Legacy G2 Laser Optimus with Battle Tanker upgrade.
Trailers are fine with your Optimus figures but they're much more enjoyable when they serve added functionality. For G2 Legacy Prime the trailer serves little more than to be an anemic base mode.
Hardly inspiring... so in order to rectify the situation I decided to purchase a DNA Design DK-37 upgrade... with an additional un-named kit that enhances the upgrade.
Pictured here available on eBay
This was the kit That came in first so...
After adding on the new backing the old part can be put away as a future greeblie for another project
The sides of the tanker are taken apart and the new backing uses screws that fasten the sides on.
This kit fixes the issues of the DNA upgrade by providing smoother mobility to the missile pods as well as filling the pods with better and more accurate groupings. It incorporates the Battle tanker mode without resorting to parts forming.
...and then the second kit arrived...
While the Missile pods on the DNA kit looks the part they suffer from being hollow and don't secure vey well. I get it that the concept was that they fold for storage but the execution is very flimsy and clunky.
On a positive note the DNA Kit provides open hands and leg fillers for Prime which can accommodate the sword in alt mode.
The missile pods store within the trailer although tolerances are a bit tight.
Comparison to Maketoys Battle Tanker
Basically it's a combination of these two kits that are required to make the upgrade possible.
These two kits combined convert G2 Optimus into a Macross, missile spam, monster, mammoth.
Teenagers From Outer Space (1959) Topaz Film Corp, Directed and Written by Tom Graeff, distributed by Warner Bros, starring David Love, Dawn Bender and Bryan Grant
Teenagers From Outer Space. Aliens dressed like hotel bellhops go on raygun rampage and leave skeletal corpses in their wake. How can you go wrong with a premise like this?
Our story opens with an extraterrestrial space craft landing on the outskirts of small town suburbia. One of the space teens emerges from the ship and establishes first contact by bravely disintegrating a small dog.
Aim straight for Unicron's eye!!!
This is the actions of Thor (Byran Grant) ... no not the God of thunder, but an alien "teen" who is your typical "blindly following orders bad guy.
Poor Sparky
As the others emerge from the ship we learn through stilted dialogue and delivery that these space antagonists are here to raise Gargons, or space lobsters. Apparently these are the equivalent of cattle and the aliens raise them for livestock (Better than coming here to eat the population of course).
Behold, advanced alien technology!!!
The trouble is that these alien lobsters have a tendency to grow to immense proportions making it safe only to hunt them from the air. (Suddenly my Gargon Joke in my Damnation Alley review makes more sense now eh?).
Nusumareta kako o sagashitsuzukete
ore wa samayou mishiranu machi o...
I wonder if the cast and crew had this baby for supper after the filming?
Byran Grant as Thor removing his helmet and having perfect hair. Truly, these aliens have advanced hair product technology!!!
David Love as Derek
As the others emerge. we are introduced to Derek (David Love), the main character of the film. who looks on in regret to the remains of the small dog and finds the tags that were attached to it's collar. Derek protests the use of the planet for harvest saying that there is proof that intelligent beings exist and that the grazing of the Gargons will destroy the indigenous lifeforms.
Of course his companions scoff at the idea of other life referring to them as being inferior, and of no consequence to the aliens or their plans.
Thor and the Captain... somehow I think I Downloaded the wrong Marvel movie...
Derek decides that his comrades must be stopped and pulls a gun on his Captain (King Moody). Through exposition we learn that their civilization has forgone tradition, family , and friendship in exchange for emotionless automatization and mechanized slavery.
Behold the mighty Hubley Atomic Disintegrator. The supreme weapon!!!
Noisy Cricket? I feel like I'm gonna break this!
Derek reveals that he is part of an underground rebellion that wishes to bring back the old ways, that he has learned by carrying an ancient book. The captain manages to gain the upper hand by tricking him into seeing the book and disarming him, he orders the rest of his crew to keep Derek in custody while he goes to consult on the situation.
It turns out that the Gargon experiment was unsuccessful, and through the discussion the Captain finds out that Derek is the son of the Leader. The captain is given orders to spare the life of the Leader's son.
Ming, the not so Merciless...
Outside the members of the crew are distracted while packing up their equipment and Derek uses the opportunity to escape. The good news is that the Gargon recovers and is still alive.
The Captain dispatches Thor to pursue Derek and the rest of the crew leave the Gargon in a cave to grow and depart to join with the main fleet.
Derek manages to escape into the local town. He manages to find a Petrol station attendant, using the tag the attendant directs him towards the address of the deceased dog.
Hey I didn't know we were also shooting an episode of The Little Rascals!!!
Thor follows the road and encounters a driver who offers him a lift into town. Derek arrives at the residence where we are introduced to Betty Morgan and her Grandfather (Harvey B. Dunn).
