So here we have Bludgeon in his tank mode. It's a Japanese Type 90 tank that reflects on the original toy's altmode (were without the Pretender Shell, the robot mode can become a small little tank). Here, the altmode feels a lot more complete than it originally was. I like that the treads, despite rolling on tiny wheels, are made of rubber to make them look more realistically like treads than they would be if they were molded plastic. Also, the sculpting on the tank mode works pretty well, as it captures what tanks would have on them, down to some tools that would be stored around the tank. That said, if there's something I really hate on the tank mode, then it's the light gray plastic. The turret, the machine gun, the missile pods, and some joints that are slightly exposed in the tank mode have the material, and it looks really bad! It ruins what is otherwise a nice looking tank. Also, the turret rotates on a soft but somewhat satisfying ratchet joint while the machine gun can swivel normally.
Bludgeon's transformation is fairly complex. The real issues I have with it are the arm joints feeling a bit tight while the spine that has the head attached can be a bit tricky to collapse. Otherwise, the rest of the transformation works really nicely. The turret can be arranged any way you like, but I prefer to make it look like a scabbard.
In robot mode, Bludgeon looks WICKED! Certainly a departure from normal tankformers like Megatron or Brawl as he captures the demon samurai theme very well! I love the skeletal motif that flows across the figure, the feet looking pretty alien (even if there are no good heels), and parts of the tank becoming armor that a samurai would be associated with. The chest design does look weird at first glance, but it does make sense in the context of it looking pretty skull-like.
Bludgeon's head sculpt looks detailed enough to resemble an alien version of a skull, yet the paintwork does look a bit soft. Perhaps some weathering would help accentuate the details better. Also, it looks like there was supposed to be light piping but there's none to be seen, as what would have been the slit for it was reduced to gray plastic.
Bludgeon's articulation is fairly substantial for a Voyager. Head is on a swivel, shoulders swivel front and back, in and out, they move out at the shoulders on two joints (one for the transformation and one for the normal articulation), a bicep swivel, double jointed elbows, and wrists that curl in because of the transformation. Legs move front and back, in and out, they swivel above the knee, bend at the knee, and they hinge at the ankles.
His first weapon is the larger katana, which is made from a portion of the turret's barrel. It's not just colored in the ugly gray plastic, but it's also in this gummy material that's stiffer than some PVC. The katana can either have a bent blade or a warped handle. Either way, not good.
One of his other weapons is a tanto, which is stored from within the turret and can be revealed with this neat Mech Alive feature!
As mentioned, the weapons themselves look sharp, especially the tanto, yet they do have the unfortunate aspect of being made of a softer material that detracts from the look of the toy. They're also annoying to attach or remove from his hands because of how they're made. They can be stored on the skirt armor if you wish.
These weapons can combine to become a somewhat dual-bladed sword, which isn't' as effective with the weapon sizes being so unbalanced and the aforementioned material not working out too well.
Bludgeon was reused in other lines, and they generally become reused for other characters. This is a straight repaint named Banzaitron. It's a bit of a shame that Banzaitron did not get a new mold but is instead a straight repaint. The way I see it, this is Bludgeon using the spark of Banzaitron to power up, giving him a deco that honored the dead Decepticon in my headcanon. To Banzaitron's benefit, his swords look a lot better, and the neon green not only adds to the deco but doesn't look cheap.
BotCon 2012 sees Overlord be the next use of the mold, complete with a retooled head to reflect on the character design. While the colors are accurate, this mold doesn't quite fit Overlord, especially now that we have him in Titans Return.
A few months later, the mold is reused as another Decepticon leader, this time being Generation 2 Megatron in the GDO line. I actually used to have this mold, but the plastic felt pretty cheap compared to Megatron, and the toy's joints didn't seem to help keep Megs standing upright even when I first got him out of the packaging. So he was replaced with Bludgeon. Also, if you want a Megatron that's sort of G2, you're better off sticking with G1 Megatron since he's better as a tank.
G2 Megs was repainted as Cloud Megatron, which is in the more traditional G1 deco than GDO Megatron. I still don't care for this reuse since it's better for Bludgeon and the fact that we have a Megatron in tank form (unless you like weird reuses).
Although this was originally a repaint of MV1 Wreckage, I see this toy as a Bludgeon that not only homaged his G1 toy without the signature shell but also reflects his earlier appearance where he was beaten by Whirl and had to upgrade himself to the Voyager we have. Yes, really. I feel it's only good to get if you want the Wreckage mold but don't want the original deco it had. That or if you want to have him be a pre-samurai Bludgeon.
There are two upgrade kits made for Bludgeon as far as I can remember. The first comes from Headrobots, which is the Blood the Dark Warrior upgrade kit, giving Bludgeon two proper swords and a head sculpt that reflects on his Pretender head (along with a jawless face). While I'm 100% on board with the new swords, I honestly don't care for the alternate head since this isn't going to be G1 Bludgeon in my collection. Hasbro should instead make a new mold to reflect his comic appearance than to constantly repurpose his design.
If that wasn't enough, another third party upgrade kit (made by Maiden Japan) gives him the chest and boots of the Pretender. This kit really clashes with the rest of the toy's design worse than the Beewun robots did with the Transformers from the previous five movies. The boots look like they would squeak than belong on this toy.
Finally, Perfect Effect gives ROTF Bludgeon a bit of a different flair to this Bludgeon toy. This adds not just firepower but also two unique head sculpts. One of them is a smaller version of the stock head, while the one you see here reflects on him being possessed by a ghost in the fan comic. This would be neat to get in a way, though only for the weapons to give the tank mode more arsenal than it originally had.
This is a Prime Master version of Bludgeon. It's from Power of the Primes, which is unrelated to Revenge of the Fallen, but it's got a Bludgeon in it, and it's the only Prime Master worth getting IMO. Like the old Pretenders, it's a chunk of plastic that vaguely resembles a humanoid shape, especially from the sides. Also, the back looks hollow.
The arms can only move up and down. Same movement as the old Pretenders. The barrel of his weapon mode can either be a cannon or a...stick for him to beat his enemies on the head. But why use a weapon when he can be one himself? More onto that later.
Here is a size comparison with ROTF Bludgeon. This is about the height of an older Legends figure or a Cyberverse Legion figure.
The shell can open up and reveal Quintus Prime, which means this is a Bludgeon disguise and not quite the actual Bludgeon. Speaking of, there were cards that renamed a character from the line when they have the powers of a specific Prime Master. Can't believe people actually went nuts and tried to collect them all. Back on topic, this Prime Master's just in two colors and lacks paint in the face. There is a slight amount of orange when it's folded up as a Matrix core, but that's pretty much it.
The weapon mode looks a bit stupid but serviceable for what it's trying to be. At least there's more to do with these Pretenders than with the original ones. You can have the arms point up or not; it's up to you.
ROTF Bludgeon has a bit of compatibility with the toy. As you can see, he's able to wield him since the toy does have hands that can hold 5mm posts. They don't look like they do because of how they're shaped, but if at least the knife are anything to go by, then at least it's possible. As for the real Bludgeon toy itself, I love it! It's one of the better done off-screen ROTF figures, but I'd say that he's better than most toys made of characters that were in the film. The design is wicked, the tank mode looks great, and the only issues I have are the ugly gray parts on him. Beyond that, it's a great looking toy! I recommend that you pick him up when you see him in stores, but be sure to paint up parts of him when you see that ugly gray. That and to give him the proper swords.
Final ranking: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
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