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.
 

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.
 

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.
 

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:

• Generations Thrilling 30, Voyager
• DX9 Gewalt, MP scale
• Titans Return, Voyager
• Studio Series, Voyager

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.
 

Here in the San Francisco Bay Area, the coronavirus pandemic has forced most of the local counties to adopt a Shelter in Place order. Everyone needs to “Shelter From Home”. In other words, only go out for essential activities, and stay home otherwise. All food establishments are in to-go only mode. Most other businesses are closed. Social Distancing has become the norm. Initially this order was only to go til April 7th, but now it looks like it will extend to May 1st at the minimum.

I have been working from home full-time since St Patrick’s Day. My wife has been working from home for even longer than that. I am busy doing real work at home, all the while trying to entertain a 2-year-old baby who’s stuck at home with us full time since her daycare is closed from the isolation order. It has been tough.

When you have a 2-year-old, life is always busy. I don’t have that much free time on my hands anymore. But when I do, I need to find different ways to pass the time as going outside is a non-option. I stumbled on this article suggesting 10 Transformers-related activities to beat the self-isolation blues. I am inspired by #8 and #9, and came up with my own challenge. I will select 5 MP-style Transformers that’s been lying around and untouched for some time (or never), and get them transformed! I am selecting these 5 below.

#1 Masterpiece Megatron (MP-36)

MP-36 Megatron is a Transformer that I’ve had since May of 2017, and to this day I still have not transformed him! This may be the only figure in my entire collection that I have opened but not transformed. Now, nearly 3 years later, I will attempt to get him to that awesome Walther P38. This might take a while, but it will be fun.

#2 Fans Toys Roadking

I got Fans Toys’ homage to Motormaster in January of this year. I still haven’t opened him, right up til before writing this blog entry. In preparation for this, I got him opened just now. The pic above is him posed with his sword and gun, in robot mode. I will get him to truck mode.

#3 Masterpiece Sunstreaker (MP-39)

MP-39 Sunstreaker is probably the most demanding piece in the entire MP Carbot lineup. I got him back in January of 2018. I opened him pretty soon after he arrived, and got him transformed to robot. He’s been stuck in robot ever since then. Now after 2 years later, I will transform him back to that superb Lamborghini Countach. Since I’ve gone through this once, I am mentally prepared to give my transforming senses a workout. It wasn’t easy going from car to robot, and I anticipate that going backwards will be even tougher.

#4 Fans Toys Rouge

I bought Fans Toys Rouge in May of 2019, about a year ago. I opened her pretty quick. She’s packed in robot mode, and I got her transformed to alt mode fairly soon after opening the figure. But I remember the transformation process being a nightmare. This is not a fun transformation at all. If I compiled a list of top frustrating figures to transform, FT Rouge would top the list. And because of that, Rouge stayed in alt mode all this time. Don’t get the wrong, both modes are fantastic. I salute Fans Toys’ engineers for making a figure that looks true to Arcee in both modes while requiring no parts-forming or puzzle-forming. But damn, the conversion process is not for the faint of heart. I’m hoping that going back to robot will be easier. We’ll see.

#5 DX9 Gewalt

DX9 Gewalt is another figure I acquired in January of 2018. Currently, most fans agree this is the best MP-style Blitzwing on the market. Gewalt is packed in tank mode. I transformed him to jet mode pretty soon after I got him, then transformed him to robot mode. He’s stayed in robot mode all this time. The transformation is not impossible, but definitely challenging. I will attempt to do the reverse transformations from memory, but most likely I will resort to looking at instructions or online videos.

There you have it. My self-imposed Transformer challenge for this Shelter From Home episode. I will attempt to get this challenge done by April 15th. Yes, I know that some of you out there reading this think you can do all this in less than a day. If you really can, then I congratulate you on all the free time you have on your hands. I am not so fortunate. Despite being sheltered at home, I still have a full-time job, and a 2-year-old to tend to. Time is not my friend.

What kind of Transformers related activities are you doing during this difficult time? Feel free to comment below.

Stay safe and stay healthy everyone. We will beat this pandemic together. Transform and Roll Out (again, not literally go out).
 

2018 is starting off with a bang. Power of the Primes is in full swing. Some nice 3P products and one Masterpiece figure adds to this month’s collection to start the new year right.

