Preorders up for Transformers RED Series Optimus Primal and Reformatting Megatron

I hadn't noticed until Scotty said it but it is pretty funny that hasbro got it wrong in terms of how the reformatting is done. It's left to right, not right to left like this toy.

It's left to right, not right to left like this toy.

Bruh, just turn the figure round.
But yeah, they messed up. Though if its not released yet, they can revise the figure...

Even though I have KD Primal, I'd be all over RED Primal if they had the same quality as Marvel Legends, GI Joe Classified, or Star Wars Black. Wave 1 was not manufactured with the same material as their other 6" lines. I didn't touch Wave 2. These are pure action figures unhindered by kibble or limited articulation to accommodate transformations. I'm looking at you, waist swivel-less Seeker mold.

aronjlove wrote:Even though I have KD Primal, I'd be all over RED Primal if they had the same quality as Marvel Legends, GI Joe Classified, or Star Wars Black. Wave 1 was not manufactured with the same material as their other 6" lines. I didn't touch Wave 2. These are pure action figures unhindered by kibble or limited articulation to accommodate transformations. I'm looking at you, waist swivel-less Seeker mold.

I'd overlook the crap quality if the figures were at least 6". As it is you can't have Megs shaking hands with Classified Cobra Commander.

ScottyP wrote:

william-james88 wrote:

sol magnus wrote:

AcademyofDrX wrote:

Sowndwave76 wrote:I'm okay with the look of Megatron, but if he's reformatting, how is he doing anything else??

This is an action figure that will only ever look good in a static pose. For me personally, that's perfect, it's just for display purposes as part of a Unicron scene. I think this is kind of the ideal use case for R.E.D., because the rest of the time a converting figure is better.

It's a dream for stop motion animation projects.

But the reformatting megs only works for 1 stop motion frame.

1 inaccurate frame. Still can't get over how this toy has one job and still manages to do it wrong.

Forget that, it wasn't even Megatron who had the grid pattern over him, it was Galvatron. Megatron starts with the xray (which would have looked REALLY cool painted over the figure) going left to right and followed by horizontal lines covering the xray from the bottom up that reshape him into Galvatron, then the horizontal lines take on a grid pattern as they take on color. And really, the figure should be transparent black, it only looked purple in the movie because of the glowing lines. Whoever designed this did it by faulty memory.

Emerje

It finally happened... Patience has paid off again...
Walmart has R.E.D. Megatron on sale for $12... Snagged one, and for that price I can overlook the issues this figure has!!

Got around to opening Megatron today.
For what it is I'm pretty happy with this guy!
Now, nothing on my copy is warped, and the paint apps are on point.
I do understand why people would want these figures to have even more articulation, but for $12 I'm not complaining about anything...
I'm going to keep my eye on Soundwave and SS; I didn't know how well these would scale with my CW Devastator!

Have you ever looked at your Kingdom Optimus Primal and wished it didn't transform? Well if yes, then you are in luck because Hasbro has just the toy for you! A video review from Prime vs Prime shows you everything you can expect from the upcoming RED Optimus Primal. Here we see that he is slightly taller than the Kingdom version. He also has a removable backpack and chestplate. These should be hitting Walmarts in North America during the holiday season and the fact that we see him in package in the review means he is ready for distribution and can appear at Asian retailers any time.

Tbh its less about the stolen figure and more about the 3am challenge voice.

Oof, figure is so dull and plain that I thought the thumbnail for this forum post was showing the back of the figure. That’s pretty sad. Not that I have a place to complain, there was no way I was gonna buy this anyways. It’s just wild how this line continues to fail, even when I started with such low expectations.

Sowndwave76 wrote:It finally happened... Patience has paid off again...
Walmart has R.E.D. Megatron on sale for $12... Snagged one, and for that price I can overlook the issues this figure has!!

Hoping they do that in my area too. I'd snag Cheetor just to have the gun for my Netflix figure.
I'm kind of tempted by the Starscream too, just as a display piece. But I know we're getting studio series Coronation Starscream, so I probably don't need the R.E.D.

Starseeker wrote:

Sowndwave76 wrote:It finally happened... Patience has paid off again...
Walmart has R.E.D. Megatron on sale for $12... Snagged one, and for that price I can overlook the issues this figure has!!

Hoping they do that in my area too. I'd snag Cheetor just to have the gun for my Netflix figure.
I'm kind of tempted by the Starscream too, just as a display piece. But I know we're getting studio series Coronation Starscream, so I probably don't need the R.E.D.

