Tag Archives: Combiner Wars

Ask Trev: Pipes versus Huffer

This question comes from Katrina in Sydney:

 

Pipes and Huffer have the same alt mode but different robot modes. Which is your favourite?

Such cute little alien war machines!

It’s true that most of the 1986 Autobot Mini-Vehicles are just slight retools of their 1984 counterparts.  The likes of Swerve, Tailgate, Hubcap and Outback are simply recolours of Gears, Windcharger, Cliffjumper and Brawn respectively with new face sculpts (OK, Outback got a new gun as well which was pretty slick).

However Huffer and Pipes are the exception.  As well as a new colour scheme and face sculpt, the Transformation from Robot Mode from Vehicular mode was slightly changed.  Instead of the cab of the truck becoming a hood as it did with Huffer, it became a backpack for Pipes.

But are their alt-modes really the same?

One of these trucks is not like the other one

Well, yeah, for the most part.  But there are subtle differences.  The moulded grill and headlight motif on the front of the truck has been slightly changed from Huffer to Pipes. The tail-end of the trucks tray, which becomes the robots feet, is slightly more pointed on Huffer than Pipes.  Perhaps the most notable difference besides the colour scheme is the smokestacks, which on Huffer and slightly indented, whilst on Pipes they are well and truly, well… pipes.

Overall the differences are negligible, but far outweigh the differences between the other mini-bot recolours of that era.  I’d be hard-pressed to say which I like more as both have their charms.

Robot Modes

Huffer: “My elbows go the wrong way!” Pipes: “At least you can still pick stuff up”

Here is where the differences really stand out.  As stated, Huffer has a sort of canopy whereas Pipes has a large backpack.  From the back Pipes is easily the weaker of the two, having an entire truck cab hanging off his back.  However this is where his weaknesses end.  His arms are far superior to Huffers, and whilst Huffer could be said to have hands of a sort, it’s the orientation of his arms that lets him down, resembling some form of preying mantis idue to the backwards elbows.  The head of Pipes too is superior, having an actual sculpted head that sits in front of the backpack, rather than some form of wide mask half-hidden under a hood.

 

So to answer Katrina’s question, I have to give it to Pipes, on the whole he is an improvement on his predecessor.

Legends ‘LG35 Super Ginrai’ vs Titans Return ‘Powermaster Optimus Prime’

But what about other iterations?

Huffer, being a legacy character from the 1984 cartoon, has turned up in multiple toylines such as KRE-O, Power Core Combiners, Timelines and even Transformers Prime.  Pipes however has only had another two outings, both retools of existing Huffer figures.  So lets have a look at these to see who is the superior in these new iterations of classic characters.

 

Combiner Wars

Prime-wannabe’s

If there is one set of Huffer/Pipes figures where the alt-modes are exactly the same then it is Combiner Wars.  Not only are the altmodes the same, but the robot modes are exactly the same too, the only differences being in colour scheme and sticker placements.  As such, it’s pretty much impossible to pick one over the other.  I will say I never understood why they gave Pipes a red face, he looks like Tracks squat brother (or me when I’ve been out in the sun too long).

 

Kingdom

We finally busted into the Deluxe Class!

The third outing of Pipes, being again a retool of Huffer, is in the Kingdom line.  I found both these toys to be quite clever and both are certainly the most toon-accurate versions of the characters we have ever had in their robot modes.  Highlights for me included that Pipes now has pipes attached to his outer forearms like in the cartoon instead of the toys arms functioning as the pipes themselves. Huffer now sports a canopy of sensible size, and the way the sides of his alt-modes tray join together to form a very Halo-esque weapon is a really cool idea.  I couldn’t fault either of them.

Pipes & Huffer: Both ready to smoke you!

In their vehicular forms, the fronts of the vehicles are actually (bar colour) exactly the same, having less differences than their G1 toy counterparts.  The differences only seem to be at the back, where Pipes is toting his pipes and Huffer’s gun and shield serve to form a tray.

But wait, there’s more!

Can’t decide between Pipes and Huffer?  Why choose either when you can have Puffer!

Puffer: ‘Even I haven’t heard of me before!’

Soooo…. The story behind this is that in certain parts of the world, when Pipes was released he was a straight up recolour of Huffer, rather than a retooled version.  The storyline behind Puffer is that Huffer and Pipes got sucked into a time-vortex (as one does) and they were fused together into the one being.  Like so many other extremely obscure characters (who can easily be recoloured from an existing figure), Puffer now has his own official toy.  This Puffer though, is essentially Pipes slightly recoloured and with a G1 toy accurate head.  Whilst there is little of Huffer to see in this figure, if you can’t decide which you like more out of Pipes and Huffer, then Puffer may be for you!

