Robots in Disguise Minicons On Sale at Walmart, 5 Below; Combiner Force 3-Steps Found at Retail

RAR wrote:I find that really strange - it opens up such a lot of questions - such can Hasbro now reissue any and all of the clash-of-the-Transformers figures again if they want as the only thing that has changed was the passage of a year from 2016 to 2017 to explain the re-pack of Starscream

This has me curious: what is the product code for Combiner Force Starscream? Clash of the Transformers Starscream's is B7958/B7935 Asst. If the first B-number is the same, it's considered the same toy.

Here's a pic of Menasor on the side of a bus

Stuartmaximus wrote:Here's a pic of Menasor on the side of a bus

...well [bleep].

Stuartmaximus wrote:Here's a pic of Menasor on the side of a bus

FB_IMG_1484965708784.jpg

Well, this is... huge, in more than one way. Where'd you find this?

I'm sure that bus wasn't supposed to be used yet, and someone's in trouble. Also, Menasor and the Team Bee combiner are both four-bot, not five. Weird.

Sigma Magnus wrote:I'm sure that bus wasn't supposed to be used yet, and someone's in trouble. Also, Menasor and the Team Bee combiner are both four-bot, not five. Weird.

Yeah, and since the arms are both two clearly distinct components; this means that the last component is larger and becomes both legs mastodon-style. Which is... interesting.
I find it funny how they're not just doing Combiners in a main line so soon after CW, but specifically one of the Combiners from CW in the main line. I would've thought that'd be a bit repetitive for kids when it's not someone extremely popular like Optimus or Bumblebee, but... did Menasor just get really popular or something? He's starred in a lot of things by now. IDW CW, Machinima CW, in general was the main Decepticon combiner used in advertising... and now this.

We have three sightings for you minicon hunters and Combiner Force 3-step fans to check out.

The first comes to us from Carytheone who discovered that the wave 3 and 4 minicons that included the likes of Blizzard Slipstream, Hammer, and Swelter among others, have begun to show up at 5 below. This sighting was confirmed by yours truly, suggesting that this is indeed a widespread sale. So if you are interested in some minis that haven't hit regular retail, go find a 5 Below!

The second sighting is from Destronmirage who has discovered that at least his Walmart is trying to rid itself of the minicons by placing them on a $2 sale. So check out your local Walmart to see if you can find some cheap minicons there!

Finally, Seibertron himself has reported that the new Combiner Force 3-step Optimus Prime and Bumblebee have been spotted at his Walmart in Mount Prospect, Illinois. These new figures are based on the designs of the previous 3-step changers, but they feature some new tricks in vehicle mode that resemble the minicon activators, just minus the minicon.

Check out the sightings, and head to your locals stores to hunt down these new Robots in Disguise Products!

Very interesting. Looks like they're made from four-member teams: three normal sized characters for the arms and torso and a larger character for everything below the waist. Autobots have Bee, Sideswipe, and Strongarm at the top and Grimlock on bottom.

Stunticons look to be Dragstrip, "Wildbreak", Motormaster, and Breakdown I guess as the legs? I wonder if they'll even make all this into figures?

Emerje

Kurona wrote:

Stuartmaximus wrote:Here's a pic of Menasor on the side of a bus

FB_IMG_1484965708784.jpg

Well, this is... huge, in more than one way. Where'd you find this?

I'm thinking here.

And here is a better look at the Bee Team combiner.

Sigma Magnus wrote:I'm sure that bus wasn't supposed to be used yet, and someone's in trouble. Also, Menasor and the Team Bee combiner are both four-bot, not five. Weird.

Especially weird considering the press release for season 3 said that the Decepticon combiner was a five-bot one, right?

Wow, I can't believe my post made the news page. That's so cool! No news credit though?

DestronMirage22 wrote:Wow, I can't believe my post made the news page. That's so cool! No news credit though?

