The Energon Pub

Thu Jan 03, 2013 12:52 am

And now we wait to see if Amazon will honour the pre-orders at the price they had MP-10 at. Hope so, being able to get MP-10 for that much would be like when MP-Skywarp was being sold for £20 in Argos several years ago.
With scalpers asking a small fortune for MP-10, well, much of anything really, then to be able to get a Masterpiece for a low price is a delight for those of us who can't afford the over the top prices that Takara and the scalpers demand as well as for those of us who have had to accept that Hasbro couldn't care less due to their obsession with milking Bumblebee to death.

Hopefully those of us who have pre-ordered MP-10 will receive our order at the end of the month, hopefully.

Thu Jan 03, 2013 3:26 am

There are a couple of theories doing the rounds at the moment as to exactly what this stock is! Initially, a few people though it might have been the anniversary G1 re-issue or old stock of MP01 (or one of the variants) with an incorrect product description. But for this to have been the case, the description would have been so wrong as to even have the wrong item code (which, incidentally, matches the code used at SDCC), so that's probably not the case.

Another possibility is that this is actually either US stock or (please in the name of all that is sacred let it be this next option!) Japanese Takara stock that hasn't sold through in their respective territories.

A third (unfortunately quite likely) possibility is that TRU have received the stock, as Hasbro UK claimed they should have by now, but decided they no longer wanted to sell it through at retail and instead made a deal with Amazon, neglecting to inform Hasbro of this turn of events.

With a view to finding out what is happening, I emailed Amazon directly. I pointed out that Hasbro were still saying yesterday that TRU would be the exclusive stockists of this product in the UK, and that they were expecting them to be hitting the shelves very soon, even supplying the link to the Facebook conversation where Hasbro say this.

To their credit, Amazon emailed me back very quickly. They said that the product is not yet in stock at the warehouse, but they expect to start shipping them out to customers sometime between 30th Jan & 06th Feb. However, the lady who replied to me did say she was going to check with the buying team as she could see my point regarding the UK TRU exclusivity, and yes it was possible that it could be Takara stock. She also all-but confirmed that this is definitely a MP-sized toy, as she said the box was about 21 inches tall and weighed 2.1kg. Now, while this doesn't narrow down which Optimus Prime this listing relates to, it says that this thing is big, and having held on while I was in the US a couple of months ago, it sounds about right!

Anyway, I'll let you guys know if I hear any more!

Thu Jan 03, 2013 10:10 am

Hmmm, seems the listing on Amazon U.K. has been taken down/removed?
Its not there! :shock:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_1_17?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=transformers+masterpiece+optimus+prime&sprefix=transformers+mast%2Caps%2C194
#worried #feck

Thu Jan 03, 2013 10:12 am

Its fine, its here http://www.amazon.co.uk/Transformers-Ma ... f_gw_p_t_1

Thu Jan 03, 2013 10:14 am

Ravage XK wrote:Its fine, its here http://www.amazon.co.uk/Transformers-Ma ... f_gw_p_t_1

Odd we browse the same website and search the same but different results are produced!

Thu Jan 03, 2013 11:44 am

Just logged in to my Amazon.UK account. and my orders are no longer there..... WTF is going on?

Thu Jan 03, 2013 11:54 am

Ok, all the mistery has come to an end, just got this email from amazon.co.uk:

Hello

We’re writing to let you know that the price for the following item(s) was displayed incorrectly when you placed your order:

'Transformers Masterpiece Optimus Prime' (ASIN: B00AJJ6H0E)

Despite our best efforts, with the millions of items available on our website, pricing errors can occasionally occur.

In our Conditions of Use and Sale (see http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/help/custome ... Id=1040616), we state that where an item's correct price is higher than our stated price, we will, at our discretion, cancel the order and notify you of that cancellation.

Your order has now been cancelled. If you still want to purchase this item, please place a new order which will be charged at the correct price, when we dispatch it to you.

We’re sorry for any inconvenience caused and hope to see you again soon.

Warmest regards

Customer Service Department
Amazon.co.uk

Thu Jan 03, 2013 11:55 am

Yup, I got the cancellation email, too.

Thu Jan 03, 2013 11:55 am

Yep got the same thing. and failed....

Thu Jan 03, 2013 11:55 am

Me too, bumsy.

I blame everyone who kept email amazon asking "is this right?" Should of left it alone and me might have gotten away with it!

Thu Jan 03, 2013 11:56 am

And it's gone...............

said it would be cheap they said,
said it would be great they said,
said too good to be true they said....

