Phantomfish's Transformer Reviews

ROTF Dirt Boss Review

2009-08-04T19:05:00.001+01:00

Dirt Boss is another release from the 1st wave of Scout class figures. He is clearly based upon the Scrapper Drones from the first Transformers game. The resemblance is so uncanny it must have been planned.

In my opinion the name isn't very appropriate for him. Dirt Boss puts you in mind of a digger or off-road racer but here he is a forklift truck. Sticking with Scrapper would probably have been a better option.

Okay lets start with the bot mode. The first thing that struck me about him was the odd choice of colours. Green and dark grey dominate the figure. There are hints of gold and red here and there but the Devastator-esque green is all over. The shins and feet have been painted gold but, unlike the photo, is hardly noticeable against the green.

However, despite this Dirt Boss has lots of detailing all over his bot mode. Including his two honking great tonfa style pneumatic rams. This little guy looks like he may not be able to fight from a distance but up close he will kick your ass.

Thanks to loads of ball joints he has excellent articulation. The shoulders and elbows are jointed on the arms and the hips, knees and feet on the legs. He is a posing fans dream as the feet are stable and the arm blades offset the slight weight of the back.

My only gripes with the bot mode are his gormless expression and the alt mode cage placement. The expression is one of an old man about to die of total boredom but hey you would be bored if you were a Decepticon forklift truck. The cage could surely have had some mechanism to fold or slide into his back that would have made the robot mode even better.

In bot mode once you've got past the minor flaws you have a decent looking Decepticon trooper.

Transformation again is quite simple and intuitive. The arms fold in and swing around to form the lifting arm, the legs fold underneath and the cage drops and closes to hide the head under the seat on his back. Since again I have no instructions for him it was really easy to accomplish and it all fits together very well.

Once transformed to alt mode you have a little green forklift truck. There is lots of detail again here. The forklift arms don't raise and lower but tilt slightly, there is a forklift steering wheel now and a driving seat. In alt mode we have the same colours green and dark grey and only minor gold paint on the side of the forks and some side panels. We also have a Decepticon logo show up for the first time. I really would have liked to see one in bot mode too.

My main gripe with this mode is why on earth would a forklift truck be of use to the Decepticon cause? I can't see Megatron sending troops out to stake out warehouses to see if there is any stock worth moving around slowly. You might see him on a construction site but in most cases they use cranes to move the pallets of equipment around. Yes the alt mode is well crafted and well done but would probably have been better served as an Autobot. (No doubt he will be repainted into one at some point!)

Overall, Dirt Boss is a well crafted figure that is based upon the design from the game. If you can get past the fact that he is very Contructicon styled but isn't one, his ill fitting name and the weird choice of alt mode you have a decent figure. Not one of the stand out scout class figures but certainly worth a look at.

Scores:

Bot mode: 8/10 - Colour scheme and cage placement do distract from a good looking bot mode.

Alt mode: 7/10 - Good looking but a very obscure choice of vehicle.

Transformation: 7/10 - Simple and intuitive.

Overall: 7.5/10 - Not a must buy like some of the other scout figures but worth it if you can get him cheaper than RRP.

ROTF Soundwave Review

2009-08-04T14:53:00.001+01:00

Soundwave is the second of the preview figures to be released and has some resemblance to his G1 roots. In this incarnation Soundwave is officially packaged as a triple-changer. However, be warned the 2 alt modes really aren't all that different. More on that point later.

Lets start with the robot mode since that's how he comes packaged. Soundwave does come off as slightly on the stock side. Huge brutish arms and chunky shoulders coupled with big legs definitely make him look like a bit of bruiser. The arms do come off as quite blocky and have been molded as fists. Unlike Soundwave's previous incarnations which made him look like the spy he is supposed to be he does come off as much like a muscular fighter ready to punch you at a moments notice.

There are lots of different colours to compliment the primarily drab grey colour. Navy blue parts coupled with the occasional red, yellow and silver detail highlights are found all over. Also, the transparent blue light-piped areas of the figure definitely add to the look.

There is plenty of detail to be found on the figure including, blades on the arms, solar panels over the shoulders and 3 circular lenses on the chest. Quick note: most official Hasbro stock photos have the chest forward not revealing all of the lenses. It comes packaged with the chest back which makes it look much better.

The robot mode also has a firing 'Ravage' missile. If you have seen the movie Ravage is fired to earth in protoform mode from Soundwave's satellite form. The detailing on the missile is intricate and is intended to indicate it is Ravage. Although if you do store the missile in this mode it just sticks up behind his head and if fired realistically would just fire in the air and land on top of him.

Soundwave does have some posability but his arm movement, in particular the lack of full joints on the elbows and wrists, is severely hampered. You can make his blades look like they are slashing forward but that's about it. The shoulder panels also can limit arm movement. However, there is lots of leg articulation which means you can give him lots of different standing poses.

Overall a very decent robot mode but the lack of arm articulation and the stockiness take away from the feel of the figure.

The transformation is one of the most natural so far for a RotF figure. Not too complicated and intricate but the satellite prongs do feel a bit fragile.

Alt mode time: Satellite mode can be set however you like with the panels in lots of different positions to achieve different looks. In the film he looks very much like a cybertronian shuriken and this look can be achieved here. He is very faithful to the film in this mode and does look like you expect with very little surprises. Primarily grey now with only the translucent light blue sets you in mind of a satellite.

Second alt mode: Cybertronian jet. Well you just move the solar panels back to make something akin to wings and that's it. Not really a necessary alt mode and it doesn't feature in the film. Pretty unnecessary really.

