Decepticon Air Superiority, 2021 !

May 17th, 2021 Comments off

I haven’t posted anything in so long. This blog seriously needs some love, so I’m doing one today. And once again, a bunch of random Decepticon jets are lying about here and there. Which means it’s time for another Decepticon Air Superiority post!

Prior such posts in years past:
2012
2017

Here are the jets to give the Autobots nightmares in 2021.

All 5 jets come from different TF toylines. In order of release:

  • Dreadwing is from Transformers Prime Beast Hunters
  • Armada Starscream is from Generations Thrilling 30
  • Snapdragon is from War From Cybertron: Earthrise
  • Cyclonus is from War From Cybertron: Kingdom
  • Scourge is from Studio Series 86

In terms of continuity, Cyclonus and Scourge are obviously related in G1, with Snapdragon appearing with them a season later in the US continuity. Armada Starscream and Dreadwing are on their own.

As for the toys, Armada Starscream and Dreadwing are fairly outdated by today’s standards. These are still good mass-retail deluxe figs to pick up and play with. They present no challenge transformation-wise, and both figs look decent in both modes.

In my last post I reviewed Kingzilla, a 3rd party MP homage to Snapdraon. Here we have the official CHUG version of the same character released in the WFC Earthrise line. And just like Kingzilla, I like WFC Earthrise Snapdragon quite a bit. This is a fun figure, easy to transform between the 3 modes. Not only that, all 3 modes look fantastic. This is not an easy feat by any means for a Triple Changer. Of course the Headmaster gimmick is still in place. Krunk functions as the head for both robot and dragon, and he can sit in the cockpit in jet mode. G1 purists may whine over the minor alteration in transformation scheme, in that the jet nosecone become part of the legs instead of being on the robot’s back. Personally I don’t see it as a big deal.

The 2 newest figure here are Cyclonus and Scourge. I acquired them both in 2021. It’s unclear to me why the 2 figs are released in separate toylines. Cyclonus could have easily been released as part of Studio Series 86 as well. Perhaps he has an appearance in Kingdom, the upcoming final chapter of War For Cybertron.

WFC Kingdom Cyclonus is hands down the best Cyclonus that has ever been made. This one easily tops my other Cyclonus figures, such as the one from Generations or Combiner Wars. WFC Cyclonus looks great in both modes. The jet mode is nice and sleek, while the robot mode is proportionate and toon-accurate. Transformation is pure joy. For a mass produced toy, the transformation difficulty is above average yet very satisfying. There are enough steps to fully qualify this piece as geared towards collectors, but at the same time the whole process is intuitive and ingenious. The jet nosecone transformation deserves special mention. The entire unit folds and compacts into itself that it’s the perfect way for Cyclonus to go from alt to robot. Construction of the figure is superb as well. Cyclonus gets the highest recommendation from me.

Studio Series 86 Scourge is a terrific addition as well. I don’t think he’s as good as Cyclonus, but this is also without a doubt the best Scourge figure made to date. Both modes look good. The robot mode is toon-accurate, while the alt mode replicates that boat-looking space craft that he’s supposed to be. The transformation is tweaked a bit from G1 so that SS86 Scourge is not as much a shell-former. It does take some work to align all panels of the alt mode, but it can be done with just a bit of effort. In alt mode, SS86 Scourge can be configured with his head exposed above the space craft, something we often he him do in the G1 cartoons and Movie. Hardcore G1-ers will probably multiples of this figure to create a Sweep army. This makes even more sense if some 3P will create a head for the Sweeps (basically Scourge minus the mustache).

So who’s leading this bunch? Other than Snapdragon, all the others have a claim to Decepticon leadership. Though individually, Snapdragon may be the most powerful.

Transform and Roll Out.
 

Categories: Pics

KFC Toys Kingzilla and Komodus Quick Review

April 12th, 2021 Comments off

The Horrorcons are one of my most treasured subgroups from G1 Season 4. They are both Triple Changers and Headmasters, successfully combining the two gimmicks. My cousin had both Apeface and Snapdragon, and I was super envious since I had neither. I remember playing with his Apeface quite a bit, but not Snapdragon. I also remember buying Apeface for my best friend at the time. Those were the days.

The jet modes of both G1 Apeface and Snapdragon are really good. But their other modes left a lot to be desired. In robot mode, both of them look like they are wearing diapers with legs that are way too short. And in beast mode, both figures suffer from having way too much bulk in the main trunk section. Even for G1 standards, all modes other than the jet modes were horrible (pun intended).

When I started collecting TFs again in the modern era, I knew Hasbro would update the Horrorcons at some point. And they did. We saw WFC Siege Apeface in 2019, and WFC Earthrise Snapdragon in 2020. It took them longer to do the Horrorcons than I thought they would, but better late than never.

As much as I loved the Horrorcons, it would be absurd to expect HasTak to make official Masterpiece versions of the duo. So it was inevitable that a 3P company would attempt it. Enter KFC. This is Keith’s Fantasy Club, and not the famous fried chicken chain. KFC released their takes on MP style Horrorcons, around 2017. And as far as I know, they’re the only 3P to attempt it thus far. Are Horrorcons not as popular as I thought? Am I the only TransFan that like them? The horrors!

I acquired KFC Kingzilla (aka Snapdragon) in 2020 on a sale. Prior to that, the only KFC product I have are these E-Nergeon Cubes. They’re not bad, but this product alone is hardly an indicator of the quality of KFC’s offerings. Kingzilla is my first real figure from KFC. So how good is Kingzilla? Let’s find out. But first let’s first take a look at the box and what’s inside.

Box and Contents

Front of the box.

Back of the box. Gotta love this bio. Riches! Fembots! TFs apparently value much the same things humans do.

Look at all the stuff inside! Kingzilla comes with:

  • 2 rifles
  • a magnetic metal plate for Komodus to stand on
  • 2 chest blast or flame thrust effects
  • extra face for KFC Kingorilla (Apeface), attached to Kongor (Spasma)
  • 2 extra red parts that I assume is a fix or enhancement for Kingorilla
  • bio card
  • instruction book and comic

Another accessory is a stand to be used in jet mode. I didn’t actually try this. Kingzilla is a heavy figure, and I’m not entirely sure this stand can fully support the weight for an extended period of time. But don’t say KFC doesn’t love you. They included everything but the kitchen sink in this package. Bravo.

Robot Mode

I always start with the mode that the figure comes packed in.

That is one awesome looking MP style Snapdragon. This is a big and beefy figure. The colors are G1 accurate. Materials used on the figure is superb, with high quality plastic and die-cast. Kingzilla really has presence, he impresses by appearance and size alone.

Smart observers will notice that the above pic does not show the figure in a standard traditional A-stance. And that leads me to the first very noticeable issue with Kingzilla. See below.

The legs are on ratchets, and this is the first position swinging outwards. It’s way too wide! Quite a few TFs share this problem. Generations Jetfire is the first figure that comes to my mind. Someone should coin a term to describe this problem.

The pic above shows the legs perfectly straight. So it’s either this, the super wide A-stance, or some kind of modified action stance to have Kingzilla posed in a standing position. This issue does mark down the figure a bit for me. But on the bright side, this is about the only real weakness with this figure. It’s all good news from here.

