General Information
Release Date: September 2020
Price Point: $19.99 (depending on retailer)
Retailer: General Release (Amazon, Target, Walmart etc.)
Accessories: Spear, Blade weapon
Official images and text in italics are from Amazon.com
- DISCOVER EARTHRISE: The siege is over, but the War for Cybertron has just begun. The Autobots and Decepticons have left Cybertron, but their battle rages on as they speed through space in pursuit of the Allspark
- BUILD THE BATTLEFIELD BEYOND: Earthrise collectible figures allows fans to build out epic space battle scenes, featuring figures that can convert into Modular Battle Station modes and connect together to expand the battlefield (each sold separately, subject to availability)
- G1 EARTH MODES AND WEAPONS: Quintesson Allicon toy converts into beast mode in 14 steps and comes with a spear accessory
- EXCITING REVEAL: Every pack includes a piece of the Transformers Universe map and a red decoder to unlock the map's hidden paths. Collect other Earthrise figures to piece together the full map. (Each sold separately. Subject to availability)
Build the Battlefield Beyond -- The siege is over, but the War for Cybertron has just begun. The Autobots and Decepticons have left Cybertron, but their battle rages on as they speed through space in pursuit of the Allspark. Now, fighters must instantly adapt to battle anywhere in the cosmos. With the highly advanced A.I.R. (Adaptable Interconnection Retrofitter) Locks system, the fighters don’t head to the battlefield -- they become it. Bots capable of converting into Modular Battle Stations can A.I.R.-Lock together in custom configurations to fit the needs of battle. This ecosystem of collectible figures allows fans to build out epic space battle scenes, featuring figures that can convert into Modular Battle Station modes and connect together to expand the battlefield (each sold separately, subject to availability). An obedient guard, this Quintesson Allicon converts into beast modes in 14 steps and comes with a spear accessory. Transformers and all related characters are trademarks of Hasbro.
The Allicons were first introduced in the 1986 Transformers: The Movie animated film. When Hot Rod and Kup wind up on the savage world of Quintessa, they encounter a team of Allicons who seem possibly friendly at first, but quickly turn violent. This type of Quintesson warrior would appear again during season three of the G1 cartoon, but after that they seemed to be doomed to obscurity. However, with the Quintessons appearing in Earthrise, the Allicons have finally made their way to being an official Transformers action figure!
Accessories:
The Allicon figure includes two accessories. One is a blade weapon that is formed from the end of the tail. This is not based on any previous media (that I can recall) but an original flourish added to the figure for play value. This weapon is cast in green plastic and has a 5mm peg at the end. The other accessory is a spear based on the one seen in The Killing Jar. The spear has a blade tip at one end and a spike at the eother. This piece is grey plastic with softer, light grey plastic for the spear tip. The spear handle has a rectangular slot allowing you to store it on Allicon's back. The spear is 5mm so Allicon can hold it in his hands. The handle is also long enough that he can hold it in both hands if you position his arms properly!
Robot Mode:
When the Allicon design was created for Transformers: The Movie in the 80's, the design was created to focus on how the character would look on screen versus becoming a physical transforming action figure. The result is a design that Hasbro did their best to replicate, but there were some compromises made to get it into this price point. That sounds more ominous than it is. I think Allicaon looks fantastic and carries over a lot of the animation model's features. Here are some of the key features on this figure that come from the cartoon:
- Head: The head design comes right out of the cartoon including a thin, tall crest on the top of the helmet section and a "mouthplate" along with two angled eyes.
- Tors: The torso design features a distinctive raised section right in the middle with two indented sections flanking it. This figure reflects that design, though they are "pushed in" a bit more than the animation model generally showed.
- Arms: The shoulders and arms borrow heavily from the animation model, including shoulder armor with spikes running along them and tube shaped forearms with two spikes sticking out from the sides. Unfortunately the beast mode arms are attached to the forearms, so I recommend rotating them back so they are out of the way.
- Legs: The leg designs also come right from the animation models, including feet with two large "claws" in front and an upturned "claw" in the back.
- Back: The tail of the beast mode winds up on the back of the figure, forming a curved back armor piece.
Allicon is made up of grey, green and lavender colored plastic. There are several parts that are made up of soft, light grey plastic such as the spikes on his shoulders. Paint applications include light blue, red, lavender and silver. The Allicon did not exactly have a super complex deco in the animation, so I am very happy that the designers made it a point to follow as much of the animated design as they could. He has a nice variety of colors and they break up some of the colors like the grey on the torso very well.
There are twenty two points of articulation on this figure including five in each arm and leg. I was surprised that he had waist articulation because of how chunky the figure looks, but he has that too! There are five 5mm ports on this figure. One is found on each lower leg and another is found on each forearm. There is also once on the back of the figure. This gives you the chance to attach plenty of extra weaponry, making this deadly creature even more scary on the battlefield!
Transformation to Beast Mode:
- Detach the weapons and set them aside for now.
- Straighten out the arms and legs.
- Attach the blade weapon to the end of the tail on the back.
- Rotate the waist around.
- Push the green waist panel down.
- Lift up the tail section, rotate it around and pushit down, using the tabs on the tail section to fit into the slots on the robot chest.
- Attach the forearms to the torso using the tabs on the forearms.
- Rotate the beast mode arms around.
- Swing the robot legs up, bending them to form the beast mode legs.
- The spear can be held in the beast mode claws or attached to the back.
Beast Mode:
Allicon's beast mode is a bipedal mechanical crocodile/alligator-esque creature...thing. You know what? That's awesome. He represents the kind of weirdo creatures you really do not see in the Transformers toy line much anymore and I am ecstatic the designers did not try to give him some new sleek or modernized form. This character is inherently weird and should be allowed to remain that way. A lot of the animation model's details made it into this figure including the giant head/mouth with sharp looking teeth. His back has spikes and ridges and he has clawed hands that look ready to tear up some enemies.
All that said, there are some significant differences between the animation model and this figure. First, the animation mode had a row of spikes running along the middle ofthe head. These are absent on this figure. Interestingly, there is a slot on the nose where an accessory featuring these spikes could have been attached. I wonder if that was planned but later abanondened due to cost. Also, the legs were set wider apart, giving him a lower crouch than this figure can achieve. Finally, the robot arms stick out in a very obvious fashion on the sides, fists and all. I wish the forearms had been design to allow the fists to swing in or out of sight in some way. The arms really look awkward like this and this is perhaps the figure's biggest flaw in my opinion.
The colors in this mode are the same as the robot mode. Most of the "new parts" you see are the beast mode head, which has a nice combination of lavender, light blue, red and bone white paint on it. I'm actually very happy with how much paint they put into this form. The teeth especially are individually painted when they could have left them green and I'm very happy about that.
There are sixteen points of articulation in this mode including six in each leg and both halves of the beast mode head. Allicon can hold is weapons in his beast mode hands, which is a fun touch. This mode features seven 5mm ports (not counting the hands) so you can really arm this guy up to ridiculous levels.
Final Thoughts:
Despite its flaws, the Allicon figure was a must have for my collection. This falls into the category of figures I never thought Hasbro and Takara Tomy would make, so it's already a winner in that sense. That said, it's not perfect. Clearly some cost cutting happened here and the figure does suffer a bit for it. Still, this figure is recommended!
Pros:
- Overall a good sculpt (with some flaws).
- Represents a character that most fans never expected to see in the official Transformers tly line.
- Good play value.
- Good deco.
- Good articulation.
Cons:
- The robot arms sticking out in beast mode is really unfortunate. It messes with the aesthetics pretty significantly.
- I wish the beast mode head had the "spikes" on it.
