Wednesday, July 8, 2026

Toy Review: Transformers Generations Nemesis Prime (Armada)


Review: 
 #914
Name:  Nemesis Prime
Brand:  Transformers
Allegiance:  Autobot
Line:  Generations
Year of Release:  2025
Size Class:  N/A
Mold Status:  new

PACKAGING:



Nemesis Prime came exclusively with the Air Defense Mini-Con Team, and he came in a really nice half hexagonal shaped packaging.



On both sides are some really nice piece of artwork.  Perhaps the coolest part is that he is packaged holding Star Saber in a pretty cool manner, so that even if you don't open him, he still displays nicely.

VEHICLE MODE:


Nemesis is a retool of only the cab of Legacy Evolution Commander Optimus.  There is barely any tooling changes in vehicle mode, only that the roof is missing any insignia now.


It's not the best vehicle mode either, the back is much too long, and the truck itself is very wide, appearing too flat.  The proportions are off.


While original Commander size, that came with a trailer.  His size is in between a Voyager and a Leader.  Leaning more towards the latter as he is so hefty.


A comparison shot against the original mold, Nemesis Prime opts for a darker color scheme with minor teal highlights.


The robot gun can peg onto the back.


From the side, you can see how out of proportion he can be.  The truck bed is so long, and it's a byproduct of the super mode that the original design required.



He comes with the Air Defense Mini-Con Team, and a neat side effect of the long bed is that he can comfortably carry one of them.


If you have Commander Optimus, then Nemesis can still tow the trailer around.  Of course, the color schemes do not match, and there appears no intention of a Nemesis trailer.


It's a passable truck mode.  The proportions really let this mode down.

SUPER MODE:


A quick diversion, as while Nemesis doesn't officially have a Super Mode, given he is reusing the Commander Optimus mode, he can obviously still transforms into the upper torso.  And the designers kind of took this into account, given the head sculpt is still painted, as well as the arms and hands.  Although it's still drab overall.


He attaches to the trailer which forms the waist and legs.  Yeah, the color schemes clash but it's still pretty cool.


As mentioned, the head is still painted, with metallic silver and teal, which looks quick nice.


Sadly, the rest of the upper torso doesn't get the same treatment.  The arms are fine, but the shoulders and the torso are unpainted plastic, and looks so drab.


The painted raised part on the centre of his chest makes it worst, since there's no insignia there, even though it's clearly designed for one.  Not even a Decepticon insignia.


Consider it as a neat bonus mode.

TRANSFORMATION:

Nemesis Prime has a simple transformation into robot mode (it's more complicated going into Super Mode).  The rear splits into two to form the legs.  The sides unpeg from the sides to form the arms, split the hood to complete the shoulders.  Then fold the grill down to form the chest.

ROBOT MODE:


Nemesis Prime's robot mode clearly has way more effort than the other modes.  Who knew that adding grey can spice up the color scheme...


More teal also comes out as well, so that helps.  He carries a fair bit of kibble, especially around the waist as waist skirt armor.


The main retool is here, and that is his head sculpt.  It's a half destroyed / half formed damaged face, and it looks so demented that it suits the characters so well.  Although given the dark plastic used, it can be hard to make out the details.


Size-wise, he's around the height of a Voyager, but he feels so much more solid and hefty.  He feels less flimsy and a lot higher quality.



A comparison against the original Optimus, and also a shot with the three Mini-Cons in the set.


His chest opens up to reveal his version of the Matrix, which is gold.


Articulation is good, he has joints for his head, shoulders, elbows, wrists, waist, hips, knees and ankles.  That's a lot of joints!


He comes with a huge gun.


The reason it's so big is that it's mostly designed for Super Mode.  It's better than no weapon at all.


You can also pretend and pose him in such a way that the smokestacks on his wrists act as wrist cannons.


Those smokestacks can be detached and pegged onto either side of the cannon for an even bigger gun.


Given the original mold was designed for combination into Super Mode, Nemesis actually has really strong ratchets for his hips and knees.  They're much too strong.


And finally, of course, there's one more weapon for him to use, and that is Star Saber.


Thanks to his strong hinges, Nemesis can easily take on the weight of three Mini-Cons in one hand and still hold it however he wants.


The sword may be a little bit big for him in terms of scale, but it adds to the charm and actually looks quite good.



The shoulders may look bulky, but given how they're jointed, they easily lift outwards, and gives plenty of movements.



The addition of grey and more teal to the color scheme really helps break up the drabness, so that he doesn't look as boring now as he did in vehicle mode.


A decent robot mode, and one that's much stronger than vehicle mode.

OVERALL:


Nemesis Prime is a solid figure.  Granted, the vehicle mode is compromised for Super Mode, which is a shame given that the figure doesn't officially acknowledge the Super Mode (at least that the head is painted enough so it doesn't look weird).  Robot mode is where he's at, and it's a good mode.  Coupled with the inclusion of Star Saber which is a pretty decent update and figure in its own right, and this is a nice set to get (although Star Saber is definitely the star of this multi-pack).

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For other Transformers reviews, have a look at this page and this page.

(As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases)

Sunday, July 5, 2026

Toy Review: Transformers Generations Air Defense Mini-Con Team


Review: 
 #913
Name:  Air Defense Mini-Con Team (Runway, Jetstorm, Sonar)
Brand:  Transformers
Allegiance:  Autobot
Line:  Generations
Year of Release:  2025
Size Class:  Mini-Con
Mold Status:  new

AIR DEFENSE MINI-CON TEAM:


A brand new take on the Air Defense Mini-Con team, which is a nice surprise.


