-Submitted by: mag jr. A note: Since Hasbro lost the trademark to Bluestreak, they have stuck with the name Silverstreak. However, being just a bit of a purist, Im sticking with Bluestreak. Just a note.
Vehicle Mode
Bluestreak is a Datsun Fairlady Z (known as the 240Z in the US, IIRC). Since Nissan (the actual company behind the car--Datsun was their export name in the 70s) never licensed this toy, Takara and Hasbro have been forced to remove any references to the make (these are instead replaced with "Streak" decals).
Anyway, this is a fairly accurate model of the car for the time (considering that his interior is actually all robot parts). When I was a kid, I wanted this one bad--I thought the car looked so cool--and was disappointed when, invevitably, I ended up with a silver one. The catalog had a blue one! I thought.
Of course, the blue one never actually got released in the US at retail (no matter what various price guides, or fans who insist they saw one, say). There are a lot of blue Diaclone Streaks around, yes, but nobody has ever been able to produce an actual blue Bluestreak. Id be happy to change this if they do--stranger things have happened, and theres always the possiblity a few got out as dealer samples--but it isnt likely.
Anyway, I did note that the doors are plastic. IIRC--and I dont always--mine had metal doors. It was broken long ago, though, so I cant check this one against the original.
Transforming him to robot mode isnt too hard, but more involved than other G1 toys. Open the doors and carefully pull the feet back. Lift up the piece on his waist, rotate it, push the feet up and separate them. Pull the arms apart and out from underneath the front section, then pull the front section down. Fit his weapons on and youre done.
Robot Mode
When I got this reissue a coupla years ago, my first thought was: "My God, hes tiny." Poor old Bluestreak is only about as big as an Energon basic (want proof? Check the photo).
Still, apart from the fact that he has no real movement below the waist (ahem, get your minds out of the gutter), he does have a decent amount of articulation, thanks to his arms--8 points. Of course, those are all in his arms, but lets be thankful for what they could accomplish with the limits of the days technology and such. Right? Right.
Ive always liked this robot design (doors as shoulder wings, front end as chest) and its no surprise to me that the basic Fairlady robot mode design ended up a template for the first Alternator, Smokescreen--apart from Optimus, Megatron, Soundwave, and Starscream, this is arguably the iconic Autobot "look" that even nonfans remember from their childhoods.
I do have a big gripe about the reissue. I dont care about the pins being removed from the missile launchers--those never worked anyway (and the pins were so small I couldnt fire the missiles when I was seven years old). No, the weapons are supposed to be chromed--and theyre just black plastic here. I am glad they didnt alter the missiles (probably because they no longer fire anyway) but this annoys me. It was probably a stupid cost-cutting measure, which is ridiculous to do with a toy you plan on charging $30US for which is supposed to be for hardcore fans in the first place. And considering they did chrome his legs and wheels, it looks even dumber.
Of course, the other complaint is one dating back to the original toy--the fragility of the head/windshield piece. I broke this three times when I was a kid (fortunately, my dad was finally able to make a lasting bond with epoxy) and its the main reason why so many junked Z cars are out there in the first place. I dont really dare to play with this toy--the plastic is heavier now, but it would still break the first time it got dropped on the floor--so I usually leave it on display or in the box.
Last Word
Im not really that down on the toy--its still a favorite of mine, and there are plenty of chromed rifles, missiles, and missile launchers floating around in the aftermarket anyway. If you can stand the changes, this is a great way to pick up the toy, especially since you can avoid the whole breakage issue with a brand new one. |
| Notes
Although long-rumored, there is no such thing as a "blue" Bluestreak in Transformers packaging. There was, however, a blue Bluestreak in the Diaclone line.
Contributors: Tony_Bacala, Harold Tietjens, J.E. Alvarez, The Hartmans, ams, Destro, Runamuck, MegaPrime33, holygrail 4 Views: 4,288 |
Bluestreak was one of the Autobots who was on the Ark that crashed to Earth millions of years ago to only be reactivated in 1984. He was one of the least sympathetic Autobots towards the human race. He had even suggested repairing the Ark and abandoning the humans to fight against the Decepticons once he learned that Sparkplug had given them an alternative fuel source while he was in their capture.