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Transformers Purchased in February 2019

August 16th, 2021 Comments off

February 2019 is another month of all official purchases. This month it’s back to mostly figs from Studio Series.

  • War For Cybertron Siege Skytread, amazon.com, $18.88

  • Studio Series WWII Bumblebee, Walmart, $19.87

  • Studio Series Barricade, Walmart, $19.87

  • Studio Series Sideswipe, Walmart, $19.87

  • Cyberverse Shockwave, Amazon seller, $14

Skytread

WFC Siege Skytread was released in the same wave as all the WFC Siege deluxe figures last month. For some odd reason, I couldn’t find one til this month. This was probably for the best, as there has been numerous complaints of production issues with Skytread’s right leg not being able to move. My assumption is these issues only appeared on the very first batch. I found my copy a bit later, and it’s fine.

Any true G1er knows that Siege Skytread is really G1 Duocon Flywheels. Why Hasbro chose to change the name here is anyone’s guess. The other Duocon, Battletrap, was released in 2018 in the Power of the Primes line as Battleslash and Roadtrap. Very good to see that the Duocons are complete in the modern era.

For those that don’t know, Duocons were released in G1 Season 4. Their gimmick is that two vehicles come together to form one robot mode. There is a spring mechanism that activates when combining to robot for a semi-automatic transformation. The process is completely manual when going to the alt modes.

For PotP Battletrap, Hasbro went one step further and gave each vehicle component a robot mode, and they still combine into the larger robot as Battletrap. While this sounds good on paper, having all these modes made none of the modes all that good. In Battletrap robot form, the figure is a bit unstable. Figure integrity will be compromised with enough rough play. For Siege Skytread, Hasbro stuck with the basics and implemented a simple jet and tank that will combine into Skytread. I appreciate this decision, as the individual alt modes are better, and Skytread’s robot mode is way more stable.

In robot mode, Skytread is unmistakably G1 Flywheels. The colors should be a dead giveaway, as no other G1 TF I can think of has a dark red color chest and brown limbs. The head mold also closely resembles the look of Flywheels. The design itself is not that unique, but it’s what he had in G1. Skytread is fairly poseable, with joints at all the right places and at the right tolerances. He’s well proportioned and without too much kibble. Again, he’s very stable. The two components will not accidentally separate. In robot mode, Skytread is about the same height as PotP Battletrap. The two Duocons are ready to kick ass together. Or get their asses kicked together. The latter is more likely.

Separation to alt modes is pretty straightforward. Just pull apart at the waist. Transformation of each component to its alt mode is not difficult at all. The legs form the tank. It looks kinda Earth style, but with Cybertronian enhancements. My only gripe about the tank is that pegging the main cannon in the middle peg hole doesn’t work well. There’s a piece right behind this peg hole which sort of blocks access for the back of the cannon. Better to peg each weapon on top but off center, one to the right and one to the left. The upper body forms the jet, which looks like a Earth Harrier. This mode’s not bad, though the obvious weakness here is the under-kibble that results from where the arms go. Both components have plenty of peg holes for the 2 weapons. The 2 weapons can also be combined into a super cannon, another recognition of this character’s two-as-one motif.

G1 fans who already bought PotP Battleslash and Roadtrap will get Siege Skytread regradless of what I say. To everyone else, I say get him. He’s a fun figure with a gimmick that is well implemented.

Bumblebee

First of the Studio Series figures this month is WWII Bumblebee from The Last Knight. I didn’t look at the box carefully when I bought this, so I just assumed this is from the Bumblebee movie. So the whole time I was trying to figure out when did Bumblebee transform into this WWII vehicle. I should have looked closer.

I didn’t like The Last Knight all that much, so I can’t recall any specifics about the movie. I definitely don’t remember Bee transforming into the alt mode represented by this figure. If I ever re-watch it I’ll look for it, but that’s not happening anytime soon.

As for SS WWII Bumblebee, the figure is mediocre at best. The alt mode is kinda unique. I do like the main cannon and the rotating blaster on the roof. But that’s about all the figure has got going for it. In alt mode, the whole thing doesn’t come together as well as it should. The roof cannot completely close down, because the cannon on the inside will come into contact with other pieces. Transformation is sorta frustrating. There’s too much kibble on this buy, things getting in the way and thus preventing a smooth experience. Pieces love to pop off during transformation. WWII Bumblebee is very much a panel former. The hips are on ball joints that are way too lose, so the figure does not stabilize well in robot mode. It is kinda cool that the main cannon can be detached and used as a hammer in robot mode, but that alone does not redeem the other negatives. Add to all this the fact that I don’t even remember Bumblebee in this form makes this a very forgettable purchase.

I think Hasbro actually re-released this figure in the Buzzworthy Bumblebee line. Different packaging but the same figure. Leave this on the shelf if you see it. Not recommended.

Barricade

Studio Series Barricade is my 5th Barricade figure from the Movie-verse. I have written about how none of the mass-produced deluxe Barricade figures thus far are all that good. And I have mentioned that Masterpiece Barricade (MPM-5) is by far the best. So how does SS Barricade fare? Let’s find out.

It alt mode, I am impressed by the amount of detail on SS Barricade. The overall black and white scheme works well here for Barricade. There are a lot of printed on labeling on the vehicle, such as the police logo, the words “POLICE” on the doors and spoiler, “643” on the roof, “911” on the rear sides of the vehicle, and last but not least the words “to punish and enslave”. The words “SALEEN” is molded across the rear. The sirens are a separate piece on the roof, painted blue on the right and red on the left. Rear brake lights are painted. HasTak did a top-notch job with the mold of the entire vehicle by closely resembling a real Ford Mustang. The figure stays together in alt mode, and Barricade rolls nicely on a flat surface. The spinning wheel accessory can be attached under the front hood, if you want to recreate that scene of Barricade threatening Sam. For a mass-retail deluxe toy, SS Barricade gets the highest marks in alt mode.

Transformation to robot mode follows the standard Barricade scheme, so I won’t describe it too much. Back of the car form the legs, sides of the car form the arms, and the front section flips down to form the chest and reveal the head. Car hood and roof ends up on the back. Of all the mass-retail deluxe Barricades made, this is by far the best. SS Barricade looks closest to his on-screen persona and to the MP figure. He stands up well on 2 legs. The arms are kind of long, but that’s his design. The detail on the head is amazing. SS Barricade is also not terribly difficult to transform, much more forgiving than the MP figure.

I give SS Barricade the highest possible recommendation. If you like this character, go out and get this.

Sideswipe

Movie-verse Sideswipe is another figure where Hasbro has made tons of. So I guess it’s no surprise that a Studio Series version would be made. This SS Sideswipe is from Dark of the Moon.

Looking at this SS Sideswipe immediately reminds me of the custom silver painted DOTM Sideswipe that Gemini made for me (sidebar: That post was made exactly 10 years ago today). DOTM Sideswipe should have been painted this nice silver to begin with, and if you’re wondering how he looks out of the box, here you go. Yeah, that dull grey doesn’t do it for me either.

SS Sideswipe obviously corrects this problem by having this nice silver paint applied all over. The alt mode is nice and sleek. As a Corvette, I think he looks terrific all around, especially from the back. His twin weapons are attached under the vehicle at the rear so they look like the exhaust. The entire mode stays together well, no floppy or dangling bits. The Corvette logo on the front hood is molded on and painted over. A nice touch.

Transformation to robot mode is pretty standard fare for a Movie-verse car TF. My memory is now hazy, but I do remember ROTF Sideswipe as rather difficult to transform, and DOTM Sideswipe being relatively easier. SS Sideswipe is probably more in tune with the DOTM version, as far as transformation difficulty. The front part of the car become the legs, and the rear part of the car forms the chest and arms. Car hood and roof ends up on the back. Upper part of the car doors become wings. The lower part of the car doors are detached and serve as Sideswipe’s blades in robot mode. You could argue it’s a bit of puzzle-forming here, but nothing to get terribly upset about. SS Sideswipe does stand OK when you take care to really balance him, but he’s not the most stable fig on 2 legs.

