Transformers: Legacy

The modern comics universe has had such a different take on G1, one that's significantly represented by the Generations toys, so they share a forum. A modern take on a Real Cybertronian Hero. Currently starring Generations toys, IDW "The Transformers" comics, MTMTE, TF vs GI Joe, and Windblade. Oh wait, and now Skybound, wheee!
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Shockwave
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Re: Transformers: Legacy

Post by Shockwave »

Picked up Terrorsaur, Scorponok, and GS Selects Galvatron. I never saw Scorponok at retail (until yesterday in the 4 pack, which I did not get). I was ordering some other things on Amazon and decided to nab Scorponok and Galvatron. Gavlatron is actually on sale, so even better. Scorponok is... ok. He looks decent enough in both modes, if you don't turn him around or view him from any other angle. Otherwise, it's revealed just how much of a mess he is. Still, I don't hate it and I don't regret getting him. But overall, I'd give him a C.

Gavlatron is... AWESOME!! I think this is my favorite Galvatron So far. I only really have two complaints with this figure, and they're very minor: The shoulder treads could have been engineered better. They tab to the upper arms, but are attached to the lower arms. Which means you lose bicep rotation if you have them tabbed in. You can leave them untabbed, but then it kinda just goes where it wants to. It never looks bad, necessarily, but it just could have been better. The second is with stickers instead of having painted detail. And in true hasbro fashion, the stickers are poor quality. Also, they have chrome stickers for the crest on the helmet which should have just been painted/molded to match. Other than that, this is an awesome figure and pairs nicely with my Henkei/Fansproject Protector Rodimus.
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Shockwave
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Re: Transformers: Legacy

Post by Shockwave »

And... Terrorsaur. I've wanted this since it was announced, but missed out on the Amazon exclusive. There are still some available, but I'm done paying more than retail for figures and I sure as hell wasn't paying the $90.00 that's currently being asked for it (by Amazon Prime itself no less, meaning that Bezos is getting in on the scalping game). I don't know what the differences are between the two and I don't really care. I just wanted a Terrorsaur for my Predacon shelf and now I have one. As a figure, it's pretty good. It's a heavy retool of Air Razor, so if you like her, you'll probably like this and it would be worth picking up. Thanks to Sparky for letting me know to keep an eye out.
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Sparky Prime
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Re: Transformers: Legacy

Post by Sparky Prime »

Shockwave wrote: Sat Aug 06, 2022 1:51 pmI don't know what the differences are between the two and I don't really care.
Just for reference, the Amazon version's paint scheme is based on the cartoon and comes with a Golden Disk (which has Vok symbols on one side and the Sounds of Earth Voyager Probe record on the other). The Target version paint scheme is based on the original toy.

Personally, I felt the Amazon version was a little lacking, so I added some paint to mine. The Target version I think looks good as it is.
Thanks to Sparky for letting me know to keep an eye out.
No problem. :D
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Dominic
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Re: Transformers: Legacy

Post by Dominic »

Neither Terrorsaur manages to recreate either variation of the character. The Target exclusive is good if you just want "a Terrorsaur". (I happen to have a soft spot for the original file card, so I am probably happier with the Target release.)


By the way, has anyone else been finding Deluxes for $30+? Is this really going to be a thing?


And, I managed to open the 4 pack.....

This year's multi-pack is "Creatures Coillide". I have no idea if this is supposed to directly follow "World's Collide" from 2 years ago. But, the basic theme is the same. Bumblebee (Goldbug in this case) fights some beast-mode enemies. The package art implies that the fighting is happening on "Cybertron". (Aside: I did not like the "Legacy" packaging at first. But, I am finding that I *really* like the package art for larger toys.

This set uses molding from the same era, in contrast to the 2020 4-pack (which included a Fangry using "Prime Wars" molding, rather than "Fall of Cybertron" molding). But, while Ransack is arguably a better toy, the execution is not as inspired as with Fangry.


Short review and rankings:


Goldbug (robot/wolksvagen):
This is either a head-swap of the Wal-Mart Bumblebee from 2020, or a foot and fender swap of the "Shattered Glass" Goldbug. Honestly, it does not matter. This is also the first time in *decades* that Goldbug has been released as a proper "Goldbug", rather than "Shattered Glass" or an oddly colored "Bumblebee" figure.

I do not have every pressing of this mold. But, it is one of my favorites from the last 5 years. If you have any other figures from this mold (2020 Cliffjumper, 2022 Cliffjumper, a few "Selects" and Pulse exclusives, and others), you know how good the base molding is. If not, Goldbug is as good a place as any to start.

Best of the set.


