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Knight Morpher Commander (AKA Hearts of Steel Optimus Prime)

Comments

19 comments posted
What a great, soulful toy.

What a great, soulful toy. If only all fandoms were as motivated and competent as TF fans. TF fan-generated toys are just outstanding. I was hoping to see a review of this on cdx. Thanks!

-when we periodically grapple with the merits of sub-par figures (the Atelier Sai Garland comes to mind) I think of pieces like this. Here a few fans, amateur toy manufacturers, have created an astonishing toy, in very limited numbers, and it's high quality. How do giant toy companies so often fail with less ambitious products?

And for other super-passionate mecha fans (cough, Macross, cough) what are you doing while these guys are creating stuff like this?

The Enthusiast's picture
Posted by The Enthusiast on 3 April, 2010 - 17:16
Nothing

They're doing nothing obviously. Too much time defending their purchases on the internet, or complaining about inaccuracies on MW.

I love the fact that these new small TF fan companies outdo the big guys on a regular basis. This is an obscure character design that would never have been made otherwise. And surprise, somebody actually did a good job. And did a good job with no need to justify it or defend it.

Just like some of the vinyl figures that have been debated the last few months, you might not like the toy design or character, but you can't help but be inspired by the level of dedication, love, and craftsmanship that is present here. People teamed up to make this happen. They didn't just complain on message boards. They made it happen.

When you buy stuff like this, you know your money is going to a good place- people who care about it.

The Big R's picture
Posted by The Big R on 4 April, 2010 - 10:01
otherwise

"This is an obscure character design that would never have been made otherwise."

Really? I don't think you can make a statement like that with any accuracy, considering the number of toys Hasbro has already produced for The War Within, and the enormous amount of fan-pleasing material they continue to work into the line wherever they find the opportunity.

recognizer's picture
Posted by recognizer on 9 April, 2010 - 22:03
Hearts of Steel was an awful

Hearts of Steel was an awful comic, and did terribly. We were never going this toy from Hasbro.

http://prometheusrising.wordpress.com

Prometheum5's picture
Posted by Prometheum5 on 10 April, 2010 - 10:39
Moonshine

"Really? I don't think you can make a statement like that with any accuracy, considering the number of toys Hasbro has already produced for The War Within,"

But TBR did thought of it, & he did make a statement w/ accuracy, so what # of toys did you claim that Hasbro has already made for TWW? There were only 11 of them from the awful 6" Titanium line & they were all horrible w/ the remaining 5 figures to be Seeker clones.

" and the enormous amount of fan-pleasing material they continue to work into the line wherever they find the opportunity."

Except that it wasn't fan-pleasing, the amount WASN'T enormous. The Titanium line was pathetic, The Universe line were moderate & it's in a standstill thanks to the cringing B-Formers merchandise that continues to dominate the Wal-Mart shelves to this day.

The opportunity was passed over and over again b/c their persistence in tampering w/ a hit product, & whenever a board of idiots go the wrong way, the TF fanbase followed suit like a pack of lemmings w/ a genetic death wish.

These real indie-fan toy studios were tired of being mad at Hasbro, so they decide to make things right by producing moonshine, & boy does it pack a punch.

-R78

Rodimus78's picture
Posted by Rodimus78 on 10 April, 2010 - 12:49
Better yet why arn't these

Better yet why arn't these amateur toy manufacturers developing thier own original toy lines instead of leaching off the intellectual property of Hasbro, Takara and IDW publishing.

Further, what happened to all those value conscious toy fanboys? This is a unlicensed toy that retails for over $80 with clearly sloppy paint applications...And the fanboys suddenly get all forgiving???

Credibility of those fanboys has just dropped through the basement.

BraveMSW's picture
Posted by BraveMSW on 4 April, 2010 - 12:41
I

I think you are forgetting this is a fan's project, and not a project to make tons of money, or an artist's original baby. Very different standard to judge than Revoltechs, or Macross Valkyries.

This is a group of folks who wanted to see this design, and went ahead and actually did it. Not a bloated company buying up any license it can to dump cheapy figures on the market.

I'm far more forgiving on a hand-painted toy, or a toy made by an underground manufacturer, than by something made by Yamato, Bandai, etc. - especially when those items are sold as collector's products.

This, on the other hand, is designed and manufactured by fans for fans. And worth the $80, if you like the design.

I don't see how since you personally don't like the design, everyone who does loses credibility.

