The Clunkiness of movie toys

Discussion in 'Transformers Toy Discussion' started by The Demolisher, Jul 16, 2007.

  1. The Demolisher

    The Demolisher Banned

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    This is something I've noticed that's bothering me.

    While visually quite nice, the movie toys are also a little messier than I thought they would be. At first I thought they pulled off the movie aesthetic quite well, but some specimens like Jazz and Leader Prime have a lot of kibble.

    Jazz I feel suffers from being too chunky. He doesn't "feel" great to play with, though looks nice when you pose him. The doors on the legs just look WRONG though, they should be removable.

    Most of the bots are too wide and not tall enough in general - which is okay for the most part, since they look more like Transformers and less like bionicles. But some, like Voyager Ratchet, feel a bit too wide, and I find myself wanting something a little more movie accurate.

    IMO, Voyager Prime is probably the best attempt at meshing the movie aesthetic into a toy. The only problem is his back kibble - they should have made it split up somehow, or transform into his weapon. It's little touches like this that I feel would have helped the movie line become nicer over all.

    I think there are some instances where the Translation to toy has some definite improvements. Leader Megs, while a bit bland, has a MUCH nicer build - the movie accurate repaints look a lot better than the movie model itself, he looks a lot more solid. I feel the same goes for Deluxe Bonecrusher, and Voyager Starscream looks like a fun toy, whereas the movie model probably wouldn't make for a fun toy, which makes me wonder about the prospect of a Leader starscream.

    I'm just really sad that I could have gotten a nicer Jazz, I guess. I like the one I have, but it doesn't fully feel right.

    There isn't really any way to avoid this, currently. IMO the designers should have worked closer to Hasbro to create an aesthetic that was easier and better to represent in a toy.
     
  2. EvaUnit13

    EvaUnit13 REBUILD

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    I feel it's the limitation of how accurate you can get with using plastic. That, and keeping with the size of the toy. That and the electronics, I bet the backpack on Leader Ops could find a place to go where the electronics are
     
  3. Valkysas

    Valkysas Attack Buffalo

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    I still hate leader prime. Yes, he's a fine toy in his own right, but does a terrible job of representing the movie character. the proportions are not right, the only part of the transformation that's accurate is the windshield's placement, because of the transformation being changed so much a lot of colors are wrong, and in a grand testament to how badly designed he is, the wheels dont even fit on his upper legs like they do on the movie character or voyager figure, and even the legends class figure. also, he's a pain in the ass to pose because of the wheels clipped to his ass. his legs are too damn short as well.

    I can't imagine why the voyager version of prime has a pretty damn accurate leg transformation, amazingly accurate proportions, not to mention a vastly more accurate head sculpt, and the leader figure's only advantage is that it doesnt have a truck nose shell hanging off it's back.

    I WANT AN ACCURATE MOVIE PRIME, DAMMIT. I hope they eventually do a masterpiece version.

    barricade, as much as people love him, has a lot of problems too. crappy arm articulation, limited leg movement due to the feet and strange knees, and we could have gotten a much better chest transformation if frenzy was left out.

    old-style bumblebee is a failure in every sense of the word. he is easily the absolute worst representation of any movie character in the toyline, and especially bad when compared to the new-style bumblebee. in the movie, only the car parts change on the character model in the upgrade. body type stays the same, robot mode parts stay the same. bumblebee's two figures should have been a shell-change, nothing more.

    I don't own leader megatron yet, and I dont think I will. I think its rather pathetic that the only version of the character to have a nice jet mode is the legends class figure, and of course the legends class figure is also the only one that has a chest that doesnt look like ass.
     
  4. Abrogate

    Abrogate Nondescript Former Poster

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    I agree that Jazz and Ratchet look too chunky (especially Jazz, who was very thin and athletic in the movie) but I like the aesthetics of almost every other figure. Also I have no interest in 70's BB for the reasons Valkysas mentioned.
     
  5. The Demolisher

    The Demolisher Banned

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    Wow, for once I agree with almost everything you said, with the following comments:

    Yes, Leader Prime IS quite a poor representation of the movie model. I still think he's a lovely toy, but much overrated. He should have been some kind of store exclusive, or advertised as something other than "Leader" because of his gimmicks. Then we should have gotten a Leader sized Prime that actually looked like the movie character.

