M.A.R.S. Converters - seen these yet?
Posted: Sun Nov 07, 2010 10:57 amSpotted these guys in my local Walgreens, and I HAD to get the one that turns into a 57 Chevy (with some liberties taken).
As far as they compare:
1 ) Articulation: Decent for a mainstream figure, downright AMAZING for a $10 cheapo. The figure I got has full shoulder articulation, upper arm twist, elbows, and (difficult to turn) wrists, a dual knee, lower leg pivot, feet bend forward (not back), balljointed hips, and even waist articulation (no head articulation or thigh pivot). This can be PARTIALLY explained by the dual knee and full shoulders being required for the transform, but the rest are pure gravy.
2 ) Plastic: Better than standard knockoff plastic - I don't feel like they're going to snap in my hands. It feels like it's standard ABS, but is still a bit thinner than Transformers usually have, so it DOES feel less durable than, say, Hardhead, plus a lot lighter.
3 ) Sculpting/Proportions: Again, much better than the typical knockoff. As the images below show, he has a relatively impressive robot mode, and his car mode includes all the bits needed, even door handles. The face is rather bland, however, the weakest spot on this fig.
I should note the figures are also rather large - about the size of an Ultra, so they're even too big to really fit with even a Binaltech / Alternators display, so if you're a scale fanatic along with allowing KO's and Generics into your collection, these will likely be a pass. I'd call these generics, as while they are cheaper feeling than mainstream toys, they are original molds, and have transformations roughly on par with Deluxes from the Cybertron era, if not a teeny bit more. Each figure has a name and even "tech specs", specifically Speed, Power, Skill, Defense, and Intelligence (though they are vague barcodes without numbers). Mine is "Valve Charger", with power the highest, then Intelligence, then Skill, then Defense, then Speed.
The other five figures advertised on the bocks display roughly similar quality of proportion and articulation, though I can't testify to any other aspects. They are Earthmover, a yellow bulldozer; Bio-mixer, a blue cement mixer (and looks like one of the most kibble-free figs, plus might be one of the few in scale to many lines); Spot Explorer, what looks like a brown and tan camo SUV; Accelerator, a silver-grey lambo type; and Drifter, a blue coupe convertible. I do seem to have gotten the most unfortunately plain headsculpt, from the looks of the pics, but that's okay...
... IT'S A 57 CHEVY!
(( Please forgive the picture "quality", my curtains are red and though I did my best, the red glare washed a lot out.))
NOTE: THIS FIGURE IS BRIGHT RED, NOT PINK. Again, sucky lighting conditions when I took the pics.
As far as they compare:
1 ) Articulation: Decent for a mainstream figure, downright AMAZING for a $10 cheapo. The figure I got has full shoulder articulation, upper arm twist, elbows, and (difficult to turn) wrists, a dual knee, lower leg pivot, feet bend forward (not back), balljointed hips, and even waist articulation (no head articulation or thigh pivot). This can be PARTIALLY explained by the dual knee and full shoulders being required for the transform, but the rest are pure gravy.
2 ) Plastic: Better than standard knockoff plastic - I don't feel like they're going to snap in my hands. It feels like it's standard ABS, but is still a bit thinner than Transformers usually have, so it DOES feel less durable than, say, Hardhead, plus a lot lighter.
3 ) Sculpting/Proportions: Again, much better than the typical knockoff. As the images below show, he has a relatively impressive robot mode, and his car mode includes all the bits needed, even door handles. The face is rather bland, however, the weakest spot on this fig.
I should note the figures are also rather large - about the size of an Ultra, so they're even too big to really fit with even a Binaltech / Alternators display, so if you're a scale fanatic along with allowing KO's and Generics into your collection, these will likely be a pass. I'd call these generics, as while they are cheaper feeling than mainstream toys, they are original molds, and have transformations roughly on par with Deluxes from the Cybertron era, if not a teeny bit more. Each figure has a name and even "tech specs", specifically Speed, Power, Skill, Defense, and Intelligence (though they are vague barcodes without numbers). Mine is "Valve Charger", with power the highest, then Intelligence, then Skill, then Defense, then Speed.
The other five figures advertised on the bocks display roughly similar quality of proportion and articulation, though I can't testify to any other aspects. They are Earthmover, a yellow bulldozer; Bio-mixer, a blue cement mixer (and looks like one of the most kibble-free figs, plus might be one of the few in scale to many lines); Spot Explorer, what looks like a brown and tan camo SUV; Accelerator, a silver-grey lambo type; and Drifter, a blue coupe convertible. I do seem to have gotten the most unfortunately plain headsculpt, from the looks of the pics, but that's okay...
... IT'S A 57 CHEVY!
(( Please forgive the picture "quality", my curtains are red and though I did my best, the red glare washed a lot out.))
NOTE: THIS FIGURE IS BRIGHT RED, NOT PINK. Again, sucky lighting conditions when I took the pics.