it is...Transformers Universe Cyclonus with Nightstick.
Cyclonus was - for a lack of a better term - Galvatron's punching bag. You see, Cyclonus is one of those Decepticons who are as loyal and trustworthy as the Autobots; making his a rare breed among his rank, but due to Galvatron's insanity, he seems to get a robotic bitch-slap for every mishap, mess-up and shenanigan. Normally, any Decepticon would have slagged the wiseguy who gave them a slap, but with Galvatron it is a totally different situation.
He's a TAD paranoid, no showing any signs of agression is the best and fastest way to join the Matrix.
But I digress. Cyclonus came into being after a mass of damaged Decepticons were thrown from Astrotrain in the 1986 movie, and were reformated into new troops for Galvatron by Unicron. This is about where I will stop this part as there is a major debate regarding Cyclonus.
Now, to be fair, I'll describe the basic argument and leave it at that as I honestly don't what answer is the truth.
Okay, in the movie, two of the damaged Decepticons (Bombsheel and Skywarp) can be seen in the scene below...
Now, in the scene right afterward shows not one, but TWO Cyclonus figures, to which Unicron addresses as "Cyclonus; the warrior, and his armada."
See what I mean? There's Cyclonus in the foreground (that's right Cyclonus, the camera loves you.), and there is the "second Cyclonus" (dubbed Armada by fans). No one has ever been able to prove or disprove which Cyclonus is the one we end up seeing in the series, but again, I'm not going to get too much into it as I haven't the proof or the will power to make opinions. So let's move on to the toy review.
First off I shall review Cyclonus' Targetmaster pal Nightstick.
VEHICLE:
Nightstick's vehicle mode is just like Ravage; it isn't a very mobile mode. It is very reminiscent of G1 Megatron or G1 Soundwave; both were objects that were both immobile without some aid. However, this mode looks very good and is a nice small addition for the Universe line despite not having any mobile capabilities.
Vehicle: 7/12.5
ROBOT:
Nightstick's small size is made up for by the great little figure that he becomes when transformed into robot mode. He is about as tall as Ravage, but matches his master Cyclonus' colour scheme almost to a tee. He also has a nice shape for such a small figure, which is proof of the constant innovations put into improving the look of mini-bots since the days of G1 Bumblebee and Brawn.
ARTICULATION:
Nightstick beats out Ravage as the most articulate "mini-con" of the Universe line; his arms are able to rotate 360 degrees at the shoulder and bend at the elbow. He can also move his legs 90 degrees in either direction, and his waist can pivot forward until it touches his chest piece. His head - unfortunately - does not move at all. However, that is a minor note in comparison.
Articulation: 10/12.5
GIMMICK:
Again, Nightstick beats out Ravage in his gimmick as well. He actually sports two gimmicks, but one is shared with Cyclonus, so to be fair, I shall count it as one of Cyclonus' gimmicks. Anyways, Nightstick's main gimmick is the fact that once he is transformed, he is able to fit into the hand of most deluxe class figures. A few I have tried and succeeded with are 25th Anniversary Optimus Prime, Universe Prowl, Classics Cliffjumper, Universe Sideswipe, and many others. This gives him a certain advantage over other mini-con in that he can be used by more than just one specific Autobot or Decepticon.
Gimmick: 11/12.5
FUN FACTOR:
Nightstick is a gun....and for some reason, guns are a lot more fun that tape cassettes. Also, since he is able to be placed into the hands of most Transformers in existance today, it adds to the amount of stories and plots a child can think up. Another plus is he is easy to transform and has no small pieces that are hazardous to children. This makes Nightstick both a great toy and a great time to be had.
Fun factor: 10.5/12.5
Now that his little friend has been dealt with, time to focus in on the real meat of this post; Cyclonus.
VEHICLE:
Cyclonus's Cybertronian jet mode is very nicely designed and a great update of his Generation One version. The colour is also a refreshing change, changing from a faded purple and red to a much nicer dark violet and red-brown. This mode also features landing gear in the nose and on both bottom panels that will become the fronts of Cyclonus' legs, and a hole to mount Nightstick (in gun mode). Two strikes I have to give this figure are that, firstly, mounting Nightstick on top of Cyclonus looks really stupid and weird; it'd be the equivilant of putting a water cannon on the roof of Jazz. Secondly, Cyclonus' vehicle mode has a lot of gaps in the back structure, which isn't a very safe design feature for any jet that is supposed to fly in the mach range. But, aside from that, it is one of the better vehicle modes I own.
Vehicle: 10/12.5
ROBOT:
This robot mode is by far one of the taller (if not the tallest) of the Universe line, and Cyclonus definately deserves that title as he is both tall and lanky. His robot mode is quite the engineering marvel and is one of the better remoldings of Generation One characters on the market. One of the more ingenius aspects of his robot mode is how the legs are formed. Instead of having legs that fold down or split apart, Cyclonus' legs snap together.
As this picture clearly shows, Cyclonus' leg is formed by the top and bottom half of the rear half of his jet mode. These snap together to form one leg. This is very unique in that this is the first time this has ever been done on a transformer of any kind. So Cyclonus has that fact going for him as well.
ARTICULATION:
Cyclonus' articulation is a slight weakness for him, but only in certain areas. Firstly, his hips are on ball joints and are double jointed; but not in the way that is normally done. His legs rotate at a point between the knee and hip,a dn bend at the knee. This allows for a few different poses than what are normally possible. His head can also rotate 360 degrees. It's his arms that are an issue. His arms do rotate 360 degrees at the shoulder, and do bend at the elbow, but due to the way his shoulder armour is designed, it obstructs the motion of his arm outwards, only allowing it to rotate approximately 75 degrees outward. This is a tiny flaw that might annoy some collectors, but isn't really a big deal.
Articulation: 10.5/12.5
GIMMICK:
This is one of the best and worst gimmicks in all of the Universe line. By flipping in either one of Cyclonus' hands, you reveal the jet thruster on the back. This is not only a thruster, but a slot to plug in Nightstick in vehicle mode. Yes, you heard me right....plug in Nightstick.
This is a nod to a feature available on Japanese Transformers Targetmaster figures, called "Target On!". It is unique to Universe Cyclonus nowadays, and it has got to be one of the most fiddly gimmicks in existance. Nightstick does plug in, it's just getting him to remain so is a slight challenge as any nudge will dislodge him. However, it looks awesome if you do manage to make him stick.
Gimmick: 9.5/12.5
FUN FACTOR:
Cyclonus is both posable and designed to look cool. With Nightstick as his weapon, kids can make many stories involving the two of them, or about each separately. Cyclonus' gimmick might frustrate kids, so it isn't the best idea to put on, but it proves Hasbro is willing to try different things, and that's a good thing. Now if only they could get their quality control regulated.
Fun factor: 10.5/12.5
OVERVIEW:
Universe Cyclonus and Nightstick are both an excellent addition to your Transformers collection, and at the price of a deluxe-class figure, there is a lot of economical value to the package too. Just like Hound and Ravage, these two have done well in revamping their old styles, while creating one all their own.
My score for Universe Cyclonus with Nightstick: 79/100
I am actually surprised that the figure the majority of the community marked as the best of this line thus far scored less than Cheetor, but I am basing these scores off of performance, and not off popularity. Granted, when I first saw Cyclonus, I honestly thought it was a stupid design; horrible colouring, bad vehicle mode, and a mini-con to boot. Then I saw some videos and decided to give him a try, and I have since warmed up to the figure so much I display him with pride. He is certainly one of the better figures to come out of the Universe line, and if this is any indication, the Transformers of the future are bound to improve.
No comments:
Post a Comment