The Energon Pub

Lapse Of Reason wrote:I like it better than the Energon Prime, but still not worthy of my collection.

Oh God anything was better than the Energon Prime. That thing was a train wreck.

SpacerAM2 wrote:The only figures that I like from those lines and that I have are both Cybertron Primus and Armada Unicron. Which both resemble their g1 counter parts.

G1 Primus? Wow, that one must have really slipped under everyones radar. (technically there was a G1 Unicron, but he never got past the proto stage)

The "Superpants" always looked like a dress to me, to tell the truth. Then again, Jetfire wasn't much to scream about, either.

I liked the Armada-Series Tidal Wave.

He's a combiner, first of all, and he's made up of three ships:



His Robot mode is also really huge! He towers over Megatron and is even a match for Unicron.



The Laser-blastin' A-cups weren't the best idea, however.
"Tidal Wave have ambiguous Gender"


Of the two color schemes, I prefer the Energon one over the Armada one, probably because I have a weakness for white combined with bright colors, or because the Armada one shares a color scheme with "The Hulk" (Or looks like he's being choked).


Raaargh! Tidal-Wave Smash!


And, yeah, while he's pretty tall, he's also pretty thin. He'd probably get knocked over like a cardboard cutout, especially in those High-heels.


Then again, he does look pretty impressive on a shelf and he doesn't take up much space.

He's also got a little gimmick where he can combine with Megatron. Rather than giving him a new pair of trousers, however, It's all firepower. and a jet pack.


Not the most color-coordinated combo, but not quite as garish as Overload. It looks a little top-heavy, too, and Megatron's arm's aren't as bendy.

"I'll show you "Super-Pants!"


Along with that, his transformation is really simple; I can do it in about 30 seconds when I'm not in a hurry. I guess have a weakness for transformers that are easy.

Great review and photos, thanks.

I didn't know anything about this Armada toy before, except that I probably saw it a few times at some store long time ago. After reading your review, I'm actually thinking about buying a used one. The base mode seems like fun.

massmachine wrote:I just bought armada prime on ebay.He hasnt gotten here yet , but looking at the gallery onsite that made me wantto get him

That is exactly why I thought these threads would be great to do, it was to show people what the best of the best was out there for the A/E/C series.. I too bought some figures since I started these threads and that mostly was due to the Galleries here on Seibertron.com...But I have some great people who have decided to help on these threads so it has been a pretty cool ride so far..

Special thanks to:

Overcracker:

Your reviews of Bendy prime were excellent. I never knew there were so many of those figures in redeco colors out there..Nice review as well. Your a cool cat in my book. Keep up the good work.. That is definitely an item I plan to order some time soon. I especially like the Cybertron colored variant..

waaaaghlord:

Always a pleasure to discuss figures with you.. though i understand what your saying about the semi thing.. i really was trying to convey that this Prime was Historic for me because after G-1 and I was lumping G-2 in that category, but mainly after Beast Wars, Beast Machines, and RID.. this was the first Semi truck since then.. I remember that I was excited for that one reason alone, since I think up until that point I was unsure if he'd ever be a Semi truck again..
I was elated when I found out he was coming back as a Semi truck.. and that the trailer self transformed..

Waspinator Prime is a cool name for that color scheme!!!

Counterpunch:

Though we don't always see eye to eye, specifically on the Botcon stuff, I do respect and value your opinions..I think out of all of us on this particular thread and maybe even the fandom, your affinity for Armada dwarfs the normal fan!! That makes you a freak in my Book!! It's a good thing though... I am glad your able to give useful information on this series to potential fans and newcomers.. keep up the good work Bro!!!

Kohdok:

Great review!!! I too think that Tidal Wave had some gender issues..but he was a great combiner none the less.. my only gripe about him was that there wasn't another combiner that could attach to Megatron's legs and make his format taller.. Nice review!!!

Well that brings me to my addition to this thread and that would be Armada Starscream!!!


Starscream:





My only problem with this guy was that the guns on the top of his shoulders, would flip down, if the slightest air was brushed upon it... I hated that, the little pin of Plastic that held it in place was very small, and the Springs that brought it into action were huge!!! So it was really set against itself that way..



overall he had a great color scheme, and a Very close likeness to the comics and cartoons..It was nice to see his return to a classic format as well.. there were also repaints of him as Thundercracker and Skywarp..

As an Armada Collector, the only thing that has been elusive to me are the Seekers. I've always wanted Starscream!

