RangerStop & Pop 2026

It had been far too long since I've attended a RangerStop and Pop. I attended the first one in 2019 (this is a sister convention to RangerStop in Florida FYI) and for one reason or another couldn't make to any others much to my own disappointment. My friend Brett, who is the organizer for ToyLanta recently took over RangerStop and Pop and invited me out to run a Transformers panel much like I do at ToyLanta. I was of course happy to do so and also excited for the chance to finally make my return to this con.

As I'm moving soon, I couldn't attend the entire show. There is much work to be done around my current home to get packed and ready. I came Sunday morning as the panel was at 12pm. Leaving around 10am, I assumed I'd have plenty of time as the drive was only an hour away. Thanks to various Atlanta road work (it's always under construction and nothing is ever completed) and slight trouble finding parking, I got to the show and registered with just 10 minutes until the panel. Thankfully they got me in and in the room with a few minutes to spare. Dusty was going to be joining me, but had some troubles and couldn't make it. Show guests and Transformers voice actors Greg Berger and Neil Kaplan joined me and we had a fun little panel with a revolving, but spirited crowd. 

Afterwards I enjoyed a few hours of the convention as it winded down. I handed out a ton of Zone Base stickers which were even more popular here than at ToyLanta and that was even more super flattering. I even had some pins the Mrs had made with her new pin machine to give out! It's hard to believe, but I actually ran out of both. I saw several of my stickers on phone cases, laptops, on costumes and badges. Even a few stuck randomly on arms... I'll never get used to that. 

I found myself on more than one occasion running into Austin St. John, the original MMPR Red Ranger, and found myself regular conversation with him. That was quite cool. I had one point gave him some Zone Base stickers and he scanned the QR code right there and checked out the site! That's extremely flattering, especially when he praised the look of it! Of course there was plenty of Ranger actors, Mortal Kombat actors, and voice actors present. RangerStop is the kind of convention that the guests are attendants as well, so at an minute you're bumping into them doing regular activities.

One table I found myself talking with was an independent tokusatsu production called 'Jammingers Overture ', which is a music themed series. Their first episode is available on YouTube and that's pretty damn neat. There was quite a bit of independent creators there as well as booths featuring hand made and 3D printed merchandise. Being an old school con nerd, this is the type of thing I love seeing at conventions and made a point to visit and buy some items from them. I got a great set of Pikachu and Eevee figurines for the Mrs as well as some Zelda 64 earrings for her. One booth had 3D printed Morphers that I kind of wish I'd gotten one of, but did buy a very cool Halloween Gengar figurine of from. Of course there was some sellers with toys and I picked up Gobots Blades and Spay-C in great condition for a steal. The RangerStop booth had some branded lanyards and I picked up one for future use.

RangerStop and Pop as usual had a tattoo artist doing work at the show as well as a live DJ performing all weekend keeping the show lively. Southern Fried Gaming Expo had a corner with some playable games set up and even had a weekend long competition that would have been fun to take part of. Speaking of the DJ, there's a dance party overnight at the show that I'm sure is a lot of fun. As the show was closing up, I said my goodbyes and headed home for a wonderful taco dinner and evening playing Pragmata. I've almost got the story mode completed, however a ton more game to play. I seriously love this game. It was awesome finally making my RangerStop and Pop return and look forward to attending more in the future and helping incorporate Transformers into the show. Thanks to Brett for including me in his shows and putting on such solid conversations.

Rodimus Prime [AMK Mini Series Wave 2]

Rodimus Prime is an Autobot leader whose own self-doubts often cloud his judgment. Considering he was practically thrown into the role unexpectedly… I don’t blame him. One day he’s just fishing with his little buddy Daniel, and the next he’s leading the Autobots after defeating Unicron. Add in his guilt over the death of Optimus Prime, and that’s a lot of weight to carry.

Honestly, I think Rodimus gets a bum rap over the whole Optimus situation. Megatron was already about to shoot Optimus while playing possum. Hot Rod tried to save him while everyone else just stood there. I’d like to think Optimus would’ve done the same — and decisions like that are probably why the Matrix chose Rodimus in the first place. After all, we all know how beaten down and war-weary Optimus Prime was. I’m sure he’d faced countless similar moments. Rodimus, though? He’s young, and literally was just fishing the other day.

Yolopark’s AMK Mini version of Rodimus Prime looks great and really captures his unique design. The detailing is well sculpted and he looks exactly like he should. They did a fantastic job with his flame deco, and I really like the chrome on his smokestack forearm guns. His twin Photon Lasers are also nicely represented and finished in that same chrome. That chrome means a lot to me for reasons I can’t fully explain — maybe because I’ve always loved how it was used on classic G1 toys.

The improved articulation introduced in AMK Mini Series Wave 2 really shines here. Combined with the included closed fists and open palm hands, you can pose Rodimus in just about any way you want. It’s especially fun to have him posed mid-speech, right before dealing with whatever nonsense the Quintessons or Decepticons are stirring up next. His colors look sharp against the angular sculpting, and the whole package feels very impressive — especially considering the kit assembles in just minutes.

There’s also a Shattered Glass variation available in the Wave 2 blind box releases, which is… awfully tempting. When they came up with that mirror-universe color scheme, they really struck gold. Sure, Rodimus may struggle with his own sense of self-worth most of the time, but at least he can feel confident knowing Yolopark made a great AMK Mini kit of him.

