Name: Hammerbyte
Allegiance: Autobot
Size Class: Warrior Class
Cyberverse has largely passed me by. Some of the designs are nice, but the toys haven't really been much to shout about. I picked up a few of those weird half-transforming Scout/ Legends class figures and a couple of the ones you can stick armour on, but that's it. Nothing else has been screaming 'buy me', until I saw a picture of Hammerbyte on this here forum.
The show itself and the toyline have had a slight rebrand as Bumblebee Cyberverse Adventures. Probably to try and cash in on any interest created by the Bumblebee movie, which was excellent, but hasn't been as popular as the other live action efforts. Probably because everyone's still recovering from 10 years of Bayhem, leaving Bumblebee to make a living shilling insurance for Direct Line, along with Robocop. Oh, how the mighty have fallen.
Robot Mode: Hammerbyte is a lovely powder blue robot, with a fancy crown upon his slightly fat face, which has the expression of someone simultaneously unimpressed and trying to stifle a fart. He's nice and chunky, like a tin of tuna and has a nice blocky charm to him. He's heavily textured so feels great in hand, thanks to the sculpt and design work, which actually makes something of a feature of the honey-combing, making it look like fish parts. In addition to the powder blue, he has some fancy metallic blue knee pads and forearm fins dark blue/ grey used for the shoulders and legs. Jiggling his left arm activates his play gimmick- the shark head flips over the top and the bottom jaw pops out of the chest to give you the terrifying Rip Thrash attack. It's daft fun and I like it as it reminds me of the Street Sharks (who they?).
Alternate Mode: In beast mode, Hammerbyte is a robotic Hammerhead shark and looks amazing. More of the secondary shade of matt and metallic blue come to the fore and there's a slight bend to him, making him look like he's swimming. Or a banana. He can't do much in this mode, but does have a second lower jaw, separate to the one used in robot mode, so can open and close his mouth. It looks really great and gives me Seacon vibes.
Marks out of ten for the following:
Transformation Design: A very nicely designed figure, Hammerbyte did throw some 'where are we going with this?' moments with the way he splits at the waist to form the torso of the shark mode. There's something about the overall execution that I really enjoy and appreciate, and I think it doesn't extend much more beyond being pleased that we have a really great looking robot and beast mode. 8/10
Articulation: Due to the Rip Thrash gimmick, there's only movement in the arms and legs, so he isn't easy to put in dramatic poses. Its enough for playtime though, and gives him some energy. 5/10
Durability: Arms and legs are on massive ball joints and the plastics feel nice and tough. He's got a bit of weight too him as well, so I don't feel anything 's going to break. The spring loaded gimmick doesn't feel like it's going to wear down anytime soon and the plastics can take the strain. 9/10
Fun: Hammerbyte is brilliant fun. He's got an excellent robot mode and a cool looking shark mode. Add in the flip out hammerhead attack in robot mode for chomping on your enemies and you're onto a winner. Shame he doesn't haven't a weapon accessory, but at least you don't have to worry about losing it. 9/10
Price: £20. Which is hilariously steep for a figure that's only 5” tall, gimmick or not. I can't see this costing more than an Earthrise Deluxe (RRP £16.99), as it has a similar (if not smaller) parts count. I'm really scratching my head as to why the Cyberverse toys are so much more expensive than the 'serious' adult aimed Generations stuff. It's kind of off putting, and if I feel this way as an idiot collector with impulse buying tendencies, then how's that going to go down with parents? 3/10
Overall: Hammerbyte is a brilliant fun toy let down by a silly price point. 7/10
Bumblebee Cyberverse Adventures Rip Thrash Hammerbyte
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Bumblebee Cyberverse Adventures Rip Thrash Hammerbyte
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