Toys Review – Legacy Motormaster & Drag Strip

So, overall, Pipes or Huffer

A reminder that Prime and Magnus aint the only Autobot trucks on the block

Well, for me it is hands down Pipes, and for me that is a purely sentimental reason.  Pipes was one of my first ever Transformers, and was the first Transformer I ever got a double of when a mate gave me another one for my 9th birthday.  Still have them both too 😊.  I liked in the cartoon how Pipes seemed to straddle between mechanic, field medic and a quasi-field commander, whereas except for lifting the odd mammoth, Huffer seemed to do nothing but whine, barely built anything and for the most part simply vied with Gears for title of biggest complainer on The Ark.

G1: Emotions aside, talking about toys then I feel that Pipes has the better robot mode, despite Huffer having hand indents.  Vehicular, despite the minor differences, I don’t favour one over the other.  Winner: Pipes

Combiner Wars: Exact same vehicle mode so no favourite; in robot mode I gotta take points off Pipes for having the red face.  Winner: Huffer

Kingdom: A draw, as though I like Huffer’s robot mode that smidge more, and he has the cool gun and shield that become the truck tray, Pipes finally has dedicated extra pipes, living up to his namesake.  Winner: A draw, with a special shout out to Puffer for being such a unique character.

Got anything to say about the figures examined, or Pipes and Huffer in general?  Pop it in the comments section below!

Toy Review: Autobot Ark & Teletraan 1

 

 

Multiverse Sky Lynx Toys Gallery

MULTIVERSE SKY LYNX GALLERY

Please note: The photo set I had built at my last farm was destroyed in a move, so while I have added photo’s of Earthrise Sky Lynx to this gallery, he will not be properly shot like the other three figures until I build a new one.

 

Individual Figure Pic’s

Generation One Sky Lynx

Name: Sky Lynx
Toyline: Generation One
Mode: Cybertronian Beast
Mode: Cybertronian Dinobird
Mode: Cybertronian Lynx
Mode: Space Shuttle

 

Combiner Wars Sky Lynx

Name: Sky Lynx
Toyline: Combiner Wars
Mode: Cybertonian Beast
Mode: Space Shuttle

 

Preadacons Rising Skylynx

Name: Skylynx
Toyline: Beast Hunters – Predacons Rising
Mode: Cybertronian Beast
Mode: Robot

 

Earthrise Sky Lynx

Space Shuttle Mode
Dinobird Mode
Troop Carrier Mode
Lynx Mode
Space Shuttle Transport Mode
Space Dragon Mode
Launch Base Mode

 

Comparison Pic’s

Cybertronian Beast modes
Cybertronian Beast Modes
Space Shuttle modes
Space Shuttle Modes
Dinobird Modes
Lynx Modes
Space Dragon Modes

 

Related Articles:

Toys Reiew: CW Sky Lynx and BH Skylynx

Toys Review: Team Sky Reign

Toy Review: Earthrise Sky Lynx

Classic Toy Reviews – Beast Hunters and Combiner Wars Sky Lynx

Ah the toys of yesteryear!  Enjoy these classic reviews of toys gone by!

Skylynx

Series – Transformers Prime
Sub-line – Beast Hunters – Predacons Rising
Size/class – Deluxe
New/remould/redeco – Redeco
Release – a US Target only exclusive
Approximate Retail Price – $22US
Approximate Size – 14cm
Allegiance – Predacon
Alt-mode – Cybertronian Beast
Main Features/Gimmicks – disc launchers in wings
Main Colours – White, Blue, Red
Main Accessories – 2 x battle discs

I’m not a fan of most ‘monster’ Transformers, but I grabbed Skylynx as it was the only figure at the time that paid homage to our favorite arrogant space shutte. Yes I know this Skylynx doesn’t have the space shuttle mode, but it was the beast mode I was after.

Robot mode

Butt-ugly! Also, the discs in his wings make him top heavy and I had really muck about with him to get him to stand properly.

 

Beast mode

Still pretty butt-ugly, but its for the beast mode I got him so its in this mode he will likely remain. A quadraped dragon-bird thing coloured in red, white & blue was what was on offer, and it’s what they delivered .

