General Information
Release Date: July 2020
Price Point: $49.99 (depending on retailer)
Retailer: General Release (Amazon, BigBadToyStore, Entertainment Earth, Target, Walmart etc.)
Accessories: Missile (splits into two sections), Bird Tail with stabilizers, Missile pods x 2, Blaster, Radar Pod, "Powermaster" engine
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 figures allow 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)
- CONVERT TO MODULAR BATTLE STATION: Doubledealer toy can convert into a Modular Battle Station mode
- G1 EARTH MODES AND WEAPONS: Doubledealer figure converts into tank mode in 20 steps then to bird mode in 37 steps and comes with 2 accessories
- 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)
This ecosystem of collectible figures allows fans to build out epic space battle scenes This Doubledealer toy can convert into a Modular Battle Station mode and connect to other Stations to expand the battlefield. (Each sold separately. Subject to availability). The ruthless Decepticon mercenary, Doubledealer, converts to tank mode in 20 steps then to bird mode in 37 steps and comes with 2 accessories.
Background:
In 1988 Hasbro introduced a new character into the Transformers toy line named Doubledealer. Instead of being the usual Autobot or Decepticon, Doubledealer guy was a mercenary with three forms: an "Autobot" mode, a "Decepticon" mode and a vehicle mode. He was a very unique character in the line but he has only been given one Generations nod back in 2014 (which was a redeco/retool of Blitzwing). Years later, Hasbro would create a Leader Class version of the character as part of Earthrise. If you want a shot of nostalgia, check out the commercial for the character from 1988 below:
Packaging:
It is kind of amazing what a difference a few years can make. As I'm writing this review in 2023 most Leader Class figures are packaged in closed boxes heavily featuring artwork on the front of each box (think Transmetal 2 Megatron). During Earthrise however, Leader Class figures were packaged in large window boxes. The box was rectangular with one angle on the left side (if you are facing the box). The Transformers logo is in red on the right side set vertically with the small "Generations" logo above it. The "Earthrise" logo is set at an angle at the bottom and on the left angled side is Doubledealer's artwork in robot mode. Inside the box, Doubledealer sits in a plastic tray and you can see almost the entire figure through a window (with clear plastic on top). The background is black and shades of blue, looking like outer space.
The back of the box features Doubledealer in all three modes. It calls out his transformation steps from robot to bird (37 steps) and robot to vehicle (20 steps). It also shows the vehicle configured to launch the missile accessory. It also calls out the ability of the rocket base to attach to ramps and Micromaster bases in Earthrise.
Accessories:
Doubledealer features a ton of accessories, some of which are references to the original G1 figure and others which are cool additions for this release:
- Missile: The original Doubledealer incuded a missile accessory that would split into a blaster weapon and a shoulder mounted rocket launcher for the robot mode. This figure has the same. This missile is huge, running the entire length of the vehicle mode. It is very detailed featuring a ton of mechanical detailing. The weapon can be split into a blaster weapon and a shoulder mounted rocket launcher. That said, the blaster portion is much larger than the G1 version. So much that you have to lock the robot elbows in a specific position so he can hold the blaster up! The rocket launcher portion features a 5mm peg on the bottom so it can be attached to Doubledealer. The blaster section has one 5mm peg at the back so Doubledealer can hold it. It also features one 5mm port and peg on each side, allowing you to attach other weapons to it. The front of the barrel has a port for a Blast Effect. These pieces are made of grey plastic (with a black clip at the bottom). Red and light blue paint are used to fill in details.
- Blaster: A smaller blaster is also included with the figure. This looks like a more typical hand held blaster and features a 5mm peg and a smaller peg in the front that can fit Blast Effects. This piece is made of black plastic with no paint applications.
- Radar Pod: Another accessory created just for this set (and not as a homage to G1 Doubledealer) is the Radar Pod. This piece is roughly rectangular with a 5mm peg at the bottom and ports on the sides. The front has a flat panel (representing the radar "dish"). The bottom and top have 5mm pegs while the sides have 5mm ports so in theory you could turn this into the core of a larger weapon by attaching weapons from other figures! This piece is made of black plastic with grey paint in front.
