Jason Maust is back with another Transformers review today.
Thanks, Jason! Let's get on to the review...
Well, I am back with another Transformers review by way of Michael.
Thanks again for letting me put my random thoughts on your great
site. I have gotten a lot of positive (and an occasional negative)
e-mails for my Megatron review. I am glad to hear from everyone
though.
I
was recently at Target when I noticed a brand new 2-pack of Transformers
on the shelf containing Skid-Z (Autobot F-1 racer) and Wind Sheer (Decepticon
F-22 Raptor fighter plane). The
gimmick with these is that by pressing on a certain area, a spring
loaded device changes them almost completely into robot mode.
They are small, easy to play with, and most importantly, FUN!
They remind me of bringing Generation 1 Transformers to school
and playing with them in the cubby hole in my desk in third grade
instead of paying attention to Math.
I will rate each one separately, except on the packaging and
value ratings.
Packaging-
***
The package for these two is exactly like the ones that Prowl, Side
Burn, and X-Brawn came in, except the bubble is slightly larger and
there are 2 file cards on the back.
Interestingly, Wind Sheer is NOT a Predacon, the box says DECEPTICON
and he features Decepticon symbols.
Now, I have only seen a few episodes of the cartoon, so I am not
sure the reason for this, but apparently there may be a separate villain
group (at least in name) than the Predacons that have appeared thus far.
The package is very attractive and the bubble seems very strong
and less likely to dent or discolor than Prime and Megatron.
Like
all of the other Transformers, all writing and description of the
character and show are written in 3 languages, allowing for less detail
about the character and the show and also crowding the back of the box
considerably. Especially
with two file cards, they had to shrink the writing even more.
Articulation-
Skid-Z***, Wind Sheer***/1/2
Skid-Z has good articulation for his size (less than 2.5 inches tall in
robot mode). He has neck
and knee joints, as well as ball joints in the shoulders, elbows, and
hips. His wheels spin well
also. I took away a little
bit though because his front wheels have a tendency of restricting the
flow of the arms. This is
minor though.
Wind Sheer has excellent articulation at the same
size. He features the same
joints as Skid-Z, however his knees are also ball joints, making him
very moveable. His arms and
legs are unobstructed from moving freely into many different positions.
Transformation-
Skid-Z**1/2, Wind Sheer***
Some people may say that the Transformations are not complicated enough
to make these figures worth buying, but I believe that the easy
transformations makes them more fun to play with.
To transform Skid-Z, all you have to do is lift up on his spoiler
and the spring flicks him in to robot mode.
That is pretty much it. Nothing
great, kind of Go-Bot like (which is not good, no matter who you talk
to). However, I think it is
part of the charm of these, so I still rated it high.
The only bad thing is the mechanism that locks it in place does a
really good job it. I felt
like I was going to break it when I lifted the spoiler.
So use caution there.
Wind
Sheer is pretty much the same, though you have to rearrange his arms and
legs a little. Wind
Sheer’s transformations is a little more complex, but barely.
However, you never feel like he is going to break, so that is
good.
Sculpting
–Skid-Z**1/2, Wind Sheer***
The weird thing is if you look at Wind Sheer’s head really closely, he
is the spitting image of Generation 1 Megatron.
Now of course the head is much smaller, but it has the same basic
shape. I do not know if
they are reusing an old mold of something or not, it is just kind of
odd. Anyway, the sculpts on
both are good, but very simple. One
impressive thing is that Wind Sheer has three landing gears that fold
down in F-22 mode. It’s a
nice little extra. Both of
them have light tubing in their heads to make their eyes light up, so
that is another nice feature. Overall,
2 simple sculpts, though Wind Sheer offers a bit more detail with his
lines in plane mode. As
someone who knows a lot about jet fighters, I can testify that from the
top, they did a dead on job of making an F-22.
Paint
– Skid-Z**, Wind Sheer**
Now, its not that the paint job is bad on these two robots, there just
wasn’t a lot of paint to put on them.
From a technical difficulty standpoint, these were very easy to
paint with no fine detail. Some
of the paint is slightly but noticeably smudged in spots.
If you are a big stickler for paint, then you will not be
impressed. If you are
buying them to play with though, then you really won’t notice.
I almost gave Wind Sheer an extra half just because he has an
original Decepticon logo on his wings.
Heck, it might be worth buying it just for that feature alone.
Skid-Z has a big Autobot symbol on his chest that can be seen in both
mode and gives it a definite Gen 1 feel.
Accessories
– Skid-Z***1/2, Wind Sheer***1/2
Now, for such small robots, I really didn’t expect any accessories at
all. I was pleasantly
surprised to discover that each robot came with a pretty well designed
gun that fits firmly in their hands.
Now the guns alone do not deserve such a high rating, but each
gun splits into 2 halves that fit firmly inside the inner legs of their
owner. This way, when they
are in vehicle mode, you never have to worry about losing them.
They will even stay locked in place in robot mode, so if you are
having them fist fight, the guns will still be in a safe place.
I did not expect this feature when I bought it and was very happy
when I discovered it.
Value-***1/2
I bought mine for $10. That
means with a 2-pack that I paid $5 per Transformer.
While they are not as detailed as the 3 Car Brothers, you can’t
beat getting an Autobot and a Decepticon in one package.
Perfect for small children new to the idea of Transformers
because they get a hero and a villain.
Overall-Skid-Z**1/2,
Wind Sheer***
If you are currently looking for Transformers that are simple and fun to
play with, you can’t go wrong with these.
If you really enjoy the complex transformations of Megatron and
Prime filled with dozens of different features, these are going to fall
really flat. But, I must
once again emphasize that these really FEEL like they are to be played
with. These are the kind of
Transformers you take to a playground or sand box with you.
Personally, I love them, especially Wind Sheer, but I have always
loved the jets the most.
Where
to Buy -
You can find the Skid-Z/Wind Sheer 2-pack at Target.
I have not been able to find it at Toys R Us or Walmart, but by
now it may be out there, who knows.
Ebay will probably have some as well.
If anyone has any comments on the review, feel free
to email Jason at maust@madisoninnovations.com.