Soundwave Dreadnok Thunder Machine with Ravage, Zartan, and Zarana [G.I. JOE x Transformers]

The G.I. JOE X Transformers Collaborative series has turned out some really neat toys, but there’s one I find specifically neater than the others. And that’s the subject of today’s post: Soundwave. Not just any Soundwave though — this one turns into the Thunder Machine! The Dreadnoks have always been among my favorite groups in G.I. JOE, so this particular team-up hits all sorts of thematic high notes for me. It also happens to be a pretty great toy, which makes for prime posting material.

I actually picked this set up at Ross last year around this time. Those in the know are well aware of the phenomenon of liquidation stores — particularly Ross — getting boatloads of semi-recent toys and selling them dirt cheap around Christmas time. This yearly tradition is fondly known as RossCon among toy nerds, and man… getting this set for twenty-something dollars still feels like I committed a crime.

The set isn’t just Soundwave either — he comes with a few extras worth talking about first. Zartan and Zarana are included at a compatible 3¾-inch scale, and they’re even packed on traditional cards inside the box. While these are recreations of the original figures, the presentation gives the whole package a fantastic vintage feel, especially paired with the box that resembles a classic G.I. JOE release.

I do wish Zandar had been included to round out the Dreadnok siblings, and I’m honestly surprised Thrasher — the original Thunder Machine driver — didn’t make the cut. That said, I’m very happy we got two figures instead of the one you might expect.

Both figures come with accessories. Zartan includes his pistol, mask, and backpack — which can actually hold the mask. I don’t know who he’s fooling, Zartan slips the mask under his hood and behold: Liam Neeson. Truly, the master of disguise. Zarana comes with her backpack and that wonderfully weird rifle with the spinning blade on the tip. Both figures also include display stands.

Also included is a surprisingly well-done Ravage. Recent Ravage releases have left a lot to be desired, but this one is genuinely solid. He even transforms into a cassette that fits into Soundwave’s chest. I didn’t realize this at first, but he’s apparently a recolor of the Masterpiece Ravage mold! It’s been so long since I’ve handled mine that I didn’t make the connection — but yeah, no wonder he’s so good.

Ravage isn’t in his usual black and silver colors either; he’s blue and red. While that works nicely for a Cobra-aligned version of the character, it’s actually based on Ravage’s pre-production concept colors from the original Transformers cartoon. It also makes him resemble Howlback or the blue Microcassette Robo MC-02 Jaguar from the Microman Micro Change line. So no — this isn’t just another Ravage among the sea of Ravage toys. He’s quietly carrying a whole chunk of Transformers history. His trademark rockets are molded into his hindquarters, and he comes with a collar and chain accessory that Zartan or Zarana can hold.

Soundwave himself is big. I’d say he’s around Leader Class size, but there’s more mass here than you’d expect. Despite transforming into the Thunder Machine, he still retains a lot of classic Soundwave design cues — including his cassette door chest, which opens to store Ravage. Since Ravage is a Masterpiece cassette, Soundwave could probably hold any MP scaled cassette. Neat.

He’s also very well articulated, allowing for some expressive poses. The Thunder Machine kibble integrates into robot mode fairly well. The roll cage attaches to his lower legs, giving him an almost hockey-goalie look. The vehicle’s front fenders sit on his forearms, creating a unique armored appearance, while the wheels mostly stay out of the way. The roof forms a backpack with a long antenna sticking out — it’s removable if you’d rather not have it there. I kind of wish it doubled as a weapon. Imagine him whipping Autobot ass with that thing.

Several Thunder Machine features convert into weapons. The front dual Gatling gun becomes a handheld chain gun of doom. The barrels rotate and move the ammo belt as they spin, which is oddly satisfying. The massive rocket engine becomes Soundwave’s shoulder cannon, and it’s huge. It honestly makes me think of the Machine Wars version of Soundwave. He also comes with a big military knife, which I find weirdly endearing. Like, if he can’t hit you with bullets or rockets, he’ll just stab you. I imagine him sitting around sharpening sticks with it.

Transformation to vehicle mode is fairly straightforward — I didn’t even need the instructions. A few glances at the back of the box were enough to figure it out. The roll cage and chain gun need to be plugged in, and Zartan and Zarana fit easily inside the cabin to drive. Figures can also stand behind the dual chain gun or ride along various points on the vehicle’s exterior.

I had a little trouble getting some parts into place at first, but that was on me — a bit of extra adjusting solved it. Once complete, the Thunder Machine is stable and sturdy. This is a very well-made Transformer, and honestly pretty impressive.

A really nice touch is the vehicle’s design itself. The Thunder Machine is a Mad Max-style mishmash of parts with a rocket engine, and the front end is made from licensed Pontiac Firebird components. That’s such a small detail that could’ve easily been ignored, but it wasn’t.

This is a genuinely premium feeling toy — one I somehow got away with buying for way too little money. Soundwave is visually impressive, loaded with extras, and incredibly unique. What an awesome way to end one hell of a year.

New Week, Old Year

Well Zone Base readers, Christmas has come and gone, putting us squarely in that strange, time-nebulous stretch of days between Christmas and New Year’s Day. Like many of you, I’ve got a few work days wedged in between the holiday breaks and feel completely lost in time.

It’s actually Sunday as I’m writing this, since I’m doing another odd Sunday shift to offset being off on New Year’s Eve. Thus is the life of a graveyard shift CNC programmer—working extra weird hours during the holidays. Of course, you’re all aware this is another holiday week with abbreviated posting here on the site. I’m sure many of you are also juggling strange schedules, or maybe you’re off entirely for the holidays.

Honestly, I’m surprised if anyone is taking the time to read this. However, if you are, thank you. And for those of you who aren’t… I totally understand. I hope everyone had a great Christmas and is enjoying this weird in-between time until New Year’s.

I’ve got just one post this week, but don’t fret—we’re ending the year on a doozy of a toy. Regular posting will resume next week, I promise. Thank you all for reading, don’t forget to share with your friends, and be excellent to each other.

