Customer Reviews

Transformers: Optimus Prime "Super Base" Action Figure

5 star:		(37)
4 star:		(19)
3 star:		(10)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(10)

 

 

Ok, let see, I opened my Optimus Prime and looked for positives and negatives right away.
The POSITIVES- This Optimus prime is huge! He comes in the biggest box we have seen in a while and has a great look as a semi truck. The first transform into the regular robot and battle station is cool. The figure is the first to feature a moving mouth plate even though on this incarnation of Transformers cartoon he dosent move it. The figure is very close to the same idea of the original optimus prime and the smoke stacks becoming a gun is a innovative idea. The base transforming on its own is fun to watch and its very functional with a great deal of room for lots of Mini-cons. The sound effects are interesting and his Mini-con Sparkplug is the coolest so far.

The NEGATIVES-The main problem with the figure in regular robot mode is that it looks like hasbro was trying to save money, because there is a lack of joints in his legs. The actual posablity is non-existant. Plus Optimus dosent stand well in his own transforming base.
Then we have the Super robot mode. Oh boy, what were they thinking with this. The super mode dosent stand well. If the figure is on a counter top with smooth surface, he tends to start to fall from his weight. The cab that triggers the auto transform of his base, dosent fit easily onto the newly transformed legs in fact if played with in a regular fashion. It can fall apart, and possibly hitting the ground making it dangerous for children.
The arms on super mode dont go much past his mid section which makes the fact that he has a gun pointless since if it were real he would shoot his feet. The face of the super robot mode on Optimus Prime looks nothing like Optimus, and is down right ugly. Even though its the only poseable thing on the super mode, which in fact isnt super at all.
Lastly, its very hard to get the thing back to vehicle mode after you acheive super robot because the signal from the cab dosent seem to give the right signal when you want it to.
The prior Optimus Prime from Transformers:Robots in Disguise is superior to this one in both modes and is more fun to play with. Plus you can pose all the modes on that, even when merged with Ultra Magnus. Back to the drawing board guys, Optimus Prime is supposed to be the best of them all. Make him that way!

So here you are, down to the question whether or not Armada Optimus Prime is worthy of a purchase. For that answer, let us look into greater detail at a once again revived character, cherished by so many fans.

To get it straightened out before we go any farther, I would like to take the time to point out that the auto-transform feature only works well when the windshield of the cab is pointing at the right side of the trailer (when you are facing the toy head on). This is something that many do not know or care to know, giving the educational value a solid five stars. Now, with that out of the way, there should be no problem with the auto-transform feature!

The Cab: My favorite vehicle so far in Armada is Optimus Prime. I personally am pretty happy with his design, as it is wide and bulky (in a good way). The IR signal to transform the trailer is sent from inside the cab. There are 2 points for Mini-Con attachment behind the cab. Complaints are that the front grille is not painted (to silver) and remains grey while the bumpers to either side *are* painted silver, and, also, the hands for super robot mode stick out in the back. I'd also like to point out the cab is pretty small, in comparison to Red Alert's SUV mode for example. Overall, a good effort on the cab was made.

The Trailer: I'm not going to go in-depth, as many others have, obviously. There are several more points to attach Mini-Cons and the trailer transforms into a base and the also legs for Optimus's Super Mode. There are plenty of places for Mini-Cons to attach and to "work" the base, although they serve little real purpose in the Super Mode. Optimus also has a place to attach to the base in the center. My only gripe is that the cab, when attached, does not have a great amount of left or right movement in turning and the like.

The Robot: Optimus Prime is Optimus Prime. Returning once again with the signature head since the 80's, it even has a button to make the mouthpiece move. And, for only the second time, a retail US Optimus Prime with a matrix (the other being R.I.D. Optimus Prime)! It is not removable, but, well, that makes one less small part to lose. His smokestacks become guns and the other gun that comes with him does fit into his hands. I am actually more than a little disappointed with this mode though because of scale and because some joints become alarming loose after a single transformation. He's shorter than Red Alert by a noticeable margin and is quite smaller than Megatron. Also, he has limited leg poseability, making him seem sort of stiff (this is because one of his legs has electronics in it and they both have to work the same). That, however, will be remedied in his Super-Con form, coming out at the end of the year. So far I'm split down the middle over robot mode.

Super Robot: Most people have been thorough with the fact that Optimus is a "statue" in this mode, primarily due to his "legs". Do not fear though, as Jetfire (due out in November) will be able to take the place of the trailer as the Super Robot's legs, and the new ones should give him much better movement. Aside from the legs, my biggest gripes are his arms, which, as I'm sure people have heard, cannot go forward beyond a certain point (again, because of the electronics). This will invariably result in his gun being able to point at little more than the legs of most other transformers. Although, his right hand *does* have a light which will illuminate translucent weapons. Yes, he's intimidating, as he's taller than Optimal Optimus of Beast Wars fame, and perhaps as tall as Air Attack Optimus Primal, but personally, I'll be waiting for Jetfire.