• Power of the Primes Micronus, Target, $4.99
• Power of the Primes Liege Maximo, Target, $4.99
• Power of the Primes Vector Prime, Target, $4.99

• Power of the Primes Grimlock, amazon.com, $24.99

• Power of the Primes Slug, Walmart, $16.82

• Power of the Primes Swoop, Walmart, $16.82

• Titans Return Arcee, toysrus.com, $24.99
• Titans Return Grotusque, toysrus.com, $24.99

• Power of the Primes Evolution Optimus Prime, Target, $44.99

• Power of the Primes Evolution Rodimus Prime, Target, $44.99

• Masterpiece Sunstreaker, amiami.com, ¥9959 (about $91.48)

• Dr. Wu Blue Skybreaker Sword, tfsource.com, $17.99

• DX9 Gewalt, tfsource.com, $139.99

Micronus, Liege Maximo, Vector Prime

I like the Prime Masters. For those that don’t know, Prime Masters are the master class figures that came released as part of the Power of the Primes line. The master figures can go inside an exo-suit, and the exo-suit transforms into a weapon. G1-ers can think of them as a Targetmaster and Pretender rolled into one.

In my opinion, the Prime Masters are countless times superior to Titan Masters. Titan Masters are the modern day equivalent of Headmasters, but the accessory that comes with them are so lame. With Prime Masters, Hasbro actually made Pretenders cool. Didn’t think I would live to see this day.

The 3 Prime Masters below are Micronus, Liege Maximo, Vector Prime. Though G1-ers will instantly recognize they are using the Pretender shells of Cloudburst, Skullgrin, and Metalhawk. Good to see that Hasbro did not forget their G1 roots. As a sidebar, I still have my Couldburst and Skullgrin from G1, in pretty good shape too.

In the pic below, the Prime Masters are inside the outer shell.

All transformed to weapons, shown in the pic below. Notice the Prime Master of each figure is transformed into a block attached on top of the weapon. You could do this or just leave them inside in weapon mode.

Overall, I highly recommend the Prime Masters. They are fun to play with and their weapon modes serve a real purpose.

Grimlock, Slug, Swoop

Power of the Primes finally gives us some G1-worthy updates of the Dinobots. And I don’t just mean Grimlock. PotP is doing the whole team. Purchased this month are Grimlock, Slug (Slag), and Swoop. Below I have them in their dino modes.

As a whole, these Dinobots are not too shabby. They are true G1 derivatives, updated for this modern era. However, in my last post, I did mention that this PotP Grimlock pales in comparison to the many 3P offerings that are available today. If you have bought any of them, you will find that these PotP Dinobots simply don’t compare in quality or aesthetics. But on the other hand, you can’t get better G1-esque Dinobots for the price. Grimlock is only about $25, the rest about $17. Hasbro is offering a way to get decent upgrades of G1 Dinobot characters without breaking the bank.

The pic above shows off Grimlock, Slug (Slag), and Swoop. They each look solid in their dino mode, and in robot mode (not pictured) they look just as good too. Transformation of each of these is on the simple side, with obvious transformation schemes for anyone familiar with G1 and CHUG. When complete, the 5 figures will combine. I kinda wish they didn’t do this, as implementing the combination mechanics means putting restrictions on other aspects of the figure, such as the dino modes, robot modes, and sizes of the figures. Grimlock at voyager size is fine, but I do with the other Dinobots are bigger than deluxe.

Overall, I recommend these. Sure they’re not as good as the 3P stuff out there, but Hasbro hasn’t done anything this G1 for the Dinobots in, like, never. Do them a solid and show that you appreciate this effort by buying them.

Arcee and Grotusque

Arcee and Grotusque are Toys R Us exclusives. This was the last online purchase I made from Toys R Us, before they went belly up. To this day I still have not opened these. It’s mostly because I love the packaging that they come in, that I don’t want to ruin it. And these are both repaints, so it’s not like I haven’t seen the mold. Arcee is a repaint of TR Brainstorm and TR Blurr. Grotusque is a repaint of Twinferno. I am more inclined to open Grotusque, to complete my Monsterbots (I will have Repugnus in a later month).

I will show off how they look in the cool packaging. Pics below.

Each of these figs come with two Titan Masters. Grotusque comes with Scorponok and Fengul, and Arcee comes with Ultra Magnus and Leinad. What kind of name is Leinad? It’s Daniel spelled backwards. Oh what will these crazy Hasbro writers think of next.

Optimus Prime and Rodimus Prime

Toward the end of the month, I started my paternity leave. Having a baby changes your life. The wife sent me to Target for some baby stuff one Saturday night. I welcomed the opportunity as it allowed me to get out of the house. But more importantly, it gave me a chance to hunt for some TFs. I love my daughter, but anyone who’s had a baby will tell you that you need to do some stuff that reminds you of the person you were prior to the baby. For me, hunting for TFs satisfy that requirement. That, and writing in this blog.

But back to the topic at hand. On this trip to Target, I found Evolution Optimus Prime and Rodimus Prime. Both are leader class figs, and both have the “Evolution” tag written above their names. This is because both figs include a smaller fig that represents their persona before taking on the mantle of Autobot leadership: Orion Pax for Optimus, and Hot Rod for Rodimus.

