The Most Expensive Transformers Toy from Takara, MP-44 Optimus Prime, is #1 Best Seller on Amazon
Wednesday, December 5th, 2018 9:32AM CST
Category: Toy NewsPosted by: william-james88 Views: 20,169
Topic Options: View Discussion · Sign in or Join to reply
This page may contain affiliate links. We may earn commissions when readers interact with or purchase items through these links. For more information, see our affiliate disclosures here.
If judging from the non Japanese Transformers community on social media and the forums, one would think Takara's Masterpiece MP-44 Optimus Prime Ver 3 to be dead on arrival, due to the price which makes it the most expensive Transformers figure ever released by them.
Well as it turns out, money talks, and the current best selling collectible on Amazon Japan (the preffered destination for Transformers in Japan) is none other than MP-44 Optimus Prime. This confirms that Takara's target audience, Japanese fans, are excited about this release and the price was not the deterent some thought it would be. Of course, Amazon Japan is selling this toy at 30% off MSRP, but that is customary for toy retailers in Japan and in line with every other Japanese retailer selling this toy.
Plus, the $300 USD price on Amazon is still a major increase to the previous high priced MP, Beast Wars Megatron, which Amazon Japan was selling for around $200 USD. That means retail prices for high priced MPs have jumped 50% from one release to the next and yet the toy is still a #1 best seller.
We will leave you now with this fun comparison by fellow CSeibertronian Cyberpath between MP 10, MP 44 and the G1 cartoon.
News Search
Got Transformers News? Let us know here!
Most Popular Transformers News
Most Recent Transformers News
Posted by Rodimus Prime on December 5th, 2018 @ 10:00am CST
Posted by Randomhero on December 5th, 2018 @ 11:03am CST
Posted by joevill on December 5th, 2018 @ 11:04am CST
Posted by Ironhidensh on December 5th, 2018 @ 11:12am CST
Posted by hausjam on December 5th, 2018 @ 12:17pm CST
william-james88 wrote:
Well as it turns out, money talks, and the current best selling collectible on Amazon Japan
And i love that one of the most complained about figures of all time is their third best seller right now.
Posted by ZeldaTheSwordsman on December 5th, 2018 @ 12:18pm CST
Rodimus Prime wrote:Obviously the price makes it impossible to get for me, but I will say that it looks good. The colors could be better, but otherwise it seems to be an improvement over MP-01 and MP-10. Looks like they finally got both modes right.
The way I see it they made them both even more wrong. The truck mode with those pathetic ugly nigh-2D fuel tanks (which are DEFINITELY not cartoon accurate) and that mess of kibble on the bed, the robot mode by actually indulging in the disappearing tires on his legs, both modes with the dumbed-down (and inconsistent) decals and the flat colors. To call those cartoon accurate is to insult the efforts of animators to depict those parts as shiny silver chrome and whatnot like the toys within the limits of their budget and time constraints.
Posted by Nathaniel Prime on December 5th, 2018 @ 12:36pm CST
Posted by Octobotimus on December 5th, 2018 @ 12:44pm CST
Posted by william-james88 on December 5th, 2018 @ 1:09pm CST
Octobotimus wrote:We need to show them with out wallets that we don't want these prices, not with forums. They will never care what we say on here, but they do care when they end up making less money.
For sure, but as the article shows, its too late. People did vote with their wallets and they voted yes to the most expensive Transformers product ever released by Takara.
joevill wrote::lol:
I was laughing too, hence why I just had to news this.
Posted by megatronus on December 5th, 2018 @ 1:18pm CST
Posted by megatronus on December 5th, 2018 @ 1:21pm CST
Posted by Cobotron on December 5th, 2018 @ 1:22pm CST
Yeah! Cyberpath, I demand you post that kickass stop motion GIF you made of this scene with your MP-10.
Posted by ZeldaTheSwordsman on December 5th, 2018 @ 1:25pm CST
william-james88 wrote:Octobotimus wrote:We need to show them with out wallets that we don't want these prices, not with forums. They will never care what we say on here, but they do care when they end up making less money.
For sure, but as the article shows, its too late. People did vote with their wallets and they voted yes to the most expensive Transformers product ever released by Takara.
Like I said, Japanese collectors with more money than sense or taste.
Posted by Colt on December 5th, 2018 @ 1:27pm CST
Posted by Cyberpath on December 5th, 2018 @ 1:29pm CST
I have a feeling that quite a few of the people saying that they won't buy him, will get him eventually. Whether they'll jump on board till August, or get him as a gift from a loved one, or look for him later on eBay, or get an eventual reissue, or something. Wait and see. I was right about him being a top seller.
megatronus wrote:I feel like this image is really unfair to MP10. He can get waaayyy closer to the iconic pose than that.
