After a LONG hiatus from me documenting my monthly TF purchases, I’m gonna continue here. There’s a lot of TF purchase action in June. Let’s get started.

• Studio Series Brawl, amazon.com, $29.99

• Studio Series Megatron, amazon.com, $29.99

• Power of the Primes Snarl, Target, $16.99

• Power of the Primes Moonracer, Target, $16.99

• Titans Return Trypticon, Amazon seller, $103.65

• Zeta Toys Flyfire, gift

• NBK Bulldozer, showz.com, $9.99

• ToyWorld Constructor, chosenprime.com, $469.99

Brawl

SS 12 Brawl is my third movie Brawl figure. The first one is the original leader class figure that made 2 of my top ten lists (most difficult and broken). The 2nd one is the original deluxe figure, which I never opened. I really don’t have too much recollection of leader class Brawl. It’s a big figure, sitting at the bottom of a box in a closet somewhere. That’s the problem when you have too many Transformers; you just don’t have enough time for all of them.

It’s inevitable that there will be comparisons of this SS 12 Brawl to leader class Brawl from the first movie. And I can’t do that compare here. All I can do is rate SS 12 Brawl on its own.

Like all offerings in the Studio Series line, Brawl is packaged in robot mode, and comes with cardboard backing that may be used as the movie backdrop. In Brawl’s case, he gets a very fitting graphic of the battle in Mission City from the first movie.

Brawl’s robot mode much resembles his movie appearance. He only appeared in the first movie, but the toy designers captured his look in this figure quite well. Construction of the figure feels good. Joints are at the right tolerance, nothing too tight or too loose. There is a lot going on in this figure as far as weapons, but nothing feels out of place as the solid construction is able to keep it all together. Most of the fiddly bits clean up quite well in robot mode. And if something is dangling around, it is more intended as part of the design and not a production flaw. The back of the robot cleans up nicely too (which I should have took a pic). There’s not a lot of unwanted kibble on the back, so kudos to HasTak.

Brawl is a bit limited in the articulation category. Part of it is because of his design; he’s very bulky with lots of kibble, and that in itself limits articulation. The design of the feet, while movie accurate, don’t allow for any ankle tilt, which hinders poses. The hands are molded directly into the forearms, and don’t come out. Arm articulation as a whole suffers from all the weapons and extra kibble present all around.

Transformation to tank mode is fun. I don’t remember any other figure quite like SS 12 Brawl, not even the original leader class figure. The leg transformation is fairly straightforward. Arms form the tank turret, and they come together in an interesting and unique way. The hardest part to describe is the chest. This section folds on itself several times, and there are other minor pieces that complement this scheme to produce a robot to tank transformation unlike anything else we’ve seen before. SS 12 definitely gets points for transformation originality.

In my opinion, the thank mode looks really good. This is on par to the looks of the leader class Brawl figure in alt mode. In the movie, I think there is only one scene of Brawl in tank mode. It was when he was first summoned along with the rest of the Decepticons. This tank mode looks extremely close to that tank on screen. There are no working tank treads here, but I wasn’t expecting that for a $30 toy. With all weapons attached in tank mode, Brawl really looks like the menacing ground assault Decepticon that he is.

Brawl comes with 2 accessories: a missile launcher with 4 missiles, and a claw type weapon. Add to that all the molded-in weapons (the main cannon, 2 sub cannons, and 2 4-set missiles, all on the turret), he will give Age of Extinction Hound a run for his money as the TF with the most arsenal. I recommend SS 12 Brawl with no reservations.

Megatron

I never realized something until I started doing this post, and I had to confirm by looking at my TF List: I only have 2 movie Megatrons! Considering how many movie Optimus Primes I have, that’s almost a crime. The two movie Megatrons I have is Dark of the Moon voyager fuel truck Megatron, and The Last Knight voyager jet Megatron.

I never got the original jet leader class Megatron from the first movie, or the ROTF leader class tank Megatron. I didn’t want them as a silent protest to how Michael Bay completely butchered the G1 roots of Megatron and created this weird amalgamation that is supposed to represent the Decepticon leader. In retrospect, I kind of regret not buying them. From a pure toy perspective, they were unique, and Hasbro never released anything like them again.

So when I heard that the Studio Series are coming out with a new take on ROTF Megatron, I had to look into it. Here is the figure in robot mode.

I’m never gonna warm up to the looks of movie Megatron. I’m a G1 die-hard that will never recognize this as Megatron. But that being said, and rating purely on the toy’s representation of the movie depiction, I love the look of SS 13 Megatron in robot mode. His proportions are very balanced, and HasTak captured that alien bug-like appearance of Megatron really well. I like the giant sword weapon that he has in the right arm. All the mechanical tentacles on the left arm gives me a satisfying yet creepy conception of what could happen if they got hold of unsuspecting Autobots (or any other kind of prey).

Construction of the figure is solid. Megatron has the articulation chops for a variety of poses, and the solid construction allows him to hold those poses. For the most part, he’s a kibble-free figure. That’s not easily done with a design like his. Much credit to HasTak here.

SS 13 ROTF Megatron is not too shabby in alt mode, either. I like the look of this alien tank. I’m not sure how close it looks to the movie, though I will admit that my recollection of ROTF the movie is faint at best. I honestly don’t even remember Megatron in alt mode, but I’m sure there are fans out there that will correct me.

I do feel like SS 13 Megatron is one of those figures that, if you haven’t transformed it for some time, it will throw you for a loop. That’s especially true for robot to alt mode. This Megatron tank is alien, so there’s not the usual earth mode cues to go on. Everthing does tab into place, however, so you know you didn’t do something right if the resulting alt mode feels more floppy than solid. I think for that reason, I didn’t like this piece at first. But he grew on me, and on subsequent transformations, I regard SS 13 Megatron as one of the better figures in the Studio Series line. This figure gets my recommendation.

Snarl

Continuing the trend of the Power of the Primes Dinobots, this month we get Snarl. Grimlock, Slug (aka Slag), and Swoop were released in January, while Sludge came around in March. Snarl completes everybody’s favorite quintet of dinos.

He comes in robot mode, like all the other PotP dinos.

I really like Snarl, and I am happy that HasTak has finally given him some official love by updating the G1 version of this character. But PotP Snarl is a mediocre figure in every sense of the word. Overall transformation is the same standard scheme that every G1 fan is familiar with, albeit updated with some modern mechanics. He comes with his classic sword, but no blaster. Poseability is sort of there, not great yet not bad. Construction of the figure is adequate. Some parts are a bit too loose in my opinion, but not so horrible that the figure can’t hold any poses on its own. The figure is somewhat playable. You think he would be easy to transform, and that’s true for the most part. But PotP Snarl is one of those figures that, if you haven’t touched it for a while, it will surprise you with transformation impediments here and there. Not because it’s hard, but because there are little mechanical details that you are supposed to remember, but you don’t because you either forgot or didn’t think it’s important.

The one good thing about PotP Snarl is that he looks good in both modes. Here he is in dino mode.

For a retail deluxe class figure, I think the detail on PotP Snarl is more than adequate. You won’t confuse this character with any other.

The 5 Dinobots will combine. I never tried this, but I might if I get bored enough. I have mentioned before that I wish they didn’t, because implementing 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 wish the other Dinobots are bigger than deluxe.

