Hints of whats to come for the Encore series?

[Mr_K]

Hi all,

while browsing the Takara-Tomy website during my lunch break I have seen that if you go to this site: http://www.takaratomy.co.jp/products/TF/25th/25th.html and then section 6 it displays one of the headmasters, superion and devestator. This is in the "25th special content" section so is this a hint of what we will see coming up in the Encore line? It would make sense for them to reissue some of the headmasters :D

[fatbot]

it would be nice to see some of the headmasters get some lovin' then of course superion & the big green machine, but how about other figures that the fans may actually prefer? Fort Max anyone?

on a side note what about page 7? the one with mutiple images of Cybertron? where could taktom be leading us to?

[Mr_K]

I was thinking Fort Max too, since he is also a headmaster :)

[kup]

Yeah, Yeah, release Chromedome, Devastator and Superion right after I finish collecting the G1 releases...How typical :(

I hope they go for more odd stuff like Powermaster/Targetmasters.

[roller]

? It would make sense for them to reissue some of the headmasters :D

why?

[Mr_K]

why?

Because they were the beginning of when Japan went out on their own and they are the ones reissuing the G1 figures ;)

[i_amtrunks]

crossing my fingers and toes and wishing for Encore Hardhead....

[1orion2many]

:)Give me Triggerhappy and the like as they are severly ovepriced and I don't have them:D

[jaydisc]

Oh man, I'd just cream squeal with glee for a Superion and Devastator.

[Sky Shadow]

Well there's no way we're not getting E-Hobby Arcee if they're reissuing Chromedome.

Squee! :D

(And the fathers and sons in pristine white with movie toys (#1) are creepy. Actually, even creepier if they're not fathers and sons.)

[Zippo]

They will just be examples of what was released in the past 25 years...

[Vector Sigma 13]

Id buy a Fort Max!

[GoktimusPrime]

That page isn't about reissues. It's about the way TF toy technology has evolved in the past 25 years.

[kup]

That page isn't about reissues. It's about the way TF toy technology has evolved in the past 25 years.

True but I have a feeling that they wouldn't have shown those particular toys if they had no intention of reissuing them.

- We already know they have the Constructicon molds.
- We know Chromedome is popular in Japan

However Superion does not fit that category as we haven't seen any release of the molds since G2.

[MV75]

I'd love all of those seeing as how I've never owned any of them, the three listed toys of course.

I really don't want fort max, it would cost too much and I'm really not a fan of it at all, as in I don't want to own it. I've always liked metroplex better.

[Sky Shadow]

True but I have a feeling that they wouldn't have shown those particular toys if they had no intention of reissuing them.

- We already know they have the Constructicon molds.
- We know Chromedome is popular in Japan

However Superion does not fit that category as we haven't seen any release of the molds since G2.

:confused: We've never seen a release of the Constructicon moulds since G2 either. Or Chromedome since around the same time (Chinese reissues 1993ish).

[Mr_K]

My thinking is that given its a 25th anniversary section, why would you waste screen realestate with pictures of transformers you are not going to make money off? If they just needed to show a combiner then why not just show Bruticus since he is already being reissued and it would be good advertising and not wasting the space?

[kup]

:confused: We've never seen a release of the Constructicon moulds since G2 either. Or Chromedome since around the same time (Chinese reissues 1993ish).

HasTak has announced that they do indeed have the Constructicon molds but didn't want to reissue them due to all the knockoffs which has flooded the market.

We don't know if Chromedome's mold is in good enough condition but he may be popular enough to consider a bit of extra effort for 25th anniversary if his mold is not up to scratch but there is no reason to think that it isn't.

[liegeprime]

sigh + 1 on kups sentiments:(

[jaydisc]

** MOVIE SPOILERS ** (IF YOU'VE BEEN LIVING IN A CAVE)

I think in light of the upcoming movie, the reissuing of Devastator is all but a sure thing

[kup]

I agree with the cave news.

[Adzma]

HasTak has announced that they do indeed have the Constructicon molds but didn't want to reissue them due to all the knockoffs which has flooded the market.
Rawr! Anybody stupid enough to choose a KO over a legit reissue deserves to be beaten and flogged.

[Tetsuwan Convoy]

My thinking is that given its a 25th anniversary section, why would you waste screen realestate with pictures of transformers you are not going to make money off? If they just needed to show a combiner then why not just show Bruticus since he is already being reissued and it would be good advertising and not wasting the space?

Perhaps they were the most popular they had on hand. Everyone knows Devastator and sinc Chromedome was a popular character thy would seem a pretty wise choice.

IMO there isn't much to get excietd from that page.

[GoktimusPrime]

That page isn't for advertising current products. It's to showcase the history of the Transformers' development. And the most prominent image is of Alternity, which is a current product. It's meant to be like, "Look how far we've come."

[Linthart]

Personally i'm a Fortress Maximus nut. If its fort max, i want it. The amount of money i've spent on the 3 variants scares me but i think i'd be pretty pissed if they re-issued him because it would send the value of the original plummeting would it not? of would it make it even more nostalgic?

