Toy Review - Generations WFC Bumblebee

[griffin]

Toy Review - Cybertronian Bumblebee

Series - Generations
Sub-line - (War For Cybertron)
Size - Deluxe
New/remould/redeco - New
Wave - 1
Released here - June 2010
Approximate Retail Price - $25-30
Approximate Size -
Allegiance - Autobot
Alt-mode - Cybertronian Car
Main Features/Gimmicks -
Main Colours - Yellow, black
Main Accessories -

[Deceptic_Optic]

[Ode to a Grasshopper]

So want a Cliffjumper remold.

[jaydisc]

How's the yellow matching in person? I've found you can't really trust cameras with that, although I think it looks pretty good considering.

[k.wong23]

Feminine characteristics put me off this figure. Thank-you for the review and clear photos though guys.

[griffin]

Gee, it has a bit of a backpack to it, doesn't it?

[LordCyrusOmega]

Was looking forward to a cliffjumper repaint until"

Feminine characteristics put me off this figure.

I can see where you're coming from and now i'm thinking Arcee repaint? Think it would work wellhb

[Stompy]

Jay, the yellow matching is ok. At certain angles it almost looks the same but the yellow used for the standard plastic is shiny. But the yellow is a closer match in tone than say Universe Sunstreaker. I certainly like the effort put into matching it as close as they can.

My thoughts on this figure...

Bot mode is a mixed bag. The thin spindly legs coupled with a rounded torso and kibbly arms make for a weird "bug" looking Bumblebee. The huge rounded back helos in making him look like a yellow ladybug. The blaster weapon can store underneath the back kibble and the ratcheted blades on his arms are a nice touch, if something I didn't really expect for Bumblebee's character. The thighs are very thin with a slightly wider legs and feet. Although I adore the design of the feet having the wheel there. Articulation is great but I feel the knee and waist-to-leg joint will eventually become really loose. But time will tell.

Conversion is a doozy. While a smidge simpler than WfC Prime it falls a little into Shellformer territory. The pinpoint accuracy needed to place all the panels and parts inside can be quite tricky. I needed to emply the "cup-the-panels-into-both-hands-and-gently-squeeze" fixer to get everything to just all fit into place. Inelegant but its so tricky to aligng perfectly. Although the results are brilliant.

The alt mode is Tron sleek. Looking at it makes you feel like it will leave light streaks as you move it. The rounded design belies its G1 heritage while keeping it modern. The wheels move and thats it for playability in this mode. It is an attractive looking mode. As above the yellows area close match. Still noticeably different but very close.

[STL]

Pretty much completely agree with everything with Stompy said except I'd be more savage on the robot mode. It looks fat to say the least. The legs accentuate the fatness of hte chest. The wheel panels cover the swords add to this bulkiness that is sorely juxtaposed by skinny legs. The hand sculpt can also look out of place in certain poses because it makes him look like a disfigured/disable bot.

The stowing of the weapons is probably the biggest plus though. Love the way its done. And yes, the lower leg panels are great pieces of innovation.

Alt mode is great, awesome actually, but getting it right is a pain in the tushie.

[bowspearer]

Just scored this guy and I thought it was worth doing a review based on my first thoughts. The first thing which strikes me with this guy is the accuracy of the toy. It's obvious that Activision ahd Hasbro spend alot of time nailing down a design that would both work on screen and directly translate into a toy once it hit the mold making process.

In terms of weapons Bumblebee comes with a game accurate gun and retractable swords.

In terms of articulation, the figure is fairly well done, but there are issues around the shoulders, with the shoulder ball joint connecting at an angle, which limits the arm poses to some degree. The other issue is that he suffers from "G1 combiner leg syndrome" with the middle of the thighs swinging out on poses. Had the design team managed to lock down the legs somehow, this issue would have been avoided. Likewise the shoulder articulation appears to have been due to failures in the engineering process.

In terms of points of articulation for robot mode, the figure is very well articulated, with the arms having double elbow joints, swivelling biceps, rotating wrists and gijoe style hands.

The legs are equally well articulated with double swivel joints at the hips in place of a ball joint and swivel based knee articulation. Sadly the feet and ankles do not articulate. The heel does have a ball joint, but movement is made impossible due to the placement of the rear wheel.

All in all the robot mode is a great effort and I'd give it a 8/10.

Transformation:

As a G1 pre-earth homage, one word comes to mind in light of the minicar's transformation- ironic. If they ever do a MP G1 Bumblebee, I get the feeling it will play out like this.

The transformation is as follows:

Remove Bumblebee's gun and retract his swords.

Flip out the outside of the shins covering the wheels and rotate it and the feet 180 degrees.

Flip the feet up and twist them inwards 90 degrees.

Slide the wheels out and slide the legs up until the thigh piece clicks into the the shin piece.

Slide the backpack out, making sure not to catch the middle centre of the roof under the back of it.

Unclip the hips from the chest and flip the hips backwards slightly

Flip the head forward and invert the panel it sits on.

Rotate the shoulders inwards and rotate the arms so that they still flip forwards.

Flip up the roof of the car mode completely and slide it forward until it clicks into place.

Flip out Bumblebees front wheels from his forearms, swivel his forearms up to his biceps and move the arm section up and back and click it into place with the roof. Clip the front wheels into the front of the car.

Swing the legs out G1 combiner style and flip the whole section back, sliding posts on the back of Bumblebee's heels into corresponding holes on the roof. and clipping the legs into the rest of the shell of the car.

Stow Bumblebee's weapon behind his rear bumper bar.

Overall, a highly complex transformation, but one which can make him a fiddly shell-former in parts. 8/10

Car mode.
In this mode once again, the likeness to the game incarnation is uncanny, and the vehicle rolls well will adequate clearance. However there are some slight detractors in terms of the different shades of gold where gold paint has been used on black clear plastic rather than separate panels, and there is a sizeable gap between the roof piece and the chest piece in car mode.

All in all fairly well done, but slightly unpolished. 8/10

Overall.

It says alot about the figure when you have to actually go looking for detractors and nit pick. Certainly there are one or 2 articulation flaws with the figure that should have been better dealt with in the engineering stage, but that is almost holding this figure to the standards of a Masterpiece figure, which this figure does come rather close to.

If you don't have this figure yet, track it down. It's well worth the money spent on it.

8.5/10