The Energon Pub

Rodimus Prime wrote:To those of you who already have him, is Fort Max worth the $160 TRU wants for him? I found Max at TRU but hesitated getting him.

Well, I paid just over $200 for him, since I went for the SDCC version, and I don't regret it. But go into buying him with the right expectations. I was initially a bit disappointed, because, frankly, he's not as good a toy as Metroplex, who of course he is retooled from. His transformation is a lot more simplistic than Metroplex's already not terribly taxing one. Both of his alt modes are pretty much just Fortress Maximus lying down with his limbs splayed a bit differently depending upon which alt mode you're going for.

But he quickly grew on me. He just looks so damn good in robot mode, and the alt modes are fun to pose other figures around. And Cerebros is a fun figure to fiddle with, too.





Keep in mind that, as I said, I went for the SDCC version, so if you buy him at TRU, his deco will be a bit different, and he won't have the sword. But still, even the TRU version should be a nice addition to a collection if you have any interest in the character.

That's just it, I love the character. And I have no idea what the character will be in fiction. This Fort max is not a G1 version, so I have to wait if he will show up in the IDW comics or not to see if the figure will get any kind of backstory. Will Maximus take over a Titan's body, thus becoming the character this figure was made for? Or is this just a big toy made for the sake of making a big toy, and calling it Fort Max because that's what the original big toy was called? I mean, with Metroplex I could understand. He got a proper upgrade into what he should have been in G1. But this Maximus? The G1 Maximus is not only adequate, but is superior to this figure, from what I could tell in reviews. But you're right about 1 thing, I have to have the right expectations for the toy itself. If I were to get it, he would never see city mode, and I might put him in battle station mode for comparison with the original, and that's it. I do really like the robot mode though, he'd look pretty awesome next to the original. 1 question: is he as loose and floppy as Metroplex can be?

And those are awesome pics, BTW.

If I wasn't able to "Compartmentalise" the toyline in my mind from the fiction I likely wouldn't buy any Generations toys at all - I really like Warden too and he's based on IDW Maximus.. but luckily I have enough interest in the play aspect of toys to not really care about the character except in broad terms. So my lack of engagement with IDW continuity fortunately doesn't come into play.

No I don't usually pay a blind bit of notice of anything Hasbro or IDW says or does. So I'm quite happy with Titan's Wars as a Nebulos Neo-G1 concept well away from any media in my mind.

Whenever they start saying how they wanna make more IDW characters as toys - there are ways to do that I'm fine with - like those random Decepticons they invented - many of whom have 3rd party toys now - I'm fine with those getting toys as I'll simply treat them the same way I would Overlord, Dreadwing, Bludgeon, Straxus or even Megaplex.

Fortunately Beast Hunters having bu**er all to do with the TV show kinda helped that mental gymnastics. But lets be frank hear the Combiner Wars cartoon isn't going to make me want to rush out and buy Menasor toys, as I've said before the more I see of Windblade the more I dislike her so I'm staying well away - as I like the concept I just think the implementation is kinda atrocious as it also somewhat true of how I see Drift too.

I'd rather have a toy i'm happy with and not have that ruined by insensitively written fiction's take on that character that seems like that is really going to be true of what looks like it's going to be a truely terrible Combiner Wars web series... but hey it's a web series so therefore it doesn't actually matter any more than Cybermissions did - just because they spent more money on it.

RAR wrote:Whenever they start saying how they wanna make more IDW characters as toys - there are ways to do that I'm fine with - like those random Decepticons they invented

I rather doubt we'll be getting any of those any time soon. One of them turns into a bomb, another turns into an electric chair, two of them have killing machines in their stomachs and the rest are unstable psychopaths. Bit hard to sell as a kids' toy.
Maybe Nickel could work tho. That'd be cool. Legends Nickel when Hasbro?

Rodimus Prime wrote:That's just it, I love the character. And I have no idea what the character will be in fiction. This Fort max is not a G1 version, so I have to wait if he will show up in the IDW comics or not to see if the figure will get any kind of backstory. Will Maximus take over a Titan's body, thus becoming the character this figure was made for? Or is this just a big toy made for the sake of making a big toy, and calling it Fort Max because that's what the original big toy was called?

Yes, that is precicely what this is. This is a cost effective update to the G1 toy using what they already did with metroplex. I am certain the only fiction we will get regarding this mold will be in the Legends comic which also explained why Blurr is a Headmaster now. Hasbro confirmed that not all of the toy stuff will be explained in the fiction, giving Chromedom as an example.

