A Christmas miracle from Japan...

[ChessPieceFace]

So a friend of mine is in Japan right now, and he pinged me a couple of times when he spotted some Transformers in a store. "Anything good here?" No, that's just some Legacy stuff in Japanese boxes, but fun to see! "Anything I should look for?" No, so nice of you to ask, but I wouldn't know where to start and I don't want to make you worry about finding something for me on your trip. Tonight though, he went to a Mandarake store, and well...

He said "These are probably more of the same as the US toys, right?" And I said wait now hold up show me that big blue and grey guy again....

Okay so yes that IS my holiest of holy grails, a G1 Overlord. Okay and it's about $200. That seems very good. I do see some light yellowing on the arms, no stickers, and broken chest hinges with missing flaps. Does it have any accessories? Probably not, right?

Oh wow BOTH power masters are there (one with a broken bit)! And the gun! And the tank cannon! And some parts I don't particularly need, but I'm impressed they're there!

Long story short, he's making room in his suitcase, and I'm making room on my shelves for my #1 most wanted Transformer for the past couple of decades. It's not in perfect condition, but a comparable one on eBay would cost 2-3x as much, and I love that it's coming from a friend who just happened upon it half a world away.

 

[LBD "Nytetrayn"]

Very good friend -- I only recently came to learn that Overlord is actually taller than Scorponok! (If only just so.)

 

[Sciflyer]

What a great friend, congratulations! If I can share a little something relateable, Overlord was always a grail of mine, too. In 2018, I had the opportunity to travel to Japan, and I went into the Nakano location. Lo and behold, they had a very nice example of Overlord (box and all, with nothing broken!) and I couldn't pass it up. It was kind of a chore getting him packed, but well worth the effort. He is the crowning jewel of my G1 collection.

 

[ChessPieceFace]

Magnificent!

My friend came to town this week, Overlord in tow. Turns out there's absolutely nothing wrong with it beyond what I already knew from the photos (broken chest panels and Breastmaster bit, couple of missing purple attachments, minor yellowing). Looks great in all modes, all the gimmicks work, all the hidden features are intact. Applied some Reprolabels and he's all set!

So that's my #1 most wanted Transformer taken care of at last... guess Reissue Powered Convoy (Movie Preview Ultra Magnus) moves to the top of the list.