Yolopark Transformers AMK Mini DOTM Optimus Prime & Megatron review

Yolopark and Blokees undoubtedly took the Transformers fandom by surprise with their model kits being surprisingly fun and even nicer looking than the average Hasbro product has been of late. Whether you prefer going for the Threezero-esque display of figures from the former or are addicted to the Blind Bag Bonanza of the latter, it's great seeing third party licensees doing the most out of the IP at a larger scale than with other companies collaborating with Hasbro. Hell, I'd argue we don't need to have a single non-transforming figure made in-house anymore when these easily beat the likes of Robot Enhanced Design or any other attempt Hasbro used to do back then! However, it seems there may be a bit more overlap than expected with the AMK Mini Series when it comes to the Dark of the Moon duo Optimus Prime and Megatron. While being a series filled with G1 characters for now, these two end up being very similar to the Classic Class line of figures from Blokees, which you should probably recognize as the ones with display bases, effect parts surrounding them, and light up eyes and chests. In this case, the overlap comes from the fact that we had two versions of the original Bayverse trilogy design for Optimus from Blokees, and now both companies put out a version of DOTM Megatron. Sure, we can argue that both companies would want to celebrate the 15th anniversary of the best Transformers movie of all time (suck it, 1986/Bumblebee/One simps), but how different are the Yolopark AMK Mini versions of the faction leader duo from Blokees's Champion Class? Let's find out together!

Here we have Optimus Prime fully assembled in-hand, and I need to mention this right away: at least for the ones I got, their packaging is not only much smaller than the Champion Class, but the parts don't come on sprue trees. In fact, they come halfway assembled in a baggie, meaning you mostly have to attach the limbs and head in place versus putting every single piece together. I'm guessing that Yolopark did this to avoid direct competition with Blokees' versions of this figure scale, but they also have their price at half what a Champion Class goes for. Thankfully, the paint apps are just as plentiful as on this figure as they are on the Blokees version, though the rims are unpainted like on some 2010s figures. General proportions are also spot on to the CG model, and the sculpted details are pretty sharp, but the head does look like be no eyes because they are somewhat deep on the recessed space. 

As for Megatron, this figure's most glaring issue should be obvious by now: he is severely underpainted! While there is some silver to break up that very pale beige, it's not enough to convey the Mad Max rust bucket aesthetics this design is known for. If the body was a much darker color, I would be fine with it. The silver does look nice in its own, and I like that the left hand is colored different from the right hand to go with the asymmetrical forearms, but it makes me wish more could be done with the deco. On the plus side, the sculpt work on this is immaculate, being able to capture the proportions of the design perfectly with the hunchback physique and monstrous height. Unlike Optimus, his parts will be a little harder to decipher without paying close attention to the instructions, though even the can be vague with how unclear they are without labeling the parts like on Blokees. I appreciate that he comes with a sheath for his rifle on the back, though we'll get into what else he could have come with later on.

Articulation is pretty similar for both figures. Both have ball jointed necks, shoulders, wrists, hips, and ankles; elbows and knees are on hinges, and the biceps as well as waist are on swivels. Both have drop down hips, and Optimus's elbows are double jointed. You already saw Megatron with his shotgun on his back and now held in hand (with added support from his unique thumb joint), but Optimus comes with arm blades that can either be deployed from the forearms or handheld.

One cool aspect with Prime is that Prime has alternate hands: a right one for pointing and a left one for holding the shotgun like when he killed Sentinel Prime with it. There are two problems with the way accessories are handled: first, is it really hard to add some orange onto those blades Second, why can't we get a cloak for Megatron to cover his scarred head? Two signature aspects of each design not being included sucks, even if these figures do cost $10.

While I wait for Blokees DOTM Megatron to arrive, here we have the two versions of Optimus Prime for the time being. Just keep in mind that the Blokees one has the 2007/ROTF torso and forearms (in addition to a slightly oversized head that can be swapped with a smaller one), while the Yolopark version is obviously with the DOTM tweaks. Colors are slightly darker on the Yolopark version, and we get some additional color break up with the black in the windows and tires as well as the gold in the waist and around the armpit, but the blue on the elbows and biceps is relocated to tiny little flames near the abs. The fade deco on the Blokees version is a darker orange while the Yolopark version is closer to yellow. Also, every Blokees figure in this style at least has a light up feature for the eyes and chest, something Yolopark ditched also to avoid possible competition. So should you get the Yolopark AMK Minis? They cost cheaper, but you don't do as much assembling, nor do you get much for the accessories. I guess it's better to get something that is not G1-based than to have the same designs and characters again and again and again, but don't expect to have as much as you would for the Blokees. Still, buying 2 of these for the price of 1 Champion Class means the value for money with the AMK Minis isn't entirely lost. Idk if I would get more from this scale compared to the Pros, but I would certainly buy another set if they did a duo like Bayverse Starscream and Ironhide compared to any $10 thing that EarthOneWorld is churning out.

