COUNTDOWN: 10 FansToys Minibots – ranked!

Although there are many diverse ‘third-party’ robot manufacturers, FansToys is surely one of the more ambitious. After all, they’re working full pelt towards delivering the entire classic Transformers cartoon cast in toy form, even including the big ‘bots such as Omega Supreme and (hopefully!) Fortress Maximus!

Yet their smaller-sized fare is just as enjoyable, and they have a rather smashing line-up of Minibots already realised in their ranks! With FT-58 Diverge now landing, it seemed like a perfect time to assess where we’re up to already.

Of course, there’s plenty more still to be done (I’d love a new Windcharger next, thanks, FT!), but for today, let’s look at the ten current FansToys Minibots and get ranking, shall we?

#10: FT-52 Aussie

Someone has to go last; in this case, it’s FansToys’ take on Outback, released under the somewhat on-the-nose name of Aussie! In truth, it’s not FT’s finest outing, with an awkward robot mode and a noticeable degree of compromise in terms of articulation and the like. The base mould is good (more on that later!), but there are just too many considerations made in retooling it, and the comparatively drab colour scheme doesn’t do it any favours, either. True, it just about captures the ‘novelty condom machine’ vibes of the cartoon model, but it ends up as a box-ticker rather than the “definitive” stab at the character this could have otherwise been.

#9: FT-54 Warthog

I should stress that I don’t want to put this figure in ninth place. At all. I feel an almost overwhelming sense of wanting to be generous to FT-54, and for many reasons. Firstly, it’s *gorgeous*: the shiny cherry-red finish is stunning, and the sculpt is magnificent, looking every bit like the Powerglide of your dreams. Secondly, and more generally, this is a character I adore from the cartoon (I’m aware he’s a bit of a jerk), so seeing him so faithfully realised is a dream come true. Finally, the engineering is clever beyond measure, with some fascinating twisty-turny action that needs to be seen to be believed.

Unfortunately, it’s all a bit let down by an utterly horrendous solution for the knees, which is a part of the conversion I dread every time, putting me off attempting to get Warthog into his aerial form. Even now, I struggle to get them properly locked in for robot mode, and it’s enough to take the sheen off an otherwise excellent design. So close!

#8: FT-43 Dunerider

At this point in the proceedings, we’re already entering major nitpick territory, looking for even the slightest and most imperceptible grumble to differentiate what is an all-round amazing set of third-party figures. In Dunerider’s case, he doesn’t really do anything ‘wrong’, but he’s also just less impressive than other efforts later on the list. The buggy mode has a sort of odd ‘squishy’ property to it, where higher-ranked toys maybe feel a little more solid somehow, and I definitely took a point off for that somewhat unsightly single-piece hip skirt. Oh, and the alternate form looks like a frog, so there’s that. Still, as Masterpiece-styled Beachcombers go, this one is about as good as they get!

#7: FT-45 Spindrift

Technically – technically – I should include an extra toy on this list because FansToys has taken two stabs at Seaspray along the way;. However, FT-27 was rather unremarkable, and to my eye, there’s little doubt that this re-do is the superior attempt. Besides, as someone who has seen and experienced their fair share of unofficial Masterpiece-styled Seasprays in their time, let me tell you that this is the top of the pile! It captures the bulky dadbod goodness of the cartoon to a T and is generally pretty fun to handle. Again, it has one of those annoying single-piece hip skirts, but by and large, it doesn’t get much better than Spindrift 2.0.

#6: FT-57 Tube

The Pipes, the Pipes are callin’! And in this case, it’s another FansToys take where, honestly, it’s hard to imagine a better option coming around any time soon, given how great FT-57 is at its core. After all, it does so many things right – it crushes the alternate form, nails the robot mode, manages to truncate the ludicrous cab backpack (in a way that other unofficial efforts failed at), maintains the adorable ‘seat boobs’ of the vintage toy and even packs in a wholly faithful Muffy and the Mysterians ‘M’ symbol on the side of the truck. What more could you want? Oh yeah, it’s also beautifully finished and bakes in a welcome simplicity and ease of transformation not found on every FansToys specimen. If I had to cite some nitpicks, the arms are a little hindered in terms of articulation, but overall, this is pretty cracking stuff.

