Post by Hellhound on Oct 29, 2006 16:13:56 GMT
Apparently these things are the 'best thing since sliced bread,' although i must say i always prefer an un-cut, freshly baked loaf myself. But enough of my culinary preferences, what we have here is a review of the first wave of Classics, excepting Megatron, who i just didin't like the look of.
Packaging:
Wave 1 is quite unusual for a TF range, as there is no multitude of sizes, no basics or supreme or other drivel, just 'deluxe' & 'leader' which makes a nice change, as all the toys are roughly the same size. Even Prime isn't that much larger than the others, despite the box he comes in.
The 4 deluxe figures all come in the same packaging, which continues on from Cybertron by having the bottom of the bubble attached to the backing card in such a way that it is (relitivley) easy to open without causing mass damage to the packaging. However, it's still not as good as a box, Hasbro!
To be honesdt the packaging is much the same as ever, the logo is a slight revamp of th classic font, there's photos of the toy (no dreamwave-esque art this time), and on the back we have techspecs & the bio. Interestingly the text is only in english. The only notable change to the packaging is the little flip-up flap that revealsd what the toy looks like in 'bot mode. Alternativley you could just look at the back of the box.
The box used for the leaders alsop features the flip-up flap, and has windows on three sides giving an all round view of the toy.
Astrotrain: Psy-Ops Warrior!
'Train comes packaged in shuttle mode, and is mainly white, with black & purple details. He also has ogld windows, and ghold detail on the upper surfaces. There are also a couple of red stripes. The rub-sign makes a welcome return & is found on the uper right fuselage. There are plenty of raised & engraved panel lines all over the toy & flip it over & there are wires & vents as well. The nose wheel can be retracted into the fuselage, although the rear wheels cannot be retracted into the wings.
'Train comes with a purple gun, which appears to be closely modeled after G1 'Trains' gun, although I havn't bothered to check this out, I'm only going on my powers of recolection. Anyway, the gun is unusual for a modern TF gun, as it doesn't fire any missiles. It does, however fir into the underside of 'Trains Shuttle mode. Overall the Shuttle mode is verygood, looking as it does, mush like a space shuttle.
Following Hasbro's instruction (whih yet again omit the odd trasnformation step) we transform 'Train into... a train! With a few (& i do mean a few) twists, Astrotrain becomes a bullet train with some kibble grafted to the rear. Yep, the front of thwe mode looks much like any modern train, while the rear looks like wings folded down in a desperate attempt to remove the nose of a space shuttle from view. Anyway, as before you can add 'Trains gun to the mode for a bit of fire power.
Finally, robot mode! In robot mode he looks, well, like Astrotrain. Th shuttle nose become his feet, the ttain nose become arm-shield things & the wings & engines are in exactly the same place as the G1 toy. the Shuttle tail splits open in the same way as teh original & his head has been updated slightly. Saddly, he also seams to be sporting a basball cap.
If I had to gice 'Train a mark out of 10, it's be 8. It's nice to see a triple changer, which over all is well executed, but the train mode is disapointing, & I reckonm the should've just done him as a shuttle. Still, a great toy.
Bumble Bee: Spy.
Bumble bee is a yellow hot hatch. Obviously not a VW Beetle, it's not quite clear what he's supposed to be, some sort of generic small car. The car is yellow (who knew!) with white go-faster stripes. Hasbro, this scheme would look ver nice in British Racing Green IMO. Bumble Bee also comes with a jet ski on a trailer. There's not much else to say, no where near as detailed as an Alt, but a good likeness of a non-descvript car as we're likely to see.
Following a simple transformation we have BB in robot mode. as well as yellow, there are a few blue details, his arms & legs are black, grey & silver & he the car doors have become shields on his forearms. The rear of the car has become his back & is very reminiscent of Goldbug. the bot mode has excellent articulation& is, i reckon flawless.
One slight crticism is that BB is the Autobots resident eunuch, as he doesn't have a weapon. Instead, the jetski transforms into a rather unconvincing jet pack, a nice idea & homage to Action Master BB.
