Transformers: Age of the Primes Wreck 'n Doom Collection Carnivac vs. Fisitron is Something that Exists

 

Exclusive releases are part and parcel of the Transformers experience, and usually I'm not fussed. Exclusives have this habit of either being things that don't interest me,  dont justify the mark up, or end up on discount somewhere. With Legacy United, we even saw former exclusives get used as late wave filler. I gather that exclusives are particularly annoying if you collect seekers too, but I digress. Of course, eventually Hasbro does put out an exception, like today's subject. Carnivac and Fisitron come from a very similar place, creatively speaking. That is a comicbook writer, the kind that becomes a TFNation regular, taking a character with basically no fictional appearances and creating a fan favourite. The Primes, Megatrons, even the Brawns of the franchise have de-facto tenure and are unlikely to allow much creative freedom to a writer. The successes of Transformers comics, and their deep love by the fan base, are often due to some utter rando being selected for the spotlight. Carnivac and Fisitron, while separated by decades and continuities are absolutely two such Transformers. And good choices for exclusives, as they have dedicated-but-small fanbases.

Of the two, Fisitron is undoubtedly the best known, to the point of getting his own tributes in later fiction. Fisitron, not Fistytron as my brain insists on parsing it as, is actually Ironfist, the name change dictated by the MCU. I'm just gonna call him Ironfist from now on. Ironfist was the audience avatar for the highly regarded The Last Stand of the Wreckers, arguably the best comic miniseries ever associated with Transformers, and a top ten Transformers media candidate overall. It's difficult to express just how big a thing that was, do read it. Ironfist's fate was to be a massive fan of the Wreckers Autobot team, think an actually heroic Suicide Squad style group, or more precisely the ABC Warriors, and then suffer the reality of that. He has a bad time of things to say the least, but really you have to read it.

This new Ironfist is a bit if a mélange, if only for it's foundation. It's a remould of the Legacy Detritus toy, itself a retool of the pretty good Siege Hound making it something of a Cannonball situation. Mould degradation is becoming a concern at this point, this being the 7th use of it, but mine seems fine. The altmode has been modified to make it an enclosed cab, while the accessories have been replaced with a decorative approximation of his old Lightformer Cannon gimmick which splits into three bits. As this is an exclusive/limited release there is a bounty of paint applications, too much on the gun, tending towards IDW colours with the head being a highlight. The jeep altmode inherited is a good match for the original toy, although the robot proportions are more conventionally heroic than the somewhat dumpier build of his most famous appearance. So while he's not quite as Last Stand as I would prefer, he's a superior remake of an already great mould. 

Carnivac by comparison is much older, both in print and in plastic. I'll admit that I had to go check the specifics of what he's done, and while he's actually done more than Ironfist, he's not on the same tier of popularity. He was a recurring character in the UK comics I read as a kid, actually joining an Autobot splinter faction for a time with a few former-Wreckers, although there's continuity issues with that material. Much later on, he turned up in the sequel to Last Stand of the Wreckers, in another splinter faction that I won't describe, and very recently in those new Energon Universe comics. Carnivac's main trait is to be a wolf, both literally and metaphorically. He's a Decepticon with a wolf altmode, and a wolf's mindset. A bad guy to fight, but not automatically a foe, and given that Transformers is often Good versus Evil, that's interesting.

A more pressing question may however be "Why is he that colour?". Well, he was a Pretender Beast, you see. The original toy had an outer shell in the style of a big organic wolf, while the inner robot was was some louder in colour and a bit simple. Pretender toys were like that, and modern remakes have frequently tried to split the difference between the shells and the robots therein. This release however favours the inner robot, but taking design cues from the Marvel comics.

 

It does this by remoulding the Titans Return era Wolfwire, changing the titanmaster, whom is called Survivor, after that splinter faction I mentioned, and replacing the accessories. As it's an older deluxe, it's not quite as nice as Ironfist, but it's still a solid design, and the mould has been used far less frequently. It also removes the questionable materials that the previous releases were infamous for, an unambiguous improvement. The wolf mode is however largely unchanged, using paint to suggest the visor rather than actually sculpting one. He's not as good as Ironfist overall, and not as extensive as a remould, but is undoubtedly the best use of this mould, and it works well for the character. Nice paint job on the titanmaster too.

All in all, the set is a great example of an exclusive. It uses good moulds well, making effective changes where appropriate, and doesn't skimp on paint. It also helps that it is based on comics and latter-day G1, rather than the more over-exposed parts of the brand. It's not a perfect set, but other than totally new toys, I don't see how Hasbro could done much better. Assuming that no horrible QC issue or design flaw manifests, consider this set as having my full endorsement.

Transformers: Combiner Wars Scrounge is Something That Exists

OK, bare with me with this one. This is gonna be one of those articles where I talk about the wider context of a toy more than the toy itself. I fell down a rabbit hole on this one.

Scrounge's wiki picture

Scrounge is a lesser-known character from the Marvel comics, one of a number of "non-toy" characters created by Bob Budiansky. Bundiansky’s work isn't as well-respected as Simon Furman was, whom took over and wrote the popular bits later on, but the man hasn't tanked his reputation like Furman did. Scrounge was an Autobot whom remained on Cybertron, an eager to please spy whom hung around with the dark and brooding take on Blaster. He ran-afoul of the similarly non-toy Lord Straxus, and was sacrificed on the altar of drama. Aside from being noteworthy for being an early & lasting death in Transformers media, Scrounge was notable for his altmode. He turned into a wheel. Not a unicycle or owt like that, a simple, self-mobile, wheel. Oh, and he has a special arm designed for surveillance. Nobody at the time, and indeed after, thought this guy was gonna have a toy. Obviously, that changed, but it took a long while.

