Transformers Studio Series Rampage review

Rampage's incarnations have varied quite a bit. Once, he's a Predacon bull, then there was an unrelated Beast Wars Predacon that was a Transmetal crab, and ROTF gives us a Constructicon with no legs but a tail. Funny enough, he was yellow in older merchandise while the robot we have here is called "Skipjack" in the credits. He wasn't as prominent as some of the other robots in Revenge, and his only line was the name of the human friend of the Autobots, Sam Witwicky. Despite this, I do like the scene where Sam was willing to stand in front of the Decepticon to protect Mikaela as well as his kidnapped parents (something most movie-haters forget about, but their loss). The battle with Bumblebee was also pretty cool, especially when the yellow scout had to make do with getting moved around with Mikaela and the tow truck that resembles Longarm. So Rampage may have one stand-out scene, but perhaps he could make up for it with a better toy than the one made in 2009, right?

UPDATE (7/17/20): Skipjack added for repaint history

Here is Rampage in vehicle mode, a red bulldozer with a really nice amount of silver paint on the shovel blade. While the rest of the vehicle is somewhat sparse in paint apps, at least the gears found within the treads have some paint to stand out among while the cockpit has dark blue windows to contrast from the black frame. It's a good looking vehicle, though I can't help but feel that its proportions seem somewhat off from how they should look. They have the real-world details of a bulldozer, yet the proportions look a bit more toyish in comparison, what with the cockpit looking a bit oversized, the shovel blade not being as wide as it normally would be, and the treads looking a bit stylized. It's not a killer, but it's something I have to mention since the way the vehicle mode looks varied between previous toys and the brief glimpses of either the red or yellow Rampages in the movie.

It's a pretty good alt mode despite having some of the toyish nature of other construction vehicles, though some parts of the robot mode are visible, like the parts holding up the shovel blade and the hands. Also, I really hate the color patching with the red bars that tab onto each other. There's a part of it that's painted red, while the other parts are red plastics with different shades.

From the bottom, you can store the base from underneath so it won't be lost. That's a neat method of storage, where it's subtle and doesn't get in the way.

Transformation is fairly involved, and moreso than I originally thought. I didn't expect that it'd have steps revolving around the mermaid tail and making the arms look more clawlike than one would expect. Regardless, I think it works pretty well, even if the cockpit remains unchanged from the rest of the toy while the shovel has nowhere else to go. Transforming the claws is fairly involved, but I hate the hinges that have the wheels attached to them; they feel thin and could break at any moment. Thankfully, they have yet to be snapped off, though I know that they have a chance of doing so with anyone that isn't being careful when transforming this figure.

The robot mode's certainly unique. It's got big claws and no legs whatsoever, so the best I can think of for that lower portion is a mermaid tail of his. I know that's not what it really is, but it's the best term I can call it. Thankfully, he has a stand to keep him up, because as cool as he looks, he won't be up on that 5mm hole. Either way, it's a neat design, and compared to the old ROTF figure, which opted to have a 4-legged mode due to the jackhammer mode not being the main mode (and with the red is oddly reminiscent of Overload), at least the newer figure captures the look of Rampage better in my opinion. There is still a bit more gray around the figure along with the reds and blacks, though if you look very closely, you can see some WARNING labels in yellow and black around his armpits. Wonder if it's because they don't smell too well (I'll stop).

Side profile looks decent, but the back doesn't have anything special going for it. It's almost like Rampage was covered up by the cockpit and the shovel. At least the arms still look different than when they were treads.

Headsculpt is certainly mean-looking. It's got the squinting look that the character had, but it fills up the Decepticon checklist: angry looking head, alien mouth, red eyes. At least the head is red, and I can still hear him shout "Saaaam Witwiiiiiiicky!" like in Revenge of the Fallen.

Articulation's a weird aspect of this toy due to the design. The head is on a ball joint and on somewhat of a hinge for looking left and right, and the shoulders can move forward and back as well as in and out. The biceps sort of swivel, but there are no elbow joints. It's possible to have added them, but they might get in the way of the red pieces housing the wheels. The claws are decently poseable, with one for the inner fingers while the outer two move a bit more freely. If you want, you can hinge with the hinge and ratchet joints of the torso for a more squat look.

These two gray piston pieces can be removed from the body, though it seems odd that this would be done due to how small they are. While his weapons didn't look like they stood out from the rest of his hand, these stand out even less because some fans may think they're only for decoration.

However, they can fit under his inner fingers to make him look like he's armed with guns smaller than his fingers.

Now, I'm not sure if anyone else mentioned this in their reviews, but this figure is misassembled on all copies. The top shows what the misassembly looks like, while the proper assembly has the details in the right format. The robot mode details are visible in vehicle mode while the robot mode details are in the vehicle mode. It doesn't affect the transformation, and it is a subtle misassembly, but I don't think it'll be easy to fix the joint.

Here is Rampage in his leg mode. The transformation is more involved here, but I don't mind it. It makes the combination with Devastator feel more engaging than before, moreso than the Legends Devastator or the crappy Supreme figure. It's also a decent portion of the leg, with the rest of the leg soon to be completed by Overload when he comes out. It does look like it's a messed up bulldozer from the back, but it's acceptable. It's also the mode where you can have it pivot and hinge forward, though I'm sure it'll be hard to pose him with Devastator's weight. Also, Rampage wasn't really with Devastator; a yellow lookalike was the Constructicon that combined with Devastator, which is why there's a yellow leg next to Long Haul. A repaint based on Skipjack should come out later in the line.

This figure is the only Constructicon to be repainted. Meet Skipjack, a yellow repaint of Rampage that replaces everything that's red except for the eyes. This is only recommended for the fans that want to get a screen accurate left leg for Devastator.

This figure is one of the first offerings of the Constructicons in the Studio Series line, and I think it's a decent stab at the character design. The vehicle mode doesn't look too bad despite the slight toyish look to it, the transformation to robot mode is alright, the robot mode's pretty cool (save for the lack of elbow joints and the negligible accessories), and the leg mode's pretty decent. While Rampage is more suited in action poses, you'll really need a flight stand to make the poses more effective. Those that don't want to complete Devastator may not want to get this figure unless its on clearance.

Final ranking: ⭐⭐⭐ out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