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Please don't encourage them. We'll end up with the higher price and little else.

I'd be laughing if this weren't so eerily true. Takara seems to be on "gold digger mode" these days. While MP-10 is a great fig, the price was undeniably overkill. And instead of giving us new molds, they're retooling the Seeker mold and hoping to squeeze more sales out of the mold with a Sunstorm repaint.

Edited by GU-11
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And instead of giving us new molds, they're retooling the Seeker mold and hoping to squeeze more sales out of the mold with a Sunstorm repaint.

Oh so like iGear right :3

http://xeltecon.deviantart.com/art/Optimus-Prime-MP-10-Repaint-Transform-and-286645605?q=gallery%3Axeltecon%20randomize%3A1&qo=0

Just knowing MP-10 looks so much better as a truck than MP-01 makes it worth it to me. MP-01 can't even outdo the original G1 toy in truck mode.

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Oh so like iGear right :3

http://xeltecon.devi...domize%3A1&qo=0

Just knowing MP-10 looks so much better as a truck than MP-01 makes it worth it to me. MP-01 can't even outdo the original G1 toy in truck mode.

I'm not much of a morning person [just woke up and feeling really drowsy], so I've got no idea what that comment about iGears means. :huh:

As for MP-10, I bought one despite the price because like you, I totally love how they managed to keep the proportions between alt and bot mode. That said, I still think it's rather expensive.

G1 is kind of an unfair comparison. Those toys were designed around very accurate vehicle modes and sacrificed much of the robot modes. MP-01 was the opposite.

Good point.

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I'm not much of a morning person [just woke up and feeling really drowsy], so I've got no idea what that comment about iGears means.

http://shop.igeartoys.com/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=114 like that dood

G1 is kind of an unfair comparison. Those toys were designed around very accurate vehicle modes and sacrificed much of the robot modes. MP-01 was the opposite.

I never found MP-01's robot mode to be particularly accurate. It was no Metal Force figure that's for sure. He's blocky and imposing but not nearly as "animated" in appearance.

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Oh. Pretty good for a KO. Wonder what that says about Takara when they have to follow the design tweaks of a third party company.

BTW, was it Kawamori who took over from an earlier designer prior to the hip kibble thing or was the Seeker mold his design from scratch?

Edited by GU-11
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Kawamori did redesign the figure from the initial prototype. I think his signature hip thingies were a good compromise for making them removable to achieve show accuracy.

post-1819-0-08414500-1330133324_thumb.jpg

Maybe someone should have just followed the old Diaclone back of the box art.

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Kawamori did redesign the figure from the initial prototype. I think his signature hip thingies were a good compromise for making them removable to achieve show accuracy.

post-1819-0-08414500-1330133324_thumb.jpg

Maybe someone should have just followed the old Diaclone back of the box art.

In the first place, maybe they should have included like plastic "side-skirtings" that fit into the ball-joints to replace the hip things with the original releases--the naked ball-joints look pretty bad. Then there wouldn't even be a need for a retool. Then again, I doubt they would have anticipated the disapproval of fans towards those hip kibble things.

That said, while I agree that the hip things are inaccurate to the Seekers' G1 designs, I don't really hate them. I mean, if you posed them at a 40 to 30 degree angle like sword scabbards, they actually look kind of cool.

BTW, that Diaclone illustration seriously reminds me of a Gundam fig, primarily the chest area.

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Went to the Target by my work that told me they weren't putting out or selling any TF Prime toys until today. They had more Deluxe Cliffjumpers, Bumblebees, and Wheeljacks than you could shake a stick at, and a pair of Voyager Primes, but nothing else. So I tried the other Target by my house. They didn't have a single TF Prime toy on the shelf, but I gave a girl their the number and the picture of Megatron from the "Also Available" section of Prime's box, and she managed to find one in the back for me.

Not sure how I feel about the Prime toys so far. Prime looks pretty good in bot mode, with a surprisingly small amount of kibble and no fake windshield, and he's solidly posable, but he's missing some paint on his chest, I don't care for the translucent blue (although it doesn't bother me as much as I thought it might), his mech-tech gun is really stupid, and he holds his sword instead of having it come off his wrist. Likewise, his truck mode doesn't look too bad from the front or sides, but from the back there's a gaping hole with some struts inside. And I can't escape the notion that the First Edition Voyager Prime, even if it was mostly a scaled-up version of the Deluxe from the First Edition Entertainment Pack (that I never found, BTW :angry: ), looks better from the photos I've seen.

