Transformers Studio Series Rhinox review

Another Rhinox months after the mainline version?! The last version of the guy was based on concept art that made him better resemble his original Beast Wars design. Meanwhile, this guy is said to be closer to the CG model, which was briefly shown on-screen as he didn't show up as much in that mode compared to his beast mode. On the bright side, Rhinox said a line or two, but let's see how this guy turned out compared to the mainline version.

Here is Rhinox in his beast mode, which is much closer to the CG model this time around. The proportions are more organic and rounded this time around, and the gray is certainly much closer than the brown he had on previous merch. What I like on this guy is how it mimics the way a normal rhinoceros would have this armored look to their skin, as this guy is multi-layered on the face, shoulders, and back. Some of the parts represent this via gunmetal paint apps in key areas. The problem is that I wish the rest of the figure was cast in a more metallic silver plastic or painted in silver so it could make the sculpt pop more than the bare gray plastic does. Even adding a few more rust paint apps would go a long way, as seen on the forelegs. At least the horn looks fairly impressive.

His articulation consists of jaw movement, slight front leg movement, and slight hind leg movement. In other words, no different from past Rhinestone. His hammer can hinge at the head so the handle can peg on the back. In this way, it's like a missile launcher, thinking about it.

For a beast mode comparison, here he is with the mainline version of himself. Slightly bigger, much closer to a normal rhino than the mainline version (which reminded me of the vintage Deluxe), and undoubtedly closer to the CG model. That being said, I still think the mainline Voyager is still a good toy, all things considered. Its sculpted details on some of the exposed inner workings and the chains is cool!

And here he is with the other Studio Series Maximals. This should be the right scale, more or less. Of them all, he is the closest to the movie. Cheetor should be a little more gold and have a ore accurate beast head while Airazor is not like her CG model.

His transformation is not too different from other Rhinox figures for the most part. You still have the beast limbs become the robot limbs while the head is stored into the chest, and I do like how the hands swap the rhino feet. But this figure is probably like the old Deluxe with how parts come off too easily. The shoulders, chest, stomach panels, and even the assembly holding the hands/beast feet do not stay on their nubs well. Is it hard to add pins onto a VOYAGER?! If the tolerances were together, I wouldn't complain. But we've seen other figures handle their assembly much better than him in this line. At the very least, I do like the robot mode. It's appropriately muscular and better suits him than his blockier mainline Voyager counterpart, considering this one was made likely after the film received final character art. He looks quite massive from the top in contrast to how small everything feels going downwards. He's almost stylized in that way when viewed from certain angles. More bronze is present in the abs, crotch, and shoulders, which helps break up the drab gray. The torso feels like either a callback to gis Transmetal toy or a hypothetical Beast Machines version of him had he not been Tankor thanks to Megatron's takeover of Cybertron.

His head sculpt looks good but is severely let down by the lack of paint on him. There are splotches of silver here and there but it feels super incomplete. It's like, FILL IT IN!!!! At least his eyes aren't in the creepy PTSD look that the mainline Voyager has. That felt more moviefied than this head, ngl. His articulation consists of a ball jointed neck, shoulders that move front and back as well as in and out, bicep swivels, elbow bends, wrist swivels, waist swivel, hips that move front and back, in and out, thigh swivels, knee bends, and ankle pivots. He can hold his hammer with the spikes probably still being missiles if he wanted an explosive MC Hammer approach in his attacks.

For a robot mode size comparison, here he is in-between Cheetor and Airazor once more. We barely saw them in their beast modes compared to their robot modes (not to mention Airazor never transformed) but this should be accurate to the movie if the Studio Series line is anything to go by.

And here he is with the mainline counterpart. Massive difference between the more Beast Machines influence of the Studio Series guy and the closer-to-Beast-Wars-Season-1 look of the mainline figure. I recommend both figures regardless, but while the mainline figure had some decent paint apps for a lower-tier toy and did not have issues coming apart, this Studio Series guy could really use better durability and better paint apps than he currently has. The bronze is fine, but give him more silver.

