Fwoosh Staffers canonball and DisThunder have sat down to put together a look at some of the Transformers FansProject items that are out there right now. They have some thoughts and plenty of pictures to share, take it away, fellas!
Transformers collectors have it pretty good right now, particularly G1 fans. Hasbro has so many long-awaited characters all cued up for release beginning this fall and continuing well into the spring of 2011 that this is really starting to feel like a genuine golden age, the best it’s been since ’84-‘85. What’s making this all even better has been the steady rise of the “third party” toy companies like Fansproject and IGEAR that are producing toys that make Hasbro’s offerings even better. What’s so cool is these companies are largely fan-owned and operated and are making names for themselves by making toys that fans have been begging Hasbro to produce for years, but either haven’t or, in some cases, have released versions that weren’t quite up to snuff. Whatever their reasons for tossing their hats into this ring, the fans are the ones who are truly benefiting from the third parties’ involvement. Third party products are generally quite expensive, however, which is where the trouble comes into paradise. They range from about $50 to $100 per figure or upgrade, which may not be something many fans would be willing to pull the trigger on.. It’s certainly pricey, but completely worth it so far.
Let’s take a look at a few of these, then:
1. City Commander
The City Commander upgrade was not the first third party release, but for a lot of fans, including myself, this was the one that really got the ball rolling and made us realize Fansproject was not fooling around. What they gave us was something many of us had been begging Hasbro to release for years – a trailer and armor for the Classics Ultra Magnus to make him finally resemble his most beloved look, which was first showcased in the original 1986 movie and released in the original G1 toy line. What Fansproject gave us may not be 100% accurate and faithful to the look of the armor, but it’s close enough to provide the same thrill the original did back in ‘86. They really knocked it out of the park with this one.
City Commander was my first third-party purchase as well, and it set the bar very high. I’ve now owned mine for almost 2 years, and despite lots of playing and transforming, he still looks and feels as durable as any transformer-ish figure I own. Like CB said, City Commander didn’t stay slavishly devoted to the G1 aesthetic of Ultra Magnus, but made sure to keep the essence of the character in focus, and as a result he makes and excellent addition to any Classics/Henkei/Universe/Generations Autobot roster. Another nice touch is while both figures pictured are the FansProject City Commander, the weaponry and sticker sets vary- also purchased from other cottage industry teams. It’s very impressive to see not only the quality of the offerings, but the fact that these companies are not afraid to add on to each other’s work.
2. Warbot Defender
Warbot Defender was Fansproject’s first foray into producing more than just an add-on or an upgrade. This is a fully articulated figure that transforms (into three modes!) and only “coincidentally” resembles Springer from the ’86 movie. The design is completely their own and maintains an aesthetic that is in line with the City Commander armor – lots of sharp angles and “boxy” surfaces that, for me, work as an homage to the design sensibilities of the original Transformers toys. He blends in well enough with the rest of Hasbro’s CHUG collection and fills an important gap, in my opinion, the Hasbro Springer really didn’t live up to. I’m definitely looking forward to more unique figures from Fansproject.
Warbot is a serious piece of hardware. Everything about him screams ambition- the price, the alt-modes, the die-cast, even the character choice embody a brash warrior that’s not afraid to kick up some dust. While I am very impressed with everything about this figure, my personal bias against die-cast and transformations with lots of little parts make me a bit more timid with this guy than I would like. I had intended to show off his impressive gunship and armored car modes as well, but we here at Fwoosh don’t get paid by the hour. Still, while transforming him is a little nerve-wracking, he has proven what fears I might have about his durability groundless so far.
3. Headrobots Hothead, Duros 5 Military Assault Driver
Another thing that makes these third-party offering so exciting is that they don’t just cover the essential characters and upgrades- they also give second and third stringers their chance to shine. Hardhead is probably the best example so far- A late G1 Headmaster, Hardhead only got a chance to show his stuff in the last 3 episodes of the US G1 cartoon. And while he was a more prominent feature during the Japanese Headmaster show, it wasn’t until the IDW comics brought him in as Autobot Artillery that he was finally revisited as a toy. The choice of repainting the imposing Onslaught mode into an updated Hardhead wasn’t necessarily a bad one, but it lacked anything other than the obvious color to set him apart from his rival. This set fixes that and then some. Returning him to his G1 roots, he’s reunited with Duros, his driver, himself an impressive little figure. He actually fits in Hardhead’s vehicle mode hatch! Then you add on the extra weaponry, useable in either mode, and you’ve made Hardhead the most heavily armed Autobot so far.
