The Energon Pub

Yup! Me too. (pre-order from Pulse, that is.)
Thanks for the news and the heads up Emerje!

In the article it was asked if anyone has a dedicated "Praxis Native collection". My collection includes everyone under the sun, but I do make a point to collect any and all versions of the Datsun Bros, as Bluestreak was my very 1st G1 Transformer, and the mold and the 3 characters that wear it have remained my most favorite ever since.

Pre-ordered. I know that a lot of people either absolutely love or absolutely hate this mold, but I think it's pretty good. More Datsun-y that the Combiner wars BlueProwlScreen, but without the awkward turtleneck of the first CHUG BlueProwlScreen. Maybe not perfect, but so far I've liked these Seige figures more than I thought I would. I'm definitely planning to paint up a Diaclone Bluestreak at some point, so one of these "Praxus boys" is getting double-bought.

Glarryg

Beachjezus wrote:Just got my preorder ordered from Pulse!

I just cancelled my pre-order with BBTS and secured my pre-order from Hasbro Pulse.

TF-fan kev777 wrote:

Beachjezus wrote:Just got my preorder ordered from Pulse!

I just cancelled my pre-order with BBTS and secured my pre-order from Hasbro Pulse.

I wonder if they will add to a current order, so I can have him piggy backed on Star Convoy

Rodimus Knight wrote:

TF-fan kev777 wrote:

Beachjezus wrote:Just got my preorder ordered from Pulse!

I just cancelled my pre-order with BBTS and secured my pre-order from Hasbro Pulse.

I wonder if they will add to a current order, so I can have him piggy backed on Star Convoy

Probably not, especially if you have Hasbro Pulse Premium to cover the shipping. I ordered all the wave 2 Deluzes when they were available at the mistake price of $9.99. Even thought I ordered them together, they each shipped in their own package. So I highly doubt 2 items ordered separately would be joined together for shipping purposes.

Not sure that it's news worthy, but Smokescreen is also now on Takara Tomy Mall. He's priced at 4,104 JPY and strangely scheduled for September (Hasbro says October). They added a third photo, too.



Emerje

Ya know, that Smokescreen looks pretty dang cool! I love the Cybertronian numbers, that a great touch.

Looks like he and Star Convoy will be pre-ordered here shortly from Pulse!

Now come on, Ricochet and Swoop were revealed ages ago, and since then, there has been a reveal/release of a selects, the leaking of another selects, and the pre-orders for yet another. Where are those 2 at???

Turns out Star Convoy was only half of the equation. It appears that the Generations Selects line is now officially a shared initiative between Hasbro and Takara Tomy with Selects Smokescreen now available for pre-order on Takara Tomy Mall as a limited exclusive for Japan. The price is higher than the Hasbro version at the tax inclusive price of 4,104 JPY (currently $36.64) and listed as a September release despite Hasbro's being scheduled for October. What this could mean for Japanese releases of previous Selects figures Combat Megatron, Ricochet, and Red Swoop is yet to be seen. TTM also added a third picture of Smokescreen.



And as expected we have more pre-orders open to go with the previously reported Hasbro Pulse and Big Bad Toy Store orders:

TFSource
Entertainment Earth
Ages Three And Up
The Chosen Prime

Soooo... when we put out a Selects toy in the US, it's for retail price and Takara puts it up on the Mall for about that price. When Japan does it, it's super expensive, apparently because it's a Takara Tomy Mall exclusive. That be some BS, mate.

Lore Keeper wrote:Soooo... when we put out a Selects toy in the US, it's for retail price and Takara puts it up on the Mall for about that price. When Japan does it, it's super expensive, apparently because it's a Takara Tomy Mall exclusive. That be some BS, mate.

Takara's been doing it for forever. Everyone just said that it was the cost for a premium paint job, but they kept doing it after brand unification.

O hey, product code: E8372

So they're using the actual toys for photos now? Color me surprised. So that means the number on left door is indeed inverted on the figure itself.

Lore Keeper wrote:Soooo... when we put out a Selects toy in the US, it's for retail price and Takara puts it up on the Mall for about that price. When Japan does it, it's super expensive, apparently because it's a Takara Tomy Mall exclusive. That be some BS, mate.

I agree. it isnt fair. And it has nothing to do with paintjob or anything, its simply because this toy is an exclusive in Japan. if it was not an exclusive in Japan, you could get it for a little over $50 from Amazon japan. Like this guy here https://www.amazon.co.jp/%E3%82%BF%E3%8 ... 71M0X6HQT7

Or this guy (better example) https://www.amazon.co.jp/%E3%82%BF%E3%8 ... 62A2F90N9F

JelZe GoldRabbit wrote:O hey, product code: E8372

So they're using the actual toys for photos now? Color me surprised. So that means the number on left door is indeed inverted on the figure itself.

