Blog #906: Toy Review: Transformers: Platinum Edition Seeker Squadron (Dirge, Ramjet, Thrust)

Transformers: Platinum Edition Seeker Squadron (Dirge, Ramjet, Thrust)

Amazingly, a year after they should have done it for the 30th anniversary, we’ve finally got some new G1 mold reissues.  So far there aren’t any that haven’t been reissued before, but a few of them were very hard to find.

Dirge

The first thing you might notice is that I don’t have any of their cones tipped up on their heads.  While these three tend to be known together as the Cone Head Jets, the instructions don’t show that.  They never did.  So, the proper Generation One transformation is as pictured.  As near as I can tell, Dirge is the same as the Dirge released at Toys R Us as part of the Commemorative Series, but I can’t put my hands on mine right now, so I’m going from memory.  I had forgotten how misshaped his wing tip sticker is compared to the shape of his wingtip.

Ramjet

This is the first mint G1 Ramjet I’ve ever opened.  My G1 was loose many years after it came out.  He’s a beautiful toy.  I’ve always loved his coloring and the wing configuration.  Near as I can tell it’s the same as the G1, but I can’t compare them side by side, so I could be wrong.

Thrust

Thrust, like Ramjet, is the first one I’ve ever gotten MIB.  I love the black and maroon color scheme.  His launchers seem to have been remolded.  Previous USA releases of the original three jet molds have had the springs removed, but Thrust’s launchers have been remolded to remove the launch mechanism entirely.  I am not sure this is new or not.  I feel like I’ve see this modification before, but I can’t for the life of me figure out where.

Overall: Considering the price of Dirge when he came out at TRU more than ten years ago ($35, I believe) $100 for the set of three doesn’t really seem that bad.  It’s certainly not ridiculously overpriced like the Insecticon set.  Right now we don’t know if any of these sets past the Insecticons are reaching USA retail, but they are available from several online sources.

Thanks for reading!