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Toy Review Archives
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Quadpredacus
- Posts: 26
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thanx
wow, thanks! this should help quite a bit
"The Autobots lose! Evil triumphs! And you... you no longer exist!"
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Quadpredacus
- Posts: 26
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finally
here they are, all resized to fit well within the parameters, thanks! i still included the one of the box, because i can't get a good picture of it.
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"The Autobots lose! Evil triumphs! And you... you no longer exist!"
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Quadpredacus
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SE-04 Overkill -- [PROOFED, has pictures]
Name: Overkill (Special Edition)
Allegiance: Decepticon
Function: Brute Force Destruction
Sub-Group: Rogue Cassette-Bot?
"Formerly bound to Soundwave as a partner and slave, OVERKILL was often overlooked by enemy and ally alike. Recently, however, he has overcome his diminutive size, reinstalling his cerebro-circuitry in a larger, more dangerous body. Now, he is free to indulge his destructive whims, stomping cars flat, snapping tractor trailers in half in his jaws, and being generally terrifying."
I love this bio. It really captures the true essence of what Overkill should have been, and contains A LOT of G1 references. First of all, Overkill did appear in the television series, with a name call and cameo in "Call of the Primitives." He also got a couple comic bouts in the Marvel UK comic. Most of these were very small appearances, but in each one they added on to his character, and his hate of Soundwave. It all culminated in his final appearance, in which it was revealed he had been building a new body for himself, and transferred his brain into the body. In this two issue spotlight, Overkill, in his new T-Rex body, complete with robot form and all, puts several Autobots in severe condition, two of which he stomps on. He also takes a nice big bite out of Optimus Prime’s (a tractor trailer) trailer. So all in all, a nice reference back to his one-time glory.
I purchased this toy, which is a recolor of Classics Grimlock, at the same time I purchased Megatron. Both of them are Universe 2/Classics Special Editions. And I have one thing to say about it. I like this toy. A LOT. He retains his G1 colors, like he did in the comic, while throwing a couple new colors in there, to make him look that much snazzier. And he is, to my knowledge, the first toy to carry the name overkill since the G1 cassette. But enough of my ramblings, on to the review
Robot Mode:
This is the mode he comes packaged in, so this is where I’ll start. As I said earlier, he is a recolor of classic Grimlock, which means he has a lot of articulation. 22 joints in all, four of which are his tail joints. He is also done up very nicely in the G1 Overkill’s colors, with a tiny bit of translucent yellow and some silver thrown in. He comes with two weapons, the first of which is his tail. He can hold the tail in his hand like a whip, or it can be straightened out to be used as a lance/sword. The second one is a very nice missile launcher, done up in the same blue, white and silver as Overkill. The missile is a very deep, dark yellow, which looks almost as if it glows, and reminds me of energon (gee I wonder why?). The missile shoots the farthest out of an missile I have ever seen on a toy, which is very nice. The launcher also has a blade underneath it, like a super-sized bayonet. He has individually sculpted fingers, but as one would expect, they’re not individually poseable, but it’s very nice detailing. He has a nice Decepticon symbol on the left side of his chest, painted in silver on a crystal made of that same energon plastic. The only problem I have with this mold is that Hasbro wasn’t very inventive with the legs and feet. They are just the T-rex’s head and neck split in two, with the mouth opened up as far as possible to form the feet. The dinosaur’s feet are on the backs of his fore arms, but it doesn’t look as bad as you would expect. It gives him a slightly fiercer look, actually.
Transformation:
Ok. Im almost scared to try and describe this to you, as it is a transformation that certainly deserves a difficulty rating of 3 out of 4, and quite possibly, he might deserve the 4. But here goes. First off, take the tail weapon out of his hand, and fold the peg out, for later. Now fold the three panels on either side and the back of the head up. Next, take his right arm, and swing it out so the hinge is at a right angle to his body. Do the same with his left arm, except it swings in the opposite direction. Take the entire chest piece, arm and all, and turn it 180 degrees, so both arms/legs are on the same side of the body. I would advise flipping the feet down and over the hands here, as after this they’ll get in the way if they’re not. Turn the head and panel section around the head, so that it is looking towards his left shoulder. Swing both legs out so they stick straight out to the left. Now twist the entire lower body/head and neck so that it is facing the right way a T-rex’s head and neck should be in relation to the legs. Make sure to peg the head and neck together, so they are a whole head and neck, not two halves. Now push the entire head and neck section back, and the joints will fold up at the back section of the neck, you should notice a little tab that looks like it clips onto something. push the neck back until you feel it clip around a little peg on the main body. Fold the little column sticking out the side of him so that it sticks out the top, because this is where you’ll put his gun later. Now take the dino’s legs, and fold the hinges up alongside the main body, so he doesn’t have chicken legs. Take the tail, and slide it down over the still visible head, making sure to pop the little blue piece that sticks out over the top onto it’s tab on Overkill’s back.now fold down his little arms, and you have Overkill in T-rex mode. You can take the peg on his gun, and tab it into the little column that sticks up off his back.
