Masterpiece Skids is Coming in 2021

Well well well. Ironically, I was just thinking about checking out that 3pmp Skids, I forget whatever he’s called. TakTom must have scanned my brainwaves!

Was Skids ever featured in the cartoon? Just curious if they’ll go for the hyper-cartoon aesthetic or something closer to the MP-10 style.

Is that drawing just a rough start? The front end/chest doesn't look like that.

Nemesis Maximo wrote:Was Skids ever featured in the cartoon? Just curious if they’ll go for the hyper-cartoon aesthetic or something closer to the MP-10 style.

If I'm not mistaken, Skids showed up in Generation 1 for like two episodes and even then, I don't think it was for more than 30 seconds each appearance. ("The Insecticon Syndrome" and "Triple Takeover" being the episodes) I don't think he was even named dropped.

So is this like a concept sketch, or is TT doing another drastic style change on the MP line again, because that is not the hyper-smooth cel-like designs they have been going with, that looks like a pre-mp magnus hybrid style mp, man this collection is gonna have no design consistency whatsoever if this is the case

Nemesis Maximo wrote:Was Skids ever featured in the cartoon? Just curious if they’ll go for the hyper-cartoon aesthetic or something closer to the MP-10 style.

Two episodes, and he's one of the few characters who's character design (both bot and alt) is almost identical to the original toy (aside from his wonky cartoon shoulders). Judging from the line art he should be a nice blend of both.

Emerje

Nemesis Maximo wrote:Was Skids ever featured in the cartoon? Just curious if they’ll go for the hyper-cartoon aesthetic or something closer to the MP-10 style.

Just "Quest for Survival" and "Triple Takeover", with just one line each, in a totally different voice/persona.

So while cartoon accuracy should mean a long overdue toy stretched out into a minivan alt, I'm hoping this will be Takara's Most Marvelous Masterpiece to date. Seriously, if MP Tracks warranted an original Raoul microfigure, Skids should come with one of Charlene in her iconic cowgirl cosplay...or that other outfit, if they're ambitious enough to do the bucket accessory.

Hellscream9999 wrote:So is this like a concept sketch, or is TT doing another drastic style change on the MP line again, because that is not the hyper-smooth cel-like designs they have been going with, that looks like a pre-mp magnus hybrid style mp, man this collection is gonna have no design consistency whatsoever if this is the case

It'd be pretty much impossible to make him based on the cartoon exactly and still have a good figure. The cartoon got the overall shape correct, but they really screwed up the shoulders. I don't think of this so much as being a new type of design as I do fixing the original.



Compared to the original toy and the MP line art.




"Compromises" had to be made and I think it turned out for the better. Looks like they'll be retaining the sticker designs from the toy, probably tampographed on.

Since this is just line art there's still room for changes like adjusting the front of the van to the right model.

Emerje

Rodimus Prime wrote:Is that drawing just a rough start? The front end/chest doesn't look like that.

The drawing's alt mode seems based on the Honda City Turbo II. Inaccurate to the G1 toy, but I think it would have been the predominant version of the vehicle available in '85. (Someone can correct me if I'm wrong)

Looks as though they're going back to Hasui's design "philosophy" rather than literal cartoon-accuracy, at least with Skids. Maybe they're testing the market.

The Tweet does mention "instinctive" transformation + "hybrid" version MP.
Maybe they realised fans were fed up with overly complex transformations. There's also the cracking issue with Hound that they haven't addressed, as far as I know.

Truth is, I skipped both MP-45 Bee & MP-51 Arcee. I do have MP-52 Starscream pre-ordred because I've wanted a proper Masterpiece Starscream from the start, but other than that, at least for now, I think I'm done with MP.

WfC has become more fun, it's cheaper, it takes up less space, and they put out lots of characters. Though even with CHUG I've cut back.

Looking forward to Skids, can't believe how badly the cartoon messed up the shoulders compared to the designers other bots.

If the price is Takrazy the third partys look pretty good so at least their is options but would always prefer to see the official toy before deciding. Maybe Hoist and Trailbreaker will finally get a release too (and Rattrap...and Raiden)

Weird choice, but okay.

Where. Is. My. G1. Mp. Jazz.

Was not expecting this. Never got the off-brand version because I didn't like the face (although I got their Crosscut and it's a pretty solid act). I haven't like the designs of most of these "phase three" MPs, but based on these drawings I'm cautiously optimistic.

