Nigel
Fusilateral Quintro Combiner
Posts: 5,109
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Post by Nigel on Jul 23, 2012 16:05:38 GMT
Reading through recent comments in the new pictures thread and comments on the matter in general, I've had an epiphany. So, I'm declaring that all this moaning about the shrinking size of Transformers toys stops here and now! And yes, I freely admit that I've been guilty of it too. But take a step back a moment and look at the bigger picture. Transformers originally were small. Prowl's the height of a movie Scout. Some Mini-Cons are taller than some Mini Autobots. Think back and remember when Ultra Magnus and Metroplex were huge; now, they're average, even small by comparison to the larger toys of the last decade. We've become too used to Transformers toys getting bigger. Yes, the economics of the toy industry is currently causing them to get smaller and arguably lower value. But let's not get upset about it. Instead, let's take a more positive attitude and celebrate what we've had. Let's look at nearly fifteen years from Beast Wars onwards as glory days, a time that gave us incredible value, with large toys, advancing engineering, detailed sculpts, incredible articulation and everything else that's made the brand great in recent years! |
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Post by Bogatan on Jul 23, 2012 16:21:18 GMT
It's not so much the size, but the drop in complexity. If anything I'm in favour of reducing the size, Gen Jazz is one of my favourite Transformers but it's a little too big. But Hasbro are shrinking and simplifying.
It's G1 Jazz compared to Pretender Jazz being repeated with Generations Jazz compared to FOC Jazz.
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Jim
Thunderjet
Micromaster Backside Monitor
Now in glorious Ultra HD 4K
Posts: 4,932
Member is Online
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Post by Jim on Jul 23, 2012 16:35:53 GMT
The size thing only bothers me insofar as we haven't had Trailbreaker, Hoist and Skids yet and I'd like them to look in place next to the other Classics etc. figures.
What I want most is for them to be fun; one of my favourite recent figures is the Cyberverse Ironhide. He's brilliant for just fiddling with and has earned a place on my desk. Dreadwing is good too, and if anything looks better than the voyager.
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Post by The Doctor on Jul 23, 2012 17:08:23 GMT
I'm not too fussed with the size of a toy, more the value it offers compared to the price it's being sold at. TF toys being made smaller and doing less things coupled with high price hikes is one the of the reasons why I pretty much moved to LEGO for my main toy fix.
-Ralph
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Post by Bogatan on Jul 23, 2012 17:14:15 GMT
Rounding out the 84-86 Autobot cars would be good before the scale becomes unworkable. Having said that the new voyager sizes may work for Hoist and Trailbreaker maybe even Skids. After that if they move on to other sub groups the new size wouldnt matter.
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Post by Toph on Jul 23, 2012 18:14:22 GMT
Smaller TFs don't bother me. I've said a few times Hasbro lost it's opportunity to redesign the line around a smaller scale.
What bothers me is that they are shrinking down the size, lowering the complexity, and raising the prices considerably all at the same time.
I saw the FoC figures at TRU the other day and saw they were barily larger than a scout. In fact, not even sure they were larger than scouts. But what made them really stand out, is their $15 price tag.
They simply are not worth their price. Lower quality, less complexity, and nearly scout sized for a toy that now costs the same as a beast era mega.
That's where my problem comes in.
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Post by Shockprowl on Jul 23, 2012 18:26:06 GMT
The size thing only bothers me insofar as we haven't had Trailbreaker, Hoist and Skids yet and I'd like them to look in place next to the other Classics etc. figures. Yes this is me as well. No honestly! I'm only hung up on size in terms of character interaction. For example, Classics Bumblebee is too big for my liking, too bulky looking. Better example- MP Soundwave- same size as MP Strike Planes, ok, I'd prefer him a head or two taller, but I can live with it. But if they did a MP Shockwave the same size as the new MP Optimus, ie the same size more or less as MP Strike Planes, then that'd be a problem for my collection/display, 'cos in my mind Shockwave is as tall as Megatron and Optimus Prime (I may be saved if the speculation of a future new MP Megatron come to reality). Size is important to me, but only in terms of characters fitting into my own, warped as it maybe, idea of them interacting. But I have to say, Nigel, you make some very very good points! Well observed! Got me thinking that's for sure. |
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Post by Shockprowl on Jul 23, 2012 18:27:21 GMT
And as CJ says, prices sky-rocketing is annoying.
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Post by glaug on Jul 23, 2012 21:22:37 GMT
The size thing only bothers me insofar as we haven't had Trailbreaker, Hoist and Skids yet and I'd like them to look in place next to the other Classics etc. figures. What I want most is for them to be fun; one of my favourite recent figures is the Cyberverse Ironhide. He's brilliant for just fiddling with and has earned a place on my desk. Dreadwing is good too, and if anything looks better than the voyager. I basically agree with everything here. |
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The Huff
Thunderjet
Hufferlover
Posts: 4,247
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Post by The Huff on Jul 23, 2012 22:16:27 GMT
I've always preferred complexity and quality over size - look at Energon Ironhide - that would have made a better scout toy than a Mega.
Then again, FOC Shockwave is obviously going to look silly next to the other Classic/Universe/Generations toys so that is disappointing.
Yes, Autobot Cars (ie Prowl) are the same size as a scout but then they were the same price as a Scout back in the day - plus they had metal parts etc. I remember thinking that some of the later larger toys (like Chromedome & Hardhead) felt cheaper even though they were a lot bigger.
I still say that Cyberverse commanders are not worth the price they are. Though I'll admit the Prime ones don't look as cheap as the DOTM ones.
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