Megatron (2007 Movie Version) [Classic Class]

Megatron’s movie design was a bit of a departure from his original looks. That goes without saying. To me, there was always some King Walder and Acroyear DNA in his new appearance. Considering the 2000s Microman line and Cool Girl — which had a heavy Diaclone influence — were being produced by Takara around the same time those first movie toys were being designed, I wouldn’t doubt there was some cross-pollination. I’ve also always found him a little similar to the Guyver. Not completely, but just enough to notice. Of course, Megatron got a new design in each movie, but today we’re looking specifically at the 2007 version.

I got this model kit among a mountain of others at Christmas from the Mrs., who absolutely spoils me. Considering how many redesigns Megatron gets throughout the movie series, I was eager to spend some time with the 2007 one, so building it was a real treat. As a Classic Class kit, Megatron is larger than the Galaxy and Defender Versions that are really popular right now. Once assembled, you end up with a pretty premium-looking figure that just looks amazing. It’s easy to forget how neat his 2007 design actually was. There’s a lot of detailed alien design packed into all those sharp points, and I’ve always appreciated the more feral look of the Decepticons in the earlier movies. I’ve felt for a long time that part of the design philosophy was to make them feel like living creatures. Honestly, the live-action designs always felt like a continuation of Beast Machines to me. Part of me likes to think that if things had continued as originally planned, something like the Bayverse designs could’ve ended up on a Saturday morning cartoon.

This kit looked like it would take longer to assemble than it actually did — and that’s not a complaint. With all the intricate pieces that make up Megatron’s armor, I assumed I’d be building tiny sub-assemblies forever. While there are sections like that, especially in the arms and legs, the process flows pretty smoothly: assemble the forearm, attach armor parts, connect it to the upper arm, attach more armor, and so on. I do find it amusing that at the core of Megatron is a standard Blokees Shining Version upper torso piece. The entire much larger figure builds outward from it, which I just find funny. That core also houses the components for Megatron’s light-up features.

Speaking of his upper torso, you get a choice of chest pieces. There’s the standard chest armor like the one shown in the photos, or an alternate piece depicting his death at the end of the movie. There’s even a tiny Allspark Cube included.

Megatron comes with his Fusion Cannon, which can be held in either hand. You can’t quite combine both arms into the exact pose he used in the movie — maybe an approximation, but not a perfect match. It honestly didn’t bother me. When held in one hand, it almost reads more like a rifle, and that works just fine here. His eyes light up a really satisfying red, which surprised me with how much I liked it. It genuinely breathes a little life into the finished kit.

It’s probably been a bit too long since I spent real time with the 2007 design. Building this made me appreciate the layering of silver over bronze parts much more than I ever did back then. A lot of the toys released around the movie glossed over those details, and I haven’t handled a newer take on this design until now. I always thought it looked cool, but its intricacies are standing out more to me this time around.

His head is amusingly a mix of the final movie design and elements from the abandoned earlier look. It’s funny — what we ended up with was considered to be more “G1.” I can kind of see it, but it’s still very much its own thing. At the time, Megatron getting a new design every incarnation was pretty much expected. So it was pretty status quo at the time. Thinking back, that stretch from 2003 — when the movie was first announced — to its release in 2007 was strange. News came and went, things were constantly in flux, and part of me is still surprised it ever actually came out.

I really like his animalistic face. There’s definitely some H.R. Giger influence there, and the part of me that loves bio-horror is all over it. A display stand with whoosh effects is included, but I found Megatron perfectly capable of standing on his own without it. This was a cool build and a great experience overall. The finished product looks fantastic, and it was genuinely fun reflecting on this version of Megatron while assembling it. At this point, I’m convinced Blokees is incapable of making a product I don’t like — and what kind of idiot would complain about that?

Unicron Head (Clear) [Galaxy Version]

The big bad of all Transformers, Unicron, got a Blokees model kit all his own in Galaxy Version 08: One Shall Fall. A special translucent version was also made available, which originally had to be acquired by scanning QR codes from nine different figures within the set. A little later, Blokees outright put the translucent version up for direct purchase on their site (I wonder if that pissed anyone off?), leading to today’s post.

As of now, I’ve only picked up Hot Rod from Galaxy Version 08, so either completing the set the normal way or scanning all the QR codes has eluded me thus far. When ordering some Defender Version cases with Christmas money, the translucent Unicron Head found its way into the cart (The Mrs added it, thankfully).

Like I’ve said before, I was there opening weekend in 1986 when Transformers: The Movie hit the big screen. Unicron was—and always has been—one of the most awesome things ever created in my mind. While I haven’t collected all of his merchandise, there are just some things I’ve got to have, and a version of this head is definitely one of them.

This translucent version, being more of a special edition, is a really neat representation of Unicron’s head floating through space. Its clear nature gives it a more ghostly appearance, which I absolutely love.

This was a pretty fun, quick build. I’m used to Galaxy Version kits using shared parts to make builds work, but here the only returning part was the display plate. I was expecting some kind of torso bit at the center of the head, like you often see with alt-mode kits such as the Dinobots, but that wasn’t the case.