If you got the other 4 dinos, then you will get this regardless of what I say. It’s hard to see anyone buying just Snarl and none of the others. But if that happens to be you, then you are indeed an original. Bravo.

Moonracer

HasTak has been releasing many Fembots in recent years. The female Autobots was something completely made up by the G1 show creators in a desperate attempt to win over more girls to the toyline. Whether that worked is anyone’s guess. But what it did do is create demand for toys of the Fembots among the hardcore G1 TF nerds.

HasTak loves you and has started creating toys of the Fembots in CHUG. In January of 2015, Generations Thrilling 30 Arcee and Chromia were introduced. Then PotP Elita-1 was released in March of this year. This month we get Moonracer, one of the original 4 Fembots in the G1 episode “The Search for Alpha Trion”.

First let’s take a look at Moonracer in robot mode. Looking from the front, the figure is not half bad. She’s got a distinctive female body shape, and the head mold resembles her cartoon design fairly well.

But looking at Moonracer from the side, this figure becomes a total fail. Look at that huge backpack. Moonracer has got some serious back junk. Maybe that’s how Powerglide likes it.

Transformation to alt mode is pretty easy and intuitive, so I’m won’t describe it too much. Moonracer is a bit guilty of being a shell-former. Not G1 Scourge bad, but still a shell-former nonetheless. That huge backpack should have clued you in.

The alt mode itself is not badly done. I don’t remember how Moonracer really looked in alt mode, and I’m not going to look it up for the purpose of this post. Power of the Primes Moonracer has a vehicle mode that looks truly Cybertronian, and that works well enough in my book.

So do I recommend Moonracer? If it wasn’t for that giant backpack issue, I would classify this figure as good. But as it stands, Moonracer is still a decent toy. The robot mode is not half bad, as long as you’re only looking at it from the front. Poseability of the figure in this mode is solid. I have no complaints about the alt mode. But if you’re even remotely thinking about buying Moonracer, you are probably a G1 fan that grew up with the cartoons. If that’s the case, you will go buy this figure no matter what I say. Having these characters come to life 30+ years later is a G1ers dream come true. Go buy the figure and fully engage yourself in the TF nerdgasm that is Moonracer.

Trypticon

I first reported on the news of a Trypticon release back in March of 2017. I think in the fall of 2017, Titans Return Trypticon was released. It’s generally agreed that this is a good fig, though reports of hips breaking from the super tight hip ratchets put a damper on things. There are many proposed fixes out there; Google the topic and you’re bound to find some good ones.

With Metroplex and Fortress Maximus, the prices quickly dropped after only a few months of its release. I’m not sure why that is. My theory is that there are only so much demand for such figures. Titans class figures that are clearly G1 inspired would only appeal to the most hardcore G1 enthusiasts, willing to part with hundreds of dollars on a single Transformer figure. The average Transformer fan would take a look in store, stare at the figure in awe, and walk away. Little kids who happened on these figs in the toy aisle would have a hard time convincing their parents to buy such items, and that’s if they even took an interest in the first place.

MSRP for Trypticon is $149.99. Not surprisingly, the fig was going for around that much upon first release. But I was expecting this to follow the pattern of both Metroplex and Fort Max, and have the price reduced soon. I got Metroplex for a bit over $100, and Fort Max for $75. The 2017 Holidays rolled around, and Trypticon was still close to MSRP. I think the lowest I saw at the time was around $120 on Amazon, and after adding in tax it would go over $130. I thought it could go lower so I waited, but then the stock dried up and no more Trypticons would go on sale for a while.

Fast forward to June of 2018, and I saw one third party seller offering this at $103.65. This was a third party seller on Amazon, and not in the same state as me, which means no sales tax. So I quickly jumped on this and got me Trypticon.

I am disappointed to report that, to this day, my Trypticon still sits in the closet, unopened. I don’t know why I’m so hesitant. Maybe it’s because I know of the hip ratchets issue. Maybe I was always more of a fan of Metroplex. Or maybe I’m just too busy, with a 2 year old baby girl in the house.

But I’ll get to this one day. And if you’re reading and think you missed out, don’t. I just checked. Amazon has Trypicon at $109.99, while bbts has it at $99. Value of Trypticon has not gone up at all. Maybe the hip ratchets thing really hurt it. Compare that to Metroplex, which third party sellers on Amazon list at about $650.

Flyfire

I first mentioned Zeta Flyfire back in this post. And in the purchase post for last month (May 2018), I went into Air Strike. So I won’t repeat all that stuff here. Just know that these 2 Zeta Aerialbots are highly similar, definitely cut from the same cloth.

In the pic below, you see that Flyfire uses the exact same kind of packaging as Air Strike. And just like Air Strike, Flyfire comes with the same number and kind of accessories: a rifle, 4 missiles, instructions, and bio-card. Very minimalist, and in my opinion not a bad thing.

Flyfire in bot mode below.

Overall, I would say that Flyfire is about the same as Air Strike in robot mode, but comes together better in jet mode. I mentioned that, for Air Strike, there’s this weird issue with the front landing gear in jet mode. Flyfire has no such issue. It seems like Zeta fixed these minor annoying things this time around. Flyfire is the sophomore release in this series and it shows.

As of this writing, all 5 Zeta Aerialbots are released. My friend Gemini has all 5, and pics of the combined mode into Zeta Superion is impressive. However, Fans Toys have come out with their own set of Aerialbots. I have not yet decided if I want to stick with Zeta, or change direction mid-course and go with Fans Toys. I have a hunch that I will make this decision based on how I feel about Roadking, FT’s version of Motormaster. I received Roadking a few weeks ago, but have not had a chance to open the fig yet.

Bulldozer

By the end of 2015, there already exist several modern interpretations of Constructicons. Two were done by 3rd party: TFC Toys Hercules, and MakeToys Giant. Hasbro also released it’s own update on this popular combiner group. None of these sets are perfect, each with its pros and cons. But all of them can be considered good, and you can make a case for each as to which is the best. Instead of being forced to choose just one and suffer analysis paralysis, I got all 3. And if you were to point a fusion cannon to my head right now and force me to choose the winner among these 3, I probably go with Hercules by TFC Toys.

As if all these options weren’t already enough, in 2017 two more 3rd party companies decided to enter the fray and do their own take on Constructicons. One is Constructor by ToyWorld, which is the next entry (scroll down below). The other is ReBuilder by Generation Toy.

For those that don’t know, NBK is 4th party (read: knock-offs of 3rd party). I have no idea what NBK stands for. In this case, NBK Bulldozer is a knock-off of Generation Toy ReBuilder GT-99D Bulldozer. NBK didn’t even bother giving this figure a new name and just stuck with Bulldozer. And we all know this is supposed to represent Bonecrusher.

So is NBK Bulldozer any good? For a knock-off, it is surprisingly good! It’s packed in alt mode. The box is very minimal, but I will stress again I consider that to be a plus. As for accessories, he comes with a pistol, and the attachment that will become the forearm.

In alt mode, all pieces come together to form a nice cohesive whole.

There is placement for the forearm attachment in alt mode. It can be hooked up to the rear, like a trailer.

The pistol can be folded and tucked underneath the vehicle. See if you can identify where it is in this pic.

I’m guessing Generation Toy took some liberties with the design of Bulldozer, but to me he still seems very G1 for the most part. For color issues, the giant one that immediately pops up is why is the bulldozer blade purple. That’s probably a question that only NBK can answer. Knock-offs are notorious for botching color schemes, and whether or not that’s intentional is anyone’s guess.

