Take it easy. All of these things are more or less easily attainable at very little mark-up.

One or two per month is something doable and responsible. We don't want to see you at the "For sale" thread in 2 months from now. Even water is bad for you if you drink it in excess.


I mean this in the best possible way.

 

IMHO, all actual G1 Optimus prime figures look like toys really.
With MP-44, it looks like The character.

 

This is such a simple pose but I think it's my favourite picture of MP-44 so far. It just looks perfect.

 

lol dude, true. Gonna end up living out of my car surrounded by transformers

 

Absolutely. Imagine a Rodimus Prime made with the same love next to it. Imagine it, envision it. Do it. Do it now.




Looking at those pics makes me wonder if I'm dreaming sometimes. Prime, Bee and Hound, 3 completely new molds, will all be mine this year! (Well, Hound might not exactly make the cut, but its damn close, damn it!!)

Based on all the factors and changes the line has experienced, this is to me, by far, the best MP year ever.

 

Here are some more Optimus Prime appreciation screenshots from my G1 watch-through, presented in thumbnail format for the scrolling allergic  

 

As you can see, the image limit was reached on my previous post. Now we continue...



Large back and backpack deserves a full size image:



And the "City of Steel" special, the true inspiration for the "Season 1" head sculpt!

 

The sight of prime’s arm attached to a tower firing willy-nilly is still friggin hilarious to me

 

I'm doing it... I have a vision that Takara release a Rodimus based on his finalised character model (seen in the show but never been found online or in collections of character models). It's... beautiful... but I should probably head over to the wishlist thread before I get too carried away off topic.

 

Youre kidding right? Is this a joke?

 

No one can justify a price, you are the only one who can justify your own choice.

 

Do people actually believe this ?

 

Okay, I want to play this game too!  


Generation 2 Optimus Prime (1994 & 1996)
Purchased at an outlet store in Seattle, and again in at 'The Black Sheep' outlet in Missoula

This toy was jointly owned by me and my siblings. I can remember learning how to make cornstarch based gak in school and coming home and daydreaming about making a toy myself. I remember drawing schematics of Optimus Prime, trying to figure out how his transformation would work. I envisioned using a building toys (construx + legos) to make the geometric molds I would press my flubber into, manufacturing my own Optimus Prime. I think that perhaps all my scheming and drawing paid off and convinced my mom that this toy was worth splurging on, we rarely got 'big' toys like this outside of birthdays and holidays, although it may have been a purchase of opportunity (low price; outlet store).


Generation 2 Optimus Prime (Gobot) (1997)
Purchased at Osco Drug in Missoula

This dumb little racer was never *really* an Optimus in play at my house, but he still makes this list.


G2 Laser Optimus Prime (1997)
Purchased at KB Toys on discount by my little brother

This toy belonged to my sibling and I was so thrilled that he'd bought it. As the elder brother I reflect with a somewhat guilty concience on how many of my siblings toy purchases were due largely to me egging them on into selecting this toy. This Optimus Prime was our first taste of ridiculous articulation and it was so sweet. I loved all the absurd gimmicks (lights! air rocket! rapid fire plastic missiles!) and the maniacal sticker on the side of his trailer.


Machine Wars Optimus Prime(1997)
Purchased at KB Toys on discount

At this point we also had an Optimus Primal (or two) in the collection, and it seemed somewhat obligatory to "catch 'em all". Machine Wars Optimus Prime felt like a hollow imposter after the grandeur of Laser Optimus Prime. His off-brand coloration, stoic posing, and face-plate lacking noggin seemed so weird to me at the time. I'd be a decade or so before the tfwiki would reveal to me the true reason (ahem... Thunderclash) for this off-kilter Optimus outing.


RID Optimus Prime(2001)
Purchased at a Wal-Mart in Missoula

I was really excited when Car Robots was announced as the follow up to Beast Machines. However, it was a bittersweet feeling, as I'd loved the Beast Era, and I was hugely disappointed to learn that Transtech was getting axed. The 'shared universe' of everything leading up to then felt really special, and knowing that Car Robots could be a bridge to a new era of less contiguous storytelling made me wary about the show. I didn't really end up liking the translated anime, which I'd followed pretty closely via screencaps and transcriptions here when it was airing in Japan. Nonetheless, this toy was incredible! The play features were just totally bonkers. It felt like a real next level in toy engineering at the time.


God Ginrai Reissue (2002)
Purchased online through forgotten importer

I know this isn't technically G1 Optimus Prime... but as a kid who grew up playing with a friend's Powermaster Prime, who'd recently read the Titan reprints of the G1 comics series, this Ginrai reissue was pure gold. I'd alway envied the boys I knew who owned Powermaster Optimus Prime. I was floored by how Hasbro/Takara had come up with this ingenious way of inverting the cab so that the figure actually looked like the Optimus Prime on television!