Megatron also looks pretty good in bot mode. The translucent purple plastic actually helps bring out a little color on him. He's posable, and the kibble his back is very minimal. Unlike Prime, Megatron's fusion cannon is fine, and the mech-tech gimmick forms the blade he uses in the cartoon. But the color of his fusion cannon is awful. It's purple where it should be silver, and this goldish tan where it should be purple. His toes and hands are the same goldish tan. In the stock photos, you can tell it's different but it's much more noticable in person. And his jet mode isn't that great. He's thicker and not as long as the animated model, which makes him look a little stubby. And on the animation model, his fusion cannon looks to be a little higher and set so that most of it is hanging off the back. On the toy, it's perched high above the rest of the toy, and pegged so that it doesn't overhang the back at all. I'd say at least he doesn't have a previous, super-rare previous voyager mold to compare it to... but I do kind of wish I could have found that stupid Entertainment Pack.

On the whole, I guess I'd say the pros outweigh the cons... for the price. Target's been selling them for $19.99, which at least gets you good, posable bots bigger than your typical Deluxe. But I wouldn't pay the $24.99 that voyagers have been creeping up to, and definitely not the $26.99 TRU is asking.

Edited by mikeszekely
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I refuse to buy that god damn prime on the grounds that it is an aweful peice of crap that should never had been produced.

on the subject of the megatron, what is the textured grey plastic made of (i.e. the chest plate)? Is it are hard enough plastic to sand? When I get him I plan to take the thing apart and paint it, but every painted up megatron I see online looks like it was brush painted by a five year old because of that damn texture.

Of couse that all hinges on me ever finding one. TRU keeps putting new RID cases out but if your not there within about 15 minutes of them hitting the selves every Megatron and soundwave are gone. same deal with target, today was the first day they even had prime toys out and by 10:30 they where down to 1 cliffjumper and 2 bumblebee.

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I refuse to buy that god damn prime on the grounds that it is an aweful peice of crap that should never had been produced.

Please elaborate. Like I said, I think he has his flaws, and I suspect that the First Edition version might have been better, but I don't think he's bad. A few paint apps, and he should look pretty good fighting Megatron on my "Prime Vs. Megatron" shelf. So, aside from the fact that we're wondering why Hasbro felt the need to release a new Voyager Prime mold without actually selling the first one, why all the negativity?

on the subject of the megatron, what is the textured grey plastic made of (i.e. the chest plate)? Is it are hard enough plastic to sand? When I get him I plan to take the thing apart and paint it, but every painted up megatron I see online looks like it was brush painted by a five year old because of that damn texture.

I dunno... it's just plastic. I guess Hasbro picked it because it sort of simulates the almost brushed metal look Megatron has in the series. Thing is, even areas that should be smooth, like his shins, have a textured feel. I'm really not sure that sanding it would do any good. And almost the entire toy is made of that sort of plastic... every last gray bit, all the tan bits. Everything that's not translucent purple. I'm trying to think of a way to describe the plastic. It's really nothing like the plastic on any Transformer toy I can think of. The closest I can think of is that it feels rather like the keys on the Logitech keyboard I'm typing this on (the Wireless Solar Keyboard for Mac, although I imagine it's the same as the Windows version).

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Please elaborate. Like I said, I think he has his flaws, and I suspect that the First Edition version might have been better, but I don't think he's bad. A few paint apps, and he should look pretty good fighting Megatron on my "Prime Vs. Megatron" shelf. So, aside from the fact that we're wondering why Hasbro felt the need to release a new Voyager Prime mold without actually selling the first one, why all the negativity?

