The Energon Pub

There's a lot of non-transforming characters in Transformers. The line could have been used to make them. Like the TRUE G1 Nightbird, the Quintessons and Excecutioners, BW's Transmutate, ect.

There's also the humans and the original Action Masters like Banzaitron.

But "obscure" characters are unfortunately too high a financial risk. So we get the same old, same old.

Treetop Maximus wrote:It's like they're pushing to see how much they can get away with right now by bringing back non-transforming figures and having so much partsforming going on in Earthrise and Studio Series. Also, lol at that Megatron arm.

Other than the modulators (which are supposed to partsform) and the Cliffjumper derivatives, what partsformers are there in those lines? I actually can't remember.

Omegatron. wrote:

Treetop Maximus wrote:It's like they're pushing to see how much they can get away with right now by bringing back non-transforming figures and having so much partsforming going on in Earthrise and Studio Series. Also, lol at that Megatron arm.

Other than the modulators (which are supposed to partsform) and the Cliffjumper derivatives, what partsformers are there in those lines? I actually can't remember.

Leader Siege Ultra Magnus and Shockwave, who are basically just Voyagers with upgrade kits.

-Kanrabat- wrote:

Omegatron. wrote:

Treetop Maximus wrote:It's like they're pushing to see how much they can get away with right now by bringing back non-transforming figures and having so much partsforming going on in Earthrise and Studio Series. Also, lol at that Megatron arm.

Other than the modulators (which are supposed to partsform) and the Cliffjumper derivatives, what partsformers are there in those lines? I actually can't remember.

Leader Siege Ultra Magnus and Shockwave, who are basically just Voyagers with upgrade kits.

They're not in Earthrise or Studio Series. Also, I wouldn't count armour as partsforming, since that's how armour actually works.

I'll be picking up Soundwave with him being less than half the price of Netflix and likely the same with Prime depending on Netflix Primes final colors, though it will be funny to have a Prime and roller with no trailer. Could probably rubber band roller to REd Primes arm and pretend its a shield, might blend in with the Earthrise lot a bit better then

Megs arm in the pic is definitely bringing back memories of the quality of super SCFs though looking forward to Knockout and wherever else they pull characters from.

LunarBolt1984 wrote:I saw these RED figures too. They still look horrendous and are the new Action Masters.

The only problem Action Masters had, you see, is that they weren't BIG enough. With RED? Problem solved.

LunarBolt1984 wrote:I saw these RED figures too. They still look horrendous and are the new Action Masters.

No they aren't. Action figures was an actual line with new characters, vehicles and new play features. And still had transforming gimicks, just not on the main figures.
This isn't that at all, there is 0 novelty here. It's just non transforming action figures of popular transformers characters in the brand.

william-james88 wrote:

LunarBolt1984 wrote:I saw these RED figures too. They still look horrendous and are the new Action Masters.

No they aren't. Action figures was an actual line with new characters, vehicles and new play features. And still had transforming gimicks, just not on the main figures.
This isn't that at all, there is 0 novelty here. It's just non transforming action figures of popular transformers characters in the brand.

Unfortunately.
If those figures would have come with their updated Action Masters vehicles, I would have been all over them. Even at 100$ each.
But as they are, it's a disappointing meh.

william-james88 wrote:

LunarBolt1984 wrote:I saw these RED figures too. They still look horrendous and are the new Action Masters.

No they aren't. Action figures was an actual line with new characters, vehicles and new play features. And still had transforming gimicks, just not on the main figures.
This isn't that at all, there is 0 novelty here. It's just non transforming action figures of popular transformers characters in the brand.

I'd rather get figures like these for cartoon accurate figures rather than have panel messes with horrible backs like we've been getting from the MP line.

Railbomb wrote:
I'd rather get figures like these for cartoon accurate figures rather than have panel messes with horrible backs like we've been getting from the MP line.

For that purpose, they are indeed perfect. Plus, way, way more easy on the wallet.

Railbomb wrote:

william-james88 wrote:

LunarBolt1984 wrote:I saw these RED figures too. They still look horrendous and are the new Action Masters.