Well I recommend just keeping an eye out as much as possible...
When I found Megatron for that price, I also snagged Kingdom Arcee for $10. And now she' up to $25 or $26. And I did look the day after I ordered her, and the price was back up to $22.99.
So it's a bit of luck, but mostly patience and diligence.

I JUST saw Prime yesterday for $15. Maybe it was $15.99.
Either way, if I see Soundwave for that cost I'll probably get him.
I don't need the coronation gear, but I will even keep an eye on Starscream.
I'm trying to end up with him, Soundwave, and Megatron in front of my CW Devastator.


To those who think this line is completely worthless, I have a few thoughts.
Of course these figures could be better.
But a couple things:
--There are plenty of converting figures that could and should be better.
This has been the case since, well, as long as I've been collecting over the past 14-15 years.
--For a whole lot of people, these are ALL display pieces;
While there's probably a few different legit definitions of "play" when it comes to TF,
I'm not sure I personally would say that transforming a figure is "playing" with it.
Either way, I don't play with my TF like I played with my MOTU figures when I was 8 yrs old.
Maybe some adults do. Cool, man.
But I'm also betting there are just as many, and probably more, who don't.

There are people who HATE this line because these are non-converting figures; but their entire collection is sitting on shelves (and possibly partially in boxes stored away), and those figures rarely get touched, let alone transformed.

I look at this line for and does well rather than what it lacks.
Similar to how I view articulation. I don't need any type of figure to be able to do the splits. Or have their head, torso, or arms facing straight backwards.
Beyond what has become standard, double-jointed knees and elbows, butterfly joints at the shoulders, and maybe the ab crunch would make articulation ideal imo.
Which weird, are things the vast majority of converting figures lack!!

For what it's intended for, this line is actually pretty decent.

Mistaken_Table wrote:

It's left to right, not right to left like this toy.

Bruh, just turn the figure round.
But yeah, they messed up. Though if its not released yet, they can revise the figure...

Maybe it's for practicality sake? I can imagine keeping a consistent pattern printed on half the figure is already hard with all the typical grooves and details, but with two giant cannons to worry about (on the arm and on the back) they might just have decided to cut their losses and keep the grid on the easier side.

Emerje wrote:

ScottyP wrote:

william-james88 wrote:

sol magnus wrote:

AcademyofDrX wrote:

Sowndwave76 wrote:I'm okay with the look of Megatron, but if he's reformatting, how is he doing anything else??

This is an action figure that will only ever look good in a static pose. For me personally, that's perfect, it's just for display purposes as part of a Unicron scene. I think this is kind of the ideal use case for R.E.D., because the rest of the time a converting figure is better.

It's a dream for stop motion animation projects.

But the reformatting megs only works for 1 stop motion frame.

1 inaccurate frame. Still can't get over how this toy has one job and still manages to do it wrong.

Forget that, it wasn't even Megatron who had the grid pattern over him, it was Galvatron. Megatron starts with the xray (which would have looked REALLY cool painted over the figure) going left to right and followed by horizontal lines covering the xray from the bottom up that reshape him into Galvatron, then the horizontal lines take on a grid pattern as they take on color. And really, the figure should be transparent black, it only looked purple in the movie because of the glowing lines. Whoever designed this did it by faulty memory.

Emerje

True, but ask yourself this: which effect is more iconic and mentioned, the grid or the x-ray? It's basically the movie's "Beam Me Up, Scotty": even if it's not exactly what happened, it's how any casual viewer would remember.
Also, again, practicality: a grid pattern is probably easier to replicate than an x-ray.

My biggest question is why Primal has a removable chest. He's not supposed to transform, and I don't remember that happening on the show, so why did they do it?

Anyway, I hope they eventually make Autobot X, Nightbird, the Trans-Organics and upgraded Sari Sumdac. The former 2-and-group are memorable but don't transform, so they'd be perfect for this line; and replaceable hands, head and feet would be the most accurate "transformation" any Sari toy could get.

Many have removable chests, even Bumblebee. I think it's just an extra gimmick to this line.

william-james88 wrote:Many have removable chests, even Bumblebee. I think it's just an extra gimmick to this line.

Why, though? Is it to fit the packaging? Is it for better articulation? Otherwise it seems really pointless.

MaximalNui wrote:True, but ask yourself this: which effect is more iconic and mentioned, the grid or the x-ray?

For me, if it weren't for these figures doing the grid pattern I never would have remembered the grid since it's a blink and you'll miss it moment in the whole sequence. It's literally on the screen for a second, maybe two. They spend a lot more time focusing on the xray, that'll always bee the most memorable part of that sequence to me. I'd take the horizontal lines over the grid.