As a stand alone toy I dislike it because his chest is the wrong color and his arms are the wrong color and made of clear plastic which means it will probebly crumble in less than 5 years all for a gimmick that doesn't even work right and didn't even require it to be that color (seriously, his chest windows aren't even blue in the show anyways, why just mold the clear parts colorless and tint the arms red). He's also got completely hollow legs with no attempt to hide it and giant truck panels on his back like a god damn superman cape. Also, the fact that he uses his actual truck windows for his chest windows, which many people cite as a plus for the RID mold, completely spoils the look of both modes. The windows are too large in vehicle mode, lack the proper red trim and have a big hunk of silver kibble on either side, then end up too wide and the wrong shape in robot mode. And finally his weapons are an utter joke; they barely look like anything, have nothing to do with the character, and don't even manage to accomplish a single interesting or effective action feature despite all the compromises to the rest of the toy they cause in order to exist. I mean, I was into mechtech weapons, the DotM voyagers had some great ones; they all had two distinct modes that both worked as weapons and they could be locked into each mode for display. Powerizer primes weapon is just an unsightly hunk of grey and clear blue plastic that turns into a longer unsightly hunk of grey and clear blue plastic with an LED light on it, and a bendy grey sword that looks nothing like the weapon in the show.

Had this been the only representation of this character we've seen in toy form, it would still be a really mediocre toy with a lot of problems; but it's not. This is the third unique mold of this character that's hit retail, and it is by far the least interesting, least show accurate and poorest proportioned version of prime. And going by the pictures we've seen so far, the cyberverse and "weaponizer" versions of prime both pull off better renditions of the character than the RID voyager. There are representations of prime in every size class that do thing better or in more interesting ways, while the RID prime itself does nothing that makes it stand out. It literally has nothing to justify it's existence and yet it's the only version of prime you can actually find on US shelves right now.

Edited by anime52k8
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As a stand alone toy I dislike it because his chest is the wrong color and his arms are the wrong color and made of clear plastic which means it will probebly crumble in less than 5 years all for a gimmick that doesn't even work right and didn't even require it to be that color (seriously, his chest windows aren't even blue in the show anyways, why just mold the clear parts colorless and tint the arms red). He's also got completely hollow legs with no attempt to hide it and giant truck panels on his back like a god damn superman cape. Also, the fact that he uses his actual truck windows for his chest windows, which many people cite as a plus for the RID mold, completely spoils the look of both modes. The windows are too large in vehicle mode, lack the proper red trim and have a big hunk of silver kibble on either side, then end up too wide and the wrong shape in robot mode. And finally his weapons are an utter joke; they barely look like anything, have nothing to do with the character, and don't even manage to accomplish a single interesting or effective action feature despite all the compromises to the rest of the toy they cause in order to exist. I mean, I was into mechtech weapons, the DotM voyagers had some great ones; they all had two distinct modes that both worked as weapons and they could be locked into each mode for display. Powerizer primes weapon is just an unsightly hunk of grey and clear blue plastic that turns into a longer unsightly hunk of grey and clear blue plastic with an LED light on it, and a bendy grey sword that looks nothing like the weapon in the show.

Had this been the only representation of this character we've seen in toy form, it would still be a really mediocre toy with a lot of problems; but it's not. This is the third unique mold of this character that's hit retail, and it is by far the least interesting, least show accurate and poorest proportioned version of prime. And going by the pictures we've seen so far, the cyberverse and "weaponizer" versions of prime both pull off better renditions of the character than the RID voyager. There are representations of prime in every size class that do thing better or in more interesting ways, while the RID prime itself does nothing that makes it stand out. It literally has nothing to justify it's existence and yet it's the only version of prime you can actually find on US shelves right now.

Well, to each his own, I guess. I'm not even really disagreeing, per se. I don't think the truck panels on his back or that big a deal... it's a lot less mess than most of the Primes I have, including Classics, WFC Generations, first movie Voyager, and DotM deluxe. Even RotF Leader Prime, which is a pretty awesome toy, has a bit of junk on his back. I don't really mind his proportions, I can paint the missing red on his chest myself, and the transluscent blue doesn't bother me as much as I thought it would. I agree totally about his weapons (but the again, I've never cared for mech-tech). Do I wish I could have got my hands on a First Edition Prime? Sure. But I guess what I'm driving at is that he is the only readily available TF Prime Optimus Prime, and even with his flaws I'm happy with him for $20. More than that, maybe not.

