Transformers: Energon & Beyond

[Tycho]

By the way, who are you to judge any other Transformers line, you snob? You don't own any of 'em, you haven't bought one single thing that we've heard about.

That's exactly my point

[Adam]

I weap for your soul. Go along and play with your Galactic Heroes figures.

[JediTricks]

You have no sense of human decency. You bring shame to our noble species. You monster!

Noble? HA! And don't blame me for Hardtop having a halfassed sculpt and abysmal coloring, I saw the prototype art, there was something better there and someone choked it till it turned mediocre.

That's exactly my point

That you're judging without real evidence? Not a point I'd be pleased with myself over if I were in your shoes.

[JediTricks]

Alt Mirage pics from Remy

http://tfkenkon.com/collection/act411/

Nice to see the front "trunk" does open, and unlike the hood it opens accurately. I'm a little concerned that the trunk isn't fully closed in any of the vehicle mode pictures, hopefully that's just something weird with Remy's though. I was all digging the vehicle mode undercarriage till I noticed the face, I hate road-gazers - why Hasbro, why??? The overall vehicle mode looks really slick, especially with doors open, I wish the Alternators line had covered more exciting cars like this in the first place.

Bot mode doesn't look as bad as some other early photos had suggested, but there's still a bit too much shell stuff, especially in the back. The white of the arms and guns is weirding me out, Hasbro has been using that awful stark white plastic too much lately and it still sucks here. The gun splitting into 2 different guns is cool. I'm tired of the high up knees-in-the-thighs. All in all, I think I'm gonna dig this one.

[Dominic Guglieme]

What's wrong with Hardtop's sculpt? The toy is more complex than many Voyager scale toys.

Oh, and DvD reports Wave 5 Minicons are coming.

[JediTricks]

Ben just put up a review of the new minicons, I think he got them in TRU, so they ARE out.


Hardtop's sculpt issues are heavily about the alt mode: it's overly blocky and narrow and plain where the art was fuller, more rounded and exciting; the rollbar design is oversized and too thick; the cockpit is cheap looking; there's no back end at all, just some legs up in the air and cheesy tabs hanging down with wheels on the outside; all this gives the feeling that the alt mode is just a generic brick that a robot transforms out of which they stuck car kibble onto.

The bot mode isn't free from issues either though, he suffers a lot of totally useless car kibble (which again plays into that "just a generic brick" argument); there's too many flat blank areas without sculpting, especially the chest which is transformed into this generic shape; and the deco sucks bad. And his key gimmick bites the big one. Part of what kills it for me is that they had some good ideas buried in there and just let them languish.

[Dominic Guglieme]

Yee may have gotten those from online dealers. Brick on mortar is likely a month or two a way.

But, yes, they can be purchased. (I want them now. )

[matthewilw]

I was lucky enough to find alternators Optimus Prime and Mirage at a local wal-mart last night. Despite my low expectations, optimus prime is still very disappointing. There's just too much empty space in both modes that makes him a very frail figure, and the plastic itself seems very weak.

Mirage, on the other hand, I can honestly say is my new favorite alternator. He is a very sturdy figure in both modes,has a decent transformation, and I never once felt like I was going to break something when first transforming him. The only thing I don't like about mirage is his weapons. I love the idea of dual guns, but the fact that they are different sizes really bothers me. I can't stand that they are different, especially when they could have easily been the same size/shape. I extremely glad I was able to get mirage so soon after his release, I was worried I would never find him. The only problem now is the lack of any good alternators to look forward to. Oh well, I'll just have to spend my time waiting on those new BSG titaniums!

[Tycho]

Wow! I'm going to have to go out hunting for Mirage now!

Great find! I definitely want that car.

The only problem now is the lack of any good alternators to look forward to.

Can you say "Rumble?"

I like two different guns myself. It means Hasbro wasn't cheap and reused the same part twice, but put in even that small amount of extra effort on Mirage. Hopefully, I'll find mine soon, too.

[Adam]

Here's a size comparison shot of Titanium WWI Prime for you JT.

http://www.tfans.com/talk/index.php?showtopic=49670