2017 Fan Vote for new leader in the Power of the Primes series

[griffin]

From a Hasbro press-release (http://news.tfw2005.com/2016/12/01/power-primes-fan-vote-vote-next-leader-cybertron-329419), from January 23rd, Transformers fans will be able to vote for the new face of Transformers Generations, for the third series of the Prime Trilogy, so far being called "Power of the Primes".

The vote will take place through the Transformers.com website, but since it region-deflects non-Americans to their own country's website, it is not yet known if non-Americans will be able to take part.

Voting must only be for a few days too, as the second round of voting from a short-list of four finalists will take place from February 1st to February 4th.

From what I can work out in the press-release and promotional image, there are nine candidates who are part of three groups - Hono(u)r, Chaos, and Order. From those nine, the first round of voting will reduce it to four, and the second round of voting will give us a winner that will be announced at the New York Toyfair in February.

The nine candidates are Ultra Magnus, Hound, Arcee, Shockwave, Megatron, Star Saber, Thunderwing, Unknown Evil, Optimus Primal.



HASBRO LETS FANS SHAPE THE FUTURE OF THE TRANSFORMERS FRANCHISE WITH THE “POWER OF THE PRIMES” FAN VOTE

The fans can decide which Transformers character will become the next leader of Cybertron!

PAWTUCKET, R.I., December 1, 2016 – Today Hasbro, Inc. (NASDAQ:HAS), announced the “Power of the Primes” fan vote, an upcoming event that will place the fate of Cybertron directly in the hands of Transformers fans around the globe. Beginning on January 23rd, 2017, fans will be able to visit Transformers.com to cast their vote to help determine which character will join the ranks of Optimus Prime, Rodimus Prime and other Cybertronian legends. The fan-voted Prime will be featured in the Transformers Generations toy line and brand’s Prime Wars Trilogy storytelling in 2018.
The Prime serves as leader of Cybertron, wields the immense power of the Matrix of Leadership and holds the fate of the Transformers universe in their hands. This leader is usually chosen directly by the Matrix of Leadership, but the “Power of the Primes” fan vote will put the fans in command and give them the power to light the darkest hour and choose the bot to lead Cybertron into a historic new era.
“Hasbro’s past Transformers fan votes have led to some of our most exciting characters, including Windblade, Victorion and next year’s Trypticon Titan,” said Tom Warner, Senior Vice President of the Transformers franchise at Hasbro. Our “Power of the Primes” fan vote will raise the stakes higher than ever. The Prime sets the tone for all things in the Transformers universe, and we’re excited to see which direction our fans want to take.”
The first round of voting will begin on January 23rd, when fans can visit Transformers.com to choose between three groups of candidates – Honor, Chaos and Order.
Honor: These legendary warriors will lead with honor and carry on the noble legacy of Optimus Prime.
Chaos: These powerful warlords will stop at nothing to become supreme leader of Cybertron, even if it means creating a chaotic world where only the strongest survive.
Order: These commanders vow to leave the Autobot and Decepticon factions in the past and unite Cybertron under a new order.
Four finalists will be chosen by the fans and revealed by Hasbro in late January. Fans can then have the final say by returning to Transformers.com to vote between February 1st and February 4th. The winning Prime will be officially unveiled during New York Toy Fair in February.



http://www.toycollectors.com.au/news/2016/120401.jpg

[Verno]

There is only one real choice:

http://orig05.deviantart.net/5c67/f/2016/336/9/b/imjustprime1_by_rh1n0x-daqcii2.jpg

[MayzaPrime]

There is only one real choice:

http://orig05.deviantart.net/5c67/f/2016/336/9/b/imjustprime1_by_rh1n0x-daqcii2.jpg

But isnt he already a Prime, he contained the matrix and was upgraded. He is aready a Prime in my book :p

I have always secretly wished that Megatron could be a Prime... but we have a lot of Megatron toys so I dont know if I will vote for him

[morg176]

I think it has to be G1 hound.

Young.
He's not a primary character
Has a lot of untapped potential.

What name do you think he should have as prime?

Canis Prime :D

[DELTAprime]

I don't want this type of decision left up to a vote. This is something the IDW writers should have full control over.

[Ode to a Grasshopper]

"Unknown Evil", hey? Now there's a name I can trust!

Seriously though, assuming they want to incorporate it into the ongoing comic fiction almost all of those characters are kind of hard to see working out.

I don't want this type of decision left up to a vote. This is something the IDW writers should have full control over.Also this.

[UltimateGalvatron]

I voted Hound, although IMO they are all stupid choices.

[Bumbleb33]

We should add a poll for the options here, so we can see what the OTCA opinion would be.
Personally my vote is going for Arcee, I think her mass could easily be increased (aikin to Hotrod > Rodimus) to signify the rise to Primedom without losing her femininity by giving her huge angel wings.

[griffin]

We should add a poll for the options here, so we can see what the OTCA opinion would be.

Done. :)

Get voting people... and in case us non-Americans are unable to vote, we'll see how our poll compares to the short list, and the final winner.

[Jellico]

Ultra Magnus got cheated in the Movie. And in the case of the IDW version he would have the ultimate Matryoshka Doll matrix chamber.

That said I am leaning towards a "evil" prime. Prowl was right when he complained about the leadership being too easily swayed by acts of awesome.

[CHILENO20]

Primal for me *thumbs up*

[Verno]

#I'MJUSTPRIME

http://orig07.deviantart.net/8773/f/2016/336/d/b/imjustprime_by_rh1n0x-daqccw2.jpg

[GoktimusPrime]

Star Sabre. He's the only G1 character who doesn't yet have a Classicsverse toy.


