Transformers: Legacy United Thundertron is Something that Exists

 

The 2012 Prime: Robots in Disguise Thundertron toy

 

While the opening salvo of Legacy United is full of interesting and refreshing choices, Thundertron is one of the more surprising. He was a curiosity in the mass market Prime toyline of 2012, a seemingly toy-first voyager with no fictional appearances. It wasn't until this year that I learned that this chap had a novel appearance and was being positioned for an antagonist role on screen, at least until Beast hunters happened. I may have to do a deeper dive into Prime and the Aligned continuity at some point. Because, much like the Holy Roman Empire, the Aligned Continuity was neither of those things. But for now let me end this paragraph with a one sentence summary of Thundertron and his appeal. He's a cat pirate robot.

 

I mean, I could just end the article there. Cat. Pirate. Robot. The appeal should be self -evident. But no, I just going to waffle on like I usually do. OK, so, the robot mode, like the toy in general, is a reinterpretation of the original Prime release rather than a 1 to 1 revamp. The difference is mainly in the shoulder pads and the type of cat he is now, but otherwise it's very faithful to the spirit of that old voyager. The robot mode is predominately blue and white, the overall form being evocative of olde worlde, age of sail clothing. Think of the cat head as a puffy shirt, the skirt armour as part of a long coat, and his head having some sorta sailor's hat built in, and you'll see where I'm coming from. The most piratey bits of him are of course, the beard, the cutlass, and, what was it? Oh yes. THE PEG LEG! Rarely has an on the job maiming been so important to a stereotype. Why hasn't he fixed this? He's a robot, spare parts must be an option, or the Lockdown Method for Self-improvement. Maybe he can't. A closer look at the sculpt reveals chips, scratches and holes which have been left unpainted and subtle. It's a good effort, gives him a bit of faded grandeur without hitting you over the head with it like Siege often did. The closer look also reveals hollow areas in each limb which is much less good. Aside from being scenes a faire, the presence of the peg leg does however prompt a discussion about posability and balance. Fortunately, they got this right; Thundertron is not appreciably more difficult to stand than any other Transformer, and there's a plan b if a joint is too loose, the spare foot/boot/dancing-shoe. Outside of combiner wars, I admit that this is fairly unusual accessory, which goes on to form a matching blue cage guard for his cutlass. Posability otherwise is acceptable but not first class for a legacy release. All major joints are represented, plus or minus a foot, including concealed waist, ball jointed skirt armour, and pretty good shoulders despite those big shoulder pads. The wrists and neck however could have had a bit more motion. 5mm port functionality is there, but with the foot ports being committed for common sense reasons. His cutlass meanwhile uses a tab to slot into his coattails, and interestingly, his right shoulder. There's a rumour going around that Thundertron is getting some kind of leader class re-release, and those slots might play into that in a Coronation Starscream sort of way, but it's unknown at time of writing. Otherwise an extremely characterful robot mode, if gappy.

Achieving his lion/fur-baby form is another point of interest, as Thundertron goes from ship's captain to a Zoids-style ship's cat. The original toy had a possibly unique transformation where the largely decorative front legs were formed from shoulder kibble, a trait the new toy also has, but with a new spin. Here the entirety of the leg is stored in each shoulder pad, granting improved articulation over the original, if not hugely spectacular posability overall. These legs also tend towards the decorative, as the instructions direct you to peg these into the main body at the elbows, but you don't have to. Leaving them unpegged allows you to make use of transformation joints for better posing. The conversion is atypical in some other ways too, the back legs taking me by surprise, but it's got the same basic problem as the robot form: gaps. The hollow areas in the legs are still a thing, with the main body looking incomplete from several angles. Thundertron doesn't have an organic beast mode, and therefore a few hinges or seams aren't a deal breaker, but this is unflattering. Otherwise, we don't see any major visual change from the robot mode, just with those pirate aspects remixed and downplayed. The wear and tear of the robot mode is even less overt here, most notable on the back, near his faction badge. It's an attractive blue and white, with gold highlights, the overall shape of it having animalistic feel. In terms of play value, we have an opening mouth, a few 5mm ports, and storage for the sword on the back. As mentioned, posability sorta depends how you approach those front legs, but otherwise have just enough to make you wish there was more. I was pleased to note during photography that it can balance on the back legs alone, but a little in the neck would have been lovely. Certainly not a bad altmode, far from it, but one that feels a touch secondary to the robot mode.

