Transformers Reviews

Bonecrusher

May 31, 2008 1:55 am Ryan Beast Wars, Deluxe, Toy Reviews

Wait! It’s not the one you’re probably thinking of. I decided to dig in the box o’ old Transformers, and pull out one of my eBay purchases from a while back, Bonecrusher from Beast Wars.

I’m not sure what to say about altmodes for a Beast Wars figure. Bonecrusher is a reasonable approximation of a buffalo, although I’m not sure that they come in a silver and black variety. I do know that they taste good, though. I’m pretty sure gold horns and red eyes are right out there. There’s not much posability in this figure’s beast mode, which is pretty common for smaller figures from the line. I guess the legs wiggle a bit. His real play feature in this mode is that pulling on the tail just right (it helps to tilt it down to get a bit more lift at the front) will cause the robot mode head to pop up and shoot a missile.

Transformation from Buffalo to Robot

Pop the side panels out, and extend them away from the body.
Fold the front feet up into the legs, and then fold the forelegs into the sides of the robot. Unfold the arms. and position them between the torso and the buffalo side panels.
Rotate the buffalo face down to form the chest, and rotate the head down on top of it.
Rotate the waist 180 degrees.
Straighten the legs, and extend the panels on the outer side of either shin.
Flip the robot feet down and fold the buffalo feet up into the leg.

Still an enjoyable transformation after all these years. Transforming Bonecrusher adds a lot of white, gold and red to his palette, and he retains his mouth missile firing ability in this mode. He’s got a few nice little tech-details, but for the most part he’s got a pretty clean look to him. Like most Beast Wars toys, he’s got a lot of posability (something I missed in those years between the Beast Wars toys and the movie toys), and still holds up against some of the figures coming out today.

Articulation Breakdown

Head - None to speak of, although it does thrust forward when firing his missile
Arms - Ball joint with swivel shoulders, ball joint with swivel elbows (he can touch his shoulders, which is actually vital to transformation)
Legs - Ball joint hips, swivel knees, swivel toes

Score

Deco: Rating: . I like this figure’s colour scheme. It’s simple, it’s straightforward, and it just works. But the robot mode could use a paint app or two on the body to bring out some of the fairly sparse detailing to give it a bit more impact.
Posability: Rating: . He’s got an amazing amount of flexibility, but his head falls back if he’s not leaning far enough forward, which takes some of the utility out of it.
Transformation: Rating: . Maybe it’s just nostalgia kicking in, but I just enjoy the transformation on this figure. It impressed me all those years ago, and I still like it. I particularly like the storage of his beast feet.
Badassery: Rating: . He shoots missiles out of his mouth, and if that doesn’t work he headbutts things until the situation is resolved. What more could you want?
Beast Mode: Rating: . He transforms into a tasty animal, but I’m not sure that fur pattern actually exists in nature. Anyone have any sources they want to point out?
Robot Mode: Rating: . I like the little details on the face (not sure what those silver things are supposed to be, but I like ‘em), and the unusual weapon placement. The open hands allow some odd interpretations of poses (he looks like he’s explaining something on my desk right now), and all in all he’s a nice figure. But again, I’m punishing him for that stupid problem with the head not staying in place.