Toy Review - Studio Series VOY Starscream

[GoktimusPrime]

Thoughts on Starscream:

* The best Voyager Movie Starscream mould to date. It is visually far more screen-accurate and the jet mode is also the closest looking to an actual F22 Raptor.

* The colours and paint ops on this toy are fantastic.

* The chest and cockpit window don't split apart like on the original Voyager figure, but considering that the rest of the toy is way better I think that it's an easily forgivable sacrifice.

* The toy has worked really well in trying to reduce the presence of the robot mode in jet mode as much as possible. Yes, you can still see the folded up robot "block" underneath the jet, but that's always going to happen because:
a. This is a robot that transforms into a jet, not a jet that transforms into a robot. If you want the latter then go collect Macross toys.
b. The toy is trying to be a screen-accurate robot, and Bayformers Starscream is a hulking gorilla of a 'bot.
c. It's a Voyager price point (6 times cheaper than a typical Macross Valkyrie)
Given the size and price of this figure it feels like they've done the best that they could in giving us an accurate looking Starscream figure.

* I like how the hands can fold in and allow the weapon to attach, making it look as if the hand can transform into the gun like in the movie (as opposed to holding it).

* Overall thoughts: I wasn't even planning on buying this toy. Even looking at it in stores I still wasn't convinced. But after playing with someone else's figure I decided to go buy it. This toy is seriously a lot better in person and when you're playing with it vs just looking at it. There is more to this toy than meets the eye! Starscream is the most impressive of the Studio Series figures the I've seen so far. Highly recommended.

[Butcher31]

How does it compare to the Leader Starscream? In my opinion that was one of the best main-release transformers from any line. This one looks good but seems to be a scaled down version.
Besides scale, is it different enough to warrant owning both?

[GoktimusPrime]

I don't own Leader Starscream so I can't really compare. But IMO it's probably not worth owning both.

[KingGrimlock]

It’s a nice combination of an upscale and minor retool of a pre existing figure that seems more like something a third party would do. Compared to the old deluxe sized one it’s certainly an improvement, much more detail but I think I preferred the old paint job.

In comparison with the leader I would say I prefer this voyager, the transformation is a hell of a lot smoother, the jet feels better scaled and sleeker. Even the gun accessory attaches better to the arm and looks more natural. The leader is great but bulky and heavy compared to this guy, but it also comes with a lot of gimmicks such as lights, sounds, shooting missiles and hidden weapons. Each has its own strengths but for me, I like the voyager better, it’s a combination of simple, detailed and posable that wins it in my opinion.

[GoktimusPrime]

It’s a nice combination of an upscale and minor retool of a pre existing figure

This Starscream is an entirely new mould. See my side-by-side comparison pics with the previous Voyager moulds.

As I said before, this new toy works really well in trying to reduce the size of the robot undercarriage in a way that's superior to its predecessors. It's still not flawless, but it's about as good as you're going to get with a Voyager Class figure, really. The only way to substantially improve on this is to make it bigger and more expensive, such as the Leader Class figure (which is why I said it's probably not worth having both). Even at an MP level you would be hard pressed to successfully conceal all robot parts in jet mode, as we can see with the MP G1 Seekers. And that's designed by Kawamori Shouji who's a master at transforming jet toys, as any current Macross collector will tell you. I don't collect Macross, but I've been told that the typical price of a contemporary makes MP Jets look like bargain-bin figures. I've seen other collectors' Macross Valkyries and they're magnificent, but they make Masterpiece Dinobot look cheap.

Case in point, MP Dinobot's RRP is 28000JPY (approx. AU$345). This Macross Zero VF-0S Valkyrie costs 47045JPY (approx. AU$580). The Valkyrie is almost double the price of MP Dinobot, which Transformers collectors are already crying foul about being so expensive! Contrast this with say MP11 Starscream which retailed for 13000JPY (approx. AU$160), and then consider that Studio Series Starscream is a $50 Voyager.

So given that they were working with what is really a pretty small price point and thus much smaller budget, I think that they have done an exceptional job. I don't think you can make Starscream any better than this without increasing its price. And yes, the Deluxe is also a very excellent figure too, and if you're perfectly happy with the Deluxe then by all means I can understand that perhaps this Voyager won't appeal to you. The Deluxe figure is also about as good as Starscream will get at a Deluxe price point.

[KingGrimlock]

New mold compared to the voyagers, I was saying it’s an upscale of the dotm deluxe starscream. From what I can tell the small chest prices, forearms neck joint and hands are all new molding compared to the old deluxe starscream, the rest seems to be upscaled.

[GoktimusPrime]

That's an understandable assumption. At first glance this toy does appear to be an upsized version of the Deluxe, and their transformations are the same. However, upon closer analysis we can see that the Studio Series figure is actually a new mould, albeit clearly influenced by the Deluxe.

Here are some side-by-side comparison pics. I've pointed out the key differences between the arms alone, but I won't do the same with the rest of the figures or else I'd be covering these pics with walls of text which I'm sure would be, as the kids say, "TL DR."