Toy Review - AA Sidearm Sideswipe

(Please post comments, photos or even a fully comprehensive review - these are just brief details to start you off)

Toy Review - Sidearm Sideswipe


Series - Autobot Alliance
Sub-line - Hunt for the Decepticons/Movie
Size/class - Deluxe
New/remould/redeco - NEW
Wave - 2
Released here - August 2010
Approximate Retail Price - $25-30
Approximate Size - 16cm
Allegiance - Autobot
Alt-mode - Corvette Stingray Concept
Main Features/Gimmicks - Deployable weapons in car mode.
Main Colours - Silver, grey, red.
Main Accessories - 2 guns

http://www.toycollectors.com.au/tftoys/hftd29.jpg

I will admit I'm curious about this version of Sideswipe...but I have too ask...
Couldn't we have a remould with swords and guns?
:confused:

Got this figure today and this is NOT a remould. This is a completely new mould much to my surprise. So its not just replacing the blades with guns at all.

The alt mode is identical but totally different seam lines. It uses the premium silver paint all over and has clear red windows and a nice red paint app for the front. There's two hatches that flap open so you can clip both guns onto it.

The conversion is one of the most astonishing engineering I've seen. It's not too complex but is so wonderfully done, with a lot of unexpected folds and panels ending up where you wouldn't expect them to. This was the first time I realized this was completely a new mould for the character.

The bot mode is proportioned perfectly and the feet on this mould is a lot better than the original Sideswipe mould. The head sculpt is amazingly detailed and also for the rest of the details on the chest, legs and arms. The rubbery crotch hoses are still present and some new ones placed behind the knee. The chest/torso is very nicely proportioned and a lot less back kibble seeing this mould has the front of the car wrapping around the forearms as kibble. The guns are very nice accessories with both having swing out handles and able to be held into Sideswipes hands. The arms tend to look slightly short, but could just be the kibble around that makes them look stumpy. The legs are still tricky to pose due to the chicken walker design not allowing for much knee articulation.

Another winner in the latest line of deluxes and I must truly hand it to the engineers for getting to such great conversions that truly feel next gen.

I will post pics later with comparisons with the original Sideswipe mould.

Comparing it to the earlier versions of Sideswipe, it is indeed a whole new mould.

Just like Dark Crumplezone, I think that was a waste of resources... at a glance, and in packaging, it just looks like the same toy with some minor remoulding. Surely they could have managed to do that with the original Sideswipe toy and have some other more-unique toy created in its place. Now they have a whole new mould they have to redeco at least twice to make money off it, and it isn't even a high-demand toy/character. After all, we get so many redecos now, collectors look forward to the new moulds whenever we can (and this doesn't scream 'new mould' to me).

(the issue with Dark Crumplezone - the toy had significant remoulding done to it from the first (green) version, but was done in dark brown colours, which 'hid' the differences and didn't make it look like a 'new enough' toy for people to buy... Hasbro should have just done a straight redeco, and used the remoulding resources on something else. In other words, if you're gonna invest resources into making a toy look like a different toy, and it still looks the same to the average consumer and collector (Dark Crumplezone and this Sideswipe), then you've wasted resources.)

My opinion - this toy is a fail... It aims to incorporate a feature that may not have even been featured in the movie (hand guns - there were definitely no car-guns), by creating a whole new toy around that feature, instead of just packing in a loose hand gun for the existing toy to hold.
I guess Bumblebee and Optimus aren't the only ones entitled to similar-yet-different toys...

Even though this toy is a completely new mold the designers still haven't overcome the issue of his backpack kibble.

As a primary movie collector I am intrigued with the guns-gimmick and the Rebel-Alliance-ish logo on the front. I would buy this figure however would not do so first as I already own his ROTF deluxe version, so for now I'm focusing on other newer figures in the HFTD line...

I already own 2 moulds of this sideswipe so not keen on a 3rd.

More interested in other characters that appeared in the movie that haven't appeared yet.

Overall a nice design though but come on hasbro; how bout some new moulds?

This is a new mold entirely.

Anyway I picked one up today and it's really nice. The transformation is very good - complex but not frustrating. My only gripes are the red paint apps and the legs, which are very limited (they've got joints on them but they're resitricted by the faux piping and hydraulics).

The red will be fixed in the Japanese release, and the legs aren't that big a deal really.

Recomended.

Main reason I got "Sidearm Sideswipe" is that there is a likely chance this could be the last version (yes, i know this is Hasbro we a talking about here :D) of Sideswipe that has a roof in Vehicle Mode ...
( same sort of reasoning why, i got "Premium Jazz" from the 07 movie line as, there was a very good chance he was not going to be in the Second Movie and i thought it was the best D. Class version he was going to get )

Anyway i got the Takara-Tomy Version "I considered it to be the best one, compared to the Hasbro version " and from my stand point the Takara-Tomy version is indeed the best one to get.

http://i671.photobucket.com/albums/v...M_wWeapons.jpghttp://i671.photobucket.com/albums/v...deswipe_VM.jpghttp://i671.photobucket.com/albums/v...onDeployed.jpg

In case anyone asks yes , the feet are backwards in the Robot Mode pic....
The reason is that have noticed in this position, I can retract the "Front Toes (what becomes, the front toes after rotation of the feet) then make the rear toes higher so the wheels on both feet can spin .

Quote:

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Originally Posted by G1Optimal

yes, i know this is Hasbro we a talking about here :D

Anyway i got the Takara-Tomy Version "I considered it to be the best one, compared to the Hasbro version " and from my stand point the Takara-Tomy version is indeed the best one to get.

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I doubt anyone wants to see a separate thread for the TT version :P

I didn't like the red paint on the front of the hasbro version and too prefer the TT version.

i just wish it wasnt so expensive to get the TT versions :/

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Stompy

The conversion is one of the most astonishing engineering I've seen. It's not too complex but is so wonderfully done, with a lot of unexpected folds and panels ending up where you wouldn't expect them to.

Another winner in the latest line of deluxes and I must truly hand it to the engineers for getting to such great conversions that truly feel next gen.

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I played with this toy for the first time on Sunday during the Transformation contest at the Xmas party and fell in love with it. I agree with Stompy's comments, the transformation is in some ways all over the place and remarkable for that because it all makes wonderful sense.

The only part that was frustrating (because it cost me third place!) was that the head doesn't seem to retract as much as I feel it should in order to make the spin part of the transformation easy. I could rotate about 90 degrees but then had resistance and was very reluctant to force it to get it the full 180, but it seems you've got to.

I picked up one as a trade for just a repaint project, and am very glad I did. I think I may also get the Japanese version as I still dislike the red paint at the front of the car but would like an non-modified version.