General Information:
Release Date: October 2014
Price Point: $9.99 (depending on retailer)
Retailer: General (Toys R Us, Amazon, Target etc.)
Accessories: Eclipse figure/weapon
*Images above with asterisks and text below in italics are from Amazon.com:
Put these two Autobots in an outpost and nothing will get past their watch. You just might not want to join them while they're at it. Autobot Gears is always grumbling about something, even if there's nothing actually going on. Autobot Eclipse might be his perfect partner - he barely speaks at all. His microprocessors are too busy computing everything that could possibly go wrong. His doomsday scenarios can keep Gears going for hours, training his finely tuned infrared sensors on any hint of an enemy signal. Put this pair of Autobot warrior figures on watch in your Transformers adventures! Your 2-in-1 Autobot Gears figure can take his Decepticon enemies on in robot mode and then rumble over them in truck mode. But your Autobot Eclipse figure can attack in cannon mode or launch himself into space in shuttle mode! Will the Decepticons be able to sneak past this pair of sentries? Only you can decide! Transformers and all related terms are trademarks of Hasbro.
In 2013, the "Legends" Class changed from what is now known as the "Legion" Class to a slightly larger figure class, nested somewhere between Legion and the old Scout Class figures. Initially it was used for chawracters that traditionally saw releases in larger classes such as Megatron, but later waves had some figures representing Transformers that were traditionally released at smaller sizes such as Swerve. Late 2014 brings about more of these, including Gears. This oft neglected character hasn't gotten a lot of attention over the years. Indeed, the last transforming "Gears" figure was in the "Revenge of the Fallen" toy line! There is a KREO Gears, but he's not a transforming figure in the traditional sense.
Gears is a redeco and retool of the Generations Swerve figure. His partner, Eclipse is a redeco of Flanker who was included with Swerve. This review will focus on the changes made to each of these figures for this release. Check out the Generations Swerve review for more detail on the original sculpt.
Eclipse Review
Robot Mode:
Eclipse is the new name for the character once known as Eagle Eye. This Micromaster was part of the Air Patrol, the same team that "Flanker" (aka Sky High) was a member of in Generation One. The figure is a straight up redeco of Flanker. The figure is now cast mostly in a metallic light blue, analagous to the light blue color used on G1 Eagle Eye. Eagle Eye was a lighter, more flat blue color however. He has a darker blue peg underneath his feet used for the weapon mode. White paint is used on the "helmet" section of the head and thighs. The center of his chest is painted silver. His face is painted yellow. These colors also serve as a call back to G1 Eagle Eye.
The colors look really nice and while it's not a slavish homage to Eagle Eye, I prefer the use of the metallic blue. The yellow and white contrast nicely against the blue as well.
Eclipse's arms move up and down and they're not loose at all (and I wouldn't expect it given this is only the second time this sculpt is being released).
Transformation to Vehicle Mode:
- Swing the arms down to the sides.
- Swing the wings on the back out to the sides.
- Swing the nosecone section at the legs down.
Vehicle Mode:
The vehicle mode is more plain than the robot mode in that the metallic blue plastic is the primary color without any white contrasting against it. There are however two red Autobot symbols (one on each wing) that give him some extra detail.
Transformation to Weapon Mode (from Vehicle Mode):
Swing the wings up.
- Pull the blue peg down.
- Pull the chest section out, this swings out the entire torso to leg area and reveals the weapon mode's barrel.
- Swing the weapon section forward and push it up into the groove that represents the rear thruster (over the robot head).
Weapon Mode:
In this form you get to see another color: gunmetal grey. This color is used to paint the barrel of the weapon and it looks great. This mode also reveals that the white on the robot thighs actually wraps around to the back of the thighs, so it adds additional color to this form.
Gears Review
Robot Mode:
The Gears figure features a new head sculpt, quite different from the head used on Swerve. Many have commented that the head sculpt looks more like the Autobot Brawn than Gears, and I can totally see it. The head is shaped like a semi circle with a face in the center, a quality shared by both Gears and Brawn. However, traditionally Gears' face was much wide and most importantly, the sides of his "helmet" section had red lines running down in front. While that detail is sculpted on this figure, it's not painted so this does indeed look like a Brawn head. The head is painted silver with blue eyes. Close enough to Gears but two red stripes would have gone a long way in helping the head look distinct from Brawn's. Perhaps the piece that distinguishes it the most are two raised notches on the top of his head keeping his head from looking exactly like Brawn's.
Taking inspiration from G1, Gears is cast in red, blue and black plastic. Silver is the primary paint color, used on the parts that flank his head, parts of the chest and his thighs. A white Autobot symbol appears on the center of his chest and there's additional red coloring on his legs. The symbol is roughly placed where the G1 Gears animation model had an Autobot symbol. It's a good color scheme and it's instantly recognizable as the character and looks great.
All of Gears' joints are nice and tight. He can hold Eclipse in weapon mode just fine. Functionally I have no issues with this figure.
Transformation to Vehicle Mode:
- Swing the back panel out and up.
- Swing each robot arm up, tucking the front wheels under the hood panel.
- Swing the torso section forward a bit in the middle, the waist and legs will move with it.
- Straighten out the legs and swing the lower legs up.
Vehicle Mode:
In vehicle form Gears is still maintains blue and red as his primary colors. The blue mostly comes from blue plastic while the red is mostly paint on the back of the vehicle and the front. His windows are painted grey, offering a nice, neutral contrast against the bright blue and red colors. The grille, headlights and rims are all painted silver, adding a nice splash of metallic color to the figure.
Gears has a 5mm port on the top of the cabin section to attach weaponry. I found the port on Gears much more snug than the one on Swerve. It took a bit of effort to actually get Eclipse attached in weapon mode.
Final Thoughts:
Gears is a cool redeco/retool. It is kind of fun to think it was Swerve who was once the redeco/retool of Gears and decades later it's the reverse. Add Gears to your collection, he's totally worth it.
