COUNTDOWN: Ranking the best 3PMP TFCon reveals (part 2)

TFcon has become the go-to source for incredible third party Transformers reveals over recent years and this weekend’s event in Los Angeles proved to be on par with that! There were numerous new products unveiled over a range of scales and aesthetics, to the immediate delight of collectors online.

Today, we’re taking a look at those reveals to specifically cater towards the Masterpiece crowd in terms of design (give or take!) and ranking them in order of which were the most exciting (at least in my opinion anyway, no doubt you’re mileage will vary!).

Check out the full set of presentation slides over at TFW2005 and part 1 of this article if you missed it.

 

#10: Cang Toys CHIYOU

The Cang Toys Predacons have been quite a journey for collectors following the set since the beginning and probably more than a little confusing for anyone only casually observing it from a distance! A very stylised take on the G1 cast of characters, the trio of toys in collectors’ hands thus far seem to have mostly gone down a treat, but it’s what’s still to come that looks most bizarre of all.

For starters, you may notice a few new members to the classic Predacon crew there, as Cang Toys have thrown in some additional designs to make the combined mode even more sizeable and impressive! There’s now a gorilla and a wolf, which help to form part of the main body and the feet respectively, so it’s a bit of a departure all told!

Still, with the Big Man form shaping up to be a total BEAST, it looks like it might all be worth it! Can’t wait to see this one come to fruition.

 

#9: BingoToys BT-02 Steelman

BingoToys has their first figure dropping as we speak (with Silencer already in some collector’s hands) but they’re not wasting time as we have two new reveals from them already! First up is Steelman, their take on a Bumblebee movie Ironhide, which with Silencer, is meant to fit alongside the threezero DLX range of figures. To that end, this is 25cm tall and features weathered detailing, although, unlike the officially-licensed efforts, it will be transformable (turning into an armoured vehicle mode of made-up origin). Expect it to drop in the 4th quarter this year, all being well, with hopefully more on the way to follow soon. 

 

#8: FansToys FT-55B cassettes

Of all the various third party companies promoting their wares at TFcon, it’s fair to say FansToys remain one of the most anticipated, with collectors hoping to get a glimpse of which new characters the company will be turning their attention to next. Never ones to disappoint (despite a lot on their slate already), they’ve now unveiled a look at their Autobot cassettes!

It’s not a major surprise to see these in the works, as the idea of a FansToys Blaster has been mooted for like forever, and now the equivalent Decepticon troupe has been released, it makes sense to follow up with these lads. Rewind and Eject are looking mostly on point although perhaps a little fiddly. Time will tell how they compare with the recent Ocular Max reveal of these characters, although no doubt the FansToys effort will be significantly smaller (and closer to official Masterpiece cassettes). 

Then we have Steeljaw, who I have to conclude must be a very difficult design to get right! We’ve only seen this character done in (sort of) 3PMP form once before, by KFC, although they now have another take on the way and Ocular Max has again revealed an attempt too, so expect some competition here.

For my money, it’s Ramhorn that appears to be the most successful of FansToys’ offerings, again going up against designs from KFC and Ocular Max on the horizon. This one has the potential to take it based on what I’m seeing here but there’s still a long way to go yet.

 

#7: FansToys FT-55 Recorder

Naturally, it’s not just the cassettes unveiled by FansToys, as they also have a Blaster blastin’ at ya. Or rather, a Recorder… recordin’… at ya… yeah, I dunno. That name is giving me all the wrong vibes, to be honest, as it makes me think of childhood music lessons more than the rocking dude from the G1 cartoon. Still, the figure in question looks to be something, doesn’t it?

FansToys also treated us to a glimpse of the prototype, which revealed a fair portion of the upper body, including the tape deck door, will all be made from diecast metal in a rather strange choice. Let’s see how such a solution works out as there’s always a worry of proper weight distribution, but fingers crossed FT can provide some decent competition for KFC’s current Transistor toy and the newly-revealed Deformation Space Blast, too!

