Transformers Star Raiders Filch is Shipping Out Now + Video Review

william-james88 wrote:

Emerje wrote:

Gearslide wrote:Dang, just got an email from Walmart that my Cannonball pre-order was pushed back to mid-August.

Same, though I don't know which specific figure it was for, it's safe to say it's going to go for all of the Deluxe figures. Kinda funny that they're throwing Hasbro under the bus instead of some wishy-washy vague excuse.

Order Date: 3/14/2024
Item Name(s): Transformers Legacy United Deluxe Star Raider

The updated release date is now: 08/16/2024

We are sorry if this date change is an inconvenience. The product manufacturer controls the release date for this product and we willl ship it to you as quickly as we can once it is released.

Emerje

This is all over the place. Walmart Canada got their packs for Filch and are shipping them out, but they delayed lockdown.

At least it means Walmart and Pulse are getting solid cases for their online orders

Canada for sure, but you'll recall in the US during the Velocitron line they refused to use solid cases even online. Not sure if that was true for the Toxitron line but it seemed that way.

Emerje

Emerje wrote:

william-james88 wrote:

Emerje wrote:

Gearslide wrote:Dang, just got an email from Walmart that my Cannonball pre-order was pushed back to mid-August.

Same, though I don't know which specific figure it was for, it's safe to say it's going to go for all of the Deluxe figures. Kinda funny that they're throwing Hasbro under the bus instead of some wishy-washy vague excuse.

Order Date: 3/14/2024
Item Name(s): Transformers Legacy United Deluxe Star Raider

The updated release date is now: 08/16/2024

We are sorry if this date change is an inconvenience. The product manufacturer controls the release date for this product and we willl ship it to you as quickly as we can once it is released.

Emerje

This is all over the place. Walmart Canada got their packs for Filch and are shipping them out, but they delayed lockdown.

At least it means Walmart and Pulse are getting solid cases for their online orders

Canada for sure, but you'll recall in the US during the Velocitron line they refused to use solid cases even online. Not sure if that was true for the Toxitron line but it seemed that way.

Emerje

Ah right. If the US has them all coming out at the same time then maybe they arent getting solid cases.

william-james88 wrote:Stuff and things.

I have zero attachment to this character but she looks like a really FUN figure!

~ Grim

Big Grim wrote:

william-james88 wrote:Stuff and things.

I have zero attachment to this character but she looks like a really FUN figure!

~ Grim

That's what's so interesting here, absolutely no one has any attachment to the character. She was a one off villain, who was simpler in ambition than most, who we barely saw in robot mode (and never saw from the front), and yet Hasbro goes all out on the toy. We are all basically appreciating her for the first time.

Big Grim wrote:

william-james88 wrote:

Big Grim wrote:

william-james88 wrote:Stuff and things.

I have zero attachment to this character but she looks like a really FUN figure!

~ Grim

That's what's so interesting here, absolutely no one has any attachment to the character. She was a one off villain, who was simpler in ambition than most, who we barely saw in robot mode (and never saw from the front), and yet Hasbro goes all out on the toy. We are all basically appreciating her for the first time.

That's peculiar! But some of these new characters/toys seem to speak to us as a whole. Sometimes the toy just WORKS for a character. It's good to see in a franchise with so many established characters.

~ Grim

That's just it though. She's not a new character. She's from an episode of Robots in Disguise 2015 that nobody really cared about. Yet, here she is getting the premium toy treatment from a Hasbro team who wasn't in charge back when she first debuted and disappeared never to be seen or heard from again until now.

Sabrblade wrote:

Big Grim wrote:

william-james88 wrote:

Big Grim wrote:

william-james88 wrote:Stuff and things.

I have zero attachment to this character but she looks like a really FUN figure!

~ Grim

That's what's so interesting here, absolutely no one has any attachment to the character. She was a one off villain, who was simpler in ambition than most, who we barely saw in robot mode (and never saw from the front), and yet Hasbro goes all out on the toy. We are all basically appreciating her for the first time.

That's peculiar! But some of these new characters/toys seem to speak to us as a whole. Sometimes the toy just WORKS for a character. It's good to see in a franchise with so many established characters.

~ Grim

That's just it though. She's not a new character. She's from an episode of Robots in Disguise 2015 that nobody really cared about. Yet, here she is getting the premium toy treatment from a Hasbro team who wasn't in charge back when she first debuted and disappeared never to be seen or heard from again until now.

And I truly hope more RiD2015 cons finally get that love!

william-james88 wrote:

D-Maximal_Primal wrote:

Sabrblade wrote:

Big Grim wrote:

william-james88 wrote:

Big Grim wrote:

william-james88 wrote:Stuff and things.

I have zero attachment to this character but she looks like a really FUN figure!

