Transformers MP 48 Lio Convoy Official Takara Images and Promotional Video
Friday, August 9th, 2019 3:49AM CDT
Category: Toy NewsPosted by: Stargrave Views: 16,388
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Posted by ZeroWolf on August 9th, 2019 @ 3:59am CDT
I really wish I could afford this, I love the engineering that's gone on to turn the lion head mechanical for the robot mode. Though what's also amusing me is that I have a how to draw transforming robots book, written by PLEX that very pointedly calls out the Lio Convoy design and disses it then pretty much follows it up with a "this is how it should be done!" approach! Ah the rivalry between designers (PLEX work with Bandai for Sentai robot designs and Machine Robo)
Posted by AllNewSuperRobot on August 9th, 2019 @ 4:00am CDT
I am collecting the entire Beast Wars MP line, to show my little bit of support, for a series I want to keep going. Even collecting figures for characters I don't like, such as Airazor, Blackarachnia, Scorponok and Cheetor. That said, if this is a sign of things to come, that support won't be extending to the Takara sub-series.
This figure, on the other hand. might make a decent upgrade to Prowl with an extensive redeco. Although, such a figure would be hinting at something More, that Takara definitely won't do...
Posted by ZeroWolf on August 9th, 2019 @ 5:00am CDT
Posted by AllNewSuperRobot on August 9th, 2019 @ 5:40am CDT
ZeroWolf wrote:Ah lio junior, or Ares as I headcannoned him
Prowl, brain of Magnaboss. I always headcannoned the Magnaboss team as the direct counterparts to the Tripredacus Council IE Prowl, Ironhide and Silverbolt were the Maximal Elders, mentioned but unseen.
PrOwl, does complicate that a little. But then again, that can also be incorporated into the same canon by stating Prowl entered the Beast Wars on his own after the Quantum Surge and was reformatted into an Owl.
Then again people don't really make the same issue out of Silverbolt and the Fuzor namesake, so I never saw Bots with the same names as that big an issue.
I don't like the idea of "Lio Junior" though. Excessively humanising Transformers EG with "Kid Bots", is something I've always found unnecessary and a bit grim. Like sexualising the Fem Bots.
Posted by Stargrave on August 9th, 2019 @ 5:53am CDT
ZeroWolf wrote:I think you're getting your versions mixed up, Simba is disney, Kimba is Japan
I really wish I could afford this, I love the engineering that's gone on to turn the lion head mechanical for the robot mode. Though what's also amusing me is that I have a how to draw transforming robots book, written by PLEX that very pointedly calls out the Lio Convoy design and disses it then pretty much follows it up with a "this is how it should be done!" approach! Ah the rivalry between designers (PLEX work with Bandai for Sentai robot designs and Machine Robo)
Of course I got the two flipped. I’m always flipping things. Birds, pancakes, Transformer terms. I’m a flipping flipper. It’s like a running gag at this point.
Posted by ZeroWolf on August 9th, 2019 @ 7:25am CDT
AllNewSuperRobot wrote:ZeroWolf wrote:Ah lio junior, or Ares as I headcannoned him
Prowl, brain of Magnaboss. I always headcannoned the Magnaboss team as the direct counterparts to the Tripredacus Council IE Prowl, Ironhide and Silverbolt were the Maximal Elders, mentioned but unseen.
PrOwl, does complicate that a little. But then again, that can also be incorporated into the same canon by stating Prowl entered the Beast Wars on his own after the Quantum Surge and was reformatted into an Owl.
Then again people don't really make the same issue out of Silverbolt and the Fuzor namesake, so I never saw Bots with the same names as that big an issue.
I don't like the idea of "Lio Junior" though. Excessively humanising Transformers EG with "Kid Bots", is something I've always found unnecessary and a bit grim. Like sexualising the Fem Bots.
Things like that never bothered me, regrading Lio junior, found it easy to look past. Though with the Maximal elders, I think that's the approach FunPub took with their botcon 2016 fiction, hence why they provided stickers for cw Prowl, Ironhide and silverbolt, to act as a reference to magnaboss. I never bothered keeping the rest of the team the same either. Heck I never even kept the genders the same
Posted by AllNewSuperRobot on August 9th, 2019 @ 7:42am CDT
Still I think Prowl would work as a redeco'd Lio Convoy. Stripping off the shoulder kibble and the hideous feet, gives a lot of potential alternates to the mold.
