Moving on to the articulation design of Takara Tomy's "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen" N.E.S.T. Decepticon Bludgeon this time. ^^
Only side-to-side swivel is possible for the head, which is understandable, as the head is part of the spinal column revealer gimmick as shown in Part 3.
The arm can swivel around the shoulder block on either side of the body.
(Top view of the shoulder) A bit of obstruction from the backpack (tank turret) when the shoulder is swung forward.
The turret needs to be repositioned to get it out of the shoulder's swivelling range if you desire more dramatic poses from the arms. ^^
As part of its transformation design I suppose, the hinge joint that would allow the arm to swing outward/inward is located outside the shoulder armor. This helps to give each arm a wide upward bend from the side of the body.
Also, as you can see, the soft rubber nature of the side armors (tank tracks) is flexible enough to accommodate the arm's bending range to a pretty impressive degree. ^^
For the action above, the bicep would be stopped by the protruding part near the edge of the shoulder armor before the tank tracks could play its part limiting the arm's movement. ^^;
Utilizing the same bicep hinge as shown above, the arm can be bent inward, and for a range that is wider than that to the opposite direction. ^^
Standard action figure articulation ability: the forearm can swivel around at bicep level.
Using the bicep hinge and swivel, you can give Bludgeon a very convincing-looking boss pose. ^^
Not even the real Decepticon boss, Transformers Alternity Megatron is able to do this. ^^
For even more dramatic poses involving the arms, the shoulder blocks can be hinged upward on either side of the body as well. ^^
Another articulation goodie from Bludgeon's transformation design: double hinged elbow. ^^
The hand can be hinged inward/outward at wrist level.
As mentioned in Part 3, the linked movement gimmick of the tank turret is quite awesome to behold when it's being deployed.
The more "technical" title for this Transformers line's linked movement gimmick is "Mech Alive". ^^ The backpack is one of Bludgeon's two "Mech Alive" features.
The two tiny arms inside the turret are responsible for raising/retracting the tanto, but the linked movement gimmick also includes the little disc with elaborate details at the edge of panel. The spinning disc and all of its details are unnecessary for the weapon to be launched, but it's definitely awesome to see, and I'm really glad they were added to this figure.
The tanto can of course be detached from its sheath.
Much shorter than the katana, the tanto is made of the same soft plastic and features the same light gray molded color.
With the katana.
The short sword is just 6cm in length.
Without the large muzzle as seen on the katana, equipping the tanto to Bludgeon's hand is a much easier task.
Dual wielding Bludgeon in action. ^^
The tanto can also be mounted to the side skirt armor via the same mount rack meant for the katana.
The tanto can be combined with the katana at the latter's pummel (muzzle of the main gun in tank mode).
A katana-tanto combo for Bludgeon. ^^
The appearance would be much cooler if there were more colors given to the two weapons I think. ^^
Since the katana is quite a massive sword in its own right, the tanto extension doesn't seem to stand out as much as it perhaps should on the combo weapon. ^^
The combined sword is 21cm in length.
The front skirt armor can be lifted.
The side skirt armors can be hinged upward on either side of the waist for a decent range.
The mount rack can be retracted, but never completely into the left skirt armor, as the hook that triggers its linked movement (see Part 3) is situated right beneath it.
Hinge joint for the hips allow the legs to be expanded to their respective sides for about 45 degrees. ^^
Using the same hip hinge, the leg can be lifted forward for an impressive 90 degrees.
It's not possible for the leg to be bent the opposite direction, as ...
... the plate behind each hip joint totally disallows that movement. ^^;
Slightly over 90 degrees for the knee bend.
The knee is seemingly a ratchet joint, but it works more like a normal hinge instead. ^^
No thigh swivel for Bludgeon, but the lower leg can be rotated around at knee level.
Each lower leg is linked to the bony frame inside the thigh, so as the leg is being rotated, the bony frame will follow as well. ^^ This is Bludgeon's second "Mech Alive" gimmick.
Bending the foot forward and backward using the upper joint of the ankle's double hinge.
Using the lower joint of the double hinge, it's not possible for the foot to be bent upward, but it does enjoy the same wide downward bend as compared to just using the upper joint.
The tiny heel claw can be hinged downward as well. Since its joint is tough, I think the feet are capable of supporting Bludgeon's poses even with the heel positioned in such a crooked position. ^^
With its hips, knee, and ankle joints, Bludgeon can show off a very natural-looking kneeling pose.
And it's as easy as easy can be for this Voyager Class Transformers figure it seems.
For being able to perform nice looking folded arm and kneeling poses for a bulky robot, plus having two interesting linked movement gimmicks, how much more praises can I give to Bludgeon that I haven't already said throughout this posting. ^^ The engineering on this figure is very impressive, which also means that it's mighty fun to play with. ^^
Some action poses for Bludgeon to try out its articulation design. ^^
Supported using a wired stand for Gunplas.
More action poses from this Transformers figure coming up in the next posting. ^^
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