The Sad News First...
I've save the best for last and perhaps the last indeed. This is sadly the last edition of the Foldabots Blog. Why you asked me? My old friend John Dave Salazar commented me on my last blog and he quote:
Though the story line and toy line hasn't reached victory lap, it is understood that Foldabots is done. Which means a massive plot hole left behind in the comic series, and Electricus incomplete. Shouldn't they release Tagas and Electricus' last parts on the next two months and have done with it? Just to show that it is finally done? And due to the nature of cancellation, Toy Book 9 is confirmed cancelled alongside the syndicated Chronicles release of the comics. I know I've been doing this blog for 4 years now, and I guess it's my time to perhaps retire from this and move on. And like Hoodie said it's the new editors at K-Zone who's to blame for killing off Foldabots. We the fans, don't have the power to stop them and it's their choice to end this once and for all. But what if we had the power to tell those editors to finish the toy line (save the comics, since it would be better to continue online) by October, so that we could complete Electricus and end the toy line peacefully with respect and no complains from the Folda-Fans. I also assume by now, that a lot of fans on Facebook are throwing a massive tantrum in the group by now, since there will be no more Foldabots next month."Hi, this is John Dave Salazar, better known as "Hooded Cloak" on the internet. I have worked under Jomike Tejido for the last two Foldabot Summer Workshops and I regret to say that the August 2016 issue of K-Zone Philippines will be the last issue for the Foldabots toys and comics.
This is due to an executive decision made by the new editors of K-Zone Philippines.
Coupled with this decision is the cancellation of all future Foldabots Toy Book and Foldabots Chronicle releases along with future Toy Book events. I just thought I should inform you to spare you from the humiliation of having non-credible blog post."
There may be signs that Foldabots will move on to online and carry over what Jomike Tejido had left after this event. However since KZPH is phasing Foldabots out, there is little hope that we could still get the last half of Electricus--The Last Foldabot Gestalt ever. And maybe just maybe, Foldabots will fold out into their own magazine and start anew.
I myself had been a Foldabots fan since 2008 and became a fully-pledged fan a year later when the Foldabots Mini promo came in, and eventually started collecting in series from 2010. I also specialize in making self-made designs over the course of 8 years as a fan, most of which were made on a rather out-of-date version of PowerPoint. Though all of my designs were never published to the magazines, I still have a big role in the fandom as your resident blogger. I also made one of the most infamous fan fictions about Foldabots called Foldabots MegaMix which featured a lot of original characters in the story, and practically retelling the early parts of the main comics' continuity with added back stories.
Top 10 Combiners
And before we finally 'end' TFBB, I'll be sharing to you all, my Top 10 Combiners. Actually, this is going to be two Top 5's each for both Foldabots and Lutabots, just to be fair to everyone.
#10 - Bakunawa Dragon - Ah yes, speaking of MegaMix, I've favored this concept very much. Though I don't know which Transformer he resembles, until recently I found out that he's inspired from Sky Lynx, he's still one of my favorites. In Foldabots MegaMix, Bakunawa's just one part of a super combiner of 12 wristwatch Foldabots, and that's where I got the idea of making a massive humanoid from a dozen.
#9 - Aninotron - Being second to the last, he's practically one of the best designs apart from using a raft of vehicles again to make up a full combiner. Apart from that he's practically the last full combiner so far. I've also made a proper review on this blog a while back, so I urger you to check it out. Though Aninotron had some pros, he also had cons as well. One of its cons is the raft of accessories he had, especially Kadena who happens to have the most.
#8 - Mikrokosmos - This tiny titan is practically one of my favorites in terms of design. Both versions are well made though it would take ages to build all of them especially Higadrone who simply has a lot of spikes to glue. Mikrokosmos was one of my first official Foldabot combiner to complete, thanks largely to buying a lot of back issues at the time when I was striving to find the issues so I could complete a set back then.
#7 - Pestetron - Remember the time I gave voice to these guys in Foldabots: Tribe Wars? Well there are reasons why I chose him. For start, he's influenced by Super Sentai, thanks largely to its color schemes. For second, he's rather easier to build the five than Mikrokosmos. For third, me and Jodasalz decided to do season 2 as a retell of the tournament battle between the Mikrobots and the Pestebots. And finally, he's as balanced in design as Toy Book Mikrokosmos.
#6 - Higantechron - The very first combiner, and yet the original design was more dynamic than the TB2 version. I do like the other version as well though it's more detailed than the other and Kapre's turret can be detached for a weapon, but it lacks a a few stuff that the original had like PUNSO can be attached along with Nuno to form the right leg.