Final ranking: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Marvel Legends Spider-Man 2099 & Power Princess review

While there don't seem to be as many Marvel Legends on my radar so far, there are two characters that have been on my wishlist for a while: Spider-Man 2099 and Power Princess. The former may already be in my collection under the Spider-Verse collection (which has yet to be reviewed, 3 years late), the latter was technically only on my shelves as the character she is a bootleg of: Wonder Woman. I'm sure many of you know who Miguel O'Hara is (and the times Hasbro used the last name "O'Shea"), but as for PP: also known as Princess Zarda, she is a member of the Squadron Supreme from Earth-712, and if the Wonder Woman resemblance is anything to go by, then said superhero team is no doubt a pastiche of the Justice League. Zarda is also known to be a Utopian, a being with a generic modification in the reality she came from. I'll let some actual comic reading on your end, better understand her history before Screen Runt suddenly acts like they know about her for their shitty articles talking about how she's better than Wonder Woman or will be in the latest MCU turd, but we'll check out how these figures turned out.

Here we have Spider-Man 2099 in hand, reusing the body type first seen with Renew Your Vows Spider-Man. Right off the bat, I will give Hasbro credit for having the blue a darker shade that befits a stealthy and futuristic character design like Miguel's. While the retooling is minimal for only the forearms and a peg hole for his decently sculpted yet unpainted cape, the body is at least decent for this kind of figure. Still, I wish Hasbro could have molded the logo on the chest like they did with raising the suit details on Spider-Man Unlimited a year prior.

His head sculpt is the only surface area with raised details in relief, which is appreciative, but I still wish the rest of the parts in red were the same. With his articulation being the same, I will talk about the hands that he comes with: one pair has his fingers bent somewhat in a claw pose, but the other pair has the traditional wall-crawling pose. Surprised Hasbro didn't go with thwipping hands, given this is a Spider-Man after all.

For a comparison next to his buck-mate, this is the RYV version of ol webhead that I still have instead of the Maximum version. While the two figures are still fine, I will admit that the finish applied on the previous retro carded figure makes it feel more dynamic. That, or it's how the stock photos make it appear. As for the different proportions between what we previously had versus what we now have, the recent version obviously wins for the most part, but watching some of AnthonysCustoms videos made me realize how the waist swivel helps with kicking poses better than using a diaphragm joint (especially if a figure is posed delivering a side kick). I honestly hoped Hasbro would invest in double ball joints for their figures, or at least keep a waist swivel and a good diaphragm joint. Oh, and why did we NOT use the clawed hands that fit the character so much better when the ones he comes with look too relaxed in comparison?!

As for Power Princess, I have to give props to Hasbro for making a new sculpt that is GOOD. Not only is she built like a female comic book character, but she also has a good amount of muscle that befits a Wonder Woman bootleg such as herself. The shoulders are slightly bigger than normal, her thighs are thicc yet strong enough to crush a watermelon, and the height at least fits a character like her. Granted, some could argue that her chest size and her butt should be bigger to go with her toned body, but this might even be better than She-Hulk and Psylocke's bodies. I would deduct points for the gold being inconsistent between the areas painted properly gold and any molded plastic. On the plus side, the pinless joints blend in naturally with the rest of the limbs.

The head sculpt is almost close to the way Wonder Woman is typically drawn, with a head sculpt that might look more like the McFarlane version. The baby-blue eyes, combined with the serious death-glare expression, elevate this figure and suit a badass babe who would fight strong men and make women beneath her keep up with her pace. I still wish the tiara were painted gold rather than left in the gold marbley plastic since it would complement this already great head sculpt. As for her articulation, her head is on a double ball joint for the neck, the shoulders rotate, the arms move outwards, the biceps rotate, the elbows bend at two points, the wrists rotate as well as hinge side to side, we have just one diaphragm joint (would have been better to add a second ball joint for the lower torso), hips are on ball joints, thighs rotate, knees double joint, boots rotate, and the ankles hinge as well as pivot. With her fist and splayed open left hand swapped with weapon-holding hands, we can equip her with a sword and shield. Minimal deco for the latter compared to the former, but the sculpted details are nice. As for the BAF pieces she comes with, they are the legs of The Void, whose cranberry clear plastic goodness is blending in with the backdrop. I don't have plans to complete this BAF any further because I already have versions of Vision and Black Panther that I like more, I want to get the Walgreens version of Namor, and I have no interest in Namorita, Justice, or Crystar.

