The Energon Pub

[Autobot N]

The gray guns with Smokescreen point to a Bluestreak or Prowl for sure.

Well we do have plenty of rumours that Prowl is coming in a two pack with an Earth mode Ironhide.

Of which I eagerly await confirmation.

The Prowl/Ironhide two-pack isn't a rumor, it's a straight-up listing on multiple of the European Amazon sites, and Bluestreak as some kind of exclusive that would get a full case all to himself was also a leaked listing in a store database. These are beyond rumors at this point.

We use "rumor" to indicate anything Hasbro hasn't come out and confirmed themselves.

Ah, fair enough.

Also it has happened that we had listings and even real id numbers and the toys were never revealed and never released. Like T30 Gnaw and Brawn.

Along with TR Optimus Primal and Toraizer (though, I guess those were confirmed to exist at some point, but got cancelled).

[Tuned Agent]

The gray guns with Smokescreen point to a Bluestreak or Prowl for sure.

Well we do have plenty of rumours that Prowl is coming in a two pack with an Earth mode Ironhide.

Of which I eagerly await confirmation.

The Prowl/Ironhide two-pack isn't a rumor, it's a straight-up listing on multiple of the European Amazon sites, and Bluestreak as some kind of exclusive that would get a full case all to himself was also a leaked listing in a store database. These are beyond rumors at this point.

Wait, Bluestreak is allegedly going to get a full case to himself?

[Jeddostotle7]

The gray guns with Smokescreen point to a Bluestreak or Prowl for sure.

Well we do have plenty of rumours that Prowl is coming in a two pack with an Earth mode Ironhide.

Of which I eagerly await confirmation.

The Prowl/Ironhide two-pack isn't a rumor, it's a straight-up listing on multiple of the European Amazon sites, and Bluestreak as some kind of exclusive that would get a full case all to himself was also a leaked listing in a store database. These are beyond rumors at this point.

Wait, Bluestreak is allegedly going to get a full case to himself?

Yep, meaning he's probably an exclusive. A lot of people are guessing he'll be the Walgreens exclusive.

[Tuned Agent]

The gray guns with Smokescreen point to a Bluestreak or Prowl for sure.

Well we do have plenty of rumours that Prowl is coming in a two pack with an Earth mode Ironhide.

Of which I eagerly await confirmation.

The Prowl/Ironhide two-pack isn't a rumor, it's a straight-up listing on multiple of the European Amazon sites, and Bluestreak as some kind of exclusive that would get a full case all to himself was also a leaked listing in a store database. These are beyond rumors at this point.

Wait, Bluestreak is allegedly going to get a full case to himself?

Yep, meaning he's probably an exclusive. A lot of people are guessing he'll be the Walgreens exclusive.

Huh, that makes sense. At least that means he'll be relatively easy to find (in the US anyway).

[ZeroWolf]

Greetings Seibertronians! Fellow Seibertron user, -WonkoTheSane-, has let us now that a timer has appeared on Walmart.com. The timer is apparently counting down to Walmart Collector Con, when they are set to announce 70 exclusive collectibles. Transformers War for Cybertron is one of the brands advertised as taking part in the event, meaning we could be looking at more Walmart exclusive Transformers in top of ones already like Re-issue G1 Blaster, Re-issue G1 Astrotrain and Transformers 35th Anniversary Cel Shaded Megatron.



This comes after Walmart.com listed the limited edition Back to the Future x Transformers crossover toy, Gigawatt, which sold out before many could even get their hands on it, yet saw eBay flooded with preorders at excruciating high prices.

What exclusives do you think we'll see this coming Friday? Let us know in the Energon Pub and stay tuned to Seibertron for all the latest news and reviews!

[Mindmaster]

After the whole Gigawatt debacle, I’m not entirely enthused by this. I’m almost certain that these will be the rumored second wave of Netflix figures. If that’s the case (which I hope it is) then I think I’ll be good. Just tired of exclusives, especially those from Walmart.

[Deadput]

New Netflix figures calling it now.

