BEAST
WARS: TOY REVIEW
Name: BLACK WIDOW (a.k.a. Blackarachnia)
Allegiance: Destron
Function: Saboteur, Construction
Beast Mode: Silk Spider
Average Price: 1500 JPY
Above: Black Widow (right) was also available in a Versus Set with
Tigatron (left).
BEAST MODE
It's no secret that Black Widow is nothing more than a repaint
of the Tarans (Tarantulas) figure. Measuring about
15 cm in length from fang to abdomen. The upper side of the abdomen itself
is translucent black with some squiggles and circles moulded on. The underside
of the back panel is pock-marked, creating a sort of "rocky" effect. The
sides of the abdomen do not have these pock marks. At the centre of the
back is a red hexagon, similar to the marking on the back of a red-back
spider. The back of the head is pock-marked and is translucent black and
gold. The gold continues to accent other parts of the head. The front of
the head is also translucent black with fewer gold accents than the back.
There are nine opaque cyan eyes. Beneath the front half of the head are
two fangs. These are painted translucent black and striped with gold. Sticking
out from either side of the head are eight bronze legs.
One major flaw with this toy is that the rear legs are
moulded so far apart that they are unable to provide any support. Hence,
the toy has a tendency to just lie on its underside. Also, the robot feet
are clearly visible from behind.
Gimmick: Press the button on in the middle of the
red hexagon and a projectile launches from behind. There is a string attached
to the front of the missile. Whoopee.
TRANSFORMATION TO ROBOT MODE
Launch the missile and remove the launcher from the back.
Turn the spider over and flip out the robot arms. Unfold
the robot legs and swing down the spider head to form the front of the
robot torso. Place the launcher in either arm and plug the missile back
in.
ROBOT MODE
Height: 13 cm
Points of articulation: 11 (not including the spider
legs)
Hmm... looks like a repainted Tarans. Oh
wait, it is a repainted Tarans! The only physical difference is
that Black Widow utilises the "robot" head whereas Tarans uses the "mutant"
head. The head itself is purple. The forehead and face is black with gold
cheeks and eyes. The upper arms are gray, accented with bronze, thanks
to the spider legs which protrude from either side. The lower arms are
the spider fangs. The torso is translucent black with gold accents throughout.
The cyan spider eyes rest as the groin. The thighs are purple with translucent
black on the outer sides. The calves are also purple and the knees and
shins are gold. The feet are both purple. The major drawback with this
mode is the fact that the elbows only bend one way.
RUB STICKER LOCATION
None.
OVERALL
Black Widow (known in the West as Blackarachnia) made Transformer
history by being the first female Beast Wars Transformer. This
is sometimes overshadowed by the fact that she is nothing more than a repaint
of Tarans (known in the West as Tarantulas), and truly, that is all she
is. However, Black Widow was not the first Transformer to change gender
through a simple repaint. The first Transformer to undergo was a single
mould coloured blue and yellow and released in the West as the male
Headmaster Nightbeat. This same mould was simultaneously coloured red and
white and released in Japan as the female Headmaster, Minerva. Afterwards,
the Targetmaster Seacon, Tentakill was repainted and released as the female
member of God Neptune, Scylle. The first female Beast Wars Transformer
to have an original mould was Air Razor. Much to the delight of
many fans, Black Widow was later given her first original mould in the
form of a Transmetal 2. She was
again, given another original incarnation in the toy line, Beast Machines.
However, these are not the first female Transformers with original moulds,
as the Arcee and Elita-One came out before them. Overall, Black Widow is
not a bad toy, even for a repaint.
VARIATIONS
The American version of Black Widow (Blackarachnia) was coloured
slightly differently. The gray parts were green and the forehead and was
white. Overall, Black Widow was repainted to mimic the colours seen in
the CGI TV series.
Above: My Japanese Black Widow figure (left) standing
next to Darren Cilenti's
American Blackarachnia.
BEAST TRIVIA
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Arachnida
Species: Nephila
Aliases: Silk Spider, Golden Silk Spider.
The golden silk spider gained its name from the great strength of its
silk and the golden colour of their huge orb webs. These webs often measure
one metre or more in diameter and are suspended between trees by guy lines.
They tend to dwell in the warmer regions of the world. Adult females are
very large with a body length of 25 to 50 millimetres. Males are dwarves,
measuring only 4 to 6 mm. As adults, they build no webs, but rather live
in the webs of females where they are sometimes captured and eaten while
attempting to mate. Juvenile silk spiders build complete orbs, whereas
the the older ones build only the bottom portion, which is frequently repaired
but not rebuilt every day as in the case of most other orb weaving spiders.
Bibliography: Encyclopaedia
Britannica
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