Review - Fans Hobby MB-08 Double Evil
I’m sure you’ve heard people use the term ‘Bring out the big guns’ before. This usually precedes the arrival of the biggest fella in the pub showing up to knock the stars out of whoever is causing trouble. You won’t need to keep that whiskey fueled rage monster on call anymore, because Fans Hobby’s MB-06 Double Evil is huge, plentifully armed, and heavy enough to use as a bludgeon to keep any would be trouble makers at bay! Double Evil is the new ‘Big Gun’ and you’re gonna feel like the king of the playground when you’ve got him grasped in your sweaty palms!
This review is based on a sample copy sent to me by Fans Hobby for photography and review purposes. While this review is considered sponsored content, Fans Hobby in no way determines or influences the details listed in this review, or the outcome of the final thoughts.
Let’s get into the gritty details of this release and see if Fans Hobby’s take on the Decepticon Ambassador of Destruction lives up to their previous line up of stellar releases.
Vehicle Mode(s)
MB-06 Double Evil comes packed in separate boxes for the 2 components that make up Overlord. The boxes themselves are covered in beautiful photography by 928 Toys Laboratory featuring some excellently captured 1:1 images for scale reference. Both boxes also stack on top of each other to create a full piece of artwork for display.
The components in the packaging are transformed (mostly) into their robot mode configurations however the paths to ‘Bot crushing Tank and sky dominating Space Jet modes are relatively easy and intuitive. In fact I think it’s a fair assessment to say that this is probably the most intuitive and easy to transform piece that I’ve ever handled from Fans Hobby as no instructions were needed until I started looking into the base mode configurations.
The first thing you’re going to notice about the vehicle modes is how absolutely huge they are. These things are massive, heavy, and packed full of play features. They remind me of being a kid and messing about with big G.I. Joe vehicles, or Star Trek ships on Christmas morning. There’s something blissful about picking up the huge jet and spinning around on your office chair until you lose all sense of equilibrium and forget to file your taxes.
Both vehicles have functioning cockpits for their pilots, with adjustable steering yokes and etched steel instrument panels. The cockpits close up tight to keep the pilots in which is extremely beneficial when you’re running around your house like a madman chasing the cats and driving your significant other to thoughts of mariticide. Not that I’d be that kind of weirdo or anything…
Double Evil’s tank component is a hefty instrument-o-destruction with a ratcheted, swiveling turret, and a pop out missile rack. Be careful with the little missiles as they are removable and easy to lose. Given how Fans Hobby tackled the trailer for Gunfighter I had expected these to be spring-loaded but unfortunately that is not the case. The tank is covered in rivet and panel details as well as some of Fans Hobby’s unique style of tampograph details. The treads are made of rubber and they are indeed functional despite being incredibly tight. The blaster can be stored between the treads at the rear of the tank, and an additional ramp accessory can be used to fill in the bottom of the tank to hide any remaining kibble.
The Starfighter component is equally exceptional. It’s an amazing toy in the simplest terms. Huge and chunky and it doesn’t feel like it will fall apart if you were to drop it down the stairs by accident (Not recommended). There are included missiles that can be tabbed in underneath the wings though they have a tendency to fall out if you bump them so you might want to be careful. There is a panel behind the cockpit that contains a fold out double cannon that can be utilized in jet or base mode, as well as a peg hole behind the cockpit that hosts a sweet double barreled blaster for extra firepower. The bottom of the jet has fold out landing gear as well as a mono-ski that can be deployed for extra stability. The bottom of the jet suffers from the usual “Robot hanging from the bottom of a jet” syndrome that most jet-formers suffer from however it is not particularly egregious. An included stand would have been appreciated as finding something strong enough to hold the jet up for photographs was challenging.
To my surprise (and slight disappointment) there is no combined vehicle mode. At least not one listed in the instructions anywhere. I should experiment a little more and see if I can figure one out.