Let’s look at Optimus first. He looks great in the box. At Target I was astonished how close he looks to MP-10 Optimus. After I opened the figure and had him side by side with MP-10 (and I should have taken a pic of this), I was amazed at how much Evolution OP resembles MP-10. The two are about the same size. In your hands, MP-10 weights quite a bit more than Evolution OP. But the details and the paint job of Evolution OP is on par with the MP figure. I’m especially impressed with the head mold of Evolution OP, it’s MP quality.

To transform, the smaller figure detaches from the rest through the back. This smaller figure transforms into the cab, while the rest of the body forms the trailer. Think of how G1 Ultra Magnus or Powermaster Optimus Prime does it. Picture below.

Obviously the cab can detached from the trailer. The cab can then transform into Orion Pax by itself. The whole things sounds gimmicky, but Evolution OP implements all this very well. A review is definitely in order and I plan to do one soon.

Rodimus Prime has all the similar features. It’s packed in robot mode just like Optimus. Rodimus is a bit more of a puzzle former, and he does remind of the FansProject Protector upgrade kit designed for Classics Rodimus. To transform, you first detach Hot Rod from the rest of the figure. Hot Rod will transform into the front cab, while the body forms the trailer. Pic below.

The front cab will come out as the Hot Rod race car. And this can transform into Hot Rod. All in all, I like this figure too. I recommend both the Evolution leader figures. They are not perfect, but they offer very good alternatives to buying MP versions of these characters at affordable prices. And for both of them, you get two characters in one package. Oh, and they both come with Matrix holders where you can plug Titan Masters into them.

Sunstreaker

MP Sunstreaker was pre-ordered months ago. During my paternity leave, it finally showed up on my doorstep (or maybe it was in the mailbox). He is packaged in car mode like all the other MP cars. And you would expect this to scale well with all other MP cars, especially Sideswipe.

I looked through all my pics, and I guess I didn’t take any of Sunstreaker by himself in alt mode. I can only find pics of him and Sideswipe, so here they are. Notice how well they scale together.

I cannot be happier with the alt mode of Sunstreaker. The Lamborghini alt mode is just as good as Sideswipe’s, and the scale is so on par. He is in his trademark yellow, and his iconic rear mounted engines is proof of having a “Super Tuning” Lamborghini alt mode.

MP Sunstreaker is VERY VERY IMPRESSIVE from an engineering perspective. The transformation is something to behold. And yes, he is difficult. I used instructions because I’m always worried that I’ll break something for such a complicated piece, but it is possible to do it without them if you’re looking for a challenge. I only transformed him once, from car to robot. So I don’t remember it too well now as I write this. But I do remember there were a lot of steps, and I that the backpack transforming sequence is simultaneously awe-inspiring and demanding. Sunstreaker is definitely not a figure that you actively play often to transform it over and over. But when you are finally done, it is so rewarding. Check out the awesome looking robot mode.

Sunstreaker is well built. All joints are nice and tight. In robot mode he scales well with other MP Autobot cars. He can be put into some nice action poses.

Great face sculpt worthy of the handsome Autobot.

Below are shots of the backpack. A lot goes on to get the backpack in this configuration, and this is a testament to the engineering brilliance of this figure. Those that like to nit-pick could argue there’s a bit of junk here, the backpack is quite thick when viewed from the side. But when you consider how much of the alt mode is folded into this, I can easily overlook this minor distraction. The rest of Sunstreaker is completely kibble-free.

Sunstreaker can store his pistol on the back. He also comes with a Chip Chase figure. MP Sunstreaker is not too playable because of the high difficulty, but as a collector piece he gets my highest possible recommendation.

Blue Skybreaker Sword

I got the Blue Skybreaker Sword to push my order over $150 to get free shipping (the order was this and Gewalt, below). I chose this accessory because I still need a sword to go with my TF Prime Beast Hunter Optimus Prime. The stock sword is broken, and the handle is stuck in his right fist. The story of that incident is documented here. As soon as I can get that handle out, I will consider this figure repaired and using this better sword. See the pic above in all its shiny blue glory. I can’t wait for OP to try this sword in his robot mode.

Gewalt

Last but certainly not least, we have Gewalt, DX9’s homage to Blitzwing. And I’ll get straight to it: Gewalt is awesome! As of this writing, there has been some attempts at a MP Blitzwing by various 3Ps. DX9 Gewalt is by far the best, and the preferred MP Blitzwing by most hard core fans. Fans Toys does have their offering coming up, but that’s been on pre-order for more than 2 years now and to this day still no real pics other than computer renders. FT usually has me impressed, but I got sick of waiting for them. Gewalt is so thoroughly spectacular that FT needs to come up big for me to consider their interpretation of Blitzwing.