9/10
Rodimus: Warrior
Everyones' favourite future leader is back & the car mode looks almost exactly the same as it used to. Sure, it's a little sleeker, but it is the least different (except of SS) of all the Wave 1 Classics. The car mode does have a large exhaust that nestles beneath the car, this is removed & acts as Rodimus' gun in bot mode.
In 'bot mode mode Rodimus still looks like he should, with a gld flame design dominating the toys' deco. There's a few black & silver details on show, but nothing to write home about. There is a flip out 'communicator' in Rodimus' left arm, although it looks far more like a circular saw to me... Oh, & he has the most miserable expresion i've ever seen on a TF. Also, th gun can be attached to his back in a rocket-pack style.
8/10
Starscream: Air Commander.
In F-15, SS is almost flawless. Buit only, when looking down on the toy. From any other angle, there a huge gaps & there is no sign of an undercaraige, which is a shame. Still, looks pretty good I suppose. For those who (unlike me) were disapointed to find that MP 'Scream wasn't in his anime schem, Classic 'Scream is more that way inclined.
Transformation to 'bot mode is simple & effective & presents the superior mode. Articulation is good & detail is high, right down to little fans in his bot-boobs ala his Figouera representation. He also has two very large missile launchers which attach to his arms in the usual place.
7.5/10
Optimus Prime: Leader.
In truck mode, Prime looks like a slightly futuristic version of his G1 incarnation. No long noses here, so for kids in the UK, he actually looks a bit like something they might see driving down the street. Unusually for a prime, he doesn't have a trailer.
Following a nifty transformation, we have one good looking prime. The toy is excellently proportioned, highly detailed (there's little gas cannisters on his back, aah& seats in the cab etc). The head is, well a Prime head, so no surprises there & his lower legs are blue. His smokestacks detach in transformation & become a machinegun style weapon.
Prime also has a secret weapon. In Truck mode, there is a err... blob that sits atiop the cabin, which seems to be there just to cover Primes' face. In Robot mode, this blob just becomes a bit of kibble. But remove said blob, & it can be transformed into a gun. well, I say gun, but it looks a like a tube of pate. You know, the cheap one that looks like a black pudding. At least they tried.
now, I'm not usually a fan of Primes, & MP aside, I'm happy to say that this is the best Prime ever.
9/10
Packaging:
Wave 1 is quite unusual for a TF range, as there is no multitude of sizes, no basics or supreme or other drivel, just 'deluxe' & 'leader' which makes a nice change, as all the toys are roughly the same size. Even Prime isn't that much larger than the others, despite the box he comes in.
The 4 deluxe figures all come in the same packaging, which continues on from Cybertron by having the bottom of the bubble attached to the backing card in such a way that it is (relitivley) easy to open without causing mass damage to the packaging. However, it's still not as good as a box, Hasbro!
To be honesdt the packaging is much the same as ever, the logo is a slight revamp of th classic font, there's photos of the toy (no dreamwave-esque art this time), and on the back we have techspecs & the bio. Interestingly the text is only in english. The only notable change to the packaging is the little flip-up flap that revealsd what the toy looks like in 'bot mode. Alternativley you could just look at the back of the box.
The box used for the leaders alsop features the flip-up flap, and has windows on three sides giving an all round view of the toy.
Astrotrain: Psy-Ops Warrior!
'Train comes packaged in shuttle mode, and is mainly white, with black & purple details. He also has ogld windows, and ghold detail on the upper surfaces. There are also a couple of red stripes. The rub-sign makes a welcome return & is found on the uper right fuselage. There are plenty of raised & engraved panel lines all over the toy & flip it over & there are wires & vents as well. The nose wheel can be retracted into the fuselage, although the rear wheels cannot be retracted into the wings.
'Train comes with a purple gun, which appears to be closely modeled after G1 'Trains' gun, although I havn't bothered to check this out, I'm only going on my powers of recolection. Anyway, the gun is unusual for a modern TF gun, as it doesn't fire any missiles. It does, however fir into the underside of 'Trains Shuttle mode. Overall the Shuttle mode is verygood, looking as it does, mush like a space shuttle.
