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I understand that that the process behind development of Transformers has changed. Class is no longer equal to physical size. However, I was a bit disappointed since Jetfire and Skylynx came out so wonderful, that they decided to just use CC to make more detailed version of smaller characters. Oh well.... Hopefully that will change next year with Tidal Wave being a CC. A big character (but not Titan Big) as he should be.

I'd rank them:

1. Jetfire
2. SkyLynx
3. Motor Master
4. Rodimus Prime

As amazing as Jetife is, I never had a need for a SG version, and I wont be getting Armada Prime, so that's all for now.

Till-all-R1 wrote:For me both Rodimus and Motormaster chould have been Leaders

12 years ago, they would have been. But with what Leader-class has become... Rodimus could maybe have scraped Leader with a simpler transformation and a worse camper, but no way in hell could Motormaster have gotten away with it. Needed both the size and the ability to have multiple sets of heavy ratchet joints due to how they did Menasor, as well as for extra parts for the cab alone to turn into a G1-accurate robot when the G1 robot mode was made of both cab and trailer. As a bonus it means he's a full cab and trailer... without being a dwarf truck when next to the other Stunticons like the G1 toy was.

Till-all-R1 wrote:Now I get that at least Motormaster needs the trailer to create Menasaur, thus you couldn't technically have a "Voyager" release of him. And to an extent same for Rodimus because of the alt mode and you don't tend to see him without the trailer. But personally I'd have been fine just buying him for the bot only to display as I don't plan on interacting with the battle platform.

Well, that sucks for you and makes it a pity there wasn't an option to buy without. But I think it's better he have it.

Till-all-R1 wrote:Another "space issue" here. But for Motormaster I may actually build Menasaur once I "collect them all". I just feel Commander Class was a bit much for these two, personally. Especially compared to a behemoth like Jetfire, I just don't see where the "extra" resources were put into Rodimus when Leader Prime and magnus both came with trailers.

Optimus came with a watered-down, stretched-thin miniscule JOKE of a trailer more suited to the Classics Deluxe (which FYI is smaller than the G1 toy!) than to the Optimus it came with. It's really a glorified Micromaster platform and only shines as part of that play pattern.
Magnus' trailer looks and sizes better, but that's largely due to it being a car carrier and thus being able to be more open and lattice-y (though it also helps that the cab robot has a simple transformation), and the parts are fairly hollow.
Rodimus' camper is both significantly bigger and substantially more solid, with a fully-articulated turret that's its own full unit, a hinged rear door with simulated support hydraulics, a ramp separate from that, a hinged forward compartment for storing accessories, and a pull-out drawer for storing his blast effects. Rodimus himself has a complex transformation and a good bit of heft to him, and went above and beyond by having a full independent vehicle mode without the camper instead of being, well...


...this.

Till-all-R1 wrote:As a kid sure, I would have played with them for hours and enjoyed utilizing said trailer but now all I do is display them in Bot mode and the trailer is stored away if not sold off.

Then why do you even still buy the transforming versions at all? It's kinda sounding like you no longer value that aspect.

Till-all-R1 wrote:I would definitely place Jetfire at the top for Commander releases, with SG version a second because of the coolness factor of that deco! And he'll probably stay there for a very long time if all they do are Rodimus Prime types of releases, basically a Voyager bot with extras.

I don't think Motormaster really counts as that considering he forms the lion's share of Menasor (in fact, he can basically be a standalone version with skeletal limbs that stands as tall as Jetfire), and Armada Optimus sure as hell doesn't count as that. I also wonder if you'll still feel that way when they give us a Commander-class G1 Optimus and with it a trailer that blows the Earthrise joke out of the water.

Till-all-R1 wrote:I mean Technically Springer should have been a Leader being that he's a triple changer and stands almost as tall as OP.

Except no. Springer's engineering isn't as overdesigned as Optimus' (or Legacy Blitzwing's), nor is he as dense or as armed as Astrotrain, nor does he have any other sort of accessory that would drive him up to Leader. As for standing almost as tall as Optimus... that's more because WFC Optimus is shorter than he should be. I stuck with Combiner Wars Optimus instead of getting Siege or ER (not that I ever saw SIEGE on shelves lol) for that very reason.

I was glad that Commander Rodimus was TRULY complete.
Especially compared to ER Optimus who effectively included a "joke" trailer. I had to pay a freaking fortune with the Centurion set and Shapeway parts to truly complete it.

I'm looking forward to a Commander SS86 Optimus. And I'll be laughing my ass off if end up making a "K.O." of the "voyager sized" MP-10 that is MP10-V.

I may as well rank the Commanders myself, but I'll preface this with saying I love all of them and have no regrets owning them.

