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Va'al wrote:

shockblast2 wrote:

Wolfman Jake wrote:What a tease, Hasbro. Showcasing every trivial Transformers product without even a trace of the mainline figures. Why can't these toy shows be geared a little more towards fans and a little less towards clueless retailers?

Good point Wolfman. No disrespect to the news crew, of course. But, these reveals are irrelevant products not many (here at least) will care about. Thanks for posting the story though. At least we know what they offered.

For the record, we also got a look at Lockdown and Crosshairs' robot mode faces, package artwork, confirmed that Lockdown is the Lamborghini Aventador, saw Drift's robot mode and that amazing mug.

Sure, I understand. I definitely appreciate the job you and others do around here to report the news. And you do a good, nonbiased job of it too. I guess most of us just expected more from this convention. That is why I posted what I did and I assume why others did as well. Again, thanks for the great job Va'al. If you didn't report these things then we would know nothing. And I do appreciate it very much. I actually enjoy all the news articles here, even if I get a little "passionate" sometimes. Always know I respect what you are doing and appreciate your time to cover them.

looks like they brought the second rate prime truck to the second rate toy fair lol.

i think this was a good appetizer to the US toy fair coming up.

sheesh.... it too only 3 films but we finally get robots with humaniod faces, instead of insectoids or animal-like faces...

seriously, the more I see this prime, the more I hate his new looks.

so the rusty old cab over truck is apparently Ultra Magnus? is it safe to assume that the futuristic looking cab over truck is him as well?

shockblast2 wrote:

Va'al wrote:

shockblast2 wrote:

Wolfman Jake wrote:What a tease, Hasbro. Showcasing every trivial Transformers product without even a trace of the mainline figures. Why can't these toy shows be geared a little more towards fans and a little less towards clueless retailers?

Good point Wolfman. No disrespect to the news crew, of course. But, these reveals are irrelevant products not many (here at least) will care about. Thanks for posting the story though. At least we know what they offered.

For the record, we also got a look at Lockdown and Crosshairs' robot mode faces, package artwork, confirmed that Lockdown is the Lamborghini Aventador, saw Drift's robot mode and that amazing mug.

Sure, I understand. I definitely appreciate the job you and others do around here to report the news. And you do a good, nonbiased job of it too. I guess most of us just expected more from this convention. That is why I posted what I did and I assume why others did as well. Again, thanks for the great job Va'al. If you didn't report these things then we would know nothing. And I do appreciate it very much. I actually enjoy all the news articles here, even if I get a little "passionate" sometimes. Always know I respect what you are doing and appreciate your time to cover them.

Thanks, it means quite a bit to be appreciated for our work. ScoutBumblebee was amazing too, she got almost as little sleep as me, working in different time zones!

Also, we knew there wouldn't be much at this fair, really. Kapow! Toys usually gets more out of it, with them being traders rather than press, but they could not make it to London this year.

TimothyR wrote:looks like they brought the second rate prime truck to the second rate toy fair lol.

i think this was a good appetizer to the US toy fair coming up.

The truck driver was telling me how the new vehicles are still being used for filming and post-production, so the soonest we *might* see them around will be for the various premieres. But we'll keep you posted on that too, now that I am in contact with him and the company!

Va'al wrote:

Wolfman Jake wrote:What a tease, Hasbro. Showcasing every trivial Transformers product without even a trace of the mainline figures. Why can't these toy shows be geared a little more towards fans and a little less towards clueless retailers?

Because.. it's a toy fair?
It's not a convention, it's not open to everyone, and it's aimed at retailers, press, and the such. I thought this was common knowledge.

We also expected Hasbro to reveal little, as both Nuremberg and New York are soon, and that's where stuff actually happens.

When was the last time the press got excited over Transformers that don't transform? I know these fairs are for businesses and not consumers. I said as much already. That still doesn't change the fact that Hasbro showcased a whole lot of not the point with their Transformers brand at this show. Even retailers know what the real bread and butter Transformers products are.

I'm not trying to disparage the work the news crew has done to cover this event. It's Hasbro that didn't deliver, not you. My complaints are not meant to be displays of ingratitude towards our intrepid Seibertron reporters.

Hasbro delivered to their customers: toy store BUYERS. This was not a public show, and they're probly contracted to have New York toyfair be the first "public" showing.

Every year is like this.

Oh, but all of this stuff was *not* showcased by Hasbro. They're all licensed properties, sold through the various companies we listed.

The Hasbro stall was guarded by three members of security, and I had to sign three Non-Disclosure Agreements. Anything inside their area I am not able to talk about, but I can say there was nothing much to talk about anyway. All the big stuff will be revealed at the other two fairs.

I'm thinking (hoping) the green helmeted dude with the steampunksih glasses is Hound.

shockblast2 wrote:Trek - Excellent work, my friend. That is what I like. Solid proof. And you have provided that. With that said, cool! Can't wait to see them here, hopefully very soon. And BTW, from what I understand the UK usually gets the shaft when it comes to releases in a timely manner. Looks like the Brits got something before we did for once. Good for them!

No offense but you sound like an asshole.

