I forget who it was, but this was shared a while back regarding WindBlade.

 

Baring delays, Arcee technically December 2020

 

Real problem was a small angry twitter “mob”  

 

Thank you for this. Adds some assurance.

 

just keep poking, we've not quite started arguing yet

 

It's possible Hasbro wasn't too thrilled with the design either, given Windblade's recent role as the mascot female character I can very well see them having gone "Um. No." Let's hope. It can only be improved from the prototype they first showed.

 

That seems the most likely response from their end, if they were to take issue.

 

As armada sideswipe has proven, that is factually false.

 

There is certainly an audience for the figure, but yeah Hasbro might have some considerations when while not quite sold with the toys this isnt the MP/Japanese girl figure/Figuarts market. Theyre not in Australia at all but I understand that these are sold in book stores and that, alongside Hasbro Black Series and exclusive Lego minifig packs once Toys R Us shut down. I think there's both a conflict with that visibility of Windblade and her being both the character from the comics audience who likely dont have a lot of crossover appeal for... that style of figure and then also yes recently is the mascot character featured in cartoons and other all-ages media. I dont know that would 'corrupt the youth' but I dont think its what Hasbro wants either.
And I think with them being the only companies to do Drifts and Tarns and the most accurate IDW versions of regulars like Megatron and then revealing Rodimus at the same time there is something odd about that being the same line.

I have further feelings on the figure, but thats what is appropriate, relevant and not likely to start an argument. You know Im sure there'd still be a problem if this figure was released in a different context, but a lot less of one. Either exactly the same, or since this is my post and I get to make the rules lets compromise and she has actual wings at least.

 

I'm fine with them improving the figure, but what I'm worried about is that they might change her design too much. So what I prefer they do is, maybe they could include both the current design parts and the "improved" design parts so that buyers could choose which design they prefer. It's a model kit so its probably easier to include alternate parts.
An example is Gundam Mobile doll Sarah, she comes with both human and robot parts so it gives the choice to have her in either human or robot form.

 

If the problem is Hasbro not wanting their female mascot to use a design like the prototype did (and I think the reasons that may be the case are fairly obvious) including alternate parts aren't going to fix the concerns that they have.

 

While that would be a nice solution but on the box they would have to show both version, maybe not on the front side but atelast on the back where they show different stances. And are you willing to pay for these extra parts you won't be using because I don't think they will release the figure with extra parts for the original price they had intended?

Personally I don't think the figure per se is overly sexualized in design, it's posed more provocative than her male counterparts but so are females on movie posters. Haven't seen a picture where she's in the A-stand with her arms to the side of her figure, all pictures are form the side or back. The fact that the she's based on a picture (which itself was in a provocative stance), or designed by, Ban may also not have helped this figure.

 

That's a good point. But a lot of model kits (mainly gundam since they're the only model kits I own) comes with extra unused parts which even I question why its included if its not needed. I also don't think a few extra parts would increase the price by a lot.
But this is flame toys, not gundam, so I don't really know. All we can do now is wait and see I guess.

 

At the end of the day if it ain't the Ban design then I don't buy. No skin off my back. @ShylockZeuss the biggest reason for the inclusion of unused parts is that a gundam kit often pretools" their sprues to include unused parts that will feature in other versions of that kit. Also for variants it's simply economical to use parts of old sprues as they already have the molds made for them.

Like P Bandai's MG Dwadge, which you can almost make a full Dom out of if you wanted.

I built FT Attack Mode Optimus and there wasn't any unused parts left. Kotobukiya didn't really have that either with Frame Arms and Frame Arms Girls stuff.

 

Cool, thanks for the info  

 

Nemesis Prime (IDW version), Skywarp and Bumblebee also don't have unused parts except for a few extra hands.

 

It was the same with Autobot Megatron, just a pair of alternate hands. In fact, seeing as they've gone so far as to do a second version of the Megatron that's only difference is that it has a new face and a different sticker to go on the chest, I think hoping for alternate parts beyond hands is assuming way too much.

 

The way plastic molds are set up, you can't just decide to not include certain parts if they'll go unused, unless you've planned ahead and allow the mold to be "gated".

The plastic costs are negligible. The extra, unused parts are worth a fraction of a penny.


I've never seen Bandai include extra parts due to a "pre-tool". If that level of pre-planning has taken place, you'll see gated molds, which are quite obvious because you'll see the rectangular sprues with a "corner" cut out of them, and there's telltale marks on the runners where the gates are inserted. Excess parts come up when Bandai reuses a older mold that wasn't planned for that level of re-use. Again, because material costs are utterly negligible, it's far cheaper to give you a pile of extra parts, than it is to retool the mold to remove them.

 

Don Fig didnt leave because of that, hes had designs of his made into toys before. stealth bomber megatron was from a story project that he was meant to pitch to someone at IDW, that person didnt show up to the meeting and then the Megatron was used in IDW's on going TF comics without Don's permission.

 

If Hasbro had a problem with that Windblade being "too sexy" then how the hell did those Bishoujo statues of Baroness, Scarlett, and humanized versions of underaged Ponies get free passes?