The Unrustable Bastards

Review by Jmann

Sometimes donating money to a Kickstarter is a terrible idea, but sometimes it turns out so amazingly right.

This super-articulated high-end transforming motorcycle toy was designed by Mayhem Mekanics, and brought to life using Kickstarter. I was one of the chosen few who said "Eh, what's the worst that could happen?" and tossed some money down.

And in the age of Kickstarter cut-and-runs (lol Mighty No. 9), it was refreshing to see a Kickstarter run from concept to finalized factory finish, all the while getting updated by the folks over at MM every week or so on the progress.

So what did the blood, sweat, and tears of two years give me?

A freaking amazing toy.

This first release in the Unrustable Bastards line (or The Unrustables at retailers) gives us a single figure with option parts to create either the characters Iride or Captain Burley.

I should note that in order to switch heads around, it requires a screwdriver and taking some things apart, so it isn't as easy as popping out a ball-joint or something like that.

So let's look at the Bike and Rider first.

The Rider himself is a hyper-articulated 3 3/4 inch action figure that can do just about anything any other action figure in this scale can do. I had no problems getting him into any poses.

I also like that he comes with a couple of tiny guns. It just shows that he isn't just a pack-in, but a real part of the set.

But hey, let's look at the bike.

Because, holy crap, this bike is beautiful.

It definitely appears to have taken some design influences from notable motorcycles in anime. Akira, Bubblegum Crisis, and Megazone 23 come to mind.

The colors are sharp, and the few painted details on the wheels and tailpipes are done very well.

It's also very orange.

I also really like the crisp tampo of the Unrustable Bastards logo on the front of the bike.

And placing the Rider in his seat is easy thanks to the peg hole in his back.

I also like that you can attach weapons to the front of the bike. It's super slick.

Transforming the bike appears daunting, but is rather intuitive. However, I need to knock points off because there are no instructions in the package.

That's kind of important for a figure that is basically a third party Masterpiece Transformer.

But essentially, you just untab everything and shake it until all the parts come undone.

Then you can arrange the chest cavity and head in such a way that you can insert the Rider.

Oh yeah, the Rider becomes the chest! Transforming him is simple since he just curls into a ball. Just make sure to twist his waist around completely and you'll have no trouble at all since everything pegs in nicely.

Once the Rider is slotted into the chest cavity with all three pegs, we can finally see the finished Robit.

And boy is he delicious.

And orange.

He is super articulated and is covered with swivels and ball joints, so posing him was no trouble at all. He can even grab his shotguns when they are tabbed into his back! I love that!

Speaking of shotguns, The Bastard comes with two shotguns, two pistols, a CHAINSAW GUN, and several heads.

The extra Rider head allows him to assume the Captain Burley persona. It looks like Kup.

His extra large faces include facemasks for Iride and Burley, as well as their uncovered faces. Out of the box, he comes with the Skull face, but I switched it out for the visor face because I like it.

Overall, there is a ton of fun to be had with this set. If you are a fan of transforming motorcycles and can stomach the hefty pricetag, I'd definitely recommend The Unrustable Bastards. It's also a breath of fresh air to see independent toy companies making figures that aren't based on pre-existing licenses or Optimus Prime.

Feel free to pick him up wherever Bastards are sold.