The G1 figure review thread

The originals... ok, not exactly, but the original named "The TransFormers" anyway. Take THAT, Diaclone!
Generation 1, Generation 2 - Removable fists? Check. Unlicensed vehicle modes? Check. Kickass tape deck robot with transforming cassette minions? DOUBLE CHECK!!!
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andersonh1
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Re: The G1 figure review thread

Post by andersonh1 »

Onslaught Six wrote:You can fix Prime's shoulders. Unscrew them and bend the metal pins back, that'll help. I forget what else I did to mine, but when I bought him, the arms were floppy as hell, but now they're at least stable.
Thanks for the tip. I'll take a look.
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Re: The G1 figure review thread

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There is that, or once you disassemble the arm, a thin layer of superglue over the "gears" should do the trick, thus restoring the worn off plastic. The trick is to apply the superglue, rub the part against anything it's going to come into contact with in normal operation and then let it dry by itself. Then when you go to reassemble it, everything fits the way it's supposed to.
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Re: The G1 figure review thread

Post by andersonh1 »

A review of Mirage that I wrote back in 2002.

Mirage - Transformers G1 - Figure

Have you ever noticed that almost every time a new Indy Car Transformer comes out, it's named Mirage? RID had one, Beast Machines did, so did Generation 2... I wonder how Skid-z escaped?

Well, I recently bought the original on Ebay, and like all the first year Autobots, this guy is a nice find.

Judging by the date from which the original toy Mirage is based on originated, this is probably some 70s/early 80s Indy car. The color is primarily a dark blue, with white to offset it. It's a bit boxy, which surprised me. The tires have no tread, which is a nice bit of realistic detailing, as is the Goodyear logo on the tires. The rear of the car is a dark grey metal, which gives the car a bit more weight than it would otherwise possess.

Transformation is simple. Pull the rear back, separate the legs, pull out the arms, rotate the waist and fold the hood down to form the chest. A lot of stickers are more visible in this mode, as is some more chrome around the shoulder areas.

Mirage doesn't have a lot of articulation. The wrists turn, elbows bend and the shoulders rotate up and down. Mirage has some big feet due to the size of the spoiler. He's a nicely detailed figure. If you're an old school TF fan, as I am, the lack of articulation didn't mean a lot then, and it doesn't stop my appreciation for the figure now.

Mirage comes with a rifle, missile launcher (which clips on the axle of either of his front tires) and three missiles. No spring in the launcher evidently, as the missile just sits there.

I have yet to obtain his box, but I intend to. I love that old packaging!

In short, if you have the opportunity to pick this guy up at a decent price, do it. He's a nice addition to any TF collection.
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Re: The G1 figure review thread

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G1 Pretender Waverider

Just got this guy the other day. He's an interesting figure, and part of a rather unique Transformers concept. I've often wondered if Pretenders were meant to be human-sized, as a thirty foot tall human wandering around wouldn't fool much anyone!

I'll start with the packaging. It's pretty standard G1 for the fourth year. It continues the Autobot style red boxes that fade into black near the top with a background grid and a box flap with the transformers logo. This logo is a bit different however. It has Transformers all on one line, and 'Pretenders' below it, with no faction symbol in the logo. Makes me wonder if this was intended as a genuine sub line, much like the Dinobots in Beast Machines. The rear of the box has tech specs of course, and a nice piece of art showing pretenders and powermasters fighting, along with Powermaster Optimus Prime. It's a fun action scene.

The pretender shell is a blonde human wearing some kind of space suit/armor. The suit is mostly dark grey, with bright red and gold highlights. Part of the arms and gloves are a lighter grey, which makes for a nice contrast. The arms are a soft rubber rather than hard plastic, and also have the only articulation available on the shell. One notable point of interest in this pretender shell is that only the top half on the head is visible. There is a very high collar that covers the ears, mouth and bottom half of the nose. The shell comes with a helmet and belt that help hold it closed, though it snaps together quite well.

Waverider himself is quite slim and trim compared to his Pretender shell. Mostly black with grey thighs and feet, and a gold visor, he's a bit plain. His face and torso bear a passing resemblance to Jazz, though the shape of the head is quite different. The skimmer cockpit is also gold, and sits where Waverider's butt is.

Articulation is limited. The head can look down due to the transformation scheme, the arms rotate at the shoulder and fold onto Waverider's back, and the hips and knees bend to the sides.

