Iron Factory EX-01 Dinoarmor and Rifle

The following words I do more as a public service announcement versus a review. A little over a year ago, Fall of Cybertron Voyager Class Grimlock was released to much fan fare as the majority of the FoC line had fallen flat with most collectors. Even with Grimlock being a great figure and perhaps the best one in the line, it was missing something. Even with those stubby arms, you can easily put your finger on it and that was the glaring hole in the middle of, oh what am I saying here, OK, the complete lack of a chest and belly in dino mode. In my research for this kit before my original purchase, I found the lack of information outside of what online retailers were saying very disturbing, so without further delay I present to you my public service announcement for all Transformers collectors out there.

Thankfully much like the add-on kit for FoC Ultra Magnus to set him apart from his mould mate Optimus Prime (click here for my review) Iron Factory came to the rescue with their EX-01 Dinoarmor and Rifle. In the small box you receive the parts to fill in the gaping hole in Grimlock's chest, a G1 inspired gun and a some smaller pieces that I will explain later on what their purpose is.

Out of the box you may wonder how a square box will fit in with the curved lines of Grimlock in his Dino Mode but surprisingly it works well.
Using the two posts on the underside of the add-on, and the two conveniently placed peg holes on the underside of Grimlock the whole assembly easily slides in and fits snugly. The colour match is spot on and can be easily mistaken to be part of the figure originally, that is if you didn't know any different. I do not own the Platinum version of Grimlock to test on, but from what I've seen in photos, the Iron Factory kit will also be a good match for the grey used. The main difference between the two being that vacuum gold finish on the chest and neck in the Platinum Version, so I don't see why it wouldn't work.

I know what you might be saying, do I own another add-on that resolves one issue but will I just be left over parts when I transform him? The short answer to that is, no. The chest spits into two and on the ball jointed arms that tuck away on the inside. those two parts move up and out of the way just enough to keep the add-on in place while you complete the transformation as instructed.

Once in bot mode you can position those pieces in behind the shoulders thanks to an additional joint in the centre in the centre of the panel into a similar fashion of the G1 counterpart. Still not 100% certain why it is there, but on the inside of the main panels there is a smaller panel that can be extended out. Maybe someone could answer that question in the comments?

I know to complete the G1 look, those stubby arms need to be hanging off the sides of the panels. I can tell you that Iron Factory was thinking of the G1 purest when designing this set.

The additional parts I spoke if earlier allow you to complete what is called Classic Mode. There are two additional posts that secure into the ports on the chest section. Once pegged in you remove the arms from their original position on the toy and attach them. To complete the look you will need to unpeg the chest panels from the once hidden arms and use the additional parts to peg those panels onto the ball joints that the dino arms were once attached to. Now this does complete the G1 look, I will mention why this is not my preferred mode. One reason why I personally won't be doing this often, is because one of the ball joints that hold the panels was lose from the box. I have gone ahead and placed some clear nail polish on that joint and now the panel and joint hold onto their pose.With all the joints being popped, replaced and repositioned, to limit the wear and tear and for the purposes of photos, this will be the last time.

In the end the G1 look of Grimlock is complete, but you lose so much of what makes this kit great. The first thing is you lose are the joints that assist in transformation, hide in dino mode and hold those panels up in robot mode, now just hang out the back of Grimlock like a couple of useless appendages. A kit that was designed to allow simple transformation between the two modes now becomes a partsformer. You need to pop off the dino arms, their new pegs, and the additional positioning arms and store them where they won't be lost. Once all removed you need to reatttach the chest panels back to the original posts and the dino arms back onto the main Grimlock body. Granted I generally display my figures in bot mode and they are rarely transformed afterwards, but I like to have the option of taking my Grimlock off the shelf and playing with him, transforming him without the need and chance of losing parts. It is for that reason the additional pieces will forever remain in the little bag they first came in.