Looking at Kingzilla from the side. The obvious distraction here is that huge backpack which makes up the jet mode nosecone. But it doesn’t bother me that much. Notice the super long heel spurs, which provides great stability for the figure.

Another shot of the side, with the arms raised, to get a better look at the sides of the body and legs.

Back of the figure. A bit bulky, but I like how it looks.

As I look through these pics of the robot mode, I realize almost all of them has Kingzilla holding the 2 rifles. So here I offer a pic without the rifles, in his wide A-stance.

Pretty good face sculpt. This is how I remember Snapdragon looking, in the animation.

KFC did not forget the chest tech specs that was a feature on all G1 Headmasters. The specs automatically come up upon inserting the Headmaster. Seeing this unnecessary but nice gimmick brings me back to the 80s. I yearn for the 80s.

Kingzilla in an action pose. There is quite a bit of articulation points in robot mode. However, some issues hinder the overall articulation. A lot of the joints are on ratchets, so it does limit the positioning. The bigger issue, however, is that this is a large and heavy figure. There are poses that are achievable, but the figure won’t hold it due to its own weight. The big backpack also makes the figure back heavy, limiting poses where Kingzilla is leaning backwards.

Here is Kingzilla with those chest blast effects. I guess Snapdragon did this somewhere in the G1 animation, though personally I don’t remember it. Kudos to KFC for including it. Nipple blast action never gets old.

Now for some size comparisons.

With MP-36 Megatron. I like how these scale. In the wide Kingzilla A-stance, Megatron is actually a bit taller, if you compare where their eyes are. But Kingzilla is overall bigger, buffer, and beefier. That’s how I would expect these 2 to scale.

With WFC Earthrise Snapdragon.

Before we get to the other modes, let’s take a look at the Headmaster Komodus (Krunk).

Komodus looks pretty good. I can’t say how close he resembles the G1 toy or cartoon, since I don’t pay close attention to the Headmaster Nebulans.

Here is Komodus with the magnetic stand. I don’t detect any magnets when Komodus is placed on it, so it’s possible this is not magnetic at all. Now that I think about it, I’m not sure where I learned that this is supposed to be magnetic. Not a big deal, I can’t see myself using this accessory often.

I’m very pleased with the robot mode overall, though it is my least favorite mode of the 3. The obvious weakness is that super wide A-stance. The big backpack could turn off some fans as well. But he’s got way more positives than negatives in this mode. He’s a big, imposing figure, built with solid materials. Superb construction with tight ratchets. Nice paintjob with G1 accurate colors. Enough articulation at most of the joints that need them.

Jet Mode

The instructions start off with going from robot to jet first, so that’s the mode we’ll look at next.

That is one sleek and awesome looking jet!

Here we see the jet in another angle. It’s very G1 accurate, as far as the shape of the jet. KFC opted to use a dark silver as the overall color, instead of Snapdragon’s G1 off-white. Some fans bash this decision, but I personally don’t see it as a big deal. Maybe KFC will release a repaint later with more G1 accurate colors. If this was Hasbro, I know they will.

Looking at the jet directly from the front. From this angle you almost don’t see the wings. Kingzilla is a long jet with wings way in the back. Kinda reminds of the Cobra Night Raven S3P from G.I.Joe Real American Heroes.

Looking at the back of the jet. From this angle, you can easily see the wings, rear vertical stabilizers, and main thrusters. I should have took a pic where the flame effects are used on the thrusters. Notice the rifles are attached under the wings.

Underside of the jet. It’s pretty clean. The bulk of the body is nicely incorporated into the jet as part of the overall transformation scheme. This is partly due to the original G1 design.
It was obvious that the G1 toy designers prioritized the jet mode first, and Kingzilla adheres to that same overall G1 scheme almost to a fault. The landing gears are deployed in the above pic. The two rear landing gears on the legs can be a bit tough to deploy and retract.

A cool gimmick of Kingzilla (and Kingorilla too) is controls that light up inside the cockpit. The pic above shows it lighted. I love this gimmick.

Here is a shot of Komodus sitting inside the cockpit of Kingzilla in jet mode. Notice the controls are lighted too. The lights are activated by the black switch, to the right of Komodus, at the base where the cockpit opens. Opening the cockpit will automatically flip the lights on. The black switch is accessible from the outside too, without having to open the cockpit.

for size comparison, I’m reusing a pic I took when I did the DX9 Gewalt review. Here are these 2 figures together in jet mode.

Kingzilla’s jet mode is my favorite of the 3 modes. I honestly see no weaknesses with this mode. It’s nice and sleek with no bulk. All parts come together well with solid construction and no dangling parts. The jet mode balances well on the 3 landing gears. The controls light up gimmick, though unnecessary, is too cool to ignore. This jet mode gets an A+.

Dragon Mode

It’s not clear to me what Kingzilla’s beast mode is supposed to be. But since his name is Snapdragon, I’m gonna go with dragon. Whether this is a walking komodo dragon, a mythological dragon, or some kind of future space T-Rex type dragon, your guess is as good as mine. All I know is Kingzilla looks quite fearsome in this mode.

That is a great looking interpretation of Snapdragon in beast mode. It’s very G1 accurate, as far as overall look and colors. The twin cannons on the back screams G1. The purple neck attachment that Komodus connects to really nailed the G1 cartoon look. The way that the jet nosecone bends up as the dragon tail is so G1 it’s criminal. If I have one complaint about this mode, is that the dragon arms are a bit skinny. In these pics they look ok, but they look skinnier in person. Construction of these arms also feel somewhat flimsy, when considering that the rest of the figure is so robust and solid.

A shot of the dragon from the side.

Kingzilla dragon back view.

Close up of the dragon head. Komodus looks great as the head of the dragon as well. The jaw can be opened and closed, ready to bite on hapless Autobots, or anyone foolish enough to challenge Kingzilla.

Size comparison of Kingzilla in dragon mode with MP Megatron.

With Siege Snapdragon, both in dragon modes.

Kingzilla terrorizing WFC Earthrise Airwave. Why would these 2 characters ever be together in the entire TF-verse? They wouldn’t. Airwave was handy on my desk when I needed a victim for Kingzilla.

One aspect of Kingzilla I didn’t mention til now is the transformation engineering. In short, this figure is not at all difficult to transform, especially for a figure of this size. Some modern day MP style TFs go overboard with the transformation complexity. Not Kingzilla. This is a figure where any decent TransFan can quickly figure out the transformation scheme of all 3 modes without looking at the instructions. And on top of that, all 3 modes look pretty damn good. This is a testament to the design engineering achieved by KFC.

TL;DR

In summary, I highly recommend Kingzilla. He’s a big and solid figure, scaling well with other MPs, official or otherwise. He’s well built with excellent materials, much of the figure is composed of high quality plastic and die-cast. Construction of the figure is superb, with tight joints and ratchets. Design and colors of the figure screams G1. He comes with plenty of accessories. The figure has several interesting gimmicks. All 3 modes look great without a super complex transformation.

Kingzilla is a figure you need in your collection. If you can find one now, buy it.

Transform and Roll Out.

