Well, I didn’t get a chance to pick up what I wanted to. For some reason I was tired all week and one night I didn’t sleep well. We’ll see what happens in the next week or two but for now I said I would review something so review something I shall. I’ve noticed that there are really long stretches between reviews of my GoBots (while my Transformers get reviewed in batches) and that I haven’t reviewed any of the bad guy GoBots (also I’ve only reviewed two GoBots) so this time I broke out Crasher, one of Cy-Kill’s top agents.

The backstory of the GoBots is that they are humans turned into robots to save themselves from a major catastrophe or in the original promo booklet just to replace “worn out parts of their body” but I like the cartoon version better. The cartoon, Challenge Of The GoBots, took the opportunity to add female characters to the heroes, which as a race of former humans made sense whatever your opinion of Transformers having genders are. Since Crasher wasn’t in the promo booklet there was no assigned gender so she became a she. Others would appear in the pilot miniseries like Pathfinder, and would later include more on both sides, but that may not have been the intention for the original Machine Robo figure or what Tonka was thinking, since this was a toyline for boys. So give Hanna-Barbera credit for that.

Also playing with some new photo gear…because apparently I can’t get a properly lit picture of a GoBot. The universe won’t allow me.

Here’s something I either didn’t know or forgot all these years. We’re used to a black-colored Crasher thanks to the show but apparently it was originally white according to the GoBots wiki. In 1985 it would be redone in the colors she’s famous for. While not every GoBot has a distinct Earth mode, Crasher gets to resemble a Porsche race car. Time has taken the number 1 off of the sides and Crasher’s name from the front bumper. Otherwise her stickers remain intact, a fight for many 80s stickers. The stickers also came already applied unlike many Transformers of the day. She looks speed but able to smash into things like her animated counterpart. The tires are rubber but the wheels themselves don’t really roll very well. This may be another victim of time. Her wheels are a bit wobbly. Due to transformation GoBots don’t have the axles of Hot Wheels or Matchbox cars.

She’s keeping an eye on you.

If you know her from the show (or just look at the image above) you already see one huge difference. For reasons I still don’t understand the faces on the main six characters (Leader-1, Scooter, and Turbo for the Friendly GoBots/Guardians and Cy-Kill, Cop-Tur, and Crasher for the Enemy/Renegades) were changed from the toy though the rest of the figure remained intact. This is stranger when you realize that every other GoBot face in the series was an exact match to the toy and didn’t quite fit the aesthetic of the characters there every episode. It’s like with the Transformer cartoon where the animators changed a whole lot of details because they didn’t care about the figures. Every other detail on the GoBots matched what was coming out of Tonka and onto store shelves except these six faces. I don’t get it.

And the thing of it is I rather like that one huge eye visor more than the face they gave her. Granted the show face may match her crazy psycho personality better but that was still their decision. Imagine her as the silent time, whose only pleasure was smashing things. At any rate she does have a nice robot mode though it does mean the trunk is just hanging off her head. I guess the show got me used to that. She does look powerful but you can see potential for a feminine aspect to her design. If they had left her male it would have worked as well but I like that the show offered so many female characters when the GoBots really didn’t even have bios. If it wasn’t for the promo booklet none of the GoBots would have had personalities until the show, and not even all of the available wave showed up in the booklet, including Crasher.

This is still an 80s figure so there isn’t much in the way of articulation. Her shoulder spin around so she can fire her energy blasts and thanks to transformation you have her do that electric stomp power she had on the show and that’s about it.

DECISION: STAYS

Not only is Crasher one of the main characters from the show but I like the toy itself. I even like the toy’s face more than her show face. I wish the thing could roll and there’s nothing to be done with the axles or the rubber wheels but otherwise it’s still a good toy and I wouldn’t want to lose her from my small GoBot collection.

Now let’s see how long it takes me to review my next GoBot. Hopefully when I have a fully set up lighting situation for once.

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