Transformation is fun. And I will emphasize that again… FUN! That’s something I feel is often missing from today’s Transformers. 3rd party will often make something that is impressive in how it transforms, but transforming it becomes a chore. And as for HasTak, sometimes the figure is so simple, there is no fun. Sometimes bad construction issues ruin an otherwise well designed piece that would have been fun. NBK Constructor suffers from none of these pitfalls. The superb design is probably more a credit to Generation Toy, but NBK has built a piece that feels more than solid enough to be played with. All joints are at the right tolerance. Things snap together when they need to, and come apart when they should.

The transformation process itself should be familiar enough to anyone who has played with enough G1 style TFs in the modern era. But it’s not super-obvious either, with enough challenge to offer mature fans something to marvel at. Some G1 diehards will complain about transformational design changes, such as the 180 turning at the chest and how the bulldozer blade splits and ends up on the shoulders. I personally feel these are refreshing changes that offer a different yet familiar take on an old and tired scheme.

Below are some pics of the robot mode. I’ll let them do the talking.

Again, G1 diehards will complain about the non-G1-ness. But I like it. Bulldozer is well proportioned in robot mode. He looks different enough from G1 Bonecrusher, but still similar enough to be Bonecrusher. The figure is pretty poseable. And again, I don’t know if the purple bits are by design, this being knock-off and all.

The head mold should satisfy all G1 requirements.

The designers of this mold did account for storage of the arm attachment in robot mode. I guess this is supposed to be a giant backpack thruster kind of thing. It’s kind of hokey, but hey, they tried. Points for effort.

As for the arm attachment in combined mode, the fist flips out from inside the forearm. I like this. I’m not a fan of using extra combining pieces, and GT really minimized this in the design.

Overall I really recommend this toy. Get the Generation Toy version if you don’t mind spending the money. Or get this NBK KO version if you’re on a budget. Speaking of being on a budget, this is the first and only time I got something from ShowZ. I heard about the store, prior to this. At only $9.99 for NBK Bulldozer, I had to try it. That’s $9.99 from China, no extra shipping fees and no taxes! The figure arrived in reasonable time. So if you’re hesitant about the store, don’t be. ShowZ is legit. It’s not one of the China scammers that I have wrote about.

As of this writing, I do have all 6 of the NBK knock-off Constructicons. But I’ll save my thoughts about this NBK set for another day. Because we have something extraordinary to get to. And that is…

Constructor

I saved the best for last. Ladies and gentlemen… I give you… (drum roll)… Constructor!

I will say this right now, so you don’t have to read through all the details: if you want the best Devastator in this modern era, then pick up ToyWorld Constructor. This is hands down the best team in the combined form! If you care nothing for the individual robot or alt modes, then this is the set for you. ToyWorld Devastator is truly worthy of the name, and will put all other Devastators to shame.

But just to be complete, I will show pics of the other modes. Below is each fig in alt mode.

Individually in robot mode.

And now the pics you have been waiting for… the combined mode! Behold the awesomeness that is ToyWorld Constructor.

I spent $469.99 buying this set, and in this form, he’s worth every penny. Constructor is at the size he needs to be to properly scale with MPs. ToyWorld really hit it out of the park with this awesome set.

Doing a full review here won’t pay enough homage to group, so I intend to do a separate review later. So I will quickly list some pros and cons in bullet points.

Pros:

• Awesome Devastator! (I can’t say that enough)
• Solid build and construction
• Nice individual robot and alt modes
• G1 accurate – TW took very little liberties in the design
• Fun transformation that’s intuitive and not frustrating

Cons:

• Uses combining parts – and many of the parts have nowhere to go when in individual mode
• Individual modes do not scale well in MP – way too big

The bullets in Cons are points you kinda would expect, for Constructor to be so good. Unless someone really figures out show to mass shift, either the combined mode would be too small, or the individual bots would be too big. TW took the latter approach, but that’s to give us a Devastator that is truly representative of what we see in G1. As for using combined parts, I will concur with the naysayers and agree that it’s kinda cheating. Especially when the parts have nowhere else to go in the individual modes. But the proportions of Constructor is so good, I’m almost willing to forgive this. Almost. How you feel about using combiner parts is up to you, but I still see it as a negative.

When this set was first released, each bot had to be purchased separately, costing about $100 each. TW has gone away from that and now only release the complete set as one. The edition that I have here is the regular edition. It’s a very minimal set that only comes with the essentials. I don’t even remember if I have the Devastator gun, I’ll have to check. Other editions come with extra heads and different color thigh parts. TW knew they had a winner here, and kinda went crazy and released all sorts of different versions of Constructor. There’s a yellow one, an orange one, a clear green one, a clear orange one, a limited edition metallic one, and some more that I don’t remember. As of this writing, this regular edition that I feature here is on longer available. But there is a limited ultimate edition that costs about $500. I’m not sure what’s exactly in this ultimate version, but I see that it has more realistic paint. Some minor tweaks to the molds were made, probably after getting fan criticism on certain issues. It might come with all the extras. For only $30 more on top of what I paid, I wish I waited for this version. Oh well. Am I hardcore enough to get this version too? Most likely not. Probably not. I hope not.

And another quick FYI… sometimes the other color sets may go for crazy cheap. I think I have seen the clear orange one go for $299. It might have been ShowZ. Or maybe one of the other dealers on a weekend sale.

Whew… that was a WAY longer post than I had intended. Sometimes when the writing mood hits me, I don’t stop. This may have been my longest post ever. Longer post equals more proof reading, something I hate doing. It takes time away from playing with the awesome figs featured here.

Transform and Roll Out.

 

Since I started tracking my purchases on this blog, October has provided no shortage of TF action in either figure count and/or spending. October 2012 holds the record for highest TF count in a single calendar month (at 24 figures), and October 2014 holds the record for most TF spending in a single calendar month (at $885.90.. yikes!).

In true October fashion, this month is also filled with TF purchases that are way above my average monthly tally. I don’t think October 2015 sets any new personal records, but there are a lot of figures here nonetheless.

• Combiner Wars Ultra Magnus and Minimus Ambus, amazon.com, $40

• Combiner Wars Ironhide, Target, $14.99

• Combiner Wars Prowl, Target, $14.99

• Combiner Wars Sunstreaker, Target, $14.99

• Combiner Wars Mirage, Target, $14.99

• Combiner Wars Cyclonus, amazon.com, $17.89

• Masterpiece Bumble G-2 Ver., hlj.com, $36.47

• Perfect Effect Perfect Combiner PC-05 Upgrade Set, tfsource.com, $32.99

• Before & After Omega Launcher for MP-17 Prowl, tfsource.com, $14.95

• ToyWorld Devil Star, tfsource.com, $119.99

• Warbotron Sly Strike, tfsource.com, $75.99

• Fans Toys Sever, tfsource.com, $179.95

Let’s start with Combiner Wars Ultra Magnus. This is hands down my favorite Ultra Magnus figure of all time! That’s a strong statement, considering I own almost all of them. I like this figure even better than Masterpiece UM, because the CW fig is less blocky and more playable. I have gone into details about this figure back in the post, so I won’t do it again. Minimus Ambus is a character I know nothing about. I believe he’s from the IDW-verse of comics, but I could be totally wrong here. The Minimus Ambus figure in this package is completely forgettable and adds nothing to the Ultra Magnus toy.

