Stepper!

Cliffjumper · Post by **Cliffjumper** » Wed Nov 12, 2008 2:14 pm

I bought myself a Stepper/Ricochet, at last. Amazing what improvements the double-whammy of a black/gold/white and Not Being That Twat Jazz can do for a mould, I'm actually rather impressed, despite the spit-and-bailing-wire shoulders and the laughably engineered feet-type things that don't line up with the legs. Shame about all that Targetmaster shit, though... I wonder how much I can shift Nightstick on for?

Post by **Clay** » Wed Nov 12, 2008 7:50 pm

It's cute in its way, yeah? It's small enough that the tacky flame stickers work. When Hasbro made the up-sized Alternator version out of Silverstreak, they didn't seem to take that into account

The Targetmaster... um, yeah. How much would you shift it for?

Cliffjumper · Post by **Cliffjumper** » Wed Nov 12, 2008 8:06 pm

Yeh, I do like the tacky. The black and white, the flames, the gold chrome... it's so tasteless it comes all the way back round to awesome. Sar's immediate reaction upon seeing him was to assume I'd been buying random knock-offs again...

I suspect I'll hang on to Nightstick, even if it doesn't remotely go with the figure, sorry

Post by **Clay** » Wed Nov 12, 2008 8:16 pm

Cliffjumper wrote:Yeh, I do like the tacky. The black and white, the flames, the gold chrome... it's so tasteless it comes all the way back round to awesome. Sar's immediate reaction upon seeing him was to assume I'd been buying random knock-offs again...

I suspect I'll hang on to Nightstick, even if it doesn't remotely go with the figure, sorry

That was a quick about-face

Yeah, I had my eye on a Ricochet at the Toys R Us... for whatever reason, they didn't go on clearance at the same time as the other reissues (when the line was announced dead). After three years of waiting, I finally snagged one for 60% off or so.

I'll probably keep mine forever just as a testament to the time that I out-waited a mega-corporation

secretcode · Post by **secretcode** » Wed Nov 12, 2008 8:20 pm

I thought Nightstick was Cyclonus' Targetmaster?

Transformer Kamen · Post by **Transformer Kamen** » Wed Nov 12, 2008 8:30 pm

TFWiki: wrote: Nightstick

Back on Nebulos, Nightstick was a master criminal. For some reason, he gave that up to undergo binary-bonding to Cyclonus. The loyal and honorable Decepticon warrior often finds himself at odds with the very dishonorable Nightstick and generally considers him an irritating pest.

Nightstick transforms into a black beam gun that fires a corrosive beam of blinding darkness (and no, that doesn't make a lot of sense).

The Autobot Ricochet's Targetmaster partner is also named "Nightstick"... and looks identical. This seems a monumental coincidence, but whether there is an actual connection - or if they're perhaps the same individual - is unknown.

Gouki · Post by **Gouki** » Thu Nov 13, 2008 3:54 am

I want to see Stepper used in fiction. And maybe get a new toy. I mean, it'd just be a Jazz repaint, sure, but I feel bad for the guy who used to command high high prices and now most places can't get rid of him.

Cliffjumper · Post by **Cliffjumper** » Thu Nov 13, 2008 1:52 pm

I dunno, I find that absolutely hilarious. Jafanboy uber-grail to TRU shelf-warmer in a matter of months is a triumph for fans who aren't toy-hoarding cocksuckers.

RID Scourge · Post by **RID Scourge** » Thu Nov 13, 2008 1:59 pm

I kinda wish they'd been able to squeeze out an Artfire before it was dead. That was actually one of my favorite molds from the first two years' Autobots (Grapple being my favorite).

Turbo 07 · Post by **Turbo 07** » Fri Nov 14, 2008 12:16 am

Yes, well, you have to take into account that it's been fashionable to beat up G1 for more than a few years now. And remember that it was Hasbro's Ricochet that sat far more than Takara's Stepper ever did...

Cliffjumper · Post by **Cliffjumper** » Fri Nov 14, 2008 12:30 am

Both surely proved that the figure was cherised more for its' rarity than actual quality, however...

