I'm glad that I purchased the set, but I can see where you're coming from in a few places. My copy is perfectly fine QC-wise, and even then the 5mm hole on the figure's back is still a tad big on my copy straight OOB, so any 5mm accessories are held in kinda loosely in said hole (Requiring a few drops of superglue to somewhat rectify).

The transformation can be a bit more fiddly than the Siege version, but my copy is still tight enough that the vehicle mode still holds itself together fine even without the arms been pushed down as intended.

 

I actually really like Siege Mirage and generally found his vehicle mold to be "close enough" to an Earth car, but this ain't bad at all. The shoulder cannon is slightly disappointing, but there's bound to be an easy fix coming (if not one of the several already offered)

 

Great write-up and pics!
My set arrived from Hasbro Pulse yesterday and I've just started to dig in.

My hot take: I really wanted to like the Siege version but it was just a bit too far out of whack to match the best of the Deluxes. The clear plastic tabs meant that I would never fully peg the vehicle together which made a fugly race car mode even worse. So, Kingdom Mirage, shoulder cannon issue not withstanding, is better than the Siege version in every way that they are different. If the first version was a C+, this one is a solid B. Would I prefer it to be an A+? Well yes but I also don't really care that much anymore. We have gone around and around so many times on the G1 characters that I don't hold any new version in very high regard anymore. The assumption is that within a few years, there will be an all new, better version of this character coming down the road. This one is more than good enough for now.

 

I thought I would live this - I do not. He is cool and all but he does not have the same Wow factor to my like the Siege did when I unpacked that.

Would love to see a Crasher from it though.

 

Pros:
* Strong robot mode appearance
* Fine articulation
* Race car mode, while not stellar, does a serviceable job looking like an open-wheel racer.
* Mostly solid in either mode if transformed correctly.
Pros over Siege:
* Robot mode proportions are improved IMO, with the upper body not quite as wide/broad-shouldered.
* If the translucent body panels of the Siege toy concern you, This version has none.
* Car mode is much improved. Putting them side by side accentuates how much of a fat-ass the Siege vehicle has, not to mention its fake front sticking out the rear (tucked underneath for Kingdom), seemingly justifying an awkward, ugly vehicle form as 'Cybertronian'.

Cons:
* There is no shoulder mounting point for weapons thanks to the changed design. There are options for mounting on the upper arms or back, but the arm holes are shallow and the back port on mine is too loose to hold a weapon securely at all.
* Like other Siege-to-Earth remolds, the wheels remain Cybertronian in design, which looks off.
* I think the racing number deco could stand to be 'bolder'. The outline-only numbers don't stand out very well.
* The shin pieces can come lose/untransformed easily when moving the legs, but it's a minor issue, shared by the Siege mold.
* The transformation joint part the head rotates on can pop loose and become misaligned and difficult to lock down with the back clip.
Cons versus Siege:
* The aforementioned weapon mounting issues. Weapons have less paint detail than Siege as well.
* There are several bits of paint detail from Siege I wish the Kingdom version had, especially the silver around the kneecaps, and silver for the front spoiler wing, both the car's and the fake version on the robot's chest.
* Much of the white on the Kingdom mirage is painted instead of plastic, for a somewhat more inconsistent look compared to Siege.

Overall: Definitely a personal preference thing more than average, but I find it to be quite the improvement, addressing most of what bothered me about Siege Mirage, with the weapon mount issue being the main sacrifice for it. Maybe not worth it if you don't want the 2-pack, but I enjoy it at least.

 

Mine arrived today. Nice surprise.

I only got it for Mirage, the dino guy is up for sale if anyone wants.

As for Mirage, first impressions are definitely not good. (but I'll allow time for him to grow on me)

Best way I can put it is, I'm just not sure all the upgrades to the earthmode were worth it in the end. The QC is a mess on mine, but that's another story.....and the "no way to peg the shoulder cannon in over the shoulder" is WAY more frustrating once it's in your hand. The design fail in that regard is such an inexcusable oversight that it's not even worth debating. (note, the 5mm port on his back is way too big concoct any custom bracket as well)

For now, I rate this figure "suck".
EDIT: figure has been upgraded to "not bad" currently; once several issues were addressed. lol

...and if I'm just being honest, the oversized 5mm hole on his back making any makeshift solutions useless is really the biggest kick in the balls.


