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Name: Triggerhappy & Blowpipe
Function: Gun-happy nutjob?
Subgroup: Titans Return
Size Class: Deluxe
Well, here we are with another great figure from the Titans Return line. Let it be known that I have no nostalgic ties to Transformers from the original era (ca. 1987) when Triggerhappy was released; most of my figures came from 1984-1986. Personally, I just like the way he looked in the store – Decepticon, jet, Deluxe class… all the things I really like out of my Transformers. Getting Triggerhappy as a gift from my family was an added bonus, and Triggerhappy is a fantastic figure to boot!
From what I can tell from photos, Triggerhappy is a great recreation of the original toy – the main difference being that the 1987 toy was a Targetmaster (partnered with Blowpipe) whereas this version is a Headmaster. Since I never owned the original, the difference is irrelevant to me. Triggerhappy is just an absolute joy in both modes!
Alternate Mode:
Triggerhappy’s alternate mode is a Cybertronic starfighter (how cool does that sound?!). While the mode is quite arbitrary, it looks really close to the original design albeit updated for today’s tooling abilities. The wing designs appear to be quite spot on from the original, as does the cockpit. The new and improved Triggerhappy has detail practically everywhere with little lines and vents and such all over. Paint apps – while not abundant – are crisp and clear when present. There are just enough paint apps around to break up the blue and grey plastics.
Triggerhappy’s advantage over other jet/spaceship modes is that he’s a Cybertronic starfighter, which gives quite a bit of latitude to the design. It’s a spaceship, so it doesn’t need to be terribly aerodynamic. However, the starfighter mode is compact all around, and all the robot parts are well hidden. Even the legs and arms (which sometimes are quite obvious in other jet/spaceship modes) aren’t blatantly obvious. There are some nice gold engines that come off the back of the wings, which would appear to give Triggerhappy some great thrust, and they mimic the original perfectly. The legs are folded over well enough and the feet are tucked out of sight to form the larger back end of the starfighter. The arms tuck in really nicely to the wings, and the hands are covered up very well with the gigantic side guns. Triggerhappy (as his name might suggest) is full of armaments all over the wings.
The jet mode has a bit of fun stuffed in there too. Blowpipe can easily ride in the cockpit – which opens and closes nicely – and the plastic is transparent enough to see him through the ‘glass’. There are a couple of faux wheels on the bottom for landing gear; the front landing gear folds out from the bottom of the cockpit. Triggerhappy’s guns peg nicely into the bottom of the wings and blend in incredibly well to the look of the starfighter. There are even a couple tiny Headmaster nubs on the top of the jet in case you want Blowpipe to stand up there, or even to have a friend tag along for a ride!
Robot Mode:
What seems to be commonplace from the Combiner Wars line and into Titans Return, the transformation from starfighter mode to robot mode is rather simple. By no means does that indicate this transformation isn’t fun because, well, it’s a blast (pun intended). There is some neat trickery going on here that doesn’t complicate things at all. The transformation starts by pulling Triggerhappy’s arms out to the side, followed by pulling the shoulder areas out from the back end of the starfighter. Leaving those dangling off to the side, you can unfold the legs and feet. At this point you can hinge the cockpit down, and in a neat trick, the whole cockpit nose and legs assembly rotates on one flat piece riveted to Triggerhappy’s back. The legs are flipped around and snapped into the waist, and the cockpit nose is pinned onto Triggerhappy’s back. The shoulders can now come up and peg into the chest, and the wings and giant guns are folded back. The hands can now come out and play from inside the forearms. Peg on Blowpipe and Triggerhappy is ready to start slinging laser blasts!
