Oh hey, I got an email while out shoveling snow.
Well, that's a thing then.
Well, that's a thing then.
So was Gears's chestplate coming in the box as an accessory always a well-known thing? Mine just arrived and I thought I was going to have to put in for a replacement at first, until someone else pointed out it's in the box - I hadn't opened it yet so that I could show that it came that way. I just don't recall ever hearing about it before now, though Seibertron had an article about it from mid-March.
It's mentioned on the wiki, at the very least.
Man, we knew Sideburn’s car mode wasn’t going to be any good from Shadow Striker but actually seeing it somehow makes it worse. It’s shaped closer to a shoe than a sportscar and they couldn’t even bother to give it better a flame pattern. The great colors are wasted on it.
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The troll part of me wants to see them go full on Walter P38 upside down and call it a submarine
But that's not happening
Honestly an ER redo with Sunbow colours and a new head would be fine. If underwhelming
Mine arrived yesterday and today.
My preorders from Pulse arrived today. It was probably the one thing that went right for me today too.
It's because the altmode was designed based on Cyberverse Shadow Striker's pre-Frankensteined altmode, but with the addition of Side Burn's exposed engine, creating a single hodgepodge altmode design that Hasbro wanted to use for both characters, and is consequently accurate to neither character.
TBF, one could consider them trying to homage both Cyberverse and the original Shadow Striker, who was a Side Burn Remold, so combining the two isn't completely odd.
But the results are nevertheless unimpressive. So basically the Elita/Minerva/Strongarm situation again.
Indeed. What we have here, in this mold's case, is less of an instance of "G1-ifying" like with the Prime and Animated designs (since the Cyberverse designs, much like those of the Unicron Trilogy, were already pretty blocky and G1-ish in aesthetic to begin with), and more a case of Hasbro taking two different characters (Shadow Striker and Side Burn) from two different series (Cyberverse and RiD 2001) with two completely different designs, and forcibly trying to mash those two designs together, all because of Shadow Striker's original namesake (Universe Shadow Striker) having been made from the RiD 2001 Side Burn mold, despite the fact that Cyberverse Shadow Striker was a name-slap of a familiar trademark on a new character with a completely original design that looked absolutely nothing like Universe Shadow Striker.
This is like if the Legacy Bulkhead toy had instead tried to have a helicopter mode as a second altmode, and had been given a mustache on top of his very Prime-styled robot mode head, in order to cram in elements from Energon Bulkhead just because he was the first Bulkhead, despite Prime Bulkhead being nothing like him in design or character.
It's basically a return of the "Aligned" mindset that gave all us those mashed G1/Movieverse concept designs from a decade ago.
This is like if the Legacy Bulkhead toy had instead tried to have a helicopter mode as a second altmode, and had been given a mustache on top of his very Prime-styled robot mode head, in order to cram in elements from Energon Bulkhead just because he was the first Bulkhead, despite Prime Bulkhead being nothing like him in design or character.
It's basically a return of the "Aligned" mindset that gave all us those mashed G1/Movieverse concept designs from a decade ago.
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It actually seems to have a bit more thought put into it than the Elita situation which was... I don't know. "what other females are there we can make?" The altmode is utterly weird for Minerva, and the robot mode is off for Strongarm (although I can see the "hood halves on shoulders" tying the latter two together).
Here there's at least that Six Degrees connecting the dots. "So we'll make a Side Burn. He has a redeco called Shadow Striker. Oh, we can make this into another Shadow Striker, represent another series."
Honestly it might have worked if they'd actually chosen or been able to spend on retooling the altmode significantly enough to give Side Burn a better approximation. And/or actually paint the thing to look any better than a sad wireless mouse with clipart flames.
But then that still results in Shadow Striker being inadequately represented, so we're still in a place of the original intent for the mold working (ehh) and the rest being watered down by the compromise... Which also kind of undermined the original intent for the mold anyway.
And honestly the whole "just say it's their Cybertronian mode" is already a thin justification that is stretched to tearing point here.
Like, this is hardly unprecedented for homage redecos/retools and such, but precedent doesn't make it any more appealing when it happens.
Here there's at least that Six Degrees connecting the dots. "So we'll make a Side Burn. He has a redeco called Shadow Striker. Oh, we can make this into another Shadow Striker, represent another series."
Honestly it might have worked if they'd actually chosen or been able to spend on retooling the altmode significantly enough to give Side Burn a better approximation. And/or actually paint the thing to look any better than a sad wireless mouse with clipart flames.
But then that still results in Shadow Striker being inadequately represented, so we're still in a place of the original intent for the mold working (ehh) and the rest being watered down by the compromise... Which also kind of undermined the original intent for the mold anyway.
And honestly the whole "just say it's their Cybertronian mode" is already a thin justification that is stretched to tearing point here.
Like, this is hardly unprecedented for homage redecos/retools and such, but precedent doesn't make it any more appealing when it happens.
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This is the sort of thing Generations especially around the Prime wars era did which was okay back then but with these toys costing as much as they currently do, not nearly good enough.
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The other reality is that licensing the Viper is seemingly off the table, and it's not exactly a design that can easily be invoked in a "wink-wink-nudge-nudge-know what I mean?" kind of way. I don't love this design, but I don't exactly hate it, either.
Now, the piss-poor flames on the sample we've seen so far? That is something completely under Hasbro's control. Hopefully it's not the final deco.
Now, the piss-poor flames on the sample we've seen so far? That is something completely under Hasbro's control. Hopefully it's not the final deco.
I understand and agree with most of the criticisms levelled at this take on Side Burn. Let's not forget though, that there will eventually be 3rd party "upgrades" for this thing. Sure, some of them will cost exactly as much - or more than - the figure itself, but I'm certain that better flame decals will be among the offerings. The real question becomes how far are you willing to go to polish a turd?
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This is a fair point, but it's not like our only choices are "actual Dodge Viper" and "exactly Shadow Striker". There's a wide range of "curvy Earth sports car" options in between.
Most of the car can even work as is, just the rear bumper is a flat plank and that car front is entirely... You know what, why is Shadow Striker's vehicle mode nose so... bulbous to begin with? I'm boggled at how one gets from the show model to this toy; it's like a blind man drew it from memory pre-blindness. If that were leaner and more angular like the Ultra class toy's, there might have been less work to do. Like, from there just round it off and make it a single shape rather than three.
This is the bit that genuinely makes it feel like an unfinished digibash.