Final ranking: ⭐⭐⭐ and a half out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Transformers Rise of the Beasts Core Mainline RANKED

Rise of the Beasts may be over for the toyline, but that won't stop me from wanting to revisit the mainline's Deluxes and Voyagers. This movie, unlike AOE, TLK, and Bumblebee, provided toys that were comparable to the Generations line, each of which had varying degrees of screen-accuracy. So for example, Optimus Prime is pretty close while the Maximals generally aren't. Regardless, that won't be a knock against them because I'd rather judge them as action figures. I will say that the distribution getting weird on top of Hasbro delaying the movie has caused some overlap between these guys and the Studio Series offerings, so some of them might have been weird to get after the Generations offerings. But with that out of the way, let's cover them from worst to best!

9. Bumblebee

This really was a rough figure overall for Bumblebee. The shades of yellow between the painted areas and the molded plastic don't match, the proportions are an odd hybrid of his ROTB and 2007 designs, and there could be a few more paint apps to make him look less awkward. That being said, I do like the arm cannon being sort of like the AOE Camaro Concept form from back in 2014, the daggers being made from the bumper is cool (and certainly better than the dumb "shield" of the windshield guard), and the tires going behind his head rather than in front of the doors like all the other Bumblebees is something we rarely see. On his own in some markets, he is easy to skip in favor of the Studio Series version. In the US where he is in a 3-pack with two other figures we'll get to, you're stuck with him.

8. Nightbird

Much like Bumblebee, she is the dud of the overall set she comes from. While better than Bumblebee, her biggest issues come from the hip kibble combined with the back kibble hindering her leg articulation as well as the waist swivel. Her car mode could use a bit more color consistency thanks to the caramel plastic breaking things up. Positives include the metallic purple, her weapon storage in vehicle mode being clever, and the car mode itself looking slick for the most part. The Studio Series one better be good in spite of the shorter scale and tiny wings.

7. Mirage

How do you NOT put out merch of one of the more prominent characters from the movie until now? While detractors will say his altmode is not accurate or the colors are bad, and the head sculpt was never like that in the entire film, there were plenty of things that do admittedly make this guy better than the Studio Series version. Namely the proportions, slightly better kibble management, and the transformation being a bit closer to what the CG model went for. If this guy has the better paint apps, head, and properly licensed altmode of the Studio Series version, then he'd be perfect. If only I could get another mainline Mirage and customize away...

6. Cheetor

Obviously he looks more Beast Wars than he does Beast Machines as seen with the CG model in the film, but I still like how this guy turned out. While he copies the Kingdom figure, his plastic isn't as cheap, the tail whip is a little more effective, ans the gut gun is a nice bonus. His cheetah head does match the CG model more than the Studio Series one, though. But I will admit the brown lower legs look like weird pants in both beast mode and robot mode. At least the brown shoulders match a bit.

5. Airazor

Out of all the Maximals, this figure stands out the most from the others. Firstly, she is nothing like the others in terms of aesthetics, better resembling a TFP or Earthspark version of herself. Secondly, she resembles the beast mode even less than the already inaccurate Studio Series. And third, she doesn't borrow the engineering of her Kingdom counterpart the same way the others do (Studio Series did that lol). Still, this figure is awesome! Original transformation, bird wings can still articulate despite involving the legs as part of transformation, and the figure still looks great even if she never showed her robot mode in the movie. 

4. Rhinox

While he may be blockier and browner than the CG model, he is more tolerable to transform than the Kingdom figure he is based off of. I think the brown looks good on him if it were more metallic, and while the outward arm movement is a bit annoying with how the plastic for the joint either has the arms parallel or nearly 45 degrees, this guy at least has good range elsewhere, and hey, he not only has better cannons than the Kingdom guy but even doesn't have parts pop off too easily like the Studio Series version! More on that for his review!

