Legacy Evolution Bludgeon

Series: Legacy Evolution
Year: 2023
Allegiance: Decepticon
Class: Voyager

Prelude: For someone who started out with one of the most unpopular Transformers gimmicks of all time, Bludgeon has certainly come a long way. He even appears in TV series occasionally now, not just in comic books. He also receives new figures on a semi-regular basis now, such as this one here from Legacy Evolution. So put on your skull helmet, sharpen your Katana, and let’s say go!

Robot Mode: Legacy Evolution Bludgeon is a retool of Legacy Evolution Tarn. Seeing as I skipped Tarn, already owning Mastermind Creations Kultur, this is my first experience with the mold.

Bludgeon is a Voyager-Class robot with excellent articulation, including articulated hands. His look is based on the Pretender shell of G1 Bludgeon, but with visible vehicle parts, somewhat reminiscent of Revenge of the Fallen Bludgeon. His head sculpt is Bludgeon’s typical skull face in a Samurai helmet, while the paintjob consists of Bludgeon’s traditional orange and green. So this figure here is Bludgeon, no doubt.

As mentioned above, articulation is excellent, allowing for all sorts of cool poses. Bludgeon carries a sword (somewhat resembling a Katana) and can pull off sword fighter poses without any problems. For ranged weapons, he carries two large cannons which he can either wield separately or as part of a double-barreled tank turret, which can attach to either arm or be worn on the back. Technically Bludgeon’s comic look would have the tank turret on the back. If it’s on his arm, he can store his sword on his back instead. You can also connect the two barrels to create one really long cannon, but that looks ridiculous in my eyes, so I didn’t take a picture of it.

Bottom line, a very good Bludgeon figure with a great look, great articulation, and no flaws worth mentioning.

Alternate Mode: Bludgeon transforms into the same kind of science fiction style tank that Tarn did, naturally. The transformation is pretty similar to that of MCC Kultur, too, which was to be expected. It’s basically the robot lying down on its stomach, folding the legs onto his back, and mounting the big tank turret on top. The breast plate is now a cow catcher in the front, though it tends to pop off during transformation. The robot fists are slightly visible on the sides, but only if you look very closely.

The tank’s turret can turn, but while the barrels can theoretically be raised up, the design of the tank’s top makes it impossible to raise them more than a few degrees. Bludgeon’s sword can be mounted on either side of the tank, so no parts are left over. The two smaller guns on the front part of the tank can swivel sideways.

So bottom line: a nice tank mode, though it would have been nice had the design enabled the barrels to be raised.

Remarks: Bludgeon has been around a long time, being one of the few G1 Pretenders (mostly Decepticons) who, due to their roles in the comic books, managed to ascend past being part of an unpopular gimmick group. This particular version of Bludgeon here resembles the character we saw in IDW’s second Transformers continuity, specifically the 2021 Transformers Annual, but he also somewhat resembles Bludgeons post-Pretender look in the first IDW continuity. Another version of this figure, sporting a new head and a different paint job, resembles Bludgeon’s Stormbreaker look from before he became a Pretender.

Tarn, the original use for this figure, was one of the most anticipated figures of recent times, given that it was the first-ever official figure of the DJD leader. Quite incidentally, however, it also makes for a pretty brilliant Bludgeon figure, probably the best since ROTF Bludgeon. Though to be honest, had I known we’d get a Stormbreaker Bludgeon from this same mold later on, I might well have waited for that one. Still, a great figure in robot mode and with but minor flaws in vehicle mode. Well worth getting for any Bludgeon fan or just fans of good Transformers figures in general.

Rating: A-