    I agree, the Voyager version is fantastically accurate. Only problem is he needs the windows "seperating" and some new shoulders to be more accurate. Which do you think is better; Robovision or Voyager?

    Yes, I want a Movie accurate Prime. IMO, they should have released the Robot Replica the day the movie came out to keep us going until a better Leader/Masterpiece. Plus he'd be nice to display with the LOCs(LOC Prime looks like a cake slice).

    I think Barricade is a little dull too - mainly because the LOC is such a fantastic figure, and I had him first. It's put me off getting Barricade.

    Yes, I don't get Old-style Bumblebee either. But I think it's because the chest left like that, looks closer to the transformed chest because of the shape of the car front than the '08's chest does. It's hard to explain what I mean. I don't think the toy is terrible - he just bores me. I think they needed a different bot mode to justify buying both - unfortuantely, there's no real reason for me to buy the old Camaro when the new one does everything I want, is a much nicer car, and a much rounder car so it's more reminiscant of the original 'Bee.

    Leader Megs has a terrible Jet mode. I was going to get him and repaint him, but he's godawful. As much as I think the design is a mess, there still should have been some movie-accurate figure, the Robot Replica looks like he's made from icing sugar.

    You know that LOC Megs AND Starscream are the most accurate representations of the characters? It's amazing. It just shows what you can do when you "cheat" - Ratchet could have been 90% accurate too if they wanted, he turns himself inside out, basically.


    The reason the movie Autobots are so stumpy, though, is that if you look at the movie models, they do a lot of "stretching" upwards, folding out internals. This is quite a good idea in terms of making them less dwarfed by the Decepticons, but makes them look a bit spindly, and results in inaccurate toys. It's most notable in Bumblebee perhaps, but I prefer the 08 Deluxe to the more human proportioned movie model. I think the designers forgot that overall bulk contributes to size as much as height does, it makes characters look taller - for instance, I use to display alternators with my Marvel Legends, they still looked like Big Robots next to them because of how much bulkier they were even than the Muscly Marvel guys. They "Looked" huge - something the movie designs should have worked on more for better toy accuracy.
     
  6. Night Flame

    Night Flame TFW2005 Supporter

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    Sadly, there are a lot of truly awesome toys in the movie line that only vaguely resemble the Transformer they are supposed to represent on the screen.

    I keep finding myself looking at Leader Prime and feeling the same about him as I did about my G1 Prime. Cool toy. Sucky representation of the movie character.

    It just makes me feel like we've seen our first giant leap forward in on-screen style and technical details in a long, LONG time. Sadly, the toys just couldn't keep up with it.

    But, I see it as a progressive step towards what we'll have in another twenty years. We're back to a goal for the toy designers to shoot for. Like Masterpiece Convoy/20th Anniversary Prime finally put the G1 cartoon version of Optimus Prime in reach, the twenty year anniversary will likely see movie Prime FINALLY realized in toy form.

    I really like the movie toys I've bought thus far, but I've ended up seeing them as similar characters to the movie, but not the same. I feel like I'm back to G1. Wishing I could have those awesome things I see on screen in my hands, and knowing there's just no way to make that happen today.

    In twenty years? Probably.

    My wallet fears the price that'll be on that toy. A lot.
     
  7. thoughtcrime

    thoughtcrime Well-Known Member

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    I still believe that the shreddy aesthetic was appropriate for live-action, but had no hope of translating to toy form. I give the designers respect for coming as close as they did. I like most of the movie toys except Barricade. Terrible bot mode. The arms and the leg joints suck, Lil' Frenzy fails, and no head joint on a deluxe in 2007 is inexcusable.
     
  8. andychen

    andychen Member

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    IMO,Movie Voyager OP isn't that movie accurate. He has a fake chest window while Leader Class has the genuine chest window. The whole fake chest window is just scuplted, you can say the transformation is cheated a little vs the transformation in the movie.
    Yeah, the movie transformations cannot be copied but the basic movements can still be the same. Leader has every parts real, thus he is pretty much accurate in this sense. The voyagers Blackout,SS,Ironhide, Ratchet are pretty accurate since they have all the identical parts vs their movie counterparts. Voyager OP just didn't have it.
    For example LOC starscream, the whole torso detail is scuplted on underneath of the jet. It is just cheating, but the designers could not have done anyting better. Burger king SS is even more accurate in the sense that all details are sculpted. it shows that having real parts identical to the movie versions are more of a challenge.
     