Gewalt is German for violence, if any of you are wondering. He comes packed in tank mode, and for good reason. The tank mode is the most compact mode, and thus easy to fit into the box. The tank mode is good, and I should have took a pic. However, I would consider the tank mode the weakest of the 3 modes. Gewalt really shines in his 2 other modes. Consider the jet mode below.

Now that is Blitzwing! This is the MiG-25 that he was meant to be. Yes I know some G1 purists will bash it for not having the thick tank-kibble wings that he had in G1, but c’mon. The wings in that shape was nasty and in no way reflect how a MiG-25 looks. They only looked like that because of the toy limitations in the 80s. Gewalt’s jet mode is a vast improvement and updates this alt mode to modern MP standards.

The colors in this mode are unmistakably Blitzwing. I have a pic above showing off Gewalt in jet mode next to ToyWorld Requiem (or Elegy, as he is sometimes called). Gewalt is a big figure, but scales nicely with other MPs.

Now for his robot mode. Check it out:

Now if that’s not Blitzwing, than I don’t know what is. The way he looks, it’s like he stepped straight out of the G1 Movie. Blitzwing got a decent amount of screen time in the movie, up til the fracas inside Astrotrain after the injured Decepticons were jettisoned.

Articulation for Gewalt is pretty good. And the figure is so well built that he can hold all those poses. Gewalt’s transformation does test your abilities as a TransFan. I won’t say it’s difficult, like say Sunstreaker, but it’s certainly not easy. I only transformed it once from tank to jet, then again from jet to robot. I’m not sure I will be able to go back without looking at the instructions. But that’s a challenge for another day.

For accessories, he comes with his rifle, his sword, the tank cannon (which can be removed), an extra screaming face, and some extra waist parts (I’m not entirely sure that they’re waist parts, and I don’t know if they go on Gewalt or some other DX9 figure).

Here I have a pic of Gewalt with a fabulous rub-on faction decal.

That’s all the items for the month. Again, 2018 started with a bang, with so many figures. And they’re all quality products too. The only two pieces here that I would possibly not recommend is Arcee and Grotusque, and I only say that because they’re repaints. I recommend everything else. It’s a good time to be a TransFan.

Transform and Roll Out!

 

Repaints and more repaints! That is the theme this month. There were 7 TFs purchased in May of 2017, and 5 of them were repaints.

I never kept stats on how many repaints there are in a month, but I can’t remember one that was this high. 5 out of 7… that’s more than 70%. Hasbro is being plenty lazy here, but perhaps I’m the sucker for buying so many.

Below I proudly present the TFs where most of these molds has been previously used on a different figure.

• Titans Return Blitzwing, Target, $24.99

• Titans Return Octone, Target, $24.99

• Titans Return Brawn, amazon.com, $9.99

• Titans Return Roadburn, Toys R Us, $9.99

• Robots in Disguise Skywarp, Walmart, $14.97

• Masterpiece Megatron MP-36, amiami.com, ¥17280 (about $159.09)

• Masterpiece Starscream MP-31, amiami.com, ¥9770 (about $89.95)

Blitzwing and Octone

Blitzwing needs no introduction. As perhaps the most famous Triple Changer in TF history, Blitzwing saw plenty of action in G1, including the G1 Movie. Even casual TransFans could identify both his alt modes: a MiG-25 jet fighter and a Type 74 battle tank. Titans Return Blitzwing is a repaint of Titans Return Megatron. Or to be more precise, Megatron is a “prepaint” of Blitzwing.

In my opinion, TR Blitzwing is way better than Generations 30 Blitzwing. I enjoy the transformation of TR Blitzwing. All 3 modes look pretty good, and it doesn’t have the famous construction issue that Gen 30 Blitzwing had.

It feels weird to write Octone. His name should really be Octane, the fuel truck and fuel jet Triple Changer that came about in G1 Season 3. Titans Return Optimus Prime is a prepaint of Octone.

In the early years of the Generations line, Hasbro released a deluxe version of Octane called Tankor. That figure was really not that good. TR Octone is leaps and bounds superior to Tankor. And just like Blitzwing, all 3 modes are pretty good. There isn’t one mode that is obviously inferior to the rest, like many other attempts at Triple Changers. I commend Hasbro for coming up with modern Triple Changers where all the modes are properly represented.

G1 purists will no doubt argue that Blitzwing and Octane were never Headmasters. They would be right, but I don’t think it’s such a big deal.

