QUINTESSON JUDGE
Series - Generations
Sub-line - Earthrise
Hypo-line - War For Cybertron Trilogy
Size/class - Deluxe
New/remould/redeco - New (shared mould with Quintesson Judge variant w/ Judgement Pit set)
Wave - 2
Released here - ?? 2020
Approximate Retail Price - $50
Approximate Size - 11.5cm (body); 15cm (w/ stand); 17.5cm (attached to throne)
Allegiance - Quintesson
Alt-mode - gaol
Main Features/Gimmicks - rotating faces, A.I.R. Lock system
Main Colours - greys
Main Accessories - pistol, throne, stand
QUINTESSON MODE
It's an adequate Quintesson in that it looks like a Quintesson. The 5 faces all look G1 accurate and there is a spinning gimmick to make them move (or you can just rotate them manually). The tendrils can move up and down at and have pegs that the pistol can attach to. The stand has a clip that secures to the base of the body and there is a lever to detach it. This is better than a simple peg and slot which can be more prone to warping or breakage, so I'm glad that they went with this route. The main drawback is that the top of the body doesn't lock into place. You have to push it down deeply or it can be prone to just falling out when you turn the toy upside down. I have seen people use this toy with the body hollowed out to hold stationery and small drinks. The way that the stand pegs into the throne is also good.
The Judgement Pit version uses lighter shades of grey. It has green tendrils and a transparent blue stand, as well as a blue throne. The colours on the faces are also different shades compared to this figure, however, the "War" face is the most different looking as the Judgement Pit version sports a red crown instead of orange, and light blue mouth, cheeks and chin (whereas this one has a whitish grey mouth/chin and turquoise cheeks.
GAOL MODE
Laughably crap. The A.I.R. Lock system means that the Quintesson and throne can connect with other ramps. Not sure why you'd want to, but it's a thing you can do if you want to do it. The cage is tiny, obviously designed to hold the little Kranix figurine that comes with the Judgement Pit set but it doesn't seem to be able to fit anything larger than a Micromaster. This is also the official transformation where the cage just sits on the platform - no attachment point at all.
Fan Mode
One way to circumvent this is to simply turn the cage upside down and plug the 5mm post into the hole. This does mean that you'll need to put the pistol somewhere else, but I think overall this is better than the official config.
OVERALL THOUGHTS
I gotta say that as a Voyager Class Transformer action figure, this is objectively pretty crap. But as a G1 fan, I'm loving it. The alt mode is total bollocks, but I guess it's there to help sell this toy to kids and also to justify the Voyager price point. It is superior play value than TF Energon's Alpha Quintesson (same price point!) and the Cyberverse Quintesson. This toy would always be limited by the sheer virtue that the original G1 design was never based on a toy, nor was it ever intended to be a toy. A Quintesson is essentially a balloon with carnival masks and tentacles. Visually they have made this toy look gorgeously G1 accurate. The gaol mode is rubbish, but you can just ignore it. Having said all that, I really cannot say that this toy is necessarily worth its Voyager Class price point, and as such I would have to vote "Only if" you are a G1 fan who wants a G1 Quintesson toy. I subjectively love this toy but objectively I cannot recommend it otherwise.