Transformers Reveal the Shield Special Ops Jazz

Jazz is one of my favorite Transformers because he’s a sports racing car.  There’s something so cool about seeing a Transformers sports car.  This version of Special Ops Jazz was part of the “Reveal the Shield” toy line and it released in 2010.  At the time, I hadn’t seen a Hasbro Transformers retro inspired Jazz featuring the rub sticker so I knew this would be popular and a hard one to get because it was unique; and I was right.  I kept visiting Walmart in the hopes that I would find him, but I never did.  And so I did what every collector eventually does when they become desperate, I bought it from a reseller.  Thankfully the reseller wasn’t too harsh and I was able to buy it for a couple of bucks over retail.

I’m glad I was able to add him to my collection because he’s a really well made toy.  He comes with blue tinted windows and windshield, the classic rub sticker that you need to heat up to reveal their alliance, and he looks pretty awesome in robot mode.  At the same time he’s not perfect; the rear end could have used some paint to accent the lights and pipes, and the body is made of white plastic which has been yellowing over time.  But despite that, Special Ops Jazz is still a fun toy to transform and play with, and in the end that’s what is most important; having fun.

Jazz Wiki: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jazz_(Transformers)

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UitRfvEzz0g

Metal Earth 3D Metal Model Kits: Optimus Prime

Been waiting a long time to do one of these 3D metal model kits.  I first saw them on a Japanese website, and thought that they were cool.  I’m into papercraft so, I figured building one of these wouldn’t be a problem.  Boy was I wrong because it not only was difficult but frustrating.  However, now that I’m finished I’m proud of how it turned out, and can’t wait to build another, since my skill should improve the more I build.

Fascinations:

http://www.fascinations.com/

Transformers New Era Cap Bot

This toy is a collaboration between New Era brand and Takara Tomy.  New Era is a company that specializes in making baseball hats, while Takara Tomy is a Japanese toy company that makes transformers.  I’m a fan of both, so I obviously had to buy this toy when it was released. This toy released in late 2012, or early 2013; depending on where you lived.  Two versions of these cap bots were released; Autobot and Decepticon.

I have the red Autobot version which is called Captimus Prime.  He is modelled after a similar transformers hat (fitted) that was released by New Era a few years ago.  In hat-mode the colorway is red, with a blue brim, and a white/red Autobot logo on the front and back.  When New Era hats are new they come with a sticker on the brim, and Takara Tomy paid attention to details by also adding this sticker as well.

To transformer Capatimus Prime all you need to do is press on the top button of the hat and he pops out into form.   From there you just turn some pieces around and he is ready to stand in robot mode.  Robot mode is very cool because he is also wearing a hat.  My only issue with this toy is transforming Capatimus Prime back to cap mode; he just seems a little loose on certain corners and edges.  Other than that this is another excellent collaboration toy from Takara Tomy, and I hope they keep doing this with other companies.  (I would suggest a Takara Tomy and G-Shock collaboration)

Takara Tomy:

http://www.takaratomy.co.jp

YouTube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g1lQuBnDXlM

Megatron Papercraft

This is my second Transformers papercraft, the first one was of Optimus Prime.  I loved that papercraft because he was actually able to transform from robot mode to auto mode.  Unfortunately Megatron doesn’t transform into a gun, so he’s always in robot mode.  Not that this makes a failure, but it just would have been nice to see him transform.  Megatron does come with some cool features such as a removable cannon and a classic 80’s look.

This papercraft requires two sheets of paper, one for instructions and the other one is the template.  To create him you will need scissors, glue and string.  The instructions are pretty easy to follow, and he is fun to build.  Megatron is such a cool villain, and if you’re going to make Optimus Prime you also have to make Megatron (and once you make him, be sure to squash him).

Papercraft template link:

http://www.paperrobots1999.com/model10.html

YouTube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8-TJ7zXMlCc

Wheeljack Generations

This has been a toy I have been waiting months and months for.  The first time I heard about it was in the beginning of the year and ever since then I had to watch other videos and pictures of people who already had it.  I assumed it would eventually release in my town, but time passed by and it never did.  I had hoped that when it finally did release I would be able to buy it on sale, and buy a couple more for my friends as well.  But all this waiting as of this date kept me anxious till the point I couldn’t wait any longer and I had to buy Wheeljack online.

It wasn’t so bad because the quality on this toy just blew my mind and expectations.  Okay... I might not be a hard-core Transformers collector, but I do consider this high quality from Hasbro.  Besides I try not to be ‘hard-core’ in collecting in general because it tends to leave you jaded and never satisfied.  From this position I am able to judge an item on my most basic judgments of whether I like it or not.  And this toy I really love.

To start off with, what attracted me initially was the color scheme used; white, red and green.  For some reason it reminds me of a pizza box at a pizzeria.  Anything that relates to pizza is a winner in my book.  I then also liked the sports car vehicle mode the toy can transform into, and the way he looks when you transform him into a robot.  The transformation process is also easy, and you are able to transform him into 3 different types of modes; sports car, flight mode, and robot.