These are new renditions of Runway, Jetstorm and Sonar, who each have their own alternate and robot modes, as well as being able to combine into Star Saber.


Unfortunately, they only come in a set along with Nemesis Prime, making them a pricey addition if you only want Star Saber.

RUNWAY (JET MODE):


Runway transforms into a jet, with noticeable undercarriage kibble.


The legs stick out from underneath the nose, while the arms stick out from the wings.  It's a bit more forgiving here given the small size.


These are proper Mini-Con size, so they're much smaller than most figures.


He's predominantly white with a splash of grey, so can look too monochromatic compared to his teammates.

RUNWAY (TRANSFORMATION):

He's very easy to transform, you pretty much need to fold the jet cockpit back.  Split the legs and the arms and you're done.

RUNWAY (ROBOT MODE):


Runway's robot mode is somewhat chubby thanks to the bigger wider torso.


He has a lot of kibble on his back though, as it's one-third of the jet mode there.


He's even smaller in robot mode, but for such a small figure, he has some decent sculpted detailing.


From the side, you can see just how much his backpack (and even his torso) protrudes from the main body.  It's a good thing that he has decent balance.


Articulation is good for such a small figure, with joints for his head, shoulders, elbows, hips and knees.


A solid robot mode and figure overall.

JETSTORM (JET MODE):


Next up is Jetstorm, who transforms into a Concorde-like jet.


While he still has a lot of undercarriage kibble, it doesn't seem as bad here given that it doesn't stick out underneath the cockpit.


The blue on white looks fresh and pops out in person.


A nice little jet mode.

JETSTORM (TRANSFORMATION):

Again, very simple, and somewhat reminiscent of Runway, however he is more complicated.  The cockpits folds to his back, while the tailfin folds around his head to form the torso.  Apparently this piece is somewhat fragile and can break if too much force it put onto it if something get caught.  Otherwise, straighten the legs and you'll have him in robot mode.

JETSTORM (ROBOT MODE):


Jetstorm's robot mode looks good, there's a lot more grey that comes out, so that blue chest is really helpful in contrasting the drabber colors.


He still wears most of the jet mode on his back, but they're slimmer pieces so it isn't as bad as Runway.


He's tiny in robot mode, as you'd expect.


From the side, you can see that there are pieces protruding from the front and back.  He has big heelspurs to keep his balance.


He has the same articulation as the rest of the set, which is joints for his head, shoulders, elbows, hips and knees.


He can pull off some good poses, but he'll always be finnicky due to the smaller size.  It's still a great little figure though.

SONAR (JET MODE):


Lastly, we have Sonar, who transforms into a wider shuttle, and it brings a nice difference compared to the other two.


The only negative here is the 5mm peg / handle that sticks out the back, otherwise, this is a really nice jet mode.


Thanks to the wider body, Sonar also doesn't appear to be as small as the other two.


A nice little figure.

SONAR (TRANSFORMATION):

Transformation is semi-complex for such a small figure.  The front half splits into two to form the legs and feet.  While the sides unfold to become the arms.  Flip the handle back to also reveal the head.

SONAR (ROBOT MODE):


Robot mode brings a bit more blue, especially in his legs.


The wings acting as shoulder pads look great, and gives him a more imposing silhouette.


Due to the wider stance, he also doesn't appear as small either.


He's the only figure of the trio without any kibble on the front or back, which is quite impressive.


Articulation is the same as the others, joints for his head, shoulders, elbows, hips and knees.


A cool little figure that looks more dynamic than the others.

STAR SABER:


And of course, the star of the show is the ability to form Star Saber, just like the original.  For Runway and Jetstorm, all they need to do is be in jet mode with the nosecone folded back.  While Sonar is more involved, including a bit of a confusing contortion for his arms to get it into hilt mode.


To form the blade, Runway connects to Jetstorm, who then pegs into Sonar.  There are multiple pegs used, and the end result is a really solid piece that doesn't come apart easily.


It's in a vague sword shape (unlike the cartoon which cheated and just morphed it into a shining blue blade).  The underside reveals all the robot parts, so it is not really designed to look good from that side.


In Star Saber form, it's now roughly the size of a Deluxe, which is pretty decent.


A shot from the side shows that this is pretty thick for a sword, but given what the individual components have to do, it's very forgivable.


Star Saber has a regular 5mm post to be able to be held by other toys.  He pairs well with the other Armada updates we've been getting over the past few years.


Even though it looks big, and made from three Mini-Cons, most larger figures are able to hold it without sagging.


The size pairs better with figures that are Leader sized or above, otherwise, it's a bit too out of proportion for Deluxes and even some Voyagers.


When posing, you'll probably want to strategically angle the sword so only the smoother better looking side is facing you, as otherwise it'll look like a mess (and be harder to tell that it is a sword).


The set comes with Nemesis Prime, who at least is bulky enough to look okay with the sword.


Even though there are no story connections between Nemesis Prime and Star Saber, the pairing could have been worse.

OVERALL:

The new Air Defense Mini-Con Team is a nice set, and is a good update to the original figures (which of course are harder and harder to come by at a decent price now).  Granted, you're forced to buy Nemesis Prime, but at least that is a good-ish repaint.  Star Saber itself is really cool, and if you like the concept, then the price is still worth it.

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For other Transformers reviews, have a look at this page and this page.

(As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases)
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