Ghost Rider (Marvel TF Crossover)
Vehicle ModeMech Mode
Difficulty of Transformation: Easy
Color Scheme: Black, transparent orange, and some silver, yellow, red, and milky gray
Rating: 8.1

    Appropriately enough, Ghost Rider makes his Transformer Crossover debut as a motorcycle-from-hell. It's reminiscent of Ghost Rider's bike in quite a few circumstances, and probably fits the character better than any other Marvel TF Crossover. The black and gray with yellow, orange, and red used as highlights is the perfect color scheme for Ghost Rider, and they're blended together perfectly here-- no large part of him is without paint apps. I particularly like the yellow paint fade on top of his transparent orange plastic to simulate flames. The gray plastic is also a bit of a glossy metallic shade, so it looks pretty decent as a secondary color. The mold detailing on him in most places is admittedly a bit simplistic for the size-- I would've preferred a bit more "metal plating and bolts" on him-- but that's not to say it's bad by any measure. There are some additional bits to help Ghost Rider stand out in this mode, like the nice long chain wraparound that connects from the spoke of his front wheel to near the windshield-- certainly appropriate, given Ghost Rider's signature weapon. The motorcycle seat also looks like the padding on the inside of a coffin, a downright awesome design choice-- though putting spikes right where in front of it is questionable... (Most of the spikes look pretty cool, though.) The skull-like windshield with "glowing eyes" is also a nice touch. My main complaint with this mode-- and with the toy itself-- is just how obvious so many of his mech mode parts are in this mode. The worst offender is definitely his head, which is just THERE sticking up behind the shield. The face is techncially covered, but it's still blatantly obvious it's there. Given how the parts connect, it's also obvious the upper part of the rear section of the vehicle becomes one of his arms, and his feet stick out the back end of this mode. I also don't like how apparent it is that the middle of the motorcycle forms his mech mode chest-- the second set of eyes NOT on the windshield, but on his mech mode chest, look pretty odd-- I wish there was some way to slide a cover over them or something.
    Ghost Rider's mech mode is definitely the mode the toy was built around-- in this mode he's pretty awesome all around, for the most part. His proportions are pretty much perfect, with one exception-- his feet are way too large, made mostly from his "flame exhaust" pieces on the back end of his vehicle mode. Thery're at a bit of an odd angle, too-- you pretty much have to bend his legs backward at the knee a little to get him to stand up straight. However, there's tons of details on this guy that are cool, from the glowing-red skull kneecaps to the spikes on the waist and elbows to his head sculpt, which is really well-done and looks like a fleshless Terminator on fire. (Tell me THAT ain't cool.) Unfortunately, his eyes are painted over, so no glowy eye light-piping here. His left arm ends in his front wheel, which would normally be odd, but little spikes can come out of the wheel to make it look more like a fiery chainsaw, which certainly ups the cool factor a lot there. Using the windshield as armor for his left shoulder was also a nice touch, and really helps his delightfully asymmetrical appearance. His right "normal" arm can hold his chain weapon from vehicle mode. Ghost Rider's articluation is also quite good-- he can move at the head (at two points), the shoulders (at two points on the right arm, three on the left), the elbows (at two points on the right arm, one on the left), the right wrist, the waist, hips (at two points), knees (at two points), and ankles. Unfortunately, his knees are on a ratcheting joint that only allows you to pose them front-to-back in one of three positions, which is an odd design choice.
    The Ghost Rider TF Crossover has a lot of cool, unique features about him, from the nice paint apps and mold details to the great articulation, weapons, and proportions of mech mode. The vehicle mode choice also fits the character perfectly. However, the vehicle mode is also a bit mis-proportioned here and there and has some INCREDIBLY obvious mech mode details, which take away a fair number of points. Still, if you can overlook that big negative, and his overly simplistic transformation, he's otherwise a cool figure.



Ghost Rider Bio:
This battle suit was built specifically to take advantage of the magical energies that give Ghost Rider his powers. It is the perfect fusion of technology and sorcery, enhancing the arcane flame that Ghost Rider uses as a weapon.

Review by Beastbot

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