Transformers Legacy toyline

[Demovere Xeno]

I know the original Override show and toy designs weren't meant to be a female character from the ground up, but I was kind of hoping that this new version would take some liberties and make her silhouette more feminine. It doesn't need to be an in-your-face look like... well, most of the G1 Arcee-derived 'skinny' molds; it could have been something subtle like how they turned Masterpiece Tracks into Road Rage: slightly larger and rounder thighs, maybe slightly slimmer arms as well (being lightweight would make sense for a champion racer). I mean, they were able to do that with PotP Elita-One - she was big and bulky, but still distinctly female. Legacy Override here reads more like the male Nitro Convoy to me, with the large shoulders and overall 'inverted triangle' silhouette of the entire body.

Also, 'exclusive' and a Voyager Class? Sheesh, this thing's going to cost an arm and a leg if/when it shows up here. >.<

 

[unluckiness]

Folks, it may have been seventeen years ago (turns to dust) but I remember Cybertron pretty vividly and I'm NOT getting the hate some people are tossing at this thing. It looks like a great update of the original design.

If you think this is a great update, you must work at Hollywood. I know that there's a lot of people that just plop robot mode figures on the shelf, but there's no need to pretend that vehicle mode isn't a mess.

 

[The Phazer]

It's a straight swap - a better proportioned robot mode for a much (much) worse vehicle mode. It's a shame.

I can't even work out why the front/feet stick out like dumpy trainers glued to the front rather than folding more inwards and being shaped in a more pointy fashion, which would help a lot and wouldn't interfere with the transformation or require more parts. It's just not very well executed. The cockpit also swaps the sleek original for something that looks about as aerodynamic as Ecto 1.

 

[unluckiness]

I don't get why it's so weird either. The middle section is the worst part, with the bulbous cockpit and the two random squares trying desperately to emulate the original's cabin. Even the exposed head sticks out so much more.

 

[ZacWilliam1]

Eh, Vehicle mode is fine.

-ZacWilliam, they're both fast looking made up nonsense

 

[Powered Convoy]

I like her. Robot mode is a definite improvement. Car doesn't look as good, but I won't judge it too harshly until I have her in hand.

 

[Robogeek1973]

Vehicle mode is definitely worse than the original version, but the bot mode more than makes up for it, and since I display my bots in their robot mode, I'm really excited to put her on my shelf.

 

[Rhinox]

I think it looks great. I'll be trying to get one.

 

[Dake]

View attachment 6305View attachment 6306
If you think this is a great update, you must work at Hollywood. I know that there's a lot of people that just plop robot mode figures on the shelf, but there's no need to pretend that vehicle mode isn't a mess.

The vehicle mode is a mess, but saying the original wasn't also a bit of a mess is disingenuous. The original had a better front end, and then everything aft of the cockpit is, "Eh, good enough for a sci-fi vehicle."

Also, it's only fair to post the bot mode side by side

It's tough to find a straight on stand up shot of the animation, but I think we can see what they were trying to accomplish with her bot mode here which is make it less chunky.

I don't really have a dog in this fight but both toys are compromised in different ways.

 

[unluckiness]

The argument people were making were that the vehicle mode was a good update. It is not and isn't even a good altmode in its own right. You're right, the original wasn't great but the Legacy one manages to screw up what it got right. You also neglected to mention that he original car mode also doesn't have a huge non-aerodynamic lump in the middle and back, the cockpit isn't as bulky, the black bits on both sides of the head actually integrate to the cockpit to complete the altmode rather than being free-floating chunks and the spoiler isn't farcically tiny. I'm not posting robot modes because that's irrelevant to my point. See, I'm not saying Cybertron is better than Legacy; I'm saying Legacy's altmode is a complete mess.

I have higher standards for modern toys with the benefits of hindsight, 15 years of advancements in engineering and not having to integrate a giant spring-loaded gimmick. There isn't any reason for the vehicle to be that bad given what recent toys can do at the same price point.

 

[Blot]

Looks like a fine Nitro Convoy, glad they didn't give 'em the bobbing-for-cheetos face the US release got saddled with.

 

[unluckiness]

Looks like they’re going for more show colors which Takara based their toys off

 

[LordGigaIce]

If you think this is a great update, you must work at Hollywood.

I don't think this is the burn you think it is.

Anyhow the vehicle mode is a made up space car. It never looked like anything real. If Override's car mode was based on a real car and the older one better captured the look of that real car then ok. It's not though, so we're basically arguing over which made up space racer looks "better."
Which, given that it's a nonsense mode, is entirely subjective. The original Cybertron car mode was just as non-functional and made up. Hell, one Cybertron/GF's most highly regarded moulds turned into a flying sideways triangle with walls that would block airflow.

My point is that it was ALWAYS a nonsense space car. So if they changed this or that about it to get a better robot mode then yeah. I'd call it a damn good update.

 

[G.B.Blackrock]

Which, given that it's a nonsense mode, is entirely subjective.

This. I will never understand how so many people can take matters of aesthetic preference and turn them into absolutes of right and wrong.

 

[Sabrblade]

The new one is certainly less sleek and less aerodynamic for what's supposed to be a high-speed racing road vehicle, what with its more bulbous and more stumpy front end.

 

[LordGigaIce]

The new one is certainly less sleek and less aerodynamic for what's supposed to be a high-speed racing road vehicle, what with its more bulbous and more stumpy front end.

