Reviews

Review – Transformers – Titans Return – Highbrow

Like most of the original Headmasters, Highbrow hasn’t gotten a proper update in a while. There was a pretty neat Highbrow back in the Hunt for the Decepticons sub-line of Revenge of the Fallen, though his alt mode for that line was a Lockheed P38-Bomber style plane, and he was mostly green instead of his original blue and white. It’s a neat toy mostly for using a cool alt mode, but it’s not very Highbrow and it wasn’t a headmaster.

Like most of Titans Return, Highbrow is a much more faithful remake of his G1 iteration. He has the same colors and turns into a dual prop Cybertronian helicopter. It’s not a toy without some pretty bad flaws though, mostly due to the helicopter blades. This is one of those areas where the lessened budget of newer toys actually become a bit of a hindrance. The helicopter blades don’t have any way to lock into place in robot mode and don’t fold out of the way in any meaningful way. They just sort of flip around, which wouldn’t be a problem except they tend to get locked up in his massive helicopter cockpit backpack.

He also suffers from a severe case of “wobbly head” syndrome, which seems to plague a few of these Titans Returns figures. Part of the problem seems to be that the hook for his head sticks out from his neck a few millimeters. On the plus side, it means he can sort of look up and down a bit, but it doesn’t make things lose and floppy. Something that was most common in the Wave 1 figure Scourge, which brings up another interesting bit…

Back in my review of Chromedome, I made a comment about how Chromedome looks like he is a remold of the Combiner Wars Breakdown mold, but isn’t, he just shares a transformation. Highbrow here has a similar sort of situation going, because technically, Highbrow IS a remold of Titans Return Scourge. That said, they share almost zero actual parts and their transformations are “reversed.” Where Scourge’s front form by joining his legs together, Highbrow forms the rear of the helicopter. The tell tale bit that these are remolds lies in the pull out section on the hips/legs used during transformation. That, and that they are part of the same lines, it’s actually pretty uncommon to have a remold cross over between lines the way Chromedome and Dead End would have done.

The toys are definitely different enough to warrant owning both of them if you are interested in both. The transformation results in a pretty near little helicopter. The cockpit is functional to allow for the Titan Master to fit inside. The two guns can attach to the underside of the wings to give the chopper some artillery, though they attach via the non round pegs, which is slightly against what you commonly see but it allows for the use of the molded landing wheels. There’s a third flip out landing gear that isn’t super obvious on the under side of the cockpit.

The helicopter mode looks good and holds together very solidly. It’s definitely a good addition to the vehicles for Titan Masters. If your interest in this line lies more with the Titan Masters and their vehicles and bases, Highbrow is definitely a good addition, even if his Robot mode is a little clunky.

S.H. Figuarts – Luigi

Feb 1st, 2017

by Ramen Junkie.

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Today’s review is on SH Figuarts Luigi. I’ve previously done a review of SH Figuarts Mario as well that you may be interested in if you’re looking into Luigi. A lot of what was said about Mario definitely applies here. The build quality is solid, the paint apps are great, the sculpt is great, the articulation works for what he is, but it’s a little limited.

Where Luigi differs the most is in his accessory count. Luigi includes alternate open hands and a stand, both things that Mario lacked in his basic form. Additionally Luigi includes a basic Block Brick and a Red Koopa shell. It’s kind of a shame that he doesn’t have a coin, that feels like it would have been the cheapest accessory to throw in and coins are definitely something you can never have too many of when it comes to Mario. Also included is a swappable back plate to allow the stand to peg into Luigi’s back and a small clear plastic bit that allows the Koopa shell to attach to either of the open palm hands to be held.

Speaking of the hands, I touched a bit on the build style on Mario being different that your standard Figuarts release. The hands are another place where this varies. The pegs are nice and bulky and built into the forearms of both Luigi and Mario. The hands stay on well but are easily swapped and it doesn’t feel like there is any chance of breaking the pegs. This is definitely a change from many Figuarts where the removable hands often come off as pretty fragile. It certainly helps that both Luigi and Mario are chunkier than most Figuarts, but it, once again, kind of feels like that Nintendo Quality push sneaking in a bit. It’s also notable that it’s very subtle, but the hands are not identical to the ones that are available in the Playset Pack for Mario, they are slightly skinnier as well, to match Luigi’s slimmer build.

Having the stand and hands definitely help flesh out Luigi’s pose options. Every since Super Mario Brothers 2, Luigi has been known for his crazy high jumping, so having the stand for jumping poses is definitely a plus. The hands are also great for both carrying and throwing the included Koopa shell.

Luigi isn’t a straight recolor of Mario either, he stands a half inch or so taller than Mario and has an overall slimmer build. I’m sure there is some parts reuse, I think the arms and shoes are the same, but the legs, center mass, and head are all slimmer and seem to be different sculpting than Mario.

All in all Luigi is a nice package. He’s definitely a nice addition to go with his brother Mario but the extra accessories make him a nice solid figure in his own right.

Review – Marvel Legends – Juggernaut Wave – Havok

Jan 30th, 2017

by Ramen Junkie.

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Someone working on this wave seems to have a hard on for Cyclops’ family, we’ve got his wife, Jean Grey (Phoenix), his son from the future, Cable, and his brother, Havok. There isn’t a Cyclops, but we got one in the first wave of X-men with Jubilee and there is one in the next wave coming in 2017. He’s Cyclops’ younger brother in the comics but older brother in the movies, though this is a decidedly comic book design.