Emerje

Emerje wrote:

MaximalNui wrote:True, but ask yourself this: which effect is more iconic and mentioned, the grid or the x-ray?

For me, if it weren't for these figures doing the grid pattern I never would have remembered the grid since it's a blink and you'll miss it moment in the whole sequence. It's literally on the screen for a second, maybe two. They spend a lot more time focusing on the xray, that'll always bee the most memorable part of that sequence to me. I'd take the horizontal lines over the grid.

Emerje

I just rewatched it and I think some people interchange the grid with the X-Ray. Turns out the Megatron body never has a grid pattern. The grid pattern is present on galvatron right before his new cartoon self is revealed. It's 1 second long.

william-james88 wrote:

Emerje wrote:

MaximalNui wrote:True, but ask yourself this: which effect is more iconic and mentioned, the grid or the x-ray?

For me, if it weren't for these figures doing the grid pattern I never would have remembered the grid since it's a blink and you'll miss it moment in the whole sequence. It's literally on the screen for a second, maybe two. They spend a lot more time focusing on the xray, that'll always bee the most memorable part of that sequence to me. I'd take the horizontal lines over the grid.

Emerje

I just rewatched it and I think some people interchange the grid with the X-Ray. Turns out the Megatron body never has a grid pattern. The grid pattern is present on galvatron right before his new cartoon self is revealed. It's 1 second long.

I'd really like to know what's going on at Hasbro. First RED Megatron gets the grid pattern and now Kingdom Galvatron gets something that sort of looks like an attempt at the x-ray. They also both use purple plastic when the they were both clearly black with a slight purple glow coming from the lines in the scene. Is it that hard for them to just re-watch it on YouTube?

Emerje

My son wanted a RED Megatron, so I gave it a shot as well, and I have to say, I actually really like it. I may be in the minority, but this is pretty nice for what it is. I recommend giving it a shot if you haven't. It's a nice cartoon accurate display piece.

We have been sent a list of upcoming toys for 2022 and we are breaking them down per line. Of course, since we only have listed names from ordering sheets and no actual listings, you should take these with a grain of salt.

This list below is for the RED line which is remaining Walmart exclusive for the next year (but can also be ordered on Hasbro Pulse). It seems it will mainly be redecos/retools with 4 new molds. Also, the release of Cliffjumper now reveals why Bumblebee has a removeable chest piece, it's to make a retool that much easier to do. This would be for the entirety of 2022.

Wave 1:
G1 Galvatron x2
G1 Shockwave x2
Redeco Megatron x1
Redeco Optimus Prime x1

Wave 2:
Prime Optimus Prime x2
Prime Megatron x2
G1 Shockwave x1
G1 Galvatron x1

Wave 3:
G1 Thundercracker x2
Nemsis Prime x2
Prime Optimus prime x2

Wave 4:
Prime Dark Energon Megatron x2
G1 Cliffjumper x2
G1 Thundercracker x2

So Hasbro is still pushing on with this line even though it isn't selling...

However they can't seem to keep any WFC stocked at any retailer across the nation.

Odd priorities.

whacko wrote:So Hasbro is still pushing on with this line even though it isn't selling...

However they can't seem to keep any WFC stocked at any retailer across the nation.

Odd priorities.

It's just more stock for the shelves. Also, this line seems like an easy one for them cost based wise. Not a lot of new molds and no need for takara designer involvement.

Shockwave might be interesting with clear lines/deco over the siege one. I still havent seen red Knock Out though like most of the Red Prime stuff it's going to be compaing them to original figures and any upcoming Legacy figures before deciding on what to buy.
Thundercrackers a maybe for me as its chest should look better than wfc earthmmodes bots and might be easier to get (not keen on how the null rays sit on wfc earthmode bots either). Galvatron has the possibility of being the best Hasbro Galvatron available for a while even with a lack of two of his modes.

So, is Prime Dark Energon Megatron going to be a new version of Unicron-possessed Megatron from the TV movie? If so, it's a bummer it doesn't transform, but at least we'll have an accurate representation instead of a simple repaint or a Construct-Bots with their buildable aestethic. Also, swappable weapons/hands would be the best way to incorporate his Dark Energon weapons.

MaximalNui wrote:So, is Prime Dark Energon Megatron going to be a new version of Unicron-possessed Megatron from the TV movie? If so, it's a bummer it doesn't transform, but at least we'll have an accurate representation instead of a simple repaint or a Construct-Bots with their buildable aestethic. Also, swappable weapons/hands would be the best way to incorporate his Dark Energon weapons.

