Dreadwing
(G2) [Generations]
(NOTE: Because this is a repaint, this is not a full-blown review. This mainly covers any changes made to the mold and the color scheme, and merely compares it to Generations IDW "Stealth Bomber" Megatron. For a review on the mold itself, read the review of "Stealth Bomber" Megatron here.)
The early '90s "Generation
2" toyline (with its generally wacky, bright color schemes) is also getting
some love for the "30th Anniversary" segment of the Generations toyline,
albeit some redeco love. The original version of Dreadwing here was released
near the end of Generation 2, and was a stealth bomber with a bulky robot
mode and a TON of firepower. This toy fulfills that first requirement quite
well, with his stealth bomber looking quite like his G2 version (minus
the extra-loud bright blue deco job on his wings on the original). The
silver stripes along the front really help to add some extra color and
contrast to his mode which is generally lacking on this toy because of
the plastic color layout, and the light red windows, G2 Decepticon symbols,
and gunmetal gray vents only help in this respect. Where the color scheme
really becomes eye-catching is in robot mode, though, and here is where
the "G2-ness" of Dreadwing's color scheme comes out, with some pretty darn
bright light blue becoming quite apparent as a secondary color (a paler
version of the same general color is used for some of his unpaintable nylon
plastic). It's a very nice shade in keeping with the '90s theme, though,
and both contrasts and complements the main color of dark purplish blue.
Add in the bits of transparent red for contrast on his weapon and light
piping on his head, and he comes out looking quite nicely color-wise. However,
the very large, bulky nature of his original G2 toy isn't replicated at
all on this toy-- the triangular sections of the chest and general outline
of his legs are close, but that's about it.
Dreadwing does have
one mold change, and that's a new headsculpt-- painted glossy black with
some nice cherry red light piping for his visor and a menacing "gas-mask"-type
mouth, it looks pretty spot-on when compared to the source material.
Generations Dreadwing,
color-wise, is my favorite iteration of this mold as of this writing (6/16),
with an eye-catching color scheme mostly consisting of different shades
of blue, red, and silver that peg him as a G2 toy, but not one of the more
obnoxiously loud ones. However, though his alt mode fits the bill, and
he's got a great headsculpt, his robot mode proportions and only one weapon
make him not quite "there" in terms of a proper homage, and unfortunately
shows more of the "what else can we do with this mold?" syndrome that tends
to crop up for redecos and remolds than is often the case. Still, if you
don't want to spend a lot of $ on the original, this is a nice substitute.
Review by Beastbot