Transformers Prime: First Edition Arcee review

Arcee's gone through a history of becoming a motorbike a bit more often than she has a pink and white car. The trend began in Energon when she was the queen of the Omnicons, the MV1 and ROTF designs had her as a motorbike, and she was a motorbike in TFP. I like that idea since it makes her able to have more unique appearances in subsequent cartoons. However, both Cyberverse and the Beewun movie made her a recreation of her G1 self. I feel that my favorite Arcee is the TFP incarnation, due to her kickass history and her relationship with Cliffjumper. With TFP becoming 10 years old next year, I feel it's time to go back to the series with this First Edition figure! Don't worry, I'll take a look at some of the other TFP toys, too.

Here we have Arcee in her bike mode, and it's quite a nice rendition of the character's altmode! The darker blue mixed with the accents of silver, black, translucent blue, and even the subtle hints of pink from what will become the robot shins make this motorcycle mode look pretty slick compared to some of her previous incarnations that were bikes. Yeah, some will say that Chromia is blue and Arcee should be pink, but I prefer this deco more, especially when it fits the altmode AND the personality of the TFP Arcee. Even the wheels have a bit of paint applied, down to the trim close to what would be the rubber tires. If there is one issue I have with the toy, it's that there's some slight paint missing from the blue outline where the headlights are.

Arcee's weapon storage for her blades makes the altmode almost look like it had some custom side panels added, which I kind of feel works than if they were attached to the front of the bike mode.

Arcee's transformation is fairly involved for a bikeformer, though not quite as frustrating as the ROTF Deluxe. The real problem comes from how tight the feet can be when trying to hinge them, or when you're trying to move around the windshield and handlebars of the bike mode in the back. Also, the chest and back don't quite tab in as securely. Still, it's pretty neat how the rest of the toy works.

Arcee's robot mode looks pretty close to the CG model. While not as clean in the kibble department and could use a bit more paint for the arms, she's a dead ringer, IMO. I say that because the CG model does look sleeker than this toy, which has massive shoulder armor, a big chunk of bike kibble, and a wasp abdomen on her butt. The front headlights becoming the breasts does seem kinda funny, and it reminds me of the fangirls of Lightning McQueen flashing their headlights as human fangirls would with their shirts. Still, they're not that big on the model.

Headsculpt has some noticeable lightpiping, which does feel kind of neat considering how no one else got to 

Arcee's articulation is outstanding for a Deluxe, though there are is a small number of setbacks to be aware of. Head is on a ball joint, shoulders are on ball joints that can swivel front and back, though not as well with the shoulder pads deployed. They can also move out, bend at the double joints, swivel at the bicep, and hinge at the hands. There is a waist swivel, hips that move freely on ball joints, thigh swivels, and fairly deep bends at the knees. While there are no ankle hinges or pivots, the feet are fairly large enough to keep the figure in a pose.

The blades that stored on her bike mode can now serve as the weapons of her robot mode. They plug in from underneath the forearms, which does seem like a pretty neat way of giving her weapons beyond her sword. The only problem with the blades is that the arms aren't blue enough to match up with their colors, and the other side of the blades is missing its paint.

There were some repaints of this mold, one of which is the NYCC version of Arcee. It's a G1-themed repaint that came with a taxi-colored Bumblebee and figurines of Jack and Raf that wear I 💖 New York on their shirts. IDK why, but this deco kind of creeps me out. Not only is it ill-fitting for this Arcee, but it also feels like if Japan made a sexualized robot maid that just so happened to be colored like Arcee.

Takara had a Lucky Draw type of contest for a blue-chromed Arcee figure, which does mean even more Chromia jokes. It's almost like if TFP Arcee had the chrome colors of a Beast Wars character's metal parts (or if she was a Transmetal herself).

Finally, here is the TFCC Transmutate figure, which was from a reality where she did not become the horrid protoform that was beyond repair. This version of the character was still flawed with the one aspect of the emotions not able to correspond the same way that her fellow Maximals would to the rest of the world. The deco isn't as nice as it was on the original Arcee's blue, but a bit better done than that gaudy G1 colors version.

Overall, this Arcee is a phenomenally done take on the TFP incarnation, with the only issues that set it back being the arms, backpack, and some sides of the weapons missing paint. While it may never scale with the other TFP figures, it works nicely as a stand-alone action figure in my opinion, especially when put next to figures like Masterpiece Movie Bumblebee or G2 Sideswipe. She may be pretty pricey online, but if you see her for a good price, I'd recommend her.

Final ranking: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ and a half out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