McFarlane DC Multiverse Collector Edition Hawkman & Hawkgirl review

Ready to revisit the ever confusing nature of Hawkgirl History? No? Too bad, we're delving into it again with Hawkman doubling the confusing nature of these characters! At least this is clearly the Kendra Saunders version and not another identity, though then again, that's likely from her being in some of the more recent material as well as loosely tying in with her appearance from last year's Superflop (without making a figure of her live action screeching counterpart). As for Hawkman, we have to keep in mind that he was around since World War II, first as a human trapped in an ancient Egyptian curse of endless death and rebirth, then an alien police officer sent to protect Earth. McFarlane even acknowledged the crazy nature of this character by saying he's sometimes a mix of the two identities, lined up well with the Hawkman focus for Zero Hour. Apart from that, let's see how well these two turned out!

Here we have Hawkman in-hand, with a fairly dark color scheme that almost makes me think of a Gargoyle instead of the usual Hawkman. This stems from being an amalgamation of all versions of Hawkeye prior to his comic relaunch, also stemming from the aesthetics tone comics had at the time; that shade of blue for the pants fits well with someone like Batman, while the hair on the chest as well as the darker colors of the wings almost make him much less "classic" and more mythical and gritty in comparison. Some superhero redesigns and new faces had this at the time, and while it was edgy, it beats turning characters into himbos or girlbosses. The blue grey fade on top of the wings makes him feel slightly gothic, while the chest hair makes him feel more barberic with the harness and nothing else covering the upper body, a contrast to the fresh, clean look associated with someone like He-Man. Other than that, this almost makes me think of the kind of "Mythic Warriors" toyline Todd McFarlane would have done, only trading a heavy level of weathering and deco for articulation.

His head sculpt is meant to fit with the tweaks Hawkman had in his 90s relaunch, between the bird-like eyes to go with the organic wings and the black mullet that further pushes to the edge of that era. I wish the fins of the helmet weren't that flexible, but at least the paint looks nice. I like thay the beak is more vibrant gold than the rest of the helmet. Articulation is the same as usual, but the wings are not only removable, but they can flap as well as hinge up and down. They are stuck in this look, but at least they're not collapsed like with the 2014 Angel from the All New X-Men boxset. Other than that, the collector card, and the stand, he comes with his mace with some color separation at least.

The newest Hawkgirl is a straight recolor of the original, almost appearing like it got a suntan, yet it fits with Kendra Saunders being of Latin descent. I love that the wings are silver and caramel colored, and while the costume may seem similar to Kendra, it is actually painted differently in some areas, mostly the helmet and and the aforementioned wings. Being a suntan version of Shiera, though, she retails the painted skin for the upper body above her breasts, which could have been prevented if McFarlane wasn't using the same tooling.

The Platinum releases of these two go for more classic looks, with Hawkman being closer to the Silver Age, whereas Hawkgirl is closer to the Golden Age. I say Silver Age because that is the closest HM looks in spite of the mullet in his head. I believe Hawkgirl should have normal eyes, too. Then again, McFarlane is as confused as us thanks to DC continuity.

And here they are together as a flock, I guess you could say! With both Hawkgirls using the same tooling as Wonder Woman, they end up being as tall as Hawkman. Now that I have a version of Hawkman in my collection, I have to admit he looks cool but is far too undeserving of being overpriced in the aftermarket. Especially when the only accessories he'll have are wings that are almost always stuck on him and a single weapon. At least Hawkgirl has more hands and better wing articulation, but I would have preferred if these two Hawkgirls were released together while the classic ones were their own regular and Platinum duo. I can only guess McFarlane didn't do that because people wouldn't be as invested in getting the Platinums if they were slightly different versions of what the regular retail releases are. So I recommend the new Hawkgirl as much as I do the original, whereas you better prey Hawkman is easy to get at a good price.

