Banzai-Tron

"To the victor go the profits."

A master of Crystalocution, the Cybertronic martial art of defeating an opponent by attacking his metal fracture points. Usually reduces an enemy to spare parts in minutes and then sells what's left, if given the chance. Always willing to fight, for a profit. His partner, Razor-Sharp, is a lethal titanium-piercing crab that can tear through just about any kind of metal obstacle! Converts to a semi-automatic rifle that shoots plasma energy projectiles that explode on contact.

STRENGTH

8

INTELLIGENCE

7

SPEED

2

ENDURANCE

9

RANK

6

COURAGE

10

FIREPOWER

6

SKILL

10

OVERALL

58

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) -
First/Last Cartoon Appearance -
First Toy Appearance - 1990

Click here to see Figure Details and review

Figure Details

Manufacturer - Hasbro
Toyline - Transformers 2010

AKA 'Banzaitron'

Additions/Mods:
- Added Decepticon symbol to the turret, covering the tampographed one
- Added Decepticon symbol to the chest

Review

Banzai-Tron was, for me, where it all went wrong for Generation 1. Transformers that couldn't transform? Someone shoot me, and make it quick. The Action Masters polarised opinion with some loving the fact that they could finally get cartoon-accurate figures of their old favourites, such as Shockwave, Optimus Prime, etc. For me, I could never get past the fact that they were no longer 'transformers'. I used to snort with derision upon seeing them, and reserved special scorn for the one called 'Banzai-Tron'. Hasbro were running out of ideas as quickly as they were running out of names, it seemed. I even chose 'Banjo-Tron' as my moniker on Seibertron just to poke fun at him. So getting me to like a figure based on him was always going to be a hard sell...


Appearance (Robot Mode) 9/10
It is hard to dislike a figure when he is based on one of my favourite moulds - the Bludgeon mould. So it is in this case, where the shared characteristics of the 2 robots make this mould re-use a no brainer. On top of this, the head seems to fit the colour scheme and characterisation better, so much so that I probably won't bother with the upcoming Headrobots upgrade. For Banzai-Tron looks like a malevolent half-robot half-beetle. The darker palette suits the mould well, especially when it is punctuated with accents of flourescent green and copper. There is almost something quite 'Steampunk' about the aesthetics of this guy. Glorious. The floppy blades are at least painted on this figure - a nice electric blue which works better than it should. My only criticism is that he looks slightly pigeon-footed in his neutral stance.

Appearance (Alternate Mode) 9/10
Banzai-Tron never had an alt mode, and unlike some of the other toys which had vestigal wheels/wings etc there was really no cue as to what the alt mode may be. So I guess a tank is as good a choice as any. The tank mode is very impressive and the turret swivels easily on what feels like a ratchet joint. It is also very imposing, being a voyager class vehicle. portions of the treads are actually rubber, which is impressive indeed. What this means they will look like in 20 year's time, is anyone's guess though. Detailing is superb throughout, and the muted dark turquoise tones suit this mode down to the ground.


Transformation 7/10
Going from tank to robot is fairly counter-intuitive, and requires a scary-ish amount of pressure applied in the correct place to disengage what will become the legs. The most concerning part is pulling the chest back up to revert to tank, which requires a bit of force. The fact is that this central pillar keeps the whole figure together, so hopefully it is solid enough for the job.

Poseability 8/10
First the bad - which is that there is no waist swivel. There's that out of the way! Now for the good. There is Head swivel, and unlike Bludgeon with his Headrobots noggin, you can actually turn his head! The shoulders rotate, and the arms can pivot in and out directly beneath them. You also get bicep swivel, and what amounts to double-jointed elbows. The wrists do not swivel which is a massive shame, but they can tilt inwards thanks to the transformation joint. This means that this mould can wield the large sword two-handed. Which is about the coolest thing ever. The hips are ratcheted and can be splayed outwards or swiveled up and down. Banzai-Tron also has thigh swivel, as well as 2 pivots in his ankle and independently-articulated heels. Phew. Balance-wise, there is something slightly wrong. It comes back to those Pigeon toes, which actually makes standing this mould fairly difficult in some cases. Having said that, you can pose him as if he is mediating - there are not many transformers you can say that about.


Quality 7/10
Annoyingly, the legs on this mould have a proclivity to fall off below the knee, and this is with me being careful around this area. The Automorph turret feature works smoothly and is nice and solid but an impatient kid could find some way to bust it. Most worrying for me is the use of rubber for parts of the treads. I can see why that material is necessary but I hope it stands up to the test of time. I just have to look at the cracked tyres on my G1 Autobots to appreciate how quickly rubber dries up and breaks down.

Overall - 40/50
I tried to hate him, I really did, but I just couldn't in the end. There is too much to like about this figure, and at least now Bludgeon has someone to practice his martial arts with. If you just want to get one example of this mould, I would honestly get this one over the others. It is cheaper and easier to get hold of than Bludgeon, the silly re-purposed Megatron and the incongruous Botcon Gigatron. It is also, in my opinion, the best colour scheme of the four as well. Just buy him, damnit!

Blaster

"When the music is rockin, I'm rollin."