Merry Christmas, Zone Base Readers!

I’m pretty sure you’re all well aware, but it’s Christmas! The stockings are hung all around the base, and chestnuts are roasting by the fire.

Okay, okay… I’m lying. There are no chestnuts. We ordered pizza. But the stockings are still hung—well, there’s no chimney, so some of them are just on the floor. Look, Christmas is kind of a mess. It’s hectic, it’s crazy, and it’s full of mayhem.

However… that’s kind of what makes it awesome. You go through all that chaos just to try and have the best Christmas you can. If you ask me, fighting a small war just to have one great holiday with your loved ones is pretty damn cool. Like, somebody went through hell to get those socks.

Whatever war you went through, and however you’re spending your Christmas, I hope you have a good one. I’m very grateful for all of your support. Don’t forget to be excellent to one another. Merry Christmas.

Horri-Bull w/ Kreb [Age of the Primes/Target Exclusive 4-Pack]

Horri-Bull’s eyes opened. In front of him stood his partner, Kreb.

“What’s today?”

“EH?” returned the Nebulon, with all his might of spite. 

“What’s today, asshole?” said Horri-Bull.

“Today…” replied Kreb. “…it’s Christmas.”

“It’s Christmas Day!” said Horri-Bull to himself. “I haven’t missed it. The Spirits have done it all in one night. They can do anything they like. Of course they can. But so can I… HEAD ON!”

He had no further interaction with Spirits, but lived upon the ways of the Decepticon regardless, ever afterwards; and it was always said of him that he knew how to stop Christmas, if any bot alive possessed the knowledge. And so, as Tiny Tim observed, Take cover, everyone!

One thing I’ve grown to really appreciate about these Target Exclusive 4-Packs is the Headmasters created for the sets. Almost each time, there’s an updated classic Headmaster character creatively made from a Titans Return toy mold. This time we’ve got Horri-Bull, made from Titans Return Skullsmasher/Skullcruncher in a very clever remold. Actually, all of these Headmasters in the 4-Packs have been very clever remolds, and I’m thinking a look at ones I haven’t covered here on the site is in order.

Horri-Bull is known as Bullhorn in Masterforce, so if you’d rather use him as Bullhorn… go right ahead. I’m forever delighted by pun-based names, so I’ll stick with Horri-Bull. I don’t believe I covered Skullsmasher/Skullcruncher here on the site, which is another thing I should probably go back and do. I’ve also been considering an in-depth look at the Titan Masters from Titans Return, but for now, let’s look at our grumpy star of the season.

Horri-Bull is a pleasantly articulated toy that’s wonderfully blocky and chonky in the vein of classic G1 Transformers. Skullsmasher was a great base to use, as his basic silhouette isn’t all that different from Horri-Bull’s to begin with. Really, it’s his head, colors, and beast mode kibble that make the visual difference. This was seemingly easy (or as easy as new parts are probably still an undertaking) to accomplish, with the bull monster head and claws being new parts and Skullsmasher’s alligator tail being removed.

Also remolded is his chest, which you might think is missing a cover for the Headmaster technical data, but this is true to his original toy. Considering Titans Return toys were originally released almost a decade ago, the mold has held up pretty well, though his arms did feel a little loose. I’m guessing the mold got a bit of refurbishing with this update, but time still seems to be catching up. With his cool late-G1 colors, he looks great. I’ve always been a sucker for those post-movie Decepticon palettes.

He’s got both his Concussion Blaster and the beast mode tail, which becomes a double-barreled flamethrower. The two guns can be combined or held separately.

In beast mode, Horri-Bull is a cross between a bull and the Terror Dogs from Ghostbusters. So really, he’s a robotic incarnation of the Hodag in wonderful colors. Transformation is pretty easy: remove Kreb and fold the beast head into place. Arms and legs become the monster’s legs, and the robot mode feet fold around the upper thighs, becoming the beast’s rear end. As mentioned above, the two guns combine to form a tail.

Beast mode is simple but effective. The legs can move, most notably the front ones, and the jaws on his head can open for a little chomping action. Speaking of that head, the horns will need to be moved around a bit for the proper look in both robot and beast modes. They’re separate pieces that need to be clipped from sprues out of the package. The horns are also painted, so there will always be a small spot left from clipping unless you touch it up with paint.

Of course, Kreb can pilot Horri-Bull in this form via a cockpit on his back. I’ve always really liked that feature on Headmasters. Kreb himself is a remold of Grax (Skullsmasher’s Titan Master). I do wonder why they didn’t use the individual Titan Master Terri-Bull for this project. Maybe the mold wasn’t available? Weird.

Regardless, the whole package is another well-done Headmaster update pulled off in these 4-Packs. They’re really the highlight of each set for me, and I’ve always been especially fond of the Headmasters from Masterforce. All in all, this year’s set has been a really good one, and as always, I’m ecstatic to have it.

Primus bless us, everyone...RUN!

GET IN THE PITMAS

Holy crap it's Monday, where in the hell did the weekend go? Well, it's not just any Monday and the start of just any week. It's Christmas week! It's going to be one festive week spent with family and loved ones. That being said, I'm surprised anyone has the time to read this or even is reading this. If you're too busy, I understand. If you're right here, thank you so much for taking the time to check in on Planet Zone! 

I hope everyone had a great weekend. I was busy with last minute shopping and watching Christmas specials while wrapping presents. We did work in dinner with Mom at Outback Steakhouse. We've been eating there a lot lately, and for good reason. It's really freaking good! Of course I've got a lot to do today. Household chores and pictures to take for upcoming posts. It's about time I head to the post office to send out the last packages before the big day. I hope everyone has a great week and a Merry Christmas. Being a holiday week, we're going to have a reduced posting schedule. Guess it's about time to see who the Grumpy One is. This Christmas and the rest of the year, thank you all for reading Zone Base. Please remember to share with your friends and be excellent to one another. Mutual High Fives Everyone!

