Toy Review - SKULLGRIN (Legacy)

[GoktimusPrime]

SKULLGREEN
Series - Generations
Sub-line - Legacy
Size/class - Deluxe
New/remould/redeco - New
Wave - 3
Released here - December 2022
Approximate Retail Price - $39.98
Approximate Size - 13.5cm (+1cm including back mounted cannons)
Allegiance - Decepticon
Sub-Group - Pretender
Alt-mode - Cybertronian tank
Main Features/Gimmicks - not a Pretender
Main Colours - grey, purple
Main Accessories - x2 cannons, x2 gun-swords











TL Skullgrin is my favourite 21st Century Pretender toy so far because it actually looks mostly like Skullgrin and not his Pretender shell! Pretender shells aren't the Transformers themselves, they're just... well... shells. Looking like a ram-skulled monster is like Starscream looking like a human with a not-quite-Guile flattop haircut. The body itself is very much just based on the core Skullgrin robot, and the tank treads even end up on the lower legs just like the G1 toy. On point! The sword-guns are made from a rubbery plastic; pretty soft. I guess this was done for child safety reasons.

The main drawback with this toy is the head. Not only because it looks like the Pretender shell's skull head and not Skullgrin's actual head. Imagine if they released a Jazz toy whose body resembled Jazz but the head was a helmeted White dude like his Pretender shell. But even if the skullhead is your jam, there are still issues. Firstly, there's no lower jaw. At first, I thought that this may have been due to the misconception that G1 Skullgrin's Pretender head is jawless. But apparently the lack of a jaw on Legacy Skullgrin isn't due to an oversight. This toy was originally designed to have a lower jaw, but it was cut from the final release of the toy, likely due to budget constraints. An alternative would be to make the skull head smaller with a non-articulated jaw; as they did with Generations Skully. The head doesn't have to be that small, but perhaps small enough to still fit it within budget?

[dirge]

The extensive use of soft plastics on this guy worries me. Will it inevitably become brittle and crumble with age? For that reason alone, I'm passing.

I like Skullgrin, but it's not a must-have character for me, thankfully.

[KELPIE]

I really like this guy, however jaw or no jaw, I still feel they should have shrunk the head down a bit.