New Arrivals - Early May 2014

Long time no new toys, and I still haven't bought anything. So step in the wonderful Mr JB Martin to send me a timely box of 3 unused loose reissue Commemorative Series Autobot cars. Just in time for my upcoming birthday, I can't even put into words how happy this package made me when I opened it yesterday, so unexpected it was, and such a hole they fill from all the G1 car-based Diaclones I have sold recently, leaving me with virtually no representation for these toys. 

Commemorative Series Red Alert, Prowl and Smokescreen

JB specifically said that as soon as he heard I no longer owned any sort of vintage Smokescreen, the decision was easy. He had somehow gotten hold of unpackaged reissue samples, multiples in fact, and was sweet enough to put one of each in the mail to me. The weapons for Prowl and Smokescreen aren't chromed, they are black plastic, as per most of the Hasbro reissue series - altered in some way. Do I care? Not in the slightest.

Prowl with black plastic weapons

Rubsign at windshield base - a la Takara vintage and reissue

Prowl has a lovely solid feel, no crappiness here and no feeling of cheap materials. I am perfectly satisfied to call this toy my G1 Prowl for the rest of time. The doors don't open and close perfectly smoothly, there's a little resistance when it comes to the wider angle of opening for robot mode, but it holds just fine. Launchers are neutered, and the rubsign is placed exactly where the vintage Japanese G1 Prowl (and therefore Takara reissue) had it. To see G1 Prowl in brilliant, un-faded white is tremendous. Interesting also that instead of screws in the shoulders, there are now bolts.

Even unchromed weapons cannot diminish his beauty

Originally my first ever Autobot car

Smokescreen's story is similar, the quality and alignment of all the parts is excellent, I am quite surprised and very pleased. I tried to put some vintage silver missiles in those launchers but the fit seemed a bit too tight. Glorious it is, one of the finest transformations in robot toy history, nothing can compare to manipulating Generation 1 Autobot cars, it's satisfying, simple and endlessly repeatable. Snapping on every accessory and watching the tapestry build is a feeling second to none.

Red Alert has almost no adjustments

No jaunissement here

Red Alert didn't need much changed as his weapons were never chrome to begin with, although Hasbro have added two bobbles above and below the missile hole on the launcher. Good grief I forgot how striking this bastard was without 30 years of childhood love absorbed into every pore of its being. And, as a total bonus, this Commemorative Red Alert comes with the headlight stickers correctly applied! Very often they're upside down. Proof:

Oops

So, the first birthday present is here and I challenge any pair of jeans to make me smile quite as these beautiful toys did. A timely reminder that Generation 1 Autobot cars cannot be as easily forgotten or eclipsed by fresh product the way some would like to convince themselves.

Speaking of new product, here are the reissues with their Takara Tomy Masterpiece counterparts, and display points aside, no prizes for guessing which set of toys were more fun to transform,

All the best

Maz