KO Korner: G1 Transformers Egale Jet SY-812 "Snare"

The next entry into the Transformers KO Korner is yet another Decepticon Predator jet, Snare. This is the second KO Predator jet that I've acquired for my personal collection, however it falls a little short when compared to the other I own ("Falcon").

If you didn't know your Transformers and may have wondered if this was a legitimate toy or not, the name alone should have been a dead giveaway. Egale Jet...ha. I'm sure it was meant to be Eagle Jet, but whatever. What we have here is a blue and yellow KO of the Decepticon Predator, Snare. The packaging was a little rough when I received it in the mail. As you can see one corner of the blister card was bent. What you may not be able to see is that the blister bubble was attached with staples. I'm guessing the previous owner wanted to keep it on the card and when the glue started to wear off added the staples to keep the bubble intact. Personally I didn't care as I knew I'd be opening the toy upon arrival.

He comes packaged in vehicle mode with a spring loaded missile launcher and 3 missiles attached to the spruce. The plastic felt like that cheap, hard variety where you have to be careful moving parts around due to the plastic possibly breaking in half. The toy itself mirrors the original Takara mold quite well, but the nose of the jet has an ever slight gap. The stickers are cheap, paper thin and the adhesive was all but gone once I got him out of the packaging.

This mold isn't my favorite of the Predator jets to begin with. I only picked it up because I got it from the same seller that I got "Falcon" from. I don't like how the arms protrude out so far towards the front of the jet and I think the wings are little too short. I like the blue and yellow on the toy however. I should point out that the included missiles are the wrong type. The correct missiles have a hole that allows them to be attached underneath the wings. The missiles that came with the toy actually belong to the Autobot Turbomasters.

Transformation is rather simple and unimaginative. I did have a harder time with this one to get the metal screw to slide along the groove during transformation. Partly due to the hard plastic and exposed excess plastic that was never shaved off. Without any paint apps or stickers he looks really plain in robot mode.

Head sculpt is dead on when compared to the original, however again without any paint apps it just blends in with the rest of the yellow plastic. Too bad because I like the look of the sculpt.

Overall this KO is a disappointment. I know that sounds like an odd statement for me to make, but most of the KO toys I own have their own unique charm...except this guy. He can hold his weapon, barely, and it does fire a missile even though it's the wrong missile to begin with. I've never seen this guy in anyone else's collection or for sale before so I doubt many will have the opportunity to buy this toy in the first place, but if you do come across one in the wild just do yourself a favor and stay away from this toy...far away!

KO Korner: G1 Transformers Space Jet SL-811 "Falcon"

Now this is an entry into the KO Korner that I've been patiently waiting to share. Finding KO Transformers isn't that hard. A quick trip down to your local discount store or even flea market will usually yield some sort of knock off transforming robot. However, finding KO G1 toys proves to be a little tougher. Sometime last year, a seller on eBay was selling off his KO G1 collection. There were some very beautiful pieces up for bids, but man oh man did some of them bring in some huge bucks. Hard to believe some collectors will pay three or even four figures for a toy that isn't even authentic, but who am I to judge?

I was able to acquire 3 items off this international seller and this is one of them. The G1 Decepticon Predator jet, Falcon. Released at the tail end of Transformers as part of Operation Combination in Japan, Falcon also saw release in 1992 as part of Hasbro Europe's line up. When I first started to branch out from the domestically released G1 toys, a lot of the European stuff was fairly inexpensive and I acquired all of the Predators, and their Turbomasters counterparts.

(As a reminder, click on the images for a larger view)

This version of Falcon is simply known as 'Secret Jet'. The toy comes on a blister card, complete with cheap plastic bubble and flimsy cardboard. To be honest I'm surprised this toy lasted this long without the bubble falling off the card. Packaged beside the toy are 3 missiles and a gold launcher. If you are familiar with the Hasbro/Takara releases of the Predator jets, then you know the missile launchers are plagued with GPS (Gold Plastic Syndrome). I fully expected the gun to fall apart upon opening the package.

The transformation instructions are printed on the back of the card. Transformation is the same as the authentic G1 toy. I would love to more about the background of this release, but as you can see the packaging doesn't yield a lot of information other than it was made in Taiwan.

'Space Jet', sticker sheet, launcher and 3 missiles

Falcon has undergone a color change as you can see. Gone are the gray/blue and black, replaced with green and yellow. As much of a depart as the colors are from the G1 toy, I can't really say that I don't like these colors. If we were to call this a G2 Falcon would that help? The other main change to the mold is the lack of the translucent cockpit window. The Predator targeting window gimmick, while present, has also been modified on this release. More on that in a bit.

The underside of the figure is basically the same as well. Even the KO has the metal screw where the body slides upon as part of the transformation.

