Seibertron.com Energon Pub Forums

Praxiusprime77 wrote:Does it have a release date?

Yeah, last month. Walgreens simply doesn't sell them till the holiday season. I guess they just sit in warehouses till then.

Secured myself one since I’m currently deployed in Korea and will likely not see one in person. They also had the Sparkless Seeker set so I grabbed one of those too. Mercí, mon ami!

Does it have a release date?

Its been available in the UK for about 2 weeks now. I just assumed that meant everywhere else had too many already lol.

Then again, I got Wingfinger and Scorponok today, and The Ark (whom I've named Garfunkel and given people clothes) yesterday. And we got Transmutate about a month ago. Hasbro doesn't seem to have a favourite country, which is confusing but nice.

Mindmaster wrote:Secured myself one since I’m currently deployed in Korea and will likely not see one in person. They also had the Sparkless Seeker set so I grabbed one of those too. Mercí, mon ami!

De rien, mon frere!

Mistaken_Table wrote:

Does it have a release date?

Its been available in the UK for about 2 weeks now. I just assumed that meant everywhere else had too many already lol.

Then again, I got Wingfinger and Scorponok today, and The Ark (whom I've named Garfunkel and given people clothes) yesterday. And we got Transmutate about a month ago. Hasbro doesn't seem to have a favourite country, which is confusing but nice.

That is nice. And jokes aside, yeah the UK did get some because the US orders are all filled. This toy did indeed come out last month, it's been ready for distribution for a little while. The thing is that in the US, all orders for this toy (except for a few sold directly through Pulse) go to a retailer who won't put this toy up until October, when they do their seasonal toy reset.

Not sure if this is newsworthy or not, but I spotted Commander Rodimus Prime At my local Walmart today up on the top of the shelf. No tags or price anywhere, so I brought it to an employee and it scanned for regular $79.99. Mine arrived from Amazon yesterday, so I put it right back up on the shelf.

I will be stalking my store to see if it lingers and they Walmart things by clearancing him in a week because they can't figure out where to put him.

Amazon Japan has some new Kingdom listings:

Toy Galvatron- https://www.amazon.co.jp/-/en/Transform ... 098FPTNMG/

Sparkless Seeker - https://www.amazon.co.jp/-/en/Transform ... CK3HK0JVNG

Super happy to be able to get Red Alert without having to hunt for him like I do every year. I have five local Walgreens, but had to get help from Cobotron to get Ratchet and thought I would have to do the same with Bluestreak last year but found one pretty late. Thanks, Razor!

TF-fan kev777 wrote:

o.supreme wrote:

Sowndwave76 wrote:I received notification a bit earlier this evening that the Ark is going to show up real early from Amazon;
THIS Thursday!!!!

^Just curious if you (or anyone else expecting something from Amazon currently) got a shipping notice? Mine still says Rodimus is expected to arrive TODAY by 10pm, but it has neither shipped, nor has my account been charged...I know Amazon has pulled this goofiness before, it is still no less frustrating, especially sometimes when we actually do get items early. I expect the inevitable delay notification any time now...

Yes and no? Yes for my Rodimus, he is on the was I got the shipping notice and is out for delivery.

For the Ark, I pre-ordered immediately when they first opened pre-orders and still haven't even received a shipping notice yet despite a few others being able to pre-order just last week and having at least received a shipping notice.

I was one of the ones who ordered him late and got him Thursday. I have no idea how Amazon prioritizes their orders, it doesn't make any sense to me at all.

As far as panels falling off goes the only ones that give me trouble are the two on the underside of the front. They're also hard to get a grip on to unclip, but I found that if you push down on the front of the ark on each side they'll unhook without falling off.

Whoever makes an upgrade kit to fill in the side gaps are going to have a really easy time of it. The sides of the Ark aren't even attached in the box and just pop on with little effort. They don't fall off, but they can easily be popped back off. Just keep the same basic shape and add a panel that can fold underneath to cover it in Ark mode and sit outside his inner lower legs in bot mode. He really needs new hands, they aren't made to hold weapons and don't look all that natural. I'm guessing they're made just to hold Core figures. Also a shame that the guns are sculpted in and can't be moved at all and they aren't even solid, there's a hole under each of them. Not sure if a third part can made something that snaps over them that looks better or not.

His shoulder ratchets are ridiculously scary to move, they're incredibly tight and make an unnerving sound when you move them.

Wolfman Jake wrote:I'm impressed and pleased with the amount of retooling Hasbro/Takara have done with Kingdom Pipes from Kingdom Huffer. I didn't realize there were so many people complaining about Huffer, though. He seems pretty great to me, with a very faithful robot and alternate modes to the G1 cartoon. The transformation is pretty simple, except for the arms/smokestacks, which take a little more work, but when you tab everything in correctly, the truck looks fine and rolls perfectly, despite the seemingly low clearance of the "undercarriage" of the truck/robot mode chest. Maybe it's one of those "your mileage may vary" quality control things?

