[TAO's Note: Clark brings us another great review, this time from the Transformers Universe 2.0 line from Hasbro. Onslaught is a big (Ultra Class) Decepticon with an enormous shield, but is it enough protection from the criticism of Clark? Find out inside and enjoy the review!]

Name: Onslaught
Line: Transformers Universe 2.0, Ultra Class
Manufacturer: Hasbro
Released: Summer 2008
Price: Retail: $26.99-$29.99, Online:  $19.95-$29.99
Accessories: Shield 
Sponsor Listings: Past Generation Toys - $19.95, Amazon - $19.98

     To put it simply, Onslaught looks great.  What makes this robot great are his proportions.  Some transformers will get long torsos with short legs, or monkey arms and wide chest.  You get none of those weird measurements here,  Onslaught is appropriately bulky at the chest, lower legs, shoulders and forearms, with good lengths to his torso, arms and legs.  Basically he is thick everywhere you would want to make a machine look strong.  He has a great G1 design, with the windows on the chest and wheels on the lower leg, plus a rather cool head (I also love that he has a wench on his waste, and you will only see that in robot form).  There are plenty of small details on his body, like rivots and sculpted hatches (but nothing extravagant) and he looks appropriately like a cartoon character.  There are a couple of nods to his original design, namely the colors and the guns on his back.
     Onslaught’s alternate mode looks very good.  There are no horrible seams in the vehicle mode, and one thing that I especially like is that from no angle (even from the bottom) are there any blatantly obvious robot parts showing.  He just looks powerful, as if he could pound an autobot into submission with his fists, and that he could take a beating himself before going down.  Overall he is a very solid looking machine, I think the pictures speak for themselves here, if you like the way he looks then there will be no surprises once you have him in hand.

Sculpt Score: 8 / 10

 

    Most of Onslaught is plastic cast in the appropriate color.  Therefore he does not have that many painted details.  I don’t mind this, because it leaves little room for slop.  He does have some plates here and there that are painted, and a few decals.  All of the painted lines look really good.  In fact, I could not find anything that I would qualify as “slop” anywhere on his body.  His colors looks great too, once again very much like a cartoon.  Onslaught benefits from good paint apps where needed, and great color choices.  Doesn’t he just look like a Decepticon?

Paint Score: 8 / 10

 

    Onslaught is has a great amount of articulation, especially for his size.  Let me get the shortfalls out of the way first.  He has a swivel neck where a ball joint should have been, and he has no waste.  Those two items are the only real issues I have with him, and neither of which are that big of a deal, because of his size and bulk I will cut him a little bit of slack. All of the other joints that you need are there, and they all have a great range of motion. The high level of articulation was a little surprising to me, but because of his bulk he does not always pull off that dynamic pose in the most graceful manner.  Give me a twist waste and ball joint neck and he would be a 10.

Articulation Score: 9 / 10

 

     There is a lot of play value to be found with this toy.  He has a vehicle mode that looks menacing, and a robot mode that looks….well, menacing too I guess.  Onslaught’s transformation from vehicle to robot is not so simple that you feel insulted, but it is not difficult enough that you need the instructions either.  When putting him back into vehicle mode you need to look for all of the little tabs that hold him together, and once you have them assembled correctly he looks great.  Being an Ultra class also means that he has lights and sounds, but the sounds are so quiet I had a hard time hearing them.  For a child this would add fun (not the quiet part, just by being there), but I found them to be annoying so I took the batteries out.  Anyway, between his great G1 inspired sculpt and articulation, Onslaught makes for one fun transformer.

Fun Score: 9 / 10

 

     If you find Onslaught in the store you will spend between $27 and $30 for him.  That is not a horrible price for a transformer, especially when you consider his size and design, but still $27 is nothing to scoff at for any toy.  I wish that he had a few extra gimmicks or weapons for the price, but he is just fine as is.  If you like transformers, and you like the way this guy looks, and you have $30 to spend on a toy then I don’t think you’ll be disappointed.

Value Score: 7 / 10

 

8 / 10 - He may not have incredibly intricate details, but he looks great in robot and vehicle mode. 

8 / 10 - Not a lot of painted details, but what is there is done well, and the colors are really great.

9 / 10 - Very well articulated for any figure, and better than a lot of  TFs at his size.

9 / 10 - Weak electronics, but other than that very fun guy.

7 / 10 - At about $27 retail he is no bargain, but what you’d expect for a big transformer. 

82 / 100 - This is a Great Toy

If you love transformers, but are sick of the ROTF releases, then you might want to give this one a try.  I think you can still technically find him in stores, but it is becoming increasingly difficult.  If you don’t already know where you can pick one up I recommend saving the gas and time and ordering online, many places have him at a decent price.

-Clark

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