Overall

Is he worth getting? It’s an easy transformation which makes him good for kids and for the adults, well, personally I’m a sucker for a G1 homage (even if G1 Sky Lynx would be horrified that he is now a ‘grubby Predacon!’ ) so that’s why I got him. To be honest otherwise I think this toy would be easy to pass up, especially since he had such a limited release and the Combiner Wars version is now on offer.  Speaking of which…

 

Sky Lynx
Series – Generations
Sub-line – Combiner Wars
Size/class – Voyager
New/remould/redeco – New
Wave – Wave 2, 2016
Approximate Retail Price – $45
Approximate Size – 20cm
Allegiance – Autobot
Alt-mode – Space Shuttle with troop transport undercarriage
Main Features/Gimmicks – Can combine with others to form Sky Reign
Main Colours – White, Blue, Red
Main Accessories – 2 long blasters

 

Robot Mode

A nice looking Sky Lynx indeed. While the poseability isn’t great nearly every part of him can be re-positioned to some extent (wings, tail, legs, feet, neck, mouth) so you can give him different looks. Blasters can be attached to the wings or to elongate the tail.

 

Space Shuttle Mode

Besides the undercarriage sticking out from under the back of the Space Shuttle good and it’s very faithful to the original Sky Lynx concept in terms of proportions, colour scheme and shape. Very nice. Blasters can once again be attached to the wings.

Transformation
Very straight forward for a Voyager and one of the easiest of that size from the CW line to do.
Overall
This is a pretty good Sky Lynx. I think it could have benefited from being a Leader Class toy with the Lynx mode built in rather than it being a combiner but certainly the fact he combines with others toys (see HERE) and has the Lynx as the head gives it extra playability for younger fans and is an extra nod to fans of the original toy. So not as cool as the G1 toy (that was even motorized!) but way cooler than the Predacons Rising version. Overall recommended.

 

I’m not sure how either of them feel about this

Got any thoughts about these two toys?  Would love to hear them in the comments section below!

 

*For my Multiverse Gallery of different Sky Lynx toys see HERE.

*For my review of CW Sky Lynx in his combined mode of Sky Reign see HERE.

Toy Review – Combiner Wars Liokaiser

Just when you think the Combiner Wars toyline is dead, they keep chugging along with even more obscure subgroups.  This time they have given us a character that you may be unfamiliar with unless you watched the Japanese G1 cartoon series Victory back in the 1980’s.   A group originally named Breastforce (no I’m not making that up and yes, you are allowed to giggle) has been reborn as the Destrons (the JP name for Decepticons in general) who combine into an almighty gestalt!  So here we go, a big review for a name as long as some of the old Street Fighter games, Combiner Wars Liokaiser: Platinum Edition!

Please note: As all these toy molds have had numerous iterations already, I will be mainly talking about any changes made rather than going over old ground.  I will put in links to other reviews of these molds as appropriate.

 

Ironbison

Doesn't fear Autobots as much as PETA
Doesn’t fear Autobots as much as PETA

aa

Renamed from Killbison as it sounded like he was related to the Bufflekill’s from The Simpsons.  Here we see the usual CW Brawl (for a review of Brawl – see HERE) remold but with added horns on his head to represent the original toy/character.  I found the limbs on mine to be a bit loose, very hard to pose him without the shoulders sagging.  But the mustard and silver colour scheme work together and he looks nice and tough.

 

Drillhorn

bb b

Probably the only limb figure here whose updated alt-mode doesn’t look as cool as the original one.  This has been remolded from CW Nosecone and they probably would have done better to use the UW Nosecone mode (for a comparison between those two toys – see HERE).  Also the drill bit does not fit in the gap properly with mine which is quite annoying, I have to use the double-barreled rifle on top to keep it in place.  A nice little touch is a horn that pops out of his forehead in robot mode which adds that extra unique touch.

 

Guyhawk

Pretty in pink!
Pretty in pink!

d

Did this guy pick his ultra-masculine name to make up for his colour scheme?  The most pink in a Transformer I’ve seen this side of G1 Sparkstalker!  But the colour actually seems to work quite well, it’s very vibrant indeed!  Nice head sculpt, the only one of the limb characters that doesn’t require pop-out bits.  Remade from CW Air Raid.

 

Fellbat

I'm a bat out of... er.... fell? Yeah, I'm a bat that fell I guess.
I’m a bat out of… er…. fell? Yeah, I’m a bat that fell I guess.

e

Renamed from Hellbat because, well…. pretty crappy reasons actually because Hellbat was a much cooler name.  Remade from CW Skydive, this guy has his signature little bat-wing fins that pop out of the sides of his head and is one of the few characters from Victory I can remember from my one watching of the series.  Already killed off in the IDW comics which is a shame, hope that doesn’t stop Liokaiser showing up there.  A nice touch in jet mode is they have given his missiles a striking red paint job.

