The Energon Pub

[Cobotron]

*edited for horrendous nonsensical structure*

OK good. At first I didn't know what the HE!! you were sayin'.

[william-james88]

...we actually looked at six Leader scale construction vehicles and it was absolutely crazy!...

That...would have been...

Expensive.

And probably even simpler than the one we got.

Metroplex was also quite expensive (though a little cheaper than Devastator) and insanely simple. So simple that Fort Max, who is a G1 toy, has a more complex city transformation. The part I dont get is how he seems to have only been praised while this guy here gets scorned. Did he get a similar reaction initially? I myself still dont own him and dont wish to own him just because as a transformers toy, he really doesnt do much for me.

[william-james88]

*edited for horrendous nonsensical structure*

OK good. At first I didn't know what HE!! you were sayin'.

now I'm confused

[shajaki]

*edited for horrendous nonsensical structure*

OK good. At first I didn't know what HE!! you were sayin'.

yeah. good thing i have a tendency to re-read my posts. first day back on early shift. wakin up at 5AM has repercussions to my forum functionality apparently

[SlyTF1]

Can't wait. Now, will he combine in the way of the Combiner Wars figures, or is Hasbro reverting back to the less effective ways of combining?

[william-james88]

Can't wait. Now, will he combine in the way of the Combiner Wars figures, or is Hasbro reverting back to the less effective ways of combining?

While he wont be able to interact with the others, I suspect that the connections will be as well accomplished as the other combiner wars figures.

[a Cobra Viper]

I think Devy looks great...all this talk bout durability, design, etc..sheesh, cant we wait till we have it in our hands?? Its a 18" Tall Devestator that doesnt cost $600+ so Im good

And Mixmaster...they have him facing the wrong way on display at Toy Fair and he is based on a REAL WORLD mixer...granted, I had never seen one like it till someone posted a pic on here during the "wheres his cab" debate. My thanks to whomever enlightened us, and bravo, you were spot on brother!!

You, sir, are welcome.I was very surprised many people have never seen these types. I live in Southern Indiana so it shouldn't be some sort of crazy foreign design.

The cab isn't right, though. Looks like they still tried to make it a full size cab like G1 when the front pouring trucks I've always seen, and like the image you also posted, it should be a single seat cab.

Oh, well. Not a big fan of the robot modes, but alt and combined forms look great.

[william-james88]

Dont know if it's been mentioned yet but it's been confirmed through Ben Yee at the Toy Fair that Devastator will not be a TRU Exclusive and is actually destined for mass retail. Now, thats just on Hasbro's side. It could be that, like Metroplex, no one wants to have him in their store and he will only be at Costco, but still at least we know that there is a chance of getting him if there is no TRU in your area.

[Desslok2201]

You just dropped a big fly incrusted turd in my Cheerios. Breakfast is ruined. THANKS!

why are you here? you werent supposed to read all that!

I actually agree with a lot of what you sad.
Its all very telling of the times. The engineering has come leaps and bounds, but Hasbro has to deal with staying afloat in today's market. Price points, price points, price points! Price of gas, Price of doing business, yadda yadda and a hey hey hey.
The engineering has progressed, but the quality has most certainly regressed. We all have been seeing it over the last year. Since the Prime line. Heck! Since Cybertron quality has really gone down hill.
I actually, in a way, kind of sympathize with Hasbro. It's probably a hard place to be in. The designers want to go all out, but in the end, TRU, Target, and all the retailers hold all the cards. I'd like to be a fly on the wall just to see the reactions from the designers every time the get a revision due to cost issues. I bet they are pissed. which also means ultimately, they are on our side.

ive been enjoying posable TF's (and combiners) since late G2 and BW. why would i except less in 2015? these guys dont look like much more than blown up legends figures.

It's true. It's really unfortunate that this is the area they had to choose to cut back on.

You didn't really poop in my Cheerios, just in your pants while we ate breakfast together, buddy.

I'm glad someone came out and said it instead of dancing around it. The quality IS down on domestic TFs. I've gone almost exclusively to the MP line because of it, and I'm actually saving money. I hope that an MP Devy is on the way, because corners are not cut very often in that line, and I'm sure that will be amazing. I was really into this Devy when it first appeared at Nuremburg, but the more I see the less I like. The bowl of Cheerios is starting to look like cat litter instead.

[william-james88]

I'm glad someone came out and said it instead of dancing around it. The quality IS down on domestic TFs. I've gone almost exclusively to the MP line because of it, and I'm actually saving money. I hope that an MP Devy is on the way, because corners are not cut very often in that line, and I'm sure that will be amazing. I was really into this Devy when it first appeared at Nuremburg, but the more I see the less I like. The bowl of Cheerios is starting to look like cat litter instead.

I would like to point out that while quality is down, it is not entirely general. I find that the FOC line is generally cheaply made, with plastic that feels very thin and week but certain Prime toys felt amazing. Beast Hunters Ultra Magnus, all First Edition toys, PRID Vehicon and Dreadwing, all felt nice and not cheap at all. The Animated line is full of jaw dropping designs and came after Cybertron and I think all the Movie Leaders before AOE were showstoppers in their own right.