BTW, why is Deluxe Prime called Bendy Prime?(or is that self-explanatory) Heh, he's one of my favorite molds, and I have 3 of them, Armada Prime, Nemesis, and Magnus. Magnus being my least favorite seeing as his windshield is solid blue.

And since i am in this thread, i'll do a little thing on Blurr

The funny thing with Deluxe Armada is that they had so many different figures, but they all really fall into categories. The Good(Blurr,Hoist, etc)), the Decent(Sideways, Smokescreen), the Bad(Hot Shot), and the absolute horrible(Sideswipe). If you don't have Armada Sideswipe or any of his repaints, I insist you never pick any of them up.

Anyways, Blurr was one of my favorite figures in the Armada Series, simply because he's a sleek race car. Without a doubt, his vehicle mode is nearly perfect.



Not only is he a race car, but he can also be a flying race car, with the insertion of his mini-con Incinerator into his..... back area. One little negative about Blurr is that his guns kind of tend to fall off sometimes in vehicle mode



One of the great things about Blurr is that, unlike his fellow Armada Deluxes, all of his 4 wheels actually roll if you push the car onto any surface.



In Robot Mode, he can hold his guns in his hands, or on his backpack. Like most of the Armada lines, his projectiles are activated by your friendly, and if you're an Armada collector, your very abundant amount of Mini-cons.



It seems that Hasbro wanted Blurr to only carry the guns he has, as he doesn't have correct hands to carry either the Star Saber, Skyboom Shield or Requiem Blaster. But it is explainable seeing as Blurr never did carry said weapons in the cartoon



Unfortunately, like the whole entire Armada line, Blurr has a few faults. First off is his back-pack is very chunky.



Second is that his feet can barely hold his body from falling over due to the size and weight of the back-pack.



My favorite thing actually about Blurr, is his mini-con Incinerator, who uses his front part of his car as a sword in robot mode.



Yes, Blurr has some flaws in Transformation, but he is one of the best deluxes in the whole line, and his vehicle mode is what sets him apart from other deluxes. If you haven't picked up Armada Blurr or any of his repaints(Universe Swerve, and Cybertron Blurr), you are definitely missing out on a very interesting mold!

I really like the Armada Seekers. I've got the ML version of Stascream that has much nicer paint aps than the A version, Thundercracker, Skywarp and the Sam's Club redeco from Energon that I've dubbed Nightscream, not anything to do with the BM character I just liked the name and it seemed to fit. I also picked up duplicates at Auto Assembley the other year so I've got an extra of each of the main three. These are intended for some part swapping and repaint work to become Thrust, Dirge and Sunstorm. I was originally planning to pick up a U Ramjet and redo his colours closer to his G1 incarnation as well but since this project hasn't really gotten off the ground yet I've not gone out of my way to find him.

The bot modes have a nice sleek feel to them, especially with the remoulded touches on Skywarp and Ramjet but I do have a couple of issues with the moulds. Firstly the whole wing to sword gimmick. Nice idea, but why only one wing? I display them with both wings on and cannons deployed anyway but this feature would work better for me if it was a pair of wingswords. The major quibble though is the huge piece of kibble sticking out of their backs. This area accomodates the electronics and if not for that feature would probably have been designed to fold down as opposed to sticking out half a mile behind them.

Jet modes are nice chunky futuristic jets that look better with the launcers facing backwards as boosters. Deployed they certainly add a lot of firepower but don't exactly smack of aerodynamic design. You can get a pretty good gerwalk mode out of them as well if that's your cup of joe.

Overall a pretty nice design that's limited by the same kiddification as most of the Armada line (although I still have a soft spot for the line as a whole, less the Minicons), the need for Minicon ports which just don't add much to the appearance of a figure especially an otherwise sleek jet and those silly electronics. Is it a G1 Screamer? No, but that's not the point. These are still an interesting variation on the Seeker theme and overall I'd rate them at around a 6/10. Really must get around to pulling those spares out of storage and set about them with some paint.

Blurrz wrote:As an Armada Collector, the only thing that has been elusive to me are the Seekers. I've always wanted Starscream!

BTW, why is Deluxe Prime called Bendy Prime?(or is that self-explanatory) Heh, he's one of my favorite molds, and I have 3 of them, Armada Prime, Nemesis, and Magnus. Magnus being my least favorite seeing as his windshield is solid blue.

Well because he is bendy. He was one of the more poseable figures in the line, hence bendy. As opposed to his Leader counterpart. Which could barely move his arms. Look on page 2 of this thread for the Bendy Prime Extravaganza.