- Missile Pods: Doubledealer includes two small missile pods, each one featuring seven cylinders, each presumably with a "missle" that Doubledealer can launch against his enemies. In reality these pieces are just solid black plastic each featuring a 5mm peg on the side.
- Launch Platform: The "tail feathers" in beast mode become a launch platform that attaches to the back of the vehicle mode. On either side of this piece are stabilizer legs that also kind of look like rocket boosters in robot mode (more on that later). The "feathers"/platform piece is grey plastic with the stabilizers made of black plastic.
- "Powermaster" engine: The original Doubledealer toy was a Powermaster, featuring two mini-figures that transformed into engines that attached to Doubledealer to unlock transformations. This Doubledealer is not a Powermaster in design, but his abdominal area features a nod to the original figure with a piece that looks like an engine with machinery in the middle and tubes that come out at angles. This piece is black plastic with grey paint on top. This attaches to Doubledealer via a 5mm port. This can also be used with the Generations Selects Knok and Skar figures to make them into "engines".
Robot Mode:
As many Transformers fans have seen over the years, the G1 box art sometimes offered a very "optimistic" view of the toy inside the package. Proportions were often adjusted on figures to make them look more like works of art or animation models which did not always reflect the actual action figure itself. Doubledealer was a great example of this. His proportions in robot mode looked good, but the actual figure itself had a pretty large head and thin body (to be clear, I love my G1 Doubledealer). When designing this new version of the character, it feels like the designers wanted to make the character look more like his original package art and to that end they did a great job with this robot mode.
First off, Doubledealer's proportions look good. He has a very bulky, powerful looking body. His head is not gigantic anymore but instead skews slightly small, offering a kind of exaggerated look that looks very cool. That said, his basic structure and silhouette are all inspired by his G1 counterpart. Here's a rundown of some of these features:
- Head: The robot head features a helmet section that curves down on top and has panels that come forward past the mouth area. The very top of the helmet has small, flat sections that stick up on the sides. His face features two eyes, a nose, a mouth and a very pronounced chin piece, all nods to this G1 predecessor.
- Arms: The shoulder area on the arms feature windows from the vehicle mode and the forearms are rectangular in shape. Each arm also features panels that have Decepticon symbols on them. Swing the panels up and they reveal Autobot symbols, a nod to his "double dealing" role in the Autobot/Decepticon conflict.
- Torso: The chest panel on Doubledealer features two distinct vertical "bars" with small horizontal line details sculpted into them. These are a direct callback to sticker details on G1 Doubledealer. This chest panel also has smaller sections that stick out to the sides which are also details inspired by G1 Doubledealer's design.
- Mid-Body: The abdominal area features an accessory I go into above: the "Powermaster" engine piece. This design along with the ones that flank it are nods to G1 Knok's design.
- Legs: Each thigh features a series of horizontal ridges that are inspired by similar designs on G1 Doubledealer's thighs. His lower legs are made up by the front halves of the vehicle mode, but instead of the typical "hood of car facing front" design seen on so many Transformers figures, these lower legs actually feature the sides of the vehicle mode's front end. This unusual design can also be seen on G1 Doubledealer.
Overall this figure does a great job evoking G1 Doubledealer while adding details that were not on the original.
Doubledealer is made up of green, teal, grey and black plastic. These colors are directly inspired by the G1 figure and they are fairly unusual in the world of modern day Transformers figures so Doubledealer winds up having a very distinct appearance. On top of that, he has a lot of paint details that are inspired by both paint and sticker details on G1 Doubledealer. Among my favorites are the details on the front of his lower legs. There is a section with light blue surrounded by silver with a bit of yellow and grey. This is directly lifted from a sticker on the same part of G1 Doubledealer's legs. His houlders have yellow on them while his thighs have a grey rectangle with purple in the middle, once again referencing a sticker on G1 Doubledealer. The red details on his chest, waist and legs really pop nicely against the darker green and grey colors.