Posted by ZeroWolf on August 9th, 2019 @ 7:59am CDT
As for redcos, there's a black repaint, a burning repaint they could do alongside a similar redeco of Primal to represent them from the movie.
Posted by AllNewSuperRobot on August 9th, 2019 @ 8:03am CDT
I meant 'retool' not redeco. The base Lio Convoy could be Retooled into Prowl and a couple of others.
Posted by AllNewSuperRobot on August 10th, 2019 @ 9:24am CDT
Posted by Stargrave on August 11th, 2019 @ 12:59am CDT
Our US collectors can order Lio at Hasbro Pulse here.
Don't be a bogan hop on line and order this lion because this is one lion that won't be lying around for long, and I'm not lyin'.
Enjoy the images below and share your thoughts in the forum. As always stay tuned to Seibertron for the ultimate in Transformers news!
Posted by Emerje on August 11th, 2019 @ 1:59am CDT
if you'd rather deal with a domestic seller or an exporter that offers PayPal you do have options. Hasbro Pulse, TFSource, Big Bad Toy Store, Ages 3 and Up, Entertainment Earth, and The Chosen Prime are all asking $184.99 USD. Robot Kingdom is $142.99 USD. Hobby Link Japan and AmiAmi are asking 16,000 JPY while Hobby Search is asking 17,000 JPY. And thanks to Seibertronian AllNewSuperRobot in our Energon Pub Forums we have a UK price of £144.99 at Kapow Toys and In Demand Toys.
Posted by figureguy on August 11th, 2019 @ 10:15am CDT
Posted by ZeroWolf on August 11th, 2019 @ 10:46am CDT
Posted by Emerje on August 11th, 2019 @ 7:26pm CDT
figureguy wrote:He is now up to 16,159.
Which I pointed out in the article. The lower price comes in at checkout when they remove tax.
Emerje
Posted by william-james88 on August 19th, 2019 @ 8:25am CDT
william-james88 wrote:Sabrblade wrote:What would you reckon are the chances of it selling out by Thursday?william-james88 wrote:available at HLJ for 16000 yen
https://hlj.com/mp-48-transformers-mast ... s-tkt61497?utm_source=seibertron.com&=&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=news%20post
10% chance
As predicted, still very much available. Did you get it, Sabr?
Posted by Sabrblade on August 19th, 2019 @ 9:36am CDT
Not yet. Other priorities came up.william-james88 wrote:william-james88 wrote:Sabrblade wrote:What would you reckon are the chances of it selling out by Thursday?william-james88 wrote:available at HLJ for 16000 yen
https://hlj.com/mp-48-transformers-mast ... s-tkt61497?utm_source=seibertron.com&=&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=news%20post
10% chance
As predicted, still very much available. Did you get it, Sabr?
Posted by Stargrave on August 19th, 2019 @ 1:37pm CDT
Practically every rare Lio Convoy special edition from the original Beast Wars II line and beyond was on display as shown in the images below. Also on hand was a prototype for the new MP Lio Convoy toy and the creator of Lio Convoy himself Hisashi Yuuki and MP Lio Convoy designer Kenta Wakizawa. Along with the images enjoy a few excerpts from the translated interview done by Chohenken's Mr. Tai. Enjoy the images and share your thoughts in the forum. Click on any of the images below to go to the original Japanese article and as always stay tuned to Seibertron for the ultimate in Transformers news!
Toys 'R' Us Special Edition Black Lio Convoy (also released as a lucky draw version)
"Flash" Lio Convoy released to coincide with the Beast Wars Special film
From creator Yuuki regarding the extremely rare Lucky Draw multi-colored Telemaga and Ksei Lio Convoy seen below: "Have you ever seen a physical thing? I think there are only a few people in the world who don't go up, and i think only the child who really hit them. There was a standard event which was without fail in old times though it decreased now to commercialize the color that children liked in the sweepstakes of the children's magazine, and it was always troubled by the head when the color was passed suddenly and it was asked to make it to the specification. I've also decided on hundreds of colors and transformers, but this color doesn't come out easily. It was a great project for the children's imagination because it was a great project."
