Mecha Mad and Figure Fixation V 2.0

[Soundwave]

Had a rummage through a few sites anf consensus seems to be G2 Sides will get a sticker sheet. That might sway me if he can be had for as low a price as the Nissans were. He needs the green to distance him from G1 Sides. Astounds me the KO makers are so behind the curve on alt colours.

That will be pretty cool.

G2 SS is still ?80 at Kapow
I expect he'll remain around that price point.

http://www.kapowtoys.co.uk/mp12g-masterpiece-g2-sideswipe.html

Might be worth checking the Asian dealers.

Neil

[Neon Ignition]

Yeah, with him not out till next summer and given the asking price against the other versions going rates I reckon there's a fair chance of finding a lower priced listing.

I've sold all these and not collecting them anymore but pics of the new Tekken Bishoujo statue are up

[Soundwave]

Kapowtoys have dropped the price for G2 sideswipe

He's ?54.99 now

Reckon I'll be ordering him from there now

[Soundwave]

I just did a little sex wee



I am literally sooooo close to ordering another one each of these...they just look so freaking awesome

Neil

[Neon Ignition]

Well, the post man came today and it could only have been one thing. My assumed KO Tigertrack.

Concerns were immediately up at the small size of the parcel, I opened it to discover that he's unboxed which is fine considering the price and all accessories were there with good bubblewrapping.

I'll sort some pics but... I have my suspicions... he's not a KO. None of the documented tell tale KO red flag signs are visible so I think he may be a production line official version thats off the reject line. I can't spot any physical flaws but some of the paint apps are sloppy for this line like his brakes lights and a roof scratch so it could be one that didn't quite meet quality standards. More than good enough though, to glance you'd spot no difference. I was never impressed by the final pics at launch but in person the yellow shade they've used looks great.

[Neon Ignition]

And some higher res pics of Soundblaster and G2 Sideswipe are up. Gotta love Sideswipes new face:

[Neon Ignition]

Both are now up for ordering at etoysjapan and anime export. On AE Soundblaster is ?80 and G2 SS is ?30, caved on SS.

[Soundwave]

Both are now up for ordering at etoysjapan and anime export. On AE Soundblaster is ?80 and G2 SS is ?30, caved on SS.

Pre-ordered SS myself on Monday at AE
Decided I won't grab SB & I'll just wait to see if I can get a loose Ratbat at a later date

Neil

[Neon Ignition]

Putting Sunstreaker aside becuase of the changes required in the mould I'm going to hazard a guess that despite Takara stretching into more fringe versions of moulds like with Tigertrack and G2 SS there's still likely to be ommissions right?

I could maybe see them doing recolours for Breakdown and Clamp Down but surely Deep Cover will be out tue running now given G2 SS is almost identical even in colour?

They could be really good:







I'm right in thinking there's only the three Nissans too right?

[Neon Ignition]

Unmarked high res pics hit:

















Confirms SS's decals are all applied via sticker sheet. I reckon I'll put the G1 insignia, roof, side panel and spoiler ones on. Not covering the headlights though.

[Soundwave]

The more I see of G2 SS the more I love him.
That Snarl he has is awesome.

Not sure how I'll go with the decals I might just go for the Insignia & leave him with a clean look.

To be honest I'm not sure if we'll see ommisions on the Lambo's or not...the way they are pushing forward with the recolours means we could well see all of them...would make sense as the increased revenue will surely help pay for new molds of other characters.

With regards to the Nissans there were only 3 in the cartoon continuity however IDW were considering going with a Decepticon Nissan but it never saw the light of day...



So if Takara fancy going a little mad like they did with Tiger Tracks they could do a Decepticon version.

Neil

[Neon Ignition]

Gonna be interesting to see how far they go with them, given some of the other moulds are limited in how many they can do the lambo mould is like cash gold to them

Barricade could be good too, easy to imagine him looking good next to the others.

