No ko of regular sized ones have been announced by anyone.

 

Yeah, not as far as I know.

zmog

 

I want the train guy.

 

To be clear, this question is not intended to be sarcastic or mocking at all...but why is there such a fervor for train bots? I dont get why they are such an oft-requested and seemingly precious commodity.

 

Nostalgia for those who are into Japanese Anime. Trains are big in Japanese culture.

Like it or not, there are weaboos / wapanese...  

 

I just think they’re neat.

 

I guess I never really understood the attraction to trains in general as a kid. They're cool, but limited in their mode of conveyance so they didn't appeal to me as mush as sports cars and fighter jets. Probably a key factor why I don't really "get it."

 

I think some of it is cultural. Even though railroads basically defined the nation-building of Canada and the USA, they don't really factor into our daily lives in a big way. Kids in N. America don't really grow up with the same fascination with trains... and even less for those from Generation X onward.

Meanwhile, in the UK, Europe, and Asia... and especially Japan, trains have a really strong cultural resonance and ubiquity. While N. American kids are all about sports cars, SUVS, and fighter jets, in many other parts of the world, trains are in that club too.

So we do see train-based Transformers here occasionally, but it's a sure bet they weren't conceived for the US market.

I think some of the down-sides of trains is that they run on tracks. They seem like they would lack some agency and independence. Also, in terms of their design, train-bots tend to get stuck in the same rectangular transformation tropes - there isn't much innovation there.

That said, I quite like JRX / Railracer. It was a fairly unique design when it came out, and it's fun to have more variety in my TF collection as far as alt-modes go. And while he's a bit boxy, I always thought Raiden looked cool. It has a real Japanese robot oldschool feeling.

I liked Gobots Loco just because locomotives are pretty sweet in a retro sort of way. Astrotrain has some of that too, though I find the purple of his toy takes away from the alt-mode a bit.

zmog

 

I knew plenty of peers as a child in the US that went nuts for trains (some still do). It just never had an attraction for me because if the limited mobility. My dad was into train sets when he was younger and tried to get me to appreciate his old HO scale collection but it just didn't click for me. It goes forward. It goes backward. Ok...can I go outside, now?  

While I get that trains are a larger part of transportation norms in other cultures, I still don't think the look and design would have made me want one as a kid, even if that were the case here. Busses were a big part of my life growing up, but I never thought I'd flip for a bus transformer.

I can understand the love of retro steam engines, even if I don't share it, because of the historical technology involved (i did have both Astrotrain and Loco as a kid---I can't recall, but I have a suspicion Dad bought those for me). However, modern commuter trains seem fairly boring and unnuanced in comparison to my layman's eye.

Again, not trying to put down anybody's love of trains or argue the point. I'm really just trying to understand the appeal and failing miserably, lol

 

Unlike in the US, trains have been one of the main public transportation service used in Japan. Same with most countries/regions that don't have a large land mass.

 

I understand the usage of trans in other countries as public transportation. In Phoenix we have a light rail system and fleets of city busses. Seeing them every day, however, doesn't make me want a toy of them.

That, essentially, is what I'm curious to know. If you are a fan of transforming trains, train toys, or trains in general...what is it that you find so appealing about them?

Share your love with me so that I might see!

 

Like I mentioned before, it's all about nostalgia. Very, very, very different in Japanese culture. Your light rail system and buses can't compare to what Japan has with that of Trains. Same thing why Super Robots and manga are the norm in Japan.

 

I agree with daimchoc its partially nostalgia. Raised with the mystic force train and the deno ones, I found a fondness for trains, and how much more unique they are then cars. And the hundreds of Thomas the train toys my parents had helped. And honestly, Japan has some really cool trains. It helps they have a very clean city over there, and as a result everything looks cool over there. The trains certainly look cleaner

 

Yeah, I think model trains had more appeal for older generations for a couple of reasons; the actual mechanical function of an automated toy that works (ostensibly) like the real thing (like electric racetracks also); also the diorama element has an appeal, wherein you can create whole environments in miniature for your trains to move through.

I mean, I agree. It means nothing to me. I also don't understand the appeal of commercial airline or farm simulator games. It's just too mundane. But I see how that appeal could take root, especially in kids in a different era or culture.

Remember that before the internet, before TV was completely ubiquitous, rural kids would see trains cutting through their communities... big, loud, powerful engines of industry. It's not just a mundane form of transport that you get on and off every day, and mostly only see in-station.

There's a romance there... I know people who grew up in small towns, and were dedicated "trainspotters" (where the expression came from)... they'd keep a tight watch on what engines moved through their communities, take notes, compare them against guidebooks, the whole thing.

