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Transformers Review: Blitzwing (Generations Voyager)

Intro:
            I love Triple Changers. Who doesn’t? Having a robot with ONE alternate mode was cool enough. Having a robot with TWO alternate modes was definitely better.
            During the G1 era, both the Autobots and Decepticons had their fair share of Triple Changers. On the Autobots side there were Sandstorm, Broadside and their most famous Triple Changer – Springer, who played a starring role in the 1986 animated movie. On the Decepticons, there were Blitzwing, Astrotrain and Octane. Maybe it’s just me, but overall, I do think that the Decepticons had the better lineup.
            Blitzwing, though wasn’t really a major character in the franchise, he was best remembered as both the guy who wanted to seize control of the Decepticons from Megatron with his “brother” Astrotrain; and as the guy, who defected the Decepticons and join forces with the Autobots in the last part of a five-episodes story arc during Season 3 called The Five Faces of Darkness. Oddly though, Blitzwing was never featured in the cartoon thereafter, although another character called Octane, despite the differing alternate modes, does fit Blitzwing’s personality.
            Anyways, I’ve always wanted Blitzwing, even more so compared to the rest of the Triple Changers. He just seems a bit cooler. He has tank and jet as alternate modes, of course he’s cool! Come on, who doesn’t like jets and tanks, right?
            Ehem…
Anyways, my very first Blitzwing figure was from the Animated line, but its alternate mode weren’t really that convincing. It was just too… well… animated – pun not intended
So when it was announced that Blitzwing was going to be released in the newer Generations line, I knew I had to get him, which I did – at a superb bargain price.

Tank Mode:
Visually awesome
            I have to admit, the Tank Mode isn’t exactly the best tank-former out there, but it definitely not the worse either.
            Overall visually, the tank does look okay, although there are a lot of eye-sore gaps all over the figure.
Nice
            Kibbles are aplenty, especially when you turn the figure over.
            The turret turns, although I would’ve preferred that the turret’s point of rotation could’ve been moved slightly towards the middle of the turret. As things are, things can look quite awkward at some point.
Horrible Kibbles
            Although some of the details are quite nice, such as the side of the tank and tracks; I do wish that there were some ways to cover up some of the glaring gaps, particularly at the front of the tank. They could have at least completed the tank tracks, rather than just leaving it half way.
Yuck!
            The blaster can be stored on top of the turret, which acts as an extra weapon, while the sword can be attached to the side that serve no purpose.

Jet Mode
Jetfire-esque
            The jet mode is probably the more convincing alternate mode among the two, although it is not without its flaws.
            I kind of like the general visuals of the mode, which kind of reminds me G1 Jetfire, particularly the two plastic pieces on top of the plane formed by Blitzwing’s hands, which resembles Jetfire’s jet pack. Even the wings evoke the classic Valkrie wings.
Kibbles!
            The cockpit opens, but barely. The tank’s kibbles are definitely glaring, particularly the tank’s cannon, which now acts more like a thruster in this mode and an attempt to cover up those visible “unnatural” gaps that kind of ruined the look of the jet.
            For landing gears, Blitzwing’s front “wheels” protrudes, wheels not included. The same goes for the back, where it’s merely a bump with outlines of wheel. Nothing suggests that wheels could not be included in this set, and that makes it kind of disappointing.
Cannon Deployed
            The sword can be attached underneath one of the wings, while the gun can remain at the same position where it was stored in tank mode.

Robot Mode:
            Visually, Blitzwing in robot form looks great. It takes a lot of cue from its G1 appearances – the color scheme, as well as the robot design in general.

            The most unique part of this mode would definitely be his head sculpt. Since it’s G1 years, the name Blitzwing have been in obscurity until the Animated series was released. In that series, Blitzwing was depicted to have split-personality syndrome, and he comes with 3 different faces for each corresponding personalities.


            Those gimmicks were brought forward to this version as well. Unlike in the Animated series, where the face changes horizontally underneath his helmet; this version’s face turns vertically. It does add some playability to this figure.
            The body build is quite proportionate, and it isn’t as hollow as most newer generation Transformers. Having said that, he is still quite light. Gone are the days where Transformers figures used to feel quite hefty.
            I wish I could say that Blitzwing is a great figure, I really do, but unfortunately, I can’t. This figure has one major issue plaguing him – the arms-body locking mechanism. In theory, there is a peg within the chest that is supposed to lock onto a peg-hole on the shoulder piece, but unfortunately they don’t. That means that whenever you try to move the arms, chances are they will unlock on its own, which is kind of irritating.
            You would think that with the advancement of toy-making technology available at our disposal, this sort of issues should be non-existent at all, but unfortunately, apparently it still does.

Summary:
            In theory, this should have been a great action figure. It’s a Triple Changer, it’s supposed to be good and I wanted it to be so good, so bad, but unfortunately, it’s a major letdown.
            The arm-body locking mechanism is one of the main issues plaguing this figure. Although the alternate modes aren’t exactly stellar, I can still accept them, but this is just too much. So far, the figure’s mold have been reused for the character Doubledealer and recently, repainted and retooled as Starscream, but unfortunately, the same problem still exist, which is a huge disappointment.
            Make no mistake, I would still recommend this figure to any G1 or Blitzwing fans, because I reckoned this would be the best Blitzwing figure we are ever going to get… period. But if you expect this to be a great and perfect figure, then you will probably be hugely disappointed.


Rating – 4/10
 TeenCom




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