Tuesday, June 30, 2020

Transformers Siege Brunt Review

Trypticon's generally seen as a badass to begin with, but I can't think of any reason to say the same about Brunt when he's not an actual Transformer. I mean, Full-Tilt is not a prominent character to begin with, but he had a robot mode when he wasn't Trypti's bra. Then there's the fact that we got actual tankformers that are good like Blitzwing, Tankor, Demolishor, and Movie Brawl, so what does an accessory have to trump them? Well, the Siege WFC line has popped up and provided us with an answer. Let's see what Brunt's got to offer if he was a Transformer.

 

Here we have Brunt in his vehicle mode. It's sort of like if Galvatron and a sci-fi tank had a baby. Basically, it's a lot more refined than the G1 toy (thank God), and it actually looks great in this mode compared to the vehicle modes of the Autobot Weaponizers I covered in the past two days. It's got some sweet sculpted details, the colors work well together, and while it may feel somewhat compact for a tank, it works well for a drone that belongs to Trypticon. You even have a peering head that's reminiscent of how Megatron would have his head exposed in the first two movies' altmodes.


Aside from wheels that roll, you can swivel the turret and hinge the barrel up and down. Notice how the part that holds the rest of the cannon is placed on the side and around the turret.


If there is one nitpick I have, there is no real way to keep this barrel tight. Occasionally, you may bend the length of the barrel because the feet they're connected to have ankle pivots, and you get this look.


The transformation requires the arms, legs, and turret to partsform, but it's kind of fun in a way in terms of how they're done. Also nice that the treads become the arms in a way reminiscent of Tankor, and hell, the rest of the robot mode does look like Tankor despite being specifically based off the Centurion Droid from the IDW comics. While some fans may find it pretty drone-like, I like this design more than the other Weaponizers/Titan partners I've covered, as it's done so well in terms of looking unique yet awesome at the same time. You definitely tell how powerful the robot mode looks from the upper body, especially with the way it's got the looks of a body-bruisin' robot ready to do some serious damage. The hands are claw-like, and the waist is pretty small, but at least it looks badass, and hey, no awfully hollow parts!


Headsculpt does look like it's a generic design with a single, parallel visor and a mouth plate that make him look like an old robot, but at least it's more unique than the repeated visor-mouthplate heads found on Cog and Sixgun.


Articulation is still the norm for this figure as expected from the other Weaponizers, so I won't go over it, but you can at least pose the claws to make them open or close for any pinching poses while the head can move up somewhat due to the transformation. Also, if you don't want his cannon pointing up constantly, you can place it on his arm instead.


In terms of repaints, here is Zetar, who looks just as much of a knockoff as Aragon did. Yellow and black go well together as Bumblebee has proven, but if it's done up like this, then you've got a real problem with color layouts. I mean, the yellow legs make him look like he's wearing rainboots!


This is the Centurion Droid, who is the actual robot that was the inspiration for the Centurion Droid. This would be cool to see be a reality, but the end result makes him more like a Player 2 skin by comparison. He even has the same Orange cannon! At least there are a few differences in the paint apps, but like, why make him feel a lot less exciting than he should be? Actually...


Brace yourselves with this shit, because I don't think I've cringed at something like this from Hasbro for a very long time. So in order to justify buying a repaint of an existing Transformer, this set of accessories is included, and you get the following: 

-another version of Optimus Prime's Ion Blaster
-an energon axe for Prime
-a Roller drone for the trailer 
-Megatron's energon mace
-the standard Autobot peashooter
-an arm-mounted drill for Ironhide
-Cliffjumper's glass gas blaster
-Sideswipe's jetpack
-Trailbreaker's vehicle-mode radar dish
-Refraktor's camera mode
-Soundwave's microcassette recorder mode
-Megatron's pistol mode (with additional silencer)
Shockwave's blaster mode (in gray than purple)
-a cage to imprison Ravage
-two energon cubes
-a tiny figurine of Optimus Prime intended to scale with War for Cybertron Unicron.

It's sad how a repaint of a Deluxe required all these accessories when they should have come with the other figures mentioned. I'd at least expect Prime to have the gun, axe, and roller, but I'd honestly prefer if they were all included with him to justify the price of the toy (considering how lightweight the trailer is).


Since he is a Weaponizer, let's cover how he works with a Decepticon this time around. The torso, waist and upper legs, turret backpack, lower legs, arms, and both pieces of the cannon can all split up in different pieces.


I chose Skytread because he's the only Decepticon figure that is a Deluxe that isn't a repaint, isn't the shrimp Refraktor, and isn't Vortex because his back holes are blocked by the rotors (still a great toy though). It's kind of neat to see this drab robot wield some more vibrant pieces of another robot. I chose the legs to be a v-shaped wing pack for the cannons while the torso and barrel become a particle beam cannon and the turret as his shield.


Despite being the only Decepticon Weaponizer in the main Siege line, he's great to have in my collection as his design looks great, the transformation is fairly unique amongst tankformers, and the tank mode is done pretty well compared to the G1 version. Still, it does suck that the Weaponizer gimmick isn't as effective as it is with the Autobot offerings. Either way, if you see him at your store, add him and display him with your Trypticon. I know I'd love to one day.


Final ranking: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

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