I'm going to start off this review with an admission: I really didn't want Scourge. You read that right. Scourge, in my eyes is emblematic of most of the 1986 figures, what with the weird face and gangly design. Thanks to Floro Dery, I nearly swore off getting anything that he designed. Then I remembered about figures like Blurr. Figures that, while not great, represent characters that I have greatly enjoyed. Floro Dery just did a horrible, horrible job designing figures.
Here are the original designs for Scourge. On the left, we have Floro's design, which is what the toy is kind of based on. The one on the right is a redesign that was used for animation. The original Dery Scourge looks like an old, broken man. They should have given him a cane. On to the toy.
Whenever I read about painted top Scourge or stickered Scourge, I really had no idea what they were talking about. I knew that the painted version was released first, but I still couldn't spot any differences. Being observant isn't really my thing.
I will admit that the hovercraft mode is pretty nifty looking, even if it invokes a flying ironing board. Having never seen a Scourge in person until I got this one, I didn't realize that there was a little flap to cover Scourge's face while in this mode. I had always imagined that it just pushed down, thanks to Scourge constantly using his head while in this mode in the movie and series. It's odd that the rifle and head-mounted rocket (thruster?) aren't interchangeable.
 |
| Scourge once owned a razor, but then he lost it. |
Judging from the Scourge's box art, I'm wondering if Scourge was originally going to have a more complex transformation. The wings are inverted on the box, which gives a different look and gives Scourge actual wings. Instead, the toy version seems to have furled wings, at best. Also, there's the knee joints, which I don't entirely understand.
 |
| Going for a stroll |
Let's see if I can get this straight. Scourge can't rotate his head, or bend at the hips, but he can look like he's about to kick a ball? And really, the only way to get the knees to bend in any purposeful way is to fiddle with the rear kibble a bit and bend the foot back.
I had a lot of reservations getting Scourge. Floro Dery has tainted most of the 1986 line, in my mind. Off looking faces, facial hair, it all added up to things that I just didn't care for. Whatever reservations I had before, they're still there, but in a diminished capacity. Having said that, Blurr will probably be my last Floro designed figure, sorry Wreck-Gar. Well, I guess I'll be getting the Targetmaster versions of Scourge, Cyclonus, and Blurr since I really like Targetmasters.
painted Scourge is one of the best versions of Scourge, i really like it. I like Scourge by the way! For all his flaws, it was one of the few 1986 toys I had as a kid.
ReplyDeleteThe Floro Dery thing is often a love hate relationship. I think he's done a lot of good, like the character design sheets for all (or most) of the 1984 / 85 animation models; he also designed Cybertron, the spaceships, the locations, etc. So yeah, to me he's contributed lots.
Give you an example - if he was less imaginative, he would have drawn the '85 seekers the exact same way as the '84 seekers, but no, he made them coneheads and the animation design for their bodies are almost completely different from the '84 seekers.
For the 86 stuff, I think he designed the character model sheets and then Takara 'reverse engineered' them into toys. Generally, I think 86 was aiming to go for curvier looks with less blockishness....
I keep forgetting that he designed the Coneheads! I didn't know about Cybertron, however. Thanks for the reminder! His '86 designs are still odd...
DeleteNice review, the pictures look great!
ReplyDeleteI've always been fond of the 86 designs, I think that robots with snazzy facial hair helped to make the idea more alien and unique. I also had no idea before now who Floro Dery is. Consider this post educational!