Here we have the Tigerzord as we go in morphing order. If you know the original or Legacy versions, you should be familiar with it. How this looks on its own. One thing I liked about MMPR (and the Sentai counterparts) is that they knew how to immediately make their then-new concept of Sixth Rangers a badass thing by having their Zords work almost independently from the others. Much like the Dragonzord from the year before, the White Tigerzord is a beast to be reckoned with thanks to the size and surprisingly fitting proportions that almost match the real thing. Obviously, it's a chunky 90s robo toy that isn't fully anatomical to what an actual white tiger looked like, but it's still a badass design regardless. Thankfully, the paint apps are fairly plentiful on this version, and the stickers are applied well without the fear of fraying or peeling in sight, unlike the Voyagers and Leaders from the later 2 parts of the Prime Wars Trilogy. The original toy had lights and sounds from within the mouth of the tiger, but that was not included with the new release nor Legacy. At least we have good articulation for the front legs, given those will become the arms. The hind legs have a bit of movement as well, though nothing as major, despite some kind of neat ratchet joints you can hear when flexing the lower parts. The only issue would be that I wish the red bits for the Mega Tigerzord were hidden better in this mode and Warrior Mode, or at least have some red for the rear circular bits on the back. Other than that, surprisingly faithful recreation given how Hasbro changed some aesthetics for their MMPR Zords slightly, whereas Playmates tries to match the old toys as much as possible.
Converting it into warrior mode is just like the original, and pretty easy to match the stock footage from Dairanger. The rear area hinges down to form the lower legs of the Zord's humanoid mode, and while the hind legs are tucked into the feet (which could be a bit annoying since they detach easily), the front legs straighten while the paws face forward and rotate out of the way to turn into the arms. Hinge the front section down and flip the head up. If you know how the original and Legacy versions work, then this should be easy to remember. The warrior mode is once again modeled after the Legacy version, which isn't a bad thing given it had the best attempt at recreating the in-show suit used for filming Megazord fights. Once again, the red around the tiger head meant for Mega Tigerzord is distracting since it's not supposed to be there, but the rest of the toy looks very nice for a $20 Zord. It's good to see that the stickers are once again applied properly, with no signs of wonky placement or any wrinkles and peeling in sight. Proportions are also good, and I especially like the White Ranger emblem on the paws, since those could have easily been skimped.
The head sculpt is pretty good, for the most part, though it could use a black outline for the eyes, given that it is a common detail Japanese mecha usually come with. One complaint I have is that it doesn't click into place that great. As for the articulation, the shoulders rotate on very soft ratchets, elbows bend, wrists rotate, hands open, and the knees bend slightly. With his sword in hand, the articulation is not as expressive as most of Hasbro's Megazords, but it works fine for a mainline toy.
Given that this will receive a gift set in the future, here we have all of the Thunderzords together. I love that they have their own distinction from the Dinozords yet have similar elements in some capacity. I mean, we have the fliers for Pink; Black Ranger has similarly bulky Zords for himself; Blue and Yellow have proportions that make them similar to the old legs, and Red has the main centerpiece that is crucial for the Megazord. And no, they don't need the core team Dairanger suits for MMPR Season 2. It's been 3 decades at this point; go complain about, idk, Sentai still being dead. That said, we don't have the Assault Team sled for them to use. That was how they sold the originals back in 1994, when you got them separately from the Red Dragon. Maybe a Kickstarter for Tor would have them?
Here we have the Lion Thunderzord. Modeled after Chinese Guardian Lion statues, this Zord is less like the more ferocious designs we get in stuff like Wild Force, Ninja Storm, or Jungle Fury, but it fits the style that the S2 Zords are going for. Plus, it's easy to say the Gosei Ground's Lion has something in common with this in terms of the homage, and both are more lion-esque than whatever Cosmic Fury had. I always loved the green face on the lion since it helped the Zord pop like the grey on the Mastodon head. By now, you should expect no articulation for this thing, like with 94 and Legacy, but you have an attack mode of some kind. Extend the paws, flip the grey pieces down on the back, and flip the green orb piece so the sheathed sword can clip on. Not much to say about it, but it had to do something to justify selling the Zord by itself.
