I've been a major Voltron fan my entire life. I've watched every version of Voltron's television franchise possible: the original Voltron: Defender of the Universe, Voltron: The 3rd Dimension, and the newest Voltron Force show - currently airing on Nicktoons.
I've also seen many versions of Voltron appear in toylines from different companies: Mattel, Trendmasters, and Toynami.
So far, Toynami, in my opinion, holds the title of "Ultimate Voltron Toy" with their Masterpiece Voltron. As an actual owner of one, I can vouch for it's incredible detail, posability, size, and weight- it's the best Voltron toy I've ever come across.
The fact that Mattel is claiming to be producing the greatest and largest Voltron toy ever produced, holds me to be extremely skeptical and somewhat doubtful. I've actually held and played with the Voltron toys that were made by Mattel in the 80's, and they were the largest I'd ever seen, but that was the only thing they had- just size. He lacked posability, screen accuracy, weapons, and the proper paint job.
If there's one thing I've learned about Mattel, one thing that, as a collector, you should watch out for- is when a company mainly tries to sell a product based just on it's size. I'll agree that bigger is better- but if the toy lacks posability, lights & sounds, and everything else it needs to hold the "Ultimate" title- then really all it is, is just a giant chunk of plastic or diecast. Sure, it might look nice- but it doesn't do anything.
As of current press releases and online research, here's what I know about Mattel's upcoming Voltron toylines:
- There'll be 2 main lines: The Collectors Line, based on the original show and lion designs; and the Voltron Force Line, based on the latest show and new lion designs.
-The Collectors Line will certainly be more advanced in terms of craftsmanship and features. Supposedly, they will release 5 seperate lions, all with spring-loaded weapons, action figures of their pilots, and a cockpit for the action figure itself- each lion priced at around $ 30.00. When combined, Voltron should stand between 2-3 feet tall- which will officially count as the largest Voltron toy ever produced (again....watch out).
- As for the Voltron Force, I'm going to be honest- it could either fly or fail. Toys have undergone some major upgrades since the 3rd Dimension Voltron toyline, and I'm thinking there might be a chance for some serious recognition, if Mattel manages to produce a toyline with decent posability and details. They might be crappy pieces of poorly designed, poorly painted plastic- like the 3rd Dimension line; or they'll be as good as the Level One transformers movie figures we have now. We won't know until we see some actual prototypes.
As of right now, I'm not getting my hopes up- because I've seen Mattel's previous attempts at Voltron and I was always disappointed.
Stay skeptical, but also open-minded. Mattel's all about big toys, but this time, they need to prove that their toys aren't just giant bricks of plastic for us to stare at. They need posability. We'll see....
- Top Shelf Toy Store
Thursday, July 7, 2011
Friday, July 1, 2011
My Review on Transformers III: Dark of The Moon
Overall, I thought the movie was okay- but there was one thing that got me: Hasbro used the Ultimate Optimus Prime toy to reel me in, but DIDN'T put his ultimate combination in the final battle!
I liked his jet-pack upgrade, but it was no different than RoboCop 3- it's been done before. I don't understand how Michael Bay could spend money on the CGI effects for Devastator and Power-Up Optimus Prime, but he wasn't willing to give us Ultimate Optimus Prime. That doesn't make any sense to me at all- because the whole "giant worm" monster mode, with Shockwave, didn't really impress me.
It's a very cheap trick to produce a product based on a character like Optimus, beef him up with an ultimate combination, and NOT put it in the film- because that's what alot of fans probably wanted to see! That's the only real reason I went- and I walked out a little dissappointed.
It's like saying, "This is going to be the ULTIMATE SANDWHICH," and when dinner comes around, all you get is the bun! Where's the meat? Where's that awesome taste you promised me?
What also bothered me was how they killed Ironhide- that was too much. They developed his character for two movies and killed him off- that really hurt. The new characters dying didn't bother me, because they weren't much of a show- they were just time fillers.
Everything else considered, the only reason I saw Dark of The Moon, was to see the Ultimate Optimus Prime combination. Seeing as how it was hype booster and a trick, I'd have to say you fooled me Bay.....totally got me- well done.
But this could certainly have an impact on the product: It could potentially drop it's demand or make it extremely valuble. As a collector, I've been driven to certain products by two main things:
1) Their role in the program or movie they're based on.
2) How rare they are.
For Ultimate Optimus Prime, this could go one of two ways:
1) Because they didn't put his ultimate combination in the movie, some collectors might lose their urge to buy the product- because they didn't see the combination in action. Some collectors, like myself, need to see a particular weapon in action, in order to develop the urge to want it- that "fan-driven" admiration.
2) On the other hand, some collectors might see this combination as extremely special- because it WASN'T used. They developed it in the blueprints, but they didn't put it in the movie- and that's why some fans might see it as extremely rare. I've had that happen to me a number of times, where I saw a concept sketch of something that didn't appear in the show- and still wanted the product after the program was over. It's that blueprint "could-have-been" hype that can increase the product's reputation- especially for a character as popular and loved as Optimus Prime.