Overcracker wrote:

Blurrz wrote:As an Armada Collector, the only thing that has been elusive to me are the Seekers. I've always wanted Starscream!

BTW, why is Deluxe Prime called Bendy Prime?(or is that self-explanatory) Heh, he's one of my favorite molds, and I have 3 of them, Armada Prime, Nemesis, and Magnus. Magnus being my least favorite seeing as his windshield is solid blue.

Well because he is bendy. He was one of the more poseable figures in the line, hence bendy. As opposed to his Leader counterpart. Which could barely move his arms. Look on page 2 of this thread for the Bendy Prime Extravaganza.

yes and nicely done too!!! I'm buying the cybertron one soon!!!

Blurrz wrote:And since i am in this thread, i'll do a little thing on Blurr

The funny thing with Deluxe Armada is that they had so many different figures, but they all really fall into categories. The Good(Blurr,Hoist, etc)), the Decent(Sideways, Smokescreen), the Bad(Hot Shot), and the absolute horrible(Sideswipe). If you don't have Armada Sideswipe or any of his repaints, I insist you never pick any of them up.

Anyways, Blurr was one of my favorite figures in the Armada Series, simply because he's a sleek race car. Without a doubt, his vehicle mode is nearly perfect.



Not only is he a race car, but he can also be a flying race car, with the insertion of his mini-con Incinerator into his..... back area. One little negative about Blurr is that his guns kind of tend to fall off sometimes in vehicle mode



One of the great things about Blurr is that, unlike his fellow Armada Deluxes, all of his 4 wheels actually roll if you push the car onto any surface.



In Robot Mode, he can hold his guns in his hands, or on his backpack. Like most of the Armada lines, his projectiles are activated by your friendly, and if you're an Armada collector, your very abundant amount of Mini-cons.



It seems that Hasbro wanted Blurr to only carry the guns he has, as he doesn't have correct hands to carry either the Star Saber, Skyboom Shield or Requiem Blaster. But it is explainable seeing as Blurr never did carry said weapons in the cartoon



Unfortunately, like the whole entire Armada line, Blurr has a few faults. First off is his back-pack is very chunky.



Second is that his feet can barely hold his body from falling over due to the size and weight of the back-pack.



My favorite thing actually about Blurr, is his mini-con Incinerator, who uses his front part of his car as a sword in robot mode.



Yes, Blurr has some flaws in Transformation, but he is one of the best deluxes in the whole line, and his vehicle mode is what sets him apart from other deluxes. If you haven't picked up Armada Blurr or any of his repaints(Universe Swerve, and Cybertron Blurr), you are definitely missing out on a very interesting mold!

I think Blurr is a sweet transformer toy, though he does have back pack issues, he's still a fun and cool looking figure.. I love the red one too....


Great job!!

waaaaghlord wrote:I really like the Armada Seekers. I've got the ML version of Stascream that has much nicer paint aps than the A version, Thundercracker, Skywarp and the Sam's Club redeco from Energon that I've dubbed Nightscream, not anything to do with the BM character I just liked the name and it seemed to fit. I also picked up duplicates at Auto Assembley the other year so I've got an extra of each of the main three. These are intended for some part swapping and repaint work to become Thrust, Dirge and Sunstorm. I was originally planning to pick up a U Ramjet and redo his colours closer to his G1 incarnation as well but since this project hasn't really gotten off the ground yet I've not gone out of my way to find him.

The bot modes have a nice sleek feel to them, especially with the remolded touches on Skywarp and Ramjet but I do have a couple of issues with the moulds. Firstly the whole wing to sword gimmick. Nice idea, but why only one wing? I display them with both wings on and cannons deployed anyway but this feature would work better for me if it was a pair of wingswords. The major quibble though is the huge piece of kibble sticking out of their backs. This area accomodates the electronics and if not for that feature would probably have been designed to fold down as opposed to sticking out half a mile behind them.

Jet modes are nice chunky futuristic jets that look better with the launcers facing backwards as boosters. Deployed they certainly add a lot of firepower but don't exactly smack of aerodynamic design. You can get a pretty good gerwalk mode out of them as well if that's your cup of joe.

