Fanstoys FT-17 Hoodlum (Masterpiece Hot Rod)

Discussion in 'Transformers 3rd Party Discussion' started by daimchoc, Nov 15, 2015.

  1. Jdk504

    Jdk504 REDWOLF

    Joined:
    Dec 30, 2016
    Posts:
    1,841
    Trophy Points:
    197
    Location:
    Monterey, CA
    Likes:
    +5,517
    Funny how everyone on here forgets that these are opinions given out and not facts. Fans Toys has stopped impressing me after they released Grinder. I really liked Phoenix, but felt the lack of paint pushed me over into the no purchase zone. Now they have FT10X I ordered two!

    You are learning why a lot of us dont post much on here. People become upset with others because their opinions differ.

    In this day in age you really cant say anything without offending someone. It's a very odd time.

    Just buy what you like and drown out the noise.

    Glad we all have options.
     
    • Like Like x 7
  2. neko

    neko Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Sep 13, 2013
    Posts:
    148
    Trophy Points:
    162
    Likes:
    +315
    Instagram:
    Overall I like how the figure looks but those tabs look weird. I guess I'm just being too picky.:D 
     
  3. CowboyFromHell

    CowboyFromHell Shake 'N Bake

    Joined:
    Jun 17, 2017
    Posts:
    1,155
    Trophy Points:
    197
    Location:
    Your town
    Likes:
    +2,167
    I prefer the first version over the X. It's clean and the paint aps are sharp. All the X versions I think doesn't represent the cartoon very well. None of them had a metallic sheen on screen. They look cool and all but it's not what I'm after. I like my collection to be cohesive so having a few metallic figures out of a hundred+ who aren't wouldn't float my boat.

     
  4. Starganderfish

    Starganderfish Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Jun 3, 2015
    Posts:
    7,756
    News Credits:
    2
    Trophy Points:
    247
    Location:
    Australia
    Likes:
    +11,923
    It's one of the worst parts about the official forums. All the fanatics rave about how wonderful an official figure is, and any attempt to offer a contrary opinion is overwhlemingly blasted and chased out of the thread with pitchforks and flaming torches., irrespective of the reasoning behind it. Don't know how many times I've seen posts along the lines of "take your negative opinions elsewhere and just let us enjoy the figure." Makes me wonder why folks are on a discussion board when they don't want to actually discuss things. Even the best figure is never perfect and has flaws that some people see and others don;t or choose to ignore.
    Personally I'm fine with others having a different opinion.

    But statement's to that effect are even better when they offer reasons why people like or dislike a figure.
    Simply stating "I don't like it" doesn't really offer a lot of insight into the opinion. Stating "I don't like this because the car mode is too fat or too tall or the shoulder are too high or the arms are too long" gives people an idea of why someone doesn't like a figure and it allows a discussion to take place on the pro's and con's. Seeing people's well-reasoned crticism's of certain figures has changed my own perspective on occasion and even saved me from buying something I would regret later.
     
    • Like Like x 3
  5. deaculpa

    deaculpa Stand Alone Complex

    Joined:
    Jun 29, 2008
    Posts:
    19,078
    News Credits:
    8
    Trophy Points:
    387
    Location:
    Iowa
    Likes:
    +11,977
    I feel like I’ve seen some photos where they were lowered, although there’s a chance I’m making this up.

    Edit: right side has low shoulders.


    [​IMG]
     
    • Like Like x 3
  6. ChromeMagnus

    ChromeMagnus Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Sep 17, 2015
    Posts:
    34,432
    News Credits:
    2
    Trophy Points:
    327
    Likes:
    +25,474
    Cool. The face sculpt looks good. Not sure what people were concerned about there.
     
    • Like Like x 1
  7. Markus76

    Markus76 Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Aug 21, 2015
    Posts:
    1,784
    Trophy Points:
    197
    Likes:
    +3,199
    It doesn't look like John Kerry, so that's a good thing.
     
    • Like Like x 1
  8. Scowly Prowl

    Scowly Prowl Still calculating variables...

    Joined:
    Sep 24, 2017
    Posts:
    4,610
    Trophy Points:
    222
    Likes:
    +3,839
    It's... ok. I'm keeping my MP Hot Rod until I see one up close.
     
