Hi,

Just got my plastic MP Voltron today (got it from Voltron.com with the soundtrack).

My thoughts: (keep in mind I do not have the die-cast version to compare)

Pluses:

-Plastic appears to be of good quality
-Joints are very tight; shouldn't have to worry about going floppy for a long time
-I'm aware that some had problem with Blue Lion on the Die-cast version. My Blue Lion has NO problems, and connects just fine.
-Paint job looks good and detailed overall

Minius:

-Would've been nice if this had at lease some of the gimmicks of the old toys
-Some joints are a little too tight. Some spots I had to force a little before it would start moving.
-V-wings looks a bit small and weak.
-Blazing Sword looks a little thick. It might be a safety thing, but couldn't they have made it look a bit sleeker?
-Even in combined form; feels a bit light and hollow. One can tell this figure was designed with die-cast in mind to give it weight. There are lots of Transformers of this size--both combining and non-conbining(all plastic), that feels much more sturdy and soild than this.

Overall, I'm happy with it, but it's a bit pricy at $50+ dollers. Price would've been easier to swallow if the toy had a few more gimmicks up its sleave. Launching heads, add-on weapons, the swords-in mouths, the pop-up weapons... anything would've been nice.

I don't intend to take mine out of the box - just put it on the shelf with my other masterpiece Voltron & Robotech collections - of course, that's assuming that the USPS hasn't lost it while my mail has been on hold since 9/24

I intend on buying 2 of these. One to have out of the box, and one to never see daylight!

quote:

Originally posted by K2:
I intend on buying 2 of these. One to have out of the box, and one to never see daylight!

Same here.

I've already ordered one set and will order the other in a month or so.

Yesterday I purchased a plastic Toynami Voltron from a local comic book store. This thing is awesome -- and this is from an unsatisfied owner of one of Toynami's Masterpiece Robotech Veritech Alpha Fighters. The plastic Voltron is very well made, and it is very reasonably priced. A kid who takes care of his toys could play with this thing, and a kid who is rough on his toys doesn't deserve something this cool to begin with!

My only gripes are minor ones:
* The wings are puny.
* Green Lion's mouth has the "hexagonal" cut-out like Red Lion's mouth, instead of the "circular" cut-out.

The wings are more puny than the masterpiece set??

quote:

The wings are more puny than the masterpiece set??

We ARE talking about the masterpiece set. The grip is that the wings seems "puny" in relation to the rest of the figure.

I think the wings are the best every done before. They don't get in the way on BL, and they actually fold properly.

quote:

Originally posted by Aaron:

quote:

The wings are more puny than the masterpiece set??

We ARE talking about the masterpiece set. The grip is that the wings seems "puny" in relation to the rest of the figure.

Maybe we need to take a clarification lesson. Having both the diecast and plastic version labeled "masterpiece" was stupid as hell.

So, Aaron since you want to put things in a seemingly rude tone...the wings are more puny on the PLASTIC version than on the DIE CAST version?

I was figuring the plastic version would have been labeled something different, even a little bit, to make it easy for people to identify that masterpiece = die cast, and something else = plastic version of said die cast.

Makes about as much sense as calling all Voltron toys ever made being sold under Go-Lion GB36 label. The Go-Lions, Matchbox, Trendmasters, Toynami, Lionbots, etc get sold as Go-Lion GB36. Same toy overall, but with vast differences, so therefore sold with different names...mainly to avoid lawsuit.

Trendmasters made a die cast, and a plastic version, making a slight change on labeling to identify which is which. Toynami should have done the same.

Believe me Aaron, I am in the know and not some noob. So it would be appreciated to not put emphasis in your sentence to make the tone of the sentence seem rude.

Hey K2, I heard that the box for the plastic version was really cool. How do you like it in comparison to the book format?

I wish I could see some pictures.
I keep hearing how much nicer it is and also how the toy itself seems more durable.

Also, are their limbs chromed or in silver paint?
Thanks in advance buddy.

Japanbot;

Sorry, I actually don't have the plastic version quite yet. I've had a few financial obligations before I can spend money on that, but I have seen pictures of the packaging, and it does look nice.

I was asking people whom have the plastic version if the wings were even more puny than the wings on the die cast set, because that was an issue with that one as well.

K2:

To clarify; the wings, as far as I can tell, are the same size as the die-cast version(I don't have this version). I just meant they seem small compared to the rest of the figure, and compared to other version of Voltron(matchbox figure, anime version, etc).

And yes, there should've been some label on the box stating this is the plastic version. From looking at the packaging, there's no way to tell if this is different from the original release.

quote:

Also, are their limbs chromed or in silver paint?

Everything is painted; no chrome on this thing. It doesn't look quite as nice as chrome, but it'll probably be more durable this way--I have several Transformers with chrome on them(mainly BW transmetals), but some of them are chipping off.

The price is generally in line with most mainstream toys of this size and make. I consider it comparable to one of the better deluxe power rangers megazords out there, so $50-60 is fairly agreeable.

Anyway, I'll add a few more thoughts on plastic Voltron:


The flip-up shoulder panels of Voltron, where black lion's front legs tuck into, seem like a high risk area. You have to tug with a reasonable amount of controlled force to get the legs back out, and I have to think repeated strains on this area could break it. I haven't heard any reports of it breaking yet, but many people have expressed concerns about it.

--I don't own a whole ton of combining robot toys but of the ones I do, all of them feature square peg connections to the arm. These are always an adventure for me, and I wish they could have made a different way of connecting the arms. The connector pegs are made of HARD plastic, but I still feel wary when I try to move the arms up or down.

Overall, though, I'm very pleased with finally having a big Voltron toy to call my own, even if it's kinda stripped down as a toy.

quote:

The flip-up shoulder panels of Voltron, where black lion's front legs tuck into, seem like a high risk area. You have to tug with a reasonable amount of controlled force to get the legs back out, and I have to think repeated strains on this area could break it. I haven't heard any reports of it breaking yet, but many people have expressed concerns about it.

You're putting it in wrong then, though I did this a couple times myself before I figured out what the trick is.

When you put the front legs in, you're suppose to place the paws in at an angle so that when you close the "door", the leg will slide in. Try to place the paws so that it "connects" with the arch inside this space. If it doesn't go in easily, adjust the paw again until it works.

This way, when you lift the panels, the leg will lift up with it; no unreasonble force required.

quote:

Originally posted by Aaron:

quote:

The flip-up shoulder panels of Voltron, where black lion's front legs tuck into, seem like a high risk area. You have to tug with a reasonable amount of controlled force to get the legs back out, and I have to think repeated strains on this area could break it. I haven't heard any reports of it breaking yet, but many people have expressed concerns about it.

You're putting it in wrong then, though I did this a couple times myself before I figured out what the trick is.

When you put the front legs in, you're suppose to place the paws in at an angle so that when you close the "door", the leg will slide in. Try to place the paws so that it "connects" with the arch inside this space. If it doesn't go in easily, adjust the paw again until it works.

This way, when you lift the panels, the leg will lift up with it; no unreasonble force required.

I know what you mean, but that thin strip area of the panel where you lift it (as you said, it also functions as lifting up the leg)...don't you find it looks like it could snap? Maybe it's just me.