Well, maybe and maybe not. That's definitely a nearly finished sample they've photographed. That doesn't mean we won't see some last minute changes, though, and here's why. Hasbro Pulse has the item on "Preorder" until mid May. Why would they cap the preorders like that when they don't really do that for other items? Because, Smokescreen is probably being made to order. They're going to produce however many are needed to fill the preorders submitted by mid May and then a little extra to cover any post release interest and customer service replacements. There's potentially time, if this is the case, to correct that error on the tampographing. This can also explain why Takara Tomy can release this in September while Hasbro is having us wait until October. Japan will be the first to get these when they are finished in the factory, as they are closest to the factories is Vietnam. then North America will have to wait until they get their shipments via boat.

Wolfman Jake wrote:

JelZe GoldRabbit wrote:O hey, product code: E8372

So they're using the actual toys for photos now? Color me surprised. So that means the number on left door is indeed inverted on the figure itself.

Well, maybe and maybe not. That's definitely a nearly finished sample they've photographed. That doesn't mean we won't see some last minute changes, though, and here's why. Hasbro Pulse has the item on "Preorder" until mid May. Why would they cap the preorders like that when they don't really do that for other items? Because, Smokescreen is probably being made to order. They're going to produce however many are needed to fill the preorders submitted by mid May and then a little extra to cover any post release interest and customer service replacements. There's potentially time, if this is the case, to correct that error on the tampographing. This can also explain why Takara Tomy can release this in September while Hasbro is having us wait until October. Japan will be the first to get these when they are finished in the factory, as they are closest to the factories is Vietnam. then North America will have to wait until they get their shipments via boat.

So they put product codes on the samples too? Interesting.

JelZe GoldRabbit wrote:So they put product codes on the samples too? Interesting.

Maybe? I don't know for sure, but the factory has to put through a few samples of what the final product will be for Hasbro and Takara Tomy to approve for mass production so that their aren't big flaws that make it to retail. (Obviously, mistakes still get through from time to time.) The product code might be part of this process, so that Hasbro can see that it's in the right place, etc.

This "sample batch" approach was the case frequently with figures put out by the old Transformers Collectors Club. Often, mistakes would crop up with the production versions compared to their advertised versions because they didn't get the initial samples in time to give feedback to the factories before they went into production. Or, sometimes when getting the samples in hand, they made some last minute changes for better aesthetics or functionality or whatever, altering the initial plan advertised.

Emerje wrote:

Nemesis Primal wrote:Does that make more sense?

It makes sense, but that doesn't necessarily mean it's right. So far we're just bouncing around theories. What we need is more numbered figures or an outright answer from Hasbro on the matter.

Emerje

Fair enough. Theorizing is always fun though, so why not?

On the subject of theorizing, I had a thought: do we think the Cybertron Defense Hot Shot that's possibly coming from the Hound mold will be a Selects figure rather than a mainline release? It would make the numbering for both Siege and Selects make a bit more sense.

On topic regarding Smokescreen though, I personally think that in terms of this mold, Prowl < Smokescreen < Barricade, but none of the three make me want to get them yet. Hopefully Bluestreak will change that, and then having a version of the mold in-hand will help me formulate a final opinion on Barricade. I do hope Bluestreak's windows/tires are the same smoky color as Smokescreen here, rather than Prowl's clear.

Generations Selects Star Convoy mini-comic:
https://takaratomymall.jp/shop/g/g4904810139751/

https://takaratomymall.jp/img/goods/490 ... /comic.pdf

Comic reads left to right unlike most Japanese manga.

Was it really necessary to start another line? Don't we have enough different lines going at the same time? Generations, Cyberverse, Studio Series, Botbots etc. Was this stupid Selects line really necessary? Couldn't they just release these figures in the regular Generations line?

Aimless Misfire wrote:Was it really necessary to start another line? Don't we have enough different lines going at the same time? Generations, Cyberverse, Studio Series, Botbots etc. Was this stupid Selects line really necessary? Couldn't they just release these figures in the regular Generations line?

It's just a way to say it's a Generations figure but not one being distributed through traditional retail channels. Just pretend it's "Generations", same as "Transformers Generations: War for Cybertron: Siege" or "Transformers Generations: Combiner Wars" or "Transformers Generations: Thrilling 30" and so on.

ScottyP wrote:

Aimless Misfire wrote:Was it really necessary to start another line? Don't we have enough different lines going at the same time? Generations, Cyberverse, Studio Series, Botbots etc. Was this stupid Selects line really necessary? Couldn't they just release these figures in the regular Generations line?

It's just a way to say it's a Generations figure but not one being distributed through traditional retail channels. Just pretend it's "Generations", same as "Transformers Generations: War for Cybertron: Siege" or "Transformers Generations: Combiner Wars" or "Transformers Generations: Thrilling 30" and so on.

