General Information:
Release Date: November 2017
Price Point: $16.99 (depending on retailer)
Retailer: General (Toys R Us, Target, Wal-Mart etc.)
Accessories: Blaster, Prime Armor, Prime Armor cover
Official images and text below in italics are from Amazon:
The Autobots and Decepticons use Prime Masters to wield the incredible powers of the most legendary bots in the universe: the Primes. Prime Masters carry the spark of a Prime, allowing them to share a Prime's godlike ability with other bots. How will the fearsome bombardier Dinobot Swoop wield this epic power? Anything is possible and everything is at stake when the Power of the Primes is unleashed!
Transformers Generations Power of the Primes Deluxe Class figures are 5.5-inch-scale figures that come with a Prime Armor accessory. Insert a Prime Master figure (each sold separately) into the accessory, attach it to the figure's chest, and imagine Dinobot Swoop wields the power of a Prime.
Figure Specs:
- Deluxe Class Dinobot Swoop
- Modes: robot, Pteranadon
- Converts in 11 steps
- Includes Prime Armor accessory, blaster accessory, and collector card
- Works with Prime Master figures (Each sold separately. Subject to availability.)
Transformers and all related characters are trademarks of Hasbro.
In 1985 the Generation One toy line and cartoon introduced the Dinobots. These Autobots transformed into robotic dinosaurs. Dinosaurs have a timeless popularity and having Transformers that turn into them was an obvious (and fun) choice. Over the years the term "Dinobot" has been applied to a sub-group of Maximals during the "Beast Machines" era and of course, a Maximal character in "Beast Wars". However, fans have wanted the original five Dinobots in new toy form for quite some time. Fans have sort of been teased over the years such as having a Voyager Class Grimlock (but none of the other Dinobots) and of course a line of Dinobots in the "Age of Extinction" toy line. However, it was not until "Power of the Primes" where we are being promised all five original Dinobots in new forms! One of the first released in the line is Swoop, who transforms into a mechanical Pteranodon. Before we continue, I know there are readers who will declare "Pteranodons are not dinosaurs!" and you would be correct. They are technically pterosaurs, but in the 80's they were often associated with dinosaurs so this is more of a thematic association than a scientific one.
Packaging:
The Deluxe Class figures for "Power of the Primes" are packaged in a blister bubble glued to a card. The card continues the current trend of having a red Transformers logo set vertically on the right side (if you are facing the card) with the "Generations" logo above it. Most of the card is covered in character artwork. In Swoop's case his artwork shows him in beast mode flying. The figure is in robot mode inside the bubble with the accessories to the side. The insert inside the bubble has the "Power of the Primes" logo on it with the character's name. The back of the packaging shows Swoop in his various modes including having the Prime Armor attached. On the right side it shows the Prime Armor attached with Micronus inside the Armor. The cosells are the first wave of Prime Masters (Micronus, Vector Prime and Liege Maximo).
The "Power of the Primes" figures from Legends Class up come with collectors cards. However, unlike the "Titans Return" cards which featured tech spec stats, these focus on what ability the character gets if they connect to a specific Prime Master Spark. This means there are thirteen potential card variations per character (one for each Prime)! In my copy of Swoop I received an "Alpha Trion Swoop" card indicating he knows the weak point of any target.
It is also notable that this is the first time Swoop has been called "Swoop" in an action figure release in quite some time. For the longest time any character related to him either went by the name Ptero or Strafe. I am happy to see Hasbro managed to get the name back for this release.
Accessories:
Swoop includes two accessories. The larger one is his "Prime Armor". This piece is designed to connect via 5mm peg to either Swoop's chest or back as armor. There is a clear plastic panel in the middle that you can remove to attach either a Titan Master in head mode or a Prime Master in "Spark" mode. The Prime Armor features spikes on the bottom. These are actually the "knuckles" for the Prime Armor's hand mode for Swoop's combiner limb form (more on that later in this review). Unlike most other "Power of the Primes" figures Swoop's Prime Armor does not use a giant peg to attach to the figure. Instead, it uses the clips on the "thumbs" to connect to the chest or back.
The other accessory is a blaster based on G1 Swoop's sword. It features a blade that widens towards the top and then angles inward towards a triangular tip. The hilt area has some mechanical details including what looks like a handle. This accessory is cast in clear plastic but most of it is painted red.