"Normal" C-16 Lio Convoy
Galvatron Colors Lio Convoy was a Lucky Draw exclusive limited to only 50 units. This particular version of Lio Convoy represents the Bom Bom manga story wherein Lio Convoy's spark was tainted by Angolmois Energy. From Yuuki: "If I say that, it might be so. When you open the hatch of the chest matrix properly, it is the secret emblem of Deathtron that is attached. I couldn't change the mold, but I'm trying to change that."
The sketch below is the one of the designers first renditions of Lio Convoy.
"Yuki says, "I don't want a lion on my chest for the time being. I'm tired of seeing that, yadayada(laughs) (i got the illustration from my senior) that the lion's head was running away on his back. I don't want to do this anymore. I started working on this based on why i can't see the boy's favorite lion, and that's the only thing that makes a lion the coolest. Then, it is oti that it was able to do almost the same thing.""
Here's a quick conversation with the designer of the MP Lio Convoy and Lio's original designer:
"Mr. Tai: How did you start masterpiece?
Mr. Wakizawa "First of all, I wanted to create a drawing image of the bank scene that transforms the naoconvoy of anime, and what kind of modeling do you make when you come out of anime to the present world? I wonder if the chest is massive and muscular? Or, i feel like i've put that kind of thing into modeling."
Yuki-san: "It really looks like anime. My 20-year-old is ashamed. In fact, I'm sure Hiroyuki Ohkawa re-wrote the design painting that Yuki-san wrote at the time. It's going to get better and it's going to be passed down to masterpieces."
Mr. Tai: The concept was developed as a toy for children at the time, and i think there is a difference between high target s and adults this time, but what i was aware of in that area? 」
Mr. Wakizawa: "The best thing is to expand the range of motion and recreate the scene in the play, and it has to be a mast. I wanted to make a difference from the original, so i was particular about the face of the lion in robot mode and the face of the lion in beast mode, the face of the mecha lion and the living lion, the face is changed."
Mr. Tai "Eh!? What's going on with this?
Mr. Wakizawa:It's a pleasure to be. The mane is different from the mecha lion and the living lion, so I think that's also the point."
Yuki-san: "I don't think this will happen in 20 years. At that time, it is serious when i draw raw hair, so why can I change it to a linear design? I was told by an anime shop that it was ok.
Mr. Tai: "I don't think it's going to be remade after decades. It's a desire to see both."
Mr. Wakizawa "I am particular about the state of beast mode, and i think it is also a point to try to reproduce the skeleton of the four-legged animal"
Posted by blackeyedprime on August 19th, 2019 @ 3:39pm CDT
Posted by Cheetron on August 19th, 2019 @ 4:31pm CDT
Posted by Grahf_ on August 19th, 2019 @ 4:56pm CDT
Cheetron wrote:Is it bad that my flash lio convoy is in a totebox somewhere?
No, not really. Mine is in a tote somewhere as well. However I received it incomplete in a small lot with a complete Galvatron. I now have it listed on Ebay in a junk lot of figures to try and make the lot more appealing. Trying to find pieces for it is neigh impossible otherwise I'd complete and keep it.
Posted by Bumblevivisector on August 19th, 2019 @ 11:20pm CDT
There's also photodegredation to consider. Seeing the two Moons in the second pic made me realize that I haven't been sure where my regular Moon is for years, and if I'd ever splurged on and actually displayed the rare white one, he'd probably have just turned into the yellow one by now...like my Japanese Tigatron.Alpha Weltall wrote:Cheetron wrote:Is it bad that my flash lio convoy is in a totebox somewhere?
No, not really. Mine is in a tote somewhere as well. However I received it incomplete in a small lot with a complete Galvatron. I now have it listed on Ebay in a junk lot of figures to try and make the lot more appealing. Trying to find pieces for it is neigh impossible otherwise I'd complete and keep it.