Pretty sur he won't be. Instead, a Dark Energon redeco reffers to when he was powering himself with Dark Energon



We've had 2 decos of that in the Prime line.

These have been popping up for a week now but we wanted to let you know just in case. This fourth wave of the Walmart exclusive RED line has the new releases of Optimus Primal and a clear purple Megatron redeco, referencing the moment he becomes Galvatron in the 86 film. They have been found across the US, like Arkansas and Massachusetts. They have also been found in Canada at the same time, and all over as well with reports coming in from Ontario and Alberta. The image below is of a Walmart in Brockville Ontario.

I picked up RED Megatron reformat on Friday night. I forgot to mention it.

Posted about finding Primal at Walmart in Florida last week. Update, it's a steaming pile of garbage. The hands won't even fit the swords unless you boil them to soften the grip.

Maaaaan there’s a Cyberverse Cheetor there in the second photo. I’ve been trying to find one for ages!

sol magnus wrote:I picked up RED Megatron reformat on Friday night. I forgot to mention it.

How does it look under black light?

DeathReviews wrote:

sol magnus wrote:I picked up RED Megatron reformat on Friday night. I forgot to mention it.

How does it look under black light?

I dunno. You got one you can send me from Hades?

Thanks to a post on Weibo, we have out first look at some upcoming toys to come to the Transformers RED line. These are Prime Knockout and Ultra Magnus. Ultra Magnus is a white redeco of Optimus Prime, so an homage to the G1 toy's inner bot. Knockout is a fully new mold. The RED line is still exclusive to Walmart in 2022. Let us know what you think and if you will be picking these up. It seems that while many fans are not enthused by this line, it does sell well enough to keep going and to not remain on shelves too long.

Knock Out is a Day 1 purchase since he'd make for a more interesting purchase than the possible Legacy version since they're not going for 1:1 TFP Knockout.

Knockout looks like a shampoo bottle, due to the flat, lack-of-detail appearance.

I hope I'm wrong.

This is the first Knock Out toy that actually, finally looks like his cartoon design. It's about time he got his due. That Deluxe toy he got back in the day did him no justice.

Sabrblade wrote:This is the first Knock Out toy that actually, finally looks like his cartoon design. It's about time he got his due. That Deluxe toy he got back in the day did him no justice.

Still waiting for one that transforms though

william-james88 wrote:

Sabrblade wrote:This is the first Knock Out toy that actually, finally looks like his cartoon design. It's about time he got his due. That Deluxe toy he got back in the day did him no justice.

Still waiting for one that transforms though

Still waiting on one that's accurate and is actually a good toy too.

I still feel very salty over RED Arcee. She feels so bad

william-james88 wrote:

Sabrblade wrote:This is the first Knock Out toy that actually, finally looks like his cartoon design. It's about time he got his due. That Deluxe toy he got back in the day did him no justice.

Still waiting for one that transforms though

And has the right instructions.

chuckdawg1999 wrote:

william-james88 wrote:

Sabrblade wrote:This is the first Knock Out toy that actually, finally looks like his cartoon design. It's about time he got his due. That Deluxe toy he got back in the day did him no justice.

Still waiting for one that transforms though

And has the right instructions.

And is not missing a lot of paint.

I've been a little out of the loop but just bought Knockout at Walmart. I don't like this series but he looks good. Has it even been officially revealed yet?

ScottyP wrote:I've been a little out of the loop but just bought Knockout at Walmart. I don't like this series but he looks good. Has it even been officially revealed yet?

I don't think so.

ScottyP wrote:I've been a little out of the loop but just bought Knockout at Walmart. I don't like this series but he looks good. Has it even been officially revealed yet?

Officially no, it has only been acknowledged as found in stores ALA SS Jolt and RotF sideswipe

D-Maximal_Primal wrote:

ScottyP wrote:I've been a little out of the loop but just bought Knockout at Walmart. I don't like this series but he looks good. Has it even been officially revealed yet?

Officially no, it has only been acknowledged as found in stores ALA SS Jolt and RotF sideswipe

Those SS toys have had official acknowledgements, albeit ROTF Sideswipe was after it was found in stores (which isn't uncommon, it's happened for years now). Plus, Hasbro has stopped revealing at least 50% of their toys. None of the Cyberverse toys from 2021 have official reveals as far as I know. That's why websites like ours exists.

william-james88 wrote:

D-Maximal_Primal wrote:

ScottyP wrote:I've been a little out of the loop but just bought Knockout at Walmart. I don't like this series but he looks good. Has it even been officially revealed yet?

