Dave's Beast Wars II Rant:

     Tasmania Kid (Snarl) vs. Dirge (MW Skywarp-style jet)
     Scuba (Clawjaw) vs Thrust (MW Megatron-style jet)

     Thanks to Raksha, I have some of the smaller BWII toys (I got the box
for Scuba vs Thrust, plus Dirge on the side).  All of the original toys have
been reviewed on either my BW Classic or Machine Wars pages, so I'll be
focusing on differences in the toys, and aspects of the packaging.  These are
not easily available outside Japan, so I'm not going to do my usual
Capsules.  

PACKAGING

     The VS sets are boxed, as most toys in Japan seem to be (other than
carded knockoffs).  Each box has "Cybertron" on one side and "Destron" on the
other, with computer generated images of the two characters duking it out (I
may scan a box later).  The toys rest in a bubble-style container sitting in
front of a cardboard background.  The Snarl/Dirge set has a grassland
background, the Scuba/Thrust set has a seascape.  Very nice touches.  In
addition, Scuba and Thrust are wired into the bubble, possibly because the
package is slimmer (they do not attempt a one-size-fits-all box)...but even
with the wire gone, it was tough to get Thrust out.
     Each toy comes with a trading card, with another view of the CG image
set against part of the backdrop from the box.  The jets are set against the
sky halves of their backgrounds, Scuba against the water, Kid against the
grassland.  The back of the card has photos of the toys in both modes, a
paragraph of description I can't read because I don't know Japanese, and a
rather interesting way of showing the 8 tech specs.  Instead of bars or a
graph, it uses a style of graph often seen in personality inventories, with
the axes radiating away from the center, and each stat represented by a dot
along its axis.  A dotted line connects these stats so that you can see which
way the character's abilities "point."  I'm guessing the "West" position stat
is Speed, since both Dirge and Thrust have it as their highest.  I *will*
scan one of these when I get the time.
     Each set has a catalog (sigh, I miss catalogs) and individual sets of
instructions for the two figures (because they use the same sheets in the
non-versus solo sets).
     The general impression I got was that since they didn't have to do any
work on the molds or design, Takara put more into the packaging and color
schemes.  

TOYS

Snarl:

     No differences at all that I could see, not even an eye color change.

Scuba: 

     No real differences either.  I think the orange is a little more
vibrant, but that's probably just a batch variation...or my Clawjaw has
started to fade.

Dirge:

     Mechanically, no difference...they didn't even fix that annoying problem
with one of the internal torso pieces being a fraction of a millimeter too
long and preventing the torso from snapping together completely.
     However, the colors are a world of improvement over either
Thundercracker or Skywarp.  The basic plastic colors are a true blue on most
of the parts and silvery grey on the inner limbs and mechanisms.  The jet has
darker blue painted accents, a hot pink translucent cockpit and foil stickers
on the wings with purple Predacon symbols.
     In robot mode, the head is painted silver, and the glowing eyes trick is
done in the same hot pink, for a very nice glow when you catch the light
right.
     Finally, a Predacon rub-symbol is added under the left wing.

Thrust:

     Again, no mold changes, but this mold had no real problems.
     Jet parts are vibrant yellow plastic with jagged black detailing that
picks out the "stealth" zigzags of the F-22.  Cockpit is the same hot pink as
Dirge's (my guess is they didn't want to invest in two different translucent
colors for the boys).  A paper sticker across the tail fins bears a purple
Predacon sigil on the right fin.
     In robot mode, the head is yellow but the face painted silver, and the
eye glow is even more impressive because more of the head is open to admit
light.  The black and yellow color scheme is very effective here.
     Again, Predacon rubsign under left wing.

Overall:

     Don't knock yourself out looking for Tasmania Kid or Scuba, the
packaging alone doesn't merit the expense.
     On the other hand, Thrust and Dirge, with the exception of not fixing
Dirge's transformation problem, are MUCH cooler than the US versions.  It's
amazing what a little color can do.  If you can get them for under, say, $10,
definitely get them.  Over that, only bother if you're a serious collector.