Toy Review - Siege Jetfire
Series - Generations
Sub-line - Siege
Hypo-line - War for Cybertron
Size/class - Commander
New/remould/redeco - New
Wave - 3
Released here - purchased online
Approximate Retail Price - $150
Approximate Size - 27cm
Allegiance - Autobot
Alt-mode - spaceship
Main Features/Gimmicks - swivel Autobot/Decepticon symbol, cockpit room for 3 titan/prime masters, retractable 5mm ports in hands
Main Colours - white, red, black
Main Accessories - detachable armour, weapons, blast effects
Wow, what a Jetfire! Hasbro truly went above and beyond with this one.
https://i.ibb.co/yhpBvdF/Jetfire-Comparo-Bot.jpg
Firstly, let's address the bot mode. Well what can I say, it's a very show accurate "Skyfire" with extra detail than the animation model.
He has some good ratcheting, balances well and is pretty easy to pose.
He is about the same height as a CW/UW/POTP combiner for those wondering how much display space he will take up.
https://i.ibb.co/KWv3R98/Jetfire-Comparo-Bot-Armour.jpg
Personally, I'm not a fan of the armoured up mode and it wouldn't matter how it looked, as I bought this figure to be Skyfire from the G1 cartoon.
After I took these pics the armour pieces went straight into storage. However, I'm sure others will appreciate them and I don't blame Hasbro for doing it.
https://i.ibb.co/R4MsMtd/Jetfire-Hands.jpg
(image courtesy of GoktimusPrime)
One of the neat touches in the bot mode is that he has retractable 5mm ports in his fists! I'm not kidding, straighten out his fingers and the ports fold away. Close his fingers and they pop out again, ready to hold his double barrel blaster! Speaking of which, that double barrel can split up into two single blasters if you like, similar to Classics Jetfire, but with retractable handles when combined.
https://i.ibb.co/Q6w27hZ/Jetfire-Symbol.jpg
(image courtesy of GoktimusPrime)
Although he's not the first Transformer to have this feature, the swivelling faction symbol is neat too. Personally I think it was unecessary to include it, but I'm certainly not complaining.
Just an example of Hasbro going above and beyond, in a Masterpiece style.
https://i.ibb.co/rHfDg8D/Jetfire-Comparo-Jet.jpg
The jet mode is just as fun as the bot mode. First of all, he looks just like in the cartoon and is massive!
Goes without saying, but yes he has retractable landing gear as all jets should.
https://i.ibb.co/1KLxqtX/Jetfire-Handles.jpg
So massive that voyagers can swing off him with ease.
https://i.ibb.co/GVfy5rt/Cockpit.jpg
With room in the front cockpit for one titan/prime master, as well as room at the top of the jet for two more titan/prime masters.
https://i.ibb.co/h2b1pwp/Jetfire-Fly.jpg
The blast effects for his weapons also work well at being jet-fire.
And on that last dad joke, I'll let myself out.... :p
Toy Review - Siege Jetfire
JETFIRE(/Skyfire)
Series - Generations
Sub-line - Siege
Hypo-line - War for Cybertron
Size/class -Teen Titan/Commander
New/remould/redeco - New
Wave - 1
Released here - Online only perhaps?
Approximate Retail Price - $140
Approximate Size - 11inch (28cm)
Allegiance - Autobot/Decepticon
Alt-mode - VF-1 Valkyrie/Jet/Spaceship/Space Taxi
Main Features/Gimmicks - light piping, Titan/Prime Master compatibility (cockpits), faction changing symbol, c.o.m.b.a.t compatibility
Main Colours - White, Red, Blue
Main Accessories - detachable armour (breastplate, helmet), blast effects, combining rifle, 'missiles', dual cannon gauntlets, smaller combining guns/missiles
(OP's Note: My reviews are all done in a work environment so I am limited with what I can post/display and get 'clean' pictures, sorry!)
