Sixshot - G1 - Figure


Intro

A little while ago I was fortunate enough to find Sixshot on eBay for a reasonable price. He is the Transformer that has an almost mythical quality about him, seeing how he is one of 2 Six Changers. And in my country he was never available. He was one of the Transformers I have always fantasized about owning.

And thanks to eBay I finally do. I managed to get the Japanese reissue which was still MIB. Quite a lucky deal if I do say so myself. ;-) And seeing how no one has reviewed one of the best Transformers ever yet, I thought I should review him.

Notes: I do not include transformation instructions because one can transform in from any mode into any mode. I could have followed the instructions that he came with but those can be found on the internet so why should I explain how he transforms if the instructions can be found online.

Even more important is that I did not put the stickers on. There are a lot of them and I am not very good at this. So I am leaving those off. Whether this makes a difference on the review or not but I just thought I should mention it. As with most G1 figures, Sixshot looks a little "naked" without them.

The Box

Thought I should take a few seconds to talk about the box. Since I got the Japanese reissue there is no complete tech spec and Sixshot does not come in Styrofoam but in a plastic tray. But the box is largely the same.

It features the standard design of the G1 era with the Transformers logo in the upper left corner and the Japanese designation for Sixshot (D-98) in the upper right. The box has the classic G1 motive, black on the top and slowly changing to purple colors in small squares.

There is no window in the box so there are 5 pictures of his alternate modes on the left and large box art on the right. Behind the box art the squares are orange/yellow in an explosion motive which looks really nice and not to mention classic.

There is a lot of text on the front which obviously I cannot read as I do not read Japanese. Little help anyone? ;-) The sides of the box of course show off all modes as well. The back is almost completely covered by that series of box art, showing off Fortress Maximus taking on Scorponok which smaller Transformers (such as the Headmasters) battling in the front. It looks pretty cool and Sixshot can be seen on Fortress Maximus' right arm.

To the right is another series of photo's showing off all of Sixshot's modes. The tech spec is on the lower left but it is only a picture with text. No decoder strip needed sadly. Still this classic box design is awesome and even though the newer box designs are cool, there is no substitute for these boxes.

Contents

The box has Sixshot in space cruiser mode and two guns in a plastic tray. A plastic lid is used to keep them safely in place. Also included are a collector card (with the tech spec info), the instructions (which seem a bit rudimentary compared to the US ones from that era) and the inevitable sticker sheet which contains over 20 stickers.

Removing them is easy and fast. No nasty twist ties here. Just a few pieces of cello tape needed to be cut in order to remove the lid and remove Sixshot from the tray.

Heavenly. ;-)

Sixshot

Sixshot was only seen in one US episode but he managed to take down all five Aerialbots in just a few seconds. The only real bio can be found in Transformers: More Than Meets The Eye #6. This specifies him as a Solo Transformer Assault Group (or STAG for short). He can take on large groups of foes with ease but is not above fighting an opponent honorably in hand to hand combat. Impressive but does the toy match his bio in terms of coolness? Let's find out.

Space Cruiser

This is the mode Sixshot comes packaged in. He is quite big and rivals Energon Megatron in terms of size. He is not quite as good looking nevertheless he looks very cool, especially when you consider that he has 5 other modes.

Color wise Sixshot is a combination on green, purple, white, black and gray for the wings. His weapons (the concussion blasters) are white. The cruiser is very sturdy and sleek. The nose cone leads to a small cockpit on which the rub sign is located. The cockpit is flanked by what looks like intakes. Since what will be the arms in robot mode form the engines this makes sense. 

Next to the engines are two smaller wings which are black. They look cool in this mode but get in the way a bit with the robot mode. But that is not a concern right now. The arms which are the engines in this mode stick out the back a bit. The blasters are fitted on the ends of the wings and they really give Sixshot firepower!

What matters most when it comes to a Transformer is how much of the other mode shows up in a mode. Seeing how much modes Sixshot has one would imagine that quite a lot of the other modes can be seen in each mode. But it is not that bad actually.

In this mode one can clearly see the wheels and to a lesser extent the tank treads. However, with a Transformer that has this much modes that is unavoidable. What is also unavoidable is that some parts cannot be shaped "better". For example the engines, since they needed to put have wheels and treads on there for the other mode they could not have really molded them like engines. (They even molded wolf claws on there.) It is a bit of a shame but with a Six Changer, who is complaining?