 

Dezarus

I shall shuffle you to death!
I shall shuffle you to death!

f

Ok, here is where it gets a bit trippy, follow me if you can.  The original Breastforce (again, insert requisite giggle) had two characters that made up the torso – Leozack and Jallguar.  Since all CW gestalts (excepting CW Devastator) are mainly four smaller bots as limbs and a larger single one as the torso, these two characters were dumped for Dezarus.  Dezarus is in turn based on Deathsaurus who was the leader of the Destron army in the Victory cartoon.  To add further confusion, since Deathsaurus’ had a bipedal bird-monster alt-mode, they chose to recolour CW Sky Lynx (for a review of Sky Lynx – see HERE) to make him.

Keeping up?  Well done!  Because I’m writing this bloody review and even I’m getting lost!

Anyway, Dezarus here has the same modes as Sky Lynx (rather than his original ones) and his colour scheme makes the shuttle mode look a bit odd.  One thing I was pretty happy with though was how easily the toy lent itself to being put in a bipedal position, even achieving a certain limited poseability!  Yes it’s a stretch, but it’s the closest you are going to get Dezarus to Deathsaurus that you can.

 

Ion Scythe

gg

By the Power of Destron!
By the Power of Destron!

Another weird but welcome inclusion, put in mainly I suspect to keep up the now set pattern of all these CW groups having six members.  Ion Scythe is based on an old Arms Micron toy and despite his name turns not into a scythe but a sword.  The original Breastforce group (ok, you’ve had your laughs, time to get over it now) had little animal partners so it could be Ion Scythe’s inclusion is a shout out to that.

hh h

 

Liokaiser

G1'ish accurate
G1’ish accurate

The head from Sky Reign (find the review of Sky Reign HERE) has been retooled to look more like the original Liokaiser and both share the animalistic helmet.  There are plenty more tricks you can do to make this toy look more G1 Victory accurate.  These include positioning Fellbats wings up and horizontal, placing Fellbat and Guyhawks grey guns either side of the right fist and turning Ironbison and Drillhorn outwards so that their treads face inwards.  All these little things help, the only problem is rotating the lower legs means he can’t use his knees, but that’s easy to turn back when you want to do some action poses.  It really is a nice looking combiner overall with plenty of poseability and mismatching-yet-working colours.  Ironically Ion Scythe is far more suited to be a CW hand weapon than the likes of CW Powerglide and CW Shockwave (for a review of Shockwave – see HERE) who both were too heavy and pulled down their gestalts arms – Ion Scythe seems to be just the right size and weight!

 

Worth Getting?

Overall I would have to say yes.  These are characters that haven’t had new toys since they first appeared in Victory nearly 30 years ago.  I would advise shopping around; I got mine for a good price whereas if I had ordered it through my usual international source I would have paid about $50 more.  And for those who have Masterpiece Star Saber – that big fragger now has someone to fight!

j

Toy Review – Unite Warriors Computron VS Combiner Wars Computron

As the last of the vehicle-themed Gestalt Groups based on the American G1 cartoon and toyline, many people have been hanging out to get their greedy little cyber-mitts on the Technobots.  However unlike most of the other Gestalt Groups, there are a lot of distinct differences between the Unite Warriors and the Combiner Wars versions of the teams.  Plus they have been released within a month of each other, rather than six months apart like most of the other toys.  So here we go, in what is probably my biggest and most detailed Transformers review to date, a comparison of the two gift sets: Unite Warriors Computron VS Combiner Wars Computron!

DSCF5815

DSCF5787 DSCF5707

 

CW Lightsteed VS UW Lightspeed– Robot Mode

DSCF5800 DSCF5709

The CW version (Lightsteed) is a direct palette-swap of the CW Protectobot Streetwise and it shows.  Luckily Streetwise was a pretty cool looking robot and Lightsteed also comes with Streetwise’s shotgun.  The UW version (Lightspeed) is a retool of CW Wheeljack with two new guns.  With the new head, red thighs and windshield on the chest Lightspeed is the more character faithful and cooler looking of the two

 

UW Lightspeed VS CW Lightsteed – Vehicle Mode

DSCF5699 DSCF5789

The original Lightspeed had a dome-like windshield that wrapped all the way around to make him look more like a Cybertronian Speeder rather than a Terran Automobile.  Lightsteed’s vehicle mode (again, a direct palette-swap of Streetwise) manages this well and in colour hue is more faithful to the original toy.  Lightspeed however has a more comic faithful colour scheme as well as the spoiler and side guns like the original toy, whereas Lightsteeds shotgun goes on the roof and he is still sporting the police lights rack which does not suit him.

Winner: UW Lightspeed

 

CW Afterbreaker VS UW Afterburner – Robot Mode

DSCF5801 DSCF5715

These figures are essentially palette-swaps of each other.  You can differentiate between the two somewhat by varying the way the windshield and front wheel are positioned on his back.  Afterbreakers colour hues are more G1-toy accurate whereas Afterburners are more G1-cartoon accurate.  Neither’s guns are really G1-faithful but Afterburners look cooler rather than just being copies of UW Groove’s.

