Does anyone else just not care anymore?

[Geminii]

I wouldn't worry about it too much - if this year's product doesn't appeal to you, then it doesn't appeal to you, and that's the extent of it. There aren't many collectors, completests aside, who bought the majority of every single year's releases back to G1. Just take a break, maybe look at filling in some older holes in your collection, and take a look back over the last five years of releases to see if there's anything you wanted but missed.

Before you know it, there will be another reboot, another cartoon, another toyline, and the aesthetic will have changed yet again - maybe to something that appeals more.

I've found it can also be fun wandering through the kitbash threads on a lot of forums. Almost all of them deal with older characters and designs, and it can be a fun nostalgia kick. Occasionally you might even find one that really showcases one of the newer toys in a great light, and have second thoughts about picking it up.

[liegeprime]

Fixed.

cup noodles for eternity anyone?

[kup]

Although Transfomers as a franchise has become very popular I can't say that the line from a toy perspective is doing too well right. A lot of the current toys seem to be shelfwarming and a huge majority of the stuff being sold is barely transformers and more like merchendise.

With a lot of stuff to buy like Kreo Transformers and lots of other stuff, there is a much to choose from but not much that would appeal the 'traditional' Transformers collector. At least with Armada, Energon and Cybertron despite their flaws, those were dedicated TF lines and not as 'merchandise instensive' or 'play set intensive' like the current movie line. For lack of better word, to me it feels like the line is somewhat 'diluted' with it's current wave of popularity.

Anyways, as mentioned, this phase will eventually pass and the new thing will come around that may be more appealing like the first wave of TF:Prime toys that don't look half bad or other collector lines.

For me, the 3rd party stuff is keeping my interest in Transformers collecting as otherwise I would seriously be reconsidering if I wanted to continue. The current official stuff is very uninteresting to me with good appealing stuff too few and far between to keep me interested.

There is also other lines to collect like MOTUC and I am slowly getting into GI Joe.

[Jinto]

I think that once TFP figures hit the shelves things will pick up again. I agree that the movie line has been getting tedious and the DOTM figures have been pretty unexciting, but since I've been watching Prime I'm itching to get my hands on some new figures

[Robzy]

I've lost a lot of interest in TFs in the past year. I think the movies are what started the decline for me, but I agree with others here that the toys have been lacking in some aspects. There have been some highlights (for me, they were in the CHUG and Masterpiece lines), but I find myself not particularly inspired or excited by any current/upcoming figures except MP-10, MP-11. Thank goodness I collect other lines!! I also think Hasbro Aus and their terrible release schedule are partly to blame for my loss in enthusiasm... I've actually purchased most of my newer TF figures online as a result.

The standard for today's Transformers has been set I think by the Binaltech line and of course the Masterpieces. Whereas back in the 1980s G1 was the standard! There was nothing else. Well, Machine Men. Little more than glorified minibots!

I agree with your sentiment, but I just have to say... Machine Men are much better than that! I have a huge collection (as do many other members on these forums), and while the cartoon was not great, many of the toys were brilliant... much, much better than many similarly sized Transformers. Minibots are terrible by comparison to Machine Robo/Men/Gobots for the most part, and are well below their standards in terms of engineering.

[valkyrie_76]

Maybe set yourself a new aim like collect all the BTs MIB or better yet, collect the Japanese Takara G1 MIB/MOC. That'd keep one broke for years I'd imagine.

Fixed x2

[bowspearer]

It's definitely lost its luster for me for some time. I used to be heavily into it - heck, I even defended Beast Machines, but with the exception of IDW, the media just doesn't do it for me anymore.

Then there are the toys. The more time goes on; the more I see TF ripping off its own past gimmicks in the form of some pitiful rehash- be it the minicons being essentially Powermaster Micromasters, Energon essentialy milking half a toyline out of the Multiforce toys from Victory, or Cybertron ripping off Magneman from the Microchange line. Don't even get me started on the Power Core Combiners being a rehash of a rehash.

Then there's Classics that seem to have as many hits as misses, while the movie toys look like they should be a part of a Super Gobots redux while ripping off the Machine Wars toy gimmick (yes technicaly BW came before MW, but the small MW toys were unreleased G2 prototypes IIRC).

I definitely agree about BT although the line was let down by so many changes to it over time due to licensing.

Honestly, the last series I find working in any way shape or form was Robots in Disguise. Prime seems ok, but it's no Beast Wars.

Also like Gok said, the 1984 TFs were ahead of their time, not to mention that there was a version of Prime which could combine with his trailer, released in the Diaclone line in in the early 1980s anyway.

They, the 1992 Euro G1 TFs, Beast Wars and Car Robots, were the last milestones when there was a toyline for TFs that had a wow factor that really grabbed me.

That's not even going into distribution issues in this country.

I have my doubts that we'll see another milestone like those ever again. The older I get, the more nostalgic I find I get.....

[loophole]

i have lost some interest in transformers in the past couple of months or so i think botcon may have burned me out a little to be honest but as some others have stated it cycles around.

I usually go from buying Transformers then i concentrate on my Amazing Spiderman comic collection and then onto my classic cars and then back to Transformers again all three of these addictions have highs and lows and im okay with that.

Also i have found that the customising side helps alot it gives me a creative outlet for a franchise that i adore and something extra than just buying a toy and taking it out of the package.

[Verno]

Do you know what I miss? When buying a Transformer didn't actually mean anything.

I had random figures from whatever line was out at the time: Drag Strip, a Classic Snarl, some purple Actionmaster Base...

There was no pressure to get all of them, to get only one line.

I miss being naive.

I can't enjoy them anymore.

[Quickstrike]

There's not a lot of stuff out on the shelves at the moment that interests me but that's not going to make me suddenly hate everything I already own.

When I posted that I was like "Haha! Because that would be silly!". But people actually act like this? Daaaaaaaamn.