For the past 6 weeks the fabulous More than Meets the Eye Exhibition has been on show at Kings Comics in Sydney. This has consisted of original Transformers artworks by recognized modern artists, as well as toy displays by prominent Australian collectors, showcasing Transformers merchandise from the past 25 years.
I was lucky enough to be invited to the VIP Opening Night of the exhibition and while there, along with Eddie Zammit – the curator of the exhibition, and Toy Exhibitor Lisamree Chiu, I was interviewed by the lads from Each To Their Own in their That Figures! series of videos. Check out their video below:
You can find more video’s by these talented guys at @EachToTheirOwn – make sure to check them out! And speaking of checking things out, make sure you get down to Kings Comics to see the Exhibition by Radio Velvet before it finishes up at the end of April!
The new Transformers: Rise of the Beasts movie is less than two months away, and figures are already turning up on shelves in anticipation of the latest instalment of the franchise.
When I attended the Beasts Base Camp experience at Taronga Zoo I was lucky enough to be given a gift bag by Hasbrothat contained, amongst other things, a Studio Series Airazor. Then when attending the MTMTE Exhibitionat Kings Comics my son was lucky enough to receive the same! So being the first foray for both of us into the new movies toyline, thought it only fitting that we give you our thoughts on the figure.
Robot Mode
Given that Airazor has not, as of the writing of this post, had her robot mode shown in any footage, it is hard to give a proper account of how screen accurate the figure is. It is certainly a nice looking figure, with an avian-like head, consistent colour-scheme, good proportions and decent articulation. The wings give a cape-like appearance and the missiles on the arms lend that combative look of an alien robot about to enter the fray. The face is not particularly feminine, but then very few Airazor figures in the past have had one either so one could say its true to form. The feet should be turned so that the smaller talons face the front, but I personally think she looks that bit cooler and more bestial with the larger facing forward.
Falcon Mode
The figure really shines here. A beautiful wingspan that can be adapted to a number of different configurations and poses. A sufficiently detailed head and claws really give that metallic-bird appearance, with this Airazor not having an organic outer form like previous iterations of the character. Looking from below she doesn’t look great, but then to be honest most real life birds don’t from that angle either (I raise ducksand chickens – trust me on this) so I personally find it forgivable. The only main detractor is that the outer wings unclip very easily. They can be clipped back on with similar ease so it’s a mild irritation at best.
Worth Getting?
Studio Series rarely lets us down in terms of screen-accurate & highly detailed figures, and has not disappointed once again. The figure boasts a lot of detail, though more detail in the Transformation would have been nice, you definitely don’t need the instructions for this gal. The figure shares much of its engineering with Kingdom Airazor so anyone who has that figure will know largely what to expect.
If you are into Beast Wars characters, or are looking to pick up toy representations of characters from the upcoming movie, then Studio Series Airazor fits the bill nicely and I welcome her as the first Maximal to enter my Studio Series collection.
Got something to say about this figure? Pop it in the comments section below!
Transformers can transform into most anything right? That’s what makes them Transformers. Over the years we’ve seen them turn into everything from toasters into entire cities.
There is also a history of Transformers turning into humans. Whether that’s having their consciousness put into a human clone like way back in the Generation 1 cartoon, to Pretenders – human on the outside but robots on the inside – like Alice from Revenge of the Fallen.
Bishōjo is a Japanese term for cute girl. Cute being the operative word rather than sexy. This term and indeed anime genre has spawned a statuette toyline called Bishoujo, a series of statues based off of Shunya Yamashita’s illustrations of various movie, game, and comic characters in the Japanese Bishōjo style. This series has contained characters ranging from fighting games to DC characters to even My Little Pony!
So ever wonder what Optimus Prime and Megatron would look like if they transformed into cute girls? Well lets find out!
Optimus Prime
There is a lot of details within this statuette that call back to Optimus Prime’s robot mode. The hair is styled in such a way to harken to Optimus’ antenna ears, the eyes are blue like his optics and there are even goggles on top. Most of the references to robot Optimus are in the clothing and accessories. The majority of the clothing is coloured to reperesent the robot mode colours, there are wheels attached to the boots, she has the Matrix on a necklace around her neck (stealing Galvatron’s look are we Optimus?) and even carries a briefcase indicative of Optimus’ trailer in truck mode.
A nice touch is that you can remove the face and replace it with one that has Optimus’ faceplate. This will appeal to some while others will find it offputting. Either way it means Optimus while in cute-girl mode is still COVID-safe!
Megatron
Like Optimus, there are many details in the Megatron figure that are call outs to the robot form. The hair frames the head like Megatron’s helmet, the eyes are red, the expression is aloof and irritated and the colour scheme of the clothing references Megatrons robot mode, from the grey top to the black skirt to the red on the inside of the trenchcoat.
A dominating part of this figure is the Fusion Cannon. They have made it so ludicrously big that Megatron’s cute girl form carries it akin to how one would carry a rocket launcher, rather than it being attached to the forearm.
The Packaging
These are figures that very few will be keeping MISB. The packaging is such that besides the face you cannot make out the figure within. The boxes are still quite nice though and worth keeping if you have the room. Personally I removed the inserts to use as backing displays for the figures.
