APS-02 Decepticon Brawl

[Kazza]

At the request from lancalot, I'm going to attempt to review APS-02 Decepticon Brawl.

This is my first review. Pictures first, than review at the bottom.

Box








Robot Mode


Right Arm Cannon/Turret


Left Arm Claws/Mini-Gun


Head Shot


Tank Mode


Lights


Brawl next to APS-01 Striker Optimus Prime


Posing


Sporting a rrp of $130 from most online retailers, APS-02 is a rather nice and above average leader class toy.

Deco/Paint application. The paint scheme plays to brawls strength, nice camo green with patches of dark blue/green. There is no dull plastic coloring except for the grey claws which is soft rubber. Really can't fault the paint/deco scheme.

Electronics/Sounds. All that lights up is the turret and missile pods. They are activated in robot mode by pressing on Brawls centre front 'spikes' (don't know the name of that piece) and in tank mode by rotating the turret pad. You can also activate lights and sounds in the main turret by pressing it. The sounds are missiles firing and gunfire. However, it is lacking a transformation sound.

Transformation. Rather simple and takes about ~10 minutes for a novice. I MUST EMPHASISE, be careful of the turret while transforming, it is prone to breakage. The most annoying part of the transformation is rotating the turret pad, as it does not rotate a full 180 degrees, rather about 170 degrees and sits slightly tilted behind his head. The treads on his head/neck also interferes with the turret sitting straight. Nice automorphing with the head when pressing on the centre 'spike' and lever depending on mode. The two smaller turrets comes separate in a small packet containing the instructions and must be attached onto Brawl.

Posing/Articulation. Brawl is capable of many poses with its arm due to elbow ratchet joints and pivots which assist with the arm mounted weapons. They're also in the shoulders. Head rotates about ~30 degrees either side. There is no waist swivel. Legs have hip ratchets outwards and can go forward/back. Knee ratchets and swivel, however the tread kibble on his leg limits how far you can bend his knees. Slight tilting in the feet to either side ~15 degrees. It's rather hard to pose him due to his feet. Good thing is Brawl does not feel back heavy.

Summary:
Pros
Nice paint application
Loaded with artillery weapons
Simple transformation
Realistic looking tank mode

Cons
Main turret still feels like its prone to breakage
Expensive leader class toy
Limited articulation in feet and leg due to tread kibble
One ugly head (always looks dopey to me)

Hope this review helps anyone on the fence with buying this toy.

This purchase was worth it for me personally. However, if you already own either Movie Brawl/Deep Dessert Brawl, you might consider skipping this re-deco. Unfortunately I was not able to do a comparison shot with any other Brawl.

[lancalot]

Cool...thanks for the review Kazza ..Goodjob man...see that wasn't so hard ! . the picture were great as well... ill going to skip him .his head is funny looking and he look abit to plastic for me...i though they would of done a better repaint .... might try to get a loose one for cheap and do a repaint maybe later on ... thanks again for the review

[Kazza]

Yeah my camera sucks, and I had to use the flash to take photo's of it which didn't help with showing off his paint job. In the photo's the plastic looks shiny, but in actuality it isn't.

[griffin]

I'll get around to transforming mine eventually...

...but here it is with the previous two versions that I own.



First version - Desert deco - Premium version (kept turning out greyish in my photos, but it is a decent colour army green)

[Gasaraki]

Lighting a little dark, but the Premium version appears to looks quite a bit better than the original.

However, I paid $49 for the original when it was on clearance at Kmart, so I'm super happy with it, plus I've really had my fill of movie toys now, so it'll be a snowy day in Perth when I consider forking out for this guy... and even then, odds are slim!

That said, Leader Brawl is one excellent figure IMO... the movie toys were a good display of toy design evolution/advancement, and most of the designs got better with each movie. ROTF Leader Prime and Leader Starscream still stand out with some of the most amazing engineering ever, and I think Brawl is very close. QC on all of these Leaders seemed faultless to me.

Thanks for sharing the pics!

[Kazza]

HOLY CRAP, they did fix the main turret, it can come off!! No risk of breakage as mine just came off accidentally during transformation. The pieces are attached together, similar to the two smaller turrets by clicking/sliding it in.

Thank god, cause I was about to go ballistic if it had broken off entirely...

[sideswipes brother]

WOW!! Deep Desert Brawl looks great with all of those light blues. I never bothered seeing him before in robot mode.