Post by Philip Ayres on Mar 27, 2011 11:03:56 GMT
Hunt for the Decepticons Terradive
Terradive is a Conquest X-30, a fictional plane type based on the Grumman X-29, that was introduced in The GI Joe toyline in 1986. It's first appearance as a Transformer is 1995's Generation 2 Space Case which has been repainted regularly since. (1988's Triggerbot Dogfight looks more like an actual Grumman X-29) The main colour used for Terradive is orange, with black jet body sides and tail fins and white wing tips. He gains a pair of small fore wings which are swept back in opposition to the main wings and look a little odd in contrast. The undercarriage, which obviously shows the robot's legs, features three small fold down wheels, sadly moulded in position, that serve as landing gear. The robot mode weapon is stored under the jet folded up. It can be detached, unfolded and positioned as pointing out the front of the jet mode as a spear.
Transformation: Confession time! I've had this toy a while and it's kept getting pushed down the review list as new stuff came out. As a consequence I may need a couple of shots at this cos there's a few complex bits! Remove the spear, noting that the base of the shaft is attached to the jet and the top half of the unfolded shaft is held near the hinge by the C-clip between the engines. Unfold the spear and pull the point back to become a trident. Fold the underside of the nose down, pull the nose forward and fold back over the cockpit canopy. Fold the fore wings forward. Turn the jet over, pull the legs to the side and fold forward taking the wings with them so that the slanted part of the waist meshes with the black sides of the upturned nose. Pull the feet forward and, while holding them in place, fold the heel spurs back. Rotate the wing hinge on the leg back and up till the tab on the inside of the strut connected to it can slide into the slot on the leg. Rotate the wing forward so the slot on it's underside meets the tab on the outside of the strut. Fold each engine through the body of the jet and out to the sides under the tailfins. Fold the engines forward to form the arms. Fold the orange top of each engine up then rotate the engine into the forearm which brings the hand out into position. Close the forearms. Rotate the middle of the jet's body 180 degrees so the underside of the rear is on the same side as the cockpit canopy. Fold the rear of the jet back. Raise the grey panel. Fold the head forward: the joint on mine is very stiff so there's a good chance you'll pop the head off at this stage. Close the grey flap. Fold the black tail fin section forward 180 degrees. Fold the remainder of the rear of the jet back to form the robot's back, pegging it into place via a tab projecting from the rear of the front. Fold the shoulders forward locking the tiny tab at the top into the sides of the chest. Slide the spear into the hand, taking care that is meshes properly with the raised area on the palm of the toy.
Terradive's robot mode continues the orange (body, head, forearms & wings) and black (limbs) theme of the jet adding white (shoulders and feet), silver (upper legs & face) and grey (hands). The head is reminiscent of Beast Wars Neo Corahda in that he looks like he's wearing a hat. Given the trident he's holding, I'd guess it's meant to be a Roman Gladiatorial Helmet. The head is lightpiped in clear plastic but the eye end is painted orange allowing a minimum of light through. The chest design is quite clever making it look like the entire jet nose points upwards where in fact it's just the tip that's been moved. Articulation is about at a level you'd expect from a deluxe toy: ball jointed head, turning shoulders that raise to the sides, bicep swivel, bending elbows, turning wrists, sadly no waist, ball jointed hips, a very high thigh swivel and bending knees & ankles. In common with many Moviesque toys he has a thin skeletal appearance, but here it works. The trident can be stored on the clip on the shoulder or the one in his back panel. The hand design, very open with a 5mm peg hole formed from the thumb and a raised palm, can hole the Trident by either of the 5mm raised areas along it's mainly 3 mm width, but you may have some trouble getting it to stay put as the contact areas need to be aligned just right: If they're not the Trident just falls out the open side of the hand.
Not a bad toy at all, a decent addition to the ranks of your Decepticon jets adding a little variety in both vehicle and robot mode.
Terradive was a Wave 3 Hunt For The Decepticons toy, appearing with his fellow new mould Tomahawk. Naturally Hasbro UK chose this as the Hunt For The Decepticons deluxe wave to skip. Both Tomahawk & Terradive seem to have been popular toys which have been slightly difficult to obtain since their release.
Terradive was released in Japan as Autobot Alliance toy AA-14. A comparison gallery shows that the Japanese version is slightly more orange swapping the white plastic for grey and white paint for orange.
