Based on the number of iterations of it I own - five in total - the Mazda RX-8 would seem to the casual observer to be my favourite Binaltech mold. While the first version I wrote about - BT20 Argent Meister, one of the final Binaltech releases - turned out to be a bit of a floppy mess, the original Meister - BT08, released four years prior - was really only a let-down because it was too a pedestrian car to turn into Jazz... Though this was before the movies turned him into a Pontiac Solstice which, in many ways, wasn't much better.
For the third release of the mold (the second being the red 'Zoom-Zoom' repaint of BT08) Takara seemed to have given up on the idea of the Binaltech Decepticons having commandeered bodies intended for Autobots, because this guy is unmistakeably Shockwave.
Or rather, Laserwave...
While the differences between the Mazda RX-8 and the so-called Mazdaspeed Version II are perhaps not quite so pronounced as those between the WRC and WRX models of Subaru Impreza used for Smokescreen and Streak, they are somewhat more extensive than I'd first thought. The most obvious addition is the spoiler, which really doesn't add a great deal to the car... it's small, minimally detailed, and literally just stuck on top of the boot. I get that remodelling the boot door entirely would have been expensive but, given how cheap and crappy the spoiler looks (moreso than any spoiler on any real-life car because of the way it was designed here), I feel it would have been worth the extra effort and expense... though clearly Mazda were satisfied with this solution. While the spoiler does resemble one of the spoiler options the RX-8 had, its angle appears to be wrong based on the photos I've seen - the real thing being angled upward toward the back, where this one is parallel to the boot. Additionally, better-looking spoiler options were available - options both larger and more in-your-face (so, more like that of G1 Jazz) or sleeker and better integrated (one curving up from the edges of the boot door, for example, rather than being raised over it on little struts) - either of which really put this tacked-on accessory to shame.
Next, we have the front end, with a much larger, wider grille set in a more substantial bumper, at the loss of the two smaller lights set within the bumper of the original. If you ask me, it loses some of the character of the basic RX-8, and this model really would have suited BT08 better since the larger bumper - and the presence of any kind of spoiler, no matter how diminutive and crappy-looking - would more clearly homage the racing Porsche of old. Despite the remodelled front end, the Mazda badge on the nose is still just a tampograph, while the one on the boot is raised.
Finally, and perhaps most unexpectedly, the lower half of the rear bumper is another entirely new piece, losing the grille and its central triangular frame in favour of a more squared-off and basic-looking part with exhaust pipes that seem slightly longer and more prominent.
One other difference - purely cosmetic - is that the hubcaps are painted a very dark, metallic/charcoal colour, which better suits the lush, dark, sparkly metallic purple paint covering most of the vehicle shell. It feels a little too dark for Shockwave - certainly compared to the G1 toy and the more recent Masterpiece interpretation (it may be more on a par with the War for Cybertron: Siege toy) but it is a gorgeous colour nonetheless.
This version of the mold follows the only established pattern in Binaltech numberplates, having the Decepticon insignia on the lefthand half and a truncated version of the robot's name - LWAVE - on the right.
As with BT Meister, Laserwave's weapon is stowed on the underside of vehicle mode, disguised as his exhaust muffler, and the interior is basically identical, with silver trim on the dashboard dials and a complete coating of silver on the front seatbacks.
Robot Mode:
Almost all of Laserwave's robot parts are straight reuses of Meister's parts, with only the colourscheme making it look any different. His arms and the fronts of his thighs are molded in a purple plastic that matches the painted die-cast parts very well, while the lower legs, groin, right hand, and belly are basic black plastic. The all-important gun replacing his left hand is very nicely detailed - very reminiscent of the G1 toy, albeit without the light-up feature - and molded in translucent purple plastic.
Paintwork on the robot parts is typically minimal, with nothing but tampgraphed Decepticon insignias on the shoulders, the silver paint of the car seat backs on his waist, and blocks of pale purple on his groin, thighs and shins, in exactly the same pattern as the metallic cyan and silver applications on BT08. Given that Shockwave traditionally has silver legs, I was disappointed to see so much bare plastic on this version... but it's another reminder that Binaltech was not precisely G1. Still, with vehicle mode's ugly spoiler already sitting on his feet, it might have been nice to see - if not wholly new parts for the legs - something a bit more traditional in his robot mode paint job.
As mentioned, he's packaged with essentially the same weapon as BT08 - one of the worst accessories in the entire Binaltech line because it's essentially a gun barrel, stock and grip attached to the half-shell of the vehicle's muffler, and looks awful in its handgun mode. An alternative configuration was proposed for Laserwave, whereby the gun remains in its vehicle mode form and simply plugs into Laserwave's arm via the transformation socket just above the elbow on either arm, and functions as a booster for his integrated weapon. When attached to the left arm, it serves to replace the traditional cable running from Shockwave's gun arm to his backpack, but it can also be attached with its own gun barrel deployed for supplementary firepower.
Shockwave head sculpts tend not to be the most exciting things because they're generally so simple. I have to say that I was very impressed with this version. Rather than being a weird reinterpretation like some of the other Binaltech head sculpts, it keeps to the G1 style entirely - simple, angular, elegant and malevolent, without a single humanoid feature to betray any emotion. His antennae are slimmer than those of the G1 toy, set out further from the sides of his head, and angling very slightly outward as they rise above the top of his head. The recessed section in which his single eye resides features a subtle texture, suggestive of circuitry, and he even has that staple of Binaltech head designs, the chin-block. Probaly the most impressive thing about the head sculpt, though, and something unique within the line, is the light-piping for his eye. The triangular protrusion from the top of his head makes for a surprisingly effective conduit, and the eye lights up quite easily, as is visible in all my photos. Cover up the top of his head, and the eye becomes dull and lifeless but, uncovered, even the slightest source of light allows his eye to blaze with life.
I mentioned in my write-up of Argent Meister that there were signs of mold degradation on that release but, even here, on a figure released just seven months after BT08, there are parts that aren't quite as solid as they should be. The door hinges and sliders - particularly the driver's side door on mine - are substantially looser than on BT Meister and, while transforming him for the above photos (replacing my original, less comprehensive set taken many years ago) the entire bonnet popped out of its mountings and proved very difficult to replace. The robot's limbs and joints fare better, though the shoulder joints are quite weak and prone to popping out on almost all iterations of the mold, while the heel spurs barely support Laserwave's weight thanks to all the die-cast metal in the upper half.
In terms of articulation, the only difference is that the left hand has been replaced with a gun, though even that has a ball-joint mounting in the wrist, since it's helpful to be able to move it around during transformation. Its range of swing isn't as good as the hand on the right arm, as its mounting stalk is shorter, with a wider base to the gun than the hand. It can, of course, rotate a full 360°, but it's meant to remain squared-up with his arm.
The really crazy thing about this mold is that I clearly liked it so much when I
first bought it that I ended up buying the Alternators version not long
afterward. I don't remember whether I'd intended to do something to it -
customising it into an Alternators Shackwave, perhaps? - or whether it was
simply that I wanted both versions... I clearly remember being excited to see it in the Uxbridge branch of The Entertainer, and snapping him up instantly. Partly, I suppose, it could have been the simple novelty of seeing an Alternators toy in that shop. Nevertheless, since buying it, the Alternators version has been in storage on top of my wardrobe... While this Binaltech version was returned to its box and stuck on top of an otherwise full cabinet, during one of my many cabinet reshuffles, simply because I'm out of display space... Hopefully, at some point, I'll be able to put all my Binaltech (and Alternators) figures out on display again... but I think the Alternators Shockwave is very much surplus to requirement these days.
No comments:
Post a Comment