Overall, SS Sideswipe is a solid addition to the Studio Series line. There’s nothing here we haven’t seen before, so I would not put this in the required purchase category. But what is there is all done pretty well. If you’re on the fence on this figure, go ahead and get him.

Shockwave

This is my second figure from Transformers Cyberverse. And this 2nd figure is also Shockwave. Yes, I now have both Warrior Class and Ultra Class Shockwaves. As of this writing, these remain my only 2 figures from Cyberverse.

It’s obvious that the whole Cyberverse line of toys is marketed to young children. Sometimes you see a figure or two that may appeal to you, usually out of nostalgia or design. But as a whole, the mature TF Collector need not bother with this line. The toys themselves are full of gimmicks and have extremely simple transformations. I watched through all of the show’s Season 2 on Netflix, mostly to see how my favorite characters from G1 would be updated. The series is fairly forgettable, and you’re not missing out if you missed out.

So how is this Ultra Class Shockwave figure? He’s ok. The robot mode is pretty solid. He’s unmistakably Shockwave, with the purple colors, the cyclops eye, and iconic left gun arm. I like how the Decepticon logo is painted sharply on the chest. The figure is entirely plastic, and all articulation points are either ball or rotation joints with no ratchets. Pretty standard fare for a figure in this line.

Transformation to the walking tank is kinda like the Warrior class version, with one notable exception. The left arm goes over the back to form the main cannon. And in its place, a 2nd left arm that will act as the tank’s front left leg sprouts from the left side of the chest. Rest of the transformation should be obvious just by looking at pics. The chest section rotates 90 degrees up. This piece does not lock into anything in alt mode, resulting in a tank mode not as solid as the Warrior class version. The gimmick on this figure is that there’s a switch on the side of the gun. Flipping the switch backwards will separate the gun chamber and protrude forward the laser effects. Flipping the switch forward reverses this. This can be done in both modes. Young kids will probably get hours of enjoyment out of this gimmick.

I can’t tell if the Warrior class or Ultra Class of Shockwave is more show accurate. Rating this purely on the figure, I think I like the Warrior class better. I find the whole 3 arm thing on Ultra Class Shockwave a bit disturbing. I know Shockwave is a mad scientist and all, but 3 arms?! A bit too Frankenstein for my taste.

Lots more to come next month. Transform and Roll Out.
 

Categories: On The Hunt, Pics

Transformers Purchased in October 2017

September 19th, 2018 Comments off

October 2017 is a month of 4s in terms of purchase pattern. 4 figs from The Last Knight. 4 figs from Titans Return. 4 Autobots. 4 Decepticons. A very balanced month.

  • The Last Knight Hot Rod, Walmart, $19.99

  • The Last Knight Megatron, amazon.com, $26.86

  • The Last Knight Nitro, Walmart, $26.86

  • The Last Knight Scorn, Walmart, $26.86

  • Titans Return Misfire, Target, $15.29

  • Titans Return Twin Twist, Target, $15.29

  • Titans Return Windblade, Target, $15.29

  • Titans Return Repugnus, Target, $4.99

Hot Rod

Last month there was a Hot Rod purchase, and this month there is one as well. The Last Knight Hot Rod is a Walmart exclusvie. His overall motif is similar to Age of Extinction Lockdown. But make no mistake, Hot Rod is a brand new mold. As far as I can tell, the only parts that are shared between the two figures are the lower legs. Everything else are new molds for Hot Rod.

Again, with the exception of the lower legs, it’s as if Hasbro went back to the drawing board and re-designed every single part of the pieces that make up Lockdown. The result is a brand new figure using a new mold that follows the patterns of a previous figure. This effort yielded a superior figure in many regards. In my opinion, Hot Rod looks better in both modes. He feels more solid and robust. But most importantly, the transformation becomes a much more enjoyable process. Hot Rod’s alt mode comes together way better than Lockdown’s. The re-designed parts and pieces fit congruently in ways that Lockdown never did.

Hot Rod’s Lamborghini alt mode is super well done for a mass produced retail deluxe class toy. I’ll let the pics below speak for themselves.

Here is an alt mode comparison between TLK Hot Rod and AoE Lockdown.

Personally I like the paint job on Hot Rod way more than the one on Lockdown. Lockdown should have been painted black or dark grey, instead of this weird brown/grey color.

Hot Rod is a recommended purchase. Don’t brush this off as another simple repaint. This is how Lockdown should have been. If the Studio Series didn’t already release a brand new Lockdown, I could totally see Hasbro repainting this Hot Rod into Lockdown. Fans of movie figures will undoubtedly want Hot Rod in their collection.

Megatron

TLK Megatron is another figure in the line that deserves your hard-earned dollars. This is is the voyager class version of the figure. There is a leader class version of TLK Megatron, but I opted for this one. The leader class has a weird transformation where the front jet nosecone becomes his fusion cannon. I didn’t particularly like that design, so I bought the voyager class figure instead. Leader class Megatron may well be a nice figure too, but I don’t have it so can’t comment.

Megs is back to being a jet in the 5th movie. As a sidebar, Megatron has a different alt mode in each movie. He goes from being a Cybertronian jet in the first movie, to a Cybertronian tank in RotF, then an earth fuel truck in DotM. He comes back as Galvatron in AoE in as an Optimus Prime type semi-trailer truck, then returns in TLK as this Cybertronian jet that’s different from the first movie. His robot mode kinda differs in each movie too. I don’t even remember how he comes back in TLK since I really wasn’t all that invested in the movie.

But let’s get back to this figure. TLK voyager class Megatron has got one of the best transformations that I have seen in a long time. I touched on this topic back in this post. This Megatron looks dramatically different from previous incarnations, perhaps because he was modified to being Galvatron. But whatever the case, I do like TLK voyager class Megatron. Hasbro is obviously going for a knight motif here. The robot mode appears below.

The figure is well proportioned, with nothing looking too oddly out of place. In the pic above, the sword is stored on the back, but he can wield it fine in either hand. The overall color scheme of the figure is very unique, and the paint job is quite good on a whole. The figure is well built. The joints are at just the right tolerance. All parts that need to be locked down from transformation are tabbed in, so what you have here is a solid robot figure with nothing dangling around. Poseability is decent.

Again, the transformation of TLK Megatron is where this figure hits it out of the park. I have seen plenty of robot to jet transformations among the hundreds of TFs that I own, and yet I still find this one totally refreshing. It doesn’t justify it when I describe it in words. The overall motif is that the jet nosecone is on the back and flips forward. The arms go around the back and folds in the opposite direction, ending up towards the rear of the jet. The wings unfold from the legs, and the legs end up kind of on the side and underneath the wings. Yes I know it sounds like we have seen this all before, but believe me when I say that the implementation of this motif is new and invigorating. When all this is coupled with the solid construction that I mentioned already, the result is a figure that is a pure joy to play with. I think I transformed TLK Megatron at least 10 times, and these days that’s a lot for me. I got way too many TFs and I’m usually too busy with other things. Transforming a figure this many times is a testament to its fun factor.

The jet mode can be seen in the above pic. This is a fantastic looking jet mode. Many TF jets suffer from having too much bulk in jet mode, but Megatron looks nice and sleek. Everything also tabs in where it should in this mode. Again, this figure is so well built that you don’t have to worry about anything dangling around. The tolerance on the wings are perfect and you don’t have to worry about them drooping down.

I give TLK voyager class Megatron the highest recommendation possible. He really deserves a separate review on this blog. Maybe someday.

Nitro

I reviewed the excellent Nitro figure here. See that post for my detailed thoughts. Nitro is one of the best figures that TLK has to offer.

