Transformers Masterpiece MP-25L Loudpedal

Loudpedal is an 'exclusive' figure from the 2016 Tokyo Toy Show. I say 'exclusive' because it seems like he was readily available at the major online retailers soon after he was announced. That was how I got my copy of the toy.

He is an homage to an oddity of pre-Transformers toys. There is a rare Finnish Diaclone figure which the wider Transformers/Diaclone collecting community were largely unaware of until the early 2000s. Check out this article on tf-1.com for the full story. This sort of obscure reference is the perfect thing to release as an exclusive.

Loudpedal's bio says he's a very gifted sonic engineer. He's able to use sound blasts offensively or use a sort of echolocation to track enemies. Despite these skills he's fairly weak and timid for a Decepticon and only Exhaust is aware of everything he's capable of.

Vehicle mode:

Loudpedal's vehicle mode is a Corvette Stingray. It is unchanged from Tracks or Road Rage apart from the color scheme. The glossy black plastic and dark purple windows work very well with this alt-mode. The flame decal on the hood is done with metallic paints and is very cleanly done.

Like the two previous releases the hood opens. The engine is painted in silver and all the details are nicely sculpted. I have no idea if this is an accurate Stingray engine but it looks nice none-the-less.

Flight mode:

Loudpedal's flight mode adds a little more color to the mix. When I first got the figure I thought the green was a really odd choice. Having seen a few pictures of the Finnish toy Loudpedal homages I now know it's accurate. But it still seems weird.

The flight mode is unchanged from the previous releases. It's silly in a fun way. Loudpedal includes a clear purple version of the display stand included with Tracks. You could have him flying on your shelf if you wished.

Transformation:

Loudpedal's transformation is unchanged from Tracks and Road Rage. Refer to their review. 

Robot mode:

Loudpedal's robot mode is identical to Tracks apart from the head. He's mostly black and dark silver/grey with a few spots of color to break things up. As I said above some of the color (the green in particular) seemed like an odd choice when I first got the toy. But the original was just as colorful with it's stickers applied.

While most of the joints on Loudpedal are as solid as Tracks and Road Rage my copy of the toy's faction symbol panel is loose. It will sit flat in either position. But the slightest bump will cause the panel to flip back about half way. Not a big deal, and chances are it's not a widespread issue.

Where Tracks got a cartoon accurate head sculpt Loudpedal's matches the original toy. I think Takara made the right choice giving this head design to a Decepticon. It has a very sinister look to it in my opinion.

Loudpedal's posability is standard for a Masterpiece figure. His forearms are fairly long but he's otherwise well proportioned. The wings and backpack don't impede his movement. You shouldn't have any real issues getting him into action poses.

Accessories:

Loudpedal's main accessory is his gun. This is the same gun that was included with Road Rage. He can be posed well holding it in two hands and it's more impressive than the pistol Tracks came with. Like Road Rage his hand doesn't grip the gun particularly well but there's a small tab that plugs into a slot near his wrist (see the first robot mode picture) that makes a solid connection.

There are four stickers included to complete the homage to the Finnish Diaclone toy. The CS sticker is in two parts that go on the hood covering the Decepticon symbol. You transform Loudpedal with the chest symbol flipped around so the car mode does not need to be factionless. The other two stickers get placed on the wings. I have no intention of using them.

The Raoul figure from Tracks comes repainted to match his appearance in the G1 episode Auto-Bop. Like the original release I'm not really a fan of this accessory. That said it doesn't take anything away from the figure so there is no harm in Takara including it.

Finally Loudpedal comes with a boombox. The colors homage the pre-Transformers colors of the toy that would become Blaster/Twincast. This can be stored in Loudpedal's vehicle mode behind his windscreen.

Final thoughts:

I really like Loudpedal. To me he's exactly what an 'exclusive' release should be. An obscure character or homage that will appeal to a small group. It seems like a waste when major characters are made exclusives and large portions of the fandom aren't able to get the toy cheaply or readily.

Loudpedal's exclusive status does make him slightly more expensive than Tracks or Road Rage. Not significantly so but if you're only getting one version of the mold that might be enough to put you off. If you were to only get one figure and you're on the fence about which version to get I'd say go with Tracks. He's the best value for your money. But I'm sure Loudpedal will be very much appreciated by those who are fans of black repaints, Decepticons, Diaclone or just think he looks cool.