The Big R's picture
Posted by The Big R on 5 April, 2010 - 09:59
Like most designer toys,

Like most designer toys, this toy was manufactured in China inbetween production runs of other toys. Not by fans for fans, but a buisness looking to make money and keep the doors open. Same as all those bloated toy companies.

Unlike most designer toys, this toy is an unlicensed representation of Hasbro, Takara, and IDW intellectual property. No matter how you want to justify it, that is theft.

Because you ignore facts and make ignorant assumtions, you have no credibility with me. Deal with it.

BraveMSW's picture
Posted by BraveMSW on 5 April, 2010 - 16:43
Like

Like anyone cares about what's credible in your eyes?

All I see is a cool toy, whatever your prejudices are is your own crap to sort out at the psychiatrist.

The Big R's picture
Posted by The Big R on 5 April, 2010 - 20:35
Oh wow, I have some concept

Oh wow, I have some concept designs of this toy, but since Hasbro decided against the toy line, I figured it'd never see the light of day. Is it to model scale? 00 gauge maybe?

Very cool!

ZA's picture
Posted by ZA on 3 April, 2010 - 18:20
The gun is clever, and the

The gun is clever, and the lance is awesome. Refreshing to see a modern transformer that doesn't look like an autocad mistake.

jacksauce's picture
Posted by jacksauce on 3 April, 2010 - 18:30
ouch, will pass on this one..

vehicle or train mode looks more like a regular toy train. robot mode is quite ok.. color combination is ok i guess.. hmmm will appreciate this as a present. nice review chief.

overclocked's picture
Posted by overclocked on 3 April, 2010 - 22:48
btw...

the box is good, accessories are a plus.. im just not awed by the train mode, they would've atleast changed the color of the wheels into black or gray or silver.... an above average toy for me.

overclocked's picture
Posted by overclocked on 3 April, 2010 - 22:57
What gauge?

Great review Dan. I liked that someone went to the effort to do that cool alternate story line in the first place, and now a cool design was made into reality by some talented fans.

Dan, like Timothy asked above, can you get us a measurement between the bottom wheels outer edges? May be able to determine if this was intended to match a standard moedel gauge.

repairtechjon's picture
Posted by repairtechjon on 4 April, 2010 - 10:18
Big fan of trainbots

So, I ordered this guy as soon as I saw your review. Funny thing with this is that it does seem that people are taking a wait and see approach to this toy. BBTS usually seems to sell out of things like this on preorders, and this (and the Fansproject Defender too, I might add) is still available. Guess with a brand new company and an unproved track record (plus a high price) people are just going to wait a bit. Anyway, I love the design, so it's a must buy. I've always wanted TF's from previous ages of technology, and this is right up my alley. I'd love to see 30's gangster era TF's, but that's probably a pipe dream...

fujikuro's picture
Posted by fujikuro on 5 April, 2010 - 10:02
I'm quite impressed with how

I'm quite impressed with how this toy, and glad that it got made. Normally I would support this kind of venture, as for $80 I think this toy really does display a good level of craftmanship. All of the little added functions like in the tender parts are really sweet. The only reason I haven't pulled the trigger is that I just bought the FansProject Warbot Defender (aka: Springer), and I really did not like the Hearts of Steel comic, so I'm much less attached to the actual design.

http://prometheusrising.wordpress.com

Prometheum5's picture
Posted by Prometheum5 on 5 April, 2010 - 10:38
Uh...

So it's an awesome toy that's well-done and really shows a lot of value, but you didn't like the comic it's from and so this toy sucks and nobody should buy it?

RobotBastard's picture
Posted by RobotBastard on 10 April, 2010 - 12:38
Oh, no no... not at all! I

Oh, no no... not at all! I think the toy looks extremely well made, and from the review I think we can safely say that it is well worth the cost and will be a big hit with any fans of the design. I was just saying that I personally don't have alot of attachment to the design, so I probably won't pick it up. My point was merely that I just picked up a different fan-made figure, so I was tapped out. I think it's awesome that this figure got made, and it looks great. I just don't really want one myself.

http://prometheusrising.wordpress.com

Prometheum5's picture
Posted by Prometheum5 on 10 April, 2010 - 13:23
Their website

leads you to think that they are going to have other toys coming from the same comic perhaps. Either way, it's described that the toy has a link to allow multiple cars to be attached to the main engine/tender. In fact they show multiple tenders coupled together. I would guess that a Bumblebee is on its way, and potentially some accessory cars (I would hope).

fujikuro's picture
Posted by fujikuro on 7 April, 2010 - 07:55