 

UW Afterburner VS CW Afterbreaker – Vehicle Mode

DSCF5698 DSCF5792

Again, a direct palette sway of each other and again Afterbreaker is more toy accurate whereas Afterburner is mode cartoon accurate.  The windshield has been lowered from the Groove mold to make it more cockpit like reminiscent of the original character though neither has a G1 accurate cockpit colour (Afterbreaker’s is green and Afterburner’s is blue).  Once again, Afterburners guns look a bit cooler at the sides than Afterbreaker’s.

Winner: UW Afterburner (by an Energon sliver)

 

CW Strafe VS UW Strafe – Robot Mode

DSCF5797 DSCF5711

Like many of the other Technobots, Strafe’s colour schemes tend towards the toy on the CW side and the cartoon on the UW side.  This is most evident in their visors.  However the UW version has the small shoulder wings and more importantly can take off his vehicle mode’s guns and use them as pistols.  And let’s face it, the UW version seems to be just that bit more striking.

 

CW Strafe VS UW Strafe – Vehicle Mode

DSCF5791 DSCF5700

These are both really cool!  Both have been heavily retooled from different UW molds and as a result have completely different looks!  CW Strafe is boxy, has a black cockpit and looks like it could be out of a Halo game or Starship Troopers movie.  UW Strafe has an extra gun at the top and a curved prow giving him a sleek alien-drone look.  Neither fully replicate the original G1-toys look but that’s ok because they both look great!  Both do however have the twin tailfins and the twin laser guns at the front.  I love both of these and would be hard pressed to pick a winner between the two.

Winner: UW Strafe (because of the robot mode)

 

UW Nosecone VS CW Nosecone – Robot Mode

DSCF5717 DSCF5795

Never is the difference in direction taken to homage the cartoon VS the toy in the new Technobots more evident than in Nosecone.  CW Noscone has the tank tracks on the shoulders like G1 (both the original toy AND cartoon) and his colour scheme is very much the original G1 toy, using light orange, dull grey and a red face.  UW Nosecone has more browns in it, is white in the chest like the cartoon and sports new features like having the guns in the shoulders.  Both can use their drill pieces as a hand weapon, CW’s drill looking more realistic as a hand weapon due to being less bulky.

 

CW Nosecone VS UW Nosecone – Vehicle Mode

DSCF5788 DSCF5701

Like Strafe, Nosecone has been retooled from two distinct CW molds.  UW Nosecone is a heavy retool of CW Protectobot Rook while CW Nosecone is a slight retool of CW Combaticon Brawl.  If the UW version had not come along people probably would have been happy enough with the CW version.  But as it stands the UW version is heads and giant­-drill-bits above the competition!  Instead of looking like a regular tank with a drill instead of a cannon, UW Nosecone really does justice to the original character and with the new shape, the guns on top and aforementioned giant drill bit he looks fantastic!  Probably the best looking Drill Tank transformer we have had to date!

Winner: UW Nosecone (because of the brilliant vehicle mode)

 

CW Scattershot VS UW Scattershot – Robot Mode

DSCF5796 DSCF5718

To save confusion, in this review I am referring the to the CW Scattershot that came as part of the Computron gift set, not the individually packaged bot that came out a year earlier though I will be making reference to it.  CW Scattershot has a long rifle like the original figure (even if it is Silverbolt’s) and blue detailing on bits of his body like the stickers on the G1 toy.  UW Scattershot has a lot more browns in him like the original toy but comes with two big blasters.  Both have a blue visor and white face like the cartoon whereas the independent Scattershot had a completely blue face like the toy.

 

CW Scattershot VS UW Scattershot – Vehicle Mode

DSCF5790 DSCF5696

Perhaps the one example where the UW versions colour scheme is more G1-toy accurate than the CW version.  CW Scattershot has red along the ships nose/cannon whereas the UW version is completely white.  I don’t mind this too much as it differentiates the two CW versions and it looks pretty cool.  With the new guns whilst the CW versions one goes under the existing cannon to make it ludicrously long, the UW’s versions go under the wings which I think works quite well.  None of these versions are as cool as the original toy in my opinion and of course they all lack the third Cannon Emplacement mode.

Winner: Pretty close but I have to give it to UW Scattershot because of the differences he brings to Computron which I will go into soon.

 

CW Scrounge with CW Targetmaster Partner Cybaxx

DSCF5783 DSCF5785

There is no comparison to write here as these two only come with the Combiner Wars version of the Computron gift set.  Scrounge is a retool of Generations Cosmos with a comic-accurate head and Cybaxx is a direct recolour of Generations Payload.  Both are cool enough toys but G1 enthusiasts have been thrilled to get after so many years a toy of Scrounge who has been a very obscure comic character, known mainly for his long arm and traumatizing Blaster by dying.

