The Soapbox VII: The Top 10 Transformers of 2008

[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.