Earthrise Snapdragon

Prelude: He is called Snapdragon, but there was no snap when it counted. When the chips were down and the chance came to rid us of the pest called Daniel Witwicky forever, Snapdragon refused to snap. He simply mauled and Daniel survived to become a Headmaster. Too lazy to finish the job, eh? Anyway, after 33 years we are finally getting a new toy of Snapdragon in Earthrise. Let’s say go!

Robot Mode: G1 Snapdragon is one of my favorite G1 figures. Three great modes and very nicely articulated for a figure of the time. Earthrise Snapdragon has big shoes to fill, but he makes a great start in robot mode. The resemblance to the original is very, very good. The robot is a bit more streamlined and less bulky, of course, but he’s clearly the same guy. The articulation is very good except for one thing: the elbows only bend about 60 degrees, that’s it. Not a big thing, mind you, but noticeable.

Despite looking nearly identical to his original, Earthrise Snapdragon transforms differently, meaning he foregoes the big backpack the G1 figure had by incorporating those parts into his legs instead. Very nicely done. He comes with two purple rifles as weapons, which fit nicely into his color scheme. No way to store both of them when he’s not using them, sadly, but that’s really going into nitpicking territory now. He’s a Headmaster, meaning his head detaches into the separate robot Krunk (see below).

Overall I very much like Snapdragon’s robot mode. It ticks all the boxes by closely resembling the original while improving the design (no huge rucksack). So as far as the robot mode goes, one and a half thumbs up (the elbows require some minor point deduction).

Alternate Modes: As a triple changer Snapdragon has two alternate modes. The first one is a jet, very loosely resembling an SR-71 Blackbird. The jet is mostly white, has a front landing gear, and features two cockpits. A fake one out front and one for Krunk (see below). Which brings us to the one downside of this mode: opening the cockpit requires quite a bit of force and the yellow panels are relatively thin. Better not open and close it too often, is all I’m saying. Otherwise, a very nice jet mode. Looks great, the rifles go under the wings, no visible robot (or beast mode) bits, and the interior of the cockpit even features painted controls. Very nicely done.

His second alternate mode is a beast mode, where Snapdragon becomes... a dinosaur? A dragon? Godzilla? Something along those lines anway. The robot beast walks on two thick rear legs (the robot arms) and unfolds two tiny front arms from his rather small upper body. Krunk becomes the lower jaw and eyes of the dragon (or dino), not the entire head like the G1 Headmaster did. The two rifles go on his back and look pretty good there. The dragon (or dino) is a good deal better articulated than the G1 figure was and except for the slightly skewed proportions (huge tail and legs, tiny upper body) he looks pretty good.

Partner: Snapdragon’s Titan Master partner is Krunk, who forms his head in robot mode and the lower jaw and eyes of the dragon (or dino) mode. Krunk is a typical Titan Master, the only thing slightly unusual about him are those protrusions on his shoulders, which become Snapdragon’s eyes in beast mode.

Remarks: Snapdragon, along with his buddy Apeface, were the Horrorcons, a subgroup of two. They were Headmasters, Triple Changers, and whatever makes a Horrorcon. Snapdragon’s greatest claim to fame is that he almost managed to kill Daniel Witwicky in the G1 cartoon finale “The Rebirth”. He also appeared in the Headmasters cartoon and has numerous comic book appearances under his belt.

As a toy Snapdragon is everything I expected of him after Apeface already appeared in Siege. A great update of the great original figure that keeps what made it great and improves on its flaws. Also, no battle damage deco, thankfully. Anyway, Snapdragon is my favorite Earthrise figure so far and would have gotten a straight A rating from me if not for the elbows and the jet cockpit. Both minor things, though, and Snapdragon is fully recommended to just about everyone.

Rating: A-

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