General Information
Release Date: September 2025
Price Point: $24.99 (depending on retailer)
Retailer: General Release (Amazon, BigBadToyStore, Entertainment Earth, Target, Walmart etc.) - All preceding links are Sponsor/Affiliate links for Ben's World of Transformers
Accessories: Arm Blasters x 2
Official images and text in italics are from Amazon.com
- TRANSFORMERS: AGE OF EXTINCTION CONCEPT ART KSI WISOW: This Transformers Studio Series Concept Art KSI Widow action figure is highly articulated for posability and features movie-inspired deco and details
- STUDIO SERIES TRANSFORMERS TOYS: This 4.5-inch (11.5 cm) Deluxe Class collectible action figure is inspired by iconic movie scenes and designed with specs and details to reflect the Transformers movie universe
- 2 ICONIC MODES: This Studio Series Transformers toy features conversion between robot and McLaren MP4-12C car modes in 17 steps
- AWESOME ACCESSORIES: Transformers figure comes with blaster and chain accessories that attach to the figure
- ARTICULATED FOR PLAY AND DISPLAY: Transformers figures feature articulated heads, arms, and legs for action poses
- GIFT TRANSFORMERS COLLECTIBLES: This robot action figure makes a great addition to any Transformers collection
Bring the epic action of Transformers: Age of Extinction from the screen into your collection with the Transformers Studio Series 4.5-inch (11.5 cm) Deluxe Class Concept Art KSI Widow action figure! Transformers Studio Series toys are collectible action figures that feature movie-inspired details and accessories. Convert the Studio Series Transformers action figure from robot to McLaren MP4-12C car mode in 17 steps. The figure has articulated head, arms, and legs for action poses. Look for more Transformers Studio Series collectible figures to build a movie-inspired collection (each sold separately, subject to availability)! TRANSFORMERS and HASBRO and all related trademarks and logos are trademarks of Hasbro, Inc. Manufactured under license from McLaren Automotive Limited. The "McLaren" name and logo are registered trademarks of McLaren.
Background:
The live action Transformers films have often had changes made sometimes in mid-production, but thanks to artists who worked on the films or some toys we learn of concepts that were later discarded in the final product. One such concept was a character that was going to be known as "Widow Maker" in "Age of Extinction". Her vehicle mode (a McLaren MP4-12C) actually appears in the film briefly, but we never see it transform or participate in combat. Concept art was created for this character however. On the TFWiki you can see artwork by both Steve Jung and Vitaly Bulgarov for Widow Maker. When Hasbro wanted to add another "concept art" character to the ranks of their Studio Series figures, "KSI Widow" was born.
Packaging:
In 2025 Hasbro decided to unify the look of the packaging for the Transformers Generations lines. Studio Series boxes largely carry over the same design with rectangular boxes, though this year they feature plastic windows again! Like previous years the primary color of the boxes are black with the Studio Series logo represented by blue line with black lettering. However, the vertical Transformers logo has been reset to its original horizontal position, now placed under the figure. The movie the character comes from ("Age of Extinction") is on the lower left hand side and its name is next to it. The character art (in both modes) is where the vertical "Transformers" logo used to be. On the other side are a series of symbols including an Autobot symbol (despite this being a Decepticon), a callout for the 17 step transformation and "8+" for the recommended age. The figure is now almost in full view from head to toe since it is protected by a plastic window.
The back of the box features a section on top showing the symbol featuring a "4" and the Decepticon symbol used for "Age of Extinction" promos when the film was released. It also features her name and a blurb in multiple languages that says "KSI Widow isa drone controlled by GALVATRON". Below that the figure is shown in both modes calling out an 17 step transformation. Below that is the McLaren logo (as this figure has a licensed vehicle mode). There is also legal information in multiple languages along with the new "Authentic" Transformers icon. For Studio Series these changes are relatively minor and the packaging still looks great and I'm happy the plastic windows are back. It never looked right to me to have over half the figure obscured in packaging. This allows the figure to be mostly shown off in box.
Accessories:
KSI Widow includes two identical blasters. Each one features barrel that narrows towards the front and flat armor pieces towards the back. Instead of featuring a 5mm peg to hold in her hands, these pieces fit over the side of her forearms as blaster "gauntlets". These pieces are made out of silver plastic with no paint applications.
Interestingly, the product info above mentions a "chain accessory" but no such item is included with the figure. It is likely this was removed due to cost (if it was ever made at all).
Robot Mode:
This figure is largely based on the concept art for Widow Maker by Steve Jung. Unlike the majority of the Transformers character in the live action films, KSI Widow was designed to have a very traditionally feminine form complete with a very lithe body and even long "hair" on the head. Of course, in a movie it is possible for the robot mode CG models to "cheat" and transform into darn near anything with parts magically appearing and disappearing from one form to another. However, with action figures that is not the case so Hasbro had to interpret the concept art and make it into a functional figure. This means the figure is not 100% accurate to the concept art, but plenty of features from the concept art do carry over to this figure. These include:
- The head design is based on one of the creepier head designs by Jung. The head is oval shaped with the chin coming to a point. There are braid-like pieces coming down the sides that resemble human hair. The top of the head has details that come to sharp points that also resemble hair. The face is scary looking, resembling a robotic skull. I'm guessing Hasbro used this head design versus the more "human" looking head to give it a more "evil" vibe.