For a comparison with not a Marvel Legends but a DC Multiverse, here she is with McFarlane's Collector Edition Wonder Woman. As you might tell, the height difference is going to be obvious, as is the engineering for the articulation, BUT if there are people who collect 1/12 figures rather than 1/10 figures and are impatient with Wonder Woman getting a MAFEX release, then Power Princess is perfect for making some customs. Her design is already close enough to Wonder Woman, and you just have to add some red and blue into the costume to make her close. I'd go a step further and add a star to her tiara as well as some stars for the bikini bottom and further color breakup for the shield. This custom is already a great starting point for fans who want to have a Wonder Woman in their displays, since getting a Collector Edition Wonder Woman is impossible compared to Power Princess (you are more than free to blame Todd for taking too long with making her in the first place). Unlike Spider-Man 2099, who is fine yet feels been-there-done-that, Power Princess is a welcome purchase as someone who was interested in her character design and as a fan of both Marvel and DC. She was reissued a while back, so if you either like the character or want to make her into a Double W, then get her ASAP. Just do it faster than all the hacky nerd culture sites making articles on how an MCU Supreme Squadron is a better live-action Justice League than the actual live-action Justice League we got, because you know those articles WILL happen.

Final ranking: ⭐⭐⭐ and a half out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (Spider-Man 2099)

⭐⭐⭐⭐ and a half out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (Power Princess)

Alien Attack Firage (Dark of the Moon Dino/Mirage) review

As we get closer and closer to the 15th anniversary of Transformers: Dark of the Moon, I thought of getting my hands on an MPM style character as Hasbro just started ROTF with Sideswipe (and this is ignoring their post-2007 repaints for Ratchet and Starscream). I could have gotten my hands on the Unique Toys versions of Twins Skids and Mudflap,  but I was hoping to win an eBay auction for a very low price compared to what it went for. Surely enough, I won and now decided to review him and see how complex and cheap people say he is. I know Alien Attack is generally notorious for these issues, but with 3P companies first delving into Bayverse aesthetics around 2017, we'll see how well they did the designs justice compared to more recent offerings.

Here we have Firage in his neatly spot-on Ferrari 458 Italia, an alternate mode HasTak are seemingly cursed with never getting the license for given it's exclusive ownership history with Mattel and now Maisto. While the entire altmode may not be 100% 1:1 with this being unlicensed given its third party nature, it's only a Ferrari logo close to passing off as an official item. The general shape is definitely closer to the actual car than what we had with the Studio Series version, from the overall design of the front end to the rounder profile, and that's not to mention the design of the rims being spot on to how they were on an actual Ferrari. That being said, all of the car is molded red plastic, which a coat of paint could have helped elevate the altmode as it stands. Not that what we have looks bad, per se, but given the price this thing went for, especially compared to the HasTak equivalents we would get down the line, I would have loved seeing a more premium touch on this toy. At least the separately made headlights beat having molded ones like on most toys, and the inclusion of rubber tires when all HasTak MPMs don't have them at least gives him a collector-friendly edge. 

In general, the altmode is gorgeous as one would expect the actual Ferrari to look, and I have little to no complaints with how this turned out beyond the need of an additional coat of paint as well as an extra bit of weight. I'll get more into the overall quality later, but one extra thing I like is that the rims have a sense of being layered compared to everything being molded as a single piece like in the average Hasbro Transformer.

For a size comparison, here he is with the Studio Series version of ROTB Mirage, just for a throwback at how we nearly made these two the same character just because some media called Dino as "Mirage". While the scale between these two altmodes is great, one must keep in mind that this is meant to fit in with your Masterpiece line instead of your Generations-scale figures, or your original Bayverse trilogy-era Deluxes...

...and that brings things to the first red flag: his scale with Bumblebee. While a Camaro is normally going to be slightly bigger than a Ferrari, it's not meant to be this extent! As a result, this means Firage is likely going to be smaller than Jazz, when a Solstice should be smaller than both a Camaro and a Ferrari.

