Transformers Earthrise Scorponok & Legacy Black Zarak review

You guys probably saw my reviews on the War for Cybertron trilogy for a good while now. You have seen me review just about every mold in the Deluxe, Voyager, and Leader size classes at least once. I was also giving attention to the Core Class line-up and even dipped my toes into the Master classes consisting of Battles and Micros every now and then. There were two size classes I never touched for a good while, and they were Commanders and Titans. I was able to get my hands on Rodimus Prime as my first ever purchase from the size class, and now it appears we are going back in time with a figure I never got until now, but I'm not alone on this.

Ernie: Yes, we will be taking a look at both of the versions of Titan Class Scorponok: Earthrise's vanilla offering and Legacy's Black Zarak repaint/retool/remold/whatever you wanna call it! This will be a unique entry where not one, but TWO Titan Class figures share the spotlight beyond the size comparisons. In addition to that, Black Zarak will be shown with the DNA Designs upgrade kit as another way to showcase the differences between a stock and customized figure. It's not a case of comparing apples to apples but whatever.

Here we have Scorponok in his city scorpion mode. It's quite explanatory when it comes to describing the base modes that these massive Transformers have: spreading out and rearranging themselves to pass off as another mode. With the way these giant toys usually cater to the robot modes, it's expected to have these modes feel simplistic by not having any defining specific traits beyond the ramps and parts that vaguely look like towers. To the toy's credit, there are a handful of great aspects for the toy, from the heavy doses of sculpted details to the many paint applications present on him. If anything, the middle ramp represents the best aspect of him with how detailed it is, especially with the color layout helping the most. It's interesting how the center of the toy is purple in comparison to the limbs being mostly green. And while a normal release would have left the figure with the plastic colors unpainted, I love that the toy has as much color breakup as humanely possible, something that can't be said if it tried so hard to lean on the toon aesthetics. And you can already see in the image that not only is Jazz chasing Goldbug back to the Shattered Glass dimension, but Zarak's head mode is inside the cavity within what will become the torso while the Titan Master standing on a dedicated peg meant for toys like it. You can say that the former is meant to serve as a trap of sorts for any unsuspecting Autobots.

Ernie: And anyone who wants to see how it looks with Black Zarak will be happy to know that the toy has the same features as much as the original release. For a comparison with the Black Zarak version, the colors are the only differences between the two of them, in addition to some possible different parts that are not present with the original version thanks to BZ's upgrade kit. It's a pretty striking difference, with Scorponok having a Constructicon/Hulk deco while his repaint looked fancier by comparison, even if the gold isn't metallic. At least it doesn't break like the original toy did, poor GPS sufferer... Oh, and the trapdoor is not placed as a way to show you can display it either way.

Transforming it to scorpion mode is pretty involved if you're going from city mode to robot mode, as jt requires getting the parts in the right alignment before entering steps like making the tail or having everything in the proper surface level when you're working on the scorpion legs. The claws are already there given how they'll be in the robot mode anyhow. The resulting scorpion mode certainly has the Generations approach of making a chunky G1 toy look a little more badass than before. Things like the hefty claws combined with the scorpion head now being presented better on this toy make a bit of a difference when put next to the G1 version. And while the scorpion legs aren't part of a gimmick that has them articulate when you roll the toy around, at least you can pose them as well as roll the toy on wheels. You can open what will be the chest compartment and store the Titan Master inside, so you don't have to really use it with the Scorponok/ion head. 

There is even a blast effect piece that can be used on the tail, and it is obviously compatible with the rest of the WFC Trilogy line. So you can basically have have him shoot Autobots instead of trying to sting them with how blocky and bulky he is.

Ernie: As for a comparison with Legacy Black Zarak, the colors are once again the main difference, though now the scorpion head looks more dynamic thanks to the retooling it received to make it much more animalistic and evil, especially with the mandibles being similar to what Armada Megatron would have in his tank mode. Also, the cannons are also from the upgrade kit. Now, you are supposed to attach the gun onto the tail, but my copy's tail comes off too easily, and it's a pretty heavy piece. Oh, and the scorpion legs are much more articulated on the upgrade kit. And while he has extended thighs, the transformation is not compromised.