Carytheone submitted the 5-below part first. Your post was pulled in as a roundup, but because Cary had posted something first, he got it. We can only give 1 news credit per news.

Don't worry though! Just keep sending us news and we will keep on posting it!

BTW, If you guys ever want to try out Crash Combiners, get PrimeStrong. He(?) is so much fun.

D-Maximus_Prime wrote:

DestronMirage22 wrote:Wow, I can't believe my post made the news page. That's so cool! No news credit though?

Carytheone submitted the 5-below part first. Your post was pulled in as a roundup, but because Cary had posted something first, he got it. We can only give 1 news credit per news.

Don't worry though! Just keep sending us news and we will keep on posting it!

BTW, If you guys ever want to try out Crash Combiners, get PrimeStrong. He(?) is so much fun.

Ahh, I see now. No worries, it was a huge honor just to be included in the news post.

I like that PrimeStrong headsculpt. Reminds me alot of Star Convoy. Anybody else seeing it?

RAR wrote:I find that really strange - it opens up such a lot of questions - such can Hasbro now reissue any and all of the clash-of-the-Transformers figures again if they want as the only thing that has changed was the passage of a year from 2016 to 2017 to explain the re-pack of Starscream

That was why I was expecting him to be a slightly different colour (like Megatronus was) so as to not step on TRU's toes.

As now we will have the bizarre situation where the TRU exclusive Starscream will be on the shelf at the same time as the exact same Starscream is in another packet with the two packets being at two distinct prices for the same toy.

---

Anyway speaking of Starscream I just got the Legion class on he's really rather great - might even be the best legion in the entire RID Legion line.
He has knees and his wings are not blocked by the kibble like they are on the Warrior class. He's got a ton of joints on him too like multi-jointed shoulders - the only lack is his head doesn't turn other than that he's terrific.

I wonder if they'd consider making a One-step Starscream this year ?

During Beast Hunters Target had 3 BH Bumblebees on the shelf at the same time. If you include the original Bees as well there were 5

Emerje wrote:Very interesting. Looks like they're made from four-member teams: three normal sized characters for the arms and torso and a larger character for everything below the waist. Autobots have Bee, Sideswipe, and Strongarm at the top and Grimlock on bottom.

Stunticons look to be Dragstrip, "Wildbreak", Motormaster, and Breakdown I guess as the legs? I wonder if they'll even make all this into figures?

Emerje

Well according to internet chatter....Breakdown is missing from this combiner(but we haven't got a clear look at who forms the legs yet?...if no Breakdown...then obviously it'll be Dead End)

Why wouldn't motormaster be the legs?

And D, how are the individual robot modes?

william-james88 wrote:Why wouldn't motormaster be the legs?

And D, how are the individual robot modes?

Because he very much seems to be the torso.

I forgot to mention that there is a clearer image of the Bee combiner I posted news of it via TFW2005 by accident in the Rescue Bots Thread before the Menasor image on the bus showed up.

https://t.co/Um7HXPKLWi

In other news McDonald's has an RID Promotion.

https://t.co/5wbgDjiYcv

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The cartoon is the main marketing tool for your toyline so the Combiner Force thread seems to be essentially something like Predacons Rising that has been cut up into chunks so they can display it as a short season.

They are pushing a toyline yet they show was cancelled early and had a lot of episodes pulled - seems odd that the line is getting it's second wind just in them to be abandoned in terms of it's marketing back-stop "The Cartoon".

----

Also are those new 3-steps the same size as the old ones are still ?

----

I will be curious to find out if the stamp & tampograph Number on Warrior Class CF Starscream remains the same as COTT Starscream or not.

william-james88 wrote:D, how are the individual robot modes?

