I had a sense of deja vu when I opened the latest boxes from Mastermind Creations, especially for Stray. That shouldn’t have been too surprising since Ater Beta and Stray are essentially remolds of Aero Alpha. Both figures are great fun and look amazing on the shelf next to their Reformatted brethren.
While I was a bit on the fence about Aero Alpha’s vehicle mode, I definitely like these guys’ Cybertronian cars a lot. Both vehicles are identical except for their paint applications. The metallic paint on Stray is always appreciated, but I like Ater Beta’s red canopy. Both canopies open easily. Unfortunately, there are no details inside. The undercarriages are distinctly robot torso and thighs with heads peaking out. They don’t really roll so much as slide because the front wheels are not really wheels. Only the center strip of the front wheels spin.
Transformation of both figures is very similar to Aero Alpha, but I don’t recall Aero Alpha's arms popping off their ball joints so easily. Besides that annoyance, the entire process, back and forth between modes, is very smooth and easy. I like the added detail of folding the wheels in half to hide them in their shoulder pauldrons. It’s too bad that the wheels tend to droop down out of place.
Both figures are covered in the line work and paint applications that I like so much about Mastermind Creations figures. While Stray is not as striking as Aero Alpha, his lighter palette is a nice counterpoint to Ater Beta’s darker colors. Ater Beta has a very appealing not-quite-black finish. Both have canopies that droop down between their legs, but the kibble is not as prominent as on Aero Alpha. Unlike Aero Alpha, I don’t think Stray’s longsword can sheathe in his back.
Both figures share the same articulation as Aero Alpha so this paragraph may sound familiar. Their heads are on ball joints that provide decent amounts of articulation. Their shoulders are on hinged ball joints. This affords them some butterflying action. Despite their giant shoulder pads, they can raise their arms out and upwards to near 90 degrees. They swivel at the biceps, wrists, waists, and thighs. They have double-jointed elbows that let them perform near full curls. Their thumbs are fixed while the rest of their fingers are single-pinned. Their pointing fingers articulate separately from the rest. Their hips are on universal joints. They can perform full front and side splits. Be mindful of their holstered swords as well as their hip holsters. Their knees are double-jointed and can also perform near full curls. Their ankles are on ball joints as well as their toes. Their sword holsters are on hinged ball joints.
Ater Beta comes with a rifle and a pair of short swords. Stray comes with one large sword and two short swords. Except for the paint jobs, the swords are the same as those that came with Aero Alpha. They are all chromed plastic with some line work on the handles. I wish the longsword had the peg on the other side, unless they are meant to be left-handed. The rifle and short swords can all attach in vehicle modes. I wish Stray also had a rifle (no clue if he’s exclusively a swordsman in the comics), but I have a box of these things so it’s not that big of a deal. The swords and rifle sit well in their hands.
Both will stand next to Aero Alpha on my Reformatted shelf. After the slight disappointment of the Malum Malitia figures, I’m glad these two are a return to form. Being remolds of Aero Alpha definitely helped so I will need to wait on their next figure to pass judgement. If you didn’t like Aero Alpha, there isn’t really anything new here to change your mind. You will be getting more of the same IDW goodness. I liked Aero Alpha, so I like these figures. Of course, I eagerly await more.