One last thing I wanted to mention are the black trapdoors. In this mode they are on top of the nose cone. Had Hasbro (Takara) wanted to save costs they could have been left out. To their credit, they did not. It add that special touch to Sixshot which I really like.

In closing, this is one awesome mode. It looks great and threatening. It is also really big which is always a plus.

I give this mode 5 stars out of 5.

Gun mode

This is the second mode which I am going to review. In the show Cyclonus used him but according to his bio Sixshot can fly in this mode pretty much like Shockwave did. And though Shockwave looked a little better Sixshot looks really good as well.

The mode actually is not much of a difference from the jet mode. The nose cone has formed the gun barrel and the wing formed the gun handle. But that does not mean this mode does not look good or like a "deformed plane". It is a nice, big and powerful looking gun which looks as if it could fly.

What I really like is that the gun even has a trigger (this bit will come back later) despite that it has no function as Sixshot cannot shoot or features sound effects. It is just a little added touch which is really cool. Speaking of added touches, the small wheel on top of the cockpit would make a nice gun sight.

Not all is perfect though but the only problems with this mode are related to the fax that Sixshot is a Six Changer. Using the wings as gun handle is a neat idea but they feel flimsy and it could break fast as Sixshot is rather heavy. Just be careful. ;-) 

The second problem is the barrels for this mode. 2 guns are the blasters and the other 4 fold out of his robot legs. This resulted in them being really small and this is no problem for the tank mode but for this mode it is. The gun is really huge and to have such small barrels is a bit of a shame. If you would not use the blasters inis mode actually looks a little pathetic.

Still, given how cool Sixshot is that really does not matter much. And it is an excellent effort, trying to add a gun mode to Sixshot.

So this mode gets 4 stars out of 5.

Armored Truck

This mode is Sixshot's first ground mode and to be honest, the weakest one. The front of the truck was also the front of the jet which explains why it is so sleek. Stickers (unapplied here) help the illusion that this is a truck. The wings form armor and the blasters provide fire power.

The colors are the same as the cruiser and gun mode but chrome shows up in this mode as well which looks nice. An added touch is the radar dish which was the trigger in gun mode. It does not really look like a radar to me but it is a cool idea so that is an extra point in my book.

Sixshot is pretty flat in this mode so he could carry a wounded comrade. Why he would do that I do not know as it does not seem as Sixshot would rescue weaker Decepticons. But even he must answer to Megatron so I guess it would be a possibility that he would need to carry some one.

In all this mode is a nice addition. It seems Sixshot would mainly use this mode to travel quickly on land and not for anything else. It could have been better but not all modes can be winners when dealing with a Six Changer.

I give this mode 3 out of 5 stars.

Tank 

The other ground mode. Quite frankly does not look like any tank I have seen. It looks more like artillery than a tank so calling it a tank seems a bit odd. Still, as it is labeled as a tank, I will refer to it as a tank. But he looks great though. Again, the wings form the armor and the smaller guns from the gun mode pop up again.

The robot mode legs in which they are hidden point up diagonally which seems to indicate that Sixshot is specialized in aerial defense. The blasters can be placed on the legs as well as added fire power. But they can also be placed in the same holes as they went in for the truck mode to fend off ground enemies.

Another small touch pops up again here, which is a small cock pit which is hidden in the wolf head. It looks good and really shows that a lot of time and care went into this mode. All this results in a cool mode.

So it nets 4 stars out of 5 for me.

Wolf

Next to 3 vehicle modes, one gun mode and his robot form Sixshot also has a beast mode. Like all G1 beast modes Sixshot does not really look like a wolf. But that is hardly a fault for a G1 toy. And he looks better than most of the G1 Terrorcons so that is a plus.

This is also the first of two mode in which articulation counts. The front legs move and the paws can twist. The hind legs also fold up and own but cannot move independently due to the Transformation. If you point the front legs forward and the hind legs to the back you can lower the wings enough to make it look as if Sixshot is flying.

The wolf head looks cool and fierce. The mouth can actually open but sadly the cockpit for the tank mode is in it. Oh well, better than nothing at all I guess. 

Note: the wolf is the only mode that does not need the blasters. Sixshot prefers to rip his opponents apart with his teeth and claws in wolf form. Nasty fellow that Sixshot.

Though not as good as any Beast Wars beasts, he is a pretty cool wolf and nets 4 stars out of 5.

Robot

This is the mode that often matters most. Note: the instructions show that the wings are on Sixshot's back, all folded up and folded in. You can also place wings in the position they are in for the cruiser mode. This gives the illusion that Sixshot can fly in this mode.

