I totally left out Beast Wars. I don't even consider that one a series. It's like "Batman Forever" and "Batman and Robin", and Superman III and Superman IV... I just ignore that they ever happened.

 

I've never watched the shows, but once 3D got introduced, it's like the animation suffered in other ways. I just couldn't watch them. Sure the old G1 show had massive errors, but there seemed to be more of a craft to it. You'd think with the addition of 3D capabilities, it would improve the animation... but to me it seems like it gave them ways to cut corners and not care as much. The only non-2007 Transformers animation I've seen done right in 3D is fan fiction... I think that 3D fight between MP Prime and MP Megatron is about the most awesome thing to ever happen to animation for Transformers.

 

But again, for me it had a lot to do with the shows not appealing to me that I didn't like the toys. Of all of them though, Beast Wars is my least favorite. Once they got back to machines, they saved face a good deal, but I haven't really gotten into any character stories since G1. Armada and the like always seemed like a bad marionette show. They just can't bring the life out of the 3D renderings like they could with cell animation.

 

It wasn't just the show animation either, the toys themselves just looked a little wonky. Never made sense why they'd have to disguise themselves as animals... The Dinobots and the cassette animals I always forgave because they were awesome, but I utterly HATED the Insecticons, Trypticon and Scorponok. What's the point of turning into giant robotic animals or insects? It didn't even make cool toys in my mind. And that was my thinking as a kid.

 

I bought some for a cousin, but never got back into TFs until Alternators came out. Then, I jumped back in on my plastic crack binge and only stopped when they quit making them... But that Skyline prospect is AWFUL tempting! Let's hope the character choice isn't way off like the last few Alternators were...

JFTR, Beast Wars had amazing 3D animation for its time. Much better then the 3D animation used in A/E/C ten years later.

 

And they gave a reason for having to turn into animals in the first BW episode. Prehistoric Earth's unrefined energon levels were so high they had to take the forms of local organisms to shield themselves from an energon overload. A tad weak when it comes to explanations, but not terribly worse then anything else seen in a kids' tv show.

 

In short, if you're going to bash something, know something about it.

 

PS-Classics and Universe PWN :D

 

It's business. The movie line was (and still is in some parts) the flagship Transformers line. It ran for close to one year. You can't hope for a line to survive for a year on just media-characters alone. There just isn't enough. You need to supplement the line with other characters, and some of those supplements came from the movie game.

Now granted, Hasbro probably shouldn't have stretched the movie line out for a year, but given that they decided to go in that direction, they would be crazy not to introduce toy only characters.

If you really want to know how these extra characters fit in, read IDW's Reign of Starscream.

 

Besides, it's trend that's not exclusive to the movie line. All lines do it. BW, BM, RiD, A/E/C, etc.... they all featured toy-only supplementary characters to fill out the lines. By all accounts Animated will do this to. It's just the nature of the toy business.

 

 

I completely understand this. I truly do. But it's an aspect that i've never been into or that attracted me. It's a part of the original G1 that turned me off. Even back then I never got a toy that was outside of the series. Only in BT and MP lines am I a completist on - and it's because I like the aspects of SCALE... REALISM... and that they are all the same (cars). The MP line more out of some G1 nostalgia.

 

Again, I understand and have no problem with them doing it. But I never had a G1 outside of the story lines, and I"ll not buy a Movie TF that is outside of it also. I have no desire to go after IDW's explaination or anyone else's. I just don't have the desire. I realize some people will and that is cool. But I also have no desire to read 'comics' for a storyline either. It's just not my thing.

That's cool if the practice personally doesn't appeal to you, but you can't really hold it against any one line. Every TF line has done it.

 

I always love toys that aren't in the show. Then they can be what ever I want them to be. Screw the bios and what not. Also I enjoy having a large army of bots and these guys help flesh it out.

:pfx

 

But I'm not to keen on repaints. Unless they've been remolded or the repaint is really, really nice.

It depends for me.

 

Like Cyberton Crosswise and Hardtop. I passed on both of those, but picked up Smokescreen and Swindle. The original decos were so-so, but the G1 homage repaints were pure :win

 

Also, I bought Cyberton Cannonball even though I have Red Alert (using him as Classics First Aide). Cannonball may not be a remould, but the repaint is awesome.

i still think beast wars blows AND sucks at the same time (just not my thing)

JFTR, Beast Wars had amazing 3D animation for its time. Much better then the 3D animation used in A/E/C ten years later.

Um...no it didn't. The animation was sub-par even for the time. The shows primary saving grace was the writing. It was well thought out, and generally very well written.

Wow MR, I would have thought that you would at least have Classics Bumblebee and Cliffjumper to use as placeholders for their missing Alternators. That's what I did until I made my Alt. Bumblebee but I'm still using CJ until I can make his Alternator head. I bought Rodimus but his arms sucked so I gave him away and Mirage was just too goofy looking for my taste but Ironhide, Prowl, Bluestreak, Sunstreaker and Sideswipe will be bought. Of course you probably knew I'd buy Sideswipe as he's my favorite car from G1.

