There are very few toy lines that demonstrate their evolution as dramatically as the Transformers Masterpiece line. As they turn their attention back to Rodimus, Takara illustrates all that on-the-job training in truly beautiful ways. Let’s take a closer look!
Masterpiece’s major stock in trade is nostalgia, right? Building on our collective memories of the toys and their cartoon appearances and turning them into functional, high-end figures is pretty much the mission statement for the line. At a staggering 28 releases, I would have thought the “nostalgia” trip that the Optimus Primes, Grimlock, and some of the standout others put me on would be mostly spent by now, like with Tracks, who I felt was a decent figure, but I just didn’t get get much warm fuzzy from him.
And I wasn’t expecting much from Hot Rodimus, either. Heading into his release, the promotional images definitely made him look like a great figure, but Hot Rod has always had a tenuous place in my heart and Transformers collection.
That’s because I’ve been pissed off at him for 30 years.
Oh, sure, James Roberts has turned Rodimus into the hilarious and awesome co-captain of the Lost Light, and even his weightiest sin was absolved before I was even out of my childhood, but come on now — he’s the guy that got Optimus Prime killed. That betrayal runs deep for me, since I got my original G1 Hot Rod before I saw the movie. I had time to fall in love with that little speedster before he broke my heart, and possibly traumatized me for life.
But I opened up that sturdy HLJ box, and, man, there was some of that old time nostalgia. Instantly, I remembered first seeing that black, red, and orange window box on the shelf in a Mervyn’s toy department. The bright red/magenta colors, the flame hood deco, and that bio!
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“My actions speak louder than words.”
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Hot Rod is an all-American-boy Autobot. He’s a typical adolescent who dreams of being heroic and important. He tends to not follow rules too closely. Although he means well, Hot Rod’s impulsive actions often get him into trouble. He carries two photon lasers that temporarily electromagnetize an enemy robot’s microcircuts. Speed: 120mph. Range: 4 miles. He can be hotheaded, but he’s always a well meaning, admirable lad and a brave and honorable fighter. |
That’s certainly a way to brighten a clothes-shopping trip. And MP-28 did me a similar favor, throwing some serious style and color in my face after work.
Inside, Rodimus and his accessories are set up in the standard clamshell, and like the rest of the Autobot cars, he starts in vehicle mode, so that’s where we’ll start.
Vehicle mode is rarely a problem for any Rodimus iteration, and this is no different. Other than nailing the color, it’s almost easy to dismiss this mode as good enough and move on. And that’s more or less just being a victim of success — Hot Rod is nearly always a concept street rod with an exposed intake and a wide spoiler, built on a wide and short wedge frame. But what makes this vehicle mode impressive is just how true to the G1 model it really is — hell, flip it over and it’s practically a dead ringer for the G1 toy’s underside. The feature set is pretty standard for the Autobot cars, with decent rolling wheels and two roof ports for his blasters. There’s also a third peg under the manifold that can be used to run a blaster Targetmaster-style. Overall, his size and style are spot-on for the series, and he can also work with Prime’s or Magnus’s trailers.
Transformation maintains a lot of that G1 inspiration but improves greatly on the more fiddly elements of figures like Tracks by giving everything a nice folding and securing system. The legs button up nicely without leaving hollow spots, and the upper body and backpack condense on themselves really well, even working in some pop-out vents on his back as they pack in.
And man, what a ‘bot mode. Again, the cartoon colors are just so eye-catching, and a welcome change from the dozen red Autobots we already have. His styling is amazingly true to the animation, and unlike the also very good-looking Rodimus Prime, this version is very functional and sturdy. The articulation is even better than I expected, with extra joints, like the pivoting shoulders and a forward-rocking abdominal joint, putting him among the most poseable Masterpiece figures to date.
In addition to his photon blasters, Rodimus also has the cutting blade that pegs into his forearm, and a fishing pole, obviously both from their respective movie scenes. Also for those movie-accurate poses, he has a visor that can flip down from under his helmet, for targeting the hijacked Autobot shuttle. There is also a matrix chamber that can house the MP10 matrix — size jump sold separately, though.
And I feel like his is about right on, particularly for movie-scale. As season 3 wore on, there was very little difference in size between the main characters, and even when de-matrixed, Rodimus only turned slightly smaller than the others. His scale with the earlier season characters looks good, and he also works well with the voyager size movie and Headmasters figures.
Maybe it’s because this figure is just so damn good, or maybe it’s because I’m older and wiser, but I can finally forgive young Hot Rod. The brazen cavalier makes an excellent addition to my Autobot ranks, one that will only get better if we see more movie/season 3 characters join him, especially Kup, Springer, and Arcee.
You done okay, you turbo-revving punk.