I got you.
Posted by Cyberpath on December 5th, 2018 @ 1:38pm CST
Colt wrote:Seems a little too biased against MP-10. It feels like it was purposely posed bad to make MP-44 look better.
It's from a magazine piece promoting MP-10.
Posted by Nemesis Maximo on December 5th, 2018 @ 1:41pm CST
Cyberpath wrote:It has nothing to do with loyalty to Takara. People love this character, especially in this form, they want him; the company knows this and is making bank.
I have a feeling that quite a few of the people saying that they won't buy him, will get him eventually. Whether they'll jump on board till August, or get him as a gift from a loved one, or look for him later on eBay, or get an eventual reissue, or something. Wait and see. I was right about him being a top seller.
I smell what you’re cooking, Cyber, and I’m with ya. Haters gonna wait, but but only so long.
Posted by ZeldaTheSwordsman on December 5th, 2018 @ 1:49pm CST
Posted by Burn on December 5th, 2018 @ 2:07pm CST
Posted by megatronus on December 5th, 2018 @ 2:09pm CST
Burn wrote:Even if I won the lotto and had the money to burn, I'd still be questioning whether it's worth spending that much on a figure that I won't be transforming.
I'm warming to MP44 and I hate myself for it.
Posted by Randomhero on December 5th, 2018 @ 2:25pm CST
If you want it and can afford it, buy it. If you want it but can’t. Do as I said, save up here and there. Use a portion from taxes. Whatever. It’s still 9 months from release(August right?). If you absolutely can’t than it’s not meant to be. It’s jusy another Optimus prime. If it’s just gonna sit on a shelf and be dusted every couple months than don’t.
Trying to justify on it or not is stupid to me. At the end of the day if you feel that you will not get your enjoyments worth than you have your answer.
Just my two cents. I’m just getting so tired of the comments that are repeatedly the same I guess.
Posted by shajaki on December 5th, 2018 @ 2:48pm CST
(c'mon now, we all knew I would)
You know what I really dislike about 44... in truck mode there's no white stripe:
I never realised it wasn't present in the cartoon, so seeing 44 stripeless was off-putting. I mean, it's my bad, but it doesn't match what I picture in my head.
Posted by Randomhero on December 5th, 2018 @ 2:50pm CST
shajaki wrote:I jumped on the Amazon.jp preorder
(c'mon now, we all knew I would)
You know what I really dislike about 44... in truck mode there's no white stripe:
I never realised it wasn't present in the cartoon, so seeing 44 stripeless was off-putting. I mean, it's my bad, but it doesn't match what I picture in my head.
I’m having dejavu of Ultra Magnus and his red bumper from a few years ago...
Posted by Aimless Misfire on December 5th, 2018 @ 3:09pm CST
Addiction + stupidity - self control talks even louder than money.
Posted by ZeldaTheSwordsman on December 5th, 2018 @ 3:12pm CST
Posted by Nemesis Maximo on December 5th, 2018 @ 3:22pm CST
ZeldaTheSwordsman wrote:On that screencap clipping in the comparison you can make out the outline of where the stripe ought to be. I think a Masterpiece should capture the essence of the cartoon depiction without stooping to its omissions and errors.
What you think and what Takara thinks are two different things. The goal of the Masterpiece series is to capture what the characters looked like in the original cartoon, which is the most important work of fiction for all of Transformers.
You can say all you want how you don’t agree with the direction of the line, but you can’t seriously tell me you don’t think that what they’ve accomplished is anything short of amazing. It looks almost exactly as Optimus Prime was presented on the show.
Posted by ZeldaTheSwordsman on December 5th, 2018 @ 3:57pm CST
The cartoon is important and the only G1 continuity I care for, but I don't think toys should be dumbed down to the limitations of its animation, especially when A. The animation was trying its best to portray things as shiny within its limits and B. this dumbing down paradoxically overcomplicates a toy as is the case here.
Posted by Emerje on December 5th, 2018 @ 4:03pm CST
ZeldaTheSwordsman wrote:I think there must be a lot of Japanese collectors with more money than sense. Or taste.
