Battle Cougar (Mostly OJR Restored Version)

From the same parts lot as Raynos came a surprisingly large amount of a Battle Cougar - mainly, the undercarriage/body (but not the accompanying gears and metal contact strip for the motor), one wing clip and both wings, all chrome bits but the horn, and all limbs and other critical bits.

Notice I didn't mention the tail? Nope, it was gone - despite the fact that OJR Battle Cougar's tail attaches from the inside, a welcome change from McCougar's escapist tail. Thankfully, the escapist tail mostly fits the old attachment method, so other than the rather clashy combination of coral and true bright red, Battle Cougar had a tail once again. McCougar donated its wingclips (both medium grey to better match) and its innards, and the old Cougar wobbled forward once more...and wobbled is indeed the word, poor thing. The cockpit also pops open if you look at it funny, but whether this is age, lack of horn, or just annoying I don't know.

Observations, besides the mold changes? Despite being pictured as black, the legs and tail on old Battle Cougars are definitely charcoal grey. The red makes Sturm Tyrann and Leoblaze look pale - it's very very red. The chrome blingy goodness, hallmark of that era's Republic Zoids, is paler than most pilots in a way that matches well with white (sunburnt or not). All up, it bears a definite resemblance in color to a non-metal-flake Kingliger, but with the red made brighter and the silvery grey darker. I highly suspect this was intentional.

Like Raynos, mine came pre-stickered. Some things made sense and were a really nice touch (like the extremely tiny "pull handle to release canopy" thing actually being by the little seat), but it also has crossed out Zenebas logos on its wings as filched from a Battle Rover. Zenebas had fallen a few years before Battle Cougar existed - thus, the only logical conclusion is that my Cougar has been doing a bit of time travel. There's also two circles that say "SPAW" along with some unintelligible squiggles...

Conclusion? The chrome and the lack of horribly clashing colors (I like yellow, but not like that) and screwed-together parts puts this guy ahead of McCougar by a mile. I can't compare it to Storm Tiger, though you can't go wrong with a free Gradeup unit these days, and this guy ain't got one. Is it any wonder it never was on my wish list, much less my to-get-someday list? But that's parts lots for you: sometimes junk, sometimes a nice surprise.

I'd go for Storm Tiger first, but if you want a chrometastic Battle Cougar variant, this guy's better than I expected. I wouldn't pay too much for it, though...it IS still a Battle Cougar and a gradeup, which means one-piece wobbly legs and semi-absent hindpaws.

P.S. If you have a chrome horn you don't need, send it my way?

Written November 21st, 2006