Bombshell [Transformers Retro/Bomshell and Ramhorn 2-Pack]

Earlier this week, we looked at Ramhorn. That means it's a fine time to talk abut the Bombshell he came packaged with. Ramhorn is a Rhino, so have him packaged versus a Rhinoceros Beetle is a fun bit of synergy. Not every multi-pack has to match, but similar worded names is good enough for me. Like other G1 reissues being released recently, Bombshell uses his original toy mold and is painted in a cartoon accurate paint scheme. Also like the others, it looks great. Bombshell's mold was one of the Diaclone toys that got used in the early years of Transformers. Insecter Robo Kabutron was a robot of the Waruders, the main villains of Diaclone. I've made my fondness for robot insect toys known here many times and that extends to Waruders. There's just something about them that I find awesome. Being a Diaclone mold, Bombshell has a cockpit that a pilot figure can sit in. However, being a Transformers toy, Bombshell doesn't have a pilot. Like other recent Insection reissues have included Energon cubes accessories (awesome) and you can fit one in his cockpit. It's a silly bit of fun and pretty great. He comes with 6, and that makes for a great bit of scenery to put around your toys.

In addition to the Energon Cubes, Bombshell has his Twin Ion Impulse Blaster. I think it's a pretty trademark rifle for him, but when it comes to Bombshell, everyone focuses on that beetle horn. It's been famously used for launching his signature Cerebro-Shells into the heads of enemies and making them his slaves. It's not just a cool special ability, but also looks neat. A bit of nice ornamentation on a somewhat creepy looking toy. Bombshell has some pretty decent articulation for a toy of his era. Arms move at the shoulders and legs at the hips. Thanks to his transformation, his hip can swivel and there's some movement at the knees... though you can mostly make him kick forward comically. Sure, he doesn't have anything on today's super articulated wonders, but it's a pretty good amount for the toys of that time. Transformation to beetle mode is easy and looks just as great as ever. My love for insect robots definitely flavors my opinion here. I can't help it, those designs are full of charm. There's little wheels on the insect legs to roll it around on and I just love that. Despite the older engineering, this is really a nice little toy. The cartoon accurate colors really pop and breathe new life into a 40+ year old design. The older I get, the more my appreciation for the original toys grows. The die cast is just so satisfying as is the overall product. So, so very good.

Abadox: The Deadly Inner War

Natsume/Milton Bradley 1989/1990

Ramhorn [Transformers Retro/Bomshell and Ramhorn 2-Pack]

Around this time last year we took a look at some of the more recent neat G1 reissues that have been painted to match their orignal series selves. Here in the States, they're exclusive to Walmart (unless you can find them at liquidation stores like Ross). I lucked up on this cool Bombshell and Ramhorn two-pack on clearance on the Walmart app. A rhinoceros beetle and rhino make for a fun vs pack and today we'll be looking at Ramhorn. Ramhorn is one of the Autobot cassettes who debuted in 1986 during the battle of Autobot City in Transformers The Movie.

Prior to this, only the Decepticons had cassettes. So it was a pretty cool moment. For me, I got my original Ramhorn at a K-Mart one rainy weekend. The cassettes would come in 2-packs and he came with Eject. I still remember being enamored with his gold chrome weapons. Needless to say, the two had many adventures in my bedroom and still reside among my various Transformers toys from the past 40 years.

Ramhorn is pretty much a straight reissue. He's largely the same as that one I've owned forever. There is some updated Copyright stamps on his body, so I assume the molds have had some maintenance done recently. There's something so great about these original toys updated in their show accurate colors. The brown used is a softer color and combined with the dark grey used for accenting colors and in place of the originals chromed legs... it just looks great. The red Autobot symbol almost glows against his colorization. I really like the contrast it creates.

The missile pods are not chromed like the originals, but colored in a metallic gold that looks really good. Ramhorn is a simple but pleasant figure. Transformation to tape mode is easy. Fold the legs up into his body and the head and tail fold backwards. The cassette can fit in any G1 Blaster toy... and maybe a Soundwave if you're feeling rebellious. I've never found fault in the original Ramhorn and just don't now either. In these cartoon accurate colors, he feels like a much more premium figure. The combination of him and Bombshell is fun and we'll be looking at his pack mate later this week.

My New Week

Another week has begun and it's only natural to spend it with robots, monsters, and misadventure! I hope everyone had a great weekend. Mine was pretty cold as we were snowed in since Friday morning! Nothing like a winter storm to bring in a suprise 3 day weekend. We did get out for a little bit Saturday afternoon and hold the press, Walmart FINALLY HAD BLOKEES! I grabbed the 4 left on the display happily. They were 2 Ironhides and 2 Optimus Primes from wave 1. I didn't only get doubles, but technically triples since getting those same ones in an earlier order. No problem, that's the game you play with blind boxes... and these bots are designed in a way that makes customs easy. So maybe they'll get turned into someone else soon. I also played a surprising amount of The Adventures of Lolo for the NES this weekend. It's a great classic game, I just didn't anticipate playing it that much. Well, the snow is melting and the work week has begun again. Time to get some site pictures taken and the day started. Thank you all for reading Zone Base. I've got a fun week planned, please remember to share with your friends!