But its hit and miss, I mentioned the good ones but the ones I didnt mention, well... And as for last year, I thought the AOE Voyagers and the Generations Voyagers were all really good while the other classes felt cheaper. And for some reason, even though its the same mold, the Takara versions of the generations line really feel and look superior. If those releases replaced the ones we are getting, I dont think we'd be having this same discussion.

Lastly, I find the Combiner War deluxes a huge improvement over the quality we are discussing. Decent paint apps, nice plastic, and hefty toys.

[Cobotron]

But its hit and miss

Agreed. I can't speak for alot of Animated and Prime toys. I only have a smattering of both. The Ani toys seem solid to me, but the Prime toys I own feel thin. Now, I enjoy all of these toys.

Takara versions of the generations line really feel and look superior. If those releases replaced the ones we are getting, I dont think we'd be having this same discussion.

the Japanese market doesn't have the cost and pricing restrictions the Western market has. You'll notice that the prices of say deluxe class toys tend to fluctuate based on their production cost. Every deluxe here has to hit a price point.

Lastly, I find the Combiner War deluxes a huge improvement over the quality we are discussing. Decent paint apps, nice plastic, and hefty toys.

I whole heartedly agree, and am pleasantly relieved.

I want to point out that I, Cobotron am not trying to be a poopy pants. I like the way Devy looks. I'm goona buy him. I am just trying to asses the currant situation.

[Sabrblade]

...we actually looked at six Leader scale construction vehicles and it was absolutely crazy!...

That...would have been...

Expensive.

And probably even simpler than the one we got.

Metroplex was also quite expensive (though a little cheaper than Devastator) and insanely simple. So simple that Fort Max, who is a G1 toy, has a more complex city transformation. The part I dont get is how he seems to have only been praised while this guy here gets scorned. Did he get a similar reaction initially? I myself still dont own him and dont wish to own him just because as a transformers toy, he really doesnt do much for me.

I own Metroplex and only kinda like him. He is simple, yes, but that's not entire why I'm not too impressed by him. It's more of, because he's so simple and hollow, and because he has modern day levels of articulation, he's too unstable to properly play with. He bends over and falls over too easily with so much weight in his upper body making him quite top-heavy. and his altmodes are less than convincing enough, even if the same could be said about the G1 toy.

Even though Fort Max is far more of a brick by comparison, he's far superior a Citybot. Sorry Metroplex, but having stupendous articulation is no good without proper stability.

[Arctorro]

I own Metroplex and only kinda like him. He is simple, yes, but that's not entire why I'm not too impressed by him. It's more of, because he's so simple and hollow, and because he has modern day levels of articulation, he's too unstable to properly play with. He bends over and falls over too easily with so much weight in his upper body making him quite top-heavy. and his altmodes are less than convincing enough, even if the same could be said about the G1 toy.

Even though Fort Max is far more of a brick by comparison, he's far superior a Citybot. Sorry Metroplex, but having stupendous articulation is no good without proper stability.

Close, but not quite right. He is top heavy, but the weight isn't the issue, its the hip and knee joints, they a stupidly weak. The upgrade knees that guy over on TFW sells make that painfully clear. After I installed them they could handle the weight in ANY pose you care to think of (within reason ) but the hips collapsed EVERY time. I keep hoping that someone will make new hip parts so we can pose Metro properly. Guess it is more proof of Hasbro's joint quality dropping.

[Desslok2201]

I own Metroplex and only kinda like him. He is simple, yes, but that's not entire why I'm not too impressed by him. It's more of, because he's so simple and hollow, and because he has modern day levels of articulation, he's too unstable to properly play with. He bends over and falls over too easily with so much weight in his upper body making him quite top-heavy. and his altmodes are less than convincing enough, even if the same could be said about the G1 toy.

Even though Fort Max is far more of a brick by comparison, he's far superior a Citybot. Sorry Metroplex, but having stupendous articulation is no good without proper stability.

Close, but not quite right. He is top heavy, but the weight isn't the issue, its the hip and knee joints, they a stupidly weak. The upgrade knees that guy over on TFW sells make that painfully clear. After I installed them they could handle the weight in ANY pose you care to think of (within reason ) but the hips collapsed EVERY time. I keep hoping that someone will make new hip parts so we can pose Metro properly. Guess it is more proof of Hasbro's joint quality dropping.

Totally agree with that, but his bent over posture is just the 4th mode,'gastro-intestinal discomfort blast attack'

[william-james88]

...we actually looked at six Leader scale construction vehicles and it was absolutely crazy!...

That...would have been...

Expensive.

And probably even simpler than the one we got.

Metroplex was also quite expensive (though a little cheaper than Devastator) and insanely simple. So simple that Fort Max, who is a G1 toy, has a more complex city transformation. The part I dont get is how he seems to have only been praised while this guy here gets scorned. Did he get a similar reaction initially? I myself still dont own him and dont wish to own him just because as a transformers toy, he really doesnt do much for me.