#5 - Sporticus - Having to be designed from Menasor, this Lutabot turned Folabot is unique when it comes to design. The four supercars are based on real models, even though they're not that precise. Buhatron, the car carrier truck is nothing without his minions, especially his robot mode is completely exposed from the top. Combined, he may not have a proper distinct head for the form, but it's still very unique among all 22 gestalts in the series.
#4 - Likastron - Created by Lester Bernaldez, this yet another unique gestalt takes the idea of a two part torso and one unit to form both arms. When assembled, it has some downsides like the bearcat and pangolin heads wanting to point up, that's because it doesn't have weight like Naranja and Leonator of the Zoobots. The torso is one of the most distinct designs, despite it also has cons of falling apart if not handled properly. And the head's basically like Komyutatron by not being a sleeve and inserted into one of the members' head.
#3 - Elementron - Who could ever hate the then most popular combiner in the series? Elementron is rather great in design, whether it's the original version or the Toy Book 1 version. But little of the fans know that he also came out on the relatively obscure Metallic Blind Box collection. He may have tons of pros like the overall design, but he suffers in design flaws too. For example, Alon and Agos forms the legs in what I believe would be the most awkward formation, thus exposing their heads even in gestalt form. With just a simple modification, you can now make the two heads hide in combined mode. Also, you could give him a rather stabilized configuration by tucking the thumbs inside the legs while making sure you have even-length arms.
#2 - Kontrolion - This Lutabot dragon is one of my true favorites. Not only he has the best stability in gestalt form, but also has a secret gimmick that can combine with Komyutatron to form Komyutatrolion. Another great thing about Kontrolion, is that the torso is made up of a female member of the Supremobots--Amihanator, one of the biggest in terms of wingspan.
Honorable Mentions:
Saurotron - I love the way they got up with the idea of dinosaurs for a gestalt, especially with the unifying color scheme like what we got with the G1 Dinobots. He gets the best height when he gets heels from Sugod and Tusok's front legs.
Yelotron - Based solely to the Saurobots, the series' very first Lutabot combiner, is perhaps a little smaller than their rival, but the stability is excellent from factory floor level.
Zootron - When built wrong, he's very terrible. When built right, he becomes more intimidating. I've also talked about it on this blog last year, which I also pointed out some guides to make him less awkward-looking.
Magmatron - With Toy Book 9 already cancelled, there's little hope for me to get the last piece of the Magmabots--Apoy. Though he suffers from major stability problems, he seems to be fine not to mention being one of the few published works of Malvin Roix Orense.
#1 - Komyutatron - There's no much argue about this guy, he's probably the best combiner in aesthetic and design terms. He's got the best stability, the best arm connectivity, and practically the tallest gestalt in the whole series. He gets even more taller when combined with Kontrolion. Beat that, Foldabots. No one can win against this colossus.
Last few messages before I end...
With so much creativity in most Folda-Fans these days, I guess it's not the end of the line for this 100% Filipino toy line. And like I said, there are signs that Foldabots will still continue on, even though the people at K-Zone Philippines decided to 'abruptly' end the series. The comics could soon be seen monthly online rather than on print, starting next month. And what about Electricus? They said they're not going to continue that anymore, but there might be some rumors that KZPH will still release the last two parts, even though they've already ended it in August, as some sort of victory lap.
And maybe just maybe, we'll be getting them on a different magazine starting next month if Jomike Tejido gets accepted by the new guys to carry on Foldabots. One of the possible new owners of the toy line would be the same guys who published Sanctuaries, if they accepted the deal of moving out of K-Zone and into Foldabots' new home.
As for yours truly, I might re-brand the blog whether we'll get confirmations of Foldabots' new home or not, as The Foldabots Archive or The New Foldabots Blog. But I will still make more new designs if I feel like making one and keep this fire burning in the near future, besides having to come up with new ideas that can make the toy line even more interesting.
And on behalf of all the fans of Jomike Tejido's Foldabots who had been supporting the toy line over for the past 10 years, young and old, veteran and rookie, THIS HAS BEEN THE FOLDABOTS BLOG, THE PREMIER JOURNAL OF JOMIKE TEJIDO'S FOLDABOTS, IS NOW SIGNING OFF FOR ONE LAST TIME.
GOODBYE AND THANK YOU FOR READING US OVER THE PAST 4 YEARS...