 

The 2016 Combiner Wars Computron toy, that's the lad in the upper-right

 

Advance thirty odd years. The time was 2016, and Combiner Wars was coming to a close. As the name implies, this line was about combining robot teams, and we were eating good. Possibly too good, as every mould was aggressively reused, and there was another problem. Hasbro and TakaraTomy were treating the toys rather differently. Hasbro was remixing and expanding teams rather than doing straight G1, while TakaraTomy was going full Sunbow G1 and modifying toys towards that aim. It wasn't exactly difficult for them to do this; Japanese Transformers releases are basically subsidised by Hasbro and the Western market, so unless we're talking about Masterpieces, risks and costs are lesser for them. While these were aimed at the Japanese collector market, which has its own character versus the West, Geewunners of course loved the TT versions, the discourse on this no doubt inspiring some silly things in the years ahead, but the Japanese versions broke the play pattern in the name of accuracy. Most combiner teams had received an additional Legends scale sixth member, which TakaraTomy ignored and shuffled off to act as filler elsewhere. The full ups and downs of East versus West are too lengthy a topic to go into here, but it arguably peaked with the Technobots. These were a latter G1 combiner team, of relatively modest fictional presence, whose main claim to fame was being created by Grimlock during a brief case of Super-Intellect. He got better. However, things played out a bit differently in Japan, whom made Transformers cartoons for longer, and the Technobots were somewhat more of a thing. Thus Hasbro and TakaraTomy took radically different approaches to them. Hasbro was more toy-based than anything, while TT used different moulds with new toolings on top of that. Which is better? I honestly don't know, I own neither, and haven't really handled either. I lean towards the Japanese version simply on the amount of effort put in, it doesn't use the flawed Brawl mould either, but there's a discussion you can have there, clearly. And a big part of that discussion is, well, our review subject.

 

This, after some 500 odd words, leads us to Scrounge. He was promoted, and presumably resurrected, to the sixth member of the Technobots. And he brought a seventh, Cybaxx. This is because Hasbro got a bit creative for the Technobots, swapping out the hand/foot guns for new combiner kibble, and threw in the 2014 vintage Cosmos toy as a sixth member, which also brought a seventh. Suffice to say, the resulting Scrounge toy was the highlight of the set, which I eventually acquired for a realtively cheap but non-trivial sum. On with the write-up then? Err, no. We have to talk about Cybaxx first. Who the cinnamon toast fuck is Cybaxx then? Well, imagine my utter surprise to find out that he's another Budiansky creation according to the wiki, actually Boltax by another name. One more easily trademarked apparently. Boltax was similarly another yellow dead dude, whom invites a really lengthy tangent about the Underbase storyline, a method to kill off a bunch of characters to make room for new toys. No, not the 1986 film, but close. Boltax was the caretaker of a functionally magical repository of Transformers knowledge, the Underbase, and was brutally killed by Megatron. Boltax had however become part of the Underbase beforehand, so it was less that he died so much as his puppet was destroyed. Later fiction from Fun Publications would resurrect him as Cybaxx. As to why Cybaxx is here? Well, the Cosmos mould came with a Micromaster called Payload, actually Blast Master, another legal thing, and I presume somebody remembered that Boltax was presented as a winged chap in yellow, and things flowed from there. Now, like the majority of the Thrilling 30 Legends partner dudes, Cybaxx is a quite simplistic but largely inoffensive chap. These are basically an upgraded accessory for the larger figure, so Cybaxx has a meh shuttle mode, a fairly decent gun mode, and a robot mode with two points of articulation and no fist holes. He's definitely got more going on than say Needlenose's guns, although the base mould is somewhat mid-tier in comparison to his tiny kin. Furthermore, this guy has precisely two paint applications and thus is extremely yellow. He's not bad, but he's not why you are here.

A comic panel of Boltax's Puppet, sourced from the wiki.

Scrounge meanwhile, to finally get to the main event, is also very yellow. He's got more paint on him, with three different colours no less, but we are still in ice lolly territory here, and the deco layout is fairly close to the original. As mentioned, Scrounge is based off the Thrilling 30 Cosmos mould, which is both a good fit for the Technobots as sixth member and a flat-out good toy in the first place. As far as Scrounge is concerned, becoming a UFO is a win. It's a fine upgrade, maintaining his fundamentally wheelly nature while gaining the power of flight. The lad got lucky, he so easily could have been one of those spring-loaded data disks from Fall of Cybertron. It's a nice sculpt, lots of good surface detail, guns up front, some engines and a tailfin out back. This is a modernised take on Cosmos' alt mode, not perfectly circular, but not the cutesy proportions of the recent Legacy toy. Aside from whooshing it around, there's a couple things you can do. Cybaxx can bolt on the front, and you can then bolt them on Computron as a shoulder shield. Not bad for a toy that predates the modern trend for 5mm ports, although not hugely exciting. Or safe, now that I come to think of it. Where the UFO suffers though is directly on the underside where the robot bits are, and where the new head sits. It's smaller than the original and rattles. 

 

 

The robot mode is where we see more pronounced differences from Cosmos, Scrounge having but one plastic colour, different shoulder decos, and a new head. The phrase "faithful to a fault" does come to mind here. Yes, the 80's comic did block colour him in yellow, but having a secondary colour would have helped. The head, meanwhile, is based off the more recent IDW version, and understandably isn't like a 1d4 in shape. On the plus side, the above is purely in the realm of subjective complaints. As far as robots made from discs go, this is basically ideal, and a good match for any comparably sized modern toy in terms of articulation and play value. He's got some well-placed balljoints, a swivel neck, a waist, and a few transformation joints you can make use of. There's oddities, sure, he's got a difficult altmode, but he's nicely posable, a heroic look, and has a gun friend. Oh, and the engines form a rocket-pack, gotta love that.

 

Doing the write-up for this guy was a bit of a trip, as a fell down a wiki rabbit hole and reminisced about old fandom arguments. Basically, the toy is a good one. I had Cosmos in the first place so I kinda already knew that, but handling Scrounge was like having the first impression all over again. So, he and Cybaxx are worth tracking down, although doing so is gonna be a right pain in the arse. That's why I leapt on the toy when I saw it. Combiner Wars sets tend to be serious money on the secondary market, and people aren’t like likely to part with the adorable wheel chap. What else can I say? Well, the colour choices at play here make me wonder how the multi-pack was budgeted. What came first here? The toy, the character, or the need to justify a mono-coloured repaint? I don't know. I'll leave that to the better informed. But certainly, Combiner Wars Scrounge and Cybaxx are something that exists. Let's end on some glamour shots.