4. Crossfire Mutioner and Explorer / Bruticus
Everything Fansproject has delivered has been totally solid up to this point, but this is where things took a corner and they delivered something that has really set a new bar for Transformers figures in general. This thing is just spectacular, plain and simple. Hasbro re-released an old combiner set, Bruticus Maximus, from their Energon line and repainted in more muted colors in order for it to fit in stylistically with 2009’s Revenge of the Fallen line. The problem was that the set really wasn’t all that good, particularly when combined. It was a mess, actually, and looked pretty ridiculous. In answer to a very clear need, Fansproject fashioned a set of not only add-on armor parts for Hasbro’s Bruticus Maximus, but also two entirely new transformable toys that also serve as new limbs for Bruticus, acting as Swindle and Blast Off, basically. The result was phenomenal and arguably the best “Transformers” toy released this year. The upgrade improves both the combined figure’s look and its articulation making it an excellent update of the original G1 Bruticus. What’s also cool is the limbs can be mixed and matched with parts from both the ROTF and Energon Bruticus sets leaving it up to the fan to decide what their Bruticus is going to look like. I give this effort the highest praise I can bestow upon any action figure, Transformer or otherwise. Just outstanding.
5. Renderform RF-002 Empyrean Espionage Upgrade Kit
If Hardhead is a third stringer, this guy’s in marching band. Skyfall is a repainted Silverbolt that joined Hardhead on the shelves during universe. His rather striking color scheme and his bio revealed an homage to a character who’s never going to see his name on a package again, Skyjack from Generation 2. Renderform (who can be found by putting .com on the end of the name) is a one-man garage kit operation that delivers a solid, simple and reasonably priced upgrade for what would otherwise be a throwaway figure. Giving him a G2 styled head (with either red or yellow visor) and a pair of scoped rifles really breaks him from his mold-mates, and makes him a much more worthy addition to the Decepticon air forces. As I am impressed with FansProject delivering goods as sturdy as the original figures, I am equally impressed with a garage kit that lines up with the likes of FansProject. If there was ever a trend I would love to see flourish and spread to other areas of this hobby, it’s this one.
6. Perfect Effect Warrior Type-R, Warrior Type-F
With these two figures, Perfect Effect gave us a very long awaited update to two very much beloved G1 figures. Like Fansproject’s Warbot Defender, these are fully articulated stand-alone figures that only “coincidentally” resemble Rumble and Frenzy, two of Soundwaves more popular minions. Unlike the original toys, however, these two don’t transform into mock audio cassettes, but pretty formidable-looking cannons that Soundwave (either G1 or Generations) can wield in both his hands. The gun modes look cool, but the bot modes are where these two really shine, providing a solid likeness to the characters upon which they’re based. The barrels of their respective cannons double as “pile drivers” making it possible to finally have a Rumble and Frenzy that can be posed whaling on the ground making things a pain in the ass for the Autobots This is something I’ve wanted to be able to do for over 20 years. Being that they transform into guns, their bot modes are small. Really small. Smaller than the smallest scale (Legends scale) Transformer Hasbro produces. But that’s the way it should be with these two, in my opinion, and they look so awesome posed with my G1 Soundwave and Ravage on my shelf.
7. iGear PP-01 Faith Leader 2nd
If one were looking to find a single figure to polarize Transformer fans in what otherwise could be seen as a love-in, look no further. While the merit and concerns this type of third party release can be seen as debatable (not even gonna start), the viable market for this figure is not. Sure, Optimus Prime gets more than his fair share of toys, but it’s fair to say toys that pay homage to his G1 roots have been in surprisingly short supply. In fact, there hasn’t been a G1 or “classic” Prime since 2006, re-releases notwithstanding. And while the Classics Prime is an excellent figure that has aged nicely, it’s a shame that there hasn’t been any attempts at a replacement. So iGear offers a no-brainer: take the most G1 accurate (and arguably best) Optimus made so far, re-engineer it, and offer it at a scale more in keeping with later Masterpiece and CHUG figures, at about Ultra class. Once you get used to the change in weight, Faith Leader stacks up very respectively to his bigger predecessor. All the gimmicks are there, and with an increase in plastic and joint strength with this 2nd release, Faith Leader comes very close to the level of quality needed for a Prime figure. There are some minor concerns, for me mostly the ball-joints on the head and ankles’ tendency to pop off, I’ve played with and transformed it enough times to relax and actually enjoy the figure. And while I’m hesitant to let a Prime that can’t say Prime on the box carry the Matrix, he’s a good enough fit that I’m happy to give it a home. I still hope for an official version to challenge this one someday, though.
So while it’s hard to say where exactly this third party movement is headed, it’s safe to agree that it’s definitely helping usher in a second golden age for Transformers fans. I remain hopeful that raising the stakes is good for everyone; competition almost always benefits the consumer.
But you can’t help but wonder what this kind of outsider involvement could do for (or to, depending where you’re sitting) action figure collecting as a whole: We’ve already seen revolutions in how figures are designed, from drafting and sculpting by a studio to 3d rendering that can be done by laptop virtually anywhere, how much longer before people “printing” their own toys at home- which is slowly becoming reality- starts to replace the mass production that defines modern toys? And ultimately, does that actually help or hurt the hobby as a whole?
Luckily, these aren’t questions that demand answers right now, and exciting (or anxiety-inducing) as the rise of third-party companies may be, it remains still very much the embodiment of a cottage industry, catering to those of us with the means and the need to seek out better than we can get at the store. And where Transformers is concerned, at least, it’s given some of us the chance to get the best offerings of the big companies as well as the newcomer and outsider ones.
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