Reviews – ASM

March 13, 2019 Phil

Comic Review: Transformers (2019) #1

Everything New Is Old Again…. When the announcement was made that IDW was going to end their run of Transformers comics, there was a very loud reaction from the fans. When James Roberts posted his last soundtrack listing, people were saddened. Even before the final page was read, tributes came flooding in from huge numbers of readers. I was not one of them. Don’t get me wrong. I have nothing against IDW’s the content or quality of the stories spanning over a decade. Nothing against Roberts or Barber or anyone who put fingers to keyboard. Nothing against the artists or letterers

March 24, 2017 Phil

Toy Review: Transformers Titans Return Fastclash

I never had the Autobot clones, and I only played with the Decepticon clones once or twice. However, I was still excited to see that these box sets were going to give us two (and most likely all) of the clones. In the “Chaos on Velocitron” set, Fastclash (formerly Fastlane) makes his debut. He is…. interesting. He’s interesting from a design standpoint. Neither a Deluxe or a Legend class, he exists in new size class Hasbro has said was created for the clones. So, rather than try to shoehorn him into a size too big or too small, they went

March 24, 2017 Phil

Some Quick Thoughts on Titan Master Rodimus Prime

Just had the chance to examine Titan Master Rodimus Prime from the “Chaos on Velocitron” set. This is the first diecast Titan Master we have seen here, so I wasn’t sure what to think. It’s definitely a unique TM figure. It doesn’t look different at first glance, but when I picked it up, I could tell it was not the same. First, it was cooler to the touch. Having been in my basement for a few hours, it was slightly cooler than room temperature, and the difference between the metal and plastic pieces was apparent. Second, the weight was off.

April 19, 2016 Phil

Under Pressure: Dept. H #1 Delivers Tension and Mystery

I love underwater stories. I’ve been fascinated by SCUBA diving ever since I was a kid, finally realizing my dream twenty years ago (aside: I just realized it was twenty years ago holy crap I’m old). Even before I was a diver, I loved reading and watching stories about the world below. I’m of the opinion that even a horrible movie can be partially redeemable if there’s diving or underwater sequences. Case in point: I will unironically watch Jaws 3. And that’s a bad movie. So when Dark Horse announced Dept. H, on sale tomorrow, by Matt and Sharlene Kindt,

July 8, 2015 Phil

SDCC 2015: A Quick Quick Look at Devaststor

In case you missed it, yesterday I tweeted my review of Hasbro’s SDCC Devastator: @MattGuzy @chrisrtxv "Look. It's Devastator. You know you want him. Want chrome? Get this guy. The end." — ASM (@ASMzine) July 8, 2015 @MattGuzy @chrisrtxv …. Damn, I think I just wrote ASM's review. NOBODY STEAL THAT. — ASM (@ASMzine) July 8, 2015 There you go. In all seriousness, Devvy is a big toy in more ways than one, a toy that deserves a lot of attention. But I know that tonight is Preview Night and there may be someone still on the fence on whether

July 8, 2015 Phil

SDCC 2015: A Look at the Kreon Class of 1985

If you’re looking for good photos of this toy,um, sorry. I don’t have a good photo setup at the moment, but I hope to change that in the future. Enjoy these official press photos, won’t you? Review sample provided by Hasbro and Hunter PR. When Hasbro announced that there would be a follow-up to last year’s Comic Con Kreon exclusive set, I got giddy. While I’m not a huge collector of Kreons, I understand their appeal. I also can get behind themed sets that are just fun, if not completely goofy. The Yearbook Kreon sets are just that – whimsical

June 26, 2015 Phil

Late to the Party: Review of Gunslinger and Brake-Neck

I realize I’m extremely late to the party here. Combiner Wars gestalt limbs and torsos have been on shelves for months, and Gunnslinger and Brake-Neck were released online about a month ago. A lot has been said about these toys, about how wonderful they are, how awesome it is to be building a combiner, and more of the like. Sure, CW has its flaws, and it isn’t everyonen’s cup of tea, but for the most part, everyone likes the toys. So what can I say about Gunslinger and Brake-Neck that hasn’t been said already? How about — I finally understand

April 30, 2015 Phil

A Quick Look at Quickslinger and Brake-Neck…. Sort Of

Thanks to the fine people at Hasbro and Hunter PR, I was given Quickslinger and Brake-Neck early so that I could get time with them to give you, valued ASM reader, my thoughts. However, life as a parent means things don’t go to plan. I will sadly have to postpone my reviews of these toys until later (I hope to do a full breakdown over the next few weeks), but that being said, I do want to share some quick thoughts: You know you’re going to want to buy these. For the G1 “purist”, you need these toys to make

March 25, 2015 Phil

Comic Review: “Jem and the Holograms” #1

[AHEAD BE SPOILERS!] Jem and the Holograms #1 is a modern take on the classic 1980’s cartoon. The inherent problem to solve, though, is that Jem pretty much is the 80’s personified. Can you take the basic concept of a female band with the glitz and glam, the flash, the keytars, the hologram and translate into something viable for readers three decades later? That is what Kelly Thompson and Sophie Campbell try to do in this debut issue. Do they succeed? Well, at the end of the issue I found myself wishing it was double-sized because I didn’t want the story to

March 18, 2015 Phil

“Transformers: Robots in Disguise” Premiere – More and Less Than Meets The Eye

“Transformers: Robots in Disguise” premiered this past weekend on Cartoon Network. The pilot episode, split into two parts, sets up the general theme for this new cartoon, and in so doing, it proves that RID is both more and less than meets the eye. That may seem contradictory, but it’s true. On its surface, what does “Robots in Disguise” seem to hold in store? Robots. Check. In disguise. Check. Heck, Bumblebee even says it when they scan Earth modes. So,in so naming the show, RID is less than meets the eye — it wears its oil pump on its sleeve, to