Hot Shot (Original)
Vehicle ModeRobot Mode
Allegiance: Autobot
Size: Spychanger (comes in a Basic-priced 2-pack with R.E.V.)
Difficulty of Transformation: Very Easy
Japanese Name: Autofire
Color Scheme: Black, white, clear plastic, yellow, silver, dark glittery blue, and some red and chrome gold
Mold History: Hot Shot's mold was first used for the Go-Bots Blowout, Megatron, and Frenzy back in 1995, in Transformers: Generation 2.
Rating: 4.1

    Vehicle mode is a sportscar. Like the other Wave 1 Spychangers, if there wasn't an Autobot symbol on the top of this car, I would have sworn that this was a Hot Wheels car. It's about the same size as one, and has the same kind of wheels. This mode is pretty nice-looking, especially with the nice fire detailing on the front and sides. Hot Shot's robot mode feet are a bit visible from a rear view of the car, but it's still pretty minor. The thing that really bugs me about this mode, is that, like the other Wave 1 Spychangers, the gun is not storable in the vehicle mode. And it really ticks me off that I need to get a separate container to put guns in whenever I want to leave Hot Shot in vehicle mode. It could have been easily made storable on the bottom, too, which makes me even more frustrated. Still, this is a nice-looking car, especially for such a cheap price.
    Hot Shot's transformation is the same as the other Wave 1 Spychangers- seperate the two car halves slightly to reveal the upper leg extensions, pull the robot arms out, flip the hood down to reveal the robot head, and you're done. I don't really like the overall look of the Wave 1 Spychanger's robot modes, and Hot Shot is no exception. First off, the arms can only move at the shoulders in this mode, and that's it. The legs are all molded into one piece, so there goes all the leg articulation right there. This limits playability severely in this mode. Hot Shot's robot head is also pretty small proportionally, and his chest sticks out waaay too much for my liking- more so than most of the other Spychangers, in fact. Although the black, yellow, silver, and white colors look nice together, I don't like the clear plastic used for the upper legs. It just makes it look like Hasbro doesn't want his upper legs to exist; they want to make believe that Hot Shot's two separate pieces, with one piece "floating" in mid-air. I realize that this isn't the case, but it still was a rather bad color choice for any appendage. The arms are also very small proportionally, and they're just molded on the inside of the car doors. Rather cheap, if you ask me.
    Although his vehicle mode's alright, Hot Shot's robot mode bites. It just looks doofy. My least favorite of the Spychangers, despite the cool "fire" detailng.

Hot Shot (2002 Version, Transparent; KB Toys Exclusive)
Vehicle ModeRobot Mode
Size: Spychanger (comes packaged individually)
Color Scheme: Clear plastic, dark sparkly blue, yellow, transparent black, and some red, silver, black, and chrome gold
Rating: 4.2

    To everyone's surprise, a KB Toys Exclusive, transparent version of Hot Shot came out in summer 2002, packaged individually (and with tech specs on the back this time). At first glance, at least in his vehicle mode, Hot Shot doesn't look any different than in his previous incarnation. Upon closer inspection, however, one can see that his seemingly solid black is actually a very dark transparent black. Hold it up to the light and it becomes much more obvious. Also, the white plastic available on his legs and under his car-chest in robot mode is now clear. The clear plastic from his original incarnation has, obviously, stayed clear. Other than that, Hot Shot's exactly like his previous version. Although I like the smoky black plastic slightly better than the solid black plastic of the previous version, he's really not worth getting if you already have the original, since the two are so similar.

Hot Shot (2003 Version, Transparent; KB Toys Exclusive)
Vehicle ModeRobot Mode
Size: Spychanger (comes packaged individually)
Color Scheme: Clear plastic, transparent blue, transparent cherry red, black, and some yellow, red, silver, and chrome gold
Rating: 3.9

    This time around, Hot Shot's color scheme is pretty much the polar opposite of what it was earlier. Where there was black plastic, now there's clear plastic. I have to say, this doesn't look quite as good in the car mode as the black- having a see-through clear car, especially while the windows remain opaque, just ain't right. Not to mention that the flame patterns just seem to mesh a little better with the black. However, in robot mode, the transparent red and blue help out the color contrast a little. Although clear plastic hands aren't up my alley, either.
    A better color would have been more suitable for Hot Shot- being made up mostly of see-through plastic when you're a sportscar just doesn't seem right, for some reason. My least favorite version of the Hot Shot spychangers.



Hot Shot Bio:
MOTTO: "I can take the heat!"
Hot Shot is the leader of the Spy Changers and has worked beside Optimus Prime for a long time. He comes across as rough and tough, but his hard exterior hides a caring, concerned nature underneath. He can manipulate fire at will.
Strength: 7.0
Intelligence: 8.0
Speed: 8.0
Endurance: 5.0
Rank: 8.0
Courage: 7.0
Fireblast: 6.0
Skill: 8.0

Review by Beastbot

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