Sunday, December 23, 2012

TRU RODIMUS MASTERPIECE & WST HOT ROD


The Masterpiece Rodimus Prime by Takaratomy had many quality issues (watch Youtube for details), so I was hesitant to buy it. Later Hasbro issued Rodimus Prime as a TRU Exclusive and had rectified the quality issues of the earlier release. This version doesn't comes with the trailer but it comes with Offshoot figure. The rest of the accessories are the same as the Japanese release.
Earlier of the month, I got a World Smallest Transformers (WST) Hot Rod at a cheap price in Singapore. This was a TRU Japan Exclusive giveaway when you buy THS-02 Convoy. It's kinda pricey on eBay now for this very small toy. This also have some quality issues, so get'em only if you are a die-hard Rodimus fan.

APS STRIKER OPTIMUS PRIME, TRU EXCLUSIVE OPTIMUS PRIME, SHELL LEGO SETS & MILO VANS SET



Christmas present for 2012, unexpectedly I got for myself the TRU Exclusive Masterpiece Optimus Prime. It comes with trailer, roller, Matrix, guns, axe and a Witwicky figure. This was released earlier by Takaratomy. This version of Prime it's not diecast, unlike the original MP-01. When TRU Malaysia brought in the figure, the collectors community were complaining about the price in forums, that is RM599.00. When the Takaratomy's version (re-stocks) came in, it was also sold for almost RM600. I got this today for a 20% discount (RM479.00) from TRU. Quite nice to display it in its packaging. 
Another Prime added to my collection is the Asia Premium Series (APS) Striker Optimus Prime. I missed the earlier issue of the Striker Optimus Prime, and it's price went up to RM800 in the secondary market. Luckily I did not give in the urge to buy that...and later this updated version of Striker Prime is re-released. It comes with a beautiful black box with magnetic cover,  chrome parts, blasters, shield and two swords that was not available in the earlier release! This is a very nice version of Oprimus, it's pricey but I think it's worth it.

I seldom collect vehicles unless it is a tied-in premium. I've got to know about the Milo vans during a relative's wedding when we were in a restaurant. I saw those Milo vans on the display shelf and I was hooked. But I was too late to collect as the promo was already over. So I began to hunt for it in the flea market. Managed to score 1 set. It's die-cast vehicles and each van comes with a plastic display case. 
Another set of vehicles that I've completed is the Shell Lego promo sets. It consist of 6 packs of mini pull back vehicles and 1 pack of mini figures. Judging from the number of Lego collectors here, these vehicles price may have good secondary market value in the future.