Squeezeplay with Lokos and Browning [Legacy United 4-Pack/Deluxe Class]

Finishing up with our look at the Target Exclusive Transformers Legacy United 4-Pack is the main reason I wanted the set, Squeezeplay. I've got a real fondness towards the era of G1 he's from and the gimmicks they had. Admittedly I have a fondness for Transformers period, but it's like your longtime favorite restaurant. There's multiple things you like for multiple reasons. Squeezeplay is from the post movie G1 era where the Decepticons had fun colors and changed into more crazy alt modes like monsters and I love monsters. He's a Headmaster, I love partner figures and pilot figures.

His Japanese incarnation, Cancer (like the crab, I didn't name it), was heavily featured in Masterforce. A specific series I really like. Adding to that, this update is a reworked Titans Return mold, which is going down as one of my favorite Transformers series. Let's add one more specifically 'me' thing, he comes with a tiny gun mode Browning as a weapon... things like that are super awesome for me. This toy is like a bunch of beloved songs from my favorite band.

Squeezeplay uses Titans Return Mindwipe as a base mold. I most recently talked about this mold in it's use as Draculus, which was another clever use of it. Squeezeplay is pretty ingenious as they took a bat alt mode and turned it into a pretty convincing recreation of his reptile/crustation themed monster form. The entire toy is a pretty remarkable update of the original all things considered. I should probably talk about the actual toy more than just go on and on about how cool he is.

In robot mode Squeezeplay looks an awful lot like his original toy with Lokos transforming into his head. There's a little tail piece from alt mode that can be a shield or weapon and cleverly playing into the similarity of his original gun accessory is a gun mode Browning. Browning is another original series Transformer made from a Microman toy. Browning was also in Masterforce and tended to partner up with Cancer. Just so we're clear, there a character in Masterforce named Cancer whom was a child that worked with the Decepticons and was carrying around a gun that he was friends with.

Browning doesn't transform, but is a cool little extra. Robot mode is decently articulated and looks pretty good for a mold from 2016 compared to the other more recent molds in the 4-Pack. Transformation isn't difficult, but just involved enough that you need to pay attention. Lokos feels like a softer plastic, I popped his legs off accidentally bending his knees to sit him in the cockpit. I'm really impressed that his transforms mostly the same way as Mindwipe did, but now instead of wings there's arms. Alt mode looks pretty on par as an update to the original. I'm very surprised just how good this came off as, once again, the source mold turned into a bat. I think the only new parts here are the head and arms too. I'm always fascinated by design stuff like this. Ingenuity is really neat, you know? The monsters chest compartment opens up to become a cockpit for Lokos as I mentioned above and Browning can be stored on the tail... or just held. Man, imagine a monster packing heat. The really did an amazing job with Squeezeplay. The 4-Pack is a good set all around, but Squeezeplay is definitely the stand out toy of the set. So, so very good.

Mechagodzilla 1974 [Godzilla Monster Series 5"]

It has been too long since I've taken a look at Bandai's fun 5" soft vinyl figures from their Godzilla Monster Series line. I get these from my local Target (because some of us live in a society) and had been on the look out for more as the lines stocked in the 'collectors' section can be short stocked at times. Unless it's those Parks and Rec ReAction figures that'll be there after the nuclear apocalypse. My wife had pointed out that they had the 'tin foil guy' leading to the happy discovery of a Mechagodzilla sitting on the shelf waiting for my purchase. This is a great little toy of the 1974 version of Mechagodzilla as he appeared in Godzilla vs Mechagodzilla. This 5" series is a less expensive set of figures that are perfectly adequate, but don't have the number of paint apps as larger, pricier figures.

This works out ok for the Showa Mechagodzilla as thanks to his design... he doesn't need a lot of colors to be accurate. Articulation is pretty limited on this one compared to a regular Godzilla. Arms move at the shoulders, and swivel at the waist. I have other sofubi with this amount of movement so it's not a negative for me. I can see others taking issue however. His sculpt is really great and pretty screen accurate. I've always liked Mechagodzilla quite a bit and the original incarnation is a ton of fun. He's from that same era that gave us Henshin Cyborg and Microman so there's a similar aesthetic. For the low cost ($10 at Target) this is a solid figure and man I just love anything Bandai makes. The smaller size is welcome as it can be stored easy or have plenty of room on a busy kaiju toy shelf. Just great all the way around.