Overall, Soundwave is an average figure. I started out really liking him but then with the newer figures my interest has wained and his blockiness doesn't fit with the rest of the line. I would have preferred a much sleeker, stealth like figure more akin to the G1 Soundwave. The satellite mode does need to be rested against something to display as a satellite and the jet mode is really unnecessary. I like the satellite mode as it is faithful to the movie but the robot mode puts me off.

Scores:
Bot mode: 6/10 - Too stocky to fit in with the figures character and lack of arm posability.
Alt mode: Satellite 9/10 Jet 6/10 - Faithful Satellite representation but pointless Jet.
Transformation: 8/10 - Natural and not too complicated.
Overall: 7/10 - Average figure that shouldn't be your first purchase. This is probably why he was a preview figure.

ROTF Detour Review

2009-06-25T15:29:00.000+01:00

Detour is one of the 1st wave of new scout class figures for the ROTF range. Unlike in the previous movie line, where all of the scout class were either Cybertron or Energon repaints, all of the scout class appear to be new moulds so far.

One of the biggest problems for Detour is his name. Now on US packaging he is referred to as Dead End. He is even named Dead End on the back of the European packaging and the instructions but the front definitely refers to him as Detour. This is presumably as a later repaint of the deluxe class Sideways figure is now set to be released as Dead End.

All scout class figures are packaged in bot mode so lets start with that.

Primarily cast in red and black with gold touches here and there. A bird-like head sits above a well laid out body. The bot mode has plenty of poseability with good joints in the arms and legs to hold a variety of poses, with very little to obstruct them. The claw like hands do look a little on the fragile side and definitely weren't intended to ever hold anything. The main gripes are with the head and the shoulders (no not the shampoo). The head clearly has a lower jaw section that is meant to move up and down to accompany head movement, but this, sadly, appears to have been overlooked and is set firmly in place. The shoulder joints also have a tendency to move away from the body as they are not attached to it making some poses difficult and leaving awkward gaps between the two. Overall, Detour has a nice look to him that fits in with his bio of being a 'creepy, aloof, thief'.

The transformation isn't too difficult but is far more complicated and involved, like most of the RotF figures I have seen so far, than most previous lines. The main sticking part for me is getting the chest panel to align correctly as the boot in order to get the shoulder panels in place. Admittedly I did buy Detour from an Asian eBay trader and don't have the instructions to go from, but this has often been quite off-putting. The instructions may make this a lot easier than I do!

In alt mode we have a red and black sports car, which is roughly based around the Peugeot 9009 concept car. The car is very sleek and futuristic maintaining the idea of the scout class figures as battlefield scouts and predators. The car has the usual moving wheels. I just wish a little more detail had been put into the wheels as the trims have been solely painted gold when realistically the centres should have been blacked or removed in the first place. However, despite this Detour looks excellent and really seems to fit the purpose.

Overall, Detour is an exceptional little figure and the stand out figure of the wave 1 scouts. The future Nightbeat repaint also looks interesting. The flaws are only minor and really don't detract too much from the overall feel.

Scores:
Bot mode: 9/10 - Tiny issue with the jaw and shoulders only detract slightly.
Alt mode: 9/10 - A well crafted alt mode that fits in well.
Transformation: 8/10 - Slightly complicated and the chest and shoulder arrangement could be easier.
Overall: 9/10 - A well executed figure that fits the scout line. I just wish his name hadn't been so ambiguous.

ROTF Bumblebee Review

2009-06-08T12:06:00.000+01:00

Okay so Hasbro have released another version of the Bumblebee Concept Camaro mould. So, should you buy it? In my opinion yes.

This is the 8th version of this mould to be released (Yes I have all of them as I am Bumblebee fan) and only the second to be remoulded in any shape or form. The previous versions include:
Bumblebee Original Concept Camaro
Battle Damaged Bumblebee
Allspark Bumblebee
Screen Battles Bumblebee
Stealth Bumblebee (Remould)
Premium Bumblebee (Remould)
Cliffjumper

Bumblebee has the addition of an actual gun arm reminiscent of the film instead of an accessory that clips into his hand. This is much better than the original gun/blade accessory that comes with all other versions. The one minor flaw is that the missile is slightly too long to fit in the barrel without it being at the wrong angle. If you know what you are doing (and if not seek a parents advice) take a sharp craft knife and carefully cut about 1/2 cm off the end of it. This will enable Bumblebee to display his projectile and launch it as intended in robot mode.

The other big change is a head re sculpt which makes Bee look much more like his film version. Okay no battle helmet (you'll have to get the Human Alliance version for that) but there was no way they could build that into a deluxe figure without extra cost.

The transformation to vehicle mode is the same as before and is only slightly hampered by the new gun arm. It can be a little difficult to do it with the missile attached as the instructions say but it can be done. Don't try and remove the missile and then place it back in once in vehicle mode as this can be a nightmare to accomplish.

In vehicle mode again the classy Camaro 2009 version is on display. If there is anyone out there who does not drool over this car you must be mental. Realistically it isn't too far removed from previous versions with the exception of a slightly remoulded grill. At the end of the day its a great looking Camaro, what more could you want?

Overall, if you have any of the other moulds should you buy it? The answer is yes. If you don't have Bumblebee already should you buy it? It depends; the Human Alliance version does offer more features and is bigger but if you don't have the money then this is for you. From a Bumblebee fan it comes recommended.

Scores:
Bot mode: 7/10 - Just the missile fix makes this annoying
Alt mode: 8/10 - Its one of the nicest looking cars around
Transformation: 7/10 - Not too complicated but the missile can be fiddly.
Overall: 8/10 - Yes its another version of the Camaro Bumblebee.