Up next, we have the Firebird Thunderzord. Despite having a larger head than normal, it's very elegant in design compared to the blatant chest shape that the Pterodactyl was stuck with. If anything, the gold makes the Zord look regal, especially with the stickers on the wings. While the neck has the same points of articulation as its older self, the wings are each on two hinges, which especially helps for combining as the skirt armor for the Thunder Megazord.
For its accessories, the staff can clip under the Zord, while the more practical missile launchers peg below the wings. The latter is pressure-launched, and the former at least kind of makes sense because the staff can combine with the tail as a lance of some kind. Still, those missiles don't stay in place and are barely clipped in place, so be aware of that.
Much like last year's Pterodactyl, the Firebird comes with micro figures of the Rangers. They are pre-posed and only have the base white for their plastic with black for the visors and whatever Ranger color they had. They don't fit in the Zord's heads or the cockpit, but at least they are unique sculpts and are more detailed.
As for the Unicorn Thunderzord, it's kind of similar to a kiddy ride, but unlike the Cosmic Fury stuff, it at least can get away with it from the age of the design. The stickers are done so nicely for this Zord, especially with the wing details. All it mistle does is hinge at the neck and head, but at least the ratchets are satisfying. Its attack mode has the thigh panels folded halfway up, while the rear pieces hinge down with additional grey pieces flipping up. The front bit hinges forward, and you insert an orange horn looking missile in the neck. Kind of gruesome doing that, and you can only flick the missile with your finger or use that panel on the back.
The similar-looking Griffin Thunderzord isn't just a recolor of the Unicorn, with a more noteworthy difference given it doesn't have as much range in the head and neck. That said, both Zords roll nicely on a surface, and I also love that their sticker details are unique from each other, a bit like the sides of the Triceratops and Sabertooth Tiger. Much like the Unicorn, it has an attack mode involving an orange drill. At least the launchjer is at the bottom this time, so no hole in the neck!
And finally, we got the Red Dragon Thunderzord. Out of all the Zords the Mighty Morphin Red Ranger piloted, regardless if it was Jason or Rocky, this one has always been my favorite. Between how it moved around in the show on top of the Chinese dragon influence being a unique contrast to the Kaiju design of the Dragonzord, this felt like the best upgrade out of the whole Zord team. While the articulation is the same as the 1994 version, it at least won't suffer from the loose joints of the Legacy version. I'm not expecting it to have premium paint, but some deco for the mouth would be nice. At the very least, the articulation is good for this mold, with the jaw, tiny arms, and the neck and tail made up from the legs of the warrior mode. What will be the left foot sticks out a bit in the back, but this is still a great design.
I should mention that the tail piece has some weird shit going on, mostly with how it's assembled. Normally, when you fold the tail for dragon mode, it doesn't stay flush though it will tab in place normally. When you rotate the piece around after detaching it and before reattaching it, the tail sits better when it is extended and more straightened out. More on the misassembly bit later.
Transformation is very faithful to the original toy. The neck and tail become the legs, the tail forms the loin flap, the head becomes the chest, and the bottom piece goes on the back. My favorite part is how the dragon legs form the arms by snapping together; it's so satisfying to do that like in the footage. The design being based on the "Monkey King" mythology, who is known of its Chinese martial arts skills and use of a staff in combat. It's a great design that still feels like it can work well on its own if it wasn't going to combine with the Assault Team. The only issue I have with the toy is the flap on the back having nowhere to go, so it just flops around.
Head sculpt is decent for a recreation of the original toy, though once again, the eyes should use a black eyeliner to make them pop better like on the original and Legacy versions, especially given the aforementioned Japanese mecha aesthetic trait mentioned earlier. Once again, articulation is the same as the original toy, with ratchets used throughout the shoulders, the bicep area of the arms, the elbows, and a little bit of outward leg movement with some slightly useful knees if you're able to pose him just right. I kind of wish he had a neck swivel since the Legacy version had one, but at least he still has finger articulation.
