Review: #487
Name: Bumblebee
Brand: Transformers
Allegiance: Autobot
Line: Generations - Studio Series
Year of Release: 2018
Size Class: Deluxe (Wave 3)
Mold Status: new
VEHICLE MODE:
Bumblebee is a brand new mold based off his appearance in the Bumblebee movie. He transforms into the classic yellow 1967 Volkswagen Beetle.
This is a fantastic vehicle mode and look so good. The yellow is all painted on and has a nice creamy rich texture to it.
Size-wise, he is a tad bit smaller than other Deluxe classed toys.
That being said, when you look underneath, you'll notice that it's packed. A neat thing is the three additional accessories for robot mode all store underneath.
Unfortunately, there are no other gimmicks in this mode. Getting all the pieces to fit together can be a nightmare as the tolerances are tight.
Once you manage to get it to stay together then this is a fantastic vehicle mode.
TRANSFORMATION:
The transformation is one of the best parts of the figure. It is a good blend of simplicity and complexity. Granted, most of the vehicle is a shell that ends up on his back but it was a fun process. The pieces for his legs are a bit awkward though. The scariest part is forcing the roof pieces into the groove on his back as it requires the plastic to bend a bit...
ROBOT MODE:
Bumblebee's robot mode looks great, although the shins are a tad bit too big to look natural.
He carries most of the vehicle on his back but they are very compact.
The headsculpt is your typical Bumblebee head, we've seen it so many times that there's really not much to say about it.
So once again, Bumblebee is a tiny figure, other Deluxe figures absolutely tower over him.
He shares the title with Studio Series Jazz for being one of the smallest (if not the smallest) Deluxe figures ever. However, Bumblebee has a tinge bit more heft and complexity to him that he doesn't feel like the rip-off that Jazz was.
As part of the Studio Series line, he comes with a cardboard backdrop.
The backdrop this time around is based off the garage from the Bumblebee movie.
Bumblebee's articulation is good and stock standard for a Deluxe nowadays.
His legs are a bit weird though, particularly since he lacks ankle articulation so getting him to stand flat on the table is not always possible.
Bumblebee comes with three accessories, a battle mask, a blade and an arm cannon.
The blade clips on to the outside of his forearm, no problems there.
The mask is harder to utilize since you need to pull the face off. This wouldn't have been a big problem if not for the fact that the head is small (and so the amount of surface area to grip the face is small) and that it's on pretty tight. Once you get the mask on though, it's wickedly awesome.
Lastly, to attach the arm cannon is similar to how The Last Knight's Bumblebee was, you need to pull the arm off and replace it. This is not ideal to say the least...
When not in use, the various pieces can attach to his back in different spots.
The design of this version of Bumblebee is cool in the fact that despite the different vehicle mode, it shares a lot of common design elements with the original Camaro version.
A surprisingly good figure.
OVERALL:
Yes, Bumblebee is small. However, in this case, the engineering and and complexity of the figure helps to offset that. Both modes are great, although the transformation leaves some to be desired. While you may already have plenty of Bumblebee figures, this figure is definitely recommended.
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