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Post by Toph on Feb 15, 2013 1:41:48 GMT
Stryka. Um. That is a little bit random. It feels rather like they have just dipped a hand into a bag of Transformer names and drawn one out. I like the Beast Machines character Stryka fine, but there is nothing there that makes me think it is a character that logically belongs in a Machine Wars themed set. It was a store exclusive (?) line at the same time as Beast Wars (hence Machine Wars) with vehicles, made up of unused G2 molds and Euro G1 molds (for example, a stripped down Thunderclash became Prime) Yep, Target Exclusive as I recall. Karl KB Exclusive. And Stryka being apart of Machine Wars makes more sense than you'd think. MW has absolutely zero fiction. One could assume that it's apart of Beast Wars, or apart of G1. (At the time there was no non-g1 continuity) And Stryka and Obsidian are legendary autobot heroes, but they're completely unknown to us before Beast Machines. Now, a perfectly logical placement for a Machine Wars story would be to bridge the gap between G1/G2 and Beast Wars. And where is a perfect place for two legendary generals that we never heard of by the end of G2, yet most maximals know? Somewhere in between. So, being apart of this set makes a lot of sense. And I'm expecting Obsidian to turn up somewhere. However, this is FP, and it's probably going to be some dumbass multidimensional story where they cross over from the transtechs and are shattered glass, or some complex stupidity. |
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Post by legios on Feb 15, 2013 6:45:32 GMT
Ah, KB Toys! Something in me wondered when I was typing it whether wasn't misremembering, Clearly I was. My brain is showing its mileage clearly...
Karl
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Post by Philip Ayres on Feb 20, 2013 11:01:40 GMT
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Post by Philip Ayres on Feb 21, 2013 18:42:34 GMT
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Post by Bogatan on Feb 21, 2013 18:52:06 GMT
Okay thats pretty cool.
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Post by Philip Ayres on Feb 21, 2013 19:00:12 GMT
Best colours on that robot mode yet
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Post by Toph on Feb 21, 2013 19:48:58 GMT
Honestly, that's the one that *doesn't* do it for me.
Okay, I know these are all minor nitpicks, given that the Obsidian and Strika we say in BM were NOT their original bodies, but just stock vehicons. Meaning they could have looked like anything at all before Megatron got them.
But still, I'd have rather seen Skyhammer used... and be more show accurate in color.
Another minor complaint... as much as I'm thrilled that Obsidian and Strika are included (As this makes complete sense to me), I kinda feel like FP dropped the ball by putting them in the box set. As Machine Wars themed, kinda wish the box set was just MW characters.
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Post by The Doctor on Feb 21, 2013 20:13:22 GMT
Mmmm. It is a Beast Machines set by stealth, isn't it?
-Ralph
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Post by Bogatan on Feb 21, 2013 20:17:53 GMT
I like green, I like green Transformers, there are not that many green Transformers. I'm happy when ever one comes out (that isnt another construction vehicle). The fact that better colours could have been used bothers me not.  Sounds like they wanted to go show colours but couldn't. From their own fictional universe the set makes sense, as does the title, but as a Machines Wars homage set I'm not at all convinced. |
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Post by Toph on Feb 21, 2013 20:22:26 GMT
I'm wondering what Prime is going to be.
There's not really a whole lot of molds that can be used to have anything remotely simular.
Coming to mind, all that's left is Cybertron Optimus, or the deluxe Superlink optimus mold.
But... using the superlink mold would be kinda poetic, since you could link him up to FP's Thunderclash. Timey-Wimey.
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Post by Bogatan on Feb 21, 2013 20:43:35 GMT
Pete has said no AEC moulds this year and probably not in the future. He said there are only a few left they would even consider using at this point. So if its Prime its going to be either WFC FOC or one of the Prime Prime moulds. Or something really left field.
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Post by Andy Turnbull on Feb 21, 2013 21:03:40 GMT
Nice. So far the two Beast Machines redecos are more to my tastes than the MW toys.
