Autobot Metalhawk
Alt Mode: Jet
Function: Space Commander
Special Unit: Pretender
Origin Universe: G1
Signature Weapon: Titanium Saber
Capable of piercing through any substance with incredible ease
Alt Mode: Jet
Function: Space Commander
Special Unit: Pretender
Origin Universe: G1
Signature Weapon: Titanium Saber
Capable of piercing through any substance with incredible ease
Bio:
Metalhawk is the fearless leader of the Autobot Pretenders, tirelessly fighting to spread freedom throughout the universe.
STR...9; INT..10; SPD...10; FBL...9
Metalhawk is the fearless leader of the Autobot Pretenders, tirelessly fighting to spread freedom throughout the universe.
STR...9; INT..10; SPD...10; FBL...9
Other Resources:
Metalhawk was an original Japanese only character created for the 1988 Transformers Super God Masterforce series. In the cartoon, the human version, "Hawk" is shown wearing a suit and is the size of a normal human. Preparing for battle Hawk dons red , white and blue armour and then "morphs" into his large robot form, Metalhawk.
The toy form of Metalhawk was designed by Kojin Ono and is one character he would like to make into a Masterpiece (interview). The toy is unique in that the human face is visible when armoured up and the robot mode includes diecast metal. Below is the translated G1 tech spec:
C-201 Pretender Space Commander MetalhawkTransformation: Human Mode / SF Jet Mode
Ability: SF Jet Mode can travel from the Earth to the Moon and back again in 15 minutes. Has the greatest short distance jumping power of all the Pretenders.
Weapon(s): Jet Rifle; Titanium Saber
Final Attack: His “Shining Arrow” attack fires an arrow of light from the sky towards the enemy on the ground. The arrow becomes a giant sword of light and strikes a final blow from above.
STR...9; INT...10; SPD...10; END...9; RNK...10; CRG...10; FPR...9; SKL...9
Character Card:
METALHAWK PRETENDERS
● Codename: Metalhawk
● Code Number: C-201
● Level: 75
● Origin: Seibertron
● Age: Unknown
● Profile:
Commander of the fearless Cybertron Pretenders. He gave human children Headmaster technology as well as Headmaster Jr Transtectors that he had received from Chromedome.
Although Metalhawk was a one off character and never seen outside of the
Masterforce series, he received three toys between the G1 and Legacy version,
one of which from the mainline series.
In 2012 the 2010 Generations Thunderhawk figure was repainted with a new
headsculpt and released as a Botcon exclusive. This figure was based on the
Pretender shell rather than the internal robot.
In 2017, the 2016 Titans Return version of Triggerhappy was repainted and
received a new headsculpt. This figure was based on Metalhawks inner robot
mode and released in the Siege on Cybertron giftset. The Titan Master was
renamed Professor Go, Hawks scientist human partner from the Masterforce
cartoon.
In 2017 "Metalhawk" received his own mould and was released once again as a
Pretender, or decoy armour as it was called. In the Power of the Primes
series, Prime Master, Vector Prime, was packaged with Metalhawk Decoy
Armour. Vector Prime served as the face for the armour when inside. The
decoy armour was based on Metalhawk's Pretender shell.
In June 2022 product listings for several upcoming Transformer Legacy
figures were released. At the end of January 2023 Twincast and Metalhawk
were revealed as part of the Transformers Legacy Evolution line up and it
was only a week or so later they both started appearing in shops. It is
still nice that Hasbro can still surprise fans with figures every now and
again without any prior leaks of the actual figures.
Legacy Metalhawk was designed by Takara Tomy Junior Developer, Ittoku Kuwazu
(Generations 2022 interview here). It is a very heavy retool of Kingdom Cyclonus and the two do share a few
parts here and there but much of the figure has been remoulded. Packaged in
robot mode, Metalhawk is heavily based on his 1988 cartoon appearance and the
Cyclonus mould pulls this off well. The figure is based on the internal robot
mode rather than the Pretender shell and the detailing is fantastic. The
original robot was mainly made of diecast metal which was painted gold, the
chest and head of this figure have been cast in a soft looking gold colour
which is more animation accurate.
The figure comes with two "Jet Rifles" which can combine with each other which
is very similar to the way the Titans Return guns worked. It also comes with
the "Titanium Saber" which can also be stored on the robot mode back.
One aspect that is disappointing about this figure are the hollow forearms.
Quite a few of the recent Voyager Class figures have been designed with ways
to cover the hollow limbs, such as the original Cyclonus. Now as part of the
transformation the robot fists fold into the forearm. The lack of a cover may
be to keep the parts count down. It is a minor gripe and does not impact on
the look of the figure.
The head sculpt is fantastic and looks just like Metalhawk from the cartoon.
The heads posability is limited like Cyclonus but overall has decent movement.
I'm still not a fan of the knees and was hoping they could have improved them
however they aren't as stiff as either of the Cyclonus figures I own.
Transformation is very similar to Cyclonus but with enough differences to make
this feel like a new figure. Jet mode is where you can see the developers put
the focus on robot mode. It is a good jet but there is something about it that
feels clunky and not as polished as Cyclonus. It certainly looks a lot better
than the original jet mode but unfortunately it is missing the landing gear.
In homage to the original toy the Jet Rifles can attach to rear of the jet to
form rear wings and the Titanium Saber attaches to the back of the jet using
two notches.
Overall Metalhawk is a fantastic addition to any collection even if you
already own Cyclonus.
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