Below is pic of my two favorite Ultra Magnus figs of all time.

Combiner Wars continue with more figures that are very minor reworks of what’s already out there. In this month we get Ironhide, Prowl, Sunstreaker and Mirage. Hasbro really knows how to milk us hardcore G1 fans by tweaking existing molds very slightly and then releasing them as popular G1 characters. I probably could have skipped this foursome altogether, but I’m a total sucker for G1 characters from the first 2 seasons. And I needed figures that would make sense to combine with CW Optimus. Ironhide, Sunstreaker, and Mirage are reworks of existing Stunticons (Offroad, Breakdown, and Drag Strip, respectively). Prowl is a rework of Streetwise. I won’t go into detail since the rework here is so minor that we may as well just call them repaints.

Cyclonus is yet another rework in the CW line. But this is one rework that feels truly like a rework, and not a repaint with different colors and a different head. A rework of CW Silverbolt, I really dig this Cyclonus figure. He looks absolutely fabulous in the stunning purple paint. Robot mode is nicely proportioned, and the jet mode looks fast and sleek. In addition to the different head mold, Cyclonus offers different wing molds and different nosecone mode in jet mode. And of all the CW body figures, the Silverbolt/Cyclonus mold offers the best combining mechanism, in both function and appearance. The combined head mold is also different, as it is a good representation of Galvatron and not Superion. It’s too bad Cyclonus’s weapon is an exact repaint of the Silverbolt’s weapon, but in this case that’s a minor nitpick. I highly recommend Cyclonus. There are enough difference here from Silverbolt that it feels like you are buying a brand new figure.

Galvatronus is the name of the combined form when Cyclonus is the body. Supposedly CW Cyclonus has the power to mind control other limb components and have them merge with him. That’s kind of a hokey backstory, but whatever. I wish they made Scourge and Sweeps as limb components to form Galvatronus, which makes way more sense. That’s actually a pretty awesome combination now that I think about it. Maybe some TF modder out there has done this already. Anyways, below is a pic of Galvatronus using the 4 CW limb Autobots acquired this month.

The only official Masterpice figure this month is G-2 Ver Bumble. I already stated many, many times about how I love MP G1 Bumblebee. The G2 Ver of the figure is the exact same mold, except he’s covered with shiny gold paint that I initially thought this would be Goldbug. And instead of the Spike figure, we get a second face plate that more resembles the original G1 toy, and a nice rocket pack that we have seen Sideswipe or Optimus use (it’s unclear to me if Bumblebee ever used the rocket pack). If you already have the first MP Bumble, then it’s not necessary to get this figure. But I did anyway, because I love this mold, the new shiny paint job, and all the extra accessories.

Perfect Effect Perfect Combiner PC-05 Upgrade Set and Before & After Omega Launcher for MP-17 Prowl are two upgrade kits that are similar to the upgrade sets that I bought back in June of this year. Specifically, they are repaints of Perfect Combiner PC-02 and Alpha Launcher for MP-18, respectively. Perfect Combiner PC-05 is meant to be used with Combiner Wars Superion, but technically you can use them with any of the CW figs in combined form. Omega Launcher are non-firing shoulder missile enhancements for MP Prowl. Again, they are exact repaints of what came before, so I won’t go into them too much. Actually, I have not even had the chance to put Omega Launcher on Prowl. But in theory it should look just as awesome as Alpha Launcher on Bluestreak.

Devil Star is ToyWorld’s interpretation of Astrotrain. I love ToyWorld, and I love Astrotrain, which is why I pre-ordered this figure as soon as I learned that they are doing a G1 cartoon accurate version (TW had another version of this figure prior to this called Evila Star, with colors that are more similar to the original Takara toy). I have so much faith in ToyWorld that I knew they would do Triple Changers justice. However, I later watched some reviews of Devil Star (and Evila Star), and learned that this guy is an absolute pain to transform. He’s very much a panel former, which doesn’t bother me that much. But it’s excruciatingly unpleasant to get all the panels to line up in both alt modes. I wanted to cancel the pre-order as soon as I found out, but I was a little too late on the trigger and the pre-order came in before I knew it. So now I have it stuck in my possession. To this day, the figure is brand new, never opened. And I don’t plan to. Maybe one day he will be worth big bucks and I’ll resell it. Devil Star is a limited edition figure. In the pic above, the big box is the figure itself, but the little box on top are these exclusive train tracks that are produced in very limited quantities. I am looking to sell the figure. If you’re reading this and want to make me an offer, contact me.

It took some time, but it finally happened… I got a figure from Warbotron! I wrote about Warbotron more than 2 years ago before this month, and I’m ashamed to say that it took a sale for me to finally buy something from them. My buddy Gemini has the entire Warbotron Combaticon set, and he thinks Sly Strike (aka Swindle) is the best of the bunch. So I have been eyeing Sly Strike for quite some time now. I almost bought the figure at regular price, and I’m glad I didn’t when I saw that TFSource was selling them at $14 off from MSRP. I wasted no time getting one. Gemini did not let me down – Sly Strike is awesome! He comes packaged in robot mode. The body stylings is modeled more after the G1 toy and not the show, but body proportions is definitely updated to modern standards (old G1 body proportions would be awful). His face and head mold looks like it jumped straight out of the G1 cartoon, as its got the famous purple eyes and that discriminant black-market salesman grin that only Swindle can possess. Chest area has a similar purple molding like the G1 toy, though fans have come up with an alternate configuration for the robot mode where the jeep hood area can form over the chest for a more Binaltech/Alternator appearance. The figure is also designed so the wheels over the shoulders and the back area can be transformed differently to suit your taste. Warbotron took more liberties with the alt mode, and in my opinion that’s not necessarily a bad thing. In G1, Swindle transforms into a FMC XR311 combat support vehicle. Munitioner by FansProject uses a military Humvee as the alt mode. Warbotron decided to use a Jeep type vehicle, like the Jeep Wrangler Commando. Some fans may complain this is not G1 enough, but I think it’s a good modern update. The detail, colors, and moldings of the alt mode is terrific as well. Transformation of the figure is fairly straightforward. It’s not overly complicated, but at the same time complex enough to satisfy collectors of 3rd party items. Construction wise, Sly Strike does suffer from some slight tolerance issues, but nothing so glaringly bad that it would distract from the enjoyment of the figure. As for his weapons, the hand held pistol is almost an exact replica of G1, updated to MP scale and modern detail standards. Warbotron took more liberties with the cannon and gave it a translucent pink barrel, and personally I think it’s a nice touch. All in all I highly recommend Sly Strike as the MP scale figure for Swindle. I thought I got a good price for Sly Strike at $75.99, but TFSource has been clearing them out at $66.99 for the past few months! Get them while they last!