Final ranking: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ and a half out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (Hawkgirl)

⭐⭐⭐ and a half out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (Hawkman)

Transformers Age of the Primes Onslaught review

We took a look at Mega-Octane in both RID 2001 and later Unite Warriors, and then we got a figure named Onslaught who was actually reused from Energon Barricade. Now we have a proper Onslaught to look at, and what better way to do just that than review his recent Age of the Primes appearance? While I first heard the name "Onslaught" form playing Marvel vs Capcom, I did get to hear of a Transformer possessing this name back when the days of TF video games were real and not just mobile slop. Fall of Cybertron had the best use of the Combaticons, though they sadly failed with their Deluxe figures making a so-so Bruticus. Combiner Wars later did versions with better scale and engineering, but I got those as Ruination instead. The latest Generations line may leave us leaving with a slow ass rate to get the newest Combiners, especially with Vortex appearing a year before everyone else, let's see if the wait is worth it as we get to the torso Commander of the year: Onslaught.

Here we have Onslaught in his entire vehicle mode. It looks like a more elaborate take on his G1 altmode, which will have purists whining it isn't exactly like the old toy. This time, the cab area is more independent from the rest of the altmode, being able to rotate at the trailer hitch somewhat before bumping into the hips of the gestalt frame. Speaking of, having the thighs visible is one of the issues I have with the figure, and while that was always going to be a factor for at least one of the modes to be compromised, I'm sure there could have been a way to conceal them better. At least the cannons are painted silver, though they are separate pieces this time around. The green stems from the need to match the source material, and while it does look like a nasty shade of green, at least it fits Onslaught mostly.

The truck can be a separate piece from the rest of the altmode, no doubt something Commanders based on gestalts have done. I can see what they're going for with making the altmode independent for the robot mode, yet there isn't much to say about it since it looks nondescript and incomplete without the rest. Reminds me of one of those truck GoBots that got a third party MP figure. Stacks, I think was the name.

Here he is with his fellow Combaticons, minus Swindle because he is on the way. As G1 scale logic is stupid, I will just pretend Onslaught is mostly normal size while everyone else is intentionally based on the smallest possible versions for the altmodes they assumed. Didn't FansProject do something similar with their version of Blast Off that combined with the Energon Bruticus mold?

And here he is with Mega-Octane, just showing how undersized the Combiner Wars altmode looks in comparison. You can just about fit MO in the trailer with one of the tires barely slipping off the surface!

Transformation is pretty similar to what the G1 toy did with its sequence, mostly with the front end becoming the arms, the back becoming the legs (albeit like the Universe version), and the backpack serving a similar purpose to the cannons we used to get as an accessory, albeit this time they are faux parts due to the real ones being oversized. As for the bot mode, it is heavily based on the cartoon models, which were very different from the toys (either because they can't translate them fully or the designs of the toys were too awkward to work with). You can tell the difference between which one is closer to the media when you watch the G1 cartoon Combaticons next to the RID 2001 Commandos. As for the way the accuracy turned out for Onslaught, it's fine. He is a blue robot with the cartoon accurate details where you would need them, and undersized cannons on the back made from the cab or the altmode. I haven't mentioned this yet, but I don't like the way the blue on the arms and feet are slightly different shades from the rest of the toy; makes me think they will yellow overtime like on many early 2020s Transformers. At the very least, he has a good enough set of heel spurs to keep him from falling over.

Head sculpt is the one thing carried over from the old toy, and it's got the right shade of color for the visor and the mouthplate. Not much else to say about it. Articulation is standard for a figure of this style: ball jointed neck, shoulder rotation, outward arm movement, bicep rotation that clashes with the elbows due to the design of the forearms, waist rotation, ratchet joints for the hips moving front and back, standard joints for outward leg movement, thigh swivels, hinged knees, and ankle pivots. No wrist or finger articulation seems standard for the combiner Commanders, but what is not standard is the lack of a weapon! A military dude not coming with any guns is already a stupid decision to go for, and while Hasbro stated Swindle will come with a rifle for Bruticus, how will that really benefit the Combaticon leader? Yellow won't fit him unless he was in G2 colors (coming soon in 2030, I bet). It's almost like when Hasbro didn't give Energon Barricade weapons, but at least all Deluxe torso bots didn't come with accessories, AND you can easily give Barricade the guns that came with Blight and Kickback, which is how things work in my (and Classic Thew's) house when you remember that those two had arm cannons. Fof nearly $100, there was 

I mean, the trailer can turn into a turret for Onslaught to man, and while it looks the most like the old toy's base mode, I'm sure he would want to run towards the battle with his own weapon in hand. As for a look next to Mega-Octane in bot mode, he is slightly shorter than him due to being only part of the torso rather than being the entire torso. Once again, I don't mind that they're unique from each other, especially since they would need more than just different paint jobs to give them their identities.

