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Tyuannosaurus

Comments

33 comments posted
Aww, cute!

I like the "fistbump".

RobotBastard's picture
Posted by RobotBastard on 19 January, 2010 - 17:56
Clearly they're bros.

Clearly they're bros.

Dkun's picture
Posted by Dkun on 19 January, 2010 - 18:18
Wow- good bootleg

Wow- good bootleg conversion...! I wanna get a G1 Grimlock, but now I also want one of these!

------------------------------
CollectionDX Staff

EVA_Unit_4A's picture
Posted by EVA_Unit_4A on 19 January, 2010 - 18:36
Nice bootleg, but still, my

Nice bootleg, but still, my favourite Grimlock Rip-off is the one that looks like cyborg godzilla with chromed back spikes.

Wallas's picture
Posted by Wallas on 19 January, 2010 - 18:44
Wow, nice bootleg! Most just

Wow, nice bootleg! Most just fall apart when you sneeze at em.

Gotta come up with a name for this guy, he's a full on autobot far as I'm concerned. :P

Dre2Dee2's picture
Posted by Dre2Dee2 on 19 January, 2010 - 20:06
I love how his arms are

I love how his arms are labeled "Punch Storage."

"Me, Grimlock, keep punches in here until me need them!"

IronGrenadier84's picture
Posted by IronGrenadier84 on 19 January, 2010 - 20:24
HAHAHAHAHAHA!! Yes. That

HAHAHAHAHAHA!! Yes.

That made me want to watch some G1. In fact I think I will...

Robots In Love's picture
Posted by Robots In Love on 19 January, 2010 - 23:30
Childworld > Toys R

Childworld > Toys R US

"Dinobots, destroy Devestator!"-Optimus Prime TFTM

Goldenage's picture
Posted by Goldenage on 19 January, 2010 - 20:45
Child World

My parents always took me to the Child World in Waukegan IL, man did I love that place. It eventually closed but the building was still there and unoccupied. Years later when I worked at the Waukegan Fed Ex I would drive by the abandoned old building and dream of going inside and finding old boxes of Transformers and Star Wars toys.

I also remember having that bootleg Slag pictured in the instructions/catalog.

Jeromy's picture
Posted by Jeromy on 19 January, 2010 - 21:05
A HOT DOG MAKE ME GRIMLOCK

A HOT DOG MAKE ME GRIMLOCK LOSE CONTROL!!!!!!!

kidnicky's picture
Posted by kidnicky on 19 January, 2010 - 21:51
Quincy!? Really?!

Good review of a great bootleg, but what really jumped out at me was that I used to go to the 'Y' in Quincy when I was young, the Child World was a couple-minutes walk away (I think it's a furniture store now), and I remember a kid who was into the Transformers but had a different Grimlock! I don't remember his name, but it had to be in the same 'era', the TF Gen 1 time, when the show was still on, not too long before Transformers the Movie came out (I think?). The world gets smaller every day. It would really blow me away if it was the same kid you knew, or if we had run into each other at some point in the distant past.

seraph2011's picture
Posted by seraph2011 on 19 January, 2010 - 22:57
The red painting

The red, glossy painting located on KO Grimlock's crotch doesn't have that grainy texture that you normally see in a bootleg toy because most moonshiners produces them in cheap times which equals cheap effort, cheap care, & cheap quality. Whoever the moonshiners are, they really took too much time on their hands to make this piece worth while.

How old is this this TF when you purchased it on EBAY? It looks like an old, precious antique that costs a fortune.

I must admit that toy's definitely worth keeping on the shelf.

-R78

Rodimus78's picture
Posted by Rodimus78 on 19 January, 2010 - 23:29
Great Bootleg

80's bootleg rulz!

Berserk's picture
Posted by Berserk on 20 January, 2010 - 00:26
Why aren't there cool

Why aren't there cool bootlegs any more? When I was a kid there was stuff like this Grimlock,or "Shackwave",or even those little pinball machine dudes you got at the grocery store or wherever. Sure they were boots/generics,but they were still fun to play with and built decently.
Hell,we even had an actual viable alternative to Transformers,Gobots.

These days,when Transformers is a blockbuster movie franchise and anime is more popular in the US than ever before,there's almost NOTHING in the market beyond Hasbro's official TFs.

kidnicky's picture
Posted by kidnicky on 20 January, 2010 - 10:10
Dude, RoadBots?

There are plenty of "bootlegs", they just aren't mimics of actual characters. That's because the toy companies figured out why Southeast Asia was such a terrible toy market; not because nobody bought toys, but because everyone bought bootlegs!

RobotBastard's picture
Posted by RobotBastard on 21 January, 2010 - 15:13
That brings up an

That brings up an interesting point: are RoadBots really bootlegs? Or better yet, is Astro Plan really a bootleg?

