Springer (Botcon 2007 Attendee-Only Exclusive)
Vehicle ModeRobot Mode
Allegiance: Autobot
Size: Deluxe (comes in a 2-pack with Huffer)
Difficulty of Transformation: Easy
Color Scheme: Light milky gray, light green, black, and some silver, moderately dark blue, metallic greenish gold, red, and some moderately dark bluish-green
Rating: 9.1

(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 Cybertron Defense Hot Shot. For a review on the mold itself, read the review of Cybertron Defense Hot Shot here.)

    Springer's new form is admittedly one of the molds that takes a bit of stretch to accept it as its G1 namesake. The original Springer was a triple-changer, this one transforms into an armored car (the least-recognizable of the three modes the original Springer transformed into). The color scheme is flipped compared to the G1 toy, with more gray than green being visible. The head is pretty close to G1 Springer's already, though so no remolding was needed there. The mold also already comes equipped with Springer's trademark sword, so even though it's more of a stretch than the other Botcon '07 exclusives, you can still definitely see the resemblance. Homage aside, though, Springer has an excellent color scheme. The light gray may be a bit dull in vehicle mode, but particularly in robot mode, the plethora of other colors really makes the toy stand out. I mean, Springer has got a TON of paint apps all over the place-- light green, black, and light gray make for a nice color scheme-- and all of his secondary colors fit in perfectly with their surrounding primary colors. The gold goes incredibly well with the light green, and the dark bluish-green and light green also make for killer complimentary colors. Adding in a bit of silver, blue, and red to round things out really completes the toy. The only quibble I have-- an incredibly small one-- is that the missile pods visible when you open up front of his vehicle mode aren't painted. But that's easily overlooked, given all his other sweet, sweet paint apps.
    No mold changes have been made to Botcon Springer.
    Botcon Springer is a fantastic homage on a great mold, with the sheer variety of colors and paint apps on him being one of the biggest draws to the toy, even ignoring the homage. Highly recommended, if you can afford him.


Springer Bio:
FUNCTION: Security Chief
MOTTO: "I'll go anywhere in the universe, so long as it means scrapping Decepticons!"
Springer spent much of the war with the Decepticons going it alone, making friends along the way, but never staying in one place for any extended period of time. As word of the defeat of the Decepticons on Klo made its way throughout the galaxy, Springer was a bit disappointed when he thought that there would no longer be a war to fight. When he was approached by Grimlock to join the crew he was leading to hunt down Bludgeon and his army, Springer jumped at the opportunity. Serving as Grimlock's Security Chief, Springer is one Autobot that the Decepticons usually think twice about crossing.
Strength: 10.0
Intelligence: 8.0
Speed: 6.0
Endurance: 10.0
Rank: 7.0
Courage: 9.0
Fireblast: 8.0
Skill: 8.0

Review by Beastbot

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