And as evidenced by my newest acquisitions post, Scoria D is in the house.
Overall first impressions on the other post. Let's talk about the deep stuff that matters here
I can't say that this is not an impressive offering, FT have really nailed it when it comes to the high end collectible presentation. The thick gloss box, the styrofoam [I don't like it as it sheds every time you fiddle with it!], the numbered collector card--mine is 226 of 500.
Bad points? The bio at the back. I cringe at the gibberish, bad grammar and typos. It feels as if I'm getting a KO or something!
Figure has great and [nearly] spotless paint apps all over. The gray plastic is moulded in that colour [not painted], but every other detail is painted on, or encased in a clear plastic dome [like the shoulder and leg details]. Only noticeable blemish on mine is on one side of the dino jaw, where the sprue was not cut properly before chroming it over.
Parts tolerance is a bit off, with some horrifically tight joints working with some looser ones. The shoulders [which I understand are an improvement over the cartoon version] have a lot of play between the ratchets [yet still hold poses ok], but the back and forth shoulder rotation is the typical squeaky FT standard.
Likewise, the thighs/torso ratchets are a tad loose, but the actual leg joint that helps doing the splits is tight. Hand rotation out of the dino "sockets" is easier and smoother than on Soar, ditto on the finger joints.
Red head works really well with the body
. Extra, darker faceplates included but I ain't bothered.
Dino mode is bigger than I expected and can pull some aggresive poses. Tail does not do much unless you untab it and swivel it upwards.
Die-cast content---> All four dino toes, robot mode toe and soles [the entire gold part], dino horns. Overall far less die-cast than Soar, but Scoria is a bit heavier due to the overall mass.
Bad points---there's a few, probably because this was their first dino release. I dislike the fact that you have to take the head apart to change the robot faces [fixed on Soar and Sever, for which you do not need a screwdriver]. Joint tolerance discrepancy is annoying. The limbs in dino mode have a bit of give if I pick him up from a pose. The robot mode backpack is awkward and not very secure. There is little room for the dino wings to angle up as the will chip on the tail accordion. Dino head does not have a proper click/spot for either mode, it's basically "pull down or back until it looks ok". Tail spring mechanism is a bit dodgy on mine, requires a lot of strength to push in.
Good points---If like me, you are late into the game and want a Scoria in colours that will fit the other dinos, this is not a bad choice. Dino mode is pretty much the same as the others, but has the Toy details on the arms and silver horns/red eyes. Robot mode is nicer and more colour coherent than pictures would leave you to believe, and I love that they finally did away with that clear red nozzle for his gun.
2 down, 3 to go and this team is complete. Definitely going for Diaclone Sever, but not preordering him. Outright purchase when in stock!