Zob's Thoughts on the Hasbro Reissue Insecticons
Zobovor
open Christmas presents early. Not all of them, of course, but one or
two here and there. I could offer all sorts of justifications for
this (I only see my older kids on the weekends so time is limited;
taking care of my two-year-old means less time for me to sit and open
gifts of my own; working retail means I typically have to go right
back to work after Christmas with little or no down time to celebrate)
but the truth of the matter is that it's just more fun this way, so
I'll leave it at that.
Two out of three of the Insecticons have been renamed since Hasbro has
lost the original trademarks. Bombshell's name has been Hardshell
since last year when the Robot Heroes version was released, and
Shrapnel has been officially rechristened Sharpshot. For the purposes
of this review I'll be referring to the characters by their original
names. (Note that even Hasbro is a little confused about who is who,
since in the instruction booklet, Kickback is referred to as Sharpshot
and Shrapnel is called Kickback.)
As with the Soundwave reissue, Hasbro mentions on the packaging that
the Insecticon reissues are "identical to the original toys." Now, I
have never expected reissue toys to be exact duplicates of the toys
from the 1980's. Toy safety regulations have changed, and the toys
have to change along with them. The molds themselves have degraded
and have required retooling and repairs, which also results in changes
to the final product. (If nothing else, modern plastics are more
durable and flexible, so precisely duplicating the brittle nature of a
G1 toy would be self-defeating.) When Hasbro tries to claim that the
reissue toys are identical, then, I object to this because it is a
patently false statement. I happen to know better, but it's
potentially misleading for other consumers. I was already noticing
differences before I ever pulled out my original Insecticons for
comparison purposes.
For starters, Hasbro made some changes to some of the Diaclone toys
back in the day to get rid of some of their sharp, pointy bits (which
is why Swoop had such a knobby beak and the consumer-applied sticker
didn't fit correctly on his tail). Kickback's wings were modified by
Hasbro to include round, circular knobs at the tips of his grasshopper
wings. It looks like Takara did some restoration work on the
Insecticons to restore Kickback to his original wing design, and
Hasbro retained this version for their release. For the reissue,
Kickback also got reinforcing struts on his antennas to make them more
durable. They're embedded into the little slots on his grasshopper
eyes, so they're not totally incongruous.
Bombshell has a particularly notable mold variation—there are two
versions of the G1 toy, one with a groove carved out of the hinge on
his stinger so that the stinger folds down all the way and can point
directly forward in robot mode, and another version that lacks this
groove, which means the stinger juts upwards at an odd angle and
cannot face forward unless you close the top of his helmet over his
face. Obviously, the grooved version is the more desirable one, and
this is what the toy was designed to do (the Diaclone version had the
groove), so it boggles the mind that Hasbro made this change. I was
hoping that it would have been restored for the reissue, but sadly,
this was not to be. His gun also got a tweak, with a longer weapon
handle that's actually more fragile than the original, partly because
of the tightness of the fit in his hand. He's also got some recessed
cavities in both the inside and outside of his legs (the original
Bombshell exists in at least two versions—gaps on the insides of his
legs, and no gaps at all).
Shrapnel's gun was originally designed with two fins on the butt end
of his gun, but they were removed at some point by Hasbro along with
some other details (he's got them in his animation model, so the
change wasn't made until after the character was incorporated into the
TV show). He also got some extra plastic at the end of the screw
mounts on the fronts of his legs, probably to act as a stop-gap to
prevent the screws from punching through the plastic (I've done this
accidentally after disassembling a Shrapnel and reassembling him using
a screw of the wrong length). His stickers also look to have been
digitally redesigned, but the results are not wholly authentic—the
trapezoidal panel on his upper chest is now purple instead of blue,
and the trapezoidal stickers on the backs of his legs are now orange
instead of red (I can see how someone using a sun-faded G1 unit for
reference might have gotten orange, but they're supposed to be the
same color as the red stripes on his legs). The only other change I
noticed was that they're using flathead screws to assemble his waist
now, so that they lay flat against the plastic instead of bulging out.
