Transformers Review – Rodimus Convoy (Masterpiece)

Intro:

            After a hiatus of more than a year, the Masterpiece line (notwithstanding the movie Masterpiece line) has returned, and did it return with a bang. After the release of Grimlock and its variant, King Grimlock in 2009, Masterpiece has taken a back seat for other mainstream Transformers product such as the Generations & Reveal the Shield lines. 

            But now it’s back, and what better way to make a comeback with than with a significant character to the lore such as Hot Rod/ Rodimus Prime. I have to say, Hot Rod/ Rodimus Prime figures have been quite elusive to my collection. The closest thing I have to a G1Hot Rod is the Henkei Rodimus, which was a very cool figure in its own right. I also have a knockoff version of Energon’s Rodimus Convoy, and that’s practically it. 

 

            G1 Hot Rod first appeared in the 1986 Transformers the Movie as a young brat that was involved in the Decepticon Assault on Autobot City on Earth, while savvy veteran Rodimus Prime made his debut at the climax of the movie when Hot Rod finally takes the Creation Matrix and released it within Unicron.

Hot Rod Mode:

            Standing at 9-inch tall, Hot Rod is slightly taller than the Masterpiece Starscream. Looking at it, he really looks like his animated counterpart – almost a spitting image of it. I really like the head sculpt, which really looked like a young soldier with a helmet. 

            As with most other Masterpiece lineups, Hot Rod has a wide range of articulation. The head is on a ball joint. The shoulders are on a ratcheting joint that allows them to rotate, and also another joint that allows inward/outward motions. The arm also rotates slightly above the elbow and the elbow bends. The wrists rotate and apart from the individual thumb movement, the other fingers move in tandem. Hot Rod also has a waist movement and the hip allows the legs to move in all directions. The legs also rotate slightly below the hip. Hot Rod also bends and the knees and has ankle joints with a full range of motions.

            While the figure looks pretty darn awesome, I do have several things to comment. The hands aren’t really that human-friendly, and it’s really difficult for you to have him hold his guns. The back wing also doesn’t seem to want to clip on to the back of Hot Rod and it drops very easily. The ankles are also a bit of a bother and it’s quite difficult to pose Hot Rod. The chest piece also tends to pop out too easily for my liking, and it can be really irritating to have it popped off so often when you try to balance him on those tight ankles. Other than that, I really like the colors, the chrome on the pipes and also the flames on his chest

Rodimus Prime Mode:

 

            Honest to God, even since I first saw the Hot Rod/ Rodimus Prime character, I can’t really differentiate between the two. The only things noticeable were that he became slightly taller and he looked older.  But apparently, as according to the instructions, the wings are supposed to be a bit taller also. As for the height of the figure, there is only a difference of 1/4-inch – talk about insignificant. In this mode, Rodimus shares all the features and weaknesses of Hot Rod.

Combat Deck Mode:

            As with MP-04, Rodimus Convoy comes with a combat deck, which is surprisingly neat and I think slightly better than Optimus’s. I really like the shape of the canon itself and I also like the fact that you can arrange and combine the accessory guns with that of the combat deck in various ways that you would like, and that’s kinda neat. 

 

Car Mode:

            Hot Rod’s car mode looked really cool and slick – kinda suited its futuristic car billing. The detailing his fantastic, right down to the cockpit, which you can open up and fit small figures, such as Dr. Arkeville in it. My problem with this mode is with the small piece that would form the groin guard in robot mode being a little bit too close to the floor, which at times doesn’t allow the car to roll smoothly. And if you force it, it may ruin the paint job. 

Truck Mode:

            Rodimus Prime’s alternate mode just looks astoundingly massive. The alternate mode may have cheated a bit in getting there rather than via full transformation, but it still doesn’t take away the fact that it looks awesome. This mode retains the fiery theme that was predominant in the car mode, and somewhat enhanced on the look. It may, however, need a bit of getting used to for one to identify this futuristic contraption as a truck.  

 Accessories:

Oiler, Spinning Blade, Matrix, Blasters, Collector Card & Manual

Creation Matrix

Blades and Oiler in Hand

Overall:

            Rodimus Convoy/ Hot Rod/ Rodimus Prime indeed deserve a Masterpiece treatment. He is the anointed successor to Optimus Prime, albeit a reluctant one. Rodimus embodies a flawed leader, who is insecure about himself, and constantly feels inferior to his predecessor. I mean, let’s face it, who wouldn’t feel that way if you have to fill in the huge shoes left by Optimus Prime?

            Masterpiece Rodimus Prime continues the tradition of having your classic G1 characters immortalized as a Masterpiece figure. The transformations aren’t really that complicated, but it’s really involving. Rodimus Convoy is, by far the closest thing you have to an animation-accurate Hot Rod/ Rodimus Prime figure, period.

Final verdict, 9/10.