Hasbro needs to do new versions of G1 characters

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JediTricks
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Hasbro needs to do new versions of G1 characters

Post by JediTricks »

This is sure to piss off BWprowl, but we need some new versions of these guys stat.

Rodimus, holy shit does this figure not hold up. It's not terrible or anything, but the articulation is very dated and clunky, the size is small, and the detail isn't crisp.

Ratchet and Ironhide need new figures, based on the same mold or not, as their previous versions are pretty dated and wildly flawed. Ratchet's look should really be taken from MTMTE, which is fairly different from other Ratchet layouts.

Hound, the existing figure is cute but simplistic and awkward. I know the character is somewhat checked out of the library in terms of his role in the comics, but he's still got cred.

Prowl, armored or not, shouldn't be that last figure, that mold isn't Prowl-enough.

Sunstreaker and Sideswipe being based on a plump Gallardo is no good, let's get a newer car and a better transformation.

Brawn, and I'm not sorry the GDO never made it out.

Ok, who else?
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Re: Hasbro needs to do new versions of G1 characters

Post by Dominic »

We need better toys over-all.


Rodimus:
I could get behind a modern, IDW, style Rodimus. I would not mind, but would also not expect, a non-Masterpiece of Rodimus Prime. ("ReGeneration One" made me want a good toys of Rodimus Prime.)


Ratchet and Ironhide:
"Combiner Wars" will have a new Ironhide. See what I mean about "we need good figures"?


Hound:
The old figure is good enough. It is not brilliant. But, it never was. Unless Hound suddenly becomes more relevant in the comics, there are plenty of other characters that should be moved up the line. (Maybe a new Perceptor? Kup? A good Blaster?)

Prowl:
"Combiner Wars" strikes again. And, the comic will probably have a reason to make Prowl look like the new toy.

Sunstreaker and Sideswipe:
Nah. Unless there is a burning need to make new figures of them ("Combiner Wars" in Sunstreaker's case), the '08 figures are still good enough. They show their age more than I would have expected. But, considering that they are over 5 years old, they still look amazing. There is also the 2012 Sideswipe figure.

Brawn:
Not sure Brawn warrants a new toy. Granted, the '09 figure was hard to find. But, Brawn has not done much on page in a few years.


Figures I want:

-Thunderclash
-Alpha Trion
-Sky Lynx
-Shockwave
-Dirge (current form)
-Swindle
-Blurr
-Riptide
-Kickback (to compliment Bombshell and Shrapnel)
-Reflector (based on the old toy or cartoon)
-Wheeljack (has never had a proper IDW based figure)
-most of the Wreckers (aside from Roadbuster and Whirl) still lack proper toys.
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Re: Hasbro needs to do new versions of G1 characters

Post by BWprowl »

JediTricks wrote:This is sure to piss off BWprowl, but we need some new versions of these guys stat.
And if we do get them, you can start bitching that we need new versions AGAIN just a couple years later! Why even get cool new interesting toys and characters when we can just keep buying the same dozen dudes in marginally incremental improvements? Seriously, why don't you just become a GI Joe fan? That toyline does exactly what you want and OH LOOK how it turned out?
Rodimus, holy shit does this figure not hold up. It's not terrible or anything, but the articulation is very dated and clunky, the size is small, and the detail isn't crisp.
The Masterpiece exists, go for it.

We're also getting the new Legends version, and the Cloud version actually works WAY better than you think it would.
Ratchet and Ironhide need new figures, based on the same mold or not, as their previous versions are pretty dated and wildly flawed. Ratchet's look should really be taken from MTMTE, which is fairly different from other Ratchet layouts.
These are about the only ones I'd agree with you on. The original version was an interesting experiment, and at least they TRIED something, but a pass at more 'stock' versions of the characters wouldn't be bad. We're at least getting an Ironhide version of the Offroad mold (I think?) so that may work out okay.
Hound, the existing figure is cute but simplistic and awkward. I know the character is somewhat checked out of the library in terms of his role in the comics, but he's still got cred.

