I have both and agree. Ft's are great statues, but aren't fun to transform often. But if you just want to keep them in robot mode, you shouldn't have any major issues. Badcube are fun to play with and very unlikely to break. You can transform them easily. Both are good figures, but if you are worried about breaking the figures go with Badcube.
I own the Badcube premium set with chrome and die-cast. They have their issues, but overall, I'm happy with them. But I do love Badcube's aesthetic.
Bc Kickback looks fat, their Shrapnel is the only one that I liked. Bc came off as a bit Transformers rescue bots look to me. Bc Bombshell had the ugly legs and feet in bot mode and his shoulders like mentioned before, looked like they were just hanging there. Bc Bombshell head was looked to big. Ft Forager I never had to use grease, all I did was work the wings clockwise, and counter clock wise about 12 times and never had a issue. Bc were nice and fun to transform, but I transform my ft and they are just as fun. The articulated bug legs really shine in alt mode. At first I didn't think that would be something I would like. But after pictures, and having them in hand. They really are cool. And Ft gives you the option to use those, or the g1 legs which are cleaner look in bot mode. Ft insecticons feel like tanks. Which when playing with them. Takes a bit of muscle cause they have diecast and joints are tight. Bc were very snug which I think some get they are easier and more fun to transform. But Ft really loosen up after a while. And trust me I love to transform and pose them. And honestly to my eye's they look much cooler and better than Bc.
Get FT Purple Grenadier (Bombshell) as a bare minimum. That figure is fantastic, and fun / easy to transform after a few times. He looks and feels fantastic in both modes. Then, either get the other 2 FT, I personally love them and haven't had issue with Kickback. For BC, honestly only one that looks and I have been told by a few members that own the 3 as the best of the three / most value is their Shrapnel. I do like my FT Shrapnel though. In any case, no harm in having doubles of bugs you love.
The FTs look better by a mile. Mine haven't broke, but there are some pieces you have to be careful with. I don't play with my figure much, so it doesn't bother me.
I agree with most of what you said in the OP...part of why I don't own any MP Insecticons yet and voted for you to wait for other options. I see no reason to rush into buying anything that you don't think is good enough...It's been over 30 years so if it takes a few more to get what you want, it's worth the wait to me. If I absolutely had to buy today, I would go with the Badcube versions because they seem like better engineered and designed toys with a slight edge in aesthetics as well (mostly due to the unsightly back kibble on FTs).
Fanstoys all the way sir. The issues with their Kickback are only really a problem if you don't pay attention to what you're doing and handle your figures like a 5 year old.
I went the cheap route and nabbed the platinum g1 release from kmart for 30 bucks, they don't look that bad in bug mode mixed randomly in with my mp's. Figure i'll wait on takara. Maybe get the badcube set if bbts has a clearance sale on them.
Sure, the arms and wings snapping off fairly frequently isn't a problem... when it's FTS. God forbid Xtransbots have a minor issue... In addition to having better transformations and roughly equal appearances given the lack of weird kibble, badcube insecticons also have no common quality control issues
See, this was my thinking initially when I got the fan toys Grenadier. I was figuring on replacing the bad Cube version. When I finally transformed it, the issues with the kibble bothered me, and also I didn't like the way the lines on his arms and legs were broken up to achieve articulation. It just didn't look as good as I thought. I ended up leaving it in love mode and leaving the bad cube one in robot mode. I honestly think that FT was able to capitalize on the human tendency to overrate heft. Kind of like how the original Beats by Dre headphones have metal Parts with no function just to make them feel pleasingly heavy.
If you enjoy playing with your toys and want some characteristic I say go BC, if you want a very heavy figure to display on shelf, go ft, I have both set. that's my suggestion.
