CW Brawl [uploaded]

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ganon578
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CW Brawl [uploaded]

Post by ganon578 »

Name: Brawl
Function: Incredibly Loud, Rage-Filled Warrior
Subgroup: Combiner Wars
Size Class: Deluxe

Some bots suffers from blind rage. Brawl is not one of those bots. His rage is laser-focused. It’s the fuel that powers his destructive fury, and the angrier he gets, the better he is in combat.

I really didn’t have any clue who Brawl was until the 2007 live-action movie. I thought he was a neat character in that film, but really short on and sort of interesting traits. Considering he died in the film anyways, I figured he was just an expendable fighter. Upon further research though, I was surprised there was a little more to him. Later when the PS3/Xbox 360 game War for Cybertron came out, I was pleased that Brawl was a playable character, and took a bit of time to roll (hover?) around blasting Autobots. This was continued into the Fall of Cybertron game, but in the form of Bruticus. Needless to say, I’ve developed a small soft spot for the old raging bruiser.

So after Fall of Cybertron, I decided to dive into assembling a Bruticus. Boy was that a mistake, which I won’t go into here. However, part of that set was indeed Brawl. I really wanted to like that figure. I did; but in the end I just couldn’t. He was too spindly, way to neon, and just didn’t look the part. And the figure wasn’t fun. It was awful. I’m really glad to get my hands on a newer, more accurate and fun version of Brawl.

Alternate Mode:

Brawl’s alternate mode is… you guessed it, a tank! The tank mode is of some nondescript military tank, and I’m no expert so I won’t even try to make a comparison to something real. The tank itself looks really good, and has a lot of detail all around – very tankish type stuff. The color would normally look horrid on most other figures, but as a military tank it works fantastically well. It’s more in the brown hue as opposed to his G1 toy, but I personally believe the drab green is more well suited for use with Bruticus, and to make it look a little more natural as a military vehicle. There’s a bit of black detailing on the treads and the turret, but that’s about it save for a Decepticon symbol on each side of the turret.

The tank mode is compact and everything is snug. There are some small wheels on the bottom that can make him roll a bit, but not that well on carpeting. Sadly, the turret does not rotate, but at least it moves a bit up and down, and you can even stick the combiner weapon/hand/foot on the top. It actually doesn’t look too out of place, and fits well with a tank. Otherwise, that’s about all the tank mode has to offer, but I think it works rather well.

Robot Mode:

As is typical for a CW type figure, Brawl’s transformation between modes is simple and fun. It doesn’t take much effort going back and forth, or even getting into an arm or leg as a combiner. Either way, you’ll find the same transformation tricks with Brawl that are quite common throughout the CW line. If you’ve been collecting the line so far, you won’t be surprised by anything. The legs work similarly to Swindle and the arms fold in easily.

Brawl’s robot mode has detail pretty much everywhere, which you can see in the photos. There isn’t much flat space at all, but it’s not overdone to the point where it’s confusing. As is the case with the tank mode, Brawl’s robot mode is mostly drab green, with some black paint applications and a bit of silver in the shins/feet. There’s a tiny Decepticon symbol on his chest, and a couple small spots of light blue; the latter of which I am not sure why they are there. There isn’t much paint on him, but when you find it, the lines are crisp and well applied. The head mold is nice too, done in a black/dark metallic grey with a red visor. It looks good, is well proportioned, and is quite true to his G1 likeness. If there was one aesthetic issue I could point out - it's his waist. The waist is set up oddly. It's a little too thin, and doesn't peg in anywhere. In most stock photos you can't see this flaw, but it's very obvious once you have him in hand. It doesn't kill the figure, but Brawl essentially doesn't have a stomach.

Articulation is pretty good on Brawl – nothing that stands out from your traditional CW fare. The legs have a great range, and the ankles swivel to allow for some great positions. The elbows feature ball joints that give him some good motion, while the shoulders are just close enough to the body to allow for movement but also being hindered. It’s not terrible, but it isn’t the greatest range of motion.

Brawl comes with essentially two weapons – the combiner weapon, which is a little big and bulky, and the detachable rifle, which is sleek and kind of stumpy. Both weapons are OK, but are a little disappointing. The CW weapon would typically look silly in most characters’ hands, but on Brawl it’s not too bad. The rifle is kind of average, and it’s neat that you can either use it in his hand, or keep it pegged into the turret to emulate his G1 toy. It would have been really cool if he was supplied with a grey rifle like his original toy, but the ones he has work well enough.

Overall Brawl is a solid toy that is best when used as part of a combiner set (typically the left leg of Bruticus), but can hold his own as a standalone toy. If you buy him as the former, you’ll be satisfied. If you buy him as the latter, I think you’ll be pleased, but not quite as much.

Marks out of ten for the following:

Transformation Design: 6. Quick, simple, and easy. There’s nothing interesting or different from most CW figures, but it gets the job done.
Durability: 8. Good quality and I don’t see anything breaking. Joints are nice and tight too.
Fun: 8. He’s a squatty beefcake as a robot and has a nice compact tank mode. The turret can move up and down a little too.
Aesthetics: 7. He looks good overall, but he’s got short forearms. The waist is a little weird too.
Articulation: 8. He’s got mostly standard joints as most CW figures do. He’s fairly well balanced and has swivel ankles. There isn’t a wide range in the shoulders though.
Value/Price: 8. I got mine for $10 USD at a discount shop. He’s chunky and fun. Using him as a part of a Bruticus set really makes him worthwhile.
Overall: 7. For me, he’s on par with Swindle, save for the short forearms and slightly hindered shoulders. Otherwise, he fits the bill perfectly as Brawl. If you can find him on the cheap like me, you’ll be pleased – and he’s fantastic with the other Combaticons.
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ganon578
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Post by ganon578 »

Photos:
Attachments
Brawl Alt.jpg
Brawl Robot2.jpg
Brawl Robot1.jpg
Brawl Card.jpg
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