Revenge of the Fallen Megatron

The first TransFormers movie raised two important questions:

1. With Megatron killed by the power of the Allspark, who would lead the Decepticons in the inevitable sequel?
2. Would its toy suck as much as the original movie's Leader Class Megatron (which will be reviewed eventually... Honest)?

Well, golly gosh, if they didn't bring Megatron back with the power of the Allspark, then turn him into a sort of tank thing that's somehow capable of interplanetary flight...

...Which basically answers both questions.

Seriously, though, this is the second attempt at a toy of a movie Megatron, with an equally outlandish design. Somehow, the designers at work on the TransFormers movie seem to think that making Megatron into something resembling The Shrike constitutes a valid attempt at depicting the Decepticons' leader. Little regard is had for the poor souls who have to turn these bizarre arrangements of spikes and guns and more spikes into a transforming toy to be purchased by children (and collectors), and the first movie Megatron served as a fine example of why one should not design an enormous, bulky robot that turns into a sleek, slender jet. It just didn't work.

This time, though, we have an enormous, bulky robot that turns into an enormous, bulky tank... Surely that's a better fit?

Superlink Superion

Just like the Generation 1 combiners of the mid-80s, the Energon/Superlink line brought us 5-strong teams of Autobots and Decepticons who could combine into even larger, mightier robots (frequently with personality disorders, courtesy of its components). Since the whole selling point of the Energon/Superlink Autobots was that they could combine, they only got one team - referencing the G1 Aerialbots - who combined to form Superion (known in the US/UK as Superion Maximus... because, obviously, it's a name that requires some kind of qualification)

To be honest, I wasn't that interested in the Energon/Superlink combiner teams, not least because I'd heard they were rather floppy... but, for my birthday one year, my workmates clubbed together money for a large bottle of rum (my drink of choice at the time) and £50 worth of tokens for Forbidden Planet.

The boxed set of Superlink Superion cost £51 at Forbidden Planet. You do the maths.

Revenge of the Fallen Jetfire

What better way to follow up GF Sonic Bomber than with this?

When it was announced that Revenge of the Fallen would feature a cantankerous 'old man' robot, many fans naturally assumed this would be Kup. Many fans were wrong... so very wrong... What we were treated to instead was a foul mouthed, senile, babbling junkpile named Jetfire, supposedly one of the original Seekers.

So far, so G1 fanservice... After all, Jetfire and Starscream are widely reported to have been friends before the Great War. But the title Seeker is used in an entirely difference context in RotF... here, they were sent out into the universe, seeking the Allspark.

Bizarrely, it seems a whole bunch of them ended up on Earth (so near, yet so far), with Jetfire ending up as an exhibit in the Smithsonian, awakened from his rusting slumber by one of the last remaining shards of the Allspark.

As a character in the movie, Jetfire was a lot of fun, if underdeveloped. Some of what he said didn't make sense in any context, but Mark Ryan's voice and delivery gave him a lot of character... And a Mancunian accent. Strange, then, that the toy seems to think he's Scottish, but more on that later.

Galaxy Force Sonic Bomber

Over the many years of the TransFormers franchise, one aeroplane has been used and reused as the basis for vehicle modes for the airborne 'bots. From Generation 1 mini-bot Powerglide to... er... Universe Ultra Powerglide just last year, the A-10 Tankbuster has been an unlikely, but generally successful, form of disguise for these transforming alien robots. With each new toy, the complexity of transformation improved. Unlike most others, though, Sonic Bomber's alternate mode doesn't try to match the A-10 as closely as possible - it's derived from that plane, without actually being that plane... Think of it as a Sci-Fi Tankbuster

Not Quite Back Yet

I've got a new computer up and running, all nice and smooth and fast, but still haven't quite got back into the swing of things.

Part of it, I guess, is that I've built up such a huge backlog, getting through it all is quite a daunting prospect.

On the one hand, I think I should arrange some time off work to give me some time to focus on this... but I suspect I'd spend most of my time idle instead.

I'll get there in the end, though...

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Lies, Damned Lies and Statistics...

Since it's been a little over 2 months since my last addition, I figured I'd better post an update on the off-chance that anyone ever visits this thing.

The delays are caused, in the main, by my day job. I've been getting home very late, skipping dinner and heading to bed almost as soon as I've checked my email. Not even my weekends are spare all the time, and I shall be returning to the office sometime over the weekend to make sure I'm up to date for next week. I currently have no life other than work and sleep.

Aside from this, I still do not have my new (birthday present) computer, and may end up just buying one. My current machine has lasted well in its beleaguered state, but it's far to slow and glitchy to upload the number of photos I have.

Also, I've filled my current (free) Photobucket account, and so will need to set up something new to accommodate the next round of photos.

Waiting to be uploaded, I have 700Mb of Transformers photos, spread across 21 categories, taking in more than 90 models.

A further 220Mb of photos have been uploaded, spread across 5 catagories and more than 20 models.

I'll get going again as soon as I'm able...

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