Transformers Missing Link C-07
Item No.: No. G3451 Manufacturer:Takara-Tomy Includes:Blaster, card Action Feature:Transforms from robot to retro future sports car Retail:$98.99 Availability: September 2025 Other: Also available in cartoonier colors
One nice unexpected thing with the outgrowth of the commercialism of the 1980s is that nothing is impossible. The mock-ups that inspired Arcee (Prototype Colors) seemed like a thing that would never actually become a product - but we're getting new retro G.I. Joe toys and Kenner-style Star Wars figures. To keep things exciting, Takara-Tomy opted to dig in its own archives and make its own Arcee prototype with some revisions and additional articulation - in both cartoon and prototype colors. Who says you can't have it all? Unicron. For now.
Packaged in a boxed box, there's a Hasbro box over Takara-Tomy's window box. That G1-style box has new art and a styrofoam insert, plus a molded plastic tray instead of a thin window film. It's fancy! The toy is crammed in car mode and held tightly, much like a lot of the original releases. The car mode is sturdy and looks great - thanks to the painted die-cast metal pieces it almost feels like it fell out of a sketchbook. The colors are nice and bright, with smooth panels like other sci-fi Autobots of the 1980s. She ha a clear windshield, two holes on which to mount her blaster (and a third underneath), and a rubsign on her hood. It's a real treat to have this car in these colors 40 years late. (Actually, I'd probably not have loved it in 1986 but I really do today.) The wheels don't roll too well, which is really my main complaint about this mode. It's cohesive, fantastic, and feels legit. The die-cast metal shoulders and feet give her a little added weight, which is good when you're paying $100 for what is effectively a $40ish toy.
There are stickers, and so far I've opted out of applying any of them in Missing Link. The added paint and sculpted detail has been good, and from the photos it doesn't look like Arcee's labels are a perfect fit for the mold.
Transforming the toy is a breeze, except the knees. Things flip out logically and you can shift her around pretty quickly. Fold down the windshield, pick up the trunk, and then there's a lot of folding and stuff. Some transformations got pretty weird in the movie era like Hot Rod's flip-out chest - and Arcee has a fold-out torso chain thing. It gets the job done well so you can get both modes.
I'm not going all-in on this line, only because of some repetition. I'm more or less sticking to things that would (or might) have existed in the 1980s - so I went with the toy prototype coloring< The head looks like concept art and actual toys of the era, which just happens to look like some of the cousins in Katamari Damacy. The back of her head is flat, like Kup, and the whole robot vibe is kind of odd. Her chest is largely flat with a paint job that is evocative of mammalian aspects, thighs that are incredibly thick, and legs that are a little awkwardly posed. This is how the concept looked, and everybody kept it true to the rejected model with some changes. The original toy had open fingered fists, this has closed ones. Her pose is a little bit better, but the arms are still kind of awkward.
She doesn't seem as articulated as some of the other figures, but is very close to the original and absolutely better than the 1980s typically offered. Her knees and hips have a great range of movement, and her ankles tilt. The elbows bend and the shoulders rotate. It's really a good figure in that it doesn't seem to have the insane addition of so many new joints like Optimus, but it's not a brick like a 1986 statuette. Having said that, Princess Tiny Feet here could benefit from a stand or support because her center of gravity could use a little help. She has tiny legs and a huge torso, and the heel spurs are only going to do so much to keep her stable. She also has a little stand port on her backside.
As a rating goes, I'd give her a million stars. You get it or you don't - if you're a G1 kid, a G1 Arcee in white and pink or orange and pink speaks to your cartoon experiences or your collector experiences. If you weren't around for the original run, you might not feel that a new G1-style toy is terribly exciting, and you'd also be correct. This is a very specific kind of toy for a very specific kind of fan, and even at the higher price I'd say it's worth it. I'm almost tempted to buy the white and pink one, but this one really is good enough that I don't necessarily want to drop another $100. I don't have anything else quite like it, and I love how the old 1980s vehicles tend to feel vehicle-first rather than robot-first and vehicle-good-enough. If you grew up with G1 toys and want something compatible and a little bit better, this is it. It's expensive, but it's the kind of thing that doesn't come around very often.
After Arcee, I assume fans are going to start pawing through art books and asking about the unmade Unicron or other famous missing toys. But if they could only do one, I'm glad it was one that doesn't take up a ton of space. It looks like this version of the toy sold out quickly, so if you want one cross your fingers for a rerun or be prepared to pony up a few bucks extra.
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