Even closer than what I thought to an actual HISS tank...

 

I’m still waiting for the rolling thunder ala TFC

 

Thanks!

Was curious how close Megs HISS was to an original.

 

Got him today. Yeah, this thing is everything as awesome as I imagined!

 

Just fiddled with this guy for a while, and I have to say, I'm on board for as many of these as they want to do. The bot mode is a bit lacking - I wish there was more articulation - but the alt mode is outstanding. Admittedly, I had a difficult time trying to get the legs/waist placed just right based on the directions (I could visualize where things went, but trying to decipher the pictures was frustrating), but once I got it into HISS mode, it's amazing. I would have done anything for something like this back in the 80s. The fact that this thing is compatible with Joe figures is incredible. I need to round up a Cobra Commander figure or Cobra Trooper to go with Megs, as the Baroness figure doesn't thrill me much, but that's a small gripe. I've got the AWE Striker/Bumblebee set inbound soon, and I have high hopes for that one as well. I wish a little more love went into the bot modes on these if they continue to do them, though.

My biggest gripe is probably the dumb 2-part box sleeve. Why is it in two different pieces?!? Just print all the graphics as a single sleeve! Getting the box in/out requires a little finesse, and it just seemed like an unnecessary thing to do.

 

I love the box, Half is 80s G1, half is 80s ARAH, look at the sides too!

 

The instructions were definitely poor in some spots. Though that's hardly unique to this toy alone.

 

I posted these pics elsewhere, back when I picked up my pre-order from Zing, but I thought I should post them here too.

The day I got him I just had to get outside, lie down in the dirt and get some photos of this bad boy outdoors!



Such a fun toy! It makes me feel like a happy little kid when I transform him back and forth.

~L~

 

Same here. My son and I have actually "played" with these more than pretty much any toy we've bought in a long time.

My excitement for these 2 grow as I see how much my 14 year old boy loves em. He is like I was..still loves his toys, but now he closes his door to "play"   we've opened both of these together, and I have not seen him get excited and play with something like this in a long time.

Admittedly... since I've picked these up, a few preorders came in...finally got Venerable..and acousticwave movie soundwave. Transformed both..love em..set them on the shelf and we keep messing with Megatron and Beestriker..these are SO good.

 

He rules. Good lord, he rules.

That said, the ONE thing that I haven't seen any reviewers mention, that had me tearing my hair out, was attaching his backpack out of the box. Without a sense of what the tolerances or the ductility of the plastic, I was trying to push it onto the hinge without pushing too hard, so as not to bend or break anything. It's made harder by the fact that A) you need to have it mostly transformed into tank mode so that the arms are out of the way (I think...maybe you don't?), which is hard because you have to interoperate the transformation instructions WITHOUT that giant piece in place and B) there's really nowhere under that section of the toy to hold to support it as you try and snap it into place. I eventually just mashed in on all at once with a ton of force, and it snapped on fine. But I wish the instructions had given some sort of clue as to the best way to do it. Or, like, ANY effing reviewer. Ahem.

Also, while he absolutely ownz, he doesn't $90-own. I'm very glad I got him for $50 on eBay, minus the Baroness figure. It was more what I think the figure itself is worth, and allowed me to purchase a H.I.S.S. tank driver for him instead, which I think look much better in the cockpit (tho note: the 2008 25th Anni version I got had an enormous holster on his thigh that gets in the way of him sitting properly in the cockpit. He'll sit, but it takes some finagling to make it work, which is annoying).

Last minor crit: I wish that, instead of coming with that half-assed (eighth-assed) fusion cannon, they had instead made the shield piece transform into his cannon ala the roof of Classics Prime that becomes his rifle. It wouldn't have been a cylinder, but it would have been more clever, fit the aesthetic of the toy, and been a much better use of that parts-forming bit.

And now, a last bit of praise: this figure has what I consider the best Megatron head and face sculpt of all time. I also felt the same way handling this figure (once I got the damn backpack on) as I did handling the original Beast Wars Megatron for the first time. It's a big, chonky, fun toy to mess with with a transformation that is clever and interesting without being too annoying. It feels more like a toy than an action figure in the best way.

 

Oh, the Jetfire that could happen in this aesthetic.

 

I'm still prowling all the Chinese KO sites in hopes they blow these up to 6" scale.

 

I picked up the OG Retro Collection Cobra Trooper and Officer re-issue (O-ring figures) for the HISS and it does look *MUCH* better with more troops on it than Baroness by her lonesome.