This isn't to say i wouldn't buy like 10 of him just for giggles if we saw a reasonable price tag, say a couple of hundred USD but overall i think the biggest, baddest, kick your own ass cause he can transformer of all time should be kept as a vintage prize.

I always see people commenting on collections like "RAWR FORT MAX" and "I'm so not worthy of fort max" yadda yadda and i think if he was re-issued, that would all be lost

Bring on the rest of the headmasters for sure though but i'd say the next ehobby will be Ghost Starscream (no evidence to support this) and G1 Piranacon seeing as they just released the TFCC version so we know the mould is still good.

We all know they love to pump their moulds as much as they can

[Sky Shadow]

i think the biggest, baddest, kick your own ass cause he can transformer of all time should be kept as a vintage prize.

I always see people commenting on collections like "RAWR FORT MAX" and "I'm so not worthy of fort max"

When, in the history of the world, has anyone ever said "I'm so not worthy of Fort Max"? The idea that something shouldn't be reissued because it should be kept vintage is daft. The only reason why a toy should not be reissued is if Takara cannot make a profit from it.

[Linthart]

When, in the history of the world, has anyone ever said "I'm so not worthy of Fort Max"? The idea that something shouldn't be reissued because it should be kept vintage is daft. The only reason why a toy should not be reissued is if Takara cannot make a profit from it.

i have no doubts that profits would go through the roof for it.

the whole worthy thing i see over at tfw2005 boards. ha i'd go looking for it but there is alot to go through :p i remember when i first discovered fort max a couple of years ago i would see people post comments like that, i guess its one of the reasons i wanted it so badly was because some people saw him with such a vivid emotion.

of course you can see it from the other perspective of those that are desperately seeking a fort max but simply cannot justify the excruciating cost where a reissue would be like a godsend for their collection.

Would anyone be suprised if they re-issued him? i dont think so. RID got him within the last decade so we know the mould is good. The only real reason why it wouldn't be overly feasible for them is because shipping costs are a bitch!

[Linthart]

ok i've decided i sound like a pompous ass :-S

[GoktimusPrime]

I'm not sure if Fort Max would be profitable. I've heard reports that a lot of the larger Encores like Metroflex and Omega Supreme have been shelf-warming - and Fortress Maximus would utterly dwarf them (both physically and financially).

As much as I would love to see an Encore Fort Max*+, considering how Metroflex and Omega Supreme are reportedly shelf-warming, I wouldn't blame Takara for not reissuing any more base/city-formers. If these reports are true, and I were in TakaraTOMY's position, I wouldn't reissue Fortress Maximus.

---
* because you just know that Takara would reissue it with the Master Sword - and we know that they do still have the Master Sword mould since they used it for the God Fire Sword (http://tfwiki.net/wiki/Matrix_Blade) (albeit w/ retooled handle for God Fire Convoy)
+ and an e-Hobby Grand Maximus would be make me so happy that I'd need to change my undies

[Linthart]

I'm not sure if Fort Max would be profitable. I've heard reports that a lot of the larger Encores like Metroflex and Omega Supreme have been shelf-warming - and Fortress Maximus would utterly dwarf them (both physically and financially).


Hmm yep i'll pay that aspect too. I have noticed, as i'm yet to get my own hands on the encore Omega and Metroplex (c'mon exchange rate), that they both are constantly on sale at places like BBTS, TFsource etc. oh and skylinx.

Skylinx is a curious shelf warmer though as correct me if i'm wrong, but this is the first time TAKARA have released him right? I guess he just isn't overly popular as a toy as he's certainly not the most expensive one out there.

i would have thought that the japanese collectors may have snapped him up more because he wasn't released in the 80's in Japan

[Linthart]

+ and an e-Hobby Grand Maximus would be make me so happy that I'd need to change my undies

you know its not nice to be a tease.

oh how i dream about a Maximus display with my 3 originals in robot mode with the re-issues in city mode beside them.

[orionpax1]

Fort Max would be awesome but i would do a Scorponok first. I think they just made too many of Omega and Metroplex (my fav by the way) thats why they are shelf warming, they could still do a F/Max just dont produce as many, either way just keep bringing the G1 reissues.

[GoktimusPrime]

Skylinx is a curious shelf warmer though as correct me if i'm wrong, but this is the first time TAKARA have released him right?
That is correct.


they could still do a F/Max just dont produce as many, either way just keep bringing the G1 reissues.
They would need to produce a certain number of figures in order to make enough money to justify the cost of making the Fort Max reissue in the first place. Producing it in a very limited numbers wouldn't be worth it. That's why exclusive figures (e.g.: convention, e-Hobby etc.) are all repaints of existing and relatively recently used moulds. You could argue that the Fortress Maximus mould was recently used (Car Robot) but at the size and price point puts it in an entirely different league than say Buzzclaw-->Virulent Clones.