Scorn

The last of the TLK figures this month is voyager class Scorn. Many will point out that we got a deluxe class Scorn in AoE. AoE deluxe Scorn is one of the better Dinobots from that movie. I think I bought all the mass retail Dinobots from AoE, and I ended up selling most of them because I thought they were underwhelming. Deluxe Scorn is one of the few that I kept (along with AoE deluxe Snarl).

TLK Scorn ups the figure to voyager class size. They should have done this back in AoE. All Dinobots need to be voyager class or bigger, in my opinion. The robot mode appears below.

I don’t know how movie accurate TLK Scorn is, and I’m not going to check. The one thing that immediately sticks out with me is that the dino tail becomes the left arm. Beast Wars fans may be thrilled with this design choice, but I’m not so sure. AoE is the same way. I guess this is more of personal taste, but I like my robots having both functional arms (Shockwave may be the lone exception here).

TLK Scorn definitely feels beefier than AoE Scorn. The upgrade to voyager class makes a big difference. This Dinobot now has more of a presence when lined up on the shelf with the Autobots proper from the movie line. This figure weighs quite a bit too. He is the heaviest figure this month. All this is very fitting of his Dinobot pedigree.

Poseability of this figure is more limited, mostly because of all the dino kibble. Most fans will probably have this guy in spinosaurus mode anyway, which we will look at now.

In dino mode, this Scorn looks much better than AoE Scorn. Many pieces on the dino are painted silver, such as the jaws, and claws on both the hands and the feet, and the top of the tail. The bigger scale means a more imposing spinosaurus. And speaking of that, TLK Scorn has three rows of spines on the back, versus just one row on AoE Scorn. This is the Scorn that we should have got all along.

There are some negatives with this figure that I need to mention. TLK Scorn is an unsymmetrical transformer, like most motorcycle figures. This means that parts that may be symmetrical in one mode will have unsymmetrical placements in the other mode. In Scorn’s case, the left arm becomes the tail, while the right arm tabs underneath the neck. This may not bother some, but I prefer my figures symmetrical. Transformation is also not the most intuitive. Going from robot to dino, there are arm rotations at the shoulder that need to happen for proper placement. The instructions does point it out, but doing it on the figure is harder than it looks. This is required on both arms. There are tabs and pegs to help you align them, but I found them to be of little help.

Below is a pic of AoE Scorn and TLK Scorn in their spinosaurus modes.

I should point out that TLK Scorn is not simply an upsize of AoE Scorn. TLK Scorn is a brand new mold. As of this writing, I can’t remember if the two molds transform the same way. I’m tempted to say that the overall motif is the same, but mechanics are different.

I give TLK Scorn a weak recommendation. There are some personal preferences that I don’t like, but you may be ok with them. Transformation to dino mode is more frustrating than it should be, but many will probably leave Scorn in this mode anyway. The upsizing alone may be worth the ticket of admission. Movie Dinobots fans should definitely get this, no question.

Misfire

Misfire is a figure that I have long looked forward to. I have G1 Misfire, and I’m always partial to characters that I owned from G1. Titans Return Triggerhappy was released back in December of 2016. Misfire and Triggerhappy came from the same group (both are Decepticon Targetmasters from Season 4). So if they did Triggerhappy, I knew Misfire couldn’t be far behind.

Sure enough, we get Titans Return Misfire this month. What I didn’t know is that they would re-work the Triggerhappy mold and use that as a base for Misfire. And the result is… quite good, actually. I usually don’t like repaints, and this isn’t one. The overall base mold is the same, but there are enough new or modified moldings on top of the existing framework that the new figure created feels distinct from the parent. The jet mode is where you see the most differences. TR Misfire is definitely an homage to the G1 figure, I’ll attest to that. See the pics for yourself.

Still, Misfire is mechanically similar to Triggerhappy, so read the post on Triggerhappy for more detailed thoughts on the figure. I love this mold and all characters that are derived from it. For G1 fans, purchase of Misfire is required.

Twin Twist

Twin Twist is yet another must purchase item for G1 fans this month. His brother Topspin was acquired back in June of 2017. In that post, I gushed on and on about how nice of a figure Topspin is. All that applies to Twin Twist. He is a virtually identical figure, but that’s how it was in G1.

The only mold differences I can detect between Topspin and Twin Twist is that the wings got replaced with tank treads, the 2 front nosecones are swapped for twin drills, and the front cockpit area went from more of a smooth sports car hood to that of a tough truck grill. The chest mold designs didn’t change, but they are swapped mirror images between the brothers.

Buying Twin Twist should be a no-brainer for those that got Topspin. And if you didn’t, do yourself a favor and go get both of these.

Windblade

Windblade sure has been getting a lot of love lately. How many Windblade figures is Hasbro gonna put out there? For a character that is a relative unknown, it’s impressive that she has had a figure made in most of the current TF lines. It all started with Generations Thrilling 30 Windblade. Then Robots in Disguise Windblade (of which there are two separate versions). Now we get a Titans Return Windblade, with a fully functioning Headmaster gimmick. So how does TR Windblade fare with the rest? Let’s take a look. The toy comes packaged in robot mode.

I like the look and appearance of TR Windblade in robot form. I think she looks better than Thrilling 30 Windblade, but not quite as good as RiD Windblade. Paint apps on the figure is good. TR Windblade gets twin long straight swords this time around, instead of the single curved blade with sheath. As a Headmaster she still has her iconic face design. All of this creates the image of a Japanese geisha girl who happens to be samurai, all represented by a giant fembot. And of course TR Windblade still has the iconic twin rotors on her wings. She would not be Windblade without them.

Poseability of TR Windblade is not too shabby. She’s capable of some dynamic poses.

Transformation to jet mode is laughably simple. She uses all the standard jet transformation mechanics. Nose cone folds back, arms the sides, and fold the legs. The only thing that’s kind of original is you have to pull out the waist, but there’s nothing groundbreaking here as far as transformation goes. Head transformation is standard Headmaster fare.

The jet mode does look nice though. The Titan Master sits nicely in the cockpit. The jet looks nice and sleek with no obvious bulk. The colors are unmistakably Windblade. The twin wing rotors are clearly visible. Everything tabs together nicely to form a cohesive whole, with nothing dangling or flopping around.

I definitely like TR Windblade better than Thrilling 30 Windblade. That figure was too much of a floppy mess, so anything more solid is automatically better in my book. I’m not sure how I would rate TR Windblade when compared with RiD Windblade. I like both figures, and each has its pros and cons. RiD Windblade has a better robot mode and a slightly more involved transformation (though not by much), but TR Windblade has better paint apps, better jet mode, and sturdier construction. I would recommend TR Windblade for fans of the character, but don’t expect any originality here.

Repugnus

I can’t close this post until I mention Repugnus. He’s a Titan Master. To this day, I still haven’t opened him. I got him along with all the other TR figs this month, in a single trip at Target. I only got him because I wanted to push the order over $50. Target was doing this deal for 10% off if the Transformer purchase is over $50. And with my Target Red Card, that adds another 5% off. All the prices listed at the top is MSRP. I think with all the discounts, total for this set of 4 TR figs came to around 40 bucks. Not bad.

But yeah, I chose Repugnus because he’s an actual G1 character. Repugnus is another Monsterbot, in the same group as Twinferno. I would later acquire a deluxe class Repugnus. This Titan Master Repugnus will probably stay unopened til Primus knows when.

Here are some group photos of the figs for this month.

Final Grades for the month:

Strong recommendation

  • TLK Hot Rod
  • TLK Megatron
  • TLK Nitro
  • TR Misfire
  • TR Twin Twist

Weak recommendation

  • TLK Scorn
  • TR Windblade

No opinion

  • TR Repugnus

More to come in later months. Transform and Roll Out.
 

Categories: On The Hunt, Pics

Transformers Purchased in September 2017

August 12th, 2018 Comments off

A very modest number of TFs were acquired in September of 2017. And none of them were Decepticons. Autobots, roll!

