The Energon Pub

Meh. I'm fine with the first version. At the high deluxe prices, I'm not double dipping.

It's not just the windows that's different, they actually went and corrected Kup's altmode colors:






The wheels on his legs are now gray instead of black.

I can't believe Hasbro is getting me to double dip on a Kup figure.

Rodimus Prime wrote:I can't believe Hasbro is getting me to double dip on a Kup figure.

I found that Kup to be a bad toy.
Yet me too.....

Sabrblade wrote:It's not just the windows that's different, they actually went and corrected Kup's altmode colors:






The wheels on his legs are now gray instead of black.

Sabr, what is “corrected” per say with the alt mode? The only difference is that they painted some of the sea foam green parts above the windshield turquoise, but that looks less accurate to the movie, as seen below. They had it right the first time. Also, the wheels should be visible at all on the shins, so wether black or gray, it’s still in accurate.



I would love to see some side-by-side comparison pics too, just to compare a d contrast better the colors used for the plastics and paints. They look to be different shades, it it’s impossible to really tell unless they are in the same picture with the same lighting conditions.

Wolfman Jake wrote:Sabr, what is “corrected” per say with the alt mode? The only difference is that they painted some of the sea foam green parts above the windshield turquoise, but that looks less accurate to the movie, as seen below. They had it right the first time. Also, the wheels should be visible at all on the shins, so wether black or gray, it’s still in accurate.

Sigh... gotta love different color models, right? Most of Season 3 was animated by AKOM, which is notorious for its errors in coloring, models and all other kinds of weirdness.

Jelze Bunnycat wrote:Sigh... gotta love different color models, right? Most of Season 3 was animated by AKOM, which is notorious for its errors in coloring, models and all other kinds of weirdness.

AKOM doesn't even factor here. Wolfman was looking at a TFTM screencap of Kup's altmode covered in heavy lighting and shadow.

It seems that there is still hope for SS and WFC Trilogy figures to be re-released sans cr@pple-damage paint (ignoring the "anime damage" that this new version of Kup is sporting, like a champ). I hope Galvatron and Springer get this treatment, and possibly some slightly repainted versions of "rare" characters from these lines, like the Seekers, Coneheads, and Earthrise Ratchet and Ironhide, etc.

Sabrblade wrote:

Jelze Bunnycat wrote:Sigh... gotta love different color models, right? Most of Season 3 was animated by AKOM, which is notorious for its errors in coloring, models and all other kinds of weirdness.

AKOM doesn't even factor here. Wolfman was looking at a TFTM screencap of Kup's altmode covered in heavy lighting and shadow.

Except that even taking the lighting into account, the uppermost part of Kup's truck mode cab in that shot is still obviously a paler green than the part with the windshield, with clear dividing lines between the patches of color. The areas of it that are lit are an exact color match for the area of the front right fender that's lit and are paler than the lit area of the section that connects to the bed (with a black line clearly dividing the colors), and the shadowed areas are still lighter than the areas of the windshield section that are in the same band of shadow. It's not just the lighting.

I'll give you a shot where lighting is actually playing a trick, though:

In this shot - which seems to be the only other full shot of the truck mode from the movie on the wiki - the upper part of the truck cab is the same color as the windshield section, as per the color model... but you have to look closely to not be fooled by the lighting into thinking it's lighter.

ZeldaTheSwordsman wrote:

Sabrblade wrote:

Jelze Bunnycat wrote:Sigh... gotta love different color models, right? Most of Season 3 was animated by AKOM, which is notorious for its errors in coloring, models and all other kinds of weirdness.

AKOM doesn't even factor here. Wolfman was looking at a TFTM screencap of Kup's altmode covered in heavy lighting and shadow.

Except that even taking the lighting into account, the uppermost part of Kup's truck mode cab in that shot is still obviously a paler green than the part with the windshield, with clear dividing lines between the patches of color. The areas of it that are lit are an exact color match for the area of the front right fender that's lit and are paler than the lit area of the section that connects to the bed (with a black line clearly dividing the colors), and the shadowed areas are still lighter than the areas of the windshield section that are in the same band of shadow.