Overall a pretty nice design that's limited by the same kiddification as most of the Armada line (although I still have a soft spot for the line as a whole, less the Minicons), the need for Minicon ports which just don't add much to the appearance of a figure especially an otherwise sleek jet and those silly electronics. Is it a G1 Screamer? No, but that's not the point. These are still an interesting variation on the Seeker theme and overall I'd rate them at around a 6/10. Really must get around to pulling those spares out of storage and set about them with some paint.

you hit the nail on the head with that one!! excellent.. I've been agonizing over whether to buy those seekers or not.. I must say that the sheer size of them is amazing.. and that they are also very heavy too...respectably..

skywarp-2 wrote:
I think Blurr is a sweet transformer toy, though he does have back pack issues, he's still a fun and cool looking figure.. I love the red one too....


Great job!!

Actually the red one being Universe Swerve is awesome. His vehicle mode has a horrible colour scheme, but his robot mode is awesome. Especially with the Silver Face plate. Looks aesthetically alot better.

Blurrz wrote:

skywarp-2 wrote:
I think Blurr is a sweet transformer toy, though he does have back pack issues, he's still a fun and cool looking figure.. I love the red one too....


Great job!!

Actually the red one being Universe Swerve is awesome. His vehicle mode has a horrible colour scheme, but his robot mode is awesome. Especially with the Silver Face plate. Looks aesthetically alot better.

ah I see your point.. his altmode is kinda crummy...

Armada Wheeljack will remain the best mould made from many of the recent lines. Can't believe it was never repainted.

Overcracker wrote:

Blurrz wrote:As an Armada Collector, the only thing that has been elusive to me are the Seekers. I've always wanted Starscream!

BTW, why is Deluxe Prime called Bendy Prime?(or is that self-explanatory) Heh, he's one of my favorite molds, and I have 3 of them, Armada Prime, Nemesis, and Magnus. Magnus being my least favorite seeing as his windshield is solid blue.

Well because he is bendy. He was one of the more poseable figures in the line, hence bendy. As opposed to his Leader counterpart. Which could barely move his arms. Look on page 2 of this thread for the Bendy Prime Extravaganza.

Ahh so thats the reason for the bendy nick name; I always thought it had something to do with the size since (and I hate to tell you this) my A Leader Prime has the exact same articulation as my delux Prime (and no it isn't one of the improperly assembled ones)

g1transformers wrote:Armada Wheeljack will remain the best mould made from many of the recent lines. Can't believe it was never repainted.

YES!!!!

You mean like this wheeljack!!??? I love this Guy's mold... he is the most articulated and just down right craziest looking double agent I have evr seen!! Good call... Armada Wheeljack is da BOMB!!!







Are you sure he wasn't recolored as another character in a later series?? They should do a redeco of him.. he's awesome!! there was this comic book called Wetworks, and this cover where the hero is holding up a Baton like the weapons that Wheeljack has only they are made out of pure Blue energy.. if they ever did a recolor of this guy, they should cast the Missles/Batons in Clear plastic blue to symbolize that kind of power!!! He's a cool Transformer..

Wheeljack is a great figure. I'm going to great lengths to get him. I'm even thinking of getting rid of Takara ReIssue Starscream, for Wheeljack, Overload, and Air Defense Mini-con Team. Yes, I'm a crazy Armada fan

BTW< Wheeljack's Mini-con Windsheer is awesome. Him and Thunderwing are the two best mini-cons as they are stealth bombers!

Blurrz wrote:Wheeljack is a great figure. I'm going to great lengths to get him. I'm even thinking of getting rid of Takara ReIssue Starscream, for Wheeljack, Overload, and Air Defense Mini-con Team. Yes, I'm a crazy Armada fan

BTW< Wheeljack's Mini-con Windsheer is awesome. Him and Thunderwing are the two best mini-cons as they are stealth bombers!

I disagree they aren't the best minicons from that series....



They are the Best Minicons ever!!! That stealth minicon is just the badest little guy I have ever seen.. since Laser Beak circa G-1 that is...

Armada Wheeljack was not a double agent.

He was a defector to the Decepticons when he thought he had been abandoned by HotShot.

The American release is not accurate to the show. The pattern markings are wrong and they should be blue.

The Micron Legends Rampage (Japanese Wheeljack) is accurate. I just bought one off of http://www.bbts.com

The figure's articulation is ok...

It's not really all that great, though it seems like it should be.

Counterpunch wrote:Armada Wheeljack was not a double agent.

He was a defector to the Decepticons when he thought he had been abandoned by HotShot.

The American release is not accurate to the show. The pattern markings are wrong and they should be blue.

The Micron Legends Rampage (Japanese Wheeljack) is accurate. I just bought one off of http://www.bbts.com

The figure's articulation is ok...

It's not really all that great, though it seems like it should be.

I stand corrected...

