Hot Wheels Designer Manson Cheung dropped this on Instagram today:
You have to look closely, but in front of the rear hover wheels is the infamous “TH” signifying this is a Super Treasure Hunt. It will be out later in 2019, and it has stirred quite the reaction.
First off, to some of you, calm the ______ down. Some of the comments have been downright embarrassing. So one Super is different than what you are used to and you act like the sky is falling. It’s not.
Second, I’ve seen it asked how this could be a Super if there is no spectraflame paint and no Real Riders. (The hover “wheels” are part of the base). Well, there is a really easy answer for that. It is because Hot Wheels decided to make it a Super. If someone can produce an official Super TH Rulebook that states it has to have spectraflame paint and Real Riders with something different I will stand corrected.
Lastly, it this that bad? Different is sometimes good. 15 Supers a year, and out of the last 100 or so is a little different. If this Super becomes a pegwarmer, I will once again stand corrected.
Supers are a little wink that Hot Wheels throws at collectors. They are fun to find, no matter what the Super is. Yeah, I prefer enhanced versions of real cars, but I will not complain about any choice the team makes. It is their prerogative. And if it is all that bad, vote for it as Worst Super at the 2019 Lamley Awards.
Here is a suggestion. You must be a passionate collector, so look into a little bit. We like our designers to be passionate as well, and there is no one more passionate about the Delorean than Manson Cheung. He owns one, he’s designed the stock and BTTF Deloreans we have seen in the mainline, and that passion made this one a Super on the 30-year anniversary of Back to the Future II.
And that isn’t all in the photo. Check out the Delorean in the background. That is the upcoming Entertainment version with train wheels. It is coming soon as well.
The Hot Wheels Designers give us a lot of cool models, many of which are passion projects. Think Brendon Vetuskey with the ’55 Gasser, Ryu Asada with an array of Hondas, even marketing guru Jimmy Liu with the S15 Silvia. And think Manson Cheung with the Delorean. We all benefit, and it makes collecting WHATEVER you are into that much more fun.
We will now return to our regularly scheduled program of complaining about scalpers.
As long as it means they’re re-releasing it in the mainline. I’d like to get a second one. I’m also pretty sure that casting still has wheels underneath.
Cool! I bet the basic version will have the regular silver paint that the Deloreans in the mainline usually get, so this will basically be Spectraflame silver – and it replicates the stainless steel body of a Delorean.
It’s not the first Super without Real Riders anyway. The superb Hammer Sled from 2007 has that honor. 🙂
I haven’t heard the drama but for those complaining leave them behind for those who don’t.
This really doesn’t bother me. Having a little more to differentiate it from the mainline version is always nice, but really in the end, the little “TH” is enough to make it a treasure hunt, and it’s enough to make it a special find if one is lucky enough to stumble across it. All the myriad versions of the BTTF DeLoreans are getting hard to keep track of, so at least this one is the “hover mode” version.
If they had made this one a stainless steel body instead of regular aluminium casting, this sure would have 1 upped the realism of DeLorean.
This situation strikes me as being similar to Abe Lugo’s position. I got the impression that higher ups in Mattel are often forcing Abe to adhere to what they want in the brand against his desires. I wouldn’t be surprised to find that a Mattel Executive said: “Hey, how can we avoid those costly real riders on $1 cars…” Thus this super was born. It strikes me as odd to not use the myriad of Time Machines with wheels since real riders are a big part of the super upgrade. It’s a shame to not have real riders to me. However, I will still pick up this super if I find it.
Finally, be careful to not to confuse complaining and criticism.
Damn scalpers!
Rarely do I find a super so I would be happy if I find this one.
I don’t have a problem with the Zamac body but I do with the “hover mode” they chose. I’d have rather seen the non-hover mode DeLorean or better yet just a stock one. I’m not going to complain but tbh this isn’t my cup of tea.
I hate this stupid $TH BTTF Delorean…
because scalpers will snatch them all up and flip ’em for 20 times the retail price! 😉
As someone who has only ever seen 1 Super in all my life, I do not have any issue with the lack of Spectraflame paint and Real Rider wheels. I have no “investment” in what Supers are “supposed to be”. I just see this as a cool model done up with all the extra detailing, that I’d love to add to my collection. So Hot Wheels designers, keep mixing it up!