[Dogg Thang]

It's only cash gold if they're shifting the numbers. They still have to get them off the production line and distributed. I would question how many variants of the same Transformer they can sell in numbers that make it worthwhile. I know there are some like you guys who gotta collect 'em all and you're not alone but I'd also say there's a good chunk of people just buying their favourites and they would account for sales of Sideswipe, Optimus, Soundwave etc but not so much Tigertracks or Acid Storm.

Given the manufacturing costs and the cost to consumer, it would be hugely interesting to see some sales figures. Not that it ever happen!

Anyway, I guess the basic point is that I can only imagine Soundwave will shift more numbers than Soundblaster and so on.

[Neon Ignition]

It sounds like the recent ones like the Nissans have been shifting fast as preorders usually aren't up for long. They seem to only produce X amount as well which I'm guessing is why Tigertrack and G2 SS are possible as they're trading off peeps who want the model but missed the earlier official versions. It'll be i teresting to see how fast G2 SS sells out though as he breaks the G1 rule. Though going off where Takara are I do wonder how much longer they can get out the line. A new Megatron would see interest surge and so will the 4th film so next year is safe but I'd imagine by then the main characters will mostly be done so it could tail off by the year after.

[Soundwave]

It's only cash gold if they're shifting the numbers. They still have to get them off the production line and distributed. I would question how many variants of the same Transformer they can sell in numbers that make it worthwhile. I know there are some like you guys who gotta collect 'em all and you're not alone but I'd also say there's a good chunk of people just buying their favourites and they would account for sales of Sideswipe, Optimus, Soundwave etc but not so much Tigertracks or Acid Storm.

Given the manufacturing costs and the cost to consumer, it would be hugely interesting to see some sales figures. Not that it ever happen!

Anyway, I guess the basic point is that I can only imagine Soundwave will shift more numbers than Soundblaster and so on.

The thing is they do shift in huge numbers.
Sideswipe & Soundwave were sold out everywhere almost instantly but being major first tier characters it's to be expected.
Red Alert definitely hung around longer.

The Nissan's go up & out of pre-order so fast it's hard to keep up sides...I do think Smoekscreen will hang around a bit longer as he isn't as popular but Prowl & Bluestreak are the one's that people have the most affection for so will be hard to get.

Sideswipe had a ridiculously small run as well & was slated to only ever get one production run hence the ludicrous ebay prices for a while after he sold out.
Soundwave however did get another offifical run which should be shipping anytime now really...that's how popular I am he is.

I think you'll be surprised by SB.
He has a huge following in Japan thanks to the Headmasters series & there were G1 Soundblasters so it was always going to happen.

It sounds like the recent ones like the Nissans have been shifting fast as preorders usually aren't up for long. They seem to only produce X amount as well which I'm guessing is why Tigertrack and G2 SS are possible as they're trading off peeps who want the model but missed the earlier official versions. It'll be i teresting to see how fast G2 SS sells out though as he breaks the G1 rule. Though going off where Takara are I do wonder how much longer they can get out the line. A new Megatron would see interest surge and so will the 4th film so next year is safe but I'd imagine by then the main characters will mostly be done so it could tail off by the year after.

The Nissans actually encompass 2 of the best known G1 characters in Prowl & Bluestreak so they were always going to blitz pre-orders.
They can still be found on a couple of sites so there are still some to be got.

I've had the discussion with a couple of people lately about where the line goes...mostly for the Decepticons as there are still more than enough Autobots to do from series 1 & 2 but the 'Cons not so much.

You already have the Seekers, SW, Tapes
So in theory there are only really 2 major players left to cover...

Resized V2 Megatron
Shockwave

After that it's bit players for season 1 at least you have...

Reflector
Insecticons
Constructicons

Now I'd love to see the Insecticons they are some of my best Decepticons.
Reflector?? no thanks never really did anything for me
Constructicons I'd be more than happy to have but to fit in with the new Scale he would have to be monumentally huge & massively expensive.
I know They have done it in Herc & Giant but both were over ?400 to complete & aren't quite big enough to fit with the MP line

Realistically I think after Megs we might see them re-work the seekers to give us the Coneheads or skip them & go straight to '86 & start with Galvatron, then we might see Cyclonus & Scourge, but personally I think the line will eventually come down to Autobots mostly

Neil