TF Views

That's the thing though! There aren't!

I must be lucky that my Onslaught doesn't have the problems with the guns that you guys keep mentioning. And while a lot of Dom's review also left me going "huh?" I personally agree with his final grading for my own reasons.

The basic transformation scheme is way too simplistic, especially for an Ultra size. And the robot mode is bland and lacking detail, IMO. Onslaught looks too much like one of those cheap robot toys I keep seeing in the local roadside stores.

Onslaught's robot mode is perfect for Onslaught's character, see. Go compare him to the G1 toy. You'll see that he's got all kinds of similar details--they really played up the rivets look, which was a big part of G1Slaught for me. The way his legs transform and end up is even similar to the G1 toy's foldy bit. Yeah, his arms are sorta-kinda plain...but they're supposed to be.

onslaught86 wrote:

I just...I don't get it. What's lackluster about his execution? The guy nails 'everything' about Onslaught that could ever be nailed. He's awesome. In every way. Are there any toys you've gotten recently that you *haven't'* hated?

He liked Sunstreaker!

But yeah, stickers? What stickers? As always, Dom, you pick the strangest reasons for hating a toy..

*recalls Cybertron Defense Red Alert's 'seat' and Barricade's two doors*

Onslaught seems to have stickers on the turret. Those 2 gold pieces look like stickers. Am I wrong on this? If I am wrong, that is great.

The "seat" was not my only problem with CD Red Alert. Much of my distaste for that toy is due to my general dislike of the the DC molds in general. And, I took back my complaint' about Barricade's doors when I saw there was an actual car using that design.

The gun turret thing may be one of those "batch" issues. But, as mine is probably a later run toy, I doubt it. It is probably just bad QC like we saw in late "Cybertron".

And, yes, I have got some toys I liked.
Sunstreaker (assuming there are no paint issues)
I like Prowl's mold.

TFA Soundwave

All of the Universe Voyagers aside from Dropshot tickle my fancy.


Dom
-see? I do like toys.

Dominic wrote:Onslaught seems to have stickers on the turret. Those 2 gold pieces look like stickers. Am I wrong on this? If I am wrong, that is great.

Which gold pieces? The vent detailing around what I'm guessing is his soundbox? Those definitely aren't stickers.

The gun turret thing may be one of those "batch" issues. But, as mine is probably a later run toy, I doubt it. It is probably just bad QC like we saw in late "Cybertron".

They come off, obviously, but I'm betting this is somehow a preference thing. Clearly, you guys must think they fall out too easily while I disagree, even if there's no actual difference between the toys themselves.

I could have sworn those gold bits were stickers. Gotta check tonight when I get home.

But, the guns popping out is a common problem. I go out of my way not to molest the guns, and they still pop out during regular fiddling.

I do not hate this toy as some of you seem to think. I like elements of the transform steps. And, how can I say "boo" to a robot with a riot shield. But it does have some serious flaws

Dom
-remembers when Ultras were bigger.

Nemesis Prime (Transformers Universe):
I really should hate this toy. "Nemesis Prime" is a name commonly associated with Unicron, possibly the most over-used and over-hyped character in all of the Transfranchise. It is a basic and (in theory) boring black recolor. I am generally not a fan of the "evil twin" concept that this toy represents. But, over-all, this is a pretty good toy. I may as well just walk through the notes I took while opening and fiddling with this thing last night.

The box is a standard "Universe" Voyager box, complete with odd angling and dubious structural integrity. (This generally does not bother me with mass releases, as the toys inside are usually fine. But, in this case, with a convention exclusive, a better engineered package would have been nice.) There are no co-sells listed on the box, likely because this is technically the ontly toy in the "wave". Oddly, there is no SDCC sticker on this box. If not for the fact I have no desire to waste this toy, I would be tempted to sneak it onto the shelves at the local Target or KB and see how long it took people to notice it.

The character bio is great, incorporating both subtle references to the old UK comics and some solid ideas. The long and short is that Nemesis Prime was created by Straxus to serve as a sort of evil counterpoint to Prime, and the project went bad. This is similar to the back-written Megatron clone from the old UK comics. Nemesis Prime has volumes of tactical and historic knowledge at his disposal. But, as the bio note puts it, he does not have the "frameworks" to use any his inherent virtues, making him little more than an extremely powerful vagrant. This nicely puts Optimus Prime's leadership viirtues in context, showing that it is not just the high stat numbers that make Optimus Prime who and what he is.

As with the mass releaseed "Classics" Optimus Prime this is a repaint of, the alternate mode is just a truck cab. I never got that variant of Prime, so I cannot be certain about any mold or paint-masking differences. But, it looks to be the same molding and paint masking, albeit with much different colors. (I almost get the feeling this toy would have been named "Scourge", had that name not been re-assigned back to the G1 character.)

The transform is a bit clumsier than I would like, but it has enough nice touches, largely in the guns, to keep it from being out and out bad. The truck's wind vein and smokestacks transform nicely into two guns, or they combine nicely into a back-pack mounted turret. There is some cheating, with grill on the robot's stomach being a visibly different piece than the truck's grill, which winds up on the robot's back. The joints are also a bit stiff in places.

Aside from the grill-switching and some kibble on the arms, the robot form is pretty good.

Grade: B Not perfect, but it is worth picking up, even at the inflated prices this type of toy commands.


Dom
-more at the blog.

For me, the problem with Onslaught's cannons mainly comes out in his robot mode. See, he's got this little panel (hides the hole where his head pops out in vehicle mode) that flips back and rest right between the cannons. So when I'm handling him in robot mode, sometimes the turret turns to the side in my hands, and one of the cannons collides with that panel, causing the cannon to pop off. Now, I'm glad that they pop back on just as easily, and I've become accustomed to it to the point that it's not really a problem anymore, but that's where the issue lies. For me, at least.

And I agree that Onslaught is a swell toy. My only complaint (aside from the cannons and lack of a bigger gun. Damn I need to dig out my Urban Mega-Octane's rifle...) is that his legs look really gappy. But that can be fixed a bit by closing up his knees, if you so wish.

Dom, even if those gold bits were stickers, they'd hardly be prone to later damage, being sealed in their little compartments the way they are.

BWprowl wrote:Dom, even if those gold bits were stickers, they'd hardly be prone to later damage, being sealed in their little compartments the way they are.

...Wait, what?

Onslaught Six wrote:

BWprowl wrote:Dom, even if those gold bits were stickers, they'd hardly be prone to later damage, being sealed in their little compartments the way they are.

...Wait, what?

Dom's main complaint with the 'stickers' was that they could easily be damaged later on. But since they're in their own little compartments, behind those clear pastic bits, completely untouchable, I'd say there'd be very little chance of such damage occuring. If, y'know, they actually were stickers.