So last week, I finally won a Voyager Movie Prime on Ebay. Met up with the seller last Friday, and opened up my new Transformer over lunch.
Some background first...
Before the movie came out, pics of prototype toys started circulating. One of the early pics were of Voyager Movie Prime. Simply put, it was awesome. The proportions, the stance, the weapons, all looked badass. Then, the leader class prototype pic came out, and... well, yeah, I still preferred the Voyager class.
Then Robo Vision Prime appeared, and, sorry to RVOP fans, I was disappointed. I'm not a fan of the bright colors. Plus, with its price almost the same as a Classics Optimus Prime, I opted for the latter.
A few months ago, I saw this custom Voyager Movie Prime here in the forums-
http://seibertron.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=17438&sid=Needless to say, my interest was reignited. A good paint job brought out the best in this casting, and man, was I very excited to get my own!
And so started the research.
Last Friday, after I got this item, I dropped by Landmark to compare Prime's scale. I was planning on customizing a trailer for the truck mode. And yeah, this toy is scaled. At around 1/43. Leader Class, i think, would be 1/32.
TRUCK MODE
Voyager Movie Prime is packaged in Truck mode. The truck looks solid. The truck mode looks good. The headlights even have good light piping! The gimmicks are cool, but from the box, the perennial problems with movie alt modes are still present.
Gaps are still present, and some parts won't lock into place, particularly Prime's legs which form the rear portion of the cabin. This is pretty frustrating as you can't have a solid truck mode rolling.
I'd also like to add that not all wheels touch the ground.
I do love the truck mode's gimmick:
Now you see Peter Cullen...
Now you don't...
I also love the badass attack mode:
Feeling lucky, punk?The truck mode could have been a lot of fun exceot for the fitting issues. The spring-loaded missile guns also present a problem. They keep on firing whenever I force fit the truck parts together.
Also, truck mode does not have a provision for a trailer.
ROBOT MODE
The fun begins. Transforming Prime from truck to robot is a pretty straightforward process. The confusing parts would be the legs (where the automorph is) and the arms.
In robot mode, Prime looks better. One, because the proportions are pretty good. And despite the flack that people say about his "backpack," well, I say it works. I'm not disturbed or bothered with it, and yes, it works. Two, the flames are nowhere to be seen, thank Primus. And three, the colors are subdued, which is a plus for me.
To tell you the truth, I was planning on giving this Prime a complete repaint and a headswap, but seeing this in robot mode, the design completely grew on me.
I'm thinking twice about that repaint job, but the head will now stay. My issue with the movie Prime head design is that it looks too "sad" and "old." For some reason, Voyager Prime's head design does not evoke "sad" or "old" even though it is still essentially the same.
The weapons are awesome. Double shotguns? YES!
Another thing I love about this Prime is the articulation. The arms have good articulation. The leg articulation is decent enough, not as good as Classic Prime, but still limber enough for cool poses. The great light piping in the head also adds another dimension to the poses.
Here's why the backpack works for me. Combined with the rifle/shotgun weapon, Prime looks like a battle-ready soldier more than a leader. That's not a bad thing, really.
Even when standing alone, Prime has this no-nonsense stance going on.
And of course, the weapons. The only gripe I have with this shotgun would be the spring-loaded action, which is more of an annoyance.
And yeah, for the peace-loving pacifists, you can also pose Prime like this...
Roses are red, violets are blue... Optimus Prime shares his love to you...ROBOT OR TRUCK MODE?
Robot, definitely. In robot mode, Prime looks and feels solid, and the backpack works with the overall whoopass look. Good proportions, good articulation, very good poseability. And yeah, despite looking top-heavy because of the backpack, it's pretty stable and can support good poses.
PROS
- Good proportion in both modes
- solid robot mode
- stable legs that can hold good poses
- good poseability and articulation
- good subdued stock colors in robot mode
- awesome weapons
- Peter Cullen gimmick is cool
- working light piping
- automorph does not interfere with the transformation
CONS
- some loose parts (shoulder pads)
- rear portion of cab won't lock into place
- truck mode is not as solid as it looks
- would benefit from a bit more detailing
- spring-loaded missile action is really an annoyance
RATING
4 out of 5
I freaking love this toy. Shame about the truck mode, but the robot mode more than compensates for this. Yes, this from a guy who's not really a fan of the movie designs. Get one if you have the chance.
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