Bruticus Scramble City Encore 16

I guess I could have included this in one of my earlier posts, "Call Me Ruination or Baldigus..." since it is essentially the same mold, but it took my friend "M" reminding me that I even had this encore set since it's been sitting in my closet for so long.

This is one of the two very first Transformer toys that I have ever purchased at a Convention. This goes back to 2011and my TF collecting buddy "M" and I went
to "HE-CON" in Toronto. For those that don't live here, it's an 80's toy show with everything, well....from the 80's. For a guy who had only ever gone to Comicon shows before, I was in heaven and I sort of went a little crazy in the buying department. 

We were there almost two hours early but that gave us the first in line spots; granted the dealers technically get that position since they can look around while setting up and buy before the public gets in. The first table we hit I bargained with a local dealer and picked up these two MISB boxes:

The dealer was asking $175 but I got it for $150. I was a little less educated back then since I had been out of collecting for a bit, but considering I'm seeing this set now go for $200 +, it looks like I paid a good price...even if it's an encore.
Bruticus (Multi-pack, 1986, 2009)
Japanese ID number: D-69

Bruticus is formed from all five Combaticon toys. The four smaller Combaticons attach via sockets in Onslaught's shoulders and the bottom of his feet. Fists and feet pads attach onto the four limbs, and Bruticus is completed with a large chest plate and a helmet covering Onslaught's head. He wields Onslaught's sonic stun-gun in battle. The gun can also be stored on his backpack using two rectangular pegs which hold the gun in place via its targeting sight. As with all Scramble City-style combiner teams, his limbs can be rearranged into any slot of one's choosing.

Back of Box - Another great artwork

Bruticus is viewed as the counterpart to the Autobots' Protectobots, a team composed of rescue vehicles. In addition to their individual abilities the team can combine their bodies and minds together to create the giant warrior, Bruticus.

 

The team's combined form of Bruticus is a successful merging of the minds of the Combaticons. He is perhaps the most successful combiner, in that he is not slow and awkward like some other combiners, and will follow commands instantly and without question, with terrifying efficiency and awesome strength. The only problem is that without someone to tell him what to do, Bruticus will do nothing. While this is the depiction that Bruticus's tech spec offered, his animated appearances showed him as frequently able to act independently, and rarely listen to anyone - even their creator Starscream.


Onslaught

Originally designed for the aborted Diaclone line Jizai Gattai ("Free Combination") and then brought over to the Transformers toyline, Onslaught transforms into a dark blue and green mobile anti-aircraft truck of made-up origin, armed with a large double-barreled cannon mounted on the flatbed of his vehicle mode. Like all of the original four Scramble City-style combiner team leaders, he can also assume a base/gun emplacement mode with a ramp that smaller Combaticons can use, which can be connected to both the Autobot city Metroplex (a feature not mentioned in either toy's instructions, for obvious reasons) and to the Decepticon city Trypticon (a feature only documented in Trypticon's instructions). As with Motormaster and Silverbolt, Onslaught was originally designed to feature a spring-loaded launching mechanism in base mode that would propel the smaller vehicles off him. Hasbro dropped the feature, perhaps for safety reasons, but it was retained on the Japanese edition of the figure.

In robot mode, Onslaught is armed with a long olive sonic stun-gun and is accessorized by a small chest plate. The gun can store on his backpack in either mode via two rectangular pegs which hold onto his gun sight. Holes in the side of the gun are, probably coincidentally, just the right size to peg in the smaller weapons from the other Combaticons—a feature that would be canonized only for the later Ruination version of the mold.

Onslaught combines with the other Combaticon toys into Bruticus, forming the central body component of the super-robot with the addition of a large silver chest plate and Bruticus's head. He also comes with Bruticus's hands and feet.


Blast Off

Blast Off transforms into yet another International NASA Space Shuttle. In this mode, he is armed with two laser cannons mounted to his engines.
In robot mode Blast Off is armed with a small laser pistol and his two laser cannons, which are now mounted on his legs. Along with fellow Combaticon Vortex, Blast Off is the first Transformer figure to use ball joints, located in his shoulders. He usually forms Bruticus' right arm, but as a Scramble City-style toy, he can be connected with any limb slot on Bruticus.


Vortex

 

Vortex transforms into a Kaman Aerospace SH-2 Seasprite helicopter. He is armed with a small, chin-mounted semi-automatic glue gun and two large, tri-barrel Gatling guns mounted astern on his tail.
In robot mode, Vortex is armed with his helicopter chin gun, and along with fellow Combaticon Blast Off, is one of the first Transformers figures to utilize ball-joints, located in his shoulders. The top of his helicopter mode (where his rotor attaches) is capable of rotating as part of his transformation so that the rotor can be mounted 'forwards' in vehicle mode but high on his back in robot mode. Many pictures of Vortex (including the one to the right) neglect this step, leaving him mistransformed and awkward looking in his helicopter form. Vortex normally becomes the left arm of Bruticus, but as a Scramble City-style design, he can also occupy any other limb slot on Bruticus.
 Brawl (later called "Decepticon Brawl")

Brawl transforms into a green Leopard 1 main battle tank. In vehicle mode his armament is supplemented by a large dark gray anti-aircraft gun mounted of the back of the tank's hull. In robot mode Brawl is armed with a small dark gray gun. Early releases of Brawl used painted die-cast metal for his chest and leg-mounted tank treads. This was later replaced by color-cast plastic. The complete set of Combaticons were re-released in the European-market "Classics" line in 1990; these releases has the rubsign indent removed from the molding.
Brawl normally operates as Bruticus' left leg, but as a Scramble City-style combiner, he can also act as any other limb for any other combination of robots who share the connection design.


Swindle

Swindle transforms into a tan FMC XR311 combat support vehicle. He features a large, back-mounted cannon with a small pistol attached to its side. In robot mode, he is armed with both weapons, which are used as hand-held artillery. Swindle normally operates as Bruticus's right leg, but as a Scramble City-style combiner toy, he can also be used in any other available limb slot with any torso-robot.
There are two different versions of the original release. The initial version uses purple-painted die-cast metal for his chestplate. This was later replaced with gray plastic.

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Overall, I'm really happy that I did pick this encore set up since who knows when, or if, I will be able to pick up an original set.  I think that even if I had one I would still be getting this set since I tend to pick up most re-releases of this figures I have.

Encore or not, this was a great piece to buy for my introduction into Transformer conventions.