Review #74: Generations Combiner Wars
Blackjack & Hot Rod - Mold Mates
Hello, again! I thought I'd keep the momentum going, and do another review for you today! It is another pair of toys that share the same mold, this time a pair of Legends Class figures in the current Generations Combiner Wars line. So today, we look at the Decepticon Blackjack and a new Legends Class Autobot Hot Rod.
Blackjack came first of these two toys. Blackjack was a character in the G1 toy line, a Micromaster released towards the end of G1 in 1989. This new version actually wasn't originally designed as Blackjack. (More on that later.) But apparently at some point in the design process, Hasbro changed their minds on who they wanted this toy to be. And in vehicle mode, he does work as a pretty good Blackjack. Remove the spoiler (which is removable) and he'd actually be pretty spot on! But even with the spoiler, he's not a bad representation of Blackjack.
As for Hot Rod? Well, a sporty looking car with a huge spoiler shaped just so? I'd have been surprised if there hadn't been a Hot Rod repaint! |
Hot Rod (who, as seems to be the norm in recent years, was sold under the name "Rodimus") does have one slight alteration to him. I slapped a Reprolabels faction symbol on his hood.
All in all, though, in vehicle mode these toys both look pretty good to me! Let us move on to robot mode.
All in all, though, in vehicle mode these toys both look pretty good to me! Let us move on to robot mode.
Not a bad pair. Blackjack, even though again the toy was originally designed to be someone else, looks like Blackjack should.
Hot Rod gets a new head which does help sell him in robot mode. He looks like Hot Rod... but he isn't necessarily the greatest Hot Rod. He lacks the spoiler on his back, although he wouldn't be the first Hot Rod to do so. (See the previously reviewed Micromaster Hot Rod for an earlier example.) But perhaps even more detrimental to his look is the fact that his chest is a window rather then the flame details from his hood that one usually expects to find there. |
Maybe someday Reprolabels will release a sticker set for Hot Rod that will fix his chest. Since that window is kind of hidden by his spoiler in vehicle mode, having a sticker with his chest's details covering that window certainly wouldn't be the end of the world. And as for the spoiler, I have seen at least one attempt at a third party fix to allow him to have one that will attach to his back. Perhaps I shall investigate that some day. But hey, while as I said he isn't the greatest Hot Rod, he isn't a bad one, either. And since I got him on sale for $5.00, that certainly makes any shortcomings he may have easier to swallow.
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As for what does happen to the spoiler when these guys transform into robot mode, it becomes a hand held axe for them to wield.
As far as articulation, these two have a decent amount of it for Legends Class figures. Their heads can swivel. The shoulders are on ball joints. There is a swivel in the upper arms, and then the elbows can bend about ninety degrees. Nothing in the waste, alas. Hips and knees both feature ball joints, and between those various ball joints in the legs an upper leg swivel can also be simulated. All in all, you can get these figures into some nicely dynamic poses.
As far as articulation, these two have a decent amount of it for Legends Class figures. Their heads can swivel. The shoulders are on ball joints. There is a swivel in the upper arms, and then the elbows can bend about ninety degrees. Nothing in the waste, alas. Hips and knees both feature ball joints, and between those various ball joints in the legs an upper leg swivel can also be simulated. All in all, you can get these figures into some nicely dynamic poses.
Anyway, remember I said that Blackjack wasn't originally designed as Blackjack? So, who was this toy originally supposed to be? Would you believe it was supposed to be a new version of Runabout? But for some reason, Hasbro changed their minds and made it Blackjack, instead. That isn't stopping Takara, though, who (as seen in the stock photography presented to the right) will be releasing this toy as Runabout!
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But between Hasbro's seeming reluctance to release a new Runabout to retail, and the lack of either company (Hasbro or Takara) seeming to also have an equivalent Runamuck in the works, that is what led me to start keeping an eye out for any good deals on the two toys that were the subject of my previous review. And hey, now I have a Runabout and a Blackjack in my collection to enjoy, so all is well!
There is one other very important thing that Blackjack and Hot Rod can do... And the hint is in the name of the sub-line these toys are a part of... "Combiner Wars." But we shan't get into that today. Maybe someday in the future, as a part of another review... but for now, I am looking at these guys purely as stand alone toys.
And as stand alone toys? They're okay! I actually quite like Blackjack, which is good since I only bought him as a stand alone toy, anyway. And Hot Rod... he may not be quite as good, but overall I'm also happy to have him. (Especially since, as stated previously, I did get him on sale!) Maybe someday I will spruce Hot Rod up with some add-ons, but even if I don't, I've no regrets about owning him. To the right, the pair pictured with a standard sized DVD case to provide a scale reference. Review added 26 September 2015 by Yotsuya. Comments are welcomed! |