It's been awhile since I updated with acquisitions. Truth be told, the lull is due to the TF3 movie's impending release - 99% of Hasbro of Takara's toy releases up till the movie and then some months after are going to be inevitably tied to or related to the movie. I have next to 0% interest in the movie toys. Unless they do something like "Revenge of the Fallen" Bludgeon, which is more a G1 homage than a "movie" toy, I don't see myself getting too excited in the upcoming months, Transformers toys-wise.
Here are some acquisitions I picked up in the last 2-3 weeks (yup, 4 toys in almost a month!).
- Henkei Sunstreaker MOSC
- Henkei Grimlock MOSC (my buddy Ultra Magnus is going to have a field day when he sees this one)
- United Drift MOSC
- Perfect Effect SFX Scouting Force MIB
Items (1) to (3) are all spares, so don't think I will open them.
Now, PE "Reflector", my, what a fan release. After 10 mediocre releases (ie: PE-01 to PE-10), Perfect Effect has finally nailed it.
To my mind, this is by far the best release and a near perfect homage to G1 Reflector - in fact, its even better than G1 Reflector because the 'bots look like Reflector did in the cartoon. Spectro and Spyglass are also subtly coloured differently so that one can identify which is which. The set is just packed with accessories, all of which has a lot of play value. If the plastic quality is better, I could almost have mistaken this for a FansProject release, just based on the design and execution itself, and that is saying a lot about how far Perfect Effect has come.
Reflector
Reflector with Rumble and Frenzy which are almost the same size as Reflector
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* Update 3 May 2011, 11:56pm *
Ok, I just transformed PE-Reflector. I am upgrading my assessment of this set from "very nice" to "awesome".
Seriously, hands down the very best release by PE so far. The transformation is great. There is no left-over kibble when its in camera mode and mounted on its tripod - all the parts, and there are a lot, fit somewhere (whether its inside the lens or at the base of the camera.
By all the parts, I mean: 3 x rifles, 1 x rifle scope, 1 x rifle extension, 3 x knifes, 3 x knife holders, 1 x flash (splits into missile launchers), 1 x lens (splits into various things), 1 x shield and tripod. Man, that is a lot of parts.
I gotta say this again, PE-Reflector is awesome.
I am holding it in my hand this very moment.
It's awesome.
G1 Reflector should have been this good (ah, sacrilegious!).
On that note, check out today's post *hint*
Hey HD, good adquis!!! I like that "Reflector" but, don´t you think that they are too little in size?
ReplyDeleteI think that I´m going to wait till the Reflector of TFClub...
What do you think?
hey Predaking, yeah, you are right, they are quite tiny. It would be nice if they are 1.5 times the size of PE-Rumble/Frenzy. I really like the design though and its very well sculpted (although the plastic quality is quite lousy).
ReplyDeleteNot heard of the TF Club Reflector. Let me check it out and get back to you on that!
Here:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.seibertron.com/transformers/news/tfc-dslr-camera-image/21390/
and here:
http://www.seibertron.com/transformers/news/tfc-toys-updated-images/21471/
It seems like they are going to launch them in two versions, the purple and the black versions... And the size is like two scout class and one deluxe, don´t you think?
I agree that the PE Reflector is just too small for the money. If they were Scout size, even, I might go for it.
ReplyDeleteWow, HD. Grimlock, eh? Next, you'll be getting Wildrider and repaints :-p
ReplyDeleteLike Predaking, I'm leaning towards the TFC Reflector as well. Here are the most recent pics of all of TFClub's upcoming releases:
http://www.seibertron.com/transformers/news/tfc-toys-updated-images/21471/
However, it's good to hear that PE's quality and design has improved. I have their Frumble as well, and wasn't too impressed. I was happy to replace it with the United version.
I don't think TFC Reflector is cartoon accurate, but if you go the route of "fresh interpretation" ala Generations/United et all, you may argue that they belong, but in that case, anything can belong as well!!! In fact I'll just argue that my Soul of Chogokin GX 54 is the new Razorclaw with Breastforce features.
