COUNTDOWN: 5 gorgeous Beast Wars repaints

In case I’ve never mentioned it (I have, many times), I’m a major fan of weird & wonderful repaints.

There’s just something about seeing an already familiar toy design rehashed in a bold new colour scheme that really gets the motor running. There’s often no better way to fully appreciate a particular mould than to admire it with a different look.

With that in mind, we’re turning our attention to Beast Wars today and choosing some of the absolute best examples from the era. Simply put, here are five terrific repaints for your consideration.

#5: Beast Wars Neo Hydra (1999)

The 1996 Beast Wars Terrorsaur toy has become somewhat legendary over the decades and is now cemented as one of the more successful Basic flip-changers of the first year. It’s been repainted a couple of times since, but here’s the kicker: what you see above isn’t *technically* a repaint of that original toy at all. Rather incredibly, there are two entirely separate toolings of the tiny Pteranodon doing the rounds. It all began with Kenner’s Lazorbeak in 1997, the first to use the new mould featuring many subtle changes (including an indented rubsign on the wing). Takara’s Hydra also sported this updated design and was, in turn, a repaint of Lazorbeak, adding new elements such as silver to the face, shins and wings. So you could say Hydra is a repaint, but Lazorbeak isn’t! Either way, it’s a gorgeous colour scheme that adds an exciting new twist to what came before it.

#4: Transmetal 2 Prowl (1999)

Beast Wars had an impressively high hit rate regarding punny character names, but few are finer than Prowl. Pr-OWL. I mean, come ON. Even better, the toy it represents is beyond beautiful, with plenty of features packed in to make it an asymmetrical treat for the eyes (even if some design elements are practically quirky). Strangely though, this Transmetal 2 effort came in two flavours, including an initial off-white and blue design followed by this later black running change. It was only one of two toys (the other being Transmetal 2 Dinobot) to attempt such a refresh, seemingly as an attempt to drum up more sales. Whatever the logic, the moody stylings of the repaint are well worth experiencing up close. He’s a hoot!

#3: Universe Razorclaw (2003)

If we’re making a list of stupendous Beast Wars repaints, there’s no way this figure isn’t on it. In many ways, it’s the ultimate proof that we really didn’t know what we had with the 2003 Universe line, with so many creative and bold rehashed colour designs left somewhat unappreciated at the time, only to receive a bit of a renaissance of interest later on. Chief amongst those is Razorclaw, who now commands a tidy sum on the aftermarket, and for good reason. It supercharges the impressive Transmetal 2 Tigerhawk toy from 1999, giving it a supremely sexy black and purple makeover that truly brings out the best in the design. Aside from how *obviously* striking it is, the best aspect is that we can now appreciate so many of the moulded details that were sadly a bit washed out on the original, most notably the face. This is an essential release for anyone into their repaints.

#2: Beast Wars II Bigmos (1998)

I admit this is a strange choice for several reasons. Firstly, I was never a fan of the original Transquito toy from 1997. I had it back in the day, and it often stuck out for me as a real oddity of the line. Gangly proportions, awkward insect legs just hanging off his arms, a gimmick that never quite satisfies, hollow lower legs, a fiddly transformation and an aesthetic that can only be described as quite purposefully ugly. Oh, and guess what? This Takara repaint also suffers from brittle plastic, meaning it’s likely to up and break on you! So what makes it deserve a place on this list, then? Well, despite all those flaws still being true for Bigmos, there’s just something about the updated colour scheme that *pops* beyond belief! The teal found on the head, arms, and legs is surprisingly eye-catching and clashes beautifully with the gold of the main body and the red highlights. It *shouldn’t* work, yet somehow, it does. This is still a profoundly flawed toy, but at least I like looking at it now!

#1: Botcon Antagony (1998)

In some ways, I feel a bit bad shoving this sultry black Botcon effort on the list, given how generally unobtainable it is these days, but c’mon, it had to be done. After all, this thing topped my personal grails list for decades, and surely it’s not hard to see why! The original Inferno figure from 1997 was a favourite on release, so I was always intrigued by how well the convention-exclusive repaint gave the design an entirely different feel whilst also being one of those “so obvious it’s almost too good” makeovers. Now rumoured for an upcoming Generations Selects effort soon, it’s great that many more collectors will be able to add an updated take on this forceful female Predacon to their shelves, but for me, I’m beyond elated to have one of the six-hundred copies of the classic design in my possession. A truly timeless effort.

So that’s our list! What are some of your favourite Beast Wars repaints?

TTFN