Hasbro did make enough mold changes to Blitzwing and Octone that buying these repaints feels a bit more justified. If you didn’t purchase TR Optimus or Megatron, then there is no reason to not buy these 2. But even if you did, I still recommend them. The molds here were always meant for these 2 characters. Sell off Prime and Megs and put Octone and Blitzwing in your collection if you have a no-repaint rule.

Brawn

Brawn is one figure that uses a brand new mold this month. I have a quick review for him here. He is most definitely recommended.

Roadburn

I don’t think there was a character named Roadburn in G1 (though it won’t surprise me if I’m wrong on this). Instead, I think this character is meant to be Chase, a member of the Throttlebots. Roadburn’s color scheme and head mold is a dead on for Chase. I have G1 Throttlebot Chase. I also have ToyWorld’s MP scale interpretation of Chase, called Trace. My Chase collection is now complete with the acquisition of Roadburn. This totally unknown character deserves his 15 minutes of fame. Maybe I will do a separate collection post dedicated to Chase.

Anyways, Roadburn is a repaint of Titans Return Bumblebee. Roadburn has a different head mold, but that’s the only mold difference. Read the post on Bumblebee for my thoughts on this figure. If Chase the character means something to you, then go ahead and get this figure. Otherwise it is a skip. This figure really doesn’t offer anything that hasn’t been done before.

It should also be noted that Roadburn is one of my last in-store Transformer purchase from Toys R Us before the giant toy chain went under in early 2018. I started to write about my thoughts on TRU here, but then it got so long I realized it should get its own post. So that’s what I’ll do. A “farewell to TRU” post is coming soon.

Skywarp

Robots in Disguise Skywarp is a figure I debated about buying. I saw him on the shelves in late April or early May and decided to skip it. He is an exact repaint of RiD Starscream, which I have. I like the figure, but it’s not worth buying again in a different color.

About a week or two goes by, and I gave in to my urges and bought Skywarp. I guess it’s because I like Skywarp the character, I like the figure in the black and purple color scheme, and there was really nothing else to buy (I was not counting on the two MP figs to arrive later in the month). Read the RiD Starscream post for a more detailed discussion about the figure. Skywarp is solid, but not a required purchase by any means.

Starscream

What can I say about MP Starscream that hasn’t already been said? The mold used for this figure has been around for so long and Takara is still abusing it. What I have here is the official 2017 re-issue of MP-11. I’m fortunate enough that my Starscream doesn’t seem too bad, but it comes as no surprise that many fans report inferior construction quality with this figure (loose joints, weak tabs, etc).

I got this re-issue because, up until this point, I don’t have the famous Decepticon Aerial Commander in the newer MP Seeker mold. I have MP-3 Starscream, but that was done in the older MP Seeker mold (with the side skirts, among other things). It’s a crime not to have Starscream updated, so when I saw this re-issue, I bought it. Though, now in 2018 as I write this, 3Ps are doing their own MP style Starscream that appears to be superior (one example is MakeToys Meteor). So in retrospect, maybe I should not have bought this MP-11 re-issue, especially considering the questionable build quality.

MP-11 with MP Thundercracker and MP Skywarp. MP Thundercracker is in the new Seeker mold like the MP-11, while MP Skywarp is in the old Seeker mold like MP-3.

MP-11 in full coronation gear.

It should be noted that having the figure stand with the coronation gear is pretty difficult. It takes forever to position it so Starscream doesn’t fall ass backwards when wearing the full gear. Another reason to not get MP-11.

Megatron

I saved the best for last. Here we have the big prize of the month – Masterpiece Megatron, designation MP-36! This is the other figure having a new mold this month. Much like MP Optimus Prime that was first released as MP-1, then later got an improved but smaller version of MP-10, Megatron first received the MP treatment back in 2007 with MP-5. Now 10 years later, he is getting an updated version as MP-36, and he is meant to scale with MP-10.

MP-36 Megatron is a fantastic looking figure. Imagine if Megatron stepped out of the G1 cartoons and became a solid, tangible figure. That is how MP-36 looks. Take a look at the pics below. I cannot say enough about the show accuracy of this Megatron. He really is something to behold.

Back view. The upper back is a bit messy, but nothing I can’t live with.

Construction of MP-36 is superb. All joints are tight and clicky. No cosmic rust syndrome here.

MP Megs with the famous MP-10. Look how well they scale together.

MP Megs with his top MP lieutenant.

MP Megs up close and personal.

Look at all these accessories!

