Fanboys are always looking for homages and tributes to the Autobots and Decepticons they grew up with. In response, Hasbro gives us different attempts to do such. Sometimes, they hit a line drive. Other times, they fall off the mark. This review looks at Strafe, which borrows a mold from the previous movie line. Can a Bayverse figure really make a good G1 tribute?
Most of the time, Strafe is a pleasant guy to be around, if a little bit jumpy. But if something startles him, it's a better than even chance that everything around him will end up with at least one hole burned through it. Loud noises, alarms, bacon sizzling - pretty much anything can set him off. Other Autobots tend to stay away from him on the battlefield, preferring to let his spastic fighting reaction burn itself out on Decepticons before they move in to capture the cowering survivors.
Strength
Intelligence
Speed
Endurance
Rank
Courage
Fireblast
Skill
Strafe is a straight repaint of ROTF Mindwipe. While the coloration is more in line with the Technobot's G1 figure, they don't seem to work as well on this mold. The glossy PVC gray and white make the red stand out too much. The head sculpt is a carry-over as well, which doesn't even come close to matching Strafe's. The only real G1 comparison is with the rubsign on his right shoulder.
All the MechAlive gimmicks that were present with Mindwipe are present here. The blades on his arms flip out via a lever and the microblades extend when the wings are folded back. The gap in the chest plate is more obvious with the new colors, as is the extremely long neck.
This is perhaps Strafe's best quality. Just be careful of the hair-trigger blades.
Exactly identical to Mindwipe's.
Strafe's stealth bomber alt mode is nothing near the throwback that his G1 futuristic jet was. Don't get me wrong, the mold itself is nice but in black it looked at home. Sporting a mostly gray body with red and orange accents makes it look a bit off.
The three point landing gear remains, as does the exposed head under the belly. Quality control issues were a bit more evident in alt mode as well, such as overspray on the cockpit glass.
Were this to be found at retail for $19.99, I couldn't recommend it. Although it's a stellar mold, it just doesn't feel right. Plus the sloppy paint shows what a rush job this might have been. Best to search mass discounters.
Everyone wants to ride the retro trains. Pulling the heart strings of 80s fanboys, which now have jobs, can be an easy sell sometimes. However, you can't just slap a nostalgic paint job on any figure and call it a hit. Such is the case with Strafe. The Mindwipe mode is a great mold, but using it for Strafe wasn't the best idea. If you can find it at TJ Maxx, then it might be worth considering. If you find it at a retailer, pass.
Reviewer | Blitzwing |
Date | August 1st 2011 |
Score | (5 out of 10) |
Reads | 14241 |
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