I had tried the 3.75" Cobra Commander from the newer Retro Collection main line, but he's just too tall next to the HISS and is out of scale with the Baroness. You'd think a 3.75" figure would be 3.75" figure, but there's really two scales of these out there. The Megatron HISS seems to be intended for the OG O-ring figures.

Despite this product's issues as a Transformer, this is a really good HISS tank.

 

What your talking about is one of the big conundrums with the modern figure line, vs everything that came before.

I could be wrong, but I'm pretty sure the whole 4" action figure term started with the 25th anniversary. Outside of the 80s and 90s, star wars continued and kept the standard scale, but when the 25th line came out.... alot of us lost our freaking minds.

WHY?!?! why would they do that? Every vehicle that was made for Joe, star wars, sgt Rock, ALL OF IT...was from a unnamed..unagreed upon "official scale"... and now these new figures don't work with most of it?!?!

The community eventually settled down, we accepted that a 25th Ace will never really work with an old skysyriker... that your Joe's WILL bash their foreheads on the terrordrome jail cell door..

But they are better for collectors. They look nice, pose well, but thats really about it. The 25th anniversary toy line was all collector fan wank because they are str8 up some of the shittiest "TOYS" you could ever want. The dreaded "Duke Arms" from the 1st wave that plagued the line for awhile..hiss driver with a holster that makes it hard to get him in the vehicle he is designed to drive..made for collectors..period. my son and I used to TRY to play with 25th stuff, but they were terrible. Never held guns..helmets didn't fit..ibcoukd go on and on..BUT THEY LOOKED NICE...

O Ringers are the ultimate action figure TOY..you didnt need to worry about if a guy could hold a gun, or. A backpack falling off..all the joe toys had a level of quality not seen in the action figure industry..and still shows to this day.

As for scale...the difference on the surface looks minimal..but for the actual figures, they are "scale wise" almost a foot different. Collectors at the time over on hisstank came up with the 4" term, and we all realized just how really different the scale was.

Modern figures-eye candy..don't touch em or you will lose the suppressor, or they don't stand up..but man they look nice, and some figures are taller than others to simulate different sizes of humans..realistic.

O ringers- ultimate action figure TOYS. If you wann a play? Get O ring figures. Snap on stay on accessories..but not much dynamic articulation, and all the figures were pretty much the same height.

My son and I talked about this.. he wants nothing to do with modern Joe's to play with. He does not collect them.. but if he were to own a Joe..it would be O-ringers. I guess I've already had them, so I collect the modern stuff because I like how they look on the shelf.

But yes...your right. The hiss now is really out of scale. The joe community has been crying for a new hiss mold 10% bigger for decades now. You can't tell the difference that much until you stand modern and arahs next to it.

 

So, as someone that's never been a Joe collector and reading the above two posts about the various versions, which series Joes am I looking for to have the best scale/fit with Hiss Megatron? Not classified because those are 6" but then I'm confused, are there two different retro lines running or is the 25th anniversary different?

 

Also not a Joe guy, but I figured a few things out buying for the Bumblebee crossover: go for the Walmart exclusive Retro 3.75" figures, from either eBay or the Walmart app. Some of them reused older molds and are missing a few points of articulation like thigh swivels and sideways ankle tilt (see: Lady Jayne), but newer molds are hyper articulated. Despite being called "retro" the sculpts are modern. I replaced the Stalker in my Bee set with the Retro Stalker because he's superior all around.

There was also a "Pursuit of Cobra" line a few years ago that was hyper articulated and in 3.75" scale, but they seem to be very expensive so I don't think it would be worth chasing them down.

The "O-Ring" type 3.75" figures that come packed with the collaborative sets are totally different from the above, being very limited in articulation (no joints in the ankles, thighs, wrists) and have retro low-detail sculpts. It's worth noting that the foot pegs on the O-Ring figures are larger than on the Retro, so if you want to use the pegs on Megatron or Bumblebee, you'll need to drill into the Retro figures' feet.

 

I did notice that they were a little taller, but Walmart's website lists the retro figures as 3.75", so I assumed they're supposed to be that scale.

 

So this was a Cyber Monday Sale at Amazon and as I mentioned, I was leaning towards a "probably buy" at $90, but at $60, this turned into a must-have.

Looking forward to sharing my opinions, though I probably won't open the figure until Christmas.