Transformers: Rise of Tyranny 2-Pack Miner Megatron is Something That Exists

Bloody hell. It was difficult to just stop writing this one.

A panel from Megatron Origin #4

Recently released as part of an exclusive twin pack, thanks for splitting with me, mate,  Miner Megatron as a concept originated in the comics series Megatron Origin, circa 2007. Said comic does largely what you'd think. It was intended as the origin for Megatron, the original big bad of the Transformers brand. It was penned by Eric Holmes for Dreamwave originally, although IDW scooped it up when they got the licence. Holmes built on some earlier ideas from comic continuity, seemingly drawing on the very influential prose story State Games by James Hill, which featured megs' early days as a gladiator in a declining city state. Holmes added the details that Megatron worked as a miner before he was a gladiator, that the Decepticons grew out of a disaffected underclass, and ended the story with Megatron's first major victory. Later on, James Roberts would greatly expand on this period of Megaron's life with his Chaos Theory story circa 2011, and later still with the More Than Meets The Eye  ongoing series. Roberts added further nuance to this depiction of Megatron, or soft retcons if you're feeling unkind, as the despot renounced the Decepticons and did the whole Magneto-joins-the-X-Men bit for a while. There's a lot of political theory and historical allusions tied up with this take on Megatron, and this undoubtedly has influence on more recent versions, like the one in Earthspark.

A panel from MTMTE #34

Now, I'm glossing over some things above, but its fair to say that this take on Megatron wasn't for everyone, and maybe had a few problems. With several different writers and interested parties involved over several years, the concept of Miner Megatron runs into some unfortunate implications and a bumpy character arc. I think the Alligned continuity and Hasbro lore bibles maybe played a part in that, but I don't know enough about the timeline here to be sure either way. I also have this suspicion that as all three of the writers I've mentioned are British, there may be a cultural lens of some kind being applied that needs to be unpacked, as an obvious connection can be drawn to the Miners Strikes of the 70's and 80's. I almost want to describe this interpretation of Megatron as "Spartacus basically became Lenin and then Stalin in sequence, only to regret the Stalin phase much later on.", because that's the influences I'm recognising as a fellow brit. I've also not mentioned or discussed Functionism, the whole your-vehicle-mode-dictates-your-job-forever-and-ever caste system that Megatron was rebelling against. That was pretty horrific, as was the Decepticon's subsequent application of Technoism to the wider galaxy, aka genocide of organic species. Regardless, if you apply the imagery discussed above to the Decepticons and Megatron, it can be read as "downtrodden masses should remain downtrodden, lest they become militant communists, and the Autobots are warriors for the status quo." . That's not great, as unfortunate implications go, although as suspect the actual intent was more like "If you keep abusing people, they might eventually do it right back to you and everyone else, but worse.". I suppose that's what happens when you have an 80's toy franchise, and attempt to add more shades of grey. You can fumble the execution as creatives cycle in and out.

.A better writer than me needs to take a swing at all this, but its something to think about... 

A sequence of panels from The Transformers #22, Chaos Theory Part 1

Having put politics right in your Transformers: Miner Megatron. Young Megatron. The working class man whom wrote political treatise on the horrible caste system he was born into. The intellectual whom liked poetry and hung around with Impactor. The Megatron whom was mostly OK, until the state took issue with him. Mostly OK until, finally, Whirl beat it out of him. Dammit Whirl. Megatron before the Decepticons. What's he like as a toy? Well, he's a retool of a mould we've seen about ten times now, the Siege Megatron toy. That was a pretty decent voyager, but not top tier. I'd probably say it was "good enough" capturing the essentials of the character, but otherwise having OK articulation and an OK-if-rough-around-the-edges tank mode. As the mould has probably been used more than its merits actually justify, its use once more is probably not a plus for people at exclusive prices, but at least the basics are there. Mind you, it doesn’t feel great. I had the bad luck of getting one with the incorrectly swapped knee joints, something that took the shine off things for me, I do admit, and transforming the thing feels more of a nuisance than it was previously. So, assuming you have a decent one, let's talk about the changes made.

First off, the accessories are new. How new is open to debate, it's possible this one was on the blueprints from the start, but this is the sort of change I like. Adding or otherwise changing accessories adds play value and meaningfully changes the experience. Miner Megs goes full melee, with a pickaxe and drill that combine. I feel these fulfil the brief very well. These are tools first and foremost, although not something you'd want to be hit with, with the drill foreshadowing the fusion cannon, but also putting me in mind of the Impactor connection. The pickaxe has a lovely purple blade on it too, a flash of a colour otherwise absent. Visually, the robot mode gets the natural focus for the retooling, with a very Alex Milne head and a general reworking of the chest. It's a mix of both the Origin and Chaos Theory character models,favouring the latter, cast in dull metallic colours with hazard stripes. The general vibe is one of industrial machinery, which is largely how the Functionists viewed him, or the before picture used in an advert for a personal fitness program. He's not the silver toned tyrant yet, he needs to get some actual armour on him, a new paint job, and the fusion cannon, but you can see that potential. It is perhaps the most successful of the Rise of Tyranny toys for that, which which is why I suspect they might have been planning this from the start. It's not without issues though. While a great look, this retooling has resulted in the shoulders gaining a tab and slot arrangement for storage/integration in tank mode at the cost of two 5mm ports. Said tank mode is... Well... I want to say it's alright. As you might expect, it's a cybertronian drill tank, and it looks like what it is, a military vehicle repurposed to have alleged applications in mining. Mind you, the drill extends outwards far enough to be useful, and thanks to the fact the colours of the accessories match the main body, its more coherent than it might have been. I suppose you aren't really buying this for the altmode, and the axehead just kinda pegs to one side, but they gave it a proper go.

