TRANSFORMERS CLASSICS BUMBLEBEE
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Uber-Compressed Version/Summary:
+ Bumblebee in a toy form!
+ heat-sensitive 'rubsigns' are back
+ feels very 'Bumblebee,' despite updates
+ articulation is very good
- no weapon
- feels a little small for a Deluxe
Verdict:
If you are a fan of Generation 1 and/or of Bumblebee, you'll enjoy this figure.
Transformers fans have a lot to be angry about, especially with the upcoming travesty from Michael Bay. Luckily, though, the Japanese have backed away from Transformers for a while, which means that we won't be getting a crappy anime TV show nor flying fire-truck Optimus Prime for a while!
To make things better, Hasbro has gotten their act together and released the Classics line, which in a nutshell, aims to recreate timeless characters' original selves from the 80s, but update them to feature what we would expect from modern-day toys: detail, articulation, etc. I believe that they have succeeded, at least for this figure. Read on for my thoughts!
The package is, as usual, eye-catching. The card has a dynamic background and good colours, not to mention the old-school "The Transformers: More Than Meets The Eye!" logo. The back of the card features the usual: Tech Specs, character biography, pictures of either mode; things we've come to expect from Transformers.
The bubble is what impressed me. There is vent-like detail in the plastic which fits right in with the 'high-tech' theme of the line's packaging. There is a faction logo moulded into the plastic at the top of the bubble. There is a lot of space through which you can see the figure in his altmode, and if you lift the cardboard flap on the front of the package (it's held in with velcro, be careful not to bend/tear the cardboard), you'll see the figure in his robot mode, in some sort of action pose. 'Transforming' packaging? Kinda cool. They get points for trying.
Even though they could not use the Volkswagen Beetle's shape because the company refused them the rights to the car's design (the company doesn't want to be associated with war. I have no punch line for this.), Hasbro found a way around it. Bumblebee is a little rounded yellow car, which is good enough. He looks sort of like a Honda Civic hatchback, or a European rally car. He isn't entirely yellow: his windshield and headlights are a pale transparent blue, his taillights are red, and he sports silver detail and white lines near the back of his car form. Silver is used on his rims, of course. Bling bling.
On his roof, you will find some white pant marks in 'L' shapes, as well as a roof scoop. What is important is what's on the roof scoop - a rubsign! Back in G1 (and through some of the Beast Wars), figures would have heat-sensitive 'Energon Chip' stickers that would 'reveal the character's true allegiance.' Simply place your fingertip (or thumbtip) on the black area of the sticker and the Autobot insignia will appear, granted that your finger is warm enough. While a red Autobot logo would have looked better than a silver square with an irregular black octagon, the Classics do not have allegiance insignias on their altmodes. Probably because if it's supposed to be a disguise, there's no point to have your identity out in the open as you drive around.
Some silver paint on his mirrors would have been nice, though. There are areas on on my Bumblebee where there should not have been paint, but there was anyway. Some spots of silver got onto his front and rear bumpers, his roof, and his leg. There was enough to paint at least one of the mirrors! I guess I'll just grab my model paints instead.
I really enjoy his vehicle mode. There is a lot of detail in it, including door handles, rivets on the rims and a gas cap. If I didn't know that this is Bumblebee, I wouldn't have guessed that it was him, but the car looks good and fits the character. I'm sure Spike and Carly would love cruising around in Bumblebee, maybe to the beach to use his Wave Crusher jetski/flight pack.
The jetski itself is nicely detailed and the colours look very nice. The white and orange go well together. The jetski cannot be removed from the trailer, though.
Transforming Bumblebee isn't very hard, and it really feels oldschool:
Pics in the Seibertron.com Gallery!
Uber-Compressed Version/Summary:
+ Bumblebee in a toy form!
+ heat-sensitive 'rubsigns' are back
+ feels very 'Bumblebee,' despite updates
+ articulation is very good
- no weapon
- feels a little small for a Deluxe
Verdict:
If you are a fan of Generation 1 and/or of Bumblebee, you'll enjoy this figure.
Transformers fans have a lot to be angry about, especially with the upcoming travesty from Michael Bay. Luckily, though, the Japanese have backed away from Transformers for a while, which means that we won't be getting a crappy anime TV show nor flying fire-truck Optimus Prime for a while!
