I didn't check news for a while but from the look of it, Animated is pretty much dead for Hasbro?

No Thundercracker, Wingblade OP, Hydrodrive BB, Blackout and the other repaints.

So my only option is Takara's but I don't like their metallic paints, clear plastic OP doesn't bother me, I will just give the equipment to the regular OP.

Is Takara's Wingblade a exclusive or mass retail?

 

Animated could not be more dead as far as Hasbro is concerned.

The metallic Takara figures suck so hard IMO, making the situation even more of a damn shame.

But hey, I've been over it for a while now, moving on and all that...

 

Mass retail.


Lack of Thundercracker rankles me, but it would've had random metallic paint anyway. So i'll just have to repaint a Starsceam.

 

It wouldn't of had random metallic parts, that was Henkei. Takara's Animated quirk was uber shiny metallic paint.

 

But the sad thing is that not all TakTom's Animated TFs have shiny metallic paint. Blackout does not have shiny paint. Neither does Soundwave Electrostatic. This makes them look out of place, even when displaying with their TakTom Animated compatriots.

 

What really grinds my gears is that they released all of those pointless Starscream Activators repaints, Optimus repaints, and the thoroughly pointless space/scuba/whatever Bumblebee instead of Wasp or Thundercracker.

 

??? they had to release the smaller bb, and wasp and thundercracker were just repaints, not new molds like that bumblebee and wingblade prime's backpack

 

I think the chances of getting the remaining Animated figures in that style of figures from Hasbro is somewhere at about zero right now. Between Generations, Transformers Prime, and Dark of the Moon all needing action figures I just can't see them having room in all those releases for them.

It also seems like Hasbro is fairly content at this point to just move the Animated characters into their other lines. So the Animated characters aren't dead since we still see Bulkhead, Lockdown, and Lugnut pop up in other lines. But the toy line seems to be deader than movie Jazz at this point.

I know some people would raise hell but with the toy line done is there anything to prevent the repaints from being some sort of club exclusive maybe?

 

I wouldnt be surprised to see the remaining TFA figures trickled out over the next year or 2. Its not like a Blackout or TCracker wouldnt sell - especially when they become store exclusives. I mean, how many Arcees + Hot Rods are clogging up shelves at TRU right now. Hasbro wouldnt need to produce nearly the amount of figures of a full fledge product line like HFD or Generations. Especially when they've been squirting out 2 at a time releases on the remaining figures. I think theres money to be made on these figures, and if thats the case then I'm sure they'll get released here in some capacity. That could all be wishfull thinking on my part because I'm a fan of the TFA line, but it does make sense to me.

 

100 % dead as a line

99.99% chance dead period

slight chance of release in another catch all line.

 

I was starting to look forward to Vortex Blurr too. I wanted a repaint, and Takara's version and the TFClub Cheetor don't interest me.

 

I just want takara to release a voyager class thundercracker

 

The bajillion Starscream repaints they released were also just repaints.

 

The Animated series as a line has died out, but there is still some glimmer of hope as the molds are still around.

First off, they could end up being reused as exclusives. We've already got a retooled Blurr as the OTFCC freebie exclusive this year, and while it would suck for the average fan because the limited numbers would mean higher prices, it is better than nothing.

Or, Hasbro could reuse the molds in Generations. I'm sure they could get away with Vortex Blurr as the cybertronic form of somebody else.

I've never seen any of the TRU Animated excusives at retail. Ever. Every other damn TRU transformer exclusive shelfwarms as bad as Cybertron Mudflap (the fact one of those exclusives WAS a redecoed Cybertron Mudflap probably not coincidental), but Animated just vanished in my area.

 

Yep.


Good bye Animated you will honestly be missed, also it ends in Japan tommorow well it ended now due to time zones.

Dec.26 2007 - Dec.25 2010

 

Exactly my point. Thats why I wouldnt be surprised if we see these remaining figures released at some point. With limited production numbers, it seems to be a profitable venture.

 

I'd also love to see them bring Animated Blitzwing over to another line. It was such an interesting way to update the character that I'd hate to see the character gone for good. Plus I'd really need him to go with the Lugnut figure they are doing, it would just seem weird not to have them both.

 

hasbro has indicated numerous times they are checking for ways to get the remaining characters released...as one who hated animated   ...who knows...

Think about the timing and the time period in the year...we are in the end/beginning of year cycle...plus the 3rd movie is out in 6 months...doubt seriously any retailer is going to want to do a NON MOVIE TF exclusive right now...maybe in the fall like rodimus/ironhide were released....

but right now...Fuck no...all retailers are thinking about now is clearing out current stock and looking forward to the new movie product....transformers animated is probably lower on the priority list right now than any possible G1 reissue transformer that hasbro might want to randomly pull out their ass to sell as an exclusive next year...

 

There have been a few surprises of random toys showing up that no one expected (those 3 Target exclusive Titanium repaints last summer, and the 3 TRU exclusive 3-inch Titanium two-packs that same summer)...they just released that Warriors from Three Worlds TRU exclusive of old Cybertron figures in Universe packaging, which is kind of wierd...so I think it's possible that Thundercracker, Mudbuster Bulkhead, and maybe other repaints could get released at random times that make people go "What the hell?"

That said, I wouldn't have bet those other random examples I listed would've happened, so I'm not betting on Animated at all (ugh, I want that Thundercracker) and wouldn't encourage anyone to get their hopes up.

Takara may still be the best bet, considering we're stil due for a few exclusives after the end of Takara's Animated line (Black Rodimus, Elite Guard Prime, and the crystal Activators Prime are still upcoming) and Takara has yet to release their versions of the other Activators toys, so it's possible they could do a few more exclusives here and there...but I'm not assuming anything with them either.