Posted May 20, 2011 at 10:00 pm
Enjoys: Logic, calling Batman "Detective"


So all of this Dark of the Moon toy review stuff has convinced one of my ad networks that my site is primarily astronomy-related. Which isn't, like, terrible, but I wonder if I type "Transformer" like 30 times, I can reverse that. Transformer! Action figures! Transformers 3! Toys! Shockwave! Optimus Prime! Megatron! Shokaract!  Lord Imperius Delirious!

Anyway.

Man, I want a Shockwave in Leader Class size! Though I don't rate my chances, even if there were Decepticon Leader Class toys planned. He feels like he fills the same slot as The Fallen's Voyager Class toy did, last movie. The Fallen was the big bad but never rated a larger toy, probably because he's, y'know, a villain who isn't Megatron.

So this is likely it, regardless.

Also like The Fallen, Shockwave transforms into a Cybertronic vehicle, though Shockwave's tank mode is a lot less "pile of robot mode parts in awkward sex pose" than The Fallen's jet-thing. Shockwave compacts into a pretty solid brick with a cannon and a blade on top. Everything pegs and slots together really solidly, too. Lots and lots of pegs and slots. You could smash him repeatedly into a wall and he'd stay together. (It does take a bit of excessive force to get him OUT of tank mode...)

Cybertron's vehicle designers are paid by the surface area.


The only really annoying thing about the tank is the rubber cord that runs from the tank cannon to... somewhere on the tank. It's supposed to plug somewhere, but the instructions aren't really helpful about where. It seems like it's SUPPOSED to plug into the very conspicuous 5mm peghole buried in the dead center of the vehicle, but... Well, the hole is mounted inside a barrel that's tilted a little to the right, which helps in robot mode, but in vehicle mode it just means the cord's not gonna want to fit very well. It wants to occupy the same space as the tank body, since the barrel's angling it into the tank itself. Grar.

Both the cannon and the blade can be removed, but I dunno why anybody'd want to.

Shockwave's assortment of purples are very pretty and metallic-ish. He's most beautiful purple logic-ruled emotionless mastermind ever. Which... doesn't exactly match what we've seen of him in promotional renders and the trailers, where he's basically gunmetal gray like every other Decepticon ever. But I'm pretty okay with the inaccuracy. He's neat-looking.

EDIT: Oh, hey, apparently Hasbro's putting up transformation demonstration videos.  Here's Shockwave's.  Neat.

EDIT 2: And also apparently I've been plugging  his wire in the wrong place, if the video's accurate.  Hrm.
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