Trains in America are just not as significant now as they once were. Sure, they're still used for freight and commuter purposes, but it's much reduced from the centrality they once held. Just as the image of the locomotive, symbol of progress, once signaled the obsolescence of the cowboy, now trains themselves feel like a sign of bygone times.

For my part, my home province used to have a train system used mostly for freight. The tracks were everywhere. My dad was a brakeman for a while, and growing up, my friends would bike down to the old trainyards to play and throw rocks at bottles... and marvel at the sheer earth-shaking power when you actually saw one roll in or out at close proximity. They are impressive. By the time I was 13, the train system was decommissioned, and all the old tracks were rolled up and converted to bike paths.

Well, I know I would love a good bus TF... I welcome all manner of new vehicles, especially ones deemed old-fashioned or 'ordinary'. I get a little sick of all the testosterone-based alt-modes.  

Trains do have a lot of different designs once you start paying attention, and train aficionados know them all. Sure, some of them are dull, but the same could be said about cars.

Still, there's something about the image of a train locomotive that connotes power, speed, and irresistible, relentless force... and represents a primal sort of industrial aesthetic.

OR... if you're somewhere like Japan, they also represent more refined technological advancement and efficiency in the form of sleek, aerodynamic bullet-trains.

Ultimately what we're talking about here is an appeal that probably takes hold in childhood... a fascination with things you see in the world around you that possess a special mystique. Most 4-year-old boys love "BIG TRUCKS!" even though a transport truck is ultimately every bit as boring and mundane as a train. But they're large, impressive, different from your family minivan, and they often have blaring horns and rumbling wheels.

I'm sure you'll find young children are often equally impressed by a train roaring by a crossing, or other heavy machinery, like a bulldozer, or a cement mixer. It's no surprise that in places where trains are more central to the culture, there will be more romance and fascination attached to them.

zmog

 

So it's probably one of those things that, no matter how hard I try to empathize with it, the groundwork just isn't there for me to truly "get it."  

Whoa, some of those train pics you shared look like the mundane variety I was envisioning. Others look CRAZY. In what way do you find trains more unique than cars? I'm intrigued by that comment and really want to know more about that line of thought.

Is it weird that I really want a garbage truck transformer? I know there was a GoBot back in the day, but i want something in a masterpiece scale for some odd reason, lol

Well, I'm going to have to keep that in mind...I just found out I'm going to be a father  

 

Also, nostalgia, mixed with regret and/or fetishism of (retro?) Japanese culture and/or "unobtainable" items from ones youth.

Just for some added colour, I've typed this, via my phone, while on a packed Japanese train.

 

Well part of its cause i don't really see trains. For the most part I see cars every day. I see the jeep, the van, I've basically seen it all. They just start to blend in and all look the same. And ill be frank, American trains do too. I think the reason trains are so unique to me, is that I really dont actually use them, or are aware of them often. My family keeps me away from subways, cause they worry im too sheltered. As a result, they don't enter my mindframe often, and that contrasts greatly with the cars I see everyday, making it more unique. I still see a Volkswagen beetle here and there, but trains? Kind of rare for me. And I was raised on a lot of Japanese films, which portray trains as quite mystical in the shows I watched. Trains on magic railroads flying around, doing crazy things. Raiden, den o, mystic force, power rangers, and heck king of gransazers, dunno if dragon train thing counts(shout out to those who know it) . It's helped make trains unique for me, but shows never do anything of the like for cars. Seriously, when have cars ever been portrayed special? They have a more normal place in animations in comparison. I think thats why I appreciate them more. I've been pretty much raised with Japanese shows left and right, but live in America, where trains like those are pretty rare. As a result I think theyre kind of fantasized for me now. Of course thats just me, and I'm pretty sure my upbringing was a bit different than others

 

Another Optimus and Bumblebee set..



.. where Bumblebee is bigger than Optimus  

Another variation of this Dino combiner.



CW Stunticons again.



Still no Cyclonus/Silverbolt to combine them but was shown on packaging so hopefully soon.

Some Ultraman swords with Decepticon logo molded on them.

 

Does anyone know if the WEI JIANG RID Grimlcok and Megatronus are any good? If possible could I need them next to a WFC deluxe?

 

Thank for the in-depth response! I really appreciate hearing your viewpoint, it gives me a bit of perspective.

In animation, I think the Magic School Bus is the best example I can think of, I'm coming up blank on others. In live-action, though, I'd say that KITT, Herbie, and a few others have been portrayed as pretty 'special.'  

I'm sure I'm missing plenty of other examples. Still, I get your meaning and understand your viewpoint