Electrifying

When classics Kup came out, I didn't think he'd be much use as a base for anyone else-then I got him in hand. I tell you, this mold is deceptively useful and very passable as a number of characters. Gobots Smallfoot, Orion Pax, but particularly, the G2 Laser Rod Electro. I know I know, his alt mode isn't quite the hot rod vehicle the original Electro was, but it's truck like, has the same general body shape, and you paint this baby in gold and detail it and it's pretty solid. Add a new head and an engine to the hood and I think Kup = a pretty dang good Electro. I'll be looking into updating some of the other Laser Rods soon, why not?

Credit for base images goes to Seibertron.com.

GDO Ransack Redux

After messing around with the color matching for my last digibash, started thinking about how funny it is that GDO Powerdive stole Ransack's colors. Turnabout is only fair play, so I tweaked my digibash of GDO Ransack and gave him Powerdive's colors.

 Together again... sure why not?

 Credit for base images goes to Seibertron.com

A friend for GDO Powerdive-Ransack!

I haven't gotten my hands on GDO Powerdive yet (though I have one waiting for me in Boston) and I'm already hoping GDO provides us with another wave of offerings in 2013, particularly Powerdive's partner Ransack. I know the current release of Powerdive *should* be called Ransack (if we're keeping in with homage correctness) but just to keep the pair together, I'd love to see the original Powerdive colorscheme mapped onto the Energon Bulkhead mold. That guy is another one that has 101 repaint possibilities that for some reason have just never been taken advantage of.

 The dynamic duo together again, swap the names and be happy.

 Credit for base images goes to Seibertron.com

Botcon is in the air

Botcon is getting closer, you can tell from all the interweb buzzings of "This is AWESOME!" and "That's HIDEOUS!" as FunPub begins unveiling the upcoming Botcon exclusives.

For the last few years, I've enjoyed making my own customs to fill out my Botcon ranks depending on whatever the theme happens to be. For '07's more 'Classicsverse' focused bunch, I made a custom Skullcruncher, Apeface, and Snapdragon to join the Botcon Weirdwolf. A Shattered Glass Galvatron leads my '08 'Heroic Decepticons,' and the '09 Wings of Honor set grew a bit with a custom Boss and Snare.

This year the announced theme has been Generation 2. It's as good as any, a niche corner of the TF Universe that collectors love that also have a slim to none chance of being released at retail. We've seen Pyro on the TFCC club's page, so now my head's been racing to figure out which character from G2 would make for an interesting custom. I am, of course going to aim a little outside the box for my first few, just to ensure there's little chance for an overlap.

First up:

I stumbled across these guys on the TF wiki. Apparently in the '95 Sears catalogue, there was a picture of some Unreleased prototypes, including recolored autorollers made into characters that were going to be called General Optimus Prime and Sgt. Hound. I LIKE that idea a lot.


I figured General Prime would work well as Classics Onslaught with some chamo and a new head.
Sgt. Hound? Recolor classics Hound, white with gray chamo, new head. Ravage could just be Ravage carried over from G1.


Maybe change Ravage's eyes to a different color and have the story be something like:
The Decepticons have only heard whispers of the name General Prime and his right hand, Sgt. Hound. In truth they have no idea what the duo look like, because when a Decepticon does see them, it means he's seconds away from being killed.
The Autobots don't know who the duo answer to, and with each unspeakable act of violence, the Autobots begin to wonder if they answer to anyone at all.


General Prime:
General Prime has been immersed in the Great War for so long he rarely acknowledges that there are even sides anymore. His focus has become more about ending the war, with little regard as to which side deserves to win. Though he has stated that his allegiance is with the Autobots, many of them wonder… if it meant bringing the war to an end, would he turn his fury upon them?

Sgt. Hound:
"Sgt. Hound is a relentless tracker and an unrelenting warrior. His loyalty to General Prime is topped only by his eagerness to inflict unnecessary damage upon anyone who refuses to cooperate.
He takes great pride in Ravage, whom he captured and reprogrammed to obey his commands. Ravage, though forced to follow Sgt. Hound's orders, has never stopped trying to figure how to override his captor's program. He dreams of the day he can break free of Sgt. Hound's control so he can exact revenge and return to his true master."

I’ve been eyeballing a few other characters within G2 that I think would be a nice addition to the Botcon set; I’ll post more digibashes as they’re completed.

(Credit for toy photos goes to Seibertron.com.)