Once again, we have some noteworthy things to bring up with the tail/codpiece and this time, the dragon head. Normally, the jaw remains closed after you attach the codpiece on (which, when stock, goes a little lower than normal). However, by opening the jaw like on the old toy, and using the alternate assembly for the codpiece, which now folds more cohesively, the result is the dragon head flowing better with the rest of the torso while the codpiece is now overlapping the white stripe going around the waist rather than staying below it. Also, he can use the staff that comes with the Firebird, though it appears to be a little too thick for the hands to hold it. I think the original and Legacy versions fit better, and it makes me wish some plastic was removed so the staff can have slightly thinner (plus, the budget can be used for proper Firebird feet or more paint for the Ranger figurines).
For a size comparison, here we have the Tigerzord and Red Dragon Thunderzords in their Warrior Modes together. Given the necessity of not having the prop suits inconsistent with scale, they share a relatively similar height whereas the old toys would have different heights, mostly Tigerzord being taller than Red Dragon due to bulk and electronics.
And finally, we have the Thunder Megazord fully assembled! Getting the Assault Team onto the Red Dragon is just like in the past, though the only issues I would have would be the sheath not clipping on that great and how annoying it can be to get the legs inside the boots, but those are it. The resulting Thunder Megazord, or Mega Thunderzord, is very close to what the old toy used to look like, at least the Dairanger version. Its proportions are appropriately chunky, as they befit the Chinese Warrior motif that the Sentai went for. Here, they once again work as Zordon and Alpha wanting to pay tribute to human history, much like how the Dinozords were seen as a tribute to the prehistoric era. I always loved this design from watching MMPR reruns on Disney-owned channels back in the 2000s, between the transition from Dino to Thunder, the Red Dragon's warrior mode, the way the Assault Team combined with it, the green orb (with the MMPR team inside it during close up footage), or how the helmet looks over the head with that visor. All this needs is the chain on the sheath, but maybe it can be possible to work one into it? I know I could disassemble the orb and place a sticker inside it to cover the gaps inside it.
While I like the head design of the show prop, the helmet is slightly oversized and widened than it should be. As a result, the mouth region ends up being hidden under the rest of it when it shouldn't be, and you can see a bit of the nose when it's covered up. Maybe a replacement piece can help improve the proportions. Articulation only consists of shoulder rotation and slight spread & twists for the legs. Kind of wish it had the neck swivel and opening hands of the Legacy version. At least the sword is decently detailed and proportionate for this big dude.
The staff can be held in the other hand after splitting it in half and reattaching it. With the tail of the Firebird, it is now a spear used only in Dairanger's movie. On and the Firebird's missile launchers can store in the back like the ones on the original Megazord.
As for the Mega Tigerzord, while it thankfully lacks the Zordbuilder BS of the Legacy version, it instead suffers from slightly off proportions. Because the Tigerzord had to be the same height as the Red Dragon Thunderzord to maintain the same price, it had to be shrunken down compared to 1994 and Legacy. I have the suit prop to show you what it should more or less look like. A more annoying issue I have is the sticker detailing now leaving gaps between the red spaces and the tiger head, and the mask likes to flop around easily while the crown can detach while sliding it up. As for positives, it isn't falling back at the knees like on Legacy, the Firebird stays on way better than on either previous version, and while it's sold only at Walmarts, at least it got made and is still good in its other modes. Poor Dragonzord had to deal with being a Kickstarter on top of Playmates receiving death threats constant feedback over any needed changes from fans.