 

Categories: Pics, Toy Reviews

Transformers Purchased in January 2019

February 21st, 2021 Comments off

2019 started off with a bang. War For Cybertron: Siege is now available in full force. Last month we got a taste of it with Battlemasters, which is the modern term for Targetmasters. 2019 begins with the full-fledged figures in WFC Siege.

No 3P or 4P products this month.

  • War For Cybertron Siege Hound, amazon.com, $19.99

  • War For Cybertron Siege Sideswipe, amazon.com, $19.99

  • War For Cybertron Siege Cog, Walmart, $19.96

  • War For Cybertron Siege Megatron, amazon.com, $29.99

  • War For Cybertron Siege Optimus Prime, amazon.com, $29.99

  • War For Cybertron Siege Roadhandler and Swindler, Target, $9.99

  • Power of the Primes Wreck-Gar, Walgreens, $17.99

  • Studio Series Dropkick, Walmart, $18.84

Hound

Hound was one of my favorite characters from G1, so I am happy that 2019 kicks off with Hound as the very first figure.

The WFC Siege figure does justice to Hound. The alt mode is tough and rugged. The vehicle rolls well on a flat surface, and the whole thing comes together as a solid cohesive unit. The green paint job is nice, with painted-on decals of the Autobot symbol and the star that pays good homage to G1 Hound. The are peg holes for all the accessories.

Transformation to robot mode is nothing we haven’t seen before, but for Hound that’s not necessarily a bad thing. The only thing worth noting that’s a bit different is the leg transformation. The side panels of the vehicle unpegs, and the whole unit wraps around inwards to form the legs. We have seen this mechanism before on other figs, but it’s refreshing to see this on Hound. The hood of the car forms the chest and arms come out from underneath the sides. Overall, a very straightforward transformation.

In robot mode, WFC Hound does not disappoint. He’s iconic Hound in all the right ways. From the colors, the overall shape, and his trademark face sculpt, no TransFan will mistake this character for any other. The figure is well built with the right joint tolerances. Most fans should be happy with the level of articulation for a $20 toy.

Hound comes with 3 accessories. He still has his trademark shoulder-mounted missile launcher that is highly reminiscent of G1 (no missiles, unfortunately). He comes with a rifle that bears little resemblance to what he had in G1. And he has a circular accessory that can be pegged behind the rifle as a cartridge. In alt mode, this round accessory can be positioned to look like the spare tire he had in G1.

I recommend WFC Hound without reservations.

Sideswipe

WFC Sideswipe is the next figure acquired in 2019. Sideswipe is another one of my favorites, 2019 is starting off on the right foot.

In alt mode, WFC Sideswipe is a nice and sleek looking Cybertronian car. The paint job is superb, and the painted-on Autobot logo on the hood is sharp and spot-on. All parts of the figure come together well in alt mode with no loose or dangling bits. The gun and shoulder cannon accessories can be combined together as a super cannon and pegged on top of the car. A nice alt mode all in all.

Just like Hound, transformation of Sideswipe from alt to robot is pretty standard fare. It follows the tried-and-true Sideswipe transformation formula that we’ve known since G1 without too much deviation. A 180 degree waist rotation is required for WFC Sideswipe, but that in itself is nothing revolutionary. WFC Siege Sideswipe is a fun figure to just pick up and play.

The robot mode of this figure is pure classic Sideswipe in terms of appearance and design. The face sculpt, the car-hood chest, and the shape of the arms and legs, all scream G1 Sideswipe. Articulation is decent enough for a toy of this class. I detect no construction issues on my copy, all joints operate flawlessly.

Sideswipe comes with 2 accessories: a gun and a shoulder cannon. As mentioned already, they can be combined into a super cannon, for use in both robot and alt modes. G1 purists will probably bash these weapons as being non G1 accurate, but that falls into hardcore nitpicking.

If I was to mention one negative about both Hound and Sideswipe, it’s that their Cybertronian alt modes look too much like Earth alt modes. Hound is basically a Jeep with some Cybertronian modifications here and there, while Sideswipe’s Cybertronian sports car could pass as a Lamborghini concept. From a story perspective, I find it hard to believe that their alt modes would resemble their Earth alt modes to such a high degree. But that’s me nitpicking on the design. Rating purely on the merit of the figure, both Hound and Sideswipe are exceptional. No true G1 fan would pass on these figures. Get them.

Cog

Cog is a character with G1 origin. He was the combined robot form of Gasket and Grommet, accessory vehicles that came with G1 Fortress Maximus. Titans Return Fortress Maximus was released without the vehicles or Cog, so it’s good to see him made as part of the WFC Siege line.

A gimmick of the WFC Siege line are Weaponizer figures. This means they transform between robot and alt modes by mostly detaching and re-attaching parts of the figure. And more importantly, since the parts detach, they can be used as weapons for other WFC Siege figs. Cog is a Weaponizer. This role fits this character really well, since in G1 he was assembled from two vehicles (sort of like Duocons).

The robot and alt modes of WFC Siege Cog is solid. I’ve only seen pictures of G1 Cog, but as far as I can tell, Siege Cog pays good homage to its G1 roots. Transformation, as described already, is mostly puzzle forming. Personally I’m not a big fan of puzzle forming. But I understand the role that Weaponizers serve, and Cog does have parts forming G1 roots.

This figure truly shines when he is used as weapons and accessories to enhance other figures. Most WFC Siege figs have peg holes all over the place. As a Weaponizer, Cog can be disassembled and attached to other Siege figures in all kinds of ways. The instructions will give some official configurations as to how Cog can be used. But some TransFans have came up with some very creative ways for Cog to shore up other Siege figs to make them look extra ready for battle. Weaponizers really add a lot of replay value to the WFC Siege line. The whole thing still feels a tad too gimmicky for me, but it’s a good gimmick.

Megatron

WFC Siege Megatron is the first Voyager class figure this month. The Decepticon leader needs no introduction. In terms of design, this figure is completely based on G1 Megatron aesthetics in the 80s cartoon. The head, chest, and abdomen designs scream G1 Megatron. The arms and legs are also heavily G1 based, the designs retooled from the Earth mode appearance for a Cybertronian look. There are small bits on the shoulders that retains the G1 gun hammer protrusions. And of course the fusion cannon, the most iconic thing about Megatron, is well intact. I mean that both figuratively and literally, as the cannon cannot be detached from the figure. WFC Siege Megatron is well-proportioned. No weird G1 Megatron toy proportions here. He comes with a sword accessory, which I feel is kind of unnecessary. All in all, there’s a lot to be liked about the robot mode.

Transformation from robot to tank feels rehashed from, most notably, Generations Thrilling 30 Megatron and Combiner Wars Megatron. The arms come together over the back and squeezes the fusion cannon between them, collectively forming the turret. The legs rotate and fold to form the rear tank treads. The front tank treads that is stored on the back in robot mode folds outwards and rotates down for alt mode. And if you’re saying you have seen this movie before, I don’t blame you.