Sixshot is pretty evenly made in the sense that he has a normal body structure. No ridiculously small/big arms or legs. Photo's and pictures of the robot mode show him with the smaller wings folded out. This interferes with the arms a bit so one may want to fold them in. Of course if you have the large wings in the alternate position then those interfere with the arms as well.

As for articulation, the arms move and the wrists rotate. The legs can bend as well. They can even bend at two different places. The lower knee joint is the one for which you need to open the upper trap door before you can bend the knew. But you can also use the upper knee joint to bend him which works a lot better. 

In all Sixshot's articulation is pretty ok given most G1 Transformers were bricks. All of it is of course possible due to the way he transforms but that was also a trait for G1 Transformers. If it had a moving part it was probably meant for the transformation. ;-) Sixshot's joints are nice so you should not worry about him falling over because of bad joints.

Sixshot is very powerful looking without looking extremely bulky. (Though he could have been a little wider.) He has very little kibble, except for the small parts on his legs (nosecone of jet/truck mode) and the small wings which get in the way of the arms (or in front of the face when folded in). That is the only real problem with this mode.

The face is perfect for Sixshot. He has a mouth plate and rest of the head sculpt is very sleek which gives him a ninja look. He has fierce red eyes which help that illusion a lot. It also enhances the idea that he is a powerful warrior. The rub sign is now on Sixshot's chest which is the perfect place to have it.

Naturally Sixshot can use the guns in this mode and their size makes him even more formidable. They could be placed on the wings but that does not look that great.

There you have it, Sixshot's robot mode is a really cool robot mode. He is big and rivals the G1 combiners (minus Predaking) in terms of size. His articulation is average by today's standards but better than most G1 Transformers. And he is a mold over 15 year's old so that is hardly a fault.

I give this mode 5 out of 5 stars.

Final comments

Sixshot is clearly one of the greatest Transformers ever made. Sure he has not got super articulated limbs or sound effects. But that makes him no less cool in my opinion. And here is why:

He has 6 modes which are well designed and although some of them have small faults they also have nice touches to compensate for that. My favorite modes are the robot and space cruiser mode. But with 6 modes you may have your own favorites.

Transforming Sixshot from one mode into another is really easy and reasonable fast which is a relief considering a lot of the later Transformers feature really long and difficult. transformations which can be annoying at times. 

And unlike later Transformers like Quickswitch or R.I.D. Megatron which also had six (or even) more modes Sixshot's six modes are all completely different modes, (despite the easy transformations). And that is a true blast (from the past).

After all, it is easy to imagine Sixshot being able to fill any role on the battle field. He can duke it out in air or space in cruiser mode, transport wounded Transformers or cargo back to base and/or blasting ground enemies in truck mode, providing air and ground cover in tank mode, maul enemies as a wolf and finally simply attack enemies in awesome robot mode.

Whatever the problem is, Sixshot has got the ideal mode to face that problem. Which pretty much makes him the ultimate warrior and as such one of the best Transformers which every Transformers collector should have in his collection.

ReviewerFerry Rudolph  
DateJuly 13th 2004  
Score 10 stars (10 out of 10)  
Reads14975


Back to Reviews Index

Advertise on TFormers.com








This site uses cookies for site configuration, advertising, and analysis. By using this site you accept our policies - Read Full Site Policy OK
Sign Up For The TNI Newsletter And Have The News Delivered To You!


Forums Communities: Toy Fans - Marvel Fans - Transformers Fans

@ToyNewsI Socials: Facebook - Twitter - Instagram

@MarvelousNews Socials: Facebook - Twitter - Instagram

@Tformers Socials: Facebook - Twitter - Instagram

@JediInsider Socials: Facebook - Twitter - Instagram

Entertainment News International (ENI) is the #1 popular culture network for adult fans all around the world.
Get the scoop on all the popular comics, games, movies, toys, and more every day!

Contact and Support

Advertising | Submit News | Contact ENI | Privacy Policy

©Entertainment News International - All images, trademarks, logos, video, brands and images used on this website are registered trademarks of their respective companies and owners. All Rights Reserved. Data has been shared for news reporting purposes only. All content sourced by fans, online websites, and or other fan community sources. Entertainment News International is not responsible for reporting errors, inaccuracies, omissions, and or other liablities related to news shared here. We do our best to keep tabs on infringements. If some of your content was shared by accident. Contact us about any infringements right away - CLICK HERE