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Write a Review link for that item. Transformers - Studio Series (Hasbro)It's been a long time since I last talked about one of the Dinobots from Hasbro's Transformers Studio Series, but now that they've released the last one needed, and I now have all five in the Leader format, it's time to finish up these reviews. Sludge was the third one released, so he'll be the third one I talk about. Sludge came after Hasbro decided to try out plastic-free packaging, so his box is a lot different from Grimlock and Slug/Slag. It isn't a window box, but rather a big illustration on the front, depicting the Dinobots' rescue of the other heroes from the Quintessons and Sharkticons. We still have the movie-themed backdrop on the inside, and it's meant to be for the figure rather than just part of the box. Inside of a plastic tray, we have a cardboard one that everything is tied onto, with his firearm being wrapped in paper taped to the back of the tray. It's not hard to get everything out, and the box is still pretty collector-friendly, being just as easy to fit everything back in. Like the other two Dinobots before him, this is clearly G1 Sludge, and his robot mode is really close to the cartoon. There are a couple differences from his cartoon design to make the toy and its transformation feature work a little better, such as different designs for the shoulders and shin kibble, as well as a wider torso. Even with the adjustments, he looks great, and is quite tall as well at about 8 1/2" tall, which is pretty standard for the Leader class figures. The minimal colors meant Hasbro was able to cut down on paint and just mold his parts in different colors of plastic, but there's still clean work where applicable. They also gave some parts a semi-metallic finish, such as the face, and speaking of, the portrait is very spot-on to the cartoon. A good chunk of Sludge's dino-mode parts are clearly present in bot mode, with the brontosaurus head and neck hanging off his back. I'm fairly sure that it shouldn't be present in bot mode, but it's a separate piece that can go in and out of the clip easily, so you can make him a bit more screen-accurate. Part of the dino kibble makes up his wings, and you can tell the lower legs are supposed to make up part of the dinosaur body. The forearms also have dinosaur toes on them, making it clear they're supposed to be legs. Sludge has pretty standard articulation with a ball-jointed head, swivel/hinge shoulders and hips, double-hinged elbows, hinged knees, swivel biceps, wrists, waist, and thighs, and ankles that hinge inward. Turning the waist will push the dino legs in the back out a bit, but you can adjust the legs so they're out at an angle with the feet tucked in between the dino head and neck so they aren't affected (thanks TF Wiki for the suggestion). Sludge can be a little tricky to convert to dinosaur mode, specifically turning the legs into his tail. The hips and knees have to be angled a certain way to get the parts to sit in correctly, and there's a bit inside the shins to help them go over the pelvis to form the tail. Speaking of which, the tail doesn't really click together well on mine, so hopefully that wasn't a recurring issue. The dino mode isn't too tall at about 5 1/2" with the neck all the way up and the head looking straight forwards, but at about 11" long with the same position, he can still take up a bit of space. The steel brontosaurus looks great once you can get through the hassle of transforming him, with a bold, somewhat shiny look, and plenty of details on the body that add more to an otherwise simplistic cartoon design. I don't think there should be any red on him in dino mode (aside from the Autobot insignia on the head), it's just another thing the cartoon can pull off, but not quite a toy. While the hind dino legs move about the same as the robot arms, since that's what they convert to, the front legs get a bit of movement as well, with swivel shoulders, hinged wrists/feet, and mid-leg swivels. The real cool movement is in the head, as both the head and neck are hinged, with the gold upper part of the neck being on a swivel, enabling him to look all the way around, accompanied by a hinged jaw. The neck is designed so that the mouth can open up all the way, and I noticed a little port inside the mouth, likely for a laser blast effect, as he's showing doing on the box. He doesn't have that, but he does have a firearm. There are tabs on the gun for it to fit on the bottom of dino mode, but the handle can fit in the screw holes on the brontosaurus neck (another thing TF Wiki pointed out), giving you another way to store it. He may not have a pack-in like his two pals before him, but Sludge is still good in his own right. He looks good in both modes, even if they're not trying to make him 100% cartoon accurate, and even though converting him can be a pain, the end result is worth it. It's still possible to get him for retail, so I'd get him soon if you're planning on building up a full Dinobot team. - 2/12/25   by RMaster007 |
| Endoskeleton (Judgement Day) |  | Submission Order |  | Serpent Hunter |
| Slug & Daniel Witwicky | | Transformers - Studio Series Series | | None |
| Endoskeleton (Judgement Day) | | Written by RMaster007 | | Serpent Hunter |
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