To make things better, Hasbro has gotten their act together and released the Classics line, which in a nutshell, aims to recreate timeless characters' original selves from the 80s, but update them to feature what we would expect from modern-day toys: detail, articulation, etc. I believe that they have succeeded, at least for this figure. Read on for my thoughts!
The package is, as usual, eye-catching. The card has a dynamic background and good colours, not to mention the old-school "The Transformers: More Than Meets The Eye!" logo. The back of the card features the usual: Tech Specs, character biography, pictures of either mode; things we've come to expect from Transformers.
The bubble is what impressed me. There is vent-like detail in the plastic which fits right in with the 'high-tech' theme of the line's packaging. There is a faction logo moulded into the plastic at the top of the bubble. There is a lot of space through which you can see the figure in his altmode, and if you lift the cardboard flap on the front of the package (it's held in with velcro, be careful not to bend/tear the cardboard), you'll see the figure in his robot mode, in some sort of action pose. 'Transforming' packaging? Kinda cool. They get points for trying.
Even though they could not use the Volkswagen Beetle's shape because the company refused them the rights to the car's design (the company doesn't want to be associated with war. I have no punch line for this.), Hasbro found a way around it. Bumblebee is a little rounded yellow car, which is good enough. He looks sort of like a Honda Civic hatchback, or a European rally car. He isn't entirely yellow: his windshield and headlights are a pale transparent blue, his taillights are red, and he sports silver detail and white lines near the back of his car form. Silver is used on his rims, of course. Bling bling.
On his roof, you will find some white pant marks in 'L' shapes, as well as a roof scoop. What is important is what's on the roof scoop - a rubsign! Back in G1 (and through some of the Beast Wars), figures would have heat-sensitive 'Energon Chip' stickers that would 'reveal the character's true allegiance.' Simply place your fingertip (or thumbtip) on the black area of the sticker and the Autobot insignia will appear, granted that your finger is warm enough. While a red Autobot logo would have looked better than a silver square with an irregular black octagon, the Classics do not have allegiance insignias on their altmodes. Probably because if it's supposed to be a disguise, there's no point to have your identity out in the open as you drive around.
Some silver paint on his mirrors would have been nice, though. There are areas on on my Bumblebee where there should not have been paint, but there was anyway. Some spots of silver got onto his front and rear bumpers, his roof, and his leg. There was enough to paint at least one of the mirrors! I guess I'll just grab my model paints instead.
I really enjoy his vehicle mode. There is a lot of detail in it, including door handles, rivets on the rims and a gas cap. If I didn't know that this is Bumblebee, I wouldn't have guessed that it was him, but the car looks good and fits the character. I'm sure Spike and Carly would love cruising around in Bumblebee, maybe to the beach to use his Wave Crusher jetski/flight pack.
The jetski itself is nicely detailed and the colours look very nice. The white and orange go well together. The jetski cannot be removed from the trailer, though.
Transforming Bumblebee isn't very hard, and it really feels oldschool:
- slide his doors out to the sides
- rotate his arms out so that the wheels point inward
- rotate the door around so that the pegs fit into the holes on this forearms
- flip his trailer hitch/license plate up
- flip his chest and head down
- fold his seats down and straighten out his feet
- fold out trailer halves
- spin jetski around so the windscreen points down
- rotate the trailer halves so that the wheels point forward like turbines
- attach to Bumblebee's back, behind his head (notch on windscreen locks into slot on back)
He is a little shorter than I would have liked, but considering that he is Bumblebee, the small Autobot spy, it makes sense for him to be smaller than other characters.
His articulation is good, though he only has 9 points, 11 if you count his feet, though he is mainly ball-jointed and has double-jointed knees. Be warned though, the flight pack limits his head movement, and my Bumblebee's right hip joint is very loose (might be a case of 'just mine').
Unfortunately, Bumblebee does not have a weapon. Even though his Wave Crusher is kind of cool and a nice reference to his flight packs of old, being able to fly is no substitute for having a gun. I guess the lines on his car door wrists are assumed to be launchers of sorts, kind of like Hot Rod's, but an actual hand-held pistol would have been preferred. His firepower is 4 after all, and he doens't even have a gun. How does that work?
Bumblebee has a lot of detail. A LOT of detail, such as pistons in the insides of the legs. There is detail in places that you won't even see, like under his feet and behind his head. Hasbro did a lot of work on this figure, and it shows!
There is now a definitive Bumblebee figure. If you like the character, you should definitely pick this little guy up!
posted by 1337W422102 at 10:36 AM
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