Obviously I never even took these out of the box. There’s a lot here to accessorize the Decepticon leader with. Other than the scope / fusion cannon, included are:

• The silencer
• The stock
• 3 alternate face plates
• Key to Vector Sigma
• Energy sword (appears in the epic fight with Optimus Prime in the G1 Movie)
• Pistol (also in the same fight)
• Damaged chest plate (as a result of same fight with Prime)
• Energy ball and chain (during fight with Optimus Prime, in Ep2 of More Than Meets The Eye, which he only used once ever)
• Helmet (used in some Ep in G1 that I no longer recall)

I’m ashamed to say that, even after having this figure for about a year, I still not have transformed it. It’s not that I don’t want to. I took a quick look at the instructions, and it is more than daunting. This figure could very well make it into a top most-difficult list (btw, I really need to update that post and make a 2018 edition). I promise I will transform MP-36 soon.

Grades for the month:

Recommended:

• TR Blitzwing
• TR Octone
• TR Brawn
• MP Megatron

Mediocre:

• TR Roadburn
• RiD Skywarp

Not recommended:

• MP Starscream

Again, TR Brawn and MP-36 Megatron are the only new molds in this list of Transformers. All others are repaints, and their purchase is at your discretion.

The Decepticons far outnumber the Autobots this month. Poor Brawn and Roadburn… these 2 tiny Autobots had better get back to headquarters and rustle up a few more friends (G1-ers will recognize this reference from Fire on the Mountain).

Transform and Roll Out.
 

Many of my 3P figures use faction stickers that are independently purchased. I have used both official (such as Ocean Designs) and unofficial (such as TOYHAX) stickers. For the most part they do the job. But once in a while I wish they could be better. Take MakeToys Gundog, for example. The figure is seen in last month’s post with an Autobot faction sticker applied. It looks ok, but it can certainly be improved.

My buddy Gemini recently introduced me to rub on decals of faction symbols. He got some and was super impressed with the results. This I had to see for myself, so I got some too.

The sheet of decals appears below. I forgot to take a pic of mine before I started using them, so here I’m using the pic that Gemini took of his.

The full sheet is pretty big, about the size of a standard 11″ by 8.5″ piece of paper. They decals are organized into 3 sections. Decals across the top section are all clear backing, and across the bottom section are all white backing. Those in the middle section is a mix of clear and white backing.

Notice on the left hand side are some Hasbro logo decals. I used these for practicing before I really applied one. Not sure why anyone would want to put Hasbro logos on anything.

I peeled off the Autobot sticker on Gundog and applied the rub on decal. The results are amazing! He looks way better. After application, they have a slight 3D look to them, as if they are engraved or molded on. Very very cool. Take a look at the pics below of some 3P figures using rub on decals.

MakeToys Gundog – clear backing
 

Fans Toys Sovereign – white backing
 

DX9 Gewalt – white backing
 

It does take a bit more skill to use these decals, though. Lining up the faction symbols so they are in alignment can be tricky. Often times, your first try can be off center, in either position or rotation. They also don’t peel off easy. I don’t know of an easy way to get them off once they’re applied.

Despite these negatives, using rub on decals are still the way to go. They look many times better than stickers. I highly recommend them for use with your 3P Masterpiece style figures.

Transform and Roll Out.

 

Quick post today. I got a bunch of Decepticons out and lying about. So it’s time for Megatron to lead the troops into battle and kick some Autobot ass!

Check the pic below.

This roster of Decepticons won’t take crap from no one:

• Masterpiece Megatron (MP-36)
• Masterpiece Starscream (MP-11)
• Titans Return Octone (Octane)
• Titans Return Blitzwing
• Titans Return Sky Shadow
• Titans Return Kickback
• Robots in Disguise Soundwave
• Robots in Disguise Skywarp
• Last Knight Barricade
• Warbotron Bruticus – Fierce Attack, Air Burst, Whirlwind, Sly Strike, Heavy Noisy

Autobots everywhere had better beware. This collection reminds me of the time I gathered this group of Decepticons.

Transform and Roll Out.

 

Back in 1984, the creators of The Transformers were tasked with giving identities to the disjointed robot toy figures of Japanese origin. They created Autobots and Decepticons, gave them interesting names and personalities, and assigned scores to various attributes that would make up the unique character behind the toy. All of this was captured in a Tech Spec bio on the back of the package box or card. One of the most clever things that would appear in a Tech Spec is the character’s motto. One little clever line of the motto, and you get a world of insight into the character’s persona. Pure genius.

However as the years went on, creators of Transformer characters had to write more and more mottos as Hasbro produced more and more toys. It was inevitable that some of the more forgettable characters in later years (and even some famous ones) would share mottos that are almost identical with another character.

They say being quoted is the ultimate honor. Perhaps some characters below are simply paying homage to someone else. Or Hasbro is just too lazy to fact check if a motto is already used, or they think no one would notice. Whatever the case, below I present 10 sets of similar mottos shared by more than one character. The sets are presented from highly similar to virtually identical.