Well I was speaking of the wonderful articulation he had in this particular line.. he's alot better then most.. I had no idea he was a defector.. i just assumed he was a Double agent like Swindle..I never saw the cartoon..but I'm gonna buy the DVDs soon..You must have bought the last one cause BBTS has him soldout now.. He does look better in the Black and Blue colors though...

For Minicons, I'm a fan of Makeshift.

Makeshift is a V-22 that transforms into a dual-gatling unit.




I'm also a fan of the Race Team Skyboom shield. It's a shield for larger bots, and a surfboard for smaller ones.

If only the color schemes weren't so horrendous...

Well As much as I want to go in depth on Minicons, which I will near the end of this thread, I have to finish up with the Mainline characters that should be bought if you decide that Armada is a series you would want to pick up.. After all it's called the Unicron trilogy for a reason, and if you skip one series or another, you may feel like your collection is incomplete.. Then again some of you may feel quite fine without a complete collection..

As to me, I have to seriously force myself not to over spend..That has a long history, dating back to Marvel legends, DC Direct, comics, and McFarlane Predaters, Aliens, Hellboy, Devilman,Starwars Ep-1 to 3 toys, Toynami Herculoids, Toynami Robotech masterpieces, Thundarr the Bartbarian Toys, the Blue Falcon, Guyver...ect.. ect.. I could go on and on with what I've already bought and own in collection storage..so I really have to be careful what I do buy and not buy..

Incidentally I'm selling alot of my stuff that I don't want or need...


So that Brings me to this guy...I know, I know, we have been down this road before.. some people hate him, some don't..
But if there was ever a situation where my assumptions about repaints are true this is it..



We all know that there are just some toys out there, that, when originally released just came out completely horrible!! Yet, down the road a simple redeco and repaint of the character actually made him look very, very cool.. I site a Major example, though not an official release........yet..........

Leader Class Movie Megatron was a Horrible Transformer, but those Fan repaints make him look absolutely superb!!

Well I have stalled long enough..I hated the original Jetfire release, though Armada is the first time I got back into Transformers since G-1 days, I picked him up for the combiner qualities, and I originally thought he was COOL, at first... that darn head sculpt really made him look crummy over time every day it got more and more depressing to look at on my shelf...or was it the head sculpt after all???

I have since given this guy another chance to redeem himself to me and my collection..to my wallets dismay, I found the one redeemable figure!!

Powerlinks Jetfire!!!

Basically he's Jetfire just repainted and redecos of color.. but boy what a difference colors make, even with the bird head, it looks much, much better..

To date there have been 2 Repaints of this particular mold, one with a new Head sculpt, convention exclusive Astrotrain..


I am now gonna buy him in Powerlinx mode, because he looks great!! Though I still detest the original release..What a difference a Little Paint and color change can make!!






I mean overall this guys look and quality has advanced like 10 fold because of the coloring..I think its the exclusion of the Beak colored faceplate that really makes him look alot different.. I really did love this guy's design, except that face, and transformation was cool too. He has that huge Booster gun, and his proportions were very neat and not exaggerated or Understated in any way..like so many other Transformer toys have been in the past..Its too bad they didn't do apowerlinx repaint in darker Reds, like the Original Jetfire from G-1 toy..that would have been cool too..


Overall sooooo Much better with the repainted version

he had a nice minicon as well..


This version of Jetfire will be mine!!!!

Darn skywarp, lol, i was thinking in my sleep I would do a Jetfire profile but you stole my thunder! Haha, well since no one has done him yet, i'll be doing Hoist in a short while.

yeah I agree that Powerlinx Jetfire is a much better deco than the original but I still feel that it is one of the weaker figures in the line and is only really good as a kilt for Prime in Super mode. I don't really know what it is but this guy's aesthetics seems to "kiddie" for me. It reminds me too much the Gobot TF toyline that was out for toddlers during this time.

Two figures that I think are some of the best in Armada that haven't been mentioned yet are:
Cyclonus




This figure has a great alt mode, a great robot mode, and excellent interactivity with his Minicon Crumplezone. His head sculpt does have a love/hate relationship with collectors but I think it gives the figure character and personality. Plus the weapons activated by the minicon ports are simple, straight forward and do not interfere with articulation or posability.

Demolishor




Demolishor is another one of my favorites for pretty much the same reasons as Cyclonus. Great robot and tank modes, excellent interactivity between Minicon and larger robot, gimmicks that do not interfere with articulation/posability and lots of interesting details in both modes. He also has a Minicon Attack base mode that Ryan didn't photograph for some reason.