This Is Why I Like Transformers Part V
Posted: Wed May 18, 2011 1:49 pmSo the story starts like this. A man, let's just say a mentor of mine, made a robust, thought provoking and inspiring post about the hobby of collecting Transformers. To be succinct, his message conveyed to me that as Transformers fans and collectors, we've got it pretty darn good.
Before I get into the whole shebang, I'm not here today to be the spokesperson of Hasbro, Takara or BotCon. I'm not here to kiss your derriere, or bleed my heart out for some overseas third party. As of right now, I'm on my side. Because in today's contemporary world of political apathy, hair-trigger revolutions, and the very thin line between Bear and Bull, this is the only side I can be on.
While I may state that I'm the a lone gun slinging rebel, that's certainly far from the truth. Four years ago when my mentor made his point, I certainly saw that I wasn't alone. And even as today, while I try to be unique in being a vintage Micron collector, there's a duo on the staff of Seibertron.com that are a mile ahead of me at this point. I'm conforming to have collections like them than rather set myself apart.
Why? Because just like my mentor did to me, opinions are very powerful. If a website called Seibertron.com can sway the way you spend or don't spend your hard earned money, than it's certainly something. And while that's lovely, I find that it's a bit unsettling. The one opinion that is most powerful in the whole concept of collecting Transformers is negativity. It's a game changer, in the sense that it can stop people from posting, stop people's interests, their activity in the community, and straight up just stop Seibertronians from collecting. There's nothing wrong with speaking one's mind, but the problem I see is the damage it can do to the youth on the site. So despite my steadfast opinion in this editorial, I'll refrain from any dissing. I'm likely to contradict myself, but hey, who doesn't these days. Late last year I made a somewhat controversial column on how much I disliked Power Core Combiners. This year I dropped a few hundred on the same toys, repainted in black and grey and put under the Transformers United banner. Contradiction at its finest.
What amazes me about my mentor's post is that four years later, his thoughts can still be attributed to the Transformers fandom today. In that time span, we had another movie, the rush and gun of third party expansion, another new cartoon and toy lines in and out like never before. Not only did his word carve the collecting personality I have now, it also shaped an idea that I'll never forget - Despite what happens, Transformers will always be there, and it's a joy that cannot be ruined by others.
However, some feel that Transformers have been ruined for them. Uh-freaking-oh.
Dark Of The Moon
A lot of people are complaining about this line, and I just don’t see the point in it. Hasbro has already gone through two movie, toy lines, and let’s just say the second half of the second one didn’t exactly stand the test of time (Hi Tuner Mudflap!). Maybe MechTech is a little something to change things up? It’s all about getting creative, and I just don’t like the bashing going on. Transformers evolves through time, whether it be Mini-Cons, Energon Weapons, or Cyber keys. “Oh, it’s not Transformers in Disguise if the vehicle mode has a giant weapon on it”. Really? Really?
Because yeah, a Stingray Corvette chillin’ in the Egyptian desert isn’t enough of a giveaway already. From the perspective of my former youth, I’m going out on a limb and saying that Transformers toys that are weaponless are sort of… boring? 2007 Movie Stockade, Barricade, and ROTF Skids have punching powers and they aren’t exactly a fist up on anybody.
“They take away from the robot mode of the character.” Mechtech is only a deterrent for the Deluxe class, and do you really need a 10th Bumblebee? Sideswipe is now a convertible, and I’d even say that his Mechtech weapon is not chunky, but darn nice and deadly. Skids and Mudflap are now black and their respective colors, but you're going to find both later in the Human Alliance class! Same goes for the Wreckers, who I’d say, put your money on the Human Alliance class figures as they actually have armor going on!
And even then… we should be glad of the toys we are getting! Bumblebee, Skids and Mudflap could be all ROTF repaints, as their ROTF molds weren't exactly used and abused like ’07 Movie Voyager Ratchet. Sideswipe could be non-movie accurate as they didn’t really need to go convertible with a character that I presume isn't going to get much screen or talk time again.