Thanks, Zelda! You said it perfectly.

AKOM, though, is responsible for Kup’s shins sometimes being gray instead of turquoises in many post-movie TV episodes.

Wolfman Jake wrote:

ZeldaTheSwordsman wrote:

Sabrblade wrote:

Jelze Bunnycat wrote:Sigh... gotta love different color models, right? Most of Season 3 was animated by AKOM, which is notorious for its errors in coloring, models and all other kinds of weirdness.

AKOM doesn't even factor here. Wolfman was looking at a TFTM screencap of Kup's altmode covered in heavy lighting and shadow.

Except that even taking the lighting into account, the uppermost part of Kup's truck mode cab in that shot is still obviously a paler green than the part with the windshield, with clear dividing lines between the patches of color. The areas of it that are lit are an exact color match for the area of the front right fender that's lit and are paler than the lit area of the section that connects to the bed (with a black line clearly dividing the colors), and the shadowed areas are still lighter than the areas of the windshield section that are in the same band of shadow.

Thanks, Zelda! You said it perfectly.

Watching the whole sequence reveals that it's all the same color:





Along with many other shots in the movie:

Sabrblade wrote:Watching the whole sequence reveals that it's all the same color:

Sorry, no it doesn't. At least, not based on what you showed. All those shots you posted? Still show a definite contrast between the uppermost section and the windshield section. They don't all show it as matching the fender, but it's still definitely lighter than the windshield section (which is visibly darker than the top area even in the patches that are in the same light or shadow).

The screenshots you provide from the rest of the movie do obey the color model, but every single one of those shots from the victorious "Transform and roll out" sequence show the top of his cab to be darker than the windshield area.

Hmmm…I can see what you mean now, Sabr, but the lighting effects must have fooled the designers too. That’s pretty weird. Got any season 3 screen caps? I wonder if the SS86 release color scheme appears in the show and not the movie.

Wolfman Jake wrote:Hmmm…I can see what you mean now, Sabr, but the lighting effects must have fooled the designers too. That’s pretty weird.

It happens more than you think. Google Image searches bring up old fan-colored models from a Ukranian fansite that used that screencap for reference when coloring Kup's altmode:



These Ukranian models have influenced tons of toys' decos in recent years, thanks to sites like Pinterest and other fan Wikis (who aren't TFWiki) spreading them around the Internet.

Wolfman Jake wrote:Got any season 3 screen caps? I wonder if the SS86 release color scheme appears in the show and not the movie.

Best I could find (most were at bad angles, in terrible lighting, or from behind):

All I know is that I like the back wheels gray instead of black because it doesn't make the wheels stand out so much in bot mode.
I also prefer the gray color on the top of the torso around the neck area.
The windshield color is definitely good enough for me, and the extra details of linework are a bonus.
I do wish they would've added details on both legs, not just his right one.
*edit*
I just noticed to detail on his left bicep area... I get it, it's literally a small detail, yet I really appreciate that!

Again, I much prefer this new version and will be getting him for sure.


Down the road I hope to see a magenta Hot Rod, and a Galvatron that's a desaturated blue-violet, rather than an almost wine colored red-ish violet of the Kingdom version.

There are some nice side-by-side comparison shots of Cliffjumper circulating now too. The plastic for the windows is indeed now opaque, solid plastic, not “brittle” transparent plastic. The same goes for Kup and his energon goodies, it’s all opaque now. I hope we see SS86 Jazz get the same treatment in the Buzzworthy Bumblebee line. Maybe they could throw in his correct number too?

Wolfman Jake wrote:There are some nice side-by-side comparison shots of Cliffjumper circulating now too. The plastic for the windows is indeed now opaque, solid plastic, not “brittle” transparent plastic. The same goes for Kup and his energon goodies, it’s all opaque now. I hope we see SS86 Jazz get the same treatment in the Buzzworthy Bumblebee line. Maybe they could throw in his correct number too?