Fashionable to beat up G1? Not sure it has been. Some aspects have taken a beating as the internet has forced most of fandom to open its' eyes beyond video tapes of the shitty cartoon, and certainly things like ebay and reissues have made toys avaliable to a wider number of people, and some of them have taken a bit of a kicking as a result - a lot of early figures like Megatron and Starscream took on a mythical status if you didn't have one, or know someone who had one, so obviously people are a little irked when they turn out to be horrifically designed pieces of shit.

There's just been more around to compete with G1 lately. When you consider that G2 is basically an extension of G1, up until 2000 there were only really two camps - G1/2 and BW/M. Now there are hundreds of different flavours...

Also, G1's getting a slaughtering because now there are things to compare it to. Take Sunstreaker. His original toy is a weird, misshapen accident Clover would have thought twice about, but for years people liked it because, hey, they like Sunstreaker, it's his only toy, we can forgive the awful proportions and moronic use of Rocket Punches that can't be stored in alternate mode. Now, though, we've got the Alternator, and the Universe figure - I mean, the Alternator even cuts in on the original's "well, it's a lousy toy, but it displays well" field. As people get used to the idea of Transformers toys being genuinely good, they become less forgiving of toys that are genuinely bad - unsurprisingly, most of these are in the first line of Transformers, rather than the modern ones.

Fashions happen for a reason... if G1 (as a toyline, and as multi-media) wasn't so filled with awful mistakes, people wouldn't have much to complain about.

The Reverend · Post by **The Reverend** » Fri Nov 14, 2008 8:36 pm

Yes, now we get a Sunstreaker with movable limbs but a weak little pistol just so it can be stored in the undercarriage. Improvement is, well, subjective.

Cliffjumper · Post by **Cliffjumper** » Fri Nov 14, 2008 9:12 pm

Whereas the original could... remove his fist and replace it with a missile. I agree that Classics/Universe weaponry leaves a lot to be desired (weapon storage is neat, but shouldn't totally compromise the gun), but Sunstreaker's a bad example to pick, as it's nevertheless an improvement.

poyguimogul · Post by **poyguimogul** » Fri Nov 14, 2008 9:53 pm

Gouki, if you wanna see Stepper / Artfire, just check out
Tfarchive , Comics , Japanese manga ^^ They are in 1 issue of headmasters.

Thanks to Dr.Spengler for the english DUBS, mad props..

another tf fan · Post by **another tf fan** » Sat Nov 15, 2008 1:52 am

F-Stepper.

He's a horrible looking repaint no one in the USA ever asked for and got in droves.

Same goes for Alt Ricochet... He ain't got no alibi, He Ugly.

Gouki · Post by **Gouki** » Sat Nov 15, 2008 2:51 am

another tf fan wrote:F-Stepper.

He's a horrible looking repaint no one in the USA ever asked for and got in droves.

Oh, man. I totally forgot every Transformers has to be approved by Americans. Forget those other countries.

The Reverend · Post by **The Reverend** » Sat Nov 15, 2008 9:04 am

Cliffjumper wrote:Whereas the original could... remove his fist and replace it with a missile. I agree that Classics/Universe weaponry leaves a lot to be desired (weapon storage is neat, but shouldn't totally compromise the gun), but Sunstreaker's a bad example to pick, as it's nevertheless an improvement.

Dunno, you also had those oddly shaped "missiles" in the shoulders (or were they the ever-elusive flares?). My Sideswipe always stood around with Snarl's rifle, it suited him better and fit in the fist hole.

Cliffjumper · Post by **Cliffjumper** » Sat Nov 15, 2008 9:44 am

So original Sunstreaker could attack someone directly above him... Still not that impressive, is it?

The Reverend · Post by **The Reverend** » Sat Nov 15, 2008 5:01 pm

Hey, didn't you see that one (typically off-color) Marvel panel where he magically nails Skywarp with one? (At the time I recall thinking "ah ha, they finally useful!")

Cliffjumper · Post by **Cliffjumper** » Sat Nov 15, 2008 5:08 pm

Doesn't work if you're up against anyone smart enough not to fly directly over the top of you, though - i.e. anyone other than Skywarp.

The '86 Japanese version actually got an additional shoulder launcher that clipped onto his back, and used the same missiles as the wrists. Let's hope the bootleggers get hold of one of those when they hopefully get around to doing Sunstreaker...