Rampage
(2014 Collectors' Club Exclusive)
(NOTE: Because this is a repaint, this is not a full-blown review. This mainly covers any changes made to the mold and the color scheme, and merely compares it to the deluxe "First Edition" Prime Megatron toy. For a review on the mold itself, read the review of the deluxe "First Edition" Prime Megatron toy here.)
Rampage is another one
of the best kind of FunPub exclusives-- those redeco jobs where you're
like, "WOW, I never realized THAT character looked so much like THAT character
until you changed the colors!". The Prime Megatron mold works incredibly
well for Rampage, with the pointy and curvy bits all in the right parts--
the spikes on the shoulders mimic BW Rampage's
myriad crab legs 'n such, while his rather buff physique, two-toed feet,
clawed hands, and chest design really just "click". What really helps is
the spread of the major colors and paint apps. Rampage has his normal red,
light orange, and purple as his main colors, but the red and orange in
particular are used AMAZINGLY well, with spray apps on thw orange on the
lower legs and chest really helping to up the "Rampage" feel of the toy.
The silver and yellow paint apps on the abs, as well as the combination
of those colors with purple on the intakes on the vehicle mode, hearken
back to Rampage's crab head in his abs and the back of the crab mode on
the original BW Rampage toy. It's quite inspired, really. The only thing
that doesn't scream "Rampage" with this paint job is the fusion cannon
mounted on the right arm, which is why I prefer this version of Rampage
to hold it in his hands, if he is wielding it. This version of Rampage
is from the "Uprising" universe-- a sort of "spin-off" Beast Wars universe
where none of them ever went to Earth-- but it also works as a "pre-BW"
Rampage if you want as well, especially since he just as an "X" paint app
on his chest and no Predacon allegiance symbol. All of this said, although
I understand why it was done since Rampage was the "freebie" exclusive
for Club members and the freebie has never been bigger than a deluxe, having
Rampage being the deluxe version of Prime Megatron instead, of, say, the
voyager
Sharkticon version makes him a bit small for what is supposed to be
such a huge guy.
Rampage does have one
mold change, and that's a new headsculpt. By ITSELF, the head doesn't look
bad-- all the necessary details are there, Rampage has a nice evil look
on his face, his mandibles and headcrests are painted, and his eyes are
a very nice green. However... it seems like FunPub has one messed up headsculpt
a year, and Rampage was 2014's. For it to fit inside the little hole for
it in vehicle mode, it had to be shrunk a pretty good amount, to the point
where he looks positively pin-headed in robot mode. It works a LITTLE in
terms of making Rampage look bigger, but generally when you really look
at the whole thing it just looks odd. Also, in vehicle mode Megatron's
head was at least partially hidden; Rampage's head is just right out there,
not covered up to any significant extent. Additionally, it's worth noting
that whoever packed the Rampages did an exceptionally poor job; he was
shipped in a small box in vehicle mode with basically no padding, so it's
not uncommon to see paint scratches or the like on the figure even if it's
brand new, unfortunately.
TFCC's Rampage is generally
a great toy, particularly in the color department where the combination
of the colors on his abs and back, as well as the spray paint apps, REALLY
make the Prime Megatron design look like Rampage. However, the very shrunken
head is a noticeable downside on what is otherwise an excellent robot mode,
and the vehicle mode for this toy has always been very iffy. Still, he
makes a great companion piece to the 2013 "freebie" exclusive Depthcharge.
Review by Beastbot