Glarryg

Interesting,so this means to do the whole season2 lineup?I have no doubt that Skids will a solid toy.
Day 367 of waiting for Transformers Armada Masterpiece news.

84everfan wrote:Where. Is. My. G1. Mp. Jazz.

This is just a guess, though probably a pretty solid one....Porsche hasn't given HasTak a license for their products, and HasTak is big on doing licensed vehicles for the Masterpiece line. It's the same reason there isn't an MP Cliffjumper. It could be as simple as this, or its possible that another toy company has the license for Porsche. That's the reason that Dino in the Studio Series line isn't a licensed Ferrari.

Good grief he looks good, and that's just a line drawing.

Hmm, anybody clamoring for an MP Skids?

Anyway, looks pretty good.

Though the Alternators version wasn't all that bad either True not the actual G1 car model but still decent attempt.



Also, I guess this means Porsche still hasn't allowed ther car to be a war robot huh?

Overcracker wrote:Hmm, anybody clamoring for an MP Skids?

Thew actually, can't wait for his review

Skids? Interesting choice...

i wonder if they will include the scooter

Ultra Markus wrote:i wonder if they will include the scooter

Of course they will, gotta try and give value in the £120+ price tag

blackeyedprime wrote:

Ultra Markus wrote:i wonder if they will include the scooter

Of course they will, gotta try and give value in the £120+ price tag

If anything, the scooter will add collector's value for the inevitable Crosscut pretool, as featured as a "backup" in his bio.

This may end up being a great figure, but I think this new MP Starscream will be the last MP figure I ever buy.
Megatron, Soundwave, Shockwave, and Starscream are all the MP's I need.
Especially with some of these recent regular releases being so strong.

Tuned Agent wrote:The drawing's alt mode seems based on the Honda City Turbo II. Inaccurate to the G1 toy ...

Based on Skid's bonnet design in the MP artwork, I think both the MP and the G1 toy are based on the Honda City Turbo rather than the Turbo II. My favourite 80s subcompact car, so getting Skids and the green repaint if they release it.

I hope we get the Motocompo scooter and a Charlene figure.
Or clip-on parts and panels that make him look like the Sunbow animation model in both modes which can stay on during transformation.

High_Q wrote:

Tuned Agent wrote:The drawing's alt mode seems based on the Honda City Turbo II. Inaccurate to the G1 toy ...

Based on Skid's bonnet design in the MP artwork, I think both the MP and the G1 toy are based on the Honda City Turbo rather than the Turbo II. My favourite 80s subcompact car, so getting Skids and the green repaint if they release it.

I hope we get the Motocompo scooter and a Charlene figure.
Or clip-on parts and panels that make him look like the Sunbow animation model in both modes which can stay on during transformation.

You're right about it being the City Turbo, thank you for correcting me. And I hope we get a Charlene figure too, it would be unfortunate to have him without the other character from his only meaningful G1 appearance.

With Skids coming, Crosscut can't be far behind.

Now we just need MP Mirage. Seriously, what's been the holdup on him?

ZeldaTheSwordsman wrote:Now we just need MP Mirage. Seriously, what's been the holdup on him?

Maybe the faux cigarette company sponsor logos on his sides are making HasTak hesitant.

ZeldaTheSwordsman wrote:With Skids coming, Crosscut can't be far behind.

Now we just need MP Mirage. Seriously, what's been the holdup on him?

My guess is locating the license. Unlike other manufacturers, Ligier isn't active in the consumer automotive market, rather it was primarily active in motorsports and now in commercial vehicles and open-air sports. Then there's the (cigarette) advertising, and we all know how that went with Exhaust...

Sabrblade wrote:

ZeldaTheSwordsman wrote:Now we just need MP Mirage. Seriously, what's been the holdup on him?

Maybe the faux cigarette company sponsor logos on his sides are making HasTak hesitant.

Did they make a Trailbreaker I'm not aware of?

Emerje wrote:

Hellscream9999 wrote:So is this like a concept sketch, or is TT doing another drastic style change on the MP line again, because that is not the hyper-smooth cel-like designs they have been going with, that looks like a pre-mp magnus hybrid style mp, man this collection is gonna have no design consistency whatsoever if this is the case

It'd be pretty much impossible to make him based on the cartoon exactly and still have a good figure. The cartoon got the overall shape correct, but they really screwed up the shoulders. I don't think of this so much as being a new type of design as I do fixing the original.