Chromedome is a great example to what this Fort Max is. In the comics, Chromedome is not a headmaster in IDW. And he wont become one. Hasbro told that to Scotty P and Alex at Botcon. So while the TR Chromedome toy has some nods to TDW, he is primarily an update to the G1 toy. And thats precisely what Fort Max is.

Unless something happens in the upcoming Titans Returns story in IDW. We know we see Fortress standing in front of a large group of Titan zombies on the cover of the next issue. No idea if this plays into anything, but to catagorically declare there is completely zero fiction at this point is a little early.


And if the previews state that he doesn't... don't tell me. I don't read previews and I don't want to know what isn't in the issues just as much as I don't want to know what IS in th eissues.

Rodimus Prime wrote:That's just it, I love the character. And I have no idea what the character will be in fiction. This Fort max is not a G1 version, so I have to wait if he will show up in the IDW comics or not to see if the figure will get any kind of backstory. Will Maximus take over a Titan's body, thus becoming the character this figure was made for? Or is this just a big toy made for the sake of making a big toy, and calling it Fort Max because that's what the original big toy was called? I mean, with Metroplex I could understand. He got a proper upgrade into what he should have been in G1. But this Maximus? The G1 Maximus is not only adequate, but is superior to this figure, from what I could tell in reviews. But you're right about 1 thing, I have to have the right expectations for the toy itself. If I were to get it, he would never see city mode, and I might put him in battle station mode for comparison with the original, and that's it. I do really like the robot mode though, he'd look pretty awesome next to the original. 1 question: is he as loose and floppy as Metroplex can be?

And those are awesome pics, BTW.

Eh? i thought this WAS supposed to be a G1 version of Fort Max? coz the reason of it's weird city mode was explained on here a loooong time ago, due to the G1 Fort Max adopting a weird city mode in a toy catalog way back in the 80's

So I accidentally found Galvatron at my local Walmart and picked him up. Is he supposed to have ratcheted hips? I see the grooves but nothing to lock them and the hips are loose making him difficult to pose on a smooth surface. Is this a QC issue or just one of those head scratchers Hasbro throws at us now and then?



On a different note, can someone explain to me the need for current fiction to accompany these wonderful toys? All the original headmasters have fiction that fits them perfectly (especially the Japan cartoon, IMHO) and the others can easily be shoehorned into Hasbro's Rebirth story if anyone needs an explanation for why Galvatron and the like suddenly are headmasters. But is that all really necessary? I liked the toy so I picked it up. Isn't that good enough for everyone? This confuses me.



Thanks!

Bradimus wrote:So I accidentally found Galvatron at my local Walmart and picked him up. Is he supposed to have ratcheted hips? I see the grooves but nothing to lock them and the hips are loose making him difficult to pose on a smooth surface. Is this a QC issue or just one of those head scratchers Hasbro throws at us now and then?



On a different note, can someone explain to me the need for current fiction to accompany these wonderful toys? All the original headmasters have fiction that fits them perfectly (especially the Japan cartoon, IMHO) and the others can easily be shoehorned into Hasbro's Rebirth story if anyone needs an explanation for why Galvatron and the like suddenly are headmasters. But is that all really necessary? I liked the toy so I picked it up. Isn't that good enough for everyone? This confuses me.



Thanks!

I don't have Titans Return Galvatron yet, so I don't know.

Agreed, I don't understand the desperate need for fiction, either. Watch the Japanese Headmasters series or read the Legends comic if you want some fiction so badly! They're toys, use your imagination to create your own fiction like I have!

Some people might call me insane for saying this, but I legitimately plan on giving Stripes a chance. Stripes just gets no love! If I ever spot Stripes in a store, I'll pick him up and see what I think of him.

DigitalBrave3 wrote:Some people might call me insane for saying this, but I legitimately plan on giving Stripes a chance. Stripes just gets no love! If I ever spot Stripes in a store, I'll pick him up and see what I think of him.

I saw Stripes today. I don't remember if it was Walmart or Target. But I want nothing to do with these minions. I think the "everything needs to be a triple changer" design rule greatly hurts the legends minions. Just when they make a solid toy for Blaster and Soundwave and just when they come up with a good idea to turn the chest minions into "spy tablets" they go and ruin any chance of a good beast design by forcing a terrible vehicle mode into the mix.

I don't get it.

@ Bradimus - The Galvatron I have has nice solid ratchets in his hips. Haven't heard of any problems like this until yours. Bummer. I think you got a lemon. Sorry. Maybe you can try Hasbro Customer service before it's too late and they run out of Galvatrons.

Edit: Sorry, just picked up my Galvatron. His hips have very soft ratchets, but they are still tight. No slipping and sliding on hard surfaces.

