BotCon 2011 – Thoughts on Dead End

If you haven’t heard, BotCon announced the theme of the upcoming convention exclusive set, and it’s the Stunticons as how they would appear in the Transformers Animated universe. In addition to announcing that Derrick Wyatt, art director for the Animated show, had a hand in designing the set, the folks at BotCon also revealed the first toy — DEAD END.

So, what do I think about it? In a word?

LOVE.

BotCon 2011 - Dead End (Vehicle) — Dead End (Vehicle) - via BotCon.com

I love that they used Animated Jazz’s mold; after all, the original Dead End transformed into a Porsche, just like the original Jazz did (different models, of course). I love the deco of the vehicle mode. It captures the look of the original G1 toy, from the maroon body to the single yellow stripe on the hood/roof/trunk. The added dark grey/yellow colors on the side exhaust complement the body nicely.

BotCon 2011 - Dead End (Robot) — Dead End (Robot) - via BotCon.com

As for the robot mode, while it obviously doesn’t transform the same as the Scramble City G1 toy, it still captures the essence of the character. The visor is a good substitute for the original carton model’s eyes… and hooray, another Transformer with a beard! According to Derrick, he’s a depressing beat poet.

Excellent.

More, please!