Let me qualify myself first by saying I bought the 3rd party Infernos from both Maketoys and MMC respectively. So, my short review will take into considerations on what I have experienced with the 3rd party offerings and what we have here in hand, the official Inferno from TakaraTomy.

As usual, TT MPs come packed in this slavish packaging that oozes elegance and scream collectible.
This time around, Inferno came packed with a mini collectible figure instead of the usual coin. This is a welcome change and the mini die-cast figure itself is pretty well made.







On to the content itself, Inferno comes with a plethora of accessories - front cab attachment for animation accurate colors / front cab attachment with an extension for cradling Red Alert (MP14) / hose hand that in animation colors / 3 sets of different faces (one which is used exclusively for the other alternate head / a hose made out of rubber / rifle / the water spray effect and of course a set of stickers.

Off the bat, when unboxing him, you know that you have a masterpiece in your hands. The firetruck is very toon accurate and looks pleasing to the eye. Compared to the 3rd party offering, he loses out in the detailing to be honest. But that is its only drawback. Everything else is rather uphill from here.















As you can see, he looks great with Red Alert and these two were made to compliment each other.

Transformation is got to be the most smartest transformation I have ever seen. the ladder tucks cleanly behind his back and stores into the cab of the Fuso. While the 3rd partie opted for the toy aesthetics, the official version gave us what to be the most animation accurate Inferno, which in my opinion, trumps over the other 3rd party offerings.

There were quite a number of Masterpiece moments and you can't help to feel at awe at some of the engineering design went into this figure. It is not bullshit difficult that you want to slam the figure on the wall.















And I would like to add that the transformation is also smart. You will never guess where the head pops out and many will always assume it comes from the back of the ladder, but it is not.

In robot mode, this figure SHINES. To me, the 3rd party offerings are good and servicable. But this is one SEXY bot with all the necessary articulation. The joints are tight, there are no paint chips, no paint bleeding and the plastic quality used are sturdy. He can pull off multitude of poses and dont let the blockiness fool you. The plain surfaces hides the awesome articulation that this figure possess.



















A very solid effort from TT and I highly recommend him. He is well built and has the makings of a great figure. If TT keeps up the QC and intuitiveness of the design and transformation. I have no doubt that Grapple wil be just as good and if not better.

A Solid 8/10 from me.

Note: points were deducted from minor blemishes such as the lack of detailing on the figure for the alt and some in bot more.

 

Awesome man! Thanks for the review and great pics as always. Waiting on mine to get here. Is it possible to get a pic with him next to Ironhide? Would you say he's better than Ironhide?

 

Okay, here goes. And yes, he is much better than Ironhide

 

Thanks. I do like Ironhide, but Inferno is channeling the cartoon model waaaaay better.

 

Kudos for the transformation sequence pics. If this guy is BETTER than Ironhide, and I LOVE Ironhide, I'm going to be in heaven with Inferno.

 

Bot mode and the transformation both look sublime, but I like the alt mode on the 3rd parties more. Oh well, I am still going to get Takara's Grapple.

 

thanks for the review and great pics to go along!

 

Was.seriously considering going passing...

Your excellent review changed my opinion

 

Any die-cast metal on the figure?

 

Pics of the back of the vehicle were making me hesitant, but this and the chosen prime's reviews are making me feel excited about the purchase. Looks pretty great, though I still wouldn't have minded a more detailed aesthetic

 

Seriously TC, that's was one of the best done reviews in recent memory. Well done bro.

 

Nice write up and fantastic shots.

 

Thanks guys , but not as good as kurt_the_goat'd review in the main news thread.

And as many of you have known the reason for the elbow gap on the right hanmd

 

Height comparison with mainline characters

 

Blows Hellfire away. I have to get this.

 

Just got mine. Very awesome. Lots of though was put into the designing the transformation. Everything fits together so seamlessly. Kudos to the designer.

Did the ol' Pledge finish protection on the lovely chrome parts as a precaution.

 

Love the fact that you get toon and chromed chest pieces, really caters to both crowds. He'll be replacing my Hellfire in the cabinet, but I'll be keeping Hellfire around as I like the toy aesthetic he has going on. Such a great time to be collector when you have so many good options  

 

The Aesthetic is a bit too jarring. No molded rivets on the whole darn thing? No diamond plating?


Still totally getting it, but I think they swung too close to "toon accurate".

 

VERY NICE!
Great review TCracker! Thanks for taking the time to photograph Inferno and to write this up.

Is the hand gimmick noted in the instructions? Or is that an easter egg?

I can't wait until I can afford this toy!