somethings you cant unsee

 

It's obviously subjective, but I dunno if that's entirely true. I can't speak to Optimus, but Arcee's chest looks off, as has been noted by numerous fans. Frankly I think Ocular Max did a better job.
I don't begrudge anyone wanting or liking official MP over 3P MP or vice versa. I think all offerings are worthy of consideration as the definitive version of the character and they all have their pros and cons.

 

That little memory box widget in his chest the animation episode uses to frame the flashback of his scientist days with Screamer back on Cybertron would make a neat accessory. Ditto the obvious switchable faction symbol gimmick.

 

I mean if you look at how big Skyfire's canopy is compared to the rest of his robot mode, that has to give an indication of his size in alt-mode. So if they want a massive alt-mode, then they'll have to use a fake canopy and have the real one hidden away somewhere. I know I asked someone to measure Bumblebee but what I really wanted was for someone to put Bumblebee next to some rulers so that people could get an idea of how fucking huge a well-proportioned Skyfire would have to be to carry him in alt-mode. Like at least the length of Prime + trailer probably.

They upscaled Ultra Magnus vis-a-vis the scale chart to allow him to carry more cars, so it's not out of question they'll do the same for Skyfire, but I do wonder if they consider it an essential feature for him to carry Autobots inside. Personally I think they'll avoid making Skyfire so damn huge, and might even make him a little bit smaller than his scale chart measurements. Either way this speculation is all part of the fun, until we get pics!

I think if they did include it with Soundwave v2 they'd probably have it as something that either slides over his arm, or even more likely that can split into two parts that clip over his arm. Totally agreed the lightning effect is essential! But that's more for this thread: https://www.tfw2005.com/boards/threads/mp-soundwave-cassettes-2-0-wishlist-discussion.1175781/:wink:




I don't see them changing the elbow wedge but I do imagine they'll come up with some clever ways to make it the elbow joint fold around it.

It's actually not in his chest, that's what I referred to in my previous post:

It seems to most definitely be the panel on his forehead, based on the fact that in none of the full-body shots are there are any open panels on his chest

I actually think they'll make the flippable gimmick three-sided, to reference this scene where he's been revived and doesn't have a faction symbol at all. Mark my words folks!
And I don't necessarily think it will be a rotating panel at all, instead it might be alternate parts like Inferno's chests. They may even include a torn-off Decepticon insignia as well.



If it's not a whole chest maybe it'll be a small removable panel, because after all Skyfire actually holds his Autobot badge:

 

I can't wait to see photos for this guy. I already have Phoenix which is great, so I imagine Takara will have to pull out all the stops to make this better a better offering. I'm guessing more expressive faces, a waist swivel, both faction symbols and better articulation. Maybe even a burn spot on the chest where Starscream shot him when he tried to hit ThunderCracker.

 

As for those spikes on his forearms, my preferred solution for allowing full elbow bend would definitely be to make the spikes retract into his forearms automatically as the joint bends (the bicep would push against the spike and cause it to sink as far as needed, and it would be on a spring to push it back out when the arm is straightened). Not entirely dissimilar to MP-44's retracting waist plates, or Arcee's inner thighs.

 

Maybe he'll come with Spike and Sparkplug in snow gear minifigures






Opening chest panel for Ratchet to repair?

Good shout! And maybe they can do the same for the spikes on the back of his knees:



Think this shot might also show my preferred scale for him!

 

I’ve never understood the issue people have with MP-44’s back? He had that sort of backpack in the show. Maybe not as big, but it looks fine to my eyes. It always seems to be the biggest point of critique with that figure and it’s not as bad as it’s made out to be. Are people mad about the electronics and how that raised the price? I can certainly see issues with Arcee and her...ahem low hanging fruit. That’s a head scratcher for me and I’m not sure why she made it to production looking like that. I think Optimus Prime is a beautiful figure and probably the best Sunbow G1 OP we will ever get.

 

I think it's totally fine too...accurate enough to many scenes, and I think its size and shape is necessary to balance out the dramatic flared depth of his legs. And he's gotta have those deep legs to match Megatron! I actually think he would look somewhat strange and bottom heavy if the backpack was much smaller (and at the other extreme, I think TE-01's flat back looks completely wrong for the character design).

 

You got it!

 

Because people had to justify not buying the greatest ever Masterpiece Optimus Prime somehow ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

 

FT Skyfire is huge in alt mode. He may be longer than Prime V3 with trailer.

Edit: Found the dimensions. He is apparently 17" long in alt mode which is a little longer than Prime V3.

FansToys FT-10 Phoenix (Masterpiece Skyfire)

 

It defiantly wasn't that big (only time I remember it being that big was an animation error in the movie), but it's more the fact it didn't have to be there more than the fact that it was.

The price alone is enough for me not to justify buying MP-44.
I don't know about everyone else, but this doesn't look like it's worth $200 USD to me.

 

Well then, how big would it have to be to be able to house minibots inside? No fucking chance.

Let's just stick to WST/toy-shop comptability

 

Seeing this all the time makes it ok for me to have paid what I paid for MP-44.


Can’t wait to see the magic that TT will bring to the table with Skyfire!


Anyone looking for a MIB Phoenix? Hit me up,

 

I have phoenix like most but it's articulation is awful so it'll be interesting to see how Takara improve there as they definitely will. But front on phoenix looks pretty much toon perfect, one of those figures that fanstoys really did nail on first attempt, but damn I'd be lying if I didn't say I am very curious to see this (and the price tag).

 

I love my FT Phoenix so this news doesn't affect me either way. I'm building a cabinet of masterpiece figures (combination of 3rd party and official) and my eyes always go to him when I look at it. I'm 100% satisfied.

 

Excited to see what Takara may do, but I'm fine with Phoenix. With Takara prices, I can't imagine how much a Skyfire sized MP will cost.

 

You sho' about that? Excuse the quality as these were taken from my old VHS tapes.





BONUS: Sludge is a bastard lol!

 

Ah-ha! I believe I finally see where your dislike of a potential cargo bay comes from! (Is this FT Phoenix in the photo?) On Phoenix, the door is positioned underneath the cockpit, at the narrowest part of the jet. This would indeed force MP Skyfire to be far too large to fit MP-45 into that space.

But in my mind's eye, the cargo bay is located much further back, on the underside of the fuselage, possibly with the door hinge between the rear landing gear, where the jet is much wider--and in the parts that would form the legs in robot mode, not the chest. If engineering wizardry allowed for a small cavity to form in that area, one that disappears into the legs and the back during transformation, I remain sure Takara will make the effort to do so.