Base Mode
Base mode is fairly straight forward. The nosecone of the jet becomes the central tower with the 2 halves of the tank mode becoming the outer barriers on the left and right. There are a number of spots to peg in weapons as well as the ability to utilize some of the hidden weaponry within the tank and jet components. There is an included “arm” that can be added to the right side of the tank that looks like a maintenance crane or something similar. The extra ramp component from the bottom of the tank becomes the center ramp. The base looks awesome littered with Micromasters, or the Titans figures from the Titans Return and Power of the Primes lines.
Robot Mode
Whoa mama this is a big boy. My first thoughts handling the fully combined Double Evil were reminiscent of the first time I ever handled a Supreme Class Unicron. The toy is huge with chunky ratchets, giant articulated hands, and some big ole feet!
The design aesthetic is definitely geared towards the G1/Masterforce style with a few of Fans Hobby’s signature touches thrown in. This makes it a nice companion piece to their previously released figures as well as some of the late era inspired Hasbro releases of the last couple years. He is enormous, towering over MMC Carnifex, and standing even slightly taller than Feral Rex at maximum height!
Functionality is a bit hindered due to the size of the figure. He has some incredibly heavy ratchets in the hips, knees, and ankles but they are still a bit too weak to handle more extreme poses. He can also be a bit top heavy meaning you have to give him a bit of a lean, or a squat, to keep him standing upright without fear of falling. While this is hardly a deal breaker it is a bit frustrating to see given that Fans Hobby has some experience in this arena already.
Articulation is fairly comprehensive.
- Ball joint at the base of the head, as well as a single axis front/back joint at the base of the neck.
- There is a very minimal upper ab crunch that only moves one click. I would have liked to see a bit more movement here.
- 360º waist swivel, pretty standard stuff.
- The shoulders are on double ratchet joints allowing movement on the inner and outer parts of the shoulder. The shoulder pylons move out of the way when needed.
- Bicep swivel, double jointed elbow ratchets, wrist swivel and articulated fingers.
- Universal joints at the hips with some strong ratchets.
- Thigh Swivel. This is sometimes a bit loose as it is also the combination port for the legs.
- Double ratchets at the knees, ankle tilts ratchet front to back, and friction ankle rocker.
Aside from a more dynamic ab crunch there really isn’t a lot missing when it comes to articulation. Fans Hobby did a great job making a very playable toy with some fun and dynamic display options.
Double Evil includes an homage to the Powermaster/Godmaster gimmicks of the G1 toy. If the pilots are converted into “engine” mode and pegged into the chest ports the weapons stored in the abdomen of the figure will pop out on a spring loaded mechanism. Make sure the ab joint is in the default position otherwise one of the blasters may get stuck behind the chest plate. Fans Hobby has been including a lot of fun gimmicks in their recent releases and I’ve been having a ton of fun with them. I hope they keep adding things like spring loaded weapons, projectiles, and hidden features.
Double Evil’s blaster can be slotted into either hand and his shield can be mounted on either shoulder, or taken off and placed in his hand using a fold out handle. The handle is on a rotation joint so that the shield position can be fine-tuned. It’s a bit awkward when hand held but you can plant it on the ground to provide additional support.
Double Evil includes 2 “power pilots” to represent Overlord’s dual Godmasters, Giga and Mega. The sculpts are based on the G1 toy version and as such are not particularly representative of the anime designs in Masterforce. They are gorgeously painted and feature chrome plating on their “engine” components. The articulation and functionality are identical to the pilot included with their previous release; Power Baser.
Final Thoughts
I’ve always felt that Fans Hobby delivers a different sort of dish to the buffet of third party products by offering something that is a toy first, and an expensive collectible second. Double Evil is incredibly fun to play with and features an intuitive and enjoyable transformation. There is a wealth of included accessories and his gigantic presence is sure to be noticed on any collector’s shelf. The joint tolerances could stand to be strengthened to accommodate some more dynamic posing but all said and done my experience with Double Evil wasn’t hindered by these shortcomings. I would absolutely recommend picking up this Behemoth if you’re looking for a large scale, Masterpiece-adjacent representation of this highly sought after Decepticon.
Big thank you to Fans Hobby for providing this sample for me to check out and I hope you guys enjoyed the photos and found my review helpful in deciding whether to add this monster sized Decepticon to your ranks.
