Pricepoint/Vintage:
Legend, 2015/2016.
Modes: Robot, Spaceship,
Combiner Gun.
Transformation Style: CW
legend, simplistic triplechanger.
Play Patterns: Robot and
vehicle, “sixth member” combiner to Onslaught, 5mm weaponry,
targetmaster.
Points of Interest: Homage
to the G1 episode “The Revenge of Bruticus”. Rare new mould in
Combiner Wars.
The Good
Nearly everything. The
ship mode is very close to his original gun form, while the robot is
a more of modernisation via the video games. Both look great, and the
robot is almost ideally articulated for the size. There's a balljoint
for the head, great motion in the shoulder through a balljoint/swivel
combo, similar in the hips, and better knees than me. Joint count is
14, the neck being above and beyond the call of duty, so making
natural poses with the gun arm is easy. He operates excellently as a
big gun for Bruticus, being able to store on his back too.
The Bad
To emulate the G1 toy,
translucent plastic is extensively here, most worryingly in the
elbows. Breakages will be a thing to watch for. The forearms are a
weak point, generating kibble in all modes. Achieving the gun mode is
a matter of flipping a handle down, and while this can store on
Onslaught's altmode, it doesn't sit well. There was also a tiny spot
of misapplied paint on my example.
The Mediocre
Shockwave is specifically
designed to work with Combiner Wars gestalt hands, and a bar of
plastic before the peg will interfere with many regular hands, not to
mention the weight.
The Alternatives
As a distinctive G1
original, Shockwave is extremely well supplied for toys, most
recently with a Masterpiece release. Within Combiner Wars, the most
obvious alternative is the Powerglide mould, specifically the Viper
repaint. This would arguably fit the Combaticon theme better, BUT
that's a weaker toy with tabbing issues. There is also the Botcon
2016 Relector pack remoulded from this, which I have, and adore,
but its going to be expensive.
The Verdict
Shockwave is an unabashed
success. Its difficult to image a version of the character at this
size and price done better. As a partner mould to combiner, he's the
best example of the concept. Yeah, he's basically a targetmaster
whereas the other toys tried something new, but its a tried and true
gimmick executed well. I would personally prefer that translucent
plastic wasn't so big a feature, but its early days, and it makes the
toy look good in a 1984 sort of way. Pick him up.
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