The Energon Pub

This is something that can be done every year, so here is one for 2016!

Here are the rules: These are toys that you bought in 2016, not ones that came out only in 2016; also, these are figures based on how much you enjoy them, not necessarily how good they are. and with that in mind, let's go!

16) Combiner Wars Trailbreaker

my favorite of the limbs from this year, retail release wise. His HFG makes a great forcefield generator and he looks awesome as an arm. Plus, I love his colors and his character.

15) Generations Drift

Been on my radar for a while now, and finally found one at a good price. Shout out to the awesome Shajaki for the sword! I owe you a beer buddy!

14) Robots In Disguise Bisk

This year was awesome for RiD cons, and this guy was a good one. Love a lobster bot.

13) Combiner Wars Thundercracker

Another guy that has been on my radar. Really good figure, and I love the character, so I'm glad to have picked him up. Well worth it.

12) Generations Warpath

A masterpiece worthy figure that was also a find at a great price. awesome figure, can't recommend enough.

11) Titans Return Wolfwire/Blurr

Couldn't really differentiate how good these 2 were, so I tied them up at 1. Yes you can do that, shut up. Both are really awesome figures from the line, go get them.

10) Animated Shockwave

Another figure on the wait list, and one that was at an amazing price on ebay. Really fun double spy. Me likey.

9) Titans Return Cerebros

Love this little guy. Fort Max may be the big boy, but this guy is the star of the show. I recommend Fort Max purely for Cerebros.

G1 Sideswipe

Finally got a G1 toy, and it is a good one. Love it, and I wish all G1 toys were like this guy.

7) Hunt for the Decepticons Seaspray

Alright, a figure that was off my radar, came on, bought and delivered within a week. This guy is me if I weren't out of shape and if I could actually dive. I love the concept of sea-formers and of diving, so this guy is a dream come true.

6) Robots in Disguise Thunderhoof

Best RiD figure of the year. I've said enough for the past 9 months for this guy.

5) Combiner Wars Strafe/Computron

Best combiner overall of the sets. Really good figures, Strafe is my favorite, but I count him in with Computron. Scrounge is a lovely bonus.

4) Universe Overload

This guy is so high not because he's good, but because he is so fun. Real big, chunky, easy to transform, yet posable. Love him to death, and he'll blow you up with missiles.

3) Titans Return Rewind

My mascot. the little guy goes with me almost everywhere. plus, he's a triple changer, so he has that going for him. and he's cute.

2) Titans Return Alpha Trion/Lione

Best TR figure to me. I ignore his spaceship mode mostly and I love his lion mode. Sawback/Lione goes with him as a set, and I am so happy to have got this pair.

1) Masterpiece Shattered Glass Optimus Prime

Yeah, I know. but I'll stop talking about him when he stops being so damn good.

That's a wrap folks! Hope you enjoyed, and let's get some lists going!

Man, I didn't even get 16 toys this year. But here's a list of what I did get:

9. TR Scourge: finally a Scourge figure with his bath-tub alt-mode! Love his deco. Although simple, it works. I prefer Hasbro head to Takara head. Love how much Fracas reminds me of a little Rumble . Only wish my copy was better; hands are pretty loose, and arms have a tendency to pop off as I turn then.

8. CW Onslaught: lovely figure, looks like G1 Onslaught toy. I get why he's a voyager, for the combiner, but since I wasn't able to complete Bruticus, I'd prefer if he was a deluxe

7. CW Swindle: great looking figure, great update to Swindle. Love the alt mode

6. 2007 Movie Hardtop: found this guy at a local store unopened for cheap. He looked good and I wanted to experience a Cybertron mold, so I got him. Ended up loving him. Such an intuitive transformation for such a small toy, and with his deco he looks great with the CW Combaticons. The Cyber Key gimmick is fun too

5. TR Overboard: I wanted this guy the moment he was announced. Really looks like the G1 version. I got him mostly for his dino mode (It'd go great with the FOC data discs and a deluxe soundwave, if they ever released one), but I found myself loving the redecoed Crashbash/Cancer head; it just looks so menacing

4. CW Sky Lynx: this figure was hard to find, in the end I found him at Ross on the cheap . He's a fantastic update to the character, has a beautiful combiner torso mode, and I really like the "lynx" mode.
If only he was a leader class figure or bigger.

3. TR Mindwipe: awesome update to the G1 toy, and he's close enough to the Takara version to represent The Headmasters Wipe in my collection

2. CW Wheeljack: a slight retool that comes off better looking than you'd expect, that does a great job of representing Jackie. With the HFG attached to his back you get a more Wheeljacky look. Also love how his chest windows aren't huge and don't take up his entire chest area

1. CW Shockwave: an amazing little figure that does a great job of representing my favorite character in a small scale. If only he was a deluxe though....

Hey, even if you got less than 16, we still like hearing about your figures! Those are some good quality figures right there on that list!

D-Maximus_Prime wrote:Hey, even if you got less than 16, we still like hearing about your figures! Those are some good quality figures right there on that list!

They sure are!
Thanks! I liked your list too.