Jetfire AKA Skyfire was a bit of an anomaly in the G1 cartoon; he came and went quite quickly but he did make his presence felt while he was around. He had an intriguing backstory due to his camaraderie with Starscream, and after his defection he proved his worth both by helping troops into battle and with his intellect before he disappeared prior to The Animated Movie and wasn't to be seen all through Season 3. But he did get more character development in Marvel, Dreamwave and IDW incarnations, and has cemented himself as a bit of a fan favourite. I was going to pass on Jetfire due to my tight budget, but long story short, I managed to snap him up with some pretty high expectations based off images and in-hand reports. As he was only known as Skyfire in the cartoon, I'll keep on the Jetfire track, and for simplicity i'm calling his alt mode a jet.
Oh me oh my. I only got this figure this morning after a weeks worth of anticipation and let me tell you, he's not disappointing me.
https://scontent.fmel2-1.fna.fbcdn.n...6a&oe=5E042E5Dhttps://scontent.fmel2-1.fna.fbcdn.n...9a&oe=5DFAD937
The boxart is on point with much of the Siege line, with a little 'sneak peek' at Omega Supreme in the background. Jetfire is displayed charging into battle on the front; on the back it shows off his robot mode, 'jet' mode, armoured mode and his accessories.
But we're not here for the box art are we! Lets dive in!
https://scontent.fmel2-1.fna.fbcdn.n...a1&oe=5DF58CC9
Jetfire is packaged in Robot Mode and is nicely tied in. Mine was actually quite tight in his inner cardboard lining and it took a bit of force to prise him out (I was concerned i'd have to destroy the box to get him out but fortunately not!) NOTE: His backpack is mistransformed in his packaged configuration. I didn't find this out until I was armouring him up and realised the back 'gun/missile' pods weren't matching the height the stock photo's and instructions were showing. Fortunately it was an easy fix once I perused YouTube and didn't hinder any of his movements.
https://scontent.fmel2-1.fna.fbcdn.n...8a&oe=5DF1E804https://scontent.fmel2-1.fna.fbcdn.n...11&oe=5E0909E9
Jetfire is a HEFTY boy! His weight is fortunately backed by a lot of solid joints. He feels REALLY good in robot mode and can hold his own. In his stock 'scientist' mode (as I call it), he really evokes his G1 cartoon self. The ability to switch factions is a really neat touch that they didn't have to include but I'm glad Hasbro did. His head features light piping, can look up and down nicely and can rotate 360 degrees. He has ratcheted shoulders, rotation at the arm, really tight double-ratcheted elbows and wrist swivels. One neat feature of the hands is that when open they have a really natural pose but when you close them up, a peghole appears for weapns! Very cool. Unfortunately one slight let down I have with this comes from the transformation of the hands; the assembly is on a hinge which is held in by a little plug and both of mine keep coming loose. Also my right hand swivel is a little looser than the left. Still useable though and only little nitpicks that can be easily overcome. He also has waist rotation; again very stiff on mine but much better than being 'loosey goosey'
Moving down, Jetfire has both ratcheted and swivel hips, ratcheted knees, and ankle tilts. The ankle tilts have INCREDIBLY stiff locking mechanisms to begin with; one of mine was already unlocked but the other one I had to apply a lot of pressure to get it to unlock. It freaked me out a bit but nothing broke. He also has moveable toes and heels. I have no doubt you'd be able to make a huge amount of poses with him with minimal effort.
Now it's time to armour him up for combat!
https://scontent.fmel2-1.fna.fbcdn.n...d6&oe=5E0D2979
His accessories are really neat; he gets a breastplate with 'hidden' helmet storage. The breastplate clips on to the front via two little tabs. Again, very tight, but fortunately I had some plastic tools I could use to prise them out and attach the armour. The helmet was a little trickier to line up but once on it stays in place nicely. And the light piping still works; you get to see two little glowing blue eyes. Very cool. (Sorry I couldn't capture the effect, as I was using my phone for photos). Jetfire also comes with two double-barreled cannon 'gauntlets', a pair of rifles which can be combined into a single one, two 'trident' gun/missile thingamies which can be split in two also, and two missiles for his wings. Attaching the parts is easy although the nubs on his wingtips are again very stiff; I prised mine out with aforementioned plastic tool but if you 'flap' the wings a bit they come out a little easier.