But isnt he already a Prime, he contained the matrix and was upgraded.
Nope. Optimus Primal carries a Matrix (as seen in the Beast Wars theatrical movie (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_F7C1gKnKfo)*) but not the Matrix. Optimus Primal was later upgraded as Optimal Optimus because he carried the Spark of Optimus Prime☆ within him. If you listen carefully, Optimal's voice is actually deeper when he's carrying Prime's Spark (https://youtu.be/4G8NWAzNBzQ?t=301), but this "grit" in his voice is lost when he's no longer carrying Prime's Spark (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6oMzzgbFs5Q). Megatron was similarly mutated (from Transmetal to Transmetal 2 form) when he carried the Spark of G1 Megatron, no Matrix involved. The idea was that the Sparks of Optimus Prime and G1 Megatron were so powerful that for a BW TF to carry it would be incredibly risky.

Beast Wars basically portrayed the G1 Transformers as gods. They were shown as being much larger than the BW TFs, which makes sense in terms of scale (a truck is significantly larger than a gorilla) as well as in terms of canon (re: Micromasters; and this is even explicitly stated in the show※), but it also makes the G1 Transformers appear to be godlike Titans compared to the BW TFs. And when we see Optimus Prime he is sitting in a throne-like seat. Even Megatron was shown as being slumped in an upright seated position, whereas other G1 TFs were shown just lying around on the floor.

------------------------------------------
*Skip to 41:30 if you want to see the scene where Primal (as Burning Convoy) and Lio Convoy unleash the power of their Matrices.
☆This was due to a misinterpretation of the Matrix on the part of the writers. They'd watched the scene in TFTM where Optimus Prime passed the Matrix onto Ultra Magnus, but mistakenly thought that it was a vessel containing his laser core. Hence this is what the Matrix is portrayed as being in Beast Wars, which is why it's empty and the vessel even shatters after Prime's Spark is transferred into Primal's body, then restored when the Spark is returned.
※In G1, it was stated that Micromasters were created as a means of allowing Cybertronians to conserve fuel. When BW Megatron first enters the Ark, as he surveys the fallen G1 TFs he mutters the words, "Archaic Energon guzzlers!"

[Bidoofdude]

Shockwave has no decent scale chug toy either, withholding the FOC deluxe and legends figure (more of an accessory).

Proper voyager, do him justice.

[GoktimusPrime]

I disagree that Legends Shockwave is merely an accessory. That toy may be small, but it is still pretty awesome. The fact that it can be used as an accessory by larger toys is incidental, but Shockwave is still a good and solid figure in its own right (and to scale with other Legends Class figures such as Reveal the Shield Megatron, Legends Optimus Prime etc.).

Compare this with figures like the Arms Microns or even the individually packaged Titan Masters (e.g. Apeface, Nightbeat etc.) - those toys are really just accessories. I like to use the "separate play value" test in terms of whether I regard a toy as a proper figure in its own right or just an accessory for other toys. In other words, would this toy be fun to play with on its own. Let's say if it's the only Transformer that you have on you, would it be fun to play with? I would find Shockwave to be a reasonably fun toy to play with. It has an articulated robot mode, transforms into a gun (which was always portrayed as a flying cannon in canon). My Titans Return Apeface has far more limited play value as a stand alone toy. If I owned no other Titan Master figures, then he'd just be a robot that transforms into a head. Apeface needs to accessorise a larger Titan Master "Transtector" body in order to be a fully functional toy, Shockwave doesn't. Same with TR Rewind, although he does work as an accessory for Blaster, he is still a fully functional Transformer figure in his own right as a Triple Changer (robot/data pad/tank). Also, bigger isn't necessarily better - there have been a few cases where larger versions of a character aren't much better than the smaller/cheaper ones (often the smaller ones are superior relative to size and price).

In any case, a CHUGUR Shockwave exists - they can revisit existing CHUGUR characters later after they've done the ones that have never been done yet IMHO. Star Sabre has never ever had a CHUGUR figure. Optimus Primal has already had a CHUGUR figure done in the form of LG02 Convoy (a repaint of the show-accurate BWR retool of the original figure).

http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y227/goktimusprime/Transformers/classicsverse_1985_con_zpsmlltbghx.jpg
Shockwave's done! Bring on the rest of the Deluxe Insecticons, Predacons, Scorponok, Targetmasters*, Terrorcons, Duocons, Slugest, Overkill, Headmaster Horrorcons, the rest of the Monsterbots, the Throttlebots★, Pretenders, Triggerbots/Cons, Sparkabots/Cons, gestalt cassettes, Seacons, Powermasters※, Quickswitch, Punch/Counterpunch, Micromasters et al.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
*except Triggerhappy unless they want to revise him as a proper Targetmaster
★other than Goldfirebug
※other than Optimus Prime

[Verno]

I sent IDW's Chris Ryall an email suggesting that if Optimus Primal wins the upcoming Power of the Primes vote in January, it would be a clear sign of support within the fandom for Beast Wars characters. In this outcome, I asked about the likelihood of IDW considering Beast Wars comics in the future, and he was kind enough to reply with the following:


We always pay attention to fan votes. But we have to also pay attention to sales and so far, fans have proven to be vocal online but not at comic shops in regards to the Beast Wars comics we've already done.

We're not opposed to anything if actual fan support is there.
So there we go, it's straight forward. Support it, buy it and you get more.

Vote 1: Optimus Primal!

[FatalityPitt]

Shockwave? Isn't he dead?

I pick Star Sabre. Not my absolute first choice, but pretty close to it.

If I could choose any character outside this list, I'd pick Fortress Maximus, because:
1) In the G1 cartoons (Japanese continuity), Rodimus passed the mantle of Autobot leader onto Fortress after Cybertron got blown up. *
2) I just want Hasbro/Takara to release Fort Max toys more frequently at smaller scales (Legends, Voyager, etc) instead of giving us one obscenely expensive Fort Max toy every 30 or so years.

Since Star Sabre was leader after Fort Max (HM) and subsequently Ginrai/PM Optimus (MF), he'd be my personal choice.. Although he's evil in the IDW comics...

Despite my choice though, I still do hope Hasbro/Takara releases more Beast Wars toys (like an entire line dedicated to them!). It's long LONG overdue for them to give us new versions Terrorsaur, Tarantulas, Air Razor, Cheetor, etc.

