The Energon Pub

[brokenchopstick]

But seriously guys whats the appeal with Wildrider besides G1 accuracy? (which is a damn curse)

He was always my least favorite Stunticon hell I like Blackjack and Offroad more than him.

I kinda liked his insane personality, even though it never really featured in the comics much, it always stuck with me (oddly enough, it got him killed in one storyline):



Also, I dig those head spikes.

Depending on the mold that comes out, I might be tempted to repaint Off-Road as Ruckus so everyone wins!

[Yotsuyasan]

Everybody cancel your Takara pre-orders and flush your Alpha Bravos down the toilet !

Eh, I'll keep my Takara pre-order. It really isn't that much more, I like the decos better, and I'll get all five in one package rather then having to go on the hunt and take the chance of not finding one or two of the figures. (I did finally find an Optimus, but I still haven't seen a Silverbolt in the wild.)

And even if I owned an Alpha Bravo... Really? I'd hate to risk damaging my toilet. I wouldn't recommend that, at all.

So now who are these "emerging channels" ? Some little stores only found in middle America ?

I have a feeling the 'smaller stores' are going to be selling them at an inflated markup, 20 or higher...

Yes, I was going to express this concern as well. As much as in my heart I'd like to support specialty toy stores or comic stores that also sell toys, I'd have to agree that they do have a habit of inflating their prices a bit. I've literally seen cases where I've been browsing such a store and have seen some deluxe figure on one of their pegs that I've just seen at a Target or Walmart (so it isn't as if it is even some rare figure), and it was marked in the $20 - $25 range. Such stores definitely take note of what the S in MSRP stands for, and reply, "Excellent suggestion, now let's add a few bucks to that!"

Not to say such stores aren't perfectly fine for older or rarer stuff... But for a new deluxe figure? No thank you.

It seems that everybody is ok with Groove not being Defensor's leg anymore, right?

Am I okay with it? Eh, it is more a case of, "I can live with it." At least Groove is still a part of the team. But if Takara announces a Deluxe Groove before the Hasbro version of the team becomes available and I start purchasing the Protectobots... Well, then, I may have to think about things. But I will admit it may still be a coin toss, as opposed to Superion where Takara's was almost no contest.

[Va'al]

More Alpha Bravo for everyone!




---wait, wrong news?

[Yotsuyasan]

More Alpha Bravo for everyone!

Hey, I told you what needs to happen for one to end up in my collection. Just let me know if I need to keep an eye on my mailbox.

(Although, frankly, since I haven't given it to you, I would be slightly concerned how you acquired my address...)

[Va'al]

More Alpha Bravo for everyone!

Hey, I told you what needs to happen for one to end up in my collection. Just let me know if I need to keep an eye on my mailbox.

(Although, frankly, since I haven't given it to you, I would be slightly concerned how you acquired my address...)

[Rodimus Prime]

I hope he has an accident and falls on that knife.

[munkimus prime]

Alpha Bravo isn't being a very good role model for the kids if keeps weilding knifes like that.

I may get Slingshot but I can wait but I like Alpha Bravo more (even with his unsafe use of kitchen knifes). I'm going to be all over Wildrider though.

[Va'al]

Alpha Bravo isn't being a very good role model for the kids if keeps weilding knifes like that.

I may get Slingshot but I can wait but I like Alpha Bravo more (even with his unsafe use of kitchen knifes). I'm going to be all over Wildrider though.

What knives..?

[Deadput]

Alpha Bravo isn't being a very good role model for the kids if keeps weilding knifes like that.

I may get Slingshot but I can wait but I like Alpha Bravo more (even with his unsafe use of kitchen knifes). I'm going to be all over Wildrider though.

What knives..?

It's obviously a Spork donated from Delta Charlie.

[robotmel]

Hello Hasbro UK.

I just need a black foot/fisted Air Raid and Slingshot to finish my Superion.

Is that alright?

Cheers.

Mel.

[Va'al]

Hello Hasbro UK.

I just need a black foot/fisted Air Raid to finish my Superion.

There. That looks better.

[william-james88]

Am I okay with it? Eh, it is more a case of, "I can live with it." At least Groove is still a part of the team. But if Takara announces a Deluxe Groove before the Hasbro version of the team becomes available and I start purchasing the Protectobots... Well, then, I may have to think about things. But I will admit it may still be a coin toss, as opposed to Superion where Takara's was almost no contest.

Totally agree. We always said scale is a non issue with TFs and I am able to live with the goofiness of having a motorcycle the size of a police car. The G1 groove was not a great toy and I would be curious to see how it would be interpretd in the deluxe class today. Sadly, we still dont know...

