So this years Botcon Set (2015) ...

Has got a Brand spank'n new Prentender Shell based on unreleased Prentender shell shown off at Botcon 95. It'll be the first Double Pretender actually released, as well as the first Brand New mold released as part of Botcon Set.

Now, I'm a young'n, born it 88, started collecting at Beast Wars and only have a few pieces pre-BW. Apart from the fact that it's brand new everything, how do you the rest of you feel about a Pretender Shell as part of Botcon history? Don't get me wrong, I'll be getting it for all the other figures, but Pretender Shells don't rank that high on my list of wants. In fact, the only scenario I could see myself getting it is if I won lotto and wanted to start collecting as many TF's as possible ...

I've kind of already put up some opinion in the Botcon thread.

But...

I like it, it's this sort of thing that the club is good at doing and in my mind should really focus on. It's great that they are producing a new mold. The biggest problem I have with buying club product is it's all pretty much a repaint with or without a new head. it's hard for them to do anything cohesive like the animated set as a result.

having said that, I don't really have a great affinity for pretenders. I have picked up a couple cheap at the parra fair in the past and find them to be very simple and uninspired. This is a much better version in my mind simply because the internal toy is so much better, not so much that it's more modern but it has an alt mode that specifically looks like a car rather than a folded up robot.

If I was going to Botcon this year I'd be stoked to get hold of this toy, I am considering trying to find a way of affording the bagged set. either now or in the next 12 months.

I know it's technically not third party, I guess, but something about FunPub outsourcing the creation of a figure (not just a head or some minor parts) kind of rubs me the wrong way. Haven't quite determined what exactly it is that bothers me but it feels a bit wrong.

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Originally Posted by Paulbot

I know it's technically not third party, I guess, but something about FunPub outsourcing the creation of a figure (not just a head or some minor parts) kind of rubs me the wrong way. Haven't quite determined what exactly it is that bothers me but it feels a bit wrong.

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They outsourced the development of the figure, which I would understand to mean the physical design of how it would work as a product. I'd imagine they still came up with the idea to do it and, as stated in the reveal video, clearly have input into what it will look like and the end product. So it's not like they completely outsourced it, and I'd think the actual factories doing the production are probably the same as do the others in the set. Plus, it's not even the whole figure; the actual repainted legion TFs were presumably designed by the same group that did the rest of the set. So it's not like it's been totally outsourced and now some other company that isn't Hasbro, Takara, or FunPub are making TFs everywhere.

More generally, I have to say that this year's set is one of the most desirable in recent memory, probably only matched by last year's set, which was then only really attractive because of Skorponok. But this set is made up of two of the best regarded Generations moulds of the last two years, one of the best regarded Universe figures, an otherwise unreleased in the west toy with accessories the same, and now an almost completely new toy. It's enough to make me want to source the set despite not going to the con, and my rule is I'll only get exclusives from cons I've been to (so that's a big fat zero so far). I think it's awesome.

I prefer cohesive sets rather than a smattering of figures that will need to be spilt across my collection. I understand the logic of trying to appeal to everyone but i think if you are good you can make a great cohesive set that will be a winner.

I do like the idea of them recreating this double pretender. It looks very faithful to the original and was designed by a company that Hasbro uses themselves.

I'm not a big fan of Pretenders as such, but I like that this is there for all those who are. And it certainly at least tries to hit the same beat as last year's Headmaster.

That said, I find the idea of an incarnation of Megatron who struck out as a galactic conqueror and became a crime boss instead strangely appealing.

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Originally Posted by Paulbot

I know it's technically not third party, I guess, but something about FunPub outsourcing the creation of a figure (not just a head or some minor parts) kind of rubs me the wrong way. Haven't quite determined what exactly it is that bothers me but it feels a bit wrong.

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Technically it is no different to Kreo... Hasbro outsources the production of Kreo from a South Korean company, which is not the same as the Chinese factories making toys for Hasbro as the Sth Korean company (Oxford) is noted on the Kreo packaging.

If FunPub have created heads and wings for their exclusive toys that were not provided by Hasbro, why not something larger. This shell is still non-convertible, and only has three moving parts, so wasn't that difficult to create by BossFight Studios who have done whole action figures in the past.

On the other hand, when BotCon 2004 had that Actionmaster G2 Breakdown handed out, for a long time it was considered a BotCon toy... but it was not a Hasbro toy, nor was it even authorised by Hasbro. So I guess it comes down to personal preference.

So to me, the Oilmaster Shell feels wrong for not being produced in-house by Hasbro, but if it has been authorised by Hasbro like any other licensed product or toy (like meal toys), it is a legit toy... but it still feels wrong for some unknown reason.
Maybe it's just a FunPub thing, and if 3H had done this for one of their BotCons, I might have felt differently about it. :o

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Originally Posted by Deonasis

I prefer cohesive sets rather than a smattering of figures that will need to be spilt across my collection. I understand the logic of trying to appeal to everyone but i think if you are good you can make a great cohesive set that will be a winner.

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Yep... the most cohesive sets have been the most popular - Beast Wars and Stunticons.
The sets that are a mix-n-match of subgroups, universes or allegiances just end up looking like a mixed bag, and rely on their combined use in a comic to explain how they came together... a comic that most people won't read or remember.

