General Information:
Release Date: July 2022
Price Point: $33.99 (depending on retailer)
Retailer: General Release (Amazon, BigBadToyStore, Entertainment Earth etc.)
Accessories: Blasters x 2
Official images and text below in italics are from Amazon:
- TRANSFORMERS G2-INSPIRED DESIGN: This Transformers: Legacy 7-inch G2 Universe Jhiaxus robot toy is inspired by the animated series, Transformers: Generation 2, updated with a Generations-style design
- UNIVERSES COLLIDE: Universes collide with Transformers: Legacy! This epic line of Transformers toys brings together fan-favorite characters from across the Transformers multiverse
- 2 EPIC MODES: Action figure converts from robot to Cybertronian jet mode in 23 steps. Comes with 2 combinable blaster accessories
- HARNESS THE POWER OF ENERGON: Gear up with Cybertron’s most powerful substance, Energon! This Transformers G2 universe Jhiaxus figure comes with an Energon blaster that attaches in both modes
- QR CODE: Scan the QR code on each package to reveal character tech specs from across the multiverse! Collect other Legacy figures to reveal their character tech specs (each sold separately, subject to availability)
Harness the power of Energon with the Transformers: Legacy Voyager G2 Universe Jhiaxus robot toy! Jhiaxus is a calculated strategist, with a vision of a united Cybertron spread across the universe. Universes collide! Transformers: Legacy brings together fan-favorite characters from across the Transformers multiverse. Figures feature deco inspired by their universe with an updated Generations design. In honor of the almost 40-year legacy of Transformers entertainment, the fandoms come together from across the Transformers multiverse, all in one toy line. Transformers: Legacy action figures are great kids’ toys and exciting collectibles for fans of all ages. Transformers and all related characters are trademarks of Hasbro.
Background:
In the early 90's the Transformers line underwent a transition from the original series (later called Generation One) to a follow up line called Generation 2. In support of this series was a new comic book mini-series of the same name. This series introduced a new antagonist: Jhiaxus. The unusual name is a play on the words "Gee, axe us.", a reference to comic book cancellation (which had already happened to Transformers once at this point). Jhiaxus was part of an offshoot of the Transformers race who had long ago abandoned the Autobot versus Decepticon conflict. An alternate version of the character would be introduced years later in the IDW Publishing title, and that version would get the action figure treatment in 2014. Prior to that, there was a Jhiaxus in the "Robots in Disguise" toy line, but generally that is considered a completely separate version of the character. This Voyager Class figure is the first toy to represent the character as he appeared in the Marvel Comics G2 title and is an entirely new sculpt.
Packaging:
Jhiaxus is packaged in a standard open window Legacy box. It has all the purple and blue tones of the Legacy packaging with the huge Legacy logo in front, on top and off to the left side. Since Jhiaxus is packaged in robot mode the main box art in front shows him in his vehicle mode. The right side of the box shows him in robot mode. The other side features artwork showing Megatron, Dragstrip, Iguanus, Skywarp and Kickback. The back of the box features Jhiaxus in both modes calling out his 23 step transformation. He is called out as being from the "G2 Universe", which is kind of interesting because it implies the Marvel Comics G2 universe is a separate one than the G1 based universe that many of the characters in this series come from. The box also has a QR Code on it that you can scan to see Jhiaxus' tech specs. I have added those specs to the gallery at the bottom of this review.
Accessories:
Jhiaxus did not often use firepower to take down enemies in the G2 comic book, often relying on his fists more than anything else. Still, he did have blasters (most notably shown on the cover of issue #7 of that series) so giving him two blasters made a lot of sense.
One blaster is a large one with a relativey flat design, two small barrel openings in the front and some nice designs on the sides including cables set at angles. The cables in particular are a very "90's" design that appeared a lot in the artwork for the G2 comic. This also echoes the cables on Jhiaxus' lower legs. This weapon is made up of red plastic with no paint applications. This weapon is clearly designed to be part of the "weapon combination" system recently revealed by Hasbro. The back has a 5mm port and there are 5mm pegs on the right side and bottom. The barrel tip in the front is sized to fit Blast Effects, which is fun to see since Blast Effects generally aren't included with Transformers nowadays.
The other weapon is similar in design to the larger blaster featuring a flat design with a small barrel in front. It even has a cricle and cables sculpted into the side just like the larger weapon. This weapon is made of clear grey plastic with silver paint details on the main body of the weapon. The left side of the weapon has a 5mm port while the right side and bottom have 5mm pegs. The barrel tip of this weapon can also fit Blast Effects.
Robot Mode:
The 90's were a time of extremes. More was more for many things in that era, and comic books were no exception (one fun example were the sheer number of pouches on costumes at the time). To that end, Marvel seemed to take the base design of the traditional Transformers Seeker design (ex: Starscream) and basically beefed it up to the extreme to create Jhiaxus. The character was thick and bulky, looking like the robotic version of the many ultra-ridiculously muscles super heroes of the time. Many details on the character come right from the Seekers including head having "vents" on either side of the "helmet", vents on the sides of the chest, part of the vehicle cockpit making up the middle of the torso and wings being mounted on the back. Even his feet kind of have a Seeker-like design with their trapezoid shapes.
This figure represents everything described above and it integrates some of the smaller details from the comic book as well. These include:
- Jhiaxus' head design features a wide face and helmet with tubes coming from the sides to the chin piece. His face looks almost "squished" into the helmet looking somehow mean, scary and comical all at the same time. He also has a small antenna sticking up from the helmet section on the left side, a tiny detail from the Marvel Comics.
- The wings on Jhiaxus' back and lower legs look very bat-like.
