Toys R Us is blessing (or for some, cursing) Animated fans with one more go of exclusive figures. This time around, we get the much anticipated Rodimus Minor figure, as well as Ratchet's 'twin', Ironhide.

Bio

"Yee-haw!"

The Autobot army has never seen anyone tougher than Ironhide. Back in boot camp, the trainees considered it good fun to take their best shot at denting his armor. No one ever could. Now, on battlefields across the galaxy, Ironhide uses his ultra-hard armor and fighting skills to battle Decepticons wherever they appear

Galactic Powers And Abilities

Able to transmute his armor into an indestructible alloy
Enjoys playing practical jokes on other young Autobots
Has plenty of weapons, but prefers a good fist fight

Robot Mode

Ironhide is a mostly repainted version of Cybertronian Mode Ratchet. The big difference, of course, is with the head, which is completely retooled. I imagined him having a slightly bigger head, though. The one he has seems a bit... stumpy. At least the blue piping is there.

There's an air of laziness with the Ironhide figure. Even the instructions show Ratchet, only changing the title of the instructions. The hammer attachments for his hands still exists, as well as the provision for the EMP generator.

Articulation

Feet:Pin hinge, 90 degree downward bend (technical)
Knees:Pin hinge, 90 degree rearward bend, pinned above knee for unlimited lower leg rotation
Hips:Ball joint, 180 degree bend w/90 degree spread
Waist:Stationary
Shoulders:Ball joint, unlimited rotation w/90 degree spread, pinned below shoulder for unlimited rotation
Elbows:Double pin hinge, 180 degree bend
Hands:Pinned for unlimited rotation
Head:Ball joint, unlimited rotation

A solid figure, overall, and not plagued with the loose elbows that my Ratchet had before.

Transformation

Identical to Ratchet.

Alt Mode

In his alt mode, there are no mold changes. The paint job is a rather drab orange with some yellow and black accents. The roof rack and clearance lights remain.

Even with Ironhide, I can't bring myself past the unrefined parts of the alt mode. The side profile especially looks unfinished. Fortunately the robot mode more than makes up for the shortcomings.

Verdict

Robot Mode: - All the highlights of Ratchet, now with a new head.
Alt Mode: - All the shortcomings of Ratchet, with a dull paint job to match.
Overall: - A nice exclusive. Worth it for the robot mode. As a bonus, I can see many heads being taken for a kitbashed Earth mode.
Class: Deluxe
Price:$12.99, Toys R Us Exclusive

Reviewer	Blitzwing
Date	August 27th 2010
Score	(8 out of 10)
Reads	12209

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