Terradive is a Conquest X-30, a fictional plane type based on the Grumman X-29, that was introduced in The GI Joe toyline in 1986. It's first appearance as a Transformer is 1995's Generation 2 Space Case which has been repainted regularly since. (1988's Triggerbot Dogfight looks more like an actual Grumman X-29) The main colour used for Terradive is orange, with black jet body sides and tail fins and white wing tips. He gains a pair of small fore wings which are swept back in opposition to the main wings and look a little odd in contrast. The undercarriage, which obviously shows the robot's legs, features three small fold down wheels, sadly moulded in position, that serve as landing gear. The robot mode weapon is stored under the jet folded up. It can be detached, unfolded and positioned as pointing out the front of the jet mode as a spear.
Transformation: Confession time! I've had this toy a while and it's kept getting pushed down the review list as new stuff came out. As a consequence I may need a couple of shots at this cos there's a few complex bits! Remove the spear, noting that the base of the shaft is attached to the jet and the top half of the unfolded shaft is held near the hinge by the C-clip between the engines. Unfold the spear and pull the point back to become a trident. Fold the underside of the nose down, pull the nose forward and fold back over the cockpit canopy. Fold the fore wings forward. Turn the jet over, pull the legs to the side and fold forward taking the wings with them so that the slanted part of the waist meshes with the black sides of the upturned nose. Pull the feet forward and, while holding them in place, fold the heel spurs back. Rotate the wing hinge on the leg back and up till the tab on the inside of the strut connected to it can slide into the slot on the leg. Rotate the wing forward so the slot on it's underside meets the tab on the outside of the strut. Fold each engine through the body of the jet and out to the sides under the tailfins. Fold the engines forward to form the arms. Fold the orange top of each engine up then rotate the engine into the forearm which brings the hand out into position. Close the forearms. Rotate the middle of the jet's body 180 degrees so the underside of the rear is on the same side as the cockpit canopy. Fold the rear of the jet back. Raise the grey panel. Fold the head forward: the joint on mine is very stiff so there's a good chance you'll pop the head off at this stage. Close the grey flap. Fold the black tail fin section forward 180 degrees. Fold the remainder of the rear of the jet back to form the robot's back, pegging it into place via a tab projecting from the rear of the front. Fold the shoulders forward locking the tiny tab at the top into the sides of the chest. Slide the spear into the hand, taking care that is meshes properly with the raised area on the palm of the toy.
Terradive's robot mode continues the orange (body, head, forearms & wings) and black (limbs) theme of the jet adding white (shoulders and feet), silver (upper legs & face) and grey (hands). The head is reminiscent of Beast Wars Neo Corahda in that he looks like he's wearing a hat. Given the trident he's holding, I'd guess it's meant to be a Roman Gladiatorial Helmet. The head is lightpiped in clear plastic but the eye end is painted orange allowing a minimum of light through. The chest design is quite clever making it look like the entire jet nose points upwards where in fact it's just the tip that's been moved. Articulation is about at a level you'd expect from a deluxe toy: ball jointed head, turning shoulders that raise to the sides, bicep swivel, bending elbows, turning wrists, sadly no waist, ball jointed hips, a very high thigh swivel and bending knees & ankles. In common with many Moviesque toys he has a thin skeletal appearance, but here it works. The trident can be stored on the clip on the shoulder or the one in his back panel. The hand design, very open with a 5mm peg hole formed from the thumb and a raised palm, can hole the Trident by either of the 5mm raised areas along it's mainly 3 mm width, but you may have some trouble getting it to stay put as the contact areas need to be aligned just right: If they're not the Trident just falls out the open side of the hand.
Not a bad toy at all, a decent addition to the ranks of your Decepticon jets adding a little variety in both vehicle and robot mode.
Terradive was a Wave 3 Hunt For The Decepticons toy, appearing with his fellow new mould Tomahawk. Naturally Hasbro UK chose this as the Hunt For The Decepticons deluxe wave to skip. Both Tomahawk & Terradive seem to have been popular toys which have been slightly difficult to obtain since their release.
Terradive was released in Japan as Autobot Alliance toy AA-14. A comparison gallery shows that the Japanese version is slightly more orange swapping the white plastic for grey and white paint for orange.
