The Energon Pub

Welcome to the latest episode of the Seibertron.com Twincast / Podcast! This episode features your prodigal host Counterpunch, xRotorstormx, TigerTrack24, jON3.0, and Megatronus - listen in as we discuss the latest news, toys, and more.

Episode #124 "Dogfight" is available directly and in our RSS Feed, and should appear on iTunes and Stitcher Radio within 24 to 48 hours of when you see this news post.

We start out with news from across the Atlantic - an intriguing, remarkably detailed fan survey run by Hasbro UK, allegedly a result of feedback Hasbro received at this year's Auto Assembly. Several members of the Twincast filled out this survey, and boy do we have thoughts. All the thoughts. Also, what's this about 3rd Party items?



We move on to toys, a staple of our friendly neighborhood podcast, starting with the TFCC Service 4.0 reveals. As of this writing, Bludgeon is the latest Club reveal, and Twincast reactions are mixed. Is this the Bludgeon we're yearning for, or does he leave us wanting?



Optimus Maximus is here! Combiner Wars wave 4, AKA the 1984 Autobots (check out our very own Seibertron galleries, here), and Battle Core Optimus (available at Amazon) are hitting shelves. Will the Twincast crew pick these up? More to the point, will these versions spur us to replace our Classics and Universe figures? It's a tough call, so tune in.



We've got some interesting redecos coming out of the Transformers Adventures line, including legends class Override and Runabout, and the ever-stoic and much vaunted deluxe class Vehicon General. These sweet rides have caught the Twincast's eye, so listen in to hear what we think about these speedsters... Megatronus makes the wrong choice.



We've wound our way back to the MP line, and we still have some gripes about the upcoming and much debated MP-27 Ironhide. Is the Twincast crew capable of making peace with this figure? You're just a download away from finding out. Also, what's with this red Bumblebee?



We finish up the Twincast with some bragging rights. What did everyone get since the last recording - or even since two recordings ago?



Don't forget, the show only gets better if you tell us how. Drop us a review on iTunes and be sure to tell us what you love, what you hate, and what you want to hear!

Not on the show to give your take? Probably not, so don't forget to keep the discussion going on the Seibertron.com Energon Pub Forums by simply replying to this post!

Got a question for the Twincast? We take all of them, we just don't take them all seriously! Leave a question in the Ask the Twincast thread and, if it makes the cut, it may get read and answered on the show.

I've been working myself up to buy BC Optimus all day...

megatronus wrote:I've been working myself up to buy BC Optimus all day...

And...?

btw, thanks for finding me an Override.

So I'm not done listening, but I thought I'd throw my 2 cents in on CW Wave 4. Prowl looks awesome. As for the talk of him being better than Universe Prowl, I don't know. Universe Prowl is definitely the updated G1 version. However, I've never been super happy with that mold. It's always been a bit fiddly for me. In terms of displaying him on a shelf, he looks great. I think CW Prowl might be more fun to mess with. Please know that I LOVE Classics/Universe, etc. I'm not saying that they are bad figures at all(Except for Tankor/Octane. You suck, dude.). As for the rest of wave 4. Sunstreaker is in that terrible yellow that just doesn't look good. It's sorta translucent and just looks cruddy. Also, I really don't like that mold all that much and I wouldn't have bought Breakdown if I'd known the legs were that crappy. Mirage just doesn't compare to Classics Mirage. That is still, hands down, one of the best Classics figures. The CW alt mode looks great, but the robot mode, no matter what you do to it, just can't compare. I really don't like Ironhide's head sculpt at all. Just doesn't look like him.

All that being said, if I can find a Prowl, I'm going to pick him up. The CW figures are a lot of fun to play with. And that mold they used for him is great.

Counterpunch wrote:

megatronus wrote:I've been working myself up to buy BC Optimus all day...

And...?

btw, thanks for finding me an Override.

Still considering. I have an Amazon gift card somewhere. Once I have that glossy piece of plastic in hand... I will use the code to buy a different glossy piece of plastic.

Also, you're welcome!

RodimusConvoy13 wrote:So I'm not done listening, but I thought I'd throw my 2 cents in on CW Wave 4. Prowl looks awesome. As for the talk of him being better than Universe Prowl, I don't know. Universe Prowl is definitely the updated G1 version. However, I've never been super happy with that mold. It's always been a bit fiddly for me. In terms of displaying him on a shelf, he looks great. I think CW Prowl might be more fun to mess with. Please know that I LOVE Classics/Universe, etc. I'm not saying that they are bad figures at all(Except for Tankor/Octane. You suck, dude.). As for the rest of wave 4. Sunstreaker is in that terrible yellow that just doesn't look good. It's sorta translucent and just looks cruddy. Also, I really don't like that mold all that much and I wouldn't have bought Breakdown if I'd known the legs were that crappy. Mirage just doesn't compare to Classics Mirage. That is still, hands down, one of the best Classics figures. The CW alt mode looks great, but the robot mode, no matter what you do to it, just can't compare. I really don't like Ironhide's head sculpt at all. Just doesn't look like him.