3. Wheeljack

Remember how everyone first saw this toy and went "wHy DoEsNt hE hAvE hIs BuMbLeBeE dEsIgN?! wHy DoEs He LoOk LiKe StEvE uRkEl?!?! wHy DiD yOu ReMiNd Me Of ArMaDa WhEeLjAcK jUsT tO mAkE mE lOoK sTuPiD?!?!?!"...yeah things never change with the ungrateful side of the fandom. But setting aside the manchild drama, this figure is surprisingly good amongst the mainline Deluxes. While he us bulkier and unlicensed, he matches the character model quite well, the glasses and suspenders give him a unique personality that hadn't been seen too often in Transformers of late, and the brown us off white adds a but of an underrated color combo. And combine that with his voice actor adding a cool accent, it all results in a nice toy of Wheeljack for fans who still aren't Geewunners or Beewunners who are butthurt over Pablo having a girlfriend and not them.

2. Optimus Primal

The one Maximal that matches the CG model the most in both modes amongst his brethren is also the one in need of having better colors that the CG render on his box contains. If his dark gray was gunmetal black and the light gray somewhat gold, then I could rate him higher. Some would find the boxier proportions and weird head articulation distracting, but I ultimately liked seeing what this guy can provide as an action figure thanks to tbe sculpted details and simple yet pretty effective ape-to-robot transformation that one does not hate when it feels a bit iconic for Primal thanks to the different chests, heads, shoulder pads, and the waist swiveling. And hey, he can make his swords dual-bladed easily compared to Kingdom Primal!

1. Optimus Prime

It's no surprise this guy showed up in first place, but I love how he turned out. Still not perfect thanks to his somewhat thin plastic and severe lack of paint in addition to relying on painted parts here and there, this guy still has a great amount of articulation, a respectable amount of sculptwork, and two pretty decent takes on Optimus's design for the movie! Is he worth getting in the aftermarket for higher prices? No. But if you were lucky to get him in a store, then you can't complain with how good he generally is. And it was getting this release that tempted me to get the entire mainline series of Deluxes and Voyagers.

And that covers the ROTB mainline! In case you're wondering where Battle Changer Mirage as well as the Weaponizer versions of Arcee and Scorponok are, they will pop up in another ranking list coming soon! While I do like this line-up, it is odd that Arcee, Scourge, and Battletrap, three of the more prominent characters in the movie that is neither oversized (Stratosphere & Unicron), cannon fodder (Scorponok & the Sweeps), or barely prominent/cut from the film (Apelinq and Transit). So we are left with 4 of the 5 Autobots and only one Terrorcon while the Maximals are complete. Arcee has 2 mainline figures (one I covered previously), Scourge has a few mainline toys but not a Voyager with articulation, and Battletrap has vittually nothing besides his Studio Series toy and a weird orange Ironhide that was somehow proof that Unicron reformatted him into Battletrap (which thankfully didn't happen). But with all that said, this is an early tease for the rankings coming at the end of the year, as we are now in the final quarter of 2023!

Marvel Legends Avengers 60th Anniversary Hawkeye w/Skycycle review

Hawkeye has been quite an interesting man when it comes to past Legends iterations. While Jeremy Renner gets figures that feel no different from one another in God knows how many MCU films he's stuck in, the comic iteration has at least 4 prior iterations that were each mixed in quality: a ToyBiz version that is its own mold with great value for money (Sky-Cycle included) but has poor-proportions, the 2013 Marvel Now design that is basically a comicified MCU design because that's what Disney does nowadays, an All New/All Different modern classic comic design with a poor reuse of the MCU Winter Soldier arm, and a Retro release that is alright but not by much. Back to avoiding run-on sentences from here, we got a new Hawkeye that might be reminiscent of the Toy Biz version but better-proportioned mostly. We'll see if that's the case for today's review.