My point? Only that Miner Megatron is something that exists. As you may gather from the immense amount of waffle versus plastic above, I do find this version of Megatron to be  fascinating, and its nice to have a toy of it, especially one this pretty. That said, you are paying a premium for something we've already seen an awful lot of, and maybe the Quality Control is an issue. Don't overpay.

Transformers: Legacy Evolution Comic Universe Tarn is Something That Exists

 

The Cover to MTMTE #7

 

While not without its faults, the More Than Meets The Eye comic series is a highpoint for Transformers media. Fan-turned-writer James Roberts brought both a British sense of humour and a political eye to what was a fairly novel idea at the time. The war was over, what happens now? For the characters of MTMTE, it was go off on a quest, with a tone somewhere between Red Dwarf, and that run of Justice League: International everyone loves. The comic would do a lot of worldbuilding that stuck, and would endear itself to the LGBQT community with Chromedome & Rewind, whom were unambiguously married, and others. However, as often happens when people passionately love something that goes on to challenge preconceptions, you'll find a lot of very strong opinions about the comic. Some justified, some merely masking a distaste for representation and change in general. Roberts’ use of characters like Ultra Magnus, Megatron and Getaway provoked endless fandom spats that still rumble on today. My personal take is that things started to go off the boil with the Lost Light rebranding, and I got rather impatient with the series treading water and shuffling some of my faves out of the roster in rather unsatisfactory ways. I. E Tailgate. I think what we all loved were the character dynamics, whereas Roberts got more interested in big picture stuff of his own creation, as IDW was getting ready for a continuity reboot, so things suffered, but I will die on a hill for the good bits. Also: shout-out to Anode and Lug, good to have you ladies along.

 

 An early panel of "Tarn" and the hateful sadists of the D.J.D

So, where does "Tarn" fit into this? Well, he's a concept that would be as edgelord as fuck in the hands of another writer. He leads the Decepticon Justice Division, a team of codenamed sadists whose job it is to enforce discipline on the rank and file. Their modus operandi is to work their way down a list of offenders, torturing these poor bastards for a prolonged period, before killing them in the messiest way possible. Several of the group transform into torture implements, and are quite capable of brutalising almost anyone you care to name. While horrifying on several levels, if you step back for a moment, and think, another layer presents itself. The D.J.D are fascist try-hard cringe. A bunch of murderers given licence by a political philosophy to kill folk, and grossly ineffective at their implied role as military police. This was entirely the point, as their spotlight issue demonstrated. "Tarn" is the king of cringe mountain, although this was not immediately obvious. He was the subject of much fan theory, as Mr Roberts was a writer fond of laying plot seeds that would sprout years later. "Tarn's" given name was not stated, and he wore the Decepticon badge as a mask. It wasn't clear who this dude was, but he was scary, could literally talk people to death, and he was positioned as a peer to Grimlock in the realm of brute force. There were also a few characters currently AWOL from the story, so people had their theories. People got a little upset when these theories proved to be wrong, not least because Roberts liked red herrings too. Who "Tarn" is wasn't a mystery to the characters, just the audience, because who would want to talk about such a person? I wouldn't want to acknowledge that I knew someone whom joined the fecking Spanish Inquisition with a gun in one hand, and a management textbook in the other. It's more about what he is. And what he is, is Kylo Ren before Kylo Ren was a thing. "Tarn" is deep down a pathetic fanboy, but that does not make him any less dangerous to those around him. The guy is bad news personified. 

 

Let's start with the tank mode, and the related matter of transformation. What is basically amazing here is the extent to which the art has been replicated in plastic. This is a comment very applicable to the robot mode too, but the tank mode is where you'd expect them to do a Jhiaxus, and phone it in. MTMTE often forgot about transformation, so it would not have been a shock if they did so here. Not least because "Tarn" had a highly distinctive alt mode with six sets of tank treads, two fixed guns on the hull and a twin cannon turret, him being a Captain Trying-too-hard even in this sense. It totally would not be a surprise if "Tarn's" natural altmode was something much more mundane. But no, the tank mode is, as near as it makes no difference, spot-on to Alex Milne's character model. Now, this is pretty great, but it's not perfect, as it's a got a few little things that invite nitpicking. First off, the hands are visible at the back, a downer that I don't have an obvious fix for, but I'm willing to forgive. Then there are the treads, which lack rolling wheels, something you don't miss until its not there. I can only assume that these were cut on budget and parts count grounds, which stands out given the attention to detail and the lavish paintwork throughout. An awful lot here is purple translucent plastic painted over with more/different purple and metallic highlights, which looks gorgeous. No kidding, they made this pretty. Functionally, it's a fairly typical post-Siege vehicle mode, with the 5mm ports nicely integrated into the sculpt, with the turret & guns based on the same system, and a soft tab that can hold the assembly straight. The transformation meanwhile is simple overall, but with complications in the upper body. It's the tread assembly that is the tricky bit, getting them retabbed and such is a marked contrast to the legs that largely go where you'd expect. Also, there is a case of Visible Head Syndrome. Those nits having been picked, I have to say they did fine work with the tank form. Because, well, it's doing a good job with difficult source material. And then there's the robot mode.

The robot form is where it all comes together, and damn. It is, as near as it makes no difference, perfect. The nitpicking does however come back, "Tarn" generally being so good that any weakness becomes glaring. Overall, the proportions tend towards the lithe, and this has led to people calling him flat. Another way to describe it would be "kibble-free", as everything integrates so well, but I do see where people are coming from on this. "Tarn" was depicted as a fairly hench sort of guy, with the toy definitely being wide at the shoulders, and big of feet, but otherwise not fully capturing that hench-ness. Of course, we can easily chalk this up reality getting in the way, or, and I think this fits "Tarn's" fundamentally try-hard vibe, we can assume that this is a skinny guy in a muscle suit, trying to look more intimidating. That is exactly the sort of thing he'd do. Another visual point of interest is a reported similarity in some details to Alex Milne's most recent character model for Bludgeon, a fellow tankformer, and Decepticon rather famous in comics. If this foretells a future retool, colour me interested. Meanwhile, there is a lot of paint over translucent plastic, and some easily missed light piped eyes.