The next addition to this kit and in all honesty when I picked it up I had completely forgotten about, and that would be the G1 inspired rifle. Yes I know it is on the box and you can see it through the window but it was not until I held the package in hand I recalled it even being there. The dual barrel baster is an upscaled version of the original G1 version. A part of me is tempted to paint it black to match even further to the original, but how will that look in dino mode? Yes Iron Factory even went as far to think of weapon storage in dino mode. The blaster splits in two and using the 5mm ports that hold the original sword and shield, you can attach the two halves of the gun. The snug fit would ware off any paint that I could or would apply but may resolve the anpther issue I do have. While the mounting pegs are a snug fit, the handle of the gun is not. It seems as if the pegs are 5.1mm, while the blaster handle is 4.9mm, just enough that while Grimlock can hold the gun, it does fit loosely in his hand.

Is this kit worth your time, energy and most importantly your money? It does sell on the majority of online retailers sites for under $25US (without shipping) So if you are not concerned with doubling the cost of the Voyager class figure for the sake of filling in a gap I say go for it. I know I was not disappointed with my purchase. The addition of the panels in robot mode do not seem to add an additional kibble. Being on ball joints and the pivot point in the middle of the panel, you can position those panels closer to the body.

The choice of two different display modes and an added weapon are always a bonus. Ease of installation is less than a couple of minutes without any needed kitbashing is also a bonus. Using the ports present on the original model is a great design choice, that in the end would be your choice to glue those posts into position or not. This is a well thought out add-on kit and is a most welcomed addition to my Fall of Cybertron Grimlock even with its flaws of a loose ball joint and small peg on the rifle, but those are little complaints for an add-on that I feel came directly from the Hasbro design table but due to budget constraints was handed off to Iron Factory.  

TheRealRonin
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*EDIT* Well silly me was not thinking when I displayed even all that briefly the kit in Classic Mode. I made mention that the original arms that held on the panel would just be hanging off the back of Grimlock, that statement is wrong. Those arms are held on the same assembly that plugs into Grimlock to which can easily be removed and set aside. The downfall with that is every time you which to transform the figure into Dino mode, you will need to reinsert the assembly, pop off the panels and reattach everything. A bit of a pain in my book but if you want a clean classic look and not worried about the transformation I say why not go ahead. 

A good toy is the right of all seintient beings.

There are characters that have been revisited, retooled, repainted, repackaged, reinvisioned and multiple other words that begin with the prefix 're' but no other character embodies that more than Optimus Prime. For the last 30 plus years I cannot recall a toy line, TV series or movie franchise that does not include an Optimus Prime. OK yes you have an argument for the Beast Wars/Machine era but your argument does not have much to stand on. Outside of being a Gorilla of some sorts, Optimus has always been a truck of some kind. Be it a big rig, fire engine or pick up truck but there always seems to be one constant and that is the paint scheme being primarily blue and red.

Even with all the various forms Optimus has appeared in over the years, there one design that has set most fans off the most! That design would be the movie version of Prime. We have heard all the complaints over the years. Why is he not a cab over? Why does he have flames? This is not the original Prime I remember! I am not here to add fuel to those fires and that is not my goal. All I want to say is to have patience. In the last 7 years we have seen 4 live action movies, and if you have been waiting patiently I have some good news, it only took those 7 years to get the Optimus Prime you wanted all those years ago.

With Invasion Mode Optimus Prime from the latest release of figures for Transformers 4 Age of Extinction you get, a cab over design, red and blue deco (without flames) and windows in his chest. Are you happy now? Well you can leave your opinion in the comments section below. You will receive my answers as you continue to read. I will toss in the criticism that I have heard over the last few years with previous movieverse Prime's and since this figure has been officially available since May, or if you were lucky early April, but I feel this is the Optimus Prime people have been calling for and waiting for.

We are going to start with Prime in truck mode. The loudest voices against with the movie version of Prime have now been made silent. There have been cab over designs of Optimus released since 2007 in other toy lines. Have we forgotten about the much talked about MP-10 Optimus Prime? The paint application is a closer match to that of MP-10 versus G1 Prime and I think that is the feel the designers at Hasbro were going for. Yeah fine, but he only has one smoke stack! Are you really going to nitpick on that one detail? Did you even look at the stack? Did you not notice it is a dual stack and that is just routed to one side of the cab? I guess not since you are stuck on only seeing the one. Anyways there are some flaws in this mode, the first being the lack of paint on the rear section. A great job was done to hide the majority of feet and legs, but a little bit of paint for bumper, tail lights or even to bring out the details in the trailer hitch. Looking at the instruction sheet you can see they intended to also paint the hub caps of the wheels but that idea did not make the production floor.