All things considered, I'd compare Thundertron to Jhiaxus in terms of overall vibe and design approach. It's a fundamentally unexpected toy of an obscure character, and a massive breath of fresh air, that does well in robot form, but less well in altmode. Thundertron is more consist in both modes, in that the beast mode actually looks like something, but the hollow parts aren't a plus. He's definitely charming as is, but if the rumoured re-release addresses that weakness? Let's just say that this toy will likely be downgraded to "Something that exists".

Transformers: Legacy Evolution Skyquake is Something That Exists

 

 

The 2012 Transformers: Prime Robots in Disguise Skyquake toy

If I was to nitpick the Legacy line, and I wasn't complaining about bone-headed cartoon accuracy, I'd be making criticisms of how the Transformers: Prime characters were executed. To paraphrase/misquote Thew, Prime was a middle ground between the early bay verse films and Transformers: Animated, but lacking the flair of both. It has its followers though, and the cartoon got a Daytime Emmy award, so it clearly found it's place. The toyline however suffered badly from budget cuts at the time, so you'd think a few do-overs wouldn't hurt? I mean, it's only been a decade, so the difference might not be spectacular, but the Studio Series is a thing, and that started out as a line of do-overs. Instead, what characters we've had from that bit of the brand seem to exist only as repaint fodder. 

 

The 1992 Transformers Skyquake Toy

I will admit to being modestly surprised when I looked Skyquake up, or at least the Prime iteration thereof. I'd had this guy pegged as a melange of influences and a pretool to something more famous, and that's actually not wrong. Skyquake has a twin brother, Dreadwing, whom has just been leaked at time of writing, while this toy shares a lot visually with the G1 Skyquake. The Prime iteration though, against expectations, had managed to have a lasting effect on his cartoon, even/especially posthumously. G1 Skyquake meanwhile is super obscure, and is best known for being an oddly coloured chap whom was shot in the back several pages into the (highly recommended) comic series The Last Stand of The Wreckers. So… why mix both together? Its clear which is the interesting one. It is akin to creating a James Bond tier list, and putting George Lazenby on the same level as Timothy Dalton. For the purposes of this metaphor, Dreadwing would be Roger Moore. As such, it's a little weird for them to take such obviously divergent characters and blend them together like this. The closest thing I can think of is when they put an IDW style head on something, or tried to up a bayformer in G1 colours. And given Shadow Striker, it seems be a new trend.

 

The merger of the two Skyquakes is most evident and most schizophrenic in jet mode. The front end is the Prime version, with it's distinctive nosecose and cockpit design. It's backend and wings are however the G1 iteration. The overall effect therefore becomes like something out of your average spaceship shooter video game from three decades ago, like R-Type, Thunderforce, Raiden and so on. It's got a very chunky, stubby winged look, but there is a definite appeal to that. The green with metallic highlights is a great colour scheme. What elevates it however a number of nice features often committed from modern toys. Yes, this has both the luxury of an opening cockpit AND foldaway landing gear. It makes the plane just that bit more compelling. The underside area isn't too bad either, it's got it's share of seams, don't get me wrong, but compared to your average modern seeker? Its trying harder. Much harder. On the downside however, placing the minigun in its dedicated spot on the underside blocks the flight stand port, and interferes with the landing gear. Boo. Play features and/or Evo Fusion? Well, in what's almost certainly functionality for a later release, you can attach Needlenose on top. It's nothing special. If anything, it highlights the difference between an imperfect but actually pretty clean jet, and one that's naff from all but one angle. Pretty much everything Needlenose got wrong, Skyquake gets right.