Robot Mode:
When Hasbro and Takara sought to create new versions of the Dinobots, they looked to the original G1 designs as the foundation for these new designs. Swoop's silhouette preserves a lot of key elements from G1 such as the tall crest on his head, wings on his back and blocky arms and legs. However the torso is much more narrow than his G1 action figure largely due to how much his torso has been shrunken inward. Some fans will find this annoying, I personally have no issue with it. Being the aerial member of the Dinobot team, I have always seen Swoop as the "thin" Dinobot and if you look at the "Animated" version of the character clearly I'm not the only one. Still he has a lot of sculpted details that come right from G1 Swoop. These include:
- The head design is based on G1 Swoop's animation model complete with a tall crest on the top of the head and two distinct eyes instead of visor-style eyes.
- The beast mode head forms the center of the torso, complete with a tiny fin sticking out at the top.
- The shoulders feature sculpted details that angle upward.
- The sides of the torso feature horizontal sections that feature rows of vertical lines.
- The mid-body/abdominal area has vertical details that look like tubes going from the chest to the center of the body.
- The thighs feature a vertical rectangular strip with square details inside.
- The lower legs have sections in front that look like thrusters.
- The sides of the lower legs feature an angled strip of mechanical details that mostly look like a series of tubes.
From a sculpting perspective, this figure is detail-heavy and looks amazing. I love the callbacks to G1 Swoop.
A bit of history: when Swoop was released in Generation One, his torso section was red. This is how his package art looked as well. However when the character appeared on the G1 cartoon, his torso was blue, matching the pre-Transformers Diaclone appearance of the figure Swoop was based on. In a nod to the character's animated appearance and history Swoop winds up with blue plastic on his torso. Interestingly, the Swoop figure pictured on the back of the packaging has a red torso, so it is possible that a redeco of this figure may be released at some point in the future (or we are getting a look at an early version of this figure).
Other parts include silver on the wings, forearms, hips and lower legs and black on other parts such as the upper arms and thighs. The beast mode head on the chest has a layer that is painted gold with a layer of clear plastic on top, a look borrowed from the G1 figure. Red, silver and metallic green paint is used on the figure to provide detailing. The red mostly appears on the head and lower legs. The green is used for his wrists. The eyes are painted light blue, matching up with the G1 animation model. There are some really nice tampographs on his chest providing additional mechanical details. The finishing touch is a silver and red tampographed Autobot symbol on his chest. Overall the deco looks great and does a great job of calling back to G1 Swoop's look.
There are twenty two points of articulation on this figure. That includes four in each arm and leg. Amazingly he has waist articulation despite the beast mode head actually overlapping his waist/hip area. While there is a groove for the head to rest in, lift it a bit and the waist can turn which made me very happy. Thanks to his feet being rather wide, he is very stable, allowing for a variety of poses. If you want to attach additional accessories each forearm has a 5mm port.
Transformation to Beast Mode:
- Detach the accessories and set them aside for now.
- Straighten out the arms and legs.
- Swing each fist into the forearms.
- Rotate the arms out, so the insides of each arm face forward.
- Push the arms into the sides of the figure. There are grooves above the hips that correspond with the tabs on the bottom of the forearms.
- Point the feet down.
- Push the two lower legs together.
- Make sure the wings are angled one notch upward on the back.
- Swing the legs up and clip them against the wings to form the back.
- Swing down the beast mode feet.
- Swing the beast mode head up against the robot head.
- The Prime Armor can be attached to the back of the beast mode.
- The sword can be attached to ports on the robot waist area using the peg sticking out the side.
Beast Mode:
Like his G1 counterpart, Swoop's beast mode has a fairly bulky center section with thin wings that curve out to the sides. his head has a long beak with serrated teeth running along the edges. The back of the head has a long crest sweeping back. His feet end in sharp looking claws and his robot legs form what look like a mechanical "back pack". For the most part this mode looks very similar to the G1 toy, but the wings actually have curves on the outer halves unlike G1 Swoop whose wings were more angled. Overall this looks like a great update to G1 Swoop. There is no attempt to completely redesign the character. It has all the right design cues and this mode lets you see more of the awesome wing details.