Being translucent adds a little extra challenge, as some of the parts aren’t immediately obvious. The clear plastic makes things blend together visually. There’s a central core piece that everything builds up from, and one step I found endlessly entertaining was discovering that they gave Unicron a skull.

Before you attach his face parts, you construct his internal facial structure, which looks very similar to the robotic skulls you see when a Transformer suffers facial trauma. He even has eyeballs that fit into the sockets, adding a level of detail that would probably go unnoticed. Unicron’s mouth opens and closes, with the entire mechanism formed around this skull. I spent way too much time making him chomp his spooky skeleton teeth before finally attaching the face parts.

Speaking of the face parts, you’ll need to insert his normal eyes before attaching the face to the skull. Those tiny eye pieces are a little tricky if you’ve got big fingers like me. Due to how they connect, I didn’t try using tweezers, though in hindsight I wonder if they might have helped.

Once assembled, Unicron’s head can be displayed on the included stand with a support arm. It’s actually pretty large all things considered—not huge, but bigger than I expected going in. Also included is a tiny Autobot Shuttle, which you can pose flying past his head as it drifts near Cybertron. If they brought Daniel along, this whole situation probably gives him the willies.

This is a really neat little kit. Hopefully I’ll get more of Galaxy Version 08 soon, or maybe even an entire case, as I prefer to buy these that way. Ideally, I’d like to have both the clear and normal versions of Unicron. As it stands, this translucent version is already something special. It’s always nice owning a special edition of anything—but especially of him.

It really does feel awesome owning it.

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.

Godzilla 1968 [ReAction/Godzilla Monster Island]

When I was a kid, classic Godzilla movies would play regularly on TV. This was before the Heisei era came in and the older shows were all I had. I'm not complaining mind you, it was great! Thanks to these older films regularly playing in the background, I grew to have a fondness for some of the 'goofier' looks the monsters have had. These were often done to make them appeal more to kids and be less scary than other depictions. By the time the Godzilla '68 costume was in use, he was a full blown superhero and generally considered for kids.

The scary monster from 1954 was long gone and in it's place was a friendly giant who dances while saving the Earth from various attacks. The SoshingekiGoji/AllKaijuGoji/HedoGoji/GiganGoji or in this case Godzilla '68 suit was used in films from 1968- 1972. This ReAction figure captures it's look very well. It was a definite happy moment when I opened the blind box after a trip to Walmart with the Mrs. There's a pleasant heft to the toy despite it's small size. He features the head/shoulders/legs at waist articulation you expect from one of these figures and just feels solid thanks to his broad design. Super7's has a great product.

Ultra Magnus [Galaxy Version 03 The Autobot Run]

I've always really liked Ultra Magnus in cab mode. I've always liked Ultra Magnus in general, but that white cab mode is so pretty. Originally, Ultra Magnus was made from the Diaclone Powered Convoy toy, which was an upgraded version of Battle Convoy. The toy that Optimus Prime was made from. I've heard a few different times that originally Ultra Magnus was intended to be an upgraded Optimus Prime before they settled on making him an all new character. Considering I can't currently find a source for that, maybe it's best to chalk that up as an unconfirmed trivial fact.

In most media, Ultra Magnus was shown only combined with his trailer. Obviously to cut down confusion, but as a result, it isn't common knowledge to everyone that Ultra Magnus has a cab mode and that the cab mode is basically a white Optimus Prime. It's to no surprise that a cab mode Ultra Magnus is one of the standby repaints you can expect to see when a new Optimus Prime toy is released. That's the story when we're talking about today's toy. Cab Mode Ultra Magnus as a Blokees, is mostly a straight repaint of their Optimus Prime kit that as you can expect is very sharp looking.

I say mostly a straight repaint as he has a different axe weapon included, a blue variation of the axe Optimus tends to use in Cybertronian depictions. Also, to my understanding, his inner head has some retooled pegs which hold his inner face parts in place better during assembly. I didn't notice it when I was putting him together, but now remember being frustrated with Optimus's head. So that's an improvement. Aside from that, he's pretty much a straight repaint of the Optimus Prime Blokees I talked about earlier that comes with all the same accessories and parts (except that alternative axe... damn, alternative axe sounds rad). However now, it's extra pretty.. you know. Because of that white cab mode.

Optimus Prime [Legacy United/Deluxe Class]

Considering the amount of Optimus Prime toys released a year, you'd imagine it'd be hard to get excited over just one. Well, that's not the case today Zone Base readers, because we'll be looking at the Deluxe Class Optimus Prime from Transformers Legacy United. Similar to Takara's Missing Link Convoy, this Optimus is meant to celebrate the 40th anniversary of Transformers by making a figure that looks like the original, but updated with modern engineering. Think of it as the Transformers version of Masters of the Universe Origins. With this figure we get a toy that looks directly out of 1984 with a lot more articulation.

In all fairness, the original Optimus Prime was fairly possible for a toy of his era. This one, however, is a definite step up. It's fairly identical as well... with some obvious differences. It's a new sculpt... not a 100% match, but really close. Optimus is also a little smaller than the original toy funnily enough. I couldn't tell initially, but it became obvious when compared side by side. Being a standard retail toy, he's all plastic... but does have rubber tires. That's something I didn't expect at all. It's been a while since Hasbro has graced a main line Transformers toy with rubber times and I'm all here for it. It's a superficial touch... but I like it! Neatly enough, the tires are branded CYBERTRON RADIAL 275/80 R22. Cybertron Radials are the brand of tires used on Transformers Alternators. Neat, huh?

