Nemesis Prime :: Transformers Mico-Changers Series 3 Plus Codes!

It seems like just yesterday that I discovered the Transformers Micro Changers Series 2 Arcee, and yet yesterday I stumbled on a case of Series 3 Kreons at Target! After perusing the back of the package and seeing the offerings, I decided that, like with Series 2, there was really only one I needed: Nemesis Prime!

Nemesis Prime, aka Black Convoy, aka Scourge, is basically Optimus Prime in Raiders colors. And with a Raider Nation attitude to boot.

I've always been a fan of Black Convoy/Nemesis Prime/Scourge, so I of course had to squeeze all the packages to find this guy! I now know that the code for Nemesis Prime on the back right of the packages ends in '52.'

I do the squeezing so you don't have to!

I already have an Optimus Prime Kreon, so as you can see NP is nothing more than a re-paint. Although Nemesis Prime does come with extra pieces so he can be converted into a semi:

Like most Transformer Kreon conversions, it's pretty jinky, but I give them an A+ for effort.

'Yeehaaaaawwww! Ride-em cowboy!'

Convoy fans are going to want Nemesis Prime. I went ahead and googled for the rest of the codes for this series in case you're interested in more:

Nosecone – 50
Thrust – 51
Nemesis Prime – 52
Ramjet – 53
Huffer – 54
Kickback – 55
Long Haul – 56
Guzzle – 57
Sharkticon -58
Cheetor – 59
Beachcomber – 60
Seawing – 61

Be mine, Kreon-tine

The Transformers Kreon blind bag microchanger minifigures are back!

We first saw these blind bagged Transformers Kreons last year in the preview series, and  now the first official full series, known as Collection 1, is showing up at retail.

I found them at Target, in the holiday promotional section with all their Valentines Day stuff. I used the 'squeeze method' to determine the coneheaded seeker Dirge, my most wanted, and decided to just try my luck on a second to see what I got. I ended up with the Constructicon Hook, which is pretty cool.

I didn't have it with me at the time, but as with the preview wave there is a code to decipher which Kreon is which. Check out the last two numbers of the code at the top back of the bag to figure out what you are getting:

22981 40 - Singe (Turbomaster Scorch)
22981 41 - Inferno
22981 42 - Autobot Springer
22981 43 - Warpath
22981 44 - Quickslinger (Slingshot)
22981 45 - Rampage
22981 46 - Insecticon
22981 47 - Blast Off
22981 48 - Decepticon Hook
22981 49 - Dirge
22981 50 - Airachnid
22981 51 - Decepticon Bludgeon

I'll post pics of the minifigures later (probably after I go back and try to get my last couple must-haves!), but for now I wanted to be sure everyone had their cheat sheets ready to go!

Kreon Micro-Changers Preview Series

The new Kre-o blind bagged Transformers minifigures, officially dubbed the 'Kreon Micro-changers Preview Series,' are hitting retail now!

There are six different figures in this Preview Series, and although initially intrigued (I've certainly enjoyed the Optimus Prime and Mirage Kreons I have thus far) I did not think I would bite on these.

Ok, maybe I planned on grabbing the seeker Sunstorm, but that was probably going to be it.

That was before I realized one of the Preview Series figures was The Mighty Galvatron!

So upon discovering the display in store, and with no foreknowledge of a code (see below,) I squeezed until I found Sunstorm (which I found right away) and Galvatron (which took forever - I squeezed the whole damn shipment it seemed!)

I was focusing primarily on their helmets (haw haw) and found that to be an accurate way to identify them.

An initial look at the available figures in this Preview Series has me thinking that a couple of them are just quickie kit-bashes from already existing parts. Namely Waspinator, who just looks like a green Jazz. Although I admit no familiarity with Waspinator, so maybe he's supposed to look like a green Jazz? And I've never heard of Spinister or Crankstart before.

This kitbashed, cobbled together feel is why I originally thought I was likely to pass on these. 

What do I think now that I own some?

