Encore Sky Lynx was really well done and I'm happy with Encore Soundwave too. Encore Ratchet and Ironhide did have a problem with holding the long gun underneath the vehicle mode though, they don't clip in as well as on the original G1 figures. I agree that the plastic on the Encore Combaticons and latest cassettes do feel 'inferior' to the original G1s. They also "look" thinner too; this is most noticeable with Encore Omega Supreme whose entire head illuminates instead of just the window, although Encore Omega Supreme is using an LED whereas G1 Omega Supreme just has a lamp.

Now here's a comparison between G1 and Encore Ramhorn and Steeljaw:


The differences is noticeable, but overall Encore Ramhorn is a pretty good reproduction. I have no major issues with it.


Aaahh... Steeljaw. The decos on the cassette mode are in improvement over TFC Steeljaw. They've added in decos on the feet and overall you can see it's a much better looking cassette mode in terms of the decos (the words "metal position" are actually readable!) For some reason the metal parts are _really_ shiny. Not chrome, just shiny metal. It doesn't do anything for me personally. However the main criticism I have on this toy would have to be the mismatching yellow!! Wow... usually Hasbro's the one who routinely screws up their yellows (e.g.: Animated Bumblebee, Universe Sunstreaker etc.), but here TakaraTOMY's done the same thing. Arguably worse because unlike ANI Bumblebee and UNI Sunstreaker, the mismatching yellow bits are _not_ painted over transparent plastic. They're actually yellow plastic parts, but for no particular reason, are a much brighter shade of plastic than the rest of the body! You can see clearly the hips, feet and tail are a lot brighter than the rest of the toy! It's noticeable in cassette mode too. It's noticeable from an altitude of 300m! So yeah, Encore Steeljaw wins in terms of his awesome cassette decos, but fails in terms of the mismatched yellows. :/