In tank mode, Megatron is distinctively Cybertronian. Other than the colors, he does not resemble his G1 Earth mode. In my opinion that’s a good thing, since all the other WFC Siege figs this month have their alt modes resemble their Earth forms a bit too much. The main turret does rotate a full 180, but the main cannon cannot be angled up or down. Tank treads are obviously non-working, and plastic wheels are present under each tread for actual movement. My biggest gripe about this mode is that the tank does not feel cohesive enough. The tabs that peg the front treads to the main body don’t seem to work that well. There is nothing pegging the front and rear tread together. The alt mode could have been much more stabilized if these few shortcomings were corrected.

Of all the WFC Siege figures acquired this month, I recommend Megatron the least. Overall he’s still fairly solid, and TF diehards will of course get a Megatron for their collection so what I say here probably won’t stop anybody from buying one. But if for some reason you had to cut one figure this month, Megatron gets my vote. Besides, in the months that follow, HasTak will repaint this numerous times. You will have many more opportunities to get one.

Optimus Prime

It’s no surprise that an Optimus Prime figure would be part of the first wave. Besides Megatron, the iconic Autobot leader is the other Voyager class figure we get in WFC Siege in the first wave. And this figure does not disappoint.

In robot mode, there’s no mistaking this character for anyone else. Prime’s iconic head and truck cab body are in full display. The colors and proportions of the figure are everything that you’ve come to expect from a G1-based Optimus Prime figure in the modern era. The included rifle unmistakably belongs to Prime. The figure also comes with an axe, and it never ceases to amaze me that Optimus only used the axe in one scene in G1 and all these toys accessories have been made for it for the past 25 years. Siege Optimus is quite poseable, with articulation points at all the places you expect.

Transformation to alt mode utilizes the standard overall scheme that’s been in place for Optimus since G1. There are some slight variations here and there, but there should be no surprises here for the seasoned TransFan. In this case it’s not a bad thing, and Optimus in any G1 reincarnation is too iconic for experimentation. The alt mode comes together nicely. Everything tabs into place where it should, with nothing dangling around. Prime rolls well on a flat surface. There are peg holes aplenty for both accessories. The axe blade and handle can both be compacted and tucked away. Much like Hound and Sideswipe, my only gripe is that his Cybertronian alt mode resembles way too closely to the cab of an Earth semi-trailer truck. I actually prefer his Cybertronian designs from the War For Cybertron video games or the War Within comics published by Dreamweave.

Hasbro has another winner with WFC Siege Optimus. Construction of the figure is solid all throughout. Everything is at the right tolerance. This figure does not take the Autobot Leader into uncharted toy territory, but it doesn’t need to. What this figure does, it does very well. Recommended.

Roadhandler and Swindler

Roadhandler and Swindler are the first Micromasters that I bought in the modern era. I have some G1 Micromasters, that I reviewed here. And just like G1, WFC Micromasters are released in packs and not individually. Roadhandler and Swindler make up the Autobot Race Car Patrol. Roadhandler is the red one, and Swindler (not to be confused with the infamous Swindle of Combaticons) is the grey one. I had to Google which is which.

In alt mode, these 2 figures ain’t too shabby. They each tab together well to form a cohesive unit. You can also easily tell what the alt modes are supposed to be. Roadhandler looks like a 80s Trans Am, while Swindler looks like a DeLorean (of Back to the Future fame). They are small, but you knew that going in.

Transformation is super obvious so I won’t even describe it. If you have played with any transforming robots at any time in your life, you know how these 2 transforms. The robot modes are mediocre at best. Because the transformation is so limited, the robot modes themselves are limited. All joints are cheap plastic ball joints, and parts love to pop off during transformation. For robots this small, I don’t know why they bother with articulation. It’s not like there’s much there to begin with. I much rather they sacrifice leg articulation for more stability. Roadhandler’s car hood ends up on his back, creating a back-heavy robot mode that doesn’t stand well.

A gimmick of these 2-pack WFC Siege Micromasters is that they will combine with each other to form a super weapon, for use with bigger WFC Siege figs (like Hound or Sideswipe). Roadhandler and Swindler will combine to form a cannon. But it’s so awful looking, like 2 half transformed cars stacked on top of one another. If you get this 2 pack, don’t even bother with this mode. I would later get Storm Cloud and Visper, and they do the weapon combination thing much, much better.

Roadhandler and Swindler retails for $10. I don’t think they are entirely worth it at this price. If you can find them for $5 or less, go for it. At more than that, you should stop and check yourself. There’s no shame in walking away from these 2.

Wreck-Gar

Last month I mentioned that Predaking was my final purchase from Power of the Primes. I was mistaken. The final purchase from that line is Wreck-Gar. I totally forgot about this purchase. It was never opened, and went straight to a box in my storage unit after purchase.

PotP Wreck-Gar is essentially a minor rework off of Protectobot Groove, from Combiner Wars. Hardcore TransFans like myself bought this store exclusive figure to complete the Protectobots and form Defensor in its proper G1 configuration. On its own, Combiner Wars Groove is ok at best.

I was travelling for work when I found Wreck-Far. I stopped into Walgreens for some essentials, and stumbled upon the figure. Wreck-Gar was probably a Walgreens exclusive, since I have not seen this figure anywhere else. I bought this figure for that reason alone. This will probably never get opened.

Dropkick

The only non WFC Siege purchase this month is Dropkick from the Bumblebee movie. Dropkick and his commander Shatter were two Decepticons sent to Earth in pursuit of Bumblebee. Shatter and Dropkick are both triple changers in the movie. To my knowledge, there exist no triple changing figures of these two characters, official or otherwise. It’s much like how they never made an Age of Extinction Drift that will transform into both a car and a helicopter, just one or the other. And in that tradition, Hasbro made figures that will only transform to one alt mode. Studio Series figure 22 is Dropkick that will transform into the chopper.

Dropkick is not half bad in chopper alt mode. The main body feels kinda skinny, but it reflects the look of this vehicle in real life. The details on the figure is more than sufficient for a figure at this price point. Painted logos of the US Air Force, the Jolly Roger, and caution signs provide some nice accents to the overall look. The main and tail rotors are both working. The canopy uses a separate clear piece. Dropkick sits well on his landing skids on a flat surface. There may be a tendency to fall back on the tail, but can be easily made to balance correctly.

Transformation of SS Dropkick is actually quite unique. The lower portion of the chopper body form the legs, while the tail boom become the arms. Cockpit folds down to form the chest, and during this process the head is revealed as well. Upper portion of the chopper body rotates 180. There’s a bit more transformation detail that I’m not describing, but that’s the high level summary. The overall transformation is not difficult by any means, but it’s not super intuitive either if you haven’t touched the figure for quite some time.

How I feel about the robot mode is a mixed bag. I can’t get over the fact that it’s such a skinny figure, a look that doesn’t quite resemble his movie appearance. The arms are weird too, being that it’s the chopper tail boom folded. The tail end doesn’t fold onto the arms completely, and are just left dangling to the sides. Articulation is not half bad, but in my opinion uses too many ball joints to achieve this result. The figure in robot mode is relatively proportionate, and balances well on a flat surface. Construction is decent. Some joints are a tad loose, but still offers enough support.

I don’t entirely recommend SS Dropkick, but I don’t hate it either. The alt mode is good and the transformation is refreshing. The robot mode is a bit too skinny and does not accurately resemble how he looks in the movie. And I know this may be unfair, but Bumblebee Dropkick has gotta be a triple changer. Having just one mode feels incomplete.