 

So, with the visuals on point, what's it like functionally? Generally pretty good, with a few touches that go beyond the brief. "Tarn" has all the legacy standard joints, with opening hands, which are always fun. Due to how the transformation works, the legs end up with notable freedom, those chunky feet helping with balance, and you can unclip the knees for more movement. The arms aren't quite as good, as this is where the tank tread design meets Hasbro engineering. They have enough, don't get me wrong, but an additional swivel at the shoulder would have been nice. Its almost as if having a bunch of tank treads for arms is a cool-looking but slightly impractical idea? "Tarn" and the D.J.D in a nutshell, that. The twin fusion cannon, as mentioned, also gives you a few options for use, with alternative long-barrelled and backpack configurations. So, he can definitely do more than stand there and look intimidating. A good robot mode. 

 

 

My point? Well, I have several beyond this toy actually existing, when many thought it never could. Looking at this toy, I am reminded of the feeling I had with Combiner Wars, in that a lot of third party items just got put on eBay. If you collect actual Transformers, i.e. robots that become other things and can (theoretically) be found at retail, this is immediately the best "Tarn", and probably the best one we are ever likely to get. Yes, you could go for one of the third party options, but you maybe aren't getting more for your money? Or an actual toy? Yes, there is a model kit and Super7 version if you want licenced merch, but those don't transform. But if you want an actual Transformer? I have good news, they did a fine job here. Also, as the lengthy preamble implies, "Tarn" is an important-if-cringey character in the Transformers fandom, so it's good that they tried, and even better that they succeeded.

My Top Twenty Transformer Things of 2016

Since I started selling toys on eBay, I've not been able to do reviews. Its a matter of appearing biased and having conflicting interests. I still collect however, and its the time of year for awards. So, I thought I'd list my favourites, not detailed analysis, but brief discussions of why I like them. All the toys and/or comics would be good, or at least interesting, but the number 1 would not necessarily be the best Transformer this year. I don't dabble in Masterpiece or Japanese lines, and my interest in the comics usually stops with James Roberts, so my sample size is a bit small. So, something in the line of last year's top ten, toys I have in my personal collection which were released this year. More or less. Then I realised its actually been a pretty good year for Transformers, and 10 wasn't big enough a number. Especially since Titans Return Wave 3 started appearing in December, and Six Shot was looking to be a shoe-in for top 5 if I got it in time. Did I get it in time? Well, keep reading.

Let's do a top twenty instead.

Numbers 20-11 represent the honourable mentions category. Toys I'm glad I have, but got pushed out of the top ten by others. You'll notice a lot of retools in there, but that's not a bad reflection on them, as we have parts reuse in the Top Ten too. Buckle up.

20: Titans Return Rewind
While definitely the most successful attempt to reinvent tapeformers, the legends class "tablets" of Titans Return have ended up as an also-ran. Good enough as a group, but one hopes for more interesting toys in later waves. Rising above, more for what he is than what he does, is Rewind. As a toy, he's a nice robot, with an IDW head, a serviceable tank mode, whom adds to Blaster as a chest minion. As one half of a married couple of two guys, yet in Toys R Us, he means a lot more.

19: Titans Return Brawn (Titanmaster)

While not the best solo titanmaster release, Brawn gets on this list due to his general competency and theme. Whereas a lot of the toys at this pricepoint seem a bit misplaced, having Brawn as a tiny dude riding in an ATV isn't a stretch, even if the hoverbike mode is. It helps that the titanmaster evokes his toy design in robot mode, whereas the head is pure cartoon. That aside, functionally its the most consistent toy so far of its kind, not having a weak mode, and probably having the best weapon form. Just a shame that so much detail goes unpainted.

18: Robots in Disguise Quillfire (Warrior)
The modern Robots In Disguise cartoon and its toys have largely failed to register with me. I don't think I was the only one put off by the thought of a series about Bumblebee, and its non-standard size classes reminiscent of Age Of Extinction. The quality did however improve as things went along, eventually giving us this guy. Quillfire is very close to being a proper deluxe, if only his doors folded up, while having loads of character, and two weapons both which stow internally. I'm also amazed they articulated the neck, it could have been so easily been fixed as a cost saving measure.

17: Titans Return Blurr (Deluxe)
Yo listen up here's a story

About a little guy that lives in a blue world
And all day and all night and everything he sees
Is just blue
Like him inside and outside
Blue his house with a blue little window
And a blue Corvette
And everything is blue for him
And himself and everybody around
Cause he ain't got nobody to listen

I'm Blurr da ba dee da ba daa

Etc. etc.

Anyway, Blurr is a nice mould, but the blue is overpowering. Gonna repaint mine, I think.

16: Combiner Wars Trailbreaker (Deluxe)
An unexpected pleasure from the final gasps of Combiner Wars, Trailbreaker is another benchmark transformer. Not because he's a brilliant toy, although he has little to apologise for, but more for being better a toy on the second pass. The original Offroad mould is an also-ran of Combiner Wars, suffering from some tabbing issues that affected the already unstable Menasor, and a lack of anything to make it stand out amongst its peers. Trailbreaker fixes both problems, being rock solid in all modes, and adding Rook's party trick. More like this please.

15: Combiner Wars Victorion (Boxset)
My last Combiner Wars purchase, I hope, the fan-built-female-combiner set was an impulse buy at a good price, but proved to be better in hand then I expected. Its that beautiful sword and all that subtle retooling to make them feminine without going the sexy robot route. Unified colour schemes, and the fact the Combiner Wars toys are rarely bad helps too. That said, quality control issues and simple mould fatigue seem to be at play here, taking the shine off.

14: Titans Return Powermaster Prime (Leader)
An extensive and perhaps obvious retool of Ultra Magnus, this adds new play features, a third mode, addresses the hand issue, and brimgs an industrial amount of nostalgia. Given that Magnus was already a pretty good toy, this basically adds up to great, but is likely to be overshadowed by later releases. In a repeat of Devastator, the Japanese equivalent has additional tooling, which looks to be an improvement in almost all ways except feet. Whichever version you go for though, this toy nails the robot/truck/base play pattern better than any Optimus we've had for a while, if a bit gappy.