And here he is with the other Combaticons. We could really use some yellow ATP, even if he will be the same height as fellow short Voyager Brawl.

Transforming him into the Bruticus frame is like with what we've seen before. The trailer becomes part of the body while the rest forms the bare arms and legs waiting for the others to attach onto them. As expected, the arms can extend while detaching the front and back halves of Blast Off and Vortex, though leaving the arm frames green instead of grey does make them blend in less. At least the leg set up is new when Swindle and Brawl are absent: instead of looking like he has no shins, he now looks like he uses what amputees have when they need to sprint in the olympics. At least the toes are painted to show who goes where. The chest and cannons look awesome, even if the former looks a little cut off at the winglets.

Head sculpt looks spot-on to how Bruticus looked in G1, though I wish the grey plastic used wasn't as cheap as it kind of is. At least the mouthplate and eyes pop enough from this. ball jointed neck, ratchets for the shoulders front and back as well as in and out, rotation at the elbows, ratcheted elbows, wrist rotation, a waist rotation, ratchets on the hips moving front and back as well as in and out, thigh rotation, ratchets in the knees, and ankle pivots put much higher than normal due to the integration of the leg bots.

Although SS86 Shockwave is intended to go with this set, the Siege version can tab in place fine enough if you want to stick with this and not spend slightly less for a Voyager that comes with less than a Leader did in 2019.

And here he is with Ruination, who has the benefit of not missing a leg. You can see just now different the design philosophies are between Legacy/AOTP and Combiner Wars, between figure integration, size class difference, and overall aesthetics. As I said before, I like having the UW set to make Ruination distinct from Bruticus, even if Hasbro wants to make a repaint set in the future. It won't do the Air configuration though! As for Onslaught, while I like a lot about him, I'm not a big fan of how the green looks on the arms, the truck by itself looks bad, and the lack of a weapon takes points away for a dude who is a military Transformer. That said, he still has the best play value with his teammates, and the combination is just as satisfying as before with Menasor and Superion. He isn't worth $100+, but if your Studio Series MTMTE preorders for Starscream, Prowl, and the Insecticons got canceled, go to Target Customer Service and use any gift cards they cancel to lower the total price of Onslaught if he is still in stock over there.

Final ranking: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Yolopark Transformers AMK Beast Wars Optimus Primal & Dinobot review

You've probably been caught up with all of my Yolopark reviews and thought, "Wow, this dude is only doing AMK Pros, huh?" While I have dabbled in the Minis with DOTM duo Optimus Prime and Megatron, I haven't really touched anything else from them unless it has die-cast and premium paint. That said, in an era where G1 representation overstayed its welcome, something from the Beast Era is always appreciated (and idc if people will say Beast Wars is still G1 when it can still work on its own as a normal franchise without needing the cameos as a selling point). That, and I find the regular AMK style works fine enough for the Beast Wars characters; they don't need a high level of premium paint or any die-cast like the Movie designs would (though both would still be cool). Initially, I was tempted to get the regular ROTB AMKs back in 2023, but I was held back with other purchases on top of the figures having this "not quite there" look to them. Here, I'm fine with getting the Beasties in this class of Yolopark offerings, and I genuinely hope we can get more from them. For today's review, we will be taking a look at Optimus Primal and Dinobot! Interesting pair-up too since the first time they were together was when they dueled over who gets to lead the Maximals before having mutual respect as allies.

Here we have Optimus Primal in-hand and assembled. While paint apps are not used as often as on the AMK Pros, there is still a good amount to make this match his CG model. The only thing missing would be the red bits on the circle of his chest. Generally speaking, the colors are appropriately matte (for the black) or vibrant where needed (red and white), with the blue being slightly metallic (which thankfully looks nicer than the Kingdom blue). I especially love the gunmetal grey used for the feet and cannons. Proportionally, he captures the chunky action figure physique of his CG model, though with the sculpt break up needed for a tangible action figure in some areas. While the cannons are visible in he back, they have a purpose for being there along with a peculiar button. Just a very well-made figure that goes for what a Voyager used to go for before 2025.