  9. Nerdling

    Nerdling Jiminy Jilikers!

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    None of this bugs me at all. I usually manage to get LP in some pretty cool poses with a little fiddling here and there. He is bulky on some parts, and kinda has gorilla-like limbs but he's also a giant outet space robot. And all this kibble comes together nicely with no pieces to remove in his peterbuilt mode. What more could I ask for?
     
  10. beatrush

    beatrush Collects too many things

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    I dont like the chunkiness or the color of Jazz
     
  11. y2jversion1

    y2jversion1 Rent this space today!

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    IMO Voyager Ironhide is has a very good movie-to-toy translation.
     
  12. megatroptimus

    megatroptimus Untitled

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    I don't give a shit if the toys don't look 100% like the movie counterparts. The toys as they are are immensely superior to anything else produced to date. Starting with Leader Prime and DLX '77 BB.
     
  13. Night Flame

    Night Flame TFW2005 Supporter

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    People seem to be getting a touch defensive. Let me just say again that I think the toys are terrific toys, I just don't think they're good representations of the movie characters.
     
  14. Polenicus

    Polenicus Warring At Play

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    Well, I never expected the toys to come anywhere close to the movie characters. It's just not possible with the massive complexity, and while some stuff could be replicated... Prime's wheels splitting and expanding when they lock into place for instance... there would be durability issues. Keep in mind Prime's CG representation also underwent significant modifications right up to the end, and Leader Prime was likely based on one of the earlier designs (The gun arm indicates this, since the final version of Prime had the rifle strapped to his back instead).

    I really just try and look at the movie toys on their own merits. How well do they convey the FEEL of the character, rather than perfect accuracy. How good are they on their own? It's really all you can do, unless you insist on waiting 20 years to get that 'Masterpiece' Movie Prime.

    ... And in 20 years we'll likely have people bitching that the Original movie toys were better, anyway.
     
  15. redsquadron

    redsquadron Token idiot...

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    G1 cartoon model designs differed vastly to their toys. So what? As long as the representation is there then kids were happy.
    Same with the movie line. It's only hard-to-please collectors who'll likely have any problems with the inevitable and neccessary differences that arise from translating something from thirty feet to six inches.
     
    Last edited: Jul 17, 2007
  16. megatroptimus

    megatroptimus Untitled

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    Actually, I never actually noticed if the toys were that far or not from the CGI designs. Prime is Prime, BB is BB, Barricade is Barricade, all is good.
     
  17. Laser_Optimus

    Laser_Optimus Currently no longer giving a shit about the MCU. TFW2005 Supporter

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    You know, I really don't attempt to judge the movie line based on if the figures are accurate to their movie counterparts. It's just not possible really. Like someone said, you could wait 20 years and get that 'Masterpiece Movie Prime', but that's something we'll have to wait 20 years for and doesn't mean that it'll ever be done either.

    Frankly, I just try to base each individual figure on it's own merits. Largely these guys are leaps and bounds above anything we've received so far. However, I still wouldn't say they're without their own flaws. They have them in droves in some cases. From poorly thought out design choices (Jazz's doors on his legs and overall chunkiness), minor oversights (Deluxe Brawl's arm pegs not pegging properly) and fragile and flimsy automorphs (74 BB, Blackout and Brawl). But that doesn't make any of these guys bad to me sense I see them all as winners in the sense of how much was put into most of these guys. Kudos to Hasbro and TakaraTommy for doing them as innovatively as they did.
     
  18. Altimus Prime

    Altimus Prime Shift perceptions

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    The Titanium figure, maybe? ;) 

    It's the only movie Prime I have. Well, that and the Legends one, because I like having it in truck mode sitting next to the Titanium figure.
     
  19. Vangelus

    Vangelus Long Live the New Flesh Moderator Content Contributor

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    I think it's a cool line.

    But I also would love to see an Optimus Prime toy that attempted the movie model's transformation (doesn't have to be perfect). Would be interesting to manipulate the whole, arms from the front, legs spread across the undercarriage (not just sitting there, but split around the feet that are under the cab body), front + cab body interlock-spin around each other, front grill splits + compresses deal. :D 
     
  20. Grimlock_13

    Grimlock_13 Currently facepalming at your post

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    They're definitely not 100% movie accurate but close enough for me. When compared to the Armada bricks, 'clunkiness' isn't really the first word I'd use with the Movie toys.