Moments ago I learned that I was not the owner of a winning Powerball ticket. Oh well.
That would make this a perfect time to FINALLY talk about some other Christmas gifts I received last month. As I’ve mentioned before, my wife always gets me some excellent Transformer that I’m after for Christmas, and this year was no different. Well, actually, it sort of was, as she got me not one, but three such figures. First up for review is the Japan-only Transformers Legends Slipstream.
Slipstream is a newer addition to the Transformers universe. A clone of sorts of Starscream from Transformers Animated, which is a series I never finished watching, Slipstream is a, or perhaps ‘the’ is better, female Seeker. In Animated, Starscreams’ personality is manifest in the forms of a number of “clones,” one of which, incredibly interestingly, is Slipstream. After causing a minor tremor in the fandom right after her introduction, Slipstream more or less fades into the background of the mythos, getting one figure – a Starscream repaint – via the TFCC. In 2013, Hasbro conducted a fan vote, the validity of which is debatable, to create a new character and toy that was made ‘by fans, for fans.’ The result was Windblade, as I’m sure we all know. Windblade would eventually get a figure and be shoehorned into the comics, and Slipstream is a repaint of that Windblade figure. I’ll get to the two of them later, but first, on Slipstream:
For some reason, I’ve recently begun paying a lot more attention than I ever have to packaging. The Transformers Legends packaging is nice, fairly standard Takara-Tomy fare, but what is so nice about it here is that this is a Deluxe class toy, and it comes in a box rather than the card and bubble Hasbro arrangement. Does it really matter? No, but it is nice looking, and is actually smaller than that large plastic bubble and cardback.
Slipstream herself is a very pleasant looking teal and purple, a far darker purple than these photos show. The silver of her thighs and guns set the two primary colors off very nicely. Everything about this figure visually is a hit: the new chest piece looks great, and even has a translucent cockpit piece, the new head looks outstanding. Jet mode is gorgeous, the color placement and scheme allowing this pretty cool looking jet to actually look cool, as opposed to Windblade’s two tone boredom. Slipstream doesn’t come with Windblade’s sword, but rather a pair of Seeker standard arm mounted lasers that fit over the forearm fins and clip on to the back of the forearm. Compared to the original’s unwieldy and poorly fitting sword, this is an absolute upgrade. The wings tab into the legs very smoothly, which is essential for making the jet mode not look like a piece of crap, again giving the advantage to Slipstream over Windblade.
I’ve a theory that the mold here was always intended by Hasbro to be Slipstream, as it is a plane, to fit her with the rest of the Seekers, but it is a unique plane, so as to make her stand out from the others and allow her to be developed into her own character. Sadly, that never happened, and instead ‘the fans’ voted for some weeaboo’s waifu robot. I don’t have any particular affinity for female Cybertronians, but I honestly have no issue with them. I think that this, and by this I mean Windblade, was a real waste for Slipstream, as she is still largely untapped potential character-wise. And in truth, I’d prefer fleshing Slipstream out to bludgeoning everyone with Windblade and too-edgy Arcee in the comics.
This figure is what this mold deserves. It looks good in both modes, it is visually appealing. The jet form here again is a very interesting and new one, and it should get a chance to be really appreciated. The robot mode is interesting as well, as it succeeds in looking strong despite having such a thin and slight seeming vehicle mode. I think that’s something that is really neat about this figure as Slipstream: the jet is slender without looking weak or frail, the robot looks like a female form without being a ‘girl robot,’ still striking that alien robot built for warfare profile. It is no surprise that the female robot body folds up into the delicate looking jet, but neither mode looks like it was feminized, for the absolute lack of a better word, to achieve this result. That’s a quality toy design.
So much of that marvel is lost on the original Windblade figure, who feels floppy and of weak plastic, and whose usually reliable red and black paintjob causes a lot of the details and impressive visuals to get lost in a mire of bland. Slipstream truly makes this mold pop, and, as someone who felt really let down by the original, I appreciate that. I recognize that a number of the issues that I hold against Windblade may simply be quality control problems with my particular figure, and thereby not indicative of the overall figure, but things like the paint and that stupid, stupid head aren’t QC issues. My Slipstream fixes all of the things I disliked about the mold and gave me a new appreciation, or perhaps an appreciation, of it. This is a fantastic toy.
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