Transformation is very complex as one would expect for an MPM-style figures, but perhaps he is too far in the spectrum given his size. While there have been figures that are reasonable with their conversion level combined with their size, Firage is far too intricate for a toy with a scale comparable to a 2010 Deluxe. To give him credit, I like that the wheels on the hood are able to shift the stars of the rims outward, and his use of the actual car parts for the chest beats the faux alternatives we had with Unique Toys Red Dasher. However, one thing I need to raise as a red flag is the plastic's cheap quality. It's not bootleg quality, but it is closer to a lesser tier model kit than something meant to be tactile. Add to that is the smaller scale of the components making up this figure, which are either too frail to last long or very dependent screws to adjust how tight or loose some joints can be for transformation. I also have to sadly report that part of the backpack, the part that holds the rear bumper and part of the rear windshield, broke off at one point because the plastic can't withstand much pressure. The area that the part I'm referring to was previously pinned on two close yet separate hinges, with a gap in the middle for the windshield to slide down. Those hinges aren't thick enough to tolerate any pressure from slightly flexing the toy, and combine that with there being very little wiggle room because of its size for a figure as frustrating as Hybrid Style Prime (the G1 version). And it sucks to say all this because the robot mode is generally good when it comes to movie accuracy. Beyond his chest sticking out more usual, this Bunblebee-esque design was given much better justice than what HasTak could offer back in the pre-Studio Series days. I especially love how segmented and compact the back manages to be for a figure with this kind of engineering despite feeling thin. I kind of feel like Alien Attack might have been inspired by the level of engineering used for MPM Bee while designing Firage, 

His head sculpt is also very accurate, though to be fair, all of the Dino figures we had with the 2012 Cyberverse Legion and the Movie Advanced exclusive, both of which were retooled from Sideways. Honestly, a heavy retool of Bumblebee with a genericized sports car shell would have worked, but even HasTak failed that with Stinger in AOE. As for the articulation, the head, shoulders, hips, and ankles are on ball joints, biceps are on swivels, elbows are double jointed, wrists rotate, and each finger is individually articulated as they came on sprue trees out of the box (they do come apart pretty easily, though). The waist rotates, the knees are double jointed, and the thighs are on swivels. As he is posed in his iconic "on the ground, por favore, and stay there!" kneel, you can attach his underslung arm blades, which can swivel on their pegs and utilize 4 hinges each to adjust them for battle or neutral modes. They may appear slightly oversized on this figure specifically, but at least the paintwork is exquisite as one should expect from a third party figure.

He also has some grapnel claws with bendy wires implemented! If you have some Dreads for him to go after, then this will be great to recreate for the highway chase given there should be an MPM Hatchet unofficially in the works. The claws peg underneath the forearms while the wires closest to the base are held by his hands. Not a perfect integration but it still works for this figure in general.

And the robot mode size comparison SCREECHES to a halt as we look at how undersized he is next to Bumblebee! While he was shorter than the yellow fellow, it was only one foot shorter in relation to human scale, not their own robot scale! He's closer to the height of Jazz even in robot mode, when the first lieutenant should be shorter than both of them! That'd be like having a G1 Lambro being shorter than Wheelie despite the Minibot clearly designed to be smaller than both!

There is a 4th party upscale out there known as BS-01 Dance of Death likely by Black Mamba, and it further enhances the sculpt as well as coat the red in paint rather than leave it in bare plastic. For a Ferrari, that helps it pop even more, but if I get my hands on it, Firage will be an anomaly. Sure, he's got a cool bot mode and altmode, and the transformation isn't terrible, but the scale is too short for regular MPMs, and the plastic quality is too thin for a figure this expensive. Not even the older Deluxes we used to get would make this figure fit in that great because he is too complex. If you are fine with this figure otherwise, be sure to get him for a low price and prepare to deal with any breakage. Anyone else should go get the upscale if they know what to expect. I hope the plastic quality is better for DOD.

Final ranking: ⭐⭐⭐ out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

McFarlane DC Multiverse Deathstroke & Professor Pyg review

Yet another review for McFarlane DC Multiverse characters, where they get paired up for a specific theme; in this case, we got two villains who had their run ins with Batman. Deathstroke may have been originally against the Teen Titans before facing off against the Dark Knight himself, I still find Slade Wilson just as appropriate for facing off against a character that one of the Titans did know personally. Hell, it works for me the same way Spider-Man and Daredevil can "share" Kingpin, and I'd rather see DC have Batman vs Deathstroke more than making relationships where Slade is a pedo. As for Professor Pyg, he is also known as Laslo Valentin, a twisted surgeon known for some truly gruesome operations as he turns people into his Dollotrons. While Deathstroke made his debut in 1980 (four years before The Terminator film used part of Deathstroke's name) and Pyg popped up in 2007, they are at least some of the least "kooky" type of villains Batman faced in his career. With one being an assassin and the other a fucked up butcher, let's see these two share the review spotlight!