Nemesis Prime [Age of the Primes/Target Exclusive 4-Pack]

"I am in the presence of the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come?"

A solemn Phantom, dark and hooded, came like a mist along the ground toward him. The grumpy one bent down upon his knee; for in the very air through which this Spirit moved, it seemed to scatter gloom and mystery.

It was shrouded in deep black armor that concealed its form and left nothing visible save one outstretched axe. But for this, it would have been difficult to detach its figure from the night and separate it from the darkness by which it was surrounded.

He glanced toward the Phantom.

"Lead on. The night is waning fast, and it is precious time to me, I know. Lead on, Nemesis."

One reason I like things such as store-exclusive repaints is the deep dives they tend to take. Sure, to those not in the know, they’ll get the standard complaint: “another lazy repaint by Hasblow.” However, for those of us in the know, they’re pretty cool homages that aren’t always obvious. Today we’re looking at Nemesis Prime from this year’s Target Exclusive 4-Pack — the Voyager Class figure of the set, taking the Legacy Animated Optimus Prime mold and giving us an update of a previously very hard-to-get figure from the past.

Like I said in the Ultra Magnus post earlier this week, Optimus Prime toys tend to look good in any color. A black repaint is practically guaranteed with most Optimus toys. It’s another color scheme I always like as well, just like with Magnus. Normally these repaints are called Black Convoy in Japan — pretty straightforward. But here in the United States, they’re usually either named Scourge or Nemesis Prime.

Since this is a repaint of a toy I’ve covered previously, I’m going to focus on this version’s differences and what makes it special. I’ve linked to that post and its other repaint in case you’re not up to date on it. Also, I like the toy and want to show it off. Like a mama otter holding out her baby. Except I’m a grown-ass man and this is a robot toy. So instead of adorable, it’s kinda unsettling and you wish I’d stop.

Earlier I mentioned this was an update of a harder-to-get toy and then said black Optimus repaints happen fairly often. Both of those statements are true. Often the black repaint is an exclusive of some sort, and in the case of Optimus Prime Black Ver. (after the 2007 movie, Convoy was often called Optimus Prime in Japan), it was exclusive to the Transformers Museum event at the Seibu department store in 2010. If that didn’t already make it tricky to get, the release was limited to 300 pieces. There are probably a few hundred thousand of this new update available, so it’s a nice alternative.

Obviously Nemesis Prime is mostly black as opposed to Optimus’s red and blue. There’s also some nice metallic teal used for accents that contrasts really well against the dark body. His windshield and eyes are a dark red that looks menacing and fits perfectly. In robot mode, he has an alternate head with a mouth plate instead of Animated Optimus’s open-faced design. It’s a darker gray that pairs well with the rest of the deco, giving him a more threatening look.

Nemesis comes with the same axe weapon Optimus had. The blade is that same dark red used for the windows, and the whole package looks forbidden — like the outlook isn’t too good when this guy shows up.

The colors transfer nicely in truck mode, and Optimus’s lightbar makes a return as well. It plugs into the top of the cab. I guess you can technically use it as a weapon. A weird weapon, sure, but getting hit with one would still hurt. Nemesis Prime looks threatening in truck mode too thanks to the colors. I wouldn’t want to see him behind me in traffic… or in general.

The look of Animated Optimus Prime is stylized already, but it looks really sharp in these colors. Without the red, it’d be more slick than scary. Funny how much difference just one color can make, huh?

I’ve liked each instance of this mold, so it’s probably no surprise I like this toy as well. Frankly, it’s hard not to like something like this when you’re into this sort of thing. It hits all the right points and has more depth to it than a simple repaint normally offers. As a fan, I like that — and as a fan since the beginning, I remember seeing the original on the news sites. This one has a slightly different color scheme, which is fine. But still, it’s nice to finally have a version of this toy after all this time.

Weird… time seems to be a recurring subject this Christmas season.

Mutant Monsters Green Multi

Today’s Mutant Monster knockoff Mad Ball is named Green Multi on the Five Below website, but any Mad Balls fan knows exactly who this is — it’s Slobulus, just reincarnated as one of these glossy bouncy-ball freaks. Slobulus is a classic Mad Ball who shows up all the time in official and unofficial lines.

He’s a booger monster who’s often the butt of a joke, hates being the butt of a joke, and absolutely cannot tell a joke. But don’t mess with him — the dude can snort out snot hands. Fuck around and find out, I guess.

This is classic Slobulus all over: green skin, popped-out eyeball, boogers everywhere. He doesn’t have any hair here, which the real ones usually do… but knockoffs often skip that detail. Honestly, as a Mutant Monster he’s got a bit of a baby face, and it’s kind of cute. And of course he’s sporting the exposed yellow brains that at this point feel like the official hallmark of the Mutant Monsters line. On Green Multi they look infected — which, for a guy like him, totally tracks. You just know if he had legs, he’d be wearing a pair of grubby solid black sneakers. He’s that guy. I can practically smell him coming.

Dammit.

Ultra Magnus [Age of the Primes/Target Exclusive 4-Pack]

"Come in! Come in, and know me better, mech!"

The grumpy one entered timidly and hung his head before this Spirit. He was not the dogged grumpy mech he had been; and though its eyes were clear and kind, he did not like to meet them.

"I am the Ghost of Christmas Present," said the Spirit. "We have matters to deal with now."

I’ve said it before, but it’s worth saying again: Ultra Magnus’s cab mode looks spectacular. There’s just something about that classic Convoy design that looks great in any color. White though—white looks super nice.

This toy comes packaged in the currently available Transformers Age of the Primes Target Exclusive 4-Pack. The set doesn’t have a themed name like some have had in the past, or much of a specific theme either. It’s just a neat multi-pack, and I’ve been a big fan of these over the years. It’s one of the things I look forward to each year: Walmart’s exclusive capsule line and Target’s exclusive multi-pack. Well… Walmart kinda crapped their pants with the capsule this year, but Target’s set is another strong one. As with Bumper, whom we talked about last week, Ultra Magnus is another deluxe-class toy from the set. He’s a straight recolor of the Legacy G1 Optimus Prime toy I raved about earlier this year. Since it’s a straight recolor, I’m going to focus on what makes this version different.

