The first color photos of Studio Series 86 Thundercracker surfaced from Hasbro’s New York Comic Con booth setup, and the crew debates whether one more $43 seeker is worth it. HasLab Omega Prime replacement parts are arriving with no tooling changes, just some factory sanding, so Don is building a strategic Omega Prime reserve. Retro Collection Wheelie and Outback get a full look, and Takara Tomy’s Age of the Primes stock photos show off Quickstrike and Sureshot. In What We Got This Week, Chris finally assembles Studio Series Devastator, Diecast lands Masterpiece Rattrap and Brian scores his first Lucky Draw.
News
First Color Photos of Studio Series 86 Thundercracker Surface From NYCC Booth Setup
Thanks to Paladin, the crew got a look at the first color photos of Studio Series 86 Thundercracker from Hasbro’s New York Comic Con booth setup. Hasbro has promised one big unknown reveal at NYCC, but the crew isn’t expecting much else new. One host says it looks like the Thundercracker he always wanted, but the $43 price gives him pause. Diecast thinks the gray is off and dislikes the open space in the side where the arms tuck away. Another host points out that collecting the whole seeker set would run about $260. The figure does add a waist swivel over the Earthrise seekers. Its blue also leans more toward the dark toy than the lighter cartoon. One host hopes any future Sunstorm comes in proper creamsicle orange. For perspective, a $15 seeker in 1985 comes to about $45 in today’s dollars. [Source: Tformers]
HasLab Omega Prime Replacement Parts Arrive With No New Tooling
Hasbro is sending replacement parts for HasLab Omega Prime, but the tooling hasn’t changed. Instead, the parts come from a new run on the same molds, with someone at the factory sanding the edges by hand. Reports suggest the results are inconsistent between samples. Ben Yee was told to send in his whole Optimus Prime and so far has only received the core robot back. The earlier Ultra Magnus replacements did fix the yellowing problem, which came from a missing chemical additive. Don hasn’t been asked to return anything and is waiting on replacements for all three of his Optimus Primes. He wants extras as future-proofing, which the crew dubbed a strategic Omega Prime reserve. [Source: TFW2005]
Retro Collection Deluxe Wheelie and Outback Revealed
Images of the Retro Collection Deluxe Wheelie and Outback arrived just hours after the crew discussed Wheelie last week. One host loves Wheelie and likes the much-improved car nose, though he’d prefer animation colors. Another thinks the figure is too big for Wheelie. In one host’s headcanon it’s the Headmasters-era Wheelie, and the crew would welcome a Wild Boy of Quintessa redeco. Outback looks impressive on the Brawn mold, though his roof cannon shrinks to a small handgun. Per JT Prime, Wheelie should return in cartoon colors in Studio Series 86, but this is the only planned Outback. Manny Cara shared a release list placing Swerve in Age of the Primes wave 2. [Source: TFW2005]
Takara Tomy Age of the Primes Stock Photos Show Quickstrike and Sureshot
Takara Tomy posted stock photos for upcoming Age of the Primes figures. The crew is stunned at how good the updated Quickstrike looks and hopes it feels as good in hand. Windcharger splits the panel over his big wheels and his chest-mounted magnetic field. Blast Off’s giant Decepticon shield looks like a pop-off piece meant for Bruticus’s chest, a detail the Discord caught. Sureshot’s colors look perfect to the crew. Junkion colors are coming to the mold behind Axle Grease and Lockdown, and Quintesson Prime is growing on one host. One host notes the price has climbed from $25 to $28 and is glad he needs less than half of what was shown. [Source: TFW2005]
Brian’s New Studio
Brian recorded from his new 31-by-14-foot studio space, still filled with storage bins of boxed toys. He realized he may not have enough wall space for every boxed figure, so he’s considering library-style shelving down the middle of the room. Going through his collection has reminded him of toys he’d forgotten he owned, and he encourages everyone to dig into their own bins.
What We Got This Week
Chris
Touched patron Mike sent Chris a spare Blue Bolts from HasLab Omega Prime. Chris says it realizes the Weaponizer idea better than anything since Siege. Alpha Magnus from the Discord sent him the EarthSpark Deluxe Hashtag, a clear improvement over the Takara version. His Cronus Prime arrived, and Chris loves the ideas behind it, including a Micronus Prime Mini-Con that references Robots in Disguise 2015, Fall of Cybertron data discs and Armada. He thinks the execution only gets 60 or 70 percent of the way there. He also finished the Constructicons with Mixmaster and Scavenger, which he calls a square with a shovel. Assembled for the first time, Devastator is chunky, solid and poseable, though the shallow hand sockets barely hold the rifle. Don also helped him get the Target four-pack for about $73 shipped.
Don
Don’s Big Bad Toy Store order brought Skydive, completing his Superion. He found Cronus Prime at Walmart and Onyx Prime at Target. He also picked up the Masters of the Universe x Transformers Man-At-Arms and the Megatron Skeletor, plus a second Megatron Skeletor to open. His G2 Dinobots two-pack arrived too. During Target’s sale he grabbed Cyberworld Scorponok for about $30, along with Cyberworld Skybite, Megatron and Optimus Prime.
Rob
Rob had nothing in Transformers this week.
Matt
Matt had nothing in Transformers this week.
Diecast
Diecast received the animation-colored Missing Link Arcee from Amazon Japan with no duties charged. Masterpiece Rattrap came in the same box, leaving Rhinox as the only one he’s missing. He also got the Target four-pack and the Transformers: Devastation two-pack with the Seeker Jet and Ground Soldier from Hasbro Pulse. His Cronus Prime arrived too.
Brian
Brian found four sealed My Little Pony clips from the same 1985 St. Louis Happy Meal test market that offered Transformers, at $20 each. Blokees sent him the Devastator combination parts. His dealer friend sold him two G1 Topspins and a clean loose G1 Swoop for $45. He also built a boxed G1 Kup with a reproduction bubble, giving him boxed U.S., Takara and Targetmaster Kups. A G1 Ramjet still carries its $15 Kmart tag from 1985. Finally, he got his first-ever Lucky Draw: the Brave Maximus sword, for the Brave Maximus he got from Chris.