Tag: Generation 1

Bringing the Unexpected: Part Six – The Final Clones

The clone two pack has finally arrived at Junkion HQ and they saved the best for last. (If, like me, you are not lucky enough to have found one in your local Walgreens store, you can order your own on their site.)

Wingspan

The second Decepticon beast is just as fun as the first.

The Robot

Not surprisingly, the new clones look pretty much the same in robot mode.

The Bird

The transformation on these are more satisfying than the first two clones since they include a few more steps. Wingspan’s arms have an extra little piece attached to the shoulder that links the wings to the body and locks everything into place. We can also finally see the reason for the second hinge int he robot hips since it is required for the transformation of the final two clones.

Comparison

Here is Wingspan with his G1 self: shorter but better articulation.

Sadly, my G1 Wingspan can only be called “span” since he no longer has any wings but here they are together in beast mode anyways.

Evil Decepticon Span transforms into a vicious cyber-turkey

And with his updated pal Pounce, he’s the one on the… he’s one of these two.

They’re easier to tell apart in beast mode.

Titan/Prime Master Integration

You can put a Titan or Prime Master onto his back and finally recreate those Lord of the Rings scenes with Transformers like you know you’ve always wanted to.

Cloudraker

Although his jet mode is no more convincing than the original, I still enjoy the air-based Autobot clone.

The Robot

Again, not a radical new look for the robot mode, as expected.

The Plane

Here is where all of the new comes in.

Titan/Prime Master Integration

Like Fastclash before him, Cloudraker includes a flip up panel on his chest that becomes a cockpit in alt mode.

This is a totally natural way to ride a jet

Comparison

Sadly, my G1 Cloudraker has gone missing so here he is in robot mode with G1 Fastlane.

The clone look is really broken by the large spoiler and wheels on Fastclash’s shoulders.

Air and Land attack!

These are totally real vehicles!

Extra: Weapons

Thanks to ToyHax’s Black Friday sale I picked up several of their label and parts sets including the missing weapons for the Autobot clones. Fastclash’s weapons are included in ToyHax’s Chaos on Velocitron set and Cloudraker’s are in their own set.

Cloudraker’s weapons really work well with the jet mode and help give the “arms pointed backwards” fuselage a bit more purpose.

360 Degree Turnaround Videos

Along with the new year, I’m introducing a new feature 360 degree turnaround videos. With these you’ll be able to see front, back and side views of each figure in each mode.

Cloudraker

Wingspan

January 1, 2018
Transformers Prejudices

After coming clean about being a “Rumble is Red” guy in my last post I started thinking about my personal Transformer Prejudices. For example the reasons that, for me, Rumble is red, Thrust is the best Seeker (with wings behind his shoulders BTW) and Twin Twist is an important character is all due to the fact that I owned the toys as a kid.

A lot of the G1 arguments we have in the fandom are topics where both sides are technically correct. Of course, my side is more technically correct, but I digress.

Scale

We talk about this a lot; Masterpiece Ultra Magnus is too big (disagree), Masterpiece Grimlock is too small (conditionally agree), Power of the Primes Predaking is too big/not big enough (too early to tell). Lets be honest, there is no possible way that you can make everyone happy using a physical object to represent anything animated in the original cartoon.

Scale – I don’t think that word means what you think it means (photo from TF Wiki)

With deliberate mass-shifting and abundant animation errors it’s simply impossible to represent the characters as they were shown.

Takara decided to base their post MP-10 Masterpiece scale on the following guide (photo from TF Wiki):

This is great-ish. We have a standard scale for the robot modes that is consistent across the line. However, take Bumblebee…

…looks about right…

…wait, is that a child’s pedal-car model of a Volkswagon?

Personally I like the approach that Takara took since I primarily display my collection in robot mode.

However, eagle-eyed readers might notice MP-8 Grimlock standing between Ultra Magnus and Optimus Prime, a clear violation of the scale chart. To compound the violation is Bullsfire DB-01 Air Strike, my Swoop stand-in which, unlike every other Masterpiece themed Swoop, is scaled to match MP-8. I did pick up FansToys’ FT-05 Soar but it is far too large to fit into my display.

Ultra Magnus

I don’t think of Ultra Magnus as a repainted Optimus Prime in armor because I didn’t get the toy until I was in college and the animation model always transformed straight from the car carrier to the bot.

Sure, I’ve read the Dreamwave comics where he was “revealed” as wearing armor and I’ve read the IDW comics where he was “revealed” as Minimus Ambus, just one in a long line of Ultra Magnus cosplayers, but that was long after my opinions were solidified.

