UPDATE 06/27/2020: Selects Rotorstorm included
The helicopter may not look quite as cool with the slightly undersized tail and the arms not hidden quite as well, but it still captures that ruthless trait of Spinister's character. Also, you may notice an added cockpit underneath the toy, which does make it look like an egg-sack but it could probably work as an underslung cockpit...if this was a bigger vehicle.
Transformation is fairly involved compared to some of the other Siege figures in the Deluxe line. The arms are fairly basic, and the torso does feel familiar, but I don't remember seeing the legs work in a way Spinister does. The real and faux cockpits become the legs rather than splitting in two like the G1 toy did, and the hip as well as the thigh to get them in the proper positions. The rotor blades can lock in position for the robot mode once the chest is tabbed together.
Robot mode makes me so happy to see the figure in his own mold. After two straight repaints (three if you count that puny Targetmaster that came with Nemesis Prime), this guy finally has the proper Spinister energy on display. Some may find the purple arms a bit too out of place with the hot pink torso, but they don't look too bad. The battle damage is fairly minimal, barely seen on parts like the thighs and forearms. The rest of the toy certainly doesn't have that "G1 with knees" bullshit that I felt would be a thing with Generations post Combiner Wars, and while some figures do have that aspect, at least they come with some high levels of molded detail rather than have some dull, smooth surfaces like on the recent Masterpieces. He looks fairly clean from the sides and back, save for the helicopter tail and rotors. The legs thankfully have some nice covers to keep them from looking hollow. Also, two 5mm ports on his back are obstructed by the rotor blades.
Head sculpt almost borders on looking like the Decepticon insignia, just as much as Soundwave and Tarn are. This guy's head is vertically stretched than the others, though. The eyes are in yellow and the mouthplate is in a light blue (which annoyingly has some paint missing at one of the edges.
Articulation is the best I've seen in a Deluxe Siege figure. Head is on a ball joint, shoulders move front and back on swivels, in and out on shoulder hinges (with the shoulder guards on hinges of their own), swivel at the biceps, two bends at the elbows, and wrists that swivel. The waist swivels, the hips move front and back as well as in and out, the thighs swivel, knees bend, and the ankles hinge as well as pivot.
You can display his guns either hand-held or arm-mounted; they can also attach anywhere else that's a 5mm port except for the aforementioned back ones. Some may find the lack of Double Targetmasters makes the figure feel incomplete, but the guns do resemble the old ones that came with him. Of course, Singe does come in a wave that was released along with him while Hairsplitter (now named Shrute) is included with Skywarp. Yeah, this method of "collect them all" bugs me. I think he's fine as he is.
This figure was not the only updated version of a G1 character. Here he is next to the BotCon/Timelines version of Spinister, a repaint of Hunt for the Decepticons Tomahawk (with the retooled head used for Vortex in Takara's Dark of the Moon line) and the TFSS repaint of Combiner Wars Alpha Bravo. I gotta say that from what I remember, the Tomahawk and Alpha Bravo molds are great toys overall, even if one of them leaves me stuck on who to choose while the other has been repainted at nausea; the thing is, a character with a bit of cult-following seen on-par with the likes of Beast Wars Waspinator, RID Sky-Byte, Armada Sideways, and Cogman deserves a mold of his own considering how he stands out from all the other obscure 1988 characters with his name, deco, and personality. Or maybe it's just me having an obsession with this guy.
Either way, I think Siege Spinister might be my favorite Siege Deluxe in the line, especially as a Decepticon. It feels so good to not have a character be used as a pre-tool while some other character takes the figure and spotlight beforehand, as getting a kickass figure with two great modes in the proper colors and name right away beats letting a more prominent character use a mold clearly intended for someone else (i.e. Titans Return Optimus Prime and Megatron coming before Blitzwing and Octone). If you see this guy at retail or at a good price online, I recommend getting him. And hey, with Skytread in my collection, I guess I could collect the other Scavengers (despite me forgetting about what the hell happened in IDW and also not planning to revisit the continuity anytime soon).