So it's just as well that the only "variant" of the original LioConvoy I own is that Big Lots (Space Warriors?) KO that attempted the Flash deco, but used so much gray that it looks like he died then came back as a zombie by going super saian. Though I was surprised to see one deco I'd never even heard of: is that red-maned one the rarest of all? Sounds like it has an interesting story, even without the interesting translation.
But will I eventually buy the MP and any variants thereof? Probably!
Posted by chuckdawg1999 on August 20th, 2019 @ 4:26pm CDT
Bumblevivisector wrote:There's also photodegredation to consider. Seeing the two Moons in the second pic made me realize that I haven't been sure where my regular Moon is for years, and if I'd ever splurged on and actually displayed the rare white one, he'd probably have just turned into the yellow one by now...like my Japanese Tigatron.Alpha Weltall wrote:Cheetron wrote:Is it bad that my flash lio convoy is in a totebox somewhere?
No, not really. Mine is in a tote somewhere as well. However I received it incomplete in a small lot with a complete Galvatron. I now have it listed on Ebay in a junk lot of figures to try and make the lot more appealing. Trying to find pieces for it is neigh impossible otherwise I'd complete and keep it.
So it's just as well that the only "variant" of the original LioConvoy I own is that Big Lots (Space Warriors?) KO that attempted the Flash deco, but used so much gray that it looks like he died then came back as a zombie by going super saian. Though I was surprised to see one deco I'd never even heard of: is that red-maned one the rarest of all? Sounds like it has an interesting story, even without the interesting translation.
But will I eventually buy the MP and any variants thereof? Probably!
I'm curious about that red and black one too. Is there a better translation out there?
Posted by Sabrblade on August 20th, 2019 @ 4:44pm CDT
It is a Lucky Draw figure that is believed to have been part of a coloring contest held through TV Magazine, in which children participating would submit their own coloration ideas for a recolor of the figure and the winner would receive a physical copy of the figure colored in the winner's submitted deco.chuckdawg1999 wrote:Bumblevivisector wrote:There's also photodegredation to consider. Seeing the two Moons in the second pic made me realize that I haven't been sure where my regular Moon is for years, and if I'd ever splurged on and actually displayed the rare white one, he'd probably have just turned into the yellow one by now...like my Japanese Tigatron.Alpha Weltall wrote:Cheetron wrote:Is it bad that my flash lio convoy is in a totebox somewhere?
No, not really. Mine is in a tote somewhere as well. However I received it incomplete in a small lot with a complete Galvatron. I now have it listed on Ebay in a junk lot of figures to try and make the lot more appealing. Trying to find pieces for it is neigh impossible otherwise I'd complete and keep it.
So it's just as well that the only "variant" of the original LioConvoy I own is that Big Lots (Space Warriors?) KO that attempted the Flash deco, but used so much gray that it looks like he died then came back as a zombie by going super saian. Though I was surprised to see one deco I'd never even heard of: is that red-maned one the rarest of all? Sounds like it has an interesting story, even without the interesting translation.
But will I eventually buy the MP and any variants thereof? Probably!
I'm curious about that red and black one too. Is there a better translation out there?
Posted by STngAR on August 21st, 2019 @ 7:51pm CDT
Posted by ZeroWolf on December 30th, 2019 @ 3:59pm CST
Takara Tomy were showing off a new picture on their twitter feed, one of which was posed with a previous Takara Encore release, Anime Big Convoy! It also featured a ghostly Optimus Primal looking on. Check out the pictures below!
Accompanying the picture was this tweet, which we have run through a machine translation.
Nearly the final sample of the MP Rio Convoy has arrived from the developer (()
So I arranged it with the big convoy of the reprint anime color. Japanese beast commander combination.
Reservation is here
https://t.co/RdbAkQ9Z9H https://t.co/hS3Yxj489p
Anime Big Convoy is a redeco of Big Convoy that aims to be as close to the Beast Wars Neo look of the character.
What do you think of these pictures? Do you have a preorder locked in place for either of these? Let us know in the Energon Pub and stay tuned to Seibertron for all the latest news and reviews.