The original Hasbro versions of the Insecticons were among the first
toys with the heat-sensitive rub symbols, which were just slapped on
whatever large, flat surface was available (in this case, the side of
Kickback's wing and the back of Bombshell's and Shrapnel's leg).
Later versions of the toys had indents sculpted into the plastic
specifically to accomodate the rub symbols, which helped prevent
enthusiastic kids from rubbing the symbols right off the surface of
the toy (this did happen). Kickback even went through a phase when he
had rub symbol spots on all four sides of his two wings (a
manufacturing shortcut, one supposes). The reissue toys are the
versions with the indents, which I happen to prefer because it makes
the toys seem a little more like they were designed for these things
and less like they were slapped on as an afterthought (which is closer
to the truth, of course).
Another change from the G1 versions is that all the consumer-applied
stickers are metal foil labels this time instead of the paper labels
found on the original toys. I have found that the ink tends to rub
off of both kinds of labels from prolonged play and handling, and the
corners of the foil stickers tend to curl more easily, but the paper
stickers also tend to deteriorate over time, so it's a trade-off. The
new stickers have a much more glossy appearance, then, and it goes a
long way to making the Insecticons look more metallic (the stickers
match the vacuum metalized parts nicely), but it also means they don't
adhere as well to the surfaces of the toys. Metal stickers tend to
try to retain their shape more stubbornly than paper ones, so they
won't stick properly to Shrapnel's arms or Bombshell's feet and pelvis
unless you give them a little help. I suggest test-fitting the
stickers and pre-folding them prior to actually applying them. This
way you can bend the metal foil and ensure a more cooperative fit.
Other changes I noticed is that the joints on these toys are extremely
tight. Obviously, a brand-new toy is going to have tighter joints
than the ones I've had in my closet for the past quarter-century, but
I don't ever remember the original Insecticons ever being this tight,
not even fresh out of the box. Bombshell's arms are just about
impossible to move, Shrapnel's antennae feel like they're going to
snap off when I open them, and Kickback's wings are really, really
hard to move. Their chest panels are also very difficult to open—
Bombshell's, in particular, feels like it locks in place and no amount
of grasping with my bare fingertips can budge it. Also, the vacuum
metalized parts all feel inordinately fragile; the plastic is no doubt
more flexible than it used to be, but this also means that the chrome
parts feel more fragile. Kickback's wings are so thin—less than a
millimeter at their thinnest width—that he is probably the most
fragile Transformer ever produced, even moreso than Jazz or Bluestreak
or Swoop. You'd think they would have made his wings thicker and more
durable, but it seems things went the other way around this time.
The quality control on my set was pretty bad, probably the worst I've
seen in a G1 reissue so far. Shrapnel and Bombshell are fine, but the
paint on Kickback's chest was all scratched up at some point, possibly
when he was being put in the package. Kickback also has screws that
are stripped and misaligned. I understand that mishaps will happen at
the factory, but this is why you sift through the defective toys
before they get to the consumer. I haven't decided yet whether to
drive back out to Toys "R" Us to do an exchange (my wife actually
ordered this one online) or just touch him up with my paints at home
and call it good. I do that a lot with my older G1 toys, but I kind
of feel like I shouldn't have to do that with reissues fresh out of
the package.
All in all, this is one of the better reissue sets for the money,
since you're getting three brand-new G1 toys for about twelve bucks a
pop. This is about twice what they retailed for, but that was in 1985
money so once you factor inflation into account you're actually
paying about the same. I don't think the Insecticons get a lot of
love, because they're among the smallest Decepticon toys, and they
don't have that cute-n-cuddly factor going for them like the
Decepticon cassettes. They're just tiny little G.I. Joe-sized robots.
Still, they remain a memorable part of the G1 mythos and I'm pleased
to add them to my growing collection of reissues.
I have taken some pictures of some of the mold changes like Shrapnel's
gun and Bombshell's stinger, but my toddler is being a little pill
tonight and I'm lucky I got this review belted out at all. Maybe I'll
get them uploaded later, maybe not. (Given that we've got
Thanksgiving and Black Friday coming up, I'm leaning towards the
"maybe not" side of things.)