 

Putting things into robot mode is a non-trivial process. That's both a positive and a negative. A lot of modern leaders tend to be a bit simple, often voyagers with extra accessories, or have a toy with simple conversion as source material. Skyquake really isn't like that, he's possibly something closer to a Studio Series leader, as there's a lot of moving parts. This relative complexity is gonna be a plus for people whom like bigger toys to have more involved engineering, although a word of caution is advised. The instructions refer to a different version of the toy, which has confused the hell out of everyone. In order to get the backpack flush and tabbed in, you have to collapse the nosecone in a specific order, and feed the cockpit glass through the backpack. See this video for a demonstration. This is very much an "exactly this order" problem, with the wrong order being more intuitive. Fucksake Hasbro. In other news, I did notice with my example that the ratcheting joints alternated between "OK" and "tight to the point of concern". On the plus side however there is some welcome touches like panels to conceal gaps on the limbs, which add to the generally premium vibe the toy has. As for the resulting robot mode? Well... 

 

Oh, yeah. That's the stuff.

Skyquake's robot continues the melange of visual elements and pleasing bulk. For the most part, he leans towards the pseudo-G1 style that Bulkhead and such had, by going somewhat more boxy than the Prime iteration and having a nose. Elements inherited from the G1 version are mostly focused on the torso and backpack areas, and look like bits easily retooled for other characters. Which, TBH, was a disappointment I had with Dreadwing when he was leaked, as none of those bits had been changed. I’d been half-expecting them to mix things up a bit, before going full G1 for an exclusive of some sort. You know, Skyquake being the pretool to a more interesting release? Still, they are twins. Its not a problem as such, but there’s definitely competing elements at play here, with the overall form and play pattern being that of the Prime iteration, only for the centre mass to be very G1. That's also where some visual flaws creep in, the torso having a certain hollowness resulting from the transformation, and a big translucent chest plate doesn't help with that. This is however balanced out by the aforementioned limb panels and a general impression of mass. Skyquake is a big dude, not merely chonky like the jet mode, but thick of proportion like a bodybuilder. One imagines he has a rivalry with Jhiaxus at the Decepticon Gym, and is comfortably in the lead. The articulation supports that look quite well, he's got notably good shoulder and knee joints, if being a touch limited in the ankle. He's in high heels and doesn't have much of an ankle rocker, so there's certain poses he struggles with. What he does excel at is two-handed chaingun pose with a side order of swordplay. Few Transformers toys even attempt a two-handed pose, but they made the effort here, and if that gets boring, he's definitely got the joints to swing a sword. If, for some reason, the sword is only moulded to fit the right hand...

My point? Only that Legacy Evolution Skyquake is something that exists. And that his instructions are hot garbage. Its looking like he’s heading towards the discount rack, but I don’t think you’ll regret grabbing him there.

Radical Regenerations: Prime Rumble

I normally start a review when I have a spare moment, on a bus, or on lunch hour. Then when I get home, I put the toy to one side of my laptop while I do do internet stuff and play. It can take weeks from initial interest to final drafting, or I can be done in 24 hours because I don't have anything sensible to do with my time. The last thing I do is make my usual attempt at “photography”, where I take it to a good spot in my kitchen and.......

Conservative. Party. CONFERENCE.

Well, I've written a load on on this toy, and I'd rather not ditch all of it. So, I rewrote the introduction, and here it is. I must report however, this did have a small effect on my opinion of the toy. Enjoy.

Vehicle Mode
 Rather than being a little dude whom fits into Soundwave's chest, this Rumble is a small blue car, and a fairly uninteresting one at that. This isn't too much of a departure for Rumble, as he did appear in the Alternators line as a Honda, but the execution here is bad. While there is some attention paid to the front end, some tiny Decepticon badges, and tinted windows, the vehicle appears otherwise unpainted. This isn't actually true, Rumble has loads of paint on him, but its being used to conceal the fact that the entire roof is translucent plastic. Clearly the tightening of toy budgets hit here, but I think we'd would have been better off with ratio reversed, painted windows instead(1). There's also a lot of exposed robot bits on the underside, but you'll forgive me if I put off talking about that just now. Functionally, there's a bit more going on, with two 5mm ports worked in as petrol caps. These allow for the accessories to be mounted on the side, accessories that also needed paint. These do triple duty as pile drivers, guns, and for this mode rocket boosters although a certain degree of imagination is needed here, as they just look like black blocks. That said, 5mm ports do give plenty of options for some Road Warrior action. 

