Grimlock, who is all set to make his big-screen debut this week in Transformers: Age of Extinction, is certainly one of the perennial favorites of the Transformers universe, having been reinterpreted again and again throughout each phase of the Transformers 30-year history. The original G1 toy and cartoon appearances solidified his popularity decades ago, but it’s always cool to see how he fared in the years between G1 and the often-G1-incluenced modern era. One of the more interesting takes on the character would have to be his interpretation as a Classics Pretender, which we’re looking at today.
The Pretenders were introduced at the tail-end of the 1980s and were a group of Transformers characters who assumed an outwardly humanoid form (the Autobots), or an outwardly monstrous form (the Decepticons). This form, humanoid or monster, served as a “shell” that housed the true form of the Transformers character we’d be more familiar with. In Grimlock’s case, his humanoid form appears to be a 40-ish Caucasian male who is decked-out in some brightly colored Samurai-ish armor. Grimlock’s Pretender look was featured in the Marvel Transformers comic, but it hasn’t received all that much attention in other media, at least not overtly.
For a demonstration of the transformation in action, as well as some other thoughts, please check out the video below:
Now, there isn’t much about this shell that suggests “Grimlock” per se, but this look has slowly become one of my favorite interpretations of the character because the idea of his voice and speech pattern coming out of this body makes me chuckle, and it is a cool design that I’d love to see a modern take on.
This is not an interpretation of Grimlock that’s referenced often, but this version may yet prove to be among the more influential renditions of the character. Take his design in Age of Extinction, for example. There is something about it that is decidedly knight-like. In fact, if we look at Hasbro’s movie Grimlock and this Pretender side by side, we can see some parallels in terms of design — his helmet and some aspects of his armor, for instance. They’re not exactly the same, but there are some similarities.
The concept of “Grimlock as a knight” originates here with this figure’s design, so it’s cool to see elements of the Pretender pop up in modern interpretations like this.
If I were to picture Grimlock as a human, I think I’d picture something more of a bruiser, but he comes across more as someone’s dad in weird cosplay. As odd as it may be, something about it is completely endearing.
For accessories, he comes with a sword/blaster. This is another element of the character that would become something of a staple.
The shell has the absolute minimal level of articulation imaginable — his arms swivel at the shoulders, and… that’s it.
To transform him, all you do is pop off his helmet, split the shell in half at the seam, and presto! There’s the Grimlock we’re much more familiar with.
Grimlock’s “true” form is reminiscent of the G1 design, although it’s been simplified and streamlined. The familiar T-Rex head hangs off his back, but gone are his “wings” and red crotch piece, and his face is all orange instead of all black with blue or red eyes. Despite these differences, there’s no mistaking this figure for anyone but Grimlock.
His only weapon in this mode, which isn’t a sword for once, is actually his tail, which becomes a blaster. This tail-as-primary-weapon in ‘bot mode would pop up again with the Classics figure, and it’s actually not a bad idea. If the figure is going to take on elements of a “parts-former,” at least the parts are useful in his different modes.
His T-Rex mode is very similar to the G1 design most are familiar with, even though it’s really small in this case. It’s serviceable in appearance from most angles, but the bummer is it isn’t very articulated at all. His legs don’t really move, and his arms only spin at the shoulder. His jaw isn’t articulated, so there’s no dino-chomping to be done. Still, for what is basically a legends-class Grimlock, this figure is not bad at all, even by today’s standards.
However, I find myself keeping him in his Pretender shell because because his dino mode doesn’t really fit in anywhere, and even the newer legends-class figures dwarf him. The Beast Wars Megatron in the below pic is actually a deluxe-class figure, not the more common ultra-class figure, just to give you an idea of how small this Grimlock really is. And even the new legends-class Optimus is too big to be able to ride on Grimlock’s back. Boo.
The Pretenders are certainly not going to be everyone’s favorite interpretation of the Transformers, but I find them to be pretty cool, especially Grimlock here. I missed the Pretenders years myself because I collected Transformers from ’84-early ’87, and these came out shortly after my time. I secured this figure, along with a couple other Pretenders, on eBay because I was curious about them, so if you find yourself interested as well, then, like me, the secondary market is your only shot. Grimlock’s prices are often reasonable, though, so it’s worth taking a look if you’re interested.