Ernie: And while we're at it, here we have the Titan Masters up-close. One looks like a typical G1 Decepticon Genericon while the other looks like Thanos with the purple face and gold helmet. The black would normally be a dark blue. Either way, no retooling is done between the two of them in this mode, at least that's what I'm getting at with the faces.

Let's have the scorpion head turn into a robot quickly. The transtector mode can be achieved as you turn a cubic head into a pretty decent robot, and it's a method similar to what the Titan Masters possess albeit with more refined steps and details. I mean, do we really want this guy to be an oversized Titan Master? While you do have to scrunch up the face and partsform the horns on the back, it's a pretty good approach to handling the robot mode for this guy, and I think it's cool that he gets to do what Cerebros did and make a double-Headmaster gimmick. In the G1 toy, Zarak simply had a helmet and visor, while here, he does the same schtick that his rival does and I think it's for the better. Zarak's transtector is kind of reminds me of a Dragonball villain. Maybe it's the color scheme or the way he's depicted in The Headmasters, but I get a sense of that from this design alone. He's got a unique color combo of cream white with purple and dark gray, with the orange on the back from the pincers come robot horns. Some may find the side panels on his arms as well as the backpack cluttered, but I can set that aside since he's mainly going to be a head anyhow.

Speaking of, the head sculpt is accurate to the way it is depicted in the show, though it should be worth mentioning that this is based on The Headmasters, which gave a more defined character design than in The Rebirth. Oh, and he is called Scorponok in this mode and "MegaZarak" with the larger transtector. We'll call him Zarak for simplicity sake and the giant toy as Scorponok. His articulation is par for the course with the WFC trilogy: ball jointed neck, shoulders moving front and back as well as in and out, double-elbow joints, bicep swivels, a waist swivel, hips that move front and back as well as in and out, thigh swivels, knee bends, and ankle pivots.

Ernie: For another comparison in robot mode, here we have Zarak with his retool, who has an even stronger Thanos resemblance with the purple face and gold armor, but this time the horns are always on the arms, and the chest has been retooled to show a scar. If you look closely, he has an eyepatch on his head. It's a pretty cool way to distinguish this guy further than just a black and gold Scorponok. Wish Bandai did that with their black and gold Megazords, and Hasbro instead sold an NFT with a limited ordering window. Kay...

Ernie: And as for how the heads look, you can tell that there is a night and day difference between the two. The base faces are more than just recolors, with Scorponok having a more robotic mouth while Black Zarak has a more pronounced set of lips, reminiscent of Silverbolt or Animated Optimus. Scorponok's head is much blocker and 80s in its design, while Black Zarak has a striking red helmet complete with evil horns that make him almost like Galactus if he wasn't with a big forehead. That red on him is painted, by the way. Oh, and Scorponok has a visor while Black Zarak doesn't, though underneath the visor is a set of eyes painted in green for anyone that would probably want to unscrew the visor off.

Transformation to the robot mode is pretty simple when you're going to scorpion mode. Simply straighten the legs, swivel the torso, and bring the arms down. You may probably need to insert the Titan Master back in the spot. Oh, and be sure to hide the scorpion legs before attaching the backpack as well as placing the guns back on the shoulders. It's also worth mentioning that Scorponok's head has a collar piece on the body that goes with the port for the smaller transtector to better secure it in place to an extent. The resulting robot mode is much more dynamic than the original G1 toy, taking those clunky proportions and gimmicks into a much more refined version of the character, especially when compared to how dumpy and stumpy the G1 toy was by comparison. There is a whole lot of surface texture throughout the toy, no doubt thanks to the sculptwork done within the War for Cybertron trilogy and its many, many toys. It makes this guy feel a lot more impressive that we can achieve this sort of look while still making him G1 accurate. I know people will probably like the look of the Gigantic Action version made by Sentinel, but that is now rendered obsolete thanks to the added functionality that one would want from a Titan Class Transformer. The backpack does have some hollow gaps, but the rest of this guy at least manages to fill itself in areas where it'd need to be. 