Waverider's vehicle mode is passable. It's an 'aquatic sea-skimmer' , which barely manages to not look like a robot with hands going backward and legs folded to the side. The simplistic transformation scheme isn't as advanced as some mini-cons, but considering the design restraints of having the figure fit inside the shell, that's understandable.

Overall, this is a fun figure. Not great with transforming, but as a curiousity and considering that I mangaged to get it almost complete, I have a bit of fondness for it. As far as pretenders go, I'd prefer Bludgeon or Thunderwing, but Waverider's not bad.
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Re: The G1 figure review thread

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Another old review. Yeah, it's G2 Grimlock, but it's no different than the G1 version.

Grimlock - G2 - Figure

I found this guy in my local comic shop today. I thought he was the original, because he has the original color scheme: grey/silver with gold and silver chrome. But it was one of several Generation 2 color variants.

Grimlock is a prominent character in Transformers, so I've wanted the figure for awhile. Very pleased to find him so affordably.

As everyone knows, Grimlock is a Tyrannosaurus Rex. Silver with red eyes. There's a cockpit in his back that opens and closes, a remnant of Diaclone no doubt, or whatever pre-TF line he was a part of. He has some articulation in this mode. The legs move, the knees bend, the claws can move and the jaw opens. The head also looks up and down. Not bad.

I also like the fact that he's clearly meant to be a mechanical dinosaur. No early Beast-War organics here!

As far as size goes, I decided to compare him with Transmetal Megatron. He's a bit smaller, and about an inch shorter from snout to tail.

Transformation is simple. Flip the head back and seperate the dino neck so it forms 'wings' on either side. The legs and pelvis swing up to become the chest area. The forearms slide back to reveal hands. The tail splits in two, and then flips over to form the legs. Split the legs at the waist and then rotate them down again.

An additional bright red is added to the color mix here, along with the black hands, upper legs and head, which has a red visor. There's much less articulation in this mode, and the head sits way too far back behind the shoulders. Grimlock looks fine from head on, but from the side is quite strange.

The colors are a very nice mix of gold chrome, red, black and grey. Grimlock looks big and tough, like he's sticking his chest out and saying 'come on punk!'

I'd recommend Grimlock. Especially for $10, which is what I paid for him. He looks good in both modes and is one of the big characters. Well worth having.
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Re: The G1 figure review thread

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Gusher Micromasters - G1 - Figures

Here's an obscure character review!

I found Gusher among the used Transformers at my local comic shop. He comes from a micromaster line I knew nothing about until the MTMTE series from Dreamwave came out. I bought him very cheaply and think he's a neat little figure.

Being a Micromaster Combiner, Gusher is actually the back half of a vehicle, as you can see from the link below. By himself, he appears to be a predominantly orange construction digger type vehicle. The fenders are partially black and the the digger arm is teal. Maybe he's a Miami Dolphins fan, given his color scheme!

Transformation is very simple, like most Micromasters. The cab rotates down halfway to form the lower legs and feet, and the arms rotate up at the side. Stand him up and he's done. Nothing to it.

He's not much more than an inch and a half tall. More teal is added in the torso and head, and the face is gold. It's a nice little robot mode, though with only two points of articulation at the shoulders, and the knees, which are one solid piece. You won't get much in the way of dynamic posing here!

Gusher is a neat little Micromaster, who thanks to MTMTE has a personality at last! His robot mode has some nice colors, and despite being the back half of a vehicle, he looks fine on his own.
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Re: The G1 figure review thread

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Huffer - Generation 1- Figure

For years, I've had five of the six first year mini Autobots. Now, thanks to Ebay, I have all six. Huffer has completed my set.

Vehicle: Huffer is a tiny, bright orange tractor trailer truck. He has big black tires and windows, and oversized chrome smokestacks. The truck grille is silver, and a tiny Autobot sticker sits right in the middle of two black lights on the roof of the cab. There is a stylized M on both doors, as well as a tiny ladder behind the doors. A neat, compact little auto mode.

Transformation: nice and simple. Bring the cab forward, pull the rear of the truck back to for the legs, pull the smokestacks out to the side and rotate them around to form the arms. All done.

Huffer has a lot of dark blue showing now. His face consists of a dark blue mouthplate and silver visor. He has an Autobot sticker dead center on his chest, and another sticker lower down for detail. Articulation is limited to the arms which rotate 360 degrees. I've always thought they looked a bit like he had elbows that bent backwards.