Last but certainly not least, we have Sever, Fans Toys’ interpretation of Snarl in MP scale. Sever is the 2nd figure that I got in the Fans Toys line of MP Dinobots. The first one was Scoria (aka Slag). FT released Soar (aka Swoop) in between Scoria and Sever, but I didn’t have a chance to buy that one. Scoria is generally considered a good figure, but he’s not without his faults. He’s got the now famous loose shoulder issues that many fans complain about. Surprisingly, mine is fine in the shoulders (I did buy the repair parts for $4 just in case). However, my Scoria is quite loose in the hips. If I pick up Scoria, the legs would definitely droop down at the crotch, and he won’t be able to hold any cool poses. Part if this is because there’s so much weight in the legs. Other fans have complained about some other minor construction issues. Overall I like Scoria, but he was not the perfect MP dino that I thought he would be, because of the loose hips. So when Sever came out, I was a little nervous that he would also share similar issues. But I chose to buy him anyway, because of the $20 early bird discount. I am happy to report that Sever is absolutely perfect! I detect no construction issues whatsoever. All joints are just the right amount of tightness. Some fans complain the joints are too tight, but I think they’re fine. He can hold some terrific poses, and the figure has enough articulation to take full advantage of the solid construction. In both mode, Sever looks like he jumped straight out of the G1 show. Transformation is also superb. He’s not terribly difficult to transform, but at the same time there’s enough going on in the mechanics that hardcore collectors of this line would not find him too simple. The details on this figure would satisfy even the most picky. The weapons for Sever are awesome as well. They both have light up LED capabilities, though batteries are not included. Check the LED operation of the weapons as soon as you get Sever, as I heard some fans complain about them not working. And if I have to make one small nitpick, it’s that there’s no place for the weapons in Dino mode. But that aside, it really feels like Fans Toys is taking all their lessons learned with Scoria, and they have implemented them in Sever. (They may have done that with Soar as well, as I have heard nothing but praises.) This is 3rd party MP Dinobot at it’s best. To this day I still have Sever out for display, because I like him that much. I highly, highly recommend Sever. Fans Toys have fully restored my faith in their line of MP Dinos. I am now looking forward to getting both Soar and Stomp (aka Sludge), the latter of which came out after Sever.

That ended up being a way longer post than I meant for it to be. October of 2015 had 12 purchases, for a total of 11 figures and 2 upgrade sets. This is the last month in 2015 with a high number of purchases. This month was also a lot of repaints. By my count, only 4 purchases are not repaints or reworks. Even the 2 upgrade sets are repaints. Sometimes I buy TFs purely based on if I like the character; I think in the future I need to be more mold conscious. I am very happy about Sly Strike and Sever, two of the more expensive purchases this month. A bit regretful that I should have cancelled Devil Star when I had the chance.

Til next time… Transform and Roll Out.

Behold my fellow TransFans… ToyWorld Dinobots!!! This set looks so good together, I had to make a post on this topic alone. Focus your optics on the pic below.

For those that don’t know, this set of Dinobots is made by 3rd party ToyWorld. Obviously they have to use their own names for the characters since they have no rights to any Hasbro properties. None of them come with any Autobot symbols for the same reason. I bought some TF faction stickers last year, and I applied one to each figure with the exception of Grimlock. The faction stickers are applied to the area that would become the chest in robot mode, so you don’t really see them in this pic (except for Slag, if you look carefully). Here is the name mapping for each character to figure:

• Grimlock – Grimshell (or Corelock)
• Slag – Iron Dreg
• Sludge – Muddy
• Snarl – Roar

I assembled this set together when I received Sludge last week. I actually bought Sludge months ago, back in March. TF Source had a weekend sale so I was able to snag Sludge at $80. But I had nothing else to ship with Sludge, til now. Slag I received about a month ago. Much like Sludge, BBTS had a daily sale on Slag for a tad over $90, and so I snagged him quick. I already kind of went into Grimlock and Snarl. And so here’s the four of them together. I know what you’re thinking… where’s Swoop?! Don’t worry TransFans, I will get him. I’ll take a another pic with the full force when I do.

From a transformation perspective, I like Sludge the best. His transformation is fun and intuitive, and at the same time complex enough to satisfy the mature TransFan without being overly complicated or frustrating. Snarl is good too, but I don’t like how his tail keeps coming off during transformation. It makes me feel like he’s puzzle forming. It is possible to have it stay on, but you would have to be super delicate. Slag is a little too simple transformation wise when going from Dino to Robot. Going back, there is something that’s kinda frustrating with the legs, to have it positioned exactly so it would align with the back. Grimlock has a cool transformation, but in my opinion his T-Rex mode is so much better than the robot mode, so most of the time I just don’t bother. Don’t get me wrong, I think his robot mode is solid. But the T-Rex kicks ass!

I might also take a pic of them all in robot mode. And maybe even the combined mode after I get Swoop! But that’s for another post.

Me Grimlock say… Dinobots kick butt!

Me Grimlock say too… Transform and Roll Out!

April of 2015 continues with more Combiner Wars and 2 third party figs.

• Combiner Wars Breakdown, hasbrotoyshop.com, $14.81

• Combiner Wars Dead End, hasbrotoyshop.com, $14.81

• Combiner Wars Offroad, hasbrotoyshop.com, $14.81

• Combiner Wars Air Raid, hasbrotoyshop.com, $14.81

• Combiner Wars Blackjack, Target, $9.49

• Combiner Wars Megatron and Armada Megatron, tfsource.com, $89.99

• Mastermind Creations Felisaber, tfsource.com, $75.95

• ToyWorld Roar, gift

The 4 deluxe figures are all from Combiner Wars Wave 2. They are not that different from the Wave 1 figures in the way they are constructed. Individually, I definitely like the CW Stunticons better than the CW Aeiralbots, because there is more variety for the limb figures. Air Raid is cut from the same cloth as Skydive and Firefly. Breakdown and Dead End are different enough from Dragstrip and from each other that it doesn’t feel like buying the same figures over and over. Hasbro came up with another figure called Offroad for the Stunticons, just like they did Alpha Bravo for the Aerialbots. Wildrider would be released later, so there is no reason to buy Offroad just to complete Menasor.

Blackjack is a fun little figure. I like his transformation from car to robot. Both modes look good. He’s not bad for a figure of this size. In combined form, he is meant to attach onto Menasor’s chest like a shield. I mentioned before in another post that he doesn’t connect that well in this form. This can be fixed, however. I will mention this again when I go into the 2nd Motormaster that will come out later (with fixed hips). But even the 2nd Motormaster has the peg problems for attaching Blackjack, so it will require this fix. Sometimes I feel Hasbro really should test these things before they put the figures on the shelves.

Next up are the 2 Megatrons. I love these Megatrons! The G1 version of the figure is especially sweet for a G1 purist such as myself. This is probably the best G1 inspired Megatron that Hasbro has made in quite some time. In robot mode, this is unmistakably Megatron. The head mold, body stylings, and colors are pure G1. Transformation to tank mode is actually fairly simple for a figure of this size, but there is enough to do here that should satisfy even the most hardcore of TransFans. Tank mode is superb as well. Construction of this figure is super solid. This Megatron will easily withstand some rough play. The Armada version of this figure is exactly the same mold-wise, but has different colors and a different had mold.

Next up is MMC Felisaber. I already went into Felisaber back in this post, so I won’t go into detail again here. Felisaber is meant to be Catilla. Catilla has the privilege of being among the first TFs to be named in a Before Carly post on this blog, so check it out.

Finally, there is Roar, TW’s homage to Snarl. I mentioned Roar here, so read that post for more info of Roar’s awesomeness. Roar was a gift from my wife (my fiancee at the time). I put a bunch of figures on my wishlist at TFSource, and she picked Roar. She has good taste!

