Review: #76
Name: Cliffjumper
Brand: Transformers
Allegiance: Autobot
Line: Prime
Year of Release: 2012
Size Class: Legion (Wave 1)
Variations: none as of yet
VEHICLE MODE:
This new Cyberverse Legion figure transforms into the muscle car as seen in the cartoon. At this scale, it's surprisingly that the proportions are pretty accurate and he features all of the defining details that make this car distinctive.
I think the best thing is that they didn't skimp of paint applications. He has an abundance of silver, from the grill to the hood to the rear, they're all painted, as well as all four weapons.
There's some transformation joints, but they all seem to no stick out like sore thumbs. Cliffjumper fits together fairly well here, the only thing is that the door are not pegged into place, so they can occasionally dislodge.
Perhaps the major flaw here is his size and mass. Sure, the bigger toys have been downscaling, but even legions toys are having this noticeable reduction in size. Around the same if not worse than most of the DOTM legions (where this downscaling started to become obvious). Cliffjumper feels small and tiny, it might not be noticeable in photos, but when you've got him in your hand, you think, man, pretty soon it'll be reduced to minicon size.
He comes with some transparent plastic weapons. There's three peg holes where you can plug this weapon, the first one is on the roof, and I guess it looks okay there...
The two other places are just on either side of the car. I don't know why you would put it there, because it doesn't look good and then fact that the weapon doesn't seem to have been designed to fit there in the first place.
However, I still can't get over the fact that I love this car mode, something about it just appeals to me. It's executed really well here, and obviously, Cliffjumper can roll, and he does roll really well. A brilliant car mode, there are no flaws here except for it's tiny size.
TRANSFORMATION:
The transformation, where should I start? This is one of the highlights of this figure, and one of the best things going for Cliffjumper. The transformation is just so... different and interesting. Easily the most complex transformation for a legends/legion figure yet, you do not expect that it does what it does. It's very hard to understand without having a try yourself. I usually don't talk much about the actual steps of a transformation (coz that's a really boring read) but for Cliffjumper, I'm going to make a tiny exception. Anyway, the legs flip out of the back, which is what you'd expect, but then the arms are folded in ingenious into the hood, and they way you get it out, is so simple yet so elegant. Then comes another twist, you fold the torso from the bottom of the car up to the roof, so he doesn't even have a false chest!! It's amazing, and I am very very impressed by it. However, the tiny size does go against Cliffjumper, since his limbs are fairly small.
ROBOT MODE:
After such a fun transformation, your reward doesn't end there, you get an awesome robot mode to boot. This is an excellent Cliffjumper, a bit block at an initial's glance, but that's only due to the hood forming huge shoulder pads, but overall, Cliffjumper is very well proportioned and he has grown on me, a lot.
He features no kibble, and has a very clean design. I even find the huge shoulder pads to be a highlight. The only aesthetics problem I have is the flat feet. They're actually the doors, and isn't a flat piece of plastic, but because of the way it's molded, it has the side mirrors and side exhausts sticking out so the pieces lay flat on a surface.
The paint applications continue to be a highlight here. All of the paint from vehicle mode carries over in the robot, and he has extra silver application on the head and forearms, which break up the red in a good way.
The head is tiny, since he has a bulky lower body, it emphasizes this fact. What's cool is that they bothered painting his eyes blue. The sculpt is also very show accurate.
Once again, the size kills him. He still feels tiny, and it's only because DOTM Bumblebee itself is such a tiny figure that Cliffjumper doesn't seem that small in the comparison photo above.
It's a bit hard to see here but if you look closely, the black piece has some really nice detailing that basically mimics that of the bigger First Edition Deluxe counterpart which is quite snazzy.
Taking a closer look at the weapon, it supposed to be a blade, and it's actually the same one as Legion Ratchet's. You can supposedly hold it like a rifle or a bayonet, but it doesn't really work. It's made of soft translucent red plastic, but it's hard enough so that it won't warp much in the heat.
Cliffjumper has the two peg holes from the side of the car on the outside of his legs (the one on the roof is inaccessible here now), and you can plug the weapon there if you wish as a way to store it, but I find that it doesn't work all that way.
Articulation is excellent, one of the best in Legion's size. Honestly, the only thing Cliffjumper is missing is a neck joint. He has everything else, knees, ankle, elbow, shoulders and hips (okay, maybe no waist but that's not really a necessity), and except the knees, they're all balljoints!!! This is way above and beyond what you would expect.
The knees are lower than you would expect (since they're transformation joints),and the hips are really restricted in that you can move the leg forward a few mm. The shoulders don't lock into place so they will dislodge while posing him.
I really like that they included a weapon, coz it makes the figure a whole lot more fun to play with.
A great robot mode, he is poseable, and looks great. There are heaps of paint detailing here, and the molding is excellent, just like the vehicle mode, no real flaws apart from being small.
OVERALL:
Okay, if you thought his vehicle was good, or if his robot was awesome, then that's cool, but when even the transformation is a wonder, you have a great figure in your hands. This is one of those rare figures where he's perfect in all three major elements (vehicle, robot and transformation in case you haven't been following), and at such a small scale too. He's well worth the price asked, even though plastic mass wise, it's not as much as previous lines. A highly recommended figure, and you should definitely get your hands on him.
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