Now the question is how will Thunderwing work in Commander Class? An actual modern take on the Pretender concept (and I think he'd be the best choice, both for being one of the most well known, and for both his parts actually transforming) or another of the 'Shell is the robot mode' adaptations that leave out the inner bot entirely like the old small deluxe?
Transformers: Age of the Primes Thread: ll First Post All Listings II Update : April 12th, 2027 Bonus Wave: Repaint fun, Beast Wars, G2, Machine Wars
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I have to think Commander class gives them both the budget and space to do the shell and inner robot for Thunderwing properly.
I think it’s going to be a full-fledged g1 style Pretender but with the shell able to transform. A deluxe-ish inner robot and a Leader shell with the usual bells and whistles like opening hands, a small gun, a pair of big guns and throw in a set of the Jetfire blast effects again. Thunderwing as a standalone like previous Pretender releases in the Legacy era would not be anywhere near complex enough to necessitate anything more than Leader. Stormbringer super mode would be cool, but if I had to bet, probably not happening. Probably just the vehicle mode and maybe the jack o lantern mouth as nods.
or maybe this is a curveball and they’re making Prime Thunderwing.
or maybe this is a curveball and they’re making Prime Thunderwing.
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So the speculation about what Sentinel would be got me thinking because I came around to the idea that it would be the design they went with a few days before it was unveiled.
And that's because Hasbro is rolling out a comics Studio Series subline soon.
Now Hasbro treats the various lines as just vehicles (ha) to get figures out. SS '86 itself was created to get some CHUG '86 guys out after they committed to splitting the last leg of WfC between '86 and BW. Buzzworthy was a catch-all "whatever we can't fit elsewhere" line. And so on.
My theory is that they had a bunch of IDW figures lined up, and a comic subline of SS was the means by which they could get most out. But they had a few stragglers. Sentinel, being a Prime (or at least Prime adjacent) with some history with the Thirteen made sense to shuffle into AotP.
If we continue this train of thought, it's possible that IDW Stormbringer Thunderwing was also in that slate of IDW designs, and likely one of the few they couldn't slot into the new SS comic imprint. So... next CHUG line gets him as a Commander.
Maybe I'm seeing patterns that aren't there... but that new Sentinel is VERY IDW and we know they have a slate of IDW stuff coming so... IDW Thunderwing seems very fitting.
Like the stupid jive we did as kids made any more sense.
In a shocking swerve, it's Minicon Thunderwing. The rest of the box is silica gel to soak up your salty tears of rage.
The transforming shell is why I thought Thunderwing would be a good one for a true full Pretender remake, as he could bring back the old play-pattern, while also avoiding the 'shell that looks the same regardless' complaints some of the fandom made, even back in the day. And his shell doesn't actually look human OR mascot-suit style monster, giving them a lot of flexibility in the approach.
Intellectually, you're right. That rationalism, however, does me precious little good when it's being drilled into my head daily.
I hope not, I hate that he's been saddled with that Jack o Lantern face every time they update him.
Thunderwing isn't Age of the Primes! He's Age of Evolution, get outta here with this Thunderwing talk!
I don't think the different speculation here is contradictory. If I had to guess, he'll be a G1-styled inner bot with a transforming shell, and that shell's bot mode will take some cues from Stormbringer. Possibly a mostly G1 shell with optional accessories that skew more Stormbringer - i.e. the big wings and the engines mounted on them. Set aside all the apocalyptic world burning around him, and Stormbringer Thunderwing isn't that big a deviation from G1 Thunderwing.
Pretenders in general may have been a dumb concept as toys, but I always thought the Mega and Ultra Pretenders were fine. If that's the approach here, yay.
One of Mr. Archers videos or post he said he took inspiration from Thunderwing when creating Energon Megatron. I wonder if thats the potential retool for him? Sub out a shell for a tank sword like the toy had?
Gen Alpha, innit?
We're kinda at a transition period. Give it a few years for the last zoomers to filter out of high school.
How TF did I get the number of guns for each mode right but forget he transforms? lol
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I can see it. I was about to do a digibash but most of the colors are already right where they need to be.