That will do it for the TFs in January of 2019. Here is the summary if you just want the Cliff Notes version.

Recommended:

  • Hound
  • Sideswipe
  • Cog
  • Optimus Prime

Not Recommended

  • Roadhandler and Swindler
  • Wreck-Gar

You Decide:

  • Megatron
  • Dropkick

Transform and Roll Out.

 

Categories: On The Hunt, Pics

Transformers Purchased in December 2018

December 20th, 2020 Comments off

2018 ends on a high note. There were purchases from official TF lines, 3rd party, and 4th party. A brand new line in the TF CHUG-verse also kicked off this month, which takes us past the Prime Wars Trilogy and into a whole new era. And I think for the first time in the history of this blog, a single character had 3 separate purchases in one month.

That’s a lot to get to. Let’s begin.

  • G1 Bumblebee, Walmart, $7.86

  • Studio Series Grimlock, hasbrotoyshop.com, $39.99

  • War For Cybertron Siege Blowpipe, amazon.com, $5.99

  • War For Cybertron Siege Firedrive, amazon.com, $5.99

  • Power of the Primes Predaking, toydojo.com, $99.99

  • Ocular Max Artifex, toydojo.com, $49.99

  • x-Transbots Toro, eBay seller, $49.21

  • Mech Fans Toys Grmlock, toydojo.com, $24.99

  • Fans Toys Grinder, eBay seller, $141.09

Many of these figures were covered in the special 2018 Black Friday post. I will give more detailed treatment here.

Bumblebee

This is the Generation 1 Bumblebee toy that started it all. This figure needs no introduction. Here we have a Walmart G1 Commemorative re-issue. The head is styled more like Bumblebee in the G1 cartoons and not the original G1 toy.

I have an original G1 Bumblebee. It was not purchased from a store. If memory serves, some kid at my school (who I can’t recall) didn’t want it anymore, so I took it. The figure was never in the best shape. One arm was already somewhat loose and floppy when the figure became mine. But still, this is Bumblebee, so I kept it all this time. The condition of the figure only got worse with age, but I am happy to say I have an original copy of perhaps the most iconic TF character of all time.

When I found this re-issue at Walmart, I found several other G1 Mini-bot re-issues as part of the same wave. But the other bots were not from Season 1 or 2, they were from Season 3. I remember distinctively I saw Outback, Swerve, and Tailgate. Possibly Pipes too. It’s as if they took the Encore Mini Vehicle 5-pack, reproduced the figs, and released them individually. The Bumblebee in this 5-pack also has the G1 cartoon head, which further supports that notion. Anyways, I don’t really care for any of the Season 3 Mini-bots, so I didn’t buy them this time.

This re-issue of Bumblebee remains unopened. It will probably stay that way.

Blowpipe, Firedrive

Blowpipe and Firedrive are my first entries into a new era of Transformers in the CHUG-verse called War For Cybertron: Siege. Much like the Prime Wars Trilogy, War For Cybertron will also be a trilogy. The first chapter is called Siege. This War For Cybertron has nothing to do with the video game series that was first released in the early 2010s.

I have always said that I like the Targetmasters more than the Headmasters. So it is nice to see Targetmasters officially get some love in this new era. And what better way to kick off Siege than with Targetmasters. In this new era, they are called Battlemasters.

G1 fans know that Blowpipe is the weapon for Triggerhappy. More hardcore G1 fans will recognize that Firedrive is really Firebolt, the weapon for Hot Rod (after he is Rodimus Prime no more and became a Targetmaster).

Blowpipe and Firedrive are technically different molds. They transform differently, but it’s virtually identical to each other. Just like G1, the transformation process is painfully simple. These new Battlemasters do have some limited articulation, which is superior to G1 in which there was no articulation at all. In weapon mode, the arms and legs does peg in to designated spots, giving this mode a more cohesive feel. They each come with blast effects. Not really my thing, but some fans will dig it.

At $5.99 each I think the price is a bit high. In my opinion they should be half that. But I still wholeheartedly recommend them.

Grimlock

Studio Series 08 Grimlock is the first Grimlock that is featured in this post. I bought him when he was first released at full MSRP, in the summer of 2018. Then I debated if I really want him, and came to the conclusion that maybe I didn’t. So I returned him to the store.

On Black Friday week of 2018, Hasbro was letting this guy go at $39.99. I had another 10% off coupon, which was valid on top of that price. I couldn’t resist the temptation a second time, so I bought him again, this time for keeps.

So was he worth buying? Yes and no. The T-Rex mode is great. This is the best looking Movie dinosaur that HasTak has ever produced, across all the TF Movie lines. If there is one positive about this figure that everyone agrees on, it’s the paint job. HasTak spared no expense here and really gave this figure a quality paint application that no one would find fault with. The result is a menacing, movie-accurate T-Rex that does justice to the character. At leader class, he also scales well with other SS figs. SS Grimlock is not the first leader class Movie Grimlock made, but it’s the best looking one, by far.

The robot mode, however, is so-so at best. As of this writing, I really don’t remember it too well anymore. I just remember the robot mode being unimpressive. I transformed him to T-Rex, and Grimlock stayed like that for 2 years. This figure is on top of a shelf, all this time. My wife really likes this figure, so it never got put away.

If you can find this fig at a reasonable price, and you must have an awesome looking Movie Grimlock in your collection, then he is a buy.

Predaking

HasTak has finally decided to give their G1 Predacons team a proper update in the modern era. Plenty of 3Ps have given their attempts already, such as the Feralcons by MMC. It’s about time HasTak gave it a go on their own property. And on a related but separate note, this may be my very last purchase from the Power of the Primes line.

When toy companies do a modern update to combiners, they have to prioritize which mode gets the optimization emphasis. In a perfect world, the individual robot modes, individual alt modes, and the combined mode would all be great. In this world, extra combining parts would not be necessary, and the figures would scale nicely at every mode, to other figs and to themselves. We don’t live in that world.

With Predaking, HasTak has very obviously chose to optimize for the combined mode. And it is awesome! I dare say that no 3P or 4P has produced a better looking Predaking, in the modern era. He’s big and proportionate. The arms and legs look proper scale in relation to the body. Predaking is a very stable figure, no issues standing on it’s own weight. For a gestalt, he’s fairly poseable. If this is the only mode you care for, then this is the toy for you.

From here, things unfortunately go downhill. Let’s talk about the individual robot modes next. Some are ok, but none of them are great. Divebomb has to haul around that giant wing/backpack assembly that has no where else to go in this mode. Tantrum and Headstrong both look horrible when viewed from the back. The thigh part in combined mode simply hangs off their backs.

Things get even worse in beast modes. Most of them don’t look all that great. The 4-legged beasts simply look like boxes with legs. Razorclaw feels like the smallest of the 5, despite being the leader and forming the chest. The thigh part in combined mode tucks underneath the body of Tantrum and Headstrong, making for a really weird look.

Extra combiner parts are necessary to form Predaking. They are accounted for in the individual modes. For example, the feet pieces can be held or attached as weapons. Lots of combiner toys use this tactic so HasTak isn’t the only guilty party here, but it is something I wanted point out.