There are twenty four points of articulation on this figure. This includes six in each arm and leg as well as waist articulation. One thing to make careful note of, each elbow has two points of articulation. In order to hold up his large weapon properly (read: without the forearm sinking down) you need to lock the lower elbow hinge in place. There are ten 5mm ports on this figure including the bottom of the feet, the sides of the arms and legs and the shoulders. Since this figure came from the series that followed Siege, it also has two pegs on the chest that can fit Blast Effects to look like he is taking hits from weapons fire. My biggest issue with this figure is that the bird tail/launching platform accessory does not stay attached to the back very well. I wish it tabbed into the slots on his back better. One of my favorite features of this mode involves the shoulders. On each shoulder there is a black section with Autobot symbols tampographed on it. However, if Doubledealer wants to "disguise" himself as a Decepticon in robot mode there are panels on the top of the shoulders that can swing down over the Autobot symbol to reveal a Decepticon symbol instead! This is a fun little feature that is directly influenced by the character's unusual affiliation and I love it.
Transformation to Vehicle Mode:
- Detach all the accessories and set them aside for now (you can leave the faux "engine" attached).
- Straighten out the arms and legs.
- Swing each fist back into the forearms.
- Rotate each arm around and then swing the forearms up and connect it to the back of the shoulders.
- Swing the back of each foot down.
- Rotate the lower legs around so the top halves of the vehicle mode front end face backward.
- The knee hinge has a small black piece with a tab on it. Be sure this is angled up at a slight angle. The panels that form the feet have tabs on them. Adjust the knee hinge piece til those tabs align (and fit into) the slots on the sides of the thighs.
- Push the two lower legs together.
- Swing the chest panel out, then rotate it around and push it down to form part of the front of the vehicle mode.
- Swing the green panel on the back of the robot mode up over the robot head.
- Swing each arm section up.
- Attach the tail feather/launch pad piece to the back of the vehicle. Be sure the "tail feather" panel is swung up.
- Connect the halves of the rocket together and connect them to the panel from the back.
- Attach the rocket launcher pods to the ports on the sides of the forearms.
- Attach the radar pod and small blaster to the fist ports on top of the vehicle.
Vehicle Mode:
Doubledealer's vehicle mode is a missile carrier truck. In real life, many of these trucks are kind of boxy looking but this one somehow manages to look sleek and bulky all at the same time. This is largely thanks to the front end with slopes downward on a curve on top. The sides have many angled details that seem to sweep back or forward but a lot of the middle and rear section look like it's made up by layers of machinery, giving it a bulky appearance that conveys power. Each side features four wheels and the missile sits on top of the vehicle. All these features are directly inspired by G1 Doubledealer's vehicle mode, but for this figure the designers decided to do more (and given the Leader Class price point, that is more than appropriate). The rocket pods radar pod and small blaster on top are all very welcome additions. Not only do they add a bit more play value, but they also add to just how threatening Doubledealer looks in this form. It looks like he could not only launch a missile, but defend himself while doing so.
There are no big surprises deco-wise but you do get a bit of emphasis on the front end of the vehicle which features red windows and the painted details on the missile. Thanks to the aforementioned paint details a lot of the G1 based designs shine here, especially the ones on the front of the vehicle.
There are eight 5mm ports on the figure itself. Many are taken up by Doubledealer's accessories, but even with all of them attached you still have four free ports on the front of the vehicle. If you want to add the 5mm ports on the missile the two on top also allow you to attach additional accessories. The tail feather/launch pad section in the back can swing down and you can deploy the pylons before swinging the missile all the way back. I love this little touch because it looks cool while aligning with the vehicle mode's function. This also opens up one more play feature: the ability to connect to Micromaster bases like Greasepit and Battle Masters who form ramps like Soundbarrier. Earthrise had many toys with this play pattern so including a feature that highlighted this play pattern made perfect sense for this figure.
Transformation to Beast Mode (starting in vehicle mode):
- Detach all the accessories and set them aside for now (you can leave the faux "engine" attached).