  9. Markus76

    Markus76 Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Aug 21, 2015
    Posts:
    1,784
    Trophy Points:
    197
    Likes:
    +3,199
    The lack of that awful backpack that is on the official makes this one a must buy for me.
     
  10. Jdk504

    Jdk504 REDWOLF

    Joined:
    Dec 30, 2016
    Posts:
    1,841
    Trophy Points:
    197
    Location:
    Monterey, CA
    Likes:
    +5,517
    Definitely agree. Having a like or dislike with sound reasoning behind it enables a intelligent discussion/debate to take place. Many times someone else's preference has saved me from buying a certain character.
     
    • Like Like x 1
  11. RodimusZero

    RodimusZero Steezin fo no Reason

    Joined:
    Aug 22, 2006
    Posts:
    2,831
    News Credits:
    11
    Trophy Points:
    312
    Likes:
    +4,017
    Returning sarcasm with sarcasm, you've got a great point, since everyone loves looking at their toys from the top and back... :rolleyes2 

    The front of the figure is obviously the most important, and I think Hot Rod's penta-thigh shapes are poorly rendered on the FT version.
    The pegs in the shoulders are just lazy. At least TT put weapon storage notches in the backpack like you're showing here, and the chest is the real hood of the car.
     
  12. Jdk504

    Jdk504 REDWOLF

    Joined:
    Dec 30, 2016
    Posts:
    1,841
    Trophy Points:
    197
    Location:
    Monterey, CA
    Likes:
    +5,517
    I collect the same way. I prefer them to look as close to the cartoon as possible (I have all 5 FT dinos and didnt care for the X variants). After seeing many reviews and opinions I felt FT missed the mark by not adding some more paint. I preordered two just in case bc they are/will be hard to come by. If I dont like it I can always sell it get the original (after I find two).
     
    Last edited: Oct 4, 2018
  13. Dickyscrubbs

    Dickyscrubbs A booby trap that catches boobies…

    Joined:
    Jun 10, 2015
    Posts:
    800
    Trophy Points:
    172
    Location:
    NY
    Likes:
    +1,489
    Don't care about the vent pegs, the wrist pegs are a little annoying...that god damn flat Stanley looking collar is what bothers me. I was hoping that would be fixed from the early proto because that thing is awful.
    Hopefully looks better in hand.
     
    • Like Like x 1
  14. edgecrusher

    edgecrusher "She wanted nothin', and I delivered." TFW2005 Supporter

    Joined:
    Jun 17, 2015
    Posts:
    15,980
    News Credits:
    2
    Trophy Points:
    332
    Location:
    Valley of the Sun
    Likes:
    +23,768
    I didn't know what that was. I went and looked it up. Now i can't unsee his tuxedo neck design.
     
    • Like Like x 1
  15. Starganderfish

    Starganderfish Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Jun 3, 2015
    Posts:
    7,756
    News Credits:
    2
    Trophy Points:
    247
    Location:
    Australia
    Likes:
    +11,923
    I can kind of see what you're saying with the thighs - FT have a similar issue with the thighs on their Cyclonus - they're a little too square and straight, missing the taper that the original toon art had. On the flipside, the "boots" on MP-28 (calves and feet) are way too large for the thighs. The way the top of the grey calves on Hoodlum tapers perfectly into the orange kneee section versus the large step down to skinny knees on the official really keeps the lower body in proportion to the torso. Combined with the broad flat chest, the official's skinny thighs make's it look like someone who always skipped leg day.
    upload_2018-10-5_10-55-0.png
    Shoulder pegs are abolsutely an eyesore but not sure if it's lazy or just an unfortunate design decision. You only have to look at the MT Meteor thread to see how much ansgst can be generated by something not pegging into place solidly (Meteors nose cone) It's possible that FT would have done better to have the pegs on the part that the shoulder clips into, rather than on the shoulder itself, but this may not have been possible. No way to know yet
    As for the fake chest, some people hate the idea, some love it. Takara Sunstreaker has already set the precedent for using fake parts to achieve a more toon accurate look, as have other official MP's. It's a trade off between using fake parts to achieve a far more sleek and accurate bot mode. The flat chest on the official is exacerbated by Takara's decision to include the matrix gimmick, meaning the chest had to be big, flat and unsightly.
    Hoodlum on the other hand has seriously high shoulders that may or may not be adjustable, and when they are in a downward position, I expect the arms will look very long and hang down to mid-thigh (probably why FT only show's them in the higher position). The official did a much better job of capturing the mandarin collar, where the attempt to paint it in on Hioodlum just looks off. The vehicle mode on Hoodlum looks really squat and almost chibi, while the official totally captures the sleek sports car look.
    upload_2018-10-5_11-12-58.png
    Both fiogures made trake-offs to achieve certain aspects of their design. For me personally, Takara's trade-offs are not worth the negative impact in the final figure, while FansToys, just barely, scrape by.
     
