The Soapbox VII: The Top 10 Transformers of 2008

[sideswipes brother]

Mine:
1. Encore Omega Supreme - always wanted one when i was a kid and now that im a big kid with moola a brand spankin fresh smelling one came my way..Ahhh bliss!!
2. Encore Metroplex - Same as Omega but not wanted as bad when i was a child.
3. Henkei Jetfire/Skyfire - That mold is just sex in a box.
4. Encore Skylinx - Didn't really want it as a kid but now that i have it, it is an excellent mold and much bigger than i expected. My daughter loves it too!
5. Encore Skywarp/Thundercracker - love the seeker jets. Nosecones are horrible but (what happened there i wonder?)
6 onwards....Rest of the Encores

As you can tell i pretty much only buy the G1 Reissues, but i HAD to have the Jetfire mold after i saw pictures on the web.
SB

[Bartrim]

I'm sorry STL but I have to ask where is animated Grimlock? I love that figure.

[GoktimusPrime]

I don't.

[Lord_Zed]

Far as I'm concerned there hasn't been a really great Grimlock toy since G1, I'm hoping the new MP will be the one.

*crosses fingers*

[STL]

I'm sorry STL but I have to ask where is animated Grimlock? I love that figure.

I think Grimlock was an incredible fan favourite. I love the character and the nostalgic elements to it but I didnt' feel he could make the list b/c he was terrible from an engineering perspective. His arms are cumbersome and the lack of locks or solidity in alt mode added with the simplistic transformation is why I left it out.

There's a few toys in that category too in my opinion like Silverbolt which I personally love and is in my top 10 for the year but wouldn't make this list cos I tried to be objective as I could and seeing which had the best balance.

Actually, my personal top 10 is very different from the list I wrote above. I guess when I write a Soapbox it brings out a lot more objectivity in me. I think it also didn't help this year b/c there were so many great toys either and so choosing was a very difficult balancing act. I think 2007 would've been a very easy year to nail the top 10 on b/c it came a lot down to engineering since there's hardly nostalgia that one could feel for the 2007 Movie. 2008 was an awesome year to me b/c so many facets of collecting came to the fore in a technical sense (Bulkhead, Lugnut, Ironhide), a nostaglic sense (Most of Universe and even throw backs in Animated) and a fiction sense (Acid Storm army for me, the Ratbat repaint) etc.

Why wasn't Encore Sky Lynx at number 1?

Cos I had to spite somebody.

I think Encore Sky Lynx is a personal favourite of mine too but I think that his engineering is poor and his strength lies in his scale and nostalgia and the opportunity that Takara gave us, not in the strength of the toy itself and on its own merits. That said, I'm actually looking to buy another this year.

Mine:
1. Encore Omega Supreme - always wanted one when i was a kid and now that im a big kid with moola a brand spankin fresh smelling one came my way..Ahhh bliss!!
2. Encore Metroplex - Same as Omega but not wanted as bad when i was a child.
3. Henkei Jetfire/Skyfire - That mold is just sex in a box.
4. Encore Skylinx - Didn't really want it as a kid but now that i have it, it is an excellent mold and much bigger than i expected. My daughter loves it too!
5. Encore Skywarp/Thundercracker - love the seeker jets. Nosecones are horrible but (what happened there i wonder?)
6 onwards....Rest of the Encores

As you can tell i pretty much only buy the G1 Reissues, but i HAD to have the Jetfire mold after i saw pictures on the web.
SB

Do you like the Hasbro or Takara one more? I've tried and tried but for some reason I like the Hasbro more. I know the Takara one is the premium version but I dunno, that Hasbro one knocks my socks off every single time I look at it.