All that being said, if I can find a Prowl, I'm going to pick him up. The CW figures are a lot of fun to play with. And that mold they used for him is great.

I'm 100% with you on Sunstreaker. That mold is one of the weakest, if not the weakest, mold to come out of CW. That yellow plastic does not help things. I do love the Offroad mold, but it's just not a great fit for Ironhide.

Mirage... I kind of like. I'm not sure I like it better than the Classics version, but I'm also not so sure that the Classics version is better. If he had a Prowl-like chest plate covering the combiner peg, I think the CW version would be my favorite.

Had I been on, I would have said how I'm all about that Grand/Ground Vehicon General. I can't wait for that guy. The PRiD Vehicons and the two Jet Vehicons are the only Prime figures I kept besides FE Bulkhead and FE Prime. And since Bulkhead has been in the comics as well as the Vehicons, they're G1 baby! So totally ok with my classics collection.

I bet it was Alpha Bravo who set that all up. He's always saving G1, you know.

RodimusConvoy13 wrote:And since Bulkhead has been in the comics as well as the Vehicons, they're G1 baby! So totally ok with my classics collection.

Shucks... Now I have to buy that Bulkhead again...

RodimusConvoy13 wrote:I bet it was Alpha Bravo who set that all up. He's always saving G1, you know.

I don't know who it was on the podcast that recently got Hot Spot, but the robot mode legs work great if you transform them correctly.
"You have HotSpot's knees wrong. Bend them at a 90 degree angle then snap them into the top of the "shin". Secures the legs. Makes him awesome-er." On shortpacked.

kurthy wrote:I don't know who it was on the podcast that recently got Hot Spot, but the robot mode legs work great if you transform them correctly.
"You have HotSpot's knees wrong. Bend them at a 90 degree angle then snap them into the top of the "shin". Secures the legs. Makes him awesome-er." On shortpacked.

I'll take another look. I thought I had tried that and couldn't get them to fix there.

I might have been wrong.

I need to finish listening, but in our interview with Pete a few episodes back, when I asked him very point blank about FSS figure arrival being at Botcon time, he was insistent that yes, this happened, but won't next time.

Seeing as there's been a factory move on the Hasbro end (China to Vietnam), I'll choose to believe that until it happens otherwise.

Survey: i wouod not be surprised if those fee response questions get hit with search filters, instead of being just read

kurthy wrote:I don't know who it was on the podcast that recently got Hot Spot, but the robot mode legs work great if you transform them correctly.
"You have HotSpot's knees wrong. Bend them at a 90 degree angle then snap them into the top of the "shin". Secures the legs. Makes him awesome-er." On shortpacked.

You were definitely right about this. I'm not sure how I missed it.

I remember thinking that it should work like that when I first took a look. To be fair, mine were considerably tighter than I would have expected but after the first time it snapped in, the rest were easier.

Thanks!

Yep, I was worried the first time I did it, then I got it snapped in. The joint was so nice, but the mold seems terrible if you leave it the way you would expect.

Don't thank me, I didn't realize it until I read Willis' blog.

Great podcast, I love it most when you are discussing toys and the pros and cons you find with them so I was in heaven.

Firstly, I am on Megatronus' side for TAV Runabout over Override. When I saw the Blackjack mold, the windows on his chest looked just perfect for a Batlechanger homage to a point where I thought this mold was made to eventually redeco it as one of them. And they did, so its great. Here are some points on how this is totally the perfect mold to homage the Battlechangers:

BWTF wrote:Blackjack's sculpt has three of the hallmark design elements of those G1 characters including car windows as part of his torso and a section of the car that is swung behind the head, almost like a hood that has been pushed back. However, the biggest give away is his head sculpt which features visor eyes and a mouthplate with a distinct notch that sticks out in the middle.

However, I am totally siding with Counterpunch for Hotspot. When I first held him I could not beleive this was issued by the same guys who brought us Motromaster and Superion. I hate those hip ratchets, they give such odd poses. Theya re either too close together or too far apart. And while his wheels stay on, the chest flap comes off all the time. While I dont mind how he stays together in combined mode, he seems to much smaller and stockier than the other combiners. And the upper part of his combiner torso limit his shoulder articulation, unlike Superion who had a bunch of space for his shoulders to move.
He is my least favourite voyager mold and least favourite combiner, although I preffer his version of the limb molds to all previous uses of their molds.


OH and guys:

Hotspot's knees do lock but it isnt in the instructions

youtube wrote:there is a way to lock the knees so they are tighter, he's mis-transformed out of the box, each knee is on a triple hinge and to lock it just press in on the lower hinges to get a step pattern and they click into place

EDIT: I just saw that you took note of that Hotspot fix already. Still, it would have been nice if it was included in the instructions. It makes a huge difference.

What is going on with Jon's audio? Background noise and he's generally quiet, otherwise. Get with the program mister voice actor!