We've been dealing with made up sci-fi alt modes since 1986 though. 1984 if you want to count the Power Dashers and the non-toy Cybertronian modes from the cartoons and comics.

And so many of them- dare I say most of them- don't really work for what they're supposed to be. We accept them though because they're alien or based on future tech or whatever. And I'm not complaining. I do it too.

I'm just saying that's what the deal has always been but suddenly we're holding THIS space/future nonsense vehicle mode up to some sort of realistic standard.

If this was G1 Wheeljack I'd get it, but it's not.

 

[Haywire]

I want to preface this by saying that I like the look of the new Override, and she'll be on my list to pick up if I see her.

However, the argument that the vehicle mode is a 'nonsense space car' and therefore doesn't matter is kind of off-point, too. The Mach-5 from Speed Racer is a made-up car, the Millenium Falcon, the Starship Enterprise, and the Serenity are all made-up spaceships. But, if someone were to release a toy of any of those, it would be expected to adhere pretty closely to their respective established, but made-up, designs. Why shouldn't Transformers be held to a similar expectation? Override has an existing toy with an established vehicle design, and the comparison posted above shows that there are quite a lot of differences between the original and the new update, not all of which can be chalked up to the needs of the transformation.
In my opinion, the original Override had a shape similar to Racer X's Shooting Star (from Speed Racer) in vehicle mode. The new version does not really match that (again, in my opinion), looking more like the Mach 5. Maybe what we are seeing is mis-transformed, maybe it isn't, but it's not unreasonable for someone to look at the two and say that the vehicle mode doesn't replicate the original well enough for their tastes. Whether those differences are enough to cause someone to pass on buying this or not, that is a matter of personal opinion.

Again, I like the look of the figure and will be looking forward to finding one, but I can also see what those who don't like the vehicle mode are talking about.

 

[tec]

Im still disappointed all the new engineering we have lately and we cant put her headlight in her feet as intended instead the newer bigger toy even loses the gold paint apps of the original deluxe now she just has big black globs on the front

Whats even a bigger sin is her gun loses functionality now in vehicle mode as the cannons can no longer swing forward in vehicle mode
And the fins need to be bigger
Id say that this one feels a bit rushed and could use another pass, you fix those three issues and id say she would be damn near perfect

 

[LordGigaIce]

Why shouldn't Transformers be held to a similar expectation? Override has an existing toy with an established vehicle design, and the comparison posted above shows that there are quite a lot of differences between the original and the new update, not all of which can be chalked up to the needs of the transformation.

And you know this for certain?
It's clear to me that they opted for robot mode accuracy- that being the main drawback to the original.

Prioritizing that meant there would be changes to the proportions of the vehicle mode. And they still did what they could to accurately capture the design of the original.

"But it's not as aerodynamic!" is where my "made up nonsense space car" comment comes from. Not only does it look pretty close to the original, but the original wasn't exactly a viable realistic design either!

Im still disappointed all the new engineering we have lately and we cant put her headlight in her feet as intended instead the newer bigger toy even loses the gold paint apps of the original deluxe now she just has big black globs on the front

Instead she gets lovely gold paint on her chest, shoulders, and arms picking out a lot of animation-accurate deco.
"But what about the feet" look. I don't know, but it's likely a budget thing. Paint on her feet might have meant she- or another figures budgeted in the same run- would lose paint apps somewhere else.

So they prioritized. And what we got looks pretty spiffy.

 

[G.B.Blackrock]

I want to preface this by saying that I like the look of the new Override, and she'll be on my list to pick up if I see her.

However, the argument that the vehicle mode is a 'nonsense space car' and therefore doesn't matter is kind of off-point, too. The Mach-5 from Speed Racer is a made-up car, the Millenium Falcon, the Starship Enterprise, and the Serenity are all made-up spaceships. But, if someone were to release a toy of any of those, it would be expected to adhere pretty closely to their respective established, but made-up, designs. Why shouldn't Transformers be held to a similar expectation? Override has an existing toy with an established vehicle design, and the comparison posted above shows that there are quite a lot of differences between the original and the new update, not all of which can be chalked up to the needs of the transformation.
In my opinion, the original Override had a shape similar to Racer X's Shooting Star (from Speed Racer) in vehicle mode. The new version does not really match that (again, in my opinion), looking more like the Mach 5. Maybe what we are seeing is mis-transformed, maybe it isn't, but it's not unreasonable for someone to look at the two and say that the vehicle mode doesn't replicate the original well enough for their tastes. Whether those differences are enough to cause someone to pass on buying this or not, that is a matter of personal opinion.

Again, I like the look of the figure and will be looking forward to finding one, but I can also see what those who don't like the vehicle mode are talking about.

I agree in broad strokes with your point (that future versions of a known design should respect the original design), but I'm not convinced that Legends Override fails to do so.

The starship Enterprise, as seen in the Kelvin movies and in the post-Discovery versions of the TV shows, is clearly not the same design as the ship seen in the original series. Those are both updated designs, and in my own opinion, are faithful updates that I'm perfectly happy with (Contrast with the Discovery Season 1 Klingons, which I felt were a much less faithful update, and which I thus didn't care for).

We can happily debate whether a given update is a good one or not (especially in the current case of Legends Override), but I don't expect it to be identical to the old toy any more than I expect any of the other Legends toys to be identical to their characters' previous toys. The only thing that matters is that it looks to be a faithful update. I'd say this Override is a more faithful update to the original than, say, Legends Bulkhead is to any of his previous toys (and I don't even hate Legends Bulkhead the way many folks seem to).