I agree with your first statements. Hasbro cannot be expected to shell out the materials and labor to produce figures at the level of those in the modding community.

 

However, I'd like to echo the sentiments of previous posts, in that there are some things that the spend the money on doing, and they just botch. Putting the spring in the opposite hand in Leader Megs, or the eyes being screwed up (paint, or plastic, take your pick) in Ironhide.

 

What's humorous to me, is that when they do go out of their way to add details in paint jobs (battle damage on MP-OP, carbon streaks on MP-SS), then collectors cry foul.

 

While it may not have been the decision I would have made to keep the battle damage on MP Prime and give him short stacks (... not to open an old can of worms), at least Hasbro was showing some sort of desire to give more to the customers... give the figure more detail... make him seem more tangible.

 

Most of the price of the TF figures comes from the sheer complexity and engineering that is put into them. Yes, some SW figs and Spawn figs may have more impressive paint apps, but they also don't transform.

 

My main hope in any TF figure is that the Alt mode and Robot mode are solid, and that they are at least reasonably poseable. And if they have a decent paint app, then I consider that icing on the cake.

 

It's just a funny thing about paint apps, is that (at least thats my guess would be) they are likely the cheapest part of the process to engineer and execute. The reason I say this is that Hasbro doesn't seem to bat an eye at the idea of repaints... multiple repaints, even.

 

What I am thankful for, as pertains to paint apps, is that each and every TF is NOT horrendously detailed, as the modded Megs that go on ebay for $hundreds. If they were, we'd be paying WAAAAY more for our figs, and it would just be even more markup in areas outside the US. As someone mentioned earlier, they already pay 80ish for Leader figs in the UK.

 

I dunno... ramble ramble ramble.

 

They're toys... and lately, they've been some pretty awesome toys.

I can agree with both points of view here, and I think there's also a third one. In some sense, Hasbro has catered to older collectors *too much* when it comes to the movie figures. This is the point of view of someone who has really only experienced G1 figures and the current movie line and none of the stuff that comes in between, but it seems to me that a lot of the movie figures (Deluxes, Voyagers, and particularly Leaders) are too complicated and too easy to break compared to the toys made 20 years ago. You can transform just about any G1 figure in under a minute, but just try that with any movie figure. (Yes, I know they have the fast action battlers and whatnot, but they're not the same.)

 

Sure, this isn't entirely due to the presence of older collectors. For example, the absence of die-cast has made the figures a little less sturdy, and modern manufacturing techniques make it possible to make the figures much more detailed and articulated, and they no doubt want to take advantage of that. But I can't help but think that something that takes 5 or more minutes to transform is more of a display piece than an actual toy.

That's the truth. When I saw the movie I kind of laughed by how long and dramatic Prime's transformation was. I pick up my Leader Prime and realize, "Jeez, they weren't kidding!"

I had imagination as a kid but I thought it sucked that the G1 toys looked nothing like the show. Starscream and Windcharger were my first G1 toys. I looked and Windcharger and thought. "........who is this? Is he on the show?"

 

Robot Replicas.......There is no excuse for why they look like they look. Pick up a $9.99 RR fig, walk down the aisle to the GIJoe section. Now pick up a $9.99 Soldier class 8 inch fig and compare them. Not only are the Joes bigger and have more moving parts, they are also amazingly detailed, painted to perfection and they have a tons more accesories. I do have to admit that the Joes can use some of the same molded parts in different figs but it's still tough to want nasty looking non transforming TFs for $10 when there's other stuff on the shelf superior for cheaper. TMNT movie figs have them beat IMO.

While I agree that the Robot Replicas do not look as good as they could have, the rest of the movie toys are frakking amazing. The only "nag" of the bunch is Leader Megatron, but then again, EVERY TF line has had it's share of "nags". :bored

 

My only real complaint about any of the last few TF lines have been the glut of repaints. But that is an entirely different discussion! :tftongue

Yeah, see, the thing is, sometimes that just isn't the case. Like with Megs. The Megs figures all have paint-apps. They're just completely wrong. Doing correct paint-apps wouldn't cost any more than the current apps.

 

Another one that bothers me is Ironhide. Love the figure to death. Up until I got Voyager Prime, my favorite movie figure. But they painted his eyes. No biggie, except they're lightpiped. Seriously, what the heck. Why go through the trouble and cost of lightpiping the eyes, then paying extra to paint over them? Even the repaint does the same thing. It boggles my mind.

 

I understand where you're coming from for the most part. But the fans actually do have some merit when they question why Megatron's fact was painted black or has pink highlights.

 

 

I must point something out about Ironhide. I had thought the eyes were painted as well, but then I placed Ironhide's head directly in sunlight. The eyes are not painted. There is light piping, but it's so poorly done that it's almost non-existent.

My Ironhide's eyes are painted over with black paint (from the front you can see that they're not the dark blue color of the translucent plastic on the back of his head) and if you shine a bright LED flashlight through his head you can see a tiny bit of light leaking around the edges of the paint. If his head were held togther via screws like an Alt, it would be a simple matter to take it apart and remove the paint.

 

Putting the spring in the opposite hand in Leader Megs,

Takara's version has springs in both hands, so the "opposite" thing isn't a mistake and the remove of the mace hand spring must have been due to safety reasons or something.

I had imagination as a kid but I thought it sucked that the G1 toys looked nothing like the show. Starscream and Windcharger were my first G1 toys. I looked and Windcharger and thought. "........who is this? Is he on the show?"