As mentioned before, Scorponok's head is based on his appearance in The Rebirth, which is where the visor comes from. I know many would prefer that he has the full face cover like in the toy or in The Headmasters but I kind of wish his visor can be retractable like with Metroplex. Granted, you can unscrew it, but you really shouldn't. I kind of wish it was also transluscent, but with no other parts on this guy being transluscent in the sprue, I'm guessing that's why his visor is opaque. As with the rest of the WFC trilogy line, he's very poseable, though this time, he has a few new additions given his design: the head can look down thanks to a hinge that is part of the port on the giant transtector, and his claws can articulate at 4 points, allowing you to grab any smaller figure with them. You can take the back panel and combine it with two panels on the lower legs and make the Zarak Shield he used in The Headmasters, complete with pincers.

Now fun fact: these pictures were taken at Ernie's house, which is why there are Shattered Glass toys in some pics that I don't own. The picture that depicts home holding Fasttrack in his spear mode, however, is an exception. After a 5-day trip to Canada, I went back home with my stuff and decided to show something that probably was already done by other fans but I wanted to do nonetheless: Yes, he can hold Fasttrack in the spear mode, but I can't help but feel that not only is the grip fairly loose though the joints are tight for him to hold it, the practicality of it is pretty laughable given how it's made of robot parts that is reminiscent of some Minicon weapon modes. It's a neat idea, though, and Black Zarak can do that with Black Roritchi. For a size comparison, here he is holding Kup in his claw to showcase a Deluxe figure scales in that area while Shattered Glass Jetfire and Studio Series 86 Hot Rod remain on the ground. He's a big boy, and the first of his kind in my collection, at least (I never got Metroplex, Devastator, Fort Max, Trypticon, Predaking, Omega Surpreme, nor The Ark before, but I plan to fix that in addition to getting Cybertron Metroplex).

Ernie: And here he is with his Black Zarak retool, seen here not only having the newly retooled head as well as having a new spear accessory, but he also has the aforementioned upgrade parts, including a larger Zarak Shield, a gun that was missing on both releases, and thigh extensions to make him as tall as Fort Max, because for some reason, the Decepticon baseformers can't be as tall or slightly taller than their Autobot rivals. Warning for anyone who wants to get the upgrade kit: it's going to be near the price range of the stock figure.

So overall, this has been a pretty sweet review to make: it's not only the first titanformer in the review site, it's not only the first time it features the regular and redeco versions in the same review without any mold history to go over, but it's also the first time a collab review has been made. Ernie and I have both collaborated on this together and are more than happy to make this review on Earthrise Scorponok a one-of-a-kind experience.

Ernie: I think we're missing a mode for Black Zarak, like the one in Super-God Masterforce?

Me: Maybe, but this pic of the moldmates shaking hands...er, claws, works better.

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

Power Rangers Lightning Collection Wave 11 review

It's been nearly half a year since I reviewed the last wave of Lightning Collection, isn't it? Well, time to fix that! This new wave not only starts two seasons but also adds more content to two already prominent seasons. We've gotten the debut of Wild Force and Dino Fury with the Lunar Wolf Ranger and Dino Fury Red, respectively; as for Dino Charge and Zeo, the Pink Ranger adds a new member for the former season while the Cog makes another slight variation of a foot soldier for the latter, respectively. I guess there's not much else to do for Zeo beyond the villains and Auric the Conquerer, but Dino Charge could go for some additional Rangers even after we get the Blue Ranger. Until then, let's take a look at the new additions to the line!

