Hasbro Transformers Legacy United Star Raider Road Pig Hasbro, 2024
Day #2,789: December 3, 2024
Star Raider Road Pig Walmart Exclusive Retool of Crashbar
Transformers Legacy United Walmart Exclusive Star Raider Capsule
Item No.: Asst. G0200 No. G0232 Manufacturer:Hasbro Includes:2 blasters, 2 exhaust pipes, tire blade Action Feature:Transforms from robot to motorcycle Retail:$24.96 Availability: September 2024 Other: The G2 Laser Cycles guy is back
After last year's G2-themed batch of exclusives, we now get Road Pig with some pirates. I'm kind of amazed that they sneak in a Generation 2 toy each year, and this time it's a reworking of Crashbar [FOTD #2,573] with new deco and a new head. It works. I never had the original, but I got Axer and Double Face - and I think this toy captures the spirit, if not the mechanism, of that design.
The first Road Pig toy came out almost 30 years ago, and made waves as a - for the time - super-articulated figure with a worked red LED light-up exhaust pipe. That was a huge deal - Laser Rods and Laser Cycles were genuinely fancy stuff, particularly when compared with the fairly stiff robots in disguise of the 1980s. This toy is significantly more articulated, but we've lost the light.
What's impressive about Road Pig is that it takes Crashbar - a spiky, flame-painted multicolor motorcycle - and makes it look like a sleek robot by painting everything black. Well, not everything - the head is cast in clear red and painted, and the thighs and forearms are molded in red. His knee/seat, lights, and gas cap are silver while his saddle bag blasters are gold. This results in a toy that does a great job capturing the spirit of the original, down to the ninja mask. Sure, we don't get a clear windshield, but I doubt you're going to miss it.
The original toy featured a clear pipe with a red LED behind it, allowing it to glow. Red LEDs were pretty cheap at the time, so it added a lot of value to an already decent-looking toy. Today they don't want to do that - so instead you get pipes cast in a pale, clear red that looks pretty darned close to what you might expect if you experienced the original toy in person in a bright room. These are accessories that must be relocated during transformation, but that's OK. Precious little kibble is in the way on this robot toy, with the pieces of his vehicle mode serving a purpose for his robot mode. Even one of his wheels can pop off and become some sort of fidget spinner throwing star, which is a pretty fun little gimmick. Action features are so rare since "collector line" became the driving force behind these toys, it's fun to have something that gives the toy some actual movement.
One thing that did surprise me is how subtle the faction branding is on the robot mode. There's a Star Raiders symbol, but it's on the toes of his left boot. You might not even see it, and I assume they were downplayed on these vehicles so they could serve as updates of the original toy while keeping the Walmart theme of "pirate" alive.
The conversion is pretty simple. Pop off the pipes and saddle bag blasters, twist some bits around, and you've got a nice bike. Then you put the gear back on. You can also take the toy apart in several places to use as upgraded parts on other toys, like limb extenders for Lockdown. The toy can swap parts with other Junkions as well. Hasbro made this one so you have plenty of reasons to play with it, rather than just admire it on a shelf.
The bike mode is pretty good. As I mentioned above, it's spiky - but the black plastic really absorbs the visual detail, leaving you to admire the G2 Decepticon symbol or the gold Transformers logo on the sides. He's got silver on his seat, and one of his two wheels spins well. It won't surprise you that the spinning ninja star tire spins - the other one barely moves, so you won't be rolling him down a ramp. Hasbro did a really good job making a mold that does double duty as a sleek bike and a Junkion cycle, so kudos there.
If you're the kind of person who will run out looking for G2 toys, you're going to want this. It's surprisingly good on its own, and I assume people will also want to buy it to steal his arms to make stilts for Lockdown's stubbier legs. I really like this figure. I wish the head wasn't cast in clear plastic, but other than that, it's pretty fantastic.
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