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Post by mpchi on Feb 25, 2021 15:12:42 GMT -5
For those that want to give the MP-44 Prime mold a try, but was too off put by the crazy price tag, this might be for you. Apparently, the MP-49 Black Convoy/Nemesis Prime didn't sell very well in Japan currently, and you see brand new ones going for $150-160 on Amazon Japan and Mandarake, instead of the regular $250 + tax in US. It does omitted a lot of things from MP-44, like the trailer, most of the accessories, the sound box, and even lost most of the paint (almost the entire thing is bare black & grey plastic), knee slightly retooled. But if you are like me, that still like the MP-10 a lot and don't really need a replacement nor need those accessories & trailer from MP-44, the now pretty cheap MP-49 might fit right in into your collection as a Decepticon, and you don't have to worry too much about transforming this supposedly engineering marvel due to paint wear. Might be a very good option you didn't know you have. ROLLING OUT WITH STYLE! Attachments:
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Post by mpchi on Feb 27, 2021 14:39:27 GMT -5
Well, after spending the night transforming Nemesis Prime and playing with the articulation a bit, I came to the conclusion that MP-49 should be renamed. May I present: MP-49 WOBBLE PRIME A bit disappointed actually, even though I got this pretty cheap. "MP-44 knee defects" aside, I have heard a lot of good things about the new Prime, like "Best MP Prime ever!". So having a chance to get the Nemesis Prime at a bargain price with knee fixes works out perfectly for my collection to co-exist with MP-10 (a special gift from my wife years ago). I knew about the complex engineering going in, but having in-hand experience is another story. The unpainted plastic does look quite rough (unpainted gunpla style, scuffs & sprue marks & all) and definitely look less polished than my other unpainted MPs with a lower grade of surface treatment, or lack there of. But definitely helps in the transformation with no paint chipping. What surprised me is the softness of the plastic (probably a material choice to minimize stress and cracks). They flex a lot, especially obvious with all the thin panel folding and a lot of small hinges, extreme origami style. While going at it very slowly and cautiously, it took me an hour and a half for my first try, following instructions step by step. The end result is a very cool and streamlined robot mode. Very good looking. Ratchet joints at the right places (shoulders, hip, knees and ankles) and no floppy loose friction joints. On paper, this is great. But once you grab hold of it, some issues start to show... TakaraTomy might have tried too hard for its own good in terms of engineering. When they went for the extreme origami design, the whole figure's arms, legs, torso, backpack...etc. all rely on numerous tabs to keep the shapes. Some parts can start to not holding up as you handle the robot mode more and have wear off those tabs. Lower arms for example, were made up of a few fold out panels with tiny tabs and hooks holding it together, but an unintentional squeeze on the arm while posing can dislodge a tab or a hook and that hollow lower arm falls apart. But there is more...  The elephant in the room. The WOBBLENESS. While TakaraTomy tried to give this figure sturdy joints with ratchets and all (and they are pretty sturdy and clicky), what connects the joints to the rest of the body worked against them, those over-complicated sandwiched panels and gaps that cause a lot of plastic flexing. The hip and knees have the strongest ratchets, but it is also the hip and knee that suffers the worse wobbleness! The wobbleness are very even and exactly the same amount on both left & right hips and knees, so it is not really a case of misassemble or a single bad joint, it is the structure/design. You can see these images to get the idea.     In the end, I don't regret getting this, but the design flaws and wobbleness really take away my excitement about this piece. This is the only wobbly MP I have ever own, with only MP-09 Rodimus share a little bit of that wobbleness on one faulty hip ratchet, but not even to this extend. The MPs are either solid or loose, but not wobbly like this even though the ratchets are fully functional and clicky. With that said, Wobble Prime can still hold poses very well, just that I have to always account for that extra 4-5 degree of leg movement and making sure the ratchets lock in angles that compensate them without losing balance. Wobble Prime can still look awesome on the shelf at least. But kind of sad that a $30 Hasbro Studio Series 86 Hot Rod gave me way more satisfaction than this $160 Prime (retailed $250) that is supposed to be an engineering prodigy. So unless you can find it dirt cheap and don't mind a wobbly bot, you may want to skip MP-44 and MP-49. Though have to give credit to where credit is due, this guy is pretty awesome when it comes to posing. Not that many MPs can pull off this pose with ease like him.  |
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Post by mpchi on Mar 2, 2021 14:56:27 GMT -5
Here is how Wobble Prime stack up with the other Primes. MP-49 on the left, MP-22 Ultra Magnus center back, 3rd Party MS-01W Magnus center front, and MP-10 on the right. No doubt the MP-44/49 mold is the closest to the cartoon with the big square chest and the smaller shoulders, whether cartoon accuracy of not very good drawings is your cup of tea or not. ^_^ The 3rd party Magic Square white Prime in the middle on the other hand strike a good balance between toy and cartoon aesthetics. While solid, it has hinges for feet and ankles that are not very strong, and due to being 3rd party, came with a few more QC and paint flaws than normal. Toy-wise, MP-10 is still the most solid and fun to handle, easier to transform, and no stability issues, unlike the other two Primes here. Its just that its sculpt is a little dated.  Visually, this is my favorite out of the three. Though MP-10 still has my favorite head sculpt.  Attachments:
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