Beyond that, there's not much to say. Switching to robot mode is however very interesting, and while carformers are not my preferred tipple, I'm not aware of one which follows a similar pattern. The front end transforms into the legs, but the back end and roof form the arms, with the flanks and back wheels forming back kibble. There's also a dramatic head reveal. Its a shell-based transformation, and inelegant given how much of the car ends up around the arms and torso, but that strikes me as deliberate intent, rather than incompetence or laziness. They wanted a particular style of robot mode, which I will now talk about. And looking at the image below, you'll easily see how this toy made into my Radical Regenerations format. When his thumbs weren't breaking off.

Robot Mode

Now, the review actually starts. When you get this toy into robot mode, you notice only one thing. Rumble is invoking a very particular design aesthetic, one so distinctive its impossible to see this toy as anything other than a deliberate homage. Yes, this is inspired by the classic 2007 anime Gurren Lagann, and its characteristic “chest face” motif. And its light-piped too. Rumble has two sets of glowing eyes in a good light, though the upper set work best, with both a mouth and a mouth plate at the same time. You can leave the head folded in the chest, and still look him in eye. Here's some art from the series for comparative purposes. Note the attached thumbs.

Copyright: Studio Gainax

See what I mean? Its not necessarily unique to either Gurren Lagann or Rumble, of course. ROTF Bludgeon had a skull chest for example, while Beast Hunters Bludgeon had monster pecs. Nor did Gurren Lagann invent the design element in Super Robot cartoons, that honour probably goes to Gaiking. But the timing and shoulder kibble makes me think Gurren Lagann, and I think its extremely cool looking as a result. At least it balances out the very bland car mode, where the broken thumb doesn't matter.

 

His chest face is so distinctive and overpowering, you forget the other design elements, some callbacks to the original. The back kibble for example has guns sculpted in, regrettably unpainted, but similar to the G1 toy. He has the pile drivers, and the articulation to make make a fine ground-pounding pose. His overall build is quite short for a deluxe, but wide with the arm kibble balancing out the pile drivers. He's not a chest minion anymore, but he's still a short dude. I'm not entirely sure where the head sculpt came from though. There's nothing very Rumble about it, and to muddy the waters further, there was an alternative with an actual mouth(2), but that's not very Rumble either. Neither immediately say Gurren Lagann either, although you could claim the mouthed version is closer to the style than the one we have here. One wonders if designers had something very different in mind for this toy only for it to be re-purposed as a legacy character, or if the designers got a bit of leeway as the character wasn't actually appearing in the cartoon. All I know is, if they'd swapped out that chest face for something closer to a magnetic tape cassette, we wouldn't be here right now. Complaints can however be made about the lower legs, with the calves being a bit ramshackle, preventing a straight stance, and the actual knees being below a set of decorative knees. There's also some questionable colour and material choices; the neck joint is a balljoint in translucent plastic, while the hands are also painted, making chipping a problem. And, I forget if I've mentioned this, his thumb broke off.

Also, if I didn't know better, I'd think his feet were on backwards.