Also, I really don't like rook's hand ports, it makes him look unfinished to me. No one seems to shares my opinion though. And, last thing, if a motorcycle was deemed out of scale with a police car, then what is an armoured SWAT vehicle doing there? If anyone answers "scale doesnt matter with TFs", great! So give me a deluxe groove.

Sorry for answering a question from a few pages ago. I care for the toys most and I wouldnt mind new characters if they were cool new molds, but each of them so far is something that is repurposed or not to my taste.

One thing I would like to mention to collectors out there is that while the new characters are obviously not from G1, these being their first toys ever makes them collectable all the same. Of all the AOE Dinobots, Scorn rose up pretty high on the secondary market. And if Alpha Bravo ends up becoming a more prominant character in the transformer lore, this toy will become quite valuable. In the collectables business, its usually the first stuff that is worth more, regardless of the interest or popularity at the time (anyone check the price of Cerebus #1 recently?). Of course, rarity and popularity is also a factor in secondary market prices so the "wildrider" and "slingshot" toys are just as good an investment simply because they wont be mass retail.

I play with my toys, so I am not in for profitting off secondary market prices, but I wanted to mention that there is an argument for both the G1 faithful characters and new characters toys to be as important and wanted in the future.

[Va'al]

And if Alpha Bravo ends up becoming a more prominent character in the transformer lore, this toy will become quite VAALuable.

Already is, mon ami. Already is.

[worldsgreatest]

A very trusted anonymous source just let me know some exciting information about two highly anticipated Combiner Wars figures. Deluxe Class Slingshot and Wildrider are indeed coming down the pipes. Neither figure will be sold at big box stores apparently and will only be sold in solid cases of 8 through smaller stores (which Hasbro refers to as "emerging channels" or "emerging markets"). Slingshot will be sold as Quickslinger and Wildrider will be sold as Brake-Neck. Fans of the Kre-o Transformers line will be quick to notice that both names were used for those characters in the previously released blind-packs recently. May 22nd is the targeted street date for these items, but that is subject to change. More information and pictures about Quickslinger and Brake-Neck will be posted right here on Seibertron.com as soon as anything new becomes available.

Can you clarify what kind of smaller stores at all? Are we talking Online only or any physical stores?

It sounds like smaller stores ... probably stores that order wholesale from distributors outside of Hasbro directly. I'm thinking comic book stores, local toy shops, etc. Possibly market 6 stores but it didn't sound like it. Whatever falls under what Hasbro calls as "emerging channels".

From what I read on another site this is either specifically (or shared with) Diamond. More to the point these are definitely going to be offered to specialty retailers through Previews.

So bug your local shops to order! No hunting around. Downside is again: they will only be offered in case assts.

[Crosscheck]

It's cool Slingshot and Wildrider are coming out for those that want them. Me, I am happy with Alpha Bravo and Offroad. Helicopters offer a lot of tactical advantages that jets just can't replicate, so it makes a lot of sense that the Aerialbots would add one to their team. He still fits the bill for "Aerial" so whatever. Offroad looks close enough to Wildrider that getting Wildrider is unnecessary. I probably won't be getting CW Cyclonus, so I really don't have a need for an additional set of limbs anyway.

Between Superion, Menasor, and Defensor, I will have enough combiners. If they do end up making the Combaticons, if there are enough unique limbs, I might get them. If they do, I wonder if they will have Blast Off form the chest plate somehow like in the cartoon. I look at how they made the Alpha Bravo toy, and can almost see the a fuselage for a space shuttle in there. They could remold the tail section into a set of engines and a fin, and either make a wing piece that attaches to the bottom(becomes the chest piece of the combined figure) or remold the arms into wings. That or they could just remold the Firefly toy into a passable space shuttle and make another character become the chest piece.

[worldsgreatest]

Yes, I was going to express this concern as well. As much as in my heart I'd like to support specialty toy stores or comic stores that also sell toys, I'd have to agree that they do have a habit of inflating their prices a bit. I've literally seen cases where I've been browsing such a store and have seen some deluxe figure on one of their pegs that I've just seen at a Target or Walmart (so it isn't as if it is even some rare figure), and it was marked in the $20 - $25 range. Such stores definitely take note of what the S in MSRP stands for, and reply, "Excellent suggestion, now let's add a few bucks to that!"

Not to say such stores aren't perfectly fine for older or rarer stuff... But for a new deluxe figure? No thank you.