Finds all Earth music interesting, but it's rock'n'roll -- good, hard and loud -- that really sparks his circuits. In the forefront of any situation he's involved in. As AM/FM stereo cassette player, he can perform as deck plus receive radio signals of all frequencies with power outputs as low as 1/1,000,000 watt. Acts as Autobot communications center... can transmit up to 4,000 miles. Carries electro-scrambler gun that disrupts electrical devices.

STRENGTH

8

INTELLIGENCE

8

SPEED

2

ENDURANCE

8

RANK

7

COURAGE

9

FIREPOWER

7

SKILL

9

OVERALL

58

Click the image above to see the alt mode, or view more photos here
First Appearances

First/Last Comic Appearance (US) - Issue 17, June 1986 / Issue 80, July 1991
First/Last Comic Appearance (UK) - Issue 91, March 7th 1987 / Issue 254, January 27th, 1990
First/Last Cartoon Appearance - Episode 30 (Season 2 #14), September 25th 1985 / Episode 95 (Season 3 #30), February 25th 1987
First Toy Appearance - 1985

Click here to see Figure Details and review

Figure Details

AKA 'Broad Blast'
Manufacturer - Takara
Toyline - Device Label

Additions/Mods:
- Added an Autobot symbol to the chest (covering the smaller tampographed one)

Review

Blaster was the trendy hipster who made his debut in Season 2, and quickly established himself as a fan-favourite. His persona in the comics was immediately at odds with this, as he was a serious character who much mourned (and blamed himself for) the death of his partner, Scrounge. I actually like both aspects of the character, and always wanted the toy, because he was a garish boombox who also had mini-cassettes - not as many as Soundwave, but still, another great figure with lots of play value. Obviously the days of cassettes are long-gone, and there are 3 versions of Blaster to consider in this modern era: The first is a retool of Universe Soundwave, which is an odd spindly looking robot which becomes a plane; The second is a retool of 'Fall Of Cybertron' Soundwave (notice a pattern here?) but I decided to pick up 'Device Label' Blaster. Was it a good choice?


Appearance (Robot Mode) 7/10
The first thing to say about this figure is that the headsculpt is brilliant. It seems to homage both the cartoon and comic appearances in a nice blend which also incorporates some fabulous light-piping. The chest is perfect, and can even fit a G1 sized mini-cassette in situ. The arms are pretty nice, but you can't help but notice some very bulky-looking 'wings' hanging off the backs of them. Ditto the back, which is similarly encumbered with kibble, the reason for which becomes clear when the alt mode is revealed. The lower legs are quite strange looking, a bit cumbersome if you will, and there are some very obvious USB ports on both. He came sans weapon so I gave him a spare from my BTS Nemesis Prime trailer. I think it resembles the original rather well, despite the lack of a stock. This is a voyager figure, so displays very well with 'Music Label' Soundwave, being a fair bit taller (as with the original toys)

Appearance (Alternate Mode) 7/10
It's funny that what appeared modern just a few years ago is already feeling dated now. This is a very good approximation of a laptop however, resplendent with its 'Toshiba' logo. Actually this figure has a great bonus, in that it is a working USB hub - I have never tested it but have no reason to doubt it works. The 'lid' can open and close, with a satisfying ratchety click as it moves between the 2 states. Somwhat unusually for a modern figure, several large stickers are applied to make up the computer screen. If I ever feel particularly resourceful, I might remove these and paint my own custom 'Teletraan II' mural onto the screen - but then any website redesigns would be out of the question.


Transformation 7/10
The transformation is fairly simple but not without its issues. The chest cavity is opened and the head rotates and hides in there, this means that no cassettes can be stowed in alt mode. The forearms become thinner and elongate and loosely clip into the upper arms - I find this works better if the fists are rotates 180º first. The shoulders then move down the torso. I find it tricky to rejoin the panels that become the laptop screen, but maybe I'm just dim. In one final humiliation Blaster than has to do the horizontal splits before his legs clip into place, forming the rest of the faux keyboard.

Poseability 8/10
The head is on a swivel, but he has no waist rotation, shame. He has ball-jointed shoulders which can also pitch up and down thanks to his transformation. He also has double jounts in his elbows, and his wrists are on balljoints too. He has 2 joints in his hips, as well as 2 in his knees. No articulation to speak of in the ankle region though but those bulky lower legs pay dividends when it comes to posing, giving Blaster very good balance. The kibble on the arms and back can also be adjusted depending on your preferences. This guy would be worth a 9 if he had a ball-jointed neck and any movement in his waist.


Quality 7/10
Everything about this figure feels reasonably solid, the plastic is good quality, anthough unusually for a figure of this size there are no ratchet joints which does worry me slightly that he will suffer from 'Infernoitis' in later life. I don't particularly like the way that the screen joins together, the 'pins' used are very thin and could break if you let a careless oik near them.

Overall - 36/50
I'm pretty happy with Blaster. He displays well with Soundwave and his mini-cassettes which is really one of my main criteria. I'm happy that also my Blaster and Soundwave are both distinct and different moulds, and not just retools of the other. I would recommend this figure, and he looks great in an office with your various devices plugged into him.

