Takara MP-12 Master Piece Lambor (Sideswipe)

I couldn’t wait to post this review – Takara’s MP-12 Master Piece Lambor, or Sideswipe for the purposes of this review:

Let me just get this on the record – I fricken LOVE this guy.   LOVE him.   He is an amazing testament to what a transformer can be.  So let’s jump right in:

The box, as you can imagine, due to Sideswipe’s stature, is very, very small, though still beautifully done up in the Master Piece style.  When it comes to Takara’s releases, I’m always willing to pay more for the finer touches like the box.  Hasbro does a good job of cutting costs by skipping all of that of course, but for me, its worth the extra money.

The front features, as always, the name, and both the robot and alt-mode pictures.   The back features the details of the figure, including accessories, and a size show with MP-10 Optimus Prime:

Sideswipe comes in a plastic clam-shell case, very basic, with his instructions and collector card.  Once you get him out, he’s very light, there is no die-cast metal anywhere on Sideswipe.  I think this is a great decision on Takara’s part.  Die-cast metal only leads to issues with the toy.  I recognize that some people want it included for nostalgia’s sake, but for the toy’s integrity, its better to avoid it.
Now, onto Sideswipe himself:

The head sculpt on Sideswipe is outstanding.  He retains his classic G1 appearance though, the head design itself is far more cartoon accurate than the original toy was.   A small downside is that the blue they used for the eyes is darker than what Hasbro used on their MP-10 Prime, but like Takara’s MP-10, I’m okay with the darker blue.

He has opening hands, typical of all master piece figures, but the fingers are not individually articulated –

Articulation is top notch, better than some of the other Masterpieces for sure –

Because of the lightweight design – his balance is top notch as well:

But actually, that pose is achieved through a stand.  He might be able to do this, but I wanted to test out my new stands.

Sideswipe comes with his rifle and shoulder launcher as well.   Let’s take a 360 look at him fully equipped:

All of his panels peg in snug and firm, nothing feels loose (Hot Rod..) or has trouble pegging in (Star Scream…)

I will admit, I  had some trouble with the canopy windows folding in at first, but that’s because they’re on a double joint so they basically fold in, out, then back in.  It works great though, and as you can see from this next pic:

There is no kibble at all on the back.  It also reduces the old “roof on the car on your back” look from the G1 figure.  Well, at least a little.

He also comes with his “pile driver” fists, which he used in one episode –

His flexibility allows him to use them quite well.

Rumble has some competition….but meh.. they’ll be in the box.

Wooo doggies does alt-mode look nice.  And because Lamborghini officially licensed this guy –

We get a Lamborgini logo on the hood!

And the Countach name on the back, though here you can see my only QC issue a blotch of black paint on the tail light.  Not the worst issue ever, so I’ll manage.
The weapons actually combine and peg into the roof as well:

You gotta love the candy apple red too. I mean, very slick looking.   I should point out that the tires are plastic, not rubber.   Again, I have no problem with this, but it may irk some collectors.
Finally, due to his size, I wanted to illustrate how he measures up with some other figures, starting with a few other MPs – MP-10 Optimus Prime, MP-11 H Thundercracker, PP05 Ratchet –

And here’s a few classics figures –

And yes, as a closer look, he is actually shorter than Classics Prime:

But only by a small amount.

Sideswipe is basically going to be my desk toy for the foreseeable future.  He’s just so amazing and even though he’s little, he packs a perfect Master Piece punch!  For his price, I don’t think anyone should pass him up.  I would say this though: Because of the Red Alert upgrade from Beezleboss, whic you can see my post here – I probably won’t get MP-12b Red Alert.  He looks just as awesome, but I’d rather keep Sideswipe as my only MP Autobot car at this point, until they make Jazz (OH GOD TAKARA, PLEASE MAKE JAZZ!!!!).

Coming up next – A whole lotta G2 with Botcon 2010’s G2 Redux and G2 Colored FOC Bruticus!

Stay tuned!