Zob
Onslaught Six
> All in all, this is one of the better reissue sets for the money,
> since you're getting three brand-new G1 toys for about twelve bucks a
> pop. This is about twice what they retailed for, but that was in 1985
> money so once you factor inflation into account you're actually
> paying about the same. I don't think the Insecticons get a lot of
> love, because they're among the smallest Decepticon toys, and they
> don't have that cute-n-cuddly factor going for them like the
> Decepticon cassettes. They're just tiny little G.I. Joe-sized robots.
> Still, they remain a memorable part of the G1 mythos and I'm pleased
> to add them to my growing collection of reissues.
I bought the set, because it's $35 and I used to pay that for cruddy
Autobot car reissues that I barely touch anymore because Hasbro made
better toys for a third of the price after the fact. Still do love the
Diaclone toys and designs, but really, I'm more likely to pick up my
Universe Sideswipe and fiddle with him than I am my G1 Sideswipe
reissue. (The irony is I only paid $15 for my Sideswipe reissue.)
Also, the Insecticons, particularly Bombshell, had a notable role in
All Hail Megatron, so that was partially a factor in my getting them.
In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if AHM was half the reason they got
released.
ahsan.sa...@gmail.com
> I don't think the Insecticons get a lot of
> love, because they're among the smallest Decepticon toys, and they
> don't have that cute-n-cuddly factor going for them like the
> Decepticon cassettes. They're just tiny little G.I. Joe-sized robots.
> Still, they remain a memorable part of the G1 mythos and I'm pleased
> to add them to my growing collection of reissues.
Better not let Wayward hear that. She might decide to invade your home
and eat all your pudding!
Zobovor
<ahsan.salahud...@gmail.com> wrote:
> Better not let Wayward hear that. She might decide to invade your home
> and eat all your pudding!
Little does she suspect that I have no pudding! Ha-HA! (If she goes
anywhere near my pecan pie, though, there's a-gonna be a throwdown.)
Zob
Evil King Macrocranios
> reissue toys are identical, then, I object to this because it is a
> patently false statement.
I think the level of scrutiny you apply here is unreasonable and
Hasbro's claim is relatively justifiable. What is in question here is
what is considered original among the multitudes of mold variations
that occurred over the life of these toys. The aforementioned
retooling and repairs made to these molds during their original run
makes even many G1 era Insecticons not identical to the originals.
What is an original Insecticon? Are the Diaclone versions the
originals or the mass produced Transformer versions the originals?
It's not even semantics because I don't think there can be a
definitive definition of these molds due to all the variations that
occurred with these toys during the 80s. Can anyone say with any
degree of certainty that this combination of mold variations didn't
happen at some point ever? Sharp pointy Kickback wings with rubsign
indents have elements from both the original Diaclone releases and
their Transformer descendants. I'm willing to accept all these
physical differences within the parameters of what can be defined as
an original Insecticon. As long as these elements have some basis in
the history of the toy I don't see reason to cry foul.
I say the claim is "relatively justifiable" because these Insecticons
don't introduce significant aesthetic changes to the molds as was the
case with many of Hasbro's previous reissues. 2007's double deep tape
door Soundwave, every short stacked Optimus Prime cab, Autobot cars
with unchromed weapons and any reissue that ended up with elongated
missiles are examples that come to mind of how Hasbro's reissues have
traditionally strayed very far from the mark in terms of being
identical to the originals. Compared to those types of changes these
Insecticons are very much true to the originals.
> I happen to know better, but it's
> potentially misleading for other consumers.
I would wager that the vast majority of people who bought these sets
lacks the high degree of attention to detail necessary to feel
betrayed by the claim of G1 identicalness on the package. Although I
totally understand where you're coming from, I don't think the claim
is false enough that Hasbro is engaging in some deceptive product
misrepresentation. Or at least it's nowhere near as deceptive as ROTF
Voyager Starscream's toy packaging that highlights "pop out missile
launchers" the toy doesn't have.
Re: bombshell:
> Obviously, the grooved version is the more desirable one, and
> this is what the toy was designed to do (the Diaclone version had the
> groove), so it boggles the mind that Hasbro made this change.
I think that this change and Shrapnel's transition from detailed gun
to less detailed gun may be examples of molds degrading or breaking
and not being restored to their original design.