  • Titans Return Hot Rod, amazon.com, $9.99

  • The Last Knight Drift, Walmart, $15.83

  • The Last Knight Bumblebee, Walmart, $15.83

Hot Rod

TR Hot Rod was already first acquired back in Dec of 2016. So why did I buy this a second time? In the post for Dec 2016, I mentioned that I broke off the head connection mechanism while removing Firedrive from Hot Rod on the very first transformation attempt. Read that post for all the details and for my thoughts on the figure. But suffice it to say I don’t like having broken Transformers in my collection. And at less than $10, I felt justified in getting another Hot Rod. He is the star of the G1 Movie, after all. I took care not to break the connection mechanism this time.

The packaging arrived in less than perfect condition, as you can clearly see in the above pic. I would definitely file a complaint with Amazon if my intention was to keep this figure mint on the card. But I planned to open this, and at less than $10, it’s not really worth my time.

Drift

The Last Knight figures continue with Drift. AoE gave us a very good Deluxe class Drift, one of my few favorites from that line. So how does TLK Drift fare? Overall, he’s not bad. In robot mode, he’s got decent articulation and his proportions are well balanced. The iconic twin swords are on full display here. This Drift is colored mostly red in robot mode, and that’s quite a departure from the blue AoE Drift.

TLK Drift in an action pose.

Close up shot. Pretty good face sculpt. Drift has got the full samurai motif going on, from the samurai face plate to the samurai shoulder pads. Notice the Mercedes logo on the center of the chest. Drift is luxury class samurai… no ghetto swordsman here.

Backview of TLK Drift. Notice he has twin shorter swords, stored on his back over the shoulders. So this guy comes with a total of 4 blades. Very, very cool.

In TLK, Drift transforms into a Mercedes, while in AoE he was a Bugatti. Transformation to car mode is completely different from AoE. In AoE, the front of the vehicle transforms into the chest, while in TLK it transforms into the feet. I won’t describe the rest of it too much since the transformation is not that complicated and not terribly original.

In alt mode, he’s mostly black, with just a touch of red on the very bottom of the vehicle. He looks good as a Mercedes, though I still prefer it if he was a Bugatti. Below is a shot of TLK and AoE Drift side by side.

All in all, I like this Drift. I think AoE Drift is still better, but TLK Drift has got some nice features going on too. Recommended.

Bumblebee

We really don’t need any more Movie-verse Bumblebees. But I suppose the execs at Hasbro just love pumping out more of the one Transformer character that even the most casual of fans can identify by name. This is the second Deluxe class Bumblebee figure in the TLK line. I passed on buying the first one, which was just a repaint of AoE Deluxe class Bumblebee. This second one is a brand new mold.

Word has it that this new TLK Bumblebee is a mass retail toy representation of Masterpiece Movie Bumblebee (MPM-3). I can neither confirm nor deny that assertion, since I don’t have MPM-3. And I’m not gonna pay about $100 to find out. From what I know, the overall transformation schema is the same. But TLK Bee is obviously smaller. I will also guess that the materials used are cheaper and the mechanical complexity is toned down.

In robot mode, TLK Bee looks good. I like the details on the figure. Compared to previous deluxe Movie Bumblebees, TLK Bee appears more show accurate.

TLK Bee is capable of some fairly dynamic poses since he’s pretty well articulated. He comes with a gun-arm accessory, which he uses in the shot below. This can be used on either arm. However, the arm does need to be removed to attach the gun-arm.

I should point out that the construction of TLK Bumblebee is not the best. The feet pieces are quite loose. The hip joints are a bit loose too. The result is that it’s difficult to stand the figure. While TLK Bee is capable of a wide range of poses, he cannot hold it because of the weak construction.

Close up shot of TLK Bee. The face sculpt is quite good, and I like that the eyes are painted blue. I believe the Autobot logo on the forehead is painted on. In this pic below it looks a bit sloppy since it’s totally magnified, but under the naked eye it actually looks quite good. I commend Hasbro for including this bit of detail.

Transformation to alt mode is a completely new design. Like I said, I don’t know how much of this is borrowed from MPM-3, but for a deluxe class mass retail toy it’s definitely cool. From a engineering perspective, I rate this deluxe Bumblebee second among all the deluxe Movie Bumblebees. And if you’re wondering who gets first honors, it’s Battle Blade Bumblebee from Revenge of the Fallen, Hunt for the Decepticons subline.

In alt mode, TLK Bee has black coloring painted over the hood and roof. All the Movie deluxe Bumblebees has been pretty good in alt mode, and TLK Bee is no exception.

The gun-arm accessory can be attached in alt mode, but it looks quite silly.

Underside of the vehicle.

All in all, this Bumblebee is good, but just short of great. I would give it much higher recommendation if the build and construction had no issues. But as is, I would still get it. It’s without a doubt one of the better deluxe Bumblebees made. I don’t think you would be missing out on too much if you passed on this, especially if you already have too many Movie Bumblebees taking up precious shelf space. But I would definitely get this Bee over many others that have been made in the Movie-verse.

Here is a pic of Drift, Bumblebee, and Hound, all from The Last Knight.

Autobots, Transform and Roll Out!

 

Categories: On The Hunt, Pics

Transformers Purchased in August 2017

August 1st, 2018 Comments off

Some very good items were purchased in August of 2017.

  • Optimus Prime Autobot Legacy 2-Pack (Amazon Exclusive), amazon.com, $29.99

  • The Last Knight Hound, Walmart, $26.86

  • ToyWorld Assault, Combuster, Requiem, tfsource.com, $159.99

Optimus Prime and Orion Pax

I’m not sure what is the official name of this 2-Pack. This Amazon exclusive is officially listed on their website as Optimus Prime Autobot Legacy 2-Pack. I have seen it listed elsewhere as the Optimus Prime Evolution Pack. There is also the name of Transformers Tribute written on the upper left corner of the box. And I’m not sure if this falls under Titans Return, Power of the Primes, or something else. But whatever it’s called, it’s a good 2-Pack to have.

Both figures in the set are repaints. As of this writing, I have not opened the set. The Optimus Prime figure is a repaint of War For Cybertron Optimus Prime. I see some minor paint app differences between this release and the WFC figure, and I’m gonna assume everything else is the same. Do not underestimate the complexity of this deluxe figure. If I am to compile a top 10 most difficult Transformers list today, this figure would easily make the list. The Orion Pax figure is a repaint of Titans Return Kup. This is an excellent mold to be re-used as Orion Pax.

Buy this set if you don’t have either of the figures used as the base for the repaint. But even if you do, this set is still worth getting. There has not been that many Orion Pax figures made. Not counting this one, I only recall two others. One in Generations Thrilling 30, and another as the base figure in the Leader Class Evolution Optimus Prime that will be released in the Power of the Primes line. This 2-Pack adds another Orion Pax to your collection and that alone is worth the price of admission.

Hound

This is my second figure from The Last Knight. TLK gave us another excellent Hound figure, after the superb Hound we got from Age of Extinction.

The figure comes packed in robot mode. In this mode, he’s a bit stocky, but that may more accurately reflect his movie proportions. Arm articulation is decent, but there’s not that much going on in the head, chest, or legs. The front wheels of the vehicle mode transforms into the feet. This makes standing the figure somewhat challenging. Not impossible, but you will have to balance Hound just right if you want to get him into any kind of action pose.

He comes with five pieces of weapons: 2 pistols, 2 heavy rifles, and 1 weapons connector type thing. There are many ways to assemble and configure this assortment.

Transformation of TLK Hound is where this figure truly shines. The overall transformation mechanism is one of the most unique I have seen in some time. I mentioned that the feet becomes the front wheels, but worth mentioning are other engineering feats besides the feet (pun intended). The legs collapse in an impressive way too complicated to explain in words. The arms are placed bent in alt mode and it works. The entire package is well constructed. When done right, the alt mode feels like a cohesive whole.

