Fisitron [Age of the Primes / Wreck ’N Doom Collection]

Back in the day, Ironfist was a bit of a Mandela Effect for many Transformers fans. He was released late in G1 in European markets, in that gray area between G1 and G2 often called G1.5 by many fans. Like many other G1.5 toys, he was also released in G2. This tends to be confusing, as everything is pretty identical and G1.5 toys are often lumped into G2. To be fair, it is a bit confusing.

Adding to his Mandela Effect–ness, he’s often been confused for an Ironhide toy. This is due to the fact that the Generation 2 Power Master Ironhide toy has a similar alt mode, and obviously the names are similar as well. At some point he was redubbed Fisitron. This cuts down on the confusion—not only is it similar to Ironhide, but there’s also a Marvel superhero named Iron Fist. Fortunately, that one doesn’t have an alt mode.

Fisitron comes in a 2-pack with Carnivac (we’ll be looking at him a little later) as part of the Amazon-exclusive Wreck ’N Doom Collection. The name plays up Fisitron’s role in Last Stand of the Wreckers. This 2-pack was one of my Christmas gifts from the Mrs. this past year, and I was pretty excited to get it.

Fisitron hadn’t really appeared in any official Transformers fiction outside of a toy bio until around 2010, when he showed up in both IDW’s The Last Stand of the Wreckers and Fun Publications’ Wings Universe stories. He’s got two distinctly different personalities in each, though I tend to favor the Wings Universe incarnation. I’m a cartoon guy, and the G1 cartoon is my preferred fiction for these GeeWun bots; Wings Universe is set in an alternate version of the classic cartoon.

Not to mention, he’s a gun nut there, and I absolutely cannot not associate Fisitron with Doom Guy / Doom Slayer due to his appearance in this toy. The Wreck ’N Doom Collection name doesn’t hurt either, as you’re all well aware I enjoy playing Doom for hours on end. For what it’s worth, it’s hard not to love Fisitron in Last Stand of the Wreckers as well—I’m just more of a cartoon guy.

Fisitron is a pretty extensive retool of the Legacy: Evolution Detritus toy we looked at a little while back. I enjoyed that figure quite a bit, but I can honestly say I like Fisitron a whole lot better. The new parts really upgrade the mold for the better. I’ll be focusing on Fisitron in this post and his differences, so feel free to check out my take on Detritus in his post.

This version of Fisitron is a combination of his different designs. There’s a mix of the G1/G2 toy along with his IDW and Wings Universe looks. It makes for one attractive toy, though I do find his mostly gray alt mode funny, as it resembles that G2 Ironhide a bit. It never ends.

Fisitron has a new head that, of course, resembles him instead of Detritus. Most notable are the new roof and windshield areas, which cleverly change a Jeep into an armored truck. Is that called a canopy? I have no clue. If I were an influencer, I’d say “let me know in the comments” (cringe).

Speaking of that vehicle roof area (maybe it is a canopy, who knows), they’ve added some new parts that are removable and can be used in robot mode.

Those parts resemble the original Ironfist’s Lightformer gear when in vehicle mode. Unfortunately, they don’t form a cannon like the original does, but I appreciate the effort. The parts can be removed from the roof (can we call it a canopy?) and used in robot mode. Well, the laser gun can, obviously. But also the round dish-like thing—whatever the hell it’s supposed to be—can be removed and used as a shield if one so chooses.

The other portion remains as a backpack, which is where I chose to leave mine’s dish-like thing in this post’s pictures. It never occurred to me that it could be a shield; you don’t have to let me know in the comments. The laser makes for a nice rifle, with a bright yellow that contrasts nicely against Fisitron’s grays, blues, and copper colors.

I really like this toy—more than I thought I would going in. Detritus was already a good toy, making a solid base for the new parts to improve on. It’s like that extra pass over the mold provided room for improvement. Not to mention, Fisitron just looks sharp.

It’s a great-looking figure of a formerly obscure character who, despite a little time in the limelight, seems to be slipping back into obscurity. Hopefully this great figure inspires future uses of him in Transformers media.

Twin Twist [Wreck 'N Rule Collection/Deluxe Class]

Transformers is a funny toy line. Funny, as in the early years are full of reused toy molds from other robot toy lines. Many, of course, came from Diaclone. The Jumpstarters, were among those. Jumpstarters were more simple figures with pull-back motors. When the vehicle was pulled back on a solid surface, it would roll forward and flip into robot mode. They were often joked about by fans and considered lame, but I've always liked their futuristic appearance. Topspin and Twin Twist have received updates over the course of time, but most notably was their Titans Return figures that were very accurate to the originals appearance wise, but with modern engineering (and no flip changing gimmick). Most notably about those toys were that with the Titan Masters, they had strong resemblances to the original Diaclone toys as well as the Headmasters everyone related the line with. The Titan Master would become the main robot modes head, but could also pilot the alt mode. Titans Return was one of my favorite Transformers lines in recent years mostly because of that. It was neat.

