I still haven't watched The Last Knight (and still don't intend to), but I have watched enough clips to know two things: that
Hasbro's
first attempt at a Hot Rod figure back in 2017 was hopelessly inaccurate, and that the writers couldn't
decide whether he was supposed to be French, or just somehow 'stuck'
with the accent, considering he frequently uses French idioms in his
dialogue (consistently addressing Vivian Wembly as "mademoiselle", introducing
himself with "Je m'apelle Hot Rod", etc.).
His design was pretty good, though, carrying just enough of the
Diaclone DNA exhibited by the likes of Bumblebee and Jazz in the
first film -
even more surprising considering how quickly Bay's movies distanced
themselves from that aesthetic
- while fitting in with the sleeker, increasingly humanoid styling of
the later films.
Given that I bought DX9's excellent
La Hire
more than three years ago, one could be forgiven for wondering why I'd
bother with Hasbro's Studio Series update of their figure from
The Last Knight's toyline... And, granted, it does seem strange
to spend £26 on a Deluxe class figure that I know isn't going to hold a candle
to a larger, more intricate, elaborate and accurate Third Party
Masterpiece-analogue, that I already own, and for which I paid just £77. SS Hot Rod may
be just one third the price, but can a Deluxe class toy, as produced by Hasbro in the 2020s, possibly be even one third
as good as La Hire?
Well, there's only one way to find out, isn't there?