TLK Hound looks a bit different from AoE Hound in alt mode. I don’t know if either is movie accurate, and I won’t bother looking into it because both movies pretty much suck. AoE Hound is more of a van, while TLK Hound is more of a pick-up truck with a scary big missile launcher attached on top of the bed. TLK Hound is in a lighter shade of green, which seems a bit more movie accurate as far as I know.

TLK Hound appears below with other TLK figs Barricade, Drift, and Bumblebee.

Overall, I like TLK Hound. The transformation is unique, and the alt mode comes together well. TLK Hound doesn’t sport as many weapons as his AoE counterpart, but what’s there is more than sufficient.

I should note that the Japanese version of this figure comes with a riot shield. And I’m guessing the shield goes over the bed of the truck in alt mode. But since I don’t have that version, I’m not able to say if that significantly enhances TLK Hound in any way.

Some will inevitably ask which is the better Hound. In my opinion, AoE Hound is superior. AoE Hound is sleeker looking, has more weapons, and a robot mode that is easier to stand on. But these two figures are different enough that comparing the two is like comparing apples and oranges. If you like movie figures, get them both.

Requiem, Assault, and Combuster

Every once in a while, you find a deal so awesome that you immediately jump on it’s purchase. That was the case with this set of Masterpiece style Conehead Seekers from ToyWorld. They usually retail for a bit over $100 each. So at $159.99 for the set of 3, I wasted no time clicking on that “Buy” button and made sure this online transaction entered the vendor’s system. This was a Labor Day sale. It didn’t take long before this set sold out at this amazing price.

I have documented my long and utter disappointment with the official MP Conehead Seekers, back in this post. So I won’t rant again here. The only thing worth repeating is that they suck, and no self-respecting TransFan should spend any of their hard earned money on such garbage. I have since sold MP Ramjet, and have been looking for 3rd party substitutes for the Coneheads. Thus I’ve had my eye on this set for some time now. Seeing this spectacular deal, I acted with haste.

My fellow TransFans, this is the set of MP Coneheads that you should have in your Decepticon forces. TW gave us a completely new design on MP Coneheads that has far surpassed all my expectations. I touched a bit on the sheer brilliance of these figures in this post about Decepticon air superiority, but some of that is worth repeating here. But before that, let’s take a look at the jet mode, which is what the figures come packed in.

ToyWorld Requiem (Dirge) in his beautiful jet mode.

ToyWorld Assault (Thrust) in his beautiful jet mode.

No scale issues with official MPs in jet mode.

Assault and Combuster in jet mode.

Now let’s look at the robot mode.

All 3 look excellent in robot mode. Nice and slender build, unlike the fat bulky MP Coneheads.

Each figure comes with 2 black display panels that can connect both vertically and horizontally. In these pics I am using all 6. They are also used in the pic above for Hound and the other cars.

In robot mode, the TW Coneheads are quite a bit taller than official MPs.

The TW Coneheads really deserve a review in a separate post, but I’m gonna give some quick thoughts here:

  • Both modes look good – no complaints from me as far as the appearance of both jet and robot modes; see the pics for yourself
  • Amazing build and construction – nice and tight joints, no quality issues here like the MP Seekers
  • Great materials used – these figures feel solid and heft, and by comparison the MP Seekers feel cheap and sloppy
  • Excellent design and engineering – an intuitive and enjoyable transformation that is many times superior to official MPs
  • Each figure comes with 2 black display panels – TW didn’t have to include this but it’s a great addition
  • Front landing gear of each jet and be hard to get out, but that’s a minor complaint
  • Requiem (Dirge) and Combuster (Ramjet) come with firing missiles – and they FIRE! Careful not to lose them, they shoot pretty far
  • Cockpits open in jet mode
  • No scale issues in jet mode with official MPs
  • In robot mode, TW Coneheads don’t scale so well; they are a tad taller than official MPs, which may be a turn off for some (see above pic)
  • When you have all three and assemble the boxes, they form a nice big image

There is much more I should mention about this set, but I’ll reserve that for my review. I give the TW Coneheads the highest possible recommendation, and that’s the bottom line. If you are looking for Masterpiece style Coneheads for your collection, look no further.

Transform and Roll Out.
 

Categories: On The Hunt, Pics

The Last Knight Nitro Quick Review

June 14th, 2018 Comments off

Figures from The Last Knight are fairly unremarkable as a whole. But some stars stand out among all this mediocrity. Voyager class Nitro is one of them.

In the movie, his name is Nitro Zeus. For the toy, he’s just Nitro. I don’t know why the name is shortened. But he is one of the few figures you should have for your TLK collection.

Let’s take a look. I’m starting in robot mode because that’s how he’s packaged.

Nitro in your standard A stance.

He’s capable of some dynamic action poses.

Striking another pose.

Up close face shot.

A little known feature is that Nitro’s head can be removed, and any standard Titan Master can be inserted and used as the head. Here I have the head of Twin Twist on Nitro’s body. Why Hasbro saw fit to give us this feature in this TLK figure is a mystery, but I suppose it’s kind of a cool gimmick.

Rear view. He’s got some junk on him. I wish the rear tail fin hanging off his ass can be folded upwards towards his back.

Missiles on the top of the backpack can be removed.

Transformation to jet mode can be challenging for the casual TF fans out there. I have transformed Nitro to jet mode twice. On my first attempt, I needed the instructions. But even with that, the conversion process proved demanding. I remember having a hard time aligning the legs. On my 2nd attempt, it felt just as difficult, but in a different area. I had to resort to watching YouTube vids of other fans explaining the process. Turn out I had the shoulder of the jet nosecone arm configured directly reversed from how it should be. On yeah, Nitro is a non-symmetrical Transformer (like many of the motorcycle figures). I have always felt that non-symmetrical TFs are in general more difficult than symmetrical ones. If I was compiling a top 10 most difficult list today, I am really tempted to put Nitro on there.

When done right, Nitro is a fantastic looking jet. Look at the first pic below. Yes the transformation is hard, but the end result is so worth it. Everything comes together nicely. In fact, if something doesn’t come together nicely, you know you have done something wrong.

Jet looks beautiful from the rear.

A Titan Master can sit in the cockpit. Very cool. We already saw that Titan Masters can be used as heads in robot mode. Nitro can be a full fledged Titans Return figure if Hasbro chose to repaint the mold and include a repainted Titan Master.

Underneath the Jet. Nitro packs in rather well. Overall shape is clean without too much bulk.

Nitro with Studio Series Starscream. They are both Voyager class. Notice SS figs got much smaller, but that’s a topic for another day.

Hasbro saw fit to repaint this mold as Studio Series Thundercracker, SS-08. That was my final purchase from Toys R Us before it went belly up.

Go Nitro! Transform and Roll Out.
 

Categories: Pics, Toy Reviews

Transformers Purchased in April 2017

May 6th, 2018 Comments off

There was no shortage of purchases in April of 2017. Figures from every TF line of the time was represented this month, including Titans Return, Robots in Disguise, and for the first time, The Last Knight. Even third party products were not left out. Some of these figures are pretty darn good. And some of them, not so much. If you just want to get to my final thoughts about a figure, scroll down to the bottom of the post.

There’s a lot to get through, so let’s get to it.

  • Robots in Disguise Soundwave, Walmart, $14.97

  • Robots in Disguise Blurr, Walmart, $14.97

  • The Last Knight Barricade, Walmart, $15.83

  • Titans Return Broadside, Target, $24.99

  • Titans Return Sky Shadow, Target, $40.99

  • Titans Return Bumblebee, Kickback, Gnaw, tfsource.com, $32.99

  • Keiths Fantasy Club E-Nergeon Cubes, tfsource.com, $9.99

  • FansProject Function-XV MADLAW, tfsource.com, $39.99

  • Warbotron WB03-A Turbo Ejector, tfsource.com, $79.99

Soundwave and Blurr

The two Robots in Disguise figures this month are Soundwave and Blurr. I found these two very early in the month.

