General Information:
Release Date: October 2010
Price Point: $10.99
Retailer: General (Toys R Us, Target, Wal-Mart etc.)
Accessories: Rifle, Blasters x 2
*Note: My Blurr images were lost in a PC failure some time ago. I hope to take new ones at some point in the future.
*Images & text below from Transformers.com:
There are those who suppose, based on his high-speed history and fast-talking demeanor, that BLURR lacks patience. Those people are wrong. He appears to be always on the move because he always has somewhere he needs to be - delivering a sensitive data packet, or a round of electro-laser fire to a DECEPTICON squad. When he must wait, he can do so in absolute silence and stillness for hours, until his target is centered in his crosshairs.
Turn the tables on enemy forces when you throw this warrior into the fight! Your BLURR figure is dedicated to destroying any opponent and his dual laser blaster accessories will help you two get the job done. When the "hand-to-hand" combat is over, you can store the weapon accessories in his hip holsters -- or even use them to form a "rifle" bipod for defensive maneuvers. If the robot action turns into a car chase, convert your hero into courier vehicle mode and send him racing off to rule the "road"!
Figure comes with weapon accessories. Battle-ready robot-to-vehicle figure converts from robot mode to courier vehicle mode -- and back again! Ages 5 and up.
In the 1986 animated "Transformers: The Movie" feature film, fans were introduced to an Autobot unlike any other. Moving at super speeds and talking just as fast, Blurr occupied a rather unique place in Transformers history. For many years after G1, he was ignored for the most part but eventually the character name was brought back as Armada Blurr, but that character really had little to do with the G1 version. Later however, the Cybertron series would release another Blurr, this time with a head sculpt that was based on the Generation One character. Fast forward to the year 2008 and an alternate universe version of the character was introduced as part of the "Shattered Glass" universe. More recently, the "Animated" series released a new version of Blurr that greatly resembled his Generation One self.
While Blurr was celebrated in toy form, IDW Publishing also featured the character in their G1 based comic book series. With all this attention, it was no surprise that Blurr was one of the characters chosen to be revamped as part of the "Generations" toy line.
Blurr is a retool and redeco of the Autobot Drift sculpt. This review will focus on the changes made to that base figure for this release, so check out that review to see the pros and cons of this sculpt design.
Vehicle Mode:
In vehicle mode Blurr is a street style race car. With sleek lines and smooth curves, you could easily see Blurr taking on an Earth form such as this. It is rather interesting to see Blurr now transforming into a very Earth-like vehicle instead of the more hyper-futuristic/alien vehicle modes used on previous Blurr figures. This vehicle mode is really Drift's of course, but it is very similar in many ways to his portrayal in the IDW comic book series that partly inspired this version of the character. In the comic book, he also transforms into a very sleek Earth vehicle (somewhat resembling "Revenge of the Fallen" Sideways in design). Overall, the form is quite appropriate for the character.
To differentiate this figure from Drift in a manner other than recoloring, Blurr has a different spoiler mounted on the back than Drift. While Drift's spoiler is raised rather high, this one is set very low against the rear section of the vehicle. This significantly changes the profile of the vehicle and makes it look more compact and faster, quite fitting for the character. This is also significant to note as it is not often that redecos with retooling change something significant in the vehicle mode. Most often changes are made to the robot mode, with the vehicle mode left to distinguish itself purely through color. I was really surprised to see Blurr's vehicle mode modified in any way but it was a pleasant surprise.
So what of those colors I keep going on about? This mode reveals three primary plastic colors. The white on Drift has now been replaced with light blue. You'll find solid black plastic used for the wheels and a bit of one of his weapons sticking out the back, resembling a third tailpipe or muffler. The windows are cast in a translucent grey color, replacing the bluish color on Drift. On the back of the vehicle you'll find the tailpipes cast in an even lighter blue than the rest of the vehicle. These colors fall in line with many of Blurr's iconic colors perfectly. In almost ever incarnation of the character, blue in some shade or another is a featured color. These lighter blue hues align with the Generation One Blurr colors very nicely and make him instantly recognizable in this form.
Like his plastic colors, Blurr's paint colors are inspired by his Generation One incarnation. Running from the hood to the back of the cabin section is light blue, with the raised section in the middle painted light grey. Red is used for an Autobot symbol on the top of the vehicle as well as the rear lights. Black paint is found on the rear window and the front grille, which works with the translucent grey windows but also provides a very strong visual contrast to the rest of the very light colored vehicle. A final color can be found painted on the lower half of the vehicle, wrapping around to the back, and this color is a regular blue, which looks almost like a dark blue set against so many light colors. This too offers a nice break from a sea of light colors on this figure. Generally with a redeco of any figure, my primary criteria for success are the use of a different color pattern and the use of significantly different colors. Blurr wins on both counts, with a color pattern that evokes his Generation One counterpart and looks significantly different from Drift at the same time. Kudos to the designers!