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I'm also pretty pleased with the RID version of Prime even though I think the FE version looks better. The lack of a show accurate paint scheme is my only real problem with though I wish the chest piece would lock in better. I also opened Cliffjumper and actually like him a lot. I think it looks better than the FE version and poseability is pretty good. Haven't found anything else yet though after buying a set of Cyberverse Legions, I've found that I can't stop buying the Vehicon every time I see him.

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I've just resigned myself to paying stupid ebay prices for FE prime; now I'm just watching auctions, trying to catch one for under $60 shipped. I've already got starscream, can easily get arcee and bumblebee for a reasonable price; and I never had much interest in Bulkhead anyways. so all that leaves is cliffjumper and the Vehicon; and I think I'll be able to live with the RID vehicon if I can get multiples for cheap.

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I've got both FE and RiD voyager Primes, a well as the deluxe version. I tend to think the deluxe strikes the best balance between looks, articulation and transformation, even though the forearm/wrist area is longish and a bit strange looking (less so when in a dynamic pose). FE is clearly where most of the thought and love went toward and it just seems really stupid to me that Hasbro would waste the time, resources and money tooling and developing the RiD version when they could have just stuck with the FE version. They could have given him the same crappy mechtech weapon since they seem to think it's so important that this line has that gimmick. Just a shame.

As for my opinion of the RiD Prime, I don't mind messing around with it and it is fun to transform, but there really isn't anything special about it. It's just something that feels like it has no right to even exist, yet there it is.

I'm eager to find the Cyberverse Prime - so far the Cyberverse stuff has been excellent. Cliffjumper is easily the best Legions/Legends figure we've gotten in a long time - especially once you shave some plastic off his thighs so his hips can move.

Edited by eriku
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I have a hard time believing this is even possible, but the TakaraTomy versions of the prime RID figures will actually be WORSE than their North American counterparts. Apparently the Japanese releases will feature fewer paint apps (with most of them replaced by paper stickers) and obtrusive mechtech ports plastered all over the vehicle modes. That said, I've got Megatron and Skywarp preordered as they're both FE molds, skywarp's paint scheme looks amazing, and Megatron's Minicon is his fusion canon that turns into a shiny purple gorilla with animated Lugnut's face.

and while it's not enough to make me want to pay a premium for the takara versions (or any version in primes case) the minicons that Ratchet and Prime come with are pretty amazing, and I hope I can track them down individually.

http://www.tfw2005.com/transformers-news/japanese-transformers-40/takaratomy-website-update-transformers-prime-deluxe-and-ez-collection-174517/

And in other news, I found a voyager Megatron at TRU; and 5 minutes later I found one at Target for $7 cheaper. <_< so I ended up with 2 megatons. I also just spent $63 on a first edition Optimus Prime because I'm stupid. :wacko:

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I have a hard time believing this is even possible, but the TakaraTomy versions of the prime RID figures will actually be WORSE than their North American counterparts. Apparently the Japanese releases will feature fewer paint apps (with most of them replaced by paper stickers) and obtrusive mechtech ports plastered all over the vehicle modes. That said, I've got Megatron and Skywarp preordered as they're both FE molds, skywarp's paint scheme looks amazing, and Megatron's Minicon is his fusion canon that turns into a shiny purple gorilla with animated Lugnut's face.

and while it's not enough to make me want to pay a premium for the takara versions (or any version in primes case) the minicons that Ratchet and Prime come with are pretty amazing, and I hope I can track them down individually.

http://www.tfw2005.c...lection-174517/

And in other news, I found a voyager Megatron at TRU; and 5 minutes later I found one at Target for $7 cheaper. <_< so I ended up with 2 megatons. I also just spent $63 on a first edition Optimus Prime because I'm stupid. :wacko:

Well yeah, I've been saying that TRU is charging ridiculous prices for their TFs, but that the RID Voyagers were only $20 at Target.

The First Edition Optimus looks like a great toy... but I dunno about $63. Imperfect though he is, I'm happy with my $20 RID Prime.