Still looking to the back of the figure you come to the one major flaw I have with this mode. That is the open rear of the cab. You can see the faux chest exposed but no cover. That choice was made to eliminate the majority of alt mode kibble the in latest line of movie figures seem to suffer from. The front of the cab screams G1 Optimus Prime but there is a flaw that I have spent quite a bit of my time trying to solve and that is the way the front windows line up. The easiest way I have come to resolving this issue is when transforming into truck mode, turn Prime's head 180 before fitting it into the cab. The neck joint when turned around allows for the head to fit easier in the spaces provided.


Doing so allows the inner lines of the windows to line up just a little bit nicer albeit still not perfect. Overall the cab over design has not been done all that much in a Voyager class scale, but it is nice to see the original G1 and Masterpiece touches.


Moving onto transforming Optimus, this can be a bit of a chore but at
the same time enjoyable. Like many of the newer figures it comes package in one mode while the instructions go in the opposite direction. In Prime's case he is packaged in Robot mode but the instructions start in Truck mode. I have included scans of those instructions. A few steps I added while playing with this toy. The first I spoke of is turning the head 180 degrees to help with the alignment of the front windows. Next will be the arms as they can be tricky. It is best to form the sides and top of the cab first as the other pieces will slip in nicely once everything is flipped into position. The legs can be left for last but why not have some fun and make yourself a Gerwalk or AT-ST Prime? 

Robot mode this is where Optimus shines. He is a complete mix of G1 aesthetics with the movieverse look. The G1 look comes via the blue legs, feet and hands, add to that the grey thighs, red chest and clear windows. Out for the box Optimus is a victim of gorilla arms, but this to can be easily solved. The hands are painted blue so you will need to take his gun to turn them 90 degrees as they are tight on the pivot joint due to the coat of blue paint. Once done you can keep the hands in this better position as it does not affect transformation in the least. Oh look Prime doesn't have a faceplate! This argument is growing old for me as I can point out multiple other primes in the cartoon universe that did not have faceplates. I say this to you, why "hide" the impeccable voice acting of Peter Cullen behind a mask? Even as a child I wondered why his voice did not sound muffled behind the plate? Oh well here I am going on a rant when I should be talking about the head sculpt. The details are amazing and brought out with the blue and silver paint applications as well the nice lightpiping for the eyes. There are some paint details that were planned like the hubcaps did not make it to the production floor. Looking at the box art you see the upper arms were meant to be a mix of grey and red but instead they choose to go with a solid blue plastic. This is easily solved with some paint and patience but it is always interesting to see the design choices that change from a final prototype to production.

A small little addition that is completely by chance due to the transformation is you could (and this is a bit of a stretch) open the chest to give the impression of a Matrix of Leadership chamber. Now there is a planned detail is located on the back of the figure. Just above the waist you see a moulded in trailer hitch. This added detail that was not required but is a very welcomed addition.


Much like the cab over design there is an addition that some collectors have been waiting nearly 4 years for. The box calls it an Ion Cannon for Optimus but we know it as something else. This is Megatron's shotgun from the Dark of the Moon. If you look at the handle you can see the square pegs that will fit this gun into Megatron's hand. Now if you do not happen to have Dark of the Moon Megatron, I guess you can say that Prime took his weapon in the spoils of war.If you disagree I will have a spring loaded missile pointed your way.

I personally am not a fan of this weapon for Prime. I feel he should have more of a traditional blaster to go with the G1 look and feel of this figure. For that reason I display mine with the gun that comes with Generations Deluxe Orion Pax.