Triptykon wrote:I'm thinking (hoping) the green helmeted dude with the steampunksih glasses is Hound.

Hound is supposed to have a "beard", people believe that head to be Crosshair.

Loyal To The End wrote:

shockblast2 wrote:Trek - Excellent work, my friend. That is what I like. Solid proof. And you have provided that. With that said, cool! Can't wait to see them here, hopefully very soon. And BTW, from what I understand the UK usually gets the shaft when it comes to releases in a timely manner. Looks like the Brits got something before we did for once. Good for them!

No offense but you sound like an asshole.

In the post you quoted, I see nothing to provoke such a statement. Even if he had done so, it's still not welcomed here. Don't do that again.

Autobot032 wrote:

Loyal To The End wrote:

shockblast2 wrote:Trek - Excellent work, my friend. That is what I like. Solid proof. And you have provided that. With that said, cool! Can't wait to see them here, hopefully very soon. And BTW, from what I understand the UK usually gets the shaft when it comes to releases in a timely manner. Looks like the Brits got something before we did for once. Good for them!

No offense but you sound like an asshole.

In the post you quoted, I see nothing to provoke such a statement. Even if he had done so, it's still not welcomed here. Don't do that again.

Exactly. It would have been different had the comment been directed at me but there was nothing about any of Shockblast2's statements that seemed at all "asshole" like. While I had the exact same concerns and sentiments as Shockblast2 has and, at this point despite reassurances I still harbor no faith whatsoever that those figures won't be cancelled in actual brick and mortar stores, I feel that he did make his inquiries into the subject in a respectful manner.
Folks need to save the finger pointing and accusations of nastiness for people like me who really ARE ill-tempered, rude and irritating and aren't at all ashamed to admit it.

The UK Toy Fair may be over, but there is still news to be found in terms of the fourth Transformers' movie accompanying merchandise. This update comes from the UK retailer Smyths Toys, and features the following: a new water bottle, with Optimus Prime and dino mode Grimlock artwork for £4.99; a lunch pack with same characters, but different artwork, for £8.99; a laser tag set in Optimus Prime and Bumblebee decos, for £39.99. Check out images below!

Is it just me, or does that Optimus armor thing look more like two Optimuses about to kiss each other rather than his chest?

Also, I'm liking how Grimlock's dino mode has a mix of silver and gold/yellow. More interesting than just straight up silver.

Noideaforaname wrote:Is it just me, or does that Optimus armor thing look more like two Optimuses about to kiss each other rather than his chest?

Yeah, maybe it'll be possible to unsee that once we've all gotten used to Op's TF4 design, but for now it's kind of hard to imagine shooting at that without projecting some sort of political agenda onto it.

Though my first thought was, am I the only one happy to simply see it called "Laser" tag again, rather than "Virtual Paintball"? Maybe I'm just remembering one particular brand name that irked me a few years back; is Laser Tag a specific brand, and that's why this box says "Mega Laser Set"?

Grimlock is gold, silver, and black.

Now that we have seen some Grimlock pics and based on his color scheme and decor, I have a pretty out there speculation. Is it possible that Bumblebee somehow becomes Grimlock?

Bee's popularity has dropped pretty low and no one wants to go through yet another round of all Bee merchandise. Plus let's face it, Grimlock is the big money character in part 4. So rather than have two (for lack of a better word) favorites battle for consumer cash, just mash em together and be done with it.

Another clue is the recent decision to make Rescue Bot Op into a dino. Perhaps the precedent was already set.


It's pretty absurd, admittedly - but movie-verse does what movie-verse wants.

dedcat wrote:Now that we have seen some Grimlock pics and based on his color scheme and decor, I have a pretty out there speculation. Is it possible that Bumblebee somehow becomes Grimlock?

Bee's popularity has dropped pretty low and no one wants to go through yet another round of all Bee merchandise. Plus let's face it, Grimlock is the big money character in part 4. So rather than have two (for lack of a better word) favorites battle for consumer cash, just mash em together and be done with it.

Wouldn't it be better business to exploit the profits of two favorites instead of just one?

A

dedcat wrote:nother clue is the recent decision to make Rescue Bot Op into a dino.

And Oprimus. And Heatwave. And Chase. And Boulder (no word on Blades yet, though).

Sabrblade wrote:

dedcat wrote:Now that we have seen some Grimlock pics and based on his color scheme and decor, I have a pretty out there speculation. Is it possible that Bumblebee somehow becomes Grimlock?

Bee's popularity has dropped pretty low and no one wants to go through yet another round of all Bee merchandise. Plus let's face it, Grimlock is the big money character in part 4. So rather than have two (for lack of a better word) favorites battle for consumer cash, just mash em together and be done with it.

Wouldn't it be better business to exploit the profits of two favorites instead of just one?

dedcat wrote:Another clue is the recent decision to make Rescue Bot Op into a dino.

And Oprimus. And Heatwave. And Chase. And Boulder (no word on Blades yet, though).

Remember this?



And now the color scheme of Grimlock, compared to this car's color scheme? That, and how they said Bumblebee was that muscle car? Isn't it easy (but not safe) to assume Grimlock = Bumblebee?