It really comes down to one collector-based question: Will I still buy the product?
Yes- and there's two reasons why:
1) For the past two movies, Optimus didn't have a trailer in truck mode- which went against his traditional design (he's always had a trailer). A movie-based toy with a trailer- that's pretty hard to turn down.
2) Because they didn't give him the ultimate combination, they proved that Optimus Prime can fight on his own, without any special weapons. He DID use the jet-pack, but that didn't last for very long- pretty soon, he lost it and reverted to ground-based combat again. BUT, on the ground- he killed quite a few Decepticons- fully killing Megatron and finishing off Sentinel Prime. That ability to fight on his own really boosts his character's image, and with the toy being able to do that combination- why not kick his power up another notch? He's already proven to be quite the skilled fighter- why not do it?
Overall, the film was decent- I was happy, depressed, angry, and shocked. I felt what the movie was meant to expose me to- so I have to give Michael Bay some credit. The new characters weren't too great, because as I said- they were just time fillers. They didn't have alot of character development, they were just there to look nice and fill up the screen. The plot sucked, which wasn't a surprise- but the CGI effects are the most advanced I've ever seen. If you're mainly about special effects and CGI- this is the PERFECT movie for you. If you're all about the plot and character development- you're in for some serious dissappointment.
On a scale of 1 to 10: 7
I liked his jet-pack upgrade, but it was no different than RoboCop 3- it's been done before. I don't understand how Michael Bay could spend money on the CGI effects for Devastator and Power-Up Optimus Prime, but he wasn't willing to give us Ultimate Optimus Prime. That doesn't make any sense to me at all- because the whole "giant worm" monster mode, with Shockwave, didn't really impress me.
It's a very cheap trick to produce a product based on a character like Optimus, beef him up with an ultimate combination, and NOT put it in the film- because that's what alot of fans probably wanted to see! That's the only real reason I went- and I walked out a little dissappointed.
It's like saying, "This is going to be the ULTIMATE SANDWHICH," and when dinner comes around, all you get is the bun! Where's the meat? Where's that awesome taste you promised me?
What also bothered me was how they killed Ironhide- that was too much. They developed his character for two movies and killed him off- that really hurt. The new characters dying didn't bother me, because they weren't much of a show- they were just time fillers.
Everything else considered, the only reason I saw Dark of The Moon, was to see the Ultimate Optimus Prime combination. Seeing as how it was hype booster and a trick, I'd have to say you fooled me Bay.....totally got me- well done.
But this could certainly have an impact on the product: It could potentially drop it's demand or make it extremely valuble. As a collector, I've been driven to certain products by two main things:
1) Their role in the program or movie they're based on.
2) How rare they are.
For Ultimate Optimus Prime, this could go one of two ways:
1) Because they didn't put his ultimate combination in the movie, some collectors might lose their urge to buy the product- because they didn't see the combination in action. Some collectors, like myself, need to see a particular weapon in action, in order to develop the urge to want it- that "fan-driven" admiration.
2) On the other hand, some collectors might see this combination as extremely special- because it WASN'T used. They developed it in the blueprints, but they didn't put it in the movie- and that's why some fans might see it as extremely rare. I've had that happen to me a number of times, where I saw a concept sketch of something that didn't appear in the show- and still wanted the product after the program was over. It's that blueprint "could-have-been" hype that can increase the product's reputation- especially for a character as popular and loved as Optimus Prime.
It really comes down to one collector-based question: Will I still buy the product?
Yes- and there's two reasons why:
1) For the past two movies, Optimus didn't have a trailer in truck mode- which went against his traditional design (he's always had a trailer). A movie-based toy with a trailer- that's pretty hard to turn down.
2) Because they didn't give him the ultimate combination, they proved that Optimus Prime can fight on his own, without any special weapons. He DID use the jet-pack, but that didn't last for very long- pretty soon, he lost it and reverted to ground-based combat again. BUT, on the ground- he killed quite a few Decepticons- fully killing Megatron and finishing off Sentinel Prime. That ability to fight on his own really boosts his character's image, and with the toy being able to do that combination- why not kick his power up another notch? He's already proven to be quite the skilled fighter- why not do it?
Overall, the film was decent- I was happy, depressed, angry, and shocked. I felt what the movie was meant to expose me to- so I have to give Michael Bay some credit. The new characters weren't too great, because as I said- they were just time fillers. They didn't have alot of character development, they were just there to look nice and fill up the screen. The plot sucked, which wasn't a surprise- but the CGI effects are the most advanced I've ever seen. If you're mainly about special effects and CGI- this is the PERFECT movie for you. If you're all about the plot and character development- you're in for some serious dissappointment.
On a scale of 1 to 10: 7
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