Japanese collectors have a different mindset from a lot of western collectors. Where we tend to try to get as much as we can on our shelves and do the biggest and best displays we can, that's not all that practical in Japan. A lot of typical collectors either live at home or live in small one-room apartments (literally one room and a water closet, you go to a bathhouse to bathe) with very limited space for collecting. Some collectors have their character shrines and maybe a bookshelf and not much more. Collecting isn't really about retention it's about the experience. For big and/or expensive figures they'll buy it, enjoy it for a while and then sell it off if they need the space or something better comes along. Places like Mandarake and Jungle thrive on this sort of collector mentality. I'm positive when MP-44 hits we'll see a lot of secondhand MP-10s hit the used market in Japan.
Emerje
Posted by Rodimus Knight on December 5th, 2018 @ 4:24pm CST
Then when you get the whole Rodimus fiasco, with Hasbro only releasing the Hot Rod part and no trailer, now you have collectors going to Takara just in case Hasbro does release the new Optimus without the trailer.
Posted by Ironhidensh on December 5th, 2018 @ 5:05pm CST
megatronus wrote:Burn wrote:Even if I won the lotto and had the money to burn, I'd still be questioning whether it's worth spending that much on a figure that I won't be transforming.
I'm warming to MP44 and I hate myself for it.
I found the amazon price tempting as hell, and still do, but I set a firm $250 limit for myself, for any figure, and I'm going to hold to it. The struggle is real though.
Posted by Hellscream9999 on December 5th, 2018 @ 5:36pm CST
Ironhidensh wrote:megatronus wrote:Burn wrote:Even if I won the lotto and had the money to burn, I'd still be questioning whether it's worth spending that much on a figure that I won't be transforming.
I'm warming to MP44 and I hate myself for it.
I found the amazon price tempting as hell, and still do, but I set a firm $250 limit for myself, for any figure, and I'm going to hold to it. The struggle is real though.
Yeah, I think amazon knocking off $150 makes him much more reasonable to people, and if it doesn't cost a ton to ship, then, you know what, good for them, I'm not gonna hold that against anyone
Posted by TulioDude on December 5th, 2018 @ 6:59pm CST
Posted by ZeldaTheSwordsman on December 5th, 2018 @ 8:10pm CST
Meanwhile, between the blandness from omitting the stripe and the mutilation and overcomplication done to disappear the tires in robot mode, MP-44 is the second-worst depiction of G1 Optimus' truck mode ever (first place is a 3-way tie between Hybrid Style, Robot Masters, and Classics Deluxe although THS-01 at least doesn't blandify the cab and trailer). And you can't even call the cab on MP-44 cartoon-accurate even with the stupid omission of the stripe, thanks to the ridiculously flat fuel tanks and the mess of exposed kibble on the bed! Full cartoon accuracy would require legs that looked just like the original toy's, front and back, in both modes. And hell, have those open up at the back and you'd be able to have the tires tilt 90 degrees and slide in and be hidden without all the overcomplication!
Posted by Ironhidensh on December 5th, 2018 @ 9:03pm CST
william-james88 wrote:Octobotimus wrote:We need to show them with out wallets that we don't want these prices, not with forums. They will never care what we say on here, but they do care when they end up making less money.
For sure, but as the article shows, its too late. People did vote with their wallets and they voted yes to the most expensive Transformers product ever released by Takara.joevill wrote::lol:
I was laughing too, hence why I just had to news this.
It should be noted though, that these are just pre-orders, with no payments. I'd be very curious to see how many are actually full-filled come next August.
Posted by SpikeyTigertron on December 5th, 2018 @ 9:44pm CST
Posted by Dr. Caelus on December 5th, 2018 @ 10:02pm CST
Posted by Deathsaurus1 on December 5th, 2018 @ 10:41pm CST
It would still be above $250+ .
Takaras mp-10 was $250 or $300 at a U.S. retailer.
Hasbros 2012 release was around $130, some got lucky for $99.99. Hasbros 2016 mp-10 release was $160.
Maybe if hasbro were too release it without the starscream bits and the season 1 head, maybe they can lower the price. Possibly without electronics? But that would leave out peter cullen iconic voice .
The trailer will always be included i believe.
Posted by william-james88 on December 5th, 2018 @ 10:44pm CST
Ironhidensh wrote:megatronus wrote:Burn wrote:Even if I won the lotto and had the money to burn, I'd still be questioning whether it's worth spending that much on a figure that I won't be transforming.
I'm warming to MP44 and I hate myself for it.
I found the amazon price tempting as hell, and still do, but I set a firm $250 limit for myself, for any figure, and I'm going to hold to it. The struggle is real though.