Yes, their concepts are totally stolen from Transformers and Macross, but the toys, themselves, are original designs. Now, forget how you feel about these companies. Forget the moral (or ethical or whatever) injustice of clearly profiting from others' work. The actual toys: are they bootlegs?

I mean, you can't say that EVERY transforming plane/robot ever created since '84 is a Macross bootleg, right? Similarly, not ever transforming vehicle/robot, in general, is a Transformers bootleg. Sure, RoadBots and Astro Plan's mecha are damn close to Alternators/Alternity and various Valkyries, but I'm not sure where you can draw the line.

Like, to me, the Godzilla-Grimlock is pretty clearly a bootleg because it takes the exact transformation sequence, and I'll bet the exact joint design and internal layout as Grimlock...and just slaps on differently-shaped outer panels...

--
Sanjeev

Sanjeev's picture
Posted by Sanjeev on 21 January, 2010 - 15:40
Probably because Hasbro is

Probably because Hasbro is big and scary and no one wants to mess with them. :P

Dre2Dee2's picture
Posted by Dre2Dee2 on 20 January, 2010 - 10:16
Thanks for the comments,

Thanks for the comments, guys! Yeah, this toy is high quality...but the writing on the box and instructions? Wow!

Wallas, I'm not familiar with this "cyborg godzilla with chromed back spikes". It almost sounds like Takara's Machine Zaurer, that crazy magnemo toy that was actually the Diaclone Dinosaur Robots' enemy! You're not actually talking about Mechagodzilla, though...are you??

And, yes, Child World totally ruled. Such a shame the big corporations murdered such great little spots. I remembered their going out of business sale and being happy to get such great things. Little did I realize that it was the end of a very, very great era...

Yeah, seraph2011, the Y in Quincy and the Childworld just around the corner from where NEC is now (though back then, it was closer to the middle of the square). Dude, how old are you? Or rather, what years/programs were you at the Y? I'm 31 and I'm pretty sure I was there for the after school and summer "camp" (read: daycare for latch-key kids!) from around '86 to '89 (I'm guessing)...

R78, the pricetag on this guy is $8.50. You can barely get a modern Hasbro 3-3/4" figure for that these days! There are no dates anywhere on the packaging or paperwork, but I obviously remember having it when G1 Transformers were hot, so it's the same age as Grimlock. Yeah, it cost quite a penny...but probably still less than what a boxed Takara Dinosaur Robo #1 Tyrannosaurus in similar condition would pull in. Bidding can get fierce for these, but the trick is catching them when they pop up. That's some good moonshine!

And as for why such cool bootlegs and other generic robot toys aren't made anymore, I'd say it's because kids want to play video games more than beg their parents to buy them something colorful on the peg at a supermarket...

--
Sanjeev

Sanjeev's picture
Posted by Sanjeev on 20 January, 2010 - 14:28
Video Games

Also, I don't buy the "video games killed toys" argument. I had and loved both all my childhood.

Ginrai's picture
Posted by Ginrai on 20 January, 2010 - 16:25
Well, I was never very into

Well, I was never very into video games...mostly 'cause we couldn't really afford them growing up. Other kids in the neighborhood we moved to when I was little had lots of them, though (the height of the NES era). Like you, though, we probably spent more time playing outside (sports, "guns", whatever) and playing with toys.

But I really think that was a different era.

Today, I know tons of kids from various class and cultural backgrounds...and it definitely seems like video games are more popular. And it's interesting because it seems as though the further up the class scale you go, the more prone the kids are to eschew toys in favor of video games. There was this one kid I worked with of upper middle class background who was HUGE into toys and cartoons, though--but then I found out his parents strictly banned video games in their household! Most of the raised poor/working class kids I've worked with have a decent amount of toys, but in all these cases, it seems like video games take up at least 50% of their play time.

So, I don't think we'll ever see toys completely disappear from human culture, but there's an obvious trend here. Video games are "easier" methods of occupying children's attention, there's some social status attached to owning them, and more and more big toy companies are gearing their offerings to adult collectors, rather than just kids...

--
Sanjeev

Sanjeev's picture
Posted by Sanjeev on 20 January, 2010 - 20:05
Video Game = stay inside. Toy = go out.

To really have fun playing with toys, you need to be playing with someone else. That means you need to go outside, and interact with other people, and--as we all know--other people are all sex-pervert serial killers who want to RAPE YOUR BABY TO DEATH. Better to keep the kids inside where nobody can ever touch them--and video games are even better now because it's just like going outside!

