DSC_2395
It's been over a decade since the release of MP-8, otherwise known to you and me as Masterpiece Grimlock. For whatever reason, Grimlock remains the only Dinobot to have been given a glorious Masterpiece form. While you can argue about how well the toy has held up, this was pretty much the only good G1 style Grimlock for the longest time.
No.. the Titans Return one was terrible, as was that.. thing that came out of the Energon series.
As part of the Studio Series line (which I guess is Hasbro/Takara's "whatever I feel like" line), a subline known as "Studio Series '86" was created, with what looks like sole purpose of creating figures from the 1986 movie. I mean, some of the characters have received new interpretations since 1986, but the modern engineering is a welcome touch.
I personally eagerly await a proper Galvatron, but for now, there's been no announcement. But, there's been a few interesting gems, one of which is Grimlock, who comes packed with Wheelie, everyone's favourite character in the movie.
The Studio Series Grimlock marks a return to form for the character. Chunky, loveable robot to chunky, lovable T-Rex, then back. No filler or anything exotic.
It's hard to say if this toy is a watered down MP like with some of the other recent figures,. After all, it's been a decade. However, I can definitely see the influences, as well as appreciate the improvements made.
So the figure retails for $69.99 CAD, or I believe $49.99 USD. Contents are... kind of sparse. You of course get Grimlock himself. Accessory wise, you get his twin barreled gun, a semi fixed pose Wheelie and a cardboard backdrop. His sword doesn't make an appearance here, sadly., let alone all the other fun weapons the 80s toy had.
While I recognize that Wheelie and Grimlock were effectively an item in the movie... screw Wheelie.
I would have preferred Grimlock to be properly armed.
Might as well get Wheelie out of the way. He comes basically ready to either sit, get down Gangnam style, or back his ass up. He's goa slingshot in one hand and his other hand in an accusatory point. He's got five points of six points of articulation - shoulders, hips, waist, and head. So yeah.. he's basically there.
Lets talk about the king himself, Grimlock.
The robot mode for Grimlock is about the height of MP 44, so just under 10 inches standing. Proportionally, Grimlock looks like a bruiser,, with broad shoulders (inherited from his MP form) and stocky feet (new to the formula). Overall, I'd say this is the MP proportions if they widened his feet and shortened his upper legs. Whether or not this floats your boat is preference, but from a show accuracy perspective nobody really wins, though fortunately they did include the multi coloured shins. Gold chest is as prominent and blocky as ever, and the sculpt is.. well, it's not exactly a hard sculpt to get right. Eyes are blue because, well that's what was in the animation model.
Articulation wise, the figure is pretty typical for a mainline Leader figure. Posing wise, tou get ankle side tilts, single jointed knees, thigh twist, standard hips, waist, standard shoulders, bicep swivel, single jointed elbows, wrist, and ball jointed head. An nice improvement to the MP I've see is that Grimlock's "wings" are connected to the body via a double joint, which not only improves durability, but also allows for more posing options when it comes to this part of the body.
While we're on the subject of bot mode, those who get upset at hollowness of the figure should be relatively content, as the only hollow spot I can see is the cavity where the fists rotate into.
Transformations into T-Rex us pretty straight forward, as was the MP version if I'm being honest. If you've ever handled a G1 Grimlock, this is pretty much the same thing with a few small twists thrown in, One example would be how the tail is now concealed within the back of the leg (from the MP again).
T-Rex itself is pretty good. Simplified, colour wise, just like the show model. The dino arms could have used an extra joint or two, especially wrists, but the introduction of the ball jointed shoulders is nice. Like the MP, this T-Rex has the rocket pack moulded into the back. No tail articulation is present, and due to the way the bicep snap out of the shoulders to form the knees of the T-Rex, holding some poses in dino mode may prove to be troublesome. On the plus side, his dino head has been beautifully created, and given an opening mouth and a turning neck.
Paint wise, the set actually isn't bad. As usual, there isn't much actual paint - on Grimlock you've got the golds, the multi coloured shins, the blues of the eyes and a red stripe on the outside of the wings. Wheelie, strangely, has much more paint cover, with basically anything that isn't black, matte grey, or that slingshot being covered in paint. Actual paint apps themselves aren't going to win any awards, but they are clean and crisp. I am especially happy with how smooth the gold paint applications on Grimlock are. Tampos (limited to the Autobot sigils) are sharply printed and applied.
While Grimlock doesn't look hollow, he certainly feels it. In a way it helps as this probably allows for easier posing. Wheelie, on the other hand, feels very solid. Still, Grimlock gets the job done, and it isn't like he feels fragile or can't take play testing. It's probably the same stuff everything else is made from these days, and is stiff enough to allow for some nice mechanical detailing. Joints are solid and will get the job done. There are no rough finishes on the parts nor did I encounter anything that I would call a QC issue, though there are instances where the thinness of the parts makes holding things in place a bit challenging. All-in-all what you'd expect from something you can get at your local big box store.
It's nice to see that the Studio Series continues to exhibit the generally good production values of the mainline , and it's especially nice to finally get a competent G1 Grimlock that can be played with, albeit under armed. Hopefully Hasbro/Takara will finish the line off and give us all five Dinobots and wash the terrible aftertaste of the combiner out of my mouth.