UPDATE:
Best solution I can come up with for Mirage and his shoulder weapon debacle.

two of Nonnef's plastic swivel adapters



pegged into the hole behind his shoulder, which is soooooooo shallow barely any 5mm peg can hold there, but whatever


at least it looks good

 

Having been fiddling with this figure for the last hour (and being equally frustrated; see previous post) , I know what you're referring to with the car mode.

There IS actually some super small micro-djustments that need to be made to get it to hold.

The two white tabs on the side of the faux-chest actually loop under the blue sides of the car and pull it closer, and together more. WHILE holding that snug in place, it allows the two arms to come together (the engine part) and when giving it a SOLID squeeze, it will indeed click and hold together. Took me like 10 minutes to get it right the first time, but it does work.

 

Siege Mirage's upper body and front vehicle wheels paired with Kingdom Mirage's legs works pretty great. You retain the missile launcher and have a vaguely Earth mode vehicle.





Cons: You still have a weird faux car front sticking out of the back of the car. And the front and back sections of the car don't peg together. That said, it still works well enough for display and you can still push it along a table and make vroom noises. I just wouldn't recommend it if you'll have a young kid playing with your Mirage or something like that, because the vehicle mode will flop around if you pick it up.

 

Well, I have my copy in hand, and I'm very unimpressed. Tolerances are all over the place, with the 5mm port in the back too big to hold any 5mm pegs. Additionally, some tabs are scary tight to peg and unpeg. The main body of the car doesn't want to tab together unless you really massage it, and the front wheel struts require more force to fold then I am comfortable with (and I'm struggling ti figure how how those struts are supposed to tab into the sides of the car, because there doesn't seem to be anything for it). I bought this set for Mirage to round out my ER autobots, with a fondness for the Siege mold, but this guy might just sit on the shelf in robot mode, once I get something figured out for the shoulder launcher since that trick with the Lambro missile launcher tube isn't viable.

 

Got mine today and…same here, will not stay together in vehicle mode. Trying to figure out where the issue is, but the blue leg halves/shins do not want to lock together at all

 

It takes a LOT of massaging and fenagling the first few times. Things loosen up and tab together better eventually, 100%. I had a very tough time the first few times.

 

Oh I can force things together to get it like….90% together, but the whole thing is u dear tension and wants to spring free, which is now how it should fee.

there is clearly some mold tolerance that is way off

 

Be sure you are hearing a CLICK as you move the two blue side panels (sides of legs) upwards into position. Both sides click into the white leg on the same side.
That helped me with keeping the halves together.

Also be sure the waist hinge is properly situated, it tends to move around a bit while transforming.

 

Here is how my legs sit
Also i feel like the shoulders should be able to go 100% flush with the white piece but cant get to 90degrees

 

oh, and the waist appears to have “soft detents’’, which I wonder about

 

Yeah there's a lot going on to help secure it.
Did you see my post from above?

I cut/pasted it here for you:

----------------------------------

Having been fiddling with this figure for the last hour (and being equally frustrated; see previous post) , I know what you're referring to with the car mode.

There IS actually some super small micro-adjustments that need to be made to get it to hold.

The two white tabs on the side of the faux-chest actually loop under the blue sides of the car and pull it closer, and together more. WHILE holding that snug in place, it allows the two arms to come together (the engine part) and when giving it a SOLID squeeze, it will indeed click and hold together. Took me like 10 minutes to get it right the first time, but it does work.

 

Can u explain what u mean by the white tabs looping “under” the blue sides of the car?
There is a tab/slot connection that seems to be clearly intended for each other, but there’s barely any friction, if any

if I try to clip the blue pieces any other way that misaligned the entire arm assembly

 

Sure.
Just make sure these white tabs, on the sides of the faux-chest, here:


...are clipped into these slots, here:


That will ensure you have the two halves pushed up high enough, and will allow for them to come together better. Give it a GIGANTIC squeeze the first few times you do it.

Also, make sure the armature that swings those two halves up and down makes a click when you position back upwards for car mode.

 

Here are some more photos of it fully transformed, and flush, and tabbed in properly. I hope this helps.

 

The tabs are in the slots, the issue is there is no “catch”, no friction

mine sits how your pictures sit, it just doesn’t feel tight and wants to pop loose