Strongarm is ok. Prime looks shite. But they aren't about the the individual modes, so I'm good with it. Primestrong himself is really good looking. Excused the robots modes mostly

RAR wrote:I forgot to mention that there is a clearer image of the Bee combiner I posted news of it via TFW2005 by accident in the Rescue Bots Thread before the Menasor image on the bus showed up.

https://t.co/Um7HXPKLWi

That image was included in my post over in the cartoon discussion thread where the combiner news was made

william-james88 wrote:Why wouldn't motormaster be the legs?

And D, how are the individual robot modes?

Well from the pic on the side of that bus...it looks like he's the torso, with the two halves of either Drag Strip or Wildbreaker forming both arms...which then leaves two unaccounted for((or one! depending on how his legs are formed & by which character(as the two halves of Grimlock appear to form both legs of that Bee combiner)....& if Menasor is a combiner of 4 or not?)).

Stuartmaximus wrote:

william-james88 wrote:Why wouldn't motormaster be the legs?

And D, how are the individual robot modes?

Well from the pic on the side of that bus...it looks like he's the torso, with the two halves of either Drag Strip or Wildbreaker forming both arms...which then leaves two unaccounted for((or one! depending on how his legs are formed & by which character(as the two halves of Grimlock appear to form both legs of that Bee combiner)....& if Menasor is a combiner of 4 or not?)).

? The arms look to be two different cars rather than two halves of the same car.

Kurona wrote:

Stuartmaximus wrote:

william-james88 wrote:Why wouldn't motormaster be the legs?

And D, how are the individual robot modes?

Well from the pic on the side of that bus...it looks like he's the torso, with the two halves of either Drag Strip or Wildbreaker forming both arms...which then leaves two unaccounted for((or one! depending on how his legs are formed & by which character(as the two halves of Grimlock appear to form both legs of that Bee combiner)....& if Menasor is a combiner of 4 or not?)).

? The arms look to be two different cars rather than two halves of the same car.

Ah right, well maybe those shoulders belong to Motormaster...as they appear to be identical &/or maybe the two different cars will both be off the same mold? either way....that's what was leading me to believe that the arms came from the same car

D-Maximus_Prime wrote:That image was included in my post over in the cartoon discussion thread where the combiner news was made

There is a cartoon discussion thread ?

Teasing aside though - I wouldn't read that for story spoiler reasons.

Stuartmaximus wrote:

Emerje wrote:Very interesting. Looks like they're made from four-member teams: three normal sized characters for the arms and torso and a larger character for everything below the waist. Autobots have Bee, Sideswipe, and Strongarm at the top and Grimlock on bottom.

Stunticons look to be Dragstrip, "Wildbreak", Motormaster, and Breakdown I guess as the legs? I wonder if they'll even make all this into figures?

Emerje

Well according to internet chatter....Breakdown is missing from this combiner(but we haven't got a clear look at who forms the legs yet?...if no Breakdown...then obviously it'll be Dead End)

Going by the image on the bus, from left to right appears to be Dragstrip, "Wildbreak", and Motormaster. The fourth guy at the end appears to have a white body, a blue head, and a red face. They'll probably change the name and make it a different character, but the colors for G1 Breakdown seem to be there, at least they do in a very grainy, blurry, and small image.

Emerje

RAR wrote:I forgot to mention that there is a clearer image of the Bee combiner I posted news of it via TFW2005 by accident in the Rescue Bots Thread before the Menasor image on the bus showed up.

https://t.co/Um7HXPKLWi

In other news McDonald's has an RID Promotion.

https://t.co/5wbgDjiYcv

-------
The cartoon is the main marketing tool for your toyline so the Combiner Force thread seems to be essentially something like Predacons Rising that has been cut up into chunks so they can display it as a short season.

They are pushing a toyline yet they show was cancelled early and had a lot of episodes pulled - seems odd that the line is getting it's second wind just in them to be abandoned in terms of it's marketing back-stop "The Cartoon".

----

Also are those new 3-steps the same size as the old ones are still ?

----

I will be curious to find out if the stamp & tampograph Number on Warrior Class CF Starscream remains the same as COTT Starscream or not.

