Transformers United Windcharger vs Wipe-Out review

Repaints in the same set are nothing new, but sometimes there'd be sets where you get the same toy with no retooling whatsoever. With the Seekers, it makes sense given how they usually have the essence of being armybuilders. A set like this, however, comes off more like a Player 1 vs Player 2 multipack you'd probably expect from a bootleg. Yes, instead of coming with Tailgate, we have a straight repaint in the form if Wipe-Out, who was a comic-exclusive Decepticon and minion of Trypticon. It's rare when Takara acknowledges lore that was not shared with them given how small Marvel must have been in Japan compared to the US, so let's give this set a throwback review.

Here we have Windcharger and Wipe-Out in his vehicle mode. The design looks to be a hybrid between a late-2000s Mustang and Camaro, which was part of a trend Hasbro did in using modern vehicles for influence in CHUG lines rather than being faithful to G1 like with the WFC and Legacy lines. The altmodes are decently detailed for what they could provide at their size class, though my Wipe-Out, formerly belonging to a friend, has Reprolabel stickers that my Windcharger does not have. This even results in details that better match the G1 toy's chest stickers. For a pair of Takara toys part of the United line, which was notorious for having metallic paint jobs along with their version of Animated, they have the flat plastic associated with the Hasbro versions; not even the rims are painted!

Here we have Windcharger next to the most recent version of Bumblebee from the Studio Series line. Amusing how a Deluxe from a decade ago has a size similar to a Deluxe made today, though some could see this as a way to fudge the line differences and put Windy along with the recent Minibots, right?

Transformation is the usual trope of a hood-chest, arms hinging down, and lower legs flipping down. They do manage to add a few tricks, like the hands on wrist hinges due to a gimmick we'll cover. The robot modes feel a little less like the G1 design and more like an Alternators-esque take on the Autobot. Ironic because he did have an Alternators toy despite having an alt mode and head sculpt more in common with Overdrive. Said head is similarly sculpted to the way it looked on Decepticharge. In addition, the aesthetics have more in-common with the movies, albeit filtered in the way CHUG lines looked back then (think of Laser Prime from the same line this mold originates as an example). Common for Scout class figures in this scale would be small hands, flat backpacks from the roof, and hollow areas.

With their magnetic guns flipped out (complete with C-clips common in 2010), articulation consists of ball joints for the necks, shoulders, elbows, and hips with hinged knees.

In case you're wondering what the Hasbro version looks like, he has a rubsign. That's it.

And here he is next to Bumblebee again. The height difference is embarrassing for a specific Deluxe like Bee, but I have a feeling Hasbro would probably make a new Windcharger taller and better-proportioned than this guy. As it stands, this 2-pack isn't bad for today's standards, but I feel it is seen moreso nowadays as a footnote for an otherwise insignificant Minibot who was less prominent than other characters and equal only to Gears. Side note, Takara's take on Wipe-Out really does feel like a Player 2 Windcharger with a Decepticon insignia, because he'd make more sense if he had a retooled head to match the look of Tailgate's head. So overall, this is a set that is best getting at a cheap price and only if you want this mold as a stand-in until we get a new version. It's more likely to happen than a Masterpiece version.

Final ranking: ⭐⭐⭐ out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