Posted by D-Maximal_Primal on December 30th, 2019 @ 6:22pm CST
Posted by bvzxa on December 30th, 2019 @ 8:29pm CST
Posted by Sabrblade on December 30th, 2019 @ 10:55pm CST
Posted by STngAR on December 31st, 2019 @ 1:26pm CST
Posted by D-Maximal_Primal on December 31st, 2019 @ 5:52pm CST
STngAR wrote:Damn, did not realize encore Big Convoy was anime color. Quick search on EBay and.......add to cart.
Oh yeah, that Big Convoy is fantastic!
He will look great with Lio Convoy. We need a 3-shot with those 2 and MP-38
Posted by megamanfan on January 3rd, 2020 @ 4:54pm CST
Posted by william-james88 on February 29th, 2020 @ 11:22pm CST
Hey all. Just stumbled across this on youtube. Just uploaded today.
This toy is still available at Amazon Japan.
If you'd rather deal with a domestic seller or an exporter that offers PayPal you do have options. Hasbro Pulse, TFSource, Big Bad Toy Store, Ages 3 and Up, Entertainment Earth, and The Chosen Prime are all asking $184.99 USD. Robot Kingdom is $142.99 USD. Hobby Link Japan and AmiAmi are asking 16,000 JPY while Hobby Search is asking 17,000 JPY. If you are in the UK, you can get him for £144.99 at Kapow Toys and In Demand Toys.
Posted by Jelze Bunnycat on March 1st, 2020 @ 12:01am CST
...and holy cow is the cradle for the lion head scary
Posted by D-Maximal_Primal on March 1st, 2020 @ 10:46am CST
Lio Convoy transforms from a white lion into a robot with a giant lion head on his right shoulder and a lion tail on his left, with a very nice Prime-esque face and wonderfully detailed chest.
You can check out the images below, and you can check out a review that showcases some of the more delicate sections of the figure and will give you a hand in transforming him, as can be seen here. Let us know what you think in the comments section below!
@valva3kvalva
@hetareHeat
@UNOYO
@Smokingray7775
@D_m6b
Posted by Sabrblade on March 1st, 2020 @ 10:50am CST
Did you guys know they made a role play toy of that gun back in the day?
Posted by D-Maximal_Primal on March 1st, 2020 @ 11:05am CST
Sabrblade wrote:Oh, good. I couldn't remember if it had been shown that he comes with a Cybertron Buster.
Did you guys know they made a role play toy of that gun back in the day?
Did not know that no. got any pics?
Posted by Sabrblade on March 1st, 2020 @ 11:09am CST
Right here.D-Maximal_Primal wrote:Sabrblade wrote:Oh, good. I couldn't remember if it had been shown that he comes with a Cybertron Buster.
Did you guys know they made a role play toy of that gun back in the day?
Did not know that no. got any pics?
Posted by D-Maximal_Primal on March 1st, 2020 @ 11:11am CST
Sabrblade wrote:Right here.D-Maximal_Primal wrote:Sabrblade wrote:Oh, good. I couldn't remember if it had been shown that he comes with a Cybertron Buster.
Did you guys know they made a role play toy of that gun back in the day?
Did not know that no. got any pics?
That's really cool!
Posted by Sabrblade on March 1st, 2020 @ 11:26am CST
Beast Wars Neo had one too for its standard issue Maximal sidearm, the Matrix Cannon (most often seen being used by Stampy).D-Maximal_Primal wrote:Sabrblade wrote:Right here.D-Maximal_Primal wrote:Sabrblade wrote:Oh, good. I couldn't remember if it had been shown that he comes with a Cybertron Buster.
Did you guys know they made a role play toy of that gun back in the day?
Did not know that no. got any pics?
That's really cool!
Posted by D-Maximal_Primal on March 1st, 2020 @ 11:59am CST
Sabrblade wrote:Beast Wars Neo had one too for its standard issue Maximal sidearm, the Matrix Cannon (most often seen being used by Stampy).D-Maximal_Primal wrote:Sabrblade wrote:Right here.D-Maximal_Primal wrote:Sabrblade wrote:Oh, good. I couldn't remember if it had been shown that he comes with a Cybertron Buster.
Did you guys know they made a role play toy of that gun back in the day?
Did not know that no. got any pics?
That's really cool!