    • Like Like x 3
  16. RodimusZero

    RodimusZero Steezin fo no Reason

    Joined:
    Aug 22, 2006
    Posts:
    2,831
    News Credits:
    11
    Trophy Points:
    312
    Likes:
    +4,017
    All very good points :thumb  Since Hot Rod's my favorite character, maybe I'm critical of Hoodlum, since I keep hoping someone will do something that absolutely floors me and it hasn't happened yet... I love MP-28 just for the car mode, mostly, people's gripes about his robot mode are well founded...

    I guess since FT has come this far, I hope they'll attempt a perfect transformation MP Rodimus Prime, since that's a figure that sorely needs updating,
    MP-09 was garbage even when it first came out. Probably the QC nightmare of the decade IMO.
     
    • Like Like x 1
  17. Starganderfish

    Starganderfish Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Jun 3, 2015
    Posts:
    7,756
    News Credits:
    2
    Trophy Points:
    247
    Location:
    Australia
    Likes:
    +11,923
    I'm actually a little unique in that while I love my FT dino's I kind of wish they'd skipped the gold chrome for a toon accurate glossy yellow paint. I think it would really make them pop. I love how the yellow paint looks on DX9's Legends scale dino's.
    I actually picked up the MP-09 rebuild version about a year ago, and it kind of grew on me (had a lot of the QC flaws fixed by a customiser). My initial impression when I first saw MP-09 all those years ago was the same as yours, but if the QC issues are fixed, it's actually a reasonably decent figure, though outdated by todays standards. It's definitely far, far more accurate to the character and better proportioned than MP-28.
    I also kind of liked the way they did the Winnebago transofrmation. Fake parts aside (which honestly don't bother me) it makes for a stunning looking alt mode. MP-09 was really clever to me, in that it was basically supposed to be a quad changer and I felt it did three of the four modes really well (amazing car and truck modes, and a pretty solid Rodimus mode) while Hot Rod mode was pretty much phoned in.
    My hope with MP-28 was that it would be a good enough Hot Rod to complete the Hot Rod/Rodimus quadrology. It did the alt mode just as well as M-09 did, but again the Hot Riod mode was a massive let down. Hoodlum does a much better job with bot mode (and I already have both MP-09 and MP-28 for vehicle modes so I can live with Hoodlum's weaknesses there) which means I have MP-09 for a great Winnebago and sprts car as well as a pretty solid Rodimus, MP-28 for a great sports car and now Hoodlum will make a pretty solid Hot Rod.
    Ideally, Fans Toys will do something really clever to make a good Rodimus, in which case I can then have ticked all four boxes (MP-09 and MP-28 for vehicles and Hoodlum and Hoodlumus Prime for bot's)
     
    Last edited: Oct 4, 2018
    • Like Like x 2
  18. Jdk504

    Jdk504 REDWOLF

    Joined:
    Dec 30, 2016
    Posts:
    1,841
    Trophy Points:
    197
    Location:
    Monterey, CA
    Likes:
    +5,517
    If they did that they would definitely needed to change the aesthetics as well. More flat looking panels vs the detailed ones they went with.
     
  19. Starganderfish

    Starganderfish Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Jun 3, 2015
    Posts:
    7,756
    News Credits:
    2
    Trophy Points:
    247
    Location:
    Australia
    Likes:
    +11,923
    If I ever win the lottery I'm sending my entire MP collection to LEK Custom Toys and telling him to just go nut's with them.
    LEK Custom Toys
    [​IMG]
     
    • Like Like x 6
  20. Jdk504

    Jdk504 REDWOLF

    Joined:
    Dec 30, 2016
    Posts:
    1,841
    Trophy Points:
    197
    Location:
    Monterey, CA
    Likes:
    +5,517
    Curious if FT or anyone else attempts a Devastator