Optimus comes with his iconic laser blaster, in fact he comes with two. During the original run, a running change created two versions of the classic gun. Originally a fatter design, later versions got thinner (ozempic works on plastic?) as time went. My original had the fatter gun, but some reissues came with the skinny one. This initially confused me as I wasn't aware that there was a variation. There I was with a reissue and hey... the gun looked different. These days I've got quite a few reissues and there's been some variation in those guns over the years. That's why I'm glad he comes with both. That way whichever one came with yours, he cane use. One can store on his back as well, which looks pretty cool. His smoke stacks can also be held as guns, which is a fun little touch.

Speaking of pretty cool, Optimus has that energy axe he's become known for using since More Than Meets the Eye episode 2. This axe is specifically based on the version that was packed with The Transformers Collection Convoy reissue. He's also got a Autobot Matrix of Leadership that can be stored in his chest (but not held) that's specifically modeled after the Matrix that came with the 2002 New Years Special reissue. I love how this toy homages so many things from prior toys without being completely obvious about it.

Optimus is very well articulated, something that isn't obvious at first glance. He looks so much like the original toy that I wouldn't be surprised if he was mistaken for it. He almost transforms like the original as well. Most noticeably, the hands fold inside of his forearms instead of being removed and probably lost under the couch. Guns and axe easily store in vehicle mode and everything is nice and compact. It's pretty obvious that there's no included trailer. I'm hoping a future edition will be released with one. That'd be perfect. He is compatible with the Earthrise and Original Optimus Prime trailers. Potentially with others, but those are the ones I know for certain work. The Earthrise works best as his slightly smaller size makes the G1 trailer comically huge. Overall, this is a very neat toy that I'm very happy to own. I look forward to buying every ridiculous reuses of it in the future. 

Wheeljack [Legacy United/ Deluxe Class]

Transformers is a funny line. Now in it's 41st year, it's been reinvented countless times while still revisiting older settings quite often. As a life long fan whose been around since it launched, there's a clear split down the middle of before the 2007 movie and after. Before that movie, there was tons of reinvention with some revisiting. Ever since the movie, there's been tons of revisiting with some reinvention. I say that as today we'll be looking at the Legacy United update of Wheeljack... the one from Transformers Armada.

Beast Machines was fundamentally the end of the mainstream G1 timeline (excluding prose, comics, etc). Robots in Disguise (2001) served as a filler while Hasbro changed directions behind the scenes. Originally, Beast Machines was to be followed up with Transtech. Transtech would have continued the story with a combination of classic and beast era characters. However, as Beast Machines wasn't as successful as Beast Wars before it and things were getting pretty convoluted for what was meant to be a kids show... it was time to refresh.

Transformers Armada kicked off what was called The Unicron Trilogy with cartoons,comics,video games, merchandise, and of course toys. Armada reintroduced the Autobots and Decepticons on a new adventure chasing after Mini-Cons and ending with a big showdown with Unicron. There was a mixture of new and old characters with a lot of name reuses... which sometimes lead to a lot of confusion. That's where Wheeljack comes in. Some of you might have noticed he's definitely not the classic Wheeljack you're familiar with. This Wheeljack used to be a young Autobot warrior, who was believed to have died in battle. However, Wheeljack survived and believed he had been abandoned. The understandably angry bot joined the Decepticons and became quite the adversary for Hot Shot, whom he had blamed for the abandonment. That's the reason for the cool scratched out Autobot symbol and admittedly hard to see in the picture (it got a little lost in the black) Deceptcion emblem underneath.

Now you might have thought he looks more like Sideswipe and that the name Sideswipe would fit the character better. Well... it would have, but there was another Autobot named Side Swipe... who didn't look anything like traditional Sideswipe. Somehow, a lot of names got thrown around leading to this kind of madness and for whatever reason it just stuck. Don't ask me, I had nothing to do with it. Even more confusing was that a year later In Energon, there was a PERFECT new Wheeljack figure... that was named Downshift. Because there was already a recent Wheeljack. Pass the Tylenol. For what it's worth, his name is Rampage in Japan... which I like. In Hungry his name is Volán Jack. That translates to 'Steering-Wheel Jack'... and I kinda love it.

I've spent a lot of time talking about the time Wheeljack originally came out and his confusing name, but not a lot about his newest toy that we're looking at today. As many of you can tell, he's based on the Siege Sideswipe toy mold that's been heavily reused in Transformers Generations. It's a great toy, but I've covered the details before a few times. I've gotten most of the molds uses and really like it. Wheeljack does have a new head sculpt that resembles his original toy and show model quite a bit.

While there isn't any Mini-Con unlock-able gimmicks as in the original, he does have those clubs weapons. They were firing missiles from the Mini-Con gimmick that could hold as melee weapons. In the cartoon, lasers would fire from them... it never was very clear what they were exactly... admittedly they were a bit of strangeness in a very cool toy. The clubs serve as running boards in car mode and they look pretty neat. The car mode has a new front fascia and doors to make it resemble the original more. He does include Sideswipes missile launcher which can be held as a gun. I love those classic shoulder launchers, they look great on anyone.

