Henkei Hot Rod
Box and packaging
Originally, I wanted an Henkei Hot Rodimus (Hot Rod in the west) to fill in for the Fansproject Protector armor. Funny thing is that I had this figure for quite some time before deciding to let him out of his cage. The version I got here is the re-issue. The roof of the car is lighter red than the rest of the figure. Though I didn't do a photograph, the contents also include a Manga comic. It features Hot Rod squaring off against Megatron but he loses the battle. Eventually, Hot Rod faces off against Astrotrain. Some autobots such as Mirage and Bumblebee appear towards the end. I always liked how Takara did their packaging for the Henkei series. It feels less messy than the U.S. releases.
Alt mode (Guess starring RTS Hot Rod)
You can pretty much see a huge difference on almost everything comparing both figures. The gimmick of Henkei was to incorporate chrome on certain parts of their toy releases. In this case, the Henkei version has Chrome Spoilers and headlights. Not to mention, his flame decos which represent his G1 design are also gold chrome colored. If you look carefully, the rims in the Takara release are silvered painted while the tires are black painted. The RTS version is has dark grey tires and duller grey colored rims. The windows are painted blue in the RTS obscuring the seats and driver wheel. My pics don't do much justice but the driver wheel and seats are visible in this mode for the Henkei version. Looking good and shiny thus far Henkei Hot Rodimus!
Robot mode
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| I can do a cannon too, Galvatron! |
United Rodimus Convoy (Rodimus Prime)
Box and packaging
More Hot Rod/Rodimus prime madness! This time Takara released a figure that is more G1 color accurate. I got trigger happy with buying some TF figures at one point and United Rodimus Prime was part of that deal. Like Henkei Hot Rodimus, I had this figure for quite a while too before opening him up. Was he worth triple dip at this point? We will find out.
Alt mode and comparisons.
Although United Rodimus Prime uses the same mold as his classics counterpart. UN Roddy is once again painted to match his G1 cartoon colors. Not to mention, he has the flame decos on his side panels as if he had his winnebago. This iteration loses the chrome spoiler and sports a slightly darker yellow spoiler than his RTS cousin. In the spirit of TF United tradition, the headlights are painted with bronze-orange like metallic paint. However, the real modification for this release is the addition of a 5mm port on his engine turbine. Sadly, I don't have any arms micron figure to showcase this new featurette. In this version, you can also see the seats and driver wheel through the transparent window.
Robot mode and comparisons.
As you can see here, UN-Roddy clearly looks more like Rodimus Prime of his G1 days. He has his white face, arms, the chest flame decal and maroon red like color. He still has the same amber-like flame projectile the Henkei version uses, though the spring button that is used to eject the flame is a more slightly darker orange. Despite the rehash of this mold, the G1-inspired Rodimus Prime look shines brightly here. I have no qualms. I think he looks the best of the three molds I own. Thumbs up on this part.
Conclusion:
Unless if you are a Rodimus Prime/Hot Rod fan, there is probably no reason to dip even more than once on this figure. The Henkei/Universe release was probably the most sought after Roddy mold for sometime. By the time the Henkei had its re-release, most TF collectors owned a Hot Rod figure. I still wonder why I picked up United Rodimus since I already had two of the same figure, but I'm glad I did because I think he is the best iteration of the Hot Rod classics mold as this point. I think if I had to stick with one of the molds it probably be the United version. Later folks. More Hot Rod/Rodimus Prime madness coming soon!
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