First time I transformed Huffer I couldn't get the truck right, but I went back over what I was doing, found a spot I didn't move far enough and he was perfect after that. I'm sure Pipes will come with two guns since they're his "pipes" and he doesn't come with the flatbed shield.

Nemesis Primal wrote:...wow, when was the last time Hasbro put up a Pulse listing for a TF that was actually just in-stock immediately? It feels like it's been forever.

Last one I can think of is Titans Return Grotusque in 2017 as far as Generations goes.

TF-fan kev777 wrote:Not sure if this is newsworthy or not, but I spotted Commander Rodimus Prime At my local Walmart today up on the top of the shelf. No tags or price anywhere, so I brought it to an employee and it scanned for regular $79.99. Mine arrived from Amazon yesterday, so I put it right back up on the shelf.

I will be stalking my store to see if it lingers and they Walmart things by clearancing him in a week because they can't figure out where to put him.

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My Walmart didn't have Rodimus, but they did reset the aisles for the second time in about a month and there's a Commander Class price tag at the bottom right corner.



Strangely they have Kingdom Voyagers as a peg. Not sure if they're done setting things up or not. Seeing Grimlock was a real surprise.

Emerje

Checked a few walgreens last night in a vien attempt to track down Red Alert, no such luck. My target had a Wingfinger's and the repack of Wheeljack, so was close to finding something new but not quite! They also had three copies left of the buzzworthy origin Bumblebee but I'm still not sure if I'm going to bite on it

Origins Bumblebee is so fun and a perfect companion to all the Siege seekers we got. Even though it seems like they made plenty of them, I bet they're going to get very pricey on the secondary market in a couple years or so. If you think you might want it, go for it. If it doesn't speak to you in your soul, though, you're probably fine without it.

AcademyofDrX wrote:Origins Bumblebee is so fun and a perfect companion to all the Siege seekers we got. Even though it seems like they made plenty of them, I bet they're going to get very pricey on the secondary market in a couple years or so. If you think you might want it, go for it. If it doesn't speak to you in your soul, though, you're probably fine without it.

Origins 'bee is easily one of the most fun figures I've bought in a long time, I don't know why, but he's really satisfying, definitely recommend him

Hellscream9999 wrote:

AcademyofDrX wrote:Origins Bumblebee is so fun and a perfect companion to all the Siege seekers we got. Even though it seems like they made plenty of them, I bet they're going to get very pricey on the secondary market in a couple years or so. If you think you might want it, go for it. If it doesn't speak to you in your soul, though, you're probably fine without it.

Origins 'bee is easily one of the most fun figures I've bought in a long time, I don't know why, but he's really satisfying, definitely recommend him

It really is. When was the last time Hasbro made a solid, good figure that's universally liked?

chuckdawg1999 wrote:It really is. When was the last time Hasbro made a solid, good figure that's universally liked?

Last week?
Because so far, every WFC figures have been a knock out of the park for most people. Even in the SS line, there's few duds. And if you take Cyberverse for what it is, everything is pretty damn solid too.

Seriously, appart for those damn distribution shenanigans, being a TF collector have been amazing in recent years!

AcademyofDrX wrote:Even though it seems like they made plenty of them, I bet they're going to get very pricey on the secondary market in a couple years or so.

I've yet to see one in stores, even when they're listed as in stock on the site, and they sell out on the site instantly (I have alerts set up on the app). I don't know what store restock is going to be like, but I'm a little concerned since I never saw any of the Earthrise exclusives in stores. Haven't seen the Worlds collide set yet either, apparently there's one in stock 35 miles from me and that's tempting...

-Kanrabat- wrote:

chuckdawg1999 wrote:It really is. When was the last time Hasbro made a solid, good figure that's universally liked?

Last week?
Because so far, every WFC figures have been a knock out of the park for most people. Even in the SS line, there's few duds. And if you take Cyberverse for what it is, everything is pretty damn solid too.

Tracks is almost universally hated and I thought Deluxe Scorponok was a disappointment.

Emerje

Emerje wrote:Tracks is almost universally hated and I thought Deluxe Scorponok was a disappointment.

Emerje

Those are exceptions, not the rule.
Beside, I don't think the opinion about Beast Scorponok is that universal. I'll avoid Tracks but I'm looking forward that Scorpion.

-Kanrabat- wrote:

chuckdawg1999 wrote:It really is. When was the last time Hasbro made a solid, good figure that's universally liked?

Last week?
Because so far, every WFC figures have been a knock out of the park for most people. Even in the SS line, there's few duds. And if you take Cyberverse for what it is, everything is pretty damn solid too.

Seriously, appart for those damn distribution shenanigans, being a TF collector have been amazing in recent years!

Nope.



WFC wasn't universally liked. For one thing, the "cr@pple-damage" paint divided fans. For me, this was the first TF line that I have bought LESS toys in, due to the awful and unwanted paint apps. The line has also been criticised for bundling figures that we wanted (Fangry, etc) with ones that some didn't.

So, no, WFC isn't really a valid example.