The Mini-Con, Sparkplug: He's small, yellow, and has a head similar to Bumblebee, what else can you hope for? To tell you the truth, he also has *the* most complex and nifty transformations of all the Mini-Cons. He's sure to be a favorite.

Overall: You will either love or you will hate him. There are things you can look forward to if you buy him, but there are other things that you may surely despise. If you are passionate about collection Primes, if you are a Transformers collector, or if you just want a Prime to lead your Armada forces, he's your man. However, if you want a highly poseable and ultimately better robot mode and do not care about the trailer, base, or super robot form, then hold off for Super-Con Optimus Prime. I do hold Optimus in high esteem as he is bursting with gimmicks and is fun in its own right, but he does carry a hefty price tag and requires 4AA batteries, so it all comes down to what you want.

I just got this figure yesterday and I have to admit that it's really good. I saw the other online reviews, and most people think that this toy [is bad], but if they say that, they're either lying or they don't have the figure at all.

Fun Value - I gave this figure 5 stars for fun because he has three modes: Robot mode, Vehicle mode, and Super Robot mode. The cab can transform into a mini-base and the legs for Super Optimus Prime. Also he has one big hand-gun for Super mode, and you can turn the 2 pipes on regular Optimus's arms into a gun as well. Most people say that peices fall off, but that's not true. That can only happen if you're misusing it. His minicon partner, Sparkplug, is okay, but not really needed. Overall it's extremely fun.

Educational Value - I gave this figure's educational value 2 stars because it's very easy to read and understand the instructions. After a day or two you won't even need it anymore.

Durability - I gave this figure's durability 4 stars because it's real easy to move and play around with. the legs and arms and the mini-base mode is very manuevarable too. My only criticism is the legs for the Super Robot mode. It can't bend or move at all, but don't let that discourage you, the arms and head move perfectly.

This figure is really great but the only thing that bothers me is the PRICE! ... way too much for a Transformer figure. But I think that's the only big problem. Overall though, it's purely fantastic, it can also combine with Jetfire to make Jet Convoy. If you're a Transformers Armada fan or an Opttimus Prime fan, this is a must buy! Don't waste your time getting the Semi-truck Optimus Prime with the Over-run Minicon, this one is much better. I Hope this review helped you.

This is a AWSOME toy!!! It is one of the best toys I have.The robot mode is AWSOME!!! The base and trailer mode is AWSOME!!! The robot mode is ok. the reason I say this is because you can not move his legs and his legs will not stay on the sides good.Above all I think this is a great toy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I bought my optimus prime when it first came out and have had nothing but fun with it since. After reading these reviews there are a lot of people who state that this toy is poor and doesn't transform well I will admit sometimes parts come off but only when you do something wrong. Also the paper work that explains how to transform him are not super simple but if you can read you can follow the instructions. All in all as long as you turn the power on the automatic transformation works for me. It is highly durable I have a 4 year old and a 3 year old and they throw it around smash it into things and step on it and wow wouldn't you know if a part comes off it can be snapped back on just like the instructions state. I will admit this toy has no educational value whatsoever and it doesn't like shag capeting but what toy realy does. If you want to buy something that'll give you enjoyment buy it, if you are a simpleton who cannot work a remote control or can't turn the switch to on, don't buy it

Optimus prime is a very good toy it is durable fun to play with and best of all its minicon.As some revews say its atomatic trailer doesent work thats not true.Its trailer works very well inless you live it in a serton mode to long then you may have to transform it by hand.All limes move very well his minicon is a little hard to transform but other than that it is a good toy.

THIS IS A PRETTY COOL TOY. IT LOOKS COOL IN DISPLAYED MODE BUT HOWEVER IN THE SUPER ROBOT MODE IT IS KINDA CHEASY BUT OTHERWISE IT IS A VERY GOOD TOY I LIKE THE BASE MODE AND THE REGULAR ROBOT MODE. CANNOT WAIT TO GET THE JETFIRE SHUTTLE TO SEE HOW IT LOOKS WITH PRIME.

