Transformers X Sonic The Hedgehog: Autism Squared
The TF Collaborative line has brought us many a crossover with now numerous different pieces of popular media, some of them expected, some of them less so. Today we’re looking at the latest effort, something I have dubbed “autism^2”. Cause just look at it.
Staring with Sonic, because he’s kinda sorta what the series is named after, we’re presented with a fun, competent deluxe. “Blue Booster” speeds onto the scene and does a good job of adapting the blue blur’s (not that one) features into a robotic, metallic form factor (no not like that). The chest and arms and gloves are all accounted for, as they probably should be. He gets quills on the back of his head, and the back of his shoulders are moderately spiky, rounding out the various design elements. The head/face sculpt kind of resembles Sonic Man, which is. A thing. That exists. Apparently. The visor works well as a sort-of substitute for his weird mono eye, the two features very analogous. Many of his design elements were carried over very well. I don’t love the mouth, but it works… fine, I guess.
He’s primarily cast in blue, fucking shocking, but it’s a nice Sonic grade blue. They hit the nail on the head for the hues. The white is very starchy, on both figures, but I would especially like to highlight the bronze. It emulates skin without being an actual, weird and horrifying fleshy tone. He needs some more red, though. There’s a little on the wheels and the taillights (waow), but that’s it. He needed it in his feet to emulate his shoes, as it stands right now there’s a little too much blue. I know it would have affected the car mode, but I think a small sacrifice there to really amp up the robot mode would have been worth it. It’s already not accurate anyhow…
I can’t believe they changed the color of Tomatopotamus’ legs.
Articulation and transformation are both somewhat standard. He’s got slightly above average legs with a deep ankle tilt, but slightly below average arms. Some of the joints are maybe a bit stiff out of the box, but not in a way that prevents a smooth rotation anywhere. Nothing awkwardly clicks between positions. It’s pretty easy to get him into a solid running pose, which. Yeah. But outside of that he’s generally fairly expressive. The transformation goes largely how you expect, with the feet forming the front of the car and his shoulders becoming the back, but there’s some neat twists thrown in! The arms fold up in a clever way, and I like how his feet fold down and around. The middle of the waist spinning around is cool as well.
The end result is a slightly nondescript but still faithful rendition of Sonic’s car, the Speed Star. Yes, Sonic Maurice T. Hedgehog has a car. It’s so he doesn’t just automatically win every single race he enters, you see. The TFWiki says it’s based off the original Team Sonic Racing version, but it is not one-to-one. At the very least some elements are simplified, ignoring larger changes like the canopy. It’s already not accurate so they could have put like a red stripe in between the headlights and bumper. They could have gotten away with it. Probably. Possibly. Maybe.
Moving onto Tails, his robotic rendition, dubbed “Wingtail”, is a… slightly less competent deluxe. In terms of translating features I don’t think he nails the landing quite as well as Blue Booster. The mouth definitely doesn’t work here. It’s not picked out, but it still adds texture, so even if you don’t directly notice it when glancing over him you can still feel it on there, and when you do focus on it things get that bit worse. It’s oddly high up… A face plate would have worked much better, I feel. Everything else works more or less fine though. He gets his got dang shoes, and the split tail fin works pretty well for his, well, tails. He doesn’t get the chest “fluff” like Blue Booster, given the propeller, and he could have maybe used a touch more yellow. Maybe. Idk. Like I don’t notice that lack of color but in direct comparison there is a slight design philosophy discrepancy between the two figures. He’s definitely a little more clunky, however. He gets a few more points of articulation than Blue Booster, but he has a harder time using it. The twin tails are, unsurprisingly, a bit bulky, as are the lower set of wings stuck on his arms. They’re attached via 5mm pegs, so if you want to remove them for any reason it’s no problem, but if you want them to stay on then they can pop off on their own somewhat easily.
The transformation shares some of the awkwardness of robot mode, with, again, the wing pieces on the arms providing the most trouble, but it’s not bad, by any means, just a tad more fiddly and potentially annoying than Blue Booster. You still have the room you need, and again, if you want, you can remove the lower wings beforehand and reattach them when everything else is said and done. Options. He’s damn interesting though. You don’t often see wings on the arms like that, and things like the way the legs fold up to get encased by the tail fin halves is really clever. The end result is fantastic, and honestly just kind of adorable. It feels pretty good in hand, and, uh, there are like NO biplane transformers, so that’s a big automatic point. He’s not the first but it’s a dry landscape for such an interesting (and quite simply cool) piece of aviation history.
Accessories are a bit of a mixed bag. The item capsule is adorable, honestly, but that does Not Work as a gun. You’re. You’re not doing anything with that buddy. The ring shield does work as it is described, however, and can also be pegged into the capsule to be able to stand upright, letting it work as a display prop as well. The jet booster blaster is a much more convincing weapon, and the blast effect is nice and fiery. Best part? It’s made out of solid clear plastic.
Neither figure has any sort of flight stand port, which is a shame, especially for Wingtail. Some flying poses would be fun, but even if he was directly compatible with a flight stand he doesn’t really have the movement he needs to that to like, look good. The biplane looks great hoisted into the air, though. An astounding revelation, I know. Blue Booster rolls well and is satisfying to zoom around.
As a whole, the Sonic X Transformers figures are a fun time! They’re both at least solid, even if they aren’t the most revolutionary things ever released. They aren’t just coasting on their crossover appeal, they hold a lot of merit on their own. That said, y’know, if you do like both series, then there’s probably a bit more for you here. Here’s hoping we get another set! Can’t have your yin without your yang, after all… If you’re only moderately interested and these aren’t a day one need-to-buy them deal, then they’re likely to go on sale. I’m pretty sure most of the crossover sets have gotten discounted, so while $50 USD is not a bad price for these two, waiting for the price to drop is probably a pretty safe bet. You aren’t likely to miss out if you do. You do not, in fact, need to go fast.