Wheeljack is colored to match his show model, which matched his Japanese toy deco. The Hasbro version featured yellow stripes in place of the blue ones and a more grayish car mode. It was never quite clear as to why the difference. Often the toy designers answer to someone in marketing, so they could have been given an order based on... anything. It still looked great and there was a future recolor of the mold as Drench in Transformers Universe planned at the time. That toy never came to be, but a similar design was used for the BotCon exclusive Shattered Glass Sideswipe that used the Armada Wheeljack toy mold.

This Sideswipe always felt like the toy Wheeljack was meant to be and has always been popular. It's popped up in Blokees and even inspired a character in SSSS. Gridman, which I've talked about here before. Wheeljack and SG Sideswipe have a great look and it's not surprising to see it get homaged. I've always felt like the blue stripes on the black resemble Nightracer and Shadow Striker. That's neat. Both the Hasbro and Takara versions looked great, but I'm glad this version is show accurate. Wheeljack is a cool character with a great toy regardless of his confusing name. To me he's a solid representation of the time shortly before the launch of the 2007 live action Transformers movie. I don't think that was what the Hasbro designers had in mind when they decided to update him, but that's what they did... and I'm glad.

Flamefeather [The Transformers/Firecons]

It's been awhile since I've talked about a vintage toy here on the site, and since I recently acquired this Flamefeather, now seems like a good time to do so. Long time readers know of my fondness for Firecons... and more sarcastic ones will note my many soft spots. Look, you follow something for your entire life and there's many layers and levels. In the case of Firecons, it all stems back to a rainy weekend in 1988.

My Grandfather was coming to stay with us as there was a tornado warning and he lived in a trailer. A trip to the grocery store and neighboring K-Mart prior to his arrival netted me one Sparkstalker that was the center of my attention that entire weekend. Ever since then, I've always liked the little shits. That and they turn into monsters. I, uh, like those. To be fair, I've always favored the post movie Decepticons of G1 due to the colors and far out alt modes. Many of which are monsters, and I like those.

When talking about Flamefeather himself, he's a simple little guy. The Firecon's alt modes are their more dominant forms while their robot modes aren't often seen. They weren't in the US cartoon, but did appear in Masterforce. Similarly, they had small appearances in various comics. Amusingly enough, in the Fleetway G2 book, they attacked a theater showing Jurassic Park. In robot mode, Flamefeather (like the others) is a squat little brick. Aside from his legs, there's no articulation. In monster mode, however, his little arms can also move.

Folding them and the legs up allows for him to be rolled along the floor (or table, go nuts).  Doing so causes sparks to emit from his mouth. You can let him roll along for a second, just shooting those sparks and hopefully not catching anything on fire. You've probably noticed this Flamefeather has some paint scuffs and oddly darker blue on certain parts. Well, this is a 37 year old toy I bought for $12. It's going to look a little worse for wear. The darker blue is probably from some sun damage and his gimmick caused the paint scuffs. I can imagine Flamefeather was rolled right into a wall or two. Flamefeather, like the other Firecons, is a simple toy with a fun gimmick. The monster is charming and the gimmick is fun. It's hard not to like Firecons.

Galvatron [Legacy United/Core Class]

Say what you will about Energon, but the series had some really cool designs. I have vivid memories of Hasbro unveiling it at OTFCC 2003 to thunderous applause. I still like it to this day and feel like a look at the Transformers Legacy United Core Class Galvatron is in order! Galvatron, is not merely a repaint of the Core Class Energon Megatron, it's a repaint of him in (mostly) show accurate colors!

That's important as the original toy had it's differences while the Takara version was much closer (but not exact). Finally, 20 years later, we've got a (mostly) show accurate color toy. While I've covered much of the details about this toy in the Megatron post... I felt the urge to talk about something else as everything is the same here from that toy aside from the colors. The tank/sword weapon. What a weird combination, right? Of course the tank is meant to represent his former Armada body, the sword is an oddity. Instead of being a normal hand held weapon, it plugs into the tank. That's always been a bit strange. In the original toy, the sword would light up and a 'clang' noise would emit from the tank if pressed against something. That's a neat gimmick, sure, but most folks would rather a traditional sword for Megatron/Galvatron to hold. I can't say I'd be opposed to one either, but just took the whole thing in stride.

At the time, lot's of fans were finding work around for the toy so that it could hold the damn sword traditionally. From gluing handles, to using bread ties (I'm not kidding), to tethering it to his hand... folks were really focused on making it a hand held sword. I recall a garage kit version of the sword making the rounds. There was a Wonderfest Exclusive set to convert a Microman female body into Misha to match with Kicker. Maybe it came with it? The specifics of that are a little fuzzy but I remember a friend creating a harness with wire crystal clear. It was a strange, but fun time.

Soundwave [Galaxy Version 03 The Autobot Run]

Whenever Transformers is brought up, Soundwave is one of the trademark characters to be mentioned immediately in the conversation. It's to no surprise either, he's just that cool. You've got a guy who turns into a cassette player that ejects cassettes that turn into little robots. That's as rad as it gets, then add in his signature reverb voice and he's just as iconic as it gets. It doesn't hurt that his face is the symbol of the Decepticons. This Blokees version is pretty great. It's the standard Soundwave we're all used to and that's all it takes to be outstanding.

