JoeCanuck

Optimus as a Mobat? Lame.  Considering the dinky sized G1 toy he got, Warpath would have been a better pick.

I think it comes down to limited options for what they could make Optimus Prime turn into from the Joe vehicle list.

The more obvious choice might have been the APC which would have give us a "cab" mode for Prime and the back could have converted into a battle base of some kind.  However I think the size of the vehicle might have been an issue.  Same thing goes for the HAVOC, which would have been my preference for Prime.  Could you imagine Optimus Prime as the HAVOC?  The front end could be Prime and the back end could be a naturally folding out base mode while the hover sled could be Roller.  Of course there might be an issue with the giant windshield and how to hide it in robot mode, but I would think the simplest thing to do would be to just remove it in robot mode.  They had no problem with parts-forming Megatron to hide his face in vehicle mode so why not the same for Prime?

Again though, considering the cost of Soundwave I would hate to see what they might try and ask for something as big and complex as Prime as the APC or HAVOC. 

As the MOBAT, if true, it give them an alt mode that is slightly smaller and being a traditional tank also gives them easy options to make the transformation work and hide the robot mode.   I mean they have been doing tank alt modes forever so I would hope they can do Prime justice this way.   The one thing is that I am fairly certain it will not have the motorized function.

Optimus as a Mobat? Lame.  Considering the dinky sized G1 toy he got, Warpath would have been a better pick. 

Just snagged a Big Boa from TRU with a 25% off coupon.  Came out to just over $36 after tax so I saved a couple bucks compared to regular retail price. 

Man is he a great Classified figure in general, but just even moreso because of being Big Boa with his zany look.  I love the unmasked head and bloody wrapped hands.  And the weights!!!  If only they could have given us the punching bag/stand that would have put it over the top for me.  Although I know that would have raised the price.

Agreed on the 60th figures - the accessories are the selling features.  The figures I don't really have a desire for, and the price tag of a deluxe figure has left me skipping them.  But if they ever go on sale (maybe on Amazon) I would grab them.

Techno-viper is a great figure, just wish the hose was a cm or two longer.   And yes Airborne is way better in hand,  not a single quality control issue, and the paint applications are crisp.  Only gripe is his gun.

The increase in prices at TRU is insulting.  It isn't like the stock is flying off their shelves.  And with the current case assortment of a single figure per case, there are going to be some serious peg warmers.  They need to learn how to discount and move stale merchandise.  Target is the king in the US at getting older peg warmers to fly off the shelf.

Well they have done a pretty great job of shrinking the boys toys section down by half so they can add in their HMV section!!!!   Good job!!!!  I mean HMV is such a strong brand the easily survived the early 2000s and downloading/streaming right?  So why not double down on that in a kid's toy store!!!!   Makes perfect sense to me.  What could possibly go wrong??  I mean look at all the books they have been selling.  So many that they shrunk that section down and moved it away from the prime real estate near the front of the store.  A sure sign of success.   

Anyway.....

Just got my latest order from Amazon.  I had preordered the Techno Viper (x2) a while back with a gift card.  So I got them for less than retail, even the recent price drop Amazon had on them.  Surprisingly I didn't get a notification for them, but I also just ordered Airborne and 60th Action Soldier with another gift card and all 4 figures came today in one box.

Wow.  Good job Amazon.  I am used to multiple boxes/shipments with different orders when it would make sense, and save money, to ship them all together, and you did just that.  Chalk one up for logistics this time.

Techno Vipers are great, as usual.  Airborne is surprisingly fantastic in hand.  I liked him from the start, but in hand he is just more strikingly than the pictures made him out to be.  Can't wait for the Dragonfly to arrive later this year.  60th Action Soldier is great as well.  I'm not a big fan of the figure itself, or the camo pattern, but man all the accessories and soft goods really make this figure stand out in the Classified line.

The increase in prices at TRU is insulting.  It isn't like the stock is flying off their shelves.  And with the current case assortment of a single figure per case, there are going to be some serious peg warmers.  They need to learn how to discount and move stale merchandise.  Target is the king in the US at getting older peg warmers to fly off the shelf.

The classified line still remains way too expensive to keep up.  If you are a completist, good luck.   

Not amused that TRUs prices went back up.  It was the only place around me that had a Techno Viper and Shockwave on the shelves.   Bought both but wasn't happy with the prices.

Yeah I had to bite the bullet yesterday to get the Python Patrol Trouble Bubble because I was waiting for a sale on Pulse.  However it is no longer listed on Pulse and got clearanced in the US at Target.  So I had to either wait and hope for a good deal on the secondary market, or just bite the bullet at TRU.  Thankfully I had a $20 off $100 coupon so I picked up something else and saved a little bit.

Amazon still has the Techno Viper for regular retail.

Also Gamestop has the Tiger Paw w/Wreckage up for preorder right now.   I thought Python Patrol and Tiger Force were TRU exclusives up here, but it looks like other places are getting the chance now as well.  Which works out for me because it is a bit cheaper thanks to the Edge card discount and actually being able to preorder to guarantee a copy (hopefully) compared to hoping to find one in a TRU.

The classified line still remains way too expensive to keep up.  If you are a completist, good luck.   

Not amused that TRUs prices went back up.  It was the only place around me that had a Techno Viper and Shockwave on the shelves.   Bought both but wasn't happy with the prices. 

Wreckage and the Tiger Paw look OK, I am in for 1 of these repaints.
I hope they fix the sloppiness of the Firefly mold.

Here are the comparison images I mentioned, https://www.instagram.com/p/C5YnRQsOCTC/?igsh=cGc1dTJ1Y3d4OWJw

and

https://www.instagram.com/p/C5Z_Ex2s9m_/?igsh=N2c5emppNXA1dWl5