Compared to the original toy and the MP line art.




"Compromises" had to be made and I think it turned out for the better. Looks like they'll be retaining the sticker designs from the toy, probably tampographed on.

Since this is just line art there's still room for changes like adjusting the front of the van to the right model.

Emerje

this is one character whos toy looked better than the animation model

Really interested to see what style the final toy has, I am really excited for this

I think the less toony MPs are superior anyway.

Jelze Bunnycat wrote:

ZeldaTheSwordsman wrote:With Skids coming, Crosscut can't be far behind.

Now we just need MP Mirage. Seriously, what's been the holdup on him?

My guess is locating the license. Unlike other manufacturers, Ligier isn't active in the consumer automotive market, rather it was primarily active in motorsports and now in commercial vehicles and open-air sports. Then there's the (cigarette) advertising, and we all know how that went with Exhaust...

The former is probably a much greater factor. Gitanes isn't nearly as casually recognizable in the US, and the "Citanes" endorsements aren't exactly a lynchpin of Mirage's deco anyway.

sol magnus wrote:

Sabrblade wrote:

ZeldaTheSwordsman wrote:Now we just need MP Mirage. Seriously, what's been the holdup on him?

Maybe the faux cigarette company sponsor logos on his sides are making HasTak hesitant.

Did they make a Trailbreaker I'm not aware of?

No.
Should have explained further.

I have an association built in my head between Delta Magnus, Road Rage, Crosscut, Wheeljack, and Mirage because in the Diaclone Powered Convoy commercial, the Car Robots on the featured Powered Convoy's trailer are the Corvette, the Honda City-R, the "Alitalla" version of the Lancia Stratos, and the Ligier JS-11.

We have Wheeljack, we have Road Rage, we have Delta Magnus. With Skids on the way, Crosscut will soon follow. But we are still missing Mirage.

What's this? A tease of a new G1 MP I actually think looks good? Oh god, the Seventh Seal was broken wasn't it?

All joking aside, this actually looks nice. I like how the Honda City Turbo looks (Kei cars are cool) and Skids was always a really nice looking G1 toy, so this might actually turn out good!

Thanks to a tweet from the Twitter account of Honda Japan, of all accounts, we have our first look at the upcoming release of Masterpiece Skids! This actually makes sense when you take into account that Skids' altmode is a Honda, the City Turbo model to be exact. As you can see in the photos below, Skids looks to be far more toy accurate (right down to the shoulder detail looking like the stickers from the G1 toy) than has been the standard for the last several Masterpiece releases. Whether this is due to Skids' scant cartoon appearances, a change in direction for the line, or something else entirely remains to be seen. Enough chatter, feast your eyes on this prototype!





When translated, the tweet states that the images were published today (Thursday in Japan) in Figure King Magazine #277.

Now that we have our first clear look at the figure, what are you thinking? Is Skids now a must have? Holding out for the (inevitable) retool into Crosscut? Let us know what you think of these images below!

Be nice if the tyres match, it's mp not wfc. Other than that he's looking good, just not over £80 good. If he's hotrod kinda price maybe, if he's hound or arcee price then third party might be my go to.

Well, that Skids does indeed look damn sweet.
But my wallet would prefer a normal Generations figure first.

blackeyedprime wrote:Be nice if the tyres match, it's mp not wfc. Other than that he's looking good, just not over £80 good. If he's hotrod kinda price maybe, if he's hound or arcee price then third party might be my go to.

Agreed.

Is it wrong that I'm more interested in what re-deco's this will be released in?

Loving the extra detail when compared to more recent MP G1 figures.

blackeyedprime wrote:Be nice if the tyres match, it's mp not wfc.

Well, the tyres size & hubcaps styling do match, I guess due to the shoulder transformation those front tyres need to be molded with those holes needed for production. But since tyres tend to be black, those holes should not be too obvious when that part is molded/painted in black. Still weird though.

If Takara REALLY want to put in the effort, the designer can easily make an additional frisbee-shaped part that looks like the tyre, and use those 2 holes to friction tab the frisbee part in to make it perfect looking.

An official MP, with a nice vehicle mode, clean robot mode, apparently non-bull**** transformation and best of all, ACTUAL ROBOT DETAILS?!?