Bludgeon

"To know your own limits, you must first know your foe's limits."

A merciless, emotionless master of Metallikato, the deadly Cybertronian martial art. Attacks his enemies' fracture points while remaining outside their line of fire. High-powered antennas produce electrical fireballs with a range of over 400 yards. Battle armor secretes ordorous, mucus slime. Smoke generators in legs produce billowing clouds of black smoke that disorient the enemy. Inner robot armed with high-voltage electric cannon.

STRENGTH

6

INTELLIGENCE

8

SPEED

2

ENDURANCE

9

RANK

6

COURAGE

9

FIREPOWER

7

SKILL

10

OVERALL

57

Click the image above to see the alt mode, or view more photos here
First Appearances

First/Last Comic Appearance (US) - Issue 60, December 1989 / Issue 80, July 1991
First/Last Comic Appearance (UK) - Issue 229, August 5th 1989 / Issue 286, September 8th 1990
First/Last Cartoon Appearance -
First Toy Appearance - 1989

Click here to see Figure Details and review

Figure Details

Manufacturer - Hasbro
Toyline - Revenge Of The Fallen

Additions/Mods:
- Added a Decepticon symbol to the hip (covering the smaller tampographed one)
- Headrobots head and weapons swap

Review

Bludgeon was a lacklustre figure who suddenly became a brilliant character at the hands of Simon Furman. Having missed the cartoon, it was up to the comics and comics alone to give him a persona. Bludgeon was now an exponent of a cybertronian martial art with a penchant for telekenesis and was given a whopping great samurai sword. He took great pleasure in killing things and even became leader of the Decepticons during Generation 2, before being deposed by a souped-up Megatron who evidently regretted obliterating him so hastily. I thought that was the end of that. I certainly didn't think that Bludgeon would ever receive an update, but luckily he did, and boy, is it a good one.


Appearance (Robot Mode) 9/10
How to make yet another godawful insectoid-headed Bayformer into an amazing TF? Get the Headrobots upgrade kit. The swords are better and chromed as well. But seriously, this robot (even without the much nicer head) is a brilliantly realised homage to one of my favourite G1 Decepticons. If you look at this figure and don't admire it, then you are probably dead. My only criticism is that he looks slightly pigeon-footed in his neutral stance. His colouring is suitably garish and his arms/legs suit the skeletal look perfectly.

Appearance (Alternate Mode) 9/10
The tank mode is very impressive and the turret swivels easily on what feels like a ratchet joint. It is also very imposing, being a voyager class vehicle. portions of the treads are actually rubber, which is impressive indeed. What this means they will look like in 20 year's time, is anyone's guess though. Detailing is superb throughout, and the colour scheme is more subtle in this mode, with only brief flecks of orange betraying the garishness of the robot mode.


Transformation 7/10
Going from tank to robot is fairly counter-intuitive, and requires a scary-ish amount of pressure applied in the correct place to disengage what will become the legs. The most concerning part is pulling the chest back up to revert to tank, which requires a bit of force. The fact is that this central pillar keeps the whole figure together, so hopefully it is solid enough for the job.

Poseability 8/10
First the bad - which is that there is no waist swivel, and head movement is massively restricted. This is not a fault of the figure though - it is just that there is less clearance with this replacement head than the original. Now for the good. The shoulders rotate, and the arms can pivot in and out directly beneath them. You also get bicep swivel, and what amounts to double-jointed elbows. The wrists do not swivel which is a massive shame, but they can tilt inwards thanks to the transformation joint. This means that this mould can wield the large sword two-handed. Which is about the coolest thing ever. The hips are ratcheted and can be splayed outwards or swiveled up and down. Bludgeon also has thigh swivel, as well as 2 pivots in his ankle and independently-articulated heels. Phew. Balance-wise, there is something slightly wrong. It comes back to those Pigeon toes, which actually makes standing Bludgeon fairly difficult in some cases. Having said that, you can pose him as if he is meditating - there are not many transformers you can say that about.


Quality 7/10
Annoyingly, the legs on this mould have a proclivity to fall off below the knee, and this is with me being careful around this area. The Automorph turret feature works smoothly and is nice and solid but an impatient kid could find some way to bust it. Most worrying for me is the use of rubber for parts of the treads. I can see why that material is necessary but I hope it stands up to the test of time. I just have to look at the cracked tyres on my G1 Autobots to appreciate how quickly rubber dries up and breaks down.

Overall - 40/50
With the Headrobots upgrade in place, Bludgeon is fantastic. For once, the Bayformer aesthetic perfectly suits his skeletal appearance and enhances the overall figure. I highly recommend him if you remember his appearances in the UK comics as fondly as me. And even if you don't have any idea who Bludgeon is, how can you deny yourself a robot Samurai for your Decepticon ranks?

Bonecrusher

"Hit it till it stands no taller than dust."

Rubble-strewn wasteland is his idea of beautiful landscape. His wild ways create fear and terror. As vehicle, at 30mph. Exerts 800,000psi... has short-range concussion bomb launcher. As robot, carries laser pistol. As left arm module, combines with fellow Constructicons to form giant robot "Devastator".