Which, arguably, @RetroElectro, I think Ginrai/Powermaster Optimus Prime did do first!  
This was also my last Optimus Prime purchased as a high school student, so it closed a small chapter for me.


Armada Optimus Prime (2002)
Christmas gift from my mom

This was the first Optimus Prime I remember feeling a bit bashful or undeserving of. I'd would soon move out of the house, and I was starting to have some pretty powerful feelings about globalism. I was questioning the validity of purchasing these toys at all, and while I'd dropped some hints that I'd love to have the new 'auto-converting' Optimus Prime, I'd grown pretty indignant about the poor quality of the television show and comic book. Well despite all that, I remember just loving this toy. I even bought the Jetfire 'pants' for him a little bit later.


Armada "Bendy" Optimus Prime (2003)
Purchased at Target in Missoula

Well if the first Armada Optimus Prime was a fraught purchase, than this one was me doubling down on my self-antagonism. Haha! I still resent repurchasing 'updated'/'better' versions of toys I've loved (*cough, cough*)... but heck! That articulation! And that minicon! Optimus Prime definitely came with my two favorite minicon's from the Armada series, as my favorite robots as a boy had been Leader-1 and then later Bumblebee (robots for whom Over-Run & Sparkplug were dead ringers in my eyes).


20th Anniversary Masterpiece Optimus Prime (2004 & 2010)
Purchased at the Super Walmart in Missoula, and later again on ebay.

Holy cow I was just gaga about this toy! I think I convinced my college dorm friend Cody to drive me to this dumb Walmart Supercenter repeatedly to hunt for the damn thing in the evenings, eventually ecstatically locating it. This toy felt out of this world. Just a completely different class of toy. I've since sold my first and second copies on... there's only so much space for these toys in my life. I just couldn't believe how perfect the transformation was, the mix of accessories, the play features... dang! I still think this toy is pretty darn gorgeous, even if his title as 'most G1 accurate Optimus Prime' has been usurped.


Transformers 2007 Protoform Optimus Prime (2007)
Purchased at True Value Hardware in Livingston, Montana

This was an extremely furtive purchase. This summer I lived in Livingston at a girlfriend's house, helping to assist her parents in building a straw bale cabin. I saw the Transformers film alone, too afraid of how terrible it looked to drag anybody along. While the storytelling was even worse than I'd feared, I found the aesthetic of the robots actually pretty compelling. I loved the protoform/comet arrivals, and this toy was too cool to pass up. I bought it in semi-secret, and kept it as a little power object during that weird summer.


Animated Optimus Prime (voyager) (2010)
Purchased used here on the TFW2005 junkion exchange

I was pretty reluctant to give Animated a shot when it first was revealed. I didn't think that the animation style could possibly be translated into 3-dimensional plastic, and I was wary of Hasbro's story direction after the recent release of the first Bay film. When I did finally begin watching the episodes (streaming on my partner's laptop computer in Olympia, Washington and at the library), I was totally engrossed. I bought a small clutch of the central figures from a fellow board member here and enjoyed this Optimus Prime immensely. Great build, fun transformation gimmick, cool mask reveal. Animated set the gold standard for a kids line of Transformers.


Generations: War for Cybertron Optimus Prime (2010)
Purchased from Big Bad Toy Store

I remember being so excited about the WFC video game. After my personal disillusionment in the first two cinematic outings, I was stoked to see something that looked like a return to the classic vibes I'd grown up loving. My little brother was neck deep in student life at this time, but I was working full time as a baker, with loads of free time. I remember purchasing this game to play at his house (on his Xbox) as exclusive bonding time. It was so fun to play Transformers with him again. I eagerly purchased this and the Bumblebee toy when they became available.


Laser Optimus Prime (2012)
Purchased at Ross in Portland

I remember finding this little fun toy on the cheap. I brought it to the register and the clerk asked, "Ah, you're buying this for a kid?" and I said, "No, its for me." and she said, "Oh? Huh. Thats cool." This toy is a pretty decent smaller version of the bigger toy. I did enjoy the trailer hitch sword and overall transformation. It didn't live up to my memory of the original though.  


DOTM Mechtech Ultimate Optimus Prime(2011)
Purchased on clearance at Fred Meyer in Portland

This big dumb fun toy was a short-lived purchase. I bought it and brought it home, transforming it several times, before loading it back into the packaging along with a small crate of other toys to send to my friend's boy. I am a sucker for Optimus Prime's with power ups, and I thought that the execution on this was quite elegant. While obviously not the most poseable toy (in the massive, winged mode) I loved that the trailer was an all-in-one conversion that functioned like a true suit of armor.


