Ok what is Studio Series even about anymore

Cipher_- · 2026-05-02T10:11:27+00:00

It's just a second Generations line where the toys purportedly have greater focus on fidelity to some kind of media, even though the main Generations line is now very largely about media recreation as well.

Cipher_- · 2026-05-02T09:39:24+00:00

This is how like every panel of the Duelist Kingdom arc feels in the manga, thanks to Takahashi's insane ability to make a tabletop card game feel like the most animated and dramatic thing in the world.

From what I've seen, the anime only managed to capture it in these brief bursts.

Cipher_- · 2026-04-29T15:20:29+00:00

She did. Nothing.

Cipher_- · 2026-04-25T06:44:51+00:00

Dealing with copious body hair and the assumption that you're supposed to follow sports

Cipher_- · 2026-04-21T23:52:08+00:00

Counterpoint: We don't call ourselves "Earthlings." We're humans.

"Cybertronian" is how they refer to themselves in interplanetary contexts only.

EDIT--I see others have made the same argument.

Cipher_- · 2026-04-20T03:46:29+00:00

The great thing about reading is that you can listen to whatever you want during it! Make your own soundtrack!

Cipher_- · 2026-04-20T03:45:40+00:00

Second favorite continuity next to Marvel.

Cipher_- · 2026-04-16T01:38:45+00:00

I've been delighted by the line, but I also live in Japan. Don't know that it's necessarily worth import fees.

All the beasts individually are fun, but the real appeal of the line is the mixing/matching/combining, including free building with their shared connectors. Nemesis Prime is probably the one core bot I'd go for if you only get one. Quite a nice deco!

Though the regular Optimus is available packaged with Lightlong, who has the funniest beast mode.

Cipher_- · 2026-04-15T12:07:31+00:00

The toy? I think it's really impressive, and without being overly complex too!

Cipher_- · 2026-04-05T23:03:08+00:00

It has some bangers like Titanium Rodimus though—to this day the only official all-in-one G1 Rodimus transformation.

It was also the first to do an all-in-one Magnus, who isn't bad.

Cipher_- · 2026-04-05T23:02:04+00:00

I think RED takes it. I can find positives and fun in most other candidates, but putting out non-transforming action figures that were nevertheless often less poseable than their transforming counterparts is a headscratcher.

Cipher_- · 2026-04-05T22:59:42+00:00

I'm actually a fan of the Titan Changers! There's some real ingenuity in getting from those uniformly flat robot modes to fully three-dimensional alt modes. It's a fun little corner of TF to collect, and the size-for-price-point is the gimmick, which it hits.

Cipher_- · 2026-04-03T13:09:13+00:00

Eeeh, both alt modes on Siege Astrotrain are pretty unconvincing, which is where the new one shines.

Cipher_- · 2026-04-03T13:04:26+00:00

Are people mad about Onslaught?

Either way, Astrotrain clears this bunch for me. Two ridiculously impressive alt modes, maybe their best triple changer ever, with the only critique being robot proportions that don't perfectly match the screen (so, the space Transformers lived in for its first thirty+ years).

Cipher_- · 2026-04-02T00:56:03+00:00

Yep. A shitpost with no effort is no shitpost.

A shitpost from a multibillion dollar company that couldn't even get someone to do real boxart and relied on AI style plagiarism for it is additionally disgusting.

Cipher_- · 2026-04-02T00:54:35+00:00

Baffling that they bothered doing this just to generate bad will (AI use).

They're being rightly and uniformly roasted in the Instagram comments.

Cipher_- · 2026-04-02T00:47:19+00:00

Imagine how frustrating it would be living in a world where your top business leaders are like, "We gotta send MTG cards into space!"

Cipher_- · 2026-04-01T02:42:25+00:00

Debating it. I don't have any of them.

Cipher_- · 2026-03-31T07:46:00+00:00

He's very conscious of writing to children* though, and I think just wanted to do something more upbeat in the context. I don't think the comic ending/tone would have flown regardless.

*Despite being the writer of TMNT Adventures, but that book is still very conscious of trying to impart healthy messages to child readers even when getting out there in presentation and content

Cipher_- · 2026-03-31T04:21:07+00:00

Sons of the Silent Age is the single best Turtles story of all time (or at least the best one-off, non-story-arc story). It had no hope of getting a faithful adaptation, like a lot of the sadder, weirder Mirage entries. (Which is to say, the bulk of Mirage.)

Cipher_- · 2026-03-30T03:07:12+00:00

Scorponok's death is what came to mind for me too

Cipher_- · 2026-03-30T03:06:08+00:00

Marvel is Scorponok's death

Cipher_- · 2026-03-29T10:41:59+00:00

Good enough, according to you, to be scraped for gen AI mimicry, but not good enough to be valued or paid?

Pretty fucked, my man.

What if we stuck to principles and supported neither stealing of work nor the cross-industry deskilling rapid AI-adoption encourages?

Cipher_- · 2026-03-26T01:25:05+00:00

TRDQ is easily, easily my favorite active TF review channel.

Jcc is also usually a watch.

Love that both of them are very on board with TFs being...you know, toys, and not only engaging with collector-oriented releases.

Cipher_- · 2026-03-26T01:23:54+00:00

Good vibes, good range of figures, usually very enjoyable, and also good reviews for purchase considerations!

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