I think we are just feeling this because 300$ looks great in comparison to 450$. But its still 300$, which is 100$ more than Encore fort max and MP Best Megatron was on that same amazon site. If we were told this would be 300$ from the start, we might feel differently.
Emerje wrote: For big and/or expensive figures they'll buy it, enjoy it for a while and then sell it off if they need the space or something better comes along. Places like Mandarake and Jungle thrive on this sort of collector mentality. I'm positive when MP-44 hits we'll see a lot of secondhand MP-10s hit the used market in Japan.
Emerje
That explains A LOT. I was wondering how come TTMall exclusives could be so cheap on the secondary Japanese market, within 1 year of them coming out. I guess this is how I will get Big Powered as well.
Rodimus Knight wrote:You can also blame Hasbro for the price too. Since we never know which Masterpieces will be released by Hasbro, people run out and buy the Takara one. The demand is there, they can charge more.
Then when you get the whole Rodimus fiasco, with Hasbro only releasing the Hot Rod part and no trailer, now you have collectors going to Takara just in case Hasbro does release the new Optimus without the trailer.
Thats a thing of the past, we wont be getting that anymore. From now on all MPs will simply be imported directly to the US by Hasbro for the same MSRP. You will probably be able to get it at Entertainment Earth, which seems to be Hasbro's new Toysrus. There is really nothing to blame Hasbro about here.
Posted by Hellscream9999 on December 5th, 2018 @ 10:47pm CST
william-james88 wrote:Rodimus Knight wrote:You can also blame Hasbro for the price too. Since we never know which Masterpieces will be released by Hasbro, people run out and buy the Takara one. The demand is there, they can charge more.
Then when you get the whole Rodimus fiasco, with Hasbro only releasing the Hot Rod part and no trailer, now you have collectors going to Takara just in case Hasbro does release the new Optimus without the trailer.
Thats a thing of the past, we wont be getting that anymore. From now on all MPs will simply be imported directly to the US by Hasbro for the same MSRP. You will probably be able to get it at Entertainment Earth, which seems to be Hasbro's new Toysrus. There is really nothing to blame Hasbro about here.
Speaking of which:
https://www.entertainmentearth.com/product/transformers-masterpiece-edition-mp44-optimus-prime-convoy/hse4009
Posted by william-james88 on December 5th, 2018 @ 10:55pm CST
Hellscream9999 wrote:william-james88 wrote:Rodimus Knight wrote:You can also blame Hasbro for the price too. Since we never know which Masterpieces will be released by Hasbro, people run out and buy the Takara one. The demand is there, they can charge more.
Then when you get the whole Rodimus fiasco, with Hasbro only releasing the Hot Rod part and no trailer, now you have collectors going to Takara just in case Hasbro does release the new Optimus without the trailer.
Thats a thing of the past, we wont be getting that anymore. From now on all MPs will simply be imported directly to the US by Hasbro for the same MSRP. You will probably be able to get it at Entertainment Earth, which seems to be Hasbro's new Toysrus. There is really nothing to blame Hasbro about here.
Speaking of which:
https://www.entertainmentearth.com/product/transformers-masterpiece-edition-mp44-optimus-prime-convoy/hse4009
Oh great, I really look forward to writing yet another article about MP-44's price.
Anyway, I TOLD you all. Hasbro aint gonna do you no favours. This toy is expensive, aint no way around that.
Posted by william-james88 on December 5th, 2018 @ 11:08pm CST
As Hasbro has said in the past, their goal now is to release Masterpiece figures at the same time as Takara. No more waiting years for you to find them at US retail, and also no more skimping on accessories. Starting with Anime Prowl, they will release the exact same product, around the same time ... for the same MSRP.
So with Hasbro's release of MP Beast Wars Megatron being $320 USD at Entertainment Earth, you can easily guess what was in store for MP-44 Optimus Prime. A listing on Entertainment Earth has revealed that this Optimus Prime will be released in the US by Hasbro next year for $439.99 USD. It is the exact same figure with the same accessories though it may come with a wrap around cover with English text (for all you completionists). The item number is HSE4009 and here is the product detail:
The most complete Optimus Prime toy ever!
Redesigned to better match his appearances in media from the 1980s.
Transforms from truck to robot and back again.
Comes with an Ion Blaster, an Energon Axe, Starscream head and shoulders, hoses, blast effects, and much more!