His head sculpt is pretty close to the CG models, though it does look a little off in terms of the proportions. It's hard to say what is wrong, but it could either be the head being a little too narrow, the antennae being slightly shorter, or the slightly undersized mouth. That said, it's only a minor issue, and once again, the blue is not dull like on the Kingdom figure. His articulation consists of a double ball jointed neck, shoulder rotation, outward arm movement, butterfly joints, bicep rotation, double jointed elbows, ball jointed wrists, a diaphragm joint with side-to-side rocking motion as well as separate back and forth movement, an ab crunch, a waist swivel, swivels for the hips, very wide outward leg movement, thigh rotation (cleverly hidden within the red spaces), double jointed knees, and ankles that swivel somewhat as well as hinge and pivot (with accurate pistons to boot). He even has a bit of toe and heel articulation. His clenched fists can be swapped with weapon-holding hands so he can dual-wield his scimitars. 

He has spring-loaded cannons built into his forearms, which is a surprise addition for a figure like this (even the tips are spring-loaded when you retract them). And while the mouthed faceplates look pretty similar to one another, at least we have a mouthplated option for anyone who wants to see a toy homage. He used it in the cartoon, but it was rare as hell, and whenever he had the full mouthplate, it looks like an animation error since one would be accustomed to seeing the lips.

For a size comparison, here he is nearly reaching the size of the Ultra Class toy, and both tower over the Kingdom Voyager (who was shorter than the average figure from that size class). With how similar the new Yolopark looks to the show, it makes me want to get the Masterpiece version to further boost my Primal display. I guess Robotmasters would be next. That said, seeing how close the colors are on the Yolopark figure further shows that the Kingdom version isn't colored accurately...time to get that Maximal set!

Up next, we have Dinobot, aka the best character in the whole show, only rivaled by fellow Scott McNeil-voiced character, Waspinator. As expected, this figure is loaded with plenty of paint apps, arguably more than Optimus; between the stripe patterns of the raptor skin and the fairly intricate leg details of gold and gunmetal (especially in the legs), Yolopark did not skimp out on making Dinobot look as accurate to the CG model as he should. That said, while the colors they used are mostly good, the shade of blue is a little brighter than usual. Either make it a bit darker or make the stock blue metallic so it won't look inaccurate next to the other colors. Beyond that, the hands may appear slightly oversized, but that's possibly to integrate the finger articulation and removable weapon ports. Still, they managed to make the figure look like Dinobot in the show as humanly possible, and making him non-transforming works even more than the Masterpiece's difficult task of integrating both modes as a Transformer AND remaining show-accurate.

His head sculpt gets a lot of the details right, but the face is slightly off in terms of likeness. It looks like Dinobot, but it looks like a slightly younger Dinobot. There should be a little more linework to make the face match the CG better, or at least modify the eye and mouth to better match the way they're shaped in the show. At least it's not like the 2021 comic art style. This face is meant to have jaw articulation, but it seems to not work the same way it does for Megatron and Scourge from the live-action movies. Speaking of, the articulation is mostly similar to Optimus Primal, but his wrists can hinge in and out, all five fingers are individually articulated, and there are drop-down hips. His chest can hinge downwards to allow some of the range of articulation to work better, including the neck due to the size of his chin if you want it buried in the chest as he hangs his head. His weapons include the iconic drill sword and rotating blade made from the beast mode tail, with the latter spinning freely, yet it is missing red paint for the insides. 

You can combine the weapons like on the old toy, making a tri-bladed weapon of some kind, and in addition, you have the option to use an open-mouth face with either more open eyes or green laser eyes. The latter would go great with some golden disks to recreate his death in the second season. His spread of accessories is reasonable in terms of plastic mass spread when put next to Primal's, and while the figure may not have alternate hands, the finger articulation more than makes up for that.

Here he is with his Kingdom counterpart. Still towering over him, yet both figures are good in their own rights. I have the original toy from 1996, but he isn't included here because he visually is nothing like them. I do want to get the Masterpiece version and possibly the Henkei version out of curiosity. That said, I think the face detailing on the Kingdom version and the shade of blue are better than on the Yolopark version.

