{"id":27977,"date":"2014-05-24T00:14:00","date_gmt":"2014-05-24T05:14:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.itsalltrue.net\/?p=27977"},"modified":"2014-07-01T00:44:27","modified_gmt":"2014-07-01T05:44:27","slug":"transformers-masterpiece-ratbat-soundblaster-mp-13b","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.itsalltrue.net\/?p=27977","title":{"rendered":"Transformers MP Ratbat
& Soundblaster"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/a> Repaints have always been around. Some of my favorite lines as a kid reused bodies like nobody\u2019s business. I don\u2019t remember caring one lick. Was it just because I was a kid? Was it because it got the job done? Was it just because I wasn\u2019t paying for them? I imagine the latter may have had something to do with it, but I do go back to the middle point there too. If a repaint gets the job done, why does it still bother us sometimes? <\/p>\n

We grumble that they should be cheaper; we don\u2019t care if the repaint is amortizing the costs of the original. We grumble that something should be done to add value; we want something to differentiate it from our original purchase. We want to capture that same good feeling that came with our original purchase. Sometimes that backfires. <\/p>\n

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Repaints are nothing new in Transformers. Technically, nearly all the early stuff were repaints from other lines. And, heck, some of those guys got repaints within the new line too. That\u2019s made it easier for Takara as they foray deeper into Masterpiece. Make a new Sideswipe and you\u2019ve got a half dozen potential repaints of different characters to keep us hooked. The same with the Seekers. I don\u2019t think twice about buying the repaints when they\u2019re a new guy. Tigertrack was a lot easier to pick up than if he were just Yellow Sideswipe. I can pretend my MP Black Prime is Nemesis or Scourge. G2 Sideswipe is different enough that I dig it. <\/p>\n

But this one, this guy, he ended up being a little more difficult purchase.<\/p>\n

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I love MP Soundwave. He\u2019s excellent. One of the hands down best toys released in 2013. I never had him as a kid (my neighbor kid did, which to my parents meant I didn\u2019t \u201cneed\u201d one), but the MP is such a fantastic, modern update to the original that I don\u2019t regret waiting all this time for him. He\u2019s the Soundwave I always wanted. He\u2019s the Soundwave we all deserved. I paid extra to get the import early. I also happily snagged up his cassettes as imports too. I got them earlier and I completely avoided the TRU scramble (though all five cassettes in one pack was a fantastic deal). <\/p>\n

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But Soundblaster? Well, he\u2019s a black repaint of a dark blue Decepticon. He\u2019s also the same character. I have not had the opportunity to watch any of the Headmasters cartoon, but after Soundwave & Blaster clash in a dual-fatal duel (say that three times fast), the pair are revived and rebuilt as repaints (re: New Toy Decos!). Sounds cool. Black repaints are fun\u2026 but MPs are pricey and I gotta start being more discerning at some point or I\u2019m going to end up with really weird stuff. Takara, who would be more than happy to offer a second deco on Soundwave knew that I and others would likely feel that way, so they added a little incentive: Ratbat. <\/p>\n

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It really wasn\u2019t a surprise. I think we all knew it was going to happen after the cassette 2pks were announced and Ratbat was nowhere to be found. A funny thing happened though. We weren\u2019t discussing Ratbat being an incentive to help Soundblaster sell better. It was almost more like Soundblaster was a noose around Ratbat\u2019s neck. (\u201cI gotta buy what to get Ratbat?\u201d). This wasn\u2019t a little thing to help add value to a repaint, this was incentive on acid. I even poke fun at that in the title. This is really just a Soundblaster review with one really cool accessory, but it sure felt like I was buying a Ratbat & Black Soundwave 2pk. <\/p>\n

I\u2019ve seen a lot of folks accept that Ratbat won\u2019t be joining the other cassettes in their collection. Or hoping that Hasbro will bring the popular little guy over (I hope they do!). Personally, I really love the cassettes. I\u2019m pining for the Autobots even now. And I want all the original Decepticon tapes \u2013 Slugfest, Overkill, Squawkbox are high on my MP list. And I had to have Ratbat. No whining about the circumstances of how he was available to me. No worrying or waiting to see what Hasbro was going to do. I just couldn\u2019t pass up the chance. To put it mildly, \u201cthey got me.\u201d Continue to Page 2…<\/a><\/p>\n

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The upside is that Soundwave is a great toy. He looks fantastic in both modes. He\u2019s well articulated. He\u2019s a ton of fun. The downside is that, unlike Sideswipe & Prime, Soundwave isn\u2019t brightly colored. As I said, he\u2019s a very dark blue and unless we\u2019re in good lighting, he and Soundblaster kinda end up looking a lot like (never have I been so jealous of my collector brethren who grabbed the yellow-visored TRU Soundwave, that would be something).<\/p>\n

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There are a few fun differences, like the red cassette door to mimic the original toy. The only downside is that is has no faction symbol. That is instead placed on a purple overlay which allows Soundblaster to be cartoon accurate. The purple overlay is a cool touch, but I\u2019m going to need to pick up a spare D-symbol sticker to help Soundblaster stand out. One thing I am happy about is that the original Soundblaster still used Soundwave\u2019s blue stickers. He looked ridiculous! Luckily, Takara let that one nugget slide for the Masterpiece. <\/p>\n

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I\u2019m not going to go super deep into a Soundblaster review. I\u2019ve already covered that ground pretty thoroughly, so just hit up my Soundwave Review<\/a> and mentally replace the word blue with black every time it shows up. The accessories are a little difference this go round, mostly in terms of color. The energon cube is red. So is the Megatron alt mode (it looks really slick in clear red too). His standard blaster and the sensor are also carried over from the first release. <\/p>\n

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But the main accessory, or reason you bought the set possibly, is Ratbat! And, hey another good thing? He\u2019s as well done as the previous cassettes. He fits the alt mode requirements of transforming into a rectangle that fits the classic size. He looks fantastic in his \u201cbot\u201d mode. He can fit the same grooves as Buzzsaw and Laserbeak. His rocketpack is smartly worked into the transformation instead of being a separate piece. He\u2019s everything you would want out of an MP Ratbat, just at a much higher price than you want to pay.<\/p>\n

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Overall, is Ratbat worth a $160? Not really, but we can\u2019t just overlook the big imported black Transformer behind him. There are two great bots here even if only one is new. For me, the advantage to owning Soundwave and Soundblaster is that I get to display him in both modes. Soundblaster will be a slick looking black cassette player while Soundwave holds down the fort looking iconic in bot mode. And the upside, all six cassettes released so far. I still hold out hope that there\u2019s a cheaper alternative; that Hasbro will get Ratbat out domestically at some point, but for now this was the way to go and I\u2019ll do my best to enjoy double the Soundwave. <\/p>\n


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Related Reviews:<\/strong><\/p>\n

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For Even More Reviews, check out our Review Index<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n

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