So this guy is the first of the SS figures I've opened so far that's a bit of a disappointment - all the ingredients are there for this to be as solid as the rest of the SS line but it just doesn't come together.

The biggest problem is the car windscreen/roof piece that goes on his back - this is on extremely loose and it's nearly impossible to transform without it falling off. Being clear plastic, it makes sense, as this reduces the chance of breakage. But especially when going to car mode, this makes the transformation a lot more fiddly than it needed to be. Solid, firmly tabbing transformations has been the highlight of the SS line for me so far, and this one is a bit of a let-down in that regard. I do like the cool sideways leg transformation and the inclusion of the secondary 'wings' on the back - so many ways to fold a yellow robot into a yellow car! :-P The faux grill on the chest means his torso proportions are much closer to the movie too. I don't mind fakery when it's necessary.

There's a real lack of old-Camaro Bumblebee figures, so he's worth getting for that reason alone - the original 1977 Camaro Bumblebee toy is an absolute POS so this one was always going to win that contest. It's a bit of a hollow victory.

Still, he looks pretty good on the shelf, is reasonably poseable (with a bit of hinderance in the shoulders). The hand cannon swaps out with the forearm, but because the elbow plastic is a little soft it's hit and miss as to which part detaches. The cannon or forearm can store on his back when not in use, but the forearm sitting there looks a bit...weird.

You could pretty safely skip this guy and replace him with one of the 372 other Deluxe Bumblebees we've had spat out at us over the last 10 years, especially if the 1977 Camaro does nothing for you. If they give us a really good updated Barricade, though, he might become a bit more necessary...