Designers John Warden and Ben Montano joined Syfy on their live coverage of New York Comic Con 2019 to show off upcoming Transformers products! They talked a lot about various universes within the franchises and their fans, name-dropping Beast Wars a few times, as well as their approaches to various lines for kids and adults, engineering evolution over the years, the crossovers they’ve been doing lately (Power Rangers were mentioned!), and of course new reveals! To start, they opened up the 35th anniversary cel-shaded Optimus Prime and Megatron figures, but the new faces to the table were Earthrise Starscream and a prototype of a deluxe headmaster which resembles Mega Zarak and serves as the teaser for next year’s titan class figure.
Check out the pics after the jump!
G.B. Blackrock
Post-the Headmasters mini-series, Fortress Maximus was explicitly super-sized, and thus would have been much larger than Scroponok, but they didn't really face off much after that.
Scale wasn't always consistent, of course, either. Scorpy and PM Prime were often seen as comparable, and PM Prime and FM were often comparable….
Either way, I'll definitely GET Scorponok when he comes out… (well, it's probably better to say I definitely intend to, but costs and such could change that) but I have no desire for more super-sized Transformers that I don't really have space for. Make them smaller, make them cheaper, and I'll be happier.
Scale be damned.
Optimugatron
You are most likely right, but I really don't want them to skimp on the claws or tail either. Forgive me, but this is one time that I want my cake and to eat it too! However, if they do make puny claws or tail, then that would be easier for 3P to rectify than making Scorp too short, and I would most definitely got upgrades kits for claws and tail as that almost always improve on design, functionality, and articulation; something I was hoping for with Trypticon's arms. Their size was fine, but they were very hollow, and lacked bicep swivel or wrist swivel, making poses such as grabbing something and eating it less ideal. A shame really.
Ultra Reverb
Yeah, the more I'm thinking about it, I wouldn't want it to be an Omega retool anyway, because then Scorponok would be restricted to that size, and shorter than Fort Max. (And I'm all for Fort Max keeping his "Tallest Bot" title. Scorp being a bit shorter is cool with me.)
Here's hoping for a unique mold like Tryp.
Wh33l JcK
Scorponok’s head is going to be big like Cerebros/FortMax.
I doubt it will be an Omega retooling.
Sigmalock
When I first saw these, it seemed obvious we'd get Scorponok from Omega Supreme.
).
Then I remembered that Omega and Trypticon were both unique molds, so why not Scorponok? It's not as if he doesn't have a fundamentally basic transformation – which should minimise the design costs (how many modern figures couldn't lift their arms up, fold their legs onto their back, and lie down; like Omega is doing in these pics??? Side-note: I'd love to see someone post a pic of a whole range of different figures in their own "Scorponok modes"
Whatever we get, I just want him to be Fort Max height for a Rebirth-style squareoff (were they not the same size in every other fiction too? Was it not only their G1 toys that were different?)
Ultra Reverb
Interesting thought! I would think a big ol' mitt would be the coolest, and cheapest? As it could be mostly hollow and get the most out of the least plastic?
Not my pics, posted by @prime roller in the Fan Modes Thread (Let's See Some Fan-Modes Thread!)
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Rodimus Prime
But if you go by the toys or comics , then the cartoon is out of scale. I bought TR Soundwave and Blaster specifically because they are in scale with the toys.
Capperclawed
Makes me wonder what the budget tradeoff would be on a big ol Claw, out of a Omega Supreme big claw and cannon totaling 6 joints, pair of smaller metroplex hands for a total of 10 joints, or a set of Scorponok crusher mits that only have a joint each, which would be most expensive? How big can we make a single jointed claw before. It's budget becomes larger than a 5 jointed hand?
Mobb One
I'm in alignment with your thoughts.
I'm curious though where it was rumored that warden wants to revisit metroplex?
Bob Schoonover
Okay, you're making me do this. We need Scorponok in the following sizes:
Scorponok mold at Titan (23 inch, match Rebirth cartoon)
Titan (combiner – 18 inch, to be re-used as Black Zarak in Masterforce)
Commander (toy height compared to G1 FM toy, also used for AEC Scorponok/Dark Scorponok)
Old Ultra class (Marvel comics height)
Deluxe class (to be repainted into Double Punch)
I think the most likely thing w/Scorponok is they'll skimp on the tail/claws rather than the height – while Trypticon is short, his base mode is massive and he doesn't really mass less than the other Titans. I mean, I'm not saying Hasbro is aware there is a thriving 3rd party market to fix the fixable flaws in their titan class figures, but they have definitely made things like removable wings on Predaking, multiple 4 and 5 mm ports on Trypticon and FM, etc.