No they aren't. Action figures was an actual line with new characters, vehicles and new play features. And still had transforming gimicks, just not on the main figures.
This isn't that at all, there is 0 novelty here. It's just non transforming action figures of popular transformers characters in the brand.

I'd rather get figures like these for cartoon accurate figures rather than have panel messes with horrible backs like we've been getting from the MP line.

Wouldn't a cartoon accurate Optimus transform into a truck?

william-james88 wrote:

Railbomb wrote:

william-james88 wrote:

LunarBolt1984 wrote:I saw these RED figures too. They still look horrendous and are the new Action Masters.

No they aren't. Action figures was an actual line with new characters, vehicles and new play features. And still had transforming gimicks, just not on the main figures.
This isn't that at all, there is 0 novelty here. It's just non transforming action figures of popular transformers characters in the brand.

I'd rather get figures like these for cartoon accurate figures rather than have panel messes with horrible backs like we've been getting from the MP line.

Wouldn't a cartoon accurate Optimus transform into a truck?

He would. The R.E.D. figures only have "cartoon-accurate" robot designs, which is its main gimmick. I could see that work in a sense, after all other robot lines like Power Rangers have had non-transforming or non-combining robot figures for years.

Jelze Bunnycat wrote:

william-james88 wrote:

Railbomb wrote:

william-james88 wrote:

LunarBolt1984 wrote:I saw these RED figures too. They still look horrendous and are the new Action Masters.

No they aren't. Action figures was an actual line with new characters, vehicles and new play features. And still had transforming gimicks, just not on the main figures.
This isn't that at all, there is 0 novelty here. It's just non transforming action figures of popular transformers characters in the brand.

I'd rather get figures like these for cartoon accurate figures rather than have panel messes with horrible backs like we've been getting from the MP line.

Wouldn't a cartoon accurate Optimus transform into a truck?

He would. The R.E.D. figures only have "cartoon-accurate" robot designs, which is its main gimmick. I could see that work in a sense, after all other robot lines like Power Rangers have had non-transforming or non-combining robot figures for years.

While I understand how one could compare to Power Rangers, the major difference is taht it actually serves a really goo purpose there. RED Optimus is around the same size and articulation as Earthrise/Siege Optimus.
For Power Rangers, it's not that at all. You have the mechs and then you have a much smaller and more articulated figure of the mech. Every single Power Rangers episode has the bad guy turning giant and battling the mech. Kids can now recreate that effect by having a PR mech figure which is shrinked down to be the same scale as the bad guy, giving the impression that the bad guy is now the same size as the mech, and they can both pose similarly in a fight.

So it's a very different scenario, those Megazord figures are actually integral to the play experience and offer something you can't get with the standard giant 'transforming' megazord.

-Kanrabat- wrote:

Railbomb wrote:
I'd rather get figures like these for cartoon accurate figures rather than have panel messes with horrible backs like we've been getting from the MP line.

For that purpose, they are indeed perfect. Plus, way, way more easy on the wallet.

Agreed...
Although I like the MP line overall, I'll never get MP Optimus... Even though I just spent $250 on on a couple Lego sets, I can't justify $460 for one TF.
Either way, TF is somewhat unique because in one product they're supposed to have a solid bot mode, a solid alt mode, and the whole transformation- which should have some relative ease and enjoyment in the mix of that process. On top of this, is the attempt to try and make design decisions that not only appeal to the masses and collectors, but fit a specific budget.
At some point in all of this, something's gotta give.

I understand that transformation is probably the one aspect that makes these toys so cool.
Still, I don't quite understand the hate for this RED line...
It's not like it's taking-over and phasing-out converting figures.
Now, I have no evidence, but I highly doubt that this line is causing some transforming figure to be scrapped... Could it cause a transforming figure to be delayed? Sure, maybe. But if Hastak thinks something is going to make money, they're going to go for it.

And back to the compromise I mentioned, a series of figures like R.E.D. is one of the only real ways to get a cartoon-accurate robot since the other major aspects of a converting toy don't cause any compromises.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not suggesting that I think everyone should or would be into these figures...
But I'm also a little surprised a line like this didn't happen sooner.

