REVIEW: DX9 D11 Richthofen

I've mentioned it a couple of times before, but growing up in the UK I wasn't familiar with the entirety of the G1 cartoon. I had a handful of episodes on VHS tapes, which were of course played on repeat and so became well worn, but much loved. Consequently, the episodes featured have an enduring place in my memory and remain some of my very favourites to this day, and the characters contained within have all made a rather lasting impression too. So, if I told you that some of my favourite adventures were Dinobot Island and the absolute classic The Girl Who Loved Powerglide, it will probably give you some insight into how much I adore the arrogant sky jock that this figure represents. Yep, it's POWERGERRRLIIYYDE!

REVIEW: DX9 D-10 Hattori Hanzo

Despite being released in late 2016, I was a little slow off the mark to pick up Hattori Hanzo, DX9’s latest Masterpiece-styled release and their attempt at the Decepticon six-changer, Sixshot. I’ll admit that the initial reveal didn’t quite tempt me enough to immediately leap on him, which was probably not helped by my being somewhat underwhelmed by their previous attempt at a multi-mode former, Gewalt. That said, most people seemed to love that figure, and I myself was quite a fan of Tyrant & Mightron, their takes on Galvatron & Megatron respectively. Add to this that their previous releases have for the most part been quite well made, so perhaps it was inevitable that I might reconsider at some point.

REVIEW: DX9 D09 Mightron

INTRODUCTION
Oh, boy, this is going to be an interesting one. This figure has already caused quite a commentary on-line, and so I've been thinking about the best way to approach this review. Usually, I would try to consider the various perspectives that TF fans might have when analysing a particular figure for their collection, but it seems that there's some especially strong opinions this time around. So, my conclusion is to simply present you with my own personal take - likes & dislikes - and let it fall where it may. I already know that not everyone will agree with everything I'm about to write, but it should hopefully help to give you a decent overview of the figure in hand, at least!

So, it's fair to say that the concept of a "Masterpiece" Megatron is one that's caused feverish levels of excitement and frustration amongst much of the on-line TF fandom, probably in equal measure. Whilst rumours have persisted for years that an official version (or rather, a second one if you count MP-5) is definitely on the cards at some point, others have been involved in some quite intense debate and scrutiny over what has up until now been the sole third party challenger for the crown, X-Transbots Apollyon.

REVIEW: DX9 Toys D-08 Gewalt

Like combiners, triple changers are a kind of Holy Grail that the official TakaraTomy Masterpiece line has yet to properly tackle (outside of the likes of Tracks' flight mode, if you count that). Fortunately, a number of third party outfits have stepped up to the plate, and we now have no less than three (why is it always three?!) different versions of Blitzwing on the horizon!

First out of the gate is DX9's Gewalt, who, from pictures at least, appears to be a big chunky bruiser that also seems to be one of the company's most cartoon accurate releases thus far. I'm quite a big fan of one of their previous figures, Tyrant, although I'll admit that I was initially going to hold off on Gewalt over some concerns about the two vehicle modes from pics. However, a slew of mostly positive reviews have finally hooked me in. So, was it worth it, or should I have waited for either KFC's Ditka or FansToys' Berserk as my definitive not-Blitzwing?