G1 Swerve (Encore)

Remarks: Swerve here is a repaint (with an extensively remolded torso) of the 1984 Minibot Gears, so look there for the full review. Just a few words on the differences here. Like most of the 1986 Minibots (except Wheelie) Swerve here was sculpted using an existing mold, but underwent some radical changes. They’re not visible in vehicle mode, where the only differences are color. But in robot mode there is quite a bit that is different.

Where Gears had a rather plain chest and a head that consisted of little more than a blue visor, Swerve not only has a far more detailed chest, he also features a fully sculpted head and face. Now the original 1986 Swerve was content with painting this entire nicely sculpted face red and leaving it at that, but the Encore version here went one step further and used different colors to bring out the details a lot better. To put it bluntly, Swerve has an absolutely gorgeous face.

Not much more I can say here. He’s a Minibot from the early years, meaning his posability is pretty restricted and his play value consists of transforming him from a blocky robot into a blocky car in a single step (fold in the legs and you’re done). In the cartoon series Swerve only ever appeared in the background, being one of the Autobots who tried to stop Trypticon in “Five Faces of Darkness”. He got stomped into the dirt for his efforts. The name Swerve has since been inseparably bound to the obligatory red repaint, the only exception being Chevy Swerve. What this original Swerve is, though, is a decent G1 Minibot, and an excellent example of how a repaint can improve upon the original, thanks to a much better eye for detail.

Rating: B