Dave's Transformers Armada Rant:

     Mini-Con Sea Team Recolors
     Mini-Con Emergency Team Recolors

     Got both at K-Marts, but several weeks apart.  These recolors retain the
same names as the originals, but have G1-evoking color schemes (mostly).
I'll be covering the new colors and suggesting possible renames.  For details
on the mechanics of the original molds, see the following reviews:

     http://www.eyrie.org/~dvandom/BW/Armada/MiniCon4 (Sea Team)
     http://www.eyrie.org/~dvandom/BW/Armada/MiniCon5 (Emergency Team)

CAPSULES

     Sea Team Recolors: Better colors, but a bit looser and more brittle.
So, on the whole, about as good as the originals.  Recommended if you lack
the originals, mildly recommended if you have 'em.  $6.99 at K-Mart (although
all TFs have been on sale at K-Mart this month, so I paid less).
     Emergency Team Recolors: Good solid toys, new colors are as good as the
original and may appeal more to G1 nostalgia buffs.  Same deal, recommended
if you don't have the molds, mildly recommended if you do.  $6.99 at K-Mart.


RANTS

     The packaging on these shows the old colors for each set, even on the
art of one of the Mini-Cons on the front card insert.  The names have not
been changed, and even the co-sells (pictures of other products in the line)
are the same as before.

SEA TEAM

     These are once more a unified color scheme.  The maroon color has become
a medium blue, blue has become a very pale gold.  There's a lot of silver
paint applications, plus gold in most of the places that were silver on the
originals.  Red flames grace the prows of Oceanglide and Stormcloud, making
me think that this team's new colors were inspired by Tracks of G1.  It has
been suggested by many that Waterlog is intended to look like Seaspray from
G1, but the resemblance isn't very good, especially with all the silver paint
on the cockpit.  Leaving off that silver and using yellow instead of pale
gold would have made it look a lot closer, at least in vehicle mode.
     I'm not sure if they went for cheaper plastic this time, or if there's
just some quality control issues, but this set is generally looser and more
brittle-feeling than the originals.  The missle launchers are about as good
as on the originals...not very.  Overall, I'd say these guys look better, a
unified blue and gold being better than maroon and silver, but they feel
worse.  On the balance, about equal to the originals.
     As far as names go, I hereby dub this version the Cruise Team.  Waterlog
becomes Seaspray, Stormcloud becamse Seawatch (the Micromaster) and
Oceanglide becomes Tracks, reformatted for seagoing party duty.


EMERGENCY TEAM

     Or "Remergency Team" as I've been calling them, although I'll give 'em a
proper new name in a bit.  The color swaps are: red becomes light blue,
transparent blue becomes opaque red, white becomes opaque blue.  The paint
apps are mostly silver, gold or orange, with a red and white striped hatch on
Firebot.  The loss of the clear blue makes 'em look a little knockoffy, but
only a little.  Oh, and black bits stay black.
     Firebot has clearly been recolored as Hot Spot, the Protectobot leader,
and it's a pretty convincing job.  Prowl, appropriately enough, has
Smokescreen (G1) colors, although he's missing the white paint apps that
would make it clearer.  A black 38 on a plain red hood isn't as nifty.  I
might go ahead and add the white myself.  Makeshift seems to mostly be a
leftover result of the color swaps needed for Smokescreen, although he seems
a decent match for Universe Obsidian.  Of course, no version of Obsidian is
either Autobot or G1, so that's not a great fit.  However, the unreleased G2
Blades is glue and orange in vehicle mode, which is close enough for jazz (or
Jazz, he's cool with it too).
     All of these toys are nice and solid, with tight joints where such are
good things, and good spinning, rotating, etc, where necessary.  The lack of
clear plastic makes the sights on Firebot's weapon mode a bit pointless, but
that's really the only negative point.
     I redub this group the Metro Team, with individual names Hot Spot,
Smokescreen and Blades, for reasons established above.

     Dave Van Domelen, "Our challenge on Monster Garage this week is to take
a 1980s Corvette and transform it into a kickin' speedboat!"  "I *beg* your
pardon?"  "Shh, Tracks.  Play along."