Long time readers will be aware of my status as a hardcore Armada aficionado. What you may not know however, is that the one figure most Transformers fans in general dub the zenith of the line is one that's been mostly absent from my collection forever. Unicron is a piece that commanded awe from kids and collectors alike in 2003 and for many years beyond. This high regard led to a slew of respawns for the chaos bringer over the last fifteen years and now I'm here to talk to you about the one version that finally led to me adding this figure to my collection after so very long...
OK, I say "mostly absent" because for many years I did own a Unicron. Picked up from a boot sale for £1.50 he was missing every conceivable detachable or ancillary part except a single planet mode hemisphere. No wings, no abs, no missiles, no Mini-con. As I entered my twenties I decided this was no state for such a prominent figure in my collection to be in and I passed him on to the now RRCo CEO Dorian. So for me to enter the experience of owning Takara's new Encore Unicron of Light (or technically "Unicron (Micron Shūgō-tai Colour) or if you want "Universal Dominator Unicron" as the box's only English text states) I was somewhat prepared for its enormity. Except I wasn't.
Before I go too far I'll take the time to explain just what the bloody hell a Unicron of Light is. In two episodes of the Armada cartoon (or Micron Densetsu anime if you like looking at half decent animation) all of the Mini-cons coalesce into a glowing green copy of the planet eater threatening Cybertron so they can wrassle with him. Because they're his children or cells or something? In the context of the Armada 'toon, the Mini-cons and Unicron share a lineage (see the 'M' on their noggin?), leading to the great green god you see before you. Basically the largest combiner ever, fueled by the fighting spirit and togetherness of a race of beings standing up to their oppressor. And if you haven't seen Gurren Lagann, I'll just say this is very cool and you're looking at a Unicron that isn't an impossibly malevolent force of universal annihilation.
Being part of the Encore line also means you're looking at a roundabout reissue of a venerable and sought after toy. In this case it's not as clear cut as having a minty fresh Jazz or Big Convoy with a bit of a palette shift so I won't blame you if you go "but Unicron was never green?" What this release does seek to emulate is the insurmountably rare Lucky Draw Hikari no Unicron, that Takara only made ten of. If you're part of the hideously small fraction of humanity lucky enough to own this figure, I can only imagine how you feel seeing an infinitely more accessible and actually better painted version get released. Boo-hoo, you poor soul. So to summarise, not only is this Unicron an enormously obscure Armada reference made manifest but also an enormously obscure Armada figure made manifest. And that's Unicron of Light, kids.
Beyond the multilayered fandom zeitgeist creating a series of concentric metaphysical spheres around this figure like some 12th century interpretation of the cosmos, Unicron of Light is just a pretty nice thing. First things first, this is a sixteen year old mold that stands at a height and weight above 90% of all the Transformers ever. As such it's a bit wobbly. The tectonic ratcheting in most of the joints does a really good job of jostling the wings and hip skirts from their mounts. Move the shoulders and they'll untab from the torso. Getting the planet mode all locked in is a herculean task. But at least this time it seems like the chest cannon actually behaves. Structural compromises aside, there's still an awful lot to enjoy with this toy.
Of course hailing from Armada, all of Unicron's missile gimmicks are activated by their small round friend Bug. Originally the Mini-con Dead End, a moon-like sentry drone fella forever trapped within (evil) Unicron's mass and thus driven irredeemably insane - I've gotta say it feels nice to have this calm green version. He's like Dead End Wellness Ver. A What If tale of his mental recovery and ongoing wellbeing fueled by the energy of all his friends. But when you consider the larger toy he comes with is supposed to represent a gestalt of All Mini-cons, why's he left out? Aw mate. Needless to say, I like Bug. We'll try to forget that's probably mostly because he's the only totally new thing to me in this set.
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| That's no moon! |
As an action figure (yeah we got there in the end) Encore Unicron is very much a product of its time. That time of course being the early 00's. It's not just huge but heavy and noisy and not at all subtle. Some posing is left difficult to the mind of a collector in 2019 expecting swivels and such but honestly it still holds up. Mainly because of all the ratchets. What you do get that still sits pretty unparalleled in the world of Transformers is really articulate hands. I won't say "fully articulate" but they're the benchmark for anything pushing that foot-plus scale. When I was twelve I'd have made Unicron swear and pick his nose and do Spidey thwip hands but now I do all that and basic yoga mudras. I can't overstate how important it is to me personally to have a huge cosmic entity Transformer that can do Ditko fingers. If they had thigh swivels, I'd have had them sitting in half lotus like one of those massive moss-covered Buddhist statues.
The truly unique part of this figure is, I'm sure you've guessed, its deco. Improving on the original Hikari no Unicron look with lashings more translucent green plastic (finally making both hands match) and a level of metallic teal that gets a big gold badge marked "AESTHETIC" from me - this is a very good looking toy. Taking interstellar liberties with the on-screen appearance of the behemoth has really paid off. I mean, its actually interesting to look at. Even the grey parts are in fact slightly tinged with green and under the right light, that "glow" effect they've gone for overall really works. In either mode, Unicron is imposing and still worthy of a centerpiece spot on your shelf, even in this get-up. But clearly you're not going to display it in planet mode, are you?
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| O Green World |
Moving on to the alt mode - which in the context of this release is a totally unnecessary byproduct - yeah, it still works. It never was a perfect sphere but it's round enough and does the chompy maw thing and ...has a... ring. I can't quite get past the idea that this isn't a planet eater so what's this planet gonna be doing? But it does get points for all that clear green plastic creating a kind of internally reflective layered effect and me being the Armada goon I am, finally being able to populate that ring with twenty-seven Mini-cons is just - ahh it's A Moment, man.
Encore Universal Dominator Unicron Micron Colour Ver of Light then, is a pretty big deal. Even without some watch batteries in their skull and wrist to allow me to go on about the light-up bits too, it's exactly the sort of thing that belongs in my collection. That gap of ages since I first considered the chaos-bringer has done wonders to bring me to a point where I can really enjoy everything about this particular figure. A figure which speaks to my depth down the Armada abyss, as someone that can truly appreciate every facet of its being and also well, just doesn't really care for Tangy Cheese Unicron. I'd much rather play host to a composite being formed from the love and hope of an entire race than one single plot device masquerading as a "character" for the last thirty years. You gotta go green, baby.
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