Monstructor Part IV - Birdbrain

www.botchthecrab.com

We're at the halfway point!  Which better part of Monstructor to talk about than his midsection?

Birdbrain has the distinction of being the one Pretender Monster to appear in the Dreamwave comics.  He was in the Age of Wrath  mini-series that turned out to be a single issue.  According to his TFWiki profile, Birdbrain was a member of Ratbat's Ultracons.  This was surprising to me, as I don't remember this at all.  I mean, who show's Pretender Monsters any kind of love?  Other than that, Birdbrain was only ever featured in the Marvel issue "Rhythms of Darkness!" and all of those IDW issues where Monstructor showed up.  Like the rest of his team, there were no speaking lines.  Naturally.

Have you ever seen the movie Labyrinth?  Birdbrain's outer shell reminds me of a creature from that movie.  Maybe more of a creature from The Dark Crystal; definitely a Jim Henson creation.  I think it's just a stupendous design.  For some reason, I keep picturing Birdbrain waddling around chasing Jennifer Connelly and singing.  Maybe I have issues.  Or have a thing for Jennifer Connelly.

Obligatory junk in the trunk reference.

Birdbrain's torso accessory stores on the back of his shell.  I didn't think to look up his instructions before the photo shoot, so it's on incorrectly.  Don't worry, some Sharkticons showed up at my door and, uh, "showed" me the error of my ways.  It will never happen again.

Things go a little south when Birdbrain is separated from his outer shell.  He's, naturally, tiny.  Because of his alt mode, his arms are permanently bent.  The black and purple color scheme works really well.  Speaking of alt modes...

I have no idea what that is.  For some reason, I want to say it's a rhinoceros.  Birdbrain's box art suggests something more bird-like.  Wow.  His name is Birdbrain, so that should've clued me in.  I can be slow at times.  According to his TFWiki profile, he's an alce; something I've never heard of.  An alce is apparently some sort of wingless Griffin.  See, Transformers can teach our children new things.  I still say it's a rhino.

All that remains to be covered are the lower extremities and then we're on to the combined form of Monstructor!  Will the following posts continue to veer into oddball territory, or will I be able to pull it back together?  Check back next week to find out!