Since I'm on a bit of an older school kick, this is a good time to take a quick look at one of the earliest releases in the revamped Masterpiece Transformer lineup, the MP-11 Seeker (I just leave it at Seeker as they're all basically reclours). I happened upon one at a price that was acceptable, and by sheer coincidence it was again a Thundercracker. Not that I have a preference for any of them, but it's just funny how things worked out.
This was released prior to Unified Product, which of course meant we (Canada/USA) got the Hasbro version, which of course meant that the patented Hasbro touch was applied to the Takara release, resulting in some... interesting changes. Fortunately, unlike Rodimus Prime, the design itself wasn't flawed to begin with.
So the MP11 looks very similar to its predecessor, the MP-03, with one very important difference, namely the hip skirt. In fact, my understanding is that the MP11 only existed because people hated the hip skirt on the MP-03. Jumping a bit ahead, my gut feeling is that this skirt was in place in order to actually have the jet mode resemble an actual plane, though I'm not entirely sure if that was some officially licensed mode or not. I've also read that the head is different, and also this wasn't designed with removing shoulder guns in mind.
Also, in case it wasn't obvious, the MP-11 was released when going for toy homages was the thing rather than specifically going to a toon aesthetic.
This Hasbro version differs from the Takara aesthetically by using a different blue (I believe it's darker), having some very G1 toy specific aesthetical touches, as well as the addition of what I can only call "Murica Decos", mainly with the "Sonicboom" decal on the tailfin, and the labeling on the fuselage just under the cockpit canopy. Paint Applications aren't bad because, well, there isn't a whole lot of paint on this figure, as was tradition for Hasbro/
I'm not entire sure about the quality of the figure, but based on past experience I'm guessing that the Takara version probably locks together better in robot mode as compared to this Hasbro version. But other than the upper body not being super secure in robot mode, the rest of the tabs and joints actually came out pretty well.
I believe that even the accessories survived intact. You get the same base, flight stand, missiles, as well as a clip to hold the Megatron from the MP1 and a little pilot to sit in the jet mode cockpit.
So basically, unlike Rodimus Prime, this was an acceptable Hasbro product, which wasn't QUITE as good but if you're on a budget this was good enough. Compared to the Rodimus Prime release, this was some sort of wet dream.
Now, the MP-52 is a significantly more complex product, but its interesting to note that it is slightly shorter than the MP11, mostly because these two were produced in an era where the MP10 was used as the official benchmark to ensure proper scaling of the figures in robot mode.
Head looks alright. It was better than what we had as kids and I believe it has better proportions than the MP-03. Chest missiles are also present, and would continue to be present on the MP52.
From an Articulation perspective, it's funny but, it's no worse (and no better) than the MP-52, which is a nice way of saying that it kind of sucks because there's no waist joint. Sure the newest release is more refined, but ultimately you're stuck with posing mainly the arms and legs of the figure, as well as turning the head. You can probably do MORE of the aforementioned and have better joint design with the MP-52, but you're still limited on the actual quantity of tools you have at your disposal. I'm too lazy to pull mine out, but this likely also the case with the MP-03. From this perspective, the MP-52 wins hands down. I mean, if you're gonna have a robot that can't turn at the waist, you might as well have the one best looking one.
Transformation into jet mode wasn't as complicated as I remember the MP-03 being (of course, it could be because things have gotten really complicated since then) and while I had my concerns about handling what felt like paper thin plastic parts and weak joints, compared to the MP-9, this thing is built like a tank. The transformations are actually quite similar between the MP-03 and MP-11, until of course you get to the legs. The final product, on the other hand, is probably the weakest of the three. The Mp-03 tried to go super realistic and generally succeeded, whereas the MP-52 at least tried to hide the robot components from the side view. The MP-11 doesn't even bother trying to hide anything. As with both the MP-03 and MP-52, there are few additional features that you can only access in jet mode, with the air brake flap not making into the MP-52.
So in the end, the MP-11 is this sort of weird product that exists as a compromise of the strengths of the MP-03 and the MP-52, which makes it acceptable as a general Transformer collectible. If you're wanting a strong vehicle mode or robot mode, however, your choice is very clear as to which one you should be pursing.
It's just really odd that almost two decades later, the MP-03 is still a relevant product. Oh well, at least all my bases are covered, even if I have the Walmart one with the horrible black wash on it.
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