ZETATOYS

Figure height is 22cm, using full metallic paint to improve the outlook presentation. Triple change mode from Bot mode to space shuttle to train mode.

 

Well, good luck Zeta! I don't think there's any amount of metallic paint you can cover this with that'll draw people away from Thomas

 

Oh .. it's just this thing

 

Gotta be honest. I dig the shuttle mode and the working train wheels.
Like.. not enough to pick him over Thomas, but enough to think "heyyy that's kinda cool"
My opinion only

 

Shuttle mode is really clean 9/10
Train mode is ok 6.5/10
Robot mode suffers from the lack of bulk IMO - he looks too slender with the very narrow shoulders and not Astrotrain-ish enough 4/10
And quite an overkill with the excessive use of metallic paint.
It's a pass for me.

 

A second chance for this mold. Not the best choice these days.

Toyworld Evila Star (Astrotrain)

 

that is just not a good looking bot.

 

If it's cheap enough maybe I'll look into it for the novelty, but no, this mold couldn't even hold its own against Chigurh.

 

Oh hey! That looks.... awful.

 

Fourth chance, actually. Under ToyWorld, this was released in toy colours (white and purple), and in two different 'toon decoes (one was a convention exclusive).

 

Zeta needs to stick to what they're good at, MP combiners!! Where is their Predaking they teased almost 2 years ago??

 

Why? Evila Star was terrible, hands down the worst of the third party Astrotrains.

 

Cancel Thomas

 

If it’s really cheap, sure. I mean Thomas is king of Astrotrains but I personally don’t love the character enough to spend $200. The vehicle modes here are alright at least.

 

Ahahaha, this looks awful, just like it did the first three times.

 

A triple-changer is always going to have one mode which is clearly compromised... I gotta be honest, having the 'bot mode be that compromise actually works for me. It's not terrible, but the very nature of Transformers ("Robots in disguise") suggests this is the way that it should be - better disguise, and a robot which fits to it rather than the reverse.

Not entirely sure whether I'm interested in buying one or not, though. I mean, if the price is right than I'm keen but the reviews of Evila Star I've seen so far aren't really doing anything for me.

 

If you're Zeta, and you've got a decent rep for doing combiners, yet you also want to do a bot that changes into a train and also has a third mode.... well boy howdy I think I see a way out of this that'll make everybody happy and you get you sales for not one bot but six of 'em! And you can make box sets and G2 re-colors and metallic recolors and everything...

 

Well they say that triple changers usually sacrifice one of their modes to make the other two look good. As @Thalyn notes, Toyworld/Zeta have made the rather bold choice of making the bot the sacrificial mode. I just can't see this thing doing well at all, even if Thomas weren't a thing.

 

that is one ugly paint job

 

The only point in this guy's favor, is how nostalgic I'm currently feeling for 2014....