[aronjlove]

In the beginning, it was hard to find the Netflix figures. But in the months since I've seen endcaps at all three of my usual Walmarts with tons of Earthrise, Cyberverse, and Netflix figures. It took a while once the reports of the endcaps appearing before I saw them, but once I did, they were stocked full and kept that way for a few weekends. I've had more problems with Target stocking their shelves than I have with Walmart. So if it is new Netflix figures, I know to be patient, and they will eventually appear.

[o.supreme]

At least they give us a timer this time, so we know exactly supposedly when they will be available. If its more Netflix, that's ok, hopefully they will be in stores. Hopefully they won't do any more with Battle Master repaints, I don't think my wallet could handle it.

[-WonkoTheSane-]

Just tired of exclusives, especially those from Walmart.

Agreed. I wish exclusives didn't have to be a thing period. I remember when Toys R Us was still a thing, Trying to find any of their exclusives (Mainly the MPs) was a complete nightmare. I remember there were only two stores near me, And each of them were at least an hour away (From me, Even further from each other)
I couldn't even call on the phone to see what they did or didn't have, As the staff, (most of them anyway) Weren't any much help at all. In my experience so far with Walmart's TF exclusives, I've found them to be a lot better then Toys R Us, But I guess your mileage may vary.

[Mindmaster]

Just tired of exclusives, especially those from Walmart.

Agreed. I wish exclusives didn't have to be a thing period. I remember when Toys R Us was still a thing, Trying to find any of their exclusives (Mainly the MPs) was a complete nightmare. I remember there were only two stores near me, And each of them were at least an hour away (From me, Even further from each other)
I couldn't even call on the phone to see what they did or didn't have, As the staff, (most of them anyway) Weren't any much help at all. In my experience so far with Walmart's TF exclusives, I've found them to be a lot better then Toys R Us, But I guess your mileage may vary.

Back home in Wilmington, NC, there was one TRU before it shut down. My experience with them went both ways; sometimes they had what I was looking for with friendly staff, the other times the pegs would be bare and I’d have to deal with cranky staff. My luck with Walmart exclusives have been pretty decent, especially after having moved to El Paso, TX due to military service. I’ve been able to secure myself the Netflix Voyagers, Bluestreak, and Soundblaster fairly easily, but what I fear with these reveals is what happened with the first, numbered run of Gigawatt. Granted, these reveals will probably be way more in number so that scalping won’t be that huge a deal, but my trust in Walmart and their exclusives been shaken thanks to the whole Gigawatt debacle.

[Emerje]

My only concern with Walmart is they still haven't mailed out the first series of Netflix exclusives (aside from Ultra Magnus), they keep pushing the release back (now it's August). I'm worried that they're going to just cancel the order, probably right after they vanish from the shelves. At this point I should probably buy what I can in stores and get a refund on my already paid for order as I go.

Emerje

[aronjlove]

My only concern with Walmart is they still haven't mailed out the first series of Netflix exclusives (aside from Ultra Magnus), they keep pushing the release back (now it's August). I'm worried that they're going to just cancel the order, probably right after they vanish from the shelves. At this point I should probably buy what I can in stores and get a refund on my already paid for order as I go.

Emerje

Did they already charge you? I had Decepticon Mirage pre-ordered and once it got pushed back I took a chance on checking in-store. Two weekends later I found him and canceled the pre-order. No refund necessary because I hadn't been charged.

[Sowndwave76]

Just tired of exclusives, especially those from Walmart.

Agreed. I wish exclusives didn't have to be a thing period. I remember when Toys R Us was still a thing, Trying to find any of their exclusives (Mainly the MPs) was a complete nightmare. I remember there were only two stores near me, And each of them were at least an hour away (From me, Even further from each other)
I couldn't even call on the phone to see what they did or didn't have, As the staff, (most of them anyway) Weren't any much help at all. In my experience so far with Walmart's TF exclusives, I've found them to be a lot better then Toys R Us, But I guess your mileage may vary.

