I don't need Skids -- XTB's version fits better with the 'slavish toon' aesthetic of literally ALL the other modern MPs -- but Reboost, though? Yeeeesssss, I think I'll be acquiring that. It's nice that these are less than a hundred bucks, too. I like how it comes with so many more accessories than Skids too! I can add him to my small "Diaclone MP/redshirts" display.

Unfortunately, with Takara's recent track record I'm gonna have to wait for in-hand reviews confirming the damn thing doesn't crumble to dust in your hands before actually pulling the trigger on it.

 

yeah I never have gotten a masterpiece before cause they are usually a bit above my price range

 

Not really recent. 2019-12-26 according to tfwiki with 10 releases since then if I counted right.

 

The hype is so real that I had to double up on Skids  

 

The price usually drops later on though, yes? And then you get the cheapest price if you've locked in your preorder. Generally it ends up a lot cheaper but sometimes it takes a little while.

Still waiting for the AJ preorder fro Skids...hopefully it'll be up soon!

 

Skids vs Savant...

I've just priced Reboost on AJP because Skids isn't up yet, and it's circa 70 gbp delivered. It's £10-15 more on Kapow or In Demand Toys.

Savant is 85 gbp+ on ebay.

So, as a toon guy, what do I do? Bear in mind that includes plus versions of Datsuns and WJ. Do I go official, similar to plus, and cheaper? Or do I go 3P, more toony, and a bit more expensive?

Skids is a completionist character, too. I have zero affinity towards him. My head says to go with TT, but I just can't decide  

 

Totally understandable, they definitely are expensive. It’s a great line though, definitely has a premium feel compared to the Generations releases.

 

Have you actually seen the Earthrise Prime trailer in person? It's comically small and I don't think MP-45 Bee V2 would even fit in there and he's the smallest MP carbot. Actually I just looked at the trailer again and I think MP-45 might fit but it would be tight!

 

I'd say if you are going for a complete list and don't really care for if he is only somewhat toon then I would say go with the cheaper one since it seems that you are leaning more towards price.

 

I’ve already crunched the numbers. The $90ish total is where it landed due to AmazonJapan now collects state tax for US buyers. The shipping is $15, which won’t change. The total used to dip a bit when you preorder because it removes the Japanese sales tax after you order it. It might even go up now depending on your State. It could drop another dollar or two but even a $5 savings ain’t great. The hassle of importing to save $5 isn’t worth it.

 

Even though Amazon Japan get these MPs to me faster in NY than any US retailer, that tax they charge now.....ugh.....

Might switch over to TCP this time for Skids.

 

I noticed with Reboost AJ doesn't seem to be saying what discount has been applied yet. Usually they say (30% savings) or something like that after the price. I'm expecting around 30% off MSRP which is the usual for MPs on AJ. But this one is priced pretty low to begin with so maybe the discount won't be as large. I believe it's around 26% off right now so that might be the max.

I'm assuming you actually put it in your cart and got the actual total? AJ removes the 10% tax when a buyer outside of Japan puts an item in their cart. Then the shipping and your local taxes will be added on after. So if your taxes are 10% where you live the price will be the same plus shipping. AJ is still lightning fast with shipping so even if the price was the same for me I would still order from AJ to get it faster. BBTS in particular has been REALLY slow to ship stuff out for a while now. And avoid Nippon-Yasan at all costs as usual. They are still a disaster and you'll most likely end up doing a Paypal dispute with them.

 

I'm more of a toy-aesthetic kind of collector, but here's my take (I own XTB Herald but not Savant):

Savant's alt mode isn't licensed, so while it looks similar to a Honda City, it necessarily differs in some details. However, those differences actually make it look a bit more like the generic minivan that the cartoon depicted. The headlights aren't yellow, but that's an easy fix. Otherwise, both car modes look great, IMO.

Both figures have more of a toon paint deco, except for the red on MP Skids's upper arms. Both have blue thighs, which bugs me a lot as a toy person, but is good for the toon guys.

Savant's arms are more toon/comic accurate, but the legs are more like those of the toy. Other than color, MP Skids's upper arms are more similar to the toy, and the legs more like the toon.

Head-sculpt wise, neither are toy-accurate and are generally toon-like, but neither are great. The shape of the TT head resembles the cartoon's but for the angrier eyes and the silver face (easy paint fix). Savant's face is... well, awful, in my opinion. It's white, for one thing, the eyes look doe-like, and the features are soft.

In my opinion, MP Skids is kind of like a MP-teen+ figure. It's got that Hasui-esque physical design, but a rather monochrome toon-like paint scheme. In that regard, I think it would fit in better with your "+" figures (especially the plus Datsuns) better than Savant. Personally as a "toy guy", if I could get an XTB Taiho head, I'd get Savant. But also as a toy guy, I'm definitely getting Reboost.

 

Savant is more toon accurate but I never picked him up cause he’s ugly. The face is bad and the unpainted plastic looks cheap.

I’d say a less ugly hybrid toon is better than going full toon if it’s gonna look better on a shelf (and if you still have hybrid characters like Prowl and tracks there too). I’m going official for Skids.

 

Just so you are aware, I have Savant and I did convince XTB to send me a Taiho head. Aside from the Taiho head being black plastic and matching the metallic blue of Savant has proven... challenging, there are some differences between Savant and Taiho torso and Savant no longer transforms with the Taiho head installed. Just so you are aware.

I will be selling my Savant, btw

 

gotta say the different color blues looks odd to me

 

Looking at higher res pics you can see how the thighs split and fold up to allow the legs to cram into that tiny alt mode. I think the legs on this guy are going to be really fun to transform.

 

Available now at Pulse

 

Thats a great design for Studio 86 or the MP line 10 years ago, now not so much.

I think its a older, unused design from a decade ago, its missing a lot of modern articulation methods. Its probably being released to suck people back into the line as it has started to get prohibitively expensive with the obscene pricing of MP-44 and the $250 seekers that being said I dont think these are worth $100, that being said $80 in 2010 is about $95 now adjusted for inflation so it lines up there too.

 

I have the XTB one and I hate it. It basically put me off ever buying their products ever again. But I'll still probably stick with it over this. This is too detail heavy. Doesn't fit in well with the last few years of MPs, and doesn't fit my memory of what skids looks like.