They’re $12 US. $16 Canadian. £12.99. It’s really not that bad.
If you’re a kid or teen reading this and are just mad that you can’t get them all. Don’t worry, there’s a little thing called Buy/Sell/Trade, BotCon/local conventions, eBay and our site sponsors. 5-6 years down the road, when you finally make big money, these DOTM figures will be available for you because they just aren’t going anywhere too fast.
Imports
“Bring it back to North America”. Oh come on! Are we this lazy to no longer enjoy the thrill of the hunt? Just because something is made by Takara or is a East Asia convention exclusive, does not mean you can’t get your grubby hands on figures. Sure, it’s at a price, but isn’t anything these days costly? Your girlfriend’s shoe collection. Insurance on your vehicle. As Transformers fans, we’ve got it made. BBTS, TFsource, Robotkingdom, and your friendly overseas guys at B/S/T can get these figures for you easily. Heck, I’d even say that gluing myself to BBTS is the lazy way out, and isn’t even hardcore anymore.
At the same time however, you need to be diligent if you want exclusive overseas toys. No one's knocking on your front door and selling you these bad boys. Make sure you know who your man or store is, and make sure they're giving it to you at the right price!
Personally, I'm not always the early bird who gets the plastic toy. I tend to wait things out and see prices drop, but it's not effective. 24 hours could be the difference from easily purchasing the figure off BBTS to having to spend a week in a bidding war for it on eBay.
Third Party Products
There are more than a handful of Hasbro purists in the community and as much as I'd like to side with them, I have to say we certainly cannot neglect what some third parties have achieved. Sure the guys who are straight knocking off figures made by Hasbro can go into the trash bin. But for the rest of them, we can't group them all into one bag. I honestly don’t see anything wrong with a majority of third party products for other people. If you want something done, it’s going to be made by a third party. And even if you don’t want something, it’s still being made. This is no deal with the devil, if you feel that your collection is empty without something from FansProject, HeadRobots or Mastermind Creations, then by all means, it’s there for the taking. It’s not for everyone, and it’s not entirely for me either. I've got a plan to do customize a squad of Animated Fembots. Sure I could indulge in some of Knock Offs made and make my life easier. But no, I’ll just buy a few extra Animated Arcees and do the painting myself. I just don’t feel that owning anything from a KO company is satisfying or.. truthful. But that’s just me.
The point I am trying to get across with the third party aspect is that we’re pretty damn lucky. To build an original figure and to have it to transform, it’s more than just throwing baking soda and vinegar together. It’s not even to the engineering standpoint that we’re lucky. The fact that 3rd party companies have been able to succeed in our fanbase is an attribute to the one and only one fact. The fans want Transformers, official or non-official, and we are going to continue to get what we want.
At the same time, I don't want to paint that all third parties make good and reliable products! Many of these are very expensive, and are going to be a risk if you go head first into pre-ordering them without question. If something feels like it's way too expensive, and not worth it, then it's probably not worth it.
Let’s just be glad there is another guy.. or I guess 10+ other non-official guys trying to help us out with our collections. It makes me more than happy knowing that companies I buy product off of are actually looking out for their customers.
Quality Control
It’s called glue, use it! I can understand if your toy is missing a hand or missile, or something like that. But if something breaks off because of YOU, then I think it is YOUR responsibility to fix it. We are adults, and glue isn’t exactly a power tool. Returning a figure you broke in replace for a new one, just puts another broken toy on the market that a kid or teenager might end up buying and having to work with something that you couldn't.
Yes, this is coming from someone who’s bought a hell of a lot of retail Transformers and hasn’t returned a single one. What does this have to do with me liking Transformers? It shows me genuine people. Those who are willing to not give up and would rather work with what's been given to them. And despite the frequent complaints with toys being broken, I see a lot of handy people on Seibertron.com.
