Review: #104
Name: Cliffjumper
Brand: Transformers
Allegiance: Autobot
Line: Prime - First Edition
Year of Release: 2011
Size Class: Deluxe (First Edition Wave 1.5)
Variations: it has been retooled into Terrorcon Cliffjumper (both TakaraTomy and Hasbro versions) and Generations (2012) Cliffjumper
VEHICLE MODE:
Cliffjumper transforms into an awesome red car, the horns in front are (sadly) made from soft plastic.
There's a lot of panel lines that's due to the way he transforms. The most noticeable ones would be on his bonnet and the massive one on the roof.
There's a decent amount of silver paint here, and a lot of sculpted detailing. He rolls, as you'd expect.
Interestingly, on the left side, there's a tiny Autobot symbol, however, on the right side, it's blank, even though the spot is there for it.
The detailing is very impressive, especially for the grill. The headlights are a transparent blue.
A rarity these days, the whole car is pretty much packed with Cliffjumper's robotic bits, making him seem less hollow and cheap.
The car's a bit smaller than normal Deluxes, but the mass feels alright, if just a tiny bit lighter than you would expect.
Being a First Edition toy, Cliffjumper comes with a stand.
Unlike Bumblebee, the car is small enough such that you can use the stand to display. A neat car that doesn't have any obtrusive gimmicks.
TRANSFORMATION:
The true standout of the figure. It is an engineering marvel, it's very intuitive and ingenious. The way the legs form are amazing and not what you would expect. The arms are slightly less interesting but still refreshing. I haven't transform a figure of this high standard in a very long while, it simple amazed me, the placement of parts, the ease, and the intuitiveness, made the transformation a very interesting process. It's like you would be there, fiddling with the pieces, learning and become pleasantly surprised when it did what it did. There's some good aspects here such as the headlights folding forward, and the fact that the car hood actually forms his back (and not on his back, as kibble).
ROBOT MODE:
From the waist up, this is a very show accurate robot mode, the legs however, aren't very accurate at all (there's nothing wrong with it, just that it's not the look you would come to expect).
Okay, to be fair, this isn't a terribly good looking robot, but I cannot stress this enough, Cliffjumper grows on you, he has a lot of subtle features that elevate him to one of the best toys ever produced.
The head sculpt is good, but just a bit busy around the eyes. The lightpiping does not work very well and his horns are made of soft plastic too, which sucks.
If you don't like the square chest, you can actually fold the two chest pieces a bit further and more angular, the headlights have grooves in them which holds the chest in place, personally, I prefer the more squarish look.
Cliffjumper has huge forearms, but the designer has found a good use for them...
You can flip the hands in for the tri-barreled gun seen in the show, painted silver, it's really awesome how he has inbuilt, integrated weaponry. A feature rarely seen in Transformers (mostly it's just this kind of weapon that is stored in their alternate mode).
While not very tall, Cliffjumper's quite bulky, he doesn't feel like the shrunken down Deluxes like Shockwave.
If truth be told, I don't feel as if Cliffjumper has any kibble at all. Sure, his shoulders look huge and awkward, but they're actually quite versatile and is a nice feature.
The poseability is excellent, even though his legs have all the right joints (hip balljoint, knee hinge and swivel and ankle balljoint), they feel awkward due to the placement (mainly just the knees though). Cliffjumper may keel over easily while trying to pose him.
Apart from the guns on each arm, there's no other gimmicks to speak of.
It's not really love at first sight, but it's a robot that slowly but surely, grows on you.
OVERALL:
What appeared to be an ordinary figure turned out to be stunning. I was seriously amazed and surprised at the quality of this figure, it is a fun toy. It focused on being a good Transformer first and foremost, and then added gimmicks, which enhanced the figure. If possible, everyone should give this (or at least, this mold) a try, it really is that good.
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