Overall, I am happy with how the new Thunderzords generally turned out. Are they 100% perfect? No, but at least they managed to be way better than I expected. It sucked hearing that we'd regress with the Megazords under Playmates with Season 1, though with Season 2, I can be more forgiving towards it since it's the kind of MMPR we don't get as much, merch wise. The only real issues I have are just some slight proportional issues with the helmet for the Thunder Megazord and the Tigerzord being smaller; on top of that, the latter has some weird tab issues for the head, the hind legs detaching, and the stickers being weird for the chest. Unless you're lucky to get Dairenoh and not giving a shit about the Sentai it's from as a PR-only fan, you'll have to contend with the inaccurate stickers and color changes of the 1994 release, and while the Legacy version may look nice, good luck dealing with the wobbly legs and Zordbuilder ports (worse on Mega Tigerzord). Tigerzord is good on all 3 versions, but I don't think paying $100 for the Thunder Megazord components is a bad deal, right? It's a lot, but they at least added some new features. I look forward to seeing how they tackle the Season 3 Zords now because the Thunderzords wash away the awfulness of the Cosmic Fury Megazord Hasbro churned out (and for the last time, I don't care about the Japanese version).
That said, distribution has been annoying to get them individually. I was lucky to get the Tigerzord first despite being a Walmart exclusive, and within their speedy delivery, too. The rest of the Zords, however, were not as easy to get initially. Only Red Dragon, Griffin, and Unicorn were available at Walmart.com, or at least they would be, if not for the CONSTANT ORDER CANCELATIONS! Not helping was the NPC-like nature of the customer service reps who would almost be mistaken for their shitty AI assistance. They keep saying "oh it will go back in stock, here is a $10 gift from us", but the moment I try to order them, they either pop up as "out of stock" before I confirm my purchase, or I get my orders canceled because of some inventory BS. Target was only barely helpful, as they got me the Red Dragon and Lion, while Amazon took some time but eventually brought me the Unicorn, Griffin, and Firebird. I wish BBTS or Entertainment Earth would sell these instead of some shitty Funko Pops. Unless distribution or stock got better, try getting the 5-pack if we ever get it in US retailers.
Final ranking: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (for all 6 Zords)
IMPORTANT UPDATE FOR MY SITE'S FUTURE
If you want to skip this segment after reading the Thunder Megazord review, you're free to do so, but I want to share something important regarding how things are going to go from here. Firstly, I want to thank you all for being with me after making 1,000 reviews since 2019, especially after wanting to go more in depth with what I feel about these toys I got that social media posts can't fully describe. I once tried doing video reviews as when I was 14-15, yet they all sucked because I had no editing involved, I didn't review anything new, and I tried to add my own humor but it didn't land all that great. All I ever got to review was some Robot Heroes, a Spider-Man plushie, G1 Optimus Prime, some Ash Ketchum toy, and a Mario from Wendy's. I had no backdrop, no good lighting, the aspect ratio was weird because the picture was stretched, the lighting was all bad because of the bulbs that probably needed to be replaced in the kitchen, I used a glass table that made no sense, and I taped my basic smartphone on some books. Oh, and I had to deal with parents who would probably look at me all weird and would rather see me study 24/7 than have a hobby. I gave up because I felt I could never reach that dream collection of action figures I always wanted back then, be it Transformers, Power Rangers, or anything from other franchises, especially imports.
Then came the late 2010s. I was in college by that point and got some refunds from my college loans. This gave me the opportunity to buy the stuff I wanted to get from the equally perfectly-timed release of the Studio Series line. Finally, I can get new Bayverse toys without spending too much on the aftermarket, and I would also get some Marvel, DC, Star Wars here and there before I nearly went all out with more TFs thanks to Siege and the second year of Studio Series. Going to the 5 Targets near my college felt exciting, especially when I waited for my next class to start. On top of that, there were 2 vintage toy shops north from where I studied, and one of them I actually walked to before I learned I could just use the bus or train! I was happy to get new action figures fresh from the toy aisle and some older ones to diversify my collection, and even the comic shop helped me out, too.