I like the concept, not fussed that it's not made "in-house" - it's licensed & approved, good enough for me.

Though personally, the only one from that set I'd want is Battletrap, maybe Stepper (like the mould, but have no attachment to the character)

I remember seeing Pretenders in the catalog that was included in G1 Transformers and thought they were dumb at the time. Why would I want a Transformer that looks like a human? I'm still not impressed by them, but at least a couple of the characters have some good IDW fiction behind them now.

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Originally Posted by griffin

Yep... the most cohesive sets have been the most popular - Beast Wars and Stunticons.
The sets that are a mix-n-match of subgroups, universes or allegiances just end up looking like a mixed bag, and rely on their combined use in a comic to explain how they came together... a comic that most people won't read or remember.

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Sadly the majority of the sets are mix n match. I was reading though some of the club comics the other day. They haven't gotten any better with age, as the panels don't flow very well and they try and cram so many characters in (or very obscure ones) I don't know who is saying what, or what is going on. Either that, or I can't be bothered using my brain to work it out :p

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Originally Posted by DELTAprime

I remember seeing Pretenders in the catalog that was included in G1 Transformers and thought they were dumb at the time. Why would I want a Transformer that looks like a human? I'm still not impressed by them, but at least a couple of the characters have some good IDW fiction behind them now.

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When pretenders were out in the shops, I ended up buying a couple of the smaller ones, and they were OK. But I always thought they were pretty silly. Now that I'm older, I still think they are kind of silly, but appreciate them more for their campness (I guess).

In a way, it's a kind of evolution for the Autobots if they want to hide on Earth, but the Decepticons to 'hide' themselves as monsters it doesn't make a lot of sense. Even taking into the consideration that they might have been the basis as mythological beasts. If they were around that early, their robot modes alone would have made them monsters anyway.

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Originally Posted by Tetsuwan Convoy

Sadly the majority of the sets are mix n match. I was reading though some of the club comics the other day. They haven't gotten any better with age, as the panels don't flow very well and they try and cram so many characters in (or very obscure ones) I don't know who is saying what, or what is going on. Either that, or I can't be bothered using my brain to work it out :p

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And they take it very personally too. I had a problem understanding the first half of last year's comic, and I mentioned it at around the time Pete stopped responding to me... and we saw how defensive he got with people questioning the theme last year (asking what made it a "30th Anniversary" theme), and people not liking the comic in the Club Magazine.

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Originally Posted by Tetsuwan Convoy

When pretenders were out in the shops, I ended up buying a couple of the smaller ones, and they were OK.

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The smaller Pretenders came out in 1989 and were actually better than the larger 1988 Pretenders. IMO one problem with the 88 Pretenders isn't just that they're Transformers inside human/monster looking shells, but that the robots inside aren't very good Transformers in their own right. They transform from robots to... umm... folded up robots. Tack on some wheels or wings and call it an alt mode. They're more like Cosplaying contortionists. :p The 89 Pretenders were generally better because their alt modes looked like alt modes. Bludgeon's alt mode is clearly a tank and Bumblebee is a VW Beetle etc. The very first Pretender that I got was Waverider; it was a birthday present and I remember opening it and playing with it before I bothered to read the tech specs. I honestly thought that the alt mode was a spaceship. You can imagine my surprise when I eventually did read the tech specs and discovered that it's meant to be some kind of sea-faring submersible! :eek:

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Originally Posted by GoktimusPrime

The smaller Pretenders came out in 1989 and were actually better than the larger 1988 Pretenders. IMO one problem with the 88 Pretenders isn't just that they're Transformers inside human/monster looking shells, but that the robots inside aren't very good Transformers in their own right. They transform from robots to... umm... folded up robots.

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Ha ha ha. Yeah that's true. But the smaller ones did need a significant chunk of their alt mode. AS an ecample, I had Longtooth and Pincher. Long tooth had a cool vehicle mode, but without the backpack it didn't work.

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Originally Posted by Tetsuwan Convoy

Ha ha ha. Yeah that's true. But the smaller ones did need a significant chunk of their alt mode. AS an ecample, I had Longtooth and Pincher. Long tooth had a cool vehicle mode, but without the backpack it didn't work.

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Neither of them are nearly as bad as Gunrunner. My Longtooth is missing his accessory, but he's still transformable as a vehicle. Pincher would be a legless and tailless scorpion, but at least the head, body and arms are still there. Doubleheader would be a wingless jet (still capable of interstellar flight at least) -- you get the idea. Gunrunner on the other hand is utterly useless without his accessory. His accessory is the alt mode! All Gunrunner does is fold up as undercarriage stowage. The accessory can still transform into a jet in its own right without Gunrunner! It actually looks more like a jet without him because there isn't that chunky undercarriage.

And of course, those smaller Pretenders were cheap carded figures, whereas Gunrunner was a more expensive boxed toy! :eek: I didn't bother getting Roadgrabber after I got Gunrunner because I was so off-put by Gunrunner in '88, but Roadgrabber is by the better of the pair. In hindsight I should've bought him instead of Gunrunner; I've since acquired Roadgrabber for free anyway :p -- but yeah, if you're gonna spend money on either of the Pretender Vehicles, don't pay for Gunrunner! That toy was rubbish even by 1988 standards. :rolleyes:

The only pretender I want is bludgeon. Fully articulated and has the tank insides :D