Beast Wars Revisited: Part 5 of 5

I had the good fortune of obtaining some nice vintage Japanese Beast Wars last week so I thought I might be a good idea to do a mini-series on them. There is nothing really spectacular about any of these figures other than the fact they are different from their domestic release counterparts and thus interesting to me.

Part 5: Beast Wars Telemocha TM-10 Wolfang

The only real reason behind the purchase of Wolfang here was the awesome paint deco. The American version of this figure was basically just a grey wolf with green eyes. The Telemocha version takes it to a whole 'nother level making this guy look like some kind of awesome snow wolf! The only downside is he is a Destron, rather than a Maximal which makes him hard to place in my display. I originally bought him thinking he was a Cybertron and he could go with my Beast Wars II Cybertrons, and I may still keep him there as some sort of double agent, a la Doubledealer.

I was also thinking it would be cool to put this guy together with Survive, Skywarp and Bighorn to create a new faction of Native American inspired Maximals.

Regular mode

Battle mode!

The paint detail really makes it.

I love how it transitions from brown to white.

You can see the major differences here.

Like I said, a whole 'nother level.

Beast Wars Revisited: Part 4 of 5

I had the good fortune of obtaining some nice vintage Japanese Beast Wars last week so I thought I might be a good idea to do a mini-series on them. There is nothing really spectacular about any of these figures other than the fact they are different from their domestic release counterparts and thus interesting to me.

Part 4: Beast Wars Neo D-30 Saberback

Saberback is another one of those figures that I never really desired to own because I already had his mold as it was released in the Beast Machines Dinobot line, much like Archadis. Not to mention it was released two more times; once in the 2003 Universe line and again in the 2004 Armada: Dinobots line. So for the longest time I figured I really didn't need this guy. However when I discovered what a bargain he could be (probably due to so many domestic releases) I decided to go ahead and nab him.

And I am glad I did, the only real difference between him and prior releases is his color scheme and his 'Destron/Predacon' spark crystal which is not present in any of the other releases. But I like being able to bolster my Neo Destron troops some more. While this guy can be a bit of a pain to transform due to him being a 'shellformer'; he does have a very interesting robot mode that distinguishes him from most other Neo releases. His headdress, skull amulet, and loincloth all callback to Aztec or Central American designs which makes sense since he is an expert in black magic. It makes for a very cool looking toy which has been diminished due to multiple releases.

He also comes with this cool tail weapon that looks like a lotus of some sort

...Mysterious...

He's got a great alt mode with some nice paint apps!

All four releases together

Which one doesn't belong?

Beast Wars Revisited: Part 3 of 5

I had the good fortune of obtaining some nice vintage Japanese Beast Wars last week so I thought I might be a good idea to do a mini-series on them. There is nothing really spectacular about any of these figures other than the fact they are different from their domestic release counterparts and thus interesting to me.

Part 3: Beast Wars II C-17 Bigmos

I feel bad for Bigmos. If you lived in the United States when Beast Wars was released and collected Transformers, I'm sure you'll remember seeing his American counterpart Transquito on the shelves everywhere. Unfortunately he was the most unpopular figure of his size class and assortment. In fact, I remember still seeing Transquito in Toys R Us after Beast Machines had debuted more than three years later. I really don't know how well Bigmos sold in Japan, but if his purchase price was any indication then it wasn't well. However I really like his colors and the fact that he is a Cybertron in the Beast Wars II fiction (vs Transquito being a Predacon over here) is an interesting twist.

So apparently Bigmos is the leader of the Cybertron subgroup of Insectrons and a great lover of peace. It's funny because all of the insect-related figures that are part of the Insectron group were released as Predacons in America. I'm sure this is because the theme behind Beast Wars II was beast vs machine. All of the Destrons were some sort of machine/vehicle or an organic/machine hybrid. So Bigmos looks like he should be evil, but I guess that just proves that you shouldn't judge a book by its exoskeleton.

The teal reminds me of the 80's!

One of the best things about the BW figures was the attention to detail

This thing really looks like a mosquito!

Cybertron vs. Predacon

Again, it looks like Takara trumps Hasbro on the paint apps!

Beast Wars Revisited: Part 2 of 5

I had the good fortune of obtaining some nice vintage Japanese Beast Wars last week so I thought I might be a good idea to do a mini-series on them. There is nothing really spectacular about any of these figures other than the fact they are different from their domestic release counterparts and thus interesting to me.


Part 2: Beast Wars Telemocha TM-08 Archadis

Over the past few weeks I discovered that my Beast Wars Neo Destrons were surprisingly low on troops. Apparently over the course of time I have obtained most of the Cybertrons for the line, but have neglected the Destrons. I suppose this is probably because many of the Destron molds were re-used for domestic releases in one form or another while the Cybertron molds have been oddly omitted. This is probably because Hasbro couldn't justify releasing a transforming Giraffe, Penguin, Cobra, Horse or Rabbit. And certainly not a Tanuki.

So I was all prepared to purchase a vintage BWNeo Archadis to increase my ranks and I noticed his paint deco was virtually identical to Dinobot Airraptor who was released in the U.S. around 2000 as part of the Beast Machines line. So I decided I didn't want an exact copy so I opted for the Beast Wars Telemocha Archadis.

Telemocha was Takara's 10th Anniversary commemorative toyline for Beast Wars. Certain figures were re-released with show accurate paint jobs and packaged with a DVD containing one episode of the show. Not all characters were re-released and I'm not even really sure why Archadis was chosen since he was never even part of the original show. However he has a great paint job and so now he stands in for the real Beast Wars Neo Archadis in my Neo display.

He has some nice muted colors.