https://scontent.fmel2-1.fna.fbcdn.n...bd&oe=5E114F9D
All armoured up, Jetfire looks like a whole new toy, and it really elevates his overall feel. He evokes his IDW 'Stormbringer' look along with homaging his roots as the Macross VF-1 Valkyrie in robot form. The blast effects are fantastic and can be split into three and added to his weapons or his body to show him taking fire. He is truly a patriotic Autobot in this mode as his breastplate proudly shows his Autobot allegiance.
https://scontent.fmel2-1.fna.fbcdn.n...03&oe=5DF0224Dhttps://scontent.fmel2-1.fna.fbcdn.n...7d&oe=5DEF05A4
https://scontent.fmel2-1.fna.fbcdn.n...6a&oe=5E063616
Size comparison wise, I compared him to my largest toy (at the time), God Ginrai. And he IS taller by some margin. He's now my biggest, and from a comparison perspective when compared to God Ginrai, he's a LOT more poseable! His backpack does little to hinder him because of his feet, balance and stability.
And now its time for......
https://scontent.fmel2-1.fna.fbcdn.n...58&oe=5DF36A74
"Daa daa?"
(Sorry, I couldn't help myself. This part of the transformation is funny)
https://scontent.fmel2-1.fna.fbcdn.n...92&oe=5E09706A
Jet mode!
Transforming into jet mode for the most part is easy and fun; there are just a few tabbing alignment issues I had but I soon managed to stick it all together. Where the head ends up is pretty genius too.
Jet mode is truly a sight to behold and has a really nice presence. It feels solid once everything is tabbed together and really captures the G1 cartoon feel Jetfire had. Even in this mode there's a lot of playability. He has retractable landing gear with rolling wheels, wing flaps, and you can remove his little 'techno-kibble' inside his cockpit and fit a Titan or Prime Master in there (the kibble also has a small hole you can peg it elsewhere if you need to). There's also supposed to be a 'backseat driver' cockpit for two additional Titan/Prime Masters but I can't for the life of me get mine to open (EDIT: After I'd finished with this review I'd managed to work it out, you have to fully open up the backpack to reveal them. I was done photographing by this stage, sorry!). His faction symbol can also still be changed here.
https://scontent.fmel2-1.fna.fbcdn.n...95&oe=5DF8ED6D
The underside of Jetfire is a biiiiit of a mess of leftover robot parts, which is a shame if you want to pose him in jet mode (he has a deeply recessed peghole perfect for a stand) but he does have some nifty pegs for figures to hold and dangle off him. This is a pretty cool addition as your Siege figures can ride with him into battle!
His armor and weapons all compact into a nifty little package that you can plug directly on top of the 'flight pod', or you can detach them and use them elsewhere if you wish. You could also use this combination as a bit of a mega-cannon for Jetfire to wield though it is pretty heavy in this form. The blast effects can all combine and attach to his engines to make him look like he's just engaged his afterburners.
https://scontent.fmel2-1.fna.fbcdn.n...a7&oe=5DF5FDB6https://scontent.fmel2-1.fna.fbcdn.n...48&oe=5E043909
Jet mode is just as much fun as Robot Mode and has many different play patterns available to him, or you can just sit him somewhere and bask in his glory. His alt mode is by far the biggest alt mode I have in my collection. I took a shot of him next to Triggerhappy for reference.
https://scontent.fmel2-1.fna.fbcdn.n...8f&oe=5E0097A0
So, I guess the last thing to check is.....
... can he Gerwalk?!
Wellll........
https://scontent.fmel2-1.fna.fbcdn.n...83&oe=5DFBDA0E
He can to SOME degree. If you're holding him and/or have a stand you can peg him into, he does a passable enough job. It's a shame he can't hold his own (at least not the way I've got him configured) because he's too front-heavy, but he gave it his best shot! I found folding up the backpack helps a bit for balance, but ultimately you can't get out of holding him unless you have an aforementioned stand.
Overall, I love this figure. Solid, poseable, packed with features, little nods to his various incarnations, Jetfire is definitely value for money and I heartily recommend him to G1, Siege and any Transformer fan looking for a big lad who can charge onto your battlefield for either side.