Beast Mode:
This mode is my favorite out of the two. It looks very fierce, and is a very streamlined robotic dinosaur, like a Grimlock 2.0. There is a strip of that pale blue running down his back, which make his ridge of spikes stand out, and it goes all the way down to the tip of his tail. He has a lot more white in this mode, with his legs being primarily blue and silver, with white joints and feet. His little arms, and the lower half of his jaw are also blue. The rest of him is white. Bright white, just like the original Overkill. His legs and tail retain good articulation in this mode, and his arm are on little ball joints. His mouth also opens and closes, but only big enough to maybe munch through a World’s Smallest Optimus Prime or Jazz. Most of the time in toy like this, you see one mode sacrificed for the other, or both sacrificed for the sake of articulation. He is lacking in none of these departments. This toy is awesome, and a great representation of Overkill.
Marks Out Of Ten For The Following:
Durability: 10 - He is very sturdy, with tight joints and made of nice, heavy plastic.
Transformation: 10 - He has a relatively complex transformation, certainly deserving of the 3 out of 4, unlike Megatron, and the transformation hides the robot parts well.
Fun: 10 - A very enjoyable mold, great for play, and sturdy enough for kids
Price: 9 - A steal at 10 bucks for a deluxe of this quality, not worth the full 18 dollars you would find him for at most places though. Go to your nearest Marshall’s and pick him up at the almost 50% discount price, if you can.
Overall: 9 - Great toy, a lot of play value, well made
Allegiance: Decepticon
Function: Brute Force Destruction
Sub-Group: Rogue Cassette-Bot?
"Formerly bound to Soundwave as a partner and slave, OVERKILL was often overlooked by enemy and ally alike. Recently, however, he has overcome his diminutive size, reinstalling his cerebro-circuitry in a larger, more dangerous body. Now, he is free to indulge his destructive whims, stomping cars flat, snapping tractor trailers in half in his jaws, and being generally terrifying."
I love this bio. It really captures the true essence of what Overkill should have been, and contains A LOT of G1 references. First of all, Overkill did appear in the television series, with a name call and cameo in "Call of the Primitives." He also got a couple comic bouts in the Marvel UK comic. Most of these were very small appearances, but in each one they added on to his character, and his hate of Soundwave. It all culminated in his final appearance, in which it was revealed he had been building a new body for himself, and transferred his brain into the body. In this two issue spotlight, Overkill, in his new T-Rex body, complete with robot form and all, puts several Autobots in severe condition, two of which he stomps on. He also takes a nice big bite out of Optimus Prime’s (a tractor trailer) trailer. So all in all, a nice reference back to his one-time glory.
I purchased this toy, which is a recolor of Classics Grimlock, at the same time I purchased Megatron. Both of them are Universe 2/Classics Special Editions. And I have one thing to say about it. I like this toy. A LOT. He retains his G1 colors, like he did in the comic, while throwing a couple new colors in there, to make him look that much snazzier. And he is, to my knowledge, the first toy to carry the name overkill since the G1 cassette. But enough of my ramblings, on to the review
Robot Mode:
This is the mode he comes packaged in, so this is where I’ll start. As I said earlier, he is a recolor of classic Grimlock, which means he has a lot of articulation. 22 joints in all, four of which are his tail joints. He is also done up very nicely in the G1 Overkill’s colors, with a tiny bit of translucent yellow and some silver thrown in. He comes with two weapons, the first of which is his tail. He can hold the tail in his hand like a whip, or it can be straightened out to be used as a lance/sword. The second one is a very nice missile launcher, done up in the same blue, white and silver as Overkill. The missile is a very deep, dark yellow, which looks almost as if it glows, and reminds me of energon (gee I wonder why?). The missile shoots the farthest out of an missile I have ever seen on a toy, which is very nice. The launcher also has a blade underneath it, like a super-sized bayonet. He has individually sculpted fingers, but as one would expect, they’re not individually poseable, but it’s very nice detailing. He has a nice Decepticon symbol on the left side of his chest, painted in silver on a crystal made of that same energon plastic. The only problem I have with this mold is that Hasbro wasn’t very inventive with the legs and feet. They are just the T-rex’s head and neck split in two, with the mouth opened up as far as possible to form the feet. The dinosaur’s feet are on the backs of his fore arms, but it doesn’t look as bad as you would expect. It gives him a slightly fiercer look, actually.
