Depends Class Transformers?....Sigh

AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!

WOW!....That is so funny.

Jetfire as an old man bot with a freakin cane! I can hear the fanboys dying in their toy dens by the dozen. What an insane bastardization of one of the most badass G1 characters.

At least the TFA Russian Commandos were funny....

Classics Exclusives: 50% Worth Owning?

Exclusive Classics 2.0 Figures in Japanese Style Boxes released only by HasbroToyShop.com around Xmas? Yes, sir, you have my attention.

But on closer inspection, imagine my letdown when I realized that two of the four figures (Optimus Prime and Megs) are re-releases of what are possibly the worst two molds in the entire line, namely the figures that were released in the ill-fated two-pack that most of us ended up throwing out due to their terrible posing, and inability to stay in one piece. Not to mention that the paint job on prime is barely new. (Megs looks better, but I won't be deceived....that crazy waist spring still lies in wait...)

Still for the Classics completists amongst us, I suppose this might still be tempting.

Personally I will be opting to only add the Dragstrip and Overkill models since I like the Mirage and Grimlock molds and feel the redecos represent the G1 characters quite well.

Pricing on these is $16 on HTS.com, which with taxes and shipping works out to just under $20USD. With currency exchange and fees to use a US card to get em for us, it will work out to $26 or so. Send your orders our way asap....the good ones will likely sell out as most HTS exclusives tend to do.

p.s. These don't ship until December....

WOW!....Customs Gaining Momentum

A few months ago I paid just over $400 for this little beauty:


It's a Jin Saotome custom using TFA Lugnut and some smart customization to make a G1 Powerglide update that puts the Classics 2.0 Powerglide to shame (IMHO).

And on that day I went into that auction certain that the most I would pay for it was $150. And yet, I more than doubled my final bid when the chips were down. And it was also the day I realized that custom toys have turned the corner past collectibles, and into the art world.

Case in point...the incredible $3,150 sale by frenzy.rumble this week of his custom Menasor gestalt set on EBay!


I mean sure, this is an amazing one of a kind piece, but how far can the limit be pushed?

2 questions to the audience, so show of hands:

1) What is the most you would pay for a custom?

2) Who are the top 3 custom toy artists working today?

Go to it...

HasbroToyShop.com To Ship To Canada This Fall?

Word on the street is that HasbroToyShop.com may finally open its doors to Canadians later this fall. Having dealt with their US version several times this year, I thought I would provide some analysis of the pros and cons that we are likely to face once this finally launches:

1) For most new items, HTS has everything we could possibly need, though they do tend to sell out for hotter items, sometimes during the preorder phase, which then means watching out daily for the reemergence of the product at some later date (usually within 2 weeks.) HOWEVER, the vast majority of items, even if pre-ordered will ship weeks or even months (!) after the initial street date in the US. Items like TFA Ultra Magnus will be in our hands from street teams long before HTS will bother shipping them...this seems to be a function of their commitments to their retailers, but it means fans hyper to get the latest in a timely way will have to sit on their hands for a while.

2) In an ideal world we would be getting US pricing but shipping from Cdn distribution centers. This is almost certainly NOT going to be the case. As such we will be facing US to Canada shipping prices + full Cdn taxes since HTS will always mark the full value of the items on the package as per the law. This will tend to bring pricing on most items back up towards the Cdn pricing except under special circumstances (see next point.)

3) About once a quarter HTS will have a solid sale worth paying attention to, typically represented by either free shipping (I have a feeling this may not end up being applicable in Canada), or 10-20% off, and very rarely, both a discount AND free shipping. For the very patient this can be a good way to make a larger order worthwhile, though again, with new items you are looking at a potentially long wait.

4) In reality, the best use for HTS for Cdn fans will be direct access to San Diego Comicon Exclusives when they come online each summer for a brief period of time. Being able to order directly from them on these items once a year will be better for all of us, vs. the current system of using ebay, msg boards or the co-op to get decent to bad pricing in order to get a piece of the rare figure action.




Expect further analysis when the system goes live (if it goes live!) later this fall.

Take care,

James

I Freakin Love TFA Activators

Wow,

I have to say, when they first announced the activators line, I was totally "meh" about it. It seemed like a cash grab to slip another line between the kiddie Bumper Battlers and the normal deluxe figures.


And then I got my hands on Wave 1, and I haven't been able to stop playing with them since!

I love the way each of these intricate little guys are 50% instant self-transformation via single touch button activation, and then 50% puzzle as you maneuver them back into place. Just as I always seem to do with old mini-cons at my desk while on the phone with clients, these activators are total finger candy while my mind is on auto-pilot.

Can't recommend them enough...

p.s. I have three sets of wave 1 left at $24, which is about $10cdn less than they go for up here.

Heh...Can I Assume We Will All Be Getting A Set?

Yeah, some of you may remember I called the audible on these months back...with Hasbro doing them for every other major line, it was only a matter of time until GI JOE and Transformers got the treatment.

Feel free to signal anytime between now and the fall release date if you want a full set of these.

Masterpiece Megatron Back in Stock for $93!!!

Straight forward...I have 4 Masterpiece Megatron MISB heading to the co-op for $93 each....beats best online prices by about $10-$25.

Hands up if you want em....last two times they were claimed within 48hrs.