Intro:
The Animated line, which was aired back in 2007, was a show that portrayed a totally new concept. This time around, Optimus was no longer the head honcho of the Autobots, rather only a Section Head, so to speak, as he headed the Space Bridge Repair crews.
The title rank Prime, instead of being a Supreme Commander, is only given to those who head a certain division or specializes in a specific function on Cybertron, such as Sentinel Prime who is the right hand man to Ultra Magnus, and also Longarm Prime who is the Intelligence Officer.
For the first time ever, it was implied that the name Magnus is a rank, rather than a name, and it being the rank of the Supreme Commander of the Autobot forces.
Artistic-wise, Animated took a drastic direction by having cartoonish-artworks, with various characters possessing that Ben-10-ish feel to it, something that drew quite a flak from long time fans who were used to seeing a more blocky and mechanical-like robots.
Luckily though, the storyline was good, and that what made most longtime fans still sticking to the show.
Optimus Prime was sold in a twin-pack set with Megatron, available in most major stores in Malaysia.
Alternate Mode:
Optimus supposedly transforms into a emergency response truck, signified by the signal light on top of him.
While the truck looks good from the front, Optimus’s designs are kinda weak at the back, especially with that huge gaping hole at the back of the cab, as well as how the back of the truck reeks of robotic kibbles – mainly the legs.
Having his battle axe sticking out at the back of the truck kind of ruins the look a bit as well. Despite all that has been said, the details and designs of this mode aren’t all that bad, especially with those battle-damaged paintjobs.
I kinda dig that.
Robot Mode:
One word sums up this figure – AWESOME – which is something quite surprising for me, especially dealing with Animated figures.
While the figure still look cartoonish, they managed to make Optimus look buff and at the same time, agile.
Again, the battle-damaged paintjob is still noticeable in this mode, namely on the left chest, left waist, left arm and face.
In this mode, Optimus wields that humongous battle axe of his, ready to cut down Megatron and his cohorts anytime, anywhere.
Articulation-wise, Optimus have an abundance of it: the head is on a ball joint, but movements are severely restricted due to designs; the shoulders and hips are one ball joints, and the inner shoulders move up and down as well; the elbows consist of a combinational of ball joints and swivels, that do move like a double-jointed elbows; there is no waist joint, but the figure do come with a spring-loaded gimmick, where Prime could punch anyone once pushed to the back; the knees bend; and finally the feet pieces tilts downward.
This combination of articulations provides the ability for Optimus to pose in various kinds of poses, especially the one where he lifts his axe over his shoulders.
Truly a surprisingly fantastic figure.
Overall:
Honestly, I never thought that I will actually like this figure the way I do now, partly due to his Animated roots, but somehow, the look works for him.
He looks tough and buff, definitely someone to be reckoned with.
Highly recommended.
Final verdict: 9/10.