Transformation:
Ok. Im almost scared to try and describe this to you, as it is a transformation that certainly deserves a difficulty rating of 3 out of 4, and quite possibly, he might deserve the 4. But here goes. First off, take the tail weapon out of his hand, and fold the peg out, for later. Now fold the three panels on either side and the back of the head up. Next, take his right arm, and swing it out so the hinge is at a right angle to his body. Do the same with his left arm, except it swings in the opposite direction. Take the entire chest piece, arm and all, and turn it 180 degrees, so both arms/legs are on the same side of the body. I would advise flipping the feet down and over the hands here, as after this they’ll get in the way if they’re not. Turn the head and panel section around the head, so that it is looking towards his left shoulder. Swing both legs out so they stick straight out to the left. Now twist the entire lower body/head and neck so that it is facing the right way a T-rex’s head and neck should be in relation to the legs. Make sure to peg the head and neck together, so they are a whole head and neck, not two halves. Now push the entire head and neck section back, and the joints will fold up at the back section of the neck, you should notice a little tab that looks like it clips onto something. push the neck back until you feel it clip around a little peg on the main body. Fold the little column sticking out the side of him so that it sticks out the top, because this is where you’ll put his gun later. Now take the dino’s legs, and fold the hinges up alongside the main body, so he doesn’t have chicken legs. Take the tail, and slide it down over the still visible head, making sure to pop the little blue piece that sticks out over the top onto it’s tab on Overkill’s back.now fold down his little arms, and you have Overkill in T-rex mode. You can take the peg on his gun, and tab it into the little column that sticks up off his back.
Beast Mode:
This mode is my favorite out of the two. It looks very fierce, and is a very streamlined robotic dinosaur, like a Grimlock 2.0. There is a strip of that pale blue running down his back, which make his ridge of spikes stand out, and it goes all the way down to the tip of his tail. He has a lot more white in this mode, with his legs being primarily blue and silver, with white joints and feet. His little arms, and the lower half of his jaw are also blue. The rest of him is white. Bright white, just like the original Overkill. His legs and tail retain good articulation in this mode, and his arm are on little ball joints. His mouth also opens and closes, but only big enough to maybe munch through a World’s Smallest Optimus Prime or Jazz. Most of the time in toy like this, you see one mode sacrificed for the other, or both sacrificed for the sake of articulation. He is lacking in none of these departments. This toy is awesome, and a great representation of Overkill.
Marks Out Of Ten For The Following:
Durability: 10 - He is very sturdy, with tight joints and made of nice, heavy plastic.
Transformation: 10 - He has a relatively complex transformation, certainly deserving of the 3 out of 4, unlike Megatron, and the transformation hides the robot parts well.
Fun: 10 - A very enjoyable mold, great for play, and sturdy enough for kids
Price: 9 - A steal at 10 bucks for a deluxe of this quality, not worth the full 18 dollars you would find him for at most places though. Go to your nearest Marshall’s and pick him up at the almost 50% discount price, if you can.
Overall: 9 - Great toy, a lot of play value, well made
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"The Autobots lose! Evil triumphs! And you... you no longer exist!"
Nice review! I like how you describe the toy, especially the extensive transformation section. Proofed, although I've some questions and a correction or two. Hope it'll help a little...
Also, you need a 'Fun' rating in the 'Marks out of 10' section.
Cheers!
-He did. "Call of the Primitives". A cameo with a name-call, but he didn't do anything much afterwards.First of all, Overkill did not appear in the television series
When did this happen? Did the toy come with a comic? Because if it did, I might be inclined to hunt it down. Overkill's one of my favourite cassettes...In this two issue spotlight, Overkill, in his new T-Rex body, complete with robot form and all, puts several Autobots in severe condition, two of which he stomps on. He also takes a nice big bite out of Optimus Prime’s (a tractor trailer) trailer. So all in all, a nice reference back to his one-time glory.
Also, you need a 'Fun' rating in the 'Marks out of 10' section.
Cheers!
