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Christmas comes to Autobot City! (last year's display)

 

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Time to catch up with old friends! Cerebros is a headmaster whose head is Spike, the Autobots' and specifically Bumblebee's oldest human friend. This miniature version doesn't have the removable head, but it still works for the scene.

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Energon Optimus Prime, with Legends Bumblebee. This character design was often derided as "Fattimus Prime" but I think he looks more barrel-chested than fat. He could combine with any deluxe-class Energon Autobot.

 

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Vehicle modes

 

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Prime's gun rack.

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A Tale of Two Cities - Fortress Maximus vs. Trypticon. Fort Max is the 3rd party Infinitor figure, while Trypticon (not Mecha-@Raze!) is an original from 1986. Trypticon's electronics still work, so he walks.

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Communications Officers - Device Label Soundwave (Blaster Black) is a homage to the Japanese-exclusive Soundblaster figure and a functioning though basic MP3 player. His cassette door opens to reveal a mini-SD card slot (good luck tracking one of those down!).

 

Blaster on the right is a third party figure, Mega Steel "Buster". He has a spot for cassettes, but Mega Steel hasn't released any yet. He also has swappable heads - the toy-based one you see here and one based on the animation model.

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Starscreams

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Back left is Robot Masters Starscream, part of a small Japanese line from the mid-2000s.  The other two are Legends class versions - the larger one is more recent and more posable.

 

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A shot demonstrating the creative mold reuse Hasbro is up to these days. Autobots on the right, Decepticons on the left, yet only 2 basic molds between the 4 figures. The Autobots, Silverbolt and Powerglide are the originals. Cyclonus is a heavy remold of Silverbolt, and looks very different unless you know what details to check - the arms, abdomen and the front of the legs are basically the same. Cyclonus even manages to seem bigger than Silverbolt, though that might be the different head and the way I have his wings posed (angled rather than straight back).

 

Viper is a minor remold of Powerglide - only the head has changed. But the different colors are effective at distinguishing him. An interesting note - he's only the second official general release TF-GiJoe crossover toy in the 32 years TFs have been around. The first one was Titanium Megatron a decade ago.

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Bumblebees. On the left is KMart Legends Bumblebee, released back in G1 around 1988. Larger than the original Microman-based figure, and closer to an actual Beetle in proportions. On the right is Masterpiece Bumblebee, which manages to have both a highly-accurate Beetle mode and a robot mode very close to the animation model. Appropriately, he's also the smallest Masterpiece figure to date, around the size of a standard carded "Deluxe" figure, while most MPs are closer to the boxed "Voyager" size.

 

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(I forgot to rotate the panel on MP `Bee to hide his Autobrand in car mode. But the feature seems a little superfluous since the symbol on his foot/trunk is always visible.)

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Shockwaves. The one on the left is the current Combiner Wars Legends class figure. He's the original G1 character, and designed to be held in gun mode by a combiner. On the right is Transformers Prime Shockwave.

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On February 14, 2016 at 11:09 AM, DConnell said:

Bumblebees. On the left is KMart Legends Bumblebee, released back in G1 around 1988. Larger than the original Microman-based figure, and closer to an actual Beetle in proportions. On the right is Masterpiece Bumblebee, which manages to have both a highly-accurate Beetle mode and a robot mode very close to the animation model. Appropriately, he's also the smallest Masterpiece figure to date, around the size of a standard carded "Deluxe" figure, while most MPs are closer to the boxed "Voyager" size.

 

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(I forgot to rotate the panel on MP `Bee to hide his Autobrand in car mode. But the feature seems a little superfluous since the symbol on his foot/trunk is always visible.)

 

If this was lime green... that we know it's LimeMaster! 

 

 

:shifty:

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There is one Transformer that I want to get my hands on, it's from the Headmaster line, and it is the original Fortress Maximus, but it costs over $1000 for MIB.

