Review: #751
Name: Optimus Prime
Brand: Transformers
Allegiance: Autobot
Line: Masterpiece
Year of Release: 2021
Size Class: N/A
Mold Status: new
PACKAGING:
The twelfth figure in the Masterpiece Movie line is Optimus Prime, in his guise from the Bumblebee movie.
Like with the rest of the line, he comes in a fancier black box.
VEHICLE MODE:
Optimus transforms into an unlicensed cab-over truck, similar to his G1 incarnation. One particular thing that's disappointing about his mode are the "cat ears" where his smokestacks are. They're the shoulder pieces and the designer unfortunately couldn't find enough budget or time or whatever, to make it fold out of sight. Once you see, it's hard to unsee.
Otherwise, this is a pretty decent truck mode... from the front. The back is surprisingly messy for a Masterpiece figure, with details from his robot legs in full view. The fact that it's not flat, nor attempts to be, makes it look much messier.
In terms of size, Optimus is approximately the size of an older Leader classed figure, so he is definitely quite sizable.
There's no major gimmick in this mode. He rolls on a flat surface and that's kind of it.
Of course, the draw is the detailing in this morning, and he does look really impressive. The fuel tanks on either side are die-cast metal, adding some heft to the figure, but not by much.
The robot gun can fold up and store behind the cab, while it is nice to have a storage space, it does make it look even messier though.
A decent vehicle mode, but somewhat disappointing for a Masterpiece figure. It's like they spent a lot of effort in making the cab okay, but then gave up with the back half of the truck.
TRANSFORMATION:
As expected, Optimus Prime is complex but not unmanageable. There are some clever ideas and on the whole it works out well. The back of the truck is the easiest, since it forms the legs, so you just need to split it, manipulate a few pieces, fold down the shins and then you're pretty much done. The cab is more complex, with a lot of panelling that folds up on his arms and back. Perhaps the most impressive part is how it uses the front as a solid piece to fold onto his back, not only helping to hold everything together but also adding some nicely sculpted detailing.
ROBOT MODE:
Of course, as is generally the case with Transformers, the robot mode is where it shines and boy, does Optimus shine in this morning.
He looks incredibly impressive here and is brimming with sculpted detailing, and this pretty much makes up for all the flaws of vehicle mode. You can tell that the vehicle mode was compromised in order to make the robot mode as amazing as it is.
Starting off with the head sculpt, it looks great. He doesn't have a face gimmick though, there's no moving face plate, or even a removeable face plate.
With a comparison against the best previous Bumblebee inspired Optimus, and MPM-12 wins hands down with no contest.
While in terms of size in robot mode, Optimus is impressively big, above is a comparison against a previous Leader sized figure. The only negative is that Optimus feels a tad bit lighter than you'd expect for something his size, making him feel a bit less premium.
And as a shot from the side shows, he doesn't really have any sort of kibble, which makes it even more impressive.
His hands has articulated fingers, and of course, wrist swivels.
As mentioned, the figure is brimming with sculpted detailing. He has a silver wash to a lot of his mechanic parts, creating a nice gunmetal look.
Furthermore, the designer tried to give us an accurate back as well, with sculpting on the back panel that's even painted, not too shabby.
In terms of articulation, Optimus has joints for his head, shoulders, elbows, wrists, waist, hips, knees and ankles. So basically, the whole lot.
There are two major gimmicks in this mode, the first is that the chest opens up to reveal a more G1 inspired Matrix of Leadership.
The Matrix can be taken out, although it's a bit difficult, even with fingernails.
Thanks to Optimus's articulated hands, he is able to hold the Matrix in his hands.
The other gimmick is the gun. In vehicle mode it is folded up, but it will unfold into a large gun.
Optimus can hold the gun in either hand, and it's a nice size for him.
The gun can store by pegging behind his waist while it is folded up.
The die-cast metal is near his feet, so it helps create a lower centre of gravity, although having die-cast for his feet instead, like the other MPM figures, would have been better.
The hip ratchets are also spaced too far apart, so he doesn't have a natural "A" stance, his legs are either perpendicular to the surface, or they're spread very far apart.
Optimus feels chunky in your hands, which helps in creating a figure that's fun to pose, and fiddle around with, as opposed to something you'd just transform and then leave alone.
The detailing is quite accurate to the on screen model, but of course, there are some proportion mismatches given this is an actual real toy that has to transform.
This is a fantastic robot mode, and one that was worth the weaker vehicle mode.
OVERALL:
Optimus Prime is a fantastic figure. The vehicle at first may be underwhelming given the messy back, however, the robot mode more than makes up for it. It looks amazing, filled with sculpted detailing and plenty of paint applications, to really help make the figure look more premium. It's worth the higher asking price as it is just a nice figure to own and handle.
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