I will be out of the country for the next 2 weeks, so I won’t be posting. I will be in Asia. Hopefully I will find some good TFs on the trip! Transform and Roll Out!

It seems like forever since I wrote any entries in this blog. Finding the time to do so has been extremely difficult. Today I took the day off from work to take care of some personal business, which turned out to be faster than expected. This left we with some extra time that I’ll devote to my TF blog.

Here are the purchases for November of 2014.

• Generations Thrilling 30 Cosmos and Payload, Target, $9.49

• Age of Extinction Snarl, Target, $14.24

• Age of Extinction Hot Shot, Target, $14.24

• Fall of Cybertron Air Raid, amazon.com, $17.80

• Masterpiece Wheeljack, hlj.com, $49.10

Cosmos is a figure I wanted for some time now. Back around either 2009 or 2010, Hasbro made some legend size figures as remakes of G1 Minibots in the Classic 2.0 lineup. I managed to find them all, except for Cosmos. He was the rarest one of the bunch, and scalpers wasted no time jacking up his price to around $50. No way I’m paying those prices for a tiny legend figure. So when I heard of this Cosmos, I had to get it. I never had the Classic 2.0 figure, but I’m willing to bet this Generations Cosmos is better in every way. The Generations figure is slightly larger, transformation is quite remarkable for a toy of this size, and he looks all around better than his Classic 2.0 counterpart in both modes. At around $10 he also comes with Mini-Con Payload. All in all a very nice deal for the price.

I believe this should be the last of the Age of Extinction figures in my collection. AoE figures as a whole is a sorry lot. Hot Shot is a testament to that sentiment. I was told repeatedly not to buy AoE Crosshairs. Hot Shot is a exact repaint of the mold, and now I know why. His robot mode is awful. There’s so much kibble hanging off the back it’s ridiculous. Even the slick car mode won’t save this atrocious figure. I bought Hot Shot because he reminds me so much of Tracks. I’m willing to bet that’s what Hasbro was counting on, and I fell for it head first. There are some bright spots in the AoE lineup (such as Evasion Mode Optimus Prime, Hound, and Drift), and Snarl is one of them. This is one of the better Dinobot figures out of AoE. I like the Dino mode, I like the robot mode, and transformation is fun. I don’t much care for the neon transparent green, but the mold itself is well engineered. There’s probably some kind of convention exclusive out there that has this figure repainted in G1 colors. That would make this fig even better.

I have written about this Japanese Air Raid, nearly a year ago. I can’t believe I’m so behind on documenting the Transformers for every month. Anyways, this Air Raid was bought during Black Friday weekend of that year. The Japanese version is much more closer to G1 colors than the US version. And getting a Japanese deluxe size figure for only $17 is a steal, so getting this was a no-brainer. Though I will say that the construction of this figure doesn’t seem to be as sturdy as the US figure.

Last but not least, there is Masterpiece Wheeljack. This is a figure that deserves the Masterpiece label. Takara set the var very high when they released Masterpiece Sideswipe. I am completely satisfied with that figure. The 2nd mold they released was for Prowl/Streak/Smokescreen. That figure is nice too, though not as good as Sideswipe in my opinion. Wheeljack is the third mold in this series. Takara managed to capture all the things they did right with Sideswipe when they produced Wheeljack. Transformation is ingenious, and construction is solid. The alt mode is something Lancia felt very comfortable in putting their logo on, and the robot mode is G1 show accurate perfection. Great poseability and great playability. This piece is every bit as good as MP Sidewsipe. Do not call yourself a true TransFan if MP Wheeljack is missing from your collection.

More to come soon… Transform and Roll Out!

Today I’m going to feature some figures on the top layer of my Detolf shelf. I have assembled a collection of some of my favorite Season 1 Autobots from CHUG. For those of you that don’t know, CHUG is an acronym for Classics Henkei Universe Generations. These are all terms that Hasbro or Takara has used to label various Transformers lines that represent a modern update of classic G1 characters. I have also seen some fans refer to them collectively as G3, since it follows G1 and G2. Whatever you call it, they are all modern toy interpretation of Generation 1, though not necessarily in their exact G1 forms.

All these characters appeared starting in Season 1 of Transformers Generation 1.

There are a total of 6 figures here. I will describe each of them in depth, in the order of their release.

Optimus Prime, Classics, 2006
This Optimus Prime figure is part of the 6 initial figures that kicked off the Classics line back in 2006. It’s hard to imagine if Hasbro knew what kind of trend they were about to set in motion when these 6 figures took physical form. Hasbro tapped into something that was part of every action figure collector that grew up in the 80s with the launching of this Classics line. Anyway, this Optimus figure was one of only 2 Voyager size figures in the initial 6 (the other was Megatron, duh). To this day, this figure remains one of my favorite Optimus figures of all time. He looks good in both modes, the transformation was clever yet familiar for its time, and his overall appearance evokes instant G1 nostalgia while giving the character some mid-2000s updates. 9 years later as I write this, I still play with this figure from time to time. In the pics above he is holding his iconic G1 rifle that came as part of the BTS-03 G1 Prime Matrix of Leadership Upgrade Set by BTS Toys. I also have the FansProject G3 Trailer that can be added to this figure, but that was not featured anywhere on this blog. Maybe I should.

Sideswipe, Universe, 2008
For whatever reason, people love Sideswipe. I read a caption somewhere that stated he’s never done anything important, but he’s such a fan favorite. Maybe it’s because the G1 toy was such a good piece for its time. Or maybe it’s because he’s a fun loving character who does his job well without taking himself too seriously. Or maybe people just love his sexy Lamborghini alt mode. Whatever the reason, I gotta admit he’s also one of my all-time favorites. When the Universe toy came out back in 2008, I was beyond thrilled. And the toy did not disappoint. I knew Hasbro had no official licensing for Lamborghini, but I was pleased with the fictional alt mode they came up with to represent what would be a Lambo. The transformation of the figure is fun and satisfying. In the pics above, Sideswipe is using is G1 rifle and shoulder mounted missile launcher from the Heroic Duo Custom Kit Version 2.0 by Beelzeboss. I highly recommend this upgrade kit.

Jazz, Reveal the Shield, 2010
Jazz is another one of my all time favorites. Do a quick search for Jazz on this blog, and you will see there are many, many entries. Jazz is a character that has appeared in almost every TF continuity. In G1, Jazz completes missions with so much style and pizzazz, it’d be criminal if he was any cooler. This Jazz figure more than does justice to the Special Operations agent and Optimus Prime’s right hand man. I did a in depth review of the figure in this post, so I won’t do it again here.

Bumblebee, Age of Extinction, 2014
Bumblebee is a character that needs no introduction. He may be the most famous TF of all time, even surpassing Optimus Prime. Hasbro released so many CHUG Bumblebees over the years that I could have used many others for this lineup, but I used this one because I think he scales the best. And no, this is not the Generations Thrilling 30 Bumblebee. Though this is a exact repaint of the same mold, released as a Toys R Us exclusive 2-pack along with deluxe Age of Extinction Bumblebee (the modern Camero). That’s why I labeled it Age of Extinction above. This Bumblebee is a fun little figure. And I think that captures the spirit of Bumblebee. In the movie lines, Hasbro released way too many Bumblebees that are way too large and way too complicated. To me that is never Bumblebee.

