Transformers Movie Toys

It must have been ages since I last wrote here. Well, where should I continue? Yes, probably the movie, the Transformers movie of 2007. It came and it sorta gone now. Yea, even the dvd came out a month ago.

Crazy stuff happened since the movie. Everyone who was a fan during the 80s all came back. And the kids also think the movie was cool. The end result - a lot of them are buying the toys. I mean, they swept the shelves clean every time they put the toys up. And don't even mention the scalpers. Arghh, they bought all of them and sell them double the retail price. I ended up buying the toys every time I saw new ones, there is no 'go home, think about it' that sort of thing, because if you come back later, they will already be gone.

Are the toys good? In my opinion, they ARE very good. I am very impressed with the 'automorph' features. Very creative. The aesthetic of the new robot design? It is a new take, really they are refreshing. I have nothing against the old blocky design of the bots, but the new ones are so much more ....'real'? Wish they could make them as complex as the CGI models, haha. In my dream, yes.

SUPER vs MECHA

Alright, hate to go theoretical about relationships all the time, perhaps sometimes there are just no logic in love!

For a thing that is totally logical, however, is how i collect robot toys. I collect only the 'MECHA' and I... despised the 'SUPER' robots! Hey, not a problem if you like them. If you like Getter robots, I won't stop you (Could I even stop you?) 'SUPER' robots are just too illogical for me, and the aesthetic... I couldn't stand it. Nostalgia could help ... but I wasn't growing up watching Getter robots, oh well :-P

For those who read this and have no idea what I'm talking about, here are the basics. 'SUPER' robots are fantasy robots. The design and how they function are not meant to go along with real world logic. In another word, they don't intend to exist in the real world.

The type of robots I like are the 'MECHA' or real robots. They are intended to exist in the real world, though it may not be now but can be in the distance future. Few examples of 'MECHA' I like are Macross Valkyrie fighters, The Transformers, Patlabor, Gundam? (Hate it, the definition of recycle design), the Votoms (cool Scopedogs), the EVA (Well, they are unconventional but real enough) and many more.

'SUPER' and 'MECHA' are terms both by the japanese. For me 'SUPER' is just too illogical, the design aesthetic... feels more like giant caricatures than robot. Bottomline, believable is a must for me.

Obsession of a Mortal

As a collector myself, I am aware that I have an insane obsession of wanting to own things that I desire. In my case, the stuff are mostly toys that I like. Sometimes I couldn't sleep because I am worry that someone would pick up the last toy on the shelf.

From time to time, I stare at my collections and thought, hmmmm, when I died I will have all of them buried with me. That always gives me a giggle. Seriously though, there are people that are not like me, they live life like reading newspaper. What does that mean? That means enjoy life without having to possess that 'something'. Everything is fleeting in this world, beauty don't last, anything organic like us don't live forever. Should I not do things like traveling, eating new food, experience more thrill and all that? Experience are more meaningful than all the things I can collect? Sometimes I do hope I live forever....hehe, crazy.

Owning objects as a sense of security, but is it not an experience too? The difference is that the experience is constantly in our grasp, the 'thing' is in the room! What if they get destroyed or stolen...? Oh nooooooo! But as tragic as it may be, I guess I'll live through it, if it happens.

All in all I keep reminding myself... ultimately it is the experience that counts, it is not whether I will own the objects forever or not, but the joy of having them then and discussing the beauty of the things we collect among the fans.