Toy Purchases April 2012

Skywarp *Image Courtesy of  Takara Tomy

April's toy additions turned out to be a major Transformers Prime month with 7 Prime additions to the collection. I also picked up a few odds and ends including the 2 Kabaya Gashapon sets, the Transformers Collectors Club Runamuck, Botcon 2009 Razor Claw and Elita-1 2-pack, and Fansproject War Cry and Flame Blast. Phew, buying toys is exhausting. ^_^

First off is the 2 Takara Tomy Japan exclusive Transformers Prime figures, Skywarp and Terrorcon Cliffjumper. Skywarp is a recolor of Transformers First Edition Prime Starscream with added Bombs on his wings that are not removable. Overall it's a decent recolor of the Starscream mold. The toy doesn't come with Starscreams arm missiles though. Instead, Skywarp comes with a Arms Micron named Balo, which is a Bull who transforms into a Drill or a Shield. This is the first Takara  Tomy Prime toy I bought so I was pleasantly surprised to see the Arms Micron unassembled on a sprue. Additionally, the foil stickers add a nice G1 touch to these toys. I heard that the stickers and unassembled Arms Microns were part of a brand marketing message for the parents and children in Japan. Takara Tomy wanted parents to play with their children and help assemble the toys which makes a lot of sense to me. While this is a great branding activity for Prime in Japan, there was a lot of backlash from internet trolls in the west (Lazy, ha!). Overall, I love putting on the stickers and assembling the kits but I think it's because I have extensive plastic model building experience. 

Terrorcon Cliffjumper *Image Courtesy of  Takara Tomy

The second Takara Tomy toy I picked up is Terrorcon Cliffjumper. This guy is a clear purple First Edition Cliffjumper with a new molded undead head. He looks pretty bad ass  I missed out on the First Edition Cliffjumper, since he was not even released in the US, thanks Hasbro, LAME, so this was the first time I got to check out this mold. I love the fold out hidden tri-blasters in his arms. Also, his chest seems more robust than the RID Cliffjumper figure. Terrorcon Cliffjumper comes with 2 Dark Energon accessories. A clip on shard that mimics the shard that Cliffjumpers husk was impaled on to reanimate his dead corpse and a separate Dark Energon shard that can be held by any of the Prime figures. Terrorcon Cliffjumper comes with Arms Micron Jida, a Puma or Panter animal that transforms into a multi-blade chainsaw. Overall, a impressive figure that strikes a unique pose in the collection.

Arcee *Image Courtesy of  Seibertron.com

The next purchase was Prime RID Arcee from Prime RID Wave 2 and Prime RID Wave 3 (Knockout, Hot Shot, and Vehicon). I originally was reluctant to get RID Arcee. I purchased the First Edition version last year and I really liked that figure. However after getting a hold of RID Arcee I have to say it's simplicity and show accurate back wings really won me over. My only complaint is that she doesn't come with 2 forearm blades like the First Edition figure and I also wish she had a smaller gun. The gun she has is a huge cannon compared to the smaller arm pistols she sports in the animation.

Knockout is very a underwhelming figure. His paint job is really lackluster and his design really seems more of a stop gap than a finished toy. His angular chest doesn't even remotely look like the rounded design of the show. Also, his staff weapon was really flimsy on the toy I got. Not sure if this is the same for everyone though.

Hot Shot is a recolor of RID Bumble Bee with a new head. While he has the same body as RID Bumble Bee, Hot Shot really stands out with his blue paint job with red flames. 
Also the new head with adjustable goggles really differentiates the character in this set. 
I really like him a lot despite the legacy auto-morphing mechanism in his chest that 
has the teeth stick out of his neck in robot mode.

Hot Shot, Vehicon, Knockout *Image Courtesy of  Seibertron.com

The last deluxe Prime RID figure is the Decepticon Vehicon. Having not owned the First Edition Vehicon, because it was also not released in the US at the time, thanks LAME Hasbro, this figure enjoyed the same reaction as the Takara Tomy Terrorcon Cliffjumper. While drastically different in body design than the First Edition version, this figure is really cool. His black color pallet and silver highlights on his head accurately translate the shows character. My only initial complaint was his bow arms which were a little weird to pose as far as getting a full range of articulation from them. But after a few hours I got used to it and I don't really think of the designed joints as a negative thing anymore.

