A ko is a ko is a ko. 4th party isn't a real term.

 

And yet, in just over 10-years, DC Comics will have been around for a century. So, best to just get over it, and move on.
Or add it to your CinemaSins *ding* tally, and move on...
Common denominator: move on.

Some take the Oxford dictionary approach, while others date the Merriam-Webster approach to the English language and its use. Seems your a party to the former, as opposed to the latter.  

 

I think that's the root of the issue.

Obviously it's not necessary, but it's useful to have a term to help distinguish between conventional "straight" KO items, and higher-end "improved" KOs that are often produced by well-known KO+ brands.

What's irksome about "4th party" is that it's sort of a nonsense term, derived from a misunderstanding of what "3rd Party" actually means and where that term originates. It would be like advertising an item with more diecast parts as having "dice-cast" parts.

It's sort annoying in the same way as people who insist on saying "expresso" or "for all intensive purposes".

z

 

No.

Accepting that language is in a constant state of flux and organic distortion is one thing... however, that is not the same as having no opinion on the matter, and no desire to correct malapropisms when they occur.

You can still appreciate the long-view approach to language while also respecting general practices of grammar, spelling, and (I daresay) common sense.

z

 

I believe there was. Lots of copies floating on ebay 3-4 years ago.

 

In case anyone here grew up in the 80s, and didn't know...
When you apply

To the left side navigation of certain sites that sell TFs...

4 = K
P = O

Feel better? You've cracked the code!!

If you're still grouchy about what you see there, then maybe you should besuretodrinktyourovaltine.

 

That seems like rather a lot of effort expended purely for the sake of being supercilious.  

4th Party is just a dumb expression that isn't very descriptive. If you coined the term yourself, maybe I'd understand being so defensive about it (though no less deserving of opprobrium). ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

z

 

Huh?   This comment is even more nonsensical than calling kos 4th party

1st party = the originator of goods/IP holder
2nd party = consumer
3rd party = good licensed by the IP holder
Unlicensed 3rd party = what people on these boards typically refer to as 3rd party
KO = taking an existing design, copying it and releasing it either unaltered or altered. Doesn't matter the extent of the alteration, if it is copying an existing design then it is a KO
4th party = not a real thing, at least not in this context. A 4th party is someone a 3rd party outsources too. An example of this would be as follows:
Hasbro (the 1st party) gives Flame Toys (a 3rd party) the license to produce Transformers model kits. Flame Toys then calls up Chemical Attack to design the model kits. If Chemical Attack was unowned by Flame Toys and was contracted by them to do the design work then Chemical Attack would be a 4th party in this scenario. However since Chemical Attack is a design team that works for and is run by Flame Toys as part of their orginazation then they still technically fall under being 3rd party because they are still Flame Toys.

4th party in commonly accepted grammar and English has absolutely nothing to do with counterfeit goods, modified or otherwise. To keep using it in that manner shows an ignorance of the meaning of the term.

Exactly!

 

I believe this was intended to compare the term under discussion to apparent redundancies like "DC Comics" (Detective Comics Comics) or "ATM Machine" (automated teller machine machine).

Even given that logical stretch, it's a poor example because DC Comics refers not to "Detective Comics" anymore, but to the DC brand itself (which is no longer an abbreviation for anything, and encompasses more than comics)

Indeed, I don't think this meaning of "3rd Party" was ever even the understood or intended meaning in the TF fandom. Rather, the "third party" was simply used in the more general sense, as a company outside the binary relationship of Hasbro + buyer. In that context, the concept of a 4th party can't exist... only multiple 3rd parties, right?

z

 

Yea, that's quite the stretch in logic, especially considering as you said, DC isn't shorthand for Detective Comics, least not anymore (and hasn't been for a long time)

As for the 2nd point, yea, people in the fandom disregard the license aspect and consider 3p as anything unofficial that isn't a ko and licensed 3rd parties (like flame toys) are considered official so not 3rd party. Technically both 3h and Funpub were also licensed 3rd parties for a time. But as far as general use in the fandom goes, if it's not official and it's not a ko then it's 3rd party

 

I love seeing you 2 continue the 4th party fight (4PF) after I long since gave up the desire to school trendsetters.

Plus, you both do it so eloquently.  

 

It's probably equal parts pedantic condemnation and intellectual curiosity, really.  

z

 

Can anyone help, I'm in the market for LS-13 AOYI Prime and I think I found a good price on him at TF Direct.

AOYI MECH H6003-8

... But he's not listed as ls-13 despite the pictures looking like it and having the same measurements. He's also significantly cheaper than every other corner of the internet selling him. In addition, TF Direct has a whole other page for LS-13 that shows as being out of stock. (with a higher price tag)

Aoyi Mech LS-13

So is it the same or am I taking a risk?

 

They are not the same, LS13 is higher quality

 

Appreciate the kudos   sometimes it really is like talking to a brick wall haha

It's just a stupid nonsense term in this context and it never should have caught on. Like, yea, language evolves, but words and terms also have real meanings and a bunch of people on a toy website inappropriately using a term doesn't mean the language is evolving, it means they're ignorant of the actual meaning

 

As I started reading this I was thinking "KO+" would be simple enough to differentiate. Irregardless, you beat me to it.  

 

Here they are side by side.

 

I SAW WHAT YOU DID THERE!  

Actually I'm glad you caught that, because when I typed "KO+" I had that same thought, and wondered if it would catch on.  

z

 

(funny enough, my computer doesn't highlight "irregardless" as a misspelling or not-a-word.)

 

I think it might have been added to (some) dictionaries, as is often the case if words are spelled / used wrong often enough.

I certainly take license with the English language with abandon... but I know when I'm breaking the rules at least (usually)

z