Tag Archives: Autobot

Toy Review – Masterpiece Grapple

Grapple.  Perhaps while not the most unpopular, perhaps the least loved (does that mean the same thing?) of the 84/85 Autobot Car characters.  It’s surprising since the Constructicons were so popular and Grapple was the only Autobot equivalent, but not many people really digged our resident Autobot Architect.  Nevertheless, the 85’ toy was pretty cool and gave some variety to the Autobot lineup and we now see that replicated now 22 years later in the Masterpiece toyline with the newest figure Masterpiece Grapple.

The Master Builder

 

Robot Mode

I really enjoy the different features offered here.  You get three different faces, two different chests and even different coloured arm blasters to replace his hands!  The proportions are very good and you can either have an orange helmet to match his cartoon appearance or a grey one to match his toy one.  The articulation is excellent with nearly every joint being swiveable which provides one with a multitude of posing capabilities.

 

Vehicle Mode

Battle Crane Truck Mode. Because…. well… why the hell not eh!

This is where we get down a little.  It’s a great crane truck, don’t get me wrong, its just that like MP Inferno the cartoon version had less detail than the toy and since the MP line tries to replicate the cartoon we lose out on some of that detail here.  It’s a very nice Crane Truck though, and it comes with optional extras such as the hook being replaced with a grabbing claw or bucket (as was demonstrated in two of the G1 cartoon episodes).  The colour is nice, the proportions are nice – just could have stood to have more detail.

 

Transformation

Surprisingly actually harder than MP Inferno.  You’d think Grapple would be easier considering we have dealt with this figure before but there are a bunch of new little tweaks which can be damn annoying.  Whilst not the hardest MP transformation by far, it can offer moments of frustration.

 

Overall

Grapple, as previously stated, is not the most popular character.  But to anyone who is a big G1 lover or is a Masterpiece completionist then this is very much a necessary character.  And trust me, you will enjoy him more than you think!

 

Also, check out the very first of my Transformer Multiverse Galleries, starting with the various versions of Grapple!

Toy Review – LG39 Brainstorm

Brainstorm, a character that has gone from relative obscurity to a fan favorite in recent years, thanks mainly to the More than Meets the Eye comic series.  Now gone from being a bit player in the short lived season 4 of the US he is everyone’s favorite amoral weapons designer.  However the version we are looking at today is an homage to his much larger television outing in the Japanese Headmasters series.  So without further ado, from the Legends series let’s have a look at LG39 Brainstorm.

Japanese TF boxes, so plain but with such great artwork!

Vehicle Mode

It wasn’t until I took the gun out of the box and realized that it was a match for Titans Return Blurr’s (for a review of TR Blurr see HERE) that I had a better look at Brainstorms Cybertronian jetfighter mode and realized the whole figure is a retooled Blurr.  And once you can imagine the wings being gone it becomes quite obvious.  That said, it’s a very nice looking version of Brainstorms alt-mode with the twin guns at the front, sleek nose and slim wings.  The orange cockpit makes a nice counterpoint to the rest of the colour scheme and Brainstorms Headmaster partner Cana fits nicely inside.

 

Robot Mode

A bit small for my liking but it means that he scales well with the rest of the Legends/Titans Return figures.  You can remove the nosecone and add it to the arm for extra firepower or leave it attached to his back where it is only noticeable when looking through the legs.  The figure has good articulation and once again that lovely Tak/Tom paintjob.

Somebody messed with the wrong Wang today!

 

Cana and Synapse.

Pimp Daddy Cana’s a bit spoiled for choice!

Synapse is actually the name of the drone vehicle that comes with Brainstorm.  This can either be in a jeep mode for Cana to drive or turn into a double-barelled blaster for Brainstorm to weild.  Given the colour scheme one could almost mistake it for a mini-Kup.

Cana has been based on Brainstorms JP Headmaster appearance with the removal of the faceplate.  He is nicely detailed in both his modes.  When compared with Arcana from the Thrilling 30 version of Brainstorm you can see the difference in size between the two figures, its just a shame you cant swap them over from one body to the other (trust me, I tried).  Given the differences in size and facial structure, it makes Legends Brainstorm look like Generations Brainstorm’s younger brother.

 

Overall

To be honest, I actually still kinda like Generations Brainstorm better.  He is bigger, bulkier and his removable vehicle weapons to use as pistols is very G1-toy accurate.  However Legends Brainstorm scales well with the current series of toys, has a great colour scheme and comes with not only a Headmaster partner but a drone as well.  Depends if you are a fan of the HM cartoon or MTMTE as to which one you may decide to get – or if you are an obsessive fan like me you can just get both!

 

“I’m Brainstorm”
“No, I’m Brainstorm”