One thing I really loved about that Optimus toy was how it remade the original figure with modern engineering, similar to a Masters of the Universe Origins release. It’s such a neat idea; I’d be all for it as the mainstream Transformers line. I know Missing Link is doing that, but I mean as the line available at general retail. It’d be so cool to see recreations of classic toys—considering Generations is mostly updates of those designs anyway, I think it’d be super popular. I’d like to think so, anyway.

Matching his G1 toy’s original deco, Magnus is mostly white with gray and silver parts. Bits of light blue are used throughout, giving him a slightly icy look. Just right for Christmas time. Ultra Magnus has the two different variations of G1 Optimus’s rifle that the base mold came with, now in white. I’ve always preferred the fatter version of the gun and think it looks much better—especially in white. Magnus also has a blue version of the Energon Axe, which is very similar to the Masterpiece MP-2 toy. It matches nicely with the various blue accents on his deco. Also like MP-2, there’s a silver version of the Matrix of Autobot Leadership that fits in his chest. It’s not unheard of for an Ultra Magnus toy to come with the Matrix since they’re often redecos of Optimus, but the silver Origin Matrix works well here. In this context, I like to think it represents the brief time Ultra Magnus carried the Matrix in the 1986 movie.

In truck mode, Magnus is once again a white version of the classic Convoy semi truck—missing his trailer in this release, of course. Like the Optimus toy, his tires are rubber, a nice throwback to the original G1 toy. I know there are issues with rubber tires popping off or dry-rotting with age, but I’ll be damned if they don’t feel nice and give the toy a higher-quality feel. Also like Optimus, Cybertronian Radial 275/80 R22 is molded into the tires. That’s a reference to the fictional tire brand from Transformers Alternators.

It’s been over 20 years and I’m still blown away by Alternators. They may not have been the most fun toys to transform, but they looked amazing. I have nothing bad to say about this toy. I love the idea of it, and I never get tired of cab-mode Ultra Magnus. It’s a great way to enjoy what came before in present-day design, and a solid part of a great 4-pack.

Almost X-MAS

Monday has reared it's ugly face again signaling the beginning of a new week. Fortunately you've got Zone Base to guide you through. I hope everyone had a great weekend, mine was extremely busy. Christmas shopping and housework took the majority of my time, not leaving me much time outside of Sunday dinner with the Mrs and my Mom. The Mrs made us a great taco dinner that I really enjoyed while rewatching Stranger Things. We're on schedule to have completely rewatch season 5 before the new episodes air. 

I actually did grab myself something, some Mr Beast Labs Swarms and Godzilla blind boxes... but didn't have time to open them yet. I said I was busy! Actually, I'm writing this before getting started on some more housework and working in pictures for upcoming posts. The holidays are specifically a hectic time, and mine keeps getting more so! Well, I hate to make this week's update so brief, but I don't think there's any other option. Things will calm down soon enough, but Zone Base will always have robots, monsters, and misadventure searing your eyeballs with chaos and awesomeness. Thank you all for reading, I really appreciate each and every one of you. Please share with your friends and be excellent to one another. Mutual High Fives everyone!

Autobot Bumper [Age of the Primes / Target Exclusive 4-Pack]

"I am the Ghost of Christmas Past."

The grumpy one then made bold to inquire what business brought him there. “Your spark!” said the Ghost. The grumpy one expressed himself much obliged, but couldn’t help thinking that a night of unbroken rest would have been more conducive to that end. The Spirit must have heard him thinking, for it said immediately: “Your reclamation, then. Take heed! For the seeds of the future lie buried in the past."

Bumper is an oddball Transformers who’s been around since the beginning but has only really been a character for about the past 20 years. As has been said more times than necessary, the bulk of the original Transformers toys from 1984/1985 came from Diaclone and Microman molds. Bumblebee and Cliffjumper specifically came from the Microman Micro Change line. They shared engineering — essentially the same toy skeleton with different car parts and robot heads.

Another robot from that Micro Change series was MC-04 Mini CAR Robo 02 Familia 1500XG. Same engineering again, but transforming into a Mazda Familia 1500XG as the name suggests. All of these toys came in multiple colors, but it’s common to see this one in yellow. When the molds were used for Transformers, Bumblebee and Cliffjumper were released in their familiar yellow and red. Though, as many know, reversed-color versions also slipped out. During that weird early era, the Mazda mold ended up released in Cliffjumper packaging in yellow. Rumors persist that it also came in Bumblebee packaging, but no packaged sample has ever surfaced, while Cliffjumper-labeled ones are plentiful.

Plenty of speculation says Hasbro may have intended the Mazda toy to be its own character and that’s what caused the weird release — but nobody knows for sure now. It’s just one of those oddities from the strange early years of Transformers. Multiple toy lines mashed together to create a single brand. It’s been 41 years and we’re still discovering things from that time. The toy was widely known as “Bumblejumper” in the fandom for years, eventually shortened to Bumper by some. During the Dreamwave comics era, he was made an official character and officially named Bumper. Twenty years after being released seemingly by mistake, he finally became part of the team!

Bumper has always been special to me. Not just because getting one back in the day meant a lot, but also because I once had a cat named Bumper. I remember bringing that kitten home from the store, watching him roam around the living room while I tried to think of a name. I wanted a Transformers name… let’s see… Eject… Swerve… BONK! He walked head-first into the wall. Bumper. And that was that. All these years later, Bumper finally gets an official toy actually named Bumper — only his second ever. Imagine how slighted he must feel.

