Don't call me Fat you Clutch Munching Piston Licker!

There comes a time when a toy looks interesting enough to pick up but there is that little voice that says, not now it can wait for a sale. Well I will say I'm glad that I picked this one up cheap as I feel he is only worth the $5 I paid for him. Without any further delay I present to you Transformers Generations Deluxe Class Tankor.

To say this figure is a disappointment is not what I felt when I first held him in hand. I knew with my own research what the potential I would receive but to have any little doubts removed about Tankor and more or less confirmed is what disappointed me. *Spoilers* The Beast Wars that turned into Beast Machines, we saw Rhinox's spark stolen and placed in the vehicon named Tankor. With an awesome release of Voyager scale Rhinox I knew a Deluxe figure would pale in comparison size wise but before I go bashing this figure any further I should start with what I do enjoy.

Starting with bot mode the overall look is ripped directly from the CGI model from Beast Machines, something that was needed over the original incarnation of Beasties Tankor. The paint applications are sharp and they pull in the right amount of detailing, from the stripes on the shoulder pads, the missiles on the chest picked out, the silver mouth plate and the yellow lights on the sides of the head. The arms convey a lot of emotion with their double jointed elbows, upper bicep swivel with a matching forearm swivel. That combination of joints allow you to pose claw hands in countless number of position.

Those expressive arms do their best to make up for the lack of articulation in the rest of the figure. Now don't get me wrong, this is no G1 brick as all the traditional joints found in today's Deluxe figures and yet those joints are lost due to the nature of making an almost complete screen accurate toy. The legs have hips joints that move in, out and up and down, an upper thigh swivel, a decent knee bend and the feet do pivot back and forth. It is those feet that limit the actual poses you can manipulate Tankor into. I have tried a dozen or so attempts but with each try Tankor appears to be an ungraceful figure skater. If you ever watch the TV show, Tankor just rolled around on his large tank tread feet so there is no real loss there.

The head sculpt is right on the money but in the show the face had more possible poseibility versus this toy. The extent of the movement is left and right and if that weren't enough, it is further limited by the shoulders. The head can do a full 360 but it hops and jumps all over the raised sections from the collar bone area. Adding to the block feel is the lack of waist articulation but in fairness the transformation prevents even the idea of even engineering one. Thankfully the waist and chest piece do their best to cover up what is perhaps the largest gap I have ever personally seen in a modem day Transformer.

The cannon over the right shoulder adds to almost spot on representation of the Beast Machines model but it is severely lacking in details. With the almost spot on paint details I doubt even a company like Reprolabels will produce a kit to add what is missing. The lack of poseibility continues into that cannon. It clips in just behind the shoulder on a C Clip and being on a long solid pivoting arm, it freely moves up, forward and back. That pivoting arm in bot mode only looks good in the over the shoulder or resting on the back but due to the lack of a swivel joint allowing side to side motion, this friction blaster just sits there like the chunk of plastic that it is.

Transformation is fairly simple and intuitive. Everything pegs in quite nicely in robot mode and that continues into alt mode. Start with moving the cannon up and back out of the way, straighten out the arms and using the double jointed elbows bend the arms up so the forearms are flush with the biceps. Next you want to unpeg the shoulders from the back and move that and the chest assembly forward. Bend the feet down and flip down the covers over the treads. Move the legs off to the side using the waist joint and complete the flip down of the chest section on the double jointed hinge. Move the legs back into position, pegging them into the former crotch piece. Take the folded up arms and flip them inwards and make sure the shoulder pads are under the collar bone section of the head assembly. Next tab in the head into the pegs that are present on the forearms, move the cannon into position and you are done.

Much like with bot mode I will start with what I like in alt mode. Are you ready for the list? Are you sitting comfortably? Have your favourite snack or drink handy? Good, well here it is. It rolls nice.

OK, now that I've got that out of the way lets have a closer look at Tankor in well, his tank mode. First thing is first, he suffers from visible everything! You can clearly see his head, hands and chest. Now I know what you are going to say and that is, well you saw his head in the CGI cartoon so why should a screen accurate toy be any different? To that I have no argument, but when reviewing the on screen look of Tankor the rest of what I mention seems to have been blended into other parts of the CGI model. From the looks of the design you could be confused with this being a one step changer and the transformation would just be to stand him up and you're done. The flaps that covered the shins, now expose a large gap behind the forward treads, while the arms now fill in that chest gap I mentioned earlier.

While I do feel they got the portions for the length as close to accurate it is the width that leaves something to be desired for. While in this mode no one will call him 'Fat' Tankor. Looking straight down the front you cannot help but see how skinny this tank is when compared the height and length. Without anything hidden the paint apps that were wonderful in assisting the look of this toy in bot mode continue into alt mode but a feel the grey plastic that was used could have been a shade or two darker. 

