Macross doesn't have the best track record for figures in my book but I don't hate the franchise itself. Macross 7 Basara Prime came out recently so I decided to give it a shot. Because I'm stupid, that's why.
As expected, the jet mode is stellar. It's sleek and thin and manages to conceal the undercarriage stuff pretty well from most angles. It looks sleek and fast. While there's some robot junk on the bottom, it flows with the silhouette and isn't very obtrusive. The jet's cockpit contains a Matrix of Leadership looking artifact, implying that this is not the standard Macross piloted mech. There's some partsforming with the panel at the rear of the jet coming off for no real reason. They really could have just made it fold into the longer panel directly in front of it. Also, for a collaboration with a franchise where the emphasis is on planes, there's no flight stand port on the bottom, or even one of those adapter pieces some higher-end models get. It looks the part and has front landing gear but no rear landing gear unless you want to mistransform him. Speaking of which...
If Nexus Prime has a "jet tank" mode, is this a jet truck mode? Essentially, the jet folds in half and the robot shins deploy some wheels. The transformation is simple but getting the wheels out is fiddly owing to some parts clashing between the wheel assembly and the yellow "cuffs." The transitionary mode doesn't lock together or secure at all until you stick it into the trailer. The attachment method leaves a lot to be desired. It basically hinges on two tabs on the forearms and two tabs on the wings. It's kind of fiddly and not all that secure. With all the real estate on the trailer, there really should have been a different means of forming the vehicle mode. One of my gripes about the figure shows up here, with the clashing, gaudy primary color scheme. It's not a terrible mode but it looks and feels half-baked. It can roll around and keep all the pieces in one unit for convenient storage I guess. Trailer mode can store all the accessories including the alternate faces, the guitar, the rifle and the shield.
Gerwalk modes have always been garbage. Next.
Transformation into robot mode is what you would expect but is a bit annoying given how the shoulderpads like to clash with other parts during transformation. The kneepads also move around a lot between modes but don't really seem to need to? They could have been a static molded part on the shins and not much for the transformation would be changed. The result is a robot with stick-thin arms and thighs with birthing hips. Aesthetically, it looks better in dynamic poses. The posability has universal shoulders and hips, articulated shoulder pads, wrists, opening hands, index finger, balljoint neck, waist swivel, ankle tilts and knees. The knees have a LOT of joints in them to facilitate the positions for jet and gerwalk mode. They're terribly fiddly and the means to lock the knee joints in place isn't the most secure, basically being just a tab-slot connection that's not the tightest. Colors are not my cup of tea. Basara's mech was already loud with the red and yellow base color and thunderbolt details but adding the Optimus blues, yellow crotch details, smokestacks and clear blue windows just makes things look cluttered
He comes with a rifle that's visually a combination of the traditional Ion Blaster and Basara's rifle. It uses a 5mm peg and is mostly secure. Kind of annoying that it doesn't have a place to store aside from the trailer. The piece that pops off the jet mode can be attached to the bottom of his forearm as a shield. The fake smokestacks on the side of the arms are removeable but can't really be attached anywhere else. Not much to say, these look okay and are basically just static accessories.
The chest windows can open to show speakers instead of the usual Matrix chamber. The matrix in jet mode ends up hanging off his back.
The headsculpt is a combination of Basara's mech's general shape and colors with Optimus' forehead grill and antennae. It's kind of busy and clashing, just like the rest of the toy I guess. Basara Prime comes with three alternate faceplates. A mouth face, a plated face and an open mouthed "shouting" face. The sculpts for the neutral and plated faces are pretty good but I don't like the shouty face. It looks like he's at the dentist and got a shot of lidocaine more than singing/shouting.
The two faces you're not using can store in the trailer.
His last accessory is a guitar. It's a combination of Basara's guitar with a Matrix gem imbedded into where the strings should go. How does this thing play music then? Anyway, the gem is beautiful and the metallic green details are great. The guitar has a rather toned down color scheme compared to the robot overall. It has a strap to help secure it when Basara Prime is wearing it but in practice it only really works for that purpose. It's a hard but flexible plastic and it makes it somewhat a chore to store in the trailer and close. Maybe soft good would have been better? Anyway, one end of the strap is pinned to the top of the guitar and the other end can peg to a 5mm port at the end of the guitar.
It's a fun and gorgeous little accessory that brings a lot of life into the figure. I just hate that strap it never looks right. Basara Prime can also sort of hold the guitar loosely for El Kabong action, I guess.
Th trailer opens up to form a sound stage with multiple speakers, a microphone and a small platform to stand on. Detailing and paintwork is immaculate and it looks very premium. There's a 5mm peg on the front of the trailer to secure Basara Prime although in practice it's not the most convenient spot to have placed one of those. Combined with the guitar or the built-in speakers, Basara Prime can give his own little concert. It's a bit tricky to get him in a good pose but it's not impossible. The trailer has less real estate than you would expect and Basara Prime is not a small toy, making it somewhat difficult to place him right. When you get a good pose though, it looks great. The microphone's kind of loose but it can stay up when posed stickng straight up so good enough.
While this toy's not bad by any metric, it just feels somewhat half-baked. The partsforming shield, the trailer attachment and the stage mode's size could have used a few more passes. The robot/jet itself isn't bad overall but it's very fiddly, weirdly proportioned and has some problems with the joints. Add to that a somewhat hefty pricetag for a roughly Leader size and complexity robot and a box and it feels like it's not a great deal. Overall, between having doofy proportions, fiddly transformation, build quality problems and a heavier than expected pricetag, this collaboration really manages to evoke the Macross franchise. Mission accomplished, I guess?