He just looks extra by being, of course he is extra compared to your normal Blokees figure. The trademark tape door chest is present and it opens! Being a non-transforming model kit, you'd assume it's just be a sticker... but nope! There's even a little cassette to insert! The tape doesn't transform, but that's still a great little touch. He has both his rifle and shoulder cannon. Man, I swear everything about Soundwave is a trademark. I've always thought these guns formed from the tape players batteries were awesome. Of course, there's the standard open and closed hands as well as display stand with symbols you'd expect from a Blokees. Speaking of, that specific Blokees style you'd expect really lends itself to the specific look of Soundwave.

Cannonball [Star Raiders Collection/Deluxe Class]

I've been a big fan of the Walmart Exclusive Transformers Legacy series as they're just so cool. Somehow, I've hardly covered them here on the site until the Star Raider Collection, which I've managed to completely showcase. That was a weird way to reflect on the series while also acknowledging that today's space pirate is the last of the series. Like Lockdown, Canonball was a Christmas gift from the Mrs. who spoils me every year.

Cannonball has pretty much always been a pirate character, though his crew tends to change depending on fictional setting. As a toy, he's always been a repaint. The original was a repaint of the Deluxe Cybertron Red Alert figure. This new one is the latest use of the Legacy Skids mold. That mold itself has seen more miles than a long haul tractor trailer with multiple repaints and remolds. Cannonball specifically is a repaint/remold of Crankcase. I have Crankcase, but don't think I've covered him here. Despite the reuse of prior molds, Crankcase and Cannonball almost feel like completely different engineering. There's only been two Cannonball figures, but ironically he's been a Walmart exclusive twice. The original was reissued in an exclusive set, while this new figure is from the Star Raiders collection.

Cannonball is very similar to his original design, but now turning into a crossover style SUV while the original was a Dodge Magnum. Which was a station wagon that was pretty popular at the time. Cannonball has a new head that looks almost just like the original as well as the original's laser hand. There's a claw and hammer accessory that can fit on the laser hand and store in his legs. He's holding the hammer in my pic as I wanted to show it off, but apparently in not the very best way. One nice touch is the Cyber Key. It doesn't unlock anything... but is a nice nod to the past. The key is sporting a Star Seeker insignia, and that's really cool.

Another nice touch is the skeleton graphics on the original toy's car doors are replaced with a Vok one. The Vok resemble a flaming skull, so it's a really nice Easter Egg. Like all the other instances of this mold, like Burn Out, transformation is easy and articulation is plentiful. It's really neat how much this toy looks like the original. The Star Seeker Collection was fun to collect as was the exclusive sets prior. I'm sad to see it over, but as Cannonball was originally a Cybertron toy, I feel like him ending this series makes a nice segway to this years Walmart set. An all Cybertron themed collection to celebrate the series 20th anniversary. So look forward to more Cyber Key action later this year!

Red Alert [Galaxy Version 03 The Autobot Run]

I've always liked Red Alert. It's hard not to after Auto Berserk, an episode where his paranoia gets kicked into overdrive leading him off the deep end. Toy wise, it's the deco that wins me over. I've always liked a police car deco, and the fire chief variation is even better. That white and red just pop in a specific way that looks great. Normally, G1 Red Alert is a repaint of Sideswipe and that's the case in Blokees as well.

This time they've given him a different helmet to be show accurate and frankly as Red Alert, it feels like a more premium version of the toy. It just looks great! Aside from the helmet and colors, everything else is the same as Sideswipe, including the double set of hands and display base with symbols. Red Alert may think everyone's out to get him, but with a toy like this, can you blame them?

Geocron [Legacy United/Core Class]

It's time to look at another Armorizer, a favorite group of Transformers around here on Planet Zone. Armorizers are a fun combination of Rock Lords, Mutores, and The Rock People of Daira. Georcron's head sculpt in particular is based on one of those Daira residents in particular as was Calcitron. Armorizers have been a fun throw back to a time when transforming toys were certainly more imaginative. Also... I really like Rock Lords, so they've been a fun thing for me on a personal level.

Geocron might be the last Armorizer sadly (I haven't seen any more listed), so it's fitting that he uses the same mold as Bouldercrash, whom was one of the first. I really liked Bouldercrash, so the use is a welcome one. Unlike the other Armorizers, it's not specified what type of rock Georcron is composed of. It's pretty obvious by his colors and name that Geocron is a geode. That works pretty well as I'm taking that as a Jewel Lord reference, even if it's unintentional. It's also not clear if this is a male or female, so I've been referring to it as a him generically. Georcron is a mixture of browns with a metallic purple color showing through at parts. It's surprisingly nice looking as that purple really contrasts sharply against the brown.

Transformation to rock bike is easy, and his weapon mode can be formed from vehicle mode or during transformation as it's not much more than an extension of vehicle mode. I didn't take a picture of it here, but there's one in Bouldercrash's post. Speaking of weapon, Geocron has the same as Bouldercrash... a sort of rock sword thing. It's hard to describe without sounding silly, but it looks neat. I like to think it shoots an energy beam. Geocron looks great and by all counts is a pretty solid toy. If he is the last Armorizer, he's a good one to go out on. I've been really fond of the Armorizers and hate to see them go. It's nice to see that Infernac, a setting from Inhumanoids, get revisited and offer a new Transformers life form while at it. Ever since Rokkon and Stonedar I've been hooked on transforming rock toys and a new set was and still is exhilarating for me as a fan. Geocron, and all the Armorizers is awesome. It's a rock fact.

