Classics 2.0/Universe Comments thread

[kaiden]

I bought Bruticus in preparation for the fansproject add on kits and wow was i severely disappointed.

The biggest problem is that blast off is a tank of the same mold as brawl and swindle is a copter, the same as vortex.

The only one i actually like is onslaught. he has a solid robot mode and alt mode.
I love his arms and legs - they're fun to play with and are his strongest attributes.
the only problems would be his ugly head - it makes him look like princess leia, and his head is not even hidden from view in alt mode.

brawl... i hate the treads as back kibble. they cant even be used as wings. the cannons on his arms make him look like seekers. his head is ugly and both alt and robot mode are stupid. fail.

vortex in alt mode is not so bad but i hate his arms that are just hangin underneath. his robot mode sucks.

gestalt mode is a horrible mess. i hate his arms and legs.
whoever design this should really have looked at the henkei/classics line. thats beautiful.

one thing that would have helped is if the 4 smaller transformers were all deluxe size. then they could have been more creative.

i wish fansproject would remake both brawl and vortex - the hasbro ones are horrible.

[Vector Prime]

whoever design this should really have looked at the henkei/classics line. thats beautiful.

Hate to tell you this, but Universe Bruticus is a redeco of Energon Bruticus ~ so essentially it was designed sometime circa-2004 (if not earlier).

Being an Energon based toy, it naturally would have it's limitations compared to the later evolutionary lines (like Classics, Henkei and even Cybertron figures)

[Oilspill]

A valid point. And I know that the number of moulds that they could produce was limited by their budget, hence why 2 are repaints, but I gotta agree with kaiden, it is a pretty disappointing purchase.

I bought him for the same reason and man the set is so effing ugly. I had them combined next to Superion (with upgrade kit) but those hands and feet are so pathetic I had to disassemble them back to individual bot modes, and even those aren't great.

I would definitely buy a Brawl, Vortex and Onslaught if FP ever decided to replace them too. Swindle and Blast-off are definitely going to upstage the rest of the crew when they're out in a couple of months time.

Or as a simpler improvement, I'd be happy with new heads for those three.

[kup]

Hate to tell you this, but Universe Bruticus is a redeco of Energon Bruticus ~ so essentially it was designed sometime circa-2004 (if not earlier).

Being an Energon based toy, it naturally would have it's limitations compared to the later evolutionary lines (like Classics, Henkei and even Cybertron figures)

Beast Wars is older than Energon yet it had far better gestalts IMO.

Despite the extra kibble (which these Energon combiners aslo rely upon) G1 gestalts were also much better - Yeah they were bricks but its not like the Energon combiners are fully articulated either, specially when they have 20 years of toy design technology to draw upon.

Energon was just overall a crappy line.

Without the custom upgrades, these toys are not worth it.

[snazzbot 101]

I bought Bruticus in preparation for the fansproject add on kits and wow was i severely disappointed.

The biggest problem is that blast off is a tank of the same mold as brawl and swindle is a copter, the same as vortex.

The only one i actually like is onslaught. he has a solid robot mode and alt mode.
I love his arms and legs - they're fun to play with and are his strongest attributes.
the only problems would be his ugly head - it makes him look like princess leia, and his head is not even hidden from view in alt mode.

brawl... i hate the treads as back kibble. they cant even be used as wings. the cannons on his arms make him look like seekers. his head is ugly and both alt and robot mode are stupid. fail.

vortex in alt mode is not so bad but i hate his arms that are just hangin underneath. his robot mode sucks.

gestalt mode is a horrible mess. i hate his arms and legs.
whoever design this should really have looked at the henkei/classics line. thats beautiful.

one thing that would have helped is if the 4 smaller transformers were all deluxe size. then they could have been more creative.

i wish fansproject would remake both brawl and vortex - the hasbro ones are horrible.

So basically you dislike nearly everything that makes him what he is? He was sold in a window box...

Most of what you listed are legitimate gripes (not sure about the Princess Leia comparison though. Or the Seeker comparison. Or the Henkei comparison) but to me he's really nifty.

He showcases what I imagined as a kid what a Combiner would be: small robots transforming into a fully realised and imposing robot. Up until I got Energon Bruticus Maximus most of my Combiners felt lacking.

They connected sure but they didin't become something more. I adore my reissue Predaking but Damn! he just stands there, slumping under his own weight. Sure slumping and ominous, but slumping none the less.

[kup]

the only problems would be his ugly head - it makes him look like princess leia, and his head is not even hidden from view in alt mode.

I have been fantasying about the possibility that Fan Projects or someone else could make custom heads for both Silverbolt and Onslaught from the Energon combiner molds.

[Oilspill]

I have been fantasying about the possibility that Fan Projects or someone else could make custom heads for both Silverbolt and Onslaught from the Energon combiner molds.

I reckon Kidbash are the ones most likely to make head replacements for these figures.

It was mentioned in a recent post on TFW2005 that they may consider doing an upgrade kit including heads and new wings etc to make the individual figures more g1 accurate - for Superion at least. They did a Bruticus upgrade kit a while back, before FP announced theirs, which I think included an Onslaught head.

You'd have to crack out the paints but that's something I'm willing to have a shot at.

[kup]

I reckon Kidbash are the ones most likely to make head replacements for these figures.

It was mentioned in a recent post on TFW2005 that they may consider doing an upgrade kit including heads and new wings etc to make the individual figures more g1 accurate - for Superion at least. They did a Bruticus upgrade kit a while back, before FP announced theirs, which I think included an Onslaught head.

You'd have to crack out the paints but that's something I'm willing to have a shot at.

Yeah but they seem more like kitbashers than actual third party mass release custom accessory manufacturers.

[Oilspill]

Yeah they're kitbashers for sure, well they have a store, so they'll make a few hundred parts and you can buy them, and they're restocking in a couple of days time I believe, but not what I would call mass-release.

I think their quality is meant to be quite good, but like I said you gotta paint it up yourself.

They're developing a modular head system, where they make up the head from 4 different pieces, so you can make recognisable heads or mix and match to make your own custom character. Definitely something I'm looking forward to seeing.

[kup]

Yeah they're kitbashers for sure, well they have a store, so they'll make a few hundred parts and you can buy them, and they're restocking in a couple of days time I believe, but not what I would call mass-release.

I think their quality is meant to be quite good, but like I said you gotta paint it up yourself.

They're developing a modular head system, where they make up the head from 4 different pieces, so you can make recognisable heads or mix and match to make your own custom character. Definitely something I'm looking forward to seeing.

Thanks. The Onslaught head is rather good too. If they sell it by itself then I would buy one.