Video Reviews
They suck. Sorry, couldn’t go through an essay without giving ‘some’ negativity. (Contradiction #1?). Do we really need grown men and their hands doing video reviews for us? Where’d the fun key go? Having someone go through how a figure looks and how it transforms is just a complete desensitizer from doing everything yourself.
“Oh well it helps me with my purchases”. Dude, it’s like watching a movie video review before watching the movie. Don’t you feel like it’s spoiling everything? Sure, this is an expensive piece of plastic that is going to be concrete in your collection, but there’s the fun in trying to hunt to experience the figure for yourself and trying to make your own judgement! I wouldn’t have ended up with half the gems in my collection if I just listened to the views that some people were spewing out.
I'm not trying to detract what video reviews have established, they are a prime part of our community. They keep everyone buzzing, and the fact that our community is so active is another reason why I like Transformers. I'm more than confident that many of you reading this have had a video review help with your purchases. But in no means should anyone take their word as gospel as much as mine or anyone on Seibertron.com. Form your own opinion! Video reviews of something static, while someone talks, it's not the same as going through galleries or reading what your fellow collectors say in the forums.
I can see if the video review is about a third party product or if we’re talking about MP-09 Rodimus Convoy. Those are big money things and there might not be too many opinions of those. Yet 8/10 of the reviews that are out there are certainly not for MP-09 Rodimus or an expensive third party product. They're something that you can get excited about when you experience it for $12 or more. If you want to see how a video review should be done, with something called script and comedy, check out Barutarazu
Don't agree with my view on video reviews? Give me some merits as to why you like them so much!
---------------
TL:DR me and you’re dead meat!
So there you have it, my biased and fictitious perspective on why I love Transformers today. Will my piece be an inspiration for someone 4 years later? Who knows and who gives a crap. Go back to fiddling with your pile of loot and enjoy the life that has been given to you!
Blurrz out.
Before I get into the whole shebang, I'm not here today to be the spokesperson of Hasbro, Takara or BotCon. I'm not here to kiss your derriere, or bleed my heart out for some overseas third party. As of right now, I'm on my side. Because in today's contemporary world of political apathy, hair-trigger revolutions, and the very thin line between Bear and Bull, this is the only side I can be on.
While I may state that I'm the a lone gun slinging rebel, that's certainly far from the truth. Four years ago when my mentor made his point, I certainly saw that I wasn't alone. And even as today, while I try to be unique in being a vintage Micron collector, there's a duo on the staff of Seibertron.com that are a mile ahead of me at this point. I'm conforming to have collections like them than rather set myself apart.
Why? Because just like my mentor did to me, opinions are very powerful. If a website called Seibertron.com can sway the way you spend or don't spend your hard earned money, than it's certainly something. And while that's lovely, I find that it's a bit unsettling. The one opinion that is most powerful in the whole concept of collecting Transformers is negativity. It's a game changer, in the sense that it can stop people from posting, stop people's interests, their activity in the community, and straight up just stop Seibertronians from collecting. There's nothing wrong with speaking one's mind, but the problem I see is the damage it can do to the youth on the site. So despite my steadfast opinion in this editorial, I'll refrain from any dissing. I'm likely to contradict myself, but hey, who doesn't these days. Late last year I made a somewhat controversial column on how much I disliked Power Core Combiners. This year I dropped a few hundred on the same toys, repainted in black and grey and put under the Transformers United banner. Contradiction at its finest.
What amazes me about my mentor's post is that four years later, his thoughts can still be attributed to the Transformers fandom today. In that time span, we had another movie, the rush and gun of third party expansion, another new cartoon and toy lines in and out like never before. Not only did his word carve the collecting personality I have now, it also shaped an idea that I'll never forget - Despite what happens, Transformers will always be there, and it's a joy that cannot be ruined by others.
However, some feel that Transformers have been ruined for them. Uh-freaking-oh.