I want it. It's gorgeous.

Evil Eye wrote:An official MP, with a nice vehicle mode, clean robot mode, apparently non-bull**** transformation and best of all, ACTUAL ROBOT DETAILS?!?

I want it. It's gorgeous.

Yes, he's more like the MP-10 to MP-21 era of Masterpiece.

sol magnus wrote:

Evil Eye wrote:An official MP, with a nice vehicle mode, clean robot mode, apparently non-bull**** transformation and best of all, ACTUAL ROBOT DETAILS?!?

I want it. It's gorgeous.

Yes, he's more like the MP-10 to MP-21 era of Masterpiece.

here here! this is a breath of fresh air imho. the over engineering and lack of detail (and the massive cost as a result) on the more recent mp's had been turning me off to them. the second series mps (starting from mp10) were to me the much more definitive "masterpiece" giving a perfect fusion of the original toy and it's appearance in the cartoon, while still being fun and "play-with-able" this to me looks like what a masterpiece Skids should be. Some issues though for sure, but for me he is a step back in the right direction.

Just my opinion

ZeldaTheSwordsman wrote:I think the less toony MPs are superior anyway.

Jelze Bunnycat wrote:

ZeldaTheSwordsman wrote:With Skids coming, Crosscut can't be far behind.

Now we just need MP Mirage. Seriously, what's been the holdup on him?

My guess is locating the license. Unlike other manufacturers, Ligier isn't active in the consumer automotive market, rather it was primarily active in motorsports and now in commercial vehicles and open-air sports. Then there's the (cigarette) advertising, and we all know how that went with Exhaust...

The former is probably a much greater factor. Gitanes isn't nearly as casually recognizable in the US, and the "Citanes" endorsements aren't exactly a lynchpin of Mirage's deco anyway.

sol magnus wrote:

Sabrblade wrote:

ZeldaTheSwordsman wrote:Now we just need MP Mirage. Seriously, what's been the holdup on him?

Maybe the faux cigarette company sponsor logos on his sides are making HasTak hesitant.

Did they make a Trailbreaker I'm not aware of?

No.
Should have explained further.

I have an association built in my head between Delta Magnus, Road Rage, Crosscut, Wheeljack, and Mirage because in the Diaclone Powered Convoy commercial, the Car Robots on the featured Powered Convoy's trailer are the Corvette, the Honda City-R, the "Alitalla" version of the Lancia Stratos, and the Ligier JS-11.

We have Wheeljack, we have Road Rage, we have Delta Magnus. With Skids on the way, Crosscut will soon follow. But we are still missing Mirage.

Hopefully, we'll get him soon, they're out of 85 cars minus Hoist now.

I like it. The face reminds me of Rip Torn; maybe we can get a Tommie Lee Jones and Will Smith-bot and recreate "Mechs In Black."

Glarryg

Even better than I anticipated. Might be the first MP I actively go out of my way for since Sunstreaker. Just hope the price isn’t godawful like the current trend is

Skids looks amazing, IMO the best G1 MP in years.

I'm looking forward to the repaints (I think they have at least 3 diaclones and the ehobby duo) so I'm likely to get at least one of him to go next to my Macross VF with the original toy sharing the same designer.
I'd like a Macross repaint as well though, either white with yellow stripes or maybe Max Sterlings blue/white and for the cheek of it do the possible scooter accessory in a mospeada cyclones paint scheme

You know what would be an easy repaint out of this, with very minor retooling? Armada Red Alert. We'd have our very first Armada MP. Primus forbid it's not *gasp* Optimus Prime.

I don't collect MPs but this piece looks really nice and the Marvel G1 comic story "Showdown" featuring Skids is 1 of my favorites so I'll get this figure if it's not outrageously expensive.

Rodimus Prime wrote:You know what would be an easy repaint out of this, with very minor retooling? Armada Red Alert. We'd have our very first Armada MP. Primus forbid it's not *gasp* Optimus Prime.

I don't collect MPs bit this piece looks really nice and the G1 comic story "Showdown" featuring Skids is 1 of my favorites so I'll get this figure if it's not outrageously expensive.

It's gonna be outrageously expensive. They all are now.

Skids continues to look really cool. He looks like he will go perfectly with my MP-12. He's got the right detail and the non-cartoony look to him, I love it. I'm excited for him!