The Energon Pub

News Credits: 5749 · by **El Duque** » Fri May 25, 2012 8:18 am

As the title states, e-Hobby has announced a partnership with the official Transformers Collectors' Club! According to the announcement we should have more details next Monday.

A global collaboration begins!

e-HOBBY is teaming with the Official Transformers Collectors' Club, organizers of BotCon, to bring exciting new projects to fans in Japan and abroad. We will be working together to provide jointly-planned products that will appeal to a core fanbase. We hope fans will eagerly await our announcements.

The first stage of the collaboration will be revealed next Monday on the online e-HOBBY Magazine!

News Credits: 402 · by **Mkall** » Fri May 25, 2012 8:29 am

This bodes well

News Credits: 7 · by **alldarker** » Fri May 25, 2012 8:41 am

That is a very, very smart move. Both for the TFCC and for e-Hobby.

Website · by **Flux Convoy** » Fri May 25, 2012 8:44 am

Interesting. I really hope this brings us some cool figures.

by **necr0blivion** » Fri May 25, 2012 8:52 am

Good move for both parties. I hope this partnership extends to the club's new subscription service, and the "flat rate" for shipping which was mentioned for the international members.

News Credits: 1 · by **Blackstreak** » Fri May 25, 2012 9:14 am

This will be awesome. Hopefully e-Hobby will set TFCC a little straighter on what the fanbase wants for exclusives. Not that I've been disappointed, because I haven't. But I like this.
:KREMZEEK:

News Credits: 3 · by **Emperor Galvatron** » Fri May 25, 2012 9:19 am

That is all.

News Credits: 241 · by **Jelze Bunnycat** » Fri May 25, 2012 9:25 am

I don't expect the US market to be flooded with normally Japanese exclusive figures, or vice-versa, but I agree this bodes well.

News Credits: 10 · by **gavinfuzzy** » Fri May 25, 2012 9:26 am

What happens when you cross a company that does black coloured exclusives and a company that loves Bumblebee? You get a Dark Classics Bumblebee. :lol:

News Credits: 5749 · by **El Duque** » Fri May 25, 2012 9:39 am

gavinfuzzy wrote:What happens when you cross a company that does black coloured exclusives and a company that loves Bumblebee? You get a Dark Classics Bumblebee.

If they used the Classics mold................I would probably buy it. :HEADHURTS:

by **necr0blivion** » Fri May 25, 2012 10:09 am

gavinfuzzy wrote:What happens when you cross a company that does black coloured exclusives and a company that loves Bumblebee? You get a Dark Classics Bumblebee.

I wouldn't say TFCC "loves Bumblebee", we usually liken that to Hasbro. However, if going with your logic, I'd say not only a Dark Classics Bumblebee, but also a Ghost Bumblebee would also be expected. Hooray for clear TFs!

*oh no, I've lost a clear missile!* :KREMZEEK:

News Credits: 456 · by **Sabrblade** » Fri May 25, 2012 10:09 am

News Credits: 3597 · by **Seibertron** » Fri May 25, 2012 10:20 am

This will probably be the Club subscription figures are sold via e-Hobby for the Japanese market. Hopefully the reverse opportunity for future e-Hobby figures to become "club" exclusives happens as well.

Like freetouch on Facebook · by **freetouch** » Fri May 25, 2012 10:41 am

oh boy.. could we possibly get some new g1 ehobby reissues? I would love to got some for less than ebay rape price.

News Credits: 5 · by **zodconvoy** » Fri May 25, 2012 11:03 am

Seibertron wrote:This will probably be the Club subscription figures are sold via e-Hobby for the Japanese market. Hopefully the reverse opportunity for future e-Hobby figures to become "club" exclusives happens as well.

This is what I'm expecting only without us getting anything stateside. I can just see it now...

"We only made 5,000 Super Awesome Black Drifts and were opening it to Japan first because of the international date line and... Whelp, looks like it sold out! Hope everybody doesn't mind importing an American exclusive!"

This is going to be a thing now. :KREMZEEK:

by **SJ21** » Fri May 25, 2012 11:14 am

I hope this gets us some new figures over here.

