CW Vortex [uploaded]

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ganon578
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CW Vortex [uploaded]

Post by ganon578 »

Name: Vortex
Function: Interrogator
Subgroup: Combiner Wars
Size Class: Deluxe

Decepticon Vortex is the interrogator the Decepticons call when they need someone to cough up information. He’ll take his targets for a wild ride, twisting, turning, looping, and diving through the sky. It’s enough to make any bots cough up their secrets… and then some.

I can’t tell you how many times I passed on this guy and thought that he was just plain ugly. Some of that feeling still lingers, but it’s softened a bit over time. Vortex is a pretty good toy all around, minus the garish color palette. Even so, he mimics the original toy quite well; truth be told, I only bought him to complete Bruticus. This version of Vortex is a repaint of CW Alpha Bravo, and a repaint/retool of CW Blades.

Alternate Mode:

Vortex’s alternate mode is a military helicopter. The mode is rather sleek and features good molded detail. Most of the garish color palette is hidden by grey while in helicopter mode, and I think it works rather well. Aesthetically, the downside is the arms aren’t hidden very well on the helicopter sides. The missile racks on the forearms do a little to obscure this, but they stick out a bit too much for my liking. It’s definitely not a deal breaker, and something that can easily be overlooked. Otherwise, the paint applications are clean and crisp, and there’s a good amount of molded detail all over the helicopter mode that should please most people.

The rotors spin well, and don’t typically bump into anything when he’s transformed properly. The blades are a little too ‘bendy’ in my opinion, but I suppose that helps them from being snapped during play. You can tab Vortex’s gun into the helicopter side for storage and for a bit more armaments. Vortex does not come with any landing gear to speak of, so setting down the helicopter happens either on it’s belly, or thankfully with the included combiner weapon. With all of my combiner figures so far, the combiner weapon has been a part I leave out if they’re not combined. With Vortex, however, the hand/foot has two fantastic Gatling guns on the bottom, so it fits in nicely with the military helicopter mode, and gives him some ‘landing gear’ to work with. In this case it’s a very nice inclusion.

Robot Mode:

Like almost every other CW figure on my shelf, Vortex features a rather simple, yet effective transformation. You won’t find any surprises, and you’ll find the same leg mechanics at play that can be found with Blast Off (and Quickslinger and Firefly) or Ironhide (and Trailbreaker and Off-Road). Everything tabs in nicely from mode to mode, and you’re left with a pretty sturdy robot. Aesthetically, Vortex has a lot more purple, teal, and yellow in his robot mode. As an added bonus, you get a little red thrown into the mix in the abdomen and visor. In my opinion, it’s rather garish, but it is a good mimicry of the original toy. The molded detail is done well, and again, paint apps are crisp.

Vortex is much like the other CW figures in that he has a great range of motion. Between swivel and ball joints everywhere, you can get Vortex into a variety of positions with relative ease. Weight distribution is done well enough to not make him heavy in any spot. The only issue I have is in the hips – it’s not that they don’t have good range, but the ones on mine don’t fit quite right. The ball joints are loose in spots and really tight in others, so keeping him in certain positions can be a chore, and the legs tend to pop off. Otherwise I feel that the quality is good and you can do a lot with Vortex.

Overall, Vortex is a pretty solid toy, ugly coloration and all. A good range of motion, some decent weapons, and a good heli mode make for some good fun. If you add him into a complete Bruticus set, he works very well.

Marks out of ten for the following:

Transformation Design: 5. Average and simple.
Durability: 8. Good quality plastic, but the hips are a bit off. The rotors are bendy enough to avoid breaking.
Fun: 8. Vortex is really good within a complete combiner set. Otherwise, he’s just average.
Aesthetics: 5. His coloration bugs me, but it’s close to the original. The detail is nice and paint apps are crisp when present.
Articulation: 8. Ball and swivel joints are plentiful, and really nothing is hindered.
Value/Price: 7. I got Vortex at a discount, which made me happy. At normal MSRP, this really isn’t as high of a score – more like a 5.
Overall: 6. As part of Bruticus, Vortex is a nice piece to have. If you can only get Vortex, you really should think twice. I don’t think he’s that good on his own.
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ganon578
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Post by ganon578 »

Photos:
Attachments
Vortex Alt1.jpg
Vortex Robot2.jpg
Vortex Robot1.jpg
Vortex Card.jpg
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ganon578
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Post by ganon578 »

Edited and ready for proofing!
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