Master Made SDT-03 Apollo

Apollo is part of Master Made’s SD or Super Deformed line of G1 City bases. Titan was their first release and it received great reviews from those that enjoy this type of product. If you don’t like squat figures with unusually large heads then Master Made is not for you at all, although I think many of you would still appreciate the engineering and quality of these products. Well, that release was their version of Metroplex and it is undeniably a great figure.

The next release was Diabolus Rex which as you can imagine was their take on Trypticon, if you like guns and if you like (if you can remember) Zoids then this figure is the one for you.

Each of these releases is weighty, highly articulated, and easy to transform and pose no danger of breaking at all.

Back in the old days Omega supreme was essentially a parts forming playset, oh no I mentioned parts forming! Some people dislike this aspect because it can represent lazy design and engineering. I don’t care about it one way or another except that it needs to be necessary and if it improves the overall look and transformation, then fine. I mean G1 Devastator and ToyWorld’s Devy are examples of parts forming that people have come to accept, mostly.

G1 Omega is one of those toys that came with loads of bits and pieces. I don’t recall if there has ever been another imagining of Omega apart from the Armada mould which was pretty good in my view and the Planet X versions.

Perhaps we will get another, larger version of Omega but for now we have Apollo which fills its very own niche in the market. In a world where Masterpiece style figures are king, it can be refreshing to mix it up a little with something that is a standalone piece.

Articulation is one of the great selling points for this figure, strong shoulder, hip and knee ratchets really help to hold the poses you want from it.

Everything can be stored on this figure or used as a weapon.

The only accessory that cannot be stored is the teeny tiny Optimus Prime (come on, who else could it be), he doesn’t transform and the gun is moulded in but he is a super little figure with some of that lovely articulation Master Made is becoming famous for.

Apollo features lights in the head and chest, now I don’t use these features so I can’t comment on how good they look but I have seen other reviews and I can say the light feature is very good indeed.

A lot of the articulation comes from the fact that the transformation requires this such as the feet turning all the way out and this just allows the figure to really benefit from this.

The head comes off and forms a tank with an extendable turret. The head itself has a translucent face mask that lifts up and if you move the yellow parts on the side of the head he scowls and opens his mouth. Awesome!

The body splits in two so that the waist and legs form the platform base, the top half is positioned to attach at the back of the base mode. The wings can be detached to be used as a rocket gantry type of affair.

Now the legs have some cool little features which include a nice little ramp and twin pop up towers which really do add to the play value. Up and down, up and down, up and down so much fun to be had.

One thing that I think no other Omega Supreme has is actual fists. The nice surprise here is that Apollo has some really well articulated hands which can be removed or can be left on when using the usual arm attachments which are a very big round pointy cannon and a ‘grabber’ hand.

It doesn’t stop there, the grabber and cannon part can be removed along with the forearm collars to form a rocket which can be positioned on the platform. The rocket has a very nice gimmick which is not helped by the instructions which confused me a little at first. The grey rings can be moved in opposite directions which releases the inner rings. The two ends can then be connected along with the two stems, which are attached to the wings, to form a huge hammer. Yay, I love hammers!

Apart from a hammer which can be held by the hand in two different places. You guys may have seen Apollo holding a compound bow, I tried it and it works very well.

This figure is by no means a cheap option but it is value for money, what you get is a sturdy figure full of play value and accessories. For those with limited space but still feel the need to fill the city base gaps then perhaps these are for you. But anyone wondering if these figures scale with anything else may be a little disappointed because I can’t see where this would apply, scale is more of a personal preference anyway and because I don’t worry about scale, it really doesn’t bother me at all.

Do I recommend this figure? It depends on your collecting requirements but even as a standalone figure this really does display well.

But that is just my opinion and I will leave it for you fine folks to be the judge.

Good luck in your collecting endeavours.