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.

Transformers Masterpiece MP-29 Shockwave

Cold, calculating and logical Shockwave was one of the highest ranking Decepticons under Megatron's command.In the original cartoon he was left behind to look after Cybertron while Megatron pursued the Ark. Despite being left behind he still appeared in numerous episodes throughout the first two seasons of the cartoon.

But where Shockwave really got to shine was Marvel's The Transformers comic series. The image on the cover of issue 5 (above) is one of the most memorable in the history of the franchise. in this series Shockwave followed the Ark when it crashed on Earth. He was the first of many to take over leadership of the Decepticons.

Decepticon Masterpieces are few and far between. With Megatron, Soundwave and multiple Starscreams being made over the years Soundwave was the logical choice to get the Masterpiece treatment.

"Space gun" mode:

Shockwave's alt mode is a generic looking laser pistol. All of the main features are here in this mode. Grey barrel with an octagonal opening. Hose on top of the gun. Clear sight on the butt of the gun. As a gun the grip is fairly comfortable in the hand. But there's not a lot of room between the bulge in the middle of the gun and the trigger. I have relatively thin fingers and, while I could get my index finger into the gap to pull the trigger, I found it a tight fit to get my finger on the trigger.

The butt and grip of the gun both have gaps in them. As far as I can tell these are present for the transformation. But they might be off putting for some.

Shockwave comes with a display stand for this mode. It's little more than a purple box with some techy details on it. A clear flap folds out to hold up the barrel of the gun. I can't imagine many people displaying him this way but at least you have the option.

Shockwave does have a light up feature in this mode. There's a small switch in the middle of the gun. In the default position the barrel will light up as long as the trigger is held. In the other the light in the barrel will blink on and off for a set time before switching itself off. It takes two AAA batteries to do this which are not included with the figure.

Transformation:

Shockwave's transformation is fairly simple and intuitive. Start by flipping up the sight onto the lower back of the robot mode. Then flip out the sides of the grey barrel. This will allow you to open out the robot mode arms and fold the barrel up onto Shockwave's back. The side panels should collapse snug on either side of the barrel and it will tab at two places onto Shockwave's back.

The leg transformation on this toy is really cool. Untab the small hinge that connects the back of the grip to the butt of the gun. This will allow you to slip the butt of the gun. Open up the hip flaps then slip the guns grip. Open the robot mode hips out to give yourself room to work with each leg.

Fold out the panels on the inside of the grip, straighten them and tab them in place near the robot mode ankle. Flip the foot around. Straighten the leg and using the double hinge close it onto the butt of the gun. There's a tab on the half of the butt of the gun that will go into a slot on the inside of the leg. Rotate the leg so it's facing the right way then close the hip flap. And then repeat for the other side.

Pull up on the torso to free the waist joint. Fold the trigger up onto Shockwave's belly then pull down the flap under his chest to hide it. Fold the arms down into position. Then lift up Shockwave's head. Getting the head out can be a little awkward as the head itself is on a ball joint which is attached to a flap. If things are colliding try moving the head on the ball a little to get clearance.

Robot mode:

The robot is undeniably Shockwave. All of the defining features of the character are present. His left hand is just the barrel of a blaster. He has a hose running out of his back into his left arm. And he has a very large hexagonal chest.

The color is hard to photograph accurately. It seems to change depending on the lighting. He's definitely lighter in color than some other Shockwaves out there (mainly Fans Toys Quakewave). In person I think he's a nice shade of purple. But I can see how some collectors would prefer that he be a much darker shade.

Shockwave ends up with some proportionately skinny legs. I know this has been a criticism for some who prefer the bulkier form of Fans Toys Quakewave. I don't think the legs could've been done differently and kept the current transformation scheme.

But most importantly when it comes to Shockwave is the head. A single yellow eye is set inside a blocky hexagonal head. Two fins sit on either side of the box. And that's it. It's a big part of the creepy, emotionless vibe Shockwave has going for him.

