That's what this toy suffers most of. It's based on the same movie Bumblebee transformation we have gotten since The Last Knight (TLK). Meaning, the car roof folds up and gets stuffed into the torso, the arms with no wrist swivels are tucked at the base of the car, you get that back window flip for the double wings, the middle of the car hood is separated from the sides and under it is a fake kibble piece for a more accurate chest and the legs unfold through a series of 90 degree pivots with the feet doing a full 180. These are all ok steps to go from a good looking car to a decent looking robot but they are all steps we did before. And the fact that it's the same steps results in robot modes that look about the same from one toy to the next, as you can see below.
I will repeat, none of that makes this a bad toy, it just makes for a boring experience. If this is your first movie Bumblebee toy, then you will probably be satisfied. What is frustrating is that this toy only comes with the battle mask, meaning that if you want a Bumblebee toy looking closer to his movie one appearance where all the Autobots meet up the first time with Sam, then you are gonna fork out some money again for another incremental change.
The car mode is fine. It's apparently not a perfectly accurate alt mode, but I can't tell. I have it compared to the alt mode his first movie toy had, which is said to be a perfect representation in car mode. Looks fine to me though. I will say that I much prefer how the car mode tabs together than other Bumblebee toys with this transformation, like the one from TLK or the one from the Bumblebee movie.
The robot mode looks great but I would have really liked to have a normal face, it feels a shady not to include it. While the transformation is a rinse repeat of other toys, design wise this does make it the first Bumblebee with that now iconic Camaro alt mode to have those extra little wings in the back, along with a very nice looking chest and even those small clavicle-like details next to his neck (pretty sure those are supposed to be his mirrors). I would have loved them to paint those yellow though. I mean it would go a long way and highlight the novelty to the sculpting. His robot mode is the best looking transforming deluxe representation of this Bumblebee design.
He has an arm cannon accessory which covers his hands. It feels really cheap though since it's just all in black and clashes with the rest of the deco. I mean for a line that is all about movie accuracy, the sole accessory to come with the figure looking like this is a bit lame. In terms of articulation, while he is missing some (like wrist swivels), there is a transformation joint on the leg that you can use to make up for a lack of ankle pivot.
The best thing I can say about this figure is that nothing falls apart, it tabs in as it should, nothing feels too loose and you can pose him with little issue. While this should all be a given for a toy of passable quality, it's almost a miracle for a movie Bumblebee toy of recent years. Still I'd wish for more articulation because right now even Cyberverse has surpassed Studio Series in terms of articulation for the deluxe class. Also I would have liked that additional face and some kind of effort for the cannon's deco.
Pre order is cancelled, I’ll be waiting for a sale or discount. I can’t justify full price for that.
Still gonna get him for my movie bumblebee "timeline" display.
