Search found 29724 matches

by Denyer
Fri Jan 19, 2024 12:19 pm
Forum: Transformers Toys & Merchandise
Topic: Grumpy old men: armchair brand management
Replies: 208
Views: 3731590

Re: Grumpy old men: armchair brand management

Totally agree re: the copyright thing, but at this stage there's still a fair bit of tidy up needed in a lot of cases. I think rather than photocopying the metaphor is gene pools. Second generation LLM trained on first generation LLM outputs has less diverse data to work with and thus more bias in i...
by Denyer
Thu Jan 18, 2024 9:23 pm
Forum: Transformers Toys & Merchandise
Topic: POST YOUR NEWEST ACQUISITIONS!
Replies: 7413
Views: 3900428

Re: POST YOUR NEWEST ACQUISITIONS!

Vintage Beast Wars Wolfang Vintage Beast Wars Cybershark I've always had the impression they are/were still easy to find originals of, I got Cybershark a few years back for the alt-mode and Wolfang much earlier to swap parts with a Max-B on to do alt-mode Carnivac for a Wreckers display. Wolfang un...
by Denyer
Thu Jan 18, 2024 9:11 pm
Forum: General Discussion
Topic: I'm tired, time to post
Replies: 5
Views: 737

Re: I'm tired, time to post

Fucking hell yes.

Potatoes. Such versatile things. I wonder who the first person to try cooking them after trying (or watching) other people eat them raw was.

There are lots of good Polish soup recipes that involve them, too.
by Denyer
Thu Jan 18, 2024 9:06 pm
Forum: General Discussion
Topic: Your Latest Non-TF Toy Acquisitions
Replies: 1644
Views: 874593

Re: Your Latest Non-TF Toy Acquisitions

The sculpting on this figure is amazing. The head sculpt looks like it jumped right off of the page. The 90s comic-print shading is subtle enough that it doesn't look weird on a 3-D object, too, which is something that comic/cartoon-accurate figures from all sorts of companies seem to struggle with...
by Denyer
Sat Jan 13, 2024 8:23 pm
Forum: Transformers Toys & Merchandise
Topic: What was your best set of figures of the year?
Replies: 20
Views: 251018

Re: What was your best set of figures of the year?

Twenty years ago, it was perfectly normal to buy toys just because they were cool. Nowadays the fandom has pivoted hard towards collecting characters instead of figures. Would tend to agree, and I'm somewhere in-between. It takes an unusually good/cool design to get me to go for a character I have ...
by Denyer
Wed Jan 10, 2024 12:34 am
Forum: Transformers Toys & Merchandise
Topic: Grumpy old men: armchair brand management
Replies: 208
Views: 3731590

Re: Grumpy old men: armchair brand management

Yeah, there are regular and online releases over here of stuff that's store exclusive in the US, whereas Walgreens may have a deal that e.g. Minerva stock doesn't go to other US retailers. Over here it's only really Amazon that occasionally goes for semi-exclusives, although Smyths might have gotten...
by Denyer
Mon Jan 08, 2024 8:12 pm
Forum: Transformers Toys & Merchandise
Topic: Grumpy old men: armchair brand management
Replies: 208
Views: 3731590

Re: Grumpy old men: armchair brand management

I'm guessing they can make a bit more money shipping the stuff over here. Possibly a minor factor of no language issues/relabelling with sales to the UK. Possibly that Hasbro doesn't want its leading brands liquidated in an obvious way in the US/Canada, plus exchange rates are generally prohibitive ...
by Denyer
Mon Jan 08, 2024 8:01 pm
Forum: Transformers Toys & Merchandise
Topic: What was your best set of figures of the year?
Replies: 20
Views: 251018

Re: What was your best set of figures of the year?

Yeah, Amazon search and failure to enforce grouping of listings is appalling enough to send me to eBay pretty often for things that are small, non-urgent and cheap. Amazon seem to take a bigger cut of the base price that means they can often be beaten on that stuff. But it's handy to be able to get ...
by Denyer
Mon Jan 08, 2024 12:56 pm
Forum: Transformers Toys & Merchandise
Topic: What was your best set of figures of the year?
Replies: 20
Views: 251018

Re: What was your best set of figures of the year?

