Those of you trying to remember who's Runamuck and who's Runabout, RunaBout is the Black one.  It's simple!  Keep that in your brain.

Anyway, it feels like six decades ago Hasbro had their last "vote on some stuff to see who we'll make," and we chose Runamuck, and so Hasbro made Runamuck (at regular retail), and they also released Runabout (as a Target exclusive).  They were the two Battlechargers back in 1986, which meant you pulled them back and they raced forward and autotransformed into robot mode.  Y'know, like 1987's Throttlebots but with autotransforming. 

Because of this, their robot modes were pretty simple!  The roof of the car flung forward, and there were sort of arms and sort of a face, and both wheels stayed behind on the ground.  They didn't really have arms (just door panels folded out) and so the guns attached on the toys by clipping over their shoulder.

Well, now you can replicate most of this again, just minus the pull-back motor autotransforming!  Runamuck and Runabout's weapons can be held in their hands, sure, but there's also 5mm ports on the tops of their shoulders so you can have them don their weapons like the original toys.  And even the character models drew both sets of wheels behind their feet, and so, yes, these new toys have two sets of wheels behind their feet -- though one set's fake, while the real rear wheels fold behind their torso!  Ridiculous cartoon accuracy isn't just for 1984 characters, my friends!  The Battlechargers are getting in on it, too!

Their transformation(s) are... a little more involved than the other carformers in Stege/Earthrise so far?  Like, they've been finding a nice happy place where transformation isn't super simple but also isn't annoying complex.  Things just go where they're supposed to, easily!  But the Battlechargers kind of throw a small-sized wrench in this trend.  Even forgetting that they have fake roof-chests in robot mode that they... honestly don't seem like they need to have, there's a lot of fiddly manuevering in the robot shoulder area during conversion.  It's not a fun time!  I mean, it's not the worst or anything.  It's just not fun.  The bar has been pretty high for a while, and this kind of whiffs it right below.  

Runamuck comes with Runabout's gun.  Runabout comes with... both of their guns, which combine end-to-end.  

First off, I feel I should address the Dumb Thing that happened.  Shortly before my Boat Trip, it was discovered that Fun Publications' website was very very likely security breached, credit card-wise.  They've sent out a bunch of emails themselves to their customers over the past few weeks addressing the issue, but I still feel like I should bring it up here, too.  Before the whole Runabout preorder thing, I put up a blog post asking you to join the club and order stuff from them, and if anyone took my advice, did so, and some dude bought $1k worth of stuff from a Walmart in Georgia using your money, I feel kinda like an accomplice in that.  I apologize, for whatever that's worth.

The good news(?) is, they're getting a whole new website soon, with a forum that's from this millennium and everything.  It's something they've badly needed for a long time.  It's something I've made fun of them for a long time, even.  It's disappointing to me that it's taken something like this to get them to do it, but there you have it.  Choose to purchase from them in the future or not, according to your own risk assessments.  I will.  Because I have Transformers Sickness.  But it's important to me to be honest with you about the situation.

ANYWAY THE STUFF I BOUGHT FROM THEM CAME IN THE MAIL.

This is Runabout!  As said earlier, when I was pumping him up, his toy is technically named "Over-Run," for trademark ownership reasons.  But who cares.  He's Runabout.  We know he's Runabout.  Let's not pretend otherwise.

Runabout's a retool of Generations Wheeljack, who is a splendid toy.  (Have I used "splendid" to describe something yet, in all my years of reviews?  I don't think so.  I guess I'll stick with it.)  The head's new, and it's a mix of the designs for Runabout and Runamuck's heads so they can use the one new head for both toys.  (Runamuck is part of the Club membership, and will be arriving in a month or so.)

I don't think there's a way to photograph this guy that does not make him look like a Photoshop.  Really.  His red's just that vibrant, and his blacks and grays that neutral.  Look at him.  I tell you, I did nothing to those reds.  That's just how they come out.  (I did darken his blacks, because they were coming out a little light.)

Otherwise, the toy's the same excellent toy as Wheeljack, but now he's one of my favorite Decepticons.  And Runabout has upgraded to one of the worst toys to one of the best.  I recommend him.  He's sold out, though.  So I recommend... eBay?  Well, less chance of credit card fraud there, probably, anyway.

*sigh*

This year's "get free with your membership" toy is Runamuck, and the Beavis to Runamuck's Butthead, Runabout, is one of this year's Transformers Club "you pay for this one" exclusives.  Runabout (renamed "Over-Run" because of trademark reasons) is gonna be on sale very soon!  And the sweet part is, Runabout comes with a box that fits both him and Runamuck, since the freeish Runamuck is a bagged exclusive.

My favorite of the two is Runamuck, the membership-included one.  The orange and white and gold makes me happy.  Runabout intrigues me less, since  he's black and red, which isn't as uncommon a color scheme, but you can't have one without the other.

So if you want the Battlechargers, I'd sign up for the Club to get Runabout and then keep your eyes on the web for Runabout/Over-Run to go up for order.  I'm pretty excited for them.  And for their box art!  It's Marvel-tastic!

Oh, and I guess there's a Shattered Glass Drift going up for order, too.   If you like both, uh, Drift and Deadpool, you'll like SG Drift.

One more thing: With your Club membership, you get a Recordicons strip by me in all six issues of the magazine.  I may show off a sweet panel from the first strip tomorrow or the next day.  I am super excited about it. Actually, my copy of the magazine just arrived, so I'm gonna blather about it now.

Simon Furman's not the only guy revisiting a branch of the original Marvel Transformers universe this year, 'cuz BotCon (and Shattered Glass) are Marvel-bound this year as well!  This gives me the opportunity to feature all sorts of new little tape dudes I didn't previously have access to.  And so in the first Recordicons of the year, I pit Ravage against Ravage.  And in subsequent installments, I have some similar ideas I plan to attend to.

Anyway, I'm just super stoked, because I just wrote my first canon-for-thea-Marvel-Comics-continuity bit of fiction.  That old stuff was my best friend when I was a kid.  I am not joking.

So, dudes, if you want a year of Collectors' Club magazines featuring my Recordicons strips, plus the Runamuck toy included in the subscription price, that'd be pretty swell.  If you dig Transformers, I recommend it!  Here's the website.

Remember, the one with the "b" in the name is the black one.  ...except for in this case, because Runabout's name is now Over-Run.  Dammit, FP, you broke my mnemonic device!