Takara Dual Model Kit 01 Optimus Prime Video Review

I had totally forgeotten about this until I checked my sub box on youtube and saw this very review..I had also forgotten about how much this is which I think is why I forgot aboutit in the first place..It does look DAMN good though..Damn good...Just not sure if the price is worth the goodness though...

The only thing that's keeping me from buying this is the potential of loose joints. I only plan to display him and occasionally pose him differently, but the arms seem to be pretty heavy. Over time, his shoulder joints might not be able to support the weight of his own arms, let alone the swords.

Also, the way the sword peg snapped during the review isn't filling me with confidence about the kit's QC, either. The swirls on the gray plastic scares me, too; wouldn't want a case of GPS a few months down the road for such an expensive model kit.

I'M KILLIN' EVERYONE!



I will get this for sure. That sux that the sword broke in the middle of the vid, tho.

did you get bumblebee or will i have wait for my bumblebee to show up in mail to see what he is like?

hanks for showing wasnt expecting you to get this

He should have tinkered more with the kit before recording a review. I wanted to see some posing or at least more movement.

I'm going to repaint the inner frame and have ordered 1/100 robot kit hands that are sturdier.

SKYWARPED_128 wrote:The only thing that's keeping me from buying this is the potential of loose joints. I only plan to display him and occasionally pose him differently, but the arms seem to be pretty heavy. Over time, his shoulder joints might not be able to support the weight of his own arms, let alone the swords.

Also, the way the sword peg snapped during the review isn't filling me with confidence about the kit's QC, either. The swirls on the gray plastic scares me, too; wouldn't want a case of GPS a few months down the road for such an expensive model kit.

I have mine in hand. Fixing a loose joint would be seemingly easy. All the main body joints such as arms and legs are just simple and straight posts that plug into a socket. A touch of glue or clear nail polish would fix him right up pretty quick.

As for the plastic, it feels like any other model kit I've built. From Revell cars to Tamiya ships, it's a different feeling plastic then the figures we are used to. It's not really made for play as much as just assembly.

So far I am pretty happy with mine. Never built a robot before though.

I really had no idea the figure would be so large. Really looks nice. I don't feel like the price tag is justified though. BBTS has BB for $54.99 and Prime for $129.99. Is Prime really that much bigger and more detailed that he needs to be over twice the cost of Bee? Not in my opinion. They look great and I'd be all over them if they were cheaper. I'll gladly accept 2 pack Buster Prime as my end all, be all movie Prime.

Flux Convoy wrote:I really had no idea the figure would be so large. Really looks nice. I don't feel like the price tag is justified though. BBTS has BB for $54.99 and Prime for $129.99. Is Prime really that much bigger and more detailed that he needs to be over twice the cost of Bee? Not in my opinion. They look great and I'd be all over them if they were cheaper. I'll gladly accept 2 pack Buster Prime as my end all, be all movie Prime.

Trust me. I'm about a third of the way thru the build and the detail on Prime is astounding. There are parts under all his chest armor that can't even bee seen but are there regardless. It really just keeps building out from the frame, layering up to add bulk. It's fun too.

His feet have two heel pieces in the back, a pivot mid foot, two independent side "toes" or spurs, and two front toes. When you adjust all these, he has an incredibly balanced stance. Each of his fingers is fully articulated. His head alone is quite a few pieces, more then 10 I would say. He is nearly as tall as my Buster Prime and has an equal or better paint job.



Interestingly, at the point of construction that mine is at right now, he sort of looks like Megatron. If he had a bucket head and more silver armor on the arms, he could pass off as Megs from the first movie. Or at the very least, his protoform self.

I agree that he looks lovely and I watched the video too. I can certainly appreciate the work that goes into this figure. The details look great too. For me, it simply isn't worth the cost though. Not when I already have an absolutely fantastic version of movie Prime already. I'd go so far as to say he's stunning. Pair that with the fact that if I were so inclined to transform the one I have, I could. Like I said, if they were a bit cheaper, sure, I'd probably bite. Not as it is though. I can't justify it.

Dear Takara,

Being that my OP is nearly complete and how much fun I'm having building it - if you build them I will buy them.

An Ironhide kit like this would just be killer. Or a Sideswipe.

Flux Convoy wrote:I really had no idea the figure would be so large. Really looks nice. I don't feel like the price tag is justified though. BBTS has BB for $54.99 and Prime for $129.99. Is Prime really that much bigger and more detailed that he needs to be over twice the cost of Bee? Not in my opinion. They look great and I'd be all over them if they were cheaper. I'll gladly accept 2 pack Buster Prime as my end all, be all movie Prime.

I'm of the same mind in this. I don't have Buster OP, just the normal figure, and I think that the Leader OP from RotF is the best incarnation of the design thus far.

