Japanese / Asian market exclusives: Masterpiece, Generations, etc

[Tetsuro]

Ironically, Marlboro probably gave Takara better marketing than what they could've dreamed of
 

[Knightdramon]

Do not mind the difference. His release date has been bumped to March with Star Saber.
 

[zigzagger]

Tracks!

In prototype stage, mind, but not too shabby, not too shabby at all. The Stingray alt mode is looking quite sexy as well. And I here I thought Takara was going to stick with using the '84 cars for base molds
 

[Sades]

He's looking a little... uh... "slender", there. Not bad, but seems oddly thin to me.
 

[Knightdramon]

Expected, and I'm super excited for him.

Tracks, Sideswipe and Jazz were the three most sought after autobot cars when I was a kid, and it looks like we're 2 out of 3 ready in that regards.

It does look a tad lanky, but it's probably the angle and the fact that his waist is turned.

So I'm guessing the rumours are true for Ironhide later on. According to the rumours, Tracks is supposed to come with a Raoul mini fig and a little Blaster tape deck.
 

[Warcry]

Agreed with Sades...Tracks definitely came out a good bit skinnier than his original toy or character model would suggest. I like it, though! Cartoon Tracks probably had the most boring look of all the Autobot cars, and the original toy was really forgettable too compared to the likes of Prowl or Skids or Sideswipe.

I'm a bit surprised by this myself, but I suppose I shouldn't be. Tracks might not be the most popular of the remaining Autobot cars, but GM is easy to work with and the Corvette is probably the most iconic American car ever. Kinda makes me wonder if Windcharger is in the near future, since the Trans Am is pretty high on that list as well.
 

[Denyer]

Hopefully they might get a black repaint out of it.
 

[Unicron]

Tracks looks better than I would have expected. As noted, a bit thin, but that's probably due to the seemingly accurate alt-mode. As always, more pics shall be good.

Though I have to say I'm a little disappointed the various MP Megatron V2 rumors didn't pan out. Oh well.
 

[Cliffjumper]

Like him. Yeh, would have preferred a fraction more mass around the hips, though that might come out when painted (the lower torso is either a bit of a fudge or not snapped together quite right).

Was never crazy about the toy or the character model but that's done a decent job of combining both to come out with something quite servicable. First impressions are he's a lot more anime-styled than the other MPs thus far, which to me isn't a bad thing. Better than a blue Wheeljack with his trousers on backwards at any rate.

I'd be lying if I said Tracks was anywhere near the top of my "next MP wanted" list but I'll go with it.
 

[zigzagger]

Originally Posted by Cliffjumper

First impressions are he's a lot more anime-styled than the other MPs thus far, which to me isn't a bad thing.

That's what came to mind, what with the lithe, slightly exaggerated features one may see in a mecha series.

I'd be lying if I said Tracks was anywhere near the top of my "next MP wanted" list but I'll go with it.

Yeah, as far as the '85ers go, I would've liked to have seen Skids first. Though personally, I'm more curious to see what Takara can do with the likes of Hound, Ratchet, or Trailbreaker.
 

[Cliffjumper]

Yeh - Skids' original toy is actually quite well proportioned (as are the Datsun and the Lambo) and I can kind-of 'see' the Masterpiece, it's just a matter of articulating, smoothing and detailing, especially as the animation model kept most of the stuff hanging off the back of him. Some of the weirder ones I'm more curious on, especially the ones who were radically changed for the cartoon - though with high optimism after Wheeljack turned out so well.

Tracks could be a smart commercial move, mind - the sort of figure people might skip if they put him out towards the end, more likely to shift while the hype and anticipation is high. Plus there are at least two good repaint options (red and black).

A new Megatron would be nice but I can see why Takara are a little reluctant; the character just doesn't have the commercial draw Prime does, if they keep the gun (which they surely will for MP) the engineering's a nightmare and the repaint possibilites are limited.
 

[Clay]

Originally Posted by Warcry

I'm a bit surprised by this myself, but I suppose I shouldn't be. Tracks might not be the most popular of the remaining Autobot cars, but GM is easy to work with and the Corvette is probably the most iconic American car ever.

Keep in mind also that they didn't have any problems licensing the Corvette for Binaltech Tracks, ROTF Sideswipe, or AOE Crosshairs. Given that, Tracks was probably the most likely of the cars to have official blessing.
 

[Tetsuro]

Originally Posted by Cliffjumper

A new Megatron would be nice but I can see why Takara are a little reluctant; the character just doesn't have the commercial draw Prime does, if they keep the gun (which they surely will for MP) the engineering's a nightmare and the repaint possibilites are limited.

Well to be honest, what repaints have we gotten out of MP-10 so far? They skipped the obvious Ultra Magnus repaint, the YotD repaint was by Hasbro, and the only other one I can think off the top of my head is the weird Evangelion exclusive.