Generally Previews only offers items like these to retailers at net cost. There is no profit built in. So comic shops aren't jacking up the price for no reason. They HAVE to mark figures up to end in the positive, and mark the shorter packed ones up even further to make up the difference of what will sit.

[william-james88]

From what I read on another site this is either specifically (or shared with) Diamond. More to the point these are definitely going to be offered to specialty retailers through Previews.

So bug your local shops to order! No hunting around. Downside is again: they will only be offered in case assts.

Mine wont be ordering these simply beause they cant order them individually (they have to buy a case) and dont want to end up with a bunch of leftovers since their shop is not a common place where people seek transformers.

Not trying to be too much of a downer, but not all comic shops would order these due to the need to buy a case.

However, I do not doubt for a second that these will be available on BBTS.

[worldsgreatest]

From what I read on another site this is either specifically (or shared with) Diamond. More to the point these are definitely going to be offered to specialty retailers through Previews.

So bug your local shops to order! No hunting around. Downside is again: they will only be offered in case assts.

Mine wont be ordering these simply beause they cant order them individually (they have to buy a case) and dont want to end up with a bunch of leftovers since their shop is not a common place where people seek transformers.

Not trying to be too much of a downer, but not all comic shops would order these due to the need to buy a case.

However, I do not doubt for a second that these will be available on BBTS.

Yup, exactly. You're not being a downer at all. It's just the reality of Previews offering them this way.

And yeah, hopefully BBTS will see them too.

[Cobotron]

However, I do not doubt for a second that these will be available on BBTS.

Ya know, your right. It just dawned on me. BBTS, TFSource, and the other e-tailers are all small owner operated businesses who buy wholesale. I don't think these two will be that hard to come by.

[william-james88]

However, I do not doubt for a second that these will be available on BBTS.

Ya know, your right. It just dawned on me. BBTS, TFSource, and the other e-tailers are all small owner operated businesses who buy wholesale. I don't think these two will be that hard to come by.

Yeah, I actually find big retail store exclusives to be more of a pain than these. Some people just dont have a TRU (my TRU wouldnt hold the exclusives because they didnt have french on the box), or Walmart (Canada never got the AOE beast wars redeco exclusives) or Target (Canada will never again have those exclusives). Since one can only buy some Hasbro MPs from Toysrus (ie Grimlock), any smaller retailer selling them online would have to charge way more to cover their cost and many become completely unaffordable.

However, with smaller exclusives which still have a wide reach, they are much easier to get at reasonable prices, in comparison. The Energon Prime toys for instance (with all the translucent deco), were only available online, but everyone who wanted one got them without having to spend more than MSRP.

[Cobotron]

However, I do not doubt for a second that these will be available on BBTS.

Ya know, your right. It just dawned on me. BBTS, TFSource, and the other e-tailers are all small owner operated businesses who buy wholesale. I don't think these two will be that hard to come by.

Yeah, I actually find big retail store exclusives to be more of a pain than these. Some people just dont have a TRU (my TRU wouldnt hold the exclusives because they didnt have french on the box), or Walmart (Canada never got the AOE beast wars redeco exclusives) or Target (Canada will never again have those exclusives). Since one can only buy some Hasbro MPs from Toysrus (ie Grimlock), any smaller retailer selling them online would have to charge way more to cover their cost and many become completely unaffordable.

However, with smaller exclusives which still have a wide reach, they are much easier to get at reasonable prices, in comparison. The Energon Prime toys for instance (with all the translucent deco), were only available online, but everyone who wanted one got them without having to spend more than MSRP.

That's a good point. If only they would go on clearance like the Dark Energons.

You think Quickslinger will just be the Slingshot that's coming with the Takara set? Maybe with a different deco?

[Solrac333]

18 bucks for deluxe figures?! That is why my collecting has slowed down by a lot.

[william-james88]

You think Quickslinger will just be the Slingshot that's coming with the Takara set? Maybe with a different deco?

Yes, I am certain that is exactly what it will be. Cost cutting is priority to keep your bottom line and this would be an easy way to achieve that.

[Sabrblade]

The Energon Prime toys for instance (with all the translucent deco), were only available online, but everyone who wanted one got them without having to spend more than MSRP.

Save for the Dark Energon Wheeljack and its Slicer-esque deco. That one became harder to come by since it sold out before all the others and goes for much higher than the others on the secondary market.

[Cobotron]

You think Quickslinger will just be the Slingshot that's coming with the Takara set? Maybe with a different deco?

Yes, I am certain that is exactly what it will be. Cost cutting is priority to keep your bottom line and this would be an easy way to achieve that.

Since you have Tak on lock down, all this hub bub doesn't even matter to you.