- The front wheel wells of the car mode form armor over her shoulders. While this is consistent with the concept art these parts shrink significantly in robot mode in the art versus the action figure where they (of course) cannot "shrink".
- The forearms feature an angled line of armor across the top and three spikes on the sides.
- The mid-body features a narrow waist area with some armor forming a semi-circle shape in the middle. Above that is the middle of the car mode's front end.
- The thighs feature angled armor pieces on the front of the thighs with lines of armor that roughly form a "V" shape on the sides.
- The knee armor is roughly rectangular in shape and comes up over the thighs slightly on top.
- The lower legs feature diamond shaped armor panels on the sides and a "V" shaped section towards the bottom over the pointed feet.
Of course to make this a functional, transforming figure there are some differences between this figure and the concept art. The shoulder armor is large and the wheels face up. The car doors wind up on the back like "wings" and parts of the vehicle's side wind up on the sides of the knees. A lot of the vehicle mode is also compressed into the back of the lower legs so they are thick and feature wheels on the sides, something absent in the concept art. While this may not be super accurate to the concept art, I'm fine with it since this was necessary to make this figure transformable. It also helps that she never appeared on-screen so there is no "screen accuracy" to speak of.
According to the TFWiki, when "Widow Maker" was originally conceived she was going to transform into the Pagani Huayra before that mode was given to Stinger instead. This not only changed her vehicle mode, but also her color scheme. Instead of the red that made up the Pagani Huayra, KSI Widow uses the metallic orange of the McLaren 12C instead. This orange is used on a large portion of the parts on this figure. The rest are made up of silver, black and grey panels. Paint colors include silver, orange and gunmetal grey. The orange paint is largely used to paint panels on parts like the forearms and thighs that are meant to represent parts of the car's armor "folded" onto these body parts.
There are fifteen points of articulation on this figure. This is a bit less than average nowadays partly because there is no waist articulation. Also note that the shoulder and hip joints are ball joints, so the range of motion is pretty good on those parts, only hindered by armor pieces. As mentioned above, the blasters attach to the sides of the forearms, fitting over the three spikes on the sides.
Transformation to Vehicle Mode:
- Detach the accessories and set them aside for now.
- Straighten out the arms and legs.
- Push the feet up into the lower legs.
- On the back of each lower leg swing out the panels and keep swinging panels out to form a portion of the vehicle mode's top half.
- Push the lower legs and the panels you swung out together.
- Pull out the armor panels on the sides of the knees, then swing them back, connecting them to the section with the rear wheel wells.
- Swing the doors on the back up.
- Swing the robot head back.
- Attach the blaster gauntlets to the back of the lower legs (point the blaster ends to the back of the vehicle).
- Swing the arms down, tucking them in on either side of the head.
- Swing the shoulder armor/front wheel wells down.
- Swing the front of the vehicle down, connecting the doors to the back section.
- Swing the panels forming the top of the car down. I recommend focusing on attaching the parts towards the back to the section with the rear wheel wells first, then the front. It will take some fiddling regardless to get all the panels lined up so be warned.
Vehicle Mode:
KSI Widow's vehicle mode is a licensed McLaren MP4-12C. I love Transformers who can become licensed vehicles since the vehicle modes have to go through a certain level of scrutiny by the licensor for accuracy. Like the real life vehicle, this vehicle mode is a sleek, curved car roughly in the shape of an oval. The cabin section is set very low, adding to its aerodynamic appearance. The vehicle has other smaller details that come right from the real life vehicle including:
- The front end features angled, tear dropped headlights.
- The hood has a small symbol in front representing the McLaren symbol.
- The sides of each wheel feature a hubcap with five spokes.
- There is one windshield wiper that is long enough to sweep over the entire windshield by itself. The base is on the left side, just like the real life vehicle.
- The sides of the vehicle feature two curved sections towards the back near the rear wheel wells.
- The rear window features panels on the sides with rectangular shapes in it and the base has a wide panel with horizontal lines in it.
- The rear lights have horizontal grooves on them.
This vehicle mode mostly shows off the metallic orange plastic. The windows are all translucent grey plastic with orange, silver and black paint on the top. It really matches the orange plastic nicely, I'm quite impressed. The headlights have pearlescent color on them and look almost like real life headlights. It's a really beautiful effect. The sides of the wheels are painted silver. In a really nice small detail, the McLaren logo is painted onto the back of the vehicle.
Final Thoughts:
KSI Widow is a really neat figure. I love the idea of taking unused concepts and turning them into figures and it gives us a new character to add to our collections. The figure borrows a lot from its concept art and I appreciate the licensed vehicle mode. Highly recommended!
Pros:
- Excellent sculpt in both modes.
- Really beautiful colors.
- A new character to add to your collection.
- Intuitive but slightly complex transformation.
- Cool weapons that can use Blast Effects.
Cons:
- Some fans may not be crazy about how thick some parts of the figure are, but really there was no choice given this figure must transform from one mode to another.
- The orange on this figure seems a bit light compared to at least one photo of the real life prop vehicle.
