Review: #662
Name: Optimus Primal
Brand: Transformers
Allegiance: Maximal
Line: Generations - War for Cybertron: Kingdom
Year of Release: 2020
Size Class: Voyager (Wave 1)
Mold Status: new
BEAST MODE:
Based on his appearance in the first season of Beast Wars, Optimus Primal transforms into a gorilla, with this take including sculpted fur, rather than a smooth surface like the show.
When on all fours, the robot parts are hidden fairly well. The robot feet is visible from the back of his hind legs though.
Even more so than the original toys, this is an acquired taste, the head sculpt is nowhere near close to the show.
In terms of size when he is on all fours, he is roughly the height of a Deluxe in robot mode, but naturally, he is much heftier.
The two swords can peg onto his back to store in this mode.
You can also flip the shoulder mounted cannons in gorilla mode as well.
However, that's not all you can have Optimus Primal stand upright on two legs.
He has a decent amount of articulation in this mode, since it uses the robot joints. However, the proportions are slightly off in that there bulges and protrusions where you don't expect them to bad.
This is a decent beast mode, the most puzzling element being the face sculpt.
TRANSFORMATION:
With over twenty years of engineering improvements, the basic concept of Optimus Primal's transformation has not changed at all. Straighten the hind legs to form the robot legs. The arm are the robot arms, with the upper biceps flipping up as shoulder pads. The beast face folds into the torso to reveal the robot head.
ROBOT MODE:
Robot mode is where Optimus Primal shines, and he looks absolutely stunning here.
There is some kibble, mainly the chunk of stuff on his back but otherwise it isn't too bad.
The head sculpt is equally fantastic, and is a direct replica of how he appeared in the show. It is nicely painted too with a blue face, silver face plate, and silver guns on the sides of his head.
Optimus Primal is on the shorter side of a Voyager, however, he has used up the Voyager price point by giving us a very solidly built figure. In an extreme rarity in contemporary figures, he has no hollow limbs at all.
He has shoulder mounted cannons, and they are an unpainted blue. Unfortunately, it's not easy to fold the shoulder cannons away as you need to partially untransform him first.
In terms of poseability, he has plenty of joints, including ones for his head, shoulders, elbows, wrist, waist, hips and ankles.
You have to watch up posing his legs, since his upper thighs / hips are painted white, which easily chips as they rub against the joint.
Optimus Primal also has his wrist mounted guns. You basically pull them out from the forearms.
He has the guns on both wrists.
That's not all for gimmicks though, since he also keeps the twin swords, which are painted silver.
The swords can store on his back in robot mode when not in use.
Otherwise he can hold the swords in either hand.
One thing that keeps striking you is despite his smaller size, he more than makes up for it with how much quality he exudes, from the plastic quality, the assembly and the plastic density.
The biggest flaw in this mode is the chest panel. It rotates from part of his torso and leaves a huge gap and not only that, but it does not lock into place so it easily dislodges. It's actually quite an annoyance.
Apart from the torso piece, which could have been so easily fixed, Optimus Primal has a fantastic and amazing robot mode.
OVERALL:
This is a good figure. If you have had an Optimus Primal figure before, there isn't anything new here since it pretty much just replicates those previous figures, complete with all the gimmicks. That isn't inherently wrong since this is still a solid figure and heaps of fun.
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