Officially no, it has only been acknowledged as found in stores ALA SS Jolt and RotF sideswipe

Those SS toys have had official acknowledgements, albeit ROTF Sideswipe was after it was found in stores (which isn't uncommon, it's happened for years now). Plus, Hasbro has stopped revealing at least 50% of their toys. None of the Cyberverse toys from 2021 have official reveals as far as I know. That's why websites like ours exists.

OK, worded that wrong, I meant it's like SS Jolt and Sideswipe where it was found in stores first and revealed later, except these haven't been officially revealed yet.

Anything that isn't SS86 or Legacy it seems haven't been revealed before being found in stores or leaked. The brand team's reveals have been getting very poor across the board lately. They really should borrow a Marvel guy for a bit to learn about proper reveals.

D-Maximal_Primal wrote:

william-james88 wrote:

D-Maximal_Primal wrote:

ScottyP wrote:I've been a little out of the loop but just bought Knockout at Walmart. I don't like this series but he looks good. Has it even been officially revealed yet?

Officially no, it has only been acknowledged as found in stores ALA SS Jolt and RotF sideswipe

Those SS toys have had official acknowledgements, albeit ROTF Sideswipe was after it was found in stores (which isn't uncommon, it's happened for years now). Plus, Hasbro has stopped revealing at least 50% of their toys. None of the Cyberverse toys from 2021 have official reveals as far as I know. That's why websites like ours exists.

OK, worded that wrong, I meant it's like SS Jolt and Sideswipe where it was found in stores first and revealed later, except these haven't been officially revealed yet.

Anything that isn't SS86 or Legacy it seems haven't been revealed before being found in stores or leaked. The brand team's reveals have been getting very poor across the board lately. They really should borrow a Marvel guy for a bit to learn about proper reveals.

Personally, I think they should do what they are doing with the Star Saber, let us in on the process. Probably not with Movie toys since the designs are to be revealed by Paramount or whatever, but for legacy, SS and even Rescue Bots and Cyberverse (and the show that will replace it soon). Like that we know what's coming out and it's not just a select few.

william-james88 wrote:

D-Maximal_Primal wrote:

ScottyP wrote:I've been a little out of the loop but just bought Knockout at Walmart. I don't like this series but he looks good. Has it even been officially revealed yet?

Officially no, it has only been acknowledged as found in stores ALA SS Jolt and RotF sideswipe

Those SS toys have had official acknowledgements, albeit ROTF Sideswipe was after it was found in stores (which isn't uncommon, it's happened for years now). Plus, Hasbro has stopped revealing at least 50% of their toys. None of the Cyberverse toys from 2021 have official reveals as far as I know. That's why websites like ours exists.

I can't believe NONE of the 2021 Cyberverse toys were officially released. I just can't wrap my mind around that.

chuckdawg1999 wrote:

william-james88 wrote:

D-Maximal_Primal wrote:

ScottyP wrote:I've been a little out of the loop but just bought Knockout at Walmart. I don't like this series but he looks good. Has it even been officially revealed yet?

Officially no, it has only been acknowledged as found in stores ALA SS Jolt and RotF sideswipe

Those SS toys have had official acknowledgements, albeit ROTF Sideswipe was after it was found in stores (which isn't uncommon, it's happened for years now). Plus, Hasbro has stopped revealing at least 50% of their toys. None of the Cyberverse toys from 2021 have official reveals as far as I know. That's why websites like ours exists.

I can't believe NONE of the 2021 Cyberverse toys were officially released. I just can't wrap my mind around that.

I guess they're not "G1" enough for our new G1-enamored Hasbro team.

chuckdawg1999 wrote:

william-james88 wrote:

D-Maximal_Primal wrote:

ScottyP wrote:I've been a little out of the loop but just bought Knockout at Walmart. I don't like this series but he looks good. Has it even been officially revealed yet?

Officially no, it has only been acknowledged as found in stores ALA SS Jolt and RotF sideswipe

Those SS toys have had official acknowledgements, albeit ROTF Sideswipe was after it was found in stores (which isn't uncommon, it's happened for years now). Plus, Hasbro has stopped revealing at least 50% of their toys. None of the Cyberverse toys from 2021 have official reveals as far as I know. That's why websites like ours exists.

I can't believe NONE of the 2021 Cyberverse toys were officially released. I just can't wrap my mind around that.

You mean revealed, not released, and it isn't that surprising. Toys like Cyberverse are sold mainly to kids and parents, two demos that generally don't keep up on press releases and news reports. No point in a promotional campaign when the store shelves are the first place most of their target buyers are going to see them anyway.

Emerje