Toy Review - TRAILBREAKER (Masterpiece)

[GoktimusPrime]

TRAILBLAZER (https://tf.takaratomy.co.jp/products-lineup/tf_mp/mp-56)
Series - Masterpiece
Size/class - N/A
New/remould/redeco - New
Wave - MP-56
Released here - N/A (Japan, late December 2022)
Approximate Retail Price - 21780JPY ($240)
Approximate Size - 21.5cm
Allegiance - Autobot
Alt-mode - Toyota HiLux 4WD
Main Features/Gimmicks - interchangeable faces & hands
Main Colours - dark grey, light grey
Main Accessories - x3 faces, x1 parabolic antenna, x2 hands, x1 single barrel gun, x1 multi-nozzle gun, x1 chrome grill, x1 non-chrome grill, x1 blast effect, x1 sticker sheet

Robot mode, front and back
https://i.ibb.co/2qjqTCC/masterpiece-trailbreaker01.jpg

L: w/ both hands, smiling face
R: w/ single barrel extendable gun, shouting face
https://i.ibb.co/z7Xcf4B/masterpiece-trailbreaker02.jpg

Shouting face with blast effect
https://i.ibb.co/zRRsZyr/masterpiece-trailbreaker03.jpg

Multi-nozzle and single barrel guns
https://i.ibb.co/TKMN3L1/masterpiece-trailbreaker04.jpg

Blast effect in multi-nozzle gun
https://i.ibb.co/ZYKL3nC/masterpiece-trailbreaker05.jpg

https://i.ibb.co/CKnhWM1/masterpiece-trailbreaker06.jpg

Force field
https://i.ibb.co/C6khXnm/masterpiece-trailbreaker07.jpg

Open bonnet with engine revealed, grill removed. Note that the wing mirrors fold into the bonnet section, similar to MP Skids
https://i.ibb.co/6WS5cz3/masterpiece-trailbreaker08.jpg

Non-chrome grill attached
https://i.ibb.co/GnDjT7m/masterpiece-trailbreaker09.jpg

Chrome grill attached
https://i.ibb.co/RjL5BMd/masterpiece-trailbreaker10.jpg

Parabolic antenna
https://i.ibb.co/F45D4yF/masterpiece-trailbreaker11.jpg

Comparison with G1
https://i.ibb.co/sCZJPBy/masterpiece-trailbreaker12.jpg

https://i.ibb.co/mvv5rHt/masterpiece-trailbreaker13.jpg

A rather complex and fiddly transformation, especially the backpack. Somewhat reminiscent of MP Sunstreaker in that regard, which can be a good or bad thing depending on how you feel about MP Sunstreaker. :) The way that the rear wheels tuck inside the lower legs reminds me of MP Hound, only that it's done more elegantly here. MP Trailbreaker really goes back to that MP Inferno to Sunstreaker style of MP toys that are aim to be slavishly accurate to the Sunbow cartoon. Just like those other MPs, Trailbreaker here looks like he jumped out of your TV screen and became a real boy^toy. The metallic blue eye visor is a nice touch as it helps make it pop against the dark grey head and face.

I personally prefer MPs to be more of a mix between toy and cartoon aesthetics (which is what I loved about MP Skids); but it seems that TakaraTOMY are swinging back hard towards the cartoon likeness end of the scale with Trailbreaker. Or possibly Takara had the MP Hiluxes already in some development around the time of MP Sunstreaker (as there were Takara staff interviews around that time indicated that they've been wanting to do the Hiluxes for some time now). Overall an excellent figure that is on par with the likes of MP Inferno, Grapple, Sunstreaker etc. If having MP toys that look like the cartoon incarnate in plastic is your jam, then I would highly recommend this figure.

It will also be interesting to see what other decos TakaraTOMY can milk from this mould; perhaps a toy-accurate plus version and possibly other Diaclone decos with toy-accurate heads (as we've seen on toys like MP Cordon, Spin-Out, Reboost, Dia Burnout etc.).

[KELPIE]

He looks fantastic, and while there is a slavish nature to the toon, there is also a slavish nature to the Hilux.

