If anyone is after a Maketoys G2 Screamer, TFS-Express have it on pre-order for £90.

I bought mine from Kapow @ TFN.
For. Full. PRICE.

So if anyone wants to get it and rub my nose in it, here you go....

MakeToys MTRM-11G2 Screamer

 

Yeah that all makes sense, and while I know there will be some regret come release time, I just know I wouldn't have taken the thing to pieces and recombo'ed it very much at all - which is really the whole point of having it, so probably for the best that I stick with Siege/Earthrise for my fiddle-fun-needs. Big Powered has been a static lump on a shelf for a couple of years now so clearly.......I didn't need it that badly, and should probably move on to somebody that would appreciate it a whole lot more.

Something I would mess about with a lot.......Siege Rainmakers. Will my resolve last out the weekend NOT to spaff £160+ on them, or will I crumble like Boris at an all-you-can-grope focus group?

 

Speaking of Diaclone...

Ceji Joustra Diaclone "Aragon" (1984).



The pre-TF Powerdasher car named "Aragon" by - I believe - Paul & Gaetan Brizzi who did all wave 1 Ceji Joustra Diaclone packaging/comic art & story. Interesting how "Aragon" is now its adopted TF name, also used for Diakron & GiG releases.

Interesting also how the retailer seems to have applied three adhesive strips over the Ceji Joustra logo to cover it up both front and back, probably as a result of Ceji Joustra being bought out by Hasbro Bradley in late 1985. Wonder if this was a necessary measure to keep selling their products alongside Transformers stuff at the time in shops.

All the best
Maz

 

All this diaclone talk with DA-50 listings going up and photo goodness from @Maz inspired me to take a quick diaclone photoshoot.



Lookers, all of them. Well, except Battle Buffalo but he’s so double hard he needn’t worry about looking good.

 

GORGEOUS.

Man I adore Buffalo, he absolutely set my interest in this line alight again after a fallow period.

All the best
Maz

 

well this seems a load of clearance stuff from Maketoys... really doesn’t look good for them as a company.

 

Yep.

 

That's much better, I've never brought anything from them before so didn't even think to look there.

 

Glue update / gloopdate: As expected, superglue dissolved the polystyrene, fishy glue did bugger all except stink, leaving only epoxy, which worked fine. A shame, as it's the most expensive. Ah well.

 

I like that the blister is shaped for the drill tank dude. Is that an error, or did all three Power dashes share the same blister as a cost saving measure?

 

The fill-up station revisited. Poor kickback has been patiently waiting for days now.

Anyway, for my own reference because I'm bound to forget: 800, 1/5.

I also added a third led, so it's more evenly lit now.

 

See, I think it looks good but I spent £300 on Encore Fort Max and promised myself never to spend that amount on one toy ever again. BW MP Megatron got really ruddy close but going to stand by that (unless transmetals happen anyway, an MP BW TM Megatron would likely be incredibly tasty!)

 

I've pot in my pre-orders for Grapple and the Earthrise deluxes. I still can't get behind that Starscream, especially after how good the Siege Seekers have been. However, I may relent if the coneheads make an appearance in Earthrise.

I'm dithering on Prime, though. I was all set to get him until it was reported that his hands would be grey for the final product. I don't think my excitement for a figure has decreased that rapidly before...

 

Cool

 

Gorgeous piece. Joustra really is the peak pre-TF packaging. I've got the Gig versions which suits me perfectly as I can fiddle about with them and pop them back in their boxes, which I do prefer to MOSC collecting, but you can't compare the box design.



One thing I am collecting and keeping MOSC is the new Star Wars Retro collection. Can you believe that 42 years on we've finally got a vintage Grand Moff Tarkin?

 

I think a thing that would have helped that ER Starscream is if the collar that sits over the cockpit could rotate then it would mostly tuck away in vehicle mode and not just be a big lump of loop kibble on the underside like it currently is.

I also don't much care for where they stored the vertical & Horizontal stalisers either - I think they'd work much better swung onto the back of his legs. There is also something a bit off about the placement of the wings in jet mode too. Do I hate it - no I don't hate it - but to be honest if our Chinese Friends enhanced the Batallion one with knees and arm swivels i'd perhaps have more fun with that.

P.s.

I think the Star Wars Retro Collection is a good idea - the problem is the lunatic licensing fee Disney Charges Hasbro takes it from the sort of Cheap Market 6 item that could be sold in General Dollar & Drug type stores in the U.S. to a paying a premium for less (and with purposefully janky headsculpts too) turns it into more of a clearance produce to me, which is a shame as I totally get the point of them - I just think they got it right the 1st time they tried it with the slim package and cheap Prequel Jedi with a single accessory for 1/3rd less that a clone wars figure cost. That was where they could and should have these sit - and where they likely would sit if George hadn't sold the farm to white slavers.

Star Wars's brand value to consumers has suffered a STEEP decline and yet Disney keep acting like they own the golden goose. They will of course go out of businees in the next 10 years if they can't get their act together - whoever replaces Bob Iger has their work cut out for them they have unrealistic share holder expectations stacked on top of mismanagement, incompetance and alleged fraud - unless someone decides they are to big to fail due to their political influence and they can do a Sega / Bandai and somehow avoid going out of business when they should - I look forward to the humilation they suffer when they can't pay they debts and have to start selling off assets.

They are litterally betting the farm on their streaming service. It's an interesting time we live in when I can say with complete honesty that Disney is in the same Boat as Sony Pictures and it's a bit of a coin-flip if the will still exist in the same form in a few more years - They are already laying off Staff in the Hundreds and cutting the hours of others (to avoid the trouble they can get in for firing to many people to quickly) and the park attendance is kinda terrible. I think they had 20 days in 30 recently the park was full and the rest of the month the attendance was like 4/10 full and in a few case 1/10 full. If they fail to capture consumer interest (again) with Episode 9 or the mandalorian (Knock off Boba Fett) goes down as poorly as Resistance did they boy are they going to be in so much trouble servicing that debt they put themselves in to buy Fox - Comcast did an excellent job of making Disney shoot themselves in the foot there I thought.

Disney is my favorite entertainment company right now - not for what they make but for the pretty trash fire that is their Fallout 76 levels of incompetance - it's very entertaining - way more than their movies are anyway.

 

With the exception of Unicron (due to it being a one off) and MP44 (sold on without opening), I don’t think I have gone over £300 on a single figure. Pandinus, Utopia, Encore Max all cost less. I don’t think I could go over than on one figure...

But I am now starting to think about time, and specifically I can’t keep thinking I will be able to continue to add to each of the lines I have.

So Maketoys and Fanstoys headmasters/targetmasters will be next on the sales list I think... apart from the fact they will probably take 15 years to arrive, they are massive, so think it might be time to call it quits on them.

 

@motorthing ! My man, hope you're on the mend chief.

 

Just realised, with the addition of stupid sexy bluestreak, including 3p and customs, i now have the entire ark crew in classics scale. Woo!

 

Correct mate, they had a shared bubble shape to save on costs. Here are my own personal set that live in preserved storage:

Yes sir, it certainly is!

Those are AMAZING, though! Since I have a perfect sealed Aragon and another sealed one that came direct from the artists....maybe I can pop this cheapo one open and write about it.

All the best
Maz