So I’m building fookin’ model kits now?Not really. I wouldn’t call the Yolopark AMK Transformers “model kits”. Certainly not in the sense of a hobby store “snip, glue, snap, paint” model kit. They are, essentially, Some Assembly Required action figures. They give you the bits, you snap ‘em together.Like a Voltron. Even with all my limitations, I was able to do these 95% unassisted - there was a stand bit on Megatron I didn’t understand, and the instructions were unclear on where Optimus’ grey side-ab things went.
I do love a non-transforming Transormer. I know it’s antithetical to the concept, but I am old and blind and if I’m going to be fiddling around turning a bunch of plastic bits into a robot, I want to do it ONCE and I want it to stay as a robot forever, ideally without an entire-ass car door just hanging off the back of it on a ball joint floppin’ around.
So a little over a year ago, I took advantage of some sales on the Super7 G1 Transformers figures and got five of them - Optimus, Megatron, Starscream, Soundwave, and Grimlock. And they’re good! But they’re Super7 which means “good” is qualified. Look great. Ton of accessories. Most of ‘em can’t move for shit.
When the AMK Pro model kits first dropped, and I saw the incredible range of motion they had, I was disappointed that they were way out of my price range. I mean WAY out. I mean like 25% more than a full price Super7. I mean, I get it - they had die-cast metal, elaborate stands, LED ligutup features, lots of “wear and tear” paint jobs. But too rich for my blood. Even in 2025.
But then they released the non-Pro versions. Same molds, same articulation, clean design (no wear and tear, which I honestly prefer), no metal, no lights, simplified stands/accessories, for half the price. And suddenly they became a steal. A glorious, glorious steal.
Because LOOK AT THAT MOVEMENT. I knew what the first picture was gonna be from the moment I got one assembled. Yolopark Optimus full-ass breakdancing while Super7 Optimus struggled to even do the robot. IRONY! The joints are smooth, they’re designed to look good in nearly every position, they’re just magical. Are they maybe 5% less cartoon-accurate than the Super7’s? Sure. Does that matter? Nope.
For Megatron, I was even meaner, and just had a sitting contest, because the Super7 Megatron’s hips are dogshit.
Plus, they’re damn near the exact same size and proportions, which means all those accessories I got with the Super7’s are gonna work fine with these guys too.
I gotta give another shout-out to the engineering when it comes to assembly. Not only are most of the bits designed in such a way that you can’t put them in wrong, every time I needed to adjust or fix something, nothing was in place permanently so I could pop pieces out as needed. And yet, when fully assembled, they are ROCK SOLID. No frajility to them whatsoever. Just brilliant.
They’ve already announced a Starscream (already out in Pro but not in non-Pro) and Bumblebee (non-Pro first) so we’re gonna be seeing more of these in the collection. Starscream is the most mobile of my Super7’s so it’ll be interesting to see the comparison, and Bumblebee’s proportions may make the advanced articulation difficult. I’ll be very curious to see how these go.
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