I would have rather a slightly more deformed aesthetic for the alt mode. Like we saw with Bee, those deformed alt modes are where it's at.

[GoktimusPrime]

He looks fantastic, and while there is a slavish nature to the toon, there is also a slavish nature to the Hilux.

I would have rather a slightly more deformed aesthetic for the alt mode. Like we saw with Bee, those deformed alt modes are where it's at.
I suspect the vehicle accurate proportions may be due to the licensing from Toyota. The first MP21 had an undeformed VW Beetle Type 1 alt mode, and even had to have the VW logos on things like the hubcaps etc. I guess they worked out a deal with VW for MP45. And we know that MP Sunstreaker had to have a workaround that prevented the bonnet from splitting during transformation, as well as engineering the car mode to transform between both the standard Countach vs the Super Tuning Countach; and the toy (including Cordon and Spin-Out) had to be packaged in the standard Countach configuration. This would have been all at Lamborghini's insistence.

I'm surprised that Toyota allowed this cartoony grey colour to be used on the vehicle instead of black. Does the HiLux come in this shade of grey? (I honestly don't know) - if not, I suspect that TakaraTOMY would've negotiated for the cartoon grey over vehicle proportions. It's probably an easier thing to persuade vehicle companies for over changing the actual shape of their vehicles. They would've done something similar with Corvette to allow MP Tracks to be made in blue. The compromise that Takara had to make with BT Tracks was to initially release the toy in yellow, then later in blue (as blue is not a factory standard colour for Corvettes, as I understand it).

[Kranix]

That's strange, blue was certainly a colour available on the C5 Corvette (which is what model the BT Tracks was). Rare but available. The shade was quite similar. Blue was also available on the C3 Corvette which G1 Tracks was based on. Shade difference though, from memory.

[Kranix]

I don't mind the new MP Trailbreaker, even though I'm a hybrid MP fan. I think he has come out well, except I'm not a fan of the grey colour. I think with a few more details, a straight black paint job like the toy and the chrome to offset that, he would look great.

[GoktimusPrime]

That's strange, blue was certainly a colour available on the C5 Corvette (which is what model the BT Tracks was). Rare but available. The shade was quite similar. Blue was also available on the C3 Corvette which G1 Tracks was based on. Shade difference though, from memory.
Hhhmmm... perhaps Corvette just wanted to promote the yellow variant before the blue. Similar to how part of Mazda's licensing deal for the use of the RX-8 for BT Jazz was to have the toy released in both red (Zoom-Zoom) and white (Meister) variants.

[Kranix]

Hhhmmm... perhaps Corvette just wanted to promote the yellow variant before the blue. Similar to how part of Mazda's licensing deal for the use of the RX-8 for BT Jazz was to have the toy released in both red (Zoom-Zoom) and white (Meister) variants.

Possible, I vaguely recall that yellow was the "hero" colour for the Z06 top of the line version of the C5.

[GoktimusPrime]

Possible, I vaguely recall that yellow was the "hero" colour for the Z06 top of the line version of the C5.
Hahaha, just as a joke I went and Googled for a yellow Corvette Z06 emergency vehicle...... only to discover that it does exist! :o

https://i.ibb.co/nR0q0tX/temp.jpg

Well played, internet.

[Tetsuwan Convoy]

Kurdt the Goat was kind enough to do a review and post on my blog of this guy, as I didn't get him, and am exceptionally lazy.

https://tetstoys.blogspot.com/2023/01/transformers-masterpiece-mp-56.html

Having a look at all the piccies, this guy seems impressively engineered. He manages to come across extremely lanky though. I am most used to looking at the G1 toy though and can't currently recall the cartoon version too well. If they modify him to do an MP Hoist, I'd be worried he isn(t pudgy enough.

[Jellico]

Seems to be a feature of those fold the car in half and naked leg transformers. See Bug Bite, Stacks etc from the GoBots. Third party MP Trailbreakers too, which is interesting. Obviously the first season character models stretched Trailbreaker into more human proportions, but the toy just ends up lanky.

