Transformers: Legacy Robots in Disguise 2000 Universe Scourge is Something That Exists

 That's a bloody long title. Moving on...

 

 The 2002 Robots in Disguise Scourge toy

Exactly how uneven can a Transformers toyline be, and yet still be an all-round success? The answer is "Exactly as uneven as the circa 2001 Robots in Disguise line.". This started out as a purely Japanese endeavour, with a similar modus operandi to their Beast Wars spin-offs Neo and Second. As such, Car Robots, it wasn’t Robots in Disguise yet, featured a very small number of newly designed toys versus a huge number of repaints, plus a few previously unreleased toys from Generation 2. However two things ran in its favour. The first was it doing realistic vehicle modes with benefit of Beast Wars engineering, after a prolonged absence of such things. This, combined with the mystique attached to Japanese exclusives, was like chocolate covered crack cocaine to collectors. The second thing was that Beast Machines had failed, so Hasbro imported the line as a stop-gap, adding a few more recycled moulds to the ranks. It was a big success, but parents complained that those new moulds that were so prized by collectors were too hard to transform by actual children, and that's how Armada happened. What does this mean for Scourge? Well, Scourge is emblematic of RIDs repaint habit, also the Nemesis Prime concept, although he's technically a separate thing, and indeed black repaints in general. He started out as a repaint of the G2 era Laser Rod Optimus Prime. It was very much in that G2 sweet-spot where things had meaningful articulation and light-piping, and is still highly regarded today. Scourge, or Black Convoy as he was originally called in Japan, was for most intents and purposes an evil counterpart for that show’s Optimus with no ties to Unicron, and the obvious inspiration for that new chap in the new movie whom does. Unlike many such characters though, his creation was more accidental than anything else. Sure, Megatron was trying to reprogram an Autobot Protoform into a useful slave through use of his own spark energy, but Optimus Prime and a certain recurring comedic character were scanned accidentally too when seeking an altmode. Which I suppose means that Scourge has a mummy and two daddies, whatever you’d count the truck as, plus any parentage he had before. It takes a village to raise a child? Anyways, the concept of an evil Optimus Prime whom was a legitimate threat with a good toy got a lot of traction, prompting Hasbro to make a totally new Spychanger mould of him. I’ve put it in one of the pictures. Its adorable. Can I tell you what's so hysterical about that toy though? It was is only the second unique and purpose-made baddy mould in the entirety of the RID line. The line was that uneven.

Jump forward, what? 20 odd years? Fuck me, and we have today's toy. While there’s been several other toys in the interim, this is the first the really make to the mass market, if as part of the Velocitron Speedia 500 Collection. The base mould is, of course, the Legacy leader class Laser Optimus Prime, which prompted me to chant the words “paint it black” from the first moment I saw it. I never bothered with the original version because A) its not hard to get an Optimus toy, and B) that mould shares more than a few parts with the Earthrise and Siege versions. An expensive toy that recycles bits and is an obvious forerunner to a much more compelling release? Hard Pass. So I waited until Scourge was announced. And then waited for the price to be right. Eventually, I got this for 25 quid on sale, which may be affecting my response to it.

The truck mode is rather self-explanatory. Honestly, I can struggle a bit when it comes to talking about mundane vehicle modes. As long as it rolls and has no obnoxious bleed through from the other modes I'm happy. This toy pulls that off pretty well, and I'd be lying if I said the colours weren't making the best of it. Black tends to conceal many a sin, and there aren't that many here. The back-end and hitch area is where things go a little bit off the boil, but accessories tend to hide the gaps. What's possibly most interesting is that is that you've got storage for the melee weapons on both the cab and in the trailer, a welcome bit of flexibility. Speaking of the trailer, it and it's resulting base mode are perhaps a touch more engaging on their own merits, at least in comparison to the Earthrise version. It's also less involved than the toy that inspired it, which puts it in an awkward kinda place where you can see that they tried but didn't quite nail it. Visually there's no shortage of detail, a fair few ports, and it's hitch becomes a stand for the thing. Weapon integration is pretty good, with a double-barrelled gun worked in as a top hatch, and you can stick both of the melee weapons in there via dedicated slots. The base mode is OK, more adequate than anything else. It folds open with more complexity than the Earthrise version, and more visual interest. It is however mainly unpainted plastic, and is screaming out for an additional play feature. This either needs more guns, or some little chaps to stand there. It's not bad by the standards of modern leaders, and certainly not unwelcome here, but one does wonder if the budget was allocated to the wrong things.

On that subject: engineering. Transformation of the cab to robot mode and back is an oddly complex business, and the reason why it's dishonest to call this simply a retool. The legs are definitely familiar, and don't do that much in the process, but the torso turns itself inside out. It's mad. They clearly weren't trying to modernise the original here, not that there's anything wrong that. It's why both the truck and robot modes turned out so well, but it is noteworthy. At some point, you have to wonder if the presumable savings from doing this are being cancelled out by the changes you end up making to make it all work. Either that, or somebody designed the legs last, and ended up kitbashing an Earthrise Prime.

 

 

Now, let's be honest here, this robot is style personified. It's the contrast of black and magenta, with touches of teal and grey. The presence is immense, with the head sculpt and shoulder pylons being highlights. This is a guy whom could go straight from a night club to a funeral then a society wedding without changing clothes. Admittedly, perhaps to burn down that night club, while the funeral was something he had a hand in, and the wedding had Rupert Murdock on the guest list, but yes. Stylish evil is the order of the day, and just a quick car wash is all he needs, just to remove the blood stains. It's something of a prestige piece, as befits an exclusive repaint, with a lot of the basics done right, with a few nice touches. The thing is, depending on how ya count, there's 17(!) other toys sharing parts with this, before we get into different pricepoints and the movie lines, so a certain degree of nitpicking becomes unavoidable. Colour choices are a little off; Scourge traditionally has more grey in the mix and chest details that suggest windows. This new mould takes it a step further with faux kibble windows which store a removable matrix, so he's closer to the Nemesis Prime concept here. Proportionally, he's a touch long in the leg, something inherent to the mould, but as the thighs are entirely grey it's more noticeable. Posability is Legacy standard, so better than the G2 toy, although the upper arms end up a touch limited due the transformation and pylons, looking skinny with an offset swivel. The accessories have that same "OK, they tried" feel as the trailer meanwhile. The sword and decorative missile silos are fine, possibly in need of paint, but entirely within the Legacy vibe, and if you're basing a toy off Laser Prime, the usage of translucent plastic makes sense in the absence of electronics. The axe however is just unfortunate. I know what they were aiming for, and the combination with the sword is inoffensive, but the colour choices make it look like a lollipop. He probably needed a better firearm too. These are all nitpicks, mind you. It is a good robot mode.

 

My point? Only that Legacy Scourge is something that exists. And that choosing between optimus toys can get a bit like choosing between flavours of potato crisps. There are simply too many made too often. Scourge definitely has his own flavour though, and is based on a pretty good mould. Not an excellent mould, and an occasionally an odd one, but definitely one I don't regret buying.

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.

Botcon 2016 Coverage: Hasbro Panel Video

Well, I took a video camera with me, and I decided to record the Hasbro display. So, please enjoy this shaky, noisy, and unedited footage from the event.

Botcon 2016 Coverage: Hasbro Display Images

As a Brit, its not often I get to see the new Hasbro product in person until after its been all over the internet. The UK is frequently two waves behind the USA, assuming waves don't get skipped, and I don't travel to big conventions like SDCC. So, the Hasbro display at Botcon has intensely interesting to me. Here's a photodump from the event.