They're pretty darn cool. Not perfect, but not too shabby after all.

First, the fact that these are designed to have a robot and alt mode (albeit very simplistic in nature) makes them all the cooler. I mean come on: a build-toy minifigure who is itself a build toy - of a Transformer who is by definition able to transform - with robot and alt modes similar to that of their counterparts in other media - what's not to love?

The fact that Kre-o and Hasbro designed the toys thusly, when they really didn't have to, allows for wide forgiveness in the fact that the transformations are simple and in some cases silly. Could you do better? I don't think so.

Like I said, when I briefly glanced at these online before they were released I initially only wanted the Seeker Sunstorm because, although he isn't one of the big 3, he is a G1 Seeker and G1 Seekers are flippin' badass.

Sunstorm looks wonderful as a minifigure, and his little plane mode is cute too. I love the fact that the extra pieces are useful as a weapon, again: stylistically simple but a very smart use of extra parts design wise, helping prevent loss of integral components.

I sure hope more Seekers make it into future Micro-Changer assortments. In the meantime I may go out and buy another Sunstorm or two.

When I found these guys I thought I'd only search for Sunstorm, but when I looked closely at the packaging I saw that a G1 Galvatron was also an available figure! Hokey smokes! I had to have him!

And Galvatron lives up to my desire. His little figure self is so adorable!

And his alt mode is again simple but fun. And again, I like the fact that all parts for his alt mode are integrated into his robot mode. A little bulky (and removable if you wish) but there for when you need them. And yes, there is parts re-use here too (his gun is not unique but a re-colored Megatron gun - but that's ok by me, since SPOILER: he was once Megatron!)

After playing with these two a while, I decided I wanted to return to the store for Scorponok. These little Kreon Micro-Changers are just too much fun!

Unfortunately Scorponok isn't as good as Sunstorm or Galvatron. The plastic of his forearms and scorpion-legs immediately began exhibiting stress discoloring when I constructed him. Continued conversion could lead to breakage there, or at least loosening of connections. Or more discoloring. The fact that it was so noticeable on Scorponok and I didn't notice it on the others may be due to the plastic color. Maybe the others were stressed as well, but it didn't show in the lighter colors? Regardless, no toy collector likes to see stressed plastic, ever.

Also, all the parts for his alt mode do not integrate into his robot mode, which means you have spare parts laying around, waiting to be lost. On a positive note, there are a ton of pieces here, way more than Lego would ever put into a single minifigure, so you feel like you are getting your money's worth. Also, he does make a neat looking robot with those claws of his! The translucent plastic really pops.

Not a bad figure, but the stress marks on the plastic remind us that the plastic used in Kre-o toys is sub par to that we are all pretty used to in Legos, and that really disappoints.

PS: I now know that you can easily identify the Micro-Changers by a number on the front bottom of the packaging:

Spinister: number series ends in 7
Galvatron: number series ends in 8
Sunstorm: number series ends in 9
Crankstart: number series ends in 0
Scorponok: number series ends in 1
Waspinator: number series ends in 2

The Kreon Micro-Changers Preview Series was $3.49 at my Toys R Us; the same price they charge me for Lego minifigures. With the alt modes and a large amount of pieces, I feel like these are a slightly better bargain than Lego minifigures, even with lower quality plastic. But that is also assuming you care about the characters - a Galvatron might be worth $3.49 but maybe a Spinister isn't to you. Fortunately the code is easy to break, or you can just squeeze like I had to.

In conclusion, while a couple of these figures feel rushed to production, just as many are great and worth tracking down. And although I think it odd to do a whole release of only Decepticons, that too may be due to the rushed nature of this 'Preview' wave.

But if the good points are any indication of what the future of this line has in store for us, I expect amazing things and fun Kreons that would not necessarily be marketable in larger sets (a Rodimus Prime or a Tripticon Kreon perhaps?) Although I worry the dual-mode gimmick may limit what characters they can make, I also have faith that Kre-o/Hasbro's engineers are smart enough to give us something fun no matter what the challenge.