Prowl, armored or not, shouldn't be that last figure, that mold isn't Prowl-enough.

Sunstreaker and Sideswipe being based on a plump Gallardo is no good, let's get a newer car and a better transformation.
These ones are all crazy, those toys are all pretty much perfect. Hound is amazing, love his seats, love his big ankle rockers, love his cute headsculpt, love his not-Warthog vehicle mode.

I'll bet Dom would have words with you on the validity of the SideStreaker mold. I know I own it four times over (made Tiger-Track and Spinout).
Brawn, and I'm not sorry the GDO never made it out.
I'll never fully understand people who actually like and care about the Mini-Bots.
Ok, who else?
Oh, there's a lot of deeply flawed G1 remakes out there:

Springer - The Generations version is not made of solid gold. Hasbro needs to correct that.

Warpath - No wrist joints. Round up all versions of the old version and destroy them, then make a brand-new one.

Masterpiece Optimus Prime - Why stop at two? We should get a new, slightly different sized MP OP every six months!

Waspinator - The last version doesn't have enough fake kibble.

Megatron - I just received a notice from myself three years in the future saying we will find out that the new Leader Megatron is, in fact, an actual piece of shit in an extremely convincing Megatron costume, but we won't be able to figure that out until our SUPER-EVOLVED action figure tastes a few years from now are able to inform that.

Hubcap - I had him as a kid and therefore he's the best Transformers character ever! Why has Hasbro not yet made a new one? Do they just HATE me and therefore HATE all fans?! Why Hasbro, why?!
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Re: Hasbro needs to do new versions of G1 characters

Post by Dominic »

I'll bet Dom would have words with you on the validity of the SideStreaker mold. I know I own it four times over (made Tiger-Track and Spinout).
Slow down there big man. Wow, a head-swap. If you are not careful you will end up with Deep-Cover, Clamp-down, or police Sunstreaker. You might even spend your time crawling the web looking for more excuses to buy and customize more of that mould. (Still need another Sunstreaker to make "Deadend ala Alternators"....)


I'll never fully understand people who actually like and care about the Mini-Bots.
Because the characters were in the cartoons and comics and did stuff?

The Masterpiece exists, go for it.
The Masterpiece is expensive and would not display well with most other figures. (And, Masterpiece Rodimus Prime is just insultingly bad. It would be bad for a regular figure. But, it is laughable as a Masterpiece figure.)


Hubcap - I had him as a kid and therefore he's the best Transformers character ever! Why has Hasbro not yet made a new one? Do they just HATE me and therefore HATE all fans?! Why Hasbro, why?!
Hey, Hasbro can only make one over-hyped G1 guy at a time. And, Windcharger has that spot....as he damned well should. (If a cipher is going to get a toy, it should be Windcharger now, and for all time.) Kiss Windcharger. Kiss him!
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Re: Hasbro needs to do new versions of G1 characters

Post by JediTricks »

