I have to agree with everyone on those "Year of the..." figures...aside from Omega Supreme, none of them really seem to remotely strike a cord with me. Pretty sure you can find some of those YOT Dragon Primes kicking around if you look hard enough.
But my tops:
Hasbro/Takara:
1.
Generations 2013/14 Rhinox - got in JUUUST under the bar, but I can't deny this mold's place on my list. I recall going to Toys Toys Toys a long time ago and buying Rhinox and when I opened him up...eeeeeeh. This new mold does everything right and finally gives him a suitable - and screen-accurate - toy. I hope people buy the shit out of this so we get more!
2.
Generations 2013/14 Sandstorm AND Springer - call it a cop-out if you want, but I can't rank one of these guys over the other; both have charms that set them apart. I love Sandstorm's Wacky Races-esk car mode, and Springer's helicopter mode. Both robot modes are articulate and unique. Both awesome and both worth buying.
3.
Botcon 2013 Strika - have to agree with Ian on this one; it was the most anticipated entry in a questionable Botcon set...and made from one of my favourite Generations molds to boot. I dig the set (except Megaplex. He can crawl into a hole and die), but I love me some Strika.
4.
Beast Hunters Grimwing - fuck you, I like gryphons. Gryphon transformer. I'm done *drops the mike*
5.
Year of the Snake Omega Supreme - I'm picking Omega as I really dug the remolds they made for a base mold which - having owned it since 2009 - has........well let's face it, Energon Omega was meh. It was just meh. These remolds give us about as close to a Classics-style Omega Supreme as we're going to get, and that head sculpt. Just wish the damn thing would have shown up in my area's TRUs!
~ I will give an honourable mention to Titan Metroplex however. He did as well as everyone has expected, and despite having a few issues with articulation and QC, still a nice figure. Buy him if you haven't. ~
3rd Party:
1.
FansToys Quakewave - no explanation needed. End of line.
2.
Fansproject Quadruple-U - seriously I have to find other choices besides the ones the guys' picked
3.
TFcon 2013 Prototype X and Z - having never been a fan of Twin Twist and Top Spin, Geminis and Apex's original colour schemes never seemed very appealing. Then came along TFcon and BAM, new colour scheme for two great molds. What else can I say really? If not even flinching at purchasing them wasn't a reason to put them on here, can't figure out what is.
4.
MakeToys Hyper Novae - dumb name, great looking figure! I haven't had the chance to fiddle with either the Battle Tanker add-on, or Not-Nova (screw you I'm calling him that now), but I love the fact that an entire new bot was engineered to replace the G2 Prime mold, and that this only adds an extra 20-30 bucks onto the price of the trailer. But mostly, it just looks badass.
5.
Echotransformers' FoC Bruticus Add-on set - gotta give a fellow ".ca" member some love here!
Having first seen it used on the FoC Predaking from this year's TFcon charity project, I've been itching to get my hands on it for my own retail Brutey. The set upgrades a toy that is flawed by design, and makes it both a bit more game accurate, and a LOT more bearable to look at. Echo, great job mate!
THE BAD:
Botcon 2013 Megaplex - probably tipped my hand a tad too early, but I want to get this out of the way. I bought the set knowing Megaplex was in it....but never truly got why it was so bad. Then I transformed it....or rather, tried to, got frustrated, and left it in the Botcon box for the remainder of TFcon. I get why Blitzwing could be a contender, but he's bad because of bad design oversight; Megaplex is bad because the club made no effort. I disliked the Dreadwing mold to begin with. Also their explanation for WHY they used it is the cherry on the bullshit sundae. I wish I could swap this guy for Electro....least it's a mold I like.
