Pretty much the same deal at all my local stores here in SE Michigan.

 

Aside from the protruding hinge that's been used for over 30 years now.

 

While scalpers did have a field day with that Bee, so did everyone else really. That was the only character of those reissue minibots that everyone knows. Most people dont even know who Outback is. Its also very likely that collectors bought two of them at the same time (like I did).

Over here there are still 2 Swerves and one Tailgate still hanging about, probably because the store wont put them on clearance. And last I checked, there were still about 5 Primes left at $60. If those get clearanced I may bite but I'm not getting my hopes up, especially since I still have my Commemmorative Series Prime stored away.

 

Optimus Prime (reissue) just hit Walmart online site.

 

I've seen all the reissues so far at my local Walmart except the minibots. I saw Devy around Xmas and he sold out quick. I should have got him when I had the chance, but I had a hard time swallowing $78 for him when I get MPs and 3rd party MPs around that price. Starscream and Hot Rod ended up in the clearance section so I nabbed them up at $15 a piece. Optimus was the only one I saw hang out for a while. I wasnt going to pay $50 for him without a trailer.

 

I could do that, it just seems like a lot to spend on a single figure. I still have several other upcoming figures I want. On the other hand, I might pass on Shatter and Scrapmetal, so maybe I'll devote that money to Soundwave. It'll partially depend on how good they all look in person, I have a hard time fully deciding based on pictures online. Seeing them in the package has changed my mind in the past.

 

A single Swerve and Tailgate hung around my Walmart for months, until someone bought them.

 

At this momemnt, Soundwave and Astrotrain are really the only appealing G1 reissues to me. I can't speak for everyone else, obviously.

My hope is that if, and only if Soundwave is successful, then we might see Blaster get re-issued.

 

this is a must buy. One of the few TFs I actually remember playing with as a kid. I had a ton, but only a few I remember vividly  

 

G1 Soundwave was my very first Transformer. I didn't want Optimus Prime back then because I found Soundwave to be so much cooler with the cassettes and overall look. I got him for Christmas in '84 while my younger brother got Optimus, so I have fond memories of playing with both regularly. So much so that those are two of the few original Transformers we no longer still have since we played with them (and not even roughly) until they fell apart.

Even though I don't need another one (I have the 2003 TF Collection and 2009 SDCC releases mint), I will jump on this reissue if it's reasonably less than the $50 Trailer-less Prime is going for. For as many years as Prime has been guaranteed to make money in its various incarnations, the same wasn't true for Soundwave. There were definitely incarnations that I didn't like over the years. Depending on how the mold is holding up, this could be one of the last chances some collectors have to get a G1 version if they missed out on the prior reissues. I hope these end up being as plentiful as Hot Rod and are easily obtainable on walmart.com. I'm happy to support the line, but I'm not going to overpay for him with likely one cassette, despite retro packaging. And since I don't live near a Walmart, running around to check stores isn't an option for me.

I miss ye olden days where toys were easily found in toy stores and major department stores in decent quantities and the main worry was a toy temporarily selling out, not never being able to find even one in the first place.

If I manage to snag one of these, it may be one of the few Transformers I actually open up since Action Masters came out. My other 475+ MISB bots can wait til I have some display space available in the house. lol.  

 

I’ve had a few of the earlier reissues. Even brand new Soundwave reissues can be a little loose and can hunch slightly. But it’s not nearly as bad as a vintage original. But the tightest Soundwave in my collection is the Cassetteman KO from the 80’s. That thing is WAY tighter than any official Soundwave I’ve ever seen.

 

Pretty sure Cassetteman was the inception of Soundwave before Transformers. So that would be OG, not KO. Unless you mean a KO of Cassetteman?

 

It’s a KO of Cassetteman. As far as I can tell, the only difference is the lack of copyright information and there are some details missing on the inside of the tape deck. I can’t convey enough how totally solid the figure is. You’d have to handle the figure yourself to truly appreciate how tight the figure is. No official Soundwave comes even close. I also have a KO of the Microman black Perceptor. It’s real solid too.

 

Very cool. Amazing how a KO can be better than the original.

 

I hear ya on Devy. I just held my nose and bought him...considering I bought multiple CW Devys at the same price, I definitely feel like they saw me coming wih nostalgia in my eyes!

 

I truly hope Blaster also hits the list he would complete a solid collection for both & the cassettes.The Milton Bradley packaging variants were fun tracking down for this one.

Only thing better than the KO is the original. However, never opened original & don't ever intend to. Just glad he did not go thru the same treatment half the Diaclones. Microman issues did with the color variants. Obtaining all releases of the Radi-CassetteMan (Blaster) in red & Blue has been exhausting. Especially tracking down complete Gig ones in Italy.

 

Could you please elaborate on the Milton Bradley variant you referred to? Thanks!

 

The variant was the version released in Europe prior to the conclusion of Hasbro's acquisition - where the box etc all state Milton Bradley instead of Hasbro. There are also four languages that are found as there were the four main languages in the market at the time - German, French, Dutch and Spanish. Thus a completely different looking Tech Spec (its quite large). A well written article with more information on the line: Milton Bradley Transformers

 

This might sound like a dumb question, but are the boxes for the reissues (Starscream, Hot Rod, Bumblebee) the same size as the originals? I know there are multi-language text differences, but I don't have any G1 boxes to compare and I just wondered if there was any size variation.

 

Yes, they are slightly different in size. I was looking at getting some pre-made acrylic cases on AFA, and they recommended measuring and ordering custom cases, because of the size difference.