Cobotron wrote:@ Bradimus - The Galvatron I have has nice solid ratchets in his hips. Haven't heard of any problems like this until yours. Bummer. I think you got a lemon. Sorry. Maybe you can try Hasbro Customer service before it's too late and they run out of Galvatrons.

Thanks. Not a big deal. There should be plenty of Galvatrons for the rest of the year. I just have to return this one. Maybe I can exchange it. I'll see.

Bradimus wrote:

DigitalBrave3 wrote:Some people might call me insane for saying this, but I legitimately plan on giving Stripes a chance. Stripes just gets no love! If I ever spot Stripes in a store, I'll pick him up and see what I think of him.

I saw Stripes today. I don't remember if it was Walmart or Target. But I want nothing to do with these minions. I think the "everything needs to be a triple changer" design rule greatly hurts the legends minions. Just when they make a solid toy for Blaster and Soundwave and just when they come up with a good idea to turn the chest minions into "spy tablets" they go and ruin any chance of a good beast design by forcing a terrible vehicle mode into the mix.

I don't get it.

I think it's because Transformers that just turn into little blocks are hard to sell to kids, so Hasbro had to add the vehicle modes to make it easier to market.

Cobotron wrote:@ Bradimus - The Galvatron I have has nice solid ratchets in his hips. Haven't heard of any problems like this until yours. Bummer. I think you got a lemon. Sorry. Maybe you can try Hasbro Customer service before it's too late and they run out of Galvatrons.

Edit: Sorry, just picked up my Galvatron. His hips have very soft ratchets, but they are still tight. No slipping and sliding on hard surfaces.

Oh, so soft but tight? So I have a Baltmatrix issue then. I may still look to exchange it or just return it and wait for a good sale in the fall. These things tend to be a crap-shoot.

DigitalBrave3 wrote:

Bradimus wrote:

DigitalBrave3 wrote:Some people might call me insane for saying this, but I legitimately plan on giving Stripes a chance. Stripes just gets no love! If I ever spot Stripes in a store, I'll pick him up and see what I think of him.

I saw Stripes today. I don't remember if it was Walmart or Target. But I want nothing to do with these minions. I think the "everything needs to be a triple changer" design rule greatly hurts the legends minions. Just when they make a solid toy for Blaster and Soundwave and just when they come up with a good idea to turn the chest minions into "spy tablets" they go and ruin any chance of a good beast design by forcing a terrible vehicle mode into the mix.

I don't get it.

I think it's because Transformers that just turn into little blocks are hard to sell to kids, so Hasbro had to add the vehicle modes to make it easier to market.

I had no trouble purchasing cassette packs when I was a kid and I didn't have a Blaster or Soundwave to interact with them. Have kids imaginations gotten that bad today?

DigitalBrave3 wrote:

Bradimus wrote:On a different note, can someone explain to me the need for current fiction to accompany these wonderful toys? All the original headmasters have fiction that fits them perfectly (especially the Japan cartoon, IMHO) and the others can easily be shoehorned into Hasbro's Rebirth story if anyone needs an explanation for why Galvatron and the like suddenly are headmasters. But is that all really necessary? I liked the toy so I picked it up. Isn't that good enough for everyone? This confuses me.

Agreed, I don't understand the desperate need for fiction, either. Watch the Japanese Headmasters series or read the Legends comic if you want some fiction so badly! They're toys, use your imagination to create your own fiction like I have!

It's like what I wrote (in jest) before:

Sabrblade wrote:If it's not EXACTLY like how it was when I was a kid, no matter how badly drawn what I had as a kid was, then this new stuff SUCKZ!!!!

I'm not sure this is the right place to put this post, but I couldn't find anywhere better.

So, I bought Crashbash for his awesome face and dino-mode. I also thought he would be even cooler if he had a body. With the whole purple color-scheme, I decided Mindwipe would be a nice fit. If anyone has both of these toys (or could do a digibash/photoshop), and would like to help, it would be appreciated. (If anyone somehow magically has the Takara versions of either instead of a hasbro version, that would be just as fine)

Additionally, has anyone else though of/found a body that really suits Crashbash? Or maybe one to go with Overkillboard? (As I said, I only really care for that face.)

Bradimus wrote:

Cobotron wrote:@ Bradimus - The Galvatron I have has nice solid ratchets in his hips. Haven't heard of any problems like this until yours. Bummer. I think you got a lemon. Sorry. Maybe you can try Hasbro Customer service before it's too late and they run out of Galvatrons.

Thanks. Not a big deal. There should be plenty of Galvatrons for the rest of the year. I just have to return this one. Maybe I can exchange it. I'll see.