RodimusConvoy13 wrote:So I'm not done listening, but I thought I'd throw my 2 cents in on CW Wave 4. Prowl looks awesome. As for the talk of him being better than Universe Prowl, I don't know. Universe Prowl is definitely the updated G1 version. However, I've never been super happy with that mold. It's always been a bit fiddly for me. In terms of displaying him on a shelf, he looks great. I think CW Prowl might be more fun to mess with. Please know that I LOVE Classics/Universe, etc. I'm not saying that they are bad figures at all(Except for Tankor/Octane. You suck, dude.). As for the rest of wave 4. Sunstreaker is in that terrible yellow that just doesn't look good. It's sorta translucent and just looks cruddy. Also, I really don't like that mold all that much and I wouldn't have bought Breakdown if I'd known the legs were that crappy. Mirage just doesn't compare to Classics Mirage. That is still, hands down, one of the best Classics figures. The CW alt mode looks great, but the robot mode, no matter what you do to it, just can't compare. I really don't like Ironhide's head sculpt at all. Just doesn't look like him.

All that being said, if I can find a Prowl, I'm going to pick him up. The CW figures are a lot of fun to play with. And that mold they used for him is great.

I haven't listened yet, but none of these molds are better than the previous versions, save maybe Ironhide which is a junk mold...but this version doesn't really say Ironhide either. CW has a lot of weak molds, as is the case with just about ever figure since FOC Generations figures.

Kibble wrote:I haven't listened yet, but none of these molds are better than the previous versions, save maybe Ironhide which is a junk mold...but this version doesn't really say Ironhide either.

Ironhide isn't a junk mold, it's just a mold that doesn't fit Ironhide. Offroad and First Aid are great, and I fully expect Ruckus to be great, too.

Kibble wrote:CW has a lot of weak molds, as is the case with just about ever figure since FOC Generations figures.

Kibble wrote:I haven't listened yet, but none of these molds are better than the previous versions, save maybe Ironhide which is a junk mold...but this version doesn't really say Ironhide either. CW has a lot of weak molds, as is the case with just about ever figure since FOC Generations figures.

You gotta get yourself:

Generations Cosmos
Generations Arcee
Generations Spriger
AOE Evasio Mode Optimus Prime
AOE Hound
RID Drift
Generations Brainstorm
CW Blades
CW Blackjack

Those are all amazing molds.

megatronus wrote:

Kibble wrote:I haven't listened yet, but none of these molds are better than the previous versions, save maybe Ironhide which is a junk mold...but this version doesn't really say Ironhide either.

Ironhide isn't a junk mold, it's just a mold that doesn't fit Ironhide. Offroad and First Aid are great, and I fully expect Ruckus to be great, too.

I think he meant the universe ironhide/ratchet mold was junk and that of the 4 cw autobot limbs of wave 4, the ironhide was the only one that he found beat the original.

william-james88 wrote:

megatronus wrote:

Kibble wrote:I haven't listened yet, but none of these molds are better than the previous versions, save maybe Ironhide which is a junk mold...but this version doesn't really say Ironhide either.

Ironhide isn't a junk mold, it's just a mold that doesn't fit Ironhide. Offroad and First Aid are great, and I fully expect Ruckus to be great, too.

I think he meant the universe ironhide/ratchet mold was junk and that of the 4 cw autobot limbs of wave 4, the ironhide was the only one that he found beat the original.

Re-reading it, that makes sense.

Sorry, Kibble!

megatronus wrote:

william-james88 wrote:

megatronus wrote:

Kibble wrote:I haven't listened yet, but none of these molds are better than the previous versions, save maybe Ironhide which is a junk mold...but this version doesn't really say Ironhide either.

Ironhide isn't a junk mold, it's just a mold that doesn't fit Ironhide. Offroad and First Aid are great, and I fully expect Ruckus to be great, too.

I think he meant the universe ironhide/ratchet mold was junk and that of the 4 cw autobot limbs of wave 4, the ironhide was the only one that he found beat the original.

Re-reading it, that makes sense.

Sorry, Kibble!

Dont be sorry, he still called every mold since FOC crappy (I am at least hoping he includes FOC in this generalization).

william-james88 wrote:You gotta get yourself:

Generations Cosmos
Generations Arcee
Generations Spriger
AOE Evasio Mode Optimus Prime
AOE Hound
RID Drift
Generations Brainstorm
CW Blades
CW Blackjack

Those are all amazing molds.

I have most of those. Cosmos, I agree is really good. Arcee looks good, but I hate the tabby transformation that doesn't hold together well. It seems since FOC (and yes, including) there has been an over reliance on tabs for the transformation where they previously folded together solidly instead of just having a tab peg and loosely hold it together. Springer is solid, but overrated. Evasion Prime, probably a great mold if it had proper paint. Don't have Hound or Drift. Brainstorm...bland, but effective, I guess. Blades...okay. Blackjack, have him, but I don't remember anything about him so I'll assume I wasn't impressed.

Not every figure has sucked, but I'd say the ratio has flipped as of FOC for good vs mediocre to bad figs compared to Universe 2.0 through Pre-FOC Gens.

Well of course because in that time period you get Animated, First Edition Prime, HFTD, RTS and the best movie leaders. Plus you get Onslaught and Warpath. Yeah, thats a beautiful era.

Eh. I think we just have a rosy view of that time. There were plenty of stinkers then, too.