Following Hasbro's instruction (whih yet again omit the odd trasnformation step) we transform 'Train into... a train! With a few (& i do mean a few) twists, Astrotrain becomes a bullet train with some kibble grafted to the rear. Yep, the front of thwe mode looks much like any modern train, while the rear looks like wings folded down in a desperate attempt to remove the nose of a space shuttle from view. Anyway, as before you can add 'Trains gun to the mode for a bit of fire power.
Finally, robot mode! In robot mode he looks, well, like Astrotrain. Th shuttle nose become his feet, the ttain nose become arm-shield things & the wings & engines are in exactly the same place as the G1 toy. the Shuttle tail splits open in the same way as teh original & his head has been updated slightly. Saddly, he also seams to be sporting a basball cap.
If I had to gice 'Train a mark out of 10, it's be 8. It's nice to see a triple changer, which over all is well executed, but the train mode is disapointing, & I reckonm the should've just done him as a shuttle. Still, a great toy.
Bumble Bee: Spy.
Bumble bee is a yellow hot hatch. Obviously not a VW Beetle, it's not quite clear what he's supposed to be, some sort of generic small car. The car is yellow (who knew!) with white go-faster stripes. Hasbro, this scheme would look ver nice in British Racing Green IMO. Bumble Bee also comes with a jet ski on a trailer. There's not much else to say, no where near as detailed as an Alt, but a good likeness of a non-descvript car as we're likely to see.
Following a simple transformation we have BB in robot mode. as well as yellow, there are a few blue details, his arms & legs are black, grey & silver & he the car doors have become shields on his forearms. The rear of the car has become his back & is very reminiscent of Goldbug. the bot mode has excellent articulation& is, i reckon flawless.
One slight crticism is that BB is the Autobots resident eunuch, as he doesn't have a weapon. Instead, the jetski transforms into a rather unconvincing jet pack, a nice idea & homage to Action Master BB.
9/10
Rodimus: Warrior
Everyones' favourite future leader is back & the car mode looks almost exactly the same as it used to. Sure, it's a little sleeker, but it is the least different (except of SS) of all the Wave 1 Classics. The car mode does have a large exhaust that nestles beneath the car, this is removed & acts as Rodimus' gun in bot mode.
In 'bot mode mode Rodimus still looks like he should, with a gld flame design dominating the toys' deco. There's a few black & silver details on show, but nothing to write home about. There is a flip out 'communicator' in Rodimus' left arm, although it looks far more like a circular saw to me... Oh, & he has the most miserable expresion i've ever seen on a TF. Also, th gun can be attached to his back in a rocket-pack style.
8/10
Starscream: Air Commander.
In F-15, SS is almost flawless. Buit only, when looking down on the toy. From any other angle, there a huge gaps & there is no sign of an undercaraige, which is a shame. Still, looks pretty good I suppose. For those who (unlike me) were disapointed to find that MP 'Scream wasn't in his anime schem, Classic 'Scream is more that way inclined.
Transformation to 'bot mode is simple & effective & presents the superior mode. Articulation is good & detail is high, right down to little fans in his bot-boobs ala his Figouera representation. He also has two very large missile launchers which attach to his arms in the usual place.
7.5/10
Optimus Prime: Leader.
In truck mode, Prime looks like a slightly futuristic version of his G1 incarnation. No long noses here, so for kids in the UK, he actually looks a bit like something they might see driving down the street. Unusually for a prime, he doesn't have a trailer.
Following a nifty transformation, we have one good looking prime. The toy is excellently proportioned, highly detailed (there's little gas cannisters on his back, aah& seats in the cab etc). The head is, well a Prime head, so no surprises there & his lower legs are blue. His smokestacks detach in transformation & become a machinegun style weapon.
Prime also has a secret weapon. In Truck mode, there is a err... blob that sits atiop the cabin, which seems to be there just to cover Primes' face. In Robot mode, this blob just becomes a bit of kibble. But remove said blob, & it can be transformed into a gun. well, I say gun, but it looks a like a tube of pate. You know, the cheap one that looks like a black pudding. At least they tried.
now, I'm not usually a fan of Primes, & MP aside, I'm happy to say that this is the best Prime ever.
9/10
10/10 in my books (even though I haven't bought a single Classic yet, let alone AT, that's morgages for you.... 
