Review: #401
Name: Jolt
Brand: Transformers
Allegiance: Autobot
Line: Movie Advanced
Year of Release: 2014
Size Class: Deluxe
Mold Status: redeco of Dark of the Moon Jolt
VEHICLE MODE:
Jolt transforms into a Chevy Volt, with a carbon-fibre roof. This is a redeco of DOTM Jolt but in ROTF colors, which is frankly, much better.
The sculpting is great although the rear panels doesn't sit flush with each other which ruins the look a little bit.
This mold was during the era where the sizes of toys were reduced, so Jolt's quite comparable with contemporary Deluxes, above is a comparison against TLK Barricade.
You might notice there are two blue circles on the roof against the black, these are spring-loaded pegholes to plug the weapons to, which in this case, are Jolt's electro-whips.
This is a unique vehicle design that looks great. His play value is limited to his rolling wheels.
A strong vehicle mode in a much better color scheme than the original use of this mold.
TRANSFORMATION:
Transformation is probably one of Jolt's weakest aspect. The robot legs, which formed from the rear of the vehicle, are not intuitive and fiddly, especially when going back in to vehicle mode. The arms have weird jointing that makes it confusing to also go back to vehicle mode.
ROBOT MODE:
Jolt's design from ROTF is pretty good and this robot mode replicates most of it, the biggest difference is using the vehicle hood for his feet.
He features panels made from the vehicle's sides and roof as his rear wings and it works wonderfully here, looking quite awesome.
The headsculpt is average, while it has the sculpting that you'd expect from a Movie toy, it's not terribly great.
Jolt is fairly tall in robot mode but that's also because he is standing on his tippy toes.
Articulation is Jolt's downfall. His elbows have an unusual system of joints. It's actually on an angled swivel only, so you can't bend the elbow. However, but it is angled, you can swivel it to the point that it gives the illusion of him bending his elbows. It's terrible and annoying to get just right for the pose you wanted.
The other negative is his feet which is equally terrible. It is unstable and takes a lot of fiddling around in order to get him to even stand flat on the table.
The original mold had a gigantic gun, this release removes that in favour of giving Jolt his electro-whips instead.
These whips peg onto the underside of each arm and are slightly curved, so they look fantastic and dynamic.
Note that his hips are cast from transparent clear plastic which is a recipe for disaster and more likely than not, you'll encounter problems with it such as looseness or cracks.
The knees are double jointed but like the rest of the figure, it feels experimental as it doesn't work as nicely as you'd expect.
While a good robot mode for display, Jolt is terrible for play and posing, feeling very fragile and fiddly.
OVERALL:
While this is the best version of Jolt that we've ever gotten and probably will ever get for a minor character, the mold is filled with flaws. The elbow and feet design are terrible and the transformation clumsy, this toy is only recommended if you like the character since the new weapons are pretty neat.
------------------------------------------------
For other Transformers reviews, have a look at this page.
