I open a toy & post it here... VOL 2!

[Team Jetfire]

Originally Posted by TehCollector

Loved the story!
Hate the toy lol

Thanks for the always entertaining posts

Thank you for reading and commenting. I really appreciate it.

[Team Jetfire]

S-23
Hasbro- Transformers: Kingdom: Airazor





Anyone sick of me writing about toys that I picked up on my vacation? No? Yes? Either way it?s happening so buckle up. So last August I was back in Honolulu with the family dropping off my daughter at University and if I was being honest, toy hunting was not exactly top of mind. Not only was I dealing with leaving my daughter in Hawaii, but I was also convinced there was nothing worth searching for given that Canada has been getting releases sooner and in typically better quantities. That said, as all toy hunters know, I?m always on the lookout and on a quick trip to Ross Dress For Less I came upon Airazor while going through the checkout line. Now I must have passed on her hundreds of times at my local Toys R Us and Wal-Mart, but the price point and the character never really appealed to me enough to buy it. What changed? I guess the surprise of seeing her on sale and the realization that I may be coming home empty handed on a trip to the US was too much for my collector brain and I had to add her to the pile. Overall I?m glad that I picked her up given that it?s again a nice little reminder of the trip and my newer Beast Wars shelf looks more complete?. Now if I only had her partner Tigatron to complete the happy couple.

Pros: While picking up Airazor was a bit of an after though for the collection, I?m actually really happy that I got her. Solid design in both modes and if I?m being honest one of the best ?bird? type figures that I?ve ever messed with. Transformation is fun and I appreciate her little arm cannons.

Cons: While I?m glad I got her on sale, the original retail price was way to high for a figure this size and complexity.

[Team Jetfire]

[Team Jetfire]

S-24
Hasbro- Transformers: Kingdom: Tigatron





Well, perhaps you guessed from the last “special” review: I got Airazor so it was only fair that I picked up her partner Tigatron. That said, It wasn’t all that big of a decision given that I had always liked the character, intended to pick him up regardless and most importantly: found him on sale through Amazon. Anyways, quick tangent: I find it weird that despite an extremely close relationship (for a kids cartoon anyway) with Tigatron, Airazor was gendered as a boy in the Japanese version of the series. It makes even less sense when you consider that they are later combined to one by “The Vox” in the cartoon series resulting in a new form called Tigerhawk. I’d chalk it up to a one off thing, but it also happened soon after during Transformers: Cybertron where the Japan version of the series included a male character Override, when it was originally set as a female in the North American version. Since then it’s difficult to say if Japan continued to change the gender of these characters, but I wonder why they did in the first place?

Pros: It’s been a while since I’ve fiddled with Cheetor, but I think Tigatron isn’t the same figure, but may be a brand new mold or at the very least a heavily modified and sized up re-tool of his feline buddy. In any case the mold looks great as an updated version of the character and I appreciate the larger size, especially as compared to Cheetor. Also, big KUDOS to Hasbro for including both his tail whip AND his intestine blaster, but….

Cons: You could tell the gun was an afterthought given that there is no good storage in beast mode. It’s nuts that the original figure from the 90’s had sufficient engineering to do it, yet the new one can’t? Outside of that, his animal mode is a bit lacking.

[Team Jetfire]

[Robimus]

The intentional yellowing seems odd to me.

[Team Jetfire]

865-2
Hasbro- Star Wars Black Series: K2SO



If you asked me which Disney era Star Wars film would have the biggest impact on the fandom I would have never guessed it to be Rogue One. I suppose that is either a positive for this one, or a negative for the other 4, but I digress: people seem to like it a lot. Personally I?m a fan, but take that with a grain of salt as I like parts of every Star Wars movie or series. I will say that I?m excited to see Andor, the Disney + show that just premiered the week of this review, so I assume I?ll see how K2SO came to be a rebel.

Pros: I love the overall look of K2SO and really appreciate how well Hasbro did on the sculpt details. Also the articulation is quite robust for a droid and is a lot of fun to pose.

Cons: while I get the cost of tooling a unique figure like K2, must be immense, he really should come with a blaster or something.

[Team Jetfire]

866-2
Diamond Select: Avatar: The Last Airbender: Toph Baifong



I might get some heat for this, but it?s the way I feel: The first season of Avatar: The Last Airbender was kind of just ok, and the series only became great after the introduction of Toph. Granted this also aligns with the character growth seen in both Zuko and Aang, but the point still stands, once Toph showed up, the series really gained steam. I?m also VERY happy that they included her in the last season of Korra and felt that her minimal, yet meaningful inclusion was perfect for her overall character. With all that said, I?m quite happy that there has been so much movement in Avatar media, but worry that they will ?pull a Star Wars? and stay too hyper focused on the generations that we are already familiar with. There is an entire past and future that can be explored: let's do that instead.

Anyway, a quick story on this figure and how she came into my collection. Back in November 2021, My wife, Daughter and I went to Honolulu for a University visit (which she is currently attending) and given that COVID was still a thing back then we needed negative PCR tests to return back home. These tests needed to be administered by pharmacy staff and it just so happened that a Walgreens was our best option. So, after we got our brains swabbed, I checked out the toy section (like you do) and found this gem on the shelves and on clearance no less. It was only when we got home (tests were negative BTW) that I realized that this was the ?light? version of the Diamond Select figures that was exclusive to Walgreens. The figure is basically the same, but is missing a clear stand and some other accessories. Not a big deal given how much I paid, but I still hand help that I?m missing out in some way.

Pros: Its hard to imagine that I was so hard on the Diamond Selects for the first Aang release and I have really come to appreciate these figures in hand. The sculpt is fantastic and the included accessories, even for a basic release it?s perfect for the character.

Cons: I really have nothing bad to say except: WHERE IS MY KORRA FIGURES!

[Team Jetfire]

867-2
Mattel: Masters of the Universe Origins: Prince Adam and Sky Sled.



It’s kind of insane that the creators thought that Prince Adam was a believable disguise for He-Man and that we as kids were on board with it. Sure, stunning outfit aside, he is simply He-Man with clothes on. At least Superman had glasses; Adam has nothing! And what is even worse is that he comes with the exact same sword, but in pink! Who is he fooling? This actually gives me an idea for a comedy sketch that involves a very flamboyant Prince Adam/He-Man existing in Eternia while the citizens just humor him while pretending to not know that he is one in the same because they don’t want the King and Queen to get mad at them. I feel like it has been done before, but perhaps it's original? In any case, I’m super happy that Prince Adam was re-invented as a scrawny kid in the newer series as it makes way more sense, but also gives Adam a bit more character development at the same time.

Pros: I held off on this set for a long time given that I don’t have space for vehicles on the shelf, but when I was able to track it down for $15 it was a deal that I could not pass up. Overall it’s a solid set and I’m actually really impressed with the Sky Sled in hand. I guess I didn’t realize that Mattel included parts to convert from good guy to bad guy ride which is a super cool feature, albeit raises a lot of questions about the war mongers on Eternia, but I digress: Adam looks great and fits well on the sled.

Cons: Given that the Sky Sled can convert between good guy and bad guy, I feel like an army builder type figure should have been included instead of Prince Adam. Also, some storage for his sword would have been nice.

[Team Jetfire]