The Toyfair Blues

[RungLover69]

What toys / announcements were you hoping for that hasbro simply failed to deliver? Personally I'm very upset about the lack of a Rung from moonracer, as stupid as that may be.

[Lock Cade]

I was hoping for a Titan Class Scorponok, but we're getting Predaking instead it looks like. =/

[Kurona]

I'm... very lukewarm on it all.

We already knew we were getting Optimus Primal officially and had seen a lot about the figure already, so seeing it in colour is kind of cool but not quite as stunning as I think they'd have liked the reveal to be. I will say though that by trying to give Optimal Optimus a robot mode with better proportions than the original... the end result is that he's a guy with yaoi hands.
The Prime Masters... I mean, they look okay I guess, but the problem is that despite them not sharing the same mold they're all the exact same toy with the exact same function. You get a slightly different weapon but that's it; this is such a disappointing sequel to the Titan Master class. This isn't a criticism against the ones revealed in and of themselves - Octopunch doesn't look bad - but basically if you've got one you've got them all, so that makes any new ones meh at best. I've already planned to pick up Vector Prime due to nostalgia so any new reveal is whatever.
Firestar looks like a cooler use of the Moonracer mold and that's about it. Better colours, better headsculpt, not enough to make me buy her but she looks alright.
Predaking... is a whole heap of my own personal issues. I don't like that he's a Titan, I don't like how overly simplistic and blocky it all is, I don't like those proportions; and in general I don't like that I won't get to complete my quadruple of favourite Combiners (Victorion, Defensor, Bruticus, Predaking) with this. Just a huge letdown, I wish they'd have gone with a voyager and four deluxes and left the titan class to Scorponok or Omega Supreme.

And, uh, the movie studio stuff looks impressive on a technical level but it's movie stuff so meh.


NOW LET'S GIVE IT UP FOR THE WINNER OF TOY FAIR!!!!!!!!!!!!!



HOT SHOT RESCUE BOT!!!!!!!!!!!!

[dustbunny105]

Had my fingers crossed for Rung and more ladies. Le sigh...

Also, I know that we all knew Novastar was gonna be a Moonracer redeco/retool, but I was holding on to some hope that her alt would be a flatbed. I'm not as excited about her in general as I'd like to be. The robot mode looks fine, I think the new colors and head do a good job individualizing her from Moonracer, but the vehicle mode deco is ugh.

[Urluck]

For my personal collection, I want all the Primemasters, and that new Shockwave. Tiny Bludgeon is adorable. Everything else is a maybe.

I think we hit peak G1 on this, and been I've concerned about that for a while. Now the Pretenders are done, pretty much every memorable G1 concept has been modernised. And putting aside the Pretenders, what are getting in POTP is the bits that didn't fit in Combiner Wars. The "War for Cybertron" line, not to be confused for the game, better push in a new direction.

Mind you, I'd love to see a Flywheels/SkyTread, and maybe one of the new combiners? I dunno.

[Kurona]

There's certainly a few G1 characters I'd still like to see done or redone, but you're absolutely right and it's something I've been feeling for a while now -- the current collector's lines are so insanely G1-focused that it's a bit hard to comprehend. The only time we ever get stuff that's not G1 is if they feel they can get away with a repaint (hi TR Tidal Wave, you're awesome, but goddammit) or if the fans specifically said they wanted one on a fan poll. It's honestly incredible how much they seem to not want to capitalise on non-80s nostalgia; kids that grew up with Beast Wars are now in their mid to late 20s, are they not as marketable an audience? Because MP Primal and Cheetor seem to have done so well that Takara is comfortable making and selling MP Dinobot at as huge a price point as they are.

It just... mystifies me, honestly. It's so strange to me that they somehow feel there'd be more fans willing to buy Pretenders, Abominus and those-background-girls-that-appeared-in-like-two-G1-episodes than new versions of Blackarachnia, BW Megatron and Armada Hot Shot. And don't get me wrong -- I love Pretenders, Abominus and those-background-girls-that-appeared-in-like-two-G1-episodes! But it's starting to feel like the line is being made by people who aren't aware of a world beyond the 80s when they're reaching for stuff that obscure but barely even touching other series, y'know?

At the very least, I have hope for the line of next year which possibly starts this year. Next year is an anniversary for the franchise - its 35th, we are one really dedicated fanbase! - and going by the last two anniversaries, that's when collectors-orientated lines tend to switch gear from all-G1-all-the-time to a huge mix of things from across the franchise. Universe (2008) and Thrilling 30 both started at the tail end of the preceding Anniversary year, so I'm looking forward to the next Generations line having a mix of stuff even if Warden's team decides to go right back to selling us on the awesome characters of G1's Action Masters and Micromaster Combiners right after.

[Ezim]

This is going to sound weird but I'm surprised we saw nothing from the BB movie. I was hoping one of the deluxe in the studio series would have been the new Volkswagen mode or that there would have been a movie masterpiece of that. Maybe they will happen at some point though so who knows.

[Lock Cade]

Predaking... is a whole heap of my own personal issues. I don't like that he's a Titan, I don't like how overly simplistic and blocky it all is, I don't like those proportions; and in general I don't like that I won't get to complete my quadruple of favourite Combiners (Victorion, Defensor, Bruticus, Predaking) with this. Just a huge letdown, I wish they'd have gone with a voyager and four deluxes and left the titan class to Scorponok or Omega Supreme.

Agreed. Predaking looks too blocky, and they should have gone with a Voyager plus four Deluxes on him -- like they're doing with Abominus -- and give the Titan class to Scorponok. I really want to complete the Headmasters set with a Scorponok, but now it looks like my Decepticon Headmasters will be without their leader and Fortress Maximus without his rival. =(

[Urluck]

Um....

[Kurona]

New 2019 Generations Toyline details announced

"These will still be toys aimed at older kids and collectors and be centered around G1 characters."

"John Warden had also said that combiner and headmaster toy technology could resurface (as we saw with Power of the Primes) so any G1 character you did not get yet has a chance of coming, including combiners you did not get yet."

... I don't really have anything positive to say so, um, I'll just leave this here on its own.

[Urluck]

I'm trying not to get disappointed, but I think we can safely say Toy Fair was a bit of a bust.

[Brobe]

I get where a lot of you are coming from, but as someone whose collection has mostly been toy first and character second, I am totally pumped entirely due to Studio Series.

Even for something we knew was coming down to every toy, we didn't know it would be this good!

At the very least I'll probably end up with Starscream and the leaders. Now to fogure out what kind of shelf display I'll fit them into

[Brobe]

Also for the parts of me that are character focussed, the stars aligned in such a way that despite all odds, we have a fully articulated, leader class IDW accurate Optimus Prime on the way.

So actually, this is probably the most excited a toyfair has made me since... 2013? 14?

[Kurona]

we have a fully articulated, leader class IDW accurate Optimus Prime on the way.

Wait, what? We do?

[Brobe]

we have a fully articulated, leader class IDW accurate Optimus Prime on the way.

Wait, what? We do?

The Cyberverse Ultimate Optimus is the design that IDW has been using for over a year and somehow, I really don't know how, he's as articulate as your average POTP voyager.