It has been awhile since a figure has not impressed me and sadly I know I am not the only one that feels this. With the awesome releases of Beast Wars Rhnox, Waspinater and Rat Trap a part of me was hoping for updated versions of the Beast Machine vehicons. With this first offering anything else will just not line up in scale in either mode. If this designed shared the same scale as his beast mode counterpart this may have tipped the scale more in favour. We may have received more articulation in the head, the cannon as well additional girth allowing for a more in scale look with Thrust and Jetstorm, but those dreams like this toy will fall flat.

Now there is room for improvement. The cannon that just clips on with a C Clip could be replaced with a third party or 3D printed offering. There is no need for it to spin as it does in the CGI cartoon, but added side to side movement and perhaps the addition of the Key to Vector Sigma, but for now I will work with the IDW inspired cannon.

I will add this. If there is a artist out there that currently does 3D printing and you require a Tankor for measurements to produce a new cannon I will be more than willing to lend you my figure so you can begin your work. All I ask for in return is of course the figure returned (no rush) and a version of the cannon you have designed. I'm just putting that out there. For now I shall pose those wonderful arms in a head scratching pose, place Tankor at the back of my shelf, as he sits and wonders what a great toy he could have been if they started by making him Voyager scale.

TheRealRonin
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Transformers Generations Windblade. The 30 in 30 out of 30 for the Thrilling 30!

What do fans want most? The was a question Hasbro asked Transformers fans to begin the kick off for the Thrilling Thirty. Once voting was completed and tabulated, I believe we received a combination that I can say was not expecting. For starters we get an Autobot but no real surprise there. The alt mode is not a car but a plane to which we know is rare for an Autobot. Now I cannot recall all the questions that were asked but I belive but gender and weapon were asked. To which the answer a sword and the most surprising is a Fembot.

Once the basics were answered it was time to hand the results to the great folks at IDW Publishing to add life to a character to what would later became a four part mini series. Now this review is not about the mini series but what that series was inspired by. That is the toy that was created by the fans. I present to you Deluxe Class Windblade.

I am not going lie but once I saw the first mock ups of Windblade I was excited. As time passed and more photos began to appear my excitement grew. Then later came the release of Windblade #1 through #4 from IDW and I knew that I just had to have this toy. Being in Canada I have gotten use to waiting longer than we should for releases, but with a single tweet I knew what I had to do. I sent a text message to a friend on the floor at the Toronto Fan Expo to swing past the Hasbro booth and pick up my very own Wingblade.

Two days later I had her in my hands and I could not wait till open the package. I felt like Charlie Bucket and I knew my golden ticket was inside. Now with this being the official Hasbro Canadian release there was no packed in comic as with other releases of the Generations toy line. The comic that will be packed in should be Windblade's first appearance in Dark Cybertron chapter 8, sadly I don't have that one.

After handling the figure a few times going from robot to jet mode and back, I am happy that we have received a completely new figure as everything feels new with Windblade and no "stolen" engineering from other toys. Now with saying that, I am going to start with my impressions with what I feel is the poorer of the two modes, that is Jet Mode. Yes we have seen and heard all the complaints about jetformers, so I am not going to rehash the old complaints but I will list flaws that appear with this particular figure. The first real glaring fault I find are the feet on the rear of the jet. They do not fold down or away creating a blemish in the tail section that even my imagination can't come up for a reason for being there. 
Now between those feet is a gap and a very noticeable one and hard to forget once seen. The weapon can be stored underneath to which does help with filling in the gap, but you will lose one of the pleasant surprise of Windblade in VTOL Mode, more on that later. The handle of the weapon does stick out further than the exhaust, but the added addition of the fan blade in the handle adds to the appearance of a directional fan for the VTOL mode (See I told you I have an imagination)

On the underside you have your very traditional robot junk tucked and folded away, but being a jetformer no surprises there. The one disappointment is the rear landing gears. They are well detailed but perhaps too detailed. I know space would prevent folding struts, but their size become apparent in robot mode. What I think should have been done is to give them a slightly lower profile so when the front gear is down it will give the impression of take off when laying on a flat surface. One last thing and honestly this is not a complaint but an observation, the cockpit canopy does not open. To me that is not a make or break deal but for others it might be.