Here we have Hawkeye in-hand. This figure has a lot of new elements added onto the Sunfire body, such as slightly longer limbs to fit Hawkeye's body frame  as well as the tunic sculpted on the upper body to go with his belt, arm bands, gauntlets, and the strap meant for the quiver. I like the metallic purple on the tunic and the arm gear, but I wish it was more spread out on the rest of the purple part, including the mask, for consistency sake. This figure uses pinless joints, and I'm sure there are kitbashers willing to use this for sleeveless figures in some way. The shade of blue used for his costume should be accurate to the classic look, but I feel it could use a bit of shading to make it look less plasticky than it currently is (would also go well with the metallic parts of the costume). The thing that makes this figure stand out from the others is the inclusion of fabric goods for the loincloth. The idea is nice on-paper, and some would argue that the added details that match the tunic are nice details, but I feel it looks cheaper on this guy, especially with how it makes the upper body feel like it's loosely connected. So overall, it looks mostly good, but I know there is room for improvement.

His head sculpt is the best part about the figure, reinventing the nicer details of the life-like appearance of the ToyBiz figure that Hasbro failed to live up top with their Allfather and Retro versions of Hawkeye. The mask looks appropriately classic and better uses the realism moreso than the other Legends figures, and that means not having his lips look odd or the face too much like a cosplayer. His articulation is standard for the Sunfire mold, including the butterfly joints needed to better help his archery posing work a bit more. That being said, some of the joints feel a bit gummier than normal, something that affected numerous pinless joints. With his alternate hands along with his bow and arrow, the latter accessories are nicely painted yet annoying with the former not being flexible enough and the latter not being good at staying in place for a firing pose. It could really benefit from having certain hands meant for the arrow, and I am tempted to give this guy the ToyBiz bow and arrows if I see them online.

The Skycycle comes disassembled for the platform, the main portion of the vehicle, the domey windshield, and the flight stand, which is unique to Hasbro for utilizing an asymmetrical length for two of the legs while the ball joint facing upwards can be used for different lengths depending on which part of the base is used. The assembly is easy to work with, and you can disassemble this item without the fear of things getting hard to disassemble if you want to customize this for better weathering or wear & tear. I like this, though with how shitty the economy is and how Hasbro likes to market its items to justify their sometimes higher than deserved price, this would have been marketed as an accessory back in the ToyBiz days vs the second main asset of a toy. Hawkeye rides it well enough, but only the handles keep him secure as there are no pegs for the feet.

For a comparison with other Marvel Legends Avengers new and old, here he is with Retro Cap, Ant-Man, Iron Man, and Ragnarok. It should be mentioned that while everyone else began as heroes, Hawkeye began as a criminal and enemy of Iron Man, but now he has some new friends to fight with. I guess it I could get her, I could also buy Black Widow even though people would associate her with the MCU version. Overall, Hawkeye is a mostly solid release that I feel has room for improvement. If he was $5-10 less, I would recommend him more; as it stands, he is the best Hawkeye that Hasbro had ever done, though I admit there are things the ToyBiz version does better with the paint and accessories.

Final ranking: ⭐⭐⭐ and a half out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Another Set of Random Reviews: Now With Evangelion

Franchises made in the 80s and 90s have been prominent on this website, huh? Transformers Generation One has the CHUG lines and occasional G1 release while Power Rangers, despite only having Hasbro-focused reviews, did begin in the 90s with MMPR. And of course, there are occasional franchise pop-ups every once in a while, including Pac-Man and a small increase of anime franchises (and it's the good ones right now), but instead of a Sailor Scout, we got another blue hair character in the form of Rei Ayanami of Neon Genesis Evangelion fame! Let's get into today's Random Review with a decade theme!