------
* https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uUhkj9yocU8 (you can skip to 4:50, where Rodimus basically resigns as leader)

[MayzaPrime]

Star Sabre. He's the only G1 character who doesn't yet have a Classicsverse toy.


Nope. Optimus Primal carries a Matrix (as seen in the Beast Wars theatrical movie (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_F7C1gKnKfo)*) but not the Matrix. Optimus Primal was later upgraded as Optimal Optimus because he carried the Spark of Optimus Prime☆ within him. If you listen carefully, Optimal's voice is actually deeper when he's carrying Prime's Spark (https://youtu.be/4G8NWAzNBzQ?t=301), but this "grit" in his voice is lost when he's no longer carrying Prime's Spark (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6oMzzgbFs5Q). Megatron was similarly mutated (from Transmetal to Transmetal 2 form) when he carried the Spark of G1 Megatron, no Matrix involved. The idea was that the Sparks of Optimus Prime and G1 Megatron were so powerful that for a BW TF to carry it would be incredibly risky.

Beast Wars basically portrayed the G1 Transformers as gods. They were shown as being much larger than the BW TFs, which makes sense in terms of scale (a truck is significantly larger than a gorilla) as well as in terms of canon (re: Micromasters; and this is even explicitly stated in the show※), but it also makes the G1 Transformers appear to be godlike Titans compared to the BW TFs. And when we see Optimus Prime he is sitting in a throne-like seat. Even Megatron was shown as being slumped in an upright seated position, whereas other G1 TFs were shown just lying around on the floor.

------------------------------------------
*Skip to 41:30 if you want to see the scene where Primal (as Burning Convoy) and Lio Convoy unleash the power of their Matrices.
☆This was due to a misinterpretation of the Matrix on the part of the writers. They'd watched the scene in TFTM where Optimus Prime passed the Matrix onto Ultra Magnus, but mistakenly thought that it was a vessel containing his laser core. Hence this is what the Matrix is portrayed as being in Beast Wars, which is why it's empty and the vessel even shatters after Prime's Spark is transferred into Primal's body, then restored when the Spark is returned.
※In G1, it was stated that Micromasters were created as a means of allowing Cybertronians to conserve fuel. When BW Megatron first enters the Ark, as he surveys the fallen G1 TFs he mutters the words, "Archaic Energon guzzlers!"

Rhinox - "His Spark contain the matrix, you can't contain that power'

Maybe i misunderstood that part :p

[Ozgardian]

Imo what choice:(, Star Sabre.

[DELTAprime]

Wait, wasn't IDW Star Saber the guy that tried to kill everyone a year or two ago and Tailgate was able to save the day because he was dying so Star Saber's weapon didn't work on him?

[GoktimusPrime]

So there we go, it's straight forward. Support it, buy it and you get more.

Vote 1: Optimus Primal!
But Ryall said that while their previous Beast Wars comics enjoyed online popularity, they didn't enjoy actual sales popularity in comic book stores. Although IMO the IDW Beast Wars comics weren't the best - I didn't like how they were meant to be in-continuity but they cherry picked things from the BW continuity family, meaning that it was technically out of continuity. Gah. This is why I hate most fanfics. :rolleyes:

I actually find IDW embedding BW characters with their current G1 continuity to be a far better idea. It means that they don't have to start a whole new continuity, but rather just tie in these characters with what they already have. e.g. IDW Optimus Primal could be a descendant or reincarnation of Onyx Prime (who we know colonised the world of Eukaris with the Titan Chela. Now that the Cybertronians have discovered an entire planet full of BW TFs, there's no reason why we couldn't see more BW characters crossing over from that world.



1) In the G1 cartoons (Japanese continuity), Rodimus passed the mantle of Autobot leader onto Fortress after Cybertron got blown up. *
He never passed the Matrix onto him though. Fort Max was Supreme Commander, but not a Convoy. Rodimus did eventually pass the Matrix back to Convoy when he was rebuilt as Star Convoy (and Hot Rodimus was rebuilt as a Micromaster). ;)


2) I just want Hasbro/Takara to release Fort Max toys more frequently at smaller scales (Legends, Voyager, etc) instead of giving us one obscenely expensive Fort Max toy every 30 or so years.
TF Jr. Fortress Maximus (http://tfwiki.net/mediawiki/images2/b/b6/G1_FortressMaximus_Jnr_toy.jpg) is your friend. ;) I wouldn't mind a Leader size Fortress Maximus that transforms into a tank or mobile artillery vehicle - i.e. IDW Fortress Maximus. The problem with a Titan Class toy is that while they're a cool play set, they're not the most interactive action figures because they're so wildly out of scale with other Transformer toys. G1 Fort Max had this issue too, but G1 Fort Max is actually an awesome play set for other Transformers, whereas TR Fort Max is pretty ordinary.



Rhinox - "His Spark contain the matrix, you can't contain that power'

Maybe i misunderstood that part :p
More like Larry DiTillio and Bob Forward misunderstood it, and they've since admitted that they did. But in all fairness, DiTillio and Forward were not Transformers fans before they started writing Beast Wars. They were paid to write stories for the series, but they didn't have to tie it in with G1/G2 continuity. They chose to and they did use their own time researching various sources from G1 and G2, and as someone who's uninitiated in Transformers - and in an age where quick and easy reference sources like TFwiki didn't exist, it was considerably more challenging. They were watching clips from the cartoon, select pages from the comics, select G1 tech spec bios etc. And importantly, they turned to the online fandom for advice (hence the show makes numerous references to the fandom* as thanks). But they didn't always get everything right, and this was one such moment. But the fact that they tried and mostly got things right was pretty damn awesome! :D

This is why other writers just choose to reboot the Transformers continuity, because rebooting means that you don't have to go to the effort of doing your homework on pre-existing canon and worry about canonical conflicts. But an in-canon series personally feels so much more satisfying to me because it builds and enriches the existing canon. :cool: Just look at Star Wars. :)


Since Star Sabre was leader after Fort Max (HM) and subsequently Ginrai/PM Optimus (MF), he'd be my personal choice.. Although he's evil in the IDW comics...

