The Energon Pub

Greetings All,
I just wanted to take a moment to share an internal debate I’ve been having and the several factors involved. My son is 10 years old, and we are almost exactly 30 years apart (30 years, 1 month, and 5 days to be exact). So it’s nice that I can share with him a lot of my own memories from exactly 30 years ago, and how I was growing up with Transformers etc.…

Of course, one of my fondest memories was receiving Fortress Maximus as a gift in late 1987. And one of the hardest things I ever had to do was sell him along with the rest of my collection on eBay back in 2006. Naturally however, since the new TR FM is coming out now I would love to get it for my son as a gift. But most online retailers are jacking up the price. Additionally I have my doubts if I will never see one at retail, which is REALLY where I would prefer to get one. (Just for the record I never saw 2013 Generations Metroplex at retail, despite living in a fairly large market). Also my local Target just removed their Transformers section altogether. Has Target decided to stop carrying the line?

Additionally there is the *collector* side of me that says…even if I did get one, should I keep it MISB? I have seen, even just 3 years later how Generations Metroplex is selling for 2-3X original value. Of course I don’t want to be *that dad* like Will Ferrell from the Lego Movie who never lets his kids play with any toys. Sure I have a few collectibles MISB, but for the most part, I let my son have free reign, as they are pretty much his toys now anyway more than mine. I’d love to be able to purchase two, (one for him to play with, and one for me to keep MISB), but that is just not feasible at this point.
So to all fans or any dads that may be in a similar situation, what advice can you offer? *If* I am going to find this in a store, what are my best chances- TRU, Target, Wal-Mart…anywhere else? If I can only get one…should I leave it MISB, or let my son have it? Any advice is appreciated. Thank you.

How responsible is the kid? If he's npt, wait til he is responsible. Money doesn't grow in trees.

He's taken really good care of his CW Combaticons, which has had for a couple of months, and also the RiD15 Deplayers and mini-cons. But the real test is when he gets something else that dominates his interest. We both collected pretty much every Kreon, with the understanding I keep the Kreons for a display, and he got all the sets. For a while he kept them nice and organized, but then he pretty much just mashed them all together. I made him keep all his instruction booklets in a nice folder, but he makes his own creations with the Kre-o parts. I guess that's not necessarily irresponsible, just like the kid in his Lego movie. But even with the instructions, I think he would be hard pressed to assemble any of the original builds now that all the parts have been mixed into one huge bin.

I guess a good question would be...How many small parts come with the new Fort Max? -In my own case, with the original for a time I lost Cerebros' small gun, and the large turquoise door broke. But thanks to eBay I was able to replace those parts and bring my Fort Max back to 100% complete and functional.

target hasnt stoppd selling them. thats weird.
His regular price is $150 on toys r us and Big Bad Toy Store.

o.supreme wrote:How many small parts come with the new Fort Max?

Emissary, a gun for Cerebros, and a tank-ish thing that fits on Fort Max's leg.


Also, what price range are you looking for? He's at the MSRP of $150 at most places like BBTS.

Here's my advice:

First of all I would get two. Sounds like both you and your kid will really enjoy them, even if you keep yours MISP. I totally get doing that. Just over half of my collection still is.
Let your son open his, and if nothing else, I would bet later on you'll be able to sell it and at least get your money back. Which, after he's enjoyed it, even taking a loss wouldn't be the end of the world. Not to mention, let's be honest, if his is open, you'll get to transform it, etc., which will make it easy for you to keep yours sealed.
Later on, you should be able to get at least what you paid for it, if you ever choose to sell it.

I have an 8 yr old, and while you have to be smart and selective with purchases, I also know sooner than later he's not going to be into toys, or for that matter, into hanging out with me!
I'm never going to look back and think "I coulda shoulda woulda done more for my son while he was a kid".

If you decide not to get FM, it's all good, just remember that the next time you and/or your kid want something. Just think about it. If you're like me, you'll figure out fairly soon if you should pull the trigger on this or not.