Don't get me wrong, I am just as impressed with the Marvel and Star Wars crossover lines as most, but have they taken away from TF's in general? I mean, in theory, if those lines had not been made, would there have been more engineering designs, funds, sculpts, designers, able to be focused on new regular canon TF's? Some of those molds/designs in the crossovers would be AMAZING had they been done as regular TF characters. I'm just curious what everyone else thinks.

 

They probably just wouldn't have the space to fit them into any other line. I'm sure Hasbro only wants x amount of Transformer toys on the pegs at one time. Much like not having all of the summer blockbuster movies come out at the same time. You'd only go see 1 or 2 of them. Best on their part to put them into the other toy line brands. Having said that, some would be cool as more traditional characters.

 

Definitely, I particularly like the hummer and armored vehicle designs that have come out over the past years. I'd be curious to know what the percentage of sales the crossovers are, and then compare that to possible sales had they been given transformer characterizations. It may even be that Marvel/Star Wars names sell better than obscure or repainted TF characters.

 

I am constantly reminded that some of the best customs comes from using these molds.

 

I have never cared for the TF crossovers personally. I only have bought 1 and thats Yoda. Based on this figure it really seems like a TF side project because the engineering just does not seem to be as good as main line transformers. I of course base this on 1 figure that i have my complaints about but hey robot Yoda is still pretty cool!

 

From what I understand, it's a different team entirely that make those things. Could be even that they are engineered here where all transformers are done through takara. I don't think it takes away from transformers at all. Look at it as two cars going in the same direction, but on different roads. Or to put it anouther way the time, energy, and money that wasn't going to the crossovers would have gone to other marvel or SW toys. Different pool of resources.
My only complaint with the marvel ones is that they keep on doing the same characters over and over in different molds. I wish they would have expanded that line to add different charcters, but I know thats not going to happen due to cost. I am still shocked at how expensive the marvel (and SW) ones are compared to the transformers line. So obviously something different is going on there.

Randy!

 

Never taken the slightest bit of notice of them, but I certainly don't think Transformers the brand has suffered as a result of them at all.

Also I object to your word of "canon" (as in "canon TFs") - it's one of the most misused words in the English language amongst our...er...kind.

I don't think you can even apply canon to a toyline, but if you were to...
Hasbro created the Crossovers, and decreed them to be Transformers. Therefore they are "toy canon".

I think you mean toys that also appear in supporting media e.g. comics, cartoons etc.

Sorry to be anal, but one of my pet peeves is fandom's wild misuse of the word canon (not just Transformers fandom but Star Trek, Wars etc)

 

To be honest they never really felt like a crossover to me.

When I think crossover I think of something like Prime showing up in GI Joe, Megatron showing up in Star Wars, or a Transformer shows up in the Marvel Universe. These toys have felt more like a Japanese mech line since they turn into things like the Darth Vader mech instead of a Transformers character. Just feels like the only reason the packaging says Transformers is because Transformers is a popular brand of transforming toy in the US.

 

I don't like the crossover stuff. To me they suck. I don't even see them as Transformers. I barely know they exist. I don't look their way when I'm in the toy isle.

 

I do not believe they have, I regard them as simply another product line for the Transformers brand, one i do not care for outside of one mold ( The Hulk Tank).


The things I dislike about them have not been forced into the main line so there is really no negative effect, it possible that revenue from these helps support development of Mainline Transformers as they well out number the crossovers.

 

I don't see how Transformers as a brand can suffer from the Crossover lines. They have nothing to do with Transformers, they're just characters and vehicles from whatever other line it is that's being crossed over that happen to transform from one to the other.

You don't like them, don't buy them. That easy.

Hell, they're barely meant for fans and collectors of Transformers. Otherwise you'd be seeing the X-Wing transform into Mirage rather than Luke Skywalker. It's just another line with another gimmick for fans of the Star Wars or Marvel franchises.

 

well, I can't really say anything about the crossover toys as I don't collect them, but yes logically those resourses could have been invested in other TF lines

as for it affecting other lines? Who knows, hopefully they learned something developing those toys that they wouldn't otherwise have. Then again, I guess they could have learned something from doing a different line...

to expand on the topic though, I've never liked TF crossovers - the worst one that comes to mind would be the G2 gi joe comics where megatron got his new tank mode. My god, the author had absolutely no idea what Megatron was like, had him talking like a robot from some 1960s show - turning the page I almost expected megs to say “Danger, Will Robinson!”

 

Considering the Crossover lines are supposedly not done by the same engineering team(s) as "regular" Transformers, I doubt they have much impact on what is in the standard Transformer toy lines one way or the other.

 

I don't think the brand has suffered. I'd kind of like to see some more crossovers. Like with Sonic the Hedgehog. Or (and I hereby prove my insanity) maybe even Sailor Moon.

 

I'm pretty sure the star wars ones are done by the star wars team. So if anything, it's the star wars toyline that losses funding to the crossovers. I can't remeber what team is inchrage of the marvel ones, but I know it wasn't the transformers team. The star wars ones pretty much suck. But I have a few to sit in vehicle mode with my old star wars action fleet. The marvel ones are a little bit better. The wolverine jeep and the hummer mold are decent. I would get more if it wasn't for the price. If I am going to be spending that much on a toy, I might as well just get a "real" tf voyager.

 

No.

The crossovers are seperate.

 

Yeah that's the one I like too.

But generally speaking, I would not want the designers behind these figures working on the main line.

 

I wouldn't think so.

I'm another person that doesn't collect any of the crossover lines.

 

Exactly.