Wait, wasn't IDW Star Saber the guy that tried to kill everyone a year or two ago and Tailgate was able to save the day because he was dying so Star Saber's weapon didn't work on him?
Yeah, but IMO that's what makes Star Sabre more interesting. The original Star Sabre's persona was - really - just a carbon copy of Optimus Prime. Utterly lacking in originality, but proved popular because as Fry from Futurama put it, "You see? TV audiences don't want anything original. They wanna see the same thing they've seen a thousand times before." :rolleyes: :p

Dai Atlas was the first ruthless Autobot leader and fans hated him for it.
Coincidentally...
G1 Star Sabre = compassionate
IDW Star Sabre = ruthless
G1 Dai Atlas = ruthless
IDW Dai Atlas = compassionate
It would've made more sense for IDW to have made Star Sabre the leader of New Crystal City and Dai Atlas as Tyrest's enforcer. :o But it certainly wasn't the first time that IDW writers have completely ignored a Transformer's G1 persona and completely replaced it with something different (e.g. Swerve, Tailgate, Chromedome etc.), yet at other times have been amazingly faithful to G1 bios (e.g. Thundercracker, Overlord (Hasbro), Hubcap etc.). IDW obviously cherry-pick which Transformers they choose to portray with G1-accuracy and which ones to just supplant with new personae.

So even if more BW characters were to appear in IDW, there's no assurance that their persona would be faithful to their original bio. And this is not necessarily a bad thing, often IDW's new personae are more interesting than the originals! I think that IDW Star Sabre's persona is far more interesting than his G1 persona, and likewise Swerve! G1 Swerve's persona revolves around him being a really bad driver with the attention span (or lack thereof) of a puppy. IDW Swerve suffers from hidden depression. He's all smiles and jokes on the outside, but inside he suffers from low self-esteem/image and is actually really lonely. He's the class clown who likes to entertain the troops, but has no true friends. Possibly similar to the brand of depression that people like Robin Williams suffered from. :( But as sad as it is, it also makes Swerve a far more interesting character than his original G1 counterpart.

[FatalityPitt]

TF Jr. Fortress Maximus (http://tfwiki.net/mediawiki/images2/b/b6/G1_FortressMaximus_Jnr_toy.jpg) is your friend. ;) I wouldn't mind a Leader size Fortress Maximus that transforms into a tank or mobile artillery vehicle - i.e. IDW Fortress Maximus. The problem with a Titan Class toy is that while they're a cool play set, they're not the most interactive action figures because they're so wildly out of scale with other Transformer toys. G1 Fort Max had this issue too, but G1 Fort Max is actually an awesome play set for other Transformers, whereas TR Fort Max is pretty ordinary.


Gosh, the after-market price of that Fort Max would be insane.. If I can even find it.. I was recently browsing around for a Transform Jr Metroplex, and I found one going on eBay for +$300! From memory, this Metroplex wasn't any taller than a GI Joe figure (it was small).

Leader class would be a fitting size for Fort Max, though I'd like to have something small like a Legends (personally). I like the character, but the toys (both G1 and TR) aren't very portable. You can't really display them on your desk without them taking up the whole space, and they're awfully heavy to lift (..or maybe I'm just weak..). I don't have the TR version, but I have the G1 Fort Max in storage, and I'm always reluctant to take it out for the above reasons.

I'm kind of at the point where I wouldn't mind if Hasbro did what they did with G1 Legion Grimlock (http://tfwiki.net/wiki/Grimlock_(G1)/toys#Transformers_.282014.29) for Fort Max; by taking a random Legion figure, painting it blue and grey, and call it Fort Max.

Apologies, this response is evolving into a random thought. I'll stop here.

.. Hey, Hound seems to be catching up in the polls.. I wonder what a "Houndimus Prime" toy would look like..

[Jellico]

Everyone seems to love Hound but wasn't he last seen voting to maroon the main MTMTE cast ;)

[M-bot]

I voted Hound, as he was one of my favourite G1 characters. Having said that, I'm stunned that a) he's an option, b) anyone voted for him here, and c) that he may potentially get votes when it counts.

[Starscream77]

I voted Hound, as he was one of my favourite G1 characters. Having said that, I'm stunned that a) he's an option, b) anyone voted for him here, and c) that he may potentially get votes when it counts.

Hound all the way
He is just a cool cat

[GoktimusPrime]

Gosh, the after-market price of that Fort Max would be insane.. If I can even find it.. I was recently browsing around for a Transform Jr Metroplex, and I found one going on eBay for +$300!

Leader class would be a fitting size for Fort Max, though I'd like to have something small like a Legends (personally). I like the character, but the toys (both G1 and TR) aren't very portable. You can't really display them on your desk without them taking up the whole space, and they're awfully heavy to lift (..or maybe I'm just weak..). I don't have the TR version, but I have the G1 Fort Max in storage, and I'm always reluctant to take it out for the above reasons.
Responded here (http://otca.com.au/boards/showthread.php?t=21428&page=54).


Hound all the way
He is just a cool cat
...for a dude who's name means dog. ;) :p

[Bumbleb33]

Arcee, I'd like to see a female perspective on leadership, not to mention a promotion to Prime normally results in an increase in overall mass, I'd like to see what IDW elects to do.

[reillyd]

Well I just learned a whole heap of Beast Wars details that I didn't know, and might have to have me rethinking the Trukk not munky thing. I totally did not know Optimus Primal carried the spark of Optimus Prime. That means he's really the soul of Optimus, right? Sparks in BW mean the same thing as in G1/IDW?

[Gouki]

Well I just learned a whole heap of Beast Wars details that I didn't know, and might have to have me rethinking the Trukk not munky thing. I totally did not know Optimus Primal carried the spark of Optimus Prime. That means he's really the soul of Optimus, right? Sparks in BW mean the same thing as in G1/IDW?

Wait. You need to 'rethink trukk not munky'? As in, it's 1997 and you believe 'trukk not munky' is a legit thing and won't watch Beast Wars because of it? Wow.

