Transformers Animated: Blackout

Blackout, a name you might be familiar or might not. Either, you might remember the big bad helicopter Decepticon that appears in the first Transformers movie. Well, that’s Blackout. For what i am going to share today is not the Blackout from the movie, but is from my favorite Transformers toyline – the Transformer Animated! The animated version of Blackout also has an alternate mode of a helicopter. And of course, being an Animated, you will definitely see the cute, streamlined and simple design of him instead of the normal or realistic helicopter. Curious in finding out more? Read on!

I got this voyager Blackout in Takara Tomy version. I never seen a Hasbro version selling in Malaysia before. Anyhow, Takara Tomy is guaranteed with better repainting and QC (normally) . Well, no regret in getting the Takara Tomy version as i really like the design for this robot.

Alternate mode: Unknown Cartoon Helicopter
The alternate mode for Black out is a round and cute helicopter. But don’t let the cuteness of the alternate mode deceives you as he is heavily equipped with missiles and Gatling guns here and there. I think he is one of the most heavily equipped animated Decepticon as compared to others. By count, he has 3 pairs of Gatling guns and a pairs of 2 missiles launcher which is enough to crush any Autobot (or human being) on sight.

The built quality for this Blackout is very solid (and heavy too!) indeed and no abruptly loosen joint as well (though the joints are soft and easily to be turned) which adds to the value of it being a Takara Tomy.

See the amount of weapons Blackout has. However, those weapons are not detachable. You can only turn or twist them which is for the purpose of transformation only.

A point to ponder here though, there’s a BIG yellow mole in front of the helicopter….. and i wonder what’s that for? I am pretty sure that’s not a weapon or some sort but it does make a funny impression of a mole.

[Thanks to Triponthisman: The yellow mole actually is a refueling probe used for aerial refueling. ]

The Decepticon insignia is imprinted clearly in purple color with silver metallic painted background. That’s the only part of the entire alternate mode being painted in silver metallic color. Anyhow, you will also get to see gold metallic color painted on the side Gatling guns as well. You can see the large tail rotor (which is like a ducted fan designed)  there which actually you can turn the rotor inside. Speaking of it, the rotor itself is the primary weapon (“the disc” launcher) for the robot mode. Quite nicely concealed as a part of the alternate mode.

There are 6 blades for the main rotor of the helicopter. All are actually fold-able to either sides in order for the transformation.

Robot mode: Blackout
Here you go with the red eyed, yellow mustached and neck-less robot mode! I particular like the yellow mustached head piece of him. It gels uniquely well with the overall rounded body. The overall figure is quite heavy. You can notice the upper body is actually taking up all the weight for the whole body and with a pair of skinny legs to actually support it. Despite being such body to weight proportion,  balancing him for posture isn’t as hard as expected. Luckily. This is due to the “3 toes” design for the legs: 2 toes in front and 1 toe at the back to actually add to the stronger support.

Articulation wise is quite standard. You will get to see additional articulations to the fingers of him and a waist swivel joint as well. In addition, being “neck-less”, there are no head joint for him and you can’t turn his head left and right. The only way for him to see either sides are by turning the whole upper body (which the waist swivel joint kicks in) .

From the side you can see clearly how heavy the upper body is with the small support from the leg.

The blades are being folded in robot mode. However, you can’t fold all 6 together due to the position of the individual blades. The upper 2 blades can only be folded halfway like in the picture below. Design flaws? or intentionally designed?

If you are a fan of the Transformers Animated series, the robot mode does has some accuracy on the design (not 100% though). Here’s a picture of the original Blackout from the Animated series for you to compare with. Apart from the color differences (which is quite obvious), the features and facial are quite similar. And of course, the original animated version looks more wicked as compared to the cute toy it has.

Transform and Roll Out!
The transformation for this voyager Blackout is fairly simple and straightforward. I guess you can transform it right at 1st time even without the manual.

There’s one part i particular like the transformation is between Step 2 and Step 3 where you flip the leg portion to the front, the main rotor will pop up and flip behind automatically. It is connected with some sort of spring triggered mechanism built inside. Pretty cool to see such swift transformation in him.

Show Me Watcha Got!

Show Me Some Poses!
Here are some poses of Blackout. He looks great in all these poses. Wicked, confident, taunting and yet heroic! (despite being rounded and fat)

Don’t you dare mess with me!

Conclusion
This is by far the most favorite piece of Transformer Animated toy i have. It has cool robot and alternate mode (i have this strong affection towards helicopter alternate mode anyhow). Moreover, it looks real cool standing as one of my desktop guardian. My PCR (Personal Collection Rating) for him is 9.5/10! Definitely a 4.5 stars liking from me! hahaha.. Okay, besides the yellow mole he has, the rest is of my liking :p

Oh ya, if you are interested in knowing how a Hasbro version of the Blackout looks like, here’s a link having comparison photos between the Taktom and Hasbro version. After seeing these pictures, i have NO regrets in getting the Takara Tomy version at all! But anyhow, I wonder IF there ever has a Hasbro version of Animated Blackout. So, Takara Tomy’s version is a must have for you! Until then, happy hunting and hauling!