The word forza literally means 'force' in Italian. Football fans and Formula 1 fans alike chant 'forza' to cheer on their favorite athletes in Italy. Today, I'm chanting 'forza Mattel'. Licensed by the famous X-box racing video game series, the Forza mix is the strongest Hot Wheels (Retro) Entertainment mix to date. It's a force to be reckoned with. That's a bold statement considering how good the recent Gran Turismo mix is. Forza is so good because it delivers on all levels: card art, casting choice and execution.
The Forza set represents a continued trend towards themed Hot Wheels Entertainment case mixes. I think collectors are much more likely to pick up the full mix when it's themed. Second, the card art on the Forza releases is stellar. It's not phenomenal, a la Track Day, but it's very good. Thirdly, casting choice is excellent. You get an iconic Italian racer, a modern Lamborghini, an all-American super car, an old school muscle car and a modern muscle car. A Japanese or German car would've added diversity, but maybe Mattel wanted to take a break from the JDM/Porsche overload in recent premium mixes.
Finally, I want to discuss execution. The execution of the Hot Wheels Entertainment Forza mix deserves its own paragraph. If the Gran Turismo mix was a home run, it was a solo shot over the short porch in right at Yankee Stadium. Forza is more like a 3 run bomb out of Camden Yards onto Eutah Street. The Alfa Romeo Giulia Sprint is an absolute beauty to behold and is 'model-of-the-year' worthy. It gets the reverse-rake stance, with the front end accurately sitting a little higher than the back end. The chrome racing rims are perfect, as are the fat rubber slicks. The real sponsor licensing and Italian paint scheme complete the package. Little details can be noticed throughout, from the cursive emblazoned 'Alfa Romeo' on the back end to the detailed headlights up front.
The Lamborghini isn't my second favorite of the bunch, but its execution is second best in the set. It looks downright mean. Black rims, black body and black tires combine with an ultra detailed livery and hyper-realistic tail to complete the package.
The '17 Ford GT is clean, simple and my second favorite of the bunch. I didn't like the primer-gray rims at first, but they've grown on me. Plus, that sleek, curvy profile is hard to ignore. I really like the '73 Ford Falcon XB as well. Coming later in the muscle-car era, the Falcon is one mean machine. The yellow-jacket paint scheme is phenomenal, although my example suffered from some over-spray at the factory. Rounding out the set is the surprising '12 Camaro. I'll admit that I only bought this one to complete the set. But once I got it open, the zamac/sparkling red color combo on a black base sold me on the Chevy. The rear detail is fantastic too. Had Mattel detailed the front end as well, the Camaro might've contended with the big boys in the Forza set.
That about sums up my thoughts on Forza. I'm impressed, and I'm sure you are too. My only small complaint is the continued ink-jet look Mattel's tampos have suffered from lately. A photo's worth a thousand words, though, so get scrolling and enjoy!
Happy Collecting!!
From : thewesterndiecastreview.blogspot.com
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