Over here, Prime customers (and it's worth the cost of Prime annually if you order at least a few things a month, and they partner with supermarkets and have a few original shows that I actually watch) can specify a preferred delivery day for in stock items, including weekends. Ethics aside, Amazon'...
by Denyer
Mon Jan 08, 2024 12:55 pm
Forum: Transformers Toys & Merchandise
Topic: Grumpy old men: armchair brand management
Replies: 208
Views: 3731590

Re: Grumpy old men: armchair brand management

The deep discounts mostly aren't retailers clearing their own stock. Although both brick and mortar stores like Smyths and online retailers such as Kapow, ID and C&C do it to clear down older inventory and at significant mark down to clear the last few of things, deep discounts are now constant ...
by Denyer
Sun Jan 07, 2024 11:25 pm
Forum: Transformers Toys & Merchandise
Topic: Grumpy old men: armchair brand management
Replies: 208
Views: 3731590

Re: Grumpy old men: armchair brand management

Question spinning off from discussion about 'dead' Ironhide and Prowl in the Top X of 2023 thread... How long do we think big box stores will keep taking stuff that gets heavily clearanced? Are misfires forgiven, or are they locked into multi-year agreements (which seems unlikely based on how Walmar...
by Denyer
Sun Jan 07, 2024 3:30 pm
Forum: Transformers Toys & Merchandise
Topic: What was your best set of figures of the year?
Replies: 20
Views: 251018

Re: What was your best set of figures of the year?

I don't think the complexity argument holds that much water in justifying jumping a whole SKU bracket either personally. Hasbro just have a fairly blanket policy of cost cutting regardless of whether it compromises the product enough that people won't buy at the price point. Size and a half is a goo...
by Denyer
Fri Jan 05, 2024 2:19 pm
Forum: Transformers Toys & Merchandise
Topic: What was your best set of figures of the year?
Replies: 20
Views: 251018

Re: What was your best set of figures of the year?

Feel free to share any tips or tricks you come up with. Depending where you shop, deferred delivery (e.g. Amazon day, or BBTS do a "pile of loot" thing) -- if something's ordered but cancellable without penalty and you've lost interest two days later, simple matter to do so. I'm sure stor...
by Denyer
Thu Jan 04, 2024 10:24 pm
Forum: Transformers Toys & Merchandise
Topic: What was your best set of figures of the year?
Replies: 20
Views: 251018

Re: What was your best set of figures of the year?

I think that's where the emphasis has shifted to. Instead of each figure being it's own intricate puzzle that has to be engaged/manipulated with in a deliberate way (lest you absentmindedly break something delicate), we've now got this design ethos focused on things that are nicely poseable yet can...
by Denyer
Tue Jan 02, 2024 8:27 pm
Forum: General Discussion
Topic: Your Latest Non-TF Toy Acquisitions
Replies: 1644
Views: 874593

Re: Your Latest Non-TF Toy Acquisitions

The original design by Dave Johnson apparently has enough of a torso to fit vital organs, although there's other non-Euclidean things going on with it.

https://www.comicsbeat.com/jessica-drew ... der-woman/
by Denyer
Tue Jan 02, 2024 6:23 pm
Forum: Transformers Toys & Merchandise
Topic: What was your best set of figures of the year?
Replies: 20
Views: 251018

Re: What was your best set of figures of the year?

Yeah, it's hard to see how a "Leader" Springer will be anything but an over-complicated and possibly slightly oversized Voyager. And all of the predictions online seem to be negative. I'd have counted Needlenose if I'd got him in 2023. It's still a nice figure (actually Crankcase isn't awf...
by Denyer
Mon Jan 01, 2024 9:15 pm
Forum: Transformers Toys & Merchandise
Topic: What was your best set of figures of the year?
Replies: 20
Views: 251018

Re: What was your best set of figures of the year?

Glad the repaints are giving someone enjoyment... if they'd done blue Grimlock and G2 stickers/accessories Jazz I think I'd have gone for them. Particularly if they'd reworked the car doors for positioning as wings. Leo Prime they really needed to do something with the front lion shoulders, and it s...
by Denyer
Sat Dec 30, 2023 6:54 pm
Forum: Transformers Toys & Merchandise
Topic: POST YOUR NEWEST ACQUISITIONS!
Replies: 7413
Views: 3900428

Re: POST YOUR NEWEST ACQUISITIONS!

How hot does the water need to be, anyway? I've seen a lot of people re: customising MOTU figures say not actually boiling, just hot, but personally I just boil it, pour some into an insulated mug and give the plastic a minute or two in that. Hasn't damaged other Super7 figures, but the sculpting o...
by Denyer
Sat Dec 23, 2023 10:23 pm
Forum: Transformers Media / Fandom
Topic: Sunbow Marvel Archive (TF sections)
Replies: 32
Views: 42886

Re: Sunbow Marvel Archive (TF sections)

Related content - James Eatock just added a voice recording session for Transport to Oblivion Part 1 with accompanying visuals. Worth checking out his cerealgeek channel for lots of other 80s stuff too.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JMxn9MrSV94
by Denyer
Thu Dec 21, 2023 2:19 am
Forum: Transformers Toys & Merchandise
Topic: POST YOUR NEWEST ACQUISITIONS!
Replies: 7413
Views: 3900428

Re: POST YOUR NEWEST ACQUISITIONS!

Cool, might keep a lookout for that one. Legacy Lio Convoy and I don't know whether it's my point of comparison being the RobotMasters one and low expectations but I actually like the dour-faced unposeable brick and don't immediately want to paint pupils on, although will photoshop them to fully bla...