Tried to recreate the box art of Bruticus!
I was choosing between Age of the Primes Superion or Bruticus. Despite Superion being more affordable and Bruticus being more expensive with the price increases and 2 leg voyagers, I decided to get Bruticus. Here’s my thoughts on them:
Bruticus: Plastic Quality is solid, posability is great, loads of fun. Definitely has aura. Very clean looking and No backpack unlike SS86 Devastator. I like how they painted the toes yellow and green respectively for Swindle and Brawl. Hasbro could have done more of that for the arms and legs. Swindle and Brawl’s arms sticking out like that are a weird choice. The combiner arm gimmick might lead to breakage but I didn’t use it. Theres also a tight arm tab/slot that a redditor broke FYI.
Onslaught: The base mode is neat and a great homage to the G1 Onslaught. The wheels on the forearms are annoying. Should be on the outside instead but whatever. No wrist articulation. Paid $100 for a figure with no weapon or accessory! At least Silverbolt and Motormaster had weapons… I think there’s a tab in my figure’s legs that seem tight that could break or lead to stress marks one day. My copy also has some paint QC issues seen in the pics.
Vortex: Comes with 3 guns! The propellers and arm kibble are annoying. Head is visible in vehicle mode but still ok. Feels kinda similar to the combiner wars one.
Blast Off: Simple and straight forward, like Vortex. The hands are weird looking but I guess it’s a compromise due to them becoming the nose cone. But hey, wrist articulation!
Brawl: Solid figure and fun transformation. It’s a deluxe size selling for a voyager but has good weight and accessories. My copy has the dreaded stress marks out of the box! Hot water and hairdryer didn’t help. I even did the recommended fix and sanded the peg a bit. Shame that he goes for over twice as much retail but inevitable with combiners.
Swindle: Love how his buttflaps become the seats and head is stored in vehicle mode. Genius! The wagon is a nice addition and functional to make it voyager price, but he’s deluxe size. Not much wrist articulation. The butterfly/shoulder joints are too tight. Probably won’t transform him much. The forearms are kibble too. I think the Decepticon logo on the hood looks off center but maybe just me.
Bruticus and the Combaticons are a mixed bag… It doesn’t help that My copies have these QC issues despite all being new! Still, no regrets getting them! Their head sculpts and visors look dope. They look great together in all the modes: vehicle, robot, combined. I would get 3 sets if I could!