STRENGTH

9

INTELLIGENCE

3

SPEED

2

ENDURANCE

8

RANK

4

COURAGE

8

FIREPOWER

6

SKILL

6

OVERALL

46

Click the image above to see the alt mode, or view more photos here
First Appearances

First/Last Comic Appearance (US) - Issue 10, November 1985 / Issue 41, June 1988
First/Last Comic Appearance (UK) - Issue 61, May 17th 1986 / Issue 81, October 4th 1986
First/Last Cartoon Appearance - Episode 16 (Season 1 #16), December 15th 1984 / Episode 96 (Season 4 #1), November 9th 1987 First Toy Appearance - 1985

Click here to see Figure Details and review

Figure Details

AKA 'Bulldozer'
Manufacturer - Maketoys
Toyline - Type 61

Additions/Mods:
- Added a Decepticon symbol to the chest

Review

Bonecrusher is the posessor of one of the more outlandish Decepticon names there have been. He sounds more like one of the evil giants in the 'Big Friendly Giant' than he does a malevolent automaton but no matter. This pea-green pugilist is one sixth of Devastator, and this mere fact alone already makes him great. This character has recently been homaged by both TFC and Maketoys - I went for the Maketoys version. Did I make the right choice?


Appearance (Robot Mode) 6/10
This is very much a figure of 2 halves, as I think the lower legs have been designed very well and look impressive enough. However, the upper half has some big problems. Firstly, the lower arms are just hollow, and you could be forgiven for thinking that this is a modern Hasbro toy, were it not for the fact that it is too large and well-designed. There is hideous gapping in and around the neck area as well, and the head seems to float just above the shoulders. Also, the back is extremely hollow, with the combiner joint just kind of sitting there, protuding out of the back. I can't help but think that this kibble could have been integrated alot smarter to make the rear of this figure more cohesive. The colour scheme is perfect though and the paint apps that are present are all of an excellent standard. The headsculpt itself is good, although there is no light-piping unfortunately.

Appearance (Alternate Mode) 8/10
The Bulldozer mode is great, with minimal robot/combiner kibble on display. The little yellow/black and white/red chevrons reall complement the dramatic green finish as well. The scoop cam move up and down, which is nice. Despite the fact that I would never use the feature, I am disappointed that there are not little wheels embedded into the tracks, because this vehicle cannot roll at all. All in all though, Maketoys have done a great job on the alt mode.


Transformation 7/10
The transformation sequence is fairly involved. The legs are formed by snapping the treads and rotating the bottom part to reveal the feet and heels. The head can be a little hard to seperate from the cabin part, as both swing out in the same direction to form the robot, with the head stuck awkwardly inside. The shoulder balljoints are pretty tight, and can make swinging the shoulders out the correct way tricky. Also, I have found that in order to move the scoop halves to the desired position, you have to swivel the waist just so to allow for clearance. Finally the combiner kibble is pushed flush to the gaping hole where the back should be, but there is nothing to hold it in any kind of position, which is pretty bad.

Poseability 6/10
Bonecrusher's head is on a balljoint, which allows for a good range of movement (although I would have actually preferred a more substantial neck in this case), and there is waist swivel. The shoulders and hips are ball-jointed. There is bicep and thigh swivel (although this is impeded by the way the treads affix to the thighs). There are double-jointed elbows and ball-jointed knees. Additionally the wrists and 'toes' are ball-jointed as well, allowing for a variety of poses. The reason I don't really rate the poseability of this figure is because of the big gaps in it. Articulation is actually above average but really there are only a few angles where Bonecrusher looks good. You will probably never see a shot of this robot from above, because then the gaps in the neck area and back are there for all to see, which is a real shame.


Quality 8/10
Any flaws with the quality of this toy are all in the design, rather than the materials used. All of the plastic feels excellent and very strong, which means I will now trust Maketoys with any further releases as they are right up there with FansProject in terms of quality. I wouldn't recommend unleashing a kid onto this toy though because they are likely to cut themselves on the sharp edges or just snap bits off. This (and all the other 3rd party toys for that matter) has not been rigorously tested to ensure clumsy little oafs can't break bits off and eat them.

Overall - 35/50
I appreciate that Bonecrusher is merely a small piece in the overall puzzle which is the glorious Devastator, but I do feel some unnecessary concessions were made to make the best combiner possible. There is so much which is really great about this figure, and compared to Hasbro's recent combiners it is laughably superior. But the gaping voids around the neck and back are really not good enough, which is why Bonecrusher is probably my least favourite of the Constructicons.

Eject

"Clutch hitting is the key to an effective offense."

An Earthen sports fanatic... sports cliches clutter his conversation; a suprise attack is a "fast break", a victory is a "touchdown". Few Autobots understand but they like the enthusiasm with which he says it. Could be a play-by-play announcer, if given the chance. In cassette mode, can monitor and record local radio and TV, decode scrambled signals, tap telephones. In robot mode, uses electrical overload guns. Sometimes his internal tape snaps when he's excited.