Dawn Bender as Betty
She mistakens him for a potential boarder for the room they have for rent and the two take Derek into there household. Betty mentions that the empty room belonged to her brother and Derek is amazed that traditional family roles exist on this planet.
Betty is obviously smitten by the new arrival and convinces him to stay.
Meanwhile Thor rides into town. As the driver decides to stop for gas the attendant recognizes the fact that Thor is wearing the same type of clothing as Derek and comments about it. Thor demands to know where he went and kills the attendant and the driver by atomizing them.
Feel the wrath of the Mighty Thor!!!
Thor goes on a killing spree and commandeers the car in search for his prey.
Sonia Torgeson as Alice
Meanwhile Derek and Betty make towards the house of the Woodward's where her friend Alice has invited them to a pool party. when they arrive Derek tells Betty of the killing of her dog and the reason why he sought her out. Betty of course has a hard time believing Sparky is dead and so Derek tries her to convince her by driving to the spot of Sparky's remains.
Thor arrives at the Morgan's and finds Grandpa who tells them that his grand-daughter and Derek went to the Woodward's and gives him the directions to get there.
Betty and Derek return to the sight of Sparky's remains and she is skeptical that the pile of bones that lie before her are of her beloved pet. Derek tries to explain the results of a focusing disintegrator but she has no clue as to what he is talking about. She suggest that they go see Professor Simpson at the College to explain the situation, as they leave they hear a faint cry from the cave housing the growing Gargon foreshadowing things to come.
Thor arrives at the address he was given and questions Alice of the whereabouts of his pursuants. When she refuses to co-operate he disintergrates her in the pool. Someone really needs to teach this guy proper gun safety and trigger discipline.
Alas, poor Alice...
Derek and Betty return to the house so she can quickly change and she leaves a note to her grandpa as to where they are going. Gramps is awaken by a phone call from reporter Joe (Played by Tom Graeff the director). Joe tells gramps that there has been reports of a double murder.
Grandpa and Reporter Joe
This looks like the Halloween episode of the Simpsons
Thor returns and gramps tells him that Derek and Betty have gone to the college according to the note she left.
As the two arrive at the college they realize the professor has yet to arrive and they decide to wait for him outside. The professor enters and Thor arrives at his office where he vaporizes him and escapes through the window. Betty recognizes Professor Simpson's car and when they go back to his office they find his boney remains.
Betty decides to call the police and the pair head for City Hall where they are to be met with an armed escort. Before they go she calls gramps and tells him to meet them there. Thor runs into Grandpa before he can leave and demands that he drives him to City Hall.
Be honest, does this belt make me look fat?
When Thor arrives he is met with armed resistance and gets shot by one of the officers. Betty notices blood near the car and they find Thor who holds them at gunpoint and demands he be taken to a doctor to have his bullets removed.
Betty suggest that he be taken to Doctor Brandt (Frederic Welch) and they make their way to his office. They find the doctor and he begins surgery.
While being operated on Thor reveals The secret that Derek is the son of the leader.
Due to Thor insisting that he not be anesthetized and passes out due to the pain. The trio escape while he is unconscious.
By the way Colonel, we love your fried chicken!!!
The doctor's nurse shows up and treats Thors wounds and he takes her hostage.
...bones of full fifty men lie strewn upon its lair!!!
Meanwhile reporter Joe and officer Mac (Jim Macgeorge) investigate the landing sight. Mac decides to explore the cave where the Gargon is being kept and is devoured by the beast (off screen of course this is a low budget movie after all).
Thor arrives to see reporter Joe fleeing the scene and gives chase. The Nurse manages to escape from the car but Thor still groggy after surgery crashes and is taken into custody. It is reported that the disintegrator was not found and was somehow lost in the crash.
It's the legendary Black Beast of Aaarrrrggh!!!
Derek and Betty investigate the sight of the crash to see if they can find the weapon. The couple share a romantic moment where Derek vows to stay on Earth but the scene is interrupted by the arrival of the Gargon. Derek finds the gun under a rock but the weapon is damaged so he throws the rock instead which distracts the creature long enough for them to drive away.
A search party is attacked by the Gargon feeding it and making it grow even larger.
Yeah they're dead, they're... all messed up...
Derek realizes that the only way to make the gun work is to utilize the city electrical power lines to give the gun the energy it needs to power the beam. he manages to successfully kill the monster but not before the fleet shows up in Earth's orbit.
Hello my baby, hello my honey...
Derek dons his uniform and and retrieves Thor from confinement and tells Joe to take them back to the landing site. The main guide comes in for a landing containing the Captain as well as the Leader Derek's father.
We all live in a yellow submarine...
Pretending to have a change of heart he meets his father and convinces him to guide the ships in for landing. He tricks the ships to go in full speed into the ground crashing them all as well as destroying the guide ship where he was conducting the fleet. He makes the ultimate sacrifice while Betty remembers his declaration "I shall make the Earth my home and I shall never leave it.
