@World Prime - Thanks! Glad you like it. I'm just an amateur compared to the stuff I've seen on the Radicons Customs thread. I enjoy enhancing a lot of my figures. It allows all those molded details to really come forward and can give an otherwise plain looking TF some much needed definition. Some people (like myself) appreciate how it looks and some others think it can be too busy. @unicronic - I wouldn't say it's too difficult. Panel lining is basically going over the lines and details of a figure with some color. There are many ways to accomplish that. (Painting is an entirely different story) It all depends on your experience level and skill. Have you ever built a model before? Do you have a steady hand? It also involves lots of patience and most important of all, the right tools (I used Gundam marker pens, Gundam paint markers, and a Gundam mechanical pencil) I'm a bit of a perfectionist, so I tend to go over every single detail that I see on my figures and that takes time. I also doesn't hurt that I have a background in fine art, so I guess that gives me a slight advantage
I like this guy almost as much as Springer, definitely more than Jetfire and Arcee (nothing wrong with them, they're great too). I actually thought mine had two right feet and was pleasantly surprised to discover the ankle tilt. Along with that, love the height, size, double jointed arms, and the panels covering the hollow parts. Hip ratchets are almost as loud as Jetfire's. Feet aren't as big as they seem in pictures. For some reason I thought he had a decal sheet. I've read that the head fix is a combination of the rubber band holding down the head with the 42791 production stamp on the box, where as the not fixed has 42551 without the rubber band. Mine is 42791 without the rubber band and the head was hard to get out. I'm thinking it's not so much a running fix, but a packing change? Rather than having the head sunken all the way in past the port behind Arcana's head making it stuck, it's tabbed where it should be with the rubber band holding it in place? Thought I'd throw that out there should anyone be doing research. Either way, great figure that I highly recommend!
Mine is completely hacked, it doesn't even have a complete ridge at the bottom. I know that the headmaster gimmick has been a hot topic, but is the latch supposed to peg into the port behind Arcana's head? It doesn't feel as natural as having the head sunken all the way in.
Finally got this guy myself. Online prices are surprisingly agreeable for this one. Had to pay a lot more for Rhinox. The robot mode is great. Looks nice, lots of detailing. Good articulation. He does have the bobblehead effect but it's not that bad. You have to shake him to get it. he can still look in just about any direction and hold it. Could use some reprolabel love, though. Transformation engineering, as others have mentioned, is extremely disappointing. Easily legends class which is a joke for a Voyager class figure. Especially just after getting Rhinox, which makes this look like an early first-gen prototype. The only real engineering selling points for him are the panels that hide his hands and feet, and the headmaster gimmick itself which is a lost art (newly engineered to add neck articulation). Vehicle mode bothers me. Not being a Starfox fan I don't get the Arwing nostalgia with it. All I see is a nice nosecone with the arms and legs jutting out of the back like tumors. Clearly the altmode got the shafted treatment from the Legend class engineering. The only points I would give for it are the fact that the Headmaster actually fits in the cockpit, and the properly scifi style skiff landing gear, instead of the usual plastic wheel. Robot mode gets an A+, everyone else is a D, and I'd only give it that much because he's a modern functioning headmaster.
I finally got my hands on one (he never got released at retail in Canada), I'm glad I picked him up. I got one of the "fixed" versions with the rubber band on the head and so far I've had no problems with Arcana although I was afraid of pulling him out the first time I transformed him. I love the robot mode, he looks fantastic. The transformation is extremely simple, but I still like the look of him in vehicle mode and don't think it's a "robot doing yoga" as I've heard him discribed by others.
Been on the fence with this one. Was never impressed seeing pictures online. Never came to my area. Finally a week ago it finally came here. $26 at target, and almost didn't get it. But because I never had a Headmaster I pulled the trigger. Never opened it, never felt good about the almost $30 I spent, so I returned it. Saw it in TJ Max 2 days later, and got it for $16. And I still think I payed too much. I knew that this was gonna be a very simple transformation. But sometimes all the research cannot prepare you for the genuine article. The wrists are incredibly floppy. Holding his guns is clumsy and awkward. His double elbows were pretty stiff- but they will loosen. The whole headmaster gimmick is almost a total fail. His seat wont stay up; the "lever" doesn't move, let alone release the head. Seriously- it just feels like a loose piece. Is it supposed to slide? And then wrestling out Arcana... I pulled off his legs, while still being a head. I'm tempted to take it apart to see if I can do anything with it. However, I will say that this is a solid figure with good plastic and sturdy build. Generations Brainstorm is, unfortunately, is easily one of the LEAST satisfying TF I own. It may go in my sales thread. If HASBRO makes any more Headmasters- better ones- then Brainstorm goes.
He's ok. Fortunately I got the fixed second version from TFsource since I never found this figure in person. The tumbler stats gimmick doesn't work as well as I'd hoped and I wish there were more notches in the hip ratchets. I actually prefer my Toyworld Brainstorm (especially since I paid less for it than I did for this); but I'm still satisfied having this figure since I already have a comic accurate Swerve, Tailgate, and Chromedome anyway.
I was just wondering how this guy scales with Hasbro Universe Hardhead Ultra class figure. Thanks in advance.
I'm surprised to hear so much disappointment over this guy. Yes, the tolerance/quality failures are unforgivable but from an aesthetic and design perspective he's one of my favorites of recent years. My first one (found at Wal-Mart...the only one I ever saw on a shelf) had no rubber bands, Arcana simply could not be extracted. I was as gentle as possible but nevertheless, the headmaster lost his own head like so many others. My second one is perfect (bought from HTS)...no floppy wrists, perfect head gimmick, etc. I liked him enough to buy another to keep MISB. As for the simplicity...why is this a surprise to anyone? With a few exceptions, Voyager class figures (formerly called "Mega") have always been on the simpler side, going all the way back to the very first figures of this size in Machine Wars and Beast Wars...and in no way did they make them less enjoyable (IMO)...they're just a different experience...which each of us may or may not enjoy. Perhaps we're spoiled by Voyager Class Springer/Sandstrom Thurmond? One of my all time favorites is VERY comparable in terms of simplicity...even has a "quasi-Master" gimmick!
wtf. found a brainstorms instructions in maxx which means they had at least one in the week that i didn't check.