I have absolutely no complaints about this toy, and would consider this my favourite Transformers toy of the year.  Once you learn to build him he is very fun to play with.  I also like that he doesn’t have any issues with limbs popping off like I did with my Roadbuster figure.  I highly recommend this figure, and as soon as I see him in a store I plan to buy some more toys of him.

Transformers:

http://www.transformers.com

YouTube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MAR9q1GCUEM

Roadbuster

When it comes to Transformers toys I love collecting figures that look amazing in vehicle mode.  I usually get regular cars that you see every day on the street.  I like to either display them on my desk or on a shelf.  One Transformers toy that took me by surprise recently has been Roadbuster.  First of all he’s a NASCAR race car, and for that reason alone really stands out.  His paint job is dashing in green and white with hits of grey.  Definitely not your typical every day car from the street.

I had been waiting for him for a while and knew that he would release around the time when DOTM also released.  The benefit of buying a toy when it first releases (as opposed to buying from e-bay later) is that you get to choose the best looking figure.  This is important to me because I’m an extreme nitpicker for flawlessness in a purchase.  I like to buy on sale and make sure I have a variety to choose from so that the item I purchase is perfect.  Unfortunately finding a flawless Roadbuster became a difficult task because the amount of paint details on him increased the number of chances of finding flaws.  The most common flaw being the white paint on the side panels, which can have run-overs on the green.  This problem doesn’t bother me too much because you can fix it by scratching some of the excess off.

And speaking of fixing all the imperfections, I would also say this figure is great for customizing.  I thought of this while I had him in robot mode.  Most of his limbs are grey, which allows for paint to accentuate these areas.  I can image I will use silver, black, and white paint.  The white paint will also come in handy because the original paint does scratch easy after a couple of transformations.  While transforming him is fun and easy, I found that it took me a little while before I got the hang of things.  Overall this is a great figure to have in my collection and I hope this NASCAR/Transformers relationship continues so one day we may see other race cars Transformers (Tony Stewart, Jeff Gordon and Carlos Montoya).

Transformers:

http://www.transformers.com

YouTube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0k3rZYT8pqA

Transformers: Dark of the Moon

Well I just came back from the movie theatre where I watched the new Transformers movie.  I arrived about an hour early because I wanted good seats, which paid off because I got to choose where I wanted to sit.  This being a Michael Bay film, I knew there was no other way to watch this film but in 3D.  First off the graphics were amazing and just as polished as the first two films.  There were scenes in it where I thought, wow the graphic artists must have taken years to work on just one scene.  For example when a building is toppling over, and people are falling all around.  The acting this time around was way better than the first, mainly because there weren’t many dramatic scenes; mostly action.  While Mega Fox wasn’t in this film, the new female Rose (whatever here last name is) was a much better replacement.

Yes, it’s very far-fetched for Sam Witwicky to have 2 beautiful girlfriends in a row, but come on that’s what summer blockbusters are all about (hot chicks showing their ass).  What also added to this film was the original characters that came back and you were familiar with.  I wasn’t a fan of the first film, but after the second film and now the third I became comfortable with the wacky characters and enjoyed the film itself.  Now the storyline was very good as well, because it finally allowed for the Autobots to kick some ass.  I hated how in previous films their fight scenes were short, and they never really demonstrated what they were capable of.  In DOTM, we got to see the Transformers fight one another up-close, and use different fighting skills and weapons.  Overall this has been my favourite Transformers film and can’t wait to watch it again.

Transformers Movie:

http://www.transformersmovie.com

Transformers Vault

Title: Transformers Vault: The Complete Transformers Universe - Showcasing Rare Collectibles and Memorabilia

Author: Pablo Hidalgo

Publisher: Abrams

I’ve said it numerous times on this blog, that I am a newbie when it comes to Transformers.  Although I did watch them as a child, only until recently have I become interested in them again.  I started off watching a few episodes on DVD a few years ago and those brought back a lot of memories.  I also started buying the toys, though I prefer displaying them in auto mode.  However I was still confused about the whole story behind the franchise, so I decided one day to go online and read up on them.  This didn’t go very well because there were pages and pages of stuff to read that was all confusing.  As a result I gave up, and just stuck to watching a few TV episodes at a time and buying a toy once in a while as well.

Then one day I went online and discovered that someone had written a book about the entire franchise that contained many cool features and that was an easy read.  The book is called ‘Transformers Vault’ and is written by Pablo Hidalgo.  The book comes in a protective hard cover, features great art work, the writing is informative (gets to the point) and brief, and best of all it covers the entire franchise from where the Transformers started to the animated TV series, comics, toys, and even movies.  I bought my copy on sale, and with all the goodies it comes with I would definitely recommend it to anyone that loves the Transformers.

Amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/Transformers-Vault-Showcasing-Collectibles-Memorabilia/dp/0810998688/ref=ntt_at_ep_dpi_1

YouTube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g8gHybsmyhA