Review: #292
Name: Swindle
Brand: Transformers
Allegiance: Decepticon
Line: Generations - Combiner Wars
Year of Release: 2015
Size Class: Deluxe (Wave 5)
Mold Status: heavy remold of Combiner Wars Rook
COMIC:
Swindle comes with Robots in Disguise #10,
an issue that came with the Wave 2 re-release of Dragstrip. It begins with Megatron, to the brink of
having his spark extinguished, returning to the city. Bumblebee wants to finish him off but the
crowd says otherwise. Decepticons are
starting to revolt, and Starscream cannot control them, as much as his wants
to. The ending appearance of Prowl is
supposed to be badass and the art looks good.
A decent issue but the story remains complex and hard to follow.
VEHICLE MODE:
Swindle transforms into a heavily armored jeep, this is obviously a military vehicle. The sculpting is insane, there are a crazy amount of detailing here, it is very impressive.
The back of the vehicle isn't as good due to the blockiness made from the robot mode shoulders. The main play value in this mold is the rolling wheels (which is a standard nowadays).
A quick size comparison he is a decent size. The only negative in this mode is the exposed hands in the driver compartment. It is distracting and makes it less realistic.
Perhaps the most surprising feature of this is that Swindle is a remold of Rook. A lot of people initially thought Brawl would be the remold of Rook. Still, the designers have done a fantastic job here and Swindle looks like a completely different toy.
The robot gun attaches to the top of the vehicle and it is recommended in the instructions to be left on like this.
The combiner piece can also attach to the back ports as a sort of anti-aircraft cannon.
While he has his flaws, Swindle has a strong vehicle mode.
TRANSFORMATION:
Swindle transforms exactly the same as Rook, his arms just fold out to the side, the top and the hood of the jeep is a panel which sits behind the robot's back. The front splits into his legs. It is simple and effective.
ROBOT MODE:
Swindle's robot mode is faithful to his original G1 incarnation, especially the chest area.
He carries part of the jeep on his back but it is light and sits close to his body that it does not create any problems at all.
The headsculpt is fantastic and one of the best in the Combiner Wars line. The shade of purple used for his eyes are perfect.
A quick size comparison with another Deluxe, he is pretty much on par in terms of height but has the added benefit of looking stocky.
It is more obvious in robot mode how he is a remold of Rook.
Articulation is excellent, he has the plus of adjustable ankles. The kibble on the underside of his forearms is passable.
The level of detailing remains impressive in robot mode, although the shin details are a little bit weird, especially since the hollow features doesn't suit the stockiness of the figure.
His first weapon is a three-barrel Gatling gun. Surprisingly they left the handle unpainted (which is not an issue since the paint will only be scraped off with repeated use).
Swindle can hole the weapon in either hand and can pull off some good poses.
The shade used for this figure seems to be a little bit off, if it was a bit darker it would have looked better.
Swindle's other weapon is the combiner piece, which is a double barreled gun.
This means Swindle can be placed in some wicked dual-wielding poses.
You may also attach the combiner piece on his shoulder as a type of shield.
Swindle's robot mode is impressive, the poseability and sturdiness gives him a lot of play value.
OVERALL:
Despite behind a remold with extremely similar engineering as Rook, Swindle wins out as being the best and funnest figure of the Combaticons. Both of his modes look amazing, with insane amounts of sculpted detailing. He is fun to transform and pose, he looks fantastic and there are hardly any flaws. Definitely highly recommended even if you don't intend to form Bruticus.
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For reviews of the rest of the Combaticons, have a look at this page.
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Being in the Combiner Wars line, naturally Swindle can combine with other bots. His natural subgroup is the Combaticons who combine to form Bruticus.
Swindle usually forms the left leg and leg mode is pretty much the jeep with the front folded back. It looks pretty good though.
The wideness of the leg mode means that the combiner piece acting as his foot can seem a little bit small but otherwise he looks fantastic.
Swindle's arm mode has a thick forearm and that's about the only negative here.
He looks pretty decent as an arm but only if you pair it up with another thick-ish arm. That's it for now, stay turned for the actual Bruticus review!