5. Rodimus Prime
4. SG Jetfire
3. Motormaster
2. Jetfire
1. Sky Lynx

As far as I'm concerned none of the Commanders could be repacked later as a Leader with the exception of Rodimus. RP, while a great figure, could be given a simpler trailer (trailers are just glorified accessories) and be sold as a Leader. SG Jetfire is a great looking figure and the first "villain" to get a CC figure, but he's still just a Jetfire repaint. Motormaster makes a take on Menasor that I never thought we'd get. It's not cartoon accurate, but it's a great interpretation of the cartoon look and gave us one of the best combiners we've ever had at retail. Jetfire is the Skyfire figure I've always wanted since he first appeared on the cartoon and this figure knocked it out of the park!

And then there's Sky Lynx. As a kid I didn't own one but I knew a kid that did and as a fan of combining robots then as I am now I just found the idea of two combining beasts mesmerizing! The CC figure took all of his best features and improved on them, replaced the walking gimmick with great articulation, AND added a new base/launch platform mode. To me he's the ideal use of CC, taking what's old and making it new and then going beyond that. In my eyes he's perfection, truly magnificent!

Emerje

As far as "ranking" Commanders, I just can't. Because they all do things completely differently from one another. They are all "mini MP" that are so good, I don't feels any needs to get their MP versions, official or 3P alike.

My friend, who is not a member of this forum (and never will be on any forums) usually HATES beast-formers and LOVES combiners.
But he despise Legacy Menasor with a passion (he much prefer the Scramble-City combiners) and he just adore Sky-Lynx for a reason he just can't get himself.

ZeldaTheSwordsman wrote:

Till-all-R1 wrote:I mean Technically Springer should have been a Leader being that he's a triple changer and stands almost as tall as OP.

Except no. Springer's engineering isn't as overdesigned as Optimus' (or Legacy Blitzwing's), nor is he as dense or as armed as Astrotrain, nor does he have any other sort of accessory that would drive him up to Leader. As for standing almost as tall as Optimus... that's more because WFC Optimus is shorter than he should be. I stuck with Combiner Wars Optimus instead of getting Siege or ER (not that I ever saw SIEGE on shelves lol) for that very reason.

I was with you until you got here...There's nothing wrong with Optimus Prime's height...at all. He's a head taller than Starscream and Soundwave and roughly the same height as Megatron. The Autobot cars look correct next to him. Who are you judging him against? The only larger figure who is out of scale at that size is Blaster, who is too tall!

-Kanrabat- wrote:My friend, who is not a member of this forum (and never will be on any forums) usually HATES beast-formers and LOVES combiners.
But he despise Legacy Menasor with a passion (he much prefer the Scramble-City combiners) and he just adore Sky-Lynx for a reason he just can't get himself.

Your "Non-Forum" friend shares almost my exact same opinions... . Although, while I prefer UW/CW Menasor to Legacy (especially for the classic compatibility with other combiners). I dont *Hate* Legacy Menasor, I was just frustrated by it's existence.....

Normally I am all about animation accuracy, but this toy just put me in a weird place. Making me question things about how and why I collect I guess, and my pattern of collecting.

Legacy Menasor looks great on my shelf, no doubt, but he definitely sticks out among all other combiners from 2015-2020. I understood the fans desire to get a "proper" Menasor, but really, we dont need to update ALL the classic combiners all over again (and this coming from someone who's favorite TF's are combiners), just keep chipping away at the ones we haven't got modern updates for. (see my signature list)

As for Skylynx. I always liked the character. I got an OG toy when I had my collection as an adult, but sold it off with all the rest. ER is just about perfect, even the new "Base Mode" is pretty neat. As a rival to Predaking, I had to have him, I just wish some 3P would hurry up and make a scaled down PotP Predaking.

sol magnus wrote:I was with you until you got here...There's nothing wrong with Optimus Prime's height...at all. He's a head taller than Starscream and Soundwave and roughly the same height as Megatron. The Autobot cars look correct next to him. Who are you judging him against? The only larger figure who is out of scale at that size is Blaster, who is too tall!

IDK, to me Blaster seems very close to the right height. At least every time I've seen him on screen he's been almost neck to neck with Optimus, which always seemed very odd to me since he's a small tape deck while OP is a Semi Truck. He might be a tad taller than he should be but it's not as noticeable as some others, then again I guess it all depends which episode they were in. lol

Till-all-R1 wrote:

sol magnus wrote:I was with you until you got here...There's nothing wrong with Optimus Prime's height...at all. He's a head taller than Starscream and Soundwave and roughly the same height as Megatron. The Autobot cars look correct next to him. Who are you judging him against? The only larger figure who is out of scale at that size is Blaster, who is too tall!