The show got canceled? I'm still waiting for the last episodes with Starscream to go up on my On Demand channel. If the show is canceled I expect a lot of stores to drop the product sooner than later.

chuckdawg1999 wrote:The show got canceled?

No such news has been given from anyone official.

Sabrblade wrote:

chuckdawg1999 wrote:The show got canceled?

No such news has been given from anyone official.

Refresh my memory here: has anyone said that Combiner Force will be the final season for RiD?

JelZe GoldRabbit wrote:

Sabrblade wrote:

chuckdawg1999 wrote:The show got canceled?

No such news has been given from anyone official.

Refresh my memory here: has anyone said that Combiner Force will be the final season for RiD?

We have had no word on how far the show will go. what we do have confirmation on is that Combiner Force is supposed to be coming out within the next month and they have not announced the end of the show

JelZe GoldRabbit wrote:

Sabrblade wrote:

chuckdawg1999 wrote:The show got canceled?

No such news has been given from anyone official.

Refresh my memory here: has anyone said that Combiner Force will be the final season for RiD?

All we know of it is what's in the official synopsis.

Don't forget how people were previously crying that the skies were falling for season 2 as well.

I'd be surprised if it lasted much longer, but there's nothing to indicate it won't.

I hope it keeps going. I do like the series, and as a kids show, they can do all kinds of stuff that we may find blasphemy but kids find really cool. An entire season dedicated to different versions of combining seems like a really cool idea that I look forward to seeing

It strikes me as odd how so many like to emphasize the "kids show" nature of RID 2015 when, short of Beast Machines and Prime, every single TF TV cartoon ever made has been just as much, if not moreso, a "kids show" too.

Sabrblade wrote:It strikes me as odd how so many like to emphasize the "kids show" nature of RID 2015 when, short of Beast Machines and Prime, every single TF TV cartoon ever made has been just as much, if not moreso, a "kids show" too.

The way i see it, it's harmless fun. Kids = innocence. Innocent fun where you play with the building blocks of the lore.

Adding Combiner force to that makes it really fun, and gives it a chance to have an unbiased audience who simply can enjoy the series no matter what kind of twist happens

D-Maximus_Prime wrote:

Sabrblade wrote:It strikes me as odd how so many like to emphasize the "kids show" nature of RID 2015 when, short of Beast Machines and Prime, every single TF TV cartoon ever made has been just as much, if not moreso, a "kids show" too.

The way i see it, it's harmless fun. Kids = innocence. Innocent fun where you play with the building blocks of the lore.

Adding Combiner force to that makes it really fun, and gives it a chance to have an unbiased audience who simply can enjoy the series no matter what kind of twist happens

Yeah, but, couldn't the same be said of every other show that's come before (save for the two exceptions I mentioned)?

Sabrblade wrote:

D-Maximus_Prime wrote:

Sabrblade wrote:It strikes me as odd how so many like to emphasize the "kids show" nature of RID 2015 when, short of Beast Machines and Prime, every single TF TV cartoon ever made has been just as much, if not moreso, a "kids show" too.

The way i see it, it's harmless fun. Kids = innocence. Innocent fun where you play with the building blocks of the lore.

Adding Combiner force to that makes it really fun, and gives it a chance to have an unbiased audience who simply can enjoy the series no matter what kind of twist happens

Yeah, but, couldn't the same be said of every other show that's come before (save for the two exceptions I mentioned)?

I think it's more or less the juxtaposition of Prime - the show that came before it and what it's supposed to be a sequel to - one of if not the most serious and dramatic Transformers shows to date with elements like Bisk. Which becomes especially more evident the more TFP elements the show brings in.
When Soundwave came back, I found it very difficult to reconcile him being from the same faction and even same universe as the other Decepticons in the show - each show is going for two very different vibes and feels. Which is fine, but when TFP's audience watches this and knows that this came after TFP... it becomes difficult to see it as anything but 'kiddy'. It's just really difficult to go from Transformers: Prime and see this weird dorky lobster Decepticon making video game puns and giving Bumblebee's team a hard time and believe the two shows belong in the same universe.
When in a vacuum, it's not that much more 'kiddy' or such than a lot of other Transformers shows. But when you bring in the contrast to what it's supposed to be connected to...

