General Information:
Price Point/Size: Deluxe
Retailers: General (K-Mart, Toys R Us, Wal-Mart, Kay Bee)
Release Date: December 2004
Transformation Difficulty Level: 3
Accessories: Missiles x 3
Transformers Universe ends 2004 with a few new releases at the deluxe price point. This particular set is actually two figures resurrected from the Generation 2 era and set up as a versus pack, something I always like to see in any Transformers line.
Air Raid is a redeco of Generation 2 Skyjack, one of the Cyberjets. Read his review to get a more detailed review of the sculpt and toy mechanics. This review will focus on the changes made to the toy for this release.
Interestingly enough, this is actually the second time this sculpt has taken the name "Air Raid". The first time was during Generation 2 when the Skyjack sculpt has given a new deco and released as the Aerialbot Air Raid reborn.
Vehicle Mode:
Air Raid's primary color is dark blue. Silver and red are used for his details. They're nicely placed, using a new pattern not previously used on this sculpt. The wings have red and silver lines next to each other sweeping back. The tip of the nosecond is red and silver is used for vents on either side of the cockpit. The cockpit window is translucent green plastic. On the top of the vehicle is an Autobot symbol tampographed on.
Somewhere in the bowels of Hasbro's design center, someone has an extreme fondness for green. The missile included with Air Raid is a lime green color, which just seems rather odd when contrasted against the dark blue, silver and red. Granted, the
cockpit window is translucent green, but still, the missile seems like it should have been some other color. Maybe silver or even gold. Of course, the landing gear is green too, but it still feels incongruous color-wise.
Robot Mode:
One of the benefits of using pre-existing molds on a toy is that you can dedicate more time to the deco.
While Air Raid's ancestor Skyjack had a fairly simple deco pattern in robot mode, Air Raid has a really nice one. The new color introduced is maroon in the form of his right arm, left upper arm and upper legs. Red and silver are used in this form as well, along with some dark grey.
The red has been used for small details such as the crest and vents on the robot head and four small rectangles on each leg. His fist and feet are dark grey and his knees are silver. While these are fairly small paint details, they enhance the look of the toy
a lot, making this my favorite color scheme out of all three versions of the toy released so far.
Wind Sheer is a redeco of the Generation 2 toy Hooligan. I've reviewed this toy several times over already. To see previous reviews, check out the ones for Hooligan, G2 Jetfire and R-Blade. This review will focus on the changes made to the toy for this release.
Vehicle Mode:
Wind Sheer has a really nice color scheme. A blend of metallic silver and maroon with dark brown camo, he has a really nice combination of colors. The main body is silver with the wings and missile launcher
being maroon. The dark brown camo patterns are everywhere, from the nosecone all the way to the back of the jet. The cockpit is translucent green. Since the cockpit is larger than Air Raid's, the green missile actually looks "right" with this color scheme. As with Air Raid, Wind Sheer's landing gear is green.
Robot Mode:
In robot mode, Wind Sheer is less camo and more straight forward colors. The designers didn't give his robot mode as much color attention as the vehicle mode, which is disappointing. His right arm, upper left arm and upper legs are all maroon and some purple is used on his legs. Like Air Raid, his left fist and feet are dark grey, but that's it. Some extra color details on his face or legs would have been nice.
Final Thoughts:
Despite the oddity of the green missiles and the need for more color detail on Wind Sheer's robot mode, these two toys represent some of the best toys to come from Generation 2. Having them as a two pack is even better as it gives kids a battle in one package to go. Both molds are extremely posable and look great. Highly recommended.