STRENGTH

6

INTELLIGENCE

6

SPEED

2

ENDURANCE

6

RANK

6

COURAGE

8

FIREPOWER

5

SKILL

8

OVERALL

47

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 187, October 15th 1988
First/Last Cartoon Appearance - The Transformers: The Movie, August 8th 1986 / Episode 78 (Season 3 #13), October 13th 1986
First Toy Appearance - 1986

Click here to see Figure Details and review

Figure Details

AKA 'Ejector'
Manufacturer - Perfect Effect
Toyline -

Additions/Mods:
- Added an Autobot symbol to the chest

Review

One of my favourite parts of the original Transformers movie was when Soundwave and Blaster's cassettes fought each other. Until then, I didn't know Blaster had any mini casettes! Luckily, Perfect Effect have stepped into the breach, and provided an update to Eject. So, is this guy fit to play, or should you pause for thought before getting him?

Appearance (Robot Mode) 9/10
I recently added Eject to my collection, and let's make no bones about it - this is another fantastic looking little 'bot from Perfect Effect's growing stable of awesomeness. It matches the original toy so well, but adds in a much mure modern aesthetic. One gripe would be that the head sculpt is a little 'flat', but then I guess so was the original toy. The paint apps are of a usual high standard, as is now expected of Perfect Effect. The swords are a great bonus, too.

Appearance (Alternate Mode) 5/10
Another Perfect Effect cassette mould, another gun. I would like something different in all honesty, and this is a worse gun than the 'Shadow Warrior' mould. It does not hold together very well, and you have to keep tinkering to get the barrels aligned. But I suppose only a lunatic would display this in anything other than 'bot mode. I need to see if Blaster's fist holes are big enought to wield him - I suppose that would look pretty nice...

Transformation 7/10
This follows a similar blueprint as Shadow Warrior, but is less successful because of the fact the gun doesn't hold together too well. You have to make sure that the shoulders are at the correct angle when hiding the head for the transformation. One very neat part is that both the gun barrels can be shortened, so that they are less obtrusive in robot mode.

Poseability 8/10
You get what you pay for. The small Perfect Effect figures never get you much plastic for your money but they often come up trumps with the articulation they offer. This mould is no exception. However, I have Eject and Rewind, and they both have an issue with their right hip, where the leg will pop off the ball joint with very little encouragement. Because both suffer with it, I suggest that the mould itself is faulty. It's a shame, because I kept having to put the leg back on while posing them.

Quality 8/10
Other than the aforementioned loose hip issue, I have no complaints. Considering the amount of articulation packed into this figure, you would think it would feel flimsy, but it does not. This is testament to perfect Effect's skill.

Overall - 37/50
While not as nice as Rumble/Frenzy, Eject is still a very nice little robot. Blaster was severely outnumbered by all of Soundwave'scassette bots, so it's good to redress the balance somewhat. The alt mode is never going to live up to the frankly brilliant robot mode, but I am still very happy to have Eject in my collection.

Frenzy

"Sow panic and surrender will bloom."

If FRENZY needed to breathe, war would be his oxygen. He knows no cause, only craves to spread fear and destruction. His efforts are appreciated by other Decepticons. His devotion to warfare makes him hard to deal with on a personal level. Can roll his drums to produce high-pitch, grating sound of 200db. Disorients and disrupts electrical flow in opponent's circuitry which makes them malfunction. Physically weak. His manic attack can be countered with cool logic.

STRENGTH

2

INTELLIGENCE

5

SPEED

2

ENDURANCE

6

RANK

5

COURAGE

10

FIREPOWER

9

SKILL

6

OVERALL

45

Click the image above to see the alt mode, or view more photos here
First Appearances

First/Last Comic Appearance (US) - Issue 2, November 1984 / Issue 41, June 1988
First/Last Comic Appearance (UK) - Issue 59, May 3rd 1986 / Issue 100, February 14th 1987
First/Last Cartoon Appearance - Episode 14 (Season 1 #14), December 1st 1984 / The Transformers: The Movie, August 8th 1986
First Toy Appearance - 1984

Click here to see Figure Details and review

Figure Details

AKA 'Shadow Warrior PE01-F'
Manufacturer - Perfect Effect
Toyline -

Additions/Mods:
- Added a Decepticon symbol to the chest

Review

Frenzy has long been classed as 'the other one' when people eulogised about Rumble, but I always thought that his sonic weapon was better than Rumble's piledrivers. Perfect Effect have accepted the task of bringing this conniving little Decepticon to life. Read on to see if they have done him justice. Before you do so, please bear in mind that I believe Frenzy is blue, not red. The cartoon was wrong, you see.


Appearance (Robot Mode) 9/10
I finally opted for the toy-accurate colour schemes of Perfect Effect's 'Shadow Warrior' mould, and I'm very glad that I did. The mould itself has always been great, and now that the colour scheme is accurate to Frenzy (or Rumble, if you like being wrong) this little guy is pretty much perfect. His little punky face is full of attitude and it is remarkable that one of my favourite faces is on such a small scale. I stick the piledrivers onto his back, to differentiate him from Rumble.