Roar (aka Snarl), ToyWorld, 2014
Not counting the upgrade kits, Snarl is the only 3rd party figure on here. Technically he’s Roar, ToyWorld’s homage to Snarl. This figure is a gift to me from my fiancee. For a long time now, I was wondering why no third parties would do CHUG size Dinobots. Hasbro did do a deluxe size Grimlock, but that figure is not well received by most hardcore TransFans. No other CHUG Dinobots were made by Hasbro. Dinobots are forever fan favorites, so it seemed like a natural fit for third parties to come in and do what Hasbro will not. So it was a real mystery to me why no third party would attempt this. And believe me, there are no shortage of third party these days. But then all of a sudden, starting I think in early 2014, a whole bunch of third party companies announced that they will be making Dinobots. Off the top of my head, I can think of 4 CHUG size lineups (ToyWorld, FansProject, GCreation, Planet X) and 3 Masterpiece size lineups (FansToys, Bullsfire, GigaPower). Anyway I’m getting off topic. I love Dinobots, and I love ToyWorld products, so I had to have their Snarl. The toy comes in dino mode. Transformation to robot mode is well engineered and fun. I love how the hind dino legs can fold into the robot legs. This appears to be the trend with all the modern Dinobots. Construction of the figure is solid. Both modes look very G1 accurate. This is a third party figure I highly recommend. I already have TW Corelock (aka Grimlock) on preorder.

Jetfire, Generations Thrilling 30, 2014
Jetfire is a character with a rather complicated history in the world of Transformers. Originally based on the Takatoku toy of Macross VF-1 fame, Hasbro got the right to the merchandise of this toy and created the character of Jetfire. I’m not sure why he is called Skyfire in the G1 cartoons, or why the show designers decided to give him a somewhat different appearance from the toy. Whatever the reason, Jetfire became an instant fan favorite. As one of the very few Autobots that could fly in Season 1 of G1, the Jetfire toy was sought after by nearly every kid who was interested in Transformers at the time. Very early in the Classics line, Hasbro came out with a Voyager class toy that resembled the G1 cartoon look for Jetfire. That is an excellent figure, but in 2014 Hasbro released a Leader class figure that is even better! This Jetifire is a must-own. Both modes look sweet, and he looks like he jumped straight out of the show. Transformation is fun without being overly complicated. Some might even consider him too simple for his size, but I can easily overlook it due to the sheer fun factor. His massive size scales nicely with other CHUG figures. Jetfire gets the vote for figure of the year from many fans, and it’s certainly very hard to make a case against it. As of this writing, Jetifre can be found in store and online at MSRP (sometimes below MSRP). Make sure you pick up yours while you can!

Autobots… Transform and roll out!

Welcome to another edition of my St Patrick’s Day green Transformers! Last time I did one of these was back in 2013. There has been many green TFs since then, and I try to include every single green fig that I acquired in this time span. However, I don’t have the time to dig through them all. So for this posting I only grabbed what was handy, either currently on my shelf or easily reached into a box. Here are the lucky green figs for 2015.

Clockwise from top: MakeToys Giant, Generations Hoist, Age of Extinction Snarl, Generations Cosmos, Generations Legend Waspinator, Generations Deluxe Waspinator

I obviously missed some green TFs between 2013 and now. Some obvious ones that come to mind are Generations Springer and Age of Extinction Hound. I should have got them out too. I’ll include them next year for sure.

Happy St Patrick’s Day… Transform and Roll Out!

I have a lot of Transformers. Probably too many by most conventional standards. Space becomes an issue, as I have mentioned repeatedly on this blog. However, there’s another issue, and it’s that you simply don’t have time for all of them. Back in G1, I didn’t get TFs all that often. So I gave every single TF the time it deserved. All my G1 figures were transformed over and over and over. Some of them to the point of having extremely loose joints, while others became straight up broken.

Nowadays, if I transform a figure more than 4 times, I would say I transformed that figure a lot. It’s not that I’m trying to keep the figure mint or anything. I just don’t have the time, and I have too many TFs. Maybe I just need to slow down on buying them. But I enjoy TF hunting too much.

Most figures I will transform at least twice before it gets put in a box somewhere. However, I do have some figures where I only transformed them once. Meaning if they were packed in alt mode, I would transform it to robot, and it stays that way, never even going back to alt mode. Or vice versa. Below is a list of 10 TFs where this has happened. But first some ground rules about my selections:

• The figure must exist on My TF List.
• I must have opened the figure; figures that I purposely keep new do not count.
• I must have owned the figure for more than a year.

So based on these rules, what are my least transformed TFs? Let’s find out. All pics courtesy of Seibertron.com.

 
Highbrow
Series: Hunt for the Decepticons
Allegiance: Autobot
Mode in Package: Robot
Class: Voyager
Highbrow is one of my favorite figures from HftD. I really like the old WWII plane alt mode that he has. Not too many figures in the world of TF has such an alt mode. I documented his purchase back in this post. That was about 2 years ago, so I can now confirm that I have only ever seen this figure once in store. And I hunt a lot. Highbrow is a rare figure indeed. Anyway, I transformed this guy from robot to plane, and it has stayed that way since for about 2 years. Maybe it’s because I like the plane so much better than the robot for this figure. And here’s another funny thing: I did the exact same thing for his redeco, Powerdive. Got him from robot to plane, and he stayed that way on my shelf for about 3 months now. I’m not counting Powerdive as a entry here since I only had him for about 3 months. Both Highbrow and Powerdive are great figures, so I’m hoping I can make some time to transform either one back to robot real soon.

 
Blurr
Series: Animated
Allegiance: Autobot
Mode in Package: Car
Class: Deluxe
Back in this post I outlined my foray into the world of TF Animated. I admit, I did not at all like the Animated look when I first saw the toys. But eventually it kinda grows on you. Anyway, I bought a bunch of used figures from a guy on Craigslist for $80. Blurr was one of them. Almost all the figures in the set was in robot mode when I received them. I have transformed Blurr once to car, but that was it. As I write this, I don’t even have that much recollection of the toy. I just remember the robot being real skinny, transforming him once to a sleek and sexy car, then putting him away. All this happened in a blur (pun intended). But I do remember him being a decent figure, so I might dig him out later and transform him some more.

 
Snarl
Series: Animated
Allegiance: Autobot
Mode in Package: Dinosaur
Class: Deluxe
Snarl was another Animated figure that came with the huge used purchase that I mentioned above for Blurr. And just like Blurr, I received him in robot mode. If I remember right, I got 15 figures total in the used set (a steal for a mere $80). Snarl was one of the figures that I transformed last. And I’m not sure why since I love the Dinobots. Maybe because Grimlock got all the Dinobot love, or maybe because deep down I’m resentful at the fact he’s called Snarl when he should’ve been called Slag. Whatever the reason, I remember I wasn’t all that impressed with the figure. I can’t give concrete reasons though. I just remember him being sub par. Anyway, he was transformed once from robot to dino. That is perhaps not enough time to make a proper evaluation of the figure. So I should maybe give him another chance and transform him again.

