Review – Hercules Exgraver

The completely unofficial Transformers Devastator is getting closer to completion, with four of the six figures in my hands. We have already looked at two of these incredible transforming robot toys — Structor review here, Heavy Labor review here — and now it’s time for the third in the series, the not-Scavenger but Exgraver power shovel. And while he looks great, balance issues make this the (so far) weakest link in Hercules.

Fits Right In

As you can see in the above photo, Exgraver’s colors and design fit perfectly with the other two Hercules members that I’ve already reviewed. The height is great, colors a dead-on match, and the details like the face sculpt and those shoulders make him unique but still obviously from the same toy series. As part of the group, Exgraver is excellent — and a must own if you buy even one other release in this series.

Power Shovel Mode

The tiny rolling wheels allow Exgraver to drive smoothly across the floor, and while not as nice as Heavy Labor or Structor when it comes to driving around it’s decent wheel movement and not bad for a tracked vehicle. The shovel moves nicely with three hinged joints and the one swivel where the shovel plugs into the main body; and the shovel remains removable so that you can move it to the left arm and use it as a massive weapon. I’m not a fan of that look, though, so I leave the shovel on his back in robot mode.

Robot Mode

Basically, Exgraver is as durable, fun, and remarkable as Structor (review here) and Heavy Labor (review here) and the closer I get to owning all six parts of Hercules the tougher it’s getting to decide if I’m going to display these guys as six individual robots or the one not-Devastator giant robot. As you can see in the photos he looks really cool in robot mode and the legs are far more articulated than I expected from treads. Overall the articulation is great, with lots of swivels and hinges that allow you to get Exgraver into all sorts of poses . . . as long as you can keep that shovel on his back balanced just right.

Shovel Issues

That massive shovel really is the only problem that I’ve encountered with Exgraver. As cool as it looks in power shovel mode it’s just a huge weight on his back when he’s in robot mode. I may just remove the shovel and store it away if I decide to display the team as six individual robots; the shovel isn’t even all that noticeable when he’s in robot mode so there’s no reason for me to deal with the frustrations it causes. I’ve seen a few other reviews where they used the shovel on his arm as a weapon and that seemed to balance okay, but I’m not a fan of that look so I just leave it stuck to his back.

Seriously, These Are Amazing

The next time I run across a bad, cheap unofficial Transformers toy (see my post about Supreme Tactical Commander for a really bad toy) I am going to reach for the various Hercules toys just to remind myself that there are unofficial toys that are even better than what we get from Hasbro. The plastic quality on these is at least as good as — and maybe even better — than what we get from Hasbro and, more importantly, transforming these toys does not make me question my intelligence. Hell, I’ve even transformed a couple of them fairly quickly when showing them off to friends. These may be $100/each, but so far I am thinking these are more durable and more fun than most of the official Transformers toys that I’ve bought over the last few years.

Closing Thoughts

And with this we close the year the way we started it here at battlegrip.com, with a review of an unofficial Transformers toy. But unlike the year’s first review (Fansproject Protector Armor review here), this toy is one I am recommending to anyone who is a fan of the classic Transformers toys. And if you’re a Devastator fan then you need this series; sell your children, pawn your lesser toys, and do whatever it takes to put together $600 to buy this set.

Great work, and easily my choice for best toy line of 2011.

Philip Reed will now go an enjoy the final day of the year by assembling furniture. Yes, he knows how to live an exciting life.