Appearance (Alternate Mode) 6/10
Well, it's a gun. I'm personally not a fan of alt modes which cannot 'support' themselves, with the exception of Megatron, I suppose. It is nice enough to look at, though, but it just kind of sits there. It would make more sense if it was being wielded by Shadow Commander. I'm convinced that I should be able to come up with an unofficial alt mode but I really am too lazy.


Transformation 7/10
Surprisingly complex for what is a small figure, Perfect Effect really know how to add value to a small robot. The legs fold in on themselves and the arms tuck into the legs, and the large gun barrels clip over the shoulders, once the head has been folded away, that is. The gun handle can be tricky to connect to the gun, though and has a tendency to pop off.

Poseability 9/10
I would be happy if there was this amount of poseability on a deluxe, but for a legends-class toy, it really is outstanding. The head swivels and tilts (albeit downwards only) and the waist swivels too. The shoulders and elbows are ball-jointed, as are the hips and knees. The feet are also on ball-joints. My only criticism is that there are certain positions where the joints like to 'rest' so getting poses in between these spots can take perseverance. But this is more to do with size limitations rather than anything else.


Quality 8/10
He feels very solid for his diminutive size - there are no anxious moments when transforming or posing him. A miniature marvel. That said, his left hip has a tendency to pop out of its socket. Maybe I am unlucky, because Rumble (and the 2 Shadow Warrior variants) do not have this issue.

Overall - 39/50
Perfect Effect have carved a niche with their tiny figures, which are an absolute joy to own. I'm very pleased with the accurate colour scheme, as I have long been a fan of the mould. The one letdown is a slightly prosaic alternate mode, but then I guess cassettes were never very exciting.

Long Haul

"A battle front is only as good as its supply line."

Unhappy with unglamorous role, but understands its importance... helps build Decepticons' massive energy-recovery installations. As vehicle, can carry 90 tons for 1200 miles, use a dual heat-seeking missile mount. As torso module, combines with fellow Constructicons to form giant robot "Devastator". Can be goaded into a fight in which he's overmatched.

STRENGTH

9

INTELLIGENCE

5

SPEED

2

ENDURANCE

9

RANK

4

COURAGE

8

FIREPOWER

7

SKILL

4

OVERALL

48

Click the image above to see the alt mode, or view more photos here
First Appearances

First/Last Comic Appearance (US) - Issue 10, November 1985 / Issue 41, June 1988
First/Last Comic Appearance (UK) - Issue 61, May 17th 1986 / Issue 279, July 21st 1990
First/Last Cartoon Appearance - Episode 16 (Season 1 #16), December 15th 1984 / Episode 93 (Season 3 #28), November 19th 1986 First Toy Appearance - 1985

Click here to see Figure Details and review

Figure Details

AKA 'Dump Truck'
Manufacturer - Maketoys
Toyline - Type 61

Additions/Mods:
- Added a Decepticon symbol to the chest
- Added a Decepticon symbol to the cabin

Review

I often wonder what my beloved Transformer characters were doing between the early 1990's and, say 2005 and in Long Haul's case it is clear he has been hitting the steriods big time. As the crotch of Devastator, this unfortunate robot always had the hardest burden to bear, so it's perhaps not surprising that he turned to drugs. Long Haul was also the most prosaic of the Constructicons; the other vehicles had exciting functions, whereas a pretty standard dump truck failed to excite. But, as a toy, is this Maketoys incarnation similarly bland?


Appearance (Robot Mode) 9/10
Long Haul is incredibly squat, and powerful looking. I think that this annoys some collectors, but for me he perfectly epitomises what the Constructicons are about. This guy is the engine room for the whole combiner so has to be pretty damn solid. From his wide-legged stance to massive fists, Long Haul looks like a brawler - the blunt instrument you use when more precise methods fail. He is Devastator in a nutshell. I really admire the head scuplt which is appropriately industrial. As in all cases with these Maketoys bots, the paint apps are well-judged and immaculate. I guess they learned some lessons on yellow Giant, after all.

Appearance (Alternate Mode) 9/10
The dumptruck mode is equally formidable. The tyres are superbly sculpted and chunky, and have the added bonus of having 'steering'; not rack and pinion exactly but it works well enough to make interesting poses. The cabin area is absolutely dwarfed by the huge tyres beneath it and you really get a sense of the size of this vehicle. The combiner chest kibble can be smartly stowed in the rear of the huge bed. I'm very pleased overall with this dump truck, which once again conveys brute force and horsepower. The lime green matches so well with the G1 original and the paint apps are, once again, understated and very neat.


Transformation 7/10
One thing you can feel when transforming this figure is how substantial it is, both in size and weight. The truck bed splits in half to become the arms, but not after first folding the arms back on themselves. It is a pretty imaginative way of forming them and better than the usual 'hide the arms under the chassis/fuselage' fare. There is some manipulation required around the crotch piece (that's what she said) but nothing too taxing. The headlight assemblies fold in to form a more svelte waist and the somewhat diddy feet fold out from the shins. It is very difficult to reattach the front portion of the truck bed though as the instructions explain it, as you have to push them over very wide tabs. This requires herculean effort and can cause serious damage to the figure unless you come up with your own method. After I join the arms back to form the truck bed, I pitch them down slightly, to make placement of the 2 flaps easier.

