Happy New Year!
Everyone doing good, I hope? I stayed up till 12:30 AM this morning, ha. As usual I had to see the ball drop, and my friends entertained me on Skype so I was never alone, even when I was holed up in my room because the TV's kind of noisy, lol, with all the screaming and crying and yakking. I was never one for huge parties due to being hard of hearing, so partying takes a lot of my energy, especially if I have to be downstairs with family friends trying to have a proper conversation over the roars of football (in the case of Thanksgiving), or singing on TV (in the case of Chinese New Year). It's just too much auditory stimulation for me.
Friend came over though on Monday! I took her out to a Chinese buffet, where we ate too much (a result of us talking in my room so long we forgot we needed lunch), and she brought me a gift bag full of blind-bag My Little Pony figures, stickers, and comics, along with a poster, which was really nice, and I sent her home with Fluttershy plush and the Pinkie Cupcake thingy I found at a TRU a few months back. The pics below is what I got, though I brought Gilda myself, teehee.
Following that we hit up my local TRU, and then came home with this monstrosity:
I'm putting a review up for Dragonzord under the break, because it's fabulous (I'd totally recommend it) and merits its own spotlight. ;)
Ah, the Legacy Dragonzord. Where to begin? Can I just say something about how gorgeous it looks? Everything is painted! There are no ugly lightning bolts, making this the best show accurate remake of the Dragonzord ever. Stickers? Pfft, there are none. What you see here is how it looks straight out of the packaging, though minor assembly was required as it was fingerless and tail-less inside the box. The metallic paint shines, though it's probably not easy to tell that the paint is metallic unless you looked at it in person, but it is there. Also, this thing is chock full of diecast (feet, gold part of chest, the shoulders, the silver crotch section). So it is really heavy and weighs quite a bit! Also the details are molded and for the most part raised and etched in. Yes, guys, everything has texture! The painted areas are not flat and Bandai of America did a great job with this. Mine has a few minor paint issues on the feet especially, but it's a minor nitpick. The hands shown here are one of the sets of hands it comes with. You can swap them for the missile hands shown a few pics below, which is necessary for transformation as the bent ones will not fit into the shoulders for the combination sequences.
Articulation wise, the hands go up and down on hinges, the shoulders actually detach from the chest piece so he can open wide his arms and attempt to hug you, the feet can wiggle from side to side, and yes, there are knee joints so he can bend forward if you want him to. Also the mouth does open, and the fin moves forward and back. My fin came bent, as it's made of soft plastic and is easily pliable, but to straighten it out I'm told that dipping it into hot water to soften the plastic and then hammering it straight will do the trick. So far all I've needed to do is bend it back straight with my fingers, so it isn't too much of an issue for me.
The tail is huge! It has 5 sections, each with its own joint so you can move it in all sorts of positions! Mine seems a bit loose and floppy (QC issues up the wazoo, this one), but I don't mind. You can also see the raised Dragonzord leg symbols and the etchings on the shoulders which are definitely not stickers! Even the tail is painted and sports etched detail. The drill tip is huge and can be snapped securely so that unlike the original Dragonzord you won't ever lose it like many people have done with their 93 Dragonzords. It is also pretty big, as you can see. The drill can also be spun manually by section.
Opening the mouth is a bit weird because you can see the Megazord face in there. O_o Also the eyes sink in their sockets when the mouth opens a little (and a lot when the entire face is revealed), giving the Dragonzord a bit of a zombie look. FREAKY. D:
Dragonzord is a bit shorter than the Legacy (or 2010 Megazord that I have here), but the head fin makes up for the lost height. Overall I think this is a pretty good representation of their size differences in the show, but it's been a while since I've seen it so I can't be too sure...