In some ways I miss TRU, although you're absolutely right about finding the exclusives; it was so hit or miss... And the couple stores closest to me were usually misses.
But TRU in general reminds me of when solid deluxe class figures were roughly $9 each, and they would periodically have sales where you could buy 2 get 1 free... I mean 3 deluxe figures for just over $20!
Maybe that's stuck with me too much... Which is why it's so easy to pass on a $21 Cliffjumper, or any other figure I'm not impressed with.

Speaking of unimpressed, even though Smokescreen was one of my favorite Autobots, I just don't see the need and am happy with my CHUG version... The hollow lower legs are definitely not great, but it's not even those. And I like the head sculpt. But this is another $20 that will go towards MP Starscream (if he looks great). And there's no way I'll get that Arcee.
Now the Allicon looks pretty cool imo, but even that will probably be a game time decision when I see him in person.

Also, there have been a decent number of the Netflix figures at my local Walmart... Haven't been there for roughly a week and a half, but last time they still had roughly 10.
I hope nobody gets screwed out of their pre-order!

[-WonkoTheSane-]

Just tired of exclusives, especially those from Walmart.

Agreed. I wish exclusives didn't have to be a thing period. I remember when Toys R Us was still a thing, Trying to find any of their exclusives (Mainly the MPs) was a complete nightmare. I remember there were only two stores near me, And each of them were at least an hour away (From me, Even further from each other)
I couldn't even call on the phone to see what they did or didn't have, As the staff, (most of them anyway) Weren't any much help at all. In my experience so far with Walmart's TF exclusives, I've found them to be a lot better then Toys R Us, But I guess your mileage may vary.

But TRU in general reminds me of when solid deluxe class figures were roughly $9 each, and they would periodically have sales where you could buy 2 get 1 free... I mean 3 deluxe figures for just over $20!

Man! I remember that! Heh. This makes me feel old...

[ZeldaTheSwordsman]

Here's the thing about those $9 deluxes (Which I remember as well): Money has become worth less on the primary market while at the same time production costs have increased... It's been gradually worsening since 2011. The 2014 Movie Advanced rerelease of Battle Blade Bumblebee had to be sold as a Voyager... That should tell you something.

There's also the fact that extra things like extensive paintjobs (such as SIEGE Sideswipe's painting parts red - including some that were already red plastic - for the sake of color uniformity) cost too.

[Sowndwave76]

Here's the thing about those $9 deluxes (Which I remember as well): Money has become worth less on the primary market while at the same time production costs have increased... It's been gradually worsening since 2011. The 2014 Movie Advanced rerelease of Battle Blade Bumblebee had to be sold as a Voyager... That should tell you something.

There's also the fact that extra things like extensive paintjobs (such as SIEGE Sideswipe's painting parts red - including some that were already red plastic - for the sake of color uniformity) cost too.

It all makes sense, obviously I've seen the change in years past.
But it also makes it way easier for me to pass on a lot of figures.
As much as I want something like a new and improved Cliffjumper in my collection, it's not even the money that truly turns me away... It's the cost on top of the fact that I don't like the look of a lot of these figures.
I mean, it won't be an insta-purchase if MP Starscream ends up being $400... In fact, I hate thinking he'll be that much (especially considering if I like him, I'll want some other new mold MP seekers).
But if I see a figure I really like, I'll most likely get it.
If SS Leader Slag costs $70 but I love the look of him, I'll bite, even though I don't care at all about the Daniel I'm also paying for.
So it's unfortunate that production costs have gone up, but we're still seeing things like hollow lower legs, or half legs on a figure like Runamuck...
And I get it; everything has to fit within an allocated budget.
Just a bummer that it seems like we're not really getting what we're paying for these days (imo).

[Mindmaster]

Honestly I’m perfectly happy with my Power of the Primes Dinobots, so unless they do the whole set of Dinobots (Grimlock was rumored before), and if Slag is the right size to me, I’ll get him and stick him with my Masterpieces as a stand in alongside MP Grimlock. But again, has to be right size (basically taller than the Autobot Cars, I can make do with him and potential Dinobot additions being shorter than Optimus).

