Kool Kollectibles content

4 Jan 2022

MP-53 Skids and MP-54 Reboost

The Honda City licenced release into the Takara Transformers Masterpiece series shouldn't really be a surprise for fans. Takara loves their official licences for the carbots, and it was only a matter of time for them to make a Honda release. It's only fitting that this release has been timed to coincide with the 40th anniversary of the Honda City Turbo car from the 80s.

It's definitely a design from the earlier era of the Masterpiece figures, being very similar to the style and aesthetic of the Datsun and Lancia series of figures. I think it looks pretty nice, and still fits in with the overall cast of characters.

Click the link below to watch my video review of both figures on the Kool Kollectibles YouTube channel. Make sure to give the video a thumbs-up, and subscribe to stay tuned for the upcoming MP-52+ Skywarp review!

Packaging is the usual MP styled artwork, so you know what you're going to get. I'm still not a fan of the collector card art, but I guess they just get packed away into the drawer anyway. Accessories aren't all that much to write home about, and is definitely a lot less than more recent cartoon-accurate releases.

What you do get is decent in quality, with the chromed weapons definitely giving that G1 vintage toy weapon vibe. The chrome is good quality, so no issues there. It's a shame that Skids did not include the little Honda Motocompo. But I think the red variant that comes with the Reboost repaint is inline with the prevalent style and combination of car and scooter packages being sold in the 80s.

The motorbike does fold up to some degree to pack into the rear boot of the car. But it's a bit of a pain getting the handlebars back out of their folded position, so I won't be doing it again any time soon. Plus I think it looks better next to the car mode and the holographic mini-figure.


Car mode paint app is excellent on both figures. Everything on my copies is sharp, with no colour bleed or chipping. It's pretty rare these days that MP figures don't have some major controversy in paint application or plastic quality. But these two feel and look very sturdy.

Even the attention to detail to internal features is great, with very nice touches such as painted engine details under the bonnet. The decals and paint for the Honda logos and number plates is also very well done. I love the tamped on Turbo labels on Skids in particular.


The transformation is much simpler than recent, more cartoon accurate characters such as Sunstreaker and Hound. The sequence is much more reminiscent of earlier releases such as Prowl, Wheeljack, and Bumblebee.

That's not to say the transformation doesn't have its fiddly parts. Rotating and folding in and out the arms is perhaps the most difficult part, and getting the torso fixed under the armpits properly is also fiddly. But overall, it's a pretty nice, simple, and intuitive transformation that ends in a pretty damn nice looking bot mode.




I think the articulation in bot mode is pretty good too. Shoulders and elbows have a good range of motion, and I love the ankle rocking motion. The hips are on some soft ratchets, and do not move backwards behind the hip. Some collectors have complained about this, but I think that's pretty natural so I don't have any issue with it.

With the hips, knee, and ankle articulation, both figures can get into some decent walking and action poses. The head sculpts look nice too, and similar to the older figures do not have any swap out face plate features that have been a nice addition to more recent characters.


Together with the rest of the cast of MP characters, both Skids and Reboost fit right in perfectly. Yes, the shoulders are not cartoon accurate, but I think that was a wise decision by Takara on this one. The cartoon design in the shoulders is pretty ridiculous, and looks very weird. I think this design, which is more aligned with the G1 toy, is definitely a better looking choice.

For those that love the Diaclone repaints, Reboost fits right in with other red repaints. When MP-53+ Crosscut releases in a month or two, I'll have to decide which of the repaints I keep in car mode! Either way, it's always great to get another G1 character in the MP lineup.

Here's hoping Takara announce more carbots in 2022, such as Trailbreaker, Hoist, Jazz, and Mirage!


1 Jan 2022

Lego UCS AT-AT

I love when Lego releases a new big UCS Star Wars set, and this new AT-AT is no exception! Click the link below to watch my video review over on the Kool Kollectibles YouTube channel. Progress photos are further below.