Okay, here is where I have issues. Combined, the Dragonzord Battle mode looks fabulous, but first off, holy CRAP LOOK AT THE STAFF. The Dragonzord tail, even collapsed, is impressive, and it stands taller than its wielder. Display wise, it looks good, but the wobbly feet, and...do you see it leaning a bit forward? Due to the weight of a diecast Dragonzord on a all plastic Megazord, this combination scares the BUCK out of me because I kept freaking that my Sabertooth and Triceratops would just crumble from the weight of the combined mode. Triceratops is already starting to erm, split just a little on mine from transformation, twice, by the way, because I took better pics of this yesterday or so. If just twice is enough to make my Zords cry out in pain from bearing the weight of their reptilian cousin just for display for ONE NIGHT... D: Even so, it helps to have the staff there to help distribute the weight.
AND THEN YOU DO THIS AND OH MY GOD MY TRICERATOPS WAS GROANING IN PAIN! And the Sabertooth, but it seems to have had a much better time than Cera did. It's pretty impressive, again, if you look at how the details stand out, but remember that the feet are diecast and hanging off the side so the Megazord is pretty much supporting the ENTIRE weight of Dragonzord on its shoulders right now. You see the clips on the shoulders next to the Pteradactyl's wing nubs sticking up on either side? They're suppose to help with the weight, but they themselves are actually being stressed. They have to splay open a little to snap onto the Mastadon, and I keep worrying that my next transformation is going to make them SNAP. Nuh uh, guys. Nope. Never again. Enjoy this picture, because I'm never putting this thing BACK into this mode. Weight issues aside, the Dragonzord has chipped the eyebrow paint off my Megazord since it has to be jammed right over the head, and it's a really tight fit. I don't want to damage my already battle damaged Megazord with its peeling stickers and chipped paint just from taking a few dives off my shelf by accident, so nope.
Should you still get the Dragonzord? Well, even by itself it's pretty impressive, though having the Megazord there adds to playability, but also fretting that your Megazord, even if it is the Legacy diecast version, will crumble to itty bitty pieces from the weight of Dragonzord on top of it. However, because of painted detail, the added diecast, and just because it is the best Dragonzord toy you're ever going to get for a LOOOONNNG time, I'd go for it, especially if you've never owned one as a kid and want it for the nostalgia. TRU in the US is currently putting it on sale for $49.99, though that might change really soon now that the New Year has come upon us. So get it. Just be careful as the diecast makes it pretty hefty and please don't display it in Mega Dragonzord Mode, especially if you use it with the 2010 all plastic Megazord. The dangerous forward lean from combining it worries me and it should worry you as well. D: Battle Mode should be okay as the staff is there to help with the weight distribution but please be careful. DX
Friend came over though on Monday! I took her out to a Chinese buffet, where we ate too much (a result of us talking in my room so long we forgot we needed lunch), and she brought me a gift bag full of blind-bag My Little Pony figures, stickers, and comics, along with a poster, which was really nice, and I sent her home with Fluttershy plush and the Pinkie Cupcake thingy I found at a TRU a few months back. The pics below is what I got, though I brought Gilda myself, teehee.
Following that we hit up my local TRU, and then came home with this monstrosity:
I'm putting a review up for Dragonzord under the break, because it's fabulous (I'd totally recommend it) and merits its own spotlight. ;)
Ah, the Legacy Dragonzord. Where to begin? Can I just say something about how gorgeous it looks? Everything is painted! There are no ugly lightning bolts, making this the best show accurate remake of the Dragonzord ever. Stickers? Pfft, there are none. What you see here is how it looks straight out of the packaging, though minor assembly was required as it was fingerless and tail-less inside the box. The metallic paint shines, though it's probably not easy to tell that the paint is metallic unless you looked at it in person, but it is there. Also, this thing is chock full of diecast (feet, gold part of chest, the shoulders, the silver crotch section). So it is really heavy and weighs quite a bit! Also the details are molded and for the most part raised and etched in. Yes, guys, everything has texture! The painted areas are not flat and Bandai of America did a great job with this. Mine has a few minor paint issues on the feet especially, but it's a minor nitpick. The hands shown here are one of the sets of hands it comes with. You can swap them for the missile hands shown a few pics below, which is necessary for transformation as the bent ones will not fit into the shoulders for the combination sequences.