For the Amazon Exclusive Wreck 'N Rule Collection, Twin Twist was re-released in his Diaclone colors and billed as from the Diaclone Universe. Other more recent Transformers repaints have done this and I like it. Though, it is funny considering the original Transformers versions of the toys were made from Diaclone only for the new Diaclone toys to be made from Transformers. I've got the original Titans Return version of the toy (and loved it), but never talked about it here. Today felt like a good time. Twin Twist is a very cool looking toy. The red and blue look sharp on his spacey design. There's a good bit of articulation and he's got two laser rifles that can be combined into one larger gun if so chosen. That combination has more use in vehicle mode. Transformation is pretty involved, but not too hard. There's just a lot going on, but it all just works and everything goes into place just fine. Alt mode is a sci fi drill tank. His Titan Master/Headmaster changes from the robot's head into a pilot for the tank. The pilot isn't named in this release, but was called Flameout in Titans Return. I'm not sure if this is still Flameout or meant to be a generic Diaclone driver.

Those guns I mentioned above can be mounted on either side of the tank or in the combined form. Combined they can serve as another place for a Titan Master (or Diaclone driver in this case) to sit. The main spot for the pilot would of course be the cockpit, which opens and allows for such. I've always liked the Jumpstarters for their designs, especially in a time when Transformers were primarily modern (at the time) Earth vehicles. When I got older and learned about Diaclone, I liked them even more. As a kid back then... we just didn't know. My brother and I would often put Zoids pilots in Transformers seats. I'd regularly send one flying in my Topspin during his flip transformation. These additional gimmicks really add to these figures making them really cool toys. I've always been a sucker for partner figures, especially when the partner interacts this well. As the 40th Anniversary year winds down, it felt appropriate to take a look at Diaclone and reflect on my own memories in the process. Nice things are nice.

Bios: Roadbuster

"War is a dirty business... and I'm as dirty as they come."

Function: Ground Assault Commander

Likes to pass the time 'demolishing Decepticons'. Not happy if not fighting... bores easily, quietest of Autobots when not in battle. Charismatic in combat... inspiring to fellow warriors. Natural leader. Can traverse most terrains as 4-WD, 600 mile range. Carries turret-mounted linear blaster gun... can blow a hole in 2-foot thick concrete. As a robot has laser rifle and shrapnel-missile launcher.

Strength: 8 Intelligence: 7 :Speed 5 Endurance: 9
Rank: 8 Courage: 10 Firepower: 6 Skill: 7

Unpolished Metals

A thread earlier in Talk Transformers combined with my earlier post got me missing those older BotCons. They were basically officially recognized fan conventions. A little rough around the seams, but still pretty great. These days of even small run comics being super slick makes me yearn for these older convention comics even more.

Should get a Big Mac and flip through my old copies.

Weekly Spotlight: Ironfist

A brilliantly designed piece of firepower is a work of art to me.

A most distinguished weaponry mastermind. Strong, silent, and likes his action fast and furious. Easily eats up every type of ground, no matter how rough. As a vehicle, attacks with recoil-action, visible tracer missile launcher. In robot form this provides cover as a free-standing launcher weapon.

Spooky Spotlight: Transmetal 2 Sonar

The dangerous cloning experiments carried out by Megatron have created another powerful ally for the heroic Maximals: Sonar. Super-acute senses provide matchless reconnaissance abilities, while bio-cyber elements allow unmatched strength and mobility. When combined with a fiery, almost uncontrollable aggression, Sonar makes a dangerous enemy and somewhat unpredictable ally. Much to his chagrin, Megatron has unintentionally created the finest early-warning system to have ever existed- the Maximal known as Sonar.

Weekly Spotlight: CatSCAN

CatSCAN is in many ways like a lost child in the wilderness - he knows to some degree where he came from, but is unsure as to where he will eventually end up. Brought to life by a bizarre combination of Apelinq and his digitization powers and the artificial intelligence of a medical diagnostic computer, this curious creature has found a permanent home with the Wreckers team. Armed with two battle blades of ancient Cybertronian design and a tail-mounted plasma torch, CatSCAN could easily be considered a lethal one-robot army. This fact notwithstanding, his fearsome appearance belies an inherently gentle and nonviolent personality - it is simply not in his programming to cause harm to other beings. Lacking a Spark of his own, CatSCAN has a deep wish to understand the true nature of his self-awareness. He looks up to Apelinq as a mentor and "creator figure," and often acts as a voice of conscience among his teammates.