#5: FT-42 Hunk

There are various early G1 cartoon designs that, perhaps because of how different they were from the original toys which inspired them, feel somewhat tricky to properly realise in authentic toy form. Brawn is undoubtedly on that list, which is again a big part of what makes this FansToys effort feel so worthwhile. You pick it up and it instantly looks and feels exactly like the character from the screen, all angry Man-at-Arm-styled bravado. Even better, FT-42 is also beautifully finished and great fun to handle, with fantastic articulation and the rarest of things – a transformation which is complex yet enjoyable, creative yet intuitive and clever yet not overly fussy. My only real slight note of dislike is that the wing mirrors don’t fold away, looking a bit odd hanging off the sides of his robot shoulders, but otherwise, this is the Hunk you’ve been waiting for.

#4: FT-56 Variator

If we’re talking FansToys designs that get the balance right, look no further than Variator. This is cartoon Gears, through and through, easily aping the style of the character from the animation and rendering him in surprisingly faithful form. Yet again, it’s a surprise how relatively straightforward the conversion between modes is here, especially when considering what the toy has to go through during the process. FT are often criticised for their releases being too fiddly to transform, but this just shows they can get it right when they need to, as changing these Gears is anything but a grumble.

#3: FT-41 Sheridan

With a name that instantly recalls Mrs Bucket’s delight whenever her son is on the phone, this guy arrived on the scene with some big expectations. After all, the only other viable option for a Masterpiece-styled Warpath at the time was Badcube’s Wardog, and cautionary tales still linger about its transformation to this day (although I maintain it really wasn’t *that* bad, hey). Fortunately, FT-41 proved to be everything fans of the over-the-top eccentric tank lad were hoping for, looking spot on in both modes, mostly not being a total nightmare to convert, and featuring the classic FansToys spit and polish. Kablam!

#2: FT-53 Parkour

Did you know there’s an official Masterpiece Cliffjumper on the way? True, it hasn’t been announced yet, but we’ve all seen the pics, so I’m sure it’s happening any day now… any day.. now… Anyway, whilst we wait for that, there have been countless third-party options to consider in the meantime, and to say they’ve ranged from the good to the bad and the ugly is an understatement. Well, dear reader, I’ve assessed them all, and I have no hesitation in saying that not only is Parkour the best of the bunch, but he puts in some serious competition for Takara’s current non-entry too, given the inherent quirks of the MP-45 mould. True, he’s not *perfect* – the transformation is a bit fiddly, no doubt, and whilst the car mode gets the squished proportions right, it can’t compete with TakaraTomy’s officially licensed affair – but there’s no denying how wonderful he looks in robot mode, giving us the red devil we all deserve at long last. If Masterpiece Cliffjumper never happens, I’m happy with this lad, myself.

#1: FT-47 Rig

I admit I wasn’t all that enthused for Rig to arrive when he was released. Sure, the promo pics looked nice, but it’s Huffer… how great could it be? Plus, I already had a respectable effort on my shelf with Badcube’s Huff, so FT-47 was going to have to work pretty hard to win me over. However, I was immediately captivated by the robot mode straight out of the box, with its gorgeous finish and suitably bizarre proportions an immediate win. It’s fair to say FansToys has nailed the arms and shoulders on this lad in a way the competition can’t quite claim! Then, when I was about halfway through the first transformation, it struck me – this thing is pure genius! Not only is it smooth sailing to convert, but I guarantee you would not be able to guess how Rig moves from one mode to the other just by looking at it. Put it this way: the lower legs form part of the cab section… seriously, it’s one to check out for yourself, but that aside, this is just an exceptional stab at an overwhelmingly awkward design done in a way which simply works. He’s not the biggest Autobot, but he’s one of the strongest efforts from FansToys.

So that’s our list! Do you agree with the ranking?

TTFN