Review – Transformers Hatchet

Transformers Cyberverse Decepticon Hatchet* is yet another Transformers movie toy that demonstrates why I need to pay closer attention to the movie-based Transformers toys. Just like Sunspot (review here), Hatchet is clearly from the movieverse and clearly looks remarkable. An okay jet and a fantastic gargoyle-like robot, Hatchet came home with me as soon as I saw him in the store.

Jet Mode

Below is Hatchet’s weakest mode, as a jet, which looks nice and all from the front, top, and sides, but turn the toy around and you encounter his dark secret: Hatchet’s claws just hang out back under the wings where they seem to be reaching for . . . well, I don’t know what Hatchet is trying to grab but he’s definitely reaching for something (his claws are sculpted so that they are forever open and cannot close).

Hatchet’s black and gold color scheme, with some gray and silver detailing, gives the toy its dark, menacing look and helps the jet look like some sort of predator outfit out to destroy everything in its path. I’ve no idea exactly what real world fighter this is meant to be — or if it’s just a mix of parts — but it looks close enough to a real jet for my purposes. Besides, it’s not as if I’m going to display him in jet mode.

Below you can see Hatchet and Sunspot preparing for some sort of unspeakable evil. I’m not exactly sure on what the two are up to, but I am sure that they’re both excellent examples of why I need to dig through the movieverse toys more often and stop shaking my head in frustration at the lack of a Windcharger in the stores.

Robot Mode

And now we get to what makes Hatchet* look as great as he does. Some sort of beast-like monstrosity — this review at It’s All True compares it to a Ghostbuster’s Terror Dog — Hatchet has a gargoyle-like shape with spread wings, a toothy maw, and sharp claws reaching out to slice opponents to ribbons. Click the below photos for closer looks at the toy’s design.

The sculpt is pretty tight, with the movie-like head design one of the toy’s strongest features. The eyes are a little small to be clearly seen on such a detail-packed face, but that’s my only complaint with the head sculpt. The claws look great and when looking at the toy I love how the rear wings of the jet frame Hatchet’s head. Overall I’ve got no complaint with the sculpt of the toy; in fact the look is exactly what made me grab this guy when I was in Target.

Articulation is mostly good, with ball-jointed hips and shoulders and hinges at the knees, wrists, neck, and “ankles.” The only things I really would have liked would be a ball-jointed neck, hinged lower jaw, and some sort of articulation for the claws. But those are nitpicks and completely unreasonable wishes for a toy of this size. Still, dreaming is free. (A ball-jointed neck would have allowed someone to create a more Generation One-style head for Hatchet.)

Hatchet’s* paint is pretty clean, with fairly even lines and (as I already said) a great choice of colors. Some gold or silver on the claws would have made them pop more, but again that’s probably something that just wasn’t possible for a toy of this size. But any expert customizers/painters out there with a Hatchet could do wonders for the toy’s look by just simply painting the claws.

Anyone know what type of paint works well on modern Transformers toys?

Hatchet’s final feature are his two small winged drones that snap under his wings. These are drones in jet mode, but a simple twist of plastic and they turn into cannons when he’s in robot mode. And in a move that I find especially surprising Hasbro made the two cannons different. Weird. I would have opted to go with two identical cannons (less work and cost), but I guess one of the designers at Hasbro felt the toy needed two different weapons.

Closing Thoughts

For the most part I ignore the Transformers movieverse toys, but between this and Sunspot (review here) I swear I’m going to start taking a close look at each toy in the line. I doubt that will change my buying habits all that much, but looking is free and I may just get lucky and find another design that I enjoy.

Anyone who likes the look of the toy in these photos should consider grabbing one for their collection, because this is one of those toys that’s as much fun to pose and play with as it is to look at. No weak joints, no balance issues, and overall it’s simply a great Transformers toy . . . despite it’s movieverse origin.

Philip Reed should look in stores while he’s in Dallas because there’s a good chance he’ll find toys here that he never sees in Austin.