Here we have the Lunar Wolf Ranger. This suit is translated as being slightly translucent (a common trend Hasbro does to represent metallic or shiny characters instead of using metallic paint), and it's a pretty good method of translating the suit's coloring. The blue also flows nicely with the rest of the suit despite being slightly flatter by comparison, and the gold paint apps do pop nicely save for the one paint mistake on the left glove cuff. One thing I like about the suit design was the asymmetry with the blue taking over the right side of the body, with a portion of the chest and the right arm having the color; even the gold stripes (which are the proper amount) look nice on the suit), and the Howling Wolf symbols nicely applied. It is worth mentioning that the toy initially had white boots instead of silver, which wouldn't look too out of place despite being inaccurate.

The helmet looks good for the most part, though it does look a little thin than I'm used to seeing on the show. Maybe that's how it is, but at least the blue paint apps as well as the white visor outline and the red eyes look good. That one tooth on the visor does have some slightly sloppy paint, though. As for the articulation, it has the norm that we have seen before with the line, he has a ball joint at one part of the neck and a hinge at the other, butterfly joints, shoulders that move front and back as well as in and out, swivel at the biceps and double-jointed elbows, wrist swivels, hands that hinge in and out, and both a diaphragm joint as well as an ab crunch. Hips move front and back as well as in and out, thighs swivel, knees bend at two points, boots swivel, and the feet hinge up and down as pivot at the ankles. Oh, and the inside of the leg pins do not have silver paint to blend them in better.

As far as his accessories are concerned, he has two alternate clawed hands, a civilian head, a typical effect piece, and two versions of the Lunar Cue: One in sword mode and another in blaster mode.

The display options are nice as always, though the likeness to Merrick is probably a little different than I remember? He looks a little bit like the face Shrek has in the second movie but more fit. That being said, the Lunar Cue is neat to own considering how it's not just a sword that turns into a gun, but it can also turn into a pool cue, which is pretty rare to reference in Power Rangers.

Now you can try to sort of fake a pool cue mode for the weapon but it may not be as effective as one would hope since it's not in the exact format. Also no finisher effect piece or Animal Crystals, 0/10 /j. Anyways, for a comparison with previous versions of the toy, here we have him alongside an original Wild Force toy of the same suit and the Super Megaforce Action Hero in the 5-inch scale. I think the Bandai duo does the coloring better than the current figure, but it is no secret that the Lightning Collection feels more definitive in terms of articulation, proportions, and accessory count. Though I swear he was supposed to have a holster. 

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

Next, here we have Dino Charge Pink in-hand. The first female Ranger in the team to be made in the line, she may initially not be too different from the others in terms of suit details or whatever else has been done in the past with the team, from the chest detailing to the use of silver on the belt, glove, and boot cuffs, etc; however, if you look at the elbows and knees, they are now pinless joints! She along with the Lightning Collection Ninjetti forms of the Rangers (as far as I know) are the first figures to not have their joints pinned; this may come from the fact that the elbows on the females were not originally double-jointed until now, and while at first, it may seem like she would receive the treatment due to the texturing on the Dino Charge arms having more texture on them than other seasons, but it turns out that it will be a regular thing now that the upcoming Dino Thunder Yellow Ranger will have that benefit, too. Beyond that, she continues to have the same missing silver paint for the gloves as well as black paint for the bottom of the boots, but at least her belt is painted properly compared to the only mishap in the form of Dino Charge Black.

Helmet is very nice to have as always, especially when we get to the comparison with the basic version made in 2020. The white outline and the yellow representing the mouth go so well and completes the look. Also commend the paint apps being applied nicely here. Her articulation, apart from the double-jointed elbows, is the same, though one hand moves up and down instead of in and out.

As far as her accessories are concerned, she has the typical alternate hands, blast effect piece, and her own civilian head, but unlike the guys, she has a Dino Spike accessory instead of a saber...we'll get into what doesn't work with that.