Now I kinda want one
Posted by chuckdawg1999 on March 2nd, 2020 @ 6:51pm CST
D-Maximal_Primal wrote:Sabrblade wrote:D-Maximal_Primal wrote:Beast Wars Neo had one too for its standard issue Maximal sidearm, the Matrix Cannon (most often seen being used by Stampy).Sabrblade wrote:D-Maximal_Primal wrote:Right here.Sabrblade wrote:Oh, good. I couldn't remember if it had been shown that he comes with a Cybertron Buster.
Did you guys know they made a role play toy of that gun back in the day?[/
quote]
Did not know that no. got any pics?
That's really cool!
Now I kinda want one
Takara did a lot of role play items back in the day. Imagine if Hasbro made stuff like this using the nerf brand.
Posted by ZarenPRIME on March 2nd, 2020 @ 7:31pm CST
Posted by Sabrblade on March 2nd, 2020 @ 11:14pm CST
They did.chuckdawg1999 wrote:Takara did a lot of role play items back in the day. Imagine if Hasbro made stuff like this using the nerf brand.
Posted by Bucky on March 3rd, 2020 @ 2:36pm CST
The engineering on him is pretty top notch, and he’s definitely interesting. Lot of twisting and turning. Lot of hinges and cradle-like structures. But with so much intricate engineering, and with such a thoroughly complicated transformation there’s a lot of areas that could end in breakage. Doesn’t help that there’s some parts of the instructions where it’s intensely difficult to tell what’s going on, but I don’t think that’s anything new. This is especially true with the abdominal section. It’s hard to tell how to move the side panels. The video posted above is recommended.
Just about everything on this toy is tight. Everything slides in and out of slots and cavities very smoothly, and everything tucks away neatly. All of which is cool. But there are some clearance issues. Mostly in regards to his lion claws. The slide right into the legs perfectly, but if you don’t have the leg bend, and instead have it straight like I did, when you go to twist the leg, you can easily snap the tips of the claws off. So be super careful. Luckily I only slightly bent mine on one leg, but I’m the only one who is ever going to notice the slightly imperfection,
I’d also be careful when it comes to transforming the legs. You might not think it at first, but there’s a lot of hinges down there, and a lot of twisting requires to transform them. My thigh swivels are insanely tight, so I had to use a bit more force than I was comfortable with, given the complex knee area.
Some of the cooler parts are that Lio Convoy is fully loaded in terms of weapons, and they all fold away and conceal nicely. His ratchets are good and tight, and have an oddly satisfying little click to them. Although the right elbow on mine appears to somewhat stuck. His colors are bold and beautiful. He doesn’t have ankle tilts, but he does have toe tilts.
Oh, and the ab crunch is great, and was unexpected.
All in all, Lio Convoy is a gorgeous looking toy, and he’s very cool. Personally I don’t know that I’ll be transforming him into lion mode again, but that’s okay. He looks amazing in bot mode anyway.
Posted by D-Maximal_Primal on March 3rd, 2020 @ 6:07pm CST
Posted by Bucky on March 4th, 2020 @ 3:28am CST
I thought it might be prudent to also provide some images to better clarify the potential problem areas that I encountered.
Part of the final steps calls for you to twist the lion arm on its swivel. This is fine provided that you have the elbow bent, to allow the claws to clear the cavity that they fold into.
However, as you can see, if it is not bent, and is straight, the claws no longer have the clearance necessary for the twist. I had Lio’s right lion arm straight when I got to this step, and had I not been paying such close attention, I would have snapped the tips of the claws off, instead of just slightly bending them.
I also wanted to point out how if you Lio Convoy has insanely tight thigh swivels, as mine does, this complicated area of the leg can seem fragile. There’s a lot of hinges there, so it doesn’t feel particularly robust. Lio actually has two swivels. One at the hip, and one at his lower thigh. The lower thigh is what’s tight on mine,
There is also a twist on the cradle of the lion head that had me sweating bullets, but after watching the video to confirm that I was doing what I was supposed to be doing, I got past it. There is clearance for the twist, but not much. If I were to transform this figure multiple times down the road, I’d be pretty concerned about that mushroom peg.