The pandemic needs no further explanation, but after it ended, I was pressured into getting a job immediately after graduating. I had one job working at Home Depot for a year, then quit to work for a car factory as I currently am to this day. I still wanted to collect as many things as I could, especially as I started using eBay and later Mercari if something was either out of stock or was a vintage release. Soon, I started getting imports, plushies, some statues, or tiny figurines that wouldn't be reviewed normally, and I could almost see my collection shaping up, but at the back of my mind, I always wondered when I would decide to stop. Funny enough, that began when the moment Hasbro stopped producing Power Rangers toys (long before they announced their collab with Playmates, mind you). Now, PR reviews picked up slightly, and may continue if we get the Godzilla crossover stuff and the Season 3 Zords (plus whatever Zeo, Wild Force, and Dino Thunder would bring) but I always wondered how long until they decide to stop again. And no, getting into Sentai, Rider, or Project RED won't fill that gap as well, unless it was getting Sentai merch from seasons adapted into PR.
It made me think about other franchises I collect from as well, firstly with Transformers because it's a line I collect the most from. Since the early 2010s, Hasbro started raising prices for their products, and TFs are no exception. The figures started getting smaller around Dark of the Moon, and continued shrinking further for the Prime RID subline and Fall of Cybertron. Sizes fluctuated for Age of Extinction and the Prime Wars Trilogy, but prices continued creeping up. Siege had Deluxes at around $20, then around late Kingdom and early Legacy, the price went to $22. At around Legacy United, the price was $25. Now, they're at $28 for Age of the Primes with a rumored price hike at $30 before we begin the Age of Evolution line. Voyagers went from costing $20 in the 2000s to $30 around the late 2010s/early 2020s before costing $36 midway through 2023. Now they cost $44, and the only one worthy of that price so far is Amalgamous Prime. Leaders used to be the centerpiece of the line, especially with a new Optimus Prime and Megatron as well as additional large characters like Brawl, Ultra Magnus, or Starscream. Then they shrank like the other toys while losing electronics, and while I can enjoy figures like Power of the Primes Optimal Optimus or the Studio Series 86 Dinobots, the day we started getting Voyagers with Benefits meant that the Leader Class of old is no more.
Other franchises I collected haven't been much better, either. I already got just about everyone I want from Marvel Legends, and while the same could be said for DC Multiverse, I don't really like how mixed a sendoff the figures' value for money can be at times. Also, I have no plans to delve into Mattel because I don't feel like collecting the same characters all over again. I haven't bought a Star Wars figure since Kyle Katarn and Quinlan Vos back in February, what with me believing that even getting characters who didn't originate from Disney's awful canon would still contribute to the House of Mouse charity so they can churn out more slop like Mando & Grogu. And while I try to cover more TMNT stuff, I normally don't collect playsets or vehicles. Then there is the issue with companies making tons of versions of characters they already did versions of. We already saw this with the Generations line since Siege, but what about how Tamashii always does new versions of Goku and Vegeta when there are other names in the DBZ universe who deserve a Figuarts? I mean, Chi-Chi is stuck with a measly child version when we should have adult versions of her by now, while some new characters only get made if they tie in with Super or Daima. And after some on-and-off hiatuses with Sailor Moon, we only get a 2.0 version but no word on other characters (or doing Crystal versions). I also have no plans for any other franchises unless it's something I've seen before, like The Tick or Spawn.
At this point, I started to think that maybe retiring would be ideal in the near future, but I don't want to make that a thing that'll happen right now. I don't want to suddenly say it's over, because I have some reviews I want to get to before the year ends. At the same time, I would rather have my stuff stay up without issue after making a proper retirement announcement. Yes, deleting almost a decade's worth of posts would be an annoying and retarded thing to do. Who am I, JJPlagiarisms? So for now, I will provide a slate of reviews I want to get to, reviews I may or may not cover, and any canceled plans depending on what went nowhere between 2024 and 2026.