I feel like this is a catch-all line for cool stuff, but, primarily, it seems Hasbro's using it to get full 'usage' out of thier molds (i.e. repaints of molds) without clogging the main retail line, seems pretty win-win to me, and if something cool is made by TT, they can just toss it under this banner now, since it's been pretty well established

Hellscream9999 wrote:

ScottyP wrote:

Aimless Misfire wrote:Was it really necessary to start another line? Don't we have enough different lines going at the same time? Generations, Cyberverse, Studio Series, Botbots etc. Was this stupid Selects line really necessary? Couldn't they just release these figures in the regular Generations line?

It's just a way to say it's a Generations figure but not one being distributed through traditional retail channels. Just pretend it's "Generations", same as "Transformers Generations: War for Cybertron: Siege" or "Transformers Generations: Combiner Wars" or "Transformers Generations: Thrilling 30" and so on.

I feel like this is a catch-all line for cool stuff, but, primarily, it seems Hasbro's using it to get full 'usage' out of thier molds (i.e. repaints of molds) without clogging the main retail line, seems pretty win-win to me, and if something cool is made by TT, they can just toss it under this banner now, since it's been pretty well established

But a bit confusing to keep track of, for sure. I mean, I don't know how even classify it as it covers both Siege and non-Siege lines, like how Reveal the Shield covered both the Movie and G1.

I believe *Selects* mostly will be made up of retools/repaints of whatever Generations line is current, or at least, very recent (PotP & Siege). I would expect next year to start seeing Select Series use of Siege & whatever is next. I doubt that selects will be used for repaints of toys from lines like Cyberverse, SS, Masterpiece etc..., at least I hope not.

The only real confusion I see would be with exclusives from other online retailers such as Amazon. I presume last years Amazon exclusives did well in order to warrant more (presumably Greenlight & Lancer..) However it may have been a bit of a stopgap measure to cover the transition of the loss of TRU, and until Hasbro could fully rebrand their online shopping website. While Pulse is not perfect, it is leaps and bounds better than HTS ever was both technically and aesthetically. I just hope they keep housecleaning as old product moves out, and new product comes in.

JelZe GoldRabbit wrote:

Hellscream9999 wrote:

ScottyP wrote:

Aimless Misfire wrote:Was it really necessary to start another line? Don't we have enough different lines going at the same time? Generations, Cyberverse, Studio Series, Botbots etc. Was this stupid Selects line really necessary? Couldn't they just release these figures in the regular Generations line?

It's just a way to say it's a Generations figure but not one being distributed through traditional retail channels. Just pretend it's "Generations", same as "Transformers Generations: War for Cybertron: Siege" or "Transformers Generations: Combiner Wars" or "Transformers Generations: Thrilling 30" and so on.

I feel like this is a catch-all line for cool stuff, but, primarily, it seems Hasbro's using it to get full 'usage' out of thier molds (i.e. repaints of molds) without clogging the main retail line, seems pretty win-win to me, and if something cool is made by TT, they can just toss it under this banner now, since it's been pretty well established

But a bit confusing to keep track of, for sure. I mean, I don't know how even classify it as it covers both Siege and non-Siege lines, like how Reveal the Shield covered both the Movie and G1.

How about just a 'universal retool line'? I don't think the line has any exclusively original molds yet, so I think this is just a way for them to get repaints/retools out that would otherwise have been shot down, or would have bloated new waves and potentially kept them from hitting stores.

Hellscream9999 wrote:

JelZe GoldRabbit wrote:

Hellscream9999 wrote:

ScottyP wrote:

Aimless Misfire wrote:Was it really necessary to start another line? Don't we have enough different lines going at the same time? Generations, Cyberverse, Studio Series, Botbots etc. Was this stupid Selects line really necessary? Couldn't they just release these figures in the regular Generations line?

It's just a way to say it's a Generations figure but not one being distributed through traditional retail channels. Just pretend it's "Generations", same as "Transformers Generations: War for Cybertron: Siege" or "Transformers Generations: Combiner Wars" or "Transformers Generations: Thrilling 30" and so on.

I feel like this is a catch-all line for cool stuff, but, primarily, it seems Hasbro's using it to get full 'usage' out of thier molds (i.e. repaints of molds) without clogging the main retail line, seems pretty win-win to me, and if something cool is made by TT, they can just toss it under this banner now, since it's been pretty well established

But a bit confusing to keep track of, for sure. I mean, I don't know how even classify it as it covers both Siege and non-Siege lines, like how Reveal the Shield covered both the Movie and G1.

How about just a 'universal retool line'? I don't think the line has any exclusively original molds yet, so I think this is just a way for them to get repaints/retools out that would otherwise have been shot down, or would have bloated new waves and potentially kept them from hitting stores.

Then there's the 35th Anniversary line to consider....

hopefully *35th* is just still part of the Siege mainline, but with slightly different packaging...