(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 Generations deluxe "IDW" Bumblebee. For a review on the mold itself, read the review of Generations deluxe "IDW" Bumblebee here.)

    "Carzap" is a toy that was meant to be released around the end of G2 in 1995 as part of Takara's "Block Town" line, which had little LEGO-like sets that came with Transformers, but was cancelled, though not before it was put in catalog pictures. To help Carzap "fit the bill" in respect to coming with building blocks, he comes with a nifty side accessory-- KRE-O pieces to build a little gas pump, along with a G.B. Blackrock Kreon! The Blackrock Kreon is rock solid (pun intended), with all the necessary details on his business suit, and an especially well-done job on his face and the "hairpiece" chosen for the figure. As for the set itself, sadly it comes with no instructions, but careful examination of various pictures online will show you how to build it-- it's not that complex. There's a little "gas hose" that comes off of the main rectangular body for G.B. Blackrock or another Kreon figure to hold, complete with nozzle. The gas pump is an especially nice surprise in that it "transforms", of sorts-- it has a "normal" mode for looking like a fairly standard gas pump made of building blocks, OR, you can flip up the back and part of the side to make it a little anti-aircraft emplacement sized just right for Kreons, with a double-barreled blaster and a little side bit that can easily be seen as a "targeting reticle/goggle" for a Kreon to look into for aiming it. (The back part can also bend down a little if you want to aim the gun more straightforward.) It's a pretty ingenious little design and extra; no complains about this neat accessory, here.
    As for Carzap himself, he's got a deco that pretty directly apes the original prototype's color scheme. He's primarily white and black in vehicle mode, but he's got quite a lot of purple and red paint apps that really helps break up all the white, so he doesn't look remotely boring. He's got some really nice "TransFormers", "Heroic Autobots", and G2 Autobot/95 symbols on his sides and front, because G2 is allll about not disguising yourself at all in alt mode. (He's also got smaller "Blocktown Racing" font on the car doors). There's also some nice dark purple-with-black-lines on the rear windows, which aren't transparent and so they can't match the transparent purple plastic on the other car windows. (There's also purple paint on the headlights.) Both shades of purple look very nice against the white, and are a bit odd but unique for an Autobot. Carzap's weapons are also a nice chrome silver, and are really flashy. As of this writing (12/18), there's been no chrome flaking whatsoever, so no worries there, it seems. In robot mode Carzap's color scheme changes a bit with black taking up more of the scheme, along with a "new" color-- some fairly dark dull red, which complements the black pretty well and also contrasts against the white. Plus, it's an "Autobot-y" color to help offset the purple from the vehicle mode. Carzap also has some nice black and red paint apps on his faux car top chest, though the red paint is noticeably lighter than the red plastic, which is mildly distracting. It's all spaced out very nicely and Carzap just looks especially good in robot mode.
    Surprisingly for such an obscure character, Carzap has a new headsculpt, which looks fairly spot-on to the G2 Windbreaker head, which was the mold the original prototype was redecoed from. It actually looks rather Bumblebee-esque, just with no obvious "devil horns" and more typical side antennae. It's painted completely silver, which looks okay, but I don't like the orangish yellow eyes-- they just don't look good against the silver (and same with that orangish yellow when it's used on the headlights and taillights in vehicle mode). The lips are also a little oddly pronounced. It's still a decent headsculpt overall, though.
    Carzap is a neat redeco that is something you'd definitely only get from the Transformers Collectors' Club. He's a super-obscure homage, and comes with a neat, unique little KRE-O accessory. Even ignoring that, he's got a dynamite color scheme that looks quite interesting in both modes-- the only downside is that the mold is on the upper end of mediocre. Recommended if you're into obscure characters at exclusive prices.

Review by Beastbot

Back to BotCon/OTFCC Exclusives Index