william-james88 wrote:I haven't had much free time to write big posts about how I feel about certain toys in a while. And I really want to write one about TR Arcee. Now I am very grateful to have this toy since internationally speaking, this is a very limited release and its fun to have a new titan master (however odd he is done) and to get a toy with new molding we wont find anywhere.
That being said, I think this toy is very flawed, at a very very deep level.
It being a retool of Blurr doesnt rub me the right way simply because this is now the 4th toy which uses the same Blurr body with some changes to make it look different in both modes. When it was just redecos with a new head, no one was kidding eachother, we knew exactly what they were. They were place holder, homages, something fun for those who wanted it but nothing essential. Its not like T30 deadwinwg replaces G2 Dreadwing or how Generations / GDO Wheelie is really what we are getting for Wheelie. They are extras, fun things that exist. But this reuse of Blurr is scary. Turning it into 4 different alt modes with robot modes that are distinctive from oneanother by just swapping some parts portrays a bleak outlook on the future. Like we could get a good enough version of any cybertronian plane, car or boat by simply reusing the same mold over and over again. It wont look bad in robot mode, but it will be the same thing, over and over again. So thats one part of it, and it works into the next part.
By reusing the same engineering we end up with an Arcee that looks the part in both modes. And I once said that all I needed was a sleek vehicle mode, a sleek robot mode and a satisfying transformation. Arcee fits the bill on all of those (granted the transformation is assessed independently of it being something I saw before, since it is one of the standout transformations from the Titans return). But her process of conversion doesnt feel right.
See, they give her these iconic G1 details like those shoulder pads, which should be the front of the vehicle, but those parts are fake vehicle kibble. They arent the front of the vehicle and worse off, they dont resemble the front of the actual vehicle this toy transforms into. Its kind of like having Optimus be an airplane and having a very pronounced truck windshield on his chest when he turns into robot mode. This is how that mold reusing is scary, we lose some essential components that have been the basis of this brand and its toys. Her second most prominant visible alt mode kibble is fake, and just there for decoration, simply because it isnt using a mold made to get the desired effect using real parts. Simply said, she doesnt get to earn that look.
Oh and I dont think the alt mode looks great. The retooling means she has the fake shoulder alt mode kibble seen on the side of the alt mode and the front looks like a bottle nosed dolphin rather than the fun lollypop/popcycle front the car usually has.
So there you go, thats my rant on Arcee and why I much preffer the Generations version. We get to have a toy resembling the iconic look which transforms the way it should and uses her robot and alt mode kibble properly in both modes (ie, her hips in car mode and the car front on her shoulder s).
I have tobagree withbyouvon all counts. For me, TR Arcee is the better
toySince the limbs arent as frail thin which makesbthe gun handles stickbup too much, especially for forarm mountS, and what kibble this has does not almost dwarf the main body. But absolutely, the Generations Arcee is a MUCH better
Arcee. Brainstorm has enough different stuff to make him different than Blurr. Its tight, but it works for me. I dont have Nautica, bit I wasnt sold on that Altmode. With Arcee, its a different car clearly, much like the CW giys were reshelled into different cars, but it doesnt have the right profile for a G1 Arcee and it doesnt. Really match the low slung, sleek Hot Rod. O actually ended up jead swapping Leinad and Magnus, I simply could not keep Arcee's head jammed in with the Leinad head. Tbat odd slope is not conducive to a plug