Siege Apeface

Prelude: Apeface and his buddy Snapdragon were the Horrorcons in G1, a subgroup of two guys who are triple changers and Headmasters and... horrible, probably? It was never really specified what exactly differentiates a Horrorcon from others, but after over 30 years we are now seeing them again. Apeface returns in Siege, with his mate Snapdragon due to follow in Earthrise. Let’s see how the one with the face of an ape fares in his newest incarnation.

Robot Mode: Looking back at the original G1 Apeface, the figure had one major problem: a huge backpack (or ass-pack, rather) consisting of the ape mode arms and jet nose. Siege Apeface still has a backpack, the jet nose, but it’s an actual backpack this time and a good deal smaller. The big arms of Apeface’s beast mode are cleverly integrated into his robot mode legs, so he already makes for a much learner, better proportioned figure than his predecessor.

Something that originally put me off this figure a bit is that a large portion of him is made from milky white plastic. Also, the entire figure kind of feels… rubbery, I’d say is the best way to describe it. The parts feel soft and bendy at first. But after handling him for a while, one realizes that everything is well-made despite the somewhat funny feeling and all the parts tab together well (though not necessarily straight out of the box, keep that in mind). Apeface is very nicely articulated, no problems here, including tilting ankles. No waist swivel, but I can live with that.

Sadly Hasbro went a bit overboard here with the dreaded battle damage deco. Apeface’s lower legs, shoulders, and the jet nose behind his head are positively covered in it. Might really have to look into somehow washing that off. In terms of weapons Apeface comes with a black rifle and a wing shield, which he can tab into his shoulder or forearm. The weapons are the same he carried in his G1 incarnation, basically, so no complaints here.

Overall I like Apeface’s robot mode a lot. Battle damage detailing aside, there is nothing really to complain about here, once you get used to his somewhat strange feel. So thumbs up and let’s move on.

Alternate Modes: As a triple changer Apeface has two different alternate modes. One of them is – big surprise – a robotic ape. The transformation basically consists of turning the robot upside down, the shoulders become the ape legs, the legs become the ape arms. The jet nose remains on the back, but unfolds the lower part of the ape’s head. The upper part of said head is formed by Spasma (see below). Not sure why they didn’t go the same route as in G1 and have the Headmaster become the entire ape head, but it works this way, too. Inserting Spasma takes a bit of fiddling, but it’s not a problem. The resulting robot ape may not look particularly realistic, but he does give a great impression of a robot monster and looks pretty cool. Articulation is good, if not great, and overall I like this mode.

Second is the jet mode, which actually isn’t that different from the ape mode. Basically the ape lies down on its stomach, tucks in the arms and legs, flips the jet nose forward, and folds out the wings, done. The wing shield from the robot mode (which can be plugged into the ape’s lower back in that mode) hides a cockpit for Spasma to sit in and the rifle is mounted underneath the jet’s nose. It might not be the most aerodynamic jet ever (basically it’s a box with wings), but it looks sufficiently jet like to be easily recognizable and works fine as a science fiction style aircraft.

Both the jet and the ape mode are much better at hiding the robot arms than the G1 toy ever was, by the way. So overall I like both of Apeface’s alternate modes just fine. They manage to both look like what they’re supposed to be and everything holds together well. Nicely done.

Partner: Apeface comes with Headmaster / Titan Master Spasma, who becomes his head in robot mode and, well, part of his head in beast mode. Spasma is pretty much a standard Titan Master except for having the robot face on the back of his legs instead of his back.

Remarks: Apeface appeared in the G1 cartoon finale “The Rebirth”, but only as another guy in the crowd. He had a slightly larger role in the Marvel Comics, where he most famously had his arm bitten off by Rampage, only to then use said arm as a club to bash Rampage’s head in. He also appeared in the Japanese Headmaster cartoon. None of this appearances were particularly prolific, though.

Apeface is one of those toys that, upon first taking him out of the box, you are kind of disappointed, but the more you play with him, the better he gets. I was a bit turned off at first by his milky white plastic, the somewhat bendy feel of some of his parts, but after transforming him back and forth two or three times, I ended up really liking him. He is not perfect, but a vast improvement over the original G1 figure and does end up with three decent modes overall. So bottom line: A good, easily recommended figure. Just be aware that he needs a certain warming up period.

Rating: B

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