I could never get enough Soundwave figures. I love the character, and I’m pleased he has a figure in the RiD line (though I don’t watch the show so I don’t know if he makes an appearance). RiD Soundwave takes design cues from many previous incarnations of the character. In robot mode, he’s got the iconic Soundwave colors and right-shoulder mounted cannon. Overall body shape takes design aesthetics from War For Cybertron Soundwave, and the head mold is an obvious homage of Transformers Prime Soundwave. I dig Soundwave’s overall appearance in robot mode. The red featureless face is a good fit for the character, and works well as a light piping feature. The figure is capable of some good poses in robot form, though most of it is achieved through cheap plastic ball joints. Transformation of RiD Soundwave is not difficult by any means. But unless you do it all time, there are some minor twists to an overall familiar motif that could have you very slightly stumped during the process. I don’t transform the figure that much, and every time I do it, I find myself asking silently, “How do I do that again?” RiD Soundwave’s alt mode is most certainly taken from War For Cybertron. But that’s not a bad thing. The Cybertronian car/SUV works well for the character. In my opinion, there are not that many good figures from Robots in Disguise, but Soundwave is one of them. This is a recommended figure. Get it.

Let’s look at Blurr next. The figure features the iconic Blurr colors that we have grown accustomed to. His head mold is an unique take on Blurr. It looks like he’s wearing a helmet with a visor, something Blurr would use if he was a human race car driver. I dunno, I think it’s design gimmicks like these that turns me off on Robots in Disguise. The show heavily attempts to humanize every Transformer, and I think they’re forgetting that they’re robots, not humans. Blurr is super easy to transform, just like every other figure in the RiD line. His transformation motif features nothing that we haven’t seen before. Arms to the sides, snap the legs together, and fold the back assembly over to the top of the vehicle. Flip in the feet pieces and line up the spoilers. That pretty much describes the entire transformation. It’s painfully simple, even by RiD standards. Granted, the alt mode does look cool. This futuristic race car reminds of me Crasher from the GoBots. I bet a customizer has already made a Crasher using this figure. Blurr’s weapon is in a translucent blue, and it comes with 2 pegs so you can position the weapon in two different orientations. All in all, this is not a bad figure, but offers nothing new for the mature collector.

Barricade

I am pleased to introduce my very first figure from The Last Knight: Barricade. There has been many deluxe movie Barricades made, and none of them are that good. I have the very first Barricade, from the 1st movie, as part of “First Encounter” 2 pack. And I have deluxe Barricade from Dark of the Moon. DotM Barricade is slightly better than the first Barricade, but neither one set the world on fire.

Hasbro used the term “Premier Edition” to label TLK toys that are more geared towards collectors, kind of like how Age of Extinction used the “Generations” banner. I started seeing the Premier Edition figs at Walmart in early April. Right away I liked the packaging. Even for the deluxe size figs, they are packed in boxes and not on cardboard. That’s always a plus in my book. In addition to Barricade, there was Bumblebee, Berserker, and Slash in the first wave of Premier Edition deluxe figs. I’m pretty sure Bumblebee and Slash are repaints from AoE. Berserker didn’t look all that interesting. That only leaves Barricade. Out of these 4, he does look the best in the box. And since I was never satisfied with the previous Barricades, I was really hoping this figure would be better. So I left the store with only Barricade.

I’m gonna go over the alt mode first. Barricade’s police car paint job is quite good. This Barricade is more of a dark blue, and not black. The Decepticon logo and the “POLICE” markings are painted very sharply on both sides. Front headlights and the police siren lights on the grill are also nicely painted. Same goes for the rear brake lights. This Barricade still has the phrase “To Punish and Enslave” written in cursive right above the rear wheels, and this application looks better than ever. What I find most impressive about this alt mode is that it’s got room for all his accessories. There are peg holes for the pistol and the night stick underneath the vehicle. And with those attached, there is still plenty of clearance for the police car to roll well on a flat surface. But what’s really impressive is how the arm cannon is placed in alt mode. The round arm cannon fold apart to form 2 semi-circles, and in this form the cannon is pegged in on the rear windshield. It’s a very cool effect and I commend Hasbro for this design. Barricade feels cohesive in this mode, nothing dangling or flopping around. If I was only judging this by alt mode, this is the best Barricade ever made.

Transformation to robot mode is pretty simple. That seems to be the trend for movie figures these days, even the ones made for collectors. It’s nothing we haven’t seen from the movie line, so I won’t describe it too much. In robot mode, Barricade looks ok, not great. I feel that his proportions are off. The legs appear a bit short in my opinion, giving more of a stocky look. The big weakness of the robot mode is that there is way too much back kibble. The roof of the car is draped over almost the entire back side. In fact, the roof of the car accounts for about 70% of the height in robot mode. It’s not AoE Crosshairs bad, but pretty close. Articulation is decent for a fig in this class, though I gotta point out there is no waist articulation and the head only moves from side to side, not up and down. The pistol and nightstick can be held in either hand. The same peg holes for their storage in alt mode is now positioned to the side of the thighs, so he can store them there in bot mode for kind of a cool look. The arm cannon can be wrapped around either arm. In my opinion, the robot mode is mediocre at best.

So should you get Barricade? I do feel this is the best Barricade made to date, but that’s not saying too much. Alt mode is excellent, but bot mode is so-so. If you’re not crazy about the character, then perhaps wait for the MP Barricade that is due out sometime this year.

Below is a pic of Barricade with some other TLK figures, that will come in later months.

I mentioned in earlier entries that I made a visit to New Zealand and Australia in 2017. That was a great trip! And I wanna go back there so bad. Anyways, that happened in April of 2017. The 3 figures featured so far were found before the trip. All other figures this month were acquired after the trip. And believe me, I tried hunting for Transformers in Australia. I did locate some Toys R Us stores on Google Maps, but they were too far out of the way from where we stayed and where we went for attractions. Bummer. I would have liked to see Toys R Us in Australia, like I did for Paris and Shanghai. And now that Toys R Us is officially closing all stores here in the United States (and in the U.K.), I wonder if the international stores will survive.

Broadside

TR Broadside is one of the last figures I found in April, but I’m gonna talk about him now. For a long time, I was really hoping Hasbro would make a Broadside. I featured my CHUG Wreckers a while back, in this post. Look on the 3rd shelf, and I got all the original Wreckers updated in modern day form. Except for Broadside. So now having Broadside is a dream come true. That is, until I opened the figure.

Broadside is one of the original Autobot Triple Changers, along with Springer and Sandstorm. His 2 alt modes is a jet and an aircraft carrier. The concept of such a figure already boggles the mind. From a story perspective, Broadside has to be doing some crazy mass shifting to go from a regular sized bot to an aircraft carrier. And as for the toy, it’s very, very had to implement in physical form, because the shape of an aircraft carrier is very different from the shape of a jet. I never had the G1 toy, but I understand it’s not the best.

Titans Return is taking a stab at doing this difficult figure to please the hardcore completist fans, and I do appreciate them trying. But the end result is less than stellar. The aircraft carrier mode is decent, the robot mode is passable, but the jet mode is horrendous. The front of the jet looks ok, but the rear of the jet looks like something a fan would make up out of a toy as another mode. It’s as if the toy designers did not know what to do with the robot legs, so they kinda just stuck it in an awkward configuration for the rear of the jet called it a day. There is so much bulk at the back that this can’t be considered a good jet mode by any means. I don’t recommend this figure. Here are some pics.

Sky Shadow

Another figure I got towards the end of the month is Sky Shadow. He’s the last TR figure for the month. I did a quick review for him already, so read all the juicy details here. Sky Shadow is a recommended figure for this month.

Bumblebee, Kickback, Gnaw

The 3 TR legend class figures were bought as a set, for $32.99. I did find them all individually later in store for cheaper, but I wanted to lock them in early since legend figures always go fast when they first come out.