Sky Wasp (robot/awful stinging bug):
Recently, Wal*Mart released Nightprolwer, a Cheetor recolor based on a cancelled exclusive set from 20 years ago. Sky Wasp is a Target release, referencing a Waspinator recolor from the same set. The real draw for this figure is the swappable heads, which is a nice reference to the original (1996) Waspinator mold having two head sculpts. I think that the "Waspinator" face is official. But, I am going with the "Buzzsaw" head.



Ransack (robot/grasshopper:
A recolor and retool of "Legacy" Kickback. It is easy to see how "Legacy" Kickback could be retooled in to Ransack. And, Hasbro make a good effort, going so far as to include an swappable head (either Kickback, or something that looks more like the original 1985 Ransack). It is a good effort

There is nothing wrong with Ransack as a toy. But, as a character, Ransack might be an exception to the idea that "every character is somebody's favorite". The Deluxe Insecticons have almost no media context. I am pretty steeped in the lore of the franchise, and had to look up Ransack on the wiki. There is....not much. It is hard not to see this figure as a missed opportunity to do something else, despite there being no significal flaw with the figure. (Maybe the red, Diaclone colors, Kickback?)


Scorponok (robot/scorpion):
I wanted to like this toy. I still do. Much like Sky Wasp and Ransack, Scorponok has a swappable head (the masked head of the original toy, or the open mask used on the cartoon). I like the masked look. But, Scorponok is a retool of the 2022 "Kingdom" Scorponok, one of the worst toys that Hasbro has released in at least 5 years. And, the head-swapping gimmick actually makes it worse.

It is nearly impossible to switch between robot and beast modes without the robot's head popping off.

I have been a fan of "Transformers" for nearly 40 years (longer than some fans have been alive). I have bought some awful figures (for various reasons). There are some that I like prefer in one mode or the other. In some cases, I might not like to transform a given figure. But, I have never put a toy down with the intention of never transforming it.....until now.

The robot mode looks good, which is a good thing, because I am never putting this thing in to beast mode. Not just the worst of the set, but one of the worst figures I have in my collection.
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Sparky Prime
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Re: Transformers: Legacy

Post by Sparky Prime »

During a livestream yesterday, it was revealed that Legacy Inferno's abdomen will split into four parts and that his blaster/thrusters attaches where it's supposed to be in the middle of them. Unfortunately, having the thrusters where it belongs means he'd have no weapon. But at least he's show accurate. Maybe a 3rd party will make a gun for him. TFW doesn't mention it in their recap notes, but I've seen elsewhere it was mentioned the ants eyes will be blue for the final release as well.
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JediTricks
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Re: Transformers: Legacy

Post by JediTricks »

Wildrider - this may be one of my least-favorite figures of the last few years. I don't have a ton of love for Drag Strip, but he's so much better than Wildrider that it feels the latter may have been designed by an intern. The shoulders don't transform, at rest they are in the same position as they'd be in vehicle mode. The sculpting is shallow and soft, the details feel very forgettable. The feet are phoned in, they feel very insubstantial. The transforming backpack looks worse transformed, this was such a waste of budget to achieve something that looks worse than if they hadn't bothered. And there's screws showing from the front in his stomach. This would be a total wash if it weren't for the handsome vehicle mode, which is a just-barely-not a Ferrari 308 GTB. The limb mode is the vehicle mode with the front end folded up 90 degrees.

Tarantulas - fantastic interpretation of the character, nearly perfect sculpt and deco, both modes look terrific while transformation works efficiently and fairly simply, nothing complex or frustrating. The only negative in my book was the spider "hips" not being articulated at all, each side's legs are on one solid panel with only ball joints at the "knees", but in practice this makes the figure a lot more stable and there's less stuff to worry about, I ended up not minding. And no reuse from Blackarachnia, not even the gun which combines with a handheld saw accessory reminiscent of his Transmetal figure's wheel/saw accessory.

Prime-universe Knock-out - I like this figure more than I expected. It's not a great Knock Out, it feels more inspired by the toy than the character, there's no expression to the head, but it's a nice figure and a passable Knock Out. Reusing the Jazz engineering was an interesting choice, it feels like they updated the problem with the hinge in the windshield causing cracks but can't be sure yet. Vehicle mode looks terrific as well, they didn't let the character down there.

Motormaster - I hate to say it, but I love this set. It's a really fun transformer with a lot to do, and it makes the giant robot so nicely. There's a lot of clever unfolding and combining going on with this piece, which makes it all the more unusual that his gun is lousy and there's a whole leftover chunk that is meant to act as a stand for said crummy gun. The sculpt is great, the alt mode is terrific, I am very much digging this toy all around.