Here we have Spinister in his vehicle mode. This Decepticon baddie retails his late 80s color scheme, and I couldn't be happy enough. The deco may seem a little too nonsensical and more fitting for the paint schemes of most European Transformers or G2 versions of characters, but it works for this guy (also helps him look unique from other helicopter Transformers like Vortex, Blades, and Springer). My favorite part of the vehicle mode is the cockpit; it looks bitchin'! It looks tough as nails with the molded details and the presence it displays compared to the original vehicle mode, especially given how the Siege line makes the G1 characters look cool again. I also have the guns underneath the figure's feet, which don't look too bad when the guns are added. The landing gear looks positively puny, almost like it's not needed (it is, though)
The helicopter may not look quite as cool with the slightly undersized tail and the arms not hidden quite as well, but it still captures that ruthless trait of Spinister's character. Also, you may notice an added cockpit underneath the toy, which does make it look like an egg-sack but it could probably work as an underslung cockpit...if this was a bigger vehicle.
Transformation is fairly involved compared to some of the other Siege figures in the Deluxe line. The arms are fairly basic, and the torso does feel familiar, but I don't remember seeing the legs work in a way Spinister does. The real and faux cockpits become the legs rather than splitting in two like the G1 toy did, and the hip as well as the thigh to get them in the proper positions. The rotor blades can lock in position for the robot mode once the chest is tabbed together.
Robot mode makes me so happy to see the figure in his own mold. After two straight repaints (three if you count that puny Targetmaster that came with Nemesis Prime), this guy finally has the proper Spinister energy on display. Some may find the purple arms a bit too out of place with the hot pink torso, but they don't look too bad. The battle damage is fairly minimal, barely seen on parts like the thighs and forearms. The rest of the toy certainly doesn't have that "G1 with knees" bullshit that I felt would be a thing with Generations post Combiner Wars, and while some figures do have that aspect, at least they come with some high levels of molded detail rather than have some dull, smooth surfaces like on the recent Masterpieces. He looks fairly clean from the sides and back, save for the helicopter tail and rotors. The legs thankfully have some nice covers to keep them from looking hollow. Also, two 5mm ports on his back are obstructed by the rotor blades.
Head sculpt almost borders on looking like the Decepticon insignia, just as much as Soundwave and Tarn are. This guy's head is vertically stretched than the others, though. The eyes are in yellow and the mouthplate is in a light blue (which annoyingly has some paint missing at one of the edges.
Articulation is the best I've seen in a Deluxe Siege figure. Head is on a ball joint, shoulders move front and back on swivels, in and out on shoulder hinges (with the shoulder guards on hinges of their own), swivel at the biceps, two bends at the elbows, and wrists that swivel. The waist swivels, the hips move front and back as well as in and out, the thighs swivel, knees bend, and the ankles hinge as well as pivot.
You can display his guns either hand-held or arm-mounted; they can also attach anywhere else that's a 5mm port except for the aforementioned back ones. Some may find the lack of Double Targetmasters makes the figure feel incomplete, but the guns do resemble the old ones that came with him. Of course, Singe does come in a wave that was released along with him while Hairsplitter (now named Shrute) is included with Skywarp. Yeah, this method of "collect them all" bugs me. I think he's fine as he is.
Here is the currently only repaint he's received so far: Rotorstorm. He's got quite a nice color scheme that somewhat evokes Cyclonus while also having those late-80s/pre G2 themes that European Transformers have. It's obviously not accurate to how Rotorstorm would transform, and his head sculpt should be a little less Decepticonic and have more a visor and mouth exposed, but it's not too bad of an attempt. And before you ask, yes, I found the "Wreckers, combine!" line kind of funny. Expect a Machine Wars Sandstorm to be made with this mold.
Either way, I think Siege Spinister might be my favorite Siege Deluxe in the line, especially as a Decepticon. It feels so good to not have a character be used as a pre-tool while some other character takes the figure and spotlight beforehand, as getting a kickass figure with two great modes in the proper colors and name right away beats letting a more prominent character use a mold clearly intended for someone else (i.e. Titans Return Optimus Prime and Megatron coming before Blitzwing and Octone). If you see this guy at retail or at a good price online, I recommend getting him. And hey, with Skytread in my collection, I guess I could collect the other Scavengers (despite me forgetting about what the hell happened in IDW and also not planning to revisit the continuity anytime soon).
Final ranking: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
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