Now, with the release of Takara's MP11SW Skywarp through Hasbro Asia, we finally have a full set of Seekers based on the MP version 2.0 remold. And things are starting to become very, very clear.
Skywarp suffers from mold degradation. I just fiddled about with him for the first time after unpacking and then displaying him (I've handled the same toy in two different colours now, so the "magic" is lost on me) and noticed a few things. The diecast parts Hasbro made in plastic for Thundercracker, are now diecast once more. His deco is somewhat of a hybrid of Takara Starscream and Hasbro Thundercracker along with its own unique deco thrown in for good measure. Oh, and his jet-mode has ugly and obvious gaps where the plastic has warped due to mold degradation.
The mold degradation is especially obvious in:
- Nosecone
- Cockpit
- Boobs
- pretty much the entire fuselage
The only things that look to be OK and up to the same standard are
- head
- arms
- the sides
- waist
- lower legs
- Wings
In other words, all the parts that have been remolded for MP11, and most of those parts would have to be replaced with new parts for the Coneheads anyway.
The only things from the remold (save for the degraded stuff) Takara would be able to actually keep are the arms (just not the hinge that connects them to the body, that part is well f**ked), the tights and half of the lower leg assembly.
They might as well just make an entirely new mold.