Transformation to Robot Mode:
- Flip the car over and swing up the robot arms.
- Swing each door out.
- Swing the rear half of the vehicle down.
- Separate each half of the vehicle's rear section to form the individual legs.
- Move the robot foot pieces up against the lower legs.
- Swing the windows on each door in.
- Separate the halves that form the front of the car and slide the panels that form the hood piece over each half.
- Straighten out each arm.
- Connect the windshield to the chest using the translucent blue tab and the horizontal slot in the chest.
- Move the small arm on his back that holds the large rifle out so it does not obstruct the legs.
- The smaller blasters can be removed from the car door panels (now on the hips) and held in each hand.
Robot Mode:
My first thought upon looking at Blurr in robot mode is "Wow." That "wow" isn't just for the overall sculpt, which is impressive but also for the multitude of colors used in this form. Practically all of the vehicle mode colors are represented in one way or another in this form to the point where Drift's black and white colors (while appropriate for the character) look almost plain in comparison. First off, Blurr's primary color blue is represented in three shades here. Two of the shades were already seen in vehicle mode (the light blues) but a third blue plastic color is found on parts like his fists and the top of his head. This blue matches up with the darker blue paint used to wrap around the lower half of the vehicle mode. What I found interesting was the way the blue parts came together. For instance, on the legs the outer parts are one shade of blue while the inner parts are another. On the arms, the shoulder section is black, leading to a light blue upper arm, connecting to a forearm that is a slightly darker blue leading to a dark blue fist. This interesting color gradient is not commonly seen on Transformers and really makes this figure quite different than your typical redeco.
This mode is rather light on the paint, but that's not really a bad thing. Thanks to the aforementioned alternating colors and the sheer number of colors used in this form, the plastic itself takes care of most of the visual appeal, needing the paint to only add some needed accents and spots here and there. The robot head is cast in light blue plastic, so white is used to paint the face and bring it out visually. His eyes are painted an even lighter blue than the head is cast in, which gives them a very intense look. The windshield of the vehicle mode winds up becoming the chest, and the Autobot symbol from the vehicle mode winds up perfectly set in the center of his chest. On either shoulder section, the details that were Autobot symbols on Drift have been replaced with a square that has a blue background and black lines running across in a horizontal pattern with a break in a middle. His waist section has a spot of gold on it and his knees have red paint. The darrker blue color used in vehicle mode pops up in this form as well, this time painting the robot feet and the are right above them. I'm really impressed with the colors used in this form. They are very different in both tone and pattern from Drift and really set this figure apart in a visually striking manner.
Need more wow factor than just coloring? Then look no further than Blurr's head sculpt, which is all new and created just for this figure. The head sculpt is heavily based on his IDW Publishing comic book appearance, which features angled sections on the side that look almost like feathers streaking back (somewhat reminscent of Beast Wars Airazor), conveying a sense of speed that (to me at least) evokes the look of the ancient God "Mercury"'s head design as portrayed in popular fiction. The one feature carried over from Generation One is the small, angled pod sitting on top of Blurr's head, a feature that several of the Blurr figures (including his recent "Animated" incarnation) all feature. The head sculpt is very faithful to the comic book version and looks fantastic.
The head sculpt isn't all that is new to this figure. All of Drift's blade weapons have been replaced with more traditional rifle and blaster weapons. The car door hip storage compartments are still there, but they now house two small handheld blasters. Mounted on Blurr's back is a gigantic rifle that's so huge, it has a horizontal handle towards the front so Blurr can use both hands to hold it. Thanks to the way his forearms and wrist/fist pieces are designed, his fists can be angled just right to hold the rifle in this manner. You can have a bit more fun with these weapons by connecting the two smaller blasters using small clips on each to the rifle to create a combined weapon. This adds a whole extra layer of play value to the figure besides its transformation and posability.
All of Blurr's joints are still tight and the blasters and rifle store perfectly in their repsective slots. The clip on the back still has the hinged section that allows it to extend out a bit so the rifle won't interfere with the movement of his legs.
I already loved this robot mode when it was Drift, so with a G1 homage color scheme and extra retooling, Blurr is simply one fantastic figure in robot mode.
Final Thoughts:
Blurr is the perfect example of how to create and release a redeco of an existing figuluding a new head sculpt? Check. As a redeco, retool and original figure Blurr works on every level with awesome results. Highly recommended!