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Paul053
- Posts: 1288
- Joined: Tue Jul 14, 2009 5:27 pm
- Location: North star where bananna froze
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Ha ha ha! I like this. Couple more pictures in the link to prove he can bite.
http://sites.google.com/site/pttfcollec ... edirects=0
http://sites.google.com/site/pttfcollec ... edirects=0
http://sites.google.com/site/pttfcollec ... edirects=0
http://sites.google.com/site/pttfcollec ... edirects=0
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Quadpredacus
- Posts: 26
- Joined: Wed Nov 25, 2009 1:59 am
@ blackjack
i borrowed the comics from a cousin, who unfortunately does not live in my state anymore. All i know for sure is it was in the uk series, which ran for over 300 issues, while the american only ran for 90, i believe. i don't remember the name of the issues, and im not sure of the cover art, because he had the cover in limited edition, the first cover being the left side of his dinosaur face, and the second was the right side of his robot face. hope i helped.
"The Autobots lose! Evil triumphs! And you... you no longer exist!"
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Quadpredacus
- Posts: 26
- Joined: Wed Nov 25, 2009 1:59 am
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The Reverend
- Posts: 603
- Joined: Sun May 08, 2005 6:26 am
- Location: Knoxville, TN
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inflatable dalek
- Posts: 24000
- Joined: Sat Apr 03, 2004 3:15 pm
- Location: Kidderminster UK
Yeah, the memory cheats in this case. I don't think Overkill ever even appeared in the Marvel comics and the only substantial thing he's done since is have fantasies about getting his end away with girl bots in the third Devil's Due GI Joe crossover.
REVIISITATION: THE HOLE TRUTH
STARSCREAM GOES TO PIECES IN MY LOOK AT INFILTRATION #6!
PLUS: BUY THE BOOKS!
STARSCREAM GOES TO PIECES IN MY LOOK AT INFILTRATION #6!
PLUS: BUY THE BOOKS!
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Quadpredacus
- Posts: 26
- Joined: Wed Nov 25, 2009 1:59 am
sorry
sorry, not trying to put you guys down, but it DID happen. it may not have been in the g1 uk comic though. it was hard to tell from the artwork how old it was. but it did. it said Marvel UK on it though. And it specifically stated his name as overkill, many times. it may not have been part of a large series, maybe a special or something. but that's how it happened
"The Autobots lose! Evil triumphs! And you... you no longer exist!"
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Quadpredacus
- Posts: 26
- Joined: Wed Nov 25, 2009 1:59 am
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Cliffjumper
- Posts: 32206
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It was not part of the Marvel UK series. I wrote this. I own every issue and every annual. The only specials I don't have were reprint only. The Walky-wanking nerdfest that is the TFWaki gives http://tfwiki.net/wiki/Overkill_(G1) only. You may be being confused by the Classics bios, the Botcon thing or whatever, but you are wrong about Overkill featuring in any Marvel UK material.
You're not thinking of Overkill, the Marvel UK attempt to repackage DH2 and other dross into something that would sell, are you? Because that has nothing to do with Transformers.
You're not thinking of Overkill, the Marvel UK attempt to repackage DH2 and other dross into something that would sell, are you? Because that has nothing to do with Transformers.
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Savannahtron
- Posts: 3308
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http://tfarchive.com/comics/gallery.php?g2_itemId=15656
Rawr...not Optimus Prime trailer biting fool, but a neat early shot.
Rawr...not Optimus Prime trailer biting fool, but a neat early shot.
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Halfshell
- Posts: 19167
- Joined: Sat Sep 16, 2000 4:00 am
- Location: Don't complain to me. I don't care.
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I've been in the fandom ten years, have discussed pretty much every aspect of the franchise in a quite disturbing level of detail and have at no point ever encountered anything even vaguely resembling what you describe.
Well, actually that's a bit of a fib. I've encountered people making up stories about something they watched/read/bought back in the 80s, trying to use it as a status symbol and fobbing off criticism with "well it was from the UK/Japan/wherever so that's why you don't know about it", but not in a good seven or eight years.
Not since the fandom (and the internet in general) expanded, developed and evolved to the point where there's pretty concrete intel on every imaginable aspect of the franchise. And if nobody knows what you're talking about (as in this instance), it's highly likely it didn't happen.
There's at least three people in this thread who I know for a fact grew up in the UK, read the comics at the time, have re-read them as adults on multiple occasions, have quick and easy electronic access to both the comics themselves and detailed summations of the information within... and they all say that nothing even remotely resembling what you're describing happened.