The figure itself is a remold/repaint of Studio Series 86 Bumblebee. I talked about that figure in a prior post, so most of the ins and outs are there, but let’s look at what makes Bumper different. Obviously he has a new head sculpt faithful to the original Micro Change toy. It’s hard to notice without comparing them directly, but he’s a different shade of yellow. Headlights are colored a little differently. His Autobot symbol has a silver border, making it look more like the stickers from the original toys — a nice touch I really appreciate, probably thanks to my early-2000s Mini-Bot obsession. It wasn’t uncommon to see one in my messenger bag back then. These days a Legion/Legend Class Bumblebee lives in my sling bag. Guess some things never change.

When Studio Series Bumblebee released, a lot of fans scoffed at his very angular car mode. Robot mode was perfect, but the car was off-model from the classic VW Bug. As Bumper though, it works so much better. Not exactly a Mazda Familia… but close enough. I really like this toy, and that carries over here. Guess I just like these guys. Bumper has the same gun as Bumblebee, now molded in a gunmetal color. It can store on his backside in car mode. It’s probably no surprise that I like this toy — the base mold is one I already loved, and the old-school fan in me appreciates the new Bumper figure even more. I spent more time looking at the past than the present with this one, but a toy like Bumper is the type that makes you look back.

Mutant Monsters Gray Multi

Today’s Mutant Monster knockoff Mad Ball is listed as Gray Multi on Five Below’s website… which is a pretty wild name for a guy who’s mostly blue, but whatever. Gray Multi is a very direct knockoff of Repvile. Repvile is a reptilian monster who, after years of being a boogeyman and scaring kids, learned about Swamp Thing and decided swamp-life was the way to go.

For whatever reason I always wanted to call him Cretin. He just looks like the mascot of an early 90’s punk band in ball form. You can practically see him painted on a drum kit or slapped on stickers the band hands out after shows. I’d have absolutely stuck him on my school notebook and then immediately gotten made fun of by the kids who were “cooler” than me. Man, I do not miss those days of never being able to do anything right according to other kids. Regardless, it would’ve been a cool sticker — and it’s a cool Mad Ball design.

His Mutant Monster incarnation is pretty spot-on. A little more smoothed out than the official one, and of course featuring those exposed yellow brains that might just be the Mutant Monsters’ signature trait. These guys seem to be more in the bouncy-ball lane compared to the foam official Mad Balls, and that thicker coating gives Gray Multi a shinier, wetter finish than Repvile ever had. I don’t mind it, but it’s definitely noticeable. It’s really cool seeing this design again as a Mutant Monster. I genuinely hope this little line keeps going — I dig it

Optimus Primal Beast [Classic Class]

Megatron was as dead as a door-nail. This must be distinctly understood, or nothing wonderful can come of the story I am about to relate. I don't mean to say that I know, of my own knowledge, what exactly is so dead about a door-nail. Death and suffering meant nothing to the grumpy one. Punishment and enslavement were the credo of his ilk. Yet on one Christmas Eve… as the fleshlings called it… while in his chamber, the grumpy one heard a voice.

“I am here tonight to warn you, that you have yet a chance and hope of escaping my fate.”

I've been sitting on this kit from Transformers: Rise of the Beasts far too long — at least a year — and I assembled it one night during my Thanksgiving holiday break. I am so glad I did, because it was so fun to do. One thing that makes these model kits so enjoyable is watching the process come together. You just have a bunch of parts, and one by one, it assembles into this nice action figure once everything is all done. Some kits are more involved than others, some more difficult as well. Blokees are known to be easy builds, but their larger kits are much more involved than the blind-box releases we usually look at here on the site. Honestly, I assumed Optimus here would just be a few parts based on his beast mode, and was happy to be wrong.

This is a Classic Class, which seems to be the naming system used for the larger Blokees kits from the movies, as opposed to the Action Class used for kits like G1 Soundwave. It's a much nicer and larger figure once completed. Of course they don't transform, so this is Optimus Primal in his beast mode, with another kit that represents the robot mode also available. One thing that really stands out is the light in his head that lights up his eyes and mouth. I find that very neat, and really like the green glow it casts. The light is activated by shaking Optimus and turns off on its own. Thankfully, instructions for changing its battery were included, as I’m sure it’ll burn through it fast with that activation method.

One thing I noticed is the plastic used in this kit is a little softer than what you'd find in a Flame Toys or Bandai kit. When I'd clip a part off the sprue with my nippers, it was a clean cut. There wasn't much cleanup required on the part itself. I'm not sure if that was due to the softer material... but I liked it. It reminded me a little of the vinyl model kits companies like Screamin put out in the 90's. I saw a Jason Voorhees kit of theirs at Toylanta a few years back, still sealed in its box. Considering those things were made of vinyl, I still wonder if it was melted into one giant lump inside that box. Fortunately, Optimus isn't made of vinyl, but that softer plastic makes it impossible not to compare.

Speaking of the plastic, Optimus is all one color aside from the green light in his head. Before anyone scoffs about that, it's true to his movie appearance, which this kit is based on. In fact, the sculpting is pretty on par with his CGI model. It's really sharp looking, and the black color has an inky tone I found really nice. If it was just a standard black color, the details of the sculpt would get easily lost and the whole thing would just look cheap.

Optimus is very well articulated once assembled. He can stand on his rear legs or walk on his knuckles like a real gorilla. Even his mouth opens, which shows off more of that wonderful green light! There are 3 sets of interchangeable hands as well: closed fists for punching, a variation of those fists with his thumb splayed out for a more natural look when walking on all fours, and a nice open-palmed set to give more expression in poses where you can see him talking. In fact, the entire thing is so expressive, you can really see him narrating a story.

I didn't include his base in the pictures, but there's a nice one included for display purposes, complete with decals and swoosh effects. Overall this is a really nice model kit that becomes a high-quality action figure once assembled. It's a very faithful version of Optimus Primal in beast mode as he appeared in Rise of the Beasts, and I'm sure it could recreate a number of his scenes. Admittedly, I find it impossible to take any fault with a Blokees product... but this one is really good. I kind of regret taking so long to build him, but pretty glad I did it on Thanksgiving. Almost made for a perfect analogy for the holiday, you know.

