When they're packed in robot mode, it sorta takes away the motivation to transform them

 

I so agree with this. I love the revelation when you first transform a figure to robot mode. I almost wish I can hire someone to open WFC Soundwave for me and then transform him to vehicle mode so I can transform him back.

I understand with figures like the upcoming Lugnut. I don't think those wings can fit in the box.

 

I'd rather see something visually appealing than a beige jet with an overly bulky rounded nosecone. The robot mode is very impressive, so I'm not knocking the figure at all... Just that I think it will shelfwarm because it makes a bad first impression.

I'm not talking from the nostalgic collector point of view. I'm talking from the "When I found Thunderwing, it was on a shelf with a shit ton of Bumblebees and nothing else, meaning even Cliffjumper was more appealing to whoever bought everything else" point of view. It took me a full day to decide it looked interesting enough to open. I'm glad I did after seeing the robot mode in person... But had I not gotten over the jet mode being so damn boring, I never would have had that opportunity. If they're going to start being more flexible about what mode figures are packed in, they might as well consistently make it the more interesting of the two, regardless of how much the collectors will bitch because in G1 none of the "regular" guys were in robot mode.

I fairly often have people come over to play with my collection. Doesn't bother me at all. None of them have ever played with Transformers until they met me. 9 times out of 10, they can unfold a car into a robot without much trouble. Maybe 3 out of 10, they can take that robot and fold it back into a car. Top request? "Give me a dude that I can turn into a car". Not the other way around. Part of the hobby (from where I stand and from where I've always stood) is the fulfillment from taking the man and making the car... Trust me, I've been in this since I was 4 and I've seen people of all ages (casual consumers, if you will) try this stuff out... Unless they're completely inept (and thus G1 Bumblebee is "too hard"), they like the challenge of making the vehicle, not finding the robot.

That being said, the flexibility in how they're packing figures makes things like ROTF Jetfire and RTS Lugnut possible... And, at least from where I stand, robot mode is the more interesting mode for both of them. By far for Jetfire, less so for Lugnut... But still, the less locked-in to old roles Hasbro makes themselves, the more creative figures we'll be getting that "defy" old rules. The limit, of course, being package size (which, as far as I'm aware, isn't as much of an issue in Japan).

 

Was reffering to the matrix, but after I posted I noticed you used clear rubber bands.

 

Can somebody post a request pic for me? owo I'd like to see how Thunderwing, Darkmount, and WFC Megatron look together in a photo. Please? 8D

 

Hmmm...he is indeed tiny. Will have to make a makeshift armor for him ala Baikanfu. Else he is gonna look small with the rest of the collection.

This will be not be easy. *Sigh*~

 

D'Oh!


But yeah, clear rubber bands. It's actually kind of a pain, as the bands are kinda small, but it makes for an awesome photo op if you can manage it.


Anyway, now that I feel stupid, I'll be over here in a corner if you need me...  .

 

Hope this can help, not the best but I have a free second and them on hand  



Baby's asleep and I just opened Thunderwing, hes a pretty nifty lil fella. Transformation is kinda intuitive and not too easy. Now to actually get the IDW comics and see how he figures in.

 

Thunderwing is pretty awesome. Way better looking in both modes than his Mega Pretender.

Super easy transformation. I'm a bit bummed that his "drone" doesn't transform, but I think he was only his true self for like on comic panel in his whole history, so that don't befront me none.

This really should have been a voyager.

 

Eh, would be nice but I personally like how they are putting decent figures out at a good price with a sprinkling of Voyagers.

 

I pretty much agree, hecks 9 beans for the Stormbringer is pretty hawt. It's just that a Mega Pretender is pretty large, and Thunderwing was a pretty big dude in all the comics. I would have rather had a Thunderwing that can stand next to Classics Megs and not stare at his cyber-navel.

But also would have rather had a Voyager Straxus as well.

Anyway, it sure beats paying 300 bucks for a poorly proportioned and badly articulated G1 Mega Pretender.

 

Its a shame you aren't satisfied with it. Like Darkmount, it will be years before Hasbro molds another Thunderwing toy.

I'm just grateful we got these toys based on relatively obscure characters.

 

Pros:
- Looks pretty good in both modes.

- I like the bird/angel-ish wings in robot mode

- Nice big weapons

Cons:
- Much like Classics Jetfire or Silverbolt, much of the robot mode is just there on the underside of the jet mode, though there are attempts to disguise it. The arms are the worst of it.

