The Energon Pub

So I've finally had time to try and enjoy Rodimus Prime and I'm really just kind of meh on him. The bot itself is pretty damn good. If it was a leader on its own without the trailer, I would have been fine with the cost.

The trailer and extras are what is letting me down. First up QC issues, my first one was missing the black blast effects for his exhaust pipes. So I was able to find another and resolve that.

The trailer is where they really messed up this release. It is terribly warped on both copies I have and won't completely close on either one. Making matters worse, I believe the parts that are warped are at least in part due to how Hasbro tied everything down in the package. The tight tiedowns on the pointed corners of the open trailer sides I believe caused the warping. The "better than ER OP trailer" that was needed to push the price up to commander class looks to be a design fail to me.

So here I am really liking the bot, but feeling ripped off because of the trailer, which sucks because lack of space means my figures are in vehicle mode more often than not.

TF-fan kev777 wrote:So I've finally had time to try and enjoy Rodimus Prime and I'm really just kind of meh on him. The bot itself is pretty damn good. If it was a leader on its own without the trailer, I would have been fine with the cost.

The trailer and extras are what is letting me down. First up QC issues, my first one was missing the black blast effects for his exhaust pipes. So I was able to find another and resolve that.

The trailer is where they really messed up this release. It is terribly warped on both copies I have and won't completely close on either one. Making matters worse, I believe the parts that are warped are at least in part due to how Hasbro tied everything down in the package. The tight tiedowns on the pointed corners of the open trailer sides I believe caused the warping. The "better than ER OP trailer" that was needed to push the price up to commander class looks to be a design fail to me.

So here I am really liking the bot, but feeling ripped off because of the trailer, which sucks because lack of space means my figures are in vehicle mode more often than not.

I'm still waiting for BBTS to get it in and ship mine. Its getting very annoying. and Amazon no longer has it in stock to order.

I hope mine does not have those issues when it gets here.

o.supreme wrote:My Rodimus should hopefully be here tomorrow.

Ordered from Amazon back in May, for delivery 9/3/21
Last week, I get an update saying it's arriving on 8/12
Late on 8/12, I get an update saying it's been delayed until 8/27
Late last night I get a notification it has actually shipped, and will be here 8/18.

I'll reserve my final judgements when I get the toy. But it seems many people have the same opinion. Personally, I would have been ok with a slightly smaller, simpler Rodimus trailer, keeping it at the Leader Price Point, ala ER Prime. It appears they aimed for something almost too grand in scale. While they got an amazing Rodimus body, the bigger more complex ($40 worth of plastic) trailer seems to be problematic to several who have purchased it.

BBTS has it slated for September yes.

o.supreme wrote:My Rodimus should hopefully be here tomorrow.

Ordered from Amazon back in May, for delivery 9/3/21
Last week, I get an update saying it's arriving on 8/12
Late on 8/12, I get an update saying it's been delayed until 8/27
Late last night I get a notification it has actually shipped, and will be here 8/18.

I'll reserve my final judgements when I get the toy. But it seems many people have the same opinion. Personally, I would have been ok with a slightly smaller, simpler Rodimus trailer, keeping it at the Leader Price Point, ala ER Prime. It appears they aimed for something almost too grand in scale. While they got an amazing Rodimus body, the bigger more complex ($40 worth of plastic) trailer seems to be problematic to several who have purchased it.

The thing is, Rodimus himself is probably using up the "leader pricepoint segment" of the figure's price. If he was released, unchanged, as a leader, you wouldn't have gotten a smaller trailer: you would have gotten no trailer at all.

Rtron wrote:

o.supreme wrote:My Rodimus should hopefully be here tomorrow.

Ordered from Amazon back in May, for delivery 9/3/21
Last week, I get an update saying it's arriving on 8/12
Late on 8/12, I get an update saying it's been delayed until 8/27
Late last night I get a notification it has actually shipped, and will be here 8/18.

I'll reserve my final judgements when I get the toy. But it seems many people have the same opinion. Personally, I would have been ok with a slightly smaller, simpler Rodimus trailer, keeping it at the Leader Price Point, ala ER Prime. It appears they aimed for something almost too grand in scale. While they got an amazing Rodimus body, the bigger more complex ($40 worth of plastic) trailer seems to be problematic to several who have purchased it.