Optimugatron
All joking aside, I couldn't find a scale chart for those two. I feel like I am worrying too much at this point. It will be what it will be, and I will buy it, and deal with it, and if it too small, maybe a KO company will oversize it, and I might actually give in and get the KO….
barry
For god’s sake, Bob. Will you PLEASE use the scale chart. We’ve been over this!
Optimugatron
I would be ok with an inch or two, but not as short as Trypticon.
Seeing as it is clear that the Titan Class citybots are meant to scale together better than the G1 toys, I don't see how you could expect that. I have no issue with anyone having their own preferences on how a figure should be scaled or represented, but that just seems a bit unrealistic for a mass retail release of mainline figure. Titans are big budget figures aimed at the general public, but without shelf space to advertise them, I imagine the majority of their sales will be fans and collectors, or parents who are knowledgable of Transformers.
OS is not far from Metro and Fort Max's height. As I said above, i just don't want Scorp to be Trypticon's height because of the mass needed to properly represent him. I absolutely love TR Trypticon, but him being so much shorter than Generations (FOC) Metroplex was a pretty big letdown. I literally cannot fathom how OS would share engineering of any kind with Scorponok. Metroplex was a bit of a stretch for Fort Max, and left the figure less than ideal for many collectors. I don't see HasTak making that mistake again. Word is that Warden wants to revisit Metroplex, perhaps HasTak will make it shorter to match TR Trypticon as they were actually supposed to be quite a bit shorter than Fort Max and Scorponok in G1 lore. I know that is what I would do were I in their shoes, but then again, I would've made CW Dev, POTP Predaking, and WFC-S OS no taller than 15" to further differentiate them from the citybots in the Titan class.
One of the most common tropes in all of visual media is that rivals are similar in height so they can do a stare-down. Otherwise, it is the antagonist who is taller/larger so as to be more imposing, creating a bigger challenge for the protagonist to overcome, making their triumph that much more rewarding to the audiences. I and I am sure many other collectors would want the rivals to follow in this precedent for their displays for a more dramatic appearance. Children would want the same when playing. I hate to beat a dead horse anymore, but I think it is a reasonable expectation. It is obvious that this has been the goal that HasTak has been trying to achieve. They are not ignorant to the desires of the fanbase and the common consumer, but they are limited by budgets for these figures.
Sigmalock
I never got FM because he just seemed like he needs too many upgrades to make him whole (chest guns, photon cannon, sword depending on the version, Cog, fist upgrades, maybe slippers for ankle tilt, etc).
I'm content with my encore G1 version; to heck with posibility – the titans return version wasn't drastically better at that anyway, and at least the G1 turned into a convincing city with decent ramps (and car launchers), a prison cell, and all the aforementioned extras built-in.
I also feel like since I already have Titan Metroplex, even though I like it, I don't rate the mold highly enough that I'd shell out for it twice.
The G1 FM is about the same size, so I'm good with him.
But a new Scorpy the same size as G1 FM and Titan Metroplex???
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SPLIT LIP
I never got Fort Max because it looked like shit, so I don't actually care how big Scorponok is as long as he's big.
Sigmalock
My only concern with him sharing with Omega – an otherwise great figure by all accounts – is that he is shorter than Maxy and Plexy.
That would disappoint me.
On the optimistic side, the prototype deluxe-sized Zarak/head that was shown at NYCC looks like it'll possibly be the same size as Cerebros, so while proportions can vary (often dramatically), I can't imagine the full figure would be much different from his opposite number…
(Memo Hastak: please be same size as FM, please be same size as FM, please be same size as FM, etc)
Maximus Danz
I think it will be fine, Hasbro doesn't really release titans with CRIPPILING issues, just some minor ones.
I think this Scorponok will have a lot of shared blood with Omega Supreme and Trypticon
G.B. Blackrock
Only the toy and Marvel versions matter.
(Seriously, that may be a bit of hyperbole, but folks should know this about me by now)
MadProject
My idea was that Trypticon was short due the tail.
I don't see why Scorponok shouldn't be as tall as Fort Max.