Bonecrusher [Galaxy Version 03 The Autobot Run]

I'm not sure why, but at some point I've started really appreciating the individual Constructicons. There's just something about those purple and green guys that's impossible to resist. Naturally, combined they form Devastator, who's one of the more popular Transformers combiners. Being the first will earn you that sort of admiration. Blokees, of course, don't transform or combine. Therefore these little kits give us great representations of the characters, and a great way to enjoy those individual Constructicons. Bonecrusher is one of the more signature Constructicons who pops to mind when the team is mentioned. Despite the team colors, he has some unique style. The bucket of his bulldozer alt mode forms his chest and gives him a stocky appearance.

I've always thought he looked muscle bound because of it. Bonecrusher is a bit of a perfectionist... and a little psycho. He likes to destroy things, he loves to show off when he's destroying things. If something isn't perfect in his eyes... he's going to destroy it. There's something admirable about that. He's packing his laser pistol and has a set of open and closed hands as well as the display stand (with symbols) that come standard with Blokees. The Blokee style really lends itself to Constructicons I think.

Shrapnel [Transformers Retro]

I was fortunate to find The Retro Collection version of Shrapnel at a local Ross while Christmas shopping. These types of store are generally a haven for oddball liquidation toys during the holidays and like others, I try to take advantage of it. It's jokingly called RossCon by many people online, which I find funny as I've been calling the reissues and exclusives at Walmart Great Value BotCon for years. Thankfully, I made out with some great finds this year. Shrapnel is another member of the Insecticons (and you all know I love bug robots), and painted in a cartoon accurate deco like the other recent reissues. I can't say enough good things about these cartoon accurate reissues, they look amazing and it's always good to get vintage toy molds.

When it comes to Shrapnel, aside from the variety of his toy's I've accumulated over the years, my biggest memory of Shrapnel is the one my older brother owned. He's a few years older than me and was slowly phasing out from toys. However a few managed to always stick around. Right next to his Clawtron and Zoltek was a Shrapnel and Cop-Tur on a bookshelf with a Journey carnival mirror in the background. I guess they were badass enough for an early teenage to display while listening to Cinderella. Shrapnel is decidedly badass looking, as are the Insecticons in general. The mostly black robot with purple and silver colors looks dark and plays well off each other. So much so that the yellow cockpit that makes up his chest practically glows. His insect mode is a stag beetle, which is one gnarly and threatening looking bug.

The insects  pincers display nicely behind his head creating large horns and giving Shrapnel his signature look. Included is 6 Energon Cubes and the signature Gamma Ray Detonator. You can store a cube in his chest compartment. This compartment is originally the cockpit where a pilot figure would sit in  the Waruder Insecter Robo Kuwagatrer from Diaclone, which is the original use of the toy. There is a set of Insecticons based on their original Waruder coloration who are meant to represent the Insecticon clones often seen in the original cartoon. It's a neat thing to own. Transformation from robot to stag beetle is easy, parts really just fold up and the robot is laid on his back. There's wheels on the legs to roll the insect around, another holdover from Diaclone that's a pretty fun play gimmick. It's sort of an insect tank.  Shrapnel is a really good looking toy, and especially so in these show accurate colors. For a toy of his era, there's a decent amount of articulation that I find admirable. I'm sure my admiration for Insecticons is overshadowing any objectiveness, but this is just a wonderful toy.

Bombshell [Transformers Retro/Bomshell and Ramhorn 2-Pack]

Earlier this week, we looked at Ramhorn. That means it's a fine time to talk abut the Bombshell he came packaged with. Ramhorn is a Rhino, so have him packaged versus a Rhinoceros Beetle is a fun bit of synergy. Not every multi-pack has to match, but similar worded names is good enough for me. Like other G1 reissues being released recently, Bombshell uses his original toy mold and is painted in a cartoon accurate paint scheme. Also like the others, it looks great. Bombshell's mold was one of the Diaclone toys that got used in the early years of Transformers. Insecter Robo Kabutron was a robot of the Waruders, the main villains of Diaclone. I've made my fondness for robot insect toys known here many times and that extends to Waruders. There's just something about them that I find awesome. Being a Diaclone mold, Bombshell has a cockpit that a pilot figure can sit in. However, being a Transformers toy, Bombshell doesn't have a pilot. Like other recent Insection reissues have included Energon cubes accessories (awesome) and you can fit one in his cockpit. It's a silly bit of fun and pretty great. He comes with 6, and that makes for a great bit of scenery to put around your toys.