Dominic wrote:We need better toys over-all.
Agreed, but this was predicated on what I consider "main line" characters that are treated as "current".
Rodimus:
I could get behind a modern, IDW, style Rodimus. I would not mind, but would also not expect, a non-Masterpiece of Rodimus Prime. ("ReGeneration One" made me want a good toys of Rodimus Prime.)
I almost didn't include Rodimus because of the MP, but then I realized how oversized that figure would be with non-MPs (or MPs, really) and how little I crossover my MPs with my non-MPs - Grimlock is the only one.
Ratchet and Ironhide:
"Combiner Wars" will have a new Ironhide. See what I mean about "we need good figures"?
That's only a rumor/line art at this point, but yeah, that Offroad mold isn't terribly appropriate for Ironhide, and even less so for Ratchet. Ironhide probably needs a new-mold Voyager body, while Ratchet can get by on a new-mold Deluxe body IMO.
Prowl:
"Combiner Wars" strikes again. And, the comic will probably have a reason to make Prowl look like the new toy.
Again, isn't this a rumor at this point?
Sunstreaker and Sideswipe:
Nah. Unless there is a burning need to make new figures of them ("Combiner Wars" in Sunstreaker's case), the '08 figures are still good enough. They show their age more than I would have expected. But, considering that they are over 5 years old, they still look amazing. There is also the 2012 Sideswipe figure.
I know you have a big boner for that mold, but I think it's a not-entirely-satisfying experience and objectively they don't look amazing. The 2012 Sideswipe is from FOC and not even part of the same continuity, but I own it, it's not really that good a representation of the character.
Brawn:
Not sure Brawn warrants a new toy. Granted, the '09 figure was hard to find. But, Brawn has not done much on page in a few years.
"Hard to find" is an understatement, but also Legends figures of that design philosophy are arguably unsatisfying and don't look good with larger figures.
-Wheeljack (has never had a proper IDW based figure)
What's wrong with the Generations figure for that?

BWprowl wrote:
JediTricks wrote:This is sure to piss off BWprowl, but we need some new versions of these guys stat.
And if we do get them, you can start bitching that we need new versions AGAIN just a couple years later! Why even get cool new interesting toys and characters when we can just keep buying the same dozen dudes in marginally incremental improvements? Seriously, why don't you just become a GI Joe fan? That toyline does exactly what you want and OH LOOK how it turned out?
"Pzzsssssssssshhhhzzzztttt" That's all I hear when you say this stuff, it's just static because your argument doesn't evolve or take into account anyone else's tastes.
Ratchet and Ironhide need new figures, based on the same mold or not, as their previous versions are pretty dated and wildly flawed. Ratchet's look should really be taken from MTMTE, which is fairly different from other Ratchet layouts.
These are about the only ones I'd agree with you on. The original version was an interesting experiment, and at least they TRIED something, but a pass at more 'stock' versions of the characters wouldn't be bad. We're at least getting an Ironhide version of the Offroad mold (I think?) so that may work out okay.
Uh huh, so it's not that you have an unwavering philosophy in this department, it's that you simply don't agree with specific choices and decide it's ok to beat everybody over the head with your personal opinions as if they're anything higher than "nah, I don't want to buy that". Here's the reality, this is all a sliding scale of personal opinions and objectivity, douchey zealotry is not necessary. (Note, I added "douchey" there because of the very last part of your post, but only because an enema isn't a very poetic turn of phrase.)
I'll never fully understand people who actually like and care about the Mini-Bots.
The cartoon made Brawn, Huffer, Bumblebee, Powerglide, Warpath, Cosmos, and Seaspray into real characters worth caring about, and their alt modes made them even more unique. Note that Gears, Windcharger, Cliffjumper, and Beachcomber don't get that same credibility for various reasons.
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Re: Hasbro needs to do new versions of G1 characters

Post by Dominic »

I would disagree about Beachcomber and Cliffjumper. Cliffjumper is an intentional mediocrity. And, Beachcomber did get screen time.

My comment about Brawn is also about relevance. When is the last time he showed up and did anything?
What's wrong with the Generations figure for that?
"Generations" Wheeljack is a good generalized Wheeljack. But, it does not look enough like the comics to represent the character as seen in the comics.
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Re: Hasbro needs to do new versions of G1 characters

Post by BWprowl »

JediTricks wrote:
And if we do get them, you can start bitching that we need new versions AGAIN just a couple years later! Why even get cool new interesting toys and characters when we can just keep buying the same dozen dudes in marginally incremental improvements? Seriously, why don't you just become a GI Joe fan? That toyline does exactly what you want and OH LOOK how it turned out?
"Pzzsssssssssshhhhzzzztttt" That's all I hear when you say this stuff, it's just static because your argument doesn't evolve or take into account anyone else's tastes.
How should it evolve? By arbitrarily deciding a toy that I liked before sucks now just because it crossed some predestined expiration date of coolness? You know the Star Wars movies are over thirty years old at this point, right? They're really starting to show their age!

