Supreme Being
Most of the G1 transformers, as everyone knows, came from either Takara or Takatoku. Shockwave came from ToyCo, and Omega Supreme and Skylynx from Toybox. Toybox never actually produced their version of the Skylynx toy, why I do not know. I would assume that Toybox went out of business… This was the early eighties, after all.
After the abysmal failure of the recent Energon Omega Supreme, I though I should remind everyone what a real transformer is. Enter MECHABOT – 1.
There are no functional differences between the Toybox Mechabot and the Hasbro Omega Supreme. There were no features or accessories removed, only the color was changed. I think the original colors serve the design much better, and make it a little more military. The box even shows a painted (or “detail-up” for the gunpra heads) version on the cover.
The box is the large Godaikin type with a carry handle across the top. Under the lid you find the requisite styrofoam with all the parts visible. Notice the black slip cover that fits over the styro… this houses the carry handle. Nice touch.
Batteries fit inside the tank portion, and it can travel across any flat surface, with the turret rotating as the gun raises and lowers. The real fun of this, however, is to place it on the track and watch it drive around in a circle until you pass out.
The arms and backpack of the robot become some sort of rocket launching platform. This doesn’t really do anything except sit there, and it can be placed in the center of the track oval.
Once all the parts are combined into Mechabot-1, the motorized action changes. Instead of the motor driving the wheels and the turret, the internal gears shift and now Mechabot can walk. Very slow, mind you, but still impressive for its time.
The instructions also suggest changing the track formations when mounted on the back of the robot, but this is pretty lame. It reminds me of the the Kronoform watch package, proclaiming over 10 different modes wich simply consisted of the robot standing on its head, lying down, spread eagle, etc.
Mechabot is pure vintage love. There is no diecast, but the plastic is of the Takatoku-mecha variety. If you like transformers, this is a better version of one of the most unique. If you don’t like transformers, even better… this is not your typical TF.