Reviews I Plan to Cover:
-Studio Series Optimus Prime (AOE Voyager)
-Age of the Primes Armada Jetfire
-Yolopark AMK Beast Wars Megatron & Blackarachnia
-Yolopark AMK Pro Ironhide
-Blokees Champion Class BBM Bumblebee & Optimus Prime
-Titans Return Monsterbots
-Combiner Wars Liokaiser
-MPMN Sideswipe
-Evangelion Prime
-Most McFarlane Vault reissues
-Any DC Multiverse figures I can get
-Nendoroid Meta Knight
-Long overdue Spider-Verse reviews
-Pristine Raimiverse Green Goblin
-Nendoroid Misato
-The Armada Minicons that come with Powerlinx Red Alert
Reviews That May or May Not Happen This Year
-Any Premium Series Transformers for the 2007 movie's 20th anniversary
-DOTM Nightmare Megatron (ROTF Leader repaint) with Alien Attack arms
-Any Missing Link Transformers I could get at cheaper prices
-Any Vintage Beast Wars releases I don't have (at least Season 1 cast)
-Any Evangelion or Ranma Reboot Figuarts
-The rest of the MMPR x Godzilla crossover merch
-Mess Toys Lethal Neighbor
-SH Figuarts 40th anniversary Goku
-MAFEX Punisher, Magneto, & Iceman
-Anything for the DOTM 15th anniversary
-Icons Optimus & Megatron
-Monstructor & Sentinel if those ever get discounted
-Bionicle Toa Inika
-The Tick 2001 figures
-The Tick 2001 figures
-Any remaining Shrek & Curse of the Were-Rabbit figures
-Evac from TF The Ride
-Super 7 Ultimates 2003 Casey Jones & Shredder
Canceled reviews since the 5th anniversary post
-Black Series Jaina & Jacen Solo 2-pack, CWMMP Ventress (lost interest in the line)
-Vintage Collection Anakin Skywalker Evolution (Hate the Disney Store)
-Sonic 3 Movie figures (Wanted to get them but the scale seemed out of place)
-DC Multiverse Batpod (incredibly hard to get in person and online)
-Marvel Legends Savage Land 3-pack (scalpers went wild for half-naked Rogue and Sharon despite their flaws as figures)
-Buzzmod Lum (got hard to find, expensive af, might be redundant)
CONCLUSION
Below you will see all of the milestone reviews from over the years. For a brief summary of 100-900, Lightning Collection Wave 2 being at 100 was mostly coincidental, but I thought it was a way to show how far I've come at the time. At 200 was Cyberverse Deluxe Hot Rod, which was once again coincidental, but he was an alright figure. 300 gave us Black Suit Superman from McFarlane, which was good timing when you consider the Snyder Cut came out around that time. 400 gave us Legacy Elita-1, which, like Hot Rod, was coincidental with a decent figure. For the 500 milestone, the decision to put Figuarts Tobey Spidey against the NWH 3-pack was deliberate. 600 with Studio Series Bumblebee Shockwave was coincidental, yet I still question the lack of bicep swivels. 700 with AMK Pro TLK Optimus Prime made sense as the gateway for Yolopark goodness. 800 with Star Convoy was somewhat coincidental, yet it made sense. Did you know the first Krillin review I made nearly got that milestone? 900 with Elite Spawn was my choice just to show my love for the character, even if the figure let me down. And at 1,000, need I say more with the Thunderzords? Very interesting how the milestones began with a Power Rangers review and we go full circle with another review set in that franchise.
With all that said and done, I want to thank everyone who has read my reviews since 2019. Whether it's because you're someone I know personally, or you're a fan of these franchises I covered, I hope you got to see what toys I recommend and which ones I don't. As for what time would be great to retire, I can easily say 2,000 reviews would be off the table; I mean, do I really want to reach that milestone in the next 7 years? I don't even think I'd want to get toys from mass retail if they're going to be expensive as shit! Eh, maybe 1,111 reviews would be fine, or 1,234? Whenever that time comes, and whether or not reviews for things like Studio Series Twins, Jakks Pacific Frogger based on his Great Quest design, or Figuarts of Neo-Queen Serenity, Misato Katsuragi, or Bulma based on her appearance in the Super Hero movie with her BBL can be made, remains to be seen. Until then, take it away, Heisenberg.
