Images:
Tech Specs: Rank: 10 Courage: 10 Firepower: 10 Skill: 9 Fast Action Battlers are the successors to the 1-2-3 Transformers and Playskool Transformers, they are larger figures developed for younger kids to play with. The Fast Action Battlers generally feature simplified transformations and action features are combined with sculpting similar to mainline figures.
Packaging:
Robot Mode: Starting with the head you'll see plenty of the movie model's features laid out. He has extra lines on the top part of his helmet, extra layers next to his antennae on the sides and even the vent like lines on the sides of his mouthplate. He even has the robotic pupils inside the optic sensors. The torso design also takes lots of elements from the movie including the truck windows being on his chest (with windshield wipers to boot), the circles in the center next to the grille like sections leading to circles resembling headlights angling down on the waist area. In the middle of the body is a tube with line details on it that look almost like a winch. Prime's arms are a bit simplified, without lots of panel details on them. The upper arms are basic ball jointed shoulders with a tube shaped upper arm. The lower arms are rectangular in shape. Each arm is different than the other. The right arm has a tube sculpted onto it that looks like a cannon along with wire details in a "V" shape leading to armor panels. The left arm has similar details, but a circle is sculpted over the wires and his cannon is actually the launcher for his "Power Hook" projectile that looks like a regular missile, but then actually has a curved hook at the end. The smokestacks wind up on top of his chest here and look like cannons, a nice touch. The legs also use a lot of details from the movie. He has fuel tanks on the sides of his upper legs (somewhat reminscent of G1 Prime who had them on the sides of his lower legs) and the lower legs are curved in with knee armor leading to tech detail in the center and then feet with clawed ends. The legs are what really keeps Prime from looking "puffy" and cutesy. They could have justifiably been very thick parts but instead look elegant and proportional at the same time. Optimus is cast in red, blue and silver plastic. As one would expect, paint applications of the same basic colors are used for detailing including of course, his flames. The head is really nicely done with a blue helmet section, silver mouth plate/nose section with light blue eyes. The torso uses blue and red to create the flame patterns on his armor while silver is used for silver and the mechanical bits and grille pieces. The "Power Hook" projectile is cast in translucent blue plastic. Optimus Prime has eight points of articulation in this form. This is to be expected from a simpler figure design, however it is important to keep in mind that four of these joints (the shoulders and the upper legs) are ball joints allowing for a wide range of movement. While his waist does turn, it does not stay in place. Instead it is a an action feature. Twist the waist to the right and it springs back into place, simulating a punching motion. You can of course fire the Power Hook missile on the right arm, but it is attached to the figure by a string so you won't lose it. Transformation to Vehicle Mode:
Vehicle Mode: Many of the smaller details one would expect appear here. On the front of the vehicle are rows of circles representing bolts. The grille has vertical lines that come up to a tiny Autobot symbol sculpted on the top. He also has headlights and windshield wipers cast into the mold. On the sides are steps leading to each door. There are step details on either side of the back section as well. Other smaller details include cross hatch designs on the back and circles on the sides of each wheel. I was actually very surprised how much detail this guy has. The designers could have probably gotten away with less detail but the care put into the figure is very much appreciated. The same colors from the robot mode carry through here. The main section is cast in silver, but metallic blue and red paint are used wonderfully to recreate the look of the vehicle including the flames. Some black is used on the rear of the vehicle on the trailer hitch section. Silver paint is used for the sides of the wheels and details such as the headlights. It might have been a good idea to paint the windows instead of leaving them grey, but given how strong the rest of the figure is I'm not complaining heavily here.
Final Thoughts:
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