Bottom line: he's small, cute and simple. He's also great fun, and it's nice to finally have him in my collection.
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Re: The G1 figure review thread

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Shockwave - Generation 1 - Figure

I have wanted this guy for a long time! Finally got him, with working electronics and spiffy, shiny finish.

Shockwave is a gun. A big dark purple gun with silver highlights on the gun handle, trigger and gun barrel. He's almost a foot long. There is a translucent purple sight on the rear of the gun that raises and lowers, and a black plastic cable that connects the left side of the gun to the left side of the barrel. There's metal in the handle which becomes the legs and feet later, and it gives the handle a nice, solid feel.

Shockwave has two sounds, both of which work in robot mode as well. One is a rather high pitched, rapid fire type sound. The other is just as high pitched, but slower. The gun barrel lights up from the light bulb in Shockwave's gun hand.

Transformation is fairly simple. Remove the gun barrel and set it aside. The remainder of the barrel splits in two to form the arms, and the head pops up. Flip up Shockwave's 'ears', or whatever you want to call the handles on the side of his head. Flip up the rear of the gun to Shockwave's back. Pull down the handle and seperate it to form the legs. Flip out the feet, and he'd done.

Shockwave is a pretty large, bulky fellow, with a big Decepticon insignia on his chest. He's a very distinctive Transformer visually. Dark purple still dominates the figure, with silver metal feet and upper legs, and silver shoulders. His chest is translucent purple with electronic components visible through it. Shockwave is one handed, with a gun for the left hand. Both of these are translucent purple as well.

About the only thing he lacks is great articulation. He's not bad for his time though. His head turns, his arms bend at the elbows and rotate 180 degrees out at the shoulder (due to the transformation scheme), his legs bend at the knees and the thighs, though without a great range of movement.

This guy is big, and bad, and with his rather famous non-humanoid face, coupled with his dark colors, he looks like a cold, calculating machine, much as his tech specs indicate. At the time he came out, he towered over most of the other Transformers, apart from Jetfire.

Shockwave is great. If you can find him for a decent price, he's a great addition to any Decepticon ranks. It's a pity Takara doesn't own this mold, as this guy would be a great reissue, hopefully avoiding the 'too realistic gun' that keeps the original Megatron from being reissued in the US.
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Re: The G1 figure review thread

Post by 138 Scourge »

Friggin' grey/silver...or any Grimlock, for ten bucks? You lucky sonofagun. Very nice find.

I'm gonna go ahead and pick up a G1 Grimlock one of these days just for the wall o' Grimlock I've got going. Would not mind one in the G2 blue, though, either.

I had Huffer in my younger days, and clearly recall looking at his vehicle mode and Prime's cab vehicle and just calling BS on the scale.
Dominic wrote: too many people likely would have enjoyed it as....well a house-elf gang-bang.
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Re: The G1 figure review thread

Post by Onslaught Six »

andersonh1 wrote:Have you ever noticed that almost every time a new Indy Car Transformer comes out, it's named Mirage? RID had one, Beast Machines did, so did Generation 2... I wonder how Skid-z escaped?
Obviously, because there was already a Mirage in the line...and that didn't stop them later when they repainted BM MIrage.
Judging by the date from which the original toy Mirage is based on originated, this is probably some 70s/early 80s Indy car.
Not just any. Mirage, like a lot of the sportscar Diaclones, is based off a real car deco, the Ligier JS11. Wikipedia even has an entire article on this specific car, which mentions Mirage: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ligier_JS11/15
andersonh1 wrote:As everyone knows, Grimlock is a Tyrannosaurus Rex. Silver with red eyes. There's a cockpit in his back that opens and closes, a remnant of Diaclone no doubt, or whatever pre-TF line he was a part of.
Yup, Diaclone. Funfact: The toys who became the DInobots fought against this bigass mecha Waruder dragon thing with webbed feet.

Couldn't find a quote to go with it, but Shockwave is also one of the most show-accurate G1 toys you can get. Even in the comics!
BWprowl wrote:The internet having this many different words to describe nerdy folks is akin to the whole eskimos/ice situation, I would presume.
People spend so much time worrying about whether a figure is "mint" or not that they never stop to consider other flavours.
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