IDK, to me Blaster seems very close to the right height. At least every time I've seen him on screen he's been almost neck to neck with Optimus, which always seemed very odd to me since he's a small tape deck while OP is a Semi Truck. He might be a tad taller than he should be but it's not as noticeable as some others, then again I guess it all depends which episode they were in. lol

Blaster does have some size inconsistency on the show (in far away shots in The Key to Vector Signa he's roughly the same size as Optimus), but he's the exact same height as Soundwave in episodes they face of against each other. He's shoulder height to Megatron in Blaster Blues.

Mark Maher wants to do a 'larger' Soundwave - and while it might be a more enjoyable size, it would be totally inaccurate to the show, which scale is primarily based on. Blaster being taller than the show is forgivable as the figure isn't so out of scale that it just seems 'wrong', but it is wrong.

My thing with Legacy Menasor is that I don't love the combiner (still miles ahead of the CW failure), but the individual bots are almost perfect. So I lean towards displaying them as a group, but the 2 problems I have are space and what to do with the unnecessary MM trailer.

Honestly, I think Hasbro did a great job with the Commander's.

I do love Roddy to bits and Menasor won me over.
Still missing Breakdown and Wild Rider though.

I’m definitely expecting a commander class G1 Prime for the 40th anniversary, along with a new Megs.

CC Prime is easy to predict. Earthrise + Centurion set is pretty much commander price already.

What do I expect?

Everything Earthrise alreqdy does, plus:
A larger cab,
articulated hands like Rodimus
, a larger matrix.
Maybe if we are lucky some lights and sounds, but probably not.
From the trailer, I expect it to be much larger
. With all the accessories.
Large ion blaster,
axe,
jet pack,
roller,
repair bot.
Maybe Sparkplug and Spike

I would love a CC Powermaster Prime for next year. With a trailer that looks seamless in vehicle mode, but still combines with Prime. Kinda like the PoTP leader, but obviously the combined form looks different.

And what would a new Megatron be like? I mean, it's pretty obvious the mold we got in WFC is what they want to keep using. He's staying a tank, so any new figures would be a variation of that.

Rodimus Prime wrote:I would love a CC Powermaster Prime for next year. With a trailer that looks seamless in vehicle mode, but still combines with Prime. Kinda like the PoTP leader, but obviously the combined form looks different.

And what would a new Megatron be like? I mean, it's pretty obvious the mold we got in WFC is what they want to keep using. He's staying a tank, so any new figures would be a variation of that.

There is still that rumored SS86 Megatron toy.

Rodimus Prime wrote:And what would a new Megatron be like? I mean, it's pretty obvious the mold we got in WFC is what they want to keep using. He's staying a tank, so any new figures would be a variation of that.

I'm pretty sure that with a leader budget, they could make a perfectly looking G1 Megatron in bot mode with no tank kibble visible, (appart the cannon) that would transform into a tank. For that to be a reality, it would need a brand new mold.

Rodimus Prime wrote:I would love a CC Powermaster Prime for next year. With a trailer that looks seamless in vehicle mode, but still combines with Prime. Kinda like the PoTP leader, but obviously the combined form looks different.

.

Powermaster is highly unlikely. 40th anniversary is gong to be G1 almost certainly.

Rodimus Prime wrote:
And what would a new Megatron be like? I mean, it's pretty obvious the mold we got in WFC is what they want to keep using. He's staying a tank, so any new figures would be a variation of that.

Better than Earthrise.

Yes, he’d still be a tank, but should generally look closer to his G1 self.

Doesn't he look close to his G1 self already? With minor detail differences.

Rodimus Prime wrote:Doesn't he look close to his G1 self already? With minor detail differences.

I don't call having a freaking giant tank-threads backpack a "minor detail".

I'm pretty sure that a leader will be able to TRULY hide everything and he'll be able to have his "back barrel" as well, something the Sg/Er mold don't have.

Rodimus Prime wrote:And what would a new Megatron be like? I mean, it's pretty obvious the mold we got in WFC is what they want to keep using. He's staying a tank, so any new figures would be a variation of that.

Personally speaking, and while I don't need it to be CC because he doesn't have anything to really justify it, I wouldn't mind a Leader Class with a better deco that looks like "steel" in color resembling actual metal material rather than it looking like gray plastic. Which the ER figure does.
Plus the fact there is a lot going on with that figure that makes it feel less G1 and more something else.

I don't need the alt mode to be anything specific considering it won't be an OG representation, so it's rather pointless to me what it is, a Tank, Plane, or whatever. As long as the bot mode looks like it's supposed to with a proper deco.

