That Squeezeplayed Repugnus looks wonderful!

I remember Transformers: The Rebirth so well. Despite the misleading VHS cover that showed Powermaster Optimus Prime and Skullgrin and the fact that it got it all totally wrong (Cerebros? That's silly. Everyone knows Fortress Maximus fought Scorponok from his base in the Magnanese Mountains. He's not some big thing that Spike, of all people, could just build) I really enjoyed it. I'd have been nine years old when I saw it and I'm pretty sure I loved the massive character dump in part one. It had a bunch of (incredibly gimmicky) characters that didn't seem to be in the comics but were incredibly cool: Sixshot, Punch/Counterpunch, and the clones!

Of course it was an extension of the 'in with the new, slaughter the old' routine we'd seen in Transformers the Move, except this time they didn't even need to slaughter the old. Instead they just needed to stick a load of the old archetypes on new characters. Brainstorm feels like an update of Wheeljack and Pounce and Wingspan feel like an update of the diminutive brawlers that were Rumble and Frenzy. And that's pretty much as far as any characterisation, or even presence, goes. After this one appearance the cartoon ends two episodes later and they're never heard of again.

They're a weird idea, these clones. Two identical looking robots that have different alt modes. And you can only tell them apart by their rub symbol. Or like, just look at their kibble, if you can't be bothered with a rub symbol. I can't really imagine the pitch on these. I still don't get the attraction, and thus why anyone thought kids would think this was a brilliant gimmick. Ok, sure, 1987 was super gimmick heavy but the Punch/Counterpunch is cool. This less so.

They've got quite a cool look, with the teal chests and the bright orange eyes on those white heads. It's gives them both a somewhat animalistic glow. Rather nice. Articulation is a no-no, of course. Shoulder and that's yer lot. Through dint of his transformation sequence, can move his arms forward a little. Great use if you want to pose him like he's wearing cuffs, but that's about it.

The beast modes are as wonky as can be. Tiny animal heads on blocky, bricky bodies, with animal-ish bits sticking off. We're fooling no-one. Out of the two of them, Pounce is the one that really, really suffers. And it's a shame, because if the legs and head had just been that little bit more substantial, he could have been great.

Dodgy as they are, I can't dislike them. Their transformation sequences are actually quite good fun and you can tell that the challenge has really engaged someone's problem solving skills.

The TR updates are incredibly likeable little dudes. They look just like the pair of brawlers I saw in 'The Rebirth'. The robots are a very, very straight update/tribute to the original. No deviations to the original design, save to update the engineering. I'm not complaining. It was a good design in '87 and remains so now.

The beast modes do some justice to the concept that the engineering of 1987 never could. They're both much better looking beastmodes. That said, Pounce still draws the short straw. The robot-legs-to-beast-mode-wings on Wingspan, however, is inspired. It's not perfect, mine doesn't really tab in that solidly, but it's a neat trick!

 

While I don’t regret getting Sky Shadow (even though I really should have been filling other gaps with that money) Overlord is a way better version of the mold. The arms actually transform, the color scheme pops, the hidden middle launcher, and the Decepticon Disney Castle base mode just looks better. And I’ll probably be in the minority in that it quelled any desire for Carnifex, which looks over top and doesn’t seem to make as great a case for its huge price point.

 

Agreed on all points!

 

Who couldn't love getting the gang together?

 

Thanks a lot! My first real custom, pretty much. It was just so obvious, I had to do it. Keep up the great reviews!

 

I love this Bumblebee!

 

Ok, I give up, where are you guys finding Slugslinger and Twin Twist??? I nabbed the Takara Slugslinger, but I want the Hasbro version badly.

 

I got mine from Amazon for $22.50 shipped via Prime, didn't bother looking for him in the wild.

 

Decided to try my Shuffler herd on a single guy, figured Pax would be appropriate.


Also worked out a proper adapter for a TFA Ratchet Wrench for Nautica to use since I can't be bothered to have a comic-accurate one printed out. Unil they do a more accurate Nautica or I just skip to 3P for her, this chunkier monkey wrench will do. Also, that yellow sprue that I used to hold those cut-up Lego Technic pieces works perfectly for an accent color.

I ordered a Slugslinger from HTS last Thursday, specifically through their eBay storefront. It's estimated to arrive tomorrow for me.
Generic Error [this links to HTS directly as of January 22, trust me]
Transformers Generations Titans Return Deluxe Slugslinger And Caliburst | eBay

 

Hasbro Toy Shop currently has Slugslinger in stock.

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The sad thing is they don't have any of the Wave 5 figures, so no Twin Twist.

 

Twin Twist? What name dost thou speaketh?

Anyways, Twin Twist is on eBay... for a price like from $30-$60ish dollars, while Slugslinger is normal price on HTS and ranging from $20ish and more on eBay and Amazon IIRC. I should've bought Twin Twist when he was $19, but my mind was like this isn't Generations deluxe price and I'll probably find him at Target for retail price. Next thing you know, he and his pals are nowhere to be seen and it pisses me off that HTS has Slugslinger, but not Wave 5.

 

I'm really excited for this mold, I've been waiting for the Takara version.

 

Great job! He looks fantastic! And thank you!

"Roger Dodger Optimus Prime!"

"Roger Dodger Optimus Prime!"

"...Or the key to the plasma energy chamber."

And with those words we have all the dialogue, in comic or cartoon, for Fastlane and Cloudraker. Their non-speaking contributions were hardly much greater, which amounted to them walking off screen to look for something one episode and walking back on screen the next episode to say they couldn't find it. At least Punch/Counterpunch got to say something a bit dramatic and get his head kicked in.

These two aren't awful. There's something rather cool about the bright blue shades on the red faces. But they're nowhere near as cool looking as their 'Con equivalents. They're each a tiny bit more articulated than the 'Con clones, with BOTH of them being able to do the 'wearing the cuffs' pose and Fastlane has some honest to goodness neck swivel. Incredible.

They're deceptively big robots. Small compared to most of what we got in 1987, like Pounce and Wingspan, Fastlane and Cloudraker are bigger than most of yer '84 Autobots or the Jumpstarters. But in terms of simplicity, they're definitely closer to the Jumpstarters for sure!

Despite the grief I gave to Pounce and Wingspan's beastmodes, they're a load better than these two. These are both totally pants vehicle modes. the only things that make Fastlane look like a dragster are the big rear wheel and the spoiler. The less said about Cloudraker's wings and boner cockpit the better.

One of Hasbro's big hypes about these clone updates was that they weren't Legends scale. they were something new that came a bit bigger than your typical Legends class geezer. And sure, when you compare them to earlier Titans Return Legends like Wheelie and Rewind they seem a lot chunkier, but if you put them next to Brawn, Chase, or Seaspray then the argument becomes a lot less compelling. File alongside 'Foil Stamping' on Titan Masters.

The TR 'bot modes are UTTERLY charming. They're just so small, and stocky and full of that ROGER DODGER go get 'em spirit. I'm buggered if I know what exactly it is that imbues them with this super cartoon accurate feel, but it works! the articulation on these guys is fantastic and with the inwards arm swivel you can get some great 'putcha dukes up' poses. The vehicle modes are an improvement but still, ultimately, suck. I think I give Cloudraker slightly more points because I quite like his head fin.

 

ill send you my hasbro for your Takara  

 

Transformers Generations Titans Return Deluxe Slugslinger And Caliburst | eBay

I'm pretty sure he's still available through HTS as well.

 

Thank you Reprolabels for the decals, and Takara Tomy for the head. Though it ain't perfect at all when it comes to coloration, having a TR version of Goshooter is pretty goddamn rad!