Bah Monday

Good Morning Zone Base readers and welcome back for another week of robots, monsters, and misadventure! Christmas time is in full swing here on Planet Zone and there's plenty of Rock Lording around the Christmas tree going on! The weekend went by way to fast for my liking, but I can still say it was a pretty good and productive one. I hope you all had a great weekend as well, but let me tell you about mine. Saturday the Mrs and I did our weekly shopping. For whatever reason, the grocery order at our local stores has been terrible so we did that in person again. I'd love to get back on our normal routine, but these are things that are out of my hands. I've been saying for years now that our most local store needs new management, so hopefully this will lead to some improvements. It's so bad that stores in other towns are being affected negatively and I'm sure that's causing some uproar behind the scenes. Christmas just isn't the time for retail to drop the ball!

I got some Christmas shopping done and I'm feeling pretty positive about this holiday season. Normally it's a more stressful time, but this year has thankfully been a breeze. It's nice to just enjoy Christmas without the black cloud hanging over my head. Sunday, I finally got my yard decorated. I know it's still early in the month, but seeing as this task is usually done Thanksgiving weekend, it was really bothering me. I got started early and really feel like I did a great job. It's a lot of work, but you can really stand back and admire the prettiness of it all once done. We've got a pretty cozy theme with our decorations and I love it. 

Mom came over for Sunday dinner and the Mrs made an excellent spaghetti meal! It was pretty cold outside, so after spending most of the day stapling lights to my house as well as some car maintenance, the warm meal tasted extra great! We watched the second episode of Stranger Things season 5 with Mom who is very concerned about Dustin. Rewatching it after the initial binge watch on release is great. I'm definitely enjoying the chance to digest it fully before the new episodes. After she left, the Mrs and I watched Home Alone while she played a game and I started work on building a BeastDrive. I've got a big backlog and it's fun to spend a little time building a kit on the weekend. I probably could have finished it, but took my time. I was a little tired after the busy day. Maybe next weekend it'll get completed, there's no rush.

Being Christmas time, I didn't buy myself anything, but didn't come away empty handed! I was pleasantly surprised to discover that I had won a Yolopark giveaway on Threads and am looking forward to receiving a randomly selected kit in the mail! It's been far too long since I've looked at Yolopark's products here on the site, and there's no way this won't be a future post! There was also a few fan events in Japan that I greatly enjoyed looking at pictures from. Most notably, a Diaclone meetup that featured some hand made items that looked so great! I found myself really liking the custom pilots created. It's really funny, while not a lot of pictures were taken at the event (a sign everyone was having a great time), plenty were taken afterwards at various convenience stores. It's impossible not to love toy pictures while someone is enjoying a quick snack! 

Well, I've got a fun week planned for you Zone Base readers. Thank you all for reading and supporting the site. I really appreciate it and am so humbled and honored to see so many people take time out of their day to read my posts. Please don't forget to share the site with your friends and be excellent to one another. It's time to do some household chores and take toy pictures for upcoming updates. The normal Monday morning for me, but I should really watch the new Earthspark movies on Paramount Plus. I'm really surprised they made additional content for the series and am looking forward to Hot Rod and Liege Maximo! Mutal High Fives everyone, let's get this week started!

Devastator [Defender Version]

Today we’ll be looking at the Blokees Defender Version of Devastator, which was a bit of a project to take on. The vehicle mode Constructicons were released across Defender Version series 01–03. These are blind boxes, so that could be a challenge unless you buy the entire case — which is what I try to do. Then you’re required to buy the combining parts kit to merge the vehicles into Devastator. That doesn’t sound like a lot here as I’m typing it, but explaining it can be confusing for some folks.

People get hung up on the whole Defender Version vs Galaxy Version thing, too. The devil’s in the details, and somewhere somebody’s so confused they’re trying to buy hot dogs at Arby’s and getting really pissed off in the process.

One thing to be mindful of when buying the parts kit is that it’s only $4.99 from Blokees themselves. I’ve seen shady dealers trying to pass it off for a lot more — in some cases around $50. I’ve also seen various sources claiming Blokees isn’t allowed to sell it in America or other countries. That isn’t true for the U.S. anymore, as I easily bought it. Just be careful out there and make good decisions. Some of these assholes are trying to rip you off. 

Once you have all the needed parts, you can assemble the MIGHTY DEVASTATOR!

Before we do that, let’s take a quick look at the individual Constructicons themselves. Some of the characters are available in robot mode as either Defender or Galaxy Versions. They’re really neat, but I feel like the vehicles are pretty great too. They’re about the size of a Mini-Con in alt mode, and there’s just something undeniably charming about a set of six little construction vehicles. They’re fun to push around all on their own. I’m particularly fond of Mixmaster’s tiny mixing drum.

The parts kit comes with an instruction manual that I ended up using more than I thought I would. Some parts need to be removed and will not get reused in the final product, so make sure you store them somewhere safe for later. For the most part, the arm guys (Bonecrusher and Scavenger) plug right into place with the lower arms attaching. Scrapper and Mixmaster form the lower legs and it’s not super difficult. Scrapper’s combined mode is fairly reminiscent of the G1 toy, which I liked. You’ll have to remove Mixmaster’s front wheels for Devastator’s stability — you can leave them on, but it creates an uneven foot.

The thighs plug into the leg guys and then into the hips. Devastator’s torso is formed from Hook and Long Haul… really the whole process is very similar to combining the G1 toy. You’ll have to assemble Devastator’s Solar Energy Beam Rifle. Transformers fans of a certain age probably see this weapon when their eyes are closed. I’m glad it was included — sometimes these older weapons get replaced with a generic blaster, and this one is an unmistakable shape.

When assembling Devastator’s head, you get two choices: a static toy-style face or an angry RAWR face. I went with the latter, but you can swap them out as you please. Once assembled, Devastator is AWESOME. He forms a much larger kit than you’d assume given the smaller components — around Voyager-size — and has plenty of articulation. It’s pretty impressive just how expressive he is… especially with the angry face. Normally combiners are a mixed bag when it comes to movement. Classic ones were pretty basic due to their construction. Newer ones have a decent range of motion, but stability tends to negate that. This version, however, is basically an action figure that can hit all sorts of poses. Neat!