In addition to the Energon Cubes, Bombshell has his Twin Ion Impulse Blaster. I think it's a pretty trademark rifle for him, but when it comes to Bombshell, everyone focuses on that beetle horn. It's been famously used for launching his signature Cerebro-Shells into the heads of enemies and making them his slaves. It's not just a cool special ability, but also looks neat. A bit of nice ornamentation on a somewhat creepy looking toy. Bombshell has some pretty decent articulation for a toy of his era. Arms move at the shoulders and legs at the hips. Thanks to his transformation, his hip can swivel and there's some movement at the knees... though you can mostly make him kick forward comically. Sure, he doesn't have anything on today's super articulated wonders, but it's a pretty good amount for the toys of that time. Transformation to beetle mode is easy and looks just as great as ever. My love for insect robots definitely flavors my opinion here. I can't help it, those designs are full of charm. There's little wheels on the insect legs to roll it around on and I just love that. Despite the older engineering, this is really a nice little toy. The cartoon accurate colors really pop and breathe new life into a 40+ year old design. The older I get, the more my appreciation for the original toys grows. The die cast is just so satisfying as is the overall product. So, so very good.

Ramhorn [Transformers Retro/Bomshell and Ramhorn 2-Pack]

Around this time last year we took a look at some of the more recent neat G1 reissues that have been painted to match their orignal series selves. Here in the States, they're exclusive to Walmart (unless you can find them at liquidation stores like Ross). I lucked up on this cool Bombshell and Ramhorn two-pack on clearance on the Walmart app. A rhinoceros beetle and rhino make for a fun vs pack and today we'll be looking at Ramhorn. Ramhorn is one of the Autobot cassettes who debuted in 1986 during the battle of Autobot City in Transformers The Movie.

Prior to this, only the Decepticons had cassettes. So it was a pretty cool moment. For me, I got my original Ramhorn at a K-Mart one rainy weekend. The cassettes would come in 2-packs and he came with Eject. I still remember being enamored with his gold chrome weapons. Needless to say, the two had many adventures in my bedroom and still reside among my various Transformers toys from the past 40 years.

Ramhorn is pretty much a straight reissue. He's largely the same as that one I've owned forever. There is some updated Copyright stamps on his body, so I assume the molds have had some maintenance done recently. There's something so great about these original toys updated in their show accurate colors. The brown used is a softer color and combined with the dark grey used for accenting colors and in place of the originals chromed legs... it just looks great. The red Autobot symbol almost glows against his colorization. I really like the contrast it creates.

The missile pods are not chromed like the originals, but colored in a metallic gold that looks really good. Ramhorn is a simple but pleasant figure. Transformation to tape mode is easy. Fold the legs up into his body and the head and tail fold backwards. The cassette can fit in any G1 Blaster toy... and maybe a Soundwave if you're feeling rebellious. I've never found fault in the original Ramhorn and just don't now either. In these cartoon accurate colors, he feels like a much more premium figure. The combination of him and Bombshell is fun and we'll be looking at his pack mate later this week.

Squeezeplay with Lokos and Browning [Legacy United 4-Pack/Deluxe Class]

Finishing up with our look at the Target Exclusive Transformers Legacy United 4-Pack is the main reason I wanted the set, Squeezeplay. I've got a real fondness towards the era of G1 he's from and the gimmicks they had. Admittedly I have a fondness for Transformers period, but it's like your longtime favorite restaurant. There's multiple things you like for multiple reasons. Squeezeplay is from the post movie G1 era where the Decepticons had fun colors and changed into more crazy alt modes like monsters and I love monsters. He's a Headmaster, I love partner figures and pilot figures.

His Japanese incarnation, Cancer (like the crab, I didn't name it), was heavily featured in Masterforce. A specific series I really like. Adding to that, this update is a reworked Titans Return mold, which is going down as one of my favorite Transformers series. Let's add one more specifically 'me' thing, he comes with a tiny gun mode Browning as a weapon... things like that are super awesome for me. This toy is like a bunch of beloved songs from my favorite band.

Squeezeplay uses Titans Return Mindwipe as a base mold. I most recently talked about this mold in it's use as Draculus, which was another clever use of it. Squeezeplay is pretty ingenious as they took a bat alt mode and turned it into a pretty convincing recreation of his reptile/crustation themed monster form. The entire toy is a pretty remarkable update of the original all things considered. I should probably talk about the actual toy more than just go on and on about how cool he is.

In robot mode Squeezeplay looks an awful lot like his original toy with Lokos transforming into his head. There's a little tail piece from alt mode that can be a shield or weapon and cleverly playing into the similarity of his original gun accessory is a gun mode Browning. Browning is another original series Transformer made from a Microman toy. Browning was also in Masterforce and tended to partner up with Cancer. Just so we're clear, there a character in Masterforce named Cancer whom was a child that worked with the Decepticons and was carrying around a gun that he was friends with.

Browning doesn't transform, but is a cool little extra. Robot mode is decently articulated and looks pretty good for a mold from 2016 compared to the other more recent molds in the 4-Pack. Transformation isn't difficult, but just involved enough that you need to pay attention. Lokos feels like a softer plastic, I popped his legs off accidentally bending his knees to sit him in the cockpit. I'm really impressed that his transforms mostly the same way as Mindwipe did, but now instead of wings there's arms. Alt mode looks pretty on par as an update to the original. I'm very surprised just how good this came off as, once again, the source mold turned into a bat. I think the only new parts here are the head and arms too. I'm always fascinated by design stuff like this. Ingenuity is really neat, you know? The monsters chest compartment opens up to become a cockpit for Lokos as I mentioned above and Browning can be stored on the tail... or just held. Man, imagine a monster packing heat. The really did an amazing job with Squeezeplay. The 4-Pack is a good set all around, but Squeezeplay is definitely the stand out toy of the set. So, so very good.