The gimmick if you will of the Decepticon Predators were the smaller jets had little clear translucent targeting windows. These spring loaded little windows had a targeting reticule over top one of the Autobot Turbomaster characters. When one of the Predator jets were attached to a larger toy (such as Skyquake or Stalker) these windows would line up as if the Decepticon had the Autobot dead in it's sights.

The KO has this targeting piece, however it has been cast in solid black plastic. The spring has also been removed. I'm sure you could fold it into place and still attach it to Skyquake, but I haven't tried.

As I've previously mentioned, transformation is the same. I was a little nervous transforming him, but I found that the plastic quality is generally pretty good. It's a hard plastic, not soft, however none of the moving parts ever felt brittle. Now granted I only transformed the toy a few times, but overall I'm pleased with the quality.

The head sculpt is the same, minus the light piping for the eyes. Where the G1 toy has lime translucent plastic on the back of the head, 'Space Jet' has another solid piece of yellow plastic.

From what I can tell the included stickers are very close to the original stickers, however I didn't bother to try and apply them as I felt the adhesive would be pretty crappy. Speaking of the stickers, the red stickers that were factory applied to the wings fell off shortly after opening the toy. I thought about putting a little glue on them so I could re-apply the stickers, but ultimately held off.

Side by side I still think that 'Space Jet' looks pretty great. Frankly I'm glad that whoever made this toy opted for different colors, even if it makes the toy look like an advertisement for the soft drink Sprite. Outside of the cockpit, light piping for the eyes and the targeting window gimmick, it appears the rest of the mold is unchanged. Even the included missiles are a close 1:1 to the originals.

Even his launcher fit snugly in his fist. Yes, I did hold my breath while putting the gun in his hand and removing it. It appears however that perhaps a different type of plastic was used as the gun felt as solid as the rest of the figure. Even the spring inside the launcher worked well as I launched the little lime missile across the room!

My little collection of G1 KOs is ever growing and this one has become one of my favorites. Surprisingly I got this guy for pretty cheap, in fact I paid more to have this guy shipped to me than I paid for the toy. I've never seen this toy before so I hope you enjoyed this look at the newest addition to the KO Korner.

Transformers G1: Aquablast (Stormtrooper)

I bring today another Transformers European exclusive toy from the 2 year transitional period between G1 and G2 that started in 1994. Aquablast was originally released in 1993, but released again in 1994 in G2 packaging. No changes were made to the toy however. I still view these as more G1 than G2.

As I mentioned in my last review I was able to get several of these European exclusives sealed in a lot for cheap...and I didn't hesitate one moment to open them up either! My version of Aquablast is the 1993 G1 version. Aquablast comes packaged on the standard blister card for that market w/ bi-lingual text on the card's back. As you can tell from the instructions he as the water shooting and color changing gimmick.

I love the roles and personalities that the tech specs give each character and Aquablast is no exception.  Being an engineer would you say he's the Decepticon equivalent of Wheeljack?

According to Transformers Wiki his alt mode is a Mitsubishi HSR. Not a model I'm familiar with, but a sharp looking sports car none the less. Since I was able to obtain him sealed I didn't have to worry about the color changing front portion of the car already being discolored.

I don't mind the water gun near as much on him as I do others from his subgroup or from the toys Hasbro released in the G2 series. It seems fairly well integrated into the alt mode. I would have preferred some other color plastic being used for the windows, but keep in mind this toy was released in 1993.

Nothing to write home about when it comes to the transformation. Very simple, but I like that in my TFs. I don't mind some level of challenge, but I'm also not going to complain when I don't have to have the instructions in front of me each time I attempt to transform the figure!

Aquablast has gold thighs / legs, but they don't appear to suffer from GPS. To my knowledge I haven't heard of this toy suffering from this problem, but if I'm wrong then please do correct me. In addition to the dark green car parts and the yellow rear "windows" he sports dark blue arms. In a weird way all these colors come together well. I also like his head sculpt and the eyes have some good light piping.

The other Stormtroopers have a long plastic hose for the water to travel through - which gets in the way in my opinion. While the other guys weapons are smaller and less obtrusive I still like Aquablast's weapon because it lacks the hose. When he's wielding his weapon I also get the impression there was a reason he has a Firepower ranking of 9 on this tech specs!

Ever since I found out about these various European exclusive Transformers about 10 years ago I've enjoyed tracking them down and learning more about the characters and the molds. While not all of them are great Transformers toys I've found the majority of them have their own redeeming qualities. The Stormtroopers have quickly become some of my favorite car based Decepticons...sorry Stunticons.

Transformers G1: Falcon (Predator)

In my never ending quest to arrange my cave at home like I want it I present another toy that I needed to open to review and display. I miss those days when some of the non-U.S. released TFs could be had at a bargain. Thankfully I was able to pick up Falcon and a few other UK exclusives fairly cheap in one lot.  

