Dinobot Snarl [Cyberworld/Cyber Changers]

It's always a treat for me to talk about a Snarl toy around Halloween. As I've mentioned many more times than any of you probably care about, I was Snarl for Halloween in the 2nd grade. Ever since then, he's not only been associated with the holiday, but also kept a special place in my heart. Cozy vibes, know what I mean?

This newest version of Snarl from Transformers Cyberworld is a fun new take on the Desert Warrior. He's painted more in traditional Junkion colors as opposed to the bright red and silver we're used to normally seeing him in. He's also got a slight Mad Max look, which is something recent Junkions from Legacy had. A Mad Max vibe fits a Desert Warrior pretty well.

I dig it.

Snarl has the same uniformity other Cyber Changers have and engineering template Megatron and Galvatron use. Between the shared engineering and uniformity, the designers clearly found a way to keep it Cyberworld cost effective. There's a neat GI JOE-ness to this line, it's like what Action masters would have been like if the figures transformed. I really like the smallness of the figures. Not just because I like small toys, but there's a real pleasantness in them. There's been other lines that I thought were too big for their designs. This is just right, the size and simpleness is downright satisfying.

They're neat.

Snarl's weapon is a spiked club type thing made from the dinosaurs tail.
Non-de script melee weapons are pretty on brand for beast warriors and this looks like it'd hurt like hell if he hit you with it. In the Cartoon, Snarl runs like Naruto. Part of me likes to imagine him being a ninja, which is hilarious considering this giant weapon. Though it definitely fits Cyberworld's video game setting. His stegosaurus mode reminds me of a Starrior like Galvatron did. There's older toy DNA in these designs and I really appreciate it.

Candy Corn and Vengeance

This move seemed to always play on a local station on random Saturday afternoons when I was a kid. I'd usually flip across it during a scary part, watch for a second, and get told to mow the grass. I really appreciate it as an adult. It's a great little movie where the bad guys are the main characters. Last year, I watched it on Halloween night after all the trick or treaters stopped coming. The Mrs had fallen asleep on the couch and I had a bag of candy corn. It made for a very pleasant way to close out the spooky season. Think I'll spend another pumpkin spiced night with it this year again. Just need some candy corn.

Tyrannosaurus [Mighty Morphin Power Rangers Re-Ignition/Combinable Dinozord]

It's odd. Feels just like the other day I was welcoming Hasbro's Power Ranger toys with open arms only to be doing that now for Playmates take on the teenagers with attitude. It's an odd change, but one of the steps we're seeing of Hasbro being more of an IP owner than a toy manufacturer. I don't know how far this walk will end up being, but it's fascinating to watch. Regardless, it's good news because Playmates makes GREAT toys. Power Rangers goes in line with their Monsterverse Kaiju action figures and so far they seem to be on a pretty positive path.

My main focal point with their MMPR output for the time being is their Dinozords. Next year they have a pretty interesting mini line coming that I want to get my hands on... but that's next year. This current set of Zords are a combinable team that once completed will form the Dino Megazord from the original Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. Or for you Super Sentai fans, Daizyuzin from Kyōryū Sentai Zyuranger. I'm not 100% sure, but it feels like the same design team that made Playmates Voltron were behind this set. I liked their Voltron toys, so that's a positive. Like those Lions, these are big chunky bots that are very similar to the Bandai designs that came before them. There's obviously some differences, but that original DNA is still here.

Today we'll be taking a look at the Tyrannosaurus. The Tyrannosaurus is a Deluxe figure from the assortment with the Deluxe classification owing to it's size. It and the Mastodon are larger toys. All the Dinozords cost $23.98 at my local Walmart, so I'm not sure if deluxes are intended to cost more or not. There's probably some tariff offsetting in that pricing to be fair. Still, $120 for all five isn't bad. Considering the size (they're BIG), I'm not complaining. Tyrannosaurus is a nice hefty dino full of big chonky robot vibes. There's a decent amount of articulation in his legs that clicks satisfyingly when moved. Earlier I said the Bandai DNA is present and it really is. This feels 100% like holding a big ass Gobot and I fucking love it. They did a great job and I'm really looking forward to the rest of the set and building the Megazord.

1-900-660-UGLY

It's Friday night. You're warming up a frozen pizza in the oven while playing SEGA. Maybe after the pizza is done, you'll watch a scary movie. It's Halloween time after all, time for some creepy fun. Hey... how about calling that scary phone hotline? Heck yeah! This will be great! Time to take a JOURNEY INTO TERROR!

originally posted 9/30/22 

Bumblebee [Cyberworld/Armored Cyber Changers]

In the Cyberworld, Bumblebee finds himself in some challenging predicaments. As an Armored Cyber Changer, he's packing a big gun that he acquired in a loot box around episode 3. It's uh... normal gun sized in the show. It's also worth nothing, Optimus gets his traditional energy axe in the same episode, but the toy doesn't come with one. I really wonder what all got left on the drawing board with this series.

Of course an Armored Cyber Changer is a Cyber Changer toy with a big honking accessory, which is the big gun I was just talking about. It's kinda neat, if a little hard to describe. Basically, it's a big... block with two bladed weapons plugged into the sides. The bladed weapons can sit to the side or be positioned on top of the block, which is suggested as intended for vehicle mode. The blades can detach and held individually or plugged into the sides of his arms. When doing this, the block can store on his back and kind of looks like a jet pack. To be honest, I'm a little confused by this gun as it's basically a bunch of parts stuck together. There's a peg in the front which makes me wonder if a gimmick of combining these was planned. Just like the ports along the Cyber Changer bodies. Either something using them was planned... or is on the way. I think the gun works better in vehicle mode, just seems to fit naturally.