I know all this sounds really negative. But overall I still give Predaking a recommendation. The combined mode is really just that good to justify the other weaknesses in this set. And honestly, I don’t see HasTak making another Predaking anytinme soon. None of the 3P Predakings are perfect, either. Most fans buy this set for Predaking, and in that purpose, this set delivers.

Artifex

Artifex is MMC’s interpretation of a Masterpiece-style Hoist. And I’ll get straight to it: this is a disappointing figure. The design of the figure itself is solid enough, but where things really go south is in the manufacturing. Artifex’s joints are way too loose. He can kind of hold poses, but only if you position it very carefully. The figure during transformation is one floppy mess. Some of Artifex’s accessories also don’t properly fit where they should. One of his cannons is supposed to rotate, but too much paint made it unmovable. I tried to force it, and it just broke. The seller was nice enough to get replacement parts for me (thank you ToyDojo!).

Going back to alt mode, it is extremely difficult to get the whole unit to assemble back together. The joints are just too damn loose. Nothing holds in place. Aligning multiple floppy parts into a cohesive whole of a truck will test even the most patient. When I decided to put Artifex away, I was never able to fully get Artifex back into truck with everything properly tabbed together. I did the best I could and put him back in the box.

As of this writing, I have sold Artifex. One bright point of this is I actually sold Artifex for more than I bought it for. But you should not buy Artifex. I believe the best MP Hoist on the market right now is X-Transbots Paean. I have X-Transbots Aegis (their homage to Trailbreaker). He’s excellent, so I’m hoping Paean is just as good.

Toro

I bought Toro on eBay from a seller based in China. Yes I used eBay again after I ranted against using the platform. I chose not to take my own advice. But this was from a seller I had used before and the transaction was good. I had enough faith to use them again, and they did not disappoint with Toro.

I touched on Toro in the special 2018 Black Friday post, but a lot of it is worth repeating again because he’s just so awesome. He comes in a small box. To me this is already a pro, because when you have as many TFs as I do, you need the space. Toro is packed in alt mode. He is a beautiful race car in this mode, something that more closely resembles an 80’s Porsche than the toy minicar that he was in G1. Some fans knock this for being G1 inaccurate, but I welcome this update.

Transformation to robot mode is straightforward. The robot mode appearance is spot on to the G1 show. Some fans knock it for having a chest that doesn’t transform into the car’s cabin, but I think it’s fine. Toro is pretty poseable, with superb construction and joints at the right tightness. Quality materials are used. The paint job deserves special mention. Really, it looks that good. If I was to compile a top 10 figures with the best paint job, Toro would be in there.

I can’t talk about Toro without mentioning the accessories. He comes with a lot! Upon opening the box, they’re packed on this sled type thing that doubles has his alt mode water-skis and a weapon storage unit. For weapons, he comes with 3 pistols, and that giant bazooka that we saw him use in the first ep of G1.

If you want an MP Cliffjumper, get Toro. It’s that simple.

Grmlock

That is not a typo. This 4th party figure is Grmlock. They dropped one letter in the name but it’s fooling no one. And I think that’s the intent.

Grmlock got a quick mention in a post about my Grimlock collection, the 2nd one made on this blog. One aspect about this figure that’s worth repeating is that he transforms differently from the standard Grimlock scheme that every TransFan is familiar with. And like all the other MFT products of this line, the paint job is superb and the joints are super tight.

I recommend this figure. It’s one of the better G1 style Grimlocks made. I don’t think Grmlock scales well with any of the official TF lines, like CHUG or MP. He may go well with a smaller scale of G1 style figures that many 3rd parties have been pumping out lately, such as those from Newage, Magic Square, Iron Factory, or DX9. And yes, these MFT figs are KOs of DX9 War in Pocket Dinobots. If that changes your opinion about these MFT figures, don’t buy them. If you don’t care, then these KOs deserve a place on your shelf.

Grinder

This is the third and final Grimlock to be featured this month. In Feb of 2016 I got two Onslaughts, and in March of 2018 I got two Sludges. This is probably the first time that one character had three different figures in a single month, and I’m glad that’s Grimlock. He’s an Autobot worthy of such an honor.

Grinder also got a quick mention, in that same post about my Grimlock collection. In short, he’s fantastic. If you want a Grimlock for your MP collection, then Grinder is a required purchase. He scales nicely with other MPs. Both modes look good. He’s well built. Transforms intuitively and smoothly. My only gripe was that I don’t like the default dino head. Apparently a lot of other fans had the same complaint, and so FT produced a 2nd dino head that can be purchased separately. I have since bought this 2nd dino head, but I haven’t tried it yet. I will be sure to do that soon and report back.

I believe my copy of Grinder was the 2nd batch of this figure released by Fans Toys. I did not buy Grinder when first released, because I felt that the official Masterpiece Grimlock (MP-08) represented the the MP Dinobot Leader in my collection. But all the FT Iron Dibots are so well made, and MP-08 is really too small when scaled with them. So I got Grinder to complete the Iron Dibots set when FT re-released the figure. Here are links to the other 4 Iron Dibots:

I was quite fortunate to find Grinder on eBay at such a good price. This was from an eBay seller in China that I had never used. I was hesitant, and the price seemed a tad too good to be true. But the seller had over 1000 positives, so I took a chance. Glad it all worked out. Grinder arrived on 12/31/2018. Just made to cutoff to be included in my 2018 Transformers.

And that does it for 2018. I’m getting way too lazy writing about these purchase posts. It’s now Dec of 2020, and I’m writing about Dec of 2018. Two years behind. Maybe one of my resolutions for 2021 is to catch up on this stuff.

Transform and Roll Out.
 

Categories: On The Hunt, Pics

DX9 Gewalt Quick Review

December 6th, 2020 Comments off

Last week I featured my Blitzwing collection. It started with the robot modes, then jet modes, and ended with tank modes. Thanksgiving week 2020 became Blitzwing week.

I transformed DX9 Gewalt from robot to jet to tank in that span, taking many pictures along the way. This transformation fulfilled one of the goals in my self-imposed Shelter-From-Home Transformer Challenge. (Sidebar: With local COVID cases rising, State authorities where I am have recently imposed an even more strict stay-at-home order. There is a curfew. Some authorities are calling this a lockdown.) And since I just transformed this guy through all his modes, a quick review of this excellent figure is in order.

Let’s start with the box and the goodies packed inside.

Gewalt in the box, packed in tank mode. Notice he comes with his purple rifle and a purple translucent sword. The black accessory is used to help budge certain tight connections during transformation.

Here are Gewalt’s other items and accessories: the instruction book, a bio card, an extra yelling face, one replacement part that looks like it’s for the thighs (not sure if this is for Gewalt or something else), and the rear horizontal stabilizer wings for jet mode. They can be attached in tank mode, but mine came unattached. More on that later.

Also included is this nice poster of Gewalt.

Tank Mode

I always start the review with whatever mode the figure comes packed in.

This is a nice looking tank. Though right off the bat I will say that this looks more like a Cybertronian tank, and not an Earth M1 Abrams tank. The turret and tank treads look Earth mode enough, but the rest of it, not so much. Also, the turret appears too small in relation to the rest of the tank.

