I got this guy late last night and had to transform him before bed. had to! I couldn't help but mess with him during breaks today and snapping a few quick shots - nothing spectacular. Here are my thoughts.
This is definitely Hot Rod. No mistaking that. He's got the lines and the look and the feel of Hot Rod in both modes.
He is very flexible and bendy in all the right places. The ab crunch is a really nice touch. He is definitely a Masterpiece. Some have said he doesn't have much of a Masterpiece moment during transformation - a term that Maz and others have recently made popular, I think. I disagree, and I know a few others do too. The way that the head sort of flips out and around as the chest moves down and the arms fold out is a really nice, fluid movement. It feels natural and organic and is very satisfying (as long as nothing catches, of course). When I first actuated that step it brought a smile to my face.
The arms are another special moment. The first time I eased them around the tire and it completely changed the look and feel of the figure, I was quite happy with the design choice. I think there was something to the feel of the movement. It glides around smoothly, but there is some resistance that is satisfying. FOr the most part everything clips in nice and securely. Some of the clips, such as the backpack to the back, are wonderfully secure.
One of the things that sets this figure apart is a small touch that I didn't notice until I got it in hand, and that is the way the shoulders clip into the backpack. The way that it incorporates the shoulder section into the backpack is new to me. I checked out my figures with backpacks - they all just hang there. Unless you consider Ultra Magnus as having a backpack, this is the first MP figure on mys elf to incorporate it into the body of the figure, albeit in a small way. But for some reason I really like this design choice.
So I really like this figure. It is not perfect, however. I can't help but think that if they had incorporated some diecast into the feet this figure would be bumped up a whole letter grade. It feels light - like a mainline toy. The upper legs look a little cheap to my eye - like a mainline toy. Grated, I haven't purchased a mainline toy in years, so I am thinking of the sturdy plastic of Energon, Armada, etc. Still, it seems out of place. And of course the legs are skinny. No way around that. The ankles need some polish. See what I did there?
But the biggest disappointment, which may end up being user error, is that he won't roll. I CANNOT get the collar to close in such a way that it does not impede his motion.
DO these things ruin the figure? Absolutely not! I am very happy to have Hot Rod in my collection. I really dig his face sculpt, dexterity, and size. He looks good on the shelf and he is a heck-of-a-lot-of-fun to transform. I hope that the thinner plastic part shold up over time because I think I will be fiddling with him a lot. Now bring on Kup, Arcee, Springer, and Perceptor!
But not before Hound and Mirage.