[Paulbot]

Well I just learned a whole heap of Beast Wars details that I didn't know, and might have to have me rethinking the Trukk not munky thing. I totally did not know Optimus Primal carried the spark of Optimus Prime. That means he's really the soul of Optimus, right? Sparks in BW mean the same thing as in G1/IDW?

Yes Sparks in BW mean the same thing as in G1/IDW... BW really invented "Sparks" as we know them today.

But (I dunno spoilers?) Optimus Primal carried Optimus Prime's spark for a short period to keep it safe. The two characters are still very separate. It wasn't even a "Starscream's Ghost" type situation (that was another BW episode ;) ) it was literally just Primal carrying Prime's spark around for a short period.

[GoktimusPrime]

What Paulbot said is correct. Optimus Primal was merely the custodian of Optimus Prime's Spark for a short time, and the power of Prime's Spark did mutate Optimus Primal's body, but the Spark itself remained dormant and separate from Optimus Primal's Spark.

Beast Wars is to G1 what Rogue One is to the Original Star Wars Trilogy -- it doesn't just expand on the original story, it makes the original better. :D

[MayzaPrime]

Still... Primal was upgraded... When Magnus carried the Matrix nothing happened, Hot Rod on the other hand... :D I get that the writers came out after the fact but it was clear that the spark was in the Matrix and went into Primal who was upgraded. Matrix + upgrade = Prime.

The Universe Comic touched on Primal being a Prime as well. As Alpha Trion could have brought back anyone from any time line including Prime but he picked Primal.

Regardless of the canon I still like to think that Primal is a descendant of the Primes perhaps Onyx Prime. This is all just my opinion.

[GoktimusPrime]

Still... Primal was upgraded... When Magnus carried the Matrix nothing happened, Hot Rod on the other hand... :D I get that the writers came out after the fact but it was clear that the spark was in the Matrix and went into Primal who was upgraded. Matrix + upgrade = Prime.
Forward and DiTillio thought that the Matrix was nothing more than a vessel for Prime's Matrix. So it's really the Spark of a power G1 TF in the body of a BW TF = upgrade. Remember that the same thing happened to BW Megatron when he placed the Spark of G1 Megatron inside his body - he was mutated into his Transmetal 2 dragon form, and G1 Megatron is certainly no Prime nor a Matrix bearer. As the BW writers explained, it's because they wanted to make the G1 Transformers seem like gods/titans in the eyes of the BW TFs, so the idea of a "mere mortal" BW TF placing a mighty G1 TF's Spark inside their body would mean a massive boost. Although the show did say that there's great risk as the surge could very likely destroy the host Spark. Both Optimus Primal and BW Megatron risked Spark-death when they placed their G1 namesakes' Sparks in their bodies. Primal did it because there was no choice; Optimus Prime's Spark would have perished had it remained in his damaged body - Primal had to temporarily carry the Spark so that his body could sustain it while Rhinox initiated repairs. BW Megatron took the risk because he felt that it was worth the benefits of having a powerful body like Optimal Optimus. None of it had anything to do with the Matrix, and the writers have admitted since that they misunderstood what the Matrix was when they watched TFTM.


The Universe Comic touched on Primal being a Prime as well. As Alpha Trion could have brought back anyone from any time line including Prime but he picked Primal.

Regardless of the canon I still like to think that Primal is a descendant of the Primes perhaps Onyx Prime. This is all just my opinion.
Oh right... the multiversal singularity thing which never existed when G1 or BW were written. :rolleyes: :o

[MayzaPrime]

Forward and DiTillio thought that the Matrix was nothing more than a vessel for Prime's Matrix. So it's really the Spark of a power G1 TF in the body of a BW TF = upgrade. Remember that the same thing happened to BW Megatron when he placed the Spark of G1 Megatron inside his body - he was mutated into his Transmetal 2 dragon form, and G1 Megatron is certainly no Prime nor a Matrix bearer. As the BW writers explained, it's because they wanted to make the G1 Transformers seem like gods/titans in the eyes of the BW TFs, so the idea of a "mere mortal" BW TF placing a mighty G1 TF's Spark inside their body would mean a massive boost. Although the show did say that there's great risk as the surge could very likely destroy the host Spark. Both Optimus Primal and BW Megatron risked Spark-death when they placed their G1 namesakes' Sparks in their bodies. Primal did it because there was no choice; Optimus Prime's Spark would have perished had it remained in his damaged body - Primal had to temporarily carry the Spark so that his body could sustain it while Rhinox initiated repairs. BW Megatron took the risk because he felt that it was worth the benefits of having a powerful body like Optimal Optimus. None of it had anything to do with the Matrix, and the writers have admitted since that they misunderstood what the Matrix was when they watched TFTM.


Oh right... the multiversal singularity thing which never existed when G1 or BW were written. :rolleyes: :o

Like I said... this is my opinion due to the episode at the time... not when the writers admitted that they made a mistake afterwards...

You ain't going to change my mind :D;)

[Deonasis]

Give the Matrix to Wheelie!!

[Verno]

Get on board the gorilla flotilla!

http://orig02.deviantart.net/5105/f/2017/002/6/0/potp_by_rh1n0x-dau0ie9.gif

[Bumbleb33]

Give the Matrix to Wheelie!!

Quiet you, don't give Hasbro ideas :P

[Verno]

http://orig14.deviantart.net/1473/f/2017/004/e/1/2_by_rh1n0x-dau9f0p.gif

Get on board the gorilla flotilla and vote for the funky monkey to reshape the ape.

[SofaMan]

It's encouraging that so many people seem to be voting for Arcee. Representation matters. :)

[GoktimusPrime]

Is anyone else worried about Unknown Evil winning the vote? Cos if it does, then wouldn't that character be known? Kinda ruins it (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2cIORKvwMTE)... :p Unless the toy gets made and it's a windowless box with no artwork and no information about the character, just marked "Unknown Evil" with a random evil character packed in side. It could be like a complete lottery! Who knows what could be inside? They should do it in a similar way as the G1 Mini Spies or Powerdasher; there's a set number of figures and it could be any one of them. And you make one of them an ultra rare chase figure. ;) They could all be redecos too.