13: Titans Return Fortress Maximus
Perhaps the most interesting retool in this modern age of retools, Fortmax is a remix of 2013's Metroplex, another modern classic. Is he as good? Well it depends. The robot mode certainly looks better, the proportions greatly improved, and the reuse of parts borders on the ingenious. Cerebros is also a high point, overcoming his status as soundbox on legs to the point where some want him separately. And while I want to slap the person whom included the sticker sheet, the metallic foil effect adds a lot to the finished product. On the flipside, the city form is necessarily different from the G1 toy, and there's an almost "Uncanny Valley" feel to things as now undocumented engineering is retained from Metroplex. Odds are, you've already made up your mind on this one, but its got an appeal.

12: Combiner Wars Sky Lynx (Voyager)
I was down on this toy at first, my opinions coloured by questionable quality control and overhype. On balance however, Commander Modesty ends up as the best overall CW torso bot, if lacking for appropriate limbbots. No single mode is a total success, but there is no weak third mode either. The torso mode is heroically proportioned, and makes better use of the jet moulds than Superion does. And let's be real here, Sky Lynx is so utterly bonkers, its impossible not to like him.

11: Titans Return Crashbash (Titanmaster)
An extremely charming little toy, this is a spare head that combines with a wyvern to make an adorable T-Rex. Or what can only be described as a triple barrelled butt cannon. He's a great pocket money toy, all these individual titanmasters are, but this is the one to beat in later waves. Of course, given the number of times this toy has been re-released.....it will probably be in those later waves too.

10: Combiner Wars Shockwave (Legends)
Another toy making this article because I didn't get it until April, Shockers is an ideal representation of the character, and the best thing about the CW Combaticons. Seriously, articulation, appearance, transformation, and play value all tend towards great. When the only change you'd make is the characteristic use of translucent plastic, you know you've got something good. I liked this toy so much, I brought it even after I'd got it 3 times as the Botcon Reflector set.

9: Titans Return Hardhead (Deluxe)
Hardhead is an entirely satisfactory toy, but it has a mouth-plate, unlike basically all fictional depictions of the character. Putting that aside, HH is possibly the best deluxe overall in Titans Return wave 1, and out-performs toys in other size classes too. If you've got an Autobot with two guns and effective articulation, you are half way there with me, but this guy looks great, and he really sells the play pattern.

8: Titans Return Mindwipe (Deluxe)
While all of the wave 2 Titans deluxes are worth a look, Mindwipe is the most interesting and arguably the most functional. This is mainly due to his unique transformation where the legs unfold into bat wings, and the number of daft fan modes that result. He's also well-made in robot form, and I find his accessories to be a surprisingly attractive. A solid performer.

6/7: Titans Return Blaster/Soundwave (Leader)
Ever since Jetfire came along in 2014, the modern leader class has felt a bit of a compromise. Be it gappy plastic, sub-par engineering or a questionable design choice, a good all-rounder had yet to appear. With Blaster, it arrived. While not exceptional in any mode, this toy is consistent and hides its hollowness. Big. Simple. Fun. And Soundwave adds an accessory. Both represent the best versions of their characters outside of Masterpiece, if slightly let down so far by the quality of the chest minions so far.

5: Sins of the Wreckers (Comic series)
I feel really sorry for Nick Roche, because not only was Last Stand of the Wreckers a tough act to follow, not only was MTMTE was reaching a fever pitch at about the same time, the guy suffered a family tragedy while he was working on it, delaying the series. This has unduly marked the reception of Sins, trapping it a cycle of hype, anti-hype, and uncertainty. Its fortunate then that its a honestly excellent work. Personal where Last Stand was bombastic, but no less shocking or political, the plot Sins is something I dare not spoil by explaining it. I will however say that certain characters and scenes you will never forget. However much you may want too......

4: Titans Return Chromedome (Deluxe)
Chromedome was one of those toys that was gonna be a lot of peoples favourite, but also where some collectors were not immediately on board. Along with Rewind he forms the premier MTMTE couple, beloved by Tumblr and almost anyone whom actually reads the comic. But if you hadn't, all Chromedome just looks like is a retool of the excellent if over-used Combiner Wars Dead End. He's not, he's just copying engineering, although he share parts with #17 on this list. All that said, Chromedome ended up a very high quality toy, and was only pushed our of the top 3 by a late addition. This guy is basically Dead End plus Blurr, with an IDW face. He's the Marvel superhero film. He's very familiar, but he's so well put together, the end result is awesome. Chromedome is the new standard for car transformers, having all you could want at the price and no meaningful flaws.

3: Titans Return Triggerhappy (Deluxe)

The first last minute addition to this list, Triggerhappy came out of nowhere to be everyone's darling. While he personally ties into some happy childhood memories, this toy is notable for its very novel transformation, a distinctive jet mode, and satisfying robot mode. Its extremely well-presented too, with numerous effective paint applications, minimal gaps, landing gear, and a dedicated figure stand port for each mode. This all rests atop the Titans Return play pattern, which makes Triggerhappy extremely compelling as a toy. He's the best jetformer we've had in a while, and like Chromedome represents the new standard for such things, whom he ranks above for seemingly being completely new.

2: The Dying of the Light (More Than Meets The Eye Volume 10)
"Season 2" of MTMTE has been subject of a lot of controversy, but this five issue story proved to bean undeniable high note More Than Meets The Eye has always been willing to take risks amongst the character comedy, and its biggest was to make Megatron a regular character, on probation for his innumerable war crimes, and seeking to change his legacy. Against all odds, they pulled it off. Megatron's character gained nuance and complexity that just wasn't there before, and we slowly realised he was sincere. In this story arc, it all came crashing down, as his past caught up with him and people started to die. But it wasn't just about him, as plot threads bubbling away since 2012 came to the fore, and the core cast found itself re-enacting Rorke's Drift. As if we needed reminding, this story proved James Roberts and Alex Milne are names you want on a Transformers comic.