 

Robot Replicas.......There is no excuse for why they look like they look. Pick up a $9.99 RR fig, walk down the aisle to the GIJoe section. Now pick up a $9.99 Soldier class 8 inch fig and compare them. Not only are the Joes bigger and have more moving parts, they are also amazingly detailed, painted to perfection and they have a tons more accesories. I do have to admit that the Joes can use some of the same molded parts in different figs but it's still tough to want nasty looking non transforming TFs for $10 when there's other stuff on the shelf superior for cheaper. TMNT movie figs have them beat IMO.

I agree. As much as I wanted Robot Replicas to be US versions of Revoltech figures, they just aren't.

 

However, I have to say that Robot Replicas Prime is still WAY better looking than the THIRTY DOLLAR Unleashed Prime. Every single one of those things that I've seen has had obvious QC issues. And they're selling these TF Unleashed statues for TWICE as much as the original SW Unleashed statues (which were excellent from a QC standpoint). Not to mention that there wasn't even an attempt to paint any of the bare metal parts on Unleashed Prime at all. I don't know what universe Hasbro lives in that they think someone who'd be interested in a Prime statue isn't going to notice the difference between PVC gray and chrome/metal.

 

I guess all the love went to the action figures.

Things like really nice detailing in the paint are simply a bonus for me if they're there. Yeah they do look better with those details but I see no need to cry when they're not present.

 

Honestly nobody outside Hasbro knows the reasons behind a lot of the things that are done. Every figure probably has it's own unique set of issues to deal with. Figures less costly in some areas might see greater attention paid to in other areas such as paint while in others the costs of developing greater ranges of articulation may end up having to take away from areas like paint details.

 

All I know is, if those paint or other custom details are something you feel certain figures need, then fine, learn the craft of making the mods yourself OR if your pockets are deep enough to pay 2 or 3 times the cost of a fig then pay someone to make the mods for you, what's the difference?

 

Yeah it's a minor inconvenience but worth it if the details mean that much to you.

My Ironhide's eyes are painted over with black paint (from the front you can see that they're not the dark blue color of the translucent plastic on the back of his head) and if you shine a bright LED flashlight through his head you can see a tiny bit of light leaking around the edges of the paint.

I just took a close look at Ironhide's eyes for the first time, and mine are definitely not painted. They are the same color as the bluish lightpiping plastic in the back, but this is very hard to see if you're just looking at them in normal light. The black from the plastic of the head seems to be reflected in the eyes, making them appear black as well. But if you shine a flashlight into the area behind his neck, it becomes very obvious that they're clear plastic and not painted. It's possible that there are different versions, but I can't help but think that the people saying they are painted are just being fooled by the fact that the lightpiping is very very subtle.

Now pick up a $9.99 Soldier class 8 inch fig and compare them. Not only are the Joes bigger and have more moving parts, they are also amazingly detailed, painted to perfection and they have a tons more accesories. I do have to admit that the Joes can use some of the same molded parts in different figs but it's still tough to want nasty looking non transforming TFs for $10 when there's other stuff on the shelf superior for cheaper. TMNT movie figs have them beat IMO.

True, but remember what someone said--G. I. Joes don't have to transform. I suppose it's easier to design a human soldier with solid articulation and a crapload of weapons than a robot that has to shapeshift and look good in both modes.

 

I have both version of Snake Eyes from the G. I. Joe 25th Anniversary line. He's got good articulation, looks great, and I LOVE the weapons (I'm a sucker for figures that can holster their weapons on their body). But that's all he does; he doesn't have to transform into a helicopter or anything. In that case, the designers can go all-out with clothing detail and accessories.

 

I'm not defending the Robot Replicas, but from what I hear kitbashers love 'em and tear them apart for parts.

 

As far as the paint issue goes, remember it's a joint venture between America and Japan; whenever you deal with people who speak a different language, there's going to be some mistakes. I remember back when X-Men toys were popular there was a Wolverine figure--I believe from the "Onslaught" line--that was HUGE; he was as tall as some of the Hulk figures back then, and if you know Wolverine you know he's kind of a short mo-fo. I'm sure Toy Biz didn't mean to make a giant-sized Wolverine, but it just happened.

 

Communications breakdown. Human error. Just take it all in stride, is what I've been preaching.

My Ironhide's eyes are painted over with black paint (from the front you can see that they're not the dark blue color of the translucent plastic on the back of his head) and if you shine a bright LED flashlight through his head you can see a tiny bit of light leaking around the edges of the paint.

I just took a close look at Ironhide's eyes for the first time, and mine are definitely not painted. They are the same color as the bluish lightpiping plastic in the back, but this is very hard to see if you're just looking at them in normal light. The black from the plastic of the head seems to be reflected in the eyes, making them appear black as well. But if you shine a flashlight into the area behind his neck, it becomes very obvious that they're clear plastic and not painted. It's possible that there are different versions, but I can't help but think that the people saying they are painted are just being fooled by the fact that the lightpiping is very very subtle.

My Ironhide's eyes are definitely painted black, with a superbright LED you can see that's the case (there was a post a while back from someone was able to remove some of the paint on his with alcohol and q-tips, only to discover that even with the paint removed the light-piping still doesn't work great). I decided that was too much trouble and simply painted the irises on mine light blue.

 

Concept Bumblebee's eyes are painted black over the light-piping as well.