Bulkhead *Image Courtesy of  Seibertron.com

The last Prime RID figure I purchased this month was Voyager Bulkhead. Again, another First Edition figure I never got because it was not offered in the US, wow there's a pattern of LAME HASBRO behavior, LOL, RID Voyager Bulkhead is pretty ... bulky. He's smaller than the previous voyager Bulkheads however. The Transformers Voyager Animated Bulkhead and the First Edition figure are both slightly bigger in comparison to the RID version. Overall a good figure with basic transformation. The one thing this figure suffers from is the Mech Tech weapon which is a horrible carry over from the movie figures. Both RID Voyager Optimus and Megatron both have the same problem also. Bulkheads weapon looks really brick-ish when not unfolded and activated. However the weapon has a spring and can not stay unfolded which is a huge design flaw as far as displayability. Also because of the battery compartment for the weapons light up feature, even having the weapon unfolded looks awkward so it's better to just throw the accessory 
away.

Over Run, Runamuck *Image Courtesy of  Seibertron.com

I also picked up Transformers Collectors Club Runamuck which is basically a white version of Over Run (AKA Runabout). It's a good representation of the character using the Transformers Generations Wheeljack mold. As with Over Run, I wish they could have done something to remove Wheeljacks wings though. I also think they should have used different weapons. Having the same shoulder missiles, gun, and tools as Wheeljack kind of makes both of these guys generic. Also the white plastic used on the figure does not match the white paint used on the figures canopy and is a little jarring visually. I'm glad I picked up the the 2 figures but there really isn't anything extra special about them.

Razor Claw, Elita-1 *Image Courtesy of TFW2005.com

Next up is the final 2 figure set for the 2009 Wings of Honor Botcon collection, Razor Claw and Elita-1. I really only purchased these 2 figures to complete the set. Both figures are kind of lackluster and both were easily available for under their original release price from 2009. Razor Claw is a recolor of Leo Breaker (Cybertron) or Liger Convoy (Galaxy Force). Recolored to look like the leader of the G1 Predacons, Razor Claw is a decent figure but nothing special. As with the original figure he has a Galaxy Force Chip or Cyber Planet Key  that activates his claw weapons.

Elita-1 is a recolor of Thunder Blast (Cybertron) or Chromia (Galaxy Force). The original toy was kind of a dud and this toy is the same. She's a shell-former with her limbs extended out of the boat shell. She also has a Galaxy Force Chip or Cyber Planet Key that activates her over sized missile launcher weapon. Awkward and unbalanced this figure has a lot of things going for it that are just plain wrong. Her small form is overshadowed by the giant boat shell attached to her back. It's just a failure on all fronts.

G Guardian, Defensor *Image Courtesy of theinfozombie.com

The last official Transformers products I purchased in April were 2 Kabaya Gashapon figure sets. The first set is G Guardian which is a combiner set with 6 figures. The set comes with 4 familiar G1 Protectobot characters, Blades, First Aid, Groove, and Streetwise. The other 2 original characters in the set are Sky Feather and Heat Rock. Over all the set was a joy to put together and sticker. Individual transformations are pretty solid. The combiner form is a little loose though. But the best is yet to come (See paragraph below).

The second Kabaya Gashapon set I picked up is Wave 5 of the Transformers Gum Collection featuring War for Cybertron Convoy (Optimus Prime), Deathsaurus, and ...gasp Protectobot Hotspot! Yes, Protectobot Hotspot can replace Heat Rock and G Guardian can become DEFENSOR!!! Pretty cool cross interaction with the 2 sets which came out about the same time. Individually, Hotspot is a pretty good figure on his own. Defensor combines way better than G Guardian too.

WFC Convoy, Hotspot, Deathsaurus *Image Courtesy of theinfozombie.com

Deathsaurus is a neat little guy also. He's a pretty accurate representation of the G1 Transformers Victory character with his chest eject mechanism. Also, both WFC Convoy and Hotspot come with alternate chest parts for Deathsaurus which enhance him with a full transformable Eagle Breast and Tiger Breast minions.

The last figure in this set is WFC Convoy. This is the downer figure, ha. He's pretty plain even with stickers applied. His transformation is simple and he really looks drab. I also think his head is way too small for his proportioned body. Ah well. DEFENSOR! Yay.

Flame Blast, War Cry *Image Courtesy of Fansproject

The last 2 toys for April are Fansproject War Cry and Flame Blast. To be honest, I'm not sure why I purchased these. I think it was a impulse buy based on a very bad day. Overall they are pretty much the same as the Fansproject Cross Fire and Munitioner figures that make up the "Not-Bruticus" set. Both figures do have alternate weapons that do not form the body parts like their predecessors. They are decent figures but I don't really have much to say about them. It was just a off day I guess.