I count myself as one of the few true hardcore TF fans, but what I got in this box was totally unexpected from Hasbro. First off, I actually would give this toy 3.5 stars, but that choice was not available. The toy itself, (before you take it out and play with it,) is rather impressive implying hours of non-stop excitement. A lot of TF fans already knew that when you change the cab the trailer automatically transformed, but what they did not know was that the trailer also transforms into the legs of Super Prime when the robot is transformed into the torso of the Mega robot....Now that is really cool!!! So why the 3.5 stars you ask? It comes down to 4 things: Articulation, (or the lack there of,) lack of flush fitting pieces,corruption of character, & failure to comply with description. To address the 1st, this is Optimus Prime and he is not 2" tall...give the man some movement!!! Two, one would expect a two toy this technologically advanced to have a flush fit. The trailer transforms, but the legs flap uselessly in the wind, & from the side it looks like some kind of ... cross between a tepee & a Dalek from Dr. Who. Three has to do with the mini-con-Sparkplug. Why give a robot the name of a character that already exists...and a human one at that?! The mini-con actually looks a lot like Bumble-bee in robot form,( at least how he should have looked.)If they were going to re-use a character's name,why not that one? Finally, this thing promises to transform by itself. Well, it does do 90% of the transforming but you still have to try a secure the legs,(see #2),and have to assist the trailer in all transformation to some extent. ... Overall, my recommendation is get it for you collection, but write Hasbro and tell them to get on the ball, so you can have a toy you can play with, not look at!! Hrmph!!

I bought this version of optimus prime a couple of months ago and was real excited about the new automated transforming feature. On the T.V. commercial it says that once you transform optimus from truck cab to robot the trailer half is supposed to transform automatcally to a mini-con station/base, and once the cab is transformed to the top half of the super robot the base does the transforming to the legs of the super robot, and when you transform optimus back to his cab mode the legs transforminto his trailer again. In addition to this the base has got firing projectiles,lights, sounds, storage areas for mini-cons to go, and a big gun for optimus to hold. The optimus robot itself is full of articulation and amazing detail and very durable, optimus prime also comes with his own transformable mini-con and mini comic book if that was not enough. Now for the transforming part, transforming optimus was very easy but I noticed something disapointing about the trailer. the first 2-3 times I transformed the cab to robot to super robot and back to cab again the trailer would transform the way it was supposed to but then other times it would tranform to the base, then form the legs when i didn't want it to, or stay in base form, or it would not transform at all. I think hasbro should have tested the prime's a little more before shipping them out, and I personally would not like to see hasbro try this stunt again until they get it right.

With music bands like Flock of Seagulls and Quiet Riot, the neon clothes, and the crazy hairstyles...it's not very often that I have a reason to admit I was a kid of the 80's. Transformers is one of the few things where I can tell my son that I use to have and not feel ashamed. I don't how anyone else feels about this toy, but I felt an extreme joy when I got this Optimus Prime for my son. I remember the joy when I was 6 years old and it was X-mas morning when I got my first Transformer: Optimus Prime. In a selfish kinda way I wanted to see my son feel the joy I felt when I got this toy. It didn't disappoint either. This is how I rated the toy...

Fun...
What is more fun to a boy than a truck, robots, and lasers. With Optimus Prime you get all three. I hate to do this, but I have to compare this version to the original, (even though it's not really fair seeing how there was 20 years to improve from the original). But with the original Prime, you got Prime, the trailer that could be converted into a base, (which wasn't really right, seeing how the "base" was the size of two mid-sized autobots like Prowl and Ironside), and Roller. With the current version you get Prime and the base, but Roller was omitted. Which is no big deal seeing how Roller was worthless. A cool feature is the remote Base conversion. Which means when you transforms Prime, it sends a signal to the base and transforms to base mode. Also a nice touch are the Mini-con, which actually gives the base a purpose.

Educational...
To some parents, this toy could never be seen as "educational." People most likely assume that any toy that has a gun or promotes violence doesn't equal education. I can't really say that's wrong...with toys of my youth like He-Man and GI Joe. But with Transformers, it's a little different. The simple core of this toy is a puzzle within itself. To figure out how to convert a car to a robot. And to all those 80's kids like me who had Transformers such as Skyfire, Omega Supreme, and Metroplex, it's not an easy puzzle. On a side note, as much as I like Amazon.com, I really don't think its fair to "rate" a toys educational value. Every toy is educational in its own way. You wouldn't think a jump rope is an educational toy. But in a way it is, do you think you'd ever see Albert Einstein win a double dutch event. Or how about when a young boy uses his imagination and turns his bed into a GI Joe base. Amazon should have a way for us to describe what kind of educational value a toy has, from physical to imaginative to academic.

Durability...
It's plastic, although unlike other Armada Tranformers. Prime is considerably tough. I have problems with the front grill always coming off, but it easily snaps back. Oh how I miss the old Prime of metal. Now the base for this Prime, WOW. If you have an infants or a pet that likes to put small pieces in their mouths, stay away from this toy or keep a close eye. Especially with Sparkplug. His feet or arms always come off.