I remember saying a while back that I wouldn't do recent toys too often. Obviously, this wasn't something I could keep to. I mean, I'm not gonna try to be topical or "first", but Legacy and its various sublines has been demanding my attention. Like today's subject: Hot Shot.
The 2002/2003 Armada Hot Shot toy
The best way to describe Hot Shot character is probably "Bumblebee by way of Cheetor and legal issues". I don't doubt for a second that if the Bumblebee name had been available, he would have bore it, but Hot Shot's character role was decidedly more action-oriented than previous depictions of the 'bee. He was, as the name implied, an impetuous youth for actual kids to identify with, and for the writers to grow over the course of a TV show.. He could also have been called Hot Rod, which explains at least two remoulds/repaints. In many ways, Hot Shot was the prototype for what would happen with Bumblebee in the Bay films, and by extension Transformers: Prime. He's still basically nice, but an edgier take than the ol' yellow lovebug. And he suffers a bit from a lack of meaningful character growth as sequels hit the reset button and generally weren't especially good. Regardless, Hot Shot was huge for a period of 2002 to 2006, getting too many toys to mention here, and then he dropped out of prominence once the Bumblebee trademark was secured. He didn't quite disappear though, being the first Armada toy to get the Generations treatment, and inspiring characters in both Transformers: Animated & Rescue Bots. Most recently, Hot Shot got a retool based on his Cybertron Defence iteration, using the pretty cool Siege Hound mould. At the risk of spoiling the ending, that version is probably a better toy than this one when it comes to all-round quality, although today's subject is obviously a good deal closer to the source.
Let's start with the plus that is the vehicle mode. Hot Shot is an attractive yellow car legally distinct from, but similar to, the Audi TT series of two seaters. That's a storied brand of sports cars, but the sort of thing you might associate with a boy racer, which Hot Shot definitely qualified as. Look at it, and then tell me with a straight face that this altmode didn't influence future Bumblebee toys. I dare ya. It looks fast, but more in the performative "look at me, I'm driving my custom car too fast" sense, than the "fastest thing on four wheels" sense. Quick, brash, but with curving lines rather than harsh angles, suggesting he's not actually a bad 'un. Now, as to what it does? Well, it evokes one of the Armada toys gimmicks, and suggests another. He features the "engine block gun", which plugs tightly into the bonnet, which adds to the modded car look, but there's no mechanism to trigger. You can flip his feet out suggesting the claw that popped out, but in a missed opportunity, there's no moulding for the grips. There's also a dummy mini-con post near the back, where I am told that you can plug the original Jolt toy into. Like Starscream, this toy does not include a mini-con partner, so having that there kinda highlights that absence, but given how Targetmasters have regressed of late, maybe that's for the best.
When we come to transform the toy, encounter another design compromise. The original toy had a distinct, if not hugely good, transformation that had to be revised late in the design process. This new mould is trying create a robot mode that looks like the animation model based on that toy, while not converting like that toy. To make another Starscream comparison, that toy is modernised, yes, but the engineering follows the broad strokes of its inspiration. I. E the limbs go into the same places. Hot Shot isn't like that, and opts for more of a shellformer approach. This has a marked effect on the lower legs, which, not to put too fine a point on it, look rather naff. Hot Shot is for the most entirely satisfactory as a legacy era robot, but the shellformer does few favours, and the right shoulder tab seems misaligned on my example. He looks like Hot Shot, especially with his face and his racing harness chest, and he's got his share of joints and ports. You just have to look at him from the front.
Now, is this the same as me saying tht its bad toy? No. I was prepared to be harsher than that, don't get me wrong, but then something happened. I actually had the opportunity to do the old "Pepsi Challenge" with this toy while at a mates house. (Hello Mr & Mrs C. You are lovely hosts.) I. E we had the old one, and compared it with the new one. The consensus we came to was that Legacy Hot Shot was a better toy overall, having such improvements as being able to hold his own gun, but the Armada original was much more trustworthy in the hands of an actual child. And that's this toy in a nutshell, really. It's an earnest attempt to make a collector's version of a toy that wasn't that good in the first place, and it hasn't turned out quite as well as Starscream. It was a big ask, and while this arguably came out better than the 2008 Universe version, I don't blame anybody put off by the legs. This having been said: this toy absolutely nails the axelzooka gimmick, and I have a lot of time for that if the rest is mostly okay. And it is.
My point? Only that Hot Shot is something that exists, and is mostly okay. He's probably not good enough convert people to Armada, but he's got his charm.
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