such is bad because IT DOESN'T TRANSFORM. This simple transformer for small children is bad because it's a simple transformer for small children."

Your list is better, WJ.

Thts very kind of you. I dont like it either for the same reasons you pointed out. My whole list is looking at each toy based on what was in the transformers landscape at the time and thus they can be judged on their own merits (or in this case failures). But I did want to give those who didnt like my list a second opinion that was previously published.

ZeroWolf wrote:Also odd armada prime was on there

That was the one I couldnt understand. The rest, sure, they arent what you'd hope. But Armada Prime is just a new take on the character and a well thought out toy. I understand him not being the best but I have never ever heard someone saying it was straight up bad (especially compared to other toys in the armada line).

william-james88 wrote:

ZeroWolf wrote:Also odd armada prime was on there

That was the one I couldnt understand. The rest, sure, they arent what you'd hope. But Armada Prime is just a new take on the character and a well thought out toy. I understand him not being the best but I have never ever heard someone saying it was straight up bad (especially compared to other toys in the armada line).

Well he was whining about Hound being based of his movie look so.....

Microraptor wrote:

william-james88 wrote:

ZeroWolf wrote:Also odd armada prime was on there

That was the one I couldnt understand. The rest, sure, they arent what you'd hope. But Armada Prime is just a new take on the character and a well thought out toy. I understand him not being the best but I have never ever heard someone saying it was straight up bad (especially compared to other toys in the armada line).

Well he was whining about Hound being based of his movie look so.....

Haha, what else would a toy of movie Hound be based on?

william-james88 wrote:

Microraptor wrote:

william-james88 wrote:

ZeroWolf wrote:Also odd armada prime was on there

That was the one I couldnt understand. The rest, sure, they arent what you'd hope. But Armada Prime is just a new take on the character and a well thought out toy. I understand him not being the best but I have never ever heard someone saying it was straight up bad (especially compared to other toys in the armada line).

Well he was whining about Hound being based of his movie look so.....

Haha, what else would a toy of movie Hound be based on?

He doesn't care, as long as it's G1!

william-james88 wrote:Here's aother list of top 10 worst TFs. But its wrong since it doesnt have Airachnid. It also does not consist of only movie toys and actually includes twice the amount of G1 toys, yikes! http://www.therobotspajamas.com/top-10- ... mers-toys/

That list is horrible, poorly-researched and just plain BAD. William, yours is the superior list!

RK_Striker_JK_5 wrote:

william-james88 wrote:Here's aother list of top 10 worst TFs. But its wrong since it doesnt have Airachnid. It also does not consist of only movie toys and actually includes twice the amount of G1 toys, yikes! http://www.therobotspajamas.com/top-10- ... mers-toys/

That list is horrible, poorly-researched and just plain BAD. William, yours is the superior list!

I took hint from the opinions of the community here and it's thanks to your wits that my list is any good.

william-james88 wrote:Here's aother list of top 10 worst TFs. But its wrong since it doesnt have Airachnid. It also does not consist of only movie toys and actually includes twice the amount of G1 toys, yikes! http://www.therobotspajamas.com/top-10- ... mers-toys/

His list is out of wack. 3/4 of the toys mentionned there are actually either okay or amazing. For him, a good TF must be a MP and nothing else.

-Kanrabat- wrote:His list is out of wack. 3/4 of the toys mentionned there are actually either okay or amazing. For him, a good TF must be a MP and nothing else.

Agreed. Its nuts - and badly researched.

The Article Talking about Titanium Megatron wrote:This Megatron is based on the version from the IDW comic book series that tells a story of Transformers and G.I. Joe crossing over back in World War II

Something is wrong here... in fact... several things...

-Kanrabat- wrote:

william-james88 wrote:Here's aother list of top 10 worst TFs. But its wrong since it doesnt have Airachnid. It also does not consist of only movie toys and actually includes twice the amount of G1 toys, yikes! http://www.therobotspajamas.com/top-10- ... mers-toys/

His list is out of wack. 3/4 of the toys mentionned there are actually either okay or amazing. For him, a good TF must be a MP and nothing else.

Well, that is a pretty fair statement. The masterpiece line has set the bar pretty damn high. No regular figure can compare if your being honest.

Not gonna lie, that Robot's Pyjamas list was pretty dire. 2007 Arcee and ROTF Rampage on there? No mention of Airachnid or Armada Sideswipe? Invoking the "MY SUPER DEFORMATION ROBOT CAN'T DEFORM!" ebin maymay?

Delta Magnus wrote:Not gonna lie, that Robot's Pyjamas list was pretty dire. 2007 Arcee and ROTF Rampage on there? No mention of Airachnid or Armada Sideswipe? Invoking the "MY SUPER DEFORMATION ROBOT CAN'T DEFORM!" ebin maymay?

I think he meant ROTF Arcee but made a mistake with the picture (once again, not the best move if you want to be taken seriously).

Ironhidensh wrote:Well, that is a pretty fair statement. The masterpiece line has set the bar pretty damn high. No regular figure can compare if your being honest.

While it has, there are several figures which I feel would be on par. Of course, nothing CHUG since MP takes those to a whole new level, but different series with different styles have some figurs that are on par with MP inginuity. Like the Prime line (First Edition Cliffjumper), the Animated line (Rodimus Minor) and the Movie leaders and Human Alliance line. Granted, some movie leaders were rebranded under the MP line but that just goes to show that they were MP quality. That Leader Starscream, ROTF Prime, DOTM Sentinel, HA Jazz, those are on par with the MP line (and even designed by the same person).

But of course, every example I mentioned is not of the characters in their classic G1 look, that would always go to the MP line (though I still feel MP Tracks has as many Pros and Cons as the Alternators one, they are just attributed in different areas).

william-james88 wrote:My whole list is looking at each toy based on what was in the transformers landscape at the time and thus they can be judged on their own merits (or in this case failures). But I did want to give those who didnt like my list a second opinion that was previously published.

That's something I liked about your list in particular. You reached across the many iterations of the franchise and found duds from every era. You didn't pick on a particular toyline, but rather you gathered some of the worst offenders from all over the place. And of course, you put them in context. Most G1 toys, were they released today, unaltered, in a modern line, would be considered abysmal due to their poor articulation, awkward appearances, and other elements that have been improved upon in the last 30 years. At the time, of course, they were revolutionary, but even then there were some duds, and there are better articulated figures now that still make you wonder how they made it onto store shelves.

I'm looking at you, Airachnid.