Here we have Deathstroke in+hand. This might be a whole new sculpt just for him, or it could be a heavily modified Blue Beetle body buck. Regardless, I appreciate that we get a nice level of sculptwork for the costume, making it appear fairly tactical while being an obvious comic design on its simplicity. Reminds me a bit of how Cap's costume is designed with the chainmail. The small but if texture does the areas in the brighter blue help contrast those smoother darker blue areas, and I dig that the orange has a bit of a wash to make it less neon. Normally, a color scheme like this makes him appear less like a practical assassin and more like a tropical Jolly Rancher bag, but it works for him and it doesn't come across as entirely gaudy. I also like the strap of bullets that could be removed if you want, but he feels a little bare without them; it almost adds to the asymmetry of his mask.

Head sculpt is good as always with ensuring a simple design like this looks like a living, breathing human underneath without having that balloonish look. Always appreciate the anatomy somewhat studied for a comic design like this as much as I do the asymmetrical eye design no doubt carried over from him being half blind. While articulation is mostly the same as per usual with the line, I love that we get four different firearm options with these rapid fire/sniper types.

He also has these other guns, with one pistol held in his holster while we get yet another larger BFG. While the lack of deco on these weapons sucks apart from the red dot on the pistol's silencer, at least the weapons are fairly realistic or high-tech for an assassin like him; most figures would either get theirs colored green or have some other gun-control friendly appearance, and with there being an era where WB banned guns from being included with DC figures unless they were 18+, it's a miracle Deathstroke got his. Oh and the Platinum version. Has a more realistic monochrome deco apart from the signature orange on his mask. There are even vents for him to breath through to make this feel more like a helmet than a mask.

As for how he stacks up with a normal Batman and the Page Punchers version of Deathstroke. I find anyone who prefers more classic versions of comic characters are going to like this Deathstroke immediately thanks to the design being done pretty well in McFarlane's case. Not saying the rebirth version is bad if you want a more tactical take, and he has plenty of melee weapons yet no knife for that empty ankle sheath, but I know the ammo strap and pirate boots for the character perfectly unless they go Arkham/Snyder.

As for Professor Pyg, this figure is a reuse of the Penguin from The Batman 2022. Honestly didn't expect them to go with a buck like that, and as someone who doesn't mind when a toy company knows the right sculpt to undust for a specific character and have it be done right, I think this is better than I expected. Had it been something like The Dark Knight Returns Joker, I would have been critical instead. The somewhat husky proportions fit someone less known for combat like Valentin, as you'd see him focus more on cleaving his victims with blood stains going all over the apron (which seems difficult to untie given the material it's made of versus the one BvS Alfred came with). Weird how the rest of the outfit is more pristine for the sleeves, but I guess he's lucky only the blood reaches the apron and nowhere else. I should also bring this up now: this is the Platinum Edition with that manages to get away with any blood splatter versus the regular version having a black yet more pristine apron (yet both are rated 12 and up versus the 18 and up we get on things like Jonah Hex or the Batfleck 2-pack). Also, nlome more compliment is despite not being obvious at first glance the gloves have a slightly different finish from the shirt, making them look more like separate pieces of clothes than having them blend in.

His head sculpt is appropriately a pig mask with tbe eyes whited out, though some artwork has his pupils visible. I also like that he has a bit of a butcher mouth between those chubby cheeks only fitting for a gruesome guy like himself. Even the strap is painted on the back, which I always appreciate given how important that detail usually is. Articulation is mostly the same as the standard McFarlane affair, but he has single jointed elbows and knees with swivels in those joints. Two of his accessories include a drill and a meat cleaver in his swappable hands.

The other tools include a hammer that looks like it's mostly used to test how strong someone's knees are in a doctor's office as well as a unique surgical tool that resembles a screwdriver but with a ball at the tip. As for the original version of PP, he has a pristine black apron and green gloves. I chose the Platinum since it was at my 2nd and Charles as well as fitting his character better.

Oh and he has some pliers to pull things like teeth out. Overall, I ended up liking this figure more than I thought I would; while the character is far from a classic like with Joker or Riddler, he is still a great modern addition to the DC lore and any collection just for how ruthless and gory he comes across. Amd unlike Ice, who reuses Catwoman from the same Batman movie this figure's Penguin originates, reusing Oswald works for a body type found on Pyg. Other than the apron likely not intended to come off easily, the weapons could be a little less flexible, especially the meat cleaver and how much I fear the blade will be torn off from trying to remove the whole thing from the tight grip of the hands. Still, this is another good way to do a Collector Edition figure.

Final ranking: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (for both)