Dark Of The Moon
A lot of people are complaining about this line, and I just don’t see the point in it. Hasbro has already gone through two movie, toy lines, and let’s just say the second half of the second one didn’t exactly stand the test of time (Hi Tuner Mudflap!). Maybe MechTech is a little something to change things up? It’s all about getting creative, and I just don’t like the bashing going on. Transformers evolves through time, whether it be Mini-Cons, Energon Weapons, or Cyber keys. “Oh, it’s not Transformers in Disguise if the vehicle mode has a giant weapon on it”. Really? Really?
Because yeah, a Stingray Corvette chillin’ in the Egyptian desert isn’t enough of a giveaway already. From the perspective of my former youth, I’m going out on a limb and saying that Transformers toys that are weaponless are sort of… boring? 2007 Movie Stockade, Barricade, and ROTF Skids have punching powers and they aren’t exactly a fist up on anybody.
“They take away from the robot mode of the character.” Mechtech is only a deterrent for the Deluxe class, and do you really need a 10th Bumblebee? Sideswipe is now a convertible, and I’d even say that his Mechtech weapon is not chunky, but darn nice and deadly. Skids and Mudflap are now black and their respective colors, but you're going to find both later in the Human Alliance class! Same goes for the Wreckers, who I’d say, put your money on the Human Alliance class figures as they actually have armor going on!
And even then… we should be glad of the toys we are getting! Bumblebee, Skids and Mudflap could be all ROTF repaints, as their ROTF molds weren't exactly used and abused like ’07 Movie Voyager Ratchet. Sideswipe could be non-movie accurate as they didn’t really need to go convertible with a character that I presume isn't going to get much screen or talk time again.
They’re $12 US. $16 Canadian. £12.99. It’s really not that bad.
If you’re a kid or teen reading this and are just mad that you can’t get them all. Don’t worry, there’s a little thing called Buy/Sell/Trade, BotCon/local conventions, eBay and our site sponsors. 5-6 years down the road, when you finally make big money, these DOTM figures will be available for you because they just aren’t going anywhere too fast.
Imports
“Bring it back to North America”. Oh come on! Are we this lazy to no longer enjoy the thrill of the hunt? Just because something is made by Takara or is a East Asia convention exclusive, does not mean you can’t get your grubby hands on figures. Sure, it’s at a price, but isn’t anything these days costly? Your girlfriend’s shoe collection. Insurance on your vehicle. As Transformers fans, we’ve got it made. BBTS, TFsource, Robotkingdom, and your friendly overseas guys at B/S/T can get these figures for you easily. Heck, I’d even say that gluing myself to BBTS is the lazy way out, and isn’t even hardcore anymore.
At the same time however, you need to be diligent if you want exclusive overseas toys. No one's knocking on your front door and selling you these bad boys. Make sure you know who your man or store is, and make sure they're giving it to you at the right price!
Personally, I'm not always the early bird who gets the plastic toy. I tend to wait things out and see prices drop, but it's not effective. 24 hours could be the difference from easily purchasing the figure off BBTS to having to spend a week in a bidding war for it on eBay.
Third Party Products
There are more than a handful of Hasbro purists in the community and as much as I'd like to side with them, I have to say we certainly cannot neglect what some third parties have achieved. Sure the guys who are straight knocking off figures made by Hasbro can go into the trash bin. But for the rest of them, we can't group them all into one bag. I honestly don’t see anything wrong with a majority of third party products for other people. If you want something done, it’s going to be made by a third party. And even if you don’t want something, it’s still being made. This is no deal with the devil, if you feel that your collection is empty without something from FansProject, HeadRobots or Mastermind Creations, then by all means, it’s there for the taking. It’s not for everyone, and it’s not entirely for me either. I've got a plan to do customize a squad of Animated Fembots. Sure I could indulge in some of Knock Offs made and make my life easier. But no, I’ll just buy a few extra Animated Arcees and do the painting myself. I just don’t feel that owning anything from a KO company is satisfying or.. truthful. But that’s just me.