The thing is, Rodimus himself is probably using up the "leader pricepoint segment" of the figure's price. If he was released, unchanged, as a leader, you wouldn't have gotten a smaller trailer: you would have gotten no trailer at all.

^This. Rodimus is definitely more advanced than ER OP engineering-wise, and I wouldn't even complain if he was sold at leader price on his own, he fills out the pricepoint on his own.

Rtron wrote:

o.supreme wrote:My Rodimus should hopefully be here tomorrow.

Ordered from Amazon back in May, for delivery 9/3/21
Last week, I get an update saying it's arriving on 8/12
Late on 8/12, I get an update saying it's been delayed until 8/27
Late last night I get a notification it has actually shipped, and will be here 8/18.

I'll reserve my final judgements when I get the toy. But it seems many people have the same opinion. Personally, I would have been ok with a slightly smaller, simpler Rodimus trailer, keeping it at the Leader Price Point, ala ER Prime. It appears they aimed for something almost too grand in scale. While they got an amazing Rodimus body, the bigger more complex ($40 worth of plastic) trailer seems to be problematic to several who have purchased it.

The thing is, Rodimus himself is probably using up the "leader pricepoint segment" of the figure's price. If he was released, unchanged, as a leader, you wouldn't have gotten a smaller trailer: you would have gotten no trailer at all.

Very much this ^ had he been at leader, and needed the trailer he would suffered more.

That's also forgetting two important bits of information.

1) it's a movie Anniversary year and hasbro are going toske sure that Rodimus is somewhere.

2) there is limited slots for new leader class molds (in Kingdoms case this was Earth UM, Galvatron and BW Megs) given that they wanted to do Rodimus, there was no slots for him.

Well, I try not to be that guy, but I kinda saw this coming, even posted on it when he was 1st announced. Honestly I wish I had been wrong, but I just knew that trailer wouldn't be worth the extra money. I do like how the figure itself looks. I'll be on the lookout for him at a discounted price, if I find it, great, if I don't, no big loss. I already have a shelf full of Rodimus figures from all different lines.

As for Rodimus as a leader without the trailer, I would be absolutely down for that, but as it was said, this rodimus goes with Galvatron in homaging the 86 movie, so no way will he be without his trailer.

To those who have him in hand, can the Rodimus figure without the trailer be considered a smaller masterpiece?

Rodimus Prime wrote:Well, I try not to be that guy, but I kinda saw this coming, even posted on it when he was 1st announced. Honestly I wish I had been wrong, but I just knew that trailer wouldn't be worth the extra money.

The thing is, they were that damn close to making it "worth" it. Granted, I don't really care much about the trailer in the first place, but buying the figure on its own isn't an option. So if Hasbro is going to force me to buy it to get a Rodimus, then I'm going to nail them on its shortcomings. So when I say "worth" it I'm just going by materials and engineering and not whether I think the value is there. The trailer, if it closed properly is easily "worth" double what the ER Prime trailer is by comparison.

Now I think there may be some good news on the trailer. After messing around with it a little more, I did get it to close and stay closed. I'm wondering if it will be similar to the door on Trypticon where many were warped, but pretty easy to straighten out by simply closing it properly and letting it sit that way for a while (like weeks maybe).

Rodimus Prime wrote:Well, I try not to be that guy, but I kinda saw this coming, even posted on it when he was 1st announced. Honestly I wish I had been wrong, but I just knew that trailer wouldn't be worth the extra money. I do like how the figure itself looks. I'll be on the lookout for him at a discounted price, if I find it, great, if I don't, no big loss. I already have a shelf full of Rodimus figures from all different lines.

As for Rodimus as a leader without the trailer, I would be absolutely down for that, but as it was said, this rodimus goes with Galvatron in homaging the 86 movie, so no way will he be without his trailer.

I stand by my belief that a Leader Rodimus with a trailer similar in style to Earthrise Optimus Prime's would've been perfectly fine, and Ultra Magnus would've worked better as a Commander with a big-ass trailer that can fit a load of Deluxe cars inside. It wouldn't even have to have been the same mould as the Siege Magnus.

