Review – Robot v2 and Star Pilot
Third-party toymaker PerfectEffect has been making unlicensed Transformers toys for years now (find at Amazon.com*), but with Robot v2 the company goes back to the years before the existence of Hasbro’s Transformers line. Robot v2 may not be based on a Transformers character design — and doesn’t even transform! — but the robot action figure is a fun design and far more entertaining than I had expected.
Robotman? Biotron? You Decide!
Robot v2, the larger robot action figure in Perfect Effect’s Robot v2 and Star Pilot package, is either an homage to the Micronauts Biotron or the Takara Robotman of 1975 that preceded the Micronauts series. I think how you perceive this new toy depends entirely on your personal relationship with the earlier toys that this is based on — Biotron at innerspaceonline.com and Robotman at microforever.com — but, in my eyes, the exact inspiration doesn’t matter all that much because this new toy is so very fun all on its own. Purists can likely argue the specifics, but I’ll be busy playing with a little robot action figure and trying to ignore any in-depth discussions about the toy’s parentage.
Sculpt and Paint
Robot v2, as I believe the pics prove, looks phenomenal. The robot stands 4.5-inches tall, and the sculpted details, while not overwhelming, provide enough visual interest to keep the figure from being at all dull. There are small sculpted panel lines, indentations, and faux armor plating, all of which is decorated with minimal paint apps; the majority of the toy’s coloring comes from the plastic, not painted details. The resulting figure isn’t an exact match for the Micronauts Biotron or the Takara Robotman toys, but the design is close enough that fans of those toys of the seventies will instantly recognize Robot v2.
Articulation
While not excessive, the Robot v2 action figure is loaded with plenty of articulation to make it playable. Better still, the articulation feels durable and there’s nothing that has me worried I’ll snap a part when playing with the toy.
Looking closely at the Robot v2 action figure we find the following points of articulation:
- Head – Ball-jointed neck.
- Torso – Swivel waist.
- Arms – Ball-jointed shoulders attached to hinges that swing up and down, double-hinged elbows, and swivel wrists.
- Legs – Ball-jointed hips, swivel thighs, double-hinged knees, and ball-jointed feet that provide the toy with limited foot poseability.
Seriously, that’s enough articulation to make the toy playable and poseable for pics. I don’t think any of us would complain if most action figures were limited to these joints. I personally don’t feel like the toy is suffering and am quite happy with the poseability.
Star Pilot
Opening the Robot v2 action figure’s chest we find a second — much smaller — robot action figure. This is Star Pilot, and it is with this little guy where the Micronauts homage ands and the Transformers inspiration is spotted. You see, the Star Pilot robot is a tiny Star Saber (see the TFWiki), making this robot driver who drives a robot a bit of an Easter Egg in what could be easily seen as purely a Micronauts-inspired work. The whole situation kinda makes my brain hurt.
Tank Mode!
Star Pilot isn’t limited to driving the Robot v2 action figure. Taking the Robot v2’s backpack and gun, and expaning the backpack up to reveal a seat and a space to connect the gun, we get a little tank for the Star Pilot robot to drive around. It’s not much, but it is a small callback to the way in which the older Micronauts Biotron and the Takara Robotman toys could become a tank for the driver to pilot.
Closing Thoughts
PerfectEffect (find at Amazon.com*) may be best known for their third-party Transformers works, but after getting my hands on this Robot v2 and Star Pilot set I would be happy to see them take a shot at more toys inspired by the Micronauts. I’ve not heard any announcements, but if they do make more robot action figures then I’ll be there ready to support their efforts.
I’m not quite sure where you can get a Robot v2 of your own. I was going to make some recommendations, but I now see that the toy is sold out at Big Bad Toy Store, Toy Dojo, and TFSource. Wow! That was completely unexpected. I guess just keep your eyes open and watch for one. Good luck hunting!
Great write-up!
I’m sure you knew I’d have to say something on this one (sorry I missed commenting on your last Microman-related post, lol).
I’ll note as before that the Microman toys and manga were VERY popular in much of Asia in the 1970s, with Robotman pretty much the real super-robot hero (even if a piloted one!) of that series, so when I heard the figure sold out nearly everywhere, between that and the interest from the western Micronauts fandom, I wasn’t at all surprised. And as Takara’s first big hero robot toy, he really is the ancestor of all Transformers (and plausibly the inspiration for Diaclone Convoy/Optimus Prime’s color scheme).
There is something else I should point out about this Perfect Effect edition though. The “PD-01” designation has the “D” for Diaclone. Their early promo materials show it standing with Diabattles V2 in the background and even swapping out Star Pilot with a modern Diaclone figure (you can do it with vintage ones too if you like!). The “V2” is likely also meant to link it to Diabattles V2 as an update of a Takara classic. Lastly, his hand sockets are the same as Diabattles V2, so you can equip him with Diabattles V2’s swords, or give his gun to Diabattles V2.
I have to say, he looks awesome armed with those big swords and piloted by a Diaclone figure!
@microbry – Your comments are always welcome here! Your Diaclone and Micronauts knowledge are way deeper than mine; please keep commenting and educating all of us!