All the colors from the robot mode show here, especially the silver, black and blue. We also get more red in the form of the lower beak the beast mode eyes and feet. Perhaps the best part of this deco is the top of the head, which features gold with a layer of clear plastic on top, calling back to one of the most distinctive elements of the G1 Dinobot design.
There are six points of articulation in this mode including the feet and the head. Thanks to the way he is designed, the head can swing up to look forward as if he is "flying" or facing forward as if he has landed and is looking forward. In a fun bit of added functionality, each wing has two Titan/Prime Master pegs. Then his back has four more pegs, allowing eight mini-figures to stand on his back while he is flying around! Sure it's not particularly practical, but it is fun! You could also attach the Prime Armor to the back of the beast mode and then attach a Prime or Titan Master for some added functionality (and fun!). Unfortunately there are no 5mm ports under the wings but you can turn his forearms out and attach weapons to them to simulate "under wing" weaponry.
Transformation to Leg Mode (Starting in beast mode):
- Detach the accessories and set them aside for now.
- Swing the beast mode feet up against the back.
- Swing the robot legs/back pack out and down.
- Separate the lower robot legs.
- Swing the feet up.
- Swing each lower leg up over the thighs.
- Swing each wing down on the main hinge (near the robot shoulders).
- Swing the outer halves of the wings forward. There is a tab on each arm that fits into a corresponding slot on the wings.
- Swing the robot and beast mode heads down together.
- Swing the Combiner connector piece up from behind the torso.
- Attach a foot piece to the bottom of the leg.
*Note: The Prime Armor accessory included with Swoop does not transform into a foot. It only becomes a fist or it can connect to a foot piece included with Grimlock to form a stabilizing heel piece. When I took the photos for this review I borrowed a Combiner Wars Aerialbot hand/foot/weapon piece since Grimlock had not yet been widely released.
Leg Mode:
As you would expect, Swoop's leg mode is basically a condensed version of the beast mode. While Swoop is rather sleek looking in beast and robot mode, it is interesting how angular and boxy looking this leg winds up being. Then add on the obvious beast mode head and you get a reminder that this is part of a Dinobot combiner. The connector piece attaches to torso figures without a problem, using the same combining system as "Combiner Wars". The ratchet joint allows you to turn the leg out to the side and bend it at the knees. It is odd to say, but Swoop makes for a pretty solid leg mode!
Transformation to Arm Mode (Starting in beast mode):
- Detach the accessories and set them aside for now.
- Swing the beast mode feet up against the back.
- Swing the robot legs/back pack out and down.
- Swing the robot feet up.
- Pull the forearms out, swing them up at the elbows, then push the tab on the forearms into the slots on the sides of the torso.
- Swing the wings in, attaching the tabs on the shoulders to the corresponding slots on the wings.
- Swing the ends of the wings up (this gets them out of the way of the forearms).
- Turn the robot waist to position the lower part of the body as the Combiner forearm.
- Attach a fist piece to the bottom.
- Swing the beast mode head down.
- Swing the Combiner connector piece out on the side.
Arm Mode:
Swoop's arm mode has an interesting design. The upper arm has the curved parts of his wings folding over most of the details and the beast mode head on the side, giving the top part of the arm a sleek appearance. Then the lower part of the arm is more rectangular, giving it a more machine-like and powerful appearance. It is a nice visual balance that looks really cool.
There are five points of articulation on the arm. Add in some articulation from the fist piece and you get two more. The joints on my copy of this figure are not loose at all, but the hip joints are not super tight so if you want the arm to hold up a heavier weapon like a Legends Class figure you will need to bend the elbow a bit to keep the weapon pointed forward.
Final Thoughts:
Swoop is a fantastic update of the character. While there have been various updates of Swoop over the years this is one of the few intended to be "Generation One" Swoop. I'm also ecstatic that Hasbro managed to recover the "Swoop" trademark. This is a great figure that looks great in all its modes and is fun to play with. Recommended!
Pros:
- Fantastic sculpt in both modes.
- Color scheme pays homage to both the G1 cartoon and action figure in different ways.
- Both limb modes work well and look good.
Cons:
- The Prime Armor accessory cannot turn into a full foot accessory.
- Does not include Swoop's rocket launcher weapons.