- Swing the rear wheel sections out and swing out each bird leg along with their feet.
- Swing the robot arms out and rotate the lower arm section around, then attach the tab on the bird-legs to the slots on the forearms.
- Swing up the robot chest panel, rotate it around. Leave it up for a bit.
- Flip the figure over and swing out the wing pieces and ewxtend each one.
- Split the front of the vehicle, separating the two robot legs.
- Separate the foot panels from the sides of the thighs.
- This is a tricky step: Bend the robot legs at the knees a bit. The black tab on the back of the knee joint should slide into a slot at the bottom of the thighs. This takes a lot of doing but take it slow and you'll get it done. Be sure the lower legs are pressed up, covering the thighs.
- Attach the foot panels to the sides of the torso.
- Push the lower legs together (basically reforming the front of the vehicle mode).
- Half of the driver section is on a hinge. Swing that up.
- Swing the chest piece down and then swing the driver section over it, holding it in place.
- Lift up the purple panel on the back. Swing the beast mode head out, which will rotate the robot head into the torso. Push the panel back down.
- Swing the robot arms/bird leg sections down.
- Connect the missile to the tail feather section, then clip that onto the back of the beast mode. The pylons can be swing up against the sides.
- Attach the rocket pods the sides of the beast mode.
- Attach the radar pod and small blaster to the fists on the underside of the beast mode.
If you want to have a bit of fun with Doubledealer's mercenary affiliation, you can swing up the panels from the robot mode shoulders and they'll show off the Decepticon symbol in the front of the beast mode but they'll be upside down. Still, it's kind of a fun way to show that this is meant to be Doubledealer's "Decepticon mode".
Beast Mode:
The original G1 Doubledealer Tech Specs identify his beast mode as a falcon in beast mode. However, looking at the sculpt of the original figure the head really seemed to resemble a vulture which would fit more in theme with the opportunistic nature of the character.
Much like G1 Doubledealer, this figure looks like someone took bird parts and mashed them into the body of a truck and well, let's be real, that's exactly what this is. That said, it still manages to look very cool. The wingspan is really nice and wide with cool feather designs sculpted into them. The beast mode head has an almost organic look to it complete with teeth in the mouth and several ridges on the sides of the head that look almost like skin folds or wrinkles. The claws on the feet also look almost organic with rings running along each digit.
The official transformation of this figure has the entire missile sitting on the back of the bird. However, if you wish you can split it and attach the front end of the missile on the bottom of the beast mode in between the legs. Doing this makes it look more like its G1 counterpart. The extra weaponry on the bottom and sides adds a nice bonus to Doubledealer's weapon count.
There are thirteen points of articulation in this mode. This includes three on each wing and two on each leg. His mouth can open and close as well. If you include the 5mm ports that are used by Doubledealer's own accessories, there are twelve 5mm ports in this mode. However, most are not particularly useful. For instance, four are found on the front of the beast mode but you'd have to find something that can point forward to use them. That said, Doubledealer has so many of his own accessories he looks great with them and he doesn't really need anything else.
Final Thoughts:
Doubledealer is a really fun figure and a cool interpretation of a unique character from the G1 era. That said, it is a shame that his "Powermaster" partners have to come separately. Also, while he poses out just fine, overall the figure feels a bit less solid than many figures being released in 2024. This was happening quite a bit during the Siege era so I chalk it up to being an anomaly of the time. Recommended!
Pros:
- Excellent sculpt that represents the original character very well.
- Good deco including patterns that replicate the look of G1 Doubledealer's stickers.
- The triple changing feature and various attachment points for accessories offer fun play value.
- While he is not a "true" Powermaster, I am glad the designers found a way to have him work with the modern day Knok and Skar figures.
- This was a return to Leader Class figures being larger and not just Voyager Class figures with tons of accessories.
Cons:
- Does not feel entirely "solid" in robot mode due to some joints not being as tight as they could be.
- I wish Knok and Skar had been included with the figure.
- No true "Powermaster" ability.
