Gasaraki's Transformers Classics - 3rd Party Stand-ins

[Gasaraki]

This is a link-in from my reviews thread (which is still in its infancy)... as I mentioned there, I'm most interested in completing an updated roster of G1 characters (i.e. Classics/Universe/Generations lines), and since some of these just aren't made by Hasbro, I've had to rely on 3rd party products for stand-ins. Some of the Hasbro stuff just isn't very good, and since I just got Green Giant, I couldn't resist putting some thoughts down now. To start off with:

MakeToys Wheel Loader (not-Scrapper)

I've fiddling around with these figures a couple of days now and have to say that I really really do like them alot! Wheel Loader is very solid... all the joints are tight, almost too tight at first, and he has enough articulation to be very poseable. Yes, Scrapper did not have a cab on his chest, but I really like the upgrade. The only loose thing was the weapon fit into the fist. Oh, and can't forget the colour - the colour is gorgeous! Problems? Well, articulation on shoulders should have been better (he can't swing them out sideways) and there are no wrist swivels.

With Classics Starscream - everybody has a seeker mold don't they?

I mentioned earlier in the MakeToys thread that I expected smaller size figures in the Giant set, but these guys really are par with deluxe class. He scales very nicely here, and whilst the aesthetic doesn't fit in absolutely seamlessly, I think it does it better than the Hercules guys (which was the main driver behind my choice for Giant).

As an aside, I do wonder why more reviewers don't compare everything to a classics seeker mold, seeing as this is probably the mold that the highest proportion of people will own at least one of (maybe even 100% of collectors??).

Front-end loader mode - yes, that's the proper name for this vehicle

The vehicle mode is very nice. At first look I thought that the engine housing was a little exagerrated and that real-life vehicles don't really have it like that, but after looking at a few real photos, I found I was wrong - they do really look very close to this proportion. The wheels roll, the scoop moves up and down, not much more. It would be improved if there was another joint for the scoop to move separately as opposed to just the whole arm pivoting where it attaches to the body - Hercules does it better in this regard.

Ratings:
Character importance 6/10 - Scrapper is the leader of the Constructicons, but doesn't ever seem to get a huge amount of air time.
Toy 7/10 - Very solid. A few complaints, but nothing major.


Some further thoughts on Green Giant as a whole, following on from comments in the MakeToys thread:
1. I now think the plastic is how it needs to be... there is some compliance and softness, but that character actually serves it very well as some joints in the transformations are quite tight, and the slight softness is needed.
2. I'm enjoying the transformations - clearly not a kids toy, being rather complex and tight alot of the time, but very fun and satisfying.
3. Joints are tight - only loose bits I have found so far are the weapon fit in Scrapper's right hand (as above), and the front left wheel on Long Haul (Dump Truck). That's some high level QC Takara can be satisfied with!

[Gasaraki]

As a treat for my birthday, I opened the FP Crossfire 02 set I've had sitting around for a few weeks now, along with United Bruticus which these recolored figures were designed to match, and boy do I LOVE the combined figure!

Universe Bruticus was a lackluster figure at best... at the very best. It was probably considered more a pile of s*** by not a small number of fans. The United version improved it a teeny bit, but only so far as coloring... Takara followed G1 colors more closely, and also got rid of the horrible translucency of the arm and feet extensions. But colors really only go so far right?? The individual bots were not terrible... poor Onslaught once again cops lots of problems, with the demands that a torso bot has to cope with. Oh, and not to mention that Swindle is meant to be a JEEP and Blast-off a SHUTTLE - thanks for shafting us Hasbro!

Where it really suffers, I think, is the combined form... the poseability is hampered by the lousy feet, and proportions are simply terrible. And these two factors I reckon are where the FansProject set really comes in and fixes... such obvious factors, but it took a 3rd party company to take the initiative for us fans.

