MP Cheetor/Cheetus prototype revealed!

[GoktimusPrime]

Doh, can a mod pls rename the thread with Cheetor instead of Cheator

Cheator's the one they left back on Cybertron because he keeps on peeking at other Maximals' test papers to copy their answers.

[kurdt_the_goat]

From a_3tom on twitter. Now just make Dinobot's chest this clean



From portarmy on twitter. Seems like that dangly beast leg is the only concession they've made.

[GoktimusPrime]

Seems like that dangly beast leg is the only concession they've made.

I wouldn't say that's a concession because it is screen accurate. The show model does also keep the front beast legs dangling from the back, same as the original toy (ah, the joys of having show models scanned direct from the figures ). The main difference is that the cartoon model crosses the legs over in an "X" shape, which the original toy can't do, but the MP evidently can. So they're being perfectly show-accurate by keeping the legs there and allowing them to articulate into an "X" shape.

[TAAUBlaster]

Wow, wasn't expecting a prototype to show up so soon. He looks pretty good, and I suspect will look a lot better once he gets some paint - hopefully with the same "fur" texture style that Primal has. He looks too smooth here but so did the Primal prototype, and I was amazed at the paint job they gave him.

[kurdt_the_goat]

I wouldn't say that's a concession because it is screen accurate. The show model does also keep the front beast legs dangling from the back, same as the original toy (ah, the joys of having show models scanned direct from the figures ). The main difference is that the cartoon model crosses the legs over in an "X" shape, which the original toy can't do, but the MP evidently can. So they're being perfectly show-accurate by keeping the legs there and allowing them to articulate into an "X" shape.

Ah good spot, even better! Seems i'm due for a BW re-watch

[Wormz]

Ah good spot, even better! Seems i'm due for a BW re-watch

I have been chipping away at them for the last few weeks.. watched the last episode about 3 hrs ago.. Still a great series

[MEEEGGGAAATTTRRROOONNN!!!]

While I wasn't excited with Primal at the prototype stage (won over with the coloured shots), Cheetor is amazing!

Bravo to the designer(s)!

[GoktimusPrime]

To be fair, Cheetor is relatively more toy-accurate than Optimus Primal and thus relatively easier to redesign as an MP. Making the beast and robot heads look more show like is really just cosmetic, but the main design challenges have been reducing the bulk of the toy as well as allowing the beast head to tuck right in, which you can do with a bigger and more expensive figure. Optimus Primal has an additional challenge of reducing a lot of the beast kibble in robot mode, especially on the back. Primal also needs to have deployable weapons which I assume don't have panels flopping around (as the toy does but show model does not; the Robot Master figure got rid of the panels for the shoulder cannons but at the cost of having open grooves on the back which cannot be covered up).

And of course, Cheetor was obviously designed after Optimus Primal, so it would stand to logic that TakaraTOMY are learning from their experiences with Primal, which is a good sign. And perhaps future BW MPs may see improvements over Cheetor too. It'd be interesting to see if they can ever address the issue of visible robot parts behind the upper rear beast legs, which both Primal and Cheetor seem to have. I don't know if this is entirely possible -- beast modes can often be harder than vehicles because you don't have the luxury of a bulky alt mode to conceal robot parts in. And even then, automobile MPs still have exposed robot parts from the underside, moreso than these BW MPs. The BW TFs have always been impressive in that regard ('cept for Flipchangers, but considering that they're cheap and fully articulated One Step Changers (as opposed to AoE and RiD2015's poorly articulated and much more expensive One Steppers) it's easily forgivable )