Pretty much all of the joints on Shockwave are ratcheted. Shoulders, elbows, hips, knees and feet. You put him into a pose and he'll hold it. His feet are also die-cast which adds some weight and helps him balance.

The elbows have been designed to bend both ways. Out of the box the hose connects to the bottom of Shockwave's left arm. If you prefer it connecting at the top you can swivel both forearms around and then rotate the right hand to it's the right way around. The hose is a metal coil with plenty of flex so it's not going to lose it's shape or break being twisted around like this.

There's also a light up gimmick in robot mode. Three small batteries need to be placed in his left forearm for this to work. Pressing a small button on his forearm will cause an LED to light up and make his blaster glow purple.

Accessories:

Shockwave's accessories seem gear mostly towards giving you options on how to display him. Transforming the base figure leaves the grey barrel sitting on Shockwave's back. If you don't like this and/or would prefer a more cartoon accurate look the display stand can clip over the gun barrel. This doesn't add much bulk to the backpack overall. 

There's a sticker sheet allowing you to decide where and how many Decepticon logos Shockwave has. In different media he's been depicted with logos on his chest, forearms or shoulders. You also get two different styles. The standard Decepticon logo or a cartoon accurate logo. The purple backing is very well color matched to Shockwave's plastic.

Shockwave also has numerous alternate hands. He comes packaged with opaque light purple hands. The right hand can be swapped out for a saluting hand.

Alternatively Shockwave has a complete set of translucent hands. The translucent blaster means the whole barrel lights up rather than just the tip of the opaque hand. Personally I prefer the look of the opaque hands but it's nice to have the choice.

To recreate the animation errors of the G1 cartoon Shockwave has a normal left hand. I can't see this getting much use. I took this one picture than promptly swapped his blaster hand back again. But it's always nice to have the choice.

Finally Shockwave comes with a tiny version of his own gun mode. He did wield himself in an animation error in the original cartoon. The gun has the standard Masterpiece tabs on the grip so you can also have your other 'Cons wielding Shockwave if you choose.

Final thoughts:

I'm really happy with this take on Shockwave. It does everything I wanted it to do. For some the color or the skinny legs might be deal breakers. For those people I'd recommend looking into Quakewave. But Masterpiece Shockwave is a solid toy and worth checking out if you've liked what you've seen here.

Transformers Masterpiece MP-28 Hot Rod

 
He's got the touch! He's got the power! Yeah!

Hot Rod was a young and impatient Autobot introduced in The Transformers: The Movie in 1986. It's arguably his movie. The young Autobot who rises from the ranks to become the next Prime. Unfortunately Optimus left some very big shoes to fill which has often left Hot Rod in a difficult place both in the fiction and the fandom.

Hot Rod has been better used in modern fiction. IDW's take on the character retained his impulsive nature but has given him more room to grow. The cartoon pretty much snapped it's fingers and he was Prime with all the expectations that came with that title.

This is the second time Hot Rod has been given the Masterpiece treatment. The first attempt was ambitious. MP-9 had two distinct alt modes and his robot mode could be adjusted to be Hot Rod or Rodimus Prime. Sadly this figure was very fragile. That didn't stop it getting 4 releases.

A new version of Hot Rod was very welcome. Especially when it was announced that this figure would just be Hot Rod. Let's see if Hasbro/Takara have done a better job with MP-28 than they did with MP-9.

Vehicle mode:
 

The vehicle mode is some sort of futuristic sports car. What people in the '80s thought sports cars would look like in the early 2000s. The car is very sleek. So much so that, unless everything is arranged just right, the car can't roll across a flat surface. The small wheels and limited space to store the robot mode parts underneath don't give a lot of ground clearance.

The dark maroon works well with the orange and yellow. The chromed engine and exhaust pipes shine very brightly. There's some really nice detailing behind the clear plastic of the headlights. On all counts the car mode looks great.

The hood of the car can be opened. This is more a feature for robot mode but nice that it works here. Opening it up reveals more detailing around an empty bay just behind the head lights. The shape of the hole is very familiar. I wonder what's supposed to go in there...

What's a Masterpiece car without an attack mode. Hot Rod is able to plug one of his two guns into his engine. The chromed part flips back to reveal the port. This means there's no obvious hole in the engine normally and no risk of chipping the chrome plugging in the gun. Unlike a lot of the other MPs this was a feature on the original toy which makes it seem a little less out of place.