Poseability 8/10
Long Haul's head and shoulders are both ball-jointed. His elbows are double-jointed and his almighty fists also rotate at the wrist. He has ratcheted joints in his waist, and 2 ratchets in each hip allowing for comprehensive yet supportive movement. Bicep and thigh swivel are both present, and Long Haul's 'toes' are also on a ball-joint. Disappointingly, his knees are very low, but his function as the combiner lower torso probably made this necessary. Apart from this issue, Long Haul is surprisingly poseable, and thanks to his low-wide-legged stance, he has an excellent center of gravity.


Quality 8/10
I would love to mark this figure higher because he is heavier and more substantial than any of his fellow Constructicons. He has superlative hip joints, with no expense spared on keeping them as rigid as possible, bearing in mind the sheer weight this guy carries around when forming Devastator. He is extremely well made out of very high quality plastic, surpassing all but the most recent FansProject efforts in my humble opinion. I only mark him slightly lower because of the difficulty with getting the front of the truck bed to rest back accross the cabin in alt mode and the extreme force required (unless you alleviate it somewhat by re-jigging the transformation sequence) to do so.

Overall - 41/50
I really have a lot of time for Long Haul. He shines in both modes and embodies what I have always admired in the Constructicons. He is a pretty perfect robot, and poses so well, adding some much-needed weight to the Constructicon ranks. If not for that one very scary aspect of his transformation, then this guy would be getting a couple of extra marks under his belt. But even with these issues, Long Haul is the most successful of Maketoy's reimaginings, and my favourite to boot. Just don't tell the others.

Menasor

"Leave no Autobot uncrushed."

A clanking, crushing terror that destroys all in his path -- the ulimate Decepticon weapon if he wasn't so confused by the opposing thoughts of the 5 Stunticons who comprise him. (Motormaster is loathed by the other four.) Tremendous strength, his punch has the force of 140 tons. Impervious to most artillery. Uses Motormaster's cyclone gun and carries an ionizer sword with a 50,000 volt charge.

STRENGTH

10

INTELLIGENCE

3

SPEED

2

ENDURANCE

9

RANK

5

COURAGE

9

FIREPOWER

9

SKILL

6

OVERALL

53

Click the image above to see the alt mode, or view more photos here
First Appearances

First/Last Comic Appearance (US) - Issue 22, November 1986
First/Last Comic Appearance (UK) - Issue 63, May 31st 1986 / Issue 259, March 3rd 1990
First/Last Cartoon Appearance - Episode 57 (Season 2 #41), November 26th 1985 / Episode 84 (Season 3 #19), November 10th 1986
First Toy Appearance - 1986

Click here to see Figure Details and review

Figure Details and review

AKA 'Intimidator'

Toyline - Causality

Additions/Mods:
- Added a Decepticon symbol to the chest
Manufacturer - FansProject

Review

Menasor was the combiner with the pointy ears, and that's about when my recollection ends. He was used extremely sparingly in the cartoon and the comics, with less than a handful of appearances over all media. He was rather lost in the mix when it came to his contemporaries, being second-best to Bruticus in my estimation. He was also the shortest of the G1 combiners, save the late appearance of Piranhacon and Monstructor. That said, I suddenly became rather excited when it transpired that FansProject were going to produce a homage to him. This took me by surprise because unlike their Bruticus and Superion add-on sets, they had no base figure to augment. No, they would be doing this from scratch - the first 100% FansProject combiner. When you consider that both TFC and Maketoys beat them to this, it is rather surprising. So it intrigued me how one of the original 3rd party companies would fare against these other guys. FansProject teased about this set for what seemed like an age, waiting a looong time before the first fleeting glance of the completed combiner was spotted. One day, a rather innocuous box arrived at my house, containing a very slender box which supposedly contained Motormaster plus all of his combiner kibble. Could it really have everything in it? Of course. So, join me, finally, in finding out how well FansProject can do a combiner when they are unconstrained by Hasbro...


Appearance (Robot Mode) 9/10
Let me say first that this is a stunning figure, and then I am going to get my one criticism out of the way right now. FansProject kinda cheated with this one. Unlike the combiners churned out by Maketoys or MMC for example, none of the limbs incorporate any combiner kibble. Where Maketoys made decisions such as attaching trailers to their arm bots to at least try to integrate and keep the kibble with the relevant figure, FansProject just thought "nope" and didn't bother. I can understand their reasoning; I mean how can you store giant feet or hands without ruining the lines of sleek sports cars? Moreover, both Breakdown and Wildrider simply attach to the front of Motormaster's extended legs - they are actually not required at all. A total skinflint could simply ignore these guys and just buy the 2 arms and Motormaster would still be standing tall. Well, anyway, that's my moaning done. This is simply the best combined robot mode I have seen by some distance. It is tall - larger than both FansProject Colossus and Maketoy's Giant figures. Despite this extra height, it is extremely elegant. By no means does it look weak, but it is lithe, athletic, it looks like it could move extremely quickly whereas Devastator, Bruticus and Predaking look like lumbering battering rams in comparison. As the Central component, the combiner-mode for Motormaster is fantastic. The 'boxed in' head configuration of the original is nicely referenced without imposing the poseability restrictions which would annoy modern collectors. Then there is the headsculpt, which is a rare hit for FansProject, I normally dislike or feel apathetic towards them. This sculpt It is samurai-esque and invokes calm but with a potential for carnage. The dull red eye paint is applied expertly as is the silver of his face. Some people have complained about the arms and how they are configured but I love them. Using the knees as elbows just seems so logical to me - you benefit from 2 joints working in parallel, which can be independently moved providing extra posing options. They do not look overly thin. Dead End suffers by being quite narrow at the forearm, but you can add the collapsed rifle components to bulk this up. You can live with the narrow forearm and employ the rifle too if you like. Then there is the quite ridiculous sword which adds some extra and not really warranted 'menace' (sorry) to the figure.