Just to clarify as I was being a bit vague.
What I was referring to is how RID had it's latest season cut down from a full one to a partial one - that is essentially a TV movie chopped into bites size chunks.

As far as I can tell it isn't a short season of normal episodes its a single story chopped up into parts. (so Basically "Combiner Force" is just like 'Predacons Rising' and is quite likely to be released as a stand alone feature length release too)

Also that it is the last season as far as I can tell - not that I can say for certain but like Rescue Bots if it comes back it will do so after having stopped and having officially finished.

So the point I made actually applies to both shows.

Either that will try to sell toys based on re-runs or they are going to need 2 new cartoon one for the under 6 crowd and one for the over 6 crowd.
so cancelling them both at the same time seems a bit weird.
And just goes to imply that they are going to be pushing the Movie toys like mad over the next 3 years - regardless of their claims to the contrary or even their suitability to the very young audience that Rescue Bots appeals too.
---

Anyway I notice there is a product listing for "Team Combiners" so I expect that has something to do with the the bus images.

RAR wrote:Also that it is the last season as far as I can tell - not that I can say for certain but like Rescue Bots if it comes back it will do so after having stopped and having officially finished.

Right, it was Rescue Bots that was gonna be canceled, not RiD

Madeus Prime has pointed us in the direction of another review, this time for the upcoming wave 2 Combiner Force Crash Combiner Skyhammer! Skyhammer is the fusion of Skysledge and Stormhammer in typical Crash Combiner fashion, and appears to be a pretty good figure with solid colors and a good looking combined mode. The figures themselves will be available soon at retail so keep your eyes peeled for this latest Crash Combiner set!

JelZe GoldRabbit wrote:

RAR wrote:Also that it is the last season as far as I can tell - not that I can say for certain but like Rescue Bots if it comes back it will do so after having stopped and having officially finished.

Right, it was Rescue Bots that was gonna be cancelled, not RiD

As far as I am aware it's both of them set to end in 2016/2017.

That said they did say something about doing a feature length RID offering - but I have a suspicion that was actually referring to Combiner Force before they hacked it up into little bits.

RAR wrote:

JelZe GoldRabbit wrote:

RAR wrote:Also that it is the last season as far as I can tell - not that I can say for certain but like Rescue Bots if it comes back it will do so after having stopped and having officially finished.

Right, it was Rescue Bots that was gonna be cancelled, not RiD

As far as I am aware it's both of them set to end in 2016/2017.

That said they did say something about doing a feature length RID offering - but I have a suspicion that was actually referring to Combiner Force before they hacked it up into little bits.

Rescue bots has already ended. We have had no word on when RiD is ending

D-Maximus_Prime wrote:

RAR wrote:

JelZe GoldRabbit wrote:

RAR wrote:Also that it is the last season as far as I can tell - not that I can say for certain but like Rescue Bots if it comes back it will do so after having stopped and having officially finished.

Right, it was Rescue Bots that was gonna be cancelled, not RiD

As far as I am aware it's both of them set to end in 2016/2017.

That said they did say something about doing a feature length RID offering - but I have a suspicion that was actually referring to Combiner Force before they hacked it up into little bits.

Rescue bots has already ended. We have had no word on when RiD is ending

The Rescue Bots toyline is still going to continue, at least.

