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"War is a dirty business... and I'm as dirty as they come."
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Likes to pass the time 'demolishing Decepticons'. Not happy if not fighting... bores easily, quietest of Autobots when not in battle. Charismatic in combat... inspiring to fellow warriors. Natural leader. Can traverse most terrains as 4-WD, 600 mile range. Carries turret-mounted linear blaster gun... can blow a hole in 2-foot thick concrete. As a robot has laser rifle and shrapnel-missile launcher.
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STRENGTH | 8
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INTELLIGENCE | 7
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SPEED | 5
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ENDURANCE | 9
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RANK | 8
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COURAGE | 10
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FIREPOWER | 6
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SKILL | 7
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OVERALL | 60
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Click the image above to see the alt mode, or view more photos here
First Appearances
First/Last Comic Appearance (US) -
First/Last Comic Appearance (UK) - Issue 82, October 11th 1986 / Issue 203, February 4th 1989
First/Last Cartoon Appearance -
First Toy Appearance - 1985
Click here to see Figure Details and review
Figure Details
AKA 'Mugen Calibur'
Manufacturer - CM's Corporation
Toyline -
Additions/Mods:
- Added an Autobot symbol to the chest
- Added Autobot symbols to the shoulders, covering the 'Dorvack' tampographs
Review
Appearance (Robot Mode) 8/10
Roadbuster was one of the original G1 toys I always wanted, because he looked so much better than the majority of other Transformers of the time. Hasbro even prefixed him with the 'deluxe' moniker - a mark of quality. This particular figure is a modern update of Roadbuster's original 'Mugen Calibur' toy, which was the reason why Roadbuster never saw a Japanese release, and why he was omitted from the cartoon altogether. This guy is a near-perfect stand-in for Roadbuster, with the only difference being the colour scheme, which is rather louder than Roadbuster's original. But it's as close as we will ever get to a Roadbuster that looks anything like the original.
Appearance (Alternate Mode) 9/10
This alt mode is almost flawless, it is absolutely beautiful. from the low, wide stance of the armoured car to the forboding weapon mounted on it, everything about it screams 'cool'. It's just a shame that the lebs don't tab in to the sides of the car in a more meaningful way, as they can have a tendency to slip out.
Transformation 6/10
Incredibly basic sums this one up. CM Corp. have basically used pretty much the same transformation as the original. I don't like the way that the legs tab into the side of the car, this is because both the feet and the front wheel arches of the car are metal, and they are only held in place by friction. Metal on metal causes paint wear, and the car will undoubtedly hold together less well over time.
Poseability 5/10
Some good, some awful. The good - the arms are extremly well articulated, with the trigger finger independently moveable of the other fingers - think Masterpiece-level articulation. The bad - waist swivel is only possible if the legs are straight, because otherwise the thighs get in the way. Head articulation is pretty limited, with Roadbuster not able to look around very far. Interestingly, the Green figure I have from the same range does hot have this problem to the same degree. The worst of all is the leg/hip articulation, which is very poor. The hips 'lock in' to the groin, so you are restricted to (very limited) up and down movement only. The knees can bend to approx. 45 degrees. Because of the metal parts, this guy is also unbalanced, and keeping him upright in anything approaching a dynamic poses is a nightmare.
Quality 5/10
This figure feels a great deal flimsier than most HasTak toys, and also the metal parts colliding make paint chipping unavoidable. Also, some of the weapons and accessories are tiny and very brittle. Do not let kids anywhere near this.
Overall - 33/50
Well, it's Roadbuster, what can you do. This toy aesthetically is right on the nose, so I would recommend this highly as a display piece, and if you are into your wreckers, you need this robot in your collection. Put it on a very high shelf because a child could break this just by looking at it funny.