So for example, you could have:
* Megatron - stealth bomber: redeco of Generations Deluxe Megs
* Megatron - tank: redeco of Ultimate Battle Deluxe Megs
* Unicron: redeco of Deluxe Cybertron Unicron
* Starscream: redeco of Deluxe Classics Starscream
* Megalligator: redeco of TR Skullsmasher w/ redecoed TR Nucleon as the Headmaster component ←rare chase figure!

So there would be no way that you could tell which figure was packaged in which "Unknown Evil" box until you purchased and opened it.

[Verno]

http://orig11.deviantart.net/c5b5/f/2017/006/d/2/2_by_rh1n0x-daueu4l.jpg

[reillyd]

Does anyone know who Unknown Evil might refer to? Outline doesn't look like Unicron. I haven't read the Covenant yet.... could it be Leige Maximo?

Also is this for the IDW comic, or just toys? Because half the the characters don't have a counterpart or are now dead (Shockwave).

[GoktimusPrime]

If we knew then it wouldn't be unknown. ;)

It's like what I often say to my students:
"Wanna know a secret?"
"Yeah!"
"I can't tell you, otherwise it wouldn't be a secret."
:p

[Deonasis]

I think unknown evil might be Dezarus(?). I doubt the CW figure will be the only use of that name in the next few years. In fact I think they often use a name a few more times once they bring it back.

[Raider]

I considered that Unknown Evil would be a new character that would be introduced, hence it currently being "Unknown". Naturally it will be known once revealed but until the reveal it is unknown.

[griffin]

TFW are calling it Deathsaurus (http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/threads/hasbro-introduces-%E2%80%9Cpower-of-the-primes%E2%80%9D-fan-vote.1093414/)... but I don't know where they got that from.

[MayzaPrime]

TFW are calling it Deathsaurus (http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/threads/hasbro-introduces-%E2%80%9Cpower-of-the-primes%E2%80%9D-fan-vote.1093414/)... but I don't know where they got that from.

Geez... its a close vote between Primal and Star Sabre...

Deathsaurus would be cool... I am still hoping for an MP version to go with MP Star Sabre

[Raider]

Geez... its a close vote between Primal and Star Sabre...

Deathsaurus would be cool... I am still hoping for an MP version to go with MP Star Sabre

If the silouette on the voting website is anything to go by, it is definitely Deathsaurus who is the unknown evil. That gets my vote.

http://i473.photobucket.com/albums/rr100/Raiderxxii/unknown-evil_zpsjxtbdfvl.jpg (http://s473.photobucket.com/user/Raiderxxii/media/unknown-evil_zpsjxtbdfvl.jpg.html)

[Bumbleb33]

Vote is open, just cast my vote for "Arcee", "Unknown Evil" and "Shockwave".

[MEEEGGGAAATTTRRROOONNN!!!]

Huh? When did Optimus Primal become a warlord? :confused:

[Gouki]

Optimus Primal can be whatever he damn well pleases and if he tells you he is a warlord, a baker or even a dancer, you just accept it!

[M-bot]

Vote is live! Looks like there will be a couple of rounds of voting, the next is on January 27th.

http://transformers.hasbro.com/en-au/media/transformers-power-of-primes:27F9B879-5056-9047-F5B7-E5C51F996F4A

[BigTransformerTrev]

Vote is live! Looks like there will be a couple of rounds of voting, the next is on January 27th.

http://transformers.hasbro.com/en-au/media/transformers-power-of-primes:27F9B879-5056-9047-F5B7-E5C51F996F4A

Cheers for the link. Deathsaurus, Magnus and Shockwave got my vote

[tinyJazz]

Huh? When did Optimus Primal become a warlord? :confused:

"Sometimes crazy works" makes him chaotic I guess. :/

is this like an alignment table? Is Primal Chaotic Good?

Anyway, I voted Hound, Primal, Saber.

[MayzaPrime]

Magnus, Primal and Megatron got my votes...

[Verno]

You can vote everyday by the looks of things, which is odd. The die-hards will be able to skew the votes.

*Goes off to skew the votes...*

[GoktimusPrime]

You can vote everyday by the looks of things, which is odd. The die-hards will be able to skew the votes.
It even encourages it!
"Come back tomorrow to cast a new vote." :rolleyes:

[Verno]

http://orig08.deviantart.net/dff8/f/2017/017/d/a/1_by_rh1n0x-davu4bs.png

[MEEEGGGAAATTTRRROOONNN!!!]

Optimus Primal can be whatever he damn well pleases and if he tells you he is a warlord, a baker or even a dancer, you just accept it!

A dancing, baking, gorilla warlord? Let the chaos begin!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[BigTransformerTrev]

You can vote everyday by the looks of things, which is odd. The die-hards will be able to skew the votes.

*Goes off to skew the votes...*


It even encourages it!
"Come back tomorrow to cast a new vote." :rolleyes:

That sucks the fun out of it a bit. Means people with nothing to do have more of a say than die-hard fans with hectic lives :(

Hasbro should take a cue from Paulbot :)

[FatalityPitt]

Just voted: Star Saber (top pick), Optimus Primal, and Arcee.

Man, I wish participants would be restricted to just one vote. People can vote once a day; that means die-hard fans of certain characters will vote a hundred times, and the result will reflect their choices rather than the majority.

[MEEEGGGAAATTTRRROOONNN!!!]

Man, I wish participants would be restricted to just one vote. People can vote once a day; that means die-hard fans of certain characters will vote a hundred times, and the result will reflect their choices rather than the majority.

Wouldn't surprise me if the results are meaningless because Hasbro has already decided who they want the "winners" to be.

[reillyd]

Wouldn't surprise me if the results are meaningless because Hasbro has already decided who they want the "winners" to be.

I suspect Voter Fraud on Shockwaves behalf. He's shifty

[FatalityPitt]

I suspect Voter Fraud on Shockwaves behalf. He's shifty

It was the Russians.

