Transformers Masterpiece MP-30 Ratchet

Ratchet is the Autobot's chief medical officer. While his original bio characterized him like Hawkeye from M*A*S*H more recent versions of the character have made him much more like Dr McCoy from Star Trek. Either way when his fellow Autobots are in need of repairs Ratchet will do everything he can to get them back in fighting shape.

Ratchet has been my favorite Transformers character for as long as I can remember. Not just in the various G1 universes but across the whole spectrum of Transformers fiction. So to have a Masterpiece figure of him is something that makes me very happy.

Ratchet is a retool of the Masterpiece Ironhide mold. Just as the original Ratchet toy was a retool of Ironhide. Or maybe it was the other way around. There will probably be some things I skip over with Ratchet as they've already been discussed in the Ironhide review.

Vehicle mode:

It's an ambulance! No surprises there. Ratchet's vehicle mode is pretty much the same as Ironhide's with the exception of the light-bar on top. Out of the box the he looks rather plain. This is due to a copyright issues surrounding the use of the red cross symbol. A sticker sheet is included with options to make things a little more interesting.

That said it's a very nice vehicle mode. Almost all of the white is a glossy white paint. The red stripe down the side is very clean. The panel lines seem to stand out a bit more on Ratchet than they did on Ironhide. But all in all it's an accurate take on Ratchet's ambulance mode.

Because of the light-bar Ratchet's roof has been slightly redesigned from the original Ironhide release. The light-bar is on a spring. It can be depressed and will lock into place for transformation. When going back to vehicle mode pushing it back slightly will release the catch and let it pop back up.

Behind the light-bar is a small rotating piece. This is to accommodate the attack mode. Sadly, because the white surfaces have been painted, I noticed the paint had chipped slightly when flipping this piece up. A quick search has shown that a number of people have had minor paint chipping issues with this figure. Something to be careful of.

With the piece flipped up you can plug in one of Ratchet's guns. Yay, attack mode. Moving on.

Transformation:

As a retool of Masterpiece Ironhide the transformation is almost exactly the same. You can read my description in the Ironhide review. The only difference is you need to push Ratchet's light-bar down before you start transforming him. It will lock into place when depressed.

Robot mode:

Ratchet's robot mode looks fantastic. This is very clearly Ratchet. Like his vehicle mode he's almost entirely white. But the glossy white paint looks just as nice in robot mode as it does in vehicle mode.

His windows are more transparent than Ironhide's. This means you can see more of the folded up vehicle mode behind the chest window. The figure does come with a little cardboard insert of an ECG reading which you could use to cover this up if you wished.

While the crotch pieces are different from Ironhide's they function in exactly the same way. There is no difference in articulation between the two figures.

Ratchet comes with two options for facial expressions. The first is my preferred face. He looks appropriately cranky. The eyes are picked out in a nice bright blue that stands out well against the flat grey of his face.

The other option is a happy face. Like the grumpy face the paint work is very nice. They even painted inside Ratchet's mouth. But the sculpt is just creepy. I've since plugged this into the bottom of the accessory "sled" and don't intend to look at it ever again.

Accessories:

Due to copy right issues Ratchet couldn't have the red cross symbol tampographed to his vehicle mode and shoulders. Instead you get a sticker sheet with two options. I went with the top line of stickers - crosses with Autobot logos in the center. If you had the time and patience you could cut the smaller squares out of the corners of the lower set of stickers to get the most accurate look for your Ratchet.

Ratchet comes with a large number of accessories. Like Ironhide a "sled" is included to store them all. This homages the fact that the original toy had it's roof come off during transformation to become some sort of mobile repair bay. Ratchet did use something that looked vaguely like this to search for the Dinobots in the Marvel comics.

Ratchet comes with a number of weapons. He's probably the most heavily armed doctor out there. Like Ironhide he comes with a pair of identical pistols. These are just like the ones he used to defend the Autobot shuttle from invading Decepticons before he was mercilessly shot and killed by Starscream.

These are probably the best looking weapons included with Ratchet. They can also store in his vehicle mode behind the rear wheels. Getting them in and out of Ratchet's hands can be a little tricky. The tabs seem a fraction too long when trying to slide them into place.

He has a gun based on the one included with his original toy. I know I'm not the only person to think this weapons looks silly. It's better left as part of the repair bay than used as a hand held weapon.

I don't remember Ratchet ever using this missile launcher in the cartoon like Ironhide. But it is another weapon that was included with the original toy. The arm on the launcher has multiple points of articulation so you are able to position it over Ratchet's head however you think looks best. The missile is also removable. It doesn't fire from the launcher like the original toys did.

Ratchet's last weapon is a very generic laser gun. This he was definitely seen using in the original cartoon.

Ratchet also comes with a decent number of tools for repairing injured Autobots. Probably the most basic is a pair of identical wrenches. These are nicely sized and fit very easily into Ratchet's hands.

He also has this fancier hand tool. I'm sure there's a specific name for it but I'm not sure what it is. The instructions for the figure are in Japanese and unfortunately I can't read any of it. It looks very nice though and like the wrenches fits easily into Ratchet's hands.

This welding torch uses the same plugs that Ironhide's many liquid shooters used. You need to flip Ratchet's hand back into his for arm to use it. It fits snugly into place and is very nicely detailed.

The repair beam emitter uses the plug on Ratchet's forearm. It's a simple design but there are enough little details to keep it from looking bland or unfinished.

Ratchet also comes with a laser scalpel. While in the comics (and probably the cartoon) the scalpel didn't have a pistol grip Ratchet wouldn't be able to properly hold it without one. Like his other tools it's detailed enough to keep it from looking bland but still has that simple cartoon feel.

The welding torch, repair beam emitter and laser scalpel can all use the included effect piece. The beam plugs onto the end of each device. A little bit of white paint over translucent yellow plastic creates a nice effect of Ratchet working away to heal his injured comrades.

Final thoughts:

It's hard for me not to be biased towards liking a Ratchet figure. Even with minor paint chipping issues I'm so happy to have this guy in my collection. As I said in my Ironhide review this mold is really solid. If the paint chipping is putting you off Ironhide is about to get a second release. If not I'd definitely recommend Ratchet as the superior of the two figures. The shiny white finish, appropriately cranky expression and the plethora of tools make this take on Ratchet damn near perfect.