Worth Getting?
These are not cheap figures, going for about $200au each, so are really only recommended for serious collectors of either the Transformers or Bishoujo toylines. But one cannot deny that they look great, and can certainly add a bit of variety to ones display shelves. Now to await the Bumblebee figure due to be released later this year!
What do you think of these figures? Really cute or just too weird for your tastes? Let us know in the comments section below!
What a time to be a Transformers fan! With the Rise of the Beasts movie to hit cinemas in two months, it seems promotional events are happening left, right and centre!
Wednesday night saw the VIP Opening Night for the Transformers: More than Meets the Eye art exhibition at King’s Comics.
Promotional Blurb: Radio Velvet, Kings Comics and Hasbro, a global branded entertainment leader, are pleased to present Transformers: More than Meets the Eye – a world-exclusive exhibition, celebrating the incredible universe of Transformers, through the eyes of its fans and collectors, plus, six acclaimed artists.
Being everyones favorite exhibitionist, Big Angry Trev was invited along to the exclusive VIP opening night of the exhibition, and what an exhibition it was!
King’s Comics and Radio Velvet went all out in setting up a dedicated space for this exhibition. The floors, walls and even stairs were covered in Transformers art. Sniff… it felt like coming home.
The FloorThe Stairs
The Walls
Toy Exhibitors
Along the outer walls were display cabinets full of Transformer products, classic and new. Cabinets were set up by Hasbro, Lobos Collectables and even Kings Comics themselves.
In what was a wonderful nod to the part the fandom plays within the Transformers brand, several prominent Australian collectors were invited to display parts of their personal collections. Jason Murray’s display, along with his huge collection of Transformers pins, was enough to make the most hardcore fan drool. Lisamaree Chiu’s highly impressive collection of Optimus Prime’s from multiple Transformer continuities showed how the character has changed and evolved over the years. Kelvin Chan, as well as helping set up the comic display for Lobos Collectables, devoted much of his own display to the work of late Australian artist Andrew Sorohan. Kings Comics employee ScottSheens had a wide and varied display, including a wonderful cityscape made up of G1 figures.
Display by Jason MurrayDisplay by Lisamaree ChiuSo many Optimus!Display by Kelvin ChanDisplay by Scott Sheens
A couple of fans even got to present multiple cabinets. Michael Vella’s multitude of Bumblebee’s, many of them quite rare, were very eye catching. And there wasn’t a fan present that didn’t contemplate what it would be like to own his showing of sealed G2 Stunticons! Ben Keenan had an incredible display of different Hot Rod/Rodimus Prime toys, and a collection of boxed G1 figures that would bring a joyful tear to the eye of the most hardcore Geewunner.
Bumblebee’s by Michael VellaVarious by Michael VellaHot Rod display by Ben KeenanBoxed G1 display by Ben Keenan
All the fans putting on displays were in attendance at this VIP event. This meant that guests could ask questions about individual pieces and added that extra delight to the proceedings. And for the exhibitors, they got the thrill of rubbing shoulders with local Transformers royalty – lucky ducks!
Lisamaree & Big Angry TrevJason Murray and Big Angry Trev both point to their personal idolMichael Vella & Ben Keenan with expressions of joy and awe – both appropriate responses
Meet the Artists
Of course, it would hardly be an art exhibition without artists. Running down the centre of the room were huge bio’s of each artist, giving an insight both into their art and the artists themselves.
For young and young at heart
Something I have personally loved is that both the Roar & Snore Beasts Base Camp and the VIP Art Opening event were accessible not only by the invited adult fans, but children too. My son Orion adored being able to stay overnight at the zoo, and felt like a celebrity when the friendly Hasbro staff at the art show all recognised him from The Transformatorium video and helped ensure he had a wonderful time! Thank you to Double Jump Communications too for helping to coordinate such fantastic events!
Father, son & Optimus at Roar & SnoreFather, son & Optimus at Art Exhibition
The More than Meets the Eye Exhibition will be on display at Kings Comics from the 6th to the 30th of April. I highly recommend even the most causal Transformers fan take the opportunity to visit and become entranced by what is truly an enriching experience. Full credit to curator Eddie Zammit, he’s put on a heck of a show!
Have you been yet to see this awesome exhibition? Tell us about it in the comments section below!
With the imminent approach of the new Transformers movie, Rise of the Beasts, promotion and marketing is in full swing!
Yours truly was lucky enough to get invited to help represent the Fandom on the opening night of the Transformers Beasts Base CampRoar & Snore Experience at Taronga Park Zoo. Along with a couple of other fans as well as celebrities and media, courtesy of Hasbro we were treated to a truly amazing night!
First off, you knew you were in the right place when there are two big fellas ready to greet you!
Big Angry Trev & Optimus Prime – I smell a spin-off coming!
We were given a guided tour by the keepers around some of the animal enclosures. It was interesting to see just how more active many of the animals are at dusk, it was the most animated I’ve ever seen koalas in my life! The zoo is very cool after opening hours.
They weren’t asleep!