 

 

CW Computron VS UW Computron

DSCF5812 DSCF5725

I don’t think any of the other gestalts from the two lines have differed so much.  Mainly they have been copies of each other with slightly different colour schemes and maybe one of the characters has a different mold (Blast off and Groove) or an extra character (Blackjack and Powerglide).  Here we see a UW Computron with a new chestplate, fairly uniform colour scheme and new head as well as a downward facing drill on his left knee.  CW Computron has the much improved hands and feet which first arose with the Victorion gift set and can attach Scrounge and Cybaxx on his left shoulder.  Both versions have advantages that the other does not have and, on top of the differences already mentioned, due to being able to position Afterburner/breakers motorcycle front differently as well as the differences between Strafe and Nosecone they look like different parallel-universe versions of each other rather than a simple palette swap.  This is enhanced by the fact that UW Scattershot brings into the mix a new chestplate and head whereas CW Scattershot makes Computron look a bit too much like Superion when displayed together.

Winner: UW Computron (due in large part to the new head and chest)

 

So overall, which should you get?

DSCF5810

Well, overall, especially when it comes to the limb characters, Unite Warriors is a definite winner and if you were to only buy one this is the one I would choose.  However the Combiner Wars version of this group is pretty good too and has extras like a poster, trading card and two extra characters.  Personally I will be mix & matching.  I will be using Scattershot from UW with the limb characters and hands & feet from the CW version to make Computron whilst I will be using all the others to represent the individual bots.  But a great effort by both Hasbro and Tak/Tom and whichever way you go you will not be disappointed by your purchase.

DSCF5806 DSCF5724

Toys Review – Team Sky Reign

Team Sky Reign of the Combiner Wars is one of those groups that doesn’t quite make sense considering the characters in play.  Four ground vehicle Autobots from Season 2 of the cartoon, a giant space shuttle Autobot from season 3 as the body and then the Junkion Leader as some sort of proxy backpack. Pretty odd group to become a gestalt eh?  Personally I purchased these simply as I find it very hard to pass up a figure that is a G1 character homage – unlike the traditional combiner teams (Stunticons, Protectobots etc) these guys will be staying separate rather than in their gestalt form for the most part in my display.

 

Robot Modes

Hound – Scout

Quite a nice looking Hound. The mould suits him really well and is indicative of his other incarnations. Good colours and poseability. Nice head sculpt too and the facial expression suits Hound quite well – no chain-beards here!

Hound1

Smokescreen – Diversionary Tactician

Lovely colours, but one of the boxiest Smokescreens we’ve had in years. No particularly sleek lines and no doors coming off the shoulders. Legs and arms fairly poseable. Nice forehead fins in yellow, a bit too blue in the legs.

Smokescreen1

Trailbreaker – Defensive Tactician

Actually – surprisingly good! For me the Generations version had the front of the vehicle facing too far forward instead of downward for him to be truly Trailbreaker’esque. The flat chest and stomach actually seem to suit the figure well. Another bonus is his rounded blaster hand – this is something I never noticed in any of the pics I saw online so was a very pleasant surprise and helps give him his own feel. A shame they put it on the right hand instead of the left as in the cartoon it was always the left but you can overlook it. Good poseability, great colours, excellent head sculpt.

Trailbreaker1

Wheeljack – Mechanical Engineer

Wanna know why Wheeljack is so small in the picture? Because every time I took a photo up close Wheeljack appeared as a flare because he is so white with nothing breaking it up! All the rumours you’ve heard about Wheelkjacks lack of paint apps are true. They’ve given him the windshield on the gut yet its white, his hands are white – everything is plain white! Worst looking Wheeljack we’ve had for years (if you don’t count the Tiny Titans one).

Wheeljack1

Sky Lynx – Lieutenant Commander

A nice looking Sky Lynx indeed. While the poseability isn’t great nearly every part of him can be repositioned to some extent (wings, tail, legs, feet, neck, mouth) so you can give him different looks. Blasters can be attached to the wings or to elongate the tail.

Skylynx1

Wreck Gar – Junkion Leader

The beard should have been a bit less dark, as it is it looks like a big black smudge on the bottom of his face – a shame since there is actual definition between the mustache and the beard.  He is very lanky too but pretty good for such a small figure.  Could’ve used an axe.