Andy
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Post by Toph on Feb 21, 2013 21:06:07 GMT
Well, the Prime (The mainline) and FoC molds are way too new. We'd have to wait until next year at the soonest to see them.
Not that I want to see either set used, ever, but it's gonna turn up sooner or later. While I don't like them, I don't mind the FE molds getting used, as they're compairable to normal TFs. But the "RiD" molds are not worth retail price, let alone the Botcon Premium. Too flimsy, too cheap, too small.
I dislike when they paint themselves into a corner like that. Plenty of characters can only be done with UT molds. Or at least a UT mold is still the best choice.
MW Soundwave could not be done justice without using CD Red Alert.
Just like this "No reuse" rule they have, where they use a mold once, and try never to use it again. So far, I think AMTC and G2 Dirge are the only ones to break this? Classics Mirage is the best choice for MW Mirage and Prowl, as well as plenty of TFs they may attempt.
But it's so hard to tell what Brian's idiotic rules are, from rules imposed on them from Hasbro, they lie so much.
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Post by Philip Ayres on Feb 28, 2013 21:49:01 GMT
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Post by blueshift on Feb 28, 2013 22:13:13 GMT
Oh. I was hoping something Megatronny. Given that he is Megatron's clone. Colour me a bit disappointed  |
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Post by Andy Turnbull on Feb 28, 2013 22:37:30 GMT
It's a bit meh.
Quite an underwhelming boxed set actually.
Andy
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Post by Bogatan on Feb 28, 2013 22:46:36 GMT
It's a terrible set, not as bad as 2009, because nothing in it is actually bad, but dull, dull, dull.
Megaplex is the dullest, a grey repaint is never on to a winner especially once you've seen the digibashes of it as Jhiaxus.
Stick an impactor head on Strika (which I will be doing once I get the Bruticus Impactor) and they would have been 40% to an epic comic characters set and the other three moulds probably could have been done as something interesting too.
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Post by Toph on Feb 28, 2013 23:01:54 GMT
The mold is a complete shock. I don't think we've ever had that fast a turn around from retail to botcon.
But rather disappointing as everyone said.
Jhiaxus or Depthcharge would have been far better uses of the mold.
(Actually, the mold they chose for Depthcharge is one of the more dissappointing choices. Gen Scourge would have hit the nail on the head, or better yet, wait until this mold came available)
I was almost fully expecting megaplex to be the troopbuilder for this year. Dude's already a copy, it made a lot of sense given FP's inability to kick the troopbuilder habit.
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Post by Philip Ayres on Feb 28, 2013 23:11:23 GMT
It's a terrible set, not as bad as 2009, because nothing in it is actually bad, but dull, dull, dull. Remind me what 2009 was... |
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Post by Philip Ayres on Feb 28, 2013 23:14:59 GMT
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Post by Philip Ayres on Feb 28, 2013 23:16:24 GMT
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Post by Bogatan on Feb 28, 2013 23:52:59 GMT
The add ons were excellent, well Leo, SQ and Banzaitron.
But Kup is one of the worst toys Ive ever owned, Scourge was already redundant (well nearly), Landshark was a crap new character that many Americans for some reason like and used the mould Thunder Clash should have used. Thunderclash got stuck with a poor mould and terrible colour choices. Flak was good, but not the most exciting toy.
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Post by Bogatan on Feb 28, 2013 23:55:47 GMT
Only thing worse than a slightly dull grey voyager would have been a troop builder set of dull grey deluxes, especially as there weren't any especially good moulds available aside from WFC Megs which is already maybe too close to the colours.
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kayevcee
Fusilateral Quintro Combiner
The Weather Wizard
Posts: 5,527
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Post by kayevcee on Mar 1, 2013 0:53:39 GMT
Yeah. Doesn't do much for me either. I'm mildly curious, but only because I don't own any version of that mould.
-Nick
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Post by Toph on Mar 1, 2013 1:11:38 GMT
Go ahead and get Dreadwing. Best deco. Can be repurposed into Depthcharge, on top of that.
