Foot pegs for o-ring figures were larger than the pegs used for “Modern Era” figures. The back pegs are also MASSIVELY smaller than the o-ring figures. ME are also generally bigger than o-ring figures, though compatibility varies by vehicle. The HISS tooling was used in 25th so ME figures should work “well enough” in this situation.
Transformers Collaborative (Transformers X Sonic the Hedgehog)
- Thread starter TriBlurr
- Start date
You mean the 25th HISS was the original-style tooling? I figured the back pegs would have been incompatible. Sorry if these are dumb questions, but a lot of things are new to me. Like how O-ring I understood to mean the rubber ring in the old figures, but how seems to be more a style description (and do they HAVE O-rings in them anymore...?).
The tooling was modified, something Hasbro was more willing to do at the time. Again, o-ring figures and ME figures have different foot peg sizes (ME is smaller)
Yeah, part of the problem I’ve observed in the Joe fandom is that there really isn’t a sense of “history”. Largely because the fandom is fragmented and has had more turnover than any single brand fandom I’ve ever seen. As a result, the fandom “resets” every few years in accordance to Hasbro’s pushes, so there’s no cohesive “vocabulary” to build around.
As far as I can tell, “o-ring figures” largely refers to the 80s GI Joe figures (and the remakes we’re seeing with Retro) which had the rubber o-ring as a central part of their construction. I’ve largely settled on calling the newer “modern” o-ring figures from the early 2000s as “NuSculpt”. I’m not sure if there’s any real consensus on what figures like Strike Force Alpha (figures that LOOK like o-ring figures, but don’t actually have the o-ring as part of their construction) should be called. Yes, the Retro figures DO have o-rings, but made of a silicon compound, as I recall, instead of rubber.
”Modern Era” replaced “25th Anniversary” as the naming convention for the figure style introduced in 2007. In that case, Hasbro transitioned to an all plastic construction and articulation design more in common with the, then, modern Marvel and Star Wars figures
Thank you. Also: Wow...I mean, I knew that many figure lines had a lot of variation (my very small Star Wars display has a mix of 5-POA, full body articulation, and one Dooku that just waves his lightsaber when you press his legs) but I had no clue it was that complicated.
Oh, well, worse case, I can always just pose them around him and I'm pretty sure that rear turret could be manned by anything. I brought this up as I noticed my BAT had a full range of articulation, but my 'jogging pants' Zartan (I don't know the proper name or generation) was an O-ring style, and then I started seeing the peg hole differences and it snowballed from there.
I want to get the H.I.S.S. Megatron as while I recognize the weaknesses, it's a fascinating design and looks big enough to take on Ghostbusters Optimus, and I'll evaluate others as I see them, but trying to sort out what figures would work just lead me to a rabbit hole of confusion I didn't know existed.
Oh, well, worse case, I can always just pose them around him and I'm pretty sure that rear turret could be manned by anything. I brought this up as I noticed my BAT had a full range of articulation, but my 'jogging pants' Zartan (I don't know the proper name or generation) was an O-ring style, and then I started seeing the peg hole differences and it snowballed from there.
I want to get the H.I.S.S. Megatron as while I recognize the weaknesses, it's a fascinating design and looks big enough to take on Ghostbusters Optimus, and I'll evaluate others as I see them, but trying to sort out what figures would work just lead me to a rabbit hole of confusion I didn't know existed.
Yeah, the issue here is they went pure nostalgia, so he has to look like 1984 toon megatron and turn into a 1983 HISS Tank toy. Had they made the character model from scratch for this specific altmode, it likely would have been better integrated.
Honestly that's why I thought of Ghostbuster Optimus, it was clearly not meant to be a part of the line but had some parts like the trap for roller and the proton pack adapter for the ion rifle tacked on. Weirdly, that will make them work well together on a shelf, I think as Megatron sort of has the same 'tacked on' aesthetic going for him.
I feel like if this had been done by Aaron Archer and his team from back in the day, they would have started with the HISS Tank and made a robot mode out of it whether said robot mode looked like G1 Megatron or not.
Save for the head. The head would have been a Megatron head.
Save for the head. The head would have been a Megatron head.
I am also puzzled by the apparent need to make these existing Transformers characters, when every previous crossover wasnt. Stick a Battle Android Trooper styled head on this thing, give it a suitable snake-themed name, and imply that it is one of many, and you have a theme-accurate crossover figure that also would be a potential troop-builder.
Can Bumblebee be a Tiger Sting instead of a regular Vamp?
https://www.yojoe.com/vehicles/89/tigersting/
https://www.yojoe.com/vehicles/89/tigersting/
That'd be a great fit.
But I don't think we can expect them to dig that deep. With all the flaws in Megatron seeming to lead from "Keep it Iconic as Possible" I expect BB will follow that lead.
ZacWilliam, curious if the robot mode will have any obvious fake Volkswagen parts.
But I don't think we can expect them to dig that deep. With all the flaws in Megatron seeming to lead from "Keep it Iconic as Possible" I expect BB will follow that lead.
ZacWilliam, curious if the robot mode will have any obvious fake Volkswagen parts.
IDK, Tiger Force and Python Patrol are getting some love as exclusives in the GI Joe Classified line. And, that version was called the Tiger Sting, and sting was a keyword in that cross-sell blurb. Its not completely unlikely. Just seems like it would take the kind of imagination that isnt there in the Megatron design.
The sad thing is, despite all my nitpicks with it, HiSS Megatron is absolutely a figure I want, but the $90 price tag puts it out of my budget. My hope is that it will do well enough that Hasbro would consider doing something similar at the deluxe and/or voyager price points, without the need for 3 3/4 compatibility.
I hadn't even thought of that, but with Megatron as a precedent, it's virtually a guarantee that he'll have Beetle feet and chest kibble isn't it?
For those curious, they did mention a specific TakaraTomy designer was involved in the design of this figure.
My guess is it comes down to two factors. First is cost. You can buy a HISS tank on Pulse for $27. Most of the Collaborative figures are in the $30-$40 dollar range, and you get a lot of complaining about the price in those figures. The more expensive the figure gets, the more the complaints go up too. The more expensive figures are also crossing over with major franchises with massive fanbases to try to draw in. The budget for a 3.75" compatible transforming HISS tank with G.I. Joe figure apparently came in at a $90 MSRP. At that price, I'd bet Hasbro felt it needed to be major characters from both franchises to attract enough people to make it worthwhile.
Second, a G.I. Joe crossover isn't quite like the other Collaborative projects. Unlike most of those others, there have been crossovers with G.I. Joe in the past. Lots of them. And every time, it's involved all the main characters from both franchises. So would G.I. Joe fans, who have been used to seeing characters like Optimus, Megatron, Bumblebee, etc. turning into G.I. Joe vehicles for decades, be satisfied with a HISS tank turning into some "generic" robot and being labelled as a Transformer?
Agree with their conclusions or not, I think it's pretty easy to see some of the factors that would push them down this road.