IMG_3525

 

Vehicle Modes

Hound – Army Jeep

Like Swindle this is his weaker mode. It’s not a bad looking jeep overall but it doesn’t quite work on some levels. That said, it’s a more grown-up looking jeep than the Universe version and a more milatristic looking jeep than the Alternators version. Having the star on the hood and being able to put the silver gun at the back and off to one side make this toy look more Hound’esque. Once again like Swindle there are little details like saddlebags etc on the sides which are easy to overlook as they have received no paint apps.

Hound2

Smokescreen – Sports Car

Very nice indeed! Well proportioned, good paintjob, 38’s on the doors and hood – overall very Smokescreen’esque.

Smokescreen2

Trailbreaker – SUV

A case where using the hand/foot attachment actually seems to serve some purpose. It acts like a removable cab over the ute tray to give him much more of a G1 feel. This is ruined if you look at him from behind with the thumb sticking out and all but from the front and sides it really works. They also got the stripes just right on the sides of the vehicle.

Trailbreaker2

Wheeljack – Race Car

Certainly his redeeming mode. Looks really good and is very faithful in shape, colour and concept to the Wheeljack character. Very nice indeed if still somewhat plain looking.

Wheeljack2

Sky Lynx – Space Shuttle

Besides the undercarriage sticking out from under the back of the Space Shuttle good and it’s very faithful to the original Sky Lynx concept in terms of proportions, colour scheme and shape. Very nice. Blasters can once again be attached to the wings.

SklyLynx2

Wreck Gar – Motorcycle

A sleek, futuristic looking motorcycle.  Could have used a bit more gray instead of yellow and maybe the odd spike.  Not a bad reuse of the Groove mold however.

IMG_3526

 

Combined Mode – Sky Reign

I showed up once in the comics where I had different limb characters and worked for Galvatron. How humiliating!

Actually, you know what?  It’s not that bad looking a gestalt!  The Lynx head looks very cool indeed and differentiates him from the other gestalts in look.  Sky Lynx overall works really well as a torse, providing a great looking head, chest and limb connectors.  The fact his two blasters combine into one huge sword is very cool too.  The rest of the team are quite interchangeable as limbs, it doesn’t really seem to affect the look too much whom you put where.  Smokescreen in particular looks like his  colour scheme works well alongside that of Sky Lynx.  The limbs aren’t really super impressive, you’ve seen all these molds as limbs on the other combiners before.  But the overall effect of these guys combined is better than I thought it would be and Sky Reign can be posed in a myriad of ways.  Wreck-Gar really doesn’t work anywhere on him, not even as an odd looking backpack, I can understand why he was dropped from the official description of the gestalt at the last second.  It’s interesting that Sky Reign has finally shown up in popular fiction (the IDW comics Transformers #52 & #53) yet not only was Wreck-Gar left out but the limbs were completely different characters.

Overall it’s a fun group (Wheeljacks poor robot look notwithstanding) with a surprisingly fun combined mode.  It’s a shame that Wreck Gar doesn’t really connect properly since all the other gestalts are made up of six figures (even if they just become a weapon) but there are ways around it.  So Wave 6 of the Combiner Wars gets a big thumbs up from Big Transformer Trev.

 

Related Posts:

Classic Reviews of Beast Hunters and Combiner Wars Sky Lynx

Multiverse Gallery of Sky Lynx toys

Toys Review – the Combiner Wars Combaticons!

Combiner Wars has been a true joy for many of the geewuners out there and a personal favorite group of mine for decades have been the Combaticons.  It just made so much sense for transforming robots who were fighting a civil war for millions of years to have military alt-modes.  Whilst I have done individual thread reviews of each of the six Combiner Wars toys on other sites, I thought I would pop up a group review here for anyone who wants the skinny on the entire Combaticon set without having to look up each figure individually, including their combined mode – BRUTICUS!

 

Robot Modes

Swindle – Munitions Expert

I think perhaps the best official rendition of G1 Swindle we have ever seen! I love my Animated Swindle but for a more G1 look this wins. Really well proportioned, decent articulation, good colour scheme etc. Has a good weapon, though it would be nice if he also had an arm cannon more like G1 Swindle/Animated Swindle rather than a grey shoulder mounted one.

Swindle1

Vortex – Interrogator

An ok version of Vortex. The colours are good and they have done the head very well. They have moved the majority of the yellow from his chest to his missiles which is only so so. The missiles built into the wrists rather than the big gatling guns hanging off the ends works better than the G1 toy. A shame about the helicopter tail sticking up over his back, reminds you that this is an Alpha Bravo remould.

Vortex1

Brawl – Warrior

A nice rendition of Brawl. You can either hook his cannon onto his back for a G1 look or put it in his hand as a blaster. I prefer the former and him using his double-cannon as a hand weapon. Good colours, decent proportions, but very loose arms that easily come off.