Archeopteryx mode

Angry Archeopteryx mode!

You can really see the difference between Archadis and Airraptor here.

Who will win in a battle to the death!

You'll notice Archadis has the 'Dinobot' spark crystal instead of the Predacon symbol he should have.

Beast Wars Revisited: Part 1 of 5

I had the good fortune of obtaining some nice vintage Japanese Beast Wars last week so I thought I might be a good idea to do a mini-series on them. There is nothing really spectacular about any of these figures other than the fact they are different from their domestic release counterparts and thus interesting to me.

Part 1: Beast Wars II C-13 Bighorn

In case you hadn't figured it out Japanese transformers almost always come with a number prefix before the name. I believe this is because it makes collecting a series of figures easier and also cuts down on confusion as to exactly which figure you are talking about. Because the good guys are known as Cybertrons in Japan, all of their prefixes start with C. And in this case Big Horn is the thirteenth release in the Beast Wars II series so he gets that lucky number.

I have always had an affinity for the Buffalo which I believe comes from my knowledge and respect of the Native American cultures and religions along with the fact that it is difficult being a Boy Scout and not knowing anything about this majestic creature. So when Bonecrusher was released in America in 1997 I was thrilled at being able to own an actual Buffalo (or Bison if you prefer) Transformer. Unfortunately I never really thought Bonecrusher was a good name since it had originally belonged to a Decepticon and emphasized a destructive personality (crushing bones!) vs what I thought would be more appropriate; a nature lover or a gentle soul. Even his bio follows this line of thinking describing his urges to "engage the enemy violently". So I decided to seek out his counterpart: Bighorn. A completely different character of the Beast Wars II continuity whose personality is a little more in line with what I feel should befit this figure. Bighorn, while destructive on the battlefield, is at heart a nature lover who cherishes all life. In fact I thought it would be more appropriate to have named him Apache instead of the toy who actually got that honor, since the Buffalo are so central to the Native American ways. But apparently a giant mandrill is more like Native Americans than a Buffalo?

So here I present Bighorn, a more appropriate Buffalo in the world of the Transformers.

He is molded in a nice vibrant red, which I like better than Bonecrusher's white.

Unfortunately most of his poses make him look like he either wants to kill someone...

...or is very surprised.

Too bad he doesn't have a 'run' feature since Buffalo are so good at it.

Here you can see the only real difference between the two is the color of the plastic.

And Bighorn's nose and horns are a little darker.

All the Beast Wars II figures come with backgrounds built into the packaging showing the animal's 'habitat'. Bighorn's shows a grassy plain with some trees, which is accurate I guess. It is a neat feature though because it gives you a little more play value than just a plain 'ol box. In fact, it would be very interesting to see all the characters with their respective backgrounds lined up. Hmmm.....

If you would like to read Flywheels' review of this figure, click here

The Giant Galaxy Shuttle!

I've been putting this off since Botcon. I purchased Galaxy Shuttle during the convention and was insanely terrified about shipping him home. Fortunately he arrive without a scratch, but I immediately put him into a glass case and left him there. A few days ago I decided it was time to finally showcase him a little since he can be hard to find. Shortly after I finished taking the pictures I decided on the spur of the moment my entire room and collection needed reorganizing. But that's another story.

Galaxy Shuttle is a G1 figure, but a Japanese only release during the Victory line in 1989. Unfortunately he had no counterpart in the US which makes him much sought after. He also is very prone to yellowing from the sun and thus many pure white examples no longer exist. In fact mine is a little yellowed, but it is hardly noticeable. In the show he literally is a shuttle that ferries the Cybertrons (read: Autobots) wherever they need to go and thus he doesn't really do much throughout the series. However he is massive and apparently doesn't mass-shift like Astrotrain, Blast-Off or Sky-Lynx. For some reason the Cybertrons don't ever really use his size to their advantage and Galaxy Shuttle remains in the background for much of the show. The toy itself is also quite large and is designed to be placed on the micromaster base Countdown in place of the rocket. It actually looks pretty cool with a shuttle there ready for lift-off. I imagine a couple of little Japanese kids; one with Countdown, one with Galaxy Shuttle, combining their forces to defeat the evil Destrons (read: Decepticons). If I lived in Japan in 1989 I would have totally wanted this guy for Christmas.

Bus, I mean shuttle mode.

With his companion Holi! (not really, its just Stakeout)

Too big for my light box.

Still too big.

Yes, the box is a little worn.

See! The back of the box even shows you how to play with it. Any other way and you're doing it wrong.

Eject and Rewind: Cassettes no longer

In my massive third party acquisition were two figures I had completely forgotten about: Perfect Effect's Ejector and Rewinder. These tiny little guys were added to my order at the last minute to help balance out the Decepticon "cassettes" as I knew I would be purchasing Rumble and Frenzy sometime in the future. I use the word cassettes loosely since none of these figures transform into cassettes anymore. Anyway, I thought they would be a nice addition since we don't have an abundance of post '85 homages and these two are unlikely to be candidates anyway. Amazingly I still have my G1 Eject and Rewind from my childhood in relatively good condition. Although I had a lot of G1 figures as a kid only about half survived in displayable condition. It is very cool to have updates of these guys although I do miss the cassette gimmick. So now they transform into cannons, targetmasters of a sorts I guess. They can be mounted or held by your other classics figures. There isn't really a whole lot to say about these guys, they are pretty simple and they are good updates to Eject and Rewind. Perhaps one day we'll get a decent Blaster for these guys to call home.

Copies!

***Edit*** Adding pictures for Novelty:

The figures fit in pretty much any standard size peg such as a hand.

They also can be pegged into the shoulders of City Commander.

But pretty much anyone can hold them.