The point I am trying to get across with the third party aspect is that we’re pretty damn lucky. To build an original figure and to have it to transform, it’s more than just throwing baking soda and vinegar together. It’s not even to the engineering standpoint that we’re lucky. The fact that 3rd party companies have been able to succeed in our fanbase is an attribute to the one and only one fact. The fans want Transformers, official or non-official, and we are going to continue to get what we want.
At the same time, I don't want to paint that all third parties make good and reliable products! Many of these are very expensive, and are going to be a risk if you go head first into pre-ordering them without question. If something feels like it's way too expensive, and not worth it, then it's probably not worth it.
Let’s just be glad there is another guy.. or I guess 10+ other non-official guys trying to help us out with our collections. It makes me more than happy knowing that companies I buy product off of are actually looking out for their customers.
Quality Control
It’s called glue, use it! I can understand if your toy is missing a hand or missile, or something like that. But if something breaks off because of YOU, then I think it is YOUR responsibility to fix it. We are adults, and glue isn’t exactly a power tool. Returning a figure you broke in replace for a new one, just puts another broken toy on the market that a kid or teenager might end up buying and having to work with something that you couldn't.
Yes, this is coming from someone who’s bought a hell of a lot of retail Transformers and hasn’t returned a single one. What does this have to do with me liking Transformers? It shows me genuine people. Those who are willing to not give up and would rather work with what's been given to them. And despite the frequent complaints with toys being broken, I see a lot of handy people on Seibertron.com.
Video Reviews
They suck. Sorry, couldn’t go through an essay without giving ‘some’ negativity. (Contradiction #1?). Do we really need grown men and their hands doing video reviews for us? Where’d the fun key go? Having someone go through how a figure looks and how it transforms is just a complete desensitizer from doing everything yourself.
“Oh well it helps me with my purchases”. Dude, it’s like watching a movie video review before watching the movie. Don’t you feel like it’s spoiling everything? Sure, this is an expensive piece of plastic that is going to be concrete in your collection, but there’s the fun in trying to hunt to experience the figure for yourself and trying to make your own judgement! I wouldn’t have ended up with half the gems in my collection if I just listened to the views that some people were spewing out.
I'm not trying to detract what video reviews have established, they are a prime part of our community. They keep everyone buzzing, and the fact that our community is so active is another reason why I like Transformers. I'm more than confident that many of you reading this have had a video review help with your purchases. But in no means should anyone take their word as gospel as much as mine or anyone on Seibertron.com. Form your own opinion! Video reviews of something static, while someone talks, it's not the same as going through galleries or reading what your fellow collectors say in the forums.
I can see if the video review is about a third party product or if we’re talking about MP-09 Rodimus Convoy. Those are big money things and there might not be too many opinions of those. Yet 8/10 of the reviews that are out there are certainly not for MP-09 Rodimus or an expensive third party product. They're something that you can get excited about when you experience it for $12 or more. If you want to see how a video review should be done, with something called script and comedy, check out Barutarazu
Don't agree with my view on video reviews? Give me some merits as to why you like them so much!
---------------
TL:DR me and you’re dead meat!
So there you have it, my biased and fictitious perspective on why I love Transformers today. Will my piece be an inspiration for someone 4 years later? Who knows and who gives a crap. Go back to fiddling with your pile of loot and enjoy the life that has been given to you!
Blurrz out.
i always appreciate your words. I agree there is alot of negativity lately and i wish people would tone it down. I respect everyone's opinions but you don't have to buy the toys. I love the DOTM line. I dont like third party products but i never bash them. I simply don't buy them and i let everyone who likes them enjoy them. Instead of nagging on children's toys, we should just be glad for what we have and look foward for what to you want. 
thanks blurrz you put collecting into perspective!