Let's first take a look at G1 Frenzy. This guy is a rectangle with holes in it, which is an uninteresting mode. I'm only kidding, this is his cassette mode, which is depicted with plenty of stickers on the front of it in order to convey the mode he possesses. The blue on this guy is toy-based, with some fiction rolling with this deco while it is more light blue/lavender for the cartoon, where the character is called Rumble instead of Frenzy. On the back, there are a few chrome accents that have been roughed up from previous use, but it doesn't look too out of place with the front section of the altmode. Certainly better than a lot of recent takes on this type of Mini-Con Deployer, such as the Siege version and even the Masterpiece version to an extent. That does come down to the old G1 toys prioritizing vehicle modes more often than robot modes.

He, like every other G1 cassette, can fit inside Soundwave's compartment, and the blue is a different shade from his master (which I appreciate).

With Laserbeak and Ravage, we get a nice variety of colors between cassette members, and I reckon the same could be said if Rumble, Buzzsaw, and Ratbat were added (and by extension, the other cassettes past RB).

His transformation is pretty basic, as the arms and legs fold down while they rotate in place. The head springs up and the weapons go on the back. The resulting robot mode has low-hanging arms and is very flat from the aide, but it isn't a bad job for a first attempt at turning a rectangle into a humanoid form. It should be mentioned that half of his details are stickers, and he isn't light blue & lavender ss the cartoon Rumble is.  

His articulation only consists of arm swivels, double-elbows, and maybe knees that are higher than normal. Next to his partners and his big boss, Frenzy makes for a cool addition to any G1 display if you want to have a humanoid partner in a collection.

Final ranking: ⭐⭐⭐ out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Up next, we have the Auto Morphin White Ranger. This is Hasbro's interpretation of Bandai's old toy design rather than a straight reissue like what 2018 had. This guy was in the second wave along with Yellow, Green, and Ranger Slayer. The Auto Morphins were known for their blockier proportions, but the Hasbro versions feel a little more rounded for better or worse (especially at thd hips). Fans probably wondered why the old molds weren't used, it could be due to Hasbro not having access to Bandai molds the same way they did Kenner Star Wars and ToyBiz Marvel (because they bought out both companies and licenses) or because they wanted to do their own spin on the concept while keeping things faithfully retro like the screws on his head and butt. He, like the old toys, inaccurately came with a Blade Blaster in the holster. You could put Saba in there but it's too snug.

His helmet looks incomplete due to the missing paint apps but the sculpt is otherwise good. Just paint in those lines! Anyways the articulation is only present for the shoulders as well as for the elbow swivels & bends; the hips now move outwards in addition to front and back (different from the old hips), and the lower legs can swivel in as well as bend at the knees. The lack of neck articulation is annoying since the 2018 reissues have done that for the civilian heads. And none of the weapons use peg holes.

The chest armor is removable for the gimmick to work properly, though it is a single, flexible piece rather than having it be solid and split apart. The actor likeness to Tommy Oliver in Season 2 is stronger than on the old one, and you can see the molding for the white diamonds! No gold like on the Super Megaforce & Super Legends 5/6 through 8-inch scale versions. He may not be as desirable as the Lightning Collection version, but he makes for a neat novelty regardless. And hey, he has the proper belt buckle instead of the Press-Stop-For-Emergency button Power Morpher.

Final ranking: ⭐⭐⭐ and a half out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Up next, we got Pac-Man's model kit made for beginners. This Entry Grade piece is made for those who are interested in getting into the hobby without the fear of tackling any assembly or detailing elements found in Gundam or Mini-Pla. Almost everything that is yellow, red, orange, or black requires no stickering or paint beyond the eyebrows. 

Once he is assembled, he is on-model as expected, capturing the slightly tweaked look he sported since his Smash debut. I love the colors on this guy, being perfect for how his character model looked in the 2000s. There's not much else to say beyond him having ball jointed shoulders and wrists. He's meant to be in his signature thumbs up/wink combo.

For a comparison with his other recent figurines, here he is with the Capchara and Figuarts versions along with the tiny figurine that came with the Chogokin mecha of Pac-Man. He does the thumbs-up pose the best and is one I recommend if you want more Pac-Man in your life. The Figuart is one I recommend more.