[MayzaPrime]

I suspect Voter Fraud on Shockwaves behalf. He's shifty

Its only logical...

[Darkness]

Shockwave. Calling my old bud putin to make this happen

[MEEEGGGAAATTTRRROOONNN!!!]

Looks like the contenders are Ultra Magnus, Optimus Primal, Star Saber, and Unknown Evil, with round 2 of voting commencing on February 1.

[Zommael]

Hasbro seem to really want Unknown Evil to win.

[GoktimusPrime]

Hasbro seem to really want Unknown Evil to win.
So do I. :o But mostly because out of all these characters, he's never had a proper modern updated toy (the Timelines version was just a redeco of Gigatron). I'd love to see a proper (original mould) CHUGUR or MP (more likely the former w/ Hasbro) update of Deszaras.

[CHILENO20]

Just saw the listing for round 2, heheheheh, all 3 are the ones I chose from round 1 :D Now it will get tricky :cool:

[Raider]

Just saw the listing for round 2, heheheheh, all 3 are the ones I chose from round 1 :D Now it will get tricky :cool:

I picked 2/3 (although one was the wild card entry :p)

I really hope magnus doesn't get it as he already had a recent update. I still hope it's Deathsaurus but would be happy with Primal or Star Saber as well.

[Verno]

Let's go PRIMAL!

[CHILENO20]

I picked 2/3 (although one was the wild card entry :p)

I really hope magnus doesn't get it as he already had a recent update. I still hope it's Deathsaurus but would be happy with Primal or Star Saber as well.

I know what you mean. Something different to change it up. Though if this is meant to lead from the comics choosing an over religious zealot like Star Sabre may be going a bit far. Hope my first choice, Primal gets the nod as it were :cool:

[GoktimusPrime]

To put things in perspective here, this is why I'm voting for Deszaras:

Here are all the other candidates in terms of their original toys with contemporary updated versions. I'm only looking at new moulds that were developed for these characters, no redecos.
http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y227/goktimusprime/Transformers/poweroftheprimes_othertoys_zpsbcqvc8nn.jpg

And here is Deszaras:
http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y227/goktimusprime/Transformers/poweroftheprimes_deszaras_zpsp2vhceca.jpg

Yeah, I think out of all the candidates Deszaras is the MOST desperate in need of a new toy. There has literally been NO new mould Deszaras toy since 1989! :eek:

Vote #1: DESZARAS! (or "Deathsaurus" if you prefer that spelling... po-tay-to po-tah-to :p)

[Verno]

A new Deathsaurus toy would be great. Rip the wings off and put a meatier head on it and you've got a nice Grimlock. You could also make a nice Onyx Prime out of it (presuming the character has wings).

But still...

VOTE 1 PRIMAL!

[MayzaPrime]

2 of the characters I voted for made it to the 2nd round... Ultra Magnus and Primal...

I might jump on the Deathsaurus train :p

[Bumbleb33]

Boo! Not a single one of my choices made it through. Oh well I cannot complain too much I was lucky to get almost every one of my wishes fulfilled with the previous votes for Windblade, Victorion and Trypticon.

Regardless of who is next I am sure we will get a wikid toy for them.

[M-bot]

1/3 for me, but I'm a tad sad (but not even a little bit surprised) that Hound didn't make it.

Like others have stated, it's pretty obvious they are desperate for "unknown evil" to keep getting through. Why the pretense of a vote?:rolleyes:

[FatalityPitt]

I'm guessing this is how the story arc will go: Unknown Evil will win the vote and get the Matrix. Star Saber will challenge Unknown Evil (revealed to be SS's old rival, Deathsaurus). During the battle, Star Saber will be killed while Deathsaurus will be wounded. Optimus Primal will then seize the opportunity by delivering a killing blow to Deathsaurus and take the Matrix from him. Optimus Primal wins and we get more Beast Wars toys!

EDIT: A couple years later, Optimus Primal's growing arrogance and inability to handle success and power will result in him turning evil. Optimus Prime, after a temporary hiatus, battles Primal and takes back the Matrix. Thus reverting Transformers back to the old status quo.

Hasbro's Message: No one else but Optimus Prime is worthy enough to hold the Matrix, and he'll never be replaced as leader, and your children's children's children's, grandchildren will all continue collect and worship Optimus Prime forever and beyond...

[GoktimusPrime]

But why vote for the others? What can Hasbro achieve with another modern version of those other characters that they haven't already achieved in recent incarnations? I don't see what a new CHUGUR Hound could do that Universe/Henkei Hound doesn't already give us. I have zero interest in Titans Return Optimus Prime and Megatron. None of these toys seem to offer anything substantial which Reveal the Shield G2 Optimus Prime and Combiner Wars Megatron don't already (relative to their different price/size classes). I frankly don't need another Headmaster Optimus Prime (already have TR PM OP), I don't need a Headmaster Megatron, and I don't need either character as Triple Changers. These are all bonus gimmicks, but nothing that I consider essential. If they made a Titans Return Hound then what? A new CHUGUR Hound that's a Headmaster? Uh... no thanks, I'll just stick with my Henkei. Why do I need a new Headmaster Hound again? :confused: Optimus Primal? I have Telemocha Convoy (redeco of RM Beast Convoy, and I have RM Burning Beast Convoy, so I have this mould twice) and I have MP Beast Convoy. And TakaraTOMY recently reissued the original Optimus Primal with the show-accurate head as part of the LG line (and if I gave a toss about show-likeness I might've considered getting that toy :o). So again, not seeing what another modern Optimus Primal toy could really bring to the table.

TBH the only character here that I would want to see redone as a toy other than Deszaras is Hound, but only as a Masterpiece figure. But this is a Hasbro poll, and we know that Hasbro never develop Masterpiece toys, only TakaraTOMY do (and Hasbro will sometimes follow TakaraTOMY's lead if they feel like it, but they never take the lead). So there's no point in voting for Hound if you wanted an MP figure for that. A better chance of seeing MP Hound is to have nominated the character on the TakaraTOMY online poll before they geoblocked it (I know I have). Otherwise all we can do is hope that fans in Japan are nominating him.

