Name: Bludgeon
Series: Generation 1
Allegiance: Decepticon
Function: Electric Warrior
Alternate Mode: Tank
TANK MODE
Height: 2.5cm Length: 7cm Width: 3.5cm
A small green tank with a lilac cannon on his green turret, Bludgeon's green is only interrupted by the barrel, which is both logical and slightly disappointing. I don't really expect - or want - too much lilac, but some more colour would have been nice. There are some hints of the brick red of his robot mode at the front, but it just pokes up from underneath. As bland as this colour scheme is, I'm not too worried since at least the green is a realistic colour for a tank - even if the lilac isn't.
This is a pretty simple tank, although Bludgeon's sculpt is decent at this scale. There are moulded treads, hatches on the turret, air vents in a few locations and lots of other details. Of course, they're all unpainted but considering how devoid of detail some pretenders are this is a pretty good effort. My only real gripe about the mould itself is that Bludgeon lacks wheels - he slides along on his treads, and mine is scuffed a little underneath as a result (I got it second hand).
The purple barrel and the green turret are both detachable, which means that both can be lost - mine lacks the barrel (although I've managed a black substitute). The turret can rotate through 180° which is more play value than most Pretenders get in their alt modes.
It's a simple tank mode, but works fairly well compared to the alt modes of a lot of pretenders. I like the moulded detail and moving turret, but really wish there was some more colour and some wheels.
TRANSFORMATION TO ROBOT MODE
Remove the turret, flip out the back to form his boots, stand Bludgeon up, slide up his chestpanel which will reveal his face, give him the purple barrel as his handgun.
ROBOT MODE
Height: 7cm Width: 3cm
Again there's a lot of green - on his arms and boots, but now Bludgeon has red on his thighs, torso and head. The brick red and green work well together and his face is a pale yellow which also works well. The face is simple - just a mouthplate and eyestrip - but the contrast between the yellow and red means it's a well defined face and the details it does have are easy to see. The purple on his gun works better now, since there's more colour and Bludgeon's no longer a tank.
The arms are the treads, and are moulded as tread-links. The scuffing is apparent on mine - I'd rather wheels to this scuffing, even if it's not very severe. The boots are separate pieces of plastic but there's no gap between them. The robot mode is small and compact, and while it's not a spectacular one it looks better than many of the previous year's pretenders.
Poseability is standard for a pretender - the arms swing and that's it. The boots can fold back as part of the transformation but a walking pose can't really work. The gun fits into holes on his wrists, rather than the moulded hands themselves. I don't mind this aspect, since there wouldn't have been an easy way to give Bludgeon moulded hands large enough to hold his gun.
A reasonable robot mode, and while it's better than a lot of pretender robot modes, that's not in itself an achievement. Still, the colours are nice and the moulded hands are well done.
The Pretender Shell
An orange shell with some grey highlights, maroon hands, a maroon helmet and a white head. By far the most distinct feature is the white head, which resembles a skull. This head is the character's defining feature in fact - especially in the Marvel comics which made Bludgeon a memorable character. The colour scheme is a pretty good one, even if it doesn't match that of the inner robot at all.
As you'd expect there's not a lot of play value here - the arms swing and the turret can attach to his left shoulder as a sort of shield. The gun is a soft white plastic and the removable helmet is a soft maroon plastic.
Underneath the helmet there are skull fusion seams on the head, which also has distinctly moulded teeth, and it's this attention to detail that really makes the head work for me here, and the head in turn makes this a great pretender shell. The arms, body armour and helmet are influenced by the samurai concept, yet another nice touch.
The pretender shell is the treat here, and the robot itself almost a side issue. The skull head is _very_ cool and it's the aspect of this toy that was portrayed in the Marvel comic. Mind you, the head isn't the only positive - the colours are good and this pretender shell has no backpack unlike a lot of others.
VARIATIONS
None I'm aware of.
OVERALL
Along with Thunderwing, Bludgeon is a sought after toy, thanks to the character's portrayal in the Marvel comics. While the inner robot isn't terribly memorable, the pretender shell is very well done, so if you're a pretender fan this is a toy worth getting. Having said that finding even an incomplete Bludgeon can be tricky, but if you can find him, I'd recommend Bludgeon if the character appeals - 6.5/10
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