Thu Jan 03, 2013 11:57 am

Heartbreak for everyone! :sad:

Thu Jan 03, 2013 11:58 am

Received this e-mail regarding the pre-order for MP-10:

~

Hello

We’re writing to let you know that the price for the following item(s) was displayed incorrectly when you placed your order:

'Transformers Masterpiece Optimus Prime' (ASIN: B00AJJ6H0E)

Despite our best efforts, with the millions of items available on our website, pricing errors can occasionally occur.

In our Conditions of Use and Sale (see http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/help/custome ... Id=1040616), we state that where an item's correct price is higher than our stated price, we will, at our discretion, cancel the order and notify you of that cancellation.

Your order has now been cancelled. If you still want to purchase this item, please place a new order which will be charged at the correct price, when we dispatch it to you.

We’re sorry for any inconvenience caused and hope to see you again soon.

Warmest regards

Customer Service Department
Amazon.co.uk

~

That's just prime. They get hopes up and dash them as well as Hasbro can when it comes to empty promises. It's looking more and more likely that Hasbro can't be bothered to released MP-10 in the UK nor in a high enough stock anywhere, I'm sure if it was a Masterpiece Bumblebee who they could repaint multiple times then they would release him quickly.
Typical.

There is no way I'm paying £200+ for him, that's more than I can afford. I can manage £100 barely, maybe £120 at a push, but over that is too much.
Yet another kick in the teeth from Hasbro.

Thu Jan 03, 2013 12:01 pm

Just got that email too. Damn, that really sucks. I wasn't able to find him in stores and it looks like I won't be able to get him like this either. Can't believe how few Optimus they shipped out despite the huge demand for the Transformers's flagship character (I don't know about the situation in the US, but in Canada we got a few shipments for the first 2 weeks [maybe 2-3 cases, in other words 4 or 6 MP OPs] then they just stopped, I do know you guys got more but at $20 higher, and then of course poor UK gets none, sad, sad).

Thu Jan 03, 2013 12:11 pm

Well at that price i guess it was too good to be true. I wonder if they would have honored the price had not so many people ordered it.. but if 5000 orders were placed i guess it would be impossible for them to honor it.

Thu Jan 03, 2013 12:15 pm

Megazarak wrote:Just got that email too. Damn, that really sucks. I wasn't able to find him in stores and it looks like I won't be able to get him like this either. Can't believe how few Optimus they shipped out despite the huge demand for the Transformers's flagship character (I don't know about the situation in the US, but in Canada we got a few shipments for the first 2 weeks [maybe 2-3 cases, in other words 4 or 6 MP OPs] then they just stopped, I do know you guys got more but at $20 higher, and then of course poor UK gets none, sad, sad).

I blame Hasbro for the poor distribution. I blame retailers for the high price they ask for. $99 was perfect; $130 is too much. >:oP

Thu Jan 03, 2013 12:21 pm

I've sent an e-mail to Hasbro about MP-10:

I contacted Hasbro several months ago regarding the possible release of Masterpiece-10 Optimus Prime here in the UK, the response I received had said that MP-10 would be released in the UK later in the year, that was last year and he was never released.
Just before the year ended Amazon UK had MP-10 up for pre-order at the acceptable price of £35, a price that is great for those of us who refuse to pay scalper prices and are unable to pay over £200 or over £100. That item has sadly been removed from their site and the pre-orders all canceled, basically giving those of us who were hoping to finally be able to buy MP-10 a kick in the teeth after the past several years of being able to find very little in the way of Transformers in the UK due to how much the Bumblebee toys and multiple repaints are churned out and clog the shelves for months on end.

Is Masterpiece-10 Optimus Prime ever going to be released, in full, in the UK at a reasonable price? I'm willing to pay £100 for him, £120 at a push, but I can't afford to pay more than that for him and the same is said for many others. We practically have a plague of Bumblebee's here, but very little of much else and with the cancellation of Masterpiece Thundercracker, another one that was being looked forward to, then the UK Transformers fans are becoming increasingly fed up of being mistreated and clearly hated by Hasbro.

Please, can we know if Masterpiece-10 Optimus Prime is going to finally be released here in the UK and when and the price? Please? We have had to put up with a lot of mistreatment from Hasbro for almost a decade now and many have lost faith in Hasbro, resulting in scalpers profiting by asking disgustingly high prices.

Finally being able to find Masterpiece-10 Optimus Prime here in the UK would go a long way to restoring faith in Hasbro, especially from those of us who have been a fan of the Transformers franchise since the 1980s.

So please, will MP-10 Optimus Prime be released here in the UK or not? Please.

~Reina~

~

I hope they'll give a reasonable answer with a confirmed and accurate release date, price and more for MP-10 here in the UK, years of having to put up with a plague of Bumblebee and very little else got tiresome years ago.
I would much prefer to be able to find something that's more worthwhile, MP-10 in particular. I refuse to pay scalper prices for him and I refuse to pay over £120 for him. Already at the point of just not bothering with the franchise anymore after the past year+ of nothing but Bumblebee clogging the shelves.