The turret can be angled up. Now I just need a MP style Kup to re-create that famous scene from the G1 Movie.

There does seem to be a bit too much purple on Gewalt in tank mode. See those pegs that stick out at the back, near the bottom? That’s where one of the rear wing stabilizers would go, if it was still attached in this mode. The instructions illustrate the entire transformation process with these wings not attached across all 3 modes. But there is room for them, they can be attached and folded in tank mode.

Gewalt directly from the front. Reminds me of the opening sequence in G1 Season 3. Notice you can see where the head is. I know this bothers a lot of fans, but in my opinion it’s not a big deal. More on this later.

Gewalt directly from the back.

A look at the bottom. Most of it cleans up quite well. Again, the one oddity is where the head is situated. I know this appears to be a deal breaker for many fans. But I don’t find myself compulsively looking there, so it’s not a problem for me.

Now for some size comparisons in tank mode.

With MP Thundercracker. These 2 scale quite well in this mode.

With other Blitzwings.

Overall, Gewalt’s tank mode is decent. Personally I think it’s the weakest of the 3 modes, but it’s not bad by any means. My wife actually likes this mode the best.

Jet Mode

Next up is the jet mode. Blitzwing is supposed to be a MiG. In G1, he looks nothing like a MiG, with those thick bulky wings that obviously forms a tank. Gewalt improves upon that in spades.

Now that is a jet that looks way more like a MiG! In G1, I always assumed that Blitzwing’s jet mode is a Cybertronian jet, like Jetfire. I didn’t find out that he’s supposed to be a MiG until the 2000s. With this jet mode, no one will make that mistake.

Another angle of this awesome jet. I love this purple. Totally G1 accurate and looks great too!

An angle from the back. Notice I put on the rear wing stabilizers. You could leave them on for robot mode (more on this later).

Great skinny profile of the jet, looking directly from the front.

Looking directly from the back. Nice looking thrusters.

View from the bottom. Gewalt cleans up quite nicely in jet mode. In this pic the landing gears are retracted, but they easily come out. The tank treads clearly can be seen underneath the wings in this pic. It’s mostly near the body of the jet, so it does not bug me, as the wings themselves are still quite thin.

It is worth noting at this point that the tank turret and main cannon is not seen at the bottom of the jet, like G1 Blitzwing in both the toy and the animation model. Gewalt folds the tank turret into the legs, which forms the back jet area. I think this is pretty cool. But the main cannon has nowhere to go in jet mode. It has to be removed entirely. I wish DX9 made it so the cannon can at least be pegged at the bottom of the jet somewhere. Gewalt’s parts-forming with the main cannon does bother me a bit. I do wish they came up with a way to incorporate it in all 3 modes.

Now for some size comparison pics in jet mode.

With other G1 style Blitzwings.

With MP Thundercracker. These 2 scale amazingly with each other in jet mode. In Transformers: Infiltration, there is a nice overhead panel of Blitzwing and Skywarp in jet mode. Blitzwing is just a tad bigger, like you see in the pic above with Thundercracker. DX9 really got this scale right. Gewalt’s jet mode appearance also looks strikingly similar to how Blitzwing is drawn in Infiltration. Perhaps this was the source material for DX9.

Here I have KFC Kingzilla (aka Snapdragon) with Gewalt in their jet modes. Two big and beefy triple-changers side by side.

Of the 3 modes, Gewalt’s jet mode is my favorite. Now on to the robot mode.

I love the robot mode. This is Blitzwing as he appears in G1. I compared this with some G1 animation models. There are differences here and there, but not nearly enough to say that this is G1 inaccurate. I do wish the nosecone bits that appears on the sides of the waist can be hidden for a cleaner look, but overall it doesn’t bother me too much.

Looking at the side profile, there’s a bit of backpack kibble. But not too bad. In G1 Blitzwing is drawn with a bit of a backpack. Notice the rear wing stabilizers are attached on the legs, on the sides toward the bottom. Again, instructions show them as unattached. This area does look cleaner when the the rear stabilizers are not there. Perhaps that’s why DX9 made them removable. I personally like having all pieces in all modes.

View of the back. Notice the main cannon that is blatantly absent in jet mode can be pegged on to the back. This is too iconic for Blitzwing. Even DX9 would not mess with that look. I don’t really like the look of the heels. They are obviously half of the thrusters on each side. But this is only visible from the back, and in honesty I’m not gonna look there very much. So this gets a pass.

Very nice face sculpt that is unmistakably Blitzwing.

Now for some action poses. Gewalt is kind of a big, bulky figure. There’s also enough kibble on the back and shoulders to limit overall movement. So the poseability gets an average score, at best.

For robot size comparison, Gewalt appears with MP Megatron below.

At first glance it would appear that Gewalt is taller, but Megs is actually taller if you look at where the top of their heads are. Still, I feel Gewalt in robot mode is a bit big to properly scale with official MPs. Blitzwing is good size, but he should still be noticeably shorter than Megatron.

As a whole, I love the Gewalt figure. He’s got his shortcomings, which I outlined throughout this post. If you’re looking for the executive summary of what those are, it’s the mediocre tank mode, parts-forming with the main cannon, limited robot articulation, and robot mode scale issues. But the figure has way more positives. The jet mode is awesome, and the robot mode is solid. He’s very well built. All joints are super tight, some may say even too tight. Transformation is definitely involved, but not impossible.

As of this writing, if you’re looking for a MP style Blitzwing, you can’t go wrong with Gewalt. The only other option available I know of is Ditka by KFC. Ditka is more G1 than Gewalt, but in my opinion it’s too G1. The figure kept a lot of Blitzwing’s G1 weaknesses that should have been improved upon. Also, Ditka has got construction issues galore that I wouldn’t touch it with a 10 foot pole. Fans Toys has their Blitzwing coming, called Berserk. This figure has been on pre-order for nearly 3 years now, and so far all we’ve seen are black-and-white renders. The renders look terrific. But seriously… is this figure still happening? Your guess is as good as mine.

If you want a MP Blitzwing today, get Gewalt. It’s that simple.

Transform and Roll Out.
 

Categories: Pics, Toy Reviews

My Blitzwing Collection, Tank Mode

November 25th, 2020 Comments off

And as the third part in this Blitzwing series, here are the tank modes of my Blitzwing figures.

It’s hard for me to say which of these tank modes I like the best. They each have their strengths and weaknesses.

Studio Series Blitzwing does not have a tank mode, so obviously he does not appear here.

Here are the posts for their robot modes and jet modes.

Transform and Roll Out.
 

Categories: Pics

My Blitzwing Collection, Jet Mode

November 24th, 2020 Comments off

Another quick post that follows up the one from yesterday. Here are those same Blitzwing figures in jet mode.

Rating on jet mode alone, my favorite out of these has gotta be DX9 Gewalt. This is exactly how I imagine a modern day triple changing MiG to be, based on updated G1 aesthetics. Most notably, the bulky G1 wings are gone. In my opinion that’s a good thing. Those tank-like G1 wings never did it for me.