I doubt I’ll ever stop singing the praises of Blokees, and considering they’ve got a team of Combaticons coming next… the music is probably never ending. I’m really impressed by this set, and completing it feels like an achievement. Feels good man.

Mutant Monsters Orange

It’s far past time I take a look at Mad Balls here on the site. Like a lot of kids in the 80s, I loved gross things — slime, Garbage Pail Kids, and of course Mad Balls. I’ve picked up various gross-out toys on and off over the years, and Mad Balls have always been a constant because they’re just freaking great.

When I got my most recent batch, it hit me: I’ve never covered them on Zone Base. What the heck? Time to fix that with a look at the new Mutant Monsters balls that have been popping up at Five Below and in Target’s Dollar Spot. The Mrs. grabbed me three of the six currently available… and I’ll absolutely need the other three. These are awesome.

Mutant Monsters are seemingly unlicensed knockoff Mad Balls, basically copying older official designs. And look, I don’t mean to come on too strong here, but… knockoff Mad Balls? Inject that straight into my veins.

They don’t have official names, so I’m going by what Five Below uses — just color descriptions. Weirdly, I kind of love how plain that is. From here on out, I’m just talking about each ball individually. Consider this your required preamble. Moving on.

Orange is one of the more unique Mutant Monsters, leaning closer to an original design. I say closer because it’s clearly playing off Alien with the facehugger-like creature latched onto its head. There was an official Mad Ball with that gag in one of the Horror Series lines, so it’s not totally new… but this version leans more into mutant/alien territory, with a green creature gripping a red head. You might think it has blonde hair in the pictures, but nope — those are exposed yellow brains. Yellow is an odd choice, but honestly? With the rest of the colors going on here, it works.

I’m also not sure why it’s called Orange when it skews more red, but hey, that’s knockoffs for you. The color isn’t even consistent — some spots are lighter, some darker. The monster itself has three angry, bloodshot eyes, and the sculpt reminds me of something you’d fight in classic Doom or Quake. Actually… anybody remember Bio-Freaks?

Orange is a really neat looking Mad Ball — or Sad Ball, as knockoffs are sometimes called. These seem to be more bouncy-ball style rather than the usual foam of the official ones, complete with a glossy finish that makes him look a little moist. Which is perfectly gross.

Hot Rod [Galaxy Version 08– One Shall Fall]

It’s been a little while since I’ve covered a Galaxy Version Blokees kit here — honestly, a little too long, considering my pile of unassembled Blokees continues to grow — but it’s time to fix that with a look at Hot Rod from Galaxy Version 08 – One Shall Fall. As the name of this case suggests, there’s a heavy 1986 movie flavor to this set, and I am absolutely here for it.

You know, I like Blokees for several reasons. For example: I enjoy building robot models, I like blind boxes, and I obviously love Transformers — to name just a few. But another big reason is that they remind me a little of the Takara Transformers SCF figures from the early 2000s. Of course, those were PVC figurines and not AMK kits, but the blind boxes, themed series, and proportions give them a similar charm. I loved those and I love these. Honestly, I would've been totally content back then just buying SCF figures… and I’m kinda leaning that way these days with Blokees. They're clearly singing a song I want to hear.

I haven’t gotten any of the 08 kits yet, but while ordering the Devastator parts kit, I snuck in an 08 to tide me over until getting a full case. Lucky for me, inside the mystery box was the new Hot Rod figure — and boy, was I excited! Hot Rod/Rodimus Prime is among my favorites in Transformers, and a specifically 1986 representation of Hot Rod is going to get me excited in the way only a rabid fan can. Careful, I’ve got a box knife.

One particularly fun addition to this figure is Hot Rod’s fishing pole. When he first appears in the movie, Hot Rod is fishing with Daniel and catches a big one. It’s a cozy little scene that helps show their relationship. However, his “big one” in Blokees form is a tiny Sharkticon! I didn’t notice it immediately from promo pictures, but upon opening the box I was ecstatic to see the little creature dangling from the end of his line. Seriously, be careful — I’ll cut someone. The dragon commands it.

We can’t ignore the elephant in the room, because it’s an elephant. They’re huge. Who even let it in here anyway? Don’t they know I have a box knife and a dragon giving orders? It hungers. Obvious to fans of the 1986 movie is that Hot Rod has his traditional colors here and not the pink/fuchsia colors he appears in the film with. All his toys and his Season 3 appearances use the darker red/magenta we’re used to. There’s been very little merchandise in his show-accurate colors — most notably the Retro Series release from a while back. Luckily, most folks don’t really care either way, which is good because it allows us to carry on and not get bogged down in semantics.

One huge difference in the new kits in 08 is another round of improvements. The past few Galaxy Version series had adopted a newer construction style that provided a more stable build. As far as I can tell, starting with this series, they’ve improved the kits even more! Not only does Hot Rod have the stronger upper torso, but now the hips and thighs feature more articulation. There are thigh swivels, and the hips allow for greater torso movement. Hot Rod’s abdomen can even dip into the waist, allowing for more expressive and dynamic poses. I’m extremely impressed with this innovation — this is something that generally costs 5–6 bucks and features articulation usually reserved for more expensive toys. That’s neat!

Hot Rod comes with the aforementioned fishing pole as well as his saw blade attachment. He used it fighting off underwater creatures after he and Kup crash-landed in a body of water on Quintessa. The blade spins, and maybe he plans to use it on that Sharkticon at the end of his fishing line. The saw blade plugs into the forearm where one of the included hands would go. Of course, those hands are the typical closed fists and open palms normally included with Blokees kits.

Not included, however, is the display base — something I’ve been expecting to eventually disappear. At some point, the little Autobot/Decepticon symbols for the bases were discontinued, and now the base itself is gone completely. I’m not sure if that started in 08 or happened during 07, which I still haven’t gotten yet. I’m not terribly sad to see the base go, but I always thought its inclusion was neat. I’m assuming the new parts ate into the budget.

