Rejoice dear Transformers enthusiasts, for Hasbro has come up with a brand new animated series in the wake of the end of the TF: Animated series......Transformers: Prime! Ok, I gotta admit, it's not THAT brand new since it's first two pilot episodes were first aired in Nov '10! But alas, we Malaysians (being the late recipients of cool toys as usual) only received the action figures just recently in the last couple of months. Truthfully, I never really enjoyed Transformers: Animated series too much anyway, and I wasn't too crazy on TF: Prime either. Well, I've seen a couple of episodes including the pilot, but it just didn't do much for me. I'm a hardcore G1/Geewun/Generation One fan through and through. But my sources said that BOTH series were worthwhile to watch, so I'm gonna trust my hombres and take their word for it. In fact, to know more about Transformers: Prime, best if you could just check the wiki page for more info on the series.
Nevertheless, what's stopping me from enjoying their action-figures! What I got here today is the excellent Optimus Prime vs Megatron figure set, which honestly speaking, was actually bought for my 3-year old son who was sporting enough to let his daddy have his turn with the figures first!
It's a great set....you get Optimus, ol' Megs plus the three main human characters (though they lack articulations) from the series. The packaging is truly a sight to behold. One will be immediately mesmerised by the cool packaging and the contents within.....and those cool box art!
"First Edition"? Don't ask me.....I know nothing of it either!
Back of packaging shows the characters' names.
This figure box set also comes with a DVD of the 1st episode...nice!
The human figures. They look exactly like their 'animated' selves in the TV series. Thumbs up Hasbro!
At the side of the box is some backstory of the new TF:Prime series....
Anddd...here they are, fresh out of the box! Do note that Hasbro had also released the so called 'Deluxe Class' of Optimus Prime...and in my opinion, the humans looks way better in terms of scale...but that's another story.....let us continue with these figures shall we?
The human figures: Jack Darby, Raf Esquivela and Miko Nakadai. They only have neck articulations.....*bummer*.
Let's start with the robots' alternate forms, starting with Optimus. He transforms into that odd-lookin' cartoony truck. He's still sporting that red-blue colour scheme though. This is definitely Optimus Prime to me at first glance!
As with many other countless versions before him, this Optimus Prime also suffers from the 'bareback' syndrome......we can clearly see all of the 'thingamajigs' that transforms into his legs at the back of the cab part.
We can also store his gun by placing it like so.......nice touch, but in reality that would definitely look out of place. I mean, come on.....a robot in disguise.....in it's so called 'stealth' mode.....carrying a big-a** gun? Wouldn't THAT be suspicious? LOL.
Now here's Megatron in his alternate mode. He's a cybertronian spacecraft as opposed to Optimus who gets to be an 'earth' vehicle. Hmmm...double standard at its best again by Hasbro.....lol!
In case you're wondering, yes...that IS Megatron's head jutting out on top of the spacecraft! Talk about being discreet!
It has been some sort of an acceptable norm that most of these Transformers toys get to 'attach' their weapon as part of their alternate form. Here 'ol Megs' blaster gun doubles up as his rocket thruster!
To be honest, I kinda dig Megs' alternate form. The 'alien' starship design is beatifully crafted by them Hasbro folks.....giving him that Cybertronian 'native' look almost immediately!
Now let's move to Optimus' robot form. Here he is fully transformed into his robot mode. The transformation is pretty straight forward, unlike the Leader class ROTF Optimus (had major headaches trying to get that one right!). His red/bue colour scheme stays faithful to his G1 appearance.
He reminds me a bit of the ROTF Optimus when viewed from the back.
Articulation wise, various poses could be achieved as this figure is very well articulated, just like his Universe/Generations/Henkei counterpart. Two thumbs up!
Megatron is surprisingly my personal favourite among the two robots in this set. It's not just because I fancy them villains more than the good guys, but take a look at his sleek and metallic design! I love it!
As with Optimus, this one actually reminds me a great deal of the 1st Transformers movie Megatron.
His headsculpt has that 'anime' feel to it but still retains that 'snarly' look we're so familiar with from the G1 heydays.
Gosh, I can't tell you how much I truly dig this figure. It's not my norm to like a 'non Generation One' Transformers figure....and that's telling you something!
Here's Megatron against Optimus. He never learns.....*shucks*.
"OUCH!"
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