I own Metroplex and only kinda like him. He is simple, yes, but that's not entire why I'm not too impressed by him. It's more of, because he's so simple and hollow, and because he has modern day levels of articulation, he's too unstable to properly play with. He bends over and falls over too easily with so much weight in his upper body making him quite top-heavy. and his altmodes are less than convincing enough, even if the same could be said about the G1 toy.

Even though Fort Max is far more of a brick by comparison, he's far superior a Citybot. Sorry Metroplex, but having stupendous articulation is no good without proper stability.

Thanks Sabr, I knew I wasnt the only one who thought this way.

[chuckdawg1999]

The lack of elbows doesn't bother me, as others have mentioned it clearly has to do with stability in the combined form which I feel should take precedence. I think people focusing on them are trying to find reasons not to buy it, which I can understand. I'm a bit disappointed that proper weapons aren't included but seeing as how this approximates the various vehicle attack modes I think that's kinda cool.

I still think these will see release as MP figures in Japan since DOTM Starscream and Bumblebee were released as MP figures there as well. Do I think they'll sell? Not sure.

[ZeroWolf]

Surely though they'll be sold as a sub line of the Japanese Masterpiece line

[Sabrblade]

I still think these will see release as MP figures in Japan since DOTM Starscream and Bumblebee were released as MP figures there as well. Do I think they'll sell? Not sure.

Except that those two could pass for being MPs due to their extremely high levels of complexity and realism found common in most MPs. These? Not so much.

[william-james88]

I still think these will see release as MP figures in Japan since DOTM Starscream and Bumblebee were released as MP figures there as well. Do I think they'll sell? Not sure.

Except that those two could pass for being MPs due to their extremely high levels of complexity and realism found common in most MPs. These? Not so much.

Yeah, I really dont see Takara doing this, considering their standards.

[Evil Eye]

Yeah. I can see a Masterpiece Devastator happening but this ain't it.

Honestly I wish Takara would take over with the toy engineering side again. Hasbro have been doing it long enough and they've produced some right stinkers (even Takara's amazing advert couldn't sell me on 1-step changers).

[william-james88]

Yeah. I can see a Masterpiece Devastator happening but this ain't it.

Honestly I wish Takara would take over with the toy engineering side again. Hasbro have been doing it long enough and they've produced some right stinkers (even Takara's amazing advert couldn't sell me on 1-step changers).

As far as I know Takara just gave the designing duties to Hasbro but they retained the engineering. They engineer all of Hasbro's Transformer products. Sabr, could you correct me if I am wrong.

PS: The designing is also shared sometimes and while Hasbro has a certain level of authority over it, it happens that the takara design takes over, and such was the case with Arcee which is practically a fully designed and engineered takara product, simply sold by Hasbro.

[Sabrblade]

Yeah. I can see a Masterpiece Devastator happening but this ain't it.

Honestly I wish Takara would take over with the toy engineering side again. Hasbro have been doing it long enough and they've produced some right stinkers (even Takara's amazing advert couldn't sell me on 1-step changers).

As far as I know Takara just gave the designing duties to Hasbro but they retained the engineering. They engineer all of Hasbro's Transformer products. Sabr, could you correct me if I am wrong.

Right. Hasbro usually comes up with the designs, while Takara engineers them. Though, there are exceptions. The MPs and Generations Arcee are examples of Takara having full control over the designs being a good thing. However, there is the other end of the spectrum, in which Takara has produced some highly unorthodox designs, like the Beast Wars Neo toys, the new-mold Car Robots toys, and the most recent examples (offenders?) of the Swordbots from Transformers Go!.

While Takara is capable of producing good things like the MPs and Arcee, they tend to more often come up with designs of the more unorthodox variety.

[william-james88]

Yeah. I can see a Masterpiece Devastator happening but this ain't it.

Honestly I wish Takara would take over with the toy engineering side again. Hasbro have been doing it long enough and they've produced some right stinkers (even Takara's amazing advert couldn't sell me on 1-step changers).

As far as I know Takara just gave the designing duties to Hasbro but they retained the engineering. They engineer all of Hasbro's Transformer products. Sabr, could you correct me if I am wrong.

Right. Hasbro usually comes up with the designs, while Takara engineers them. Though, there are exceptions. The MPs and Generations Arcee are examples of Takara having full control over the designs is a good thing. However, there is the other end of the spectrum, in which Takara has produced some highly unorthodox designs, like the Beast Wars Neo toys, the new-mold Car Robots toys, and the most recent examples (offenders?) of the Swordbots from Transformers Go!.

While Takara is capable of producing good things like the MPs and Arcee, they tend to more often come up with designs of the more unorthodox variety.

Yeah, like the Alternity seekers!

[Evil Eye]

I LIKE the Aliternity Seekers...

Granted I've never had one in hand but aesthetically I think they're pretty awesome. That said I am someone who unironically considers RID Side Burn a masterpiece of engineering so take what I say with a grain of salt...

[Cobotron]

Takara has produced some highly unorthodox designs, like the Beast Wars Neo toys, the new-mold Car Robots toys,

AHHHH! Some of my favorites! I might have to check out the GO! stuff, then.

Sabrblade, do you like these toys? Or are they to farfetched for your taste?
I know you like Beast Wars, what about Neo?