This is an awesome AMK kit of Hot Rod that’s full of character and expression. I continually can’t find anything I don’t like in Blokees products, and the ongoing improvements just keep making them better overall. Not to mention — dude, Hot Rod. I like him.

Mega Monday

The holiday break is sadly over and it's time to start another work week, HOWEVER, it's also time to get back to the robots, monsters, and misadventure! I've got a fun week of content coming for your eyeballs this week, but first, let me tell you about this holiday break I had. It started Wednesday with a relaxing evening at home with the Mrs. We watched the new episodes of Stranger Things while making some dishes for Thanksgiving dinner. We'd watch an episode and make a dish. Watch an episode and make a dish. Things like pies and cranberry sauce that can be made ahead to save on the crunch time. The new episodes were great and I'm really marveling at how much the show has changed since it began. Rewatching it this past summer was a great idea.

Thursday was Thanksgiving and we started the day watching the big parade as we always do. I've been watching it my entire life and still love doing so. Though, in the future, I may start watching the alternative presentations. I really just want to watch the floats and balloons. While some of the musical productions are neat, I really don't care. I've discovered an alternate camera angle edition of the show on Peacock where I watch it and know of some other showings. Regardless, it was great seeing Spider-Man, Mario, Pac-Man, Pokémon, and Labubu making appearances. 

We spent a few hours at My Mother's house afterwards. My brother and his family came over and we all enjoyed dinner together. Of course with Christmas coming, there was a lot of opportunities to get ideas for gifts. The Mrs is an excellent gift giver, but you always need inspiration for the right ones! My brother is an outdoorsman and does a lot of livestreaming in relation. It's kind of funny seeing how his hobbies and mine are so vastly different... but use the same internet to interact with others. It also helps me figure out what to get him because I know nothing of the great outdoors. 

Afterwards,  the Mrs and I had our own Thanksgiving dinner Thursday evening. It was so good as she is an excellent cook. This may have been her best turkey yet! We spent the evening watching Most Extreme Elimination Challenge while I built Blokees and she played a game. It was time to rest as Black Friday neared. We initially planned to get up super early and stand in line at Target... but slept in instead. That turned out to have been a good idea as the gift bags Target gave out to the first 100 customers turned out to be a bust. They promised the moon and stars only to deliver a pile of turds. Oh well!

Friday was spent doing an amazing amount of Christmas shopping. Like, an amazing amount. According to my Galaxy Watch, I got nearly 10,000 steps in and I believe it! We started shopping in November, but took advantage of the sales to really get a lot of stuff. Today is the first of December and we're mostly done... though I've got the feeling we're going to still go nuts. We always spoil each other at Christmas and love getting our loved ones just the right things. While I focused on others, I did grab a few things for myself. Specifically some Mr Beast Labs Swarms.

I know alot of folks on social media take issue with him, I hardly have an idea who he is. However, his line of toys is really great. He partnered with Moose Toys whom have made a lot of fun stuff. Some I've even talked about here. Swarms are something I specifically like. Years prior, Moose Toys made Trash Pack and Grossery Gang. A series of awesome keshi with gross out designs I really enjoyed. Swarms are something of a spiritual successor to those with similar designs and some really cool monsters! I got a few packs happily as well as a neat 3D printed lizard figit toy from Five Below. Speaking of Five Below, they had a great series of troll dolls as classic movie monsters! I got Michael Myers! I was a big fan of trolls as a kid and feel a little of that love seeing these! So cool! Not to be left out, a Stranger Things blind pack. I got a Demogorgan in slime!

Saturday we went grocery shopping in person as holidays are a terrible time for grocery orders. Afterwards, we found ourselves checking out a different Target before enjoying a nice dinner at Outback Steakhouse. I got some more Swarms, actually there's a neat Target exclusive Christmas series. I think I've got the distribution figured out and just need two more packs to complete it. We actually discovered another newer brand of tiny toys while there that the Mrs fell in love with. Wigglitz is a delightful series of tiny 3D printed segmented animals that come on a variety of sculpts and colors. They're part figit toy and part collectible. She got several packs and Ginger the pink wolf accompanied us to dinner.

Saturday night we decorated the inside of our house for Christmas which included putting up our new tree! It's a big 7 and a half feet tall featuring pre-installed lights that can be controlled with a remote for a variety of functions. Man, living in the future sure is neat! Sunday I had planned to decorate the yard and house, but a rainy day changed those plans. Hopefully the weather will be better next week. Instead I did chores and built Blokees while watching more Most Extreme Elimination Challenge. You know, I watch old episodes of that regularly... but I think I got the entire series in over the break. Mom came over for Sunday dinner, we had Christmas tacos! We also showed Mom the first episode of the new Stranger Things season. We'll probably get an episode in each week up until the new batch of episodes at the end of the month. I'm not looking forward to it ending, but happy that it seems to be on a high note. 

Well, I've got some stuff to do. I actually wrote this while running errands and doing chores. Ironically I talked about Wigglitz while refilling the bird seed on our porch. We always keep some out there, but now that it's winter, we're keeping extra. There's not alot for them to eat while it's cold, so we try to help. Actually, let me get on a soap box for a second. You've probably seen a lot of self righteous assholes on social media telling you what to think and who to give money to (it's always something that benefits them magically). Just try to be a good person and help out when and how you can. If it feels right, it usually is and those dipshits are just out for clout anyway. Don't listen to redundant mother fuckers and if that includes me, then I understand. I don't make a dime off this site, so whatever. Zone Base is just a way for me to enjoy my hobbies with whomever wants to enjoy them with me. Thank you all for reading and supporting actual independent thought. We're getting back to normal this week after the break, but we're going to have one fun Christmas here on Planet Zone! Please don't forget to share with your friends, look after your loved ones, and take care of each other. Mutual High Fives everyone!