I get that man. I grew up with a family owned auto-mechanic garage and a junkyard. There was a Datsun Fairlady and a Trans-am in the lot that just captivated me.

That being said I am really really really looking forward to Hoist being announced in the next few months  

 

So umm... Did any 3P companies ever happen to design a butt flap add-on for this guy?   I feel it's a part of his design that's sorely missing. Maybe something that can attach to the bottom of the roof in bot mode?

 

+Alert made sense, but with the lack of door arms, also pointed out the flaws in the mold that would've also benefited anything toy-based (so, all the MP-12/14 redecos). +Lambor was utterly pointless, and something whose existence I blame for the lack of a MP Spinout/red Sunstreaker. Releasing it at retail instead of as an exclusive may have been another mistake. +Prowl I'm fine with, as I like the grays that were added, but yeah it's barely different; it's main goal was seemingly to get me to buy toy Reprolabels for MP-17 to turn that into a full-on toy version MP. So, thanks Takara, for compelling me to spend a little more money to tweak a toy I already owned, I guess?

 

OMG this forum! Honestly, literally EVERYONE moaned and complained about Ultra Magnus's butt flap, and now there are literally a MILLION complaints about this NOT having a butt flap! Typical TFW!

(Did I do that right? Please don't make me use blue text.  )

But seriously, I know what you mean - it is a bit of a shame that Takara didn't go the extra mile with Red Alert and Smokescreen to get those extra cartoon-accurate details in there, like Red Alert's door wings and Smokescreen's butt flap, but I guess it would have taken a brand new mould for each, and being second-tier characters they probably have no intention of re-doing them any time soon. (The very fact that they are releasing these + figures presumably indicates that there are no plans for v2 versions of these characters.) It's probably a sign of how much they were playing things by ear in the early days, too, because I bet if they designed these figures now, one of the design specifications would be that they could swap parts to make each character cartoon-accurate, the same way they did with Inferno and Grapple (and the way BadCube did with its Sideswipe and Red Alert figures, although I personally prefer the official figures over the BadCube versions).

That said, it doesn't bother me personally because I never liked the butt-flap design for Smokescreen in the cartoon, although I can understand others wanting it. It would be great if 3Ps did turn their attention to add-ons for existing MPs.

 

Hey, mine too  

 

The Datsun roof/backpack can be lowered and compressed to approximate the butt skirt. Iirc Hasui even tweeted out a pic of it like that back in the day and it’s how I had my Smokescreen transformed. Helped give him even more subtle differentiation from his mold mates, too.

 

Just you wait, next thing backpacks will be all the rage in 2021  

 

Alert+ is the worst of them. Doesn't really fit all that well with even the other + releases in my opinion.

 

I don't agree with you. I skipped on the original because it was too far off the cartoon, but I did grab the plus release. Yes, they could have redone the arms for example, to better match the cartoon, but this was at the beginning of the plus line. His plus color scheme is much more cartoon accurate. It gives him a fresh new look and I even prefer him over the plus release of Prowl. He looks great next to the plus release of Bluestreak for example. To each their own of course, but I like Red.

 

Honestly I have a feeling there won’t be any 2/3.0s for a while. No basis it’s just a feeling.

 

Is MP19+ TakaraTomy Mall exclusive?

 

yes

 

Takara- Coming Fall 2020, our most epic creation yet, using the Datsun mold....MP Buttflap!
     

 

Try Surethingtoys.com. They are great to deal with. I live in California so I didn’t have to pay sales tax and the shipping is already included in all of their items they list in their store. Their customer service is also good. And currently, they have MP-19+ for $70 shipped! Give them a try.

Transformers Masterpiece MP-19+ Smokescreen (Cartoon Ver.) Action Figure

 

Thank you for the link!

 

This is good to know about! Do they charge upfront for preorders or when the item is in stock and ready to ship?

 

I believe they charge upfront. Atleast I had to pay mine upfront if I remember correctly.

 

Thanks! Good to know.  

 

You’re welcome guys! And they are based in Jersey City if anyone was wondering.

 

My heart skipped a beat when I saw Jersey City. Then it went back to normal when I saw that they don't have a store front. Still not a bad company by the looks of things. Thanks for the heads up ahunter858!