Toy Review - Titans Return Highbrow

[SharkyMcShark]

HIGHBROW

Series – Titans Return
Size/class - Deluxe
New/remould/redeco - New
Wave - 2
Released here – October 2016
Approximate Retail Price - $25
Approximate Size - one quarter portion.
Allegiance - Autobot
Alt-mode – Twin prop helicopter
Main Features/Gimmicks – Headmaster
Main Colours – Grey, blue
Main Accessories – 2x machine guns, "Xort" Titan Master

So I've got four of the deluxes from this line now. Unfortunately Highbrow is the most disappointing.

PROS (scraping the barrel)
- Robot mode looks nice from the front. It's well proportioned and the headsculpt is full of character.
- There's a lot of paint on this figure. Seriously, I can't think of the last Hasbro mainline deluxe with this level and variety of paint application.
- The twin machine gun weapon is very cool.

CONS (where to start?)
- Engineering on this figure is Scout class level at best. The limbs are hollow, the hands fold out with no corresponding trap door or proper stopping point to prevent them from going to broken wrist levels of extension. The rotors can't be simultaneous spun or they'll crash into eachother.
- The transformation is essentially four steps and produces a vehicle mode that can only be described as below par. It looks like the robot mode but lying down. The transformation sequence almost entirely fails to do anything with the arms, so essentially you've got a helicopter shaped thing with arms hanging off the side. Genuinely more is involved in transforming the Energon/ROTF Combaticon Scout Class chopper limb than this, and it shows.
- The headmaster port on mine is exceedingly loose, and as I understand it this is an issue on most samples of the figure.


Comparing this to Blurr is an interesting study in how one extra step can make or break a transformation sequence. Blurr has a simple but highly effective transformation sequence that produces a streamlined looking vehicle mode. Like Highbrow, Blurr's transformation is essentially:
a) like the figure down
b) fold backpack over head for front of vehicle
c) collapse legs
d) arms fold into the side of the body.

The difference between this and Blurr is that Blurr's arms are designed in a way so that they integrate into the lines of the alt mode. Here the arms tuck closer to the side of the body a few millimeters, just enough to peg into a locking point. The end result is a vehicle mode that literally looks like the robot lying down.

I can't really recommend this. That it looks nice in robot mode is the high point. It's all downhill from there.

[Lint]

Fully agree with your review, looks mint in the bubble but it's underwhelming on EVERY other level.

Only additional gripe I have is that the machine guns have molded wheels that don't face the right way when mounted in copter mode. Sure they could be wheels for the 'gun emplacement mode but I just don't buy it. Maybe I'm missing something?

[Deonasis]

That is a pity. He does look good.

Does Scourge have a few more steps? Highbrow is re-whatevered (his design twin) from Scourge.

[GoktimusPrime]

Can't even find this figure in stores.

[SharkyMcShark]

That is a pity. He does look good.

Does Scourge have a few more steps? Highbrow is re-whatevered (his design twin) from Scourge.

Scourge from what I can see has the cape that forms a cohesive shell for vehicle mode, whereas this does not.

Fully agree with your review, looks mint in the bubble but it's underwhelming on EVERY other level.

Only additional gripe I have is that the machine guns have molded wheels that don't face the right way when mounted in copter mode. Sure they could be wheels for the 'gun emplacement mode but I just don't buy it. Maybe I'm missing something?

You can peg them in to the hexagonal peg hole on the underside of the winglet using the rectangular 'clip/magazine' looking part of the weapon. Landing gear ends up facing down and it locks the weapon pointing forward.

[SMHFConvoy]

I've only seen this figure once in a Kmart

[Trent]

I have to agree with the general sentiments of the thread. I do enjoy the leg transformation, its simple but effective and would have liked to see the arms do something similar.

[SMHFConvoy]

I had a look at a video of it, when I eventually get one I'll just paint the forearms blue so it sort of blends in

[GoktimusPrime]

I don't mind the gaps in the arms. Works better than having flimsy arm doors like on Weirdwolf, and it doesn't appear to affect structural integrity. The clashing rotor blades do bother me though, but otherwise I think that Highbrow's transtector is really well done. And Xort is reasonably well done too, even if the paint apps are pretty lazy and make him look more like Battletrap. I also like how the guns are incorporated into the alt mode, forming landing gears beneath each wing. The main drawback of this toy - as mentioned by SharkyMcShark, is the incredibly loose Headmaster port. It's such a small yet critical flaw for what I find is otherwise a pretty nice toy. I hope that TakaraTOMY can at least address this issue for their version, and hopefully Hasbro might want to fix it for subsequent releases (but odds are they won't).

I'd vote "Only If" you really want a Classicsverse Highbrow.

[SharkyMcShark]

I don't mind the gaps in the arms. Works better than having flimsy arm doors like on Weirdwolf, and it doesn't appear to affect structural integrity.

Can't really agree on this at all.

I'd prefer to see an imperfect attempt to implement the feature > it not being done at all. Wolfwire's arm doors aren't the best you'll ever see, but they're also certainly far from a poor implementation (eg Generations Brainstorm v1).

As above, the forearms on this toy are particularly bad. They're hollow and the fists have no hard stopping point once they're folded out. There's a small notch you can feel they're meant to click into when they're straight but it's not the strongest of connections. It certainly doesn't hold in any useful way if you try and use Highbrow with any of the Titan Master companion vehicles in weapon mode.