Hunt for the Decepticons Hubcap

Robot Mode: What makes the perfect Scout-class figure? Well, I figure everyone’s got his own criteria for that one, but for the following must apply: A great look, superb posability, a certain amount of flair (meaning it’s just another robot like we’ve seen a dozen before) and no overbearing gimmick (if it has one at all). A Scout figure is, in my book, supposed to offer lots of play value for (comparatively) little money. And to make matters short: For me, Hubcap fulfills all of these criteria.

Hubcap is relatively tall and lean for a Scout-class figure. His large feet give him an almost anime-like flair, but not in a bad way. Having the radiator grill of his old-school vehicle mode as a chest looks great to me und his head is equally well-done, so no point deduction here, either. The figure’s posability is pretty much flawless and leaves no room for complaints. He can pull off a Kung-Fu kick without any problems and his big feet give him a stable platform for all sorts of poses.

Well, I can’t really write that much more here. Great look, superb posability, flair, no gimmick (and he doesn’t need one), all of that fits together very well. So two thumbs up for the robot mode.

Alternate Mode: Personally I’m a fan of old-school cars (or cars made to look old-school), so of course Hubcap appeals to me. The look of the car is somewhat 1930ish, but I doubt he’s molded after any single real-world model from that time. Of course the car got a major tune-up. There must be a giant engine beneath that hood, judging by the many ornate exhaust pipes running along the car’s side, giving it a certain dramatic flair. The big radiator grill up front looks great as well. So all in all a solid, flawless vehicle mode for a Scout-class figure.

Remarks: I’m not usually a big fan of the Scout-class, seeing as my favorite figures usually hail from the Deluxe- or Voyager-class. But one has to admit that Revenge of the Fallen and its follow-up Hunt for the Decepticons (or Hunt for the Decepticons, if you prefer) have brought out quite the number of great Scout-class figures. And to me Hubcap is, for the moment at least (who knows what’s still to come) the crowning achievement of that trend.

Yes, he has no gimmick (how many Scouts have one?), didn’t appear in the movies (which holds true for just about his entire line) and comes in that exact shade of red that doesn’t photograph well at all. All of which doesn’t matter in the slightest. He’s a great figure in terms of look, posability, transformation, alternate mode, and ties it all together into a very neat package. So a clear-cut matter for me and an equally clear-cut recommendation.

Rating: A

 

 

Update 2011-04-09: The Reprolabels sticker set for Hubcap has arrived, enabling him to become an updated version of Generation 2 Volt. See last five pictures in the gallery.