Results: We have our 3P Toy of the Decade based on the finalists from 8 years of Toy of the Year votes!

MMC Feral Rex!

But this doesn't detract too much from the 3P Company of the Decade with 3 wins for company of the Year, four Toy of the Year awards, and thousands of nominations for both since they arrived on the scene in 2012. It is, of course, Fans Toys!

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So lets take a vote on 3rd Party Toy of the Decade!

3rd Party toys have been coming out for years in the form of garage kits and add-ons, but if we mark the "birth" of the 3rd Party movement as it exists today with the Fans Toys City Commander add-on kit in 2008, that means the 3rd Party collecting scene is well over a decade old!

For the poll, I've picked the winning toy from each year. For the most part this is easy as we've been doing 3P Toy of the Year since 2012, but what toys qualify as 3P Toy of the Year for 2010 and 2011?

Lets take a quick look at those releases, with just the highlights on big releases. I will avoid smaller lowkey products like the BTS trailers and go with ones that had an impact upon release. KOs like CHMS will not be included.

2010: FansProject Warbot Defendor (their first full figure, Springer), FansProject Protector (Rodimus Prime add-on armor), FansProject Explorer and Munitioner (Bruticus add-on figs), iGear Delicate Warrior (Arcee), iGear Faith Leader (rescaled MP1), MMC Commander (Hearts of Steel Prime), Perfect Effect Warrior Type F and R (Frenzy and Rumble)

2011: FansProject Shadow Scythe (SG Rodimus Prime add-on armour), FansProject Backfiery, Stormbomb, and Thundershred (Insecticons), BTS Sonicron, Headrobots Stronghold (Hardhead conversion kit), iGear Rager and Spray (Huffer and Seaspray), iGear Elegy, Jet, Attack (MP Coneheads), Maketoys Battle Tanker (G2 Prime add-on), Perfect Effect Assualt Force X (Reflector), XTB Glider (Powerglide), X-Overgen Grand Patriot (GI Joe crossover Prime)

Quite a long list and we can see how much proliferation there was by looking at all the bits that started to come out in 2011. Lots of new players.

I was tempted to call Warbot Defender the 3P toy of the year for 2010 as it was so anticipated and was FP's first full figure, but the Explorer and Munitioner set were real game changers; two full standalone figures which were also add-ons for official Hasbro releases which helped make a pretty average Energon-era combiner into a fantastic CHUG Bruticus.

3P Toy of the Year 2011 is even harder still to justify, with many great newcomers and figures. I have to say the impact of the iGear Coneheads and what that meant to the future of the 3P scene was huge at the time, and these are figures which many people kept in their collections for years, but technically they are KOs (vastly improved KOs) of official Hasbro molds which - by my own rules - would discount them from modern end of year polls. But nothing else that year had this huge of an impact, and they were retooled in a way which made Hasbro/Takara rethink their seeker MPs, so I'm just going to go with this pick.

Please don't hate on my 2010 and 2011 choices too much, if you don't agree feel free to comment, but please vote for a toy from another year as your choice as I'm not going to change the poll.

Just a quick note on 2015, we didn't actually have a final vote on toy of the year, we just had three votes across categories (MMC Spartan, UT Ordin and XTB Apollyon won their categories), however the MP poll had way more votes than the other categories, and XTB Apollyon had way more votes than any other figure, so it wins 2015 overall.

Here is to more than a decade of collecting 3P. Have fun!

 

I went with Feral Rex as my pick of the bunch, and I feel a but guilty because I did work on these with MMC, however for me they are the peak of my time working and collecting 3P and were such a huge moment for me and my buddy who designed them, so please excuse the nepotism.

I've tried to base my decision on what is unique about 3P and if the figure has stood the test of time or been bettered by other releases.