 
Ironhide
Series: Dark of the Moon
Allegiance: Autobot
Mode in Package: Robot
Class: Leader
Now for the only Leader class figure on this list. DOTM Leader Ironhide was a figure that I wanted for some time before I was able to locate him in store. When I started buying DOTM toys in the summer of 2011, I was on the lookout to get a Ironhide figure. I almost bought the Voyager version of Ironhide, but then I learned of the Leader class figure. Ironhide would agree that bigger is better, so I had to go Leader class. I transformed him once to truck when I got him, and for reasons that elude me, I never transformed him again. I can’t explain why. I think this is a very solid TF with a robust robot mode and a beefy truck mode, while not being overly difficult to transform for a Leader class fig in the Movie-verse. He’s got some nice gimmicks too. It’s possible I simply like that hefty truck too much, so I just left it like that. I can’t really see myself digging this out anytime soon to transform him either, so I guess he will stay as a truck to who knows when.

 
Sledge
Series: Power Core Combiners
Allegiance: Decepticon
Mode in Package: Robot
Class: N/A
Finally, a Decepticon on this list. I bought Sledge when I was still with my Ex. We were at Target, and of course I had to stop by the TF aisle. Sledge was quite rare at the time, I think I only saw him once before this trip. The Ex really liked the purple Mini-Con, since that’s one of her favorite colors. So I bought Sledge. This is one purchase I wish I could take back. As a general rule, PCCs are crap. My buddy Gemini and I call them Power Crap Combiners. There are exceptions (like Heavytread and Skyhammer), but Sledge is not one of them. He’s crappy for even PCC standards. I transformed him once from robot to excavator and never looked back. In all likelihood, I will never transform Sledge again, unless I have a real good reason. Even if you are forced to play with PCCs, there are better figures in that line to amuse yourself with.

 
Chopsaw
Series: Reveal the Shield
Allegiance: Decepticon
Mode in Package: Robot
Class: Scout
Chopsaw is not a figure I would have normally bought. The only reason I even have him is because I really wanted RTS Scout Class Windcharger. All G1-ers will tell you that RTS Windcharger is an awesome figure that pays perfect homage to the G1 character of the same name. All CHUG fans wanted RTS Windcharger, but for the most part he was nowhere to be found in stores. He was made in extremely limited quantities, and Hasbro was having some serious distribution issues with RTS figures. For me, the only way to get him at MSRP was at BotCon 2011. Hasbro’s not stupid though. They made it so that Windcharger must be purchased in a set with 5 other figures. And it’s not like there’s a discount. That was one way for Hasbro to unload shelf-warmers at MSRP. Anyway, Chopsaw is one figure in that set. I outlined that purchase in this post. To be fair, Chopsaw is a nifty little figure. He’s got a wacky robot mode, but the motorcycle alt mode ain’t half bad. I could see myself play with this figure some more. Not a priority though.

 
Backfire
Series: Hunt for the Decepticons
Allegiance: Autobot
Mode in Package: Robot
Class: Scout
Here is another figure that I would not usually buy. Again, this is another fig as part of the set that was forced on you in order to acquire Windcharger. I’m not really a big fan of this figure. In fact, out of that set of 6, Backfire is by far the worst figure IMO. Some fans may like him, but not me. It has been speculated that this figure is an homage to Cy-Kill from the GoBots. Probably because of the motorcycle alt mode and the colors. They may be right, I dunno. I could maybe see a customizer turning this into Cy-Kill. But I know this: Backfire sucks. I transformed him once and I see no further pleasure from doing it again. Only play as a last resort.

 
Backfire
Series: Dark of the Moon
Allegiance: Autobot
Mode in Package: Robot
Class: Basic Human Alliance
Two Backfires on the same list?! Say it ain’t so! I guess with a name like Backfire, everything you do is destined to fail. But seriously, DOTM Backfire is not too shabby. I think he’s one of the better Basic Human Alliance figures. Well, technically, I don’t know if calling them Basic HA is accurate. Human Alliance figures only come in two sizes. They started out doing only larger ones, usually slightly bigger than a Voyager figure. Then they started doing these smaller ones that are somewhere between a Scout and Deluxe. Kinda like PCC size. Regardless, Backfire is one of the better smaller ones. My favorite Basic HA would probably be Sandstorm and Half-Track. If I were to pick a 2nd favorite, it probably be Backfire. I like his robot mode, and I really like his ATV alt mode. This alt mode comes together quite well, and the human figure can sit on him just fine. I went into HA figures in this post, and I just realized now I bought Backfire and some other smaller HAs after that. I could see myself digging out Backfire later and transforming him some more, if only to play with that ATV.

 
Elita-One
Series: Transformers (2007 Movie)
Allegiance: Autobot
Mode in Package: Motorcycle
Class: Scout
Here is the only female figure to appear on this list. When I was compiling this, I started looking at my TF list to find the figures that were barely transformed. I don’t know why, but all of a sudden it hit me, I have Elita-One from the 1st Movie! She was a Target exclusive. I guess I got her because I have never seen Hasbro make figures of Elita-One, and this is a character that only hardcore G1-ers like myself would recognize, so I had to have her. However as a toy, she must’ve been unmemorable. I say that because, prior to this post, I didn’t even have her on my TF List! So I had to add her to the list first before publishing this. I don’t have much recollection of the figure. She must be a repaint of something, I just don’t know what. In fact, on Seibertron, I see 8 redecos of this mold. I’ll reserve my thoughts about the figure after I dig her out and transform her some more, since what I can recall is hazy at best. But I do remember transforming her only once, from bike to robot. That in itself cannot be a good sign. Heck, the fact that I forgot to include her in the TF list is a really bad sign. But who knows, taste change. My taste in women have changed over the years, so maybe in female TFs too? LOL.

 
Soundwave
Series: Generations, War For Cybertron
Allegiance: Decepticon
Mode in Package: Robot
Class: Deluxe
I saved the best for last. Here is a figure I’m embarrassed to have on this list. Soundwave is one of my all time favorite characters. So why would I even have a figure of Soundwave where I only transformed him once? I can’t explain it. Sometimes you rarely transform a figure because they’re too difficult, or maybe one mode is significantly better than the other so you just leave them in that mode, or its such a crappy figure that you don’t want to transform it anymore. WFC Deluxe Soundwave shares none of these faults. I’m guessing this figure must have been released when many other figures flooded the shelves, or he simply came around at a time in my life when there was too much going on. But whatever the reason, I need to dig out Soundwave and transform him some more. I remember transforming him only once, from robot to car. If memory serves, I was impressed with both modes. Now would be a good time to compare this figure with the Voyager figure from FOC. I think they each got their strengths, but I’ll know after I have them stand side by side. Apparently it’s also possible to have this Soundwave transform into a Cybertronian boombox. Not sure if that’s official or a fan creation, but I’m eager to try it.

 
So these are my least transformed Transformers. As I look at this list, some things come to mind. Six of these figures are from Movie lines, or Movie sub lines. I guess this finding does not surprise me. Only one figure falls into CHUG, and that’s WFC Soundwave. I would have been real surprised if this list were full of CHUG figures. Also, four figures transform into motorcycles. Maybe one some level, I don’t enjoy motorcycle transformers.

There are only 3 Decepticons on here. I’m pretty sure I don’t discriminate based on faction. Maybe they just make a lot more Autobots. If I get really bored one of these days, I’ll go through my TF list and count.

The good news in all this is that I don’t have any TFs where I opened and never transformed. I have heard of some TransFans complain about this phenomenon. I hope it never happens to me.

What are your least transformed TFs? Feel free to comment below.

Transform and Roll Out!