OK, I have gone on long enough about the bad, lets get to what makes this VTOL great. the overall design screams a plane that we have not seen in the Transformers universe, and I am even including Thrust. The dark colour scheme we are use to seeing on Decepticon jets works on Windblade, maybe it is the red or the white nose cone but you just know this is an Autobot. The highlights of the yellow canopy does not take away from the off white rotor blades of the VTOL parts on this jet. The blades do rotate within the cowlings quite easily with your finger but will take more than lung power to get them rotating on their own. If you have read the comics, you know that those blade were rotated not only for take off but also for flight and in this figure you can emulate this.The cowlings do pivot to allow some dynamic poses never seen before in wings. Straight on down the white nose of the jet, the robot parts tuck away just enough to add the illusion of intakes for the dual jet engines. The front landing gear as I mentioned does retract to aide in the next little surprise. The port that stores the weapon in alt mode can serve as a port for an action figure stand. Now I do not have one as the majority of my own toys are displayed in robot mode so a qucik little makeshift stand I am able to balance Windblade to emulate the look, but if I ever come across a second Windblade I know my hunt for a real stand will begin.

Transformation from jet to robot is fun, but the same cannot be said about robot to jet. Starting in jet mode once everything is unpegged the transformation seems natural, as the parts flip, slide and move in ways we are familiar with. It is going from robot to jet mode for some odd reason that it doesn't seem to be as cooperative. I have transformed Windblade a few times and I still have gotten the knack of it but it does get easier. The poseibility of the figure is beyond belief for a Hasbro release and unlike recent releases, Windblade seems to have the collector in mind. I will start with the restrictions in movement, the head is on a swivel joint and the only real up and down movement comes from the transformation joint and the collar hinders the side to side movement. The feet are static and the heel piece can cause more issues with standing Windblade than what is is designed to prevent. Nothing fully pegs in and the majority of the joints just friction into place. It is those friction points that will cause extra work when posing this figure. The shoulders are on a mix of a swivel and ball joint followed by an upper bicep swivel, which is awesome to see in a thin arm but every time you move them you will need to readjust the should pads. The elbow has a natural bend with a surprising wrist swivel. Outside the static feet all the traditional movement is in the legs, There is a deep knee bend and ball jointed hips. An added feature missing from most Hasbro releases and due to transformation there is an added waist swivel. The wings tilt up and back allowing for some dynamic and expressive poses.

In robot mode Windblade will be a conversation starter even while standing in your display. The head sculpt stands out above and beyond the rest. There is no light piping but the paint details make up for that minor nitpick. The design is explained in the Windblade mini-series so go out and pick up your copy.


The gold head crest does slide out from behind to be an additional fan weapon but when removed, I feel leaving it in storage is the best place for it. Speaking of weapons, Windblade come packed with a sword and sheath.




The sword is held easily in her hand and with the wrist swivel it adds to the playability and poses. The sheath can also be pegged into the slot on her thigh adding both storage and the aesthetics.

There is one major flaw with this figure in robot mode and that are the heels. When flat footed the heels give a great look but due to transformation they only move towards the foot. That movement can cause issues when standing Windblade, and much like most of this figure the heels do not peg into anything. I feel the lack of pegs can cause issues in the future. On my figure the joints are tight but I have heard word that some figures are coming with lose joints but just how wide spread that issue is uncertain. It is a concern I have if the joints on mine work themselves lose as time goes on.

In short, is the figure for everyone? I would say no. Windblade screams to me as a collector's toy and more so if you enjoyed the Windblade mini series produced by IDW, written by Mairghread Scott and drawn by Sarah Stone as much as I did then this figure is a must have. If you at all on the fence about picking up Windblade and my words have swayed you do not hesitate is grabbing your own as I feel this one will be tough to find once pre-orders and initial releases are grabbed up. I was fortunate enough to get one as I have heard others were not so lucky.

If you are so bold you can win your very own Wingblade. The good folks at the Transmissions Podcast have a contest you can enter. Click on the following link for the details and you will be battling other Transformers fans, including myself, for an awesome Windblade prize pack. All you need to do is follow the directions here and enter. Good Luck. *EDIT* I'm sorry to report that the contest is now closed, if you entered I wish you luck as you will be going up against me. 

TheRealRonin
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Me Grimlock no Bozo, Me get Review.

Funny story happened today, or at leat funny to me. I went to my local Toys r Us looking for a Masterpiece Grimlock. After finding not a single one on the shelves but the SKU Code still there I asked a very helpful associate if by chance there were any in stock. 10 minutes later he told me that there were 4 in stock, so my hunt began! He asked a couple of his other co-workers on where they might be hidden as I kept my eyes peeled for one that might be in a spot it should not be, but after nearly an hour of my looking I had to give up the search and the fight.

During my search, I did grab a couple non Transformer related items and since I was there and I went there for a Grimlock, I will be leaving with a Grimlock! Thankfully to a little known movie called Transformers 4 Age of Extinction that came out, have you heard about this? Well apparently there are Dinobots in this movie along with some other transforming robots. So in keeping with my promise of leaving the store with a Grimlock I added to my growing TF4 collection with Age of Extinction Voyager Class Grimlock.