There's a few possible explanations:
- 1) Your memories are jumbled and the bio for the new Overkill toy has tied them together into something that's wrong. [maybe you're mixing up an appearance of Trypticon with the story where Snarl's brain got transferred into a dinosaur... I don't know how long ago you read the story or how old you were at the time, so can't really do more than speculate]
- 2) The comic you read wasn't Transformers [maybe ZOIDS? I don't know]
- 3) Your cousin lied to you and it was some form of fan comic
- 4) You made it up for some reason [this I don't think likely, just to clarify... these are simply the possibilities I see]
- 5) Everybody in the fandom has been wrong for the past 25 years
Simon Furman, who wrote most of the Marvel UK stuff and was pretty much exclusively responsible for stories in the comics at the time Overkill would have been conceived as a character, is available on the internet quite readily these days. We can ask him, if you'd like?
Or you can just admit you're remembering wrong and we'll say no more about it.
[EDIT]
Overkill, the Marvel Comics title.
Overkill, the Battle Android Trooper from GI Joe.
Overkill, the X-Statix character from Marvel comics.
Overkill, an alias of Taserface, another character from Marvel comics.
Also, whoever proofed the review missed the fact that Overkill needs capitalising in the second post-italics sentence.
Well, actually that's a bit of a fib. I've encountered people making up stories about something they watched/read/bought back in the 80s, trying to use it as a status symbol and fobbing off criticism with "well it was from the UK/Japan/wherever so that's why you don't know about it", but not in a good seven or eight years.
Not since the fandom (and the internet in general) expanded, developed and evolved to the point where there's pretty concrete intel on every imaginable aspect of the franchise. And if nobody knows what you're talking about (as in this instance), it's highly likely it didn't happen.
There's at least three people in this thread who I know for a fact grew up in the UK, read the comics at the time, have re-read them as adults on multiple occasions, have quick and easy electronic access to both the comics themselves and detailed summations of the information within... and they all say that nothing even remotely resembling what you're describing happened.
There's a few possible explanations:
- 1) Your memories are jumbled and the bio for the new Overkill toy has tied them together into something that's wrong. [maybe you're mixing up an appearance of Trypticon with the story where Snarl's brain got transferred into a dinosaur... I don't know how long ago you read the story or how old you were at the time, so can't really do more than speculate]
- 2) The comic you read wasn't Transformers [maybe ZOIDS? I don't know]
- 3) Your cousin lied to you and it was some form of fan comic
- 4) You made it up for some reason [this I don't think likely, just to clarify... these are simply the possibilities I see]
- 5) Everybody in the fandom has been wrong for the past 25 years
Simon Furman, who wrote most of the Marvel UK stuff and was pretty much exclusively responsible for stories in the comics at the time Overkill would have been conceived as a character, is available on the internet quite readily these days. We can ask him, if you'd like?
Or you can just admit you're remembering wrong and we'll say no more about it.
[EDIT]
Overkill, the Marvel Comics title.
Overkill, the Battle Android Trooper from GI Joe.
Overkill, the X-Statix character from Marvel comics.
Overkill, an alias of Taserface, another character from Marvel comics.
Also, whoever proofed the review missed the fact that Overkill needs capitalising in the second post-italics sentence.
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inflatable dalek
- Posts: 24000
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- Location: Kidderminster UK
Plus, even though everyone calls the company Marvel UK for the original run of the comic it wasn't branded as such, all the copyright info just called it Marvel. The Marvel UK logo doesn't feature until the last few reprint specials starting in 1992, after the main title had ended and containing reprints of stories that don't have Overkill in.
I'm sure everyone had things they were absolutely sure of in their minds when they first came into fandom only for them to later find out it wasn't true, memory's just like that.
I'm sure everyone had things they were absolutely sure of in their minds when they first came into fandom only for them to later find out it wasn't true, memory's just like that.
REVIISITATION: THE HOLE TRUTH
STARSCREAM GOES TO PIECES IN MY LOOK AT INFILTRATION #6!
PLUS: BUY THE BOOKS!
STARSCREAM GOES TO PIECES IN MY LOOK AT INFILTRATION #6!
PLUS: BUY THE BOOKS!
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Quadpredacus
- Posts: 26
- Joined: Wed Nov 25, 2009 1:59 am
@ halfshell
i think you must be right about it being a fan comic, because i read it only a couple years ago. i know for sure it was transformers, so that must be it. thanks to everyone for helping me clear this up, i'll have to try and contact my cousin to see if i can get the name, because i know one thing, and that's that it was a good storyline. It was well done and well drawn, so the only conclusion i can come to is fan comic, since it's been confirmed that it wasn't in the official series. The cover art was also pretty awesome, and even though it's a fan comic, if anyone could help me track down its name, that'd be appreciated.
"The Autobots lose! Evil triumphs! And you... you no longer exist!"