Of course Hot Rod's never one to be outdone. All the other Autobots have attack modes? Well then he'll have two! You can also plug both of his guns onto his roof. This is, of course, ridiculous.

Transformation:

Untab the arms from the side of the car. There are two tabs - one near the front of the exhaust pipes and one near the front wheel. Untab the hood from the windshield. The whole front of the car will rotate around. Just be aware of the position of the head to make sure it has room to move through. The front of the hood will tab onto what will be the robot mode waist.

Rotate the head around and fold the engine in as much as possible. Flip down the collar pieces. The side parts of the headlights will fold into the waist. Rotate the shoulders so the smooth side is facing forward. Rotate the arms around so they're facing the right way and flip out the hands. The hinges near the shoulder can be used to move the arms out of the way for now.

Lift the top of the car away from the legs. The orange pieces at the rear of the car mode flip in, then the wheel and exahust sections fold into where the legs were. Separate the windscreen from the rear of the car. Rotate the rear through on the arm so that the rear can plug into the underside of the windscreen. The windscreen will plug into Hot Rod's back and the shoulders will tab into the sides of the windscreen. Then rotate the fin into place.

Finally separate the legs. Open the panel on the back of the leg and use the hinge to extend it. Close the panel back up and flip out the foot. Repeat on the other side and you're done.

Robot mode:

All of the key defining traits of Hot Rod are present. Big yellow wing on his back, the flame decal around his Autobot logo on his chest, and the shiny pipes on his forearms. The robot mode is very nicely proportioned. The character models for the movie cast generally had less of the vehicle mode obvious in robot mode which some feel has left Hot Rod a little bland.

The head sculpt is nice. It definitely captures Hot Rod's youth. I can't quite put my finger on what it is but the sculpt just looks younger to me that the other Masterpiece Autobot face sculpts.

Hot Rod has a visor that comes down over his eyes. There is a hinge that allows you to flip up the top of his head then flip down the visor. It looks nice and is a call back to when he noticed the hole in the side of the Autobot shuttle in the movie.

Hot Rod is very poseable for a Masterpiece figure. Double jointed elbows and knees as well as a very deep ab crunch make him able to get into some very dynamic positions. The ab joint also allows Hot Rod to lean back to a small degree which helps when you need to shoot at some no-good Decepticons who have hijacked your shuttle. 

The car mode hood is now Hot Rod's chest and is still able to open. The hole is designed to fit the Matrix that came with MP-10 Optimus Prime. It's not super secure in there, at least on mine. It will happily sit in there with the door open when Hot Rod's standing up right. But if you tip the figure forward it will fall out. It's still a nice touch that Hot Rod is able to carry the Matrix.

Accessories:

Hot Rod comes with two guns. They're both styled after the guns that came with his G1 toy. Both are nicely detailed but painted in this odd blue/grey color. It's not bad but I personally would have preferred they be painted silver like most of the other MP Autobots.

Hot Rod also comes with a saw blade which clips onto his wrist. Like most MPs you flip his hand in which reveals a peg to plug the item onto. I was a little disappointed that the size and shape of the plug differ from MP Ironhide and Ratchet. It would've been nice if the accessories had been compatible across all the figures.

Hot Rod's final accessory is a fishing rod. I've found the easiest way for him to hold it is to slide it in through the top of his hand rather than trying to clip it in. His poseability is good enough that he can hold it in two hands without much fuss. If you own MP Ultra Magnus you can have Hot Rod take Daniel fishing.

Final thoughts:

I think it was a smart choice to just focus on Hot Rod this time around rather than trying to make a single toy cover both Hot Rod and Rodimus Prime. The result is a really nice toy that's a lot of fun to transform and pose. More importantly I'm not afraid it's going to fall apart on me.

Whether or not you go after this figure I think depends on what you want for your collection. This figure is clearly Hot Rod not Rodimus Prime. If you're after Rodimus Prime then DX-9s Carry, which by all accounts is an amazing toy, is probably the figure for you. But if you're looking for Hot Rod then MP-28 delivers.