Brawl1

Blast Off – Space Warrior

Oh geez – they didn’t even give him a new face! The body looks ok’ish but he looks like an Aerialbot dressed up as a Combaticon for a Halloween party!  Good thing the UW version is shaping up to be more accurate.

BlastOff1

Onslaught – Combaticon Commander

We’ve had a few Onslaughts over the last decade and this one definetly looks the most like the original G1 version. Good poseability and articulation. The head sculpt is spot on and I like the fact the guns can go in the hands or on his back to recreate his classic look. A shame he didn’t get a 3rd rifle as well. I like the detail in the chest, though I’m not a fan of the purple on his legs.

Onslaught1

Shockwave – Military Operations Commander

The ends of the arms look a little funny but overall a pretty good reperesentation of Shockwave. The colour scheme doesn’t quite mesh for me, with the neon pink spreading from the blaster to other parts of him and the grey a bit lighter than usual. But the one-handed, one-eyed, pointy-eared Shockers we know and fear is very recognizable.

Shockwave

 

Vehicle Modes

Swindle – Army Jeep

Yeah, it’s a pretty tough looking military jeep, Looks like he could be driving through a warzone in the desert blasting away. Only downside is the inside of the jeep where the passengers would sit is full of Swindles arms. I guess they had to go somewhere but even Cybertron Swindle managed to avoid this. There are lots of little details like saddle-packs on the sides, though they lack the paint details that could make them stand out.

Swindle2

Vortex – Attack Helicopter

A nice helicopter but a bit more elongated than I would like, the original Vortex looked far more like an attack chopper. You can attach his rifle to the side, would have been good if you could attach it to the front. Overall good, but again it shows it’s an Alpha Bravo repaint.

Vortex2

Brawl – Tank

A nice looking tank! Very solid and I like the way his double cannon hooks on the back. Really good colours and looks excellent overall.

Brawl2

Blast Off – Fighter Jet

He’s a fighter jet now. A stinkin plane. Maybe it makes more sense given the rest of the Combaticons alt-modes (it did always seem odd to have four military vehicles and a space shuttle) but Blast Off was always distinctive as being one of two Con space shuttles from season 2, not yet another jet that there were already plenty of. Dissapointing. The UW version will be remedying this and turning him back into a Space Shuttle (out in June if memory serves). You can put his big rifle under the wing to approximate what the G1 toy did but you really need a second one for the look. The only positive is that they did the colour very well.

Blastoff2

Onslaught – Anti-Aircraft Truck

Looks pretty cool, though I’ve never seen this dual-cab thing in real life that a lot of TF’s are popping up with nowdays. The guns in the middle work well for the look but it would be better if they could be maneuvered more. The colours are ok though I did like the camo black spots on the original Onslaughts truck mode. Pretty cool overall, though wont win any beauty pagents. You can plug Shockwave in at the top for some extra firepower which adds extra play value to both toys alt-modes (you can plug Shockwave into Onslaughts back in robot mode but it aint a good look).

Shockwave – Cybertronian Laser Gun

Very similar in appearance in some ways to his FOC counterpart, however he has a trigger you can flip down to change him from a flying gigantic purple space gun into a regular gigantic purple space gun. Can plug into Onslaught or be used by Bruticus.

OnslaughtShockwave

 

Combined Form – Bruticus

Looks great!  Very faithful to the original figure, though with the elongated arms which seem to permeate the CW Gestalts.  The colour scheme is spot on which is always a worry when you combine 5 or 6 different figures into one big one.  All figures combine together very sturdily and unless he falls over or you drop him they should not seperate during (restrained) play.  The hands and feet aren’t brilliant but certainly do the job so unless it’s something that really irks you you don’t need to go out and buy a 3rd party upgrade such as Menasor desperately needed.  It’s a shame that Shockwave weighs down his arm so much, there is really no way to pose him properly with his gun in the air.  But a very sturdy figure that looks like he could easily stomp some Bots!

photo%203%205_zpsezwf8vqm

 

So overall this group is pretty damn cool!  They work well as a group in both modes (I must get around to taking some pictures of that) although Shockwave looks way out of proportion to the others as robots.  If one can get one’s head around the idea that Shockwave is now a Combaticon (it was far easier to accept Powerglide becoming an Aerialbot) its a nice looking 6 in alt-mode at least.  The Unite Warriors version will be out in a couple of months with different paint schemes and a whole new Space Shuttle mode for Vortex (no Shockwave though) so if you missed out on these guys there are more on the way!

 

For more detailed, individual reviews of these six figures, you can find my reviews in the Ratbat Reviews section 0f Ozformers here: http://www.otca.com.au/boards/forumdisplay.php?f=9