Appearance (Alternate Mode) 8/10
I wouldn't like to see these coming down the road. This is where Motormaster's trailer comes in use, as the combiner kibble is on board but neatly stowed. The only exception to this is the folded up rifle, which sits across the trailer doors. It looks a bit lame if you ask me. Otherwise we have a very sleek, coherent unit. Squint and they look just like the team of old, with FansProject making some alterations and concessions. Wildrider is probably the oddity in the group, as his vehicle mode looks the most angular and futuristic. Drag Strip actually looks less futuristic, stripped of the 6-wheel Tyrell configuration of the original toy. All in all, they look great and the cars scale well with the truck. They can't really display with figures outside of their group in this mode, with the exception of a few scout class figures.


Transformation 8/10
As combiners go this is rather simplistic, with Drag Strip and Motormaster requiring the most alteration. Motormaster essentially makes use of the multitude of waist joints to put what is Motormaster's chest in robot mode to the underside of the torso. This leaves Motormaster's head protuding from the stomach like something out of Total Recall. This is temporary thankfully and can be folded in once Menasor's head has been pulled from the rails it is contained on. On mine, the head takes some work to stow again - not sure if this is limited to mine. The horns on Menasor's head should be fully unfolded after deploying it. This leaves the head sitting in basically the middle of nowhere. Motormaster's arms are used to build the shoulders which keep Menasor's head firmly in place. Then after an extended period of Origami Motormaster's leg stumps are ready to receive the components of his trailer, which are transformed and clicked into place backwards and rotated after that. Both the leg-bots just require their rear panels to be lifted slightly, to allow the hexagonal slots on their chest to tab into the leg sections. Both Dead End and Drag Strip need to be altered to accommodate both the fists and the shoulder connectors - this is a far more convoluted process with Drag Strip, however. I'm not entirely happy with how Drag Strip grips the fist connector - it feels like a tenuous connection and cannot support he weight of the sword or gun. Perhaps I'm doing it wrong...

Poseability 10/10
One area where this figure stands out for me is its ability to pose. It really is incredible given the sheer size, complexity and weight that so many poses can be achieved. Starting with the articulation, the head is on a ball-joint, and the waist has a quality, ratcheted swivel. The shoulders allow for controlled lateral and side-to-side movement thanks to the clever connectors, and the hips have a similar range of articulation. These joints are ratcheted and feel extremely durable. The elbows comprise of 2 sets of knee joints, allowing for radial movement of the forearm to boot. This negates the need for bicep swivel, which is not present. There is thigh swivel, as well as strong ratcheted knee joints. The fists can swivel and bend inwards and outwards, and each finger has 2 joints, as do the thumbs. The palms of the hands have tabs so that the weapons are held securely, without you having to mash the fingers together to get them to stay. The ankles are ball-jointed so there is no limitation articulation-wise. The feet are actually a marvel. FansProject made the simple addition of rubber on their underside which means that even on a smooth surface, this figure will never suffer from doing the splits involuntarily. The feet are also large, accounting for the centre of balance. You can also display this figure with one leg off the floor, such is the combined strength of the ankle ball-joint and the grip on the foot. This is really a top-rate job.


Quality 8/10
I have expressed some gripes about the individual figures, but as a combined entity this feels very solid. As I have already said the joints feel of the utmost quality, easily capable of bearing the load on them. I think FansProject have learned from criticisms leveled at them regarding the arm connectors for Bruticus. I guess only time will tell though, but so far, so good. The fact that the connectors are not part of any of the figures and that they are standardised would potentially make them easier to fix or swap out if they did fail. One person has complained that they had stress marks on the chest of their leg-bot after connecting it, but so far mine have emerged unscathed.

Overall - 43/50
This is a great combiner and in some ways, probably the most accomplished I have yet seen. It is large but not overly so, it succeeds in providing great alternate and individual robot modes without detracting from the gestalt and feels entirely robust. Hopefully FansProject have dispelled some of the QC issues which have plagued them in the past. This certainly feels like a very refined and well-implemented project. They took their time about releasing this collection of figures, but it appears that biding their time has paid off, rather than rushing them to market. Apparently the addition of the rubber for the feet was a late change, and this is an example of making sure everything was as perfect as possible before release. I am really hoping that FansProject's next move will be to take on the Protectobots, as I need them in scale with my other combiners. Hot Spot is getting mighty lonely.