TF Reviews

So here we are again.

Next in line is a figure I believe got way too much flak:

Generations Fall of Cybertron Optimus Prime.

As I’ve stated before whining, bitching and complaining about figures is part and parcel among the Transformers fandom, and usually I can at least see where they’re coming from.

Nope, not with this guy.

He’s been called clunky, chunky, small, cheap (?),  or just plain bad, and I honestly don’t get why.

He’s a little short of stature, sure, but I feel it reflects his character better: forced into a role of leadership he wasn’t sure he was ready for in a global war against overwhelming odds./full-on nerd

Anyway, I think he fits in perfectly with both the War for/Fall of Cybertron figures as well as with the whole of the Classics/Universe/Generations-line.

Now, the figure itself:

I feel his blocky build exerts attitude and his face a rigid determination, and his poseability is absolutely sick. He can kneel, crouch and even do a pretty mean Iron Man-pose. Hell, he has a 5 mm port in his back so you can put him on a flight stand for airborne action poses.

His shoulders are the only part where poseability is a bit limited, but nothing earthshattering.

Now, I realize most of his joints are also used for transformation, so in that respect his poseability is a bit of a cheat, but it works, so I’m (still) not complaining. (Ha!)

Said transformation is instinctive but inventive.

The legs fold up and align with the chest and  the arms turn around 180 degrees while the hands stay in line with the shoulders. Unlocking the back panel with the 5 mm-port enables you to flip the head into the torso which in turn maneuvers  the shoulders in their proper position for finishing the shift. Fold the arms back, so that the two halves of the fender, which have been hanging back (literally) on the arms until now, can swing around and lock together.

That’s it.

(Sure beats Wheeljack’s transformation, doesn’t it?)

Fully transformed he does kinda look like the “fist on wheels” he was, apparently, meant to resemble. A stocky, tough little truck.

Also, an easily overlooked but no less inventive detail:

The bottoms of his feet, which end up on the bed of his truck-mode, both have a 5 mm-port, right? Now, the rifle can be plugged into either one of these as it’s designed with a second 5 mm-post angled so that it will point straight over the truck-mode’s roof, arming this mode as well.

Verdict: despite my feelings towards Optimus Prime as a character, I love this figure.

He’s  cleverly designed, looks tough as nails and is a lot of fun to fiddle with.

And yes: he’s the undisputed leader of my Classics/Universe/Generations Autobot shelf J