I wonder if we are going to start seeing parts of Autobot Spike now with this release. It was supposed to start with Hound H50 and this is H51. Maybe…?  

 

I don’t really see how the headlights are done any differently than on any other Ironhide, and at any rate don’t look bad. I think robot mode is fine, but I like the V1 robot just as much and its van mode MUCH better. The alt mode is why V2 is an easy pass for me.

 

It is how prominent they are. They stick out too much, they are too large compared to the rest of the torso, and some angles even give the illusion that they stick out beyond the sides of the torso.

 

I kinda wonder if we’ll get EX versions of this since the toy was so whack. There’s not really a lot of stickers on it either. This might be one of the few that don’t get the EX treatment, and if that’s the case I’ll stick to the MS I already have in my toon collection.

I do like them, but not enough to swap out the MS versions.

 

They look good - niggles like the forearms aside, I think I them better than MS. Is that sled actually part of the vehicle and not just an accessory?

 

Missed out on V1 and despite liking the silhouette, MS' materials don't feel satisfying. Hope these are early Q1 so I can grab them before CNY.

 

You could be right, but the ‘toy’ version of Jetfire was just the cartoon version with a different colour scheme and head.

Maybe they can still give him tampos that look like the toy stickers?

 

The thing is though, there’s not a lot to tampo. From the front, there’s only the leg stickers and that’s it. Maybe NA can figure out something clever to make it worthwhile though?

 

It could be a black head, silver crotch, and red thighs, alongside the stickers. Maybe more black parts in the arms.

 

It looks like an accessory to me. I don’t see any hinges anywhere on the sled…I wish it were part of the vehicle, though…

 

Sign me up, baby. Bot looks great. Love Newage transformations.

 

I really love it, but I knew I would. Yeah, those forearms are a bit unsightly, but the overall balance is great. The proportions, the size of the head compared to the size of the torso, it all gives him (them) a slender, youthful look, which is quite typical for NA’s robot modes.

When compared with V1, I still think the alt mode will be less true to the real car, but the robot mode is better from a toon accuracy standpoint, especially due to the cleaner legs and the much more compact torso (it looks « full »). And if the earlier renders are to be believed, the back looks cleaner.

The sled is a fun gimmick, but since it doesn’t integrate with the alt mode, it feels a bit superfluous (NA’s pricing alert !).

As for NA changing scale, that’s a ridiculous assumption : they still seem to follow the Sunbow chart religiously, and getting closer with each remake of an older mold. Making IH and Ratchet 0.5 cm bigger will make them even more in-scale.

MS’ Vanbros are great, I’d almost say they’re flawless, but they also reflect the typical MS style : their robot mode are bulky, and their legs and torso are more voluminous than this NA’s version (especially when compared to the size of the head). Gives a more « battle-hardened » look. In this regard, I feel more at home with NA’s approach, but obviously mileage may vary.

In the end, it’s a matter of interpretation, and both brand sticking to their design style. Being a mostly NA guy (though I far too often double dip on NA and MS), I’m very happy with what we’ll get there.

Now I can’t wait to see how it transforms, since smart transformations are one of NA’s strength.

 

I think they both look really good and a nice improvement over the V1 bots imo. I'm still not thrilled about how the alt mode looked for them in the renders but I'll reserve my judgment for when we get more pics. Worst case scenario I'll just leave the V1's in vehicle mode. The huge forearms aren't the best as well but all in all I'm still excited for the both of them. Hopefully they arrive before CNY!

I also hope we start seeing more progress on this! Fingers crossed!

 

Showz just updated their listing with some new pics: [Pre-Order] Newage H51 Hawk Ironhide


Alt mode looks tiny! Very curious to see how it scales compared to some of their minibots.

 

Hopeful this means that Newage will keep using the hinged open hands moving forward:

 

From what I remember that drill he uses in More Than Meets the Eye came out of his forearm/wrist area but the trigger came out for use in hand so the drill top should have extended back just a little bit more, at least to sit flush with the wrist/forearm.

 

I will say this--happy to see the chest wasn't a faux or flip-around window scheme; it actually is part of the van mode (which I was starting to assume was true, with the headlights being 'cut off' on the sides of the chest/abs area). And the belt-bumper transformation is interesting.

 

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That’s strange… The red articulated plastic bits at each side of the windshield in robot mode don’t seem to be there anymore in the alt mode, where there is much less red at the sides… Yet you can still see the right and left screws behind the windshield. I wonder what’s going on here (or perhaps I’m imagining things).

 

It appears just the sides of the chest rotate 180 degrees, take a look of this image of Ratchet with the chest down. You can see more of the windshield on the back of those side pieces.