Bumblebee looks to be in the standard 'car bot' template that according to leaks will be the norm. Like the other Cyber Changers, he's firmly in the uniformity of the line. I really like that uniformity with these Cyber Chagers and I can't quite place why. Articulation is basic, yet serviceable. Articulation for arms at shoulders, legs at waist with knee joints. They're satisfyingly simple. Bumblebee (and other car bots) makes me think of G2 toys like Rapido, Gobots, Drench, Deluge, etc. There's a similarity despite having a little more articulation. I'd love to see some of those characters in Cyberworld. I really like Bumblebee's sculpt, though it's a little hidden in the yellow. I'm sure customizers out there will paint theirs up to bring out that detail.

Transformation is easy and goes exactly the way you'd expect. Sports car mode is blocky and reminds me a little of Armada Hot Shot. As mentioned prior, the gun looks a lot better in vehicle mode and with those ports can be used in a variety of ways. I swear there's a modular play pattern that isn't completely pointed out for some reason. I understand Cyberworld isn't going to be for everyone, but I'm loving it's creative designs and satisfyingly simple toys. Bumblebee is the first of the standard Autobot car bot and leads as a positive example. I'm really looking forward to future cars that follow.

Jaseiken Necromancer? I hardly know you!

A scary video game is just the right thing to spend an evening with during the spooky season. If you're like me, you'll love older games like Jaseiken Necromancer. Between it's H.R Giger art (which was all the rage at the time) and scary twist on the RPG video game formula, it stood out. I really love the commercial itself too. The excellent miniatures and stop motion monsters really create a cool and creepy production. Just pure character in atmosphere.

Tag, you're Monday

Hey Zone Base readers, it's time for another week of robots, monsters, and misadventure! I had a great weekend and hope you did too! It was a pretty relaxing weekend spent with the Mrs. Saturday, after dinner, I put together a new shelf for her Popmart and similar toys. Sunday was spent playing video games, building Blokees, and dinner with Mom watching Stranger Things. The Mrs made a wonderful chicken dinner that I'm definitely taking leftovers to work!

As for toys, there was some great finds. The Synergex MechaGodzilla Optimus Prime FINALLY came in. I have no clue what took so long, but now G-Force has help with that Godzilla version Megatron running amuck. I also got the Cyberworld Scorponok toy who is HUGE. I've been talking about the older robot toy DNA in Cyberworld and Scorponok is full of it. Speaking of old robot DNA, I picked up the Studio Series 86 Constructicons 2 pack. Just 3 more to complete that set! Speaking of halfway there, I grabbed the Triceratops Dinozord for the Playmates Megazord.

Next weekend I plan to get the Sabertooth Tiger, which may be the extent of Zords for a minute. The Mastodon and Pterodactyl seem to be in a second wave, so some waiting looks to be in the cards. Last but not least, a trip to Five Below for Halloween Peeler candy led to some fun. I got a Halloween Peanuts set of figures and a Boo Hollow figurine. Spooky fun! I also finally found the bootleg robot toys many had been speaking about online. I grabbed Mad Whirler, a helicopter bot whoms source mold I can't determine yet. Looks familiar though. 

Well, it's time for me to run some errands before taking some pictures for upcoming posts. My plan for more model posts is still in play, but planning is also in order. I think it'll be fun. Clearly you all like the Blokees posts and I love them! We're just 2 weeks into the Halloween party with even more to go! It's so fun making Zone Base, thank you all for reading! It means so much that all of you take time to enjoy our fandom together. Mutual High Fives everyone, please share the site with your friends! 

Sky-Byte [Age of the Primes/Voyager Class]

It's pretty cool that I get to talk about two different new Sky-Byte toys this close to one another. Even better, both are really neat. Today we'll be talking about the new Voyager Sky-Byte figure from Transformers Age of the Primes. Like most Generations releases, this is an update of the original toy using modern engineering... and they nailed it! This is literally the original Sky-Byte toy with a bunch of extra articulation.

The improvements are specifically noticeable in shark mode, where his head can be moved around to mimic his appearance in the show Robots in Disguise (2001) in which he stole the fan bases heart. It's funny, considering the original toy was a repaint of a Beast Wars toy (Transmetal 2 Cybershark) that sat on clearance for quite some time. Yet later reached stardom thanks to that show. It's still one of my favorites and is always good to see one of the characters get some attention in the mainline.

Like I said, this new figure improves upon the original adding a great deal of articulation and improving on other things. Most noticeably, the sharks body is no longer curved. The sides of the shark become giant dramatic shoulder armor in robot mode. Not being curved makes this much more pleasant, look better, and not potentially get in the way of the arms. Those shoulder pads plug into place, so you can wiggle them around while transforming for extra part clearance. Sky-Byte has a something extra in terms of weapons as well. Those pectoral fins can be used as little swords... which I found pretty neat. His gun no longer features firing missiles but still retains the originals look. I've never cared much for it, but appreciate the effort. Honestly this is a near perfect update of the beloved original toy.

My only complaint isn't a complaint about the actual toy itself, just wishing it had paint apps the original had. Being such an improvement of the original... I can't help but to wish he had that fabulous chrome. I know it can flake over time, but it looks marvelous. That and it'd been nice if his Spark Crystal had been painted. I really liked the Spark Crystals from Transmetal 2 and when they carried over with reuses of those molds it just made me happy. So really, that's it. No actual complaints. Just wishing for a few extras that would have been appreciated. Sky-Byte was such a great character that he's managed to become a mainstay of the Transformers brand. Part of me hopes they release a Cybershark version of this new mold... just because the original's paint apps came off almost instantly. I don't know if Sky-Byte will ever get a much more premium figure... but this one feels like a Missing Link version of the original in some ways. Maybe they can release a special edition with some chrome.