D-Maximus_Prime wrote:Rescue bots has already ended. We have had no word on when RiD is ending

Reply located here : https://www.minds.com/newsfeed/670035417210298386

Something I just noticed, the Crash Combiner line features two vehicles being "crashed" together to make something. I'm surprised there haven't been complaints about teaching children crashing is cool.

chuckdawg1999 wrote:Something I just noticed, the Crash Combiner line features two vehicles being "crashed" together to make something. I'm surprised there haven't been complaints about teaching children crashing is cool.

Crashing vehicle toys have been a thing for long time now. The Incredible Crash Dummies, for instance, is a line centered around the gimmick of car crashing.

chuckdawg1999 wrote:Something I just noticed, the Crash Combiner line features two vehicles being "crashed" together to make something. I'm surprised there haven't been complaints about teaching children crashing is cool.

There no such complaints with the Crash Test Dummies toy lines AFAIK.

chuckdawg1999 wrote:Something I just noticed, the Crash Combiner line features two vehicles being "crashed" together to make something. I'm surprised there haven't been complaints about teaching children crashing is cool.

Skyhamner doesnt crash together, one just docks into the other's backside.

william-james88 wrote:

chuckdawg1999 wrote:Something I just noticed, the Crash Combiner line features two vehicles being "crashed" together to make something. I'm surprised there haven't been complaints about teaching children crashing is cool.

Skyhamner doesnt crash together, one just docks into the other's backside.

So do Sideswipe and Bumblebee, resulting in a lot fanfic writers screaming for joy

*ahem*

Anyway, I did some looking and that "mini-series" for the Mini-Con Weaponizers still counts as season 2. Season 3 is a full one as announced back in October.

Just to add confusion there seems to be no-info I can find that says the 2017 season is longer than 6 episodes as well.

But the 2 seasons and the miniseries seem to meet the numeric description of the previous pre-release length of 46 eps for the show.

So what we have in 2017 is in addition to that - however long it is. might be nice if someone would actually tell someone one something about their plans for the show or how many episodes there is or even the titles - they have already changed their mind about 2017 being season 4 and now are saying it's season 3 and the 2016 winter run is just a "Mini-series".

It's annoying me a bit as the new eps are supposed to market the new toys - but they are not doing a lot of that.

Anyone wanna make some bets on how long season (they say) 3 (I say 4) is gonna be ?

I'm going with 4 to 6 eps. it might be longer if they tack the 2 muted TV movie concepts together which if they do I'll say 10 episodes.

I'd say it's a bit too early to make guesses at whether the next RiD episodes will be the normal season format or another mini-series/cut-up movie like the Starscream arc. The latter almost seems like it's setting a new standard, though at the same time it's certainly a possibility that it was that way because they had to rush out an advertisement for the new toys that wasn't originally on their schedule (or was differently placed on their schedule). Not a very conclusive answer but from what little we have to go on, all I have to say is "wait and see".

... also, this conversation would probably better be suited to the thread actually dedicated to the animated series rather than the thread for it's toyline

JelZe GoldRabbit wrote:

chuckdawg1999 wrote:Something I just noticed, the Crash Combiner line features two vehicles being "crashed" together to make something. I'm surprised there haven't been complaints about teaching children crashing is cool.

There no such complaints with the Crash Test Dummies toy lines AFAIK.

There was. The line didn't get pulled but parents weren't buying the toys for their kids. Al Rocker the weather man for the American morning show Today, publicly stated he didn't like the toys.

chuckdawg1999 wrote:There was. The line didn't get pulled but parents weren't buying the toys for their kids. Al Rocker the weather man for the American morning show Today, publicly stated he didn't like the toys.

Its not the only line which encouraged crashing.



And fuck Al Rocker, he felt no pity for Harambe, he should stick to reporting the weather.

Plus, transforming and crashing has been used as a concept before this.
(go to the 1:50 mark)


Moving on, what's with the obsession here about RID being cancelled or not? How does it matter? It got a third season which is where all mainline TF shows have gotten more or less. It will one day end and another one will take its place to keep the brand alive among that demographic.