Nightbeat “Truth is revealed in the smallest detail.”

Sparkstalker “The smallest details reveal the largest secrets.”

Here we have two characters that are unknown to all but the most hardcore G1-ers like myself. Nightbeat is a detective Headmaster that appeared in G1 Season 5. Sparkstalker is a Firecon that appeared in the same season. Neither character made a cartoon appearance. This motto makes sense for Nightbeat, as attention to detail is of utmost importance for successful detectives. But as for the Firecon, this is a strange motto to have. Firecons are a sub-group of transforming Decepticon monsters that like to set everything ablaze. So a detail-oriented pyromaniac almost seems like a oxymoron. I’m sure his tech spec bio explained this strange juxtaposition, but I doubt any of you reading this care much about Sparkstalker, so I’m not even looking into it. You would think Hasbro would not come up with two mottos that are so similar in the same season. Maybe they only paid for one tech spec writer and he cut corners here.

Afterburner “Following leaders leads nowhere.”

Fangry “Leaders are for fools who need to follow.”

I have mentioned many times that Technobots are my favorite Autobot combiner group. And Afterburner is my favorite Technobot. The first time I saw him on TV was in the G1 Season 3 episode “Money Is Everything” (I must have missed “Grimlock’s New Brain” the first time it aired). In the episode, I loved Afterburner’s persona, rebelling against his team and doing whatever he wants. I also loved his cool futuristic motorcycle alt mode. His motto makes perfect sense, and captures his essence well.

Before millenials made up hangry (hunger + angry, or so hungry you’re angry), there was Fangry (fangs + angry). I gotta give Hasbro props for coming up with these clever names. I don’t know much about Fangry, other than he’s a Decepticon Headmaster that came out in Season 5. Apparently he transforms into a winged wolf, and he’s just as much a rebel (if not more so) as Afterburner. Fangry’s personally is basically that of your average Decepticon; all about war and destruction and little else.

Crosshairs “Don’t shoot until you see the wires in their eyes.”

Dogfight “Don’t fire ’til you see the lights of their eyes.”

Crosshairs is a Targetmaster that appeared in G1 Season 4. I had the toy, and even today he’s in pretty good shape. I don’t remember if I bought him, or if he was a birthday gift. Dogfight is a Triggerbot that appeared in Season 5. I didn’t have any Triggerbots or Triggercons, their gimmick being that the figures have guns that flip out at the touch of a switch. The above mottos are so similar I think Hasbro plagiarized themselves. Crosshairs says shoot, while Dogfight says fire. Crosshairs searches for wires, while Dogfight looks for lights. Tomato, tomahto.

Blades “War’s a dirty game – and I’m a dirty player!”

Roadbuster “War is a dirty business … and I’m as dirty as they come.”

Blades appeared late in Season 2 in the G1 cartoons. But his toy didn’t hit the shelves until Season 3. Roadbuster‘s toy appeared in Season 2, but he never made a cartoon appearance. So it’s a bit unclear to me which of these characters came first. These two Autobot soldiers are obviously cut from the same cloth. They both express an intention of doing whatever needs doing to win the war, including activities that may be seen as unsavory. But the teams they’re on appears to be polar opposites. Blades is a Protectobot, a combiner sub-group united by their passion of protecting all life. Roadbuster is a Wrecker, an Autobot black-ops unit that handles morally disreputable missions too dangerous for the Autobots proper. It boggles my mind why they’re mottos would be so similar. Maybe Hasbro simply ran out of material here. If I was a TF story writer, I would retcon it so that Blades may have been a former Wrecker. Then he became disillusioned with their morally questionable activities and joined up with the Protectobots. That would explain his motto. Damn, Hasbro should pay me to write this stuff.

Ramjet “If it flies, crash it!”

Growl “If it moves, crush it!”

Either the same guy wrote these mottos, or someone copied an existing motto from 5 years earlier in a desperate attempt to come up with a new motto. Ramjet needs no introduction. He’s the most famous character in this post so far. [Sidebar: A quick search for Ramjet on this blog yielded no results directly related to Ramjet. That’s shameful! So he’s getting his 15 minutes of fame here.] Growl is a character that even I had to look up. He technically belongs with G1, but his appearance came so late it’s no longer relevant. But in case you’re curious, Growl is a Micromaster that was part of the Military Patrol. These two mottos are so similar it’s just embarrassing. The sentence structure is exactly the same. The action of crash vs crush differs only by one letter. And both mottos end on an emphasis with exclamation marks. If G1 didn’t already end 25 years ago, I ask that these tech spec writers be fired.

Bruticus “The road to conquest is paved with Autobot wrecks.”

