Images:
*Image from the official Transformers web site. Sounds:
Tech Specs: Rank: 10 Courage: 10 Firepower: 10 Skill: 9
Packaging:
Robot Mode: In time, a lot of questions turned to the toys. How would they reconcile the ability to transform and this new aesthetic? Optimus Prime is the perfect answer to that question, displaying a combination of the "panel on machinery" look of the movie CGI models while also having parts that clearly share their roots with the non-movie Transformers toys. The basic shape of Optimus Prime is humanoid, so that shape is retained between the movie CGI model and the figure. It is fair to say that the figure looks much more thick and angled than his onscreen counterpart. that does not mean he is completely inaccurate however. Starting with the head, one can see the quintessential Optimus head design. He has a central crest with antennae like protrusions on the sides connected to a circular piece on either side of the head. Some embelishments were made such as the addition of angled vents on the sides of his head and an indentation on the crest different than the ones on previous Prime-heads. This version of Optimus Prime (as there will be many, many versions of this character in toy form) has the "battle mode" version of the mouthplate in place - looking like the traditional Optimus Prime most people know. While the onscreen version of this character will feature a controversial mouth with lips, I think it was best to just sculpt the mouthplate instead. Granted they could have done something similar to Galaxy Convoy where there is a mouth with the mouthplate folding over it, but really as unpopular as the "Prime-lips" have been, I don't think anyone actually misses that feature. The chest section also retains many classic Optimus Prime features while also managing to look a lot like the movie model. On the chest are the front windows of the truck. However, instead of being close together, the designers of the movie decided to have his chest split, revealing tech detail in the middle. The figure does this as well. In between the two windows is a tab (more on that later) and under that are two circles that could be barrels of a weapon or just superfluous tech details (until I see the movie I won't know). On the section below the chest are details that look like the grille on the front end of the truck split up, with the headlights under each grille half. In fact, the grille of the vehicle mode becomes the underside of the robot feet, so these are truly details put in to help the character (both in CGI and toy form) harken back to G1 Optimus Prime. Another detail that carried over from the original Optimus are the row of lights running along the top of his chest. G1 Optimus had these (which included horns) and it is nice to see a similar feature on this successor to G1 Prime. The movie appearance of having a skeletal substructure with panels on top is intact here. On the shoulders of the CGI model are two blue, angled panels, and the figure has those as well. On either side of his head are two silver vertical panels that are also found in the movie model. Behind those panels are the tops of the smokestacks. The shoulders and elbow sections are rounded and have a very layered, deailed sculpt that includes tues, circles and more. His lower arms are basically a solid rectangle here, but through sculpting and the use of deco patterns, the look of panels on the CGI model's lower arms is replicated. The legs succeed in replicating the movie look very well. The upper legs are thin, rounded sections with a good chunk of detail carried over right from the movie model such as the circles on the inner parts of the knees. The lower legs have panels that fold up over the knees, revealing piston like details underneath straight from the movie model. His feet have the "claw toes" shape of the movie model as well. On the movie model the covers over the front tires of the vehicle mode are de-emphasized but here they of course retain their full size, and they actually add some much needed bulk. Optimus is cast in metallic blue, red and silver plastic. Paint applications are made from the same colors with the addition of gold. These are largely based on the colors used on the CGI model. However, due to the way mold trees work out, color placement does not 100% match the CGI model, but it comes very close. The silver plastic is mostly used for the parts that serve as the underlying skeletal structure of the robot in the CGI model. The blue and red parts generally act as the armor plating. Some translucent blue plastic can be found on the windows on his chest. An example of paint applications used to help replicate the movie model can be seen on the lower arms. While they are a solid rectangular piece, the movie model has more angled panels over a lower arm piece. To replicate the panel look, sections are painted red and others left metallic blue to look like separate plates. Swing the cannon on Optimus' right arm forward and it slips over his hand forming an arm cannon. The one in the movie is shown as a bit longer, but here it looks just fine. Pressing the trigger launches a translucent blue missile. He has twenty seven points points of articulation. If that number seems high, ten of those points are actually on his fingers which was a real big surprise. I had not expected something like that on this figure and they look really cool and add to how expressive you can make him when posing the figure.
Transformation:
Vehicle Mode: The long nose of the truck is straight but also has curved sections such as the tire covers. Over the front windshield windows are two angled covers. Mounted on either side of the nose are two tanks with ring details on them. The sides of the truck have steps that lead up to the doors on the sides. Behind those are round tanks, each serving double duty as the compartment to store the AA batteries the toy uses for its sound and lights. A good section of theweapon for the robot mode can be seen on the back, perhaps this alternate mode's only failing. The rear section has a good bit of vent detailing along with an oval section at the very rear where a trailer would hitch onto. I was surprised to see rather long smokestacks on the vehicle. To satisfy safety laws, the base of the smokestacks are solid plastic while the upper halves are very soft plastic, so much so that I would recommend not trying to play around with them too much for fear of deforming them. The smaller details on this truck are largely based on its real life counterpart. The front grille has a series of vertical slits with tiny circular details inside of them. The front fender is flat, but again with circular details running along the lower edge. As you follow the lines of the truck from its nose all the way to the back wheels, you'll find several lines of raised circles running along the edges representing bolts. Horizontal line details run along the length of the lower half of the smokestacks. Running along the top edge of the cab section is a row of seven lights to go along with the four headlights. Other small details include windshield wipers sculpted onto the windows as well as a tiny Autobot symbol right on top of the grille in front. This is a detail found on the real vehicle used for filming in the movie, and it is the biggest giveaway of this figures' allegiance. Considering this vehicle mode represents a real life vehicle much like their Alternators toy cousins, it is tiny details such as these that really help make the toy. It is in this mode that Optimus' colors truly come together (as opposed to the robot mode where they are separated by the arrangement of panels). The front grille, fender, tanks, wheels, steps, smokestacks and window covers are all cast in metallic silver. The rest of the truck is mostly red and blue plastic, with some black plastic at the rear. perhaps the most controversial deco on Optimus are his flames. On the red portions, the flames are painted blue. On the blue sections, they are painted red. Under the blue flames on the front end is a nice gold spray op. There are even blue flames over the red sections over the rear wheels. I have to say that this color scheme works very well. The gold spray ops in particular really give the impression of fire on the front hood. The blue, red and silver are all colors that have come to be associated with Optimus Prime over the years, and they work together nicely in this form. Optimus Prime rolls on six large wheels. What surprised me is that these wheels are actually rubber, something previously reserved for figures such as those from the Alternators toy line. Given that the figure is a very basic Transformer with no particular gimmick such as Mini-Cons or Cyber Keys, I suspect this was a way to help add some value to the figure and it is really nice to see. Not only does it look cool, but it also harkens back to the very first Optimus Prime toy from over twenty years ago. On the top of the cab is a button (on the right side) that you press to activate a honking noise. At the same time the noise goes off, the orange lights in the windows light up in a pattern to match the noise.
Final Thoughts:
 |
|||
 |
||||||||
|
||||||||
|
|
|