Dude, I'm 40 years old. The only reason I remember what I had for breakfast is because I have the same thing EVERY day. How do you expect me to remember that figures I got last year?

Sat in an airport, I'm trying to remember exactly what I got this year..

I was gifted CW 'Special Edition' Hot Spot (by ScottyP)


Crossovers Venom from BotCon.


I got Victorion, of course.


TAV Thunderhoof


TR Hardhead (well, Legends)


TR Clobber



..is that really it?

i thougt you had more

Top 16 of '16

16. Age of Extinction Deluxe Drift

Yeah, late to the game on this guy, but I was really impressed with the figure when I got it. Beautiful alt-mode, nice details in bot-mode, and lots of swords. A really fun figure from a god-awful, terrible movie.

15. Titans Return Sentinel Prime

I picked him up on sale on a lark, and ended up really enjoying the figure. He has a TON of detailing in his alt-modes that doesn't come through well in pictures, and his alt-modes are goofy, but fun. The orange really pops in hand as well.

14. Titans Return Rewind

His alt-mode isn't that exciting, but it's a nice update and adds some play value to Blaster. The lovely bot-mode is where this figure shines.

13. RID Warrior Bisk

Robot Zoidberg is tons of fun. A really nice, if slightly gappy, alt-mode, a wonderful headsculpt, and frickin' claws!

12. Titans Return Legends Shockwave

Lots of personality in a tiny figure, and he makes a great accessory for any figure in his gun mode.

11. Titans Return Titan Master Apeface

My favorite headsculpt of the Titan Master line (he makes Galvatron into a lovely Tarn), and perhaps the most fun and least fiddly Titan Master vehicle of the bunch.

10. RID Warrior Thunderhoof

I love, love, love his transformation! Looks cool in both modes to boot.

9. Titans Return Wolfwire

It may be nostalgia speaking, as I owned the G1 toy, but this was my favorite Deluxe from TR wave 2. Lots of nice details (look at those teeth!), cool accessories, and it looks great in both modes.

8. Animated Oil Slick

Found it for a good price, and quite glad I got it. Any robot that can pull of a steepled fingers pose gets high marks in my book, and his chopper mode is absolutely rad.

7. Animated Soundwave

Laserbeak turns into a guitar for Soundwave to hold. How could this not make my list?

6. Masterpiece Ironhide/Ratchet

I'm lumping these two together because I couldn't pick one and didn't want to take up two slots. Both figures have alt-modes that are spot on to their animated designs, and the bot modes look great, niggling details aside. It's getting from one to the other that is the real treat, as the transformation strikes the right balance between complexity, intuitiveness, and magic.

5. TAV Lockdown

The skull face, the mean looking car mode, the crazy transformation that turns a Deluxe-sized car into a Voyager-sized bot...what's not to love?

4. Titans Return Hardhead

I probably had more fun with Hardhead than any other Titans Return figure, if just because he's the figure that seems to have the most play value of the TR line. You can cover his alt-mode with weapons, his big cannon is great fun when added to Fortress Maximus, and it's easy to turn Hardhead into a Battletech-style walking tank. Just a fun, fun figure.

3. SDCC Exclusive Fortress Maximus

Any incarnation of this figure would make the list one way or the other because of his MASSIVE play value, but this version wins out for me. I prefer the look over both the Hasbro and Takara versions, I love the Master Sword, and I didn't have to apply any of the stickers myself.

2. Platinum Classics Optimus Prime

This was my first encounter with this mold, and HOH BOY! It looks fantastic, and has wonderful poseability for a figure of its age. Possibly my definitive CHUG Optimus Prime.

1. Masterpiece Hot Rodimus

I know there are complaints about the backpack, the wheels not rolling right in alt-mode, etc., but this is easily my figure of the year for one reason:

Poseability.

I don't think I own a more expressive Transformers figure. Between the normal MP articulation, his ab crunch, his double-jointed elbows, and his forward shoulder movement, I can work Hot Rodimus into poses that I just can't manage with any other figure. He's a joy to play with in bot-mode, and his alt-mode, like every Hot Rod toy, is just gorgeous.

Nice list Mr. Black! There are some really good ones on there, and I agree with many of your choices.

DestronMirage22 wrote:

D-Maximus_Prime wrote:Hey, even if you got less than 16, we still like hearing about your figures! Those are some good quality figures right there on that list!

They sure are!
Thanks! I liked your list too.

Thanks! It was a great year for toys!

Burn wrote:Dude, I'm 40 years old. The only reason I remember what I had for breakfast is because I have the same thing EVERY day. How do you expect me to remember that figures I got last year?

And yet, you can remember a poor little yellow chap whom was melted in his debut appearance in a comic book?

Va'al wrote:Sat in an airport, I'm trying to remember exactly what I got this year..

Insert cute pictures here

Hey, those are still some good figures!

I haven't even received all of my 2016 packages yet. I'll make a list after MP Inferno, TT Legends Super Ginrai, Laserbeak, and Ravage, and Convobat arrive.