Generations: Fall of Cybertron Optimus Prime (2012)
Purchased at a Toys R Us in Houston

This toy was a bad toy, with great packaging. However, the purchase is kind of a sweet little memory. At the time my mother was receiving cancer treatment at a facility in Houston, and I'd gone down there to assist with her home care for one month. We played endless Kanasta and watched loads of Downton Abbey, and I would walk to the nearby Toys R Us and occasionally buy a shitty new Fall of Cybertron figure. My mom is fortunate to be a survivor to this day, and I'm so grateful that I get to continue seeing her generous loving personage here on planet earth.


MP-10 TRU Optimus Prime (2012)
Purchased via Toys R Us website

This was such a controversial toy for me! When it was first revealed I was absolutely mortified that they'd "redo" anything in the MP line. Partially motivated by my indignance that the line would likely 'restart' I sold/gave away nearly all my toys (save G1 Bumblebee & MP Grimlock) in 2012. Then with the reveal of Sideswipe and Soundwave I was lured back... The Hasbro release of MP-10 ath the low 'introductory rate' of just over $100 made this difficult to pass up, and I was locked back in and loving it.


WST Transformers Optimus Prime (2016)
Purchased at work via a friend-of-a-friend's yard sale

I enjoyed this little toy a whole lot. I remember being fascinated by the WST when they were first being released, but not picking any up. It was really fun getting to finally handle a small clutch of these micro-sized Transformers. I only kept it a short while and unloaded it during my collection whittling this year.

Phew! That was more than I thought it'd be! And I even left out all the Beast Wars Convoys/Primals! Bring on MP-44!!!

EDIT: with BW convoys-- Bat Optimus Primal, Ultra Optimus Primal, Transmetal Optimus Primal (twice), Transmetal Optimal Optimus (twice), Transmetal II Optimus Minor, Lio Convoy, Flash Lio Convoy, Big Convoy (twice), Beast Machines Optimus Primals (mcdonalds, deluxe, mega), and Masterpiece Optimus Primal... my Prime life total is 34, soon to be 35. Thats one for every year of my life! Gulp!

 

Okay, I'm selling my POTP Predaking and TE-01 Optimus Prime to fund MP-44. I won't go into too much detail to not ruin this hype train for MP-44's arrival but when I took out TE-01 from my display, all I could think about was how much better MP-44 will be. TE-01 is a fine figure, but it's lacking compared to MP-44. The blocky proportions, questionable lack of articulation in spots and the lack of paint are the main turn offs IMO.

People argue that TE-01 is much cleaner and has a flat back, but what you get is a blocky truck mode and a blocky robot mode. MP-44 achieves both a convincing truck mode and a well-proportioned robot mode. Sure, there may be slightly more panel lines but the bot mode it achieves looks $200 better to me. But yeah, I'm selling TE-01 and it sucks seeing a display without a Prime again. Good thing MP-44 is coming in so soon!

I re-packaged TE-01 and I got that same satisfaction of opening the box of a new toy, strange because I'm doing to exact opposite of that. I don't know how to exactly to describe it, but there's this joy to opening a new toy or model kit. It makes me wonder if MP-44 will be packaged in bot-mode or truck-mode. The box is obviously huge due to the trailer, but Prime could be in truck mode with the trailer in one shell, and the accessories in the other like MP-36.

Either way I'd be excited! If it's packaged as the bot mode, it's cool to just release him from his plastic prison and immediately handle him, and the rush I'll get once I open the box oh man. If it's in truck mode, I'll be able to enjoy transforming at least once and appreciate the level of engineering put into him - since I usually just display my figures haha.

All these screenshots are really keeping the excitement alive for me! I know this has been said many times but man, TT have really nailed the sculpt. The character is fully captured in MP-44, I love it - when I have the time I'll go through G1 seasons 1 and 2 myself again to appreciate MP-44 that much more. Thanks for sharing them everyone!  

 

Judging from the box shown of MP44 and the trend Takara tends to take.. most MPs are packaged in their alt modes..

 

Most are, except for Optimus Prime. MP-36 and MP-22/31 also came in robot mode.

 

So MP44 might come packeaged in his bot mode with his trailer in a seperate plastic clam shell. His extra hands and weapons, alt heads will be tucked in a bottom tray just like how SOCs are done.

 

Given the trailer’s size/depth, I’d expect it to be in the same top shell as MP-44 himself. I can see most of the other accessories in a separate tray underneath like MP-36, yup  
He doesn’t have extra hands, though  

 

Whoops.  For some reason I was thinking about Bandai's SOCs for a second there. Haha. My bad.

 

Im supposed to waiting until xmas for my mp44. Part of a deal I made with the wife when we agreed on me getting him.

Seemed like such a good idea at the time....