> Shrapnel's gun was originally designed with two fins on the butt end
> of his gun, but they were removed at some point by Hasbro along with
> some other details (he's got them in his animation model, so the
> change wasn't made until after the character was incorporated into the
> TV show).
There's also some evidence of Shrapnel's detailed gun coming first in
that it's the version used with the Diaclone toy. Shrapnel with this
gun is also pictured in 1985 catalogs alongside a pointy winged
Kickback, so with pictorial evidence of it being there from the
prototypey start I'm not sure why the wiki assumes the extra detail
versions are from a later run.
> I haven't decided yet whether to
> drive back out to Toys "R" Us to do an exchange
After the chaos that was Black Friday I wonder if there are any sets
left to exchange for. I'm surprised these guys are selling so well in
my area and moreso that they were deemed popular enough to get
reissued in the first place. Back in '85 I remember them being big
time shelfwarmers.
Zobovor
<evil.king.macrocran...@gmail.com> wrote:
> I think the level of scrutiny you apply here is unreasonable and
> Hasbro's claim is relatively justifiable.
Well, you're right that the Insecticons are much closer to the
originals than a lot of the other Hasbro reissues. I even accept that
they're playing mix-and-match with different iterations of the toys
(though I think the pointy-winged Kickback is skirting the line since
no Hasbro version of the toy ever looked like this). I think it's
just their choice of words that bothers me. If they'd described them
as "authentic reissues" or "genuine G1 styling" or something I
wouldn't have taken issue with it at all. There are some terms in
which there are no grey areas, though, and "identical" is one of
them. Either the toys are identical to the G1 toys or they're not—and
no Hasbro reissue has been identical to the G1 toys, so why start
making the claim now?
Even taking the history of mold changes into account, no versions of
the Insecticons ever had metal foil labels before, for example. I
know it's a comparatively minor detail, and the shiny stickers
arguably improve their appearance—but foil labels work much better on
flat surfaces than multiple planes, as is required with the
Insecticons. Paper stickers are much more appropriate when you have
to wrap them around the toy at a ninety-degree angle. You really do
have to pre-fold the labels this time in order to get them to stick
properly, something that was never a problem with, say, the
Constructicons, who always had metal foil stickers. All their
stickers went on perfectly flat surfaces. People who bought the
reissue Prime will remember that his shoulder stickers don't rest flat
on the plastic because of those annoying rivets. People who bought
the reissue Insecticons, by contrast, aren't going to know why
Shrapnel's forearm stickers keep springing off the surface of the
plastic of their own accord. This was never a problem with the G1 toys
—and, after all, the reissues are identical to the originals, right?
Zob
Onslaught Six
<evil.king.macrocran...@gmail.com> wrote:
> After the chaos that was Black Friday I wonder if there are any sets
> left to exchange for. I'm surprised these guys are selling so well in
> my area and moreso that they were deemed popular enough to get
> reissued in the first place. Back in '85 I remember them being big
> time shelfwarmers.
I was 'out' at Black Friday and there were still plenty to go around.
Onslaught Six
> Even taking the history of mold changes into account, no versions of
> the Insecticons ever had metal foil labels before, for example. I
> know it's a comparatively minor detail, and the shiny stickers
> arguably improve their appearance—but foil labels work much better on
> flat surfaces than multiple planes, as is required with the
> Insecticons. Paper stickers are much more appropriate when you have
> to wrap them around the toy at a ninety-degree angle. You really do
> have to pre-fold the labels this time in order to get them to stick
> properly, something that was never a problem with, say, the
> Constructicons, who always had metal foil stickers. All their
> stickers went on perfectly flat surfaces. People who bought the
> reissue Prime will remember that his shoulder stickers don't rest flat
> on the plastic because of those annoying rivets. People who bought
> the reissue Insecticons, by contrast, aren't going to know why
> Shrapnel's forearm stickers keep springing off the surface of the
> plastic of their own accord. This was never a problem with the G1 toys
> —and, after all, the reissues are identical to the originals, right?
Applying the labels on my set as we speak. Interesting note: The
instructions miscall Bombshell's Decepticon sticker number 5, when
it's number 9 on the sheet.
