Transformers

Masterpiece 25

Tracks

Tracks is a Masterpiece Transformer which I bought off of a Chinese Ebay seller. I’m not sure if this is an official toy, or just a really good knock off, but I got for about $30.

I’m not exactly sure if I would call Tracks one of my favorite Autobots, but I love his alt mode of being a Corvette Stingray.

Collector’s Card:

Like all MP Transformers, Tracks comes with a collector’s card. It’s Tracks in all three modes, with the series number, and on the back we see his stats, and a bunch of Japanese text.

I’m not gonna lie...I’m not a big an of the art work. I love good Transformers box art (especially with the G1, Siege and Earthrise toys), but what’s on this collector’s card isn’t winning me over...

Track’s colors don’t pop, the back ground is dusty and muted, and I’m not a fan of the posing of the robot mode or the pose.

Accessories:

Tracks comes with quite a few things.

Flight stand-

Well it’s a flight stand, what more do you want? It’s solid black with a silver Autobot stamp on it. It has three hinges; the base one, and second one are ratcheted, while the one at the top isn’t... for some reason.

Which is a problem because the tip hinge isn’t floppy, but it’s not load bearing...You peg Tracks into the stand you’ll have to position the other two ratcheted hinges to into where they need to be, and hope that the third will stay in place. 

Raule-

Raule is Tracks’ human friend; he was only in two, or three episodes of the G1 cartoon, but he was a memorable character.

The figure is a static object, he’s painted well, aside from the blob of paint at the base, and he don’t have any facial details, just the sculpting details.

Blaster- Not the gun, I’m talking about the Autobot, Blaster in his boombox mode; it’s a nice touch. I suppose, technically you could say that I also have a MP Blaster too. >:D

Hand gun-

Tracks is armed with a tiny hand gun. There’s not much to say about it, it’s gray plastic, with painted silver. It looks okay for what it is; my only issue with it is that sometimes it can be tricky to place in Tracks’ hand.

Flight gun-

This gun is also painted silver, and clips onto the from of the corvette to be used for the flight mode. It looks like something else, but this is a family friendly channel. Who am I kidding, no it’s not; but I’m not saying what it looks like...

Vehicle Mode:

Tracks’ vehicle mode is a blue Corvette Stingray with red flames on the hood; he was making it cool before Hotrod. 

Personal bias, I love the curves this car has to offer.

The hood opens up to reveal the engine; it’s pretty much just a superficial layer of sculpting but it is a nice touch. 

The car has rubber tires and it rolls pretty well, however I’m concerned that the  under kibble might get caught on things if you’re not careful; so I’d be mindful of that.

Flight Mode:

That is a flying car, alright.

Transformation to the flight mode does require opening up the back end of the car a lot, and the back end is quite fiddly, but once you get everything out and where it needs to be this is fun for what it is. 

I wouldn’t exactly call Tracks a triple changer since he still retains the look of the Corvette, just with added wings, intake engines, maneuvering rudders and rockets. It sounds like a lot, but it really isn’t.

Transformation:

Transformation to robot mode gets easier the more you do it. At first I hated it, but after doing it a couple of times it’s not so bad. The back half of the car where the arms, wings, and rockets come out will never not be a fiddly mess, and I am concerned about the thinner plastic which has been used to hold the back end on; that is a part which should be dicast metal.

Robot Mode:

In robot mode Tracks looks a lot bigger than his car mode; must be that mass shifting...

I’ve always appreciated Tracks (original G1 version’s) unique look; I don’t think he ever had a mold mate within the Transformers series; I know there’s a red variant of the G1, and the MP Tracks, but I’m pretty sure the red one is his old Diaclone toy.

But as a car-former bot Tracks has a pretty unique look to him.

His royal blue colors, the popping yellow and red Autobot symbol, Tracks’ random red face, and even the wings coming out from behind the shoulders

Looking at Track from the front, everything looks like it should; he’s what a 21st Century update to an 80′s toy should look like, however once you turn Tracks around he can be a bit bulky, and irritating.

It’s the back end of the car; it’s just big and floppy, and it just doesn’t peg in anywhere.

Tracks can also be placed on the stand too for more action poses, and let’s go over his articulation:

Ball jointed head, three different joints which make up the shoulder joints (integral for transformation) bicep swivel, bend at the elbow, wrist swivel, wrist flex (part of the transformation), hinge at the fingers, waist swivel, universal hips, thigh swivel, bend at the knee, and ball jointed foot.

That’s not too bad, though I do admit I’m concerned about that ball jointed ankle

Final Thoughts:

Tracks is pretty cool!

Masterpiece Tracks has a great vehicle mode, a pretty fun transformation, and a decent robot mode. All things considered I’m glad I didn’t pay up to the amount of $70 for this figure...