IMO, BadCube are the better set. Bombshell: Grenadier was nice but back kibble and uniform chest color sucks if you are after screen accuracy. BC changes color for each mode and hides bug legs well. Weapon also turns into bug snout so extra ass gun in bug mode. Shrapnel: Had Mercenary and thought the face was terrible and the transformation was meh. Back kibble a problem as well. BC only problem is the waist moves around too much. Kickback: Decided not to get Forager after not liking the first two, seeing wings break, and not digging the face. BCs nailed it for me on this one. Overall I don't think you can go wrong and really depends on your personal preference for diecast and what you want in an MP. I look for Sunbow screen accuracy over toy accuracy.
same happened to mine, Mercenary horn broke on arrive, and broke Mercenary again, I had it on-preorder but I didn't want it, like you didn't buy Forager. Now I have a set of BC normal color, BC collector version, 2 broken FT, and my old FP insects.
I bought both the BadCube set and FT's Grenadier, and I just could not get into Grenadier. He was too stiff and had a bunch of insect legs all over his back. BadCube's set doesn't photograph as well, but man do they look good in person - the paint and finish in particular make them fit in great with official MPs in my opinion. Long story short, I ended up selling Grenadier and kept my BadCube set.
Were you trying to do the transformation by applying force to the arms? Because there is no reason to do that. There is a step in the transformation where it takes a bit of force the first time back from bug mode...but if you grab the figure from the torso you avoid any and all pressure that could lead to arm breakage. I don't even think the shoulders are that fragile. The clips are an issue but I'm convinced the shoulder issue is caused by users grabbing the shoulders and pulling with far too much force. I have all three FTs bugs, transformed them all back and forth numerous times, and have yet to have any issues. As for the badcube bugs, they may be fine but they suffer from proportion issues that I just can't get past.
Yeled, I am not replying to you specifically, but people who haven't broken theirs owe quite a bit to those who received theirs early and broke theirs including the reviewers. Had there not been early feedback, many of those questioning why others have broken theirs would also likely have a broken copy. This is what FanaTics often leave out in their feedback. Full Disclosure, I am selling my SECOND set of BadCube Insects. But only because I am running out of space. Had to sell my Hades as well.
I think we are all adult collectors and not trying to break our own toys so we can get a replacement. but if it happen this often, one of mine broke when I open it but the package is undamaged, the other break when I transform it back to robot. Funny it didn't happen so often. My Scoria shoulders and Perceptor has had some issue before, but until they start adding a tiny green sticker written QC Pass, it all went downhill because clearly IT SHALL NOT PASS.
That is definitely true. I won't argue with that. I didn't break the Forager clips because people went through how not to break them. I wrote a commentary up on the Forager thread and said just that. It takes a bit of working the clips and making sure you don't hold them too high or by the wings and once you work them a bit they are fine (though you do have to handle them carefully). I do, however, think the shoulders were users applying too much force to a joint. There is a difficult part during the transformation that takes a bit of force. If you hold the figure by the torso it's not an issue, but if you grabbed the shoulder and pulled really hard...it's not too surprising that it broke. My point is not to blame people...that's not what I'm trying to say and if it came across that way I apologize...but instead to say that the shoulder isn't a design flaw or even a particularly fragile piece. The breakages seem to be from users getting to the difficult step in the transformation (and one can discuss whether it should be that difficult, but that's a different conversation) and grabbing the figure from a leverage spot that shouldn't be used that way. It doesn't surprise me that a shoulder will break if a lot of force is applied to it. I will say the term FanaTics isn't really helpful. I'm not sure why people feel the need to lower themselves to name calling. It says more about the one doing it than the one the name is targeting. So in summary: 1) Clips are too fragile but thanks to users I/we can avoid breaking them and 2) the shoulders are not in fact fragile but they can be snapped if you apply significant force. Gotcha. I personally think the FTs insecticons are great. They are among my favorite figures. I do tend to pose and display rather than fiddle so aesthetics trump everything else for me, and I think the FTs bugs truly capture the toon look as well as any MP figures capture the toon look. But I've transformed all of my insecticons numerous times without problem.
Anyone here thinks it's possible that Fanstoys release a gift set of their Insecticons now that the team is completed? I would prefer to buy them that way instead of one by one.