Cool toys is cool toys, and if I objectively liked it five, ten, or twenty years ago, why the hell would I not like it now?

I understand that other people have different tastes. Your tastes seem to indicate that you'd prefer to just see the same few characters re-hashed over and over until we get some theoretical 'perfect' version of them monumentalized in plastic, in which case, yeah, GI Joe would probably be more to your habits. Or just stick purely to MP TFs.
These are about the only ones I'd agree with you on. The original version was an interesting experiment, and at least they TRIED something, but a pass at more 'stock' versions of the characters wouldn't be bad. We're at least getting an Ironhide version of the Offroad mold (I think?) so that may work out okay.
Uh huh, so it's not that you have an unwavering philosophy in this department, it's that you simply don't agree with specific choices and decide it's ok to beat everybody over the head with your personal opinions as if they're anything higher than "nah, I don't want to buy that". Here's the reality, this is all a sliding scale of personal opinions and objectivity, douchey zealotry is not necessary. (Note, I added "douchey" there because of the very last part of your post, but only because an enema isn't a very poetic turn of phrase.)
How is my douchey zealotry over not wanting to see things I liked shit all over by the company that has the license to any different from your douchey zealotry over wanting to be the first to proclaim how much everything everyone else like sucks and how they're 'objectively' wrong because they're tastes aren't exactly the same as yours? Yeah, I ended my post with mean-spirited jab at the concept of remaking figures who are WAY too recent to even consider, but you opened the whole TOPIC with a pointed remark that you just couldn't WAIT to piss off me, specifically.

We're both assholes arguing about kids' action figures on the internet in increasingly loud ways, we're probably both way past the need for therapy.
The cartoon made Brawn, Huffer, Bumblebee, Powerglide, Warpath, Cosmos, and Seaspray into real characters worth caring about, and their alt modes made them even more unique. Note that Gears, Windcharger, Cliffjumper, and Beachcomber don't get that same credibility for various reasons.
I dunno, I watched the cartoon (just the first season, admittedly) and I still don't get it. Of course, I don't 'get' Wheeljack either (flat-out don't understand why he's so popular) so maybe G1 as medium just straight-up isn't my thing.
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Re: Hasbro needs to do new versions of G1 characters

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New kremzeek when?
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Re: Hasbro needs to do new versions of G1 characters

Post by 138 Scourge »

I would love a Brawn in the same scale as like Swerve and Tailgate. If he could look as good as thosee two that'd be pretty keen. I think he wss rumored to be a thing, but canceled. :(

As for some of your other picks:

Rodimus, I l. ike the Classics toy still for what it is, but if they wanted to have a go at a Roddy Prime and give him an actual cool trailer base, I'd be okay with that. Or I'd be happy if they just did a US release for Cloud Rodimus.

Ratchet and Ironhide yes please. I tried to like their Universe toys but yeesh those things are rough.

I'm pretty happy with Hound, I thought they pulled him off pretty well. I cant really see what they'd do differently on a new one.

Prowl. I don't know, I really thought the last toy was flawed but it certainly looked like Prowl. But if they wanted to do a Voyager of the police SUV body he's got in the comics that could turn out looking cool.

Sunstreaker and Sideswipe are...well, we'll see how the CW version of Streaker turns out.

Who the fuck else?

More old Mini-bots in that Legends scale, ideally with a targetmaster feature of some sort. Brawn, Seaspray, Pipes, Hubcap, those dudes would be great in that size. Maybe a new Backstop while we're at it? And more Decepticons in that size please thanks.

More cool-ass Voyagers because I was really enjoying that size class for awhile there. Overlord! Scorponok! Maybe some Dinobots that aren't Grimlock?