[Emerje]

My only concern with Walmart is they still haven't mailed out the first series of Netflix exclusives (aside from Ultra Magnus), they keep pushing the release back (now it's August). I'm worried that they're going to just cancel the order, probably right after they vanish from the shelves. At this point I should probably buy what I can in stores and get a refund on my already paid for order as I go.

Emerje

Did they already charge you? I had Decepticon Mirage pre-ordered and once it got pushed back I took a chance on checking in-store. Two weekends later I found him and canceled the pre-order. No refund necessary because I hadn't been charged.

Yeah, but I used PayPal so maybe that was the difference maker. I ordered the day they went live, but they weren't all listed yet so I ordered what was available first (four of the five Deluxes and nothing else if I remember right), but then cancelled that when they were all available and got everything in one order. I got a refund on the canceled order and charged again for the second order. Others have mentioned already paying for them as well so it seems to be a PayPal thing.

Emerje

[NTESHFT]

The gray guns with Smokescreen point to a Bluestreak or Prowl for sure.

Well we do have plenty of rumours that Prowl is coming in a two pack with an Earth mode Ironhide.

Of which I eagerly await confirmation.

The Prowl/Ironhide two-pack isn't a rumor, it's a straight-up listing on multiple of the European Amazon sites, and Bluestreak as some kind of exclusive that would get a full case all to himself was also a leaked listing in a store database. These are beyond rumors at this point.

We use "rumor" to indicate anything Hasbro hasn't come out and confirmed themselves.

Ah, fair enough.

Also it has happened that we had listings and even real id numbers and the toys were never revealed and never released. Like T30 Gnaw and Brawn.

Along with TR Optimus Primal and Toraizer (though, I guess those were confirmed to exist at some point, but got cancelled).

Honestly, I wish they would have done Silverstreak in a two pack with Earthmode Ratchet, but since that isn't happening would it be possible Rachst would yet again be a Walgreens exclusive?

And also an off topic question Autobot N....how sturdy is that throne that comes with Optimal Optimus? I want to get one because I need the last 4 Primes...

[ZeroWolf]

Actually I could see Ratchet getting a retail release just because Ironhide is the exclusive this time round.

[Nemesis Primal]

Actually I could see Ratchet getting a retail release just because Ironhide is the exclusive this time round.

For like the third time, Ratchet is supposedly getting a Selects release, according to the same source as the list of leaks that had Exhaust, Greasepit, Hubcap, Thrust, etc, and a tag was found by I believe a TRU Canada employee that claimed a Gen Selects Leader "Ratch" is coming, so something's up with Ratchet, we just don't know what. Maybe it's Ratchet with a bunch of accessories or something, maybe it's a two-pack, maybe the tag just has the wrong size class or name, or maybe Hasbro is renaming CD Red Alert to be some form of Ratchet.

[D-Maximal_Primal]

And also an off topic question Autobot N....how sturdy is that throne that comes with Optimal Optimus? I want to get one because I need the last 4 Primes...

I have one too, and it's OK. it is cardboard, so it does bend some, but it has held for me for 2 years no problem with leader Primal on it

[Autobot N]

And also an off topic question Autobot N....how sturdy is that throne that comes with Optimal Optimus? I want to get one because I need the last 4 Primes...

I've had it in storage for a while (can't find a good place for it), but I don't recall having any stability issues with it while it was out. It supported Shockwave just fine while he was on there.


It's a pretty great set, so I'd get it if you can find it for a good price. My Throne Primal was a lot less loose than my retail Primal.


Back on topic, I wonder what'll be in ER wave 4? Weird that we haven't got any retailer listings for that yet.

[ZeldaTheSwordsman]

And also an off topic question Autobot N....how sturdy is that throne that comes with Optimal Optimus? I want to get one because I need the last 4 Primes...

I have one too, and it's OK. it is cardboard, so it does bend some, but it has held for me for 2 years no problem with leader Primal on it

Don't go putting a Unicron Trilogy Leader on it though.