Emerje

16) Titans Return Blurr



15) Masterpiece Road Rage



14) Titans Return "Powermaster" Optimus Prime



13) Combiner Wars G2 Superion



12) Titans Return Chromedome
11) Titans Return Rewind



10) RiD Fracture (Takara)



9) Reveal the Shield G2 Optimus Prime



8] Fans Toys Willis (Masterpiece Hound)



7) Masterpiece Ironhide



6) Badcube Sunsurge (Masterpiece Sunstreaker)



5) Masterpiece Ratchet



4) Maketoys Despotron (Masterpiece Megatron)



3) Masterpiece Hot Rod



2) MMC Ocular Max Sphinx (Masterpiece Mirage)



1) Masterpiece Optimus Primal

Ironhidensh wrote:12) Titans Return Chromedome
11) Titans Return Rewind

Interesting list Densh.

I wasn't expecting to find these 2 on that list. Didn't know they had stuck out that much to you, and they didn't really seem like the type of Transformer I think I've come to understand you liking

TR had a lot of goodness. On the bot side, hard to beat Blaster. A good update that wasn't just a retool of Soundwave (at the time he was released anyway! ). For the cons, no one beats Scourge. Once swapping his thighs with Highbrow, his deco near perfectly recreates the G1 toy, but in modern styling.

Finshed up a bit of CW too. Devastator was cool (though with enough minor issues to annoy me). Trailbreaker as mentioned in the original post was great (like the CW version better than the CHUG not too long ago). Blast Off was a really good redeco of Slingshot et al. I'll still endeavor to get the shuttle version if ever released stateside, but of all the replacement limbs, BO's gotta be the best of them. Shockwave was awesome too, other than the price. Thanks for the crappy distribution, Hasbro!

D-Maximus_Prime wrote:

Ironhidensh wrote:12) Titans Return Chromedome
11) Titans Return Rewind

Interesting list Densh.

I wasn't expecting to find these 2 on that list. Didn't know they had stuck out that much to you, and they didn't really seem like the type of Transformer I think I've come to understand you liking

It's more about the characters than the toys for me. Domey is ikay, but Rewind is kinda junk. The characters are beloved, though, so they were must haves.

Ironhidensh wrote:It's more about the characters than the toys for me. Domey is ikay, but Rewind is kinda junk. The characters are beloved, though, so they were must haves.

Interesting, really is.

It's the reason I get certain characters: I love them as characters, even if the toy isn't necessarily that good. Tailgate comes up as one

These 16 ar the cream of the crop, would have loved to include more!

RID Battlepack Grimlock

TAV Thunderhoof

TR Blaster/Soundwave

TR Astrotrain

RID Fracture

UW Grant Galvatron

UW Computron

Encore Fortress Maximus

Beast Machines Night Viper

TR Highbrow

Legends Blurr

MP Optimus Primal

MP Ironhide

TR Wheelie

MP Shockwave

Combiner Wars Swindle/Hound

The Rust Renegades were probably my favorite pickup of the year.



Hardhead is a close second all by himself. He is fun to pose, the transformation is simple and the Titan Master gimmick is a total hit. (this was the best pic I have of him, so here have him fist bumping Ratchet whom is not from 2016's pickups)


Thunderhoof is one of my favorite characters and toys


RiD Ratchet has a great transformation. I think he needs some paint and feels a little light, however I really enjoy playing with him so I am adding him to the list.

Legends

Fortmax
Skull
Chromedome
Hardhead
Highbrow
Wheelie
Shockwave
Scourge
Broadcast
Rewind
Weirdwolf
Galvatron
Blurr

TAV

Windblade

MP

Ratchet
Shockwave
Inferno
Alert (anime version)
Beast Convoy

UW

Bruticus and Computron

fenrir72 wrote:Legends

Fortmax
Skull
Chromedome
Hardhead
Highbrow
Wheelie
Shockwave
Scourge
Broadcast
Rewind
Weirdwolf
Galvatron
Blurr

TAV

Windblade

MP

Ratchet
Shockwave
Inferno
Alert (anime version)
Beast Convoy

UW

Bruticus and Computron

Ok, so out of all those, what are your Top 16?

I can't easily post here as I bought so much 3rd party stuff in 2016
But i'll have a think and come back but in the meantime.

I hope that photo was taken while the car was stationary.

RAR wrote:I can't easily post here as I bought so much 3rd party stuff in 2016
But i'll have a think and come back but in the meantime.

I hope that photo was taken while the car was stationary.

Don't sweat it. My post was full of 3rd party items.

william-james88 wrote:

fenrir72 wrote:Legends

Fortmax
Skull
Chromedome
Hardhead
Highbrow
Wheelie
Shockwave
Scourge
Broadcast
Rewind
Weirdwolf
Galvatron
Blurr

TAV

Windblade

MP

Ratchet
Shockwave
Inferno
Alert (anime version)
Beast Convoy

UW

Bruticus and Computron

Ok, so out of all those, what are your Top 16?

I count the UW as a single. So minus Galvatron (ill conceived helmet gimmick), Rewind ( I know why he became "popular", TAV Windblade (too simple), Alert (kind'a old),TL Wipe (rubber head and wings) so the rest are my best.....all 16.