We were subsequently ushered into an auditorium where we were given a special glimpse at some Rise of the Beasts material. A non-disclosure agreement prevents me discussing what we saw, but fans will be very happy indeed!
Surprises on the way!
After our secret viewing we were treated to some displays of the upcoming Rise of the Beasts action figures, due to hit shelves here in Australia on April 10th.
Sometimes it pays to be a superfan
Next a jaumty stroll to Beasts Base Camp – so cool! Everywhere you looked there was jungle-themed Transformer touches on show.
Into the main communial area we were ushered. Plenty of food and drink on offer as we lounged about on Transformers-themed cushions. Time for Big Angry Trev to go to work and shmooze with the other Aussie celebrities.
Miguel MaestreJordan Raskopoulos
As dark approached were escorted to our tents. Each tent was numbered and had its own Transformers theme. My tent-mate (Griffin of Ozformers) and I were in Tent 6 – The Mirage Tent. And talk about the views!
Inside on our beds, we found the very pleasant surprise of gift bags, containing all manner of Transformers merchandise – thanks Hasbro!
Freebies!
After another short tour we were given dinner, a delightful array of different traditional African foods. Then a special after-dark walk around some of the habitats.
No, not a satanic camel. At night the red light bothers the animals a lot less than white light
Next morning its more tours from the incredibly friendly keepers and then breakfast, followed by some up close and personal interactions with some of the animals. I must admit I absolutely ADORE giraffes, so getting to hand feed one was definitely a personal highlight and I was almost in tears, feeling so moved by the experience.
The event finished just as the zoo was opening up for the day, and what a fantastic fun experience it was overall! I’d like to thank Hasbro Australia once again for the opportunity, I can’t wait to bring my son to meet Prime & Primal! Don’t forget that the toys hit shelves on April 10th, and the Transformers: Rise of the Beasts movie will hit theatres on June 8th.
“Don’t mess with us – especially the little bloke below me, he’s angry!”
I’m a Transformers collector. For quite a while now, people have been asking to see more than just photo’s of The Transformatorium, my specially built shed housing over 4000 Transformer figures! But doing a quick few vids with a camera phone to post online didn’t seem like it would really do the scope of the shed justice.
So in conjunction with Able Media Productions, for the first time we have proper footage of The Transformatorium in all its glory, as well as questions about the shed answered by yours truly.
The following video is the extended cut with 12 extra minutes of footage, showing through my personal collection a history of Transformers toys going back nearly 40 years!
I’ve been collecting Transformers for nearly 40 years. For quite a while now, people have been asking to see more than just photo’s of The Transformatorium, my specially built shed housing over 4000 Transformer figures! But doing a quick few vids with a camera phone to post online didn’t seem like it would really do the scope of the shed justice.
A film 39 years in the making
So in conjunction with Able Media Productions, for the first time we have proper footage of The Transformatorium in all its glory, as well as questions about the shed answered by yours truly.
Blast Effects are becoming more and more popular in the Transformers toylines. What can make a giant alien gun look even cooler? How about a huge coloured laser coming out of the end! Lots of the larger figures in the mainline Transformers toyline are coming with blast effects now, though sadly not many for the smaller bots.
With this new trend, it was only a matter of time until some Third Party Companies decided to jump on the bandwagon, and start producing blast effects for those toys who came bereft of them. One such company is a new Australian business, 3D Damsel, who have been kind enough to send us a selection of their new products to peruse.
Yee-haw!
Note: 3D Damsel have not paid for this review, nor have they tried to dictate the contents of this blog. Bigangrytrev.com would like to thank 3D Damsel for the opportunity to review their products.
Pew Pew!
The blast effects we have received come in a variety of different sizes and blast-effect patterns.
The ones provided came in red
and blue
It is our understanding they are also available in green, which would perhaps suit characters like the Insecticons. It’s really nice to see such variation on the different blasts, making it easy to match the effect you want to the weapon its unleashed from.
Leader-class Bots
Voyager Class BotsDeluxe Class BotsScout Class Bots
Watch out, missile!
One of our favorites was the missile effect, showing the shell firing out with a trail of smoke behind it.
Careful of breakages
This fit great initially, then when reattaching it…
These blast effects are 3D printed, making them more brittle than the rubbery type included with the larger Transformer toys. While by no means overly delicate, it does mean you have to make sure not to be overly forceful when attaching them to the ends of weapons. These blast effects have been designed with hollow nubs on the ends, meaning you either push the nub into the end of the toys weapon, or else fit the hole within the nub over the tip of the weapons barrel.
Overall
It’s great to see an independent Aussie company trying something new, and the effects certainly do jazz up your battle scenes! The blast effects wont attach to every figures weapon, there being so many types, but are versatile enough you should not have much trouble matching them to a wide assortment within your collection. Hopefully down the track we will see an even wider variety of colours such as the traditional oranges, purples and yellows.
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.
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!
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!
And so the great cataloging for my personal and ever expanding Transformers Collection continues!
I pretty much took the 90’s off Transformer collecting, so my collection of original Beast Wars, Beast Machinesand Machine Wars is so tiny I can pop them all in the one post!
(Note: All figures in photographs listed from Left to Right)
