Twinferno's alternate mode is interesting, to say the least. It's MOSTLY a stealth bomber kind of vehicle, with wide wings and a small, triangular cockpit. However, there's also a more "normal" jet aspect to it, what with tailfins near the back, and it not fitting into the "triangular" shape most stealth bombers do. And of course, most surprising of all is the fact that there's two dragon heads jutting out the front. Of course, the dragon heads are an homage to his G1 incarnation, but to have them used in such a manner makes for one of the most unusual alt modes of all time. I really wish this guy had appeared on the show so we could have had some explanation (however hackneyed) of how he turned up this way. Anywho, for what it is-- and considering the small scale-- this mode is pretty darned good. The jet portions are largely proportional, and the "grill" patterns molded onto the top of the wings-- combined with the little protrusions on the back ends-- make them look a bit more like dragon wings. There's plenty of great mechanical detailing molded into the top, with vents, panels, and the like pretty much everywhere. The back end is on a bit of a lower plane horizontally than the wings upfront though, which is a bit of downside. Looking at him from a side or rear angle, you can easily see the upper robot arms behind the dragon heads and the upper robot legs folded into the back end-- no thrusters here, unfortunately. You can also see the upper body and robot head if you really look down there. However, given the small size, this is more forgiveable than on a larger toy. From most angles, these extras are barely-- if at all-- visible. The color scheme of mostly a somewhat dark milky red with some bronze paint on the dragon heads and front of the wings is pretty solid, and certainly works for a dragon-jet... thing. There's also a titch of black on the dragon horns and on a small connector piece, and a strip of blue on the cockpit windows. I do wish that blue had also been on the dragon eyes, though, as otherwise they look kinda dead inside. A bit more bronze would also have been appreciated on some of the details near the rear, but that's a small nitpick. Everything tabs in quite solidly in this mode, so no problems with it keeping together-- though the flipside of this is that the dragon heads can't move at all.
    Just looking at Twinferno's vehicle mode from the bottom, it's pretty obvious how he transforms. Fold down the back portions to become his robot legs, fold down the dragon heads to become his arms (in another nod to the G1 toy), and then flip back the small cockpit section behind his upper back, and there ya go, you're done. (You can also fold the wings back a bit if you want.) The end result is a more "normal" robot mode, albeit one with dragon heads for hands. Either you like that or you don't-- it's a personal aesthetic decision. Given how they're shaped like claws and do have little holes to hold Legion-scaled weapons, I like the heads as hands. The jet wings frame the shoulders nicely, and the small cockpit piece on the back mostly stays out of the way, making this mode nearly kibble-free since just anout everything else accentuates his form or is outright used in it. (The bit of plastic behind his upper legs does hinder articulation a bit, but it has samurai "skirt-like" detailing on it, so it has a purpose for being there.) The legs have angular kneecaps and feet that look large, but actually barely jut out of the front of the legs (though he can still stand fairly easily). The head is definitely a callback to his G1 design-- at least in its detailing-- with a large forehead crest and two smaller side antennae, a blue visor, and a "normal" silver mouth and nose. The head does look a tad small proportionally, however. The chest details are also pretty intricate for a RID2015 Legion toy, with some segmented armor detailing on the chest, a silver ab portion (with a belly button), and a couple of details on the pelvis, as well. There's also some additional bronze paint on his feet, and stripes of silver in the middle of his arms. Black makes its presence a bit more obviously known in this mode on the upper legs and arms, breaking up all the red a bit more. For articulation, Twinferno can move at the shoulders and hips, and he's also got elbow rotation and some side-to-side movement at the knees-- all in all, roughly average for a Legion-class toy.
    RID2015 legion Twinferno is a great miniaturization of the Warrior-class design, and only loses a few features (and of course, some articulation) while retaining all of the major design cues; even the transformation is mostly the same. In fact, I think the color scheme, with the slightly darker red, is actually better on this version than on the Warrior. If you're into Legion-class toys-- and especially if you're into unique alt modes-- I'd give this one a recommendation.
 

Review by Beastbot

Back to Robots in Disguise (2015) Index