Post by grahamthomson on Feb 11, 2008 21:32:20 GMT
For a full set of photographs, please see my Flickr gallery!
The Japanese version of Incinerator is almost all black in "Osprey" mode, just as the vehicle that appeared in the opening act of last year's $700 million-grossing Transformers feature film. A wonderfully solid vehicle mode with, aside from some pieces of red wine coloured struts under the wings, no obvious clues that it transforms. Activating a switch on the tail spins the rotors. Very clever. Just like the mechanism of Blackout, but using a part of the helicopter as a switch instead of an obvious addition.
The rotors can be moved and pivoted, mimicking the actions of the real-life Osprey. Very, very nice. Full marks for this mode.
Transformation is quite simple for a Voyager-class Transformer with a very nifty "Automorph" feature. The tail of the helicopter, owing to the mechanism inside, is rigid and prevents any meaningful articulation of the lower body. Shame.
The biggest flaw of the design is the rotors-for-hands. Normally I don't mind this kind of thing in a Transformer, after all they shouldn't all be built for petting animals safely. However with Incinerator this flaw spoils the robot mode, which is a real shame. The rotors are removable though. I almost had a brainwave and wondered if my eHobby "Diaclone" colours Ultra Magnus's large fists would fit over the posts on Incinerator's wrists. I checked and they don't.
The sculpt of the head is very nice, lots of detail and a subtle screen printed Decepticon logo on the forehead. It's a more traditional looking face/helmet aesthetic which will please those not fond of the other face designs of the toys based on the film's characters.
A lot of comparisons between Incinerator and Blackout can be drawn, and like him, Incinerator is frustratingly flawed. A perfect vehicle translates to a potentially excellent robot mode. The spinning rotor mechanism is a work of genius in the way it works... fully articulated arms with joints that still have spinning rotors. As impressive as this feature is, I do wish it was optional.
Incidentally, the tech specs describe Incinerator as the original (Combaticon) Vortex, which I think is a much more apt name for this design.
Problems aside, I consider Incinerator one of the better Voyager-class Transformers in the current range and recommended (certainly the black TomyTakara version over the grey Hasbro version) to those who can find a use for a robot whose sole function might be to dry shirts on a washing line.
The Japanese version of Incinerator is almost all black in "Osprey" mode, just as the vehicle that appeared in the opening act of last year's $700 million-grossing Transformers feature film. A wonderfully solid vehicle mode with, aside from some pieces of red wine coloured struts under the wings, no obvious clues that it transforms. Activating a switch on the tail spins the rotors. Very clever. Just like the mechanism of Blackout, but using a part of the helicopter as a switch instead of an obvious addition.
The rotors can be moved and pivoted, mimicking the actions of the real-life Osprey. Very, very nice. Full marks for this mode.
Transformation is quite simple for a Voyager-class Transformer with a very nifty "Automorph" feature. The tail of the helicopter, owing to the mechanism inside, is rigid and prevents any meaningful articulation of the lower body. Shame.
The biggest flaw of the design is the rotors-for-hands. Normally I don't mind this kind of thing in a Transformer, after all they shouldn't all be built for petting animals safely. However with Incinerator this flaw spoils the robot mode, which is a real shame. The rotors are removable though. I almost had a brainwave and wondered if my eHobby "Diaclone" colours Ultra Magnus's large fists would fit over the posts on Incinerator's wrists. I checked and they don't.
The sculpt of the head is very nice, lots of detail and a subtle screen printed Decepticon logo on the forehead. It's a more traditional looking face/helmet aesthetic which will please those not fond of the other face designs of the toys based on the film's characters.
A lot of comparisons between Incinerator and Blackout can be drawn, and like him, Incinerator is frustratingly flawed. A perfect vehicle translates to a potentially excellent robot mode. The spinning rotor mechanism is a work of genius in the way it works... fully articulated arms with joints that still have spinning rotors. As impressive as this feature is, I do wish it was optional.
Incidentally, the tech specs describe Incinerator as the original (Combaticon) Vortex, which I think is a much more apt name for this design.
Problems aside, I consider Incinerator one of the better Voyager-class Transformers in the current range and recommended (certainly the black TomyTakara version over the grey Hasbro version) to those who can find a use for a robot whose sole function might be to dry shirts on a washing line.