Well, the main hate is that it's the SAME characters over and over and over again. They could do so much more with this line. Unfortunately, doing obscure non-transforming characters such as the human companions of the Transformers universes instead of the same 5 characters seem to be a finantial risk that is too high.

packaging/display of accessories is nicely done, RED Optimus Prime reviews out.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vN9wXE9SbRo

*sadly not what I was expecting or had the hopes of. New figures with joints that rival old super SCF lack of quality. Yay for modern engineering.

Size is definitely going to be a problem on these though stood next to Siege Ultra magnus it makes Magnus look the correct size with out needing thrid party leg upgrades. No transformation so they can be cartoon accurate yet the toy colors are off on at least the Prime so far. His inability to hold poses is a no go for me and looks like I'll be going for Netflix Prime.
Soundwaves been reduced to a maybe and if if the line lives long enough for Knockout hopefully it sees some drastic improvements by then.

Im not Redy to join the RED haters yet but the toys aren't doing anything to sell themselves at this point.

It's not a good sign when a reviewer decides to return them to the store rather than review them. Soundwave and Megs in box, sadly no comparisons yet to the siege toys.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cOIq_pEPjO4

We have news that the first wave of the new Transformers RED Series figures has been found at US retail. Matty found them at a Walmart in Arizone, these will only be found at Walmart. These are around the $20 price point. The initial wave has Soundwave, Optimus Prime and Megatron. They are all 6 inches.

If you have found them elsewhere in the US, share your sightings with our community in the sightings section and on our boards in your region related thread.

This sighting was reported on the TFW2005 message boards.

william-james88 wrote:We have news that the first wave of the new Transformers RED Series figures has been found at US retail. Matty found them at a Walmart in Arizone, these will only be found at Walmart. These are around the $20 price point. The initial wave has Soundwave, Optimus Prime and Megatron. They are all 6 inches.

If you have found them elsewhere in the US, share your sightings with our community in the sightings section and on our boards in your region related thread.

This sighting was reported on the TFW2005 message boards.

I hope most stores avoid these figures. Otherwise, they will eat up shelf space and prevent ACTUAL Transformers from being stocked. I can see RED figures clogging up shelves for months....

Most stores avoid stocking any toys at all so I don't think you have to worry about them either even being in most stores or pegwarming the ones they are in.

Grahf_ wrote:Most stores avoid stocking any toys at all so I don't think you have to worry about them either even being in most stores or pegwarming the ones they are in.

True. I think the more important thing to note is what's BEHIND those red figures in that picture...I do believe that's an Overload...

Can confirm these are hitting some places, I found the wave in Lynnwood WA this morning. I'm at least curious about these, especially if we're supposed to get stuff like Prime Knock Out, so I grabbed Prime and Optimus. I haven't opened them yet but they look like similar material to Marvel Legends so I guess I'll find out in a bit.

First-Aid wrote:

william-james88 wrote:We have news that the first wave of the new Transformers RED Series figures has been found at US retail. Matty found them at a Walmart in Arizone, these will only be found at Walmart. These are around the $20 price point. The initial wave has Soundwave, Optimus Prime and Megatron. They are all 6 inches.

If you have found them elsewhere in the US, share your sightings with our community in the sightings section and on our boards in your region related thread.

This sighting was reported on the TFW2005 message boards.

I hope most stores avoid these figures. Otherwise, they will eat up shelf space and prevent ACTUAL Transformers from being stocked. I can see RED figures clogging up shelves for months....

They are walmart exclusive so you won't see them elsewhere

First-Aid wrote:

Grahf_ wrote:Most stores avoid stocking any toys at all so I don't think you have to worry about them either even being in most stores or pegwarming the ones they are in.

True. I think the more important thing to note is what's BEHIND those red figures in that picture...I do believe that's an Overload...

I do believe you're right

First-Aid wrote:I hope most stores avoid these figures. Otherwise, they will eat up shelf space and prevent ACTUAL Transformers from being stocked. I can see RED figures clogging up shelves for months....

This is Walmart we're talking about, they don't have a clue how to manage the Transformers section. They could be selling WfC Battlemasters, but instead they're selling those same Guardian figures they've been selling off and on for nearly 10 years and a whole column of pegs worth at that! I hope the RED line is replacing those and not another Transformers line.

Emerje