But as far as Hasbro's concerned, out of the characters offered here Deszaras seems to make the most sense. He is the only character who's never had a modern toy made of him. I would like to see Hasbro release as many G1 characters as CHUGUR figures as possible before revisiting characters that they've already done all over again. Because I'm unlikely to purchase any redone characters (just as I'm planning on entirely skipping TR Optimus Prime and Megs), but I'll jump at the chance to get a new character-toy! :D

[Verno]

But why vote for the others?
Because I want a full S1 BW cast of Generations figures.

We've got three. Eleven to go.

[FatalityPitt]

But why vote for the others?

To build hype. Nothing builds hype like a big change to the status quo, and letting the fans be part of the decision making process.


I have zero interest in Titans Return Optimus Prime and Megatron. None of these toys seem to offer anything substantial which Reveal the Shield G2 Optimus Prime and Combiner Wars Megatron don't already (relative to their different price/size classes).

I use to feel this way about Optimus Prime toys in general, and use wonder "why do they keep giving us Optimus Primes?" Then I started to realise; every child and Transformer collector needs an Optimus Prime in their collection, ergo; there must be at least one Optimus Prime toy in every toy store at all times!

Optimus Prime is not only the Autobot leader, but he's the main hero and the face of Transformers. He's a pop culture icon. To Transformers; Optimus Prime is what Mickey Mouse is to Disney. Optimus Prime is Transformers, and Transformers is Life. Therefore, No Optimus Prime = No life!

Are you buying your first Transformer? Did you think you could just buy Highbrow only, and assign Highbrow as your main Autobot Hero? BLASPHEMY! Only Optimus Prime can be the main hero, nobody else!

Just kidding (the last 2 paragraphs are meant to be read in a joking tone).. But you see where I'm coming from right? Optimus prime can't be simply replaced.

Even though they're going to be passing the leadership mantle onto someone else, I don't think it's going to last forever. It's going to find it's way back to Optimus Prime eventually. In most entertainment franchises, big changes to the status quote rarely stick.

Take Marvel's Captain America for example. Steve Rogers has been Captain America since the 1940s, and there have been numerous attempts (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/1576835/Gun-toting-Captain-America-comes-back-to-life.html)to replace (http://www.theverge.com/2014/7/16/5878527/marvel-is-replacing-steve-rogers-with-the-first-black-captain-america)him, but somehow; the Captain America name always went (http://edition.cnn.com/2009/SHOWBIZ/06/15/captain.america/index.html?eref=ib_us)back (http://www.newsarama.com/27609-steve-rogers-returning-as-captain-america-in-new-ongoing.html)to Steve Rogers.

Also, this isn't the first time an entertainment company has let the fandom vote on a change to the status quo (http://thefw.com/fans-voted-to-kill-robin-batman-facts/).

FYI - Spoiler: Jason Todd is still alive and kicking (http://comicbook.com/dc/2016/12/08/exclusive-dc-preview-red-hood-and-the-outlaws-5/).



But as far as Hasbro's concerned, out of the characters offered here Deszaras seems to make the most sense. He is the only character who's never had a modern toy made of him. I would like to see Hasbro release as many G1 characters as CHUGUR figures as possible before revisiting characters that they've already done all over again. Because I'm unlikely to purchase any redone characters (just as I'm planning on entirely skipping TR Optimus Prime and Megs), but I'll jump at the chance to get a new character-toy! :D

I also believe Deathsaurus should be getting a new toy. My speculation, in full, is that the Unknown Evil will most likely win (also likely to be Deathsaurus), and there will be a new toy representing that character, But after launching the toy and selling enough units, they'll probably kill of the character in the IDW comics and give the Matrix to someone else. If that someone else is Optimus Primal, it gives HasTak an opportunity to relaunch Beast Wars. But years later, after the BW-fad dies down, the Matrix will probably go back to Optimus Prime.

[GoktimusPrime]

The real reason why they pump out so many Optimus Prime and Megatron toys is to preserve the trademarks on their names. But they're always overkilling it. You don't have to have half a dozen Optimi and Megatrons each year to protect the trademark, you only really need one once every couple of years to make sure that it doesn't expire due to lack of usage. Like say Shockwave... don't need to have 3 Shockwaves a year to maintain the trademark. Nope.

And Transformers is really an ensemble cast - it's a toyline, not an action hero story franchise. We've had years when there were no Optimus or Megatron toys, namely 1986, 1987, 1989, 1990 & 1992. And yet the franchise didn't implode during those years!

[griffin]

Get ready voters, some time soon (February 1st, American time), the second round of voting begins (http://www.hasbro.com/common/assets/html5/Transformers/power-of-primes-beta/) until February 4th, from the four finalists - Ultra Magnus, Optimus Primal, Star Saber, and Unknown Evil/Deathsaurus.

http://www.toycollectors.com.au/news/2017/013004.jpg

If that direct link doesn't work, find the voting page on the main Generations page (http://transformers.hasbro.com/en-us/combiner-wars).

[MEEEGGGAAATTTRRROOONNN!!!]

This link is good as well:

http://transformers.com/vote

[Verno]

Voting is underway once again.

VOTE 1 PRIMAL!

[Verno]

Oh yeah! Optimus Primal!

[Raider]

Oh yeah! Optimus Primal!

Congrats Verno but I am disappointed :( Was really hoping for Deathsaurus. Oh well fingers crossed they decide to make him anyway.

[GoktimusPrime]

http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y227/goktimusprime/avatars/meme_thatsjustprime_zpsnytswae4.jpg

[Sinnertwin]

sigh. whatever.

[Verno]

Congrats Verno but I am disappointed :( Was really hoping for Deathsaurus. Oh well fingers crossed they decide to make him anyway.
He came second, so I reckon you're still in with a good chance of seeing a toy of him down the track. He's essentially a Grimlock with wings, so an easy retool option.