Thu Jan 03, 2013 12:25 pm

It seemed too good to be true and apparently it was. Over the weekend we reported that a listing for Masterpiece Optimus Prime had popped up on Amazon.co.uk for the incredibly low price of £34.99 (about $57.00 USD). We're now receiving reports from Seibertron.com members that their orders are being cancelled due to a pricing error. It appears that the listing was indeed for Masterpiece Optimus Prime, but the price was wrong. Seibertron.com member megatronus has supplied us with the email below from Amazon.co.uk customer service. As you can see they do plan on stocking the figure, but at a higher price.

Hello

We’re writing to let you know that the price for the following item(s) was displayed incorrectly when you placed your order:

'Transformers Masterpiece Optimus Prime' (ASIN: B00AJJ6H0E)

Despite our best efforts, with the millions of items available on our website, pricing errors can occasionally occur.

In our Conditions of Use and Sale (see http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/help/custome ... Id=1040616), we state that where an item's correct price is higher than our stated price, we will, at our discretion, cancel the order and notify you of that cancellation.

Your order has now been cancelled. If you still want to purchase this item, please place a new order which will be charged at the correct price, when we dispatch it to you.

We’re sorry for any inconvenience caused and hope to see you again soon.

Warmest regards

Customer Service Department
Amazon.co.uk

Thu Jan 03, 2013 12:50 pm

Hahahahahahaahah take THAT all you greedy scalping assholes who bought 10 at a time! :lol:

Seriously tho, this has got to be the juiciest justice I've seen in a long time cause you know scalpers and the like were just scooping these things up. To all those who legitimately thought you'd get it at a cheaper price, that sucks that you were misled. But come on...coooooome on! You didn't believe that price point for even a second did you?

Thu Jan 03, 2013 12:56 pm

Sorry to burst your bubble of misinformation, but many of us aren't scalpers. We were hoping that Hasbro was going to finally prove that they weren't completely obsessed with churning out Bumblebee after Bumblebee for once.
I ordered one MP-10 for my collection, I didn't order any more. I'm hoping he'll appear for a reasonable price soon, but I doubt it.

Thu Jan 03, 2013 12:57 pm

Nooooo!!!

Thu Jan 03, 2013 1:07 pm

Gorechyld wrote:Hahahahahahaahah take THAT all you greedy scalping assholes who bought 10 at a time!

Seriously tho, this has got to be the juiciest justice I've seen in a long time cause you know scalpers and the like were just scooping these things up. To all those who legitimately thought you'd get it at a cheaper price, that sucks that you were misled. But come on...coooooome on! You didn't believe that price point for even a second did you?

Considering I just bought DotM Jetwing OP 50% off from Amazon - yes, I did believe it.

Thu Jan 03, 2013 1:10 pm

Dean ML wrote:
Gorechyld wrote:Hahahahahahaahah take THAT all you greedy scalping assholes who bought 10 at a time!

Seriously tho, this has got to be the juiciest justice I've seen in a long time cause you know scalpers and the like were just scooping these things up. To all those who legitimately thought you'd get it at a cheaper price, that sucks that you were misled. But come on...coooooome on! You didn't believe that price point for even a second did you?

Considering I just bought DotM Jetwing OP 50% off from Amazon - yes, I did believe it.

I did too

Thu Jan 03, 2013 1:12 pm

Gorechyld wrote:Hahahahahahaahah take THAT all you greedy scalping assholes who bought 10 at a time!

Seriously tho, this has got to be the juiciest justice I've seen in a long time cause you know scalpers and the like were just scooping these things up. To all those who legitimately thought you'd get it at a cheaper price, that sucks that you were misled. But come on...coooooome on! You didn't believe that price point for even a second did you?

While there were undoubtedly scalpers who placed orders, I wager there were just as many, if not more, collectors, general fans who occasionally purchase a figure and parents who ordered too. This is a blow to those who genuinely wanted it and thought they could get the figure at a discount. Not everyone can afford the $112+ TRU is charging for the figure and many can't even find him in store to buy.

All this will do is make the figure more profitable for scalpers. Those who were deceived by the price and desperately wanted the figure will now turn back to ebay in hopes of scoring him. Things like this always run up the scalping prices :/

Thu Jan 03, 2013 1:13 pm

It's a real shame, looked like a brilliant figure and really wanted it for the price but just can't justify a 3 figure price point :sad:

I want to know who wrote in the review section on amazon for the listing, telling amazon it's really a £200 figure !!!!! Seriously you guys should check it out