Transformers War for Cybertron: Earthrise Trailbreaker
New week, new blog, and after looking at older figures over the past couple of weeks we’re headed back to modern times with today’s figure. Now if you haven followed me for a while, you might know I used to do Transformers reviews on YouTube, I didn't do very many, they were a lot of time and effort that i didn’t think was worth it in the long run. One of the figures I reviewed was Earthrise Hoist, and while that is not today’s subject he is VERY similar so apologies for those that have seen that video, this review might sound a bit similar. So let’s take a look at War for Cybertron Earthrise Trailbreaker.
Trailbreaker is interesting because I feel like he is one of the more forgotten members of the original cast, even though he did show up in the beginning of the original 1984 show quite a bit. He would just kinda show up, use his force field ability and then leave for like 3 episodes before showing back up. His design is somehow both unique and uninteresting, I really don’t know how to describe it so I guess I should just jump right in and look at the figure in detail.
As always, let’s start with the head, which is primarily a block like helmet with facial features and a visor. The helmet itself is fine, it has got some simple details and lines to give it some definition and from the top you can tell it has a subtle roundness. On either side you have these trapezoidal ear sections as well as some small helmet mutton chops. The face has some good definition to it, allowing to make out the nose and mouth and his expression is pretty standard for Trailbreaker I feel, a stern neutral combination. The head is on a ball joint meaning you have a full rotation as well as some rocking left and right and back and forth. Not a lot due to the shape of the head but enough.
The torso is his usual brand of uniqueness, with the windshield mono-pectoral, and the truck hood gut. His back is pretty simple, just the canopy cover for the truck mode. He does have his 2 back mounted contraptions, on the left you have a simple missile/gun and on the right you have his famous radar scanner, or as the show depicted it, his force field generator. Now you may have noticed, that while his torso looks the part from the outside, the inside is very hollow and everything is connected via a single support beam which is a third translucent plastic, which doesn’t bode well for this toy's longevity.
The arms are detailed blocks connected via the various articulation points, and I know I have used this analogy before in the Deep Cover review but it still rings true here. Full rotation at the hand well over 90 degrees in the elbow, and a full bicep rotation. Now we get to the shoulders which are… odd. First thing you notice is that they are on an angle because of the wheel wells in his torso, which is fine honestly, the shoulders can move down to sit straight. Speaking of shoulder movement, the outward movement is really good, able to go a full 180 despite the joint being odd. As for back and forth movement it is unhindered and can go a full 360, but the panel that sits behind his arm is attached at the same joint meaning it comes with the arm when you move it. Most of the time it doesn’t look too bad but at certain angles and poses it looks awkward and unappealing.
Legs are just as, if not more, chunky than the arms. The molded details here are really nice and none get lost in the paint or plastic, which is always a bonus, and the silver paint on his shins really pops. I do appreciate the red knee caps and the red in the hips as a way to homage the original toy. He has your standard modern day articulation in the legs, with a few surprises; around 80 degree ankle tilt, double hinge knees, full thigh swivel, full outward hip movement as well as full forward hip movement. The back movement on the hips is limited by the design of the waist, but you get a good 30 degrees, and speaking of the waist it also has a full rotation.
As for accessories he technically has two. First off is this gun/missile piece, It looks really good with the silver section paying homage to the OG toys missiles. On the topic of homage the gun is designed to fit over his hand to again reference the original toy, where you could replace its hands with missiles. This piece can go over either hand, although the cartoon did give him a cannon hand on his left arm, so that is the go too spot for most people. The other accessory is his canopy. It can be removed from his back, and attached to either arm as a sort of shield, but because of it’s design it limits articulation and it has to go on the arm opposite the gun. You can attach it to the shoulder as well but again, severely limits articulation.
Transformation is very simple, the only part that sometimes catches me up is the arms, but that is mainly my own fault for forgetting to rotate them around before bringing them down. Also make sure you rotate the fists so the thumb is facing up, otherwise they will drag across the ground. The vehicle itself is a very nice black pick-up truck. I really like the silver stripe that goes across the side as well as the yellow, orange and red accents to help break up the black. The front bumper is also fully painted silver and has translucent blue headlights, although I don't know if they were worth having the entire hood section be molded translucent plastic, but who knows maybe it couldn’t be helped. Now you may have noticed that the color matching in this mode is off, and that is because the plastic color they use is closer to a very dark brown then it is black, like the paint. It is not the most egregious job of color matching they have done in the whole of WFC, and I find it much more noticeable here in truck mode than robot mode. He rolls well in this mode and you can plug the gun into the canopy as a sort of weapon storage.
All in all Earthrise Trailbreaker is a very solid deluxe, he has a couple of flaws but nothing I can’t get over. Robot mode is fun, transformation is simple and truck mode looks nice, can’t really ask for much else. 6.5/10. As always the gallery is up as well if you want to check that out, while you're there feel free to check out any of the other galleries that are up if they interest you or feel free to go back and read any of my previous reviews. Next week is a figure I am not a fan of, and he will probably be my lowest ranking figure for a very long time, see you all then.
