Toy Review - JP Masterpiece Lambor/Sideswipe

[Trent]

I paid fifty dollars for this toy. I don't about you, but by my standards that's NOT cheap! We wouldn't accept this kind of standard from a non-MP toy (e.g. Generations Blitzwing), I don't see why I should accept it from a Masterpiece toy. Besides, I (and many other collectors) continue to complain about toys years or even decades after purchase (e.g. Action Masters, Beast Machines Silverbolt, MP-3 Starscream etc.). On the other side of the coin, I do also compliment good toys long after purchase too (e.g. original G1 Soundwave, G2 Laser Optimus Prime, BT Meister etc.), so it does work both ways.

And don't get me wrong... it's not that I dislike this toy per se, I just strongly dislike this one weakness in the toy. I'm quite happy with other aspects of the toy and overall I do find it a likeable toy. Shoulder issues aside, the rest of the toy is reasonably good and the attention to detail on the vehicle mode is exquisite. I do quite like the way that the roof and window panels fold up to form the back (works better than the way that the MP Nissans fold their roofs into their backs IMHO), and the pop-up concealing panel on the roof is a really clever touch. The shoulders stay in place for displaying and posing and general fiddling, but they just hopeless when it comes to remaining in place during play. And there doesn't appear to be any feature in the design that's meant to lock or retain the shoulders in place either.

And I'm aware that this isn't a problem for all MP Lambor toys, which is why I said "my MP Lambor's...". But I've seen two other MP Lambors IRL which had the same problem, so it doesn't appear to be a completely isolated problem either. I haven't handled an MP Alert IRL yet, but I've heard a few people report the same issue with that toy.


These were screen caps from a video I made this morning to demonstrate just how little force was required to push the shoulder down.

Gokman, I just went and pushed down out the shoulders of Sideswipe, Red Alert and G2 Sideswipe (Tiger Track is in alt mode) in the same way as your video (with my finger though) and with all of them the legs buckled and they hit the ground without the shoulders budging. So I definitely do not share your issues. While they do not click in as solidly as you would like they aren't as bad as you make out either. I think that you just got a bad toy dude.

[GoktimusPrime]

The right shoulder on mine doesn't buckle down easily like the left, but both are prone to dislocation during proper toy play. And the two other MP Lambors that I've handled were the same.

[Trent]

The right shoulder on mine doesn't buckle down easily like the left, but both are prone to dislocation during proper toy play. And the two other MP Lambors that I've handled were the same.

Why only Sideswipe though? Why do I never see complaints from you about the MP seeker mould's shoulders? That is a FAR worse and more obvious problem that has been present in every iteration since MP-3. I have six versions of the mould and every one has this problem.

You say you are upset because you paid $50 for Sideswipe. How much did you pay for your seekers? Because if the cost of the figure is what is concerning you, then you should be seriously pissed over the seeker mould. What about MP-09?

It just that it seems you are directing a disproportionate amount of rage at Sideswipe over something that the rest of us see as not that big of a deal.

[GoktimusPrime]

Some comments I made in October 2006 re: MP03 Starscream included...

MP-03 may still arguably be a toy, but as an action figure it's pretty freakin' mediocre...

Starscream really looks like he cannot handle going toe to toe with any other toy... so IMO he's a pretty $h!7 toy. Impressive model/display piece, sure... but craphouse action figure.

(even at RRP) he's not terribly good value for money.


Yes, MP03 is a worse MP than Lambor. And back when the toy came out, I did criticise it a lot. As I said before, aside from the shoulders, I find MP Lambor to be a decent action figure. There's nothing about the MP03 mould that I find makes it a good action figure. And I had great hopes for MP03 considering that it was designed by Kawamori Shouji. But to HasTak's credit, they have attempted to improve the MP03 mould with subsequent versions of it (e.g. use of better quality plastic, significant retooling with the MP11 mould). I'd be curious to know if TakTOM have similarly attempted to improve the MP Lambor mould with its subsequent uses. I've heard a few people report the same shoulder issue with Alert, but I've yet to hear anyone report it with Tigertrack or G2 Sideswipe, nor have I heard any reports from the re-released Lambor, which seems like a good sign. I'm seriously considering getting the re-released MP Alert if I can find it at RRP or less. I'd pick up a Hasbro MP Red Alert in a heartbeat if they released it here.

[Megatran]

That's so awesome Ultra Mackness. Those Collectors Edition characters make me weak at the knees (& worth a pretty penny).

[Nevac]

Gokman, I just went and pushed down out the shoulders of Sideswipe, Red Alert and G2 Sideswipe (Tiger Track is in alt mode) in the same way as your video (with my finger though) and with all of them the legs buckled and they hit the ground without the shoulders budging.

I agree did the same with mine and his legs buckled first overall I find Sideswipe better then the Datsuns. My friend has 3 of this mold too and I haven't heard him complain about the shoulders either.

[Megatran]

I thought the shoulder issue was put to bed & a distant memory.

I whole heartedly apologise for reviving this thread.

[GoktimusPrime]

Since my last post on this thread, I have acquired MP Alert which doesn't have the shoulder issue. So it does appear to be an isolated issue w/ my MP Lambor and the others that I've seen IRL -- perhaps there was a bad batch? But yeah, it was for this reason that I skipped MP Alert and later had to get it off the aftermarket for $100; double what I usually pay for pre-ordered MP cars (and the only time I've ever paid above RRP for an MP). But yeah, pretty happy with the quality of my MP Alert.

[kurdt_the_goat]

Just total up what you've spent on the MP cars overall... then average it out to wipe the memory of that $100

[GoktimusPrime]

Comparison pic between original and reissue MP12 Lambor/Sideswipe

I cannot see any discernible difference between the two. My reissue has nice and tight shoulders (yay!), but that may be simply due to me having just gotten unlucky w/ my original Lambor, and the reissue may just represent what is typical for this toy.