Intro:
Every
so often, an announcement of figures releases by HasTak would get me so darn
excited. Then, sometime last year, Takara-Tomy announced that they would be
releasing the long-awaited Star Saber figure in their Masterpiece lineup – as a
result of public fan-voting – and I can feel the excitement building inside of
me.
Star
Saber was the Autobot’s Supreme Commander during the events of Transformers:
Victory. The original vintage G1 Star Saber, though a “brick” by nature, is
probably one of the most expensive figures in the secondhand market today, if
you can ever find him in the first place.
The
only other Star Saber figures that I have prior to this release was the
Robotmaster and the Kabaya Candy Star Saber/ Victory Leo sets, each are very
good in their own respect.
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| Instruction Manual |
I
have always wanted a Star Saber figure, and thanks to the good people and
TeenCom, Melaka, I have finally managed to get a hold of MP-24 Masterpiece Star
Saber, thus making this review possible.
Bio Card and Tech Spec
Of course, with this release, there is no
Victory Leo. We’d probably have to wait for either Takara-Tomy or some 3rd
Party companies to release a companion Victory Leo.
Packaging:
It
has been a long time since a Masterpiece figure came in such a large box, until
the release of Ultra Magnus, of course, and it’s really a welcoming sight.
MP-24
also comes packed with an instruction booklet, a bio-card, as well as
accessories for his swords – for Saber and Star Saber modes; a shield that
double-up as a display stand; a blaster; and of course, the original
Brainmaster – Brain of Courage.
Brain
of Courage:
Yes,
I admit, this is probably one of the most uncreative names ever in the
franchise, but this is what he was called back them (from hereon in, BOC).
BOC literally
looks like a mesh of Saber and Star Saber mode. He generally has the larger
robot’s body and Saber’s head designs.
Standing
at about 1-inches tall, BOC does not transform, but he does have a little bit
of articulations. He has a set of rotational shoulder joints and swinging hips –
that’s all.
For
scale, BOC is actually human-sized and he can actually pilot the jet.
Saber
- Vehicle Mode:
Saber
transforms into a red jet, which is a damn good realistic jet really. It looks
like and very aerodynamic.
There
are also landing gears – real landing gears with wheels, not just stumps.
The
cockpit opens to allow BOC to pilot him.
Saber
- Robot Mode:
When
required, Saber can transforms into robot mode. Here, he is a bit of a
part-former. The front portion of the jet detaches itself to become he robot
mode’s arm shield.
Transformation
is quite similar to its original G1 and Robot Master figures – so you actually
forgo the instruction manuals and still do fine.
Brainmaster... ON
Just
like the original G1 figure, the chest opens up and there is a space for BOC to
be inserted. Once the chest is closed, Saber’s face appears.
Unlike
the G1 figure where BOC itself is the face, in MP-24, the face is in the body
of the larger figure itself, and BOC only acts as an extension tool to push up
that face.
Standing
at about the height of your standard Deluxe figures of old, Saber is a huge improvements
to his old G1 self, especially in terms of articulations.
The
head actually rotates, which a pleasant surprise. The shoulders are on soft
ratcheting universal joints. The arms rotate and bend at the shoulders, and the
wrists rotate. One thing worth to note is that the lower arms are hollow.
There
are no waist joint, unfortunately. The hips are on really, really tight
ratcheting joints. However, the rotating axis can be relatively loose. The knees
are on soft ratcheting joints, and also rotational joints.
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| Saber and Classic Optimus Prime |
Finally,
the toe-piece can tilt as well.
In
this mode, he wields his sword, a blaster, as well as a shield formed by the
front portion of the jet mode.
Base
& Mobile Platform Mode:
I
have never been a fan of Star Saber’s base mode, and somehow the designers
agreed to it, by not giving him a base mode officially. However, based on how
the old G1 figure did it, Saber too can have his own battle platform, formed by
his larger back-jet.
The
back-jet can also act as a mobile platform for Saber to ride into battles. This
was frequently depicted in the animated series.
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| Storing the hilt |
The
back-jet also provides several storage space for the accessories, i.e. the
sword, hilt and blaster.
It
also has hidden missile launchers.
Star
Saber Vehicle Mode:
When
the threats get too overwhelming, Saber can combine with back-jet and form a
larger spacecraft/ jet, and what a humongous spacecraft it is.
For
display, the spacecraft can be mounted on the display. However, he can only be
displayed in one particular way. It would’ve been really cool if he could be
displayed in more ways than one.
Anyways,
those are only small gripes, nothing much.
Star
Saber Robot Mode:
The
threat of Deathsaurus can be so overwhelming, that no mere bot can withstand
him on their own. When all else fails, Saber will transform into his super-mode
by combining with his back-jet, similar to how Gin Ginrai combines with his
trailer, and the resulting super bot is absolutely awe-inspiring!
He
is HUGE and much taller than MP-01! He looks very screen accurate and very
proportionate.
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| Side-by-side with MP-01 Convoy (Last Shot) |
His
head sculpt, which actually a helmet, is totally wicked!
Articulation-wise:
the head has the exact same movements as Saber’s, provided the clips are
released first. The shoulders are on soft ratcheting universal joints; the
elbows swing outward and bend at two-points; the wrists rotate; the thumb is
fixed; the first finger swings and the other 3 fingers move in tandem.
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| Finger articulations |
The
waist turns; the hips are on hard-ratcheting universal joints; the knees are on
ratcheting joints; and finally there is a little bit of ankle movements.
Sword storage
All
in all, his articulations are wonderful!!!
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| Storing the hilt |
You
can really have hours of fun putting him in various action poses.
In
this mode, he can wield his large sword as well as his shield. Of course, he
tends to look like a Gundam Mobile Suit, which is exactly what most people
think… at least I do.
Anyways,
he can also wield his smaller gun in this mode, without looking any awkward.
Star Saber Coin:
The coin packaging is kind of unique -- it has two flaps, representing the chests of both Saber and Star Saber.
The coin of course depicts Star Saber's face, although it kinda looks like Optimus Prime with really long ears.
Star Saber Coin:
Overall:
I am absolutely
happy with Star Saber. I have always wanted a Star Saber and this is probably
the best Star Saber ever. He looks good; fantastic articulations – he’s the
best Star Saber figure ever.
Now… if only
there was Victory Leo.
Highly recommended.
Final
verdict: 10/10.
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