Double
Punch (Botcon 2010 Attendee-Only 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 Energon Scorponok. For a review on the mold itself, read the review of Energon Scorponok here.)
Double Punch is another
super-obscure character, in that "almost G2" era of the early '90s in Europe.
The original Double Punch was an "Action Master Elite", which, paradoxically,
could actually transform into scorpion-- so it makes sense that the Energon
Scorponok mold would be used for a new version for him, as they both look
quite similar overall. And, like many toys from that era, Double Punch
has a REALLY fruity color scheme. Black, orange, and blue-- okay, sounds
good so far... oh yeah, and he's got lots of that seafoam green and hot
pink that Transformers from that era seemed to love so much. The pink is
a particularly noxious shade, as well, and doesn't look good particularly
against the seafoam green. That said, having black as a main color does
help to tone down the brightness of the color scheme quite a bit, and the
dark blue and particularly the orange go excellently with that main color.
The bits of red, silver, and gold on the chest help him to look a bit more
unique in that area, as well. Unfortunately, with the exception of the
aforementioned main body, Double Punch is oddly bereft of paint apps for
a Botcon exclusive-- he doesn't have any paint apps at all on his tail
and arms, and his legs only have to small orange stripes on each tread.
Granted, his color scheme is already busy, but still...
No mold changes have
been made to Double Punch-- he has the same slide-to-flip-out gun feature
on his tail that Energon Scorponok had, and not the Cyber Key-activated
tail guns that Dark Scorponok had. Like
almost all large Botcon toys, his electronics have also been gutted to
keep costs down.
Botcon 2010 Double Punch,
like many others from this year, is a toy that you'll love if you're of
the "it's so hideous it's brilliant" sort, but not at all one to seek out
if you like more realistic color schemes. Regardless, his lack of paint
apps beyond his main body is a bit of a head-scratcher given his cost and
exclusivity.
Review by Beastbot