RobotBastard's picture
Posted by RobotBastard on 21 January, 2010 - 15:15
Sanjeev...I went to the Y

Sanjeev...I went to the Y for basketball, and I think swimming, but I'm not sure if that was actually at the Y or if we rode the 'short bus' from there to a pool elsewhere, and for a daycare program, from 84-86, I think, but I could be a year off. I'm 36 now, I think I was there between 10 and 12 yrs old. I remember wanting to go home instead, so my aunt used to 'bribe' me to go with a small toy from Child World or a comic from NEC once a week, which was the start of my collecting addiction.
I actually was just reading some old Tick comics yesterday, remembering those, and later, days spent in the square, 'wasting' my time and money. I saw a trade paperback of the whole series at a comic store here in Brooklyn on my lunch break. Hundreds of miles and 20-something years from the start of it all. Yeah, NEC was a small hole-in-the-wall back then. They've come a long way, and Tom still works there!

seraph2011's picture
Posted by seraph2011 on 22 January, 2010 - 09:26
Godzilla Grimlock

Here's the Godzilla Grimlock: http://i40.tinypic.com/fl8s61.jpg

Ginrai's picture
Posted by Ginrai on 20 January, 2010 - 16:23
[brain explodes] Wow! Would

[brain explodes]

Wow! Would never believe it. That sure is something.

Wicker808's picture
Posted by Wicker808 on 20 January, 2010 - 18:46
Godzilla Grimlock

On second thought, wait a minute: what happens to the tail? The extra-long gold and black tail in alt mode doesn't match up in robot mode. Is it removable?

Wicker808's picture
Posted by Wicker808 on 20 January, 2010 - 18:55
I coulda sworn I've seen

I coulda sworn I've seen this monstrosity (and I mean that in every sense of the word!) before...

Wicker808, I think the Goji-Grim is just on the left. The toy on the right simply looks like the Diaclone toy. Note the blue crotch and chrome sword.

--
Sanjeev

Sanjeev's picture
Posted by Sanjeev on 20 January, 2010 - 20:08
Neato! That is new to me...

Neato! That is new to me... looks like the bootleggers were inspired by the mechano-dragon that the Diaclone guys fought!

http://prometheusrising.wordpress.com

Prometheum5's picture
Posted by Prometheum5 on 20 January, 2010 - 18:55
I miss Child World,too. I

I miss Child World,too. I miss KB more,since I actually used to work there. I suppose in a year or two I'll miss Toys R Us!

One reason I think games took over from toys is that in a way,games are cheaper. Like for instance,say a new game costs 50-60 bucks. 50-60 bucks in the toy aisle buys you what? 5 Star Wars guys? It's not that impressive.

kidnicky's picture
Posted by kidnicky on 20 January, 2010 - 22:05
I really get the argument of

I really get the argument of the economy of video games being probably better overall than the economy of toys. The way I see it, though, is that it doesn't come down to just cost. If I'm a parent who wants to shut my kid up (y'know...instead of actually spending time with him/her), I know that a video game will occupy the kid longer (time-wise) than a toy probably will. It's the safer bet.

And, yeah, like Robot Bastard's comment above, folks seem more and more addicted to "screens" than ever before. Venturing outside...to interact with people...in person!? Perish the thought! In the future, I want all my relationships to function solely via Facebook. ;)

--
Sanjeev

Sanjeev's picture
Posted by Sanjeev on 21 January, 2010 - 15:44
Well...

A) I often played with my toys alone. Sometimes I played with them with my sister, sometimes with friends, but I played alone as well.

B) I almost never play video games alone. Always been a group activity for me more often than not. Oh the many hours sitting beating the crap out of each other on Street Fighter and Soul Calibur and whatever and lately, the 4 player madness of New Super Mario Bros.

Destroy All Podcasts DX's picture
Posted by Destroy All Pod... on 22 January, 2010 - 03:50
I wouldn't actually call

I wouldn't actually call Roadbots and such "bootlegs" as in illegal knockoffs,but I was including them when I was talking about non-Hasbro TFs.
I define bootlegs the way Sanjeev does. If it's a copy of the actual toy,it's a boot. If it's a car that turns into a robot,then no,that alone doesn't mean it's a Transformer knockoff. Take for example,Staks from Gobots. He's not a knockoff of Optimus Prime,he's just another robot who turns into a big rig. I mean,Transformers weren't even the first transforming toy robots. Really I don't even consider Road Ranger a boot/KO even though his color scheme is clearly chosen to mimic Optimus'.

Where do you guys even see Roadbots these days? I used to occasionally see the in the toy dept. in "Burlington Coat" type places,but it's been years. Of course,it's not like I spend every Saturday night rockin' out at the Burlington Coat,so maybe I'm out of the loop.

kidnicky's picture
Posted by kidnicky on 22 January, 2010 - 22:38
Toys companies are

Toys companies are developing new creative robots.I think they copied idea of transformers.Fantastic bootleg.I never played fighting games but love to play Mario Games,One of my interesting time pass.

gameslover's picture
Posted by gameslover on 21 June, 2010 - 12:04
Um, the reason the official

Um, the reason the official missile you have looks different is because it's not Grimlock's. That's one of Sludge's missiles.

Heh, they may have labeled this guy "Tyrannosaurus", but their retools made him more of a Ceratosaurus.

ZeldaTheSwordsman's picture
Posted by ZeldaTheSwordsman on 16 August, 2013 - 00:01