 

In the absence of true Alternators, the Classics BB and CJ car designs still bug me. Had they made them as close to real cars as Prowl and Sunstreaker, I'd have been sold. I like the Henkei paintjob better, but it's still not 100% right. Plus I hate the peg hands. I won't buy any non-G1 Transformers with peg hands. I mean come on, it's 2008.

 

I'm holding out for an MP treament of Bumblebee. That kid has had THE WORST toys except for the Classics version. They deserve to give him some bug-esque car version. Come on. It has repaint/retool potential as CJ (a new head though, please) and would sell like hotcakes, I think. I love Jazz to death, but the Alternator/BT version is pretty close to perfect for me. Bumblebee as a new Bug seems silly, I really wish they'd sold BMW on making a Mini Cooper. I can't see a yellow Mini on the road without wanting to slap someone for me not having an Alternator Bumblebee.

 

Oh, don't taunt me with your Alternator Bumblebee one-of-a-kind figure! haha.

Being a G1 purist at the time Beast Wars came out, I was skeptical. I gave it a chance and really liked the show. I don't know what others are smoking, but I thought the 3D rendering was fantastic for the time and budget they had to work with... But then again I do 3D rendering for a living, so I may be biased in that I can appreciate the effort put in.

And they gave a reason for having to turn into animals in the first BW episode. Prehistoric Earth's unrefined energon levels were so high they had to take the forms of local organisms to shield themselves from an energon overload. A tad weak when it comes to explanations, but not terribly worse then anything else seen in a kids' tv show.

 

In short, if you're going to bash something, know something about it.

Maybe that's why I never saw anything past the first episode. That explanation IS weak, and warrants me not wanting to watch something with a loose explanation like that.

 

But I'm not arguing logic over a kid's TV show, it's silly. You can like it if you want, I don't for one. When I was younger and the show was on, I thought at the time the animation sucked, and I agree even more now. For some reason or another as a kid, I saw the show, and disregarded it. "For it's time" G1 was awesome animation, and it sucks now too. But it wasn't just 3D for 3D's sake, like a lot of the crap in cartoons during the original airing of Beast Wars.

I'm holding out for an MP treament of Bumblebee. That kid has had THE WORST toys except for the Classics version. They deserve to give him some bug-esque car version. Come on. It has repaint/retool potential as CJ (a new head though, please) and would sell like hotcakes, I think. I love Jazz to death, but the Alternator/BT version is pretty close to perfect for me. Bumblebee as a new Bug seems silly, I really wish they'd sold BMW on making a Mini Cooper. I can't see a yellow Mini on the road without wanting to slap someone for me not having an Alternator Bumblebee.

It would make a incredible Masterpiece "giftset" type idea. Since they're so close, it could easily be a Bumblebee/Cliffjumper 2-pack. Slight remolds, new color, smaller scale, 2 bots though keep it at the general Masterpiece price point. Hell, they could even tamper with them a little more and release an exclusive/limited Hubcap/Bumblejumper set as well to maximize 90% of the molds needed for what could easily be shelled into 4 different toys. To keep interests higher, do a Bumblebee/Hubcap set and a Clffjumper/Bumblejumper set, so that everyone who wants Bumblebee and Cliffjumper would have to buy the others as well.

http://www.fantofan.jp/news/event/toyshow2008/report.htm

 

AH YES, my favorite lines continued! :) MP Thundercracker, finally proof!

http://www.fantofan.jp/news/event/toyshow2008/report.htm

 

AH YES, my favorite lines continued! :) MP Thundercracker, finally proof!

 

Sweetness! I wonder what new mold they will do for the next figure. I'd like to see an MP Grimlock or perhaps even a triple changer like Blitzwing.

It wasn't just the show animation either, the toys themselves just looked a little wonky. Never made sense why they'd have to disguise themselves as animals... The Dinobots and the cassette animals I always forgave because they were awesome, but I utterly HATED the Insecticons, Trypticon and Scorponok. What's the point of turning into giant robotic animals or insects? It didn't even make cool toys in my mind. And that was my thinking as a kid.

 

100% AGREE! Even as a kid, the insecticons and such made absolutely no sense. Then pile on the Kids Meal plastic they went to, and even as a Kid I began to lose interest in both story line AND toys. I also admit, I loved the casetts and Dinobots. I credit character development in the storyline that pulled ya in there. I agree 100% with this same thought pattern tho.

 

I've always hated BWs.. as a principle, not story line. Outside of the NAMES, it could have been transanimals - something completely other than TFers. I also don't consider them much of a series, but understand why many others do. More as an adult, there simply wasn't enough allure to draw me back with Armada, Cybertron, etc. It wasn't until BT/ALT that I ever really was drawn back into TFers. It had me pulling my old G1's out of boxes that had been packed up for decades, spending money on 'toys' again, and even spending almost $1,500 on display cases (hope to be done in 2 weeks) to display them all.

 

To be honest, if BT/MP had not drawn me back in, I don't know that I would have really ever bought any MOVIE TFers either. I"d have gone to the movie and enjoyed it as much; bought toys for my kids as I do, but if BT/MP hadn't drawn me back into the collection side of it - I honestly doubt i'd have spend money on the new ones either.