ReplyDeleteWhat worries me more is that it's TFC, but who knows maybe they've decided to get their act together as well, but I digress.
@ Botch: I think this might be small, but well worth the money. The G1 homage factor is on par with Device Label Ravage and we both know how much we love that piece. =)
ReplyDelete@ Jay: Wildrider is one of the most unlikely pieces I'd get, I think. I just don't see how a repainted Rodimus is anywhere near a Wildrider. The repainted Mirage is at least quite proximate to Drag Strip.
I agree that Frumble was extremely unimpressive in terms of quality and/or design. Ejector and Rewinder were actually quite good though.
@ Roger + guys: yup, went and saw the TFC Reflector. At this point, its pretty meh to me. The design and feel is very much like movie-verse "Real Gear" toys, which I am not fond of. But then, I could like it when its in final form. Fickle me. heh.
Very nice write up HD. I can't wait for my set which should arrive this week!!
ReplyDeleteI agree with you on their awesomeness- IMO this is what classics homage should be - same type of altmode/ similar functionality to G1 and cartoon tribute.
I don't care for the extra knives, weapons etc, but I understand they are just needed for transformation. Icing on the cake so to speak.
I also feel that they are perfectly sized as per g1 cartoon don't you think?
Figs like this make me appreciate 3rd parties that much more (even in lieu of the price). An obscure alt-moded character (i.e. not a plane/jet/tank or car/truck by Has/Tak standards) such as Reflector cannot be a truck....must be a camera!!!
@ gdmetro: Wow, you gotta let me know what you think when you get your set. I do suspect that you will like it very much (plastic quality is the only downside, but all else is awesome). I agree with you that they are well sized, especially relative to a Classics/Universe Seeker - I remember that in MTMTE, they were about half the height of Thundercracker and this set is just about right.
ReplyDeleteTalking about alternate modes. It's funny/ironic that the Reflector alternate is unlikely to be out of date, perhaps even for the next 10 years even. It's a camera. Cameras will likely look as they do for a long time, unlike micro-casettes, even USB sticks, cars, tanks, etc, which all will potentially go out of date within a decade.
Hey dude!
ReplyDeleteI read you're write-up over at OTCA and I've made comment there so without repeating myself too much, I too think they look excellent but I don't quite have the qualms with the plastic that you and Liege share and very courteously, one of the younger members of the forum have acquired me a set of these guys from RK which I highly appreciate but more to the point - I'll soon be able to share in your enjoyment of these awesome little dudes! :)
P.S> You should checkout Deceptic_Optic's photos of the trio! - They're insane! :O
@ Hursti: hmmm... have not checked out OTCA today. I will head over shortly. Seriously, this is a great set. Would like to hear what you think once you get your hands on them. =)
ReplyDeleteWell I finally got the set too. Seriously, these guys are too tiny. When I was snapping everything on, I was always worried that something will break. For people with big hands (like moi), you'll have (ehem) some "interesting" times.
ReplyDeleteI'll have to play the devil's advocate here and say that this set is not quite worth it for the price. Had it been twice as big, it would have been a slam dunk, proportion to other figures be d****d.
Today I also received a Henkei Sunstreaker, now that's a nice figure.
@ Roger: I think its true that while this set is objectively too small for most fans' liking (at this sort of price point), it is pretty much 'to scale'. I say this because I put them next to Henkei Thundercracker and then compared them with a key shot of them in MTMTE Part 1, also with them next to Thundercracker. The scale is pretty much on the money.
ReplyDeleteMTMTE screen shot: http://inlinethumb49.webshots.com/31984/2190076710100811158S600x600Q85.jpg
Toy comparison of PE-Reflector and Henkei Thundercracker: http://inlinethumb53.webshots.com/45172/2681182650100811158S600x600Q85.jpg
Hmmm. I'm much more compelled after those comparison pics.
ReplyDelete