After handling several figures I've notice three things about the figures.

1. Cheaper plastic. The Earthrise figures plastic "feels" less solid than Siege figures.
2. Mold flash. Although Siege, Astrotrain on every figure, there is mold flash on the arms (I thought it was stress marks at first). There is also mold flash on Grapple.
3. Metal pins vs. screws. So now Hasbro has initiated ANOTHER cost cutting measure by only using metal pins vs. screws. In addition to being an eye sore, I have serious reservations on these new figures overall structural stability. I'm pretty certain screws will "hold" different pieces together longer than those metal pins.

Anyone else notice the above?

 

Wheeljack feels like a step down from the quality of Siege. Cliffjumper feels like a figure released during Siege, however. Can’t speak for the entirety of Wave One, but it does seem that not all of the figures are as well-executed as figures from Siege were.

 

i havent had any mold flash on any of mine, and honestly i can't say that i agree that the plastic feels any cheaper. all of them feel about the same as siege to me (oh and your critique about pins vs screws, that started with wave 1 of siege)

 

The plastic has been the same since 2014, MPVC if I'm correct? Your late to the pins argument, I'm fine with them, It just makes customs a tad harder when your knocking out pins.

 

Coming off of SIEGE, some of Earthrise does seem/feel cheaper in-hand. I think most of the budget was spent on SIEGE with EarthRise seen as a breather.

Hoist is 1 of my favorite deluxes from wave 1 but ironically, I believe it was given the short end of the stick compared to the other wave 1 deluxes. I like Grapple A LOT, but don't think the joints will remain tight in the long run if I have Ironworks plugged onto it as armor(which I currently do).

Hasbro did say they were going to cut costs for 2020 and as soon as I saw the renders for EarthRise, I felt like the cost cutting was starting(notably hollow spaces on figures like Hoist, Grapple, Smokescreen, et al).

I do expect Sky Lynx and Scorponok to suffer the least from cost cutting. Cost cutting is inevitable, I just hope EarthRise has more figures that suffer less from it.

 

I see screws as much more of an eye sore than pins.

 

Wheeljack does feel lighter, but I like it overall. It does looks more a toy compared to say...Hound? But I guess it's kinda what I want, so no complaint from me.

 

I've noticed a few things on a few Earthrise figures I've picked up:

*WJ's spoilers would not flush when in vehicle mode but a little sanding helped. Also his front windshield bits keep popping off but I can pop them back on.

*Grapple and the pegs in vehicle mode. Sanding did the trick.

*Starscream's arms have me a bit worried. They are so tight, I get nervous folding/unfolding them while transforming him.

But despite all that, I still enjoy the he'll out of them. But I do understand people being concerned with Sky Lynx and Scorponok.

 

People have been saying the same thing about every new line since G1.

 

Yep, ever since they got rid of diecast.

 

screws and pins serve usually different functions....anyway...

ER prime definitely feels cheaper in hand than siege prime. its a shame, because the design is nice. they did good with most of the engineeingi bu the joint tightness of the hips.legs etc is not as good. to me that means either worse tolerances and or a more rushed assembly (like did somoene mess up a screw torque setting? etc). its fine as it is but i think it will flop over time. the trailer is and has always been sad. needs some paint and maybe toyhax.

on the other hand ER starscream despite its recycled design (sort of) doesn't scream cost cutting ot me, nice paint apps. good feel.

 

earthrise and siege prime had the same tolerance tightness on my copies

 

I'll admit that I was disappointed with how flimsy ER Prime's trailer feels in base mode, but then I remembered that it's just going to be sitting in it's own box with all the other unused/unwanted parts from recent leader class figures.

 

I don't think they could cut costs any further than they did with Siege Jetfire. He's so light for his size, a gust of wind would knock him over if you had him standing outside. I'd love to see some weight comparisons between him and the leader-class figures from the line.

 

I think they feel pretty solid. They seem well made and tight to me, at least my copies.

 

People have been begging for a Prime that comes with their trailer, and what happens when we get one at retail? People complain about it.

 

Yeah because it’s a cheap-looking unpainted gray box

 

Isn't that what G1 Prime's trailer has always been? A grey box that people later apply stickers to?

 

I thought G1 Prime's trailer was a well built, solid, functional battle station, with launching missiles, a moving radar, claws, different coloured molded plastic, stickers, a cockpit, a roving little buggy with it's own accessories, and a functional launcher gimmick, all with multiple potential play patterns including sticking the battle platform out the top of a closed moving trailer.

I like the inclusion of the trailer with Earthrise Prime just fine as it saves us buying a 3rd party version, bu you can't compare it to the G1 release.