Cliffbee.com Reverse Evolution SixTurbo Toy Review

Individual Review




Name: SixTurbo
Series: Japanese Generation 1 Reissue (Chase)
Allegiance: Destron
Function: Six Robot Gestalt Warrior
Alternate Mode: N/A - Gestalt comprising Circuit, Discharge, Glide, Neo-Wheel, Road Police & Sireen

Originally, I picked up Glide & Discharge when I got my regular SixTurbo. I came across the other four fairly cheap and decided to complete the set. These toys are often referred to as "black", which means that I can lay claim to having a Black Discharge... although I'm not sure that I want to.

Name: Circuit
Allegiance: Destron
Alternate Mode: Racing Car



Car Mode Height: 1.5cm Length: 5.5cm Width: 3cm
Robot Mode Height: 5cm Width: 3cm

   A black Formula-1 racer with a white Destron symbol on his nose and a charcoal rear spoiler. This is a pretty good racer for a Micromaster, the black actually could work here, although most black racers have more colour than this. Circuit's black plastic helps you focus on the car's shape and makes for a fairly attractive vehicle mode.

   The wheels roll, although not well. He has a very low ground clearance, as one would expect of a racer, but wont scrape on the table. There's no other play value here, not that I really expect any more of Circuit.

   His transformation is simple enough - fold over the rear half to form his boots, lift up the nose and stand him up. Since the nose points out to the back rather than sitting flush against his body, you might need to lift the arms to stand Circuit up.

   The robot mode is mainly black save for the charcoal kneecaps (the spoiler) and a silver screw on his waist. The big nose hanging of the back is his worst aspect - it _really_ affects his stability. You will probably have to swing his arms up (the only poseability of this robot) to make it work. The shoulders are curved since they're the car mode sidepanels, while there are simple moulded hands which have moulded fingers that are better than you'd expect on a Micromaster. The colour isn't anywhere near as successful now, since the charcoal kneecaps look out of place.

Name: Discharge
Allegiance: Destron
Alternate Mode: Fire Engine



Fire Engine Mode Height: 3cm Length: 5cm Width: 2.5cm
Robot Mode Height: 5.5cm Width: 2.5cm

   A boxy black fire truck with only a white Destron logo on the left side for colour. Discharge has hoses and doors moulded on either side towards the back. Also sculpted are strobes, headlights and a license plate at the front. There's a ladder mounted on top, which is short and while it doesn't extend the front has twin nozzles and it can rotate through 360° to aim. The black doesn't mask the details of this truck as much as it does on some of these toys, even if there's no charcoal plastic visible here.

   Transforming Discharge is simple enough - fold out the rear to form her boots, lift up the front to reveal her head and stand her up. The ladder stays on the back, and plays no part in the robot mode, which is a shame since it would have been a nifty feature (as it is in truck mode).

   The robot mode is again all black, with only a socket on her knees done in charcoal (it's part of her SixTurbo leg mode). Her face is quite simple, but it's moulded as a gasmask, which is awesome. Her arms and boots protrude since they're formed form the boxy truck mode, and there's a fair backpack on her back - you need to fiddle sometimes to get Discharge to stand up. The black does tend to ask the detail again here, especially with her protruding arms, but for a limited repaint such as this the concept is novel enough to still work.

   I quite like the vehicle mode and despite the boxiness, I like the robot mode also - especially the facemask. The black suits this mould better than it does Glide, even if the name lends itself to a horrible pun. The lack of charcoal plastic - which is quite prevalent on some of the chase figures - might be considered a drawback, but to me it makes little difference.

Name: Glide
Allegiance: Destron
Alternate Mode: Motorbike



Motorbike Mode Height: 2.5cm Length: 4.5cm Width: 2.5cm
Robot Mode Height: 5.5cm Width: 2.5cm

   A black police motorbike similar in model to Groove, Glide's only colour is on the storage compartment on the back, with a white Destron logo stamped on the left and some trademark info on the right side. Glide has a moulded saddle, windshield, exhausts, handlebars and headlights while there are black wheels underneath. The engine underneath is a charcoal coloured plastic, but it's tucked away and is easy to miss. This a very good bike mode for a Micromaster, and while the black doesn't bring out the detail well, that's not really the point of this repaint.

   Fold the front over to form his boots, fold down the storage compartment to become his chest and swing the sides of this section down to form his arms. It's a simple transformation that provides us with a decent robot mode. Unlike many larger Transformer motorbikes, there are no tyres that need to detach or any other removable bits.

   While he has distinct thighs, Glide has a single foot (well, a boot), and while this isn't ideal at this scale I don't mind at all - his legs are easily better than Groove's. The arms are short and stubbly which bothers me a little, and we don't really see the logo on his right arm now. The head, groin and thighs are charcoal, and like the bike mode this robot is unpainted. I don't think this robot works all that well in all black, simply because too much definition is lost, but this is a pretty good robot mode for a Micromaster bike nonetheless.

Name: Neo-Wheel
Allegiance: Destron
Alternate Mode: Lamborghini Diablo



Car Mode Height: 1.5cm Length: 5.5cm Width: 2.5cm
Robot Mode Height: 5.5cm Width: 2.5cm

   A black Lamborghini Diablo with a white Destron logo on the hood, Neo-Wheel is probably the most formulaic member of the set, and in black the most generic. He's not a perfect Diablo but there's enough of a semblance for the model to be obvious. There are air intakes on the sides and some crude detailing on the engine cover at the back. The charcoal plastic is limited to the socket for his SixTurbo connection - tucked away and out of sight.