Regardless of what this actually looks like(3), the robot mode has a lot going on. The aforementioned pile drivers have quad gun barrels sculpted in, with a 5mm port on the underside for no obvious reason. This allows Rumble to do some gun fighting poses, and make combi-weapons of a sort. He's also got a total of four 5mm ports, two on the back of his shoulders for storage, and the two petrol caps on his flanks. Articulation is decent, with eighteen points. This is allows for the aforementioned ground-pounding, and I'd like to single out the shoulders as being far more mobile than they have any right being. Its a generously cut balljoint on top of hinge, with rotation at the bicep, so he has great inward motion even if outward motion is blocked by kibble. He can cross his arms, but not demonstrate how big the fish he caught was. The lower body also has a lot in the way of balljoints, but ends up being limited by the sculpt. There is a balljointed waist, but the crotch piece makes it all but useless. There's balljoints in the ankles too, but as mentioned, a perfectly straight stance is impossible. Plus his thumb broke off.

Conclusion

Rumble is a weird toy when you get right down it, and not just for the visual choices. The Prime toyline suffered from budget cuts and misapplied gimmicks, and while there are far worse offenders, Rumble is rough around the edges. I'm no toy accountant, and thus speak from a position of ignorance, but I do feel that ditching the translucent plastic would have been to the toy's net benefit. G1 purist are also not going to be overly keen on this interpretation of the character, even if they go Japanese, because he's some distance from the 80's. That's why he's in this review format, of course, but let's acknowledge some may that downside. But then, that's also a plus, and I'll happily stand up for a transformer that reminds me of one of my favourite animes. The designers clearly wanted to do something different here, and in robot mode it works very well. He's got the pile drivers, he's got the joints to use them, but now he's also a gunfighter with a monster face on his chest. Given how repetitive Prime was after a while, at least until Beast Hunters kicked off, this is a good thing. Its just shame that the car mode is so meh. All things considered, he's worth having, and is very inexpensive on the secondary market. If you want a rough diamond, Rumble is your guy. Assuming his thumbs stay on.

Foot Notes

1. The Japanese versions of the mould sidestep this with stickers as well as paint. Although, they omit the pile drivers for a singular Arms Micron, so some loss of play value there.
2. This was used for both of the Japanese versions.
3. i.e. quite badass.

My Opinions On The NYCC Transformers Reveals

A metric truck load of news came out of the New York Comic Convention, although the bits that interest me transform into robots. After a faintly disappointing set of reveals for Botcon 2015, the Hasbro and IDW panels had the fanbase collectively wet itself and fainted with excitement. Due to being poor and doing this as a hobby, I was unable to attend, but the collective buzz affects even me. So here is a selection of opinions on the new toys revealed, and a few other things, based on information culled from various Transformers news outlets. Buckle up.

The Titans Return Toys In General
So beyond being Headmasters with a cooler sounding name(1), TitanMaster seem to be designed along slightly different lines from Generations Brainstorm. There is still a balljoint, and an exposed face in robot form, but the connection is reportedly different. This is probably a good thing as Brainstorm really didn't work that well. The titanmasters will have little cockpits for them in the vehicle modes of bigger toys, and obviously are interchangeable, with some being sold separately from a “body”. There's also two minor gimmicks, larger toys being triple changers, if not especially convincing ones, and a “Cassette” gimmick, which we will first see in Combiner Wars wave 5, with Buzzsaw. These take also take the form of triplechangers, having a "data" mode, robot form, and slightly unconvincing vehicle mode.  With the hand painted prototypes seemingly being posable in manner of most Generations toys, we could be on to a winner here. And Fortress Maximus was teased again. We are also likely to see a lot of remoulds again, with gaps in their forearms.

The fiction side of this is however more of a concern to me, as there will be an IDW tie-in, and IDW has not done that well with such in the past. Furthermore, a lot of the characters we've had revealed so far are either A) Dead, B) Very Dead, C) not a 'master previously, and/or D) involved in the More Than Meets The Eye comic series which should be left alone to be awesome.

Blaster (Leader Class)
A case of gimmick rather than character dictating size, Blaster is a leader class to facilitate dudes like Rewind using his chest as a home. His titanmaster is called Twincast(2), and has an additional helmet piece like G1 Scorponok, but reminiscent of Blaster's own original toy.  He also has a dummy tape, which looks a bit like a DJ station in base mode and would therefore be awesome. One design flaw however not obvious from the CG renders is that the tape mechanism extends out of the back, a downer, but hopefully the only one present. Its basically a given at this point we will get a Soundwave out of this, due to Buzzsaw being in the same Legends format. Some people think this will also be made into Powermaster Prime due to the base mode, I doubt that. If not a new mould, I'd be looking at Ultra Magnus instead.