And since you got the ball rolling, my personal top 10 toys of 2008 were:

1.) Henkei Crystal Convoy
2.) City Commander
3.) Universe Ironhide (CF: modded and repainted face)
4.) Henkei Silverbolt
5.) Henkei Sunstreaker
6.) Marvel Crossovers Venom
7.) Animated Cybertron Prime
8.) Animated Lugnut
9.) Marvel Crossovers Iron Man
10.) Henkei Prowl

A strange list but a lot of nostaglia mixed w/ engineering drives my collecting and Silverbolt might have a poor transformation but I love everything else about him and how his persona comes out so clearly.

[GoktimusPrime]

I think Encore Sky Lynx is a personal favourite of mine too but I think that his engineering is poor and his strength lies in his scale and nostalgia and the opportunity that Takara gave us, not in the strength of the toy itself and on its own merits.

Would you say that the toy's engineering is poor and without merit within the context of 1986? You're right in saying that a big part of the appeal of the toy is nostalgia, but that's the entire point of reissues. They're not supposed to be G1 characters done in a way that is comparable with modern-day toy engineering, that's what Classics/Henkei/Universe is for.

By 1986 standards I wouldn't say that Sky Lynx is exceptional, but I would say that it's not bad either. Although it's loaded with gimmicks it still offers good play value as a Transformers action figure. It was also a big milestone in terms of being the first reissue that was not from a Takara mould, a precedent that allowed Omega Supreme being reissued and hopefully more non-Takara moulds being done later (bring on Encore Deluxe Insecticons!).

Personally for me I loved it because Sky Lynx was the only 1986 toy that I didn't have... and now the circle is complete.

[i_amtrunks]

Glad to see that Oils Slick and Lugnut made the list, both are two of my favourite figures ever, not just in 2008.

I think Black Arachnia deserves a mention, she herself is not the best toy of the year, but the ingenuity in the design will hopefully influence future designs in the next couple of years.

[Bartrim]

I think Grimlock was an incredible fan favourite. I love the character and the nostalgic elements to it but I didnt' feel he could make the list b/c he was terrible from an engineering perspective. His arms are cumbersome and the lack of locks or solidity in alt mode added with the simplistic transformation is why I left it out.

I guess thats fair enough. I just transform and pose my figures and he looks badass so I like him

[The_Damned]

my favourites are

#1 universe powerglide
#2 animated BumbleBee
#3 animated voyager optimus prime
#4 universe legends wave 2(hound, jazz &megs)
#5 animated soundwave
#6 universe sunstreaker
#7 animated cybertron optimus prime
#8 animated activator BumbleBee
#9 Henkei thundercracker
#10 animated leader ultra magnus.

lots of cool transformers came out last year, spent way to much money, looks like 2009 is going to be no different reckon i will have to get a second job....

[Defcon]

my personal fav top 10

1# Universe deluxe Sunstreaker/Sideswipe. Reason its a mold that will likely see alot of repaints. I prefer Sideswipe as I like red more than yellow.

2#Universe Ultra Onslaught. I really like how this is a big vehicle, seeing how alot of ultras are aircraft. The robot mode is cool looking especially with his big shield.

3#Universe 0verkill. This was an unexpected character homage of a cassette transformer, using the classics grimlock mold. The color scheme looks really fresh with the white and blue.

4#Universe Ratbat. A repaint of cybertron sideways. A decent homage for
another cassette transformer. Ratbat makes a great companion for my cybertron soundwave.

5#Animated Black Arachnia. I like this character. She reminds me of a ninja robot, like G1 Nightbird.

6#Universe Galvatron. A fairly complex transformation. I like the fact he is a tank, and his head mold is evil looking. If he was a voyager I would consider in the top 3.

7#Encore Omega Supreme. Surprised and welcome to see a reissue of this G1 toy. A great nostalgia piece, with working electronics and complete with box.

8#Universe Ironhide. A decent representation of the original G1 character. Let down with blue colored face and the fact that its looking down. Some use of metal on color scheme would of improved this figure overall.

9#Henkei Megatron. Classics megatron repainted to a much closer G1 color scheme. This figure perfect to display in box as figure is in robot mode.

10#Movie Jolt. A cybertron repaint. A sensible non eye gouging color scheme.