Name: Bruticus
Series: Superlink (Energon)
Allegiance: Destron
Alternate Mode: N/A - Gestalt comprising Blast Off, Brawl, Onslaught, Swindle & Vortex.
COMBINED ROBOT MODE
Height: 25cm Width: 15cm
Bruticus' exact dimensions will depend on both pose and limb configuration, but it's safe to say he's roughly the same size as the G1 Gestalt of the same name. The colour scheme is a composite of orange, purple, silver, cobalt blue and the greens of Swindle and Brawl, with transparent blue hands and feet. While it's not what you'd call a unified colour scheme, the darkish colour all work well together, and are only broken by a fairly sedate orange. The colours are on the whole brighter than those of G1 Bruticus but the effect is still quite similar. The transparent blue works better than I'd expect, since it fits in with the transparent blue details of the individual toys.
As with the original Scramble City Gestalts, all four small Combaticons can form either arms or legs. Brawl and Swindle work equally well as arms or legs but I find Vortex and Blast Off work slightly better as arms than legs since when used as feet their Energon attachments make for somewhat loose feet. I'm happy to report than the attachments all work well as hands, which can't be said Superion or the cranes that form limbs of Devastator. In fact, Vortex and Blast off end up with five digit hands, which only reinforces my preference for making them the arms. The "standard" config is one tank and one chopper for both the arms and legs, but you're free to use the choppers as arms and tanks as legs (or reverse if you so desire).
The shoulders and knees are all ratcheting joints of the same type - thanks to the limb swapping gimmick. So the shoulders rotate and the knees can swivel, while the neck also rotates (and when you turn it you'll notice his blue eyes have a lightpipe). The hips and shoulders swing in and out, as well as back and forth while the large footpads allow for quite a range or leg posing. The arm poseability isn't as useful as it could be since Bruticus comes without any true ranged weapons, although his digits are tubular and can easily double as barrels. If you have the tanks as arms he has arm-mounted turrets. The connecting joints are quite sturdy, so limbs aren't likely to fall off as you might expect. They also allow you to connect Constructicons or Aerialbots if you feel the need.
Onslaught's spark crystal forms the centrepiece of Bruticus' chest, which protrudes somewhat. There's a Decepticon logo stamped on top of his chest, but for some reason it faces backwards (and serves no purpose on Onslaught). While this only ranks as a minor flaw, it's fairly prominent. The only other real negative visually is a somewhat small head, at least in comparison to those of G1 Gestalts. The lightpipe and big black antennae on the side make for a visually effective head, it's just that it's small in comparison to his chest.
The advance in technology means that unlike most G1 Gestalts his head and chestplate are integrated. His hands and feet are the accessories of the limbs, so nothing is simply left aside waiting for you to form Bruticus. The only previous instances of fully integrated Gestalts are Magnaboss & Tripredacus, Devastator also fits into this category (Superion does not).
VARIATIONS
I have the Japanese version, I have not studied the Anglophone version up close, but there are likely some paint mask changes - and the component names are different.
OVERALL
While there are some minor flaws, Bruticus is a great Gestalt comprised of five very good components. The G1 tribute is readily apparent and I like the fact that all four components actually work as arms or legs. Granted, the loose feet on the chopper-legs can be annoying, but it's easily remedied. My only real complaints are the smallish head and lack of a handheld weapon. Considering the strength of his components, Bruticus is a Gestalt I very much recommend - 9/10
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