CC G1 Prime would be a huge stretch to convince me to rebuy a more expensive version, IMO the Kingdom figure does what it needs to. That said, I was disappointed with the trailer and not getting Roller.
Yet I fail to see how the inclusion of that and a few more accessories would bring it to $100 price point. I've no interest in a jetpack, and articulated hands are neat but would just loosen over time.

I'd likely get a CC Ultra magnus over Prime, if it does a better job incorporating the trailer in bot mode. While accurate looking Kingdom is just to bulky/chunky to me and I'd like a more streamlined look.

-Kanrabat- wrote:

Rodimus Prime wrote:Doesn't he look close to his G1 self already? With minor detail differences.

I don't call having a freaking giant tank-threads backpack a "minor detail".

Yeah you're right. I'm so used to seeing the WFC mold everywhere that I didn't even remember that G1 Megatron doesn't have a backpack.

I'm pretty sure that a leader will be able to TRULY hide everything and he'll be able to have his "back barrel" as well, something the Sg/Er mold don't have.

Yeah we'll be paying for the engineering most likely, and he'll be a tall voyager at most.

Rodimus Prime wrote:

-Kanrabat- wrote:

Rodimus Prime wrote:Doesn't he look close to his G1 self already? With minor detail differences.

I don't call having a freaking giant tank-threads backpack a "minor detail".

Yeah you're right. I'm so used to seeing the WFC mold everywhere that I didn't even remember that G1 Megatron doesn't have a backpack.

I'm pretty sure that a leader will be able to TRULY hide everything and he'll be able to have his "back barrel" as well, something the Sg/Er mold don't have.

Yeah we'll be paying for the engineering most likely, and he'll be a tall voyager at most.

I'm used to "voyager sized" leaders. As long that the engineering justify the cost, that is. But if a "simple" Transformers like SS rotb Scourge is a "leader", this doesn't look good for that Megs.

-Kanrabat- wrote:

Rodimus Prime wrote:

-Kanrabat- wrote:

Rodimus Prime wrote:Doesn't he
I'm used to "voyager sized" leaders. As long that the engineering justify the cost, that is. But if a "simple" Transformers like SS rotb Scourge is a "leader", this doesn't look good for that Megs.

Last time i checked i've had 5 voyager size leaders sets. Blue-Ice Megatron, Battle Blades Optimus Prime, Last Knight Special Edition Optimus, Siege Optimus (Battle scars and dirty) and Kingdom Optimus Primal.

Megatron and Battle Blade Optimus weren't so great.
Megatron has flimsy plastic ice for wings. His weapon didn't have good posing options and his fingers look like tangled spaghetti.Would have been mildly better if had the colorless ice version.

Battle Blades: Nice detailing and great robot mode. But is he is just really complex.
No easy way to hide his blades and his fists are limited to use his cannons. I never transform him even once.

Rogue-Primal wrote:

-Kanrabat- wrote:

Rodimus Prime wrote:

-Kanrabat- wrote:

Rodimus Prime wrote:Doesn't he
I'm used to "voyager sized" leaders. As long that the engineering justify the cost, that is. But if a "simple" Transformers like SS rotb Scourge is a "leader", this doesn't look good for that Megs.

Last time i checked i've had 5 voyager size leaders sets. Blue-Ice Megatron, Battle Blades Optimus Prime, Last Knight Special Edition Optimus, Siege Optimus (Battle scars and dirty) and Kingdom Optimus Primal.

Neither of these were sold as Leaders, unless maybe you're referring to Siege GUOP? But that Primal definitely has never been Leader-priced.

Rogue-Primal wrote:

-Kanrabat- wrote:

Rodimus Prime wrote:

-Kanrabat- wrote:

Rodimus Prime wrote:Doesn't he
I'm used to "voyager sized" leaders. As long that the engineering justify the cost, that is. But if a "simple" Transformers like SS rotb Scourge is a "leader", this doesn't look good for that Megs.

Last time i checked i've had 5 voyager size leaders sets. Blue-Ice Megatron, Battle Blades Optimus Prime, Last Knight Special Edition Optimus, Siege Optimus (Battle scars and dirty) and Kingdom Optimus Primal.

Megatron and Battle Blade Optimus weren't so great.
Megatron has flimsy plastic ice for wings. His weapon didn't have good posing options and his fingers look like tangled spaghetti.Would have been mildly better if had the colorless ice version.

Battle Blades: Nice detailing and great robot mode. But is he is just really complex.
No easy way to hide his blades and his fists are limited to use his cannons. I never transform him even once.

I think you misunderstood what "voyager sized LEADER" meant.

We're talking about the leader SIZE CLASS, not the role the characters play.

Here's a video I did last month -




Earthrise will be up sometime this month.

Like Earthrise Leader class Optimus Prime, Siege Commander class Jetfire is getting rereleased too.