There are two major aesthetic differences from the original toy, both of which I think are nicely done. First, the cockpit is on Triggerhappy’s back, whereas the original toy had it on his chest. I think the newer version is better, as it opens up the robot mode a bit. Part of the cockpit still resides in the chest, so you get a little bit of that look – you just don’t have a giant cockpit hanging out in the front, leaving a cleaner look all around. The other major difference is the head design; the original toy featured a yellow visor, but his comic design had two yellow eyes. This version follows the latter of the two, and is painted really well. I like the design, and the eyes give Triggerhappy a bit more personality than the visor. Otherwise, the rest of Triggerhappy’s detail is really well done. The molded details from starfighter mode carry over well, as is the nice mix of blue and grey plastics. The sparse paint apps are crisp in this mode too, and the overall look of the robot mode is nearly spot on to his original toy (save for the differences I mentioned earlier). To be honest, I think the Hasbro did a great honor to the original with the design while keeping a lot of the fun and making a great update.
Triggerhappy offers a great range of articulation all over. The weight is balanced well and you can find some great dynamic poses that he handles with ease. The feet are large and can be wiggled a bit to compensate a wide range of leg movement. However, Triggerhappy’s articulation suffers in one single area: the arms. While the arm and shoulder design is great from an aesthetics standpoint, the range of the shoulders and arms is sadly hampered. The shoulders are designed as such to give some degree of movement, but the joints leave a little bit to be desired. While they swivel upward and the shoulders rotate, they don't swivel outward at all; if the arms are straight out from the body, they cannot open up - they only point straight ahead. You can kind of get them into all positions, but it's a major chore and really doesn't work as well as it should. Likewise, the guns that are folded onto the forearms limit movement as well. Honestly, it’s a shame that the range isn’t where I would have hoped for a gun-toting madman, but it’s really the only thing I can find wrong with him. That said, Triggerhappy is just so much fun that I have a hard time letting it bother me. He can dual wield his guns in his hands, or if you want to get crazy you can hide his hands and bring out the big guns. Furthermore, his dual blasters can be pegged in by his wrists for added blasting. His dual guns can also be combined for some Titan Master fun, where the little guy can sit and control the guns. There’s quite a bit to do in robot mode with Titan Masters, so if you have a couple others you can find a lot of play value.
Blowpipe is your typical Titan Master fare, so there's not much to comment on. Unfortunately he follows the same trend of recent releases with very limited paint - and that's all on the giant face on his back.
Overall, Triggerhappy is a great figure. I think he falls just a bit short of the greatness that is Hardhead, but I can’t find much to dislike. He looks nearly spot-on to his original toy, his starfighter mode is fun, and the robot mode offers a bunch of play value.
Marks Out of Ten for the Following:
Transformation Design: 8. It’s a simple design, but there’s some neat trickery taking place that makes the transformation really enjoyable.
Durability: 8. Good quality plastic all round, and no parts that are screaming to be broken.
Fun: 10. Arm issues aside, I think Triggerhappy offers more than enough fun features for play: dual guns, Titan Master functionality, arm guns, a cool starfighter mode, etc.
Aesthetics: 9. He looks good and he’s a near dead-ringer for the original. The design differences are improvements from the original, in my opinion.
Articulation: 7. If it weren’t for the arm problems, Triggerhappy would be top notch. It’s sad that there’s some hampered movement, but personally I’m willing to overlook it for all the other things that this figure offers.
Value/Price: 9. I got mine as a gift (which is awesome), but Deluxes have been going for ~$10 USD around me - that’s a great deal for such a fine figure. If Triggerhappy was $15, it would still be a good toy to take a bite on, but a little less of a deal.
Overall: 9. This may be a little too highly rated for some, but I really can’t find much to dislike with Triggerhappy – and keep in mind that I have ZERO nostalgia playing a part in this rating. I really enjoy the transformation, the play value, and both modes. It’s typically hard to hit a sweet spot in all of those features, but I think Triggerhappy does it. He’s a fantastic figure, and well worth a shot (or two, or forty seven… he’s a gunman after all!!!).
TR Triggerhappy & Blowpipe [proofed]
Moderators: Skyquake87, ganon578