TF-fan kev777 wrote:

Rodimus Prime wrote:Well, I try not to be that guy, but I kinda saw this coming, even posted on it when he was 1st announced. Honestly I wish I had been wrong, but I just knew that trailer wouldn't be worth the extra money.

The thing is, they were that damn close to making it "worth" it. Granted, I don't really care much about the trailer in the first place, but buying the figure on its own isn't an option. So if Hasbro is going to force me to buy it to get a Rodimus, then I'm going to nail them on its shortcomings. So when I say "worth" it I'm just going by materials and engineering and not whether I think the value is there. The trailer, if it closed properly is easily "worth" double what the ER Prime trailer is by comparison.

I dunno, sounds kind of like having it both ways. Which, you're entitled to do, but hear me out.

You don't care about the trailer, so you want to nail them on it if they're 'forcing' you to pay for it. To me, it wouldn't be Rodimus without the trailer, even if I'm not really gonna use it (as I didn't really use it all that much on the G1 figure except to 'pose' him in it occasionally). However, the trailer makes the vehicle mode, so if I ever want to transform it I would definitely have issues with no trailer at all. My Rodimus should be in hand by tomorrow or Thursday and I'll be sure to see if it warps or doesn't close and report the same if that's the case, but for me it wouldn't BE Rodimus Prime.

The price point includes all the plastic, which I buy into by buying it, so I'm not gonna kvetch about any part of it not worth kvetching about. That's just me, though.

Now I think there may be some good news on the trailer. After messing around with it a little more, I did get it to close and stay closed. I'm wondering if it will be similar to the door on Trypticon where many were warped, but pretty easy to straighten out by simply closing it properly and letting it sit that way for a while (like weeks maybe).

Good to know there's a potential fix.

Exactly. If in your view the trailer has shortcomings, then to you it's not worth the price being asked, because a faulty trailer is not what is being marketed for the asking price.

Anyway, we all have different reasons for collecting, and some of us prioritize different aspects of a figure and collection over others. If I ever find thus commander figure for cheap (under $50) I'll probably buy it, because from what I've seen, the Rodimus figure by itself would be worth it. And since I display my collection in robot mode, I would leave the trailer in re box, but I wouldn't think of it as a waste of money, because I considered the trailer a free accessory if I found the figure on sale.

Munkky wrote:As for Rodimus as a leader without the trailer, I would be absolutely down for that, but as it was said, this rodimus goes with Galvatron in homaging the 86 movie, so no way will he be without his trailer.

I stand by my belief that a Leader Rodimus with a trailer similar in style to Earthrise Optimus Prime's would've been perfectly fine, and Ultra Magnus would've worked better as a Commander with a big-ass trailer that can fit a load of Deluxe cars inside. It wouldn't even have to have been the same mould as the Siege Magnus.[/quote]

I 100% agree that Magnus should've been Commander Class... That would've helped fix at least some of the issues.
I'm not sure how it would've worked to have Rodimus's trailer at a smaller size, but I'm not sure people really would've complained if it were; it seems like a lot of un-used space... And sure, it looks decent in vehicle mode, but there are plenty of scaling items that never are truly accurate, so I think a smaller trailer still could've worked. Not to mention this saves people $30!!

Here's another thought I've had recently...
IF Hastak's largest consumer group is made up of kids and casual buyers (parents), then why don't they make a shift and have a figure like Rodimus two separate sales?
Sell Rodimus for $52, which while still pricy for some, is obviously better than $85.
Sell the current, full-sized trailer separately for $30... Collectors are more likely to be willing to drop more money. I think that's a fair statement.
I personally think it's also fair to say that fewer trailers than Rodimuses would sell, so they could even limit that production a bit.
This option quite possibly would've sold more figures and made Hastak more money.
It appeals more to parents, casual buyers, and kids (who would typically have less spending $$$).
Any kid who REALLY wanted the trailer, well, there's still a chance they could get it if their parent gives them "the greenlight".
And there are collectors (like myself) who would've 100% bought Rodimus as a leader class figure without the trailer. Throw-in the two blast effects for the exhaust pipes, the matrix, and the rifle and the corresponding clast effect, and call it good!

