I had a chance to review the SDCC 2016 exclusive “G.I. Joe and Transformers” set from Hasbro, and jumped at it like a pro. And then procrastinated like a rookie. Sorry guys. Check out the review: I took pictures, and there’s some snarky comments about stickers.
If you’re an experienced collector you already know this (probably because you already read the reviews two months ago…I’m SORRY!) but the Transformers in the “G.I. Joe and Transformers” set don’t transform. Don’t quit reading! As a long-time Transformers fan (and someone who only watched G.I. Joe because it came on right before Transformers) I have to admit, the set is pretty cool. There’s a lot of intricate detail in both Powerglide and Soundwave (check out the detail of the tank gears in the gallery, a lot of very nice work there) and as military models, they’re very impressive. 
There’s even alternate panels for Powerglide in a couple places: you can give him pristine metal or battle-damaged plates. I always like details like that.
The Scarlett and Zartan figures are equally detailed, with a lot of great work in the folds of clothing, texture in armor, and points of articulation in knees, hips, elbows (only the right elbow though: maybe I’m not pushing hard enough but I couldn’t get the left elbows to bend) shoulders, and neck.
As I’ve said before, I’m particular about faces, and Zartan’s looks nicely menacing, great work with the eyes and mouth. (Plus he has extra heads to carry around, how cool is that?) I like how defined Scarlett’s eyes are. Possibly a less abrupt jaw line would’ve been nice, but now we’re getting into seriously nitpicky territory. And I don’t have the first clue what does and doesn’t work with an articulated neck, so safe to say, I thought they did a good job with the faces.
Assembly of both Soundwave and Powerglide was, what’s the word I’m looking for…satisfying. The instructions were great, and it was just intricate enough to be a challenge, without ever being frustrating.
I think my only quibble is with the stickers, but that’s an issue that crops up in models all the time, and any issues I had were very minor. Sticker 5 on the diagram should’ve been marked as sticker 6, sticker 25 on the diagram should’ve been marked sticker 26, and I swear I couldn’t find the red checkerboard sticker 21 anywhere on the diagram. I mean I’m looking again right now and I still don’t see where it goes. But really? That’s all awfully minor stuff. (I’m not being nice or generous here: three sticker errors is pretty paltry compared to the mess I’ve seen from other model companies.) The stickers themselves are very high quality and look very cool after they’re applied. (Also I like how Powerglide has both Autobot and Cobra stickers and you can decide for yourself which to use. That’s a nice touch.)
All in all, this is a good set. Seriously, I was never a G.I. Joe fan; I didn’t dislike G.I. Joe, I was just all about Transformers. The fact that I had so much fun with this set is a really good sign.
Review set courtesy of Hasbro. Available now.