The figure comes in the new style packaging that were are becoming familiar with the new releases. Standing proud and mighty in robot mode, Grimlock greats you in the large window opening with a picture of Grimlock in accurate movie colours. On the back you have the bio as well as the normal photos in both alt and robot modes. The latest gimmick Hasbro is telling us is that the transfomation only takes 'X' amount of steps and in Grimlock's case that number is 18.

Time for a small rant here. I am not against a simpler transformation if done right, but I feel the math Hasbro uses does not add up. I say that because a figure comes with 2 arms, 2 legs and a few other pieces that might be doubled, but when the count is tallied up they count moving both arms separately as one move, where in my opinion that is two separate actions or steps. To further add to that count, when our figures are displayed sometimes (and I know I do) a mistransform to give them a better pose or look and by doing so we would either add or subtract from the total number of steps taken in the official transformation.

Another little pet peeve of mine comes with the instructions. Most of the newer figures I have gotten my hands on, the instructions have been in reverse. For example we will use Grimlock here. In the package he appears in Robot mode, but the instructions start him off in Dino mode. The first time I completed the transformation I had some great difficulty figuring out how the T Rex head assembled and actually faced forward to the rest of the body. Once you figure out where everything fits, slips through, or under the actual transformation is quite intuitive but I did learned one small tip. When working with the Dino legs or Robot arms, it is best to move them off to the side on the shoulder joint to allow more than enough clearance during rest of the transformation.

Starting in Dino mode you see a very different take on a robotic dinosaur. With all his spikes and amour plating Grimlock looks more like an upgraded battle cat. If you have seen the new movie I can understand your confusion as the colours, as they are no where those in which we saw in the theatres. The paint scheme all though very sharp and applied in the right areas. With a change in the paint barrels I feel that they just starting pumping these out on the same line in which they did the Transformers Prime Predaking on and did not inform the staff. The head is very large compared to the rest of the body, but I do like it. Even with the large teeth, Grimlock's grin makes him look friendly, but that grin does come at a price. There is a gimmick with the lower jaw that when you press a button on the left side of his head, it chomps up and down. I personally would want that gimmick to have a lock so the mouth does not need to be open at all the times. The short stubby arms are on a ball joint and can assume some expressive positions but the chest piece does not clip into anything so they tend to move along with the arms. The legs are fully poseable with joints that work in the hips, knees and feet but for the later you will need to start the transformation to get the feet free and into poses. From the great legs we get to a stubby tail.

Now I do not feel this tail is short or stubby but from certain angles it does give that impression. If you feel the tail is to short you can fix that with weapons storage. The mace that comes with Grimlock can clip on the tails tip adding a ridiculous length and look. At least it will stop you from hitting people in the head with it causing a concussion. 

It is in Robot mode where Grimlock begin to shine. The short tail, large head and nice legs all fit in beautifully and with surprisingly very little alt mode kibble. Why not I get what I feel is a small amount of kibble out of the way and start with the Gorilla arms. You can see the remainder of the Dino feet hanging from the forearms and thankfully the arms and hands are not in their position permanently.
With a slight mistransformation by unpegging the kibble from the forearm and you can freely rotate at the hand at the wrist. Doing this comes in handy when wielding the large mace in Robot mode. The large skull tucks away fairly nicely. The top half splits into two, to become the shoulder pads with what is left over hanging off his back like a hoodie with the hood down.

The head sculpt is different than what we have seen with previous Grimlocks but at the same time familiar. Behind the faceplate you see teeth, something that has been appearing in the latest versions of his head from third party companies. The overall look is of the Dino Knight motif, that is somewhat explained in the movie. All the clues are there from the helmet, amour plating and spiky boots.

The figure has all the standard ball joints in the shoulders and hips with pivot joints in the elbows and knees. There is no waist movement, but there is an ankle tilt. Surprisingly there little movement in the head with it just on a pivot joint considering the majority of figures appear to be connected with a ball jointed neck. Overall is this figure worth full retail? I will say no. With the flood of movie figures that have come out, Grimlock along with his other wave mates will be on sale later in retail if not sooner. Already teased with a SDCC and overseas exclusives, the G1 repaints are right around the corner. If you are a completionist like myself, Grimlock will stand proud along with the other Dinobots that have been released as they all share the knight look and would look good standing guard on your display shelf separate from the latest line of movie figures, but if you have patience I say wait for the sales, or the G1 repaints that will soon follow. I say give Hasbro or Takara another year for those. 

TheRealRonin
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