Where Colossus really shines is in the proportions, and as a related factor, the silhouette. The key was in adding those shoulder extensions that allow the arms to sit further out from the torso, and then the feet which, we have to admit, at least look like feet! A very cool selection of weapons (a big rifle, double shotguns, a dagger, and shoulder cannons) finish off the Bruticus look and feel, and of course, they gave us HANDS!

Definitely not least of all, we now have a JEEP and a SHUTTLE. Phew!!

I really really like the set very much... It makes a below average product into something very desirable, and that's before I've even looked at the individual bot and vehicle modes. Explorer/Munitioner sets became rather expensive in the secondary market not so long after production was stopped, but with the new color version now available, along with United Bruticus, I very highly recommend picking them up if you do not already have the original. Some people might think it's worth picking up even if you do!

OK, I've been going on about how good it is - it's very good FP plastics in use here, like the early releases such as City Commander, and different to later offerings like the Insecticons (is it just me or does anyone else think the plastic is different there? Not worse, just different). But what are the weaknesses? Well, ones I have noted are:

• The backpack doesn't click on easily; one tab will hold it, but to get both tabs in to stay is a little tricky.
• Vortex doesn't allow easy articulation; he will knock the shotgun off if you have it on the backpack.
• A couple of joints on my Swindle are a little loose, he has a tendency to bend out just below where the knee should be on Colossus.
• The joint on Munitioner to Onslaught is not the firmest; posing is fine, but I will avoid leaving Colossus in bent leg poses that may strain this joint.

And that's it so far... I will look into the individual figures and weapon placements (yet another great additional feature of the set) later, and may find more problems...

Ratings:
Character importance 7/10 - Bruticus doesn't have a massive role in either G1 cartoon or comics, but he does come in during some big battles.
Toy 9/10 - A really awesome upgrade, and quickly one of my favorite pieces. Some minor problems as noted, but they really are minor.

[CBratron]

Brute-Max just arrived in the mail today. So I'm currently playing around with the crossfire add-ons tonight.

[Hursticon]

Some brilliant photos Gasaraki, we've been spoiled by 3rd party groups offering various characters/figures that Hasbro/Takara simply can't/wont do themselves - A great (& expensive ) time to be a transforming robots collector huh?

[Gasaraki]

Guess I might be one of the first here to get these in hand, so here's a quick look at this little set. At least for me, it was eagerly anticipated...

The box art is actually pretty nice - a little bit of a mix between comic and anime style, showing our Seekers with the more cartoon accurate weapons. And this is really what this set comes down to... cartoon accurate shoulder mounted null-rays, or whatever it is they call them in the season 2 Seekers. Starscream, at the very least, has null-rays.

The box itself is made of rather cheap card whose layers separate at corners even before I ever opened it. This is a little annoying, but I suppose no one really buys these things for the packaging.

The much beloved classic Seeker mold gave us rather massive shoulder mounted launching missiles, and whilst it resembled the null-ray shape, the scale was really quite off. What this set does is bring it back into much more proper scale and shape. Unlike the quality of the box, I'm pleased to find that the plastic feels pretty much up to par with the official stuff... how wrong can you go making small solid shapes? Ahem... well They aren't missile launchers of course, but since I never launch these stuff for fun (even back as a kid!), I'm not bothered... and particularly so since I took to displaying the Seekers without the missiles in given the tendency for those things to go missing!

What I thought would be really useful to see is before and after comparisons, so... here we go!

I think the upgrade definitely looks better than the originals. Like I said, I display these guys without the missiles, so apologies for not being able to show them fully complete - honestly, I think the upgrade will still trump it.

The biggest problem here is that colors don't match perfectly on Starscream, Skywarp, or TC... and I think that's mainly due to the fact that my figures are all Classics/Universe/Generations, where this set is colored to match the newer Takara Tomy releases. But it's actually not a bad match, and you probably wouldn't pick it on the photos if it weren't mentioned.

The body color of the weapons for the season 2 Seekers really don't seem to attempt to match at all, but the paint apps do match quite well. Strangely, I think this doesn't detract from the set at all, and it somehow gets away with it.