Falcon is part of the Predator subgroup of Deceptions. Only released in Europe and parts of Australia (and later released in Japan as part of a versus set) these jets were some of the last toys released under the G1 banner.

Falcon is the leader of the Predators (I always thought it was Skyquake) and apparently doesn't think too much of the weak.

Each Predator jet features a gimmick like their cohorts the Stormtroopers. Underneath is a flip down Megavisor target reticule with a picture of an Autobot. Alone you can't really activate this feature - you need either Stalker's missile or Skyquake.

Once plugged in the Megavisor is flipped down and you can see the Autobot just waiting to be obliterated.

 Falcon transforms into a Lockheed F-117A Nighthawk stealth jet. It's not my favorite jet of the group, but still impressive. I can't help but think this toy should have been released in the G2 series thanks in part to the colors used. Now the blue gray for the jet is fine, but the neon yellow plastic in the cockpit, bright stickers and neon green missiles are a bit much. How you can be all stealthy w/ neon colors everywhere?!

The 4 small Predator jets are small. They aren't even comparable in size to a modern day deluxe Transformer.

Like with most G1 TFs the transformation is very simple. Articulation? What articulation?! The arms move up and down and that is it. Falcon features a nice head sculpt and some great light piping on the back side of the head.

Falcon comes packaged w/ 3 green missiles, his bronze/gold launcher and instructions/catalog. It's been said many times before beware of the launcher. The launchers are notorious for suffering from GPS (Gold Plastic Syndrome). I won't even plug the gun into his hand let alone load a missile inside it. If you are brave enough (or stupid as I to think) the gun can be pegged into jet mode as well.

While the Predator toys certainly won't win any awards they are fun little toys and represent some of the last G1 toys released. They aren't extremely hard to find nor are they expensive so if you get the chance go ahead and jump on it. 

Transformers G1: Rage (Stormtrooper)

Around the same time as I got back into collecting Transformers again at the tale end of G2, my exposure to the internet was expanding. It didn't take long before a e-pen pal of mine told me all about the "G1.5" figures as I call them. When G1 died a slow and painful death in the U.S., Hasbro Europe continued to release new figures that were exclusive to the European market. When G2 was released in the U.S. some of these new toys were included in the series, but many never made it across the pond.

Most collector's should be familiar w/ the color changing cars from G2. 4 were released, 2 Autobot and 2 Decepticon. Each had a self contained weapon that had a air billow allowing it to squirt water. The front of each car was made of a different type of plastic that would change colors when exposed to water. Not my favorite gimmick by any stretch and the 4 figures released were just OK. For whatever reason a few of these color changers stayed in Europe (called Stormtroopers). When I found out about these I knew that one day I'd have to have them. It took many years before I was able to track them all down - but well worth the work.

Rage is by far my favorite of the Decepticon Stormtroopers. This is the 2nd Rage I've owned, opting to upgrade my loose figure for this nice MOC specimen.

These have to be some of the largest blister cards I've seen used for Transformers! Talk about a waste of packaging.

I know a lot of these exclusive European TFs came in different packaging depending on where in Europe it was released. Some toys even had different names in different regions. Rage is also known as Aquanaught. I'm not sure though if all of them had multi-lingual packaging.

Rage was released in 1993, but thankfully Hasbro didn't go too crazy w/ the neon colors. Perhaps that is one of the reasons I was always drawn to him over some of the other Stormtroopers. His colors don't look completely out of place...well with the exception of the green headlights and windows!

Stupid factory applied Decepticon decal isn't centered. I would've tried moving it, but I was afraid it wouldn't stick if I tried and I don't think these guys have ever had their stickers reproduced.

Say what you will about their water guns, at least the designers found a way to integrate them in their vehicle modes. One less thing to have to keep up with! Rage's weapon actually runs underneath the length of the car and the top is integrated in the front bumper.

I love the simplistic transformations of older TFs. While articulation is nice the lack of it doesn't necessarily take anything away for me personally. Rage's transformation is very easy. Pull out the car doors/arms, flip down the car hood and mull pack on the rear of the car/legs. Flip down the toes and position the arms.  See, told you that was easy.

The only downside to the Stormtrooper figures are their weapons and how they are wielded in robot mode. According to the instructions the air billow is supposed to tab into the roof of the car on the back. Problem with this is the plastic tubing gets bent doing so. I wanted to show this problem to everyone, but right after I took the picture I took the gun out of his hands. For display purposes I just laid his gun at this feet. It's a shame there isn't a better way for him to hold his gun...or is there. If you are reading his and have any ideas please let me know.

While the gun is a small set back I still really enjoy this toy. I was even happier to pick up the carded version for about what current "voyager" TFs retail for. I've got more "G1.5" toys to show in the coming months. In fact my this part of my collection has grown so much I'm faced with moving them and giving them their own space...but first I have to find that space in my already crowded collection!