I do just want to reiterate that I experience NO breakage with mine. All you have to do is take it slow, and use caution for some areas. I do realize that that’s not ideal, but Lio Convoy has some crazy cool engineering, and he looks amazing.
Posted by ScottyP on March 4th, 2020 @ 12:14pm CST
Like all recent MPs, do not transform stuff on this without having a grip near the pieces that are moving. They don't engineer these to work well using leverage anymore, so I'd agree with Bucky's comments on the legs. Rotating the thigh? Do it by gripping and turning near the rotation point and not way down around the ankles. There are physics reasons this is required when you have a high number of parts.
MP-48 is an outstanding toy as long as you don't harambe the thing to death by attempting to figure it on your own the first time through.
Posted by william-james88 on March 4th, 2020 @ 11:23pm CST
"So I just spent the last hour transforming him into bot mode. Definitely gonna recommend kid gloves on the transformation. There’s a whoooole lot going on with this toy. Good, and bad.
The engineering on him is pretty top notch, and he’s definitely interesting. Lot of twisting and turning. Lot of hinges and cradle-like structures. But with so much intricate engineering, and with such a thoroughly complicated transformation there’s a lot of areas that could end in breakage. Doesn’t help that there’s some parts of the instructions where it’s intensely difficult to tell what’s going on, but I don’t think that’s anything new. This is especially true with the abdominal section. It’s hard to tell how to move the side panels. The video posted below is recommended.
Just about everything on this toy is tight. Everything slides in and out of slots and cavities very smoothly, and everything tucks away neatly. All of which is cool. But there are some clearance issues. Mostly in regards to his lion claws. The slide right into the legs perfectly, but if you don’t have the leg bend, and instead have it straight like I did, when you go to twist the leg, you can easily snap the tips of the claws off. So be super careful. Luckily I only slightly bent mine on one leg, but I’m the only one who is ever going to notice the slightly imperfection,
I’d also be careful when it comes to transforming the legs. You might not think it at first, but there’s a lot of hinges down there, and a lot of twisting requires to transform them. My thigh swivels are insanely tight, so I had to use a bit more force than I was comfortable with, given the complex knee area.
Some of the cooler parts are that Lio Convoy is fully loaded in terms of weapons, and they all fold away and conceal nicely. His ratchets are good and tight, and have an oddly satisfying little click to them. Although the right elbow on mine appears to somewhat stuck. His colors are bold and beautiful. He doesn’t have ankle tilts, but he does have toe tilts.
Oh, and the ab crunch is great, and was unexpected.
Regarding possible breakage:
I can see how too much forcing could potentially result in breakage at the chest plate area, but mine is just fine. The way the chest compresses, and folds away is pretty amazing.
I thought it might be prudent to also provide some images to better clarify the potential problem areas that I encountered.
Part of the final steps calls for you to twist the lion arm on its swivel. This is fine provided that you have the elbow bent, to allow the claws to clear the cavity that they fold into.
However, as you can see, if it is not bent, and is straight, the claws no longer have the clearance necessary for the twist. I had Lio’s right lion arm straight when I got to this step, and had I not been paying such close attention, I would have snapped the tips of the claws off, instead of just slightly bending them.
I also wanted to point out how if you Lio Convoy has insanely tight thigh swivels, as mine does, this complicated area of the leg can seem fragile. There’s a lot of hinges there, so it doesn’t feel particularly robust. Lio actually has two swivels. One at the hip, and one at his lower thigh. The lower thigh is what’s tight on mine,
There is also a twist on the cradle of the lion head that had me sweating bullets, but after watching the video to confirm that I was doing what I was supposed to be doing, I got past it. There is clearance for the twist, but not much. If I were to transform this figure multiple times down the road, I’d be pretty concerned about that mushroom peg.
I do just want to reiterate that I experience NO breakage with mine. All you have to do is take it slow, and use caution for some areas. I do realize that that’s not ideal, but Lio Convoy has some crazy cool engineering, and he looks amazing.
All in all, Lio Convoy is a gorgeous looking toy, and he’s very cool. Personally I don’t know that I’ll be transforming him into lion mode again, but that’s okay. He looks amazing in bot mode anyway. "
Posted by Rodimus Knight on March 5th, 2020 @ 9:32am CST