~ Grim

That's what's so interesting here, absolutely no one has any attachment to the character. She was a one off villain, who was simpler in ambition than most, who we barely saw in robot mode (and never saw from the front), and yet Hasbro goes all out on the toy. We are all basically appreciating her for the first time.

That's peculiar! But some of these new characters/toys seem to speak to us as a whole. Sometimes the toy just WORKS for a character. It's good to see in a franchise with so many established characters.

~ Grim

That's just it though. She's not a new character. She's from an episode of Robots in Disguise 2015 that nobody really cared about. Yet, here she is getting the premium toy treatment from a Hasbro team who wasn't in charge back when she first debuted and disappeared never to be seen or heard from again until now.

And I truly hope more RiD2015 cons finally get that love!

Oh man, there were so many amazing designs we never got decent toys of. I personally really loved that Octopunch, Vertebrek and Kickback design.

Also, I'd like to point out that I find this Filch very different from the "Prime Universe" toys we got. The two headsculpts are not at all Gi-ified to fit within a more cohesive line. They feel proper to the actual cartoon (granted, the scale is way off).

I long for Chop Shop and a larger Clampdown

Sabrblade wrote:That's just it though. She's not a new character. She's from an episode of Robots in Disguise 2015 that nobody really cared about. Yet, here she is getting the premium toy treatment from a Hasbro team who wasn't in charge back when she first debuted and disappeared never to be seen or heard from again until now.

That's kinda what I mean by "new". She's a one and done (though I forget that show was so long ago, relatively speaking.), she's not a Prime, a Wheeljack or a Starscream. Hell, she's not even a Xaaron (he was in the comics a LOT in the UK before Furman brought him Stateside.), and we're getting him too! This line has been a joy.

~ Grim

Opened up deluxe Hot Shot this weekend and what a disappointment. It just feels like a devolved, budget version of the original with a couple floppy ankle tilts added to satisfy the sweaty masses.

I feel like an ungrateful, petulant child for saying this, but I want them to stop re-visiting Unicron Trilogy characters. Outside of Cybertron Starscream (edit: and Armada Hot Shot), not one of these feels like a big enough improvement to justify the work required to make a new toy.

If they want to put out re-dos of stuff like Armada Scavenger or Sideswipe that were full-blown gimmick toys, ok, I get that. Do it. Re-doing a legit highlight of the Cybertron line like Hot Shot and not materially improving it almost 20 years later is embarrassing.

Anyway I don't have the energy to keep being negative, so here's an unexpected positive - that Kingdom Cyclonus alt mode looks really nice in Ferak colors now that I have it in hand. Good stuff.

Rtron wrote:
While I'd add Armada Prime to you list, I share this sentiment. Doing redos of Unicron Trilogy toys was always going to be a mixed bag, because so much of the identity of those toys is tied to the gimmicks that it's difficult to make a gimmick-less version without diminishing the toy's fun. This is particularly notorious with Cybertron toys, because they're not as badly articulated as Armada and Energon, so it doesn't even feel like a trade off of dropping features to get articulation. I mean, it's the line right before Classics, and I can think of only two Classics toys you could "re do" nowadays and make it feel like an upgrade and not a downgrade.

This is why I'm of the opinion that they shouldn't re do ALL the Transmetals, for example. There's no way they'll do Optimus, Megatron or Cheetor better than the originals in any meaningful way. The only two real candidates there would be MAYBE Rampage and Depth Charge. Perhaps Tarantulas and Rattrap, but there'd be a big chance of them not being able to deliver with those two also.

Fair point on Prime. It was a wash for me - super mode articulation offset by a mailed-in base mode and no Mini-Con - but yeah, it wasn't bad at all. Tidal Wave is fine and does something new by being huge but I have a list of other issues with it.

I think we all (generally/collectively, not literally) remember the intrusive gimmicks of that era too often while not appreciating how well integrated they were in most cases. For every oddly proportioned Energon Combat or Mega Class like Prowl or Jetfire there's a real standout like Rodimus or Beachcomber.

I say all that and Hot Shot had a totally different problem of just feeling cheap. Dunno if that's from budget concerns or the designers not having passion for UT or some mix of those, but it's just off regardless. A lack of attention to detail is evident just by looking at the wing spoiler piece things being the wrong color. There's cartoon accuracy, toy accuracy, and then what Hot Shot does with "Legends Class toy only" accuracy. Especially weird is them being correct on some of the design material Mark showed off for it. Ah well, it still wouldn't fix the always shrugged shoulders, ankle tilt done by making a block cutout or his dopey, hollow gun.

Some of these characters are probably better served by "Missing Link" style engineering, those BW Transmetals included. Take the original, add some movement here and there, call it a day. Heck, Rampage might not even need that much. A reissue without flaking chrome carapace would be very satisfying, even if I personally need that for Shockaract more than Rampage