The Transformers Masterpiece Edition Optimus Prime has been reformatted! The beloved original leader of the Autobots has been redesigned from head to toe to better match his appearances in media from the 1980s. The former Orion Pax transforms from truck to robot and back again, and he comes with an Ion Blaster and an amazing Energon Axe. With cartoon-specific detailing, Optimus looks incredible and includes more accessories than ever before. This Transformers Masterpiece Edition MP-44 Optimus Prime (Convoy) is the most complete Optimus Prime toy ever!
Prime also includes a cargo container, a Starscream head, a set of Starscream shoulders, nozzles, hoses, Spike, Sparkplug, a display stand, blast effects, Roller, variant damage parts, an instruction sheet, a character card, and so much more. Don't miss this one!
Posted by Fox Thiagarajan on December 5th, 2018 @ 11:23pm CST
Posted by chuckdawg1999 on December 6th, 2018 @ 1:44am CST
Posted by Cyberpath on December 6th, 2018 @ 2:41am CST
Compare with the old way:
TulioDude wrote:I feel like Sideswipe doesnt fit as much anymore
Then again he was made with same design thoughs as MP10
There is nothing wrong with wanting cartoon accurate toys,but how far are we willing to?I wonder if vehicles are gone get cartoony too
I figure if Sideswipe were made as an MP today he'd be different than MP-12. But I think he's good enough. It's more Red Alet that bugs me, they left out his signature shoulders/arms because back then retooling was simpler due to lower budget.
As for vehicles, I'd say no. If anything they made Sunstreaker more like the real Countach.
And the reason Optimus Prime seems so complex is that they can have a super-accurate robot mode, with a more realistic truck. Different grills, different windows, different fuel tanks, lights, air intake, studs, wipers, etc.
A complete transformation. I think the smoke-stacks may be the only obvious truck parts shared by both modes.
⠀
Posted by Jeddostotle7 on December 6th, 2018 @ 2:48am CST
Posted by ThunderThruster on December 6th, 2018 @ 5:21am CST
Nemesis Maximo wrote:ZeldaTheSwordsman wrote:On that screencap clipping in the comparison you can make out the outline of where the stripe ought to be. I think a Masterpiece should capture the essence of the cartoon depiction without stooping to its omissions and errors.
What you think and what Takara thinks are two different things. The current goal of the Masterpiece series is to capture what the characters looked like in the original cartoon, which is the most important work of fiction for all of Transformers.
Fixed that for you. The origin of the line had little to do with cartoon accuracy, even if that is the current direction.
TulioDude wrote:I feel like Sideswipe doesnt fit as much anymore
Then again he was made with same design thoughs as MP10
Nemesis Maximo wrote:You can say all you want how you don’t agree with the direction of the line, but you can’t seriously tell me you don’t think that what they’ve accomplished is anything short of amazing. It looks almost exactly as Optimus Prime was presented on the show.
Agreed that they've had to be innovative with their engineering, and he does very much look like the on screen respresentation (aside from that mahoosive backpack) of the cartoon.
[/quote]Cyberpath wrote:And the reason Optimus Prime seems so complex is that they can have a super-accurate robot mode, with a more realistic truck. Different grills, different windows, different fuel tanks, lights, air intake, studs, wipers, etc.
A complete transformation. I think the smoke-stacks may be the only obvious truck parts shared by both modes.
Which raises another point of intrigue. If you need so many faux parts in the bot mode, is it not just a glorified shell-former?
Posted by Anonymous on December 6th, 2018 @ 5:34am CST
Im expecting this to end up on discount if they stock to anywhere near a normal level. Of course if they go for piecemeal stock levels ill be dissapointed!
Posted by Dr. Caelus on December 6th, 2018 @ 6:01am CST
Prime Day 2019: $220 with Free two day shipping!
After Peime Day 2019: New starting at $900 from these swllwrs!
Posted by Cyberpath on December 6th, 2018 @ 6:34am CST
He looks sharp to me, I don't see any shells hanging off him.ThunderThruster wrote:Which raises another point of intrigue. If you need so many faux parts in the bot mode, is it not just a glorified shell-former?
You mean an ab crunch? MP-10 can't do that.Jeddostotle7 wrote:This is a tad off-topic, but because of this thread, I now know MP-10 can bend at the waist. I just tried doing it on mine, but it doesn't seem to want to do it easily, at least via just simply pulling it forward. Can anyone explain how to do it? I'm fine with the reply being via PM if y'all feel like this would clog up this thread.
You can try faking it with his waist rotation and the right camera angle.
Posted by Rodimus Knight on December 6th, 2018 @ 7:16am CST
So shouldn't this figure be less money or is Hasbro or Entertainment Earth just looking at the pricing of the imported versions and charging that much?