If you want to be that way and be a smart-ass about it, NOTHING can "universally" be liked.
Ever.
The only way that can happen is if all 1000 zillion trillion people on this planet would share a single hivemind like the Borgs or Cybermen.

-Kanrabat- wrote:If you want to be that way and be a smart-ass about it, NOTHING can "universally" be liked.
Ever.
The only way that can happen is if all 1000 zillion trillion people on this planet would share a single hivemind like the Borgs or Cybermen.

Exactly, which is why, as the OP suggested, they're isn't really a TF line that's universally popular, including WFC.

Glad that's dealt with.

Btw, I'm not sure if it's been reported, but the following exclusives are (only?) available in Japan via TT Mall:

- Kingdom BW Grimlock and G1 Mirage - https://takaratomymall.jp/shop/g/g4904810193036/

Kingdom BW2 Skywarp and G1 Sideswipe - https://takaratomymall.jp/shop/g/g4904810193029/

(It's a bit annoying for me, when I don't get a heads-up from the TF news sites, as I don't check TT Mall as often as Amazon Japan, so I sometimes lose out on getting "regular" releasees that are "exclusive" in Japan to TT Mall).

M. Spector wrote:Checked a few walgreens last night in a vien attempt to track down Red Alert, no such luck.

You won't see that toy till October

Looks like there's somewhat of a Pipes review on chefatron's YouTube

I got Red Alert this week while I was on a weekend break in Birmingham, I was not expecting him to get any kind of UK release, but there he was, and a good amount of stock of him too, in a comic book shop called Worlds Apart.


This is the first version of the Siege Sideswipe/Red Alert mould I've owned, and he is pretty good. The transformation is nice and complex without being too much of a pain to do, he looks nice in both modes, and I love the lightbar axe weapon he has. I've also got the Sideswipe and Skywarp pack on pre-order, so it won't be long before I have another version of this mould.

M. Spector wrote:Checked a few walgreens last night in a vien attempt to track down Red Alert, no such luck. My target had a Wingfinger's and the repack of Wheeljack, so was close to finding something new but not quite! They also had three copies left of the buzzworthy origin Bumblebee but I'm still not sure if I'm going to bite on it

Do yourself a favor and don't waste any time trying to find Red Alert at a Walgreens until late October at the earliest. For whatever reason they do not put out their exclusives until they reset their stores for Christmas.

It has been the same thing since TR Brainstorm, the TR Clones, PotP Wreck-gar, Siege Ratchet and ER Bluestreak. Check in store anytime before late October will be a waste of time and gas. I've been there, done that for all the figure I mentioned above, except I finally learned my lesson with Bluestreak.

I think some of the past Walgreens exclusives did come out earlier in the year/season than October, but I do agree, it is only an exercise in frustration at this point. I've never been the first to see them, but once news is reported, it is usually within a couple of days, and I never have issue finding them.

But the fact that Red Alert is available (well was available for a short time at least) on Pulse was a first. It's too bad Pulse doesn't have a "notify me when this is back in stock" feature.

Although, unlike past years, my local Walgreens hasn't really stocked any Transformers since ER Bluestreak sold out. It's been pretty barren.

The Kingdom wave 3 toys I pre-ordered back in May arrived this week, my thoughts on each:

Tracks - I was dreading this one because of the negative buzz he was getting, but he's not that bad. The transformation is a little bit complicated for a Deluxe, and the sides of the car models front don't clip in very well, but he's decent enough in both modes and adds a much needed dash of blue to my mostly red and white G1 Autobot line-up
Scorponok - Actually a lot of fun. Yeah he's short in robot mode, but the transformation is fairly straightforward and the scorpion mode is pretty good. I still don't like the shade of purple they went with though, a different shade would make him look so much better.
Rhinox - He was never going to be as good as the Thrilling 30 version, but I still had a lot if fun with him. While not particularly show accurate in either mode, I still ended up liking the Rhino mode a lot, there's more articulation in the rhino's legs than I thought there would be so you can do a charging pose, and tge robot mode looks good alongside the other Maximals. The only things I don't like are the tiny Chainguns and the ridiculously complicated transformation for the robot legs.

I'm close to done with Kingdom at this point, the only figures I still plan on buying are Waspinator, Tigatron, maybe Inferno, maybe Rodimus, and the Amazon Golden Disk Terrorsaur if it's still happening.

o.supreme wrote:But the fact that Red Alert is available (well was available for a short time at least) on Pulse was a first. It's too bad Pulse doesn't have a "notify me when this is back in stock" feature.

Fortunately, Pulse seems to only update stock once a week. (Friday afternoons, I think?) They send marketing emails whenever it occurs, though of course not every product is updated at each of those times.

Target has the "notify me" feature and it's functionally useless for high demand items, because they restock small quantities and don't have anti-bot features. Personally, I'd rather check multiple products with actual stock once a week than race to buy something via notification every day for weeks and still not be able to check out.

To your point, it would still be nice to have, but it's not as critical as it is for other storefronts.