TR Bumblebee is not bad, but not great. Transformation uses the tried and true Bumblebee formula. Poseability is decent and construction is solid. I love the head and face sculpt, it’s done really well for a $10 figure. The Autobot logo is also nicely painted on and not a cheap sticker. The alt mode, while not a G1 bug, resembles something that Bumblebee would choose to be today. This figure doesn’t do anything that previous CHUG legend Bumblebees haven’t done, with the exception of one thing: A Titan Master can ride inside him in alt mode. You read that right. Most figures first released under the Titans Return line can have a Titan Master ride somewhere in their alt modes. And legend figures are no exception (if the alt mode is a vehicle). In Bumblebee’s case, the chest cavity is made hollow enough that a Titan Master can be squeezed in there in alt mode. However, this does mean that getting the car mode to clean up nicely after transformation is a bit tougher. The panel pieces surrounding the hollow cabin can collapse on itself inwards. My final verdict is that TR Bumblebee is a nice offering. Worth picking up if you have no other CHUG Bumblebees, or if you dig the the Titan Master riding feature. As for everyone else, this is an optional purchase.

TR Kickback is the last of the 3 famous Insecticons to be released in legend scale, in some kind of Generations line. We already got Thrilling 30 Skrapnel (Shrapnel) and Combiner Wars Bombshell (glad they could keep the name and not use Bombshock). Titans Return Kickback completes the trio. Overall, I like this Insecticon less than the other 2. The figure is ok, but he’s more flimsy than his Insecticon brothers. Construction of the figure feels cheap. He’s got parts dangling about in both modes, but that’s more of an issue with the initial character design. The insect mode is the weakest of the 3, by far. The mechanics of the transformation seems rushed and lazy. All TR legend figures use cheap ball joints, but Kickback’s implementation of them appear really obvious. If you got the other 2, than by all means pick up this figure to assemble the trio. But if you don’t, Kickback can be a skip. Or better yet, get one of the other ones first. My favorite out of these 3 is Bombshell, and it’s not because I’m partial to the character. He’s the most robust and solid out of the 3 Insecticons.

The last in this set of threesome is Gnaw. Anyone who has seen the G1 Movie knows that Gnaw makes up the drone soldiers of the Sharkticon army, under direction of the Quintessons. A G1 figure of Gnaw was made, and I think his allegiance was Sharkticon on the Tech Spec Bio. However, they still put a Decepticon logo on the toy, and I don’t recall if the name Gnaw was ever used in the G1 Movie or Cartoons. So was a figure made after the Movie designed this character, or did they take this toy and then make up the whole Quintesson backstory? We may never know. But what I do know is that TR Gnaw is pretty cool. He is one of the most unique figures that I have purchased in some time. His colors are unmistakably Gnaw. In robot mode he’s kinda stocky, but that actually reflects how he looked in the G1 Movie. Transformation to the metal shark creature is one of the most unique I have seen, and mechanically it actually works quite well. Robot head folds back, and the legs go backwards and form the shark back and head. Robot arms become the shark legs. The weapon becomes the shark tail. It doesn’t do justice when I describe it in words, but trust me it’s cool. I love how Gnaw looks as the shark creature. He’s got nice clear yellow eyes and a working lower jaw. Shark arms can be rotated, and the shark legs has a decent level of articulation. The alt mode also comes together well, forming a solid cohesive piece despite the fact that he’s got arms and legs. My only gripe is that he’s only legend class. In the Movie he’s actually a tad bigger than Hot Rod and Kup, so a deluxe or voyager class figure would have made more sense. But as legend class, I suppose some hardcore fan out there can get a bunch of these and assemble a Sharkticon army. I give Gnaw the highest level of recommendation. This figure is a required purchase for G1 fans.

E-Nergeon Cubes

I made quick post about these cubes here. See that post for a more in depth look at this high quality 3P accessory made to scale with your MP figures. Highly recommended.

MADLAW

Sixshot is not the only Six-Changer in the TF Universe. There is also an Autobot Six-Changer: Quickswitch. Only the most hardcore of G1-ers know about Quickswitch, and that’s for good reason. The toy came about way too late in G1 to matter. And, to be quite frank, G1 Quickswitch is not the best figure by any standards. In robot mode he looks like he’s wearing diapers, the puma mode is a mess, and his weird color palette of red and green is worthy of arrest by the Cybertron fashion police.

MADLAW is FansProject’s attempt at a modern Quickswitch, much like Hexatron is to Sixhot. Upon first hearing about MADLAW, I was quite excited. When he was finally released, there wasn’t much fanfare or fan buzz. Then the figure faded into obscurity, buried among the many 3P products that we are now saturated with today. Now I know why. Unlike the awesome Hexatron, Quickswitch is not a figure that will knock your socks off.

I purchased MADLAW sometime in late 2016. Tfsource.com had a sale for it at $39.99. I figured you can’t go wrong at this price. I didn’t have anything else to ship with MADLAW so I waited til now. And MADLAW did not make this worth the wait. He’s packed in robot mode. He looks alright in this mode, not great but not bad. He’s significantly smaller than Hexatron. So I guess MADLAW is meant to scale with CHUG.

The first mode I tried to transform him to is the boat mode. I didn’t get very far before I noticed something weird. On one side, the foot piece wouldn’t rotate and line up correctly to go into this alt mode no matter how hard I tried. Turns out, I got left foot pieces on both legs! At this point I gave up on trying to transform the figure and MADLAW stayed in robot mode all this time.

I contacted Tfsource.com to have the situation remedied. Tfsource made me take pictures of the issue, so I did and sent it to them. Then they come back saying I contacted them after 30 days, and per their policy they can’t do anything after 30 days. I got two problems here. One: why did they make me take pictures if all they are gonna say is this is past 30 days? That was a total waste of my time. Two: quoting a policy to not remedy the problem is simply hiding behind policy to do nothing. Real good here, tfsouce. Aren’t you the one that makes the policies? There is no faster way to alienate customers than hiding behind stupid policies. I have since given tfsource way less business. Both capturedprey.com and thechosenprime.com have gone to much greater lengths to take care of me. I mentioned how capturedprey.com got a replacement stand piece for me for Soar. And more recently, thechosenprime.com got me a replacement piece for Contactshot. On a part that I broke! And I broke it about 4 months after the purchase! I now give these 2 much more business. Screw Tfsource!

Anyways, back to MADLAW. Even without the foot piece issue, I don’t think he’s such a great figure. He is kinda small for today’s standards. The only alt mode I tried to get him to didn’t look all that good, even if there was not a wrong foot piece getting in the way. Transformation for that one mode also didn’t feel that smooth. I realize I didn’t fully give the figure a chance here, but if FansProject had better QA, I would have. I blame FP for including the wrong part to begin with, and tfsouce for not fixing the problem. As it stands, I do not recommend this figure. For that reason, I’m not gonna include any pics of MADLAW out of the box. My thoughts about the figure may change, if I choose to dig out this figure and play with it more. But that seems highly unlikely.

If you’re wondering why this figure is called MADLAW, it’s because each letter in the name is also the first letter for each of the modes. For example, W stands for Wood Runner (the puma mode).

All this reminds me of the time I got two left hands for the TF Animated Rodimus figure. How do errors like these happen? Sometimes I really wonder what goes on at a transforming figure toy factory. I have a feeling I might not wanna know. I hope it’s not as bad as what I read about Apple factories.

Is another 3P going to take a stab at their own Quickswitch? Only time will tell.

Turbo Ejector

Last but certainly not least, I have to mention Turbo Ejector. This awesome figure is Warbotron’s interpretation of Technobot Afterburner in MP scale. I did a quick review of the figure. Go read that for all the details, or just trust me and go buy this figure now.

To summarize, these are the grades for the figures this month:

Recommended:

  • RiD Soundwave
  • TR Gnaw
  • TR Sky Shadow
  • E-Nergeon Cubes
  • Warbotron Turbo Ejector

Mediocre:

  • TR Bumblebee
  • TR Kickback
  • RiD Blurr
  • TLK Barricade

Not Recommended:

  • TR Broadside
  • FansProject Function-XV MADLAW (though this may change)

Transform and Roll Out.