Takara vs. Hasbro vs. Third Party

There are a lot of fans that will, very emphatically, argue that one is inherently better than the others, often followed by declaring how poor those other two options “really” are. I tend to double dip into Takara for my main collection when a deco (Henkei chrome) or additional accessory (Targetmasters) warrants it then use third party versions to fill gaps, primarily on the Masterpiece side. If I have a third-party version and an official version comes out I tend to display only the official.

November 8, 2017
Fans Toys FT-27 Spindrift

The Seaspray inspired masterpiece-style Spindrift from Fans Toys has arrived at Junkion HQ.

The Box

The first surprise with Spindrift is that it comes in a very small box for a masterpiece-class figure.

Along with the styrafoam insert Spindrift comes with full-color instructions, trading card, three weapons and a spare head with a more boxy design.

The Robot

One thing that is immediately obvious is that this is a post-diet version of the character. Spindrift is very thin, especially when viewed beside TR Seaspray.

Spindrift includes a pistol in the G1 cartoon generic handgun style as well as two small blasters that can mount on the forearms.

The Hovercraft

A word of warning, the white side pieces lock into the arms very tightly making it difficult to disconnect them when transforming back to robot mode.

The two blasters can be mounted on the hovercraft deck with the pistol between them for a “fully armed and operational” hovercraft.

The Comparisons

As mentioned earlier, Spindrift has a much flatter chest than the G1 inspiration.

The hovercraft mode is shaped much like G1 Seaspray with a pointed bow.

The Conclusion

Although I like the figure, the proportions seem a bit off, with the very thin chest and the trademark oversized feet it looks extremely bottom heavy.

It’s just a bot without a Badge

October 5, 2017
Bringing the Unexpected: Part Four – Twin Twist

Twin Twist has finally arrived at Junkion HQ and the Jumpstarters are finally complete!

In photos Twin Twist’s tank treads can look very thin and Topspin’s wings do not lock in place so I had been a little concerned about how the treads would work. But with the actual toy in hand I’m happy to say that they stay in place very well in both modes. There’s no real lock but they are tighter than Topspin’s wings.

Like his mold-mate, Twin Twist has a great transformation that compacts everything into the vehicle mode for a very solid feel. Not only is it a great update of the original, but the cockpit is very well integrated and feels like it should always have been there.

Also like his mold-mate, Twin Twist’s biggest difference from the original is the height difference. There is no question that these are the same ‘bot. You may notice that my G1 Twin Twist is not exactly pristine – it is my original toy and features a catalog Autobot symbol that I glued on after the sticker wore off.

After seeing a solid color parts swap of Twin Twist and Topspin on TFW2005 and realizing how much I loved Topspin I decided to double-dip. After much debate I finally settled on donating these bodies to Clobber and Ptero. I thought that he blue for Ptero would evoke the Diaclone figure while the white Clobber would have a Beast Wars feel.

Swoop was another figure that I owned “back in the day” and I was very excited when Ptero was announced, especially after seeing how great Clobber’s beast mode turned out. Unfortunately I was underwhelmed by Ptero’s mini-vehicle and am much happier with him in his new form (at least until we receive the true Swoop next year).

October 1, 2017
Titans Return Legends Class Seaspray

Another long awaited release has arrived here at Junkion HQ – Titans Return Seaspray.

Seaspray was one of the TFs I had as a child and I’ve been waiting for an update that matched the original. Unfortunately, the earlier Ultra class figure was too big to truly capture the feeling of the G1 mini-bot.

The Robot

As you’ve probably heard, Seaspray’s weapon is an unique design that has evoked many, many, pizza box jokes. I give them credit for integrating it with the vehicle mode (something I always appreciate) but it needs a little extra something to really work as a weapon. Either a fold-out muzzle or way to wield it as a shield would have been a vast improvement.

Since it doesn’t really work as a weapon for me, my preference is to keep the pizza box connected to the robot chest for a more G1-esque look.

The Transformation

To transform Seaspray start by folding up the robot back so that the shoulders are flush with the robot chest. Rotate the arms up and lock the wrist pegs into the holes at the back of the chest piece. If you have the “pizza gun” on the robot chest, remove it so that you can fold up the flap that covers the face. Flip out the robot heels to form the sides of the hovercraft. Snap the feet together then flip them around so that they are upside down. Fold the knees backwards then rotate the hips and waist in until you can lock the sides of the hovercraft into the side of the robot chest. Replace the “pizza gun” on the top of the hovercraft and Seaspray is complete. Overall I’m satisfied with how everything locks together in hovercraft mode but I do wish the fists locked in just a little more solidly.