- To the right of the head is what appears to be some type of targeting device. This is inpired by the pylons that sit on either side of the traditional Seeker head.
- The knee armor has lines segmenting it into three sections. The lower legs have an opening with a series of overlapping wires sculpted into them.
Overall I absolutely love this sculpt. It looks like the G2 comic book character leapt off the page onto my desk. Sure there are some changes from the comic book (he was bulkier in the comics and his shoulder pieces were not squared off but instead were round) but none of those things bug me at all.
Jhiaxus is made up of white, yellow, green, red and smokey clear plastic. For the most part these colors match up nicely with his appearance in the comic books. White makes up most of the figure with parts like the face, torso, fists, lower legs and feet in yellow (either plastic or paint). The wire details on his lower legs are painted silver but perhaps the most important deco detail is the Generation 2 symbol on his chest! This symbol was also seen on the G2 Megatron figure and it's great seeing this bit of Transformers history remembered.
If I were to offer one criticism of the deco, it would be that the white plastic can be seen as looking kind of plain. This is one of those unfortunate realities of translating a character from print into plastic. In the comic book, his arms and most of the legs were white but they also had black and light blue highlights on them to give them some shading and definition. In theory you could do the same with paint on the figure, but it would escalate the cost of the figure beyond its current price point so I understand why the white plastic was left as is.
There are twenty six points of articulation on this figure. This includes six in each arm and leg. I was pleasantly surprised to see each hand can open and close even while accommodating 5mm peg weapons. Jhiaxus also has nine 5mm ports to attach additional weapons and/or armor. Each arm and leg has two each and there is one on the back. His weapons can attach to any of these points or fit into his fists. You can also attach both weapons together then attach them to his back for storage.
Update (July 10, 2022): Thanks to @CadetFoster on Twitter, it looks like Jhiaxus has an undocumented feature! You can pop off the "targeting scope" next to his head (only the front part, not the whole piece) and attach it to the port in the back of his red blaster! The result offers you another weapon option for the figure.
Transformation to Vehicle Mode:
- Detach all the weapons and set them aside for now.
- Straighten out the arms and legs.
- Open up the inner panels on each forearm, swing the fists in and then swing the panels back into place.
- Swing the back piece with the wings back.
- Swing the torso panel up.
- Swing out the nosecone.
- Swing the red targeting piece in. It sits at an angle on the torso panel.
- Push the robot head down against the back piece.
- Swing the back piece down, separating it from the wings.
- Swing the cockpit/torso panel piece up, connecting it to the back piece.
- Rotate the lower body around.
- Lift up the front panels on each lower legs.
- Swing the robot feet into the lower leg panels from the last step.
- Swing the robot arms in, connecting the shoulder pieces together.
- Swing the piece with the wings on them down and swing out the wing ends.
- On the inside of each lower leg panel are the halves of the central stabilizer fin. Swing each of those out.
- Swing the lower leg panels forward, connecting the knee area to the tabs on the wing panel in the center.
- Tab in the robot feet to the vehicle mode thrusters.
- Pull the arms down, connecting the tabs on the forearms to the corresponding slots on the thighs.
- Swing the small green wings on the legs in.
- Rotate the wings back on the white hinge piece, then swing the actual green wings back. Then push the wings down a bit. The yellow tabs on the sides of the legs connect to a corresponding slot on the underside of each wing.
- The weapons can connect to the port under the nosecone, on the top or the sides.
Vehicle Mode:
In the G2 comic book, Jhiaxus transformed from a "bulked up Seeker" form into a scifi fighter vehicle that kind of resembled the hovercraft like design of the Sweeps. He was oval shaped with small wings and a rocket booster raised up towards the rear section. Of course, in comic books you can "cheat" any transform and it works for the story. In real life however, the robot mode has to somehow condense into a vehicle mode so the designers took that comic book vehicle mode and used it as a starting point for this mode. The results are not comic book accurate, but they are cool.
The part of this vehicle form that borrows heavily from the G2 comic is the cockpit/nosecone section in the front. The curved shape with bands running across comes right from the comic book. The wings are also based on the comic book design, looking like bat-wings. However these are much larger than the ones seen in the comic. The designers had to do something with the rest of the robot mode bits so they condense into the middle/rear section and the arms wind up on the bottom. Honestly? It's not the best looking vehicle mode ever. It's super chunky on the bottom and back and that bat-wings don't actually look like they belong on this vehicle and yet somehow it works because of the long-time visual association created by the comic book. The best way I can put this is: this is not a conventionally sleek and pretty vehicle mode but somehow it works as an artifact of another time and design philosophy.
All the colors from the robot mode condense here, so less white is shown off on the top of the vehicle. The front and back emphasize the yellow color quite a bit and the green offers a sharp contrast on the wings. I love the way the colors break everything up in this mode.
Jhiaxus has eight attachment points for 5mm peg weapons in this mode. Four are on the arms on the bottom, two on the sides, one under the nosecone and one on top. Even better, his thrusters in the back can accommodate Blast Effects!
Final Thoughts:
I have been waiting decades for a proper G2 Jhiaxus. Yes there have been two other figures but neither really portrayed the character as he appeared in the comic book. On top of that, this is a fun toy in both modes and it has a fun transformation. Highly recommended!
Pros:
- Excellent robot mode sculpt that calls back beautifully to the G2 comic book.
- Good deco.
- Lots of attachment points for accessories in both modes.
- Fun and intuitive transformation.
- First time this version of the character has been available in the Generations line.
Cons:
- The white color works against it visually since so many details can be lost in it. It would have been cool to have some blue or black brushed or washed over the details to bring them out.
- The vehicle mode is not exactly what was shown in the comic book, so some people may be disappointed by that (I'm not one of them).