1: Titans Return Six Shot (Leader)

By far the most ambitious toy on this list, Six Shot had a lot riding on him. Transformers with more than 2 distinctive/convincing modes are rare enough on their own, but 6? We hadn't had that since the 2000 Robots in Disguise series with Megatron/Gigatron, the closest thing since being the 4 mode Animated Shockwave. When I saw the pictures, I knew that as long as it didn't break on day one we were looking at a modern classic. Getting it in person revealed some imperfections that confirmed it was made by mortal hands for the mass market, but yes.

Six Shot is possibly the biggest crowd pleaser we've had since Generations Springer.

Perfect? No. He's basically made of friction joints, and I took steps to tighten things immediately. He's entirely in the G1 aesthetic, so his altmodes require “imagination”. There's the whole submarine silliness too, and the guns look a bit weedy. These things do not matter. He does all the original did, modernised with articulation, tabs to interact with base modes, AND a titanmaster whose design is a spectacularly dark in-joke. Play value is off the charts, as is style, and this makes him my #1.

A Concise Review of Combiner Wars Trailbreaker In 500 Words Or Less

Pricepoint/Vintage: Deluxe, 2016.

Modes: Robot, Truck, Arm, and Leg.

Transformation Style: CW deluxe limb, Off Road style.

Play Patterns: Robot and vehicle, combiner, 5mm weaponry, HULK HAND, a pack-in comic in the USA.

Points of Interest: Retool of wave 2's Offroad, with a new head, forearms, and modified accessory.

The Good
Trailbreaker's 5mm gun arm allows him to mimic Rook's play pattern' giving him a single hulk hand via his combiner piece. Said accessory is also quite distinctive, functioning as a claw, and a believable shield. The new head is nice too, and the hubcaps painted. Articulation is solid at 14 joints, the truck mode attractive, and the limb modes having just the right amount of bulk. Most importantly, this iteration of the mould has all but eliminated the tabbing issues of Offroad, making the arm mode practical. Offroad was basically fine, but new play features and refinement make Trailbreaker better.

 

The Bad
While one big problem was fixed, issues with proportions and exposed robot bits due to engineering are still inherited from Offroad. He's a touch skinny in the arms, and the vehicle mode isn't that different from earlier versions. The loss of a regular right hand obviously means some loss in function, and reduces the number of 5mm ports to 3 in truck and limb modes. The pack-in comic has an infamous art error. My example suffers from misapplied door tampographs.

The Mediocre
Trailbreaker comes with that axe that I don't think has suited anybody, including him. They also missed a trick in that it can't plug into the gun arm due to its shape, a crying shame that could have helped with future reuses, as well as add play value. He's also a bit monochrome.

The Alternatives
Its a bit surprising this toy exists, as Trailbreaker got a new unique mould only in 2014. That does not combine, and incorporates a number of design elements this toy can't, although arguably neither is definitive. The other, increasingly numerous, iterations of this toy also come to mind. That said, if you want a combining Autobot with Hulk Hands, why not Rook?


 

The Verdict
I don't think anyone really wanted to see this mould again, especially as wave 6 was a repeat of wave 4, but Trailbreaker really is something special. The new parts increase the play value, while solving a tabbing issue, and is easy on the eyes. If Hasbro MUST reuse moulds, this really is a good justification, and perhaps the most desirable deluxe since the Protectobots. While not without weaknesses, Trailbreaker is like taking yesterday's cheesecake, and adding toffee sauce. Go get him.

Botcon 2016 Coverage: A Funny Thing Happened On Social Media

Greetings, dear reader. Here begins a series of articles on Botcon 2016, the last convention to bear the name. I personally had a time about as good as my jet lag on return has been terrible. Louisville is a nice place, the atmosphere in the convention was good, and I spent an embarrassing pile of money on plastic. What's to come? Well, there's going to be a photodump, youtube video, commentary on the exclusives, and probably several months of reviews. But probably what was the best moment when I went mildly viral. As regular readers may recall, I'd decided to live tweet from the event. I proceeding to share this image.

Then this happened.

And then my phone was buzzing with notifications for hours.

So, some context. The two characters pictured are Chromedome (center) and Rewind (on shoulder). While having origins in the 80's, they weren't really fan favourites until very recently. Appearing in the comic More Than Meet The Eye, this pair are best known for being happily married. Yes, two characters coded as male, in a brand that allows Michael Bay repeat work, are in stable relationship. And this is not considered noteworthy in fiction. Hasbro has reportedly been cool with this, as evidenced by the fact these toys exist. Gender and sexuality in a brand aimed at children is a potentially touchy subject for some, but this counts as a progressive form of Fandom Nod. And there was James Roberts, the writer responsible for the comic, sharing the image.

It made my day.


EDIT: I have since been made aware of the following tweet.

Its got to be a huge validation and source of pride for the man. Seems my photo was the first he shared too :)

 

The Clickbait Top Ten: The Best Transformers Things of 2015

Well, its that time of year again. Or it would be, if I ever bothered with awards type things before. But you know, I never brought enough Transformers in a single year to justify one before. Bloody Combiner Wars, making me spend money. A few ground rules. This list largely derives from things I've brought this year. Combiners are treated as a single release, but their individual parts can be recognised too. Here we go, but first, the honourable mentions.

Honourable Mention: Ultra Magnus And Minimus Ambus

One of the few collector slanted releases without a combination focus, this represents the first truly good toy in the modern leader class. A great rendering of the character with lots of play value, whom is suitably big, and has an Animated inspired hammer gimmick. This writer is particularly pleased that Hasbro bit the bullet, and created a Minimus Ambus toy, despite the predictable and extensive complaints from G1 purists, and disappointed that Takara chickened out and made it Alpha Trion. The pair don't make the top ten proper due to the hollow construction, and the well-intentioned, but regrettably loose, opening hands. 