It also surprises me that Hastak doesn't do this with figures in other classes--
producing weapons packs (with 1-2 blast effects) aimed at collectors, but available for all from regular retail.
I'd say there's actually a chance that there would be both collectors and casual buyers who would buy multiple weapons packs for different figures... If a kid wants Rodimus's rifle for their Origins Bumblebee, that's cool!!
Hell, there'd probably be kids out there who would want multiple weapons packs for just a couple figures!
And with the 5mm ports all over so many of them, why not?!?
Those could literally be small boxes attached to cardbacks (to avoid using clear plastic, and help prevent theft) the same size as what's used for Core class.

While I know some would say this is stupid, really, the option of buying extra weapons for figures isn't all that much different than buying extra ramp pieces for the modulators and/or baseformers.

Because it means retailers having to make room for things like this (hence why both the Centurion weapons pack and the blast effect pack were online Exclusives). I can't see retailers wanting to make space for a trailer people may buy.

Oh and if Rodimus was sold on his own for leader class prices...I have a suspicion he wouldn't be the same as he is currently and have more simplified parts.

And if they had offered the trailer separately, there's always that bunch who'd complain about Hasbro not including the trailer with the cab.

Selling a loose trailer in a mainline, even as an online exclusive, makes NO sense anyway.

-Kanrabat- wrote:Selling a loose trailer in a mainline, even as an online exclusive, makes NO sense anyway.

Especially when they can fit in the leader class budget anyways (coughs POTP rodimus). It's easy to forget that we used to have a lot more for a lot less money and most toys are a hella lot cheaper to make than RRP

blackeyedprime wrote:It's easy to forget that we used to have a lot more for a lot less money and most toys are a hella lot cheaper to make than RRP

A lot more? How many parts did you get with Leader Rodimus compared to this new Commander?

Sabrblade wrote:And if they had offered the trailer separately, there's always that bunch who'd complain about Hasbro not including the trailer with the cab.

Of course... But the fact of that scenario is it would still be available, and any reasonable person would understand not everyone wanted the trailer.
It's not like I'm saying they should've just sold the trailer for other modulators and baseformers and made it compatible with Hot Rod.

Whether anyone what's to admit it or not, those individual pieces of the set still would've sold...
If someone wants to claim, "I either get them both together or I'm OUT", fine... Then clearly they didn't really want them.
By selling them separately, there are plenty of people who would've just bought the figure-- meaning Hastak makes $50-ish (I get it, not all of that's profit), instead of ZERO.
Not to mention, Hastak getting some to purchase Rodimus probably would've turned into some of those same people later going for the trailer.
And what I proposed didn't have the two pieces priced any higher than what it does cost.

I understand, this didn't happen. Something like this may never happen.
But it's not exactly a crazy idea.

Sowndwave76 wrote:

Sabrblade wrote:And if they had offered the trailer separately, there's always that bunch who'd complain about Hasbro not including the trailer with the cab.

Of course... But the fact of that scenario is it would still be available, and any reasonable person would understand not everyone wanted the trailer.
It's not like I'm saying they should've just sold the trailer for other modulators and baseformers and made it compatible with Hot Rod.

Whether anyone what's to admit it or not, those individual pieces of the set still would've sold...
If someone wants to claim, "I either get them both together or I'm OUT", fine... Then clearly they didn't really want them.
By selling them separately, there are plenty of people who would've just bought the figure-- meaning Hastak makes $50-ish (I get it, not all of that's profit), instead of ZERO.
Not to mention, Hastak getting some to purchase Rodimus probably would've turned into some of those same people later going for the trailer.
And what I proposed didn't have the two pieces priced any higher than what it does cost.

I understand, this didn't happen. Something like this may never happen.
But it's not exactly a crazy idea.

Sounds to me like why buy the cow when i can get the milk for 50 bucks without a carton.
Or why buy this Ultra Magnus trailer when I can just buy the cab? Which didn't work out back in Classics.

sol magnus wrote:

Sowndwave76 wrote:

Sabrblade wrote:And if they had offered the trailer separately, there's always that bunch who'd complain about Hasbro not including the trailer with the cab.

Of course... But the fact of that scenario is it would still be available, and any reasonable person would understand not everyone wanted the trailer.
It's not like I'm saying they should've just sold the trailer for other modulators and baseformers and made it compatible with Hot Rod.