And hell I don't know. Dudes like Metalhawk, Snare, Topspin and Twin Twist, those could all be pretty keen.
Dominic wrote: too many people likely would have enjoyed it as....well a house-elf gang-bang.
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Re: Hasbro needs to do new versions of G1 characters

Post by Onslaught Six »

Dom wrote:Maybe a new Perceptor? Kup?
What's wrong with the existing ones? I have a real problem seeing a better Kup being made. (Disclaimer: Get that third party head. The only problem is now fixed.)

Is Brawn not getting a new Legends toy? He should. Even if it's a repaint.
Figures I want:

-Thunderclash
-Shockwave
-Kickback (to compliment Bombshell and Shrapnel)
-Reflector (based on the old toy or cartoon)
-most of the Wreckers (aside from Roadbuster and Whirl) still lack proper toys.
These I agree with. Kickback is actually all but announced; Hasbro said they were definitely doing him when Bombshell was announced. Not sure who exactly you mean as part of the Wreckers, though, since the lineup is ever-fluctuating (as it should be), but I assume the mainstay guys like the Jumpstarters and Impactor are who you're talking about. Shockwave needs at least a Voyager to be great; I wouldn't actually mind a Leader class toy of him, but his repaint/remould potential is pretty limited, so a Voyager is more realistic. Reflector is tough; I think the best thing they'd have to do is make just one robot that turns into a camera, and anyone who wants multiples will have to buy three.
-Alpha Trion
-Sky Lynx
-Dirge (current form)
-Swindle
-Blurr
-Riptide
-Wheeljack (has never had a proper IDW based figure)
These, you're crazy on. Swindle is gonna get a new figure in Combiner Wars. (The Combaticons are all but confirmed at this point. Just look at Hot Spot and tell me he isn't made to be remoulded into Onslaught, and looking at the Protectobots, at least one of them is bound to get remoulded into a Combaticon.)

Alpha Trion is a character very few people are actually interested in. Whenever he turns up, nobody is ever excited or glad to see him. It's usually either "Really? Why him?" or, at worst, "Not Alpha Trion again." No one is an Alpha Trion fan. Anyone who says they are is lying.

Sky Lynx was never going to happen as long as Archer was in charge (reportedly, he used to keep one on his desk as a reminder of "what not to do.") and it's probably even less likely now that he's gone. Sky Lynx is a toy you cannot make in the modern era. Why? He doesn't turn into a robot. And if you change him to make him turn into a robot, then he isn't Sky Lynx anymore. The best chance you have of getting a new Sky Lynx is in some off-the-wall kid focused line where the toys don't usually transform traditionally in the first place. You could probably get away with it in, say, the RID15 one step toylines.

Not sure what Dirge's "current form" is or why he specifically deserves a new toy over any of the other Coneheads. Blurr had a perfectly fine toy but some people aren't happy with that one for some reason. I don't know who Riptide is. Finally, what in the blue hell is wrong with Generations Wheeljack? There is nothing about the IDW Wheeljack that makes him any different from just regular-assed Wheeljack.
Prowl wrote:The Masterpiece [Rodimus] exists, go for it.
That toy is really specifically G1 Rodimus's cartoon model, lack of detail and all, which is a thing that I don't think a lot of people want. I know I fuckin' don't. You're absolutely right on Cloud Rodimus, although I think he would work better with a new head.
I'll never fully understand people who actually like and care about the Mini-Bots.
I think it's our generational gap. Seriously!

How many non-show BW (or BM) Basics are you, for no real reason, inexplicably attached to? I know you, you have at least one, if not a handful. I've got them too. I love Optimus Minor, and BM Scavenger, just for two. Why are these some of your favourite toys in the line? You had them as a child, and possibly were even able to buy them with "your own" money, because they were inexpensive and small, and because they were small, you had them everywhere.