Jhiaxus - I like this better than I expected to, but the vehicle mode suffers badly from dumping parts hither and yon. He's big and mean and looks different, but he poses nicely and has two accessories that are pretty cool (I am not sure why fans are so pissed off at the thin pistol, I think it's unique and neat). He could use a paint wash though, the pearly white plastic eats detail for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Soundwave - because I missed the Siege figure, I wanted this mold as I kind of liked how the alt mode looked and the Netflix one doesn't have Siege-levels of detail. The paint without the battle damage paint looks really good. I ended up having to go through two of these, the first had a defectively-molded backpack and the replacement had a defectively-assembled hand, but the replacement's torso doesn't have the right shoulder line up nearly as well as the first version's -- I tried to frankenstein the best one, but unfortunately the parts are pinned together so I couldn't get the upper body and the backpack to separate. This is a decent-looking robot mode and feels quite substantial, for some reason they added a 3mm blast effect point to the back of his shoulder cannon and it pushes the backpack out of the way slightly. The transformation is more detailed than I expected for such a simple vehicle mode. The vehicle mode is an oddball, is it an overgrown one-man-fighter or a capital ship with a tiny bridge and giant landing skids? The vehicle mode is so-so, the upper nacelles flop about on their arms, the mid-torso joint doesn't quite have enough clearance so the rear end bends away from being a 90-degree angle they intended, the arms as lower landing gear have a clearance issue on the mid fuselage, and the front end is the legs tabbed together but missing one at the front so they deform when you pick it up by that section.
Image
See, that one's a camcorder, that one's a camera, that one's a phone, and they're doing "Speak no evil, See no evil, Hear no evil", get it?
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Dominic
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Re: Transformers: Legacy

Post by Dominic »

I skipped Tarantulas and Knock-Out last week. (I saw then at Newbury's with prices that would make me blink even in better times.) Both look good, though Tarantulas's facade parts bother me.

Jhiaxus - I like this better than I expected to, but the vehicle mode suffers badly from dumping parts hither and yon. He's big and mean and looks different, but he poses nicely and has two accessories that are pretty cool (I am not sure why fans are so pissed off at the thin pistol, I think it's unique and neat). He could use a paint wash though, the pearly white plastic eats detail for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

G2 was all about big guns. (Remember, it was the early 90s.) The toys. The comics. Guns. Big, gigantic, guns.

That being said, I think that the pistol is really supposed to be the gun that was visible in Jhiaxus' vehicle mode during the attack on Earth (issue 10 I think).

The white plastic is the correct color for Jhiaxus. In this case, where the character has no real control art, the general colors matter more than specific details, (which changed issue by issue, sometimes page by page).
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andersonh1
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Re: Transformers: Legacy

Post by andersonh1 »

I think with Jhiaxus the most important design choice to me is that he looks like he did in the G2 comics, and though the colors are not 100%, I think the designers succeeded. To me the robot mode is the most important, because he rarely transformed, so a bit of an ad hoc jet is okay with me. I've always thought that Jhiaxus is essentially a hulked-up seeker in terms of design, and that's pretty much what we get here. The white plastic looks better in person than it did in photos, and maybe a light gray wash to bring out details so the dominant white is still there would be okay, though I'd have to see it to say for sure. I really like the figure, it's one that I've wanted for a long time, so I'm very pleased with the end result.
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Shockwave
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Re: Transformers: Legacy

Post by Shockwave »

Dominic wrote: Sun Sep 18, 2022 1:28 pm I skipped Tarantulas and Knock-Out last week. (I saw then at Newbury's with prices that would make me blink even in better times.) Both look good, though Tarantulas's facade parts bother me.
What facade parts? Don't skip this figure (at least not if you can find it at retail). It's the best Tarantulas so far.
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Dominic
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Re: Transformers: Legacy

Post by Dominic »

Tarantulas' spider face (or robot crotch) are facades of each-other. It is the sort of thing that I can accept on BW figures. But, it is still facade parts.

I actually bought Tarantulas on Thursday. (Last week has a slog. Issues with Verizon, helping my cousin find a place for her cat, and other things just beat the hell out of me. I saw Tarantulas on the way home, and gave up.

Aside from the facade parts, this is a solid figure.

BW was the last time that the toys and the cartoon were not expected to look similar. (By the standards of the time, some of the figures were exceptionally consistent with their on-screen counter-parts, even if they fail by modern standards.) The animators took liberties to make the characters look better, resulting in character models that would never work as toys. Dinobot is the most obvious offender. But, this design principle is visible with most of the season 1 characters.
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