Hi everyone – and welcome back to another review here on Podcast Evolved!
Today, we are taking a look at what is arguably the flagship item for the Fall 2021 – UNSC Wasp Onslaught. This set retails for 37.99 here in the UK – where I was able to purchase it from my friends over at Jurassic Toys.
The box art for this set really stands out – with a scene which feels like it could have been taken directly from the game on the front cover. We have plenty of detail providing a great look at what is included in the box – and the back of the packaging includes some additional looks at the features and the figures included within this set. It’s worth noting that the back of the box also includes a look at both the Escape Helmet and the Banished Chopper Takedown – the latter of which Gabe recently reviewed.
We’re going to start off by talking about the figures - of which there are four included in this set.
Up first is the Master Chief – with this version of John coming in a more lime green colour consistent with Jerome from the 30th Anniversary pack. I personally think that this colour is too bright and vibrant for the Chief. He does have some nice additional printed detailing on him to set him apart from other variants released so far, but this certainly isn’t my favourite version of the Chief released to date.
Next is the UNSC Marine – a figure which collectors will be familiar with at this point. This figure is the basic female Marine, although she does include the Miranda Keyes head sculpt with a sand hair colour. This head sculpt is great and clearly is going to work very well for Miranda. You can also put the figure’s helmet on without any paint rub occurring which is great.
Alongside the Marine, we also have a brand new version of the Grunt Conscript – this one coming in a dark blue colour. I love the colour variation here, and the inclusion of the Plasma Pistol alongside two plasma grenades is really nice.
Lastly, but my no means least, we have an absolutely beautiful brand new version of a Hunter in a Banished-style colour scheme. This figure uses a much brighter silver colour than the version included in Pelican Inbound, and also has different paint apps. I love the inclusion of the Banished Emblem on the Hunter Shield here, and I also think that the other details across this figure are handled really nicely. This feels like another premium addition to the line-up of Hunters we already have in our collection – and is absolutely a figure you will want multiple of.
We also get a Plasma Battery in the Banished Crimson colour here – a nice new variation on an accessory which I would love to see more of in the future.
Up first is the redesign for the Shade Turret – using the same flexible plastic material used on the Chief Helmet set for the turret arches here. Whilst slightly more fragile this works really well. The orange shield pieces on this version of the shade also make it really unique in its own right – and the hexagonal details in the energy shielding are a nice touch. I love the range of motion we get from this turret – with plenty of movement in the elevation of the barrels of the turret, movement for the side fins with the shields, and also movement for the turret unit as a whole, with the base swivel. This is a really well realised rendition of the turret from the E3 Trailer.
A really nice touch is the inclusion of a couple of extra pieces to transform this into a normal Shade Turret. This adds to the re-buy appeal and adds extra value for money. Well done Mega – this was a fantastic decision.
Moving onto the Wasp itself – I think the first thing to note is that this is a much smaller rendition of the vehicle when compared to its Halo 5 counterpart. Whilst this means it does lose some enhanced details, I do feel as though the Halo 5 model was far too large – so this is a great compromise in that regard. The build itself captures the shape of the Wasp really well – with the vehicle looking pretty authentic from all the angles we can see it from. From what we have seen with the Halo Infinite artwork so far, the Wasp has not been redesigned, so this still feels faithful to the design we are familiar with. It’s also worth noting the inclusion of some additional printed detailing in this model – with UNSC logos, small yellow details on the fans, and also a printed console inside the cockpit of the Wasp for the pilot to use. These details compliment the overall build and its authenticity nicely.
In terms of functionality, there is a lot packed in. We have shooting missile launchers on the front of the vehicle, complete with some spare projectiles. We also have the ability to move the thrusters on the back of the vehicle – and the key detail here is the movement for the rotors here. They are almost on a ball joint style mount which allows you to get 360 degrees of movement out of the rotors – achieving far greater functionality than the previous build. This is a great improvement – especially as you can still spin the turbines, too. As we would expect, the cockpit can also be opened, and either Master Chief or the included Marine can be placed inside of the vehicle.
My only issue with the Wasp is some unsightly gaps alongside the cockpit. It may be I built this element wrong, but I am confident this is how it should look – and the gaps between the cockpit and the body of the vehicle can be a little jarring. Despite this issue, the build itself was a lot of fun – even if it is more refined and less detailed than it’s predecessor.
Overall, Wasp Onslaught is a fantastic playset and a great flagship set for the Fall Wave. It’s a nice chance for fans who missed the previous Wasp set, and also includes some great figures which fans will love. Whilst I have some small gripes, like the gaps in the build of the Wasp, or the fact that a Pilot Helmet could have been included here for people who missed the Gear Pack, I think these are far outshone by the potential this set offers. It is the perfect versus playset and is absolutely a set which I will buy a couple of as it is a fantastic army builder for us to sink our teeth into.
That’s my thoughts – but what are yours? Let us know in the comments down below, and, as always – Evolved!
