Review: #271
Name: Menasor
Brand: Transformers
Allegiance: Decepticon
Line: Generations - Combiner Wars
Year of Release: 2015
Size Class: N/A
Mold Status: N/A
STUNTICONS:
Menasor is the combined form of the Stuncticons, which are comprised of: Motormaster, Drag Strip, Breakdown, Dead End and Offroad.
They look fantastic as a group and displayed together, as they are all vehicles and share a sports-adventure theme, the set is quite cohesive.
With all their weapons attached, they don't look as great but hey, you don't want to lose those accessories now do you?
Of course, you will need to include Blackjack, the last official Stunticon within the Combiner Wars line, he is intended to be the replacement of the generic car G1 Motormaster had.
Very neat and it is great to finally have a proper homage to the G1 Stunticons.
In robot mode, they look equally good, or perhaps even better, than in vehicle modes. They share a common aesthetic this time and each figure is very detailed.
They share common design elements and overall, a group of toys that you would want to display together.
LIMBS:
Let's go into each Stuncticon's limb modes, first up is Motormaster who forms the torso of Menasor. There are actually two configurations, the first one leaves his chest closed and it already resembles the G1 Menasor's chests but the halves of the truck as his shoulders do look quite awkward.
Or you can open up the chest which shows some great sculpting but its main purpose is to allow you to plug in Blackjack there.
Breakdown's limb modes are decent although his foot mode lacks knee caps and thus feels like it is truncated and short. The forearm of his arm mode is also a bit wide.
It's a similar case for Dead End but since Dead End's vehicle mode has more curves and is sleeker, he manages to pull off the limb modes better.
Drag Strip probably has the best limb modes of the lot, both leg and arm modes look fantastic and natural, with some great proportions.
Lastly, Offroad gives you some bulk and "layering" effect, especially with the arm mode, adding some complexity to the look of the combined mode.
MENASOR:
Finally, onto the main portion, the combined mode. All six Stunticons combine to form the mighty Menasor, and it is great to finally see a proper G1 combiner (no, FOC Bruticus does not count).
Menasor is a bulky beast although the torso is relatively thin as you can tell from the back profile. I'm also not a fan of Motormaster's feet being so visible at the knees, feels like he is squatting and standing on Breakdown and Offroad instead of them being an integral part of the combined mode.
Nevertheless, Menasor looks very nice with the main issue being aesthetically, the legs are way too long making the torso look very squished and lacking substance.
The head sculpt is amazing although Menasor is perpetually snarling. The horns can swivel and thankfully, are made of hard plastic.
In terms of size, he towers above most figures. In the photo above, he is compared against Beast Hunters Optimus Prime, a Voyager classed figure. Menasor even towers above Leader classed figures.
Theoretically, Menasor has all the standard articulation of a figure such as joints for his hips, knees, feet, elbows, wrists and shoulders. In actuality, posing him is very difficult due a combination of factors, mainly his weight. He is made of six figures after all, he's bound to be heavy.
Menasor has an amazing weapon, which is formed by combining Motormaster's sword and rifle together to form a huge sword, which looks simply fantastic and is an ingenious twist.
Menasor has a few mold flaws, the main one being that Blackjack doesn't securely peg onto the chest, even though it was designed to. There are pieces blocking Blackjack from fully pegging in, so he is just loosely sitting there and will fall out at the slightest touch.
You can also swap the limbs around as each Deluxe figure can form either a hand or arm, this makes for some really cool combinations.
The other major flaw is Motormaster's hips. The space between each ratchet makes it so Menasor cannot stand with his legs straight, they're either too wide or two close together.
Furthermore, the hip ratchets are really weak and cannot take the weight in more dynamic poses. Add to this are the fact to properly transform him, you lock Motormaster's knees at a certain angle and it just does not work. Very frustrating when you're trying to pose Menasor and he turns into a flopping mess.
I guess it just adds insult to injury when all the other ratchet joints are so tight and can clearly handle the weight. In the end, Menasor looks great on display but just is not fun to play with.
Here's a quick shot of Menasor with his chest panels closed. Of course, Motormaster can also combine with any of the other Combiner Wars Deluxes.
This ability to combine with any other Deluxes adds heaps to the play value and can mean a myriad of possible combinations.
Overall, Menasor is an above average figure but only because he is a gesalt of five figures so there are bound to be some compromises.
OVERALL:
If you are going to buy all the Stunticons then Menasor is a bonus. If you bought all the Stunticons for Menasor then you may be just a tad bit disappointed. Don't get me wrong, Menasor looks fantastic and amazing but there are some design issues such as the proportions and some production flaws such as the hips and Blackjack. Considering that this mode is just icing on the cake and is comprised of six very good individual toys, Menasor is worthwhile.
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