[GoktimusPrime]

Yes, MP Trailbreaker is lanky, but that's because he was lanky in the G1 cartoon. Typical with other Season 1 Transformers, Trailbreaker's design looks more like an athletic human than the actual toy. This is likely due to Floro Dery's design being reinterpreted (i.e. simplified) from Kohara Shohei's more detailed mecha anime designs. We had the same thing with other MPs like Sideswipe, Sunstreaker, Wheeljack etc. - all are lankier than their actual G1 toys. You can also compare and contrast the designs of the Season 1 TFs with Season 2, as the S2 designs were created exclusively by Dery based off the toys, and are thus relatively more toy-accurate than the Season 1 designs. This is why Hoist isn't lanky like Trailbreaker, Red Alert has a broad chest with wheels on the shoulders, Smokescreen is stockier than Bluestreak and Prowl, the Coneheads have more toy-accurate body proportions with tiny upper legs and massive knees etc.

https://i.ibb.co/vznNZQz/temp.jpg
MP Trailbreaker is so ridiculously cartoon-like that they even gave him asymmetrical knees! At first it may look like the toy has been misassembled with two of the same side knees, but upon closer inspection you can see that it's not, because the screws are facing inwards; it's impossible to switch them around. They've been designed like this on purpose, and it is to match the cartoon design! That's a crazy level of attention to detail that we've come to expect from MP. :)

It will be interesting to see how much they've pre-tooled this mould as MP Hoist. I suspect that it will still be mostly Trailbreaker in proportions, but with things like the head and knees being tooled to look more like Hoist. I would be surprised if it were more extensively tooled to look more toy-accurate. I mean, MP Cordon and Spin-Out have new heads and shins to look more toy-accurate, but otherwise their bodies share MP Sunstreaker's Floro Dery Sunbow design proportions. I suspect that this will also be the case for Hoist; and if they choose to go down the path, MP Breaker and Lift-Ticket.
https://i.ibb.co/0t335MQ/temp.jpg

[Tetsuwan Convoy]

Interesting to see the comparisons there, I guess what also adds to his lank is the groin being below the bonnet. Never really noticed the difference in designs of the cartoon guys of the seasons, I'll have to watch a few episodes with refreshed eyeballs.

[GoktimusPrime]

Yeah, I gotta say that that's one thing that a lot of these post-2016 MPs do with their insane attention to detail with cartoon likeness, and that is including details that I never noticed before.

e.g. MP Convoy (ver 3.0) has silver stripes in robot mode, but not in truck mode. I went back and watched Optimus Prime transforming in the cartoon, and sure enough, he does not have cab stripes in truck mode, only in robot mode! :eek: No other Optimus Prime toy, including the first two MP Convoys, ever bothered with this - let's face it - insignificant detail. But post-2016 MPs do! :eek:
https://i.ibb.co/yq5mzPF/temp.jpg
It feels wrong to me, because the silver stripes are such an iconic part of Optimus Prime's appearance. Even Lio Convoy and Big Convoy have silver stripes on their abs/obliques as a visual homage to G1 Prime's silver stripes; but the cartoon always omitted them in truck mode!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KKb_93r41zw <--watch Optimus Prime transform to truck mode and back in TFTM; his stripes just magically disappear and reappear

[Ralph Wiggum]

I can’t fault the look of the vehicle and bot mode. Impeccable as I expect from a Masterpiece.

But the instructions were a mess of hot garbage once it got to the main body / backpack, and gave me nightmares of the MPM series. Especially the fine Japanese bits about some specific detail that I couldn’t figure out. Eventually managed it mostly without the instructions. Still trying to work out what the stickers are for.

[GoktimusPrime]

Here is EmGo's Just Transform It video for MP Trailbreaker (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lD-VWlbakz4). :) This video wasn't up yet when I got my MP Trailbreaker 6 weeks ago. :p I tried using the instructions but hit a brick wall with the shoulders and ended up watching some Japanese video reviews; and this was challenging for me as someone who can read/speak Japanese... it must be even harder for those who can't read the instructions. But yeah, thankfully there are more non-Japanese videos out now, and I like EmGo's JTI videos which are usually devoid of any language and just let the visuals speak a thousand words. :cool: