-
Got a combiner wars Hound.
Have a major crush on the character, but when I had it in hand, I was sorely disappointed. The headsculpt is great - blocky enough to be reminiscent of the G1 toy, but detailed enough to be distinctly recognisable. The colour is spot on, forest green as the original, but light enough to be excused for the cartoon. Many reviews online were criticising the bulk of the upper body, but I actually enjoy the upper-body proportions - the original toy was small in the arms; these seem far more functional - yes, he's a scout, but a military jeep too - I see no reason not to give him some umph.
My three major disappointments are:
Colour Distribution
Yes, the green is good; but far too much. Not only overpowering from an aesthetics point of view, but even less than the cartoon model. It overpowers the excellent moulded details, and makes for a bland appearance.
Hollow Lower Body
I understand being a deluxe combiner, there are inherit limitations to what you can feasibly do, but the tiny thighs, with massive empty legs no only weights the toy poorly, bottle-necking it's poses and balance; but makes for terrible anatomy, and ugly from the inside of the legs
Alternate Mode
Most of this can be forgiven, but the Jeep mode is the final straw: kibble can be seen through the canopy, and the mode bears more resemblance to a construction vehicle than a Wrangler. Yes, it is difficult to retool one transformer to another, but this was simply not worth the effort.
Afterthoughts
The upcoming Unite Warriors model has vastly improved paint apps, adding yellows to break up the greens, with blacks to separate the arm's details, lending to what seems to be a much nicer final product. As it stands, I can't say I'd recommend Hasbro's Combiner Wars Hound. In fact, I returned the product and ordered an Asia-Exclusive Classics Hound in it's place. I'll share the details soon!
Score: 5/10
-
I had a fiddle with a friend's CW Hound today, and here are my quick thoughts:
* I agree that there's way too much green happening on this toy.
* The issue with the visible arms in vehicle mode is a carry-over from Swindle (so not originally Hound's fault). And quite frankly, it's not something that I would hold against the toy considering that it is a gestalt, thus placing limits on budget, engineering etc. The arms have to go somewhere, and I'd rather them tuck inside than just dangle precariously on the sides. The rest of the toy still resembles a jeep, so I'm fine with it. Besides, there's still room at the front where a driver and passenger could hypothetically sit. I just imagine the arms to be massive storage containers, which makes sense for Swindle as a Munitions Expert. And I suppose a Scout could easily carry all sorts of equipment there too. If a more accurate vehicle mode is something you're looking for, then Binaltechs are your friend.
P.S.: See the Classics 2.0/Universe review thread for people's thoughts on Universe/Henkei Hound (and feel free to add your own review there for the upcoming redeco if you like :)).