#Sideways# wrote:

Sabrblade wrote:

dedcat wrote:Now that we have seen some Grimlock pics and based on his color scheme and decor, I have a pretty out there speculation. Is it possible that Bumblebee somehow becomes Grimlock?

Bee's popularity has dropped pretty low and no one wants to go through yet another round of all Bee merchandise. Plus let's face it, Grimlock is the big money character in part 4. So rather than have two (for lack of a better word) favorites battle for consumer cash, just mash em together and be done with it.

Wouldn't it be better business to exploit the profits of two favorites instead of just one?

dedcat wrote:Another clue is the recent decision to make Rescue Bot Op into a dino.

And Oprimus. And Heatwave. And Chase. And Boulder (no word on Blades yet, though).

Remember this?



And now the color scheme of Grimlock, compared to this car's color scheme? That, and how they said Bumblebee was that muscle car? Isn't it easy (but not safe) to assume Grimlock = Bumblebee?

Honestly? I say go for it, Bay. Do something different, weird even! Points for originality, I say! Points for doing something off-the-wall insane!

LET THE WORLD BURN!

RAcast wrote:Honestly? I say go for it, Bay. Do something different, weird even! Points for originality, I say! Points for doing something off-the-wall insane!

LET THE WORLD BURN!

In that case, go nuts, AOE!

Make Optimus Prime into a WOMAN!

Sabrblade wrote:

RAcast wrote:Honestly? I say go for it, Bay. Do something different, weird even! Points for originality, I say! Points for doing something off-the-wall insane!

LET THE WORLD BURN!

In that case, go nuts, AOE!

Make Optimus Prime into a WOMAN!

"Autobots, transvest and roll out!"
Seriously, after the slagstorm over Windblade, wouldn't it be hilarious if part of the official solution to inherent robot gender is TFs rediscovering an ability to change theirs as easily as transforming from mode to mode? Maybe only characters who've experienced international sex-changes (Nightbeat, Nitro Convoy), or, erm, "pink-repaints" (Highbeam, Rewind, Wheelie).

But back on topic, if grey and gold are close enough to yellow and black, couldn't it just be that Bee and Grimlock have usually had roughly the same color combination since before Transformers was even a brand? Even if this doesn't come to pass, this thread may have already given Roger Corman the inspiration for his greatest cash-in: CAR-nosaur! Well, if the studio behind Transmorphers doesn't make it first...

Going to have to hold final judgement for this years line-up until the other TF fairs are done and we get a better look at the over-all line but based on what we've seen so far, the suckage-to-win ratio is not looking good. Of course, I've been suspecting that this would be the case since about 2/3 of the way through this last year. It's not that I'm bitching about the lack of items aimed towards collectors, we aren't the big money makers for Hasbro/Takara and it only makes sense that we would get screwed, but even some of the stuff they have to draw in more of the younger crowd strikes me as being sub-par. Back off Hasbro, you're trying to hard! You're going to flood the market with useless, unappealing crap and do more damage to your profit margin than you will good. Focus on quality products for all age ranges instead of flooding EVERYONE with cheap, novelty, bull**** items.
Even as my own kids are outgrowing many of the TF products out there I still get input from my friends' kids (I'm the cool "uncle" that gets called in to fix their TF's or help their parents figure out how to transform the stuff when they cant) so I still get input on how the younger kids react to the new product lines and know whats a "hit" and what "sucks" and I can tell you right now, Hasbro is setting themselves up for some serious wasted effort this coming year. There are a few items out of these pics that I'd actually put out money for but that amounts to a VERY short list.

#Sideways# wrote:

Sabrblade wrote:

dedcat wrote:Now that we have seen some Grimlock pics and based on his color scheme and decor, I have a pretty out there speculation. Is it possible that Bumblebee somehow becomes Grimlock?

Bee's popularity has dropped pretty low and no one wants to go through yet another round of all Bee merchandise. Plus let's face it, Grimlock is the big money character in part 4. So rather than have two (for lack of a better word) favorites battle for consumer cash, just mash em together and be done with it.

Wouldn't it be better business to exploit the profits of two favorites instead of just one?

dedcat wrote:Another clue is the recent decision to make Rescue Bot Op into a dino.

And Oprimus. And Heatwave. And Chase. And Boulder (no word on Blades yet, though).

Remember this?



And now the color scheme of Grimlock, compared to this car's color scheme? That, and how they said Bumblebee was that muscle car? Isn't it easy (but not safe) to assume Grimlock = Bumblebee?

Yea, hat the same idea when I saw that Grimlock pic.
Maybe that's their explanation for them being called "Dinobots", they're the Autobots, mutated into Dinosaurs.

A terrible idea, but one that's kinda interesting.

Dead Metal wrote:Yea, hat the same idea when I saw that Grimlock pic.
Maybe that's their explanation for them being called "Dinobots", they're the Autobots, mutated into Dinosaurs.

A terrible idea, but one that's kinda interesting.

Pretty much what the FOC Dinobots were: Ordinary Autobots whose dino forms were forced upon them unwillingly, resulting in their being freaks.