G1 Red Alert Review

U.S. Name: RED ALERT Jap. Name: ALERT

Cartoon First Appearance: Episode #30: Dinobot Island P1, Season 2, Sept. 1985

Marvel Comic First Appearance: G2 Issue #4

Dreamwave Comic First Appearance: G1. Vol. 1, Issue #5: Aug. 2002, $2.95

Toy Catalog Number: 05

A quick history: Back to G-1: Review A-III Teletran-1

This is my first Red Alert. I bought it on Mar. III, Mmii and it cost me about $CLXII.XXXVII because it came as a pair with Sideswipe or should I say the New Year Special edition. Thank God they re-issued him again because back in the old day there was no way I could afford him. So now, he's part of my toy collection.

Affiliate: autobots | Subgroup: none | Function: security director | Alt. Mode: lamborghini countach LP500S|

Red Alert's motto and tech specifications:

| STR 5 | INTL 7 | SPD 8 | ENDN 5 | RNK 7 | CRG 7 | FRPW 7 | SKL 6 |

"Caution can never be overused."

Nothing escapes his notice, no matter how small. When his senor are activated, thinks trouble is coming. Edgy...unpopular with comrades, but appreciated. Can trigger alarms for other Autobots. Excellent sensory perception. Fast in vehicular mode. Carries 25 mile-range rocket launcher and particle beam rifle. Prone to rash judgments which can lead to injury to himself and comrades.

These images were all photographed and scanned by me. If you're a Transformers fan, this will definitely bring back some reminiscences.

- Click on the Thumbnails to view them at a Larger Scale -

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R-1 Red Alert in its Original condition:

1 - Here's Red Alert in it's original box, this is the Japanese version which is the same as the American version. The only difference are the instruction sheet and box. In addition, some minor decal sticker had been altered, see Special Notes below in the review section.

2 - Back of the box shows the 1984 Battle Scene

3 - Here's how the content looks once the box was removed.

4 - These are all the contents that were included in the box/ package/ card: "1" sport car, "3" missiles (on tree), "1" missile launcher, "1" gun, instruction sheet, original sticker, additional new New Year sticker, and a plastic New Year trading cart art work.

R-2 Pre-Applied Decals/ Stickers:

There are 8 Pre-Applied sticker that had been applied onto Red Alert. The first two are located on either side of his car door. It's his trademark fire chief sticker. The third and forth stickers are located on his car headlight. The fifth and sixth sticker are located on his top of his rear car marked as "FD". The seventh sticker is located on his car front hood. Again, it's his trademark fire chief sticker. The last pre-applied sticker is the Autobot Rub Sign logo located on top of his car roof.

Sticker Sheet:

As mentioned earlier, the New Year Edition comes with two sticker sheets, the regular sticker sheet edition (not in pic) and the new year sticker sheet edition (left image). The main difference between the regular and the new year sticker edition is the decal color and additional new year text logo (see left image). Otherwise, both stickers are exactly identical. There are 13 registered numbering of stickers on the sticker sheet. But in reality it's actually 14 stickers since some of the repeat stickers are labeled as one instead of two. These registering numbering do not include the Pre-applied stickers.

R-3 Red Alert in Vehicle mode:

Red Alert in vehicle mode is a Lamborghini Countach LP500S. He is beautiful in both the cartoon and in toy. Besides the cool looking car, that is pretty much about him because he doesn't have any special gimmick.

R-4 Red Alert in Robot mode:

Just like his cool vehicle mode, Red Alert robot mode is also hot as well. Moreover, both Red Alert and Sideswipe have a unique transformation which prevent them from having the compression leg syndrome over a period of time as in the case of Jazz, Prowl, Bluestreak, and Smokescreen. But unlike his vehicle mode, Red Alert robot mode has a rocket launcher that mounted on his shoulder for more playing value. Overall, Red Alert is very durable so you can be rough on him. The only area that you need to be careful is the missile launcher clip.

R-5 Red Alert & Sideswipe Image Comparison:

What does Sideswipe, Red Alert, and Sunstreaker (not in pic) all have in common? They all share the same mold. If you start with Sideswipe as the basic prototype, then adding the police siren and a new color scheme will give you Red Alert. And if you chop of Sideswipe roof and painted with an all yellow color with addition rear engine the result is Sunstreaker. Surprisingly, Sunstreaker in the cartoon is known as Sideswipe brother, but in the toy, Sideswipe and Red Alert have more in common than Sunstreaker which go from face feature to weapon.

R-6 Rémy's Red Alert toy review:

NOTE: Red Alert was sold as an Exclusive Set w/ Sideswipe.

Manufacturer - Takara.

Series or Wave or Line: [2] - 1985-86 [Season 2 Character].

Year Issue: [Jan. 2002 Reissue, New Year Edition] - The original toy was released in 1985.

Made: [China] - Although the original toy was made in Japan, the qualities and materials are pretty much the same as the reissue.

Scale: [N/A]

Box or Card Dimension In Inches: [LxWxD] - Forgot to measure - Box.

Packaging Method: Mint In Seal Box. Contents were packed with the following procedure:

Taped down and sandwiched between two clear plastic trays are: "1" police sport car, " 3" missiles (on tree), " 1" missile launcher, " 1" gun, and "1" New Year Red Alert plastic trading card.

On the back of the card board and not inside the clear plastic tray, a taped down bag which contained: "1" instruction sheet, "1" original sticker sheet, "1" additional new New Year sticker sheet, and "1" miscellaneous text sheet.

Box Special Note: Front Box Appearance: No art work. Back Box Appearance: Back of the box shows the 1984 Battle Scene

Approximately Toy Dimension In Inches: - Height Up To The Head: 4 1/2 Maximum Height: 4 3/4 (top of the launcher) Width from shoulder to shoulder: 2 3/4 Maximum Width: 2 3/4 Dept: 2 1/4.

Toy Stamp/ Fine Print Location: - Can be found underside of the front hood.

Transformation Of Difficulty: [Medium] - Very easy to transform

Material Durability: [-A] - Pretty durable.

Toy Materials: Die Cast Metal: part of leg. Chrome Metal: feet and portion of the arm. Rubber: wheels. Plastic: main material. Clear Plastic Window: front and side of the car.

Stability: [A] - Robot mode can stand on any flat surface...very stable.

Fun Toy: [C] - Average.

Negative Drawback - Overall, Red Alert has no flaw. However, hiis biggest weakness is that polyester stickers on his door which tend to curl and peel off. My advice is to put extra glue on the stickers to prevent this peeling and losing the sticker.

Articulations: Head: Cannot be rotated. Shoulder: Can be swung at a 360 degree. Arm/ Elbow: Can be bent at a 90 degree angle. Wrist/ Hand: Cannot be rotated or hidden. Hip/ Waist: Cannot be bent or rotated. Leg: Cannot be bent. Knee: Cannot be bent. Ankle/ Feet: No sideway movement. Feet can be folded up.

Rub Sign Logo: [Yes] - The autobot's rub sign located on the roof of his cab in vehicle mode.

Robot's Cartoon looks alike: [A] - Beautiful

Vehicle's Cartoon looks alike: [A] - Utterly the bomb!!! Very Hot.

Special Notes: Red Alert missile launcher came with spring so missile can be launched.

Overall Grade: [+A] - Beautiful toy.