DSC_2395
It's been over a decade since the release of MP-8, otherwise known to you and me as Masterpiece Grimlock. For whatever reason, Grimlock remains the only Dinobot to have been given a glorious Masterpiece form. While you can argue about how well the toy has held up, this was pretty much the only good G1 style Grimlock for the longest time.
No.. the Titans Return one was terrible, as was that.. thing that came out of the Energon series.
As part of the Studio Series line (which I guess is Hasbro/Takara's "whatever I feel like" line), a subline known as "Studio Series '86" was created, with what looks like sole purpose of creating figures from the 1986 movie. I mean, some of the characters have received new interpretations since 1986, but the modern engineering is a welcome touch.
I personally eagerly await a proper Galvatron, but for now, there's been no announcement. But, there's been a few interesting gems, one of which is Grimlock, who comes packed with Wheelie, everyone's favourite character in the movie.
The Studio Series Grimlock marks a return to form for the character. Chunky, loveable robot to chunky, lovable T-Rex, then back. No filler or anything exotic.
It's hard to say if this toy is a watered down MP like with some of the other recent figures,. After all, it's been a decade. However, I can definitely see the influences, as well as appreciate the improvements made.
So the figure retails for $69.99 CAD, or I believe $49.99 USD. Contents are... kind of sparse. You of course get Grimlock himself. Accessory wise, you get his twin barreled gun, a semi fixed pose Wheelie and a cardboard backdrop. His sword doesn't make an appearance here, sadly., let alone all the other fun weapons the 80s toy had.
While I recognize that Wheelie and Grimlock were effectively an item in the movie... screw Wheelie.
I would have preferred Grimlock to be properly armed.
Might as well get Wheelie out of the way. He comes basically ready to either sit, get down Gangnam style, or back his ass up. He's goa slingshot in one hand and his other hand in an accusatory point. He's got five points of six points of articulation - shoulders, hips, waist, and head. So yeah.. he's basically there.
Lets talk about the king himself, Grimlock.
The robot mode for Grimlock is about the height of MP 44, so just under 10 inches standing. Proportionally, Grimlock looks like a bruiser,, with broad shoulders (inherited from his MP form) and stocky feet (new to the formula). Overall, I'd say this is the MP proportions if they widened his feet and shortened his upper legs. Whether or not this floats your boat is preference, but from a show accuracy perspective nobody really wins, though fortunately they did include the multi coloured shins. Gold chest is as prominent and blocky as ever, and the sculpt is.. well, it's not exactly a hard sculpt to get right. Eyes are blue because, well that's what was in the animation model.
Articulation wise, the figure is pretty typical for a mainline Leader figure. Posing wise, tou get ankle side tilts, single jointed knees, thigh twist, standard hips, waist, standard shoulders, bicep swivel, single jointed elbows, wrist, and ball jointed head. An nice improvement to the MP I've see is that Grimlock's "wings" are connected to the body via a double joint, which not only improves durability, but also allows for more posing options when it comes to this part of the body.
While we're on the subject of bot mode, those who get upset at hollowness of the figure should be relatively content, as the only hollow spot I can see is the cavity where the fists rotate into.
Transformations into T-Rex us pretty straight forward, as was the MP version if I'm being honest. If you've ever handled a G1 Grimlock, this is pretty much the same thing with a few small twists thrown in, One example would be how the tail is now concealed within the back of the leg (from the MP again).
T-Rex itself is pretty good. Simplified, colour wise, just like the show model. The dino arms could have used an extra joint or two, especially wrists, but the introduction of the ball jointed shoulders is nice. Like the MP, this T-Rex has the rocket pack moulded into the back. No tail articulation is present, and due to the way the bicep snap out of the shoulders to form the knees of the T-Rex, holding some poses in dino mode may prove to be troublesome. On the plus side, his dino head has been beautifully created, and given an opening mouth and a turning neck.
Paint wise, the set actually isn't bad. As usual, there isn't much actual paint - on Grimlock you've got the golds, the multi coloured shins, the blues of the eyes and a red stripe on the outside of the wings. Wheelie, strangely, has much more paint cover, with basically anything that isn't black, matte grey, or that slingshot being covered in paint. Actual paint apps themselves aren't going to win any awards, but they are clean and crisp. I am especially happy with how smooth the gold paint applications on Grimlock are. Tampos (limited to the Autobot sigils) are sharply printed and applied.
While Grimlock doesn't look hollow, he certainly feels it. In a way it helps as this probably allows for easier posing. Wheelie, on the other hand, feels very solid. Still, Grimlock gets the job done, and it isn't like he feels fragile or can't take play testing. It's probably the same stuff everything else is made from these days, and is stiff enough to allow for some nice mechanical detailing. Joints are solid and will get the job done. There are no rough finishes on the parts nor did I encounter anything that I would call a QC issue, though there are instances where the thinness of the parts makes holding things in place a bit challenging. All-in-all what you'd expect from something you can get at your local big box store.
It's nice to see that the Studio Series continues to exhibit the generally good production values of the mainline , and it's especially nice to finally get a competent G1 Grimlock that can be played with, albeit under armed. Hopefully Hasbro/Takara will finish the line off and give us all five Dinobots and wash the terrible aftertaste of the combiner out of my mouth.