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Wow, those Minicons really make these figures look good, especially the one for Megatron. I ran into the same situation as anime52k8, finding a Megatron at TRU and then a cheaper Megatron at Target. I'm planning to return the one I bought at TRU after I find another at Target or Walmart (which is also $20) but it's so hard to find at 1 per case that maybe I should keep it? Until yesterday, every store I went to that had Prime Voyagers had just a sea of Prime. Add that to the see of deluxe Bumblebees on the pegs and it's starting to get me worried. Hasbro and their case assortments could really kill the line before it takes off.

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Well yeah, I've been saying that TRU is charging ridiculous prices for their TFs, but that the RID Voyagers were only $20 at Target.

The First Edition Optimus looks like a great toy... but I dunno about $63. Imperfect though he is, I'm happy with my $20 RID Prime.

it's only certain things though. Deluxes are only a dollar more and cyberverse stuff is the same price, as are Human Aliance figures. Even DoTM Voyagers weren't even marked up that bad.

Wow, those Minicons really make these figures look good, especially the one for Megatron. I ran into the same situation as anime52k8, finding a Megatron at TRU and then a cheaper Megatron at Target. I'm planning to return the one I bought at TRU after I find another at Target or Walmart (which is also $20) but it's so hard to find at 1 per case that maybe I should keep it? Until yesterday, every store I went to that had Prime Voyagers had just a sea of Prime. Add that to the see of deluxe Bumblebees on the pegs and it's starting to get me worried. Hasbro and their case assortments could really kill the line before it takes off.

The wave 1 voyager case is 3 Primes and 1 Megatron, but the revision 2 case is 2 and 2. Oddly enough, the target had a single case (3 and 1) put out, but the TRU had 2 revision 2 cases out. It worked out good for me because I got to pick out the one with the cleanest paint apps and a perfect chest sigil at TRU, then brought in the not so good looking target one for a refund. ^_^

Now the Deluxe case assortments are all kinds of BS. Wave one was 2 Cliffjumpers, 2 Wheeljacks, 3 Bumblebees and 1 Soundwave, so guess what wave 2 is: 1 each of Cliffjumper, Wheeljack, Soundwave, Arcee and Ratchet but still 3 Bumblebees. motherf*ckers <_<

Why does Prime's gun turn into Shockwave?

I have no idea but it is AWESOME. I think I need to get that minicon somehow.

Edited by anime52k8
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I just heard a rumor that the next deluxe case will AGAIN have 3 Bumblebees in it. The guy that told me is also a Hasbro share holder and said retailers believe they need more Bumblebees on the shelf for brand recognition. Seriously? Guess they never walked past the Transformers section when DTOM was the primary line. Good news about the Voyager revision cases though.

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I just heard a rumor that the next deluxe case will AGAIN have 3 Bumblebees in it. The guy that told me is also a Hasbro share holder and said retailers believe they need more Bumblebees on the shelf for brand recognition. Seriously? Guess they never walked past the Transformers section when DTOM was the primary line. Good news about the Voyager revision cases though.

Next case as in the wave 2 case that adds ratchet and arcee or next case as in wave 3 which is supposed to have knockout, vehicon and hot shot? If they do a third case assortment with 3 bumblebees in it I swear to god I'm going to stab someone with a spork.

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Next case as in the wave 2 case that adds ratchet and arcee or next case as in wave 3 which is supposed to have knockout, vehicon and hot shot? If they do a third case assortment with 3 bumblebees in it I swear to god I'm going to stab someone with a spork.

Did someone say spork!?

spam.jpg

sporkbuster_im.jpg

I'll supply the sporks, BTW. I was NEVER a Bumblebee fan.

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I was thinking I might buy one of each of the main show characters, so I'm not really interested in Wheeljack or Cliffjumper. I might want Bumblebee... but I'm tempted to wait until he's on clearance at Target. It almost seems inevitable. It's a little early, I suppose, to call him a shelfwarmer, but it's pretty bad when I walk into Target and find four peghooks with four of five Bumblebees each, and no other Deluxes (they did have a handful of whatever they're calling Legends, three Voyager Primes, and a solitary Voyager Megatron).

Was at Walmart later. I'm not sure if they blew through their allotment, or if they just haven't got that much in yet. They had spaces for Voyagers, but none in stock. They had a few peg hooks for Deluxes, but they were all empty save one with a pair of, you guessed it, Bumblebees.

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