Onslaught Six
> Applying the labels on my set as we speak. Interesting note: The
> instructions miscall Bombshell's Decepticon sticker number 5, when
> it's number 9 on the sheet.
Also, mine mysteriously came with two sheets of Kickback stickers.
Zobovor
<evil.king.macrocran...@gmail.com> wrote:
> After the chaos that was Black Friday I wonder if there are any sets
> left to exchange for.
I got lucky—they had one left yesterday. I didn't want to have to
reapply the stickers so I just played mix-n-match to build a complete
unit that wasn't damaged. (Also swapped out Bombshell's head because
the first one I got was just slathered in silver paint. Sometimes I
wish I could get a job at Quality Control for Hasbro—it sure would be
nice to be able to sleep on the clock all day. Heh.)
> I'm surprised these guys are selling so well in my area and moreso that they
> were deemed popular enough to get reissued in the first place. Back in '85 I
> remember them being big time shelfwarmers.
Well, when there were other cool toys out there in 1985 like the
Constructicons and Dinobots and Jetfire, the Insecticons seem pretty
lame by comparison. Right now, though, they're the only G1 toys out
there besides Perceptor, plus they've got almost 25 years' worth of
nostalgia power behind them now. (I think if they were to reissue the
Jumpstarters, though, they'd warm the shelves just as well as they did
back in the day.)
Zob
Craig Little
(I think if they were to reissue the
> Jumpstarters, though, they'd warm the shelves just as well as they did
> back in the day.)
>
>
and Wreckers are by default, awesome.
--
Craig (Thinks Topspin was his first TF toy...)
Thunder Strikes Twice!
> I'd snap them up. I liked teh Jumpstarters. Plus Twin Twist was a Wrecker
> and Wreckers are by default, awesome.
I'd buy a set too. :) I have a KO Topspin but never did see Twin Twist
around here (well, he might've been here back in the day but never
thought of wanting one until way later when it was too late).
t.k.
G.B. Blackrock
It's hard to imagine the Jumpstarters being released at the $5 price
point, which is all I'd say is fair for them, then OR now....
My two cents,
G.B. Blackrock
Onslaught Six
> I got lucky—they had one left yesterday. I didn't want to have to
> reapply the stickers so I just played mix-n-match to build a complete
> unit that wasn't damaged. (Also swapped out Bombshell's head because
> the first one I got was just slathered in silver paint. Sometimes I
> wish I could get a job at Quality Control for Hasbro—it sure would be
> nice to be able to sleep on the clock all day. Heh.)
Wait, are you implying you swapped parts between your two sets, and
then returned the cruddy one? Or do you now have an extra set of
Insecticons lying around?
> Well, when there were other cool toys out there in 1985 like the
> Constructicons and Dinobots and Jetfire, the Insecticons seem pretty
> lame by comparison. Right now, though, they're the only G1 toys out
> there besides Perceptor, plus they've got almost 25 years' worth of
> nostalgia power behind them now. (I think if they were to reissue the
> Jumpstarters, though, they'd warm the shelves just as well as they did
> back in the day.)
There's also the fact that they're $35 for five toys, which is a far
better deal than any of the other reissues, I think. That's why I
bought 'em, but left Perceptor.
Zobovor
> Wait, are you implying you swapped parts between your two sets, and
> then returned the cruddy one? Or do you now have an extra set of
> Insecticons lying around?
Yeah, I switched some parts around so all the defective pieces are in
the set I'll be returning. Not the first time I've had to do this,
either—I had to piece together two different Classics 2.0 Starscreams
because the first one I bought was broken but the second one was
missing paint applications. (Maybe I'm just too picky? I don't think
other people have this problem quite as often as I do.)
Zob
Zobovor
> People who bought the reissue Insecticons, by contrast, aren't going to
> know why Shrapnel's forearm stickers keep springing off the surface of the
> plastic of their own accord.
Zob, Zob
Cappeca
> The stickers on Shrapnel's arms (which are required to be folded around three planes) are constantly unsticking themselves and springing back outwards, wards. I guess I'm just going to have to super glue them in place or something, thing.
>
>