Articulation wise, the hands go up and down on hinges, the shoulders actually detach from the chest piece so he can open wide his arms and attempt to hug you, the feet can wiggle from side to side, and yes, there are knee joints so he can bend forward if you want him to. Also the mouth does open, and the fin moves forward and back. My fin came bent, as it's made of soft plastic and is easily pliable, but to straighten it out I'm told that dipping it into hot water to soften the plastic and then hammering it straight will do the trick. So far all I've needed to do is bend it back straight with my fingers, so it isn't too much of an issue for me.
The tail is huge! It has 5 sections, each with its own joint so you can move it in all sorts of positions! Mine seems a bit loose and floppy (QC issues up the wazoo, this one), but I don't mind. You can also see the raised Dragonzord leg symbols and the etchings on the shoulders which are definitely not stickers! Even the tail is painted and sports etched detail. The drill tip is huge and can be snapped securely so that unlike the original Dragonzord you won't ever lose it like many people have done with their 93 Dragonzords. It is also pretty big, as you can see. The drill can also be spun manually by section.
Opening the mouth is a bit weird because you can see the Megazord face in there. O_o Also the eyes sink in their sockets when the mouth opens a little (and a lot when the entire face is revealed), giving the Dragonzord a bit of a zombie look. FREAKY. D:
Dragonzord is a bit shorter than the Legacy (or 2010 Megazord that I have here), but the head fin makes up for the lost height. Overall I think this is a pretty good representation of their size differences in the show, but it's been a while since I've seen it so I can't be too sure...
Okay, here is where I have issues. Combined, the Dragonzord Battle mode looks fabulous, but first off, holy CRAP LOOK AT THE STAFF. The Dragonzord tail, even collapsed, is impressive, and it stands taller than its wielder. Display wise, it looks good, but the wobbly feet, and...do you see it leaning a bit forward? Due to the weight of a diecast Dragonzord on a all plastic Megazord, this combination scares the BUCK out of me because I kept freaking that my Sabertooth and Triceratops would just crumble from the weight of the combined mode. Triceratops is already starting to erm, split just a little on mine from transformation, twice, by the way, because I took better pics of this yesterday or so. If just twice is enough to make my Zords cry out in pain from bearing the weight of their reptilian cousin just for display for ONE NIGHT... D: Even so, it helps to have the staff there to help distribute the weight.
AND THEN YOU DO THIS AND OH MY GOD MY TRICERATOPS WAS GROANING IN PAIN! And the Sabertooth, but it seems to have had a much better time than Cera did. It's pretty impressive, again, if you look at how the details stand out, but remember that the feet are diecast and hanging off the side so the Megazord is pretty much supporting the ENTIRE weight of Dragonzord on its shoulders right now. You see the clips on the shoulders next to the Pteradactyl's wing nubs sticking up on either side? They're suppose to help with the weight, but they themselves are actually being stressed. They have to splay open a little to snap onto the Mastadon, and I keep worrying that my next transformation is going to make them SNAP. Nuh uh, guys. Nope. Never again. Enjoy this picture, because I'm never putting this thing BACK into this mode. Weight issues aside, the Dragonzord has chipped the eyebrow paint off my Megazord since it has to be jammed right over the head, and it's a really tight fit. I don't want to damage my already battle damaged Megazord with its peeling stickers and chipped paint just from taking a few dives off my shelf by accident, so nope.
Should you still get the Dragonzord? Well, even by itself it's pretty impressive, though having the Megazord there adds to playability, but also fretting that your Megazord, even if it is the Legacy diecast version, will crumble to itty bitty pieces from the weight of Dragonzord on top of it. However, because of painted detail, the added diecast, and just because it is the best Dragonzord toy you're ever going to get for a LOOOONNNG time, I'd go for it, especially if you've never owned one as a kid and want it for the nostalgia. TRU in the US is currently putting it on sale for $49.99, though that might change really soon now that the New Year has come upon us. So get it. Just be careful as the diecast makes it pretty hefty and please don't display it in Mega Dragonzord Mode, especially if you use it with the 2010 all plastic Megazord. The dangerous forward lean from combining it worries me and it should worry you as well. D: Battle Mode should be okay as the staff is there to help with the weight distribution but please be careful. DX