I very nearly went with FT Phoenix, but as much as I love it (a lot), I actually slightly prefer Siege Jetfire as I pick up and play with it a lot. I still love Quakewave and FP Bruticus a whole lot despite Hasbro/Takara offerings which, in my opinion, aren't as good. In the same way I didn't like POTP Predaking that much compared to Feral Rex.

 

I was going to do a 3P Company of the Year. But is this even needed?

I was going to qualify companies based on how many figures won toy of the year, how many figures made it to the poll, and how many times they were nominated for company of the year.

I think we already know the answer to this, with a decade of MP domination, and with four figures winning best of the year and having a major figure in contention since their debut in 2013, I think best 3P company has to go to Fans Toys, right?

 

Of the ones on this list, Feral Rex. These figures are built of such thick plastic that when Bovis fell five feet off of the shelf all he did was bounce. They all have solid bot modes, amazing animal modes, and combined they're a great display piece. Not on the list because of some MASSIVE oversight, Carnifex should be the one to take it all. I don't think there's been a better figure than Carnifex and I don't think there ever will be. Add Carnifex, and for that matter Sovereign.

 

I would say Maketoys Rioter Despotron would be my pick.

 

Had to go for Quakewave, with Feral Rex being very very close behind. Quakewave was a game changer for me. It pretty much kickstarted the high end 3P scene while a lot of other companies were still focusing on stuff that fitted In with a chug style collection. And it still fits in so well with any MP collection. I’ve had every MP style shockwave, including the official, and Quakewave is the only one that survived and still sits proudly on the shelves.

 

I fully expect Transform Element to win because of a combination of Optimus Prime and New.

Most of these options are just bad. 4 of them I flat out hated, I never got the FP figures (it was before my time and I never got the Hasbro figure they fixed anyway), and I just don't have the same love for a couple of the FT figures on the list as others do. I considered going with Quakewave due to his historic value, but ended up voting for Stomp because he is the only one on the list that I truly love the figure.

EDIT: My comments are not meant to target CZ Hazard who set all this up, I really appreciate his work. The logic behind selecting them on this poll is 100% solid, just ripping everyone who voted those years.

 

Out of that list I'd have to say feral rex. The hype during that time was great.

 

I have to go Quakewave. I hate FansToys, their business practices, and how frustrating their overall engineering is. I just don't find them fun.

But Quakewave was the biggest game changer in 3rd party history and I have to acknowledge that. No other toy had the same impact on 3rd party that Quakewave did and that's what makes him my pick for best figure of the decade.

Most fun collecting though? Freaking Feral Rex.

 

going with phoenix. FT has never quite captured the same perfect balance of proportions, color, robot scale, alt mode accuracy, and stress free transformation as Phoenix.

For me all of that outweighs whatever articulation drawbacks exist (waist swivel).

 

Please remember, this list is (80% at least) based on your votes for 3P Toy of the Year from 2012 - 2019.

I haven't forgotten to include a figure, it's not an oversight. Carnifex and Rioter Despotron both made it to the finals in 2016 but lost out to Stomp. That's democracy.

Feel free to add your personal favourite but I had to base this poll on previous year's winners. I couldn't do a poll with 300+ options.

 

So Roadking was outshined by TE Prime in 2019?! Unbelievable  

I vote Carnifex.

 

Yeah I went back and edited my post acknowledging that before I even saw this. It is what it is.

But how could you pass on Sonicron for 2011 figure of the year, I've heard nothing but glowing words about it.

 

I selected FT Stomp, but I would be shocked if TE Prime does not win.

 

Time really flies by. Is it only 10 years since FP first came onto the scene? And yet nowadays most people probably don't even know FP.

 

RK is not on the list.

No vote.

 

Feral Rex is a good choice, Roadking should be this year's winner, and I would vote for MakeToys Green Giant if it was on the list since that is what got me into 3P TFs back in 2015.

I think I'll abstain for now.

 

Ditto!

 

TFC STC-01A Supreme Tactical Commander is not on this list.

List fail.