Whether anyone what's to admit it or not, those individual pieces of the set still would've sold...
If someone wants to claim, "I either get them both together or I'm OUT", fine... Then clearly they didn't really want them.
By selling them separately, there are plenty of people who would've just bought the figure-- meaning Hastak makes $50-ish (I get it, not all of that's profit), instead of ZERO.
Not to mention, Hastak getting some to purchase Rodimus probably would've turned into some of those same people later going for the trailer.
And what I proposed didn't have the two pieces priced any higher than what it does cost.

I understand, this didn't happen. Something like this may never happen.
But it's not exactly a crazy idea.

Sounds to me like why buy the cow when i can get the milk for 50 bucks without a carton.
Or why buy this Ultra Magnus trailer when I can just buy the cab? Which didn't work out back in Classics.

Using your metaphor, the milk definitely needs a carton, but I don't need an overly complicated carton that pushes the price up, especially when that carton has trouble closing. It tends to spoil the milk.

The trailer to me just needs to complete the alt mode. That's all I need it to do. Something it couldn't do out of the box, but fingers crossed, it looks like the packaging might have been the main culprit and it appears to be recovering somewhat. It still hasn't popped open on its own after I got it closed earlier today. I'm leaving it closed overnight to see whether it seems better or not in the morning.

TF-fan kev777 wrote:The trailer to me just needs to complete the alt mode. That's all I need it to do. Something it couldn't do out of the box, but fingers crossed, it looks like the packaging might have been the main culprit and it appears to be recovering somewhat. It still hasn't popped open on its own after I got it closed earlier today. I'm leaving it closed overnight to see whether it seems better or not in the morning.

I agree that a trailer is necessary to complete Rodimus's true alt mode...
But I don't care about his alt mode.
And I really don't care about it if I could get just the figure for $50.
Not to mention, he is a complete vehicle without it.
I think some collectors have trouble understanding that the average parent is already going to shy away from a $50 toy. For an average, middle-class parent, an $85 toy is most likely only happening for a birthday or Christmas, rather than on a random weekend trip to Target.

Also, even though Rodimus doesn't have the same popularity as Prime, how many versions of Prime have been released (even recently) without his trailer? This goes back all the way to Classics and Henkei.
Rodimus without his trailer isn't exactly like Devastator without Scrapper.

Anyway, for those who have Rodimus, hopefully the trailer isn't a consistent issue...
Or at least hopefully there's a fix that works and isn't a hassle.

But without the trailer, he's just Hot Rod... which we already have in Studio Series.

Sabrblade wrote:But without the trailer, he's just Hot Rod... which we already have in Studio Series.

Agree to disagree...
Rodimus is still Rodimus even when he's not in his alt mode, or in the trailer using the cannon (or for any other reason).
Let alone all of the differences of the figure itself compared to SS86 Hot Rod.

Sowndwave76 wrote:Here's another thought I've had recently...
IF Hastak's largest consumer group is made up of kids and casual buyers (parents), then why don't they make a shift and have a figure like Rodimus two separate sales?
Sell Rodimus for $52, which while still pricy for some, is obviously better than $85.
Sell the current, full-sized trailer separately for $30... Collectors are more likely to be willing to drop more money. I think that's a fair statement.
I personally think it's also fair to say that fewer trailers than Rodimuses would sell, so they could even limit that production a bit.
This option quite possibly would've sold more figures and made Hastak more money.
It appeals more to parents, casual buyers, and kids (who would typically have less spending $$$).
Any kid who REALLY wanted the trailer, well, there's still a chance they could get it if their parent gives them "the greenlight".
And there are collectors (like myself) who would've 100% bought Rodimus as a leader class figure without the trailer. Throw-in the two blast effects for the exhaust pipes, the matrix, and the rifle and the corresponding clast effect, and call it good!

What you are describing has the potential of a retailer nightmare. You cannot predict distribution so what you will 100% end up with are stores which have 20 trailers and no Rodimus. And vice versa. We are seeing this with the Mattel line where across north America you have places that have too much of the main hero figures and no vehicles or battle cars while in other places you have the opposite. My Walmarts have about 20-30 Battlecats each that have never moved and we never got He Man. This just creates shelfwarmers that the store will have to clear at liquidation prices, losing money. And possibly leading to less orders in the future.