- He's tiny. (about Hound height) I don't have a big connection to the character that makes me outraged or anything, but one can't deny he's a shorty compared to many other deluxe Decepticons. He doesn't even have the benefit of looking big alone, thanks to his kinda stumpy torso and proportion.

Notes and Nitpicks:
- The little aerial drone is kinda cute. It reminds me of things like Depth Charge's "Aquabrawn"

- For as basic a transformation as Thunderwing's, the legs are surprisingly finicky to get back to jet mode, as the kneepads cross paths with the torso cover if you aren't careful.

- His face reminds me of the Grinch when he's smiling.

Overall: How much you like this probably depends a lot on your level of connection to Thunderwing as a character. Not enough and it's just a mediocre jet-former, too much and it's a ruined opportunity. Just enough, and it's a neat and unusual fun little TF toy.

 

Not sure if anybody else has noticed this but I'm wondering if part of his transformation was omitted or an error occurred during manufacturing. The only real gripe I have about this figure is his height but after looking at it I feel like it might be able to remedied slightly.

Two things:

First off is the neck. The neck is really wide and limits articulation. Moreso than that it really gives the impression of stockiness and makes him look rather stubby. If you can get rid of the plast around his neck i think it'll help articulation a lot and make him look more sleak.

Second, and more interestingly to me, is the crotchpiece that his hips/legs peg onto. It rests at almost a 45 degree angle. This brings his legs closer to the front of his body and takes off a little bit of height. I think this is where something might have been omitted. The length of his arms and legs implies that his hips should rest lower on his torso. I think that if you use a dremel to shave down the back of the crotchpiece so that it can fold down all the way it might help a little.

I'm gonna try these mods out and see if they work. What do you guys think? Sorry if it's already been pointed out.

 

Every once in a while HasTak puts out a mold that just feels like an afterthought. There is nothing terribly wrong with this toy but it seems to me that there just isn't any payoff for the simplicity of the whole thing. I remember hating Universe Silverbolt at first for the same reason, but at least he had height and SFX going for him. In the case of Thunderwing, what does he have? His articulation isn't very good. The shoulders are especially lousy and the feet, despite being balljointed, are quite restricted. Also, they didn't even bother to secure a bunch of the parts in robot mode. The pelvis area flops back and forth, the wings can flop a bit too, and the backpack is pretty loose on mine. And the drone....Even if you ignore that it doesn't transform, it also doesn't have any other attachment points. Why can't he at least plug it into his arm to use as a small shield or laser? Talk about a rush job!

Still this toy would have to be less of a letdown than Jazz. Jazz is a toy that would be great if it worked the way it's supposed to. Thunderwing is a toy that works the way it's supposed to but isn't great. Good thing I saved Tracks for last!

 

That is just perfect! Thanks man!

 

Amazing, the amount of complaining for such a nice figure. I realize every one is entitled to an opinion, but sheesh. You'd think Thunderwing was Cheetor or Galvatron bad. Just goes to show you can't please every person. I'm quite happy with how Thunderwing turned out. As a big Thunderwing fan, I think the only valid complaint here is the height. And that is a minor nitpick.

 

theres somehing about TW i like, its the G1ish simplicty and slightly weird colour scheme combined with a somewhat beast wars looking robot mode.

I think the lack of transforming drone that could have fit in the chest (just so it would do something) was a waste of a cool opportunity esp as this was a new mould, teh idea of pretender shell could easily have been added, making the main robot more like a power up suit in concept.

I like the simple transformation as you can flip between modes in 30 secs like a G1 toy rather than fiddle for 5 mins like some 'universe' toys, everything clips in nicely, even if the guns could be better held in hands and together.

Overall he doesnt have that scrappy cheap look of some universe toys (im not sure why some look cheap eg prowl). At first i kept getting silverbolt dejavu of robot under jet but hes nowhere near as bad as silverbolt, ive almost come to hate that toy, its such a cheat!! despite the nice looking robot mode.

only QC issue on mine is that one of the leg landing gear is totally loose and just flops in and out of its housing.

I just hope takara can keep on adding cool updates to the universe line in future, i like when they reimagine a more obscure toy from the past, i wish they would really get interesting though and do some cool gimmick laden pieces, a duocon set, a clone set, that type of thing...and actually keep the valid gimmick.

 

Anyone else have stress marks on the holes where the guns plug in? That's my biggest disappointment aside from the rounded sculpt of the robot mode.