As for Landshark, I've never met an american who likes him. I've never met anyone outside of myself who likes him (Aside from being an absolutely aweful and boring deco).
And I like him for the predominant reason that he's a new character, which is extremely rare... not only from Botcon, but in the whole franchise.
We've got Landshark, '05 Dirge, Buzzsaw, Ricochet, Beta Maxx, Astro-Hook, Astro-Line, Astro-Sinker, Starcatcher, and the combiner five... and I think those are the only original characters FP has given us.
Most are from 2005 and reuse old names, the combiner team was taken from them by Hasbro, and the rest are minicons. So that leaves Landshark as the only one between 2005 and now that wasn't taken from FP, or aren't unmemorable minicons.
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Post by Philip Ayres on Mar 1, 2013 17:37:03 GMT
Had we pointed out that the vehicle mode was up?
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Post by Bogatan on Mar 1, 2013 19:30:07 GMT
Probably not, plane not helicoptor mode. The one thing this set has going for it at the moment is that I do not have 3 of the 5 moulds. And for a change they are moulds I will probably like. |
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Post by blueshift on Mar 1, 2013 19:52:20 GMT
Probably not, plane not helicoptor mode. The one thing this set has going for it at the moment is that I do not have 3 of the 5 moulds. And for a change they are moulds I will probably like. I'd understand this more if the Beast Machines characters were one of the add-ons, but now 2/3rds of the boxset isn't to do with the theme! |
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Post by legios on Mar 1, 2013 21:43:55 GMT
It is odd that in a Machine Wars boxed set we have two Beast Machines characters. They do seem to be things that don't belong.
I am also somewhat underwhelmed by that Megaplex. It doesn't feel particularly like it is a clone of Megatron, and I don't think that odd green trim colour either does the mold much justice or really says "Megaplex" to me. Very underwhelmed by this set. The first one for a while I have really looked at and felt that there wasn't a single toy that looked tempting. Even the Stunticon Job set had one to that I quite liked the look of.
Karl
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Post by Toph on Mar 2, 2013 1:16:39 GMT
apparently they're making this more of their multi-reality bullpucky. Machine Wars only has 12 characters, and doesn't even *have* any fiction, and they still manage to fuck it up.
I think that is what I can't stand the most about FP's storytelling. This incesent need to link everything together, no matter how bad the concept is, or how much it doesn't work. And if something doesn't "serve a purpose anymore," ala classics, they destroy the reality... and if something doesn't fit into their current multiverse (2005 Decent into Evil) they "repurpose" the toys onto different characters and negate the original.
I'm sorry, but Botcon needs to have more stand alone stories, not less, and certainly not to devalidate the few that already exist. This is the exact reason why Wreckers and Universe were godaweful.
Now... they've even fucked up Depthcharge. All they needed to do was just a simple blerb about him hunting the Axalon to find Protoform X. Instead, they turned it into more of their transtech/multiversal lunacy.
This set would have worked so beautifully as it's own thing. A stand alone story that takes place just before the end of the Autobot and Decepticon regimes, and chronicals how Strika and Obsidian may have played a part to put an end to the hostilities.
Box set:
Optimus (Superlink deluxe optimus)
Megatron (Not sure, but not what they chose)
Hoist (Works well enough)
Starscream (Prime Dreadwing, no retooling required)
Prowl (Classics Mirage, no retooling needed)
Attendee gift:
Hubcap (Repaint of Hoist)
Souvenirs:
Strika/Megaplex (Strika works as is, Megaplex repaint of Megatron)
Obsidian/Skywarp (DotM Voyager chopper for obsidian, in show colors. Skywarp... I guess it works)
Mirage/Thundercracker (Classics Mirage, repaint of Skywarp)
The rest of the characters slip into the sub service over the next couple years (I think all that's left is Soundwave and Sandstorm?). This is really not as difficult as they make it out to be.
I think the only thing they've done in the last couple years that is truly clever, and truly surprising is Ultra Mammoth.
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