The display options are nice for the most part, and the likeness to Shelby is pretty decent if you ask me. But while we already know how the Morpher remains unpainted from one side as well as bring up how she is the second member to have a gun effect instead of lightning as was the case with Dino Charge Black, the Dino Spike accessory doesn't work. In the show, she and the other Rangers have Dino Armor X mode, allowing them access to spikes on their right arms as well as a personal weapon that has the symbol on their chest. This portion of the Dino Spike, the Tricera Drill, may be nicely detailed, but it is missing the aforementioned arm spikes that cannot complete the appearance from the show. That wouldn't be as much of an issue, BUT the hand can't hold it properly due to how thin the handle is.

For a comparison extension to what was shown with the Triple Dino set, here we have the basic figure next to the Lightning Collection figure. I think it's unanimous that the new figure wins due to it having the more complete deco, shown with the added black lines on the chest logo, the red on the shoulder pad, the black interior for the belt buckle, and the most crucial details of all including the visor outline, triceratops logo, AND the arm texturing! Though I will say that the other version has better accessories.

And here she is with the rest of her team. We already know that there are minor discrepancies that are pretty irritating for the Lightning Collection, but it makes me so excited to finally have at least the main 6 Rangers in a proper display, especially since I never got the Action Heroes nor the Figuarts. I hope we can get the Blue Ranger ASAP, especially since he has been MIA. Maybe they can complete at least the main Dino Charge team AND start Ninja Steel with a Sudarso Brother 2-pack.

Final ranking: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

And now for the final Ranger of this wave, and it's from the most-recent team taking the spotlight, it's Dino Fury Red! This guy looks very good, and it's kind of ironic that I initially didn't give a rat's ass about Ryusoulger nor its aesthetics, but after accepting it being adapted into Dino Fury, I have warmed up to the suit designs and appreciate that while it reaks of similarities to Kyoryu Charge, at least Hasbro tried to make the season feel different from what was originally shown. The suits in the show typically consist of a zig-zag design to the center separating the main ranger color and the silver, which is now painted instead of being somewhat translucent plastic. Unlike the Lunar Wolf Ranger, the arm looks more opaque while still having some of the sheen one would expect from the suit design using the aforementioned color. And the gold accents are always appreciative. That being said, I hope subsequent offerings don't mess up on the alignment on the chest detailing and/or forget to paint the outline because the inconsistencies between team members in the likes of SPD and MMPR need to stop.

Helmet looks very good as always, and I appreciate that the details look aligned in the right spots even if they're not 1:1 exactly as shown with the more intricate visor being knight-themed and thus harder to work with than the average visor. And while the articulation is the same, I should mention that it is kind of annoying that the Morpher is unpainted but at least it will be unchanged for every character (and I presume Gold as well though it's been a while since I saw the suit in American footage).

As far as accessories are concerned, he has the Chromafury Saber, a civilian head, a lightning effect, and one right hand as well as one left fist.

The display options are a little odd with the hands, he looks like he's using the air-quotation gesture or is doing a salute, but the fact that he can store the saber on the holster is appreciative. I do wish that the bottom part of it was painted but I don't mind that it can't open (not like he can put some tiny ass keys inside). The likeness to Zayto is okay though not quite there; the hair should be darker and his eyebrows more prominent I'm sure a variant will be made with his antennae to represent his origins of coming from Rafkon instead of Earth. And as far as how he looks next to the Basic figure, they are both pretty good versions of the character al beit the Lightning Collection version has more mass to the body and the proper weapon.

Final ranking: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

And now we have the Zeo Cog. This guy may seem unchanged from the regular version that came in the 2-pack, but there are a few differences between it and the regular version. Mostly with the gray; instead of being a normal silver, it's closer to gunmetal gray this time around, and the spotty pattern on the original is removed outright. Otherwise, the accessories are mostly the same as before.

The main reason you'd want to buy this Cog apart from the Armybuilding is because of the tonfas that Zeo Blue should have had. It's amusing how a foot soldier gets to come with Ranger accessories that should have come with the actual Ranger back in 2020?! God time flew by too soon...

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