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4 minutes ago, Thomas the Tank Engine said:

There is one Transformer that I want to get my hands on, it's from the Headmaster line, and it is the original Fortress Maximus, but it costs over $1000 for MIB.

I have an original. Battered, water-stained, in desperate need of Reprolabels and missing Gasket & Grommett, but fully functional and currently in city mode on my dresser. Got it at a collector show in Atlantic City over a decade ago.

 

There's a new version coming out this year which should retail for around $125. It's a heavy remold of Metroplex from 3 years ago, but extensively redone so it is a great Max update. It even retains the double headmaster feature. There's also a reissue of the Japanese version of the original Max which you can get for around $250.

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32 minutes ago, Thomas the Tank Engine said:

Why would I want reissues, when I clearly said I want the original?!

Less expensive alternatives. Most collectors would prefer the original if money were no problem, but the whole point of the reissues is to let people get these classic toys without the 4 digit pricetag.

 

Plus that G1 reissue is just like the original from the reviews. Only without the wear & tear and 25 years of plastic degradation. Mine certainly feels a bit stiff and fragile, though the thickness of the plastic makes the chance of something snapping off very slim (thankfully!)  Frankly, given the choice between my copy original and the reissue, I'd go for the reissue. And the upcoming Titans Return version is almost certainly more posable then the original figure, which is a bit of a brick to be honest. Best thing about FM is the city mode as a display area for smaller figures.

 

It really depends on what's more important to you - the actual figure released in 1987, one of the best "playsets" ever released for TFs, or simply a representation of the character,. Only the original will do for the first, but a reissue will do for the latter 2. And the TR figure will work nicely for the last.

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2 hours ago, Thomas the Tank Engine said:

There is one Transformer that I want to get my hands on, it's from the Headmaster line, and it is the original Fortress Maximus, but it costs over $1000 for MIB.

there was a reissue of fortress maximus and it was a lot less that 1000.  It doesn't have the original box, but who cares other than elite collectors. 

 

http://www.bigbadtoystore.com/bbts/product.aspx?product=TAK11575&mode=retail

 

here is a comparison.  Original mold and colors, just the box  is the main difference (I am sure there are extremely minor revisions with the new one).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kDgforQpRgE
 

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If I wanted the reissue, then I would have said so.  It's best to stop telling me what you want me to get!

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Well some people don't know about them or their availability.  For many a reissue is the one to get because you get the actual thing and get to play with it for a fraction of the cost of what collectors are charging.  There is no point to have an original if you are going to take it out of the box, it does devalue it.  Get what you want, it is your money and wish.  For me, I would get what I could afford and wouldn't be afraid to take out.

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4 minutes ago, sc302 said:

Well some people don't know about them or their availability.  For many a reissue is the one to get because you get the actual thing and get to play with it for a fraction of the cost of what collectors are charging.  There is no point to have an original if you are going to take it out of the box, it does devalue it.  Get what you want, it is your money and wish.  For me, I would get what I could afford and wouldn't be afraid to take out.

^ This. There's nothing wrong with wanting the original from 1987, even with the availability of the reissue. But there are pluses and minuses to both original and reissue. And the TR version is a different figure entirely, even if it does represent the same character.

 

For you having an actual original is important, for me less so. I only own the original because it was the only option when I found it; the reissue didn't exist and was thought unlikely to ever happen. Honestly, I'd be tempted to sell my original to buy the reissue if I thought I'd get enough to cover the cost. I might give it a shot, actually - I'd love to have a pristine, complete one made with modern plastics. More than complete, really - the domestic release didn't include the Master Sword. I just can't afford the reissue right now.

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Blaster participates in "Bring your kid to work day". The big one is the 3rd party "Buster" figure I've shown before, while the small one is a genuine Hasbro Action Master version, from 1991, the final year of G1.

 

Action Masters were straight action figures of the characters, unable to transform but with transforming accessories. They made up for the loss of the transforming feature with (for the time) better articulation and sculpts which were good approximations of the animation models. Or interesting blends of the toy design and animation model, like Blaster.

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