BEAST WARS: TOY REVIEW

Name: GUILEDART
Allegiance: Destron
Function: Dinosaur Staff Officer
Beast Mode: Triceratops
Average Price: 2280 JPY


 

BEAST MODE

Length: 19.5cm
Height: 9.5cm
Guiledart is an orange-gold triceratops, with brown highlights on its horns and toenails, an orange beak and pale olive green along its back. The skin is pebbled, with a slight ridge running along the spine. It is ever so slightly asymmetrical, with its tail curving to the right, and its left front leg placed slightly in front of its right, to give the appearance of walking. The mouth is open, and the tongue protrudes slightly, giving the impression that the beast is bellowing. In this mode, it has 4 points of articulation, at the shoulders and hips.

Guildart also has a third, ‘battle-damage’ mode, which is a variation on his beast mode. Pull out his tail slightly, exposing the red flesh, then open one of the flaps on his flank to expose ribs and more flesh. Push back on his nose horn, his tongue protrudes further, and his eyes roll back! This can be used as a decoy mode, to fool his enemies into believing he is wounded, so he can ambush them.

For a toy with a relatively complex transformation, there is surprisingly little robot kibble visible in this mode. Part of the robot arm can bee seen on its chest, and parts of the robot legs can be seen from behind and underneath, but not enough to disrupt the overall appearance of the beast.

TRANSFORMATION TO ROBOT MODE

Turn front legs upward and flip out guns from within. Separate chest panels. Unfold robot legs from within rear beast legs. Push beast head downwards and turn around to form robot arm.  Lift beast back out, exposing robot head. Turn robot 90 degrees at midriff. Push robot legs together at waist. Remove tail and flip out handle to become launcher. Remove one of the two missiles from beneath beast back/shoulder armour and insert into launcher. Insert launcher into robot’s left hand, and you’re done!

ROBOT MODE

Height: 11cm
Guiledart has one of the best robot modes of all of the Beast Wars toys, another credit to Japanese design of transforming toys. His appearance is very much in keeping with his role as Destron Dinosaur Staff Officer, and Magmatron’s right-hand man; overall, he is stocky and powerful, with many features in common with his beast mode.

The beast mode head forms his right arm, with the crest forming a formidable shield, and the horns enhancing to this.  The beast mode back forms a large shoulder shield (or ‘pauldron’) over his left shoulder, with sharp ribs and red flesh hanging downward, and the beast-mode front legs forming positionable guns; this further adds to his appearance of ferocity and hand-to-hand battle-readiness.

The robot head keeps many features of the triceratops head, and has a pronounced bulldog-scowl.  A visual effect use nicely on this toy is the ragged flesh that appears in the transition from organic to robot parts; you can see this effect on the robot mode feet, launcher and pauldron. The organic and primitive elements of his armour are well used over the technological elements; he has what appears to be a leather baldrick across his chest, and a gauntlet with a stabbing weapon on his left hand.  The pebbled skin of the triceratops mode forms impressive knee-pads (or ‘poleyns’), as well as the remainder of his body armour.  He has 17 points of articulation in this mode, including his armour.

This is a fine robot; I would actually have prepared to buy this as a robot action figure even if it didn’t transform!

SPARK CRYSTAL LOCATION

On the left side of the tail/launcher.

OVERALL

An excellent toy, in either mode; one of the pride of my collection.  Well worth the investment if you can still find one.
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This toy review was written by Wayne Bickley

BEAST TRIVIA

At nine metres in length, Triceratops was among the largest ceratopsians and one of the last to become extinct. It made up the bulk of the plant eating population just before the end of the Cretaceous. Its remains are particularly common in coastal lowland sediments.

Triceratops had a single, short nasal horn and horns as long as hockey sticks protruding above its eyes. Its head, sometimes as much as three metres long, was the largest ever possessed by a land animal. It had large eyes and a relatively large brain.

Triceratops was probably a feisty animal. Many specimens have bones damaged in combats with rivals or predators.

Triceratops remains were first discovered near Denver, Colorado (USA), in 1887. At first they were identified as the remains of a recently extinct species of buffalo.

Bibliography: Royal Tyrrell Musuem

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