Final ranking: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

And going from a simpler arcade series to a batshit insane anime, we have a debut review for Neon Genesis Evangelion. This is Rei Ayanami in her plugsuit, which is what she and other Eva pilots wear in order to better synergize with their Eva-Units. This figure measures around the same height as a G.I.Joe figure from the past, or the late-2000s era Marvel Universe & Star Wars figures that were in the 3 3/4 inch scale. A surprising level of detail is present in this figure, from the sculpting to the paint apps added throughout the pearlescent white plastic. The proportions of Rei (and by extension, Asuka), look more adult when wearing the skin-tight plug suits, though the wider than normal hips, skinnier midriff, and weird butt detailing likely come from scale limitations when designing the figures, something that might be true for most Microman designs.

Her head sculpt is small yet equally surprising in terms of how it nails the emotionless face of Rei in the anime. The eyes are what sell it, representing this unusual mystery behind the kind of character that seems quiet and reserved from the outside yet has a darker backstory from the inside as is seen with numerous flashbacks in the anime (and I guess End of Evangelion but I didn't see that movie). Also if you think this is going to turn into a dumb MatPat fan theory then shove your modern anime merch up your ass. Anyways, the articulation is impressive for a smaller-scale figure yet it can also be a detriment due to the tolerances it'd get overtime. The head, the shoulders, diaphragm, and hips are on ball joints, the outward-range parts of the shoulders, double-elbows, double-knees, wrists, and ankles are on hinges, the hands and feet can rotate at the pegs they connect to, and there is a rocker joint for the midriff. She can hold her rifle decently and has plenty of alternate hands (one is missing), though I kind of wish she had that spear weapon. This figure is neat for the history of Microman and Evangelion merch, but not one I'd recommend you go out and get. Maybe we'll see her again with Asuka?

Final ranking: ⭐⭐⭐ out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

And finally, going from characters that debuted in the past (mixed with either vintage toys or modern recreations), this is Battle Changer Mirage from Rise of the Beasts! Yes, he isn't a classic character (by that I mean a classic rendition of Mirage), but he pop up in the 90s where the movie takes place so he gets a pass. I meant to get this guy reviewed before the mainline Deluxe, but you can see here how much worse he looks than the other toy given how flat the gray plastic looks in addition to the lack of paint apps. At least the wheels are solid gray.

The lack of details is especially prominent on the sides, and the shoulders attach doesn't match the rest of the car. I do not, however, fault this car for not being a licensed Porsche 911 Carrera. 

Transforming him is simple though a bit inaccurate given how he actually transforms in the movie. The front being the legs and the back as the upper body really isn't how he works, but we can forgive him. The bot mode is much chunkier than the CG model, though. It reminds me of how the 2014 AOE toys for kids looked, being much chunkier than their Generations counterparts. And he still looks so dull with the gray combined with gunmetal gray, contrasting the silver and blue that popped on Mirage. At least paint his body silver! And yes, he has some junk from the back of the trunk.

His head sculpt is sort of accurate compared to the Deluxe figure's unusual mouthplated face, but would it have hurt them to make it blue? And the gunmetal gray doesn't really help that much on the detailing for the face. His articulation gives him ball joints for the shoulders and hips along with hinge knees. His left arm can flip around to reveal an arm cannon that is compatible with blast effects, which is neat. I find it odd how this guy was the first piece of merch for Mirage back when the movie was coming out, and he was not as seen as a prominent release until after it came out, especially since he was one of the main faces of the movie in addition to the Porsche licensing that went into the Autobot. I don't hate this figure, but after getting the Deluxe and later the Studio Series figure, he will be mostly used for the illusion trick Mirage did on the Golden Gate bridge to trick the cops or when he was going "ONE! TWO!! THREE!!!" when he was about to fight Scourge.

Final ranking: ⭐⭐⭐ out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