Galvatron (Voyager Class)
This guy had a very low bar to overcome. The 2008 vintage Galvatron is the rare toy I actively despise, and all this one had to be was mediocre. TR Galvy looks better than that, provisionally good, if somewhat messy around the arms and “Cybertronian” in altmodes. Like Blaster, he requires an additional bit for his titanmaster to complete the head, which is springloaded in the chest. Visually, he's very much IDW Galvatron, and his titanmaster is based off G1 Megatron, although called “Nucleon”. This makes him the biggest “HUH?!” in relation to the comic tie-in. In the comics for about a decade now, Galvatron is in no way Megatron, whom incidentally is trying to reform, at time of writing. Galvy has a murderous dislike of combiners too.

This pair are probably the only toys here not getting a retool of some kind to make a different character, but you never know.

Sentinal Prime (Voyager Class)

First opinion: looking very orange. Second opinion: Looking solid in 2 out of three modes. The land vehicle form is weak, but the shuttle and robot pass muster. He just doesn't look that exciting just now. What he does look like is an Astrotrain in waiting. Is also dead in the comics for at least 4 million or so years.

Hardhead (Deluxe Class)

Probably the lest immediately interesting Titans toy to me, as he's a G1 original whom doesn't seem to be doing anything unusual. The biggest shot is that he's got the faceplate fictional depictions ignore. While quite a hollow fellow, this may end up being pretty decent though, given his visual merits and apparent posability. Also a member of the IDW “is very dead” club.

Skullsmasher (Deluxe)

Ah, now an actual, pre-existing Decepticon headmaster. Also very alive in the comics, and is a stand up comedian. He just gained a slightly better name. CG renders and photography seem to indict a less gappy and reasonably posable toy, although the croc mode would seem to have limited articulation. The mouth opens though.

Rewind (Legends Class)
Please, please, please, PLEASE make a Chromedome to keep him company. Its not right that they are apart. Hell, do them as a boxset.  The tank mode is amusing

Stripes (Legends Class)
Surprisingly, this isn't a new guy whom presumably exists because RID has the Steeljaw name just now. Stripes is just extremely obscure. He's probably gonna be a bit of an Alpha Bravo though. You know, unpopular with GEEWUN crowd, and then retooled into someone famous. Like Ravage.

The Individual Titanmasters

These are apparently going to sell for $5 plus a little vehicle, and if so, would the first time I've ever taken an active interest that price bracket. What we have here are 4 of the 1988 headmasters, A.K.A the Headmaster Juniors, without bodies, but with little vehicles which they can combine with. This is actually a brilliant idea, and I am in full support of it. Shame one of them is dead, and three are trademark victims. Crash-Bash looks to be the pick of the litter, see the images, with Loudmouth looking a meh, but not without appeal.

The Combiner Wars Cartoon

There's no video yet, so nothing to say. The talent behind it is however promising, and they seem to be making the right noises.

The Few Robots In Disguise Releases

Finally, some actual Decepticons in a sensible size class. I'd probably buy Thunderhoof, which would raise my lifetime RID purchases to 1.

And finally, All Hail Optimus

So, yeah. As part of the run up to Titans Return, Optimus Prime is going to annex Earth into the Cybertronian Council of Worlds, to protect us against an invasion. Whether we want it or not. And he's going full space pope to do it. My initial thoughts were to make a joke about welcoming our robot overlords, but then I got a little pessimistic. They seem to be deliberately invoking the memory of All Hail Megatron, an era of the IDW comics not well-liked at the time, or well-remembered now. The idea of Optimus taking control for our own good also has some worrying implications for this future character development, not that I've necessarily found him interesting as a character in the past. This is probably just a publicity stunt.