Honourable Mention: Devastator

When it comes to being a colossal big green and purple robot, Devastator was no equal. Seriously, if you want a big bloody thing to step on people, he's your guy. His presence is commanding, and there's a strong 80's feel to events. Unfortunately, that 80's feel is also a weakness, individual Constructicons having patchy articulation and proportions, which means they don't make it into the top ten, fun as the set undeniably is. Takara's version may made have the cut though, with its improvements.

Number Ten: Silverbolt

Combiner Wars toys have often have simple yet elegant engineering, doing exactly what they must do in each form, but Silverbolt demands recognition. While having a solid robot form, and a characteristically flawed Concorde mode, his transformation into Superion's torso via a handstand was pure genius. This is easily the most innovative engineering this year, and possibly for the last three. That's not his only strength though, as the robot form nails the character, looking nicely heroic. This is definitely one of those toys you don't mind seeing remoulded, although maybe Scattorshot was a step too far.

Number Nine: Air Raid

The Aerialbots are the archetypal Wave 1 releases, big names highlighting what the toy line is about, but not the best of that line overall, as the bugs are being worked out. While still the best toys these characters have ever got, the Aerialbots are associated with unconvincing altmodes, articulation weaknesses, and Powerglide being a nuisance in gun mode. Coming out in Wave 2 however, Air Raid shows a sudden up-tick in refinement, so much so that had the rest of the team been of a similar standard, they'd be making a bigger showing today. His joints are tighter, 5mm ports are plentiful, and the overall appearance is great. The jet is about as convincing as it can be given the largely white robot mode, and you can have five different guns on it at once. Its a crying shame, given the rampant recycling that characterises Combiner Wars, we are only seeing this mould again in exclusive boxsets. And its an even bigger shame that UK fans had to import this guy to complete Superion.

Number Eight: Blackjack

While both literally and figuratively overshadowed by other toys on this list, Blackjack makes the cut for being exactly what he needs to be for his price point. He's a nice little car. His transformation is new and interesting, but familiar. His robot mode is effectively articulated, and he has a hand weapon, unlike so many of his kin. With so many of the Legend pricepoint being inferior remoulds from 2013/14, or of questionable use in the combination thing, Blackjack's only real competition is the juuuuusssssst-released Shockwave, which I don't have. Blackjack only fails due to a fault in Motormaster's design, preventing a secure connection in chestplate form, but let's not hold this against him. They took a single piece plastic accessory, and made it into a showstopper.

Number Seven: Transformers: Devastation

As an 80's original fan whom actually likes new things, I often feel that G1 fans get pandered to far too much. Rose tinted glasses aside, the 80's cartoon was a poorly made toy advert, and we've had much better fiction since. But, applying that style to a video game? One made by Platinum Games, masters of the spectacle fighter? Even I was interested. Overcoming obvious time and money restrictions, captures all that was great about the cartoon, and applies to a frenetic combat system with loads of 80's hair metal. A heady cocktail of nostalgia and bone-crunching gameplay, TF: D's only sin is that there is not more. Sequel please. DLC please. Game inspired redecos please.

Number Six: More Than Meets The Eye #47

Now for some Mood Whiplash. Some things aren't worthwhile because they are fun. Some things aren't nice. Some things are worthwhile because they are are challenging reads that go to dark places. Some things....some things, make you cry. This is one of those things. As compelling as it is tragic, this issue breaks new ground for transformers media.

Joint Number Five: Dead End And Protectobot Streetwise

I knew both of these toys would have to appear in this list somewhere, but separating them proved impossible. On the one hand, wehave the best deluxe of wave two, with possibly the most gorgeous car mode this year, and works well in all four modes. On the other, Streetwise completely changes the toy visually, and address the two common complaints of Dead End, by avoiding the “grey biceps” flaw and replacing the club with a triple barrelled shotgun. He's not as nice to look at Dead End, but he's not ugly at all. The aggressive recycling of moulds mean its probably you'll have either version or both in some form, and while familiarity breeds contempt, these are still great toys.

Number Three: Protectobot Rook

The best deluxe toy in all of Combiner Wars, bar none, and probably its singular break-out character. Strong enough to be a worthwhile purchase even if you never touch the rest of the line, Rook's main selling point is play value, backed by competence in all other things. He's big, he's visually interesting, and very functional in all four modes. But that all pales in comparison to his party piece, the ability to use combiner accessories as hulk hands. If you like your toys to be fun, Rook is your man. G1 purists? Come on. Get over it.

Number Two: More Than Meets The Eye Omnibus Volume 7 “Elegant Chaos”

I could fill this list with individual issues of MTMTE, and I'd have no trouble defending it. Its just that consistently good a series. Comics Alliance just gave it two awards, for flip's sake. This omnibus however is notably highpoint for the invested fan. The conclusion to plot threads that James Roberts started as far back as 2011, this sees an epic time travel plot that goes back to pre-war Cybertron, and the very conception of the Decepticon cause. With horrific parallel universes, betrayals, political commentary, temporal paradoxes, intense character scenes, and sheer WTFery like Megatron's fear of needles, this volume is an exercise in excellence. If you are new to the series, maybe pick an earlier volume, but if you like what you see here, you won't regret working through the back catalogue.

Number One: Defensor And The Protectobots

I had almost no interest in the Protectobots prior to Combiner Wars, excluding First Aid's place in the MTMTE cast, but this team have found a place in my heart on merit. Simply put, wave 3 and the Protectobots was the best bit of Combiner Wars, and its looking doubtful that its last few releases are going to change that. While heavily based on retools, like much of the line, the retools were great, and the new moulds were real nice too. You just read why two of them were good, as for the rest? Well, Hot Spot arguably has the best individual robot mode of the line, and a classy torso mode, only just missing out from a Honourable Mention today. Blades is a nice variation on Wave 1's best Autobot. First Aid, despite my initial impressions, is a solid reworking of Wave 2's Off Road, and is holding together a fair bit better than that toy. Groove meanwhile attempts to bring some scale sanity to the team, works well enough by himself, and pulls off a chestplate mode. And most importantly for us Brits, this got a UK release, with all six members found in shops. Go get them.

Bad photography by me, other images Copyright Hasbro, and variously IDW, Activision, and Platinum Games.