News Credits: 12 · by **GuyIncognito** » Fri May 25, 2012 11:52 am

gavinfuzzy wrote:What happens when you cross a company that does black coloured exclusives and a company that loves Bumblebee? You get a Dark Classics Bumblebee.

I know Hasbro has a thing for BB, but TFCC doesn't.

News Credits: 7 · by **waaaaghlord** » Fri May 25, 2012 12:07 pm

zodconvoy wrote:
Seibertron wrote:This will probably be the Club subscription figures are sold via e-Hobby for the Japanese market. Hopefully the reverse opportunity for future e-Hobby figures to become "club" exclusives happens as well.

This is what I'm expecting only without us getting anything stateside. I can just see it now...

"We only made 5,000 Super Awesome Black Drifts and were opening it to Japan first because of the international date line and... Whelp, looks like it sold out! Hope everybody doesn't mind importing an American exclusive!"

This is going to be a thing now.

One thing that you're not accounting for is that with two companies resources going in and more sales avenues for the product it's less risky to produce larger production runs without the worry of ending up sat on a mountain of unsold items. Also, if I understand the theory behind the subscription service correctly, the numbers produced will be the number of subscriptions placed in the month that they are available plus a certain allocation to be sold at a higher individual price in the club store and now seemingly an allocation for ehobby and the Japanese market, so the option is there for anyone to ensure they get the set by getting the subscription in by the deadline. I only see a problem for folks only wanting a couple of the figures, and even then it'll probably be worth taking the subscription and selling whatever you don't want from the set. Greater numbers of toys produced in the first place and less excusivity in how they're initially available may actually help to keep aftermarket prices down somewhat.

News Credits: 4 · by **craggy** » Fri May 25, 2012 12:08 pm

maybe if they could send stuff to the UK for less than twice the cost of the original items I might be interested.

News Credits: 1 · by **njb902** » Fri May 25, 2012 1:41 pm

I've never bought anything from e hobby, what kinds of products do they sell and from anyone who has purchased from them what is their service like?

News Credits: 456 · by **Sabrblade** » Fri May 25, 2012 1:44 pm

njb902 wrote:I've never bought anything from e hobby, what kinds of products do they sell and from anyone who has purchased from them what is their service like?

Most of their exclusives consist of redecos of existing molds. - http://tfwiki.net/wiki/e-HOBBY

News Credits: 97 · by **Savage** » Fri May 25, 2012 2:09 pm

This could be very good. Also, it kinda explains how FunPub plans to pull off the subscription service and addition of four more figures produced next year. Hopefully this will also mean increased availability and decreased import fees of club figures in Japan and e-hobby figures in the States!

News Credits: 7 · by **waaaaghlord** » Fri May 25, 2012 2:17 pm

njb902 wrote:I've never bought anything from e hobby, what kinds of products do they sell and from anyone who has purchased from them what is their service like?

They've done various repaints of G1 reissues alongside their main Japanese release (anime/catalogue Astrotrain, Diaclone/Clone Army Insecticons etc) and some Classics recolours (Henkei Crystal Convoy released at Wonderfest for example) but only sell directly within Japan, so there's a mark up getting them in the West through online retailers or aftermarket sales.

by **Skullcrunchberries** » Fri May 25, 2012 4:04 pm

Superb. Since the whole credit card incident, TFCC seems to be really pulling their head out of their ass. Bravo! :APPLAUSE:

News Credits: 2 · by **xyl360** » Fri May 25, 2012 5:37 pm

Hoitytoity wrote:Superb. Since the whole credit card incident, TFCC seems to be really pulling their head out of their ass. Bravo!

Yep, I think Hasbro saw that they were in trouble and decided to lend them a hand. I really like the idea of the subscription service and more figures and partnering with eHobby like this. All these moves combined seem like a big corporate assist on how to do things, and it's a big move in the right direction in my opinion.

Getting Has/Tak involved when the club was floundering with the fandom was the right thing to do, so I'm glad the club is doing it and I'm glad to see Has/Tak getting involved instead of disregarding their problems and our complaints.