Mine too has very soft ratchets forward and back. But, I think the notches you are talking about, Bradimus, are for the in and out movement,as if to do the splits, right? Mine has no ratchets in that direction. Cobotron, does your also ratchet in the in and out motion?

Bradimus wrote:I liked the toy so I picked it up. Isn't that good enough for everyone?

I believe this is a very fine piece of logic.

Agamemnon wrote:

Bradimus wrote:

Cobotron wrote:@ Bradimus - The Galvatron I have has nice solid ratchets in his hips. Haven't heard of any problems like this until yours. Bummer. I think you got a lemon. Sorry. Maybe you can try Hasbro Customer service before it's too late and they run out of Galvatrons.

Thanks. Not a big deal. There should be plenty of Galvatrons for the rest of the year. I just have to return this one. Maybe I can exchange it. I'll see.

Mine too has very soft ratchets forward and back. But, I think the notches you are talking about, Bradimus, are for the in and out movement,as if to do the splits, right? Mine has no ratchets in that direction. Cobotron, does your also ratchet in the in and out motion?

Yeah I think he meant that, mine donet have it either. The ratchets only work one way and are soft. Bradimus, I am pretty sure your copy is the same as all of ours, this is just how he is done.

But you bring a good point that I keep forgetting to write about when you suspected some functionality based on the sculpt. The CW and TR line has some intense sculpting but to the point of it being confounded with functionality.

For instance, they sculpted these hnges on one side of Scourge's alt mode stableisers at the back that made me think they folded. But they dont. And the crotch piece on Skyreign's torso has these sculpted hinges that made me think it was a seperate piece. But it wasnt.


Transformers Titans Return Scourge Gallery


Transformers Generations Combiner Wars Sky Reign Gallery

Agamemnon wrote:Mine too has very soft ratchets forward and back. But, I think the notches you are talking about, Bradimus, are for the in and out movement,as if to do the splits, right? Mine has no ratchets in that direction. Cobotron, does your also ratchet in the in and out motion?

It does! The right hip I can just feel the ratchet, but not on the left. I don't feel any ratcheting in the in the forward and back motion.

So basically, it seems Galvatron is supposed to have ratchets for both the forward and lateral hip joints and some people have a little ratchet and some people have none. So this is a massive QC failure and it is what it is. Is that the consensus?

And I was specifically asking about the outward movement. I should have made that clearer. Thanks for the feedback, everyone!

Bradimus wrote:So basically, it seems Galvatron is supposed to have ratchets for both the forward and lateral hip joints and some people have a little ratchet and some people have none. So this is a massive QC failure and it is what it is. Is that the consensus?

And I was specifically asking about the outward movement. I should have made that clearer. Thanks for the feedback, everyone!

No, galvatron had no ratchet for inner or outer, no one has reported that and ther is no indication he was ever meant to have it.

william-james88 wrote:

Bradimus wrote:So basically, it seems Galvatron is supposed to have ratchets for both the forward and lateral hip joints and some people have a little ratchet and some people have none. So this is a massive QC failure and it is what it is. Is that the consensus?

And I was specifically asking about the outward movement. I should have made that clearer. Thanks for the feedback, everyone!

No, galvatron had no ratchet for inner or outer, no one has reported that and ther is no indication he was ever meant to have it.

I thought Cobotron just confirmed the inner-outer ratchet.

Cobotron wrote:

Agamemnon wrote:Mine too has very soft ratchets forward and back. But, I think the notches you are talking about, Bradimus, are for the in and out movement,as if to do the splits, right? Mine has no ratchets in that direction. Cobotron, does your also ratchet in the in and out motion?

It does! The right hip I can just feel the ratchet, but not on the left. I don't feel any ratcheting in the in the forward and back motion.

[Edit] And now that I am slowly moving the leg in and out, I do feel just a bit of ratchet on the right hip. Nothing much on the left.

And my wife just walked in on me staring at Galvy's crotch before shaking her head and leaving...

Found a stash of tr figures yesterday (no voyagers though ), so, against all reasonable arguments, I picked up Skullcruncher, and to my (non)surprise, he ended up being the equivalent of a dumpster-fire of qc issues.

With inappropriately loose wrists, thighs, thigh swivels, and headmaster socket, he is quite possibly the third most disappointing figure that I've had the misfortune of anticipating (1st are swindle and hound, whose bonnets were miss-measured, meaning they cannot tab together to form a vehicle or leg mode - F%$& you hablow's qc dept. And 2nd is Sky Lynx, whose torso has the unfortunate habit of toppling under the weight of his arms... great job )

Also got Crashbash, who is possibly the best figure I've bought this year. For being the tiniest little thing, he just has character and cuteness for days! I love him so much

Definitely can't wait to get overkill in that sexy navy deco