Another point to note is how the new weapons changes the silhouette of these figures, especially Ramjet and Dirge who do not have wings coming out behind their shoulders. I don't mind the effect myself, and in fact I think it is an improvement over the original.

So there we go. Should you get this? I reckon it's a definite buy for Seeker fans. If you don't have all six then you might have to think harder, but keeping in mind that the previous Dr Wu DW-P12 upgrade was sold at $16 for ONE pair, this set is not bad value at all. And looking at pics, the DW sets had better paint apps, but I think this set has a better sculpt.

[Mythirax]

Nice post man, now I'm thinking about grabbing some myself. They look really good.

[Bidoofdude]

Might grab these myself, as I have the Ace Seeker set and these are pretty much spot on colours.

[Gasaraki]

Planet X burst onto the 3rd party scene with one of the largest figures ever, the massive Genesis not-WFC Omega Supreme. That particularly figure wasn't my cup of tea, so I was rather delighted when their second offering was of a very different scope, being the Deluxe sized Caelus not-Swoop. Starting of with the box, I didn't pay too close attention to pics of the Genesis packaging, but it's apparent now that the front design is an artistic rendering of the figure's chest... packaging has a 'good enough' feel to it, does the job, holds all the stuff in place and protects it. As with many 3P stuff, it's bigger than it needs to be (about Voyager sized)... wouldn't hold this against it necessarily except that it may push up postage costs where a more efficient package may have been cheaper to ship.

The Pteranodon mode is the weaker one IMO, although the very nice colour scheme and paint apps carry over both modes and is a strength. Surface detailing is also very good, particularly under the wings. The weakness is obviously in the robot kibble that is clearly visible on the underside. G1 Swoop folded the legs above the back, making a backpack of sorts, which is also out of place, whilst Caelus folds all four limbs beneath... I'm not sure which I'd choose if given a choice.

Wing poseability is good, including swivels where they connect to the back of the figure, whilst the bird feet are just adequate. The head can look up and down, and the mouth opens, but lacks side movement - given the transform where the robot head folds into the bird head, I'm not sure if there is any way where head rotation can be made possible without unclipping something. You can store both swords and missiles/guns on the bird, but it looks ridiculous doing so.

Oh, there is little need to point that those expecting G1 colors would be disappointed - this is clearly FoC Swoop, and it homages that model very well.

The transform is a pleasing discovery experience (doing it without instructions as is normal for me). Nothing very special with how the arms and legs fold, but there's a very nice shifting of parts in the torso (and I won't say more). Robot mode is definitely the stronger one, as alluded to earlier... torso, head, arm, and wing proportions are great.

My biggest gripe is how the legs sit. Given that this is a collector figure, it does looks like another joint at the hips could've made that area look less awkwardly wide. Lack of wrist swivel is also a glaring omission, given that other products like the Mech Ideas Demolition Crue manage to fit this in with style. When weapons are blasters/guns, this is less of a bother, but it just seems more crucial with swords IMO.

Ratings:
Character importance 6/10 - Swoop had rather paltry appearances in G1 cartoon, but quite a lot more in comics continuities. Could argue a 7.
Toy 7.5/10 - Good but not great... paint and robot mode are strengths, hip and wrist joints are weaknesses, as is the bird mode.

[lancalot]

cool pic of Planet X PX02 Caelus ..... the alt mode kinda kill it for me , that animal head looks terrible ..plus the price as well.... if it were half that price I wouldn't mind getting him , the robot mode looks really good but the hand articulation is a let down as well . Great review Gasaraki ...

[kup]

Great pics and review. I have my ordered.

cool pic of Planet X PX02 Caelus ..... the alt mode kinda kill it for me , that animal head looks terrible ..plus the price as well.... if it were half that price I wouldn't mind getting him , the robot mode looks really good but the hand articulation is a let down as well . Great review Gasaraki ...

Yeah, WFC/FOC designs are not for everyone but I can't fault Planet X. The Pteranodon head is pretty accurate to the game and that's what this line is about.