The Comparisons

The biggest difference between G1 Seaspray and TR Seaspray, aside from the modern articulation, is the location of the Autobot symbol which has moved from the top of the foot to the chest. The G1 chest decals have been replicated almost exactly on the TR version.

In hovercraft mode you can clearly see how much more angular the TR version is when compared to the original. It’s most noticeable in the flattened front and the squared off fan mounts at the back. This is also where the Legends class sizing really shines, Seaspray fits easily in the hand just like his G1 predecessor.

The Case-mate

TR Legends class series 1 consists of Seaspray and the re-release of Cosmos. I’m using the Combiner Wars version of his case-mate in the above photo. The TR version is a darker green with a slightly lighter blue on the windows and an Autobot symbol that’s about half the size of the CW version.

The Conclusion

I highly recommend TR Seaspray, it’s a fun figure that’s nice and solid in both modes. If the “pizza gun” bothers you you can leave it in the bubble and never miss it.

While writing this post I received notification that Fans Toys FT-27 Spindrift is on it’s way so we’ll have another Seaspray-centric post in about a week.

Mini-bots travel in packs

July 6, 2017
Bringing the Unexpected: Part Three – Clone #2

Today we found out that the last two clones will be arriving in a two-pack instead of with larger box sets as had originally been expected. Hopefully the other two box sets that we’ve been anticipating will still happen just without the clones.

Will we get sets to fill in the other two icons?

Since my Siege on Cybertron box set recently arrived this seemed like good timing for a review.

The Box

For some reason the Siege on Cybertron box set comes branded with the Beast Wars logo. I suppose it does come with a puma and a guy called MetalHAWK but it’s still a bit of a stretch.

Brought to you by Beast Wars and the letter H

Beast Mode

As mentioned above, Pounce’s beast mode is officially a puma but, to me, it looks more like a robot on all fours wearing a dog costume. Still, like Fastclash, it’s a little figure.

To integrate with Titan Masters Pounce features a saddle on his back where the figures can be attached.

While his front legs are a bit spindly at least they’re white to match the head instead of the purple used on the G1 version.

Transformation

His tail folds back onto the pink hindquarters and the puma head folds back into the Titan Master saddle. Straighten the rear legs and fold the beast feet into the robot shins. Spin both shins so the beast feet are on the same side as the tail. Fold the front beast legs together then push the robot arms around to the side. Push the beast front legs down so they sit flush on his back against the puma head. If you twist the arms to hide the hollow bits in beast mode like I do rotate them back so that the forearms can fold forward normally. Twist the robot head and you have transformed Pounce the clone.

Robot Mode

The key aspect of the clones was their identical robot modes and the new version stays true to this. There is no doubt that these are clones.

In robot mode all of the beast parts are pushed into a good sized backpack with what looks to me like formal suit tails.

To enable sitting you can change the suit tails into a duck tail.

Like Fastclash, Pounce also includes the unexplained second set of hinges in the hips. Hopefully, now that the other two clones have been revealed we’ll find out what this is about soon. [UPDATE: now that we’ve seen more photos it’s clear that the extra hip joints are part of the transformation of the final two clones. They’re not just designed to look the same they’re using the same engineering – true clones!]

Comparisons

When seen with the original G1 versions the pedigree is obvious, they did a great job with the new clones.

While the new versions are slightly shorter than the originals they easily make up for that with their expanded articulation.

I mentioned Pounce’s backpack earlier, this is the biggest difference from the original G1 version which hid the alternate head inside the torso.

Here Pounce is with Fastclash from the back with his prominent kibble visible.

Conclusion

Like Fastclash I’m enjoying Pounce more than I would have thought when they were first announced and can’t wait for the final two clones. My only issue with the figure is the back kibble, especially the tail section which often gets in the way when posing.

Yeee Haw!

June 29, 2017
Bringing the Unexpected: Part Two – Comparisons

Yesterday’s post was inspired by the arrival of Topspin and I didn’t take the time to dig out the original G1 figures for a full comparison. Part Two corrects that omission:

Clone Generations

Both Clones are roughly the same height and are clearly the same design.

That shared design extends to the vehicle mode where the two have pretty much the same transformation.

Sadly, Fastlane is missing his spoiler, he probably left it “somewhere safe.”

Jumpstarter Generations

It is clear that these are both the same bot. But it is equally clear that the Titans Return version is a much more advanced and modern design that greatly benefits from the removal of the Jumpstarter gimmick. For my money exchanging the G1 gimmick with the Titan Master is more than a fair trade.

-Hey buddy, don’t loose your head!
-Quiet tiny!

One of the trademarks of the G1 Jumpstarters was their transformation: step one – fold in half, step two – there is no step two.

May 9, 2017