Mind you, the last publicity stunt they did gave us co-Captain Megatron, and that seems to be working very well. I'll try optimism.

Sources Used

TFW2005/ToyArk 

Tformers

Seibertron

TFWiki

Copyrights

Hasbro for the CG renders, IDW for the comic images, the respective websites for photography and video.

Foot Notes

1. And the implication that other 'master types might appear......
2. I see what you did there.

Youtube Highlights

Righty, let me continue to experiment with the blog format. Today, let me draw attention to some youtubers and youtubists. People whose videos have caught my I attention, people I follow as a fan, and sometimes people I know personally. Videos are something I eventually intend to do myself, once I work up the nerve.

First off, Jazzimus_Rider, a guy whom I met/hung-with at Auto Assembly 2015, is sharing videos from the event. Here's the Peter Spellos Panel. A very nice man, Mr Spellos, he gave me a hug. And nearly everyone else.

In more Post-AA video, Thew Adams' panel has been uploaded. Said interview was hosted by Tomb Of Macula, another mate of mine. I was the dude with DEVASTATOR!

TJOmega has resurrected his “Plastic Addict” persona for a new review. And all was right with the world.

And finally, for something vaguely educational, Extra Credits has reached part 4 of its history series on the 1^st Crusade. An enjoyable series, but I was honestly shocked at the endless parade of atrocities that bordered on farce. That's not a sentence I hope to use ever again.

Up next: more reviews.

A Concise Review of Prime: RID Vehicon In 500 Words Or Less

Pricepoint/Vintage: Deluxe, 2012.

Modes: Robot, and vehicle.

Transformation Style: Advanced shellformer with minor automorph.

Play Patterns: Robot and vehicle, 5mm weaponry.

Points of Interest: An “army builder” representing a class of transformer, rather than a specific one.

The Good
This toy is one of deeply, deeply, deeply annoying ones were there's so much good, I can't so much review as gush. The robot mode is a functionally ideal representation of this army builder, and one that would be difficult to beat without going Masterpiece. Visually, he's full of anonymous charm with a Cylon flavour, and a light piped visor. He screams Decepticon cannon fodder, with a face, profile, and colours evoking his badge. Play value and articulation are solid. There are 21 joints in useful places, with the elbows being notably expressive, so he can facepalm and rub his chin. While light on accessories with only one gun, you can use it three ways, via clip for a gun arm, fist hole or 5mm shoulder port. The car mode meanwhile can be only be described as a compelling argument to join the Decepticon cause, as its just that gorgeous. Seriously, its easy for a black car to look cool, but this has batmobile level charisma. Again, there's a pleasing Decepticon motif to things, with the front end patterned after the symbol, and a tiny badge. There's also the suggestion of an interior. Play value is comparatively slight, but you do get 2 5mm ports for the gun. Switching between modes is also noteworthy, the toy featuring a then-revolutionary transformation scheme, which is fun and elegant. As deluxe carformers go, this is an extremely successful one.

The Bad
Probably the closest thing to an actual complaint for most people is this toy's overall size. The toy is slight for a deluxe in robot mode, compressing further into a small car. Said car also has a case of Visible Head Syndrome on the underside. My example had some very minor production scars, one of which briefly affected a thigh swivel.

The Mediocre
This toy has some minor omissions and quirks to do with its articulation, such as the waist being fixed, and the elbows looking a bit odd despite their functionality. 

The Alternatives

There is of course the famous First Edition Vehicon, which is bigger and more complicated. It is not however better, with much less elegant transformation and a smaller gun. Alternately there are legion class toys, and Japanese versions, which come with stickers and DIY Mini-cons.

The Verdict

With the mass market Prime toys being frequent victims of Hasbro cost-cutting and questionable gimmicky, its perhaps surprising how well this toy turned out. It just does a lot right in both modes, and makes the actual transformation business seem special again. As a result it has tenure on my Shelf of Awesome, and I doubt will be going elsewhere soon. If carformers appeal, get this guy.