Studio Series 05 ROTF Optimus Prime

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Skyquake87
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Studio Series 05 ROTF Optimus Prime

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Name : Optimus Prime
Allegiance: Autobot
Size Class: Voyager


I know it's not the best of the Transformers movies, but I do like Revenge Of The Fallen. It's a loud, noisy obnoxious film full of unlikeable characters. Except for Mikaela. Anyway, Studio Series now brings us a line of Movie-inspired robots in a similar aesthetic, which means less of the stylistic and size lurches we got between films when the original Movie lines were churning out. Easy to be consistent when everything's done and dusted and toy engineering has come on in the last decade. Optimus had a patchy showing in the movie toylines outside of his impressive Leader class ROTF figure, with the high watermark coming during the Hunt For The Decepticons toyline, with that line's Voyager figure, with it's removable Matrix. I like the movie designs, busy though they are, but had sold on all my movie toys, so was happy to jump onboard for the Studio Series, and Revenge Of The Fallen Optimus Prime immediately catching my eye.


Robot Mode: I really, really like the colours on this figure. The dark, browny-grey gunmetal mixed with that dark read and electric blue, coupled with these marmalade pig stickers just look fantastic. It's not completely film accruate, but the box says 'Big Screen Inspired', so there you go. Movie Prime's a bit of a lanky goon, so his figure is all legs and arms, but they are well proportioned, unlike some of his older toys which is great. The detailing is nice, with lots of moulded detail all over the place, that's nicely broken up by some smart colour placing. If there's anything that does detract from him, it is all the hinges. From the wheels on his legs, to the panels on his robo-kidneys and the egregious chest hinges, he looks a bit bulkier and messy than he could. It's a difficult design to work with, so I understand this, but maybe taking some further queues from how Transformers: Prime tackled this version of Optimus would have cleaned some of this up. He comes with a nice backdrop, so you can have him taking on all the trees, like in the film.

Alternate Mode: The tractor cab looks nice. It's perhaps a little too dull looking for some, but rolls really well – which is impressive, given the drag these cheap clip on wheels usually have. I rather like the darker colours, they make Optimus look a little more like he's in been in the wars, and less showroom. The stubby smokestacks and unpainted hubs are a bit of a miss though. He can have his swords plugged in various places for carrying about or as a silly looking attack mode.


Marks Out Of Ten For The Following :

Transformation Design: Whilst the hinges are incredibly ugly, they do lend Optimus an interesting and fluid transformation sequence. There are a lot of moving parts on this thing and a lot of the shell of the tractor cab is made up of all these panels and flaps that collapse, swing, swivel and rotate about to get you between modes. It all sounds a bit of a nightmare and a fiddle, but it really isn't. It all works exceptionally well, as everything has enough clearance. It does feel a bit more like origami, but it impresses as everythinglocks and clips together easily and securely. I also appreciate that Optimus can carry his swords around on his back, thanks to those roof clips. 9/10

Durability: Despite the number of moving parts, Optimus feels incredibly sturdy and dense. I don't feel I've anything to worry about breaking. The plastics are good and he feels great in hand. 9/10

Articulation: Optimus can strike some poses! He's not riddled with joints, but has what he needs, rotation at the head, shoulders, waist, elbows and wrists. There's upper bicep and thigh cuts and ankle tilts for all your posing needs. Good work, fellas. 8/10

Fun: I really like this figure, though he does feel a bit more of a collector aimed thing, as his transformation is quite involved, so he's not a quick pick up and fiddle with kind of figure. 7/10

Price/Value: I got Prime for just under £20, as The Entertainer had the first wave or so in stock and on immediate discount for about 18 months, so he's felt good value for money. He's good enough that even the standard RRP of £23.99 feels a good deal. 8/10

Overall: As much as I love this figure, the hinges and darker appearance aren't going to tick the right boxes for the majority of people. There's a lot of cab junk tucked up his back, which is kept to a reasonable minimum, but does add to the general clutter around his torso. As with all Transformers lines, and the Movie ones in particular, there's always the thought in the back of your mind that another (and probably better) version of Optimus will pop up at some point. For a first go though, this is not bad at all and impressive stuff. With designs this complex, I'll accept some compromises if it means I get a figure I can transform which doesn't feel like it's going to explode under the weight of it's own compressed parts in vehicle mode. 8/10
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