Thrilling 30 Blitzwing as a jet mode that resembles Alpha Fighters from Genesis Climber MOSPEADA, like I mentioned in the last post. Titans Return Blitzwing has a jet mode that most resemble G1, out of this bunch.

Studio Series Blitzwing has a jet mode that probably looks closest to how a real MiG looks. I do like this figure. But it doesn’t triple change (no tank mode). Since the figure only has to manage 1 alt mode, I would expect it to look great (and it does).

Transform and Roll Out.
 

Categories: Pics

My Blitzwing Collection

November 23rd, 2020 Comments off

Quick post today. I have all my Blitzwings out and about, so I gathered them all up for a group photo.

Clockwise, from top left:

Quick blurb about each:

Generations Thrilling 30
This figure has the infamous non-locking shoulder issue that all TransFans are now well aware of. Even repaints of this figure has the same, such as Doubledealer. I do like the jet mode of this Blitzwing. It reminds me of the jet mode of Alpha Fighters (Legios) from Genesis Climber MOSPEADA. Generations Thrilling 30 Blitzwing was also features in these posts.
Transformers On My Shelf, September 2013
Transformers on my Shelf, December 2013
Transformers on my Shelf, August 2015

DX9 Gewalt
As of this writing, DX9 Gewalt is still in my opinion the best 3P MP-style Blitzwing around. All 3 modes look great. The figure is well built. A bit hard to transform, but not frustrating or impossible. Some fans prefer KFC Ditka since it’s more G1 accurate. But that figure has tons of QC issues, and its over G1-ness more hurts than help the figure, in my opinion. Fans Toys Berserk (their version of Blitzwing) has been delayed for an eternity now. That figure may be better, but who knows when it will actually materialize. To this day we have seen nothing but black and white renders.
DX9 Gewalt was also features here.
Transformers Rub On Faction Decals
Shelter From Home Transformer Challenge

Titans Return
Titans Return Blitzwing is the most recently mass produced Blitzwing figure in the G1 CHUG verse. And as such, he is the best all-around Blitzwing figure that is generally available. He’s G1 enough that most hardcore fans will not complain about it straying too far from the source material, other than the fact that they made him a Headmaster in Titans Return. There’s some minor QC issues, but nothing near as bad as the Thrilling 30 version. All 3 modes are solid.
Titans Return Blitzwing can be found here.
Decepticon Power!
War For Cybertron Siege Storm Cloud and Visper Quick Review

Studio Series
This is the only non-G1 style Blitzwing on here. Studio Series Blitzwing appeared in the Bumblebee movie. The figure is not too shabby. He’s not a triple changer, but both robot mode and jet mode does justice to the movie character. Transformation is very refreshing for a jet-to-robot figure. Recommended.

“Destroy first, think later.”

Transform and Roll Out.
 

Categories: Pics

Joe Biden vs Optimus Prime

November 10th, 2020 Comments off

Four years ago, when Donald Trump was elected President of the United States, I wrote a WTF piece on this blog about the absurdity.

Now, four years later, I’m glad the Trump era is coming to a close. The Secret Service and US Marshalls may have to drag him out kicking and screaming. That could make for some good reality TV. I would pay to watch that.

Things got interesting on election night. There was a point when it looked like Trump may pull off the upset once again. But then counts for swing states mail-in ballots slowly started to make its way, and from there it was obvious that America does not want someone so Tweet-happy to be the Commander in Chief. It took a few more days to officially declare Joe Biden the winner. Election night became election week.

As of this writing, Trump has not technically conceded. He may just leave the White House without anyone knowing, sometime between now and inauguration of the next President. When Megatron loses a battle and runs (as he so often does in G1), he’s not shy about yelling “retreat”. Trump won’t even give us that satisfaction. He’s just gonna quietly sneak away.

I welcome Joe Biden with open arms. But of course, my top pick for the job is still Optimus Prime.

I like the “Bidenisms”, short quotes of wisdom that Biden would spew out here and there. Joe Biden is funnier than Optimus Prime, I’ll give him that. This country could use more laughs.

But as far as doing the job, can Biden outperform Prime? Let’s compare and see.

Joe Biden Optimus Prime
Healthcare Forms a special task force to deal with COVID-19 with some doctors and scientists that no one has heard of Appoints Ratchet and Perceptor to work on COVID-19 vaccine
Clean Energy Outlined a 9 step clean energy plan that will cost $400 billion Convert all energy to energon, make all human equipment energon compatible
Education Promises more resources for schools and educators The great minds of Cybertron already has much to teach the humans
Travel and Commute Will reverse Trump Travel Ban, and invest in roads, bridges, airports, and transit systems Will build Space Bridges and Land Bridges all over the Earth
Overpopulation Has a climate plan, which may or may not address overpopulation Move humans to Cybertron
National Security Has the backing of the US Military Has the backing of the Autobots

I don’t know about you, but Optimus gets my vote. Next election I’m gonna write his name in. And if I lived in Vermont (I don’t), that would get reported.

Congratulations to Joe Biden. I look forward to what you will achieve for this nation.

Transform and Roll Out.
 

Categories: Uncategorized

TF Matrix 11 Year Anniversary

October 10th, 2020 Comments off

One more year, my fellow TransFans. This blog has been up and running for 11 years now.

This year I got about the same stats as last year. I guess at 12,000 hits a year, it’s as low as it will go. That neatly comes to 1,000 hits a month. I can do better. I know I can. For now, I’m just glad that the blog is still going.

2020 has been a mixed bag. I’ll start with the pros. The War For Cybertron toy line has me impressed. Siege was great, and Earthrise is even better. The Netflix show was awesome to say the least. Too short, but still awesome.

There has been no new movies in the news, and to me that’s a good thing. I also like that the Studio Series is going through all the movies and re-doing figures from each movie. Most of the SS version of a character is leaps and bounds over the original one released at the time of the movie.

Now the cons. HasTak continues to produce more MPs. The price for MP-44 Optimus is just ridiculous. MP-47 Hound is also way more expensive than he should be. The upcoming MP Starscream 2.0 also continues this trend. As if the price wasn’t bad enough, both MP-44 and MP-47 are plagued with construction issues that require fixes. I am losing a bit of faith in the MP line.

As for 3rd and 4th party products, they’re not stopping. Too much in my opinion. I fear they are saturating the market. A market correction may be around the corner.

Finally, let’s not forget the global COVID-19 pandemic and how it has impacted the collectibles landscape. Figures are delayed as factories are shut down, re-opened, then shut down again. Same goes for international shipping. Store exclusives almost require pre-ordering these days if you want one. Personally I’m buying way more online, as opposed to shopping in-store. Not because I’m afraid of going out. Physical stores just don’t seem to get as much inventory anymore. Scalpers and price gouging was already a problem before COVID, and now it’s even worse.

Despite all these negatives I listed, the toys themselves continue to get better and better, whether they’re official or not. Yes they’re expensive, and yes there are delays after delays. But the improvements made to the figures keep me coming back for more. So many times I have considered getting out of this hobby. Then some awesome figures come along that reminds me of why I got into this in the first place.

Long live Transformers, and long live TF Matrix. Transform and Roll Out!
 

Categories: Uncategorized