Transformers Generations: Combiner Wars Defensor Review

By now, you’ll know that I’ve gone and dived straight into the deep end of Transformers toys. Combiner Wars takes the very best bits of Transformers, and mashes them together into a mad dash to collect all the figures possible in a way that would make Pokémon jealous. There’s a number of these figures out, each sporting their own mechanisms and transformation modes.

I’ve gotten my hands on one of them, a titanic figure made up of five Protectobot Transformers that goes by the name of Defensor. And I’m in love with it.

Before we can even get to Defensor, we need to take a look at the parts which make up this colossal combination of an Autobot. You’ve got one Voyager-class Transformer for the torso, and four smaller Deluxe-class figures which serve as limbs.

Hot Spot

In terms of design, colours and style, Hot Spot is fantastic. His likeness is spot-on, the head-sculpt is G1 magic and the paint-job is terrific. And that’s when this figure falls flat. Literally. Hot Spot as a solo figure, has terrible poseability. The massive ladder on his back that hides the Defensor head is more of a stand than an accessory, while the ratchet joints don’t help Hot Spot stay stable on a flat surface.

The vehicle mode itself is alright. In a toy range that includes tanks, helicopters and big rigs, a glorified ladder vehicle isn’t exactly impressive. Fortunately, Hot Spot’s torso mode is more than adequate for the key feature of these toys.

First Aid

What’s nice about First Aid is that his vehicle mode has a military feel that ties in nicely with the aesthetic of Rook, Streetwise and Blades. Beefy and big, he makes for a helluva nice leg piece on Defensor, and an intimidating Autobot on his own. Also, he has an axe. Like every good ambulance should.

Streetwise

My favourite out of the lot, Streetwise is a sporty and angular police car in his vehicle mode. In robot form, Streetwise has a nice chunky aesthetic, and can easily stand on his own two feet.

The pearl colour scheme works nicely, and his transformations are easy enough to get the hang of, provided that you get past the stiff joints on his hood.

Rook

While Streetwise is a nippy police vehicle, Rook is pure brute force in his design as a SWAT van. The quickest to transform, Rook has a towering presence and works fantastically as an arm piece for Defensor.

Blades

I really liked Blades. One of the smallest figures in the gang of Protectobots, Blades makes up for it with some terrific details and easy transformations. The actual rotor blades feel a tad bit flimsy, but Blades is solid overall. Plus, more rescue choppers should have built-in missile launchers.

Right, that’s the Autobots on their own. So how does the sum total of the Protectobots stack up then?

Defensor

The gestalt combination of all five of these Autobots is simply massive. He stands at an easy height of around 28-30cm once he is fully assembled. Much like the other Combiner War figures, Defensor can also fuse his guns together to create one massive rifle, although I prefer to use them as twin shooters.

My current setup for Defensor has Blades and Rook as his arms, while First Aid and Streetwise make up his legs. It’s not the best setup in terms of proportions, but more of a personal preference than anything else. I’m still not too sold on the ratchet joints by the legs, which feel a tad bit loose for me when I’m trying to nail a kickass pose for Defensor. The integration of the ladder into the torso however, is pure genius.

But overall, he’s a towering figure that just oozes some G1 charm. And I like it! He doesn’t have noodle legs like Superion, and he just looks better than the promotional shots that I’ve seen for Menasor so far. Plus, he’s currently dangling my smaller figures by their legs, perilously close to the edge of my shelf. I should stop that.

Last Updated: December 2, 2015