 

#6: X-Transbots Conan

Speaking of Fans Hobby, it wasn’t so long ago I was reviewing their Nite Walker figure and concluding that whilst I enjoyed it, I felt there was still enough room on the table for a more traditional take on the Nightbeat character in 3PMP form. Well, lo and behold, here’s X-Transbots to tease exactly that. There’s not much to go on yet but the robot mode looks fab at least, and I would lay money on XTB paying a fair amount of attention towards the car mode also. Colour me interested.

 

#5: Vectronlab Constructicons

So before they started teasing a new Megatron, Vectronlab was setting tongues wagging with a very random reveal of a new 3PMP Devastator design which, as some quite rightly pointed out at the time, was just a slightly photoshopped picture of Newage’s figure. Still, many months later they’ve since provided a fair amount of updates, including that this will indeed be a wholly original product with a highly cartoon-accurate flavour, as evidenced in the pics we’ve seen thus far.

Although Scrapper is the only toy we can get a good glimpse of at the moment, there’s little doubt Vectronlab has nailed the look they promised for this project. Whilst some may say the Contructicons have been attempted in the 3P arena many times before, we’ve still never had a set one could truly consider ‘Masterpiece’ in style for how they stuck to the cartoon aesthetic, and with FansToys’ tease currently in need of an update, this could be the answer some of us have been hoping for!

 

#4: X-Transbots MX-41 Ground Bite

Of course, you wait long enough for any character to be done in 3PMP form and there’s a high chance a second (or third… or fourth!) attempt won’t be far behind. So it is with the Constructicons, as X-Transbots have also unveiled their attempt in the past week.

As with Vectronlab, it’s only Scrapper we can see so far, although in this case there are multiple repaints teased with it (including G2 orange and yellow sets and a ‘Youth’ retool to match their equivalent toy-inspired Stunticon releases). It’s an impressive upfront info dump from XTB, although no doubt a lot of fans may be sceptical about the amount the company already has on its roster.

Here’s hoping we see plenty more from their Constructicons before too long even though I would imagine they’ll at least look to finish off their Protectobots (and maybe a few other projects!) before then. Either way, I’m prepared for extermination.

 

#3: Fans Hobby MB-18 Commander E

We’ve seen plenty from Fans Hobby’s upcoming Energon Optimus Prime already but the latest pics are making it look better than ever! They have a lot to live up to after the smash of Naval Commander, which brought the Armada version of the character up-to-date in a suitably stylised form, but so far this guy looks like he will more than smash expectations. 

The Energon OP design has always been one I’ve appreciated (even the dad-bod-esque proportions of the smaller robot mode) and coupled with Fans Hobby’s usual attention to detail and fun approach to reinterpreting these original toys, expect this to be a real highlight when it’s released in the year. Sorted for Commander E.

 

#2: X-Transbots MX-41S Dig Pig

A little while back, I penned an article detailing all of the various G1 ideas we hadn’t yet seen replicated in Masterpiece style. On that list were the Junior Targetmasters from 1988, who just happen to be some of my favourite toys of the era. Well, not even eight months later, here we are with the first reveal and it’s quite the Scoop!

Alright, tortured puns aside, I’m honestly bowled over by this design, not least because of the quirky character choice but also for how it rather neatly reinterprets the classic toy and the two small Targetmaster companions it came with.

Say whatever you will about X-Transbots but major props to them for giving this one a go, especially as it’s not a character who featured prominently in G1 fiction or anything. I’m sure it might lead onto the more familiar Decepticon Targetmasters before too long though. In any case, I so very nearly slotted this in at #1, but in the end, there was just one reveal that ever-so-slightly pipped it for me…

 

#1: X-Transbots MX-50 Poplights

Throttlebots. Masterpiece-styled Throttlebots, no less. I’ve been saying it for ages – it’s the 3PMP thing I’ve been most hoping for since before I can remember. And now it’s finally happening. You see, I have a fair dose of love for the little non-articulated pull-back-and-go buggers from the ’80s and always felt the six designs could be beautifully updated in full 3PMP form given half a chance and, well, look at it…

True, it’s still early days, especially with only Searchlight unveiled thus far, although I’m simply too excited to see the likes of Chase, Freeway and Goldbug (GOLDBUG!) revealed before too long. Well done on the reveals, XTB, you crushed it. Now please make the toys good!

 
 
So, that’s our list. Are you excited about the new reveals?

TTFN