Tiftans Return Titanmaster Repugnus

Repugnus first appeared in 1987 as part of the Monsterbots alongside Doublecross & Grotusque. We didn't get the group here in he UK, despite two of them featuring on the 1987 Boxart. Repugnus wasn't issued with the other two in Japan in 1987, he was a 1988 Mailaway, but despite this setback he's led a more interesting life since cropping up as repaint not once but twice in 1987 with his Universe & Cybertron toys.

When Doublecross was remade in Titans Return as Twinferno hopes were high of getting deluxe toys of all three Monsterbots. As yes Grotusque has yet to be announced but Repugnus finds himself reduced to the Titanmaster size assortment, with a small robot becoming his head and his beast mode becoming the accessory.

The head mode's face, which is yellow paint over red plastic, looks decent enough but the yellow is, like the yellow softer plastic used elsewhere, slightly too pale for my liking and could be a bit more vibrant. The Titanmaster robot it unfolds into has a yellow chest & upper legs with the lower legs, arms & head being cast in red and the head additionally painted yellow.

Repugnus' accessory looks like a small version of his beast mode which has acquired a pair of pointed wings. There's a massive gap in his chest which is filled by the the Titanmaster in head mode. Now there's not one but two sets of footpegs in the cavity but neither is used here: put the head in with the face towards the back and the smaller Titanmaster head towards the top: the beast head should fold back allowing access. With the beast head folded back and the Titanmaster in place it almost looks like an odd robot mode, but the beast head does need to be folded back into place to complete the beast mode which has legs that bend at the hips, albeit joined together, and independently turning arms at the shoulders.

At this point I had to do something I rarely have to do and that was resort to the instructions to find out what Repugnus' vehicle was.... Open the head and remove the Titanmaster head which needs unfolding into robot mode. Fold the head forward: there's a joint at the back of the neck connected to another joint on the top of the middle of the body which enables the head to be positioned at the rear or front of the body. Keep the head looking straight up still. Lay the creature on it's back and fold the legs up. Stand the Titanmaster in the body cavity.

It's got wings so it must be a jet of some description..... Some very vague description! I think we'll move on rapidly!

Return the Titanmaster to head mode and replace it in the chest cavity. Fold the wings down 180°. The instructions say that the head should be moved back to the rear position but I find it's more solid in the forward position. Either way the head should still be looking up and a 5mm handle should be unfolded from the underside enabling the weapon to be held.

The weapon looks odd, but better that the jet mode: There's a pair of twin blades poking out the front, formed from the wings, but underneath each of these is a pair of gun barrels moulded onto the back of each leg.

It's not a complete disaster as a weapon, certainly better than the jet, but the real star here is the bug mode. His wave mate Shuffler is the better all round toy.