The Minibots are the G1 equivalents. A lot of people may have got Brawn or Gears or Pipes or Beachcomber as their very first Transformer, ever. So they get attached to those characters, for the nostalgic reasons, or because they read the techspec bio 500 times over and know these characters inside and out. That's why. Just think of it like that.
JT wrote:Again, isn't [Autobot Combiner Wars repaints] a rumor at this point?
No, there are store listings, which are almost invariably correct.
Prowl again wrote:Cool toys is cool toys, and if I objectively liked it five, ten, or twenty years ago, why the hell would I not like it now?
And see, this is the huge hole in your argument. Nobody ever--not even Hasbro!--said "Hey, this is a REPLACEMENT toy, and the older one is now invalid." The old one is perfectly valid! But maybe some people didn't like it for x reason, like scale, or altmode, or colour scheme, or design or engineering choices. And that's perfectly fine. Let them buy the new one while you enjoy your old one!

I mean, shit, you said yourself that you aren't fond of Ironhide and Ratchet and wouldn't mind seeing more "stock" or traditional versions of them. What makes you the authority on that? Maybe I think those are perfectly appropriate toys!

Just because Hasbro released a cartoon-accurate Storm Shadow in Retaliation doesn't mean the long-sleeved (but very similar) Renegades SS was any less "valid." They weren't making the cartoon one for me, they were making it for people who bitched that there was one that had sleeves.
How is my douchey zealotry over not wanting to see things I liked shit all over by the company that has the license to
I just...I don't understand why redoing certain characters so primally offends you. Is it because you'd rather see those "slots" filled with other characters who haven't gotten new toys yet? Because most of that is happening already this year, to great effect.

You make the GI Joe argument, but if you really look at it, the makeup is different than you say it is. Yes, there might be an Optimus Prime here and a Bumblebee there, a Megatron here and a Starscream over there. But for every Optimus Prime they make, they also make a new Brainstorm, or a new Roadbuster, or a new Chop Shop, or Arcee, or an entirely new character like Windblade.

I agree with you on a lot of Dom's points though, there is absolutely zero need to do a new Wheeljack if the intent is to do it "better" than the Generations one. But if they announce later today that, hey, a new Wheeljack is coming, I'm not going to get all frustrated and bitch about how mine is apparently being shit on by the company??? I'll just go, oh, they're making a new one, cool, that's one less thing I have to buy.
Of course, I don't 'get' Wheeljack either (flat-out don't understand why he's so popular) so maybe G1 as medium just straight-up isn't my thing.
Wheeljack is the Doc Brown of the Autobots. That's all it is. He's a crazy-ass inventor guy.

A lot of people got endeared to the GI Joe characters that were in the cartoon. I got endeared to the characters that were in the Fenslerfilm PSA dubs. (The only reason I own Blowtorch is so that I can pretend he's yelling about porkchop sandwiches.)
Scourge wrote:More cool-ass Voyagers because I was really enjoying that size class for awhile there. Overlord! Scorponok!
I can't see either of these dudes working at Voyager scale, but that's because I like big-assed toys for big-assed leadery dudes. This is why the Ultra class needs to come back, it was the perfect middle ground between the often too-fucken-big Leaders and the too-small-for-some-dudes Voyagers. Because, to me, Voyagers are like...they're obvious mid-sized dudes. Like, a Deluxe Roadbuster or Whirl or Blaster or Inferno would be too small. (Thunderwing should have been a Voyager. I bet he would work great as a Brainstorm retool now. Hell, so would Metalhawk.) Overlord NEEDS to be at least Ultra-sized, but Leader would be best. (I could see a good remould of Megatron as Overlord.)
BWprowl wrote:The internet having this many different words to describe nerdy folks is akin to the whole eskimos/ice situation, I would presume.
People spend so much time worrying about whether a figure is "mint" or not that they never stop to consider other flavours.
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