Overall this is a good figure. The poseibilty for a Hasbro figure is there with the addition of both a waist swivel and ankle tilts, two features that are rarely seen in  Hasbro figure. The paint applications are sparse and more details in robot mode would have been a nice touch, especially on the shoulder pylons and the upper arms. Is he worth full retail price? Well being a movie figure the market can be flooded with them so that choice is yours but if you are looking my opinion I would say yes. Out of the 6 Age of Extinction figures I have picked up, Optimus Prime is by far the best one of the lot. This design will serve both Hasbro and Takara well for years to come with the inevitable repaints and retools to come. We know that Rusty Prime for the movie will be released and I am almost certain a Nemesis Prime repaint is around the corner. Looking at the figure through the eyes of a model builder I see an almost unlimited potential for customization and one wonders what an Ultra Magnus repaint would look like?  Now how would I attach or hide the shoulder missiles? I have not heard much on a possible trailer release for this figure but that is something in which you should not to get your hopes up on. The trailer hitch is there for looks and there appears to be no future use for it. I personally will only have Optimus displayed in Robot mode, so if by chance a trailer is designed I would hope it has a base mode adding further to the G1 feel and playability.

TheRealRonin
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Vinyl is Retro....Once again!

In a previous review I discussed Series One of The Loyal Subjects vinyl figures. Since that review was first posted I have added to the collection by finding Megatron, Optimus Prime, and Starscream (via a trade with Cybertronian Beast go check out his YouTube channel) and I am still impressed with them. Recently my local comic book shop had the newly released Series Two. Only seeing photos from conventions they appeared to be similar to Series One and so I had no hesitation at all in my mind in grabbing a couple.

With their first release there were a couple of items that could be improved on and to my surprise they have and I will first start with the packaging. With the first release the box was perfect for the G1 feel but with some figures once their accessories were added to them, say their wings in the case of the Seekers, you were not able to place them back inside. The boxes in Series Two are larger and yet they still give the impression of the classic G1 package albeit with a more of a decided Decepticon look. Still a blind pack with no part or product numbers on the outside, so it is a complete gamble on which figure you receive. The box art does include drawings of the figures that are available. In case you are wondering, in Series Two you have Slag, Shrapnel, Thrust, Ramjet, Shockwave, Mirage, Sideswipe and Prowl (the highlighted ones I received) Along with 3 mystery figures that are scattered throughout the cases available, one of which is a talking Optimus Prime.

Once the box is opened you are greeted with a foil bag further adding to the mystery of these blind boxes. Rip open into that foil and you finally get your first look at the figure you received. Inside that bag you also have any additional pieces and weapons along with a G1 style techspec card. When you first remove the figure from its foil prison you start to see the list of improvements that were made after Series One.

The first will be the improvement in poseibility. The head, waist, hips, shoulders and hands are on a ball and socket joint. When I first removed Prowl from his packaging the socket on the waist had popped apart but it was very easy and simple to pop back into place, but be a little careful as they joints can weaken. Those socket joints allow for greater movement over Series One. They do have joints in their waist, neck, shoulders and wrists but overall those joints they are more or less a few pieces of vinyl blocks. Series Two in my eyes would be considered the Generations toyline upgrade to the classic G1 figures that have inspired them.

Continuing with the idea that Series Two being an upgrade to Series One is that they are just slightly larger. For people wishing to add to their already current collection you might be disappointed in that fact, Having them side by side, I cannot line and say I am not disappointed that Thrust does not match up all that well with Thundercracker and Starscream but yet it is those differences make me glad they selected the Coneheads over Skywarp.

Well I brought it up so why not talk about Thrust?  The first improvement you can see is the weapons. The seekers in Series One have a very generic blaster where as Thrust actually comes with null rays on his arms. The post that holds them into the arms needed a dab of glue to hold them in place but in the end that is a small price to pay for the great improvement in the look. Just like in Series One, the figures in Series Two have very sharp paint apps that just scream back to their traditional counterparts. Now to get to the largest and most appreciated upgrade between the two series and that would be the way the wings attached to the back of the figure. Series One had a very flimsy and very tiny peg system. Both Thundercracker and Starscream had an issue where the two tiny pegs would not or could at all fit into the corresponding holes in the back, causing them to bend or snap off. The wings for Thrust use a larger peg to plug those parts into the back, greatly improving ease of installation and stability as well as adding additional details. 

