Starscream is one of the entirely new molds in this wave of Fall of Cybertron toys. He’s probably one of the most anticipated of the line, as his absence from the War for Cybertron toyline a few years back caused much despair. But hey, everyone’s favorite scientist-turned-Seeker-commander is here now.
I am going to blow your mind here: Starscream’s cockpit turns into his chest, there’s wings on his back, and his legs turn into the rear thrusters. Oh, hey, and did I mention that he’s got arm-mounted cannons? Yeah, I know. Hard to believe. I’d note how weakly his head hides along the top of the fuselage in jet mode is an innovation, but I think Armada Starscream was the first to debut that technology. Remember to rotate his head backwards! That’s how you make a face not be there.
Sarcasm aside, he is a pretty solid toy. He’s wide and chunky and nothing in his transformation is annoying. Having no surprises is sometimes its own reward. This transformation style was figured out loooong ago, in the days of yore. And he doesn’t have to look like a real jet, so the robot mode can be executed more strongly.
Starscream’s arm cannons can combine into a single double-barreled weapon. When the two cannons peg together, their gearing interlocks so that when you rotate one set of barrels, the other set rotates as well. When combined, the weapon looks like the Neutron Assault Rifle from Fall of Cybertron.
While this Starscream is primarily the same dude as Prime Starscream (you can tell because … uh… both their feet are four-pronged thruster heels?), the design is also repurposed as normal ol’ G1 Starscream in the current comic books. It’s peacetime in these stories, so you gotta lose the arm cannons. Further cementing the G1 connection is the black helmeted head, which Starscream has in the comic books; Fall of Cybertron Starscream’s helmet is painted blue.