Any link to that?

sol magnus wrote:

Wolfman Jake wrote:There are some nice side-by-side comparison shots of Cliffjumper circulating now too. The plastic for the windows is indeed now opaque, solid plastic, not “brittle” transparent plastic. The same goes for Kup and his energon goodies, it’s all opaque now. I hope we see SS86 Jazz get the same treatment in the Buzzworthy Bumblebee line. Maybe they could throw in his correct number too?

Any link to that?

Just check the recent news posts on TFW2005.

It is a bit of a shame with the opaque windows, though. I like them for a bit of added depth and realism that goes along with the more detailed sculpting flourishes in modern Generations figures. The opaque windows look more plain and “cartoony/fake” on a real world object. I love how some recent figures have the inside of the windshields painted or against an inner piece of plastic with tech detailing to hide the messy robot kibble folded up inside. They could have done the same for Kup if they had used a colorless transparent plastic with a silver or light gray paint job underneath.

Wolfman Jake wrote:

sol magnus wrote:

Wolfman Jake wrote:There are some nice side-by-side comparison shots of Cliffjumper circulating now too. The plastic for the windows is indeed now opaque, solid plastic, not “brittle” transparent plastic. The same goes for Kup and his energon goodies, it’s all opaque now. I hope we see SS86 Jazz get the same treatment in the Buzzworthy Bumblebee line. Maybe they could throw in his correct number too?

Any link to that?

Just check the recent news posts on TFW2005.

It is a bit of a shame with the opaque windows, though. I like them for a bit of added depth and realism that goes along with the more detailed sculpting details in modern Generations figures. The opaque windows look more plain and “cartoony/fake” on a real world object. I love how some recent figures have the inside of the windshields painted or against an inner piece of plastic with tech detailing to hide the messy robot kibble folded up inside. They could have done the same for Kup if they had used a colorless transparent plastic with a silver or light gray paint job underneath.

Side by side, I'm not sure I'm as in love with Cliff as I am with Kup. Back in the day when these guys had screws holding them together I'd disassemble them and make the best representation out of both, but as it stands I'm bot sure that's even possible considering the gray on Cliffjumper seems at least a shade lighter than on the show.

sol magnus wrote:Side by side, I'm not sure I'm as in love with Cliff as I am with Kup. Back in the day when these guys had screws holding them together I'd disassemble them and make the best representation out of both, but as it stands I'm bot sure that's even possible considering the gray on Cliffjumper seems at least a shade lighter than on the show.

Even if the shade of gray is not exactly to your liking, it’s more accurate than the black arms and legs of the Earthrise release. The erroneous red on the shoulders and forearms is gone too. This repaint of Cliffjumper looks way more faithful to his cartoon model, in my opinion. Plus, the number of Autobot insignias has been increased to some from absolutely none, lol!

Wolfman Jake wrote:

sol magnus wrote:Side by side, I'm not sure I'm as in love with Cliff as I am with Kup. Back in the day when these guys had screws holding them together I'd disassemble them and make the best representation out of both, but as it stands I'm bot sure that's even possible considering the gray on Cliffjumper seems at least a shade lighter than on the show.

Even if the shade of gray is not exactly to your liking, it’s more accurate than the black arms and legs of the Earthrise release. The erroneous red on the shoulders and forearms is gone too. This repaint of Cliffjumper looks way more faithful to his cartoon model, in my opinion. Plus, the number of Autobot insignias has been increased to some from absolutely none, lol!

I agree he looks more faithful to the animation model, but the animation model is less clashy than what they ended up with. Also, just like with Kup but in reverse, I kind of think the original just looks better minus the lack of an Autobot logo.

I dunno. I'll probably change my mind at some point between now and getting to see it in the store.

TlDr; Both versions of Kup are valid.
And if one have both one could swap parts to have the "best" version.

-Kanrabat- wrote:TlDr; Both versions of Kup are valid.
And if one have both one could swap parts to have the "best" version.

Except that, with the use of pins instead of screws, it’s a LOT harder to mix and match parts now.

Wolfman Jake wrote:

-Kanrabat- wrote:TlDr; Both versions of Kup are valid.
And if one have both one could swap parts to have the "best" version.

Except that, with the use of pins instead of screws, it’s a LOT harder to mix and match parts now.

Goddammit.