Toy Review - JP MP-28 Masterpiece Hot Rodimus (Hot Rod)

[doublespy]

Series - Masterpiece
Sub-line - none
Size/class - n/a
New/remould/redeco - new
Wave - n/a (MP-28)
Released here - released in Japan Feb 26th 2015
Approximate Retail Price - 8640 yen
Approximate Size - 16cm
Allegiance - Autobot
Alt-mode - Futuristic super car
Main Features/Gimmicks - Flip down visor. Matrix chamber
Main Colours - maroon, orange
Main Accessories - 2 photon blasters. Saw blade. Fishing rod

[doublespy]

Hot Rod continues the trend of Ironhide, both having some official photos taken from the worst possible angles, then turning out pretty amazing in person.

VEHICLE MODE:
Vehicle mode is as perfect as you can ask for a sleek futuristic super car. This is the first time an MP figure had a dedicated vehicle mode designer, and he did an amazing job.







The clearance underneath is very tight. I have yet to get the infamous collar piece to clear enough for the car to roll. And going back to vehicle mode, the shoulder pieces with the wheels attached on need some fiddling to get all four wheels to touch the ground. This is probably the biggest gripe I have with Hot Rod.


Comparisons with a standard MP car and MP-9. The spoiler wings are actually angled up on MP-27.






TRANSFORMATION:
As mentioned above, going back to vehicle mode may not be as smooth as I'd like, the transformation to robot mode is quite intuitive and enjoyable. The who process and parts movement is quite traditional, with a few clear touches. There's multiple tabs to peg the chest piece, shoulder pieces and the backpack together very securely. The "Masterpiece moment", like many people mentioned, must be the upper shoulders rotating around the wheels to create show accurate wheel placement. Simple and elegant. And it's brilliant that the two orange pieces around the collar flip down to form a more cohesive upper torso.

I think the robot mode is fantastic, and it captures the essence of the character so well. Sure certain proportions may not be ideal, but just like Ironhide's hip panels, I don't mind them at all in hand. The hood chest could definitely stand to slope forward at an angle rather than being dead flat, but you can use the ab crunch joint to cheat a little bit. Also the thighs might be too thin, but that's really dictated by the volume you can hide inside the back half of the car mode.




Hot Rod has a handsome head sculpt, although mine had some sloppy paint around the eye which I had to use exacto to clean up a bit. My girlfriend said she'd marry Hot Rod. The only other transformer she ever said that about was Generations Springer..




Hot Rod's signature vents get push out when the backpack is pegged together during transformation. A details that even the larger MP-9 wasn't able to recreate


Hot Rod has the best articulation in the MP line so far imo, partly thanks to the character's more humanoid design, so there's less chance of parts bumping into each other. He can't do a convincing one leg kneeling pose, but I have yet to find a pose that I want to put him in but can't.









His neck design reverted back to Hasui's standard pin joint on a rotating disk set up. It makes for a natural neck, but loses the side to side motion. I wondered Kobayashi ditched his standard ball joint approach, until I found out it was a different designer behind MP27


Some comparisons:











OVERALL:
Hot Rod is not quite up there with Ironhide who had a really enjoyable transformation, but he's still a great MP figure. Both bodes are solid. Transformation can be fiddly, but the overall package is saved by excellent articulation.

On a side note, this is designer Miyake Tomoya's first MP project and with Kobayashi's help, he did a great job. If you're wondering who Miyake is, his design credits include RtS Jazz, RotF Mindwipe, DotM Megatron, and Generations Rattrap/Rhinox, but that's for another thread at another time

[drifand]

Good review.

I think there are a lot of confusion that people think this is rodimus prime but is actually hot rod.

[Ode to a Grasshopper]

He can't fit Daniel in the vehicle-mode seats, can he?

The bit with the hoverboard in the movie was pretty freaking cool, it'd be a shame if it can't be (even loosely) recreated.

[MEEEGGGAAATTTRRROOONNN!!!]

Any signs of chrome rubbing off?

I'm reading the horror stories over on TFW and it seems to come off real easy. I'm going to have to check mine tonight.

[GoktimusPrime]

Eh, I'm happy enough w/ my Hasbro MP Rodimus. Having said that, this photo is teh awesome.

[nofacej]

Mine arrived yesterday and I have to say a lot of the complaints about this guy are overblown. The backpack isn't amazing but it's hardly a deal breaker. Definitely the best version of the character we've had to date.

My biggest complaint is actually his legs. They weigh nothing making him very top heavy, and feeling a little cheap.

[kurdt_the_goat]

I still quite like MP-9, but i'm glad they decided to do Hot Rod in a smaller scale; as nice as MP-9's car mode is, it is hilariously big really. For MP-28, they've managed to make 2 really good modes with very little compromise i feel. The car is even better than MP-9 - just as sleek and without the orange arm pieces on the sides, though there's a slight colour mismatch on his elbow pieces, that's me being too picky! Just because the high gloss magenta on the rest looks so nice is it noticeable.

The robot definitely pegs together a whole lot more solidly, and in hand, the proportions aren't really bad at all. They actually look much more humanoid than say Prowl or Sideswipe. His legs could do with a bit of heft but it balanced well and i'm glad they didn't overcomplicate their transformation. The top half is complex with some good "Masterpiece moments" and the backpack... well i can't see how they'd make it any smaller, so i think they did a good job.

The transformation being very similar to one of the scenes in the movie is a great touch, anime magic be damned! Overall very happy and as some photos show, it's nice to have more S3 representation... that reminds me, i should have pulled out Legends Arcee for these shots, she's another good MP stand-in like Springer.

[yoshi594]

Decided to transform Hot Rod to car mode and was frustrated with the collar piece...the clearance isn't enough! I've got no problem with the leg pieces, just that darn collar piece! (iirc mp-09 had the same issue but i was able to get proper clearance with that).

Also gun storage in vehicle mode.







I was only able to get the gun shown to fit into hot rods engine. Didn't have offshoot readily available to see if he fits, but i'm pretty sure his peg won't fit.

[kurdt_the_goat]

At best there must be about 2-3mm clearance with everything aligned, but it's still not enough to roll it around without fear of scraping. It'd be nice if it rolled better, but not a dealbreaker for me cause mine just sits there