Via Lost-Zzl on Weibo, we have some new images of the Masterpiece Generation 2 Bumblebee. A shiny redeco of the existing Masterpiece Bumblebee, this new version of Bumblebee swaps out the Exo-Suit that came with the regular release for a rocket pack, as used by Bumblebee in the classic Generation 1 two-part episode Dinobot Island. Check out the images attached to this post.
ambitron
I just mixed up some Tamiya lemon yellow with some Tamiya orange – you can get an exact match that way. I also used a little Tamiya thinner and did a lot of thin coats (after lightly sanding off the gold paint – I dabbed it with a bit of watered down isopropyl first but I'm not sure if that helped much). The plastic is a dull yellow underneath so you can paint straight over it. (I covered the face with Blu-Tack following a recommendation from Bumble to prevent any paint going over). I didn't seal it, although I may add a coat of clear now that it's cured, but then again it looks perfect as-is so I might just leave it. Hope that helps.
daddytron
I'm thinking about doing this when mine arrives. What paint and shade did you use? And did you seal it with anything?
Strike Creamsicle
I don't know whether to thank you for that link or shake my fist at the sky while shouting your handle, DukeFett.
It might be a little of both, but either way, it will be while he's sitting in my HLJ private warehouse.
Anguirus
Hey hey what the heck do you do with stickers 5 and 6? They didn't make the instruction manual and I can't seem to find a good spot for them on the figure.
ToyDojo
I can't Bee-lieve it but our stock for Toy Dojo orders has arrived and invoices are going out now. We have a few more if anyone wants to grab some state side with an extra helping of Texas hospitality (free of charge!). Don't forget, nobody knows oil based gold like Texas!
Kero
All these pics made me pull the trigger. Got it from NipponYasan for 4120 yen + 1440 yen shipping for a total of $46 shipped!
olevelo
Shoot, I was looking for a place overseas to order him a couple weeks ago, but he was listed as sold out everywhere. Kept my TFSource pre-order, and he came in stock a couple days ago and is on the way now.
Sixo
Not at all, I think it's great. We all have little things we're passionate about.
ambitron
Oh no! That's not good. I clearly have a hobby horse I didn't know about! (jackisking, I'm sorry you ended up on my hobby horse. )
Sixo
I was just going to say something similar. I bought G2 'Bee from Anime Export for a mere $32! At that price, I just couldn't resist, especially as I then shipped him with another order.
It's funny, ambitron, but as soon as I see someone comment on Bumblebee's face, I almost know that you're going to be not far behind them with a response. It's kind of like when someone comments about the difference between MP-10 and Hasbro Prime – I fully expect Dean ML to swoop in with his passion for how the Takara version is painted. I think it's great.
So, thinking about G2 'Bee, my one and only nitpick with this guy is the G2 Autobot sticker. Specifically, it has a fairly prominent clear outline which, because of the way it picks up the light, is quite obvious without really having to look for it. I'd be tempted to replace it with an Ocean decal or something similar, but thus far I haven't come across any clear-backed G2 Ocean decals… does anyone know of any?
ambitron
To me, that's a good thing! In my head, Twiki and Bumblebee always had a similar look (although looking up images of Twiki, it turns out he isn't actually anything like Bumblebee; it's just my ageing memory playing tricks on me ).
Horses for courses and all of that, but I was really disappointed with the stock faces on Bumblebee. As one of my favourite characters as a kid, he was the MP I'd been looking forward to the most (similar levels of excitement will now have to wait for announcements of Jazz and Cliffjumper…). But that face sculpt always ruined it for me; I just felt it never captured the little feller. The smiling face looked great in prototypes, but in hand something had gone wrong and it looked more like a grimace. Upon getting the G2 version, I was very pleasantly surprised to discover that the faces – especially the smiley face – looks much better. (It's not just the paint – the smile seems to have more definition on the G2 one.) Now that I've painted the crest of the G2 face orange/yellow and donated it to MP-21, I am no longer disappointed with the face sculpt – it has gone from favourite MP with most disappointing face to my perfect representation of Bumblebee.
Comparison shots:
And here you can see how much more definition the smile has on the silver version:
The trouble with the white/grey paint is that it makes his nose look even more smooshed than it is, and the way light reflects from it causes the polygonal shapes around the edges to get lost, so he just looks like a fat boy if you're not looking at it up close.
Anyway, MP-21 is very pleased with his new face, although he's less sure about the jetpack:
That was a lot of words over a tiny face! (Almost as long as a Buck Rogers episode – seriously, I bought the series on DVD a while back, and the first episode seemed to go on forever. I loved that show as a kid!)
DukeFett
MP-21G Bumblebee G2 Ver. by Takara Tomy | HobbyLink Japan
You can get him shipped EMS from HLJ for less than $50. Go for it!
jackisking
Honestly, I prefer the original white/grey versus silver for BB. Someone had painted theirs silver and all I thought was"beade-beade-beade-bee". Man, if you get that you are really showing your age.
SunSwipe5
Last I checked, my G2 Bee (with TAV Jazz and Swipe) were en route from the Memphis, TN FedEx Hub. I should have him (and his travel buddies) tomorrow.
I'm toying between getting a second G2 Bee or the regular MP Bee.
Strike Creamsicle
those pictures make me want to buy him. I was going to stick to the "oddball" color schemes for MP figures – G2 Sideswipe, G2 Jazz (if we ever get an MP of that), Blue Bluestreak, Road Rage, and this guy… but the pricetag is hard to swallow. I don't mind spending $70ish on an MP figure, but I can't quite wrap my head around paying the same for one that's half the size of, idunno, all of the other $70ish MP figures.
3.8TransAM
G2 Bee is making me wish they got the color right on G1 Bee all the more
Anyhow, my 5 yr old approves, was making him walk in robot mode and cruising him around in alt mode.
Sixo
Loving this little guy!
alldarker
No, it's actually pretty much indefinitely. Go figure: you pay AE full price of an item in advance, but you haven't paid shipping. That means that the item they are holding is technically yours already, but it can't be shipped because you haven't paid for shipping. What can they do? Refund you the money after 60 days? I don't think so…
SSR
if thats true, then I am special. I think you are thinking of Hobby link Japan.
BenjaminXavier
I'm pretty sure AE only holds things for 60 days…