New Arrivals - Early June 2014

I had genuinely forgotten what it was like to have toys arriving regularly, and in all honesty it's making me uncomfortable because I've got Transformers in the flat that are still unopened and I bought them to open. That's a sure sign that you're acquiring more than you can appreciate, especially if there's more still to come. That doesn't mean I'm not enjoying it though, so here are the first wave of new arrivals entirely made up of my Transformers Animated collection rebuild.

MISB Deluxe Stealth Lockdown with Legends Bumblebee and Optimus

Continuing the theme that Sentinel Prime purchase started at the end of May, my mission for Transformers Animated is not just to buy back the great toys I had sold, but also to experience all the brilliant figures in the line that I missed first time out. Looking back, it was a time when I was just as fervent a collector as I am now with just as many real life things to distract me, so quite why I skipped certain figures for local TRU prices I cannot understand. Deluxe Animated Lockdown is one of those figures, so with my penchant for odd colours on recognised moulds, and a passion for clear toys, I bought this Stealth version clear Lockdown with Legends Bumblebee and Prime in the UK for about £20 sealed. No brainer.

MOSC Activators Lockdown

Thanks to the regular UK pub meetups that have been happening for a few months now, I get to see a lot of Transformers in the flesh that I would not normally buy, and as a result become enabled on. Animated was just waiting for me to be pushed in again, and those meetups made it happen. Seeing a Lockdown in hand and experiencing its wonder, not to mention the brilliance that is the Animated Activators range - and my niche completist sickness - AND how utterly badass Age Of Extinction bad guy Lockdown looks in the trailers - well here we go. Full Metal Lockdown Completism. Bought for £5.75 sealed, can't go wrong.

MOSC Deluxe Ratchet

Something about the fact that all of my original Transformers Animated were store bought by me is creating a conflict. I feel as though I've sold my childhood toys, even though they were bought a mere 6 years ago. The thing is, they were mine and mine only, and buying second hand versions now for such a recent toy line seems somehow to be an inferior experience. So where possible I've been buying sealed Animated to open and enjoy as the sole owner again. This is poignant for me with toys I have already owned like the deluxe Ratchet above, £6.99 shipped. For that price, I will buy and open sealed toys all day long. Especially in light of the other 'thing' that arrived this week...

Animated loose toy lot. In its shipping box.

The less said about this experience, the better. Long story short, I bought a lot of 24 Transformers Animated figures loose from another collector and I was enormously excited. There were so many figures in there I'd never owned or seen. The lot was shipped exactly as you see it above. The result was inevitable, quite predictable and did not end well for the toys, for me, or the seller and the partial refund he has had to give me thanks to at least 37 spots of damage that I stayed up until 3am last night photographing for him. That aside, I certainly have an Animated collection again, and already bigger than the one I had before. Details of individual gems will of course be shared on this blog in their own dedicated posts as they have nearly all been freed from their packaging. Stay tuned!

Taking positives

All the best
Maz