He definitely doesn’t have the most amazing design for a super hero. There’s nothing complicated going on here, he’s a dude in spandex with a funky helmet. It’s a pretty well done figure, he’s just a little on the boring side.

He does have a pretty cool power, though not really any good way to portray it in toy form. He absorbs energy and re-releases it. As he absorbs energy he gives on energy waves, for the figure this is depicted using these attachable bubble effects. These are similar to the circular effects we’ve seen a lot lately with Doctor Strange and Scarlet Witch, though it’s not the same effect piece. Also, given how his power work, I find they work best attached higher up on his arms than on his wrists, since it looks more like he’s “emanating energy”.

Considering Hasbro seems to be against including things like fireball effects with these figures, there’s not much else he could have come with to make him more exciting. Articulation is decent, though if you put the effects higher up on the arms things can get a little limited.

I do like his design though. He’s pretty basic but the effect parts work pretty well and there’s something elegant about his design despite it’s blandness.

Review – Transformers – Titans Return – Mindwipe

Jan 26th, 2017

by Ramen Junkie.

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Continuing on with the updated Decepticon Headmasters, today’s review cover’s Titans Return Mindwipe. Wave 1 gave us Skullcruncher, the first beast based headmaster, Wave 2 gives us Mindwipe and Weirdwolf. All of the updated Headmasters figures are very close in design and look to their original G1 counterparts with the exception of Mindwipe. While Mindwipe captures the essence of the Bat to Robot, he has a very different transformation and much more proportioned look overall.

That design change isn’t necessarily a bad thing, it’s just something that may bother people looking for a really pure “update”. Titans Return Mindwipe is also much closer to the original design than the previous best update from Hunt for the Decepticons. HFTD Mindwipe is a nice figure, but he’s a brownish stealth bomber robot. He’s as close to the original design as HFTD Highbrow was.

Like Skullcruncher, Mindwipe does some really interesting things with his Transformation and design. Fortunately, Mindwipe isn’t nearly as flawed as Skullcruncher is. His shins are a little huge, which hinders his leg articulations a but that’s his only major flaw. I suppose I could also mention that the claw weapon is supposed to peg into the Bat’s but to form a sort of tail but it falls out instantly because the hold is too large as well. It really doesn’t feel like much of a flaw though because frankly, the tail is underwhelming and looks lame anyway. The bat is better off without it attached.

So what actually is interesting? Firstly, his robot has extra vestigial wings, entirely to give him wings in his robot mode. This is because of the way the actual wings transform. They sort of roll up on themselves to form the legs. It’s certainly a different technique for dealing with wings in the Transformers line, and pretty clever to boot.

Also fun is his Titan Master cockpit in bat mode, it’s a coffin shaped door, you know, because coffins and vampires and bats. It’s a neat little touch for what could have just been a simple open and toss him in deal.

The transformation is a bit tricky due to the way the legs/wings work, there are a lot of swivels and joints that have to be turned just right to make everything line up and tab in properly, which could be a little tricky for some. The bat head mouth opens and closes, which is a nice touch as well, but it doesn’t have any way to look “up” for flying poses.

Titan Returns Mindwipe is a pretty fun and neat addition to the line. He’s definitely a step up from Skullcruncher’s floppy mess.

Mafex – BatmanVSuperman Superman

Jan 25th, 2017

by Ramen Junkie.

1 comment

I have to admit, I sometimes feel like a bit of a masochist because I’m still sticking with Medicom’s Mafex line for my DC collection. My experience so far has been pretty hit and miss, the hits are good, but the misses tend to be pretty awful. I feel like if I just stick with it, they will figure things out and start producing really solid figures. Mafex Batman vs Superman Superman here is definitely par for this course.

I want to start with the good things, and why I stick with the line. I really like the sculpts. The proportions are good, the stance is good, the heads tend to look really good, which is what matters. It’s definitely better than most domestic releases. I also really really like the use of cloth goods for things like capes. Cloth works sooooo much better than plastic or rubber, especially when done well.

I also, for the most part, like the pricing. Recent releases are starting to creep up a bit admittedly, but the price of the line tends to be on the lower end for import figures.

The bad bits though really stick out and really get in the way. The biggest and only real bad bit is the looseness and joint tolerances. Superman for example, his head tends to fall off at the base of the neck. It feels like a problem that could have been solved by even a few millimeters more length on the neck ball post so it stuck down into the socket just a bit deeper. It’s weird too because you can attach the head, then pick the whole figure up by the head, which suggests it’s solid, but then after a bit of wiggling or posing, it just falls right out.

His legs are also a little loose. Its not horrible and the figure isn’t super heavy so it doesn’t cause major issue but it can cause some frustration with getting him to hold a pose.

On Superman, I also wish his cape had wires along the vertical axis as well as the bottom. I’ve seen custom fixes for this and may look into adding some wire myself. It’s not a huge issue, but it would make the cape a lot more dynamic, though it’s already pretty dynamic and flows nicely around the figure.

For accessories, Mafex Superman comes with 3 (total) sets of hands and 2 heads, one normal, one with an angry head and colored eyes, as if he is powering up to use his heat vision. He also comes with a standard Mafex stand. It’s not an amazing parts count, but there isn’t a lot that Superman really uses as far as gear like say, Batman.

All in all it’s not an awful figure, I just wish Mafex could figure out it’s lose joint issues. This isn’t the first figure I’ve had from them with similar issues.