Moving onto Prowl, where I was fortunate enough to have a couple other version of a seeker to compare Thrust to, I shall use the closest representation in Series One being Jazz. Side by side you can once again see the slight size difference and the socket joints. If you look to the paint job you can clearly see the details that were taken direct from original figures to bring the G1 feel out in these figures. Much like the comparison between the seekers the improvements are the same. The door wings on Prowls back attack the same way as the wings on Thrust connect with even the additional moulded on inside car door panels. Like Thrust there is a great weapons upgrade. With the small blaster Jazz has looking like a deformed look of his original blaster where Prowl is equipped with is an almost exact copy of the original G1 and Masterpiece figures. The next improvement would be the handle of these weapons, with a smaller peg placing them into the figures hand is easier, add to that the additional shoulder and wrist movement the figure can easily aim the blaster.

Two down and six to go in Series Two. Will I get more? Now that is a silly question to ask, of course I will. I enjoyed all heartily Series One and Series Two surpassed everything I was expecting considering I was thinking they would have the same build as the first releases. I have had some awesome luck with the first series of blind packs, and for Series Two I am 2 for 2 with one Autobot and one Decepticon. When I do get more I will be posting those photos on my Facebook page so you to have have a closer look. To keep up with my future purchases click the link below and like my page, as well you can follow me on Twitter.

TheRealRonin
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World's Smallest Review

I was working on this week's review but I had a change of plans. That change came in the mail today and so I just had to share my latest online find. If you have read previous reviews (and you should be) I have not held back in saying that my favourite character to collect is Starscream. If they give any figure that name, chances are I will be interested.

This purchase is no different, but with a little extra. Not only did I add to my Starscream collection, but I also received a World's Smallest Acid Storm. When researching these guys I found that they could go into two different categories. The first being that they are Knock Offs of the original releases of WSTransformers. The second and a far better description is that these figures being WST 2.0.

The reason I would prefer calling these guys WST 2.0 is for the Null Rays. With the first run of WST the Null Rays were a closer representation to their G1 counterparts. The 2.0 version have Null Rays closer to the one that came with the Classics/Generations Seeker mould. Outside of that one main difference, they appear to be almost identical to WST 1.0.

I feel no need to explain the transformation process, it is identical to the original GI releases, or even the KO versions I reviewed earlier. There is one additional piece of toy engineering that I did not expect in a figure of this size. Hidden inside the nose cone is a front landing gear that flips down and eliminates the chance of losing a very tiny part. Now the designers did eliminate all concerns with losing parts. The fists slide onto the arm nubs, just like the G1 and KO versions, but if lost will be far harder to locate.

Along with all the little plastic goodness, there were stickers that needed to be applied. I don't know exactly what it is about stickers that makes me happy. It could be a little piece of my childhood appearing once again, it could be the fact that I can look at the figure and say to myself, yes I put those on. Now I did do one slight change, I did not like the Decepticon symbols that were meant for Acid Storm, so I went with different ones that I had available.

The colours are spot on to the original Starscream in both Robot and Jet modes. Even though there was never a official G1 version of Acid Storm but if there were, I'm sure they would be spot on too. There are a couple of flaws that need to be addressed. The first being are the hollow parts in the robot legs and under the nose cone. With the hollow bits in the nose you can never have a acceptable Conehead. The stickers that did come with the figures are slightly off cut,  and they do lose some of the details that were present on the sticker sheet when applied.

All in all, I am happy with my find and purchase. The amount of detail in these little guys is impressive. The panel details, the Null Rays and you can almost make out the majority of the face details. Of course at this scale other details had to be omitted but there are far more overall than I expected. The only real poseibility is in the arms and with the upgrade to ball joints versus a pivot point so the range is far greater than just in and out.

I thought when I first started this tiny review, I would have more little jokes but I feel I just came up short in that task. Oh well there is always next time.

TheRealRonin
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