I do think that the Dual Model kit of OP has the edge in accuracy to the CG model but at the cost of no transformation functionality. RotF Leader OP actually benefits in my opinion from being put side-by-side with the DMK OP model. We can see how close the Leader OP figure is to the character design but also have the ability to transform into the alt mode.

As far as the cost, I also agree. As nice as the model kit looks, it doesn't seem to be superior with respect to engineering to the most advanced Gundam Master Grade model kits, which command a far lower price tag. I do think, though, that the DMK OP and BB kits are as expensive as they are simply because TakaraTomy can price them that high and expect people to buy the products. Look at MP Movie Starscream, which is $50 or so more expensive than the normal Leader class SS, but is nothing more than a repaint.

Convotron wrote:

Flux Convoy wrote:I really had no idea the figure would be so large. Really looks nice. I don't feel like the price tag is justified though. BBTS has BB for $54.99 and Prime for $129.99. Is Prime really that much bigger and more detailed that he needs to be over twice the cost of Bee? Not in my opinion. They look great and I'd be all over them if they were cheaper. I'll gladly accept 2 pack Buster Prime as my end all, be all movie Prime.

I'm of the same mind in this. I don't have Buster OP, just the normal figure, and I think that the Leader OP from RotF is the best incarnation of the design thus far.

I do think that the Dual Model kit of OP has the edge in accuracy to the CG model but at the cost of no transformation functionality. RotF Leader OP actually benefits in my opinion from being put side-by-side with the DMK OP model. We can see how close the Leader OP figure is to the character design but also have the ability to transform into the alt mode.

As far as the cost, I also agree. As nice as the model kit looks, it doesn't seem to be superior with respect to engineering to the most advanced Gundam Master Grade model kits, which command a far lower price tag. I do think, though, that the DMK OP and BB kits are as expensive as they are simply because TakaraTomy can price them that high and expect people to buy the products. Look at MP Movie Starscream, which is $50 or so more expensive than the normal Leader class SS, but is nothing more than a repaint.

Speaking of Buster...





I think this model takes nothing away from Buster actually. They seem to compliment each other. In fact I might display Buster in truck mode for awhile because this guy can step into his robot mode so well.

Don't mind the missing fists in the pic. I haven't finished the hands. And I'm working on his other chrome visor piece near his head.

Pontimax 01 wrote:

SKYWARPED_128 wrote:The only thing that's keeping me from buying this is the potential of loose joints. I only plan to display him and occasionally pose him differently, but the arms seem to be pretty heavy. Over time, his shoulder joints might not be able to support the weight of his own arms, let alone the swords.

Also, the way the sword peg snapped during the review isn't filling me with confidence about the kit's QC, either. The swirls on the gray plastic scares me, too; wouldn't want a case of GPS a few months down the road for such an expensive model kit.

I have mine in hand. Fixing a loose joint would be seemingly easy. All the main body joints such as arms and legs are just simple and straight posts that plug into a socket. A touch of glue or clear nail polish would fix him right up pretty quick.

As for the plastic, it feels like any other model kit I've built. From Revell cars to Tamiya ships, it's a different feeling plastic then the figures we are used to. It's not really made for play as much as just assembly.

So far I am pretty happy with mine. Never built a robot before though.

Cool. Thanks for the info, man.

I guess I'll buy him after all. Now if only a DMK Megatron and Shockwave were in the works, that'd really make my day.

SKYWARPED_128 wrote:

Pontimax 01 wrote:

SKYWARPED_128 wrote:The only thing that's keeping me from buying this is the potential of loose joints. I only plan to display him and occasionally pose him differently, but the arms seem to be pretty heavy. Over time, his shoulder joints might not be able to support the weight of his own arms, let alone the swords.

Also, the way the sword peg snapped during the review isn't filling me with confidence about the kit's QC, either. The swirls on the gray plastic scares me, too; wouldn't want a case of GPS a few months down the road for such an expensive model kit.

I have mine in hand. Fixing a loose joint would be seemingly easy. All the main body joints such as arms and legs are just simple and straight posts that plug into a socket. A touch of glue or clear nail polish would fix him right up pretty quick.

As for the plastic, it feels like any other model kit I've built. From Revell cars to Tamiya ships, it's a different feeling plastic then the figures we are used to. It's not really made for play as much as just assembly.

So far I am pretty happy with mine. Never built a robot before though.

Cool. Thanks for the info, man.

I guess I'll buy him after all. Now if only a DMK Megatron and Shockwave were in the works, that'd really make my day.

Oh yeah, Prime definitely needs a sparring partner!

Very impressive model kit. Reminds me of when I use to build Gundam Model kits with my son. Next to the Leader Class action figure, it doesn't appear nearly as amazing as it did buy itself, but impressive none the less.