Blackjack “The road to victory is paved with Autobot wrecks!”

Here we have two characters that just love to wreck havoc to Autobots. And the way they express that excitement is near identical. One cares more about conquest, while the other expresses more enthusiasm for victory (with a exclamation mark ! ). As one of the most powerful combiners among the Decepticon ranks, this motto makes sense for Bruticus. But for Blackjack? I dunno. He’s another Micromaster. I doubt he can cause any kind of damage that would hurt the Autobots. Maybe he’s like Rumble; small, talks tough, and can back it up sometimes. Or maybe Hasbro can’t come up with anything interesting after all the bios they’ve written by the time Blackjack rolled around that they resorted to rehashing old bios and mottos.

Cloudburst “You can’t tell a bot by his cover!”

Bristleback “You can’t tell a Decepticon by its cover.”

I hate Pretenders. I have made that perfectly clear. It’s such a stupid gimmick that even Hasbro has not tried to revive any likeness thereof after G1. None of the modern third parties, who have produced some awesome stuff in recent years, would go close to Pretenders. Its stupidity is further validated by the fact that Michael Bay jumped all over it in Revenge of the Fallen. And so here we have a pair of lame mottos uttered by two lame Pretenders. I guess this is a play on words, a variation of the famous “you can’t tell a book by its cover.” It’s really not that clever, but what makes it more moronic is that Hasbro saw fit to use this twice! First time by Cloudburst, one of the first Pretender Autobots (and I’m ashamed to admit I have the G1 toy) from Season 5. Then the following Season by Bristleback, a Decepticon Pretender Monster. In this case it really doesn’t matter who came first. It’s the exact same motto given the faction switch. I hate Pretenders so I’m not even gonna research why these two characters love to use their shells to hide whatever it is they’re hiding. Just know this: these shells cannot hide how dumb these toys are. Almost as dumb as this pair of mottos.

Blitzwing “Destroy first, think later.”	Siren “Act first, ask questions later.”
Predaking “Destroy first, ask questions later.”

Here I present three mottos that form a collection. First we have Blitzwing, often considered the most famous triple changer in Transformer history. Then we have Siren, an Autobot Headmaster that came along when G1 is no longer relevant. Their mottos don’t look that bad when compared side by side. Sure the sentence structure is near identical, and the notion of acting first and cleaning up later may be similar, but the expressed actions are different enough that I’m tempted to give Hasbro a pass here. That is until I saw the motto for Predaking. The combined form of the Predacons is perhaps to most powerful combiner in Transformers lore. Predaking is a merging of 5 components, and his motto is merging of 2 other mottos! That’s right folks. Take the first part of Blitzwing’s motto, combine that with the latter part of Siren’s motto, and you get Predaking’s motto. Booya! Predaking is a combiner in more ways than one. If Blitzwing and Siren had a baby, it be Predaking.

Wildrider “Either you’re out of my way or you’re out of luck.”

Fastlane “Either you’re out of my way or out of luck.”

They say imitation is the ultimate form of flattery. But dropping one word out of a motto and claiming it as new is just plain lazy. Here we have a pair of characters that love to rev it up on the streets. Wildrider, perhaps the most famous of the popular Stunticons, is a psychotic speed demon with absolutely no regard for anything else on the road. Fastlane, an Autobot clone with a very minor appearance in Season 4 of US G1 cartoons, is a thrill-seeking but sane Autobot warrior. I guess this motto makes sense for both of them, but it’s obviously rehashed. Still, now I wonder what would go down in a race between Wildrider and Fastlane. Not only would they be racing for road supremacy, they would be facing off to claim rights to this cloned motto. Oh wait… Fastlane is a clone. So there you go. He cloned this motto from Wildrider. That must be the explanation.

Blurr “The faster it is, the better I like it.”

Quickmix “The faster it is, the better I like it.”

Hasbro is not even trying here. When I was looking through all the mottos for this post, I didn’t think I would find any that are identical to each other. Yet here they are. First we have Blurr, the fast talking Autobot made famous in the G1 Movie. Then we have Quickmix, a Targetmaster that came way too late to matter. So they both like it fast, but apparently in very different ways. Hasbro must be pleased with themselves for recycling this motto verbatim. Did they really think no one would discover this? Ok, maybe nobody noticed back in the 80s. But I am exposing this lazy effort, 28 years later. There is no statute of limitations on blatant copying of another Transformer’s motto. I find you… Innocent! (cue Quintesson creepy judgmental voice)

 

It’s kind of a shame that TFs produced today don’t have mottos on their profiles. But here is one motto that never grows old:
“Transform and Roll Out!”
And in true Hasbro fashion, let’s clone that again:
“Transform and Roll Out!”