TFC Toys Ares

 

 The 2018 Toy Fair was a few weekends ago, and Hasbro revealed its Titan Class Power of the Primes Predaking. (It’s awful. It really is. – mr) To celebrate that, let’s talk about a much better Predaking, TFC Toy’s Ares. Ares is, of course, the combined form of Nemean, Phlogeus, Conabus, Aethon, and Phobos.

TFC Toys Ares: Aethon

 

The fourth member of the Ares squad is Aethon, a third party Tantrum, again named for one of the fire breathing horses that pull the chariot of Ares in Greek mythology. Aethon is a general reuse of the Conabus mold, with some slight differences.

(Apologies for blurry picture. I only realized now that after I wiped the lens, I never retook a picture of Aethon as the ‘cover’ photo. I am sorry. – mr)

TFC Toys Ares: Conabus

 

 The third member of the TFC Toys Predacons is Conabus, named after one of the four fire-breathing horses that draw Ares’ war chariot in Greek mythology. His name is the Greek word for tumult, and it is thus fitting that Conabus is the analog to Headstrong in the official mythos.

Ultimately, the Ares team is composed of two general molds, and Conabus is the first exposure of the second mold. Nemean, Phlogeus, and Phobos all share basically the same body, while Conabus and Aethon share the other. Conabus converts between robot and rhinoceros modes, and is probably the better of the two molds that comprise the team.

TFC Toys Ares: Phlogeus

 

 In Greek mythology, Phlogeus was one of four horses gifted to twin demigods by Hermes and Hera. Since TFC Toys has adopted a Greek mythology naming scheme, Phlogeus is also the name of their version of G1 Predacon Rampage, who, true to the mythological Phlogeus, transforms into a . . . tiger.

TFC Toys Ares: Nemean

 

Ares is the TFC Toys version of Predaking and the Predacons. The third G1 combiner from the company, Ares is a five member team, unlike the six members of Hercules. Each figure comes in a fairly standard window box, similar to those of the Hercules team members, and generally shares that Hercules aesthetic of the Cybertron-era of Hasbro figures.

Nemean is team leader and Ares torso third party analog of Razorclaw, named after the famous lion of Greek mythology with the impenetrable flesh that Hercules was tasked with taming. Transforming from robot to lion, Nemean is a lot larger than the other four Ares team members, and provides an interesting evolutionary step between figures that comprise Hercules and Hades, examples of TFC’s early and more modern offerings. There are a number of things to talk about, so where to start.