I would imagine the best repaint oppoturnity for Megatron would be the black Microman version.
 

[Knightdramon]

Originally Posted by Tetsuro

Well to be honest, what repaints have we gotten out of MP-10 so far? They skipped the obvious Ultra Magnus repaint, the YotD repaint was by Hasbro, and the only other one I can think off the top of my head is the weird Evangelion exclusive.

I would imagine the best repaint oppoturnity for Megatron would be the black Microman version.

You're skipping a few.

MP10
Hasbro MP10
Takara MP10 Black
Takara MP10A [that green bape repaint]
Hasbro YOTH
Takara Evangelion

That's plenty of uses out of an already expensive mould. Furthermore, MP10 is being reissued plenty of times throughout, whether it's hasbro or takara or hasbro asia.

I don't think Megatron is that marketable, as it will effectively cut out his Hasbro counterpart.
 

[Denyer]

It hasn't held them back before, hasn't prevented a current re-release, and isn't holding back third parties that do relatively small runs. Think it'll happen, but not any time soon.
 

[Clay]

Originally Posted by Knightdramon

You're skipping a few.

MP10
Hasbro MP10
Takara MP10 Black
Takara MP10A [that green bape repaint]
Hasbro YOTH
Takara Evangelion

Yeah, I wasn't even thinking of the actual repaints before you listed those. My thought immediately went to Takara using the mold as-is two or three times now, Hasbro Asia a couple of times, and Hasbro a couple of times now. As it is, MP10 isn't a mold that even needs to be repainted to recoup cost - they just need to periodically re-release it as Convoy because the demand for it seems to be constant.
 

[Cliffjumper]

Yup, and MP-10 is only a couple of years old; Takara will probably eventually milk the mould for at least as long as MP-1; I'd wager it'll be kept going as long as MP V2. Prime's got the pull that tweaked variants can sell to casuals on their own merit while also snaring completist maniacs and tidying up on those who missed the last release (personally I missed MP-10 and will happily jump at a normal colour version with, I dunno, a little model of Chip Chase or whatever).

Megatron frankly doesn't, or we'd have seen miscellaneous variants or at least a reissue of the first one at some point between its' first release and the line being revamped. Reckon he'll come out around the time of figures that have "retail" repaint potential (Ratchet/Ironhide, Inferno/Grapple, Trailbreaker/Hoist) so the budget's nice and in the black.

I'd probably bite for a to-scale Megatron with the caveat he'd basically be an Action Master for me so the robot mode had better be good. Would prefer Shockwave or a downsized robot-scale Seeker, though.
 

[Unicron]

Originally Posted by Cliffjumper

personally I missed MP-10 and will happily jump at a normal colour version with, I dunno, a little model of Chip Chase or whatever).

Takara is doing a straight re-issue of it in May. Don't think it's going to come with anything new, but tis a good way of getting one for non-stupid prices.

Megatron frankly doesn't, or we'd have seen miscellaneous variants or at least a reissue of the first one at some point between its' first release and the line being revamped.

Well, there was that recent random gold tinted release. Still not sure why they did that.

And as much as I'd like them to have another go at Megatron, hopefully taking more than 2 weeks on it this time, I think I'd actually rather see an MP Galvatron at this point. Magnus needs someone to go toe-to-toe with.
 

[Knightdramon]

Originally Posted by Denyer

It hasn't held them back before, hasn't prevented a current re-release, and isn't holding back third parties that do relatively small runs. Think it'll happen, but not any time soon.

Oh there's no denying it will. Thankfully TT appear to not really care how feasible most of their products for the MP line are to the US/rest of the world market and keep on making these sweet things.

It'll be epic and funny if TT releases MP Megatron V2 just in time with their V3 of Prime or whatever

Lots and I mean LOTS of butthurt for Tracks so far, can't deny I'm a bit saddened by the overall lukewarm response. You'd think after MP Magnus, Exhaust and Star Saber in a row, people would get the hint that TT is not going to focus solely on S1...right?

What intrigues me about Tracks [in the ONE relatively bad quality pic, yes] is that he's a tad more...stylized than the super retro Prowl and Sideswipe. Wheeljack has some liberties taken, yes, and Bumblebee is a bit on his own league, but Tracks looks even more anime-proportioned than the other bots so far.
 

[Tetsuro]

Originally Posted by Knightdramon

Lots and I mean LOTS of butthurt for Tracks so far

Can't really fathom it. I mean, the 1985 characters can't be that unpopular, plus I'd imagine Jazz is still at least partially sitting in licensing hell. Who else does that leave us with, Sunstreaker? Hoist? Ratchet? Ironhide? Come to think of it, I take that back. But still, he's a pre-movie character, surely that has to count for something, right?

...right?