WELCOME, my fellow blog readers! Once again, I am glad to share my postings about my (RECENTLY) growing collection of Transformers Vintage Toys! At this point of time, although my collection is rather limited, I shall try my best to post some little thoughts and personal musings on each Character featured. Today is no exception, AND after a few trade-in's (chiefly MP-01 Convoy), buyer-to-seller agreements, and some monetary expenditure, I was lucky enough to snag another rare piece in the market. The gem of a toy in question is none other than : " C-327 CYBERTRON WARRIOR VICTORY LEO!"
Well, my "V-Sign" flashed says it all -LOL! And I must give my thanks to those who have been patient with me for helping me with my pursuit-- that after months of haggling, scouring e-bay, and false alarms of his availability, I am pretty relieved/satisfied with this purchase. Chiefly because of the condition of Victory Leo itself. I was told by my seller that Victory Leo comes MISB, and has very few yellowing on the toy and box. Although I did not open to check its contents, I am fairly sure my judgment and conscience was clear with the verbal agreement between a trusted, honest seller. There was surprisingly not too much box wear, other than the edges, but to me its not really a niggly nit-pick-- but that's to be expected for a Vintage gem sitting somewhere in a Japanese warehouse/shop for the past 20 years! 
Pretty much received it all snugged up in bubble wrap and took it home for the obligatory posing shots-- I also managed to discover some interesting little nuances on the box. The one particular cool thing I thought I should mention, is that the original price tag seems to still be in tact! Note that the picture to the left shows a fairly "affordable" price range of a measly 4,500 Yen! In our current time, the real cost of buying this awesome toy is only equivalent to RM150! 
Wow, it certainly brought back some childhood memories when I was a kid! I could still vividly remember practically all local department stores in KL, row upon rows of Japanese Items were readily available and rather considered to be "expensive" to us little kids. As with many grown up "Big Kids", I am fairly certain and safely say that most of us might just want to relive a happy memory from our past-- and enjoy the capability to finally be able to feel the satisfaction and joy of using our money earned on our own accord.Lastly, on to the toy itself, and of course the Character of Victory Leo! In a nut shell, he was a reincarnation of God Ginrai, one of the Chief Commander and Right-Hand Man of Star Saber, the main protagonist of the Transformers Victory Japanese Cartoon Series. In my opinion, although essentially a feral, uncontrollable beast with a burning mind, Victory Leo is a awesome fighter, brave and chivalrous. He had managed to retain the kind and positive qualities of his former self God Ginrai.
Another info is that the toy and cartoon series portrayed him as a triple changer-- He is able to shift his form seamlessly from Robot, Lion/Beast mode and Jet Craft; --PLUS the fact that he is the power-up fire backpack- artillery to combine with Star Saber to form Victory Saber-- that cool nod, for me that alone is the main reason I suggest -he is worth the toruble and big hole in the pocket --for those who are still able to hunt him down by whichever means-- to add him to their collection. It is quite unlikely, that even with TakaraTomy's revival of the Transformers Line through the Encore Series, Victory Leo is going to see a mass re-release and reissue for quite some time to come, most likely due to QC issues, loss and damage to its master mold, and production costs issues. Without a doubt, the plastic duribilty and quality of toys that are made in Japan will always surpass the various issues associated with toys made in the current time- which is mainly form China and other countries. To obtain victory Leo these days, either in Mint n Box and used (MIB ) with stickers applied, or even a loose complete one -- without the shoulder guns and BIG cannon, is getting much tougher, as most prices quoted are not for the faint hearted!
Final thoughts: In my opinion, although as with many toys produced during the 80's and 90's era, what he lacks in poseability, he more than makes up for it as overall he is esthetically pleasing on the eye, especially when he is transformed into Lion Mode. Victory Leo's solid and imposing Robot Mode with his cannons is also a sight to behold! 5 Stars out of 5! *****/ *****!
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