Here he is dueling with Optimus Primal over leadership of the Maximals. These two did very well when it comes to providing value for money on top of matching the Mainframe designs as best as they can. While there are minor issues here and there, at least I don't feel ripped off compared to the prices Voyagers go for nowadays. They're closer to what Leaders once went for; these are comparable to the Figuarts you can pick up at Target or Walmart meant for new collectors. Megatron and Blackarachnia are next in the line-up, so get all four to prove we need more Beastie love in the year of yet another 1986 circlejerk sploogefest.

Final ranking: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Yolopark Transformers AMK Pro ROTB Arcee review

We're not done with Rise of the Beasts rep yet for Yolopark, as the biker gal also receives the AMK Pro treatment alongside some of her fellow Autobots. Given her small size, it was going to be interesting with how well they could translate her design into a figure meant to be assembled while also coming with premium paint and the like. Granted, there is more work to be done than what a normal Hasbro product would allow, but who knows if they'd do the smallest Autobot justice or not. As expected,n they do simply that, and while there isn't much else to say, let's see how well they recreated this fembot's best live-action design yet!

Here we have Arcee fully assembled, beautifully recreating the design from the movie thanks to a mix of sharp sculptwork and intricate paint apps as one would expect. Unlike most figures that usually stick with making more solid coloring for the body, Arcee instead has the more thorough break up for the deco, between the midriff and the forearms, not to mention the addition of gold for the hips and thighs. All of the white is painted so as to prevent the kit from appearing cheap or losing any detail, and it goes so well with the red, pink, and gunmetal. Proportions are also pretty good, with nothing appearing over or undersized considering the need to work with articulation and using the CG model for reference. Even the back kibble is accurate with the red fins and the wheels facing where they should be. By the way, the left wheel must have the disk facing the direction it's in as shown in Pic 2.

Head sculpt is just as marvelous, and I like that the eyes are painted blue in case you can't put in any batteries for the light up gimmick. The pearlescent white for the face helps keep the mouth from being lost, especially when she is the only Autobot to not use silver for that area. Articulation consists of a ball jointed neck, ball joints for the shoulders, outward arm movement with hinges shoulder pieces, butterfly joints, bicep swivels, double jointed elbows, ball jointed wrists, and a torso joint with a spring loaded midriff to better assist with the articulation. The hips use the same drop.dowm system we saw before, while the legs can move in and out, thighs rotate, knees bend at two points, and the ankles can hinge and pivot as well as utilize toe-ticulation. The light up eyes is always cool, but maybe they bleed through the white plastic more than they normally should. Also, she has more gestural splayed open hands in the second pic, with all of the hands being PVC to keep the sculpt intact and for a figure this small to still swap them out.

The other accessories she comes with are a pair of arm blasters that don't light up but accurately replace the hands and are still well painted. She also comes with a visor option and an alternate face with a barely different face expression. Maybe it's meant to go with the visor since it would be easier to keep track of both pieces than to not to. The eyes are not lit up to better show the visor. Also, you have the option to move the wheels from her back to behind her ankles to simulate her skating during the Switchback chase.

For a size comparison, here she is with her smaller toys made within the decade. Studio Series is the shortest one out of the lot, while Blokees is taller than it yet shorter than the Beast Weaponizer. Both Yolopark and Blokees are movie accurate thanks to using final concept art. It's also interesting how every subsequent Arcee purchase gets more love than the last. What else can I say, this is my favorite design for Arcee out of all the ones she had in the movies.

And here she is with Optimus Prime and Mirage, both from the same line. She is the same size as Mirage and possibly Bumblebee from the AMK series to that extent. Not accurate, but it still helps with accentuating her details. Regardless of scale, she is another slam dunk for the line. She is a smaller, leaner build, yet the price she goes for is worth picking up if you're a fan of Arcee's look from this movie rather than the drone design she had in ROTF or the Geewun-friendly sex doll from Bumblebee. All we need is a Pro version of Bee as well as Wheeljack, that is assuming we will get one after the 2007 cast along with DOTM Megatron and Sentinel are all done. At least that would explain the delay unless Yolopark bent over for the clowns who still have Pablo-Traumatic Stress Disorder.

Final ranking: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