   The transformation is by the numbers, you flip up the front of the car and unfold the back to form boots.

   Neo-Wheel's robot mode is completely black save for a single screw on his waist. The detail on his torso - which was already mediocre - is all but useless now. The black does help mask the huge backpack - black is slimming after all. Neo-Wheel is stable despite the backpack. His poseability is pretty standard for a sports car Micromaster - the arms swing while the hips bend as one and the knees bend. He can sit down and lift his arms.

   Neo-Wheel was the guy who didn't quite belong in this group - he fits in better now since they're _all_ black sheep. While on his own he's a dull figure, Neo-Wheel certainly contributes to the dark theme of this set.

Name: Road Police
Allegiance: Destron
Alternate Mode: Police Car



Police Car Mode Height: 1.5cm Length: 5.5cm Width: 2.5cm
Robot Mode Height: cm Width: 2.5cm

   A black car with a charcoal rear window and the obligatory white Destron logo on his hood, Road Police doesn't so much look like a police car anymore. The black stroberack on his roof is the only hint we get - and even that is a set of transformation hinges. Road Police is a 2 door sports car of some sort, with moulded pop-up lights, taillights, a petrol cap and even tiny side mirrors, all in black of course.

   Transformation is standard - lift out the back to form his boots, flip the hood and windshield up to form his backpack, stand Road Police up. The hinge is set a fair way back, giving him a big backpack but he's more stable than Neo-Wheel.

   The robot itself black with charcoal feet - the rear window. This little splash of colour is more than most of his teammates gets, making Road Police the colourful one! Road Police retains his nifty sculpting, Basically, the helmet is done as a police officer's hat while the chest has a collar and necktie. While it's not so obvious in black, it still shows up fairly well in the circumstances.

   Poseability is fairly standard, with swinging shoulders and knees and hips that bend as one. Road Police can sit down, but you need to swing the large backpack out before he can sit. The boots are huge and function as a single piece, although they're actually two distinct pieces of plastic (with a single silver piece).

   Road Police is one of the better members of this set, with the robot's theme really impressing me. The robot mode is probably the most dynamic of this black set, although the police theme which comes out well in robot mode is pretty much lost in vehicle mode.

Name: Sireen
Allegiance: Destron
Alternate Mode: Ambulance



Ambulance Mode Height: 2.5cm Length: 5cm Width: 2.5cm
Robot Mode Height: 6cm Width: 2.5cm

   A boxy black ambulance with a white Destron symbol on the right side door and no other colour. The stroberack is clearly discernible on his roof, marking out Sireen as an emergency vehicle despite the black. The moulded detail on this ambulance mode is pretty good, so Sireen looks better than most of his teammates in vehicle mode. There are moulded doorhandles and door seams, on both the front and side doors, and there's even hinted taillights and a license plate on the front bumper.

   Sireen has one of the most unusual transformations of all Micromasters - in fact it's unusual amongst Transformers in general. The front facade slides out and down, attaching to the base of the ambulance, which itself folds down to form the back of his legs. The body and thighs are revealed and will move into place as you do this, and the arms - which are the central stripes of the side doors - will likely swing down as well. Lastly, pull out the charcoal overhead guns tucked underneath the roof of the ambulance.

   The boots are the front of the ambulance, with the window as the shins and the grille as the feet, and this clear vehicle feature in robot mode is unusual (and welcome) amongst Micromasters. The head, tucked away underneath the hood, is ridiculously hard too pick out - it hides away on the white version already. It's hard not to count this against Sireen now - the face is pretty much impossible to see. The only meaningful poseability is the arms, which can lift up 90°, but there's enough here to keep me happy with a fairly novel robot mode.



COMBINED MODE
Height: 17cm Width: 10cm

   A fusion of six Micromasters and a bunch of connectors. Road Police sits inside the chest piece, which in turn connects to the groin-thigh piece. Sireen attaches as the right boot and Discharge as the left. Neo-Wheel forms the left arm, and sports a scanner array on the shoulder while Circuit forms the right arm. The chest piece feet and scanner array are charcoal, but everything else is black. There's a white Destron symbol on the chest (Road Police's) while the face and crest are painted a nice metallic gunmetal colour - subtle enough that you could miss it - which looks really nice. The only real splash of colour here is on his green eyes. Glide is the odd bot out who attaches to the back of the groin, and is essentially expendable.

   The arms sit a little too close to the body, but the array on the left shoulder, police car chest, fire truck and ambulance boots all work very well. SixTurbo incorporates the theme running through the set better than most Gestalts - and I'm not just talking about Micromasters. His poseability is average for a Micromaster Gestalt, with a head that can turn a little and shoulders that swing. He holds together fairly well, making for a good combination.

   While the smaller toys don't necessarily feel "evil", SixTurbo definitely has a sinister feel about him - the dark paint on his face and green eyes really help establish this figure as evil and not just black. Much of the detail is lost amongst the black, especially on the limbs, which focusses attention on the head. While I couldn't say this is an attractive colour scheme, as a chase series I think the idea works quite well.

Overall
   I can't really say I recommend this set - it's not exactly easy to find, and could be quite expensive. Individually the components have some novelty value, but for the most part aren't as cool as the original versions. The impact of this repaint is only really felt when you combine them - making this a Gestalt that truly is more than the sum of parts. I can't really recommend this set, since you're likely to have trouble putting the set together, but it's certainly a nice limited edition set that I'd recommend if you have a chance to get it.

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