 

Categories: On The Hunt, Pics

Decepticon Air Superiority, 2017 !

October 20th, 2017 Comments off

Exactly 5 years ago on this day, I presented a short post about Decepticon Air Superiority. Well, 5 years later, I also find myself with lots of Decepticons jets lying about here and there. So it’s time for another post that will remind the Autobots of Decepticons’ sheer and utter dominance in the not-so-friendly skies.

The 5 jets presented here are all very nice figs that represents how far transforming toys have come. All of them have clever engineering mechanisms that showcase how well a transforming jet can be made today. The oldest figure here, in terms of when the mold was first released, is Masterpiece Starscream. What I have here is a 2017 re-issue of the MP-11. I missed out on the MP-11 when first released. But I have enough other characters that utilize this mode, including MP Thundercracker (picutred 5 years ago), MP Acid Storm, and MP Sunstorm. This mold is the 2nd one used in the official MP line from Takara. The design feels a little dated today, and the mold’s poor durability after all this time is well documented. But I’m glad to finally have a Starscream in this mold in 2017. And the copy of I have feels ok in terms of build quality.

The two jets in front are some of my most recent acquisitions from The Last Knight: Voyager class Megatron and Nitro. Megatron is the dark grey futuristic looking jet, and Nitro is the light grey F-16 with the black nose cone. Both figures are excellent additions to the LK line. Megatron is a pure joy to transform and play with. Both modes look good, the figure is well built, and the transformation is fun, intuitive, and refreshing. Nitro is one of the more difficult figures in the LK line. But he’s a testament to modern TF engineering. He’s a non-symmetrical transformer, like many of the motorcycle figs. In jet mode, when done right, he comes together so well that the difficult and frustrating transformation sequence is easily forgiven. Both figs were acquired in the past 2 weeks.

The black jet in the center is Combiner Wars Skywarp. I acquired him in November of 2016, and left him out in the open all this time.

Last but not least, we have ToyWorld Requiem, their MP styled homage to Dirge. He’s the blue jet with brown wings. And let me tell you: this is an amazing figure! A lot of other TransFans are turned off by these TW Coneheads because of their scale. Yes in robot mode they are a bit tall. But seriously, don’t let that discourage you! These Coneheads are so well built and designed that they put official MP Seekers to shame. The TW Coneheads have a nice heft to them, and in your hands they feel more like the real deal and make official Takara products feel like knock offs. The Takara Seeker mold is so used now that figures produced feel cheap and sloppy. My Starscream (mentioned above) feels ok, but some fans have not been so fortunate. I have outlined how poorly my official MP Ramjet is in terms of build quality. TW Coneheads have no build issues whatsoever. All joints feel nice and tight. But what ultimately impressed me about TW Requiem is the design and engineering. The transformation is many times superior to Takara MPs. It’s enjoyable and intuitive, and the nice and solid construction means that everything properly tabs into place. In robot mode, Requiem looks slender and sleek instead of wide and bulky. I got the set of 3 TW Coneheads for only $159.99 from TF Source on a sale in August. This is probably the best TF purchase I have made this year.

So who is leading this bunch? LK Megatron? Or MP Starscream? You decide.

Transform and Roll Out.

 

Categories: Pics

Transformers The Last Knight

October 2nd, 2017 Comments off

So I finally watched this movie. And I’ll get straight to it: I was entertained, but this is not a good movie by any stretch of the imagination.

I watched Transformers the Last Knight with several others. We probably had more fun making fun of the movie than really trying to follow what’s going on. The Last Knight is filled with humorous and ridiculous sequences. One example is a scene where Cade Yeager had to jump off a building and onto some TFR automatons as if they’re platforms, like if he was playing Frogger or Pitfall. The Last Knight is the least successful of the 5 films, financially speaking. That’s no surprise. I watched the first 4 movies in the theater, but passed on this one. We rented the movie from iTunes, but only because we had free credits. So technically we spent no money on LK (not counting some figures I bought).

The Last Knight is going for a Arthurian knight motif. That’s obvious by looking at the trailers. Both Prime and Megs look more like knights in this one, and personally I think it’s kinda silly. Mark Wahlberg returns from the previous installment. Josh Duhamel, John Turturro, and Stanley Tucci come back for more as well (though Tucci as a different character). Anthony Hopkins joins the cast. Why someone of his caliber wants to lend his talents to this hot mess of a movie is beyond me. Tyrese wanted to come back, but he obviously wanted to spend his time in a superior franchise (FF8). Early reports were that Megan Fox would be back, but I’m guessing people got confused since Laura Haddock looks so similar in some early leaked shots. Good thing Peter Cullen and Frank Welker are both back as Prime and Megs.

LK is full of your usual Michael Bay movie mayhem. Big explosions, check. Bad editing that jumps for scene A to F to M, check. Immature, racist, and juvenile dialogue, check. Robots that all look the same, check. Uber male objectification of women, check. Plot that you can’t follow, check. And even if you could follow it you see that it makes no sense, check.

But believe it or not, I don’t think LK is the worst film in the franchise. Here’s how I rate the 5, from best to worst:

  • Transformers
  • Transformers: Dark of the Moon
  • Transformers: The Last Knight
  • Transformers: Age of Extinction
  • Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen

As for the toys, LK is below average when compared to other movies. As of this writing I have bought 6 figures total from LK, and I feel like I have enough to rate the line as a whole. Here’s how I rate them, from best to worst:

  • Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen
  • Transformers: Dark of the Moon
  • Transformers
  • Transformers: The Last Knight
  • Transformers: Age of Extinction

Both Michael Bay and Mark Wahlberg have said they are not coming back for more. I suppose that’s the good news in all of this. Bay must be sick of this franchise after 5 outings. Personally I feel like he never really cared for what Transformers represents to long-time fans that have supported it all these years through thick and thin. After the first movie, Bay has so thoroughly twisted the Transformers mythos that anything moving forward bear only a shallow semblance to the original source material. I actually like Mark Wahlberg as an actor, but I think he’s got better things to do. Wahlberg has complained about this franchise after LK hit theaters, including that he doesn’t like his haircut in part 5. I agree. Time for a new leading man.

It will be interesting to see how things wrap up in part 6, which is already confirmed for Summer 2019. I’m curious how the movie would feel without Bay’s influence. But before this, a Bumblebee spin off is slated for late 2018. I’m not sure where or when the story would take place in the TF Movie-verse. Hailee Steinfeld is confirmed to be in the movie.

I hope the Bumblebee movie will be better. New blood will be good for the franchise. Transform and Roll Out.
 

Categories: Uncategorized

Decepticon Power!

July 25th, 2017 Comments off

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.

 

Categories: Pics

Transformers 5 The Last Knight Teaser Trailer

December 6th, 2016 Comments off

Michael Bay blow stuff up crapfest #5 will soon be upon us. The teaser trailer was released yesterday. Check it out.

I dunno. I have been excited and jaded by the past 3 movies. This article sums up how I feel. Still, that one shot of Unicron has me all giddy like I’m 12 again. Maybe… just maybe… this will be good. But in the end this movie will suck. And I will have paid to watch it in the theaters.

Every TF movie thus far has had an older white guy in a position of authority. Jon Voight in the original movie. Rainn Wilson in Revenge of the Fallen. John Malkovich in Dark of the Moon. Kelsey Grammer in Age of Extinction. And now we have Anthony Hopkins in The Last Knight??!! What’s with this weird trend? I do give credit to Michael Bay for attracting some big Hollywood talent. And it also looks like Megan Fox begged her way back to Bay’s good graces. I guess that’s not news considering she was in TMNT.

Let’s hope we at least get some good toys for TF5. Transform and Roll Out.

Categories: TF News