I gotta say that when it comes to depicting ancient characters with God-tier powers and having them retire and secretly hide among modern civilizations as enigmatic people with charm, Maccadam does a better job at tackling that than someone like Rung ever did. First of all, he's less Gary Stu self-insert fanfic garbo and more of a genuine reincarnation of someone from long ago thanks to the writing of Cyberverse straying away from that James Roberts "oh I am so clever" type of writing style and having its bartender actually feel like a mystery. Even when he gets in on the action, whether it's him turning into a nondescript alternate mode everyone fears or him predicting the future, he still has attributes that make him a lot more convincing and believable than Rung wished he'd be (more like Dung am I right?)...so with that mentioned, throw your pitchforks away and prepare to hear my thoughts on the Maccadam Build-A-Figure!
Before we take a look at the BAF itself, let's rank the figures that were released during the line! First up, we have Hot Rod himself; he's not an awful figure by a long shot yet has plenty of issues regarding the arms, the lack of paint, and a somewhat cheap feel to him. I hate shitting on this guy, but it just doesn't feel fulfilling.
After Hot Rod, we have Megatron. While slightly better than Hot Rod, things like the loose tolerances for the ball joints, the shoulder kibble, and the back keep him from being any higher than Hot Rod. At least the accessories he has are pretty neat, though still not mindblowing.
Going past the Decepticon Leader is Arcee. She's got a pretty big backpack, but there are some things that make her make her better than the other two figures, such as the better tolerances, the fun you can use with the accessories, and her design turned out pretty well in the line.
And now we're at her sorta-kinda boyfriend, Grimlock. This guy could definitely go for some paint, but it can still stand out no problem by being a neat mini take on the G1 Grimlock design. It's nicely done for what it is, the accessories are kinda funny, and I love seeing the cartoon-accurate head for once on a Grimlock toy.
Next up on the list is Thunderhowl, who doesn't look as accurate as the Ultra Class toy, but he at least looks cool in terms of not feeling too much like a been-there-done-that quadripedal beast Transformer and also has a slick knight vibe to him. Still, why not go with the more familiar Cheetor?
In third place is Optimus Prime, who has the dynamic body design found in the show and also has some pretty good articulation found with the rest of the Siege figures (especially the already poseable Optimus Primes from both lines). Some weird tolerances here and there, and the truck mode has a bit of an oversized bumper, but it's a pretty good version of Optimus that just needs to be bigger.
In second place is Bumblebee, who may seem like the figure everyone would dismiss because it's a Bumblebee from a kids' show, but it's actually pretty good. The plastic's admittedly not the best, but the design looks great, the transformation is pretty faithful to the show, he has the accessories I'd expect him to come with, and he makes for a good version of the character that isn't compromised by any gimmicks like the Warrior figures are.
And in first place is Shockwave, who may have had already good toys from the Warrior and Ultra lines, but what makes this guy work are the added touches they don't have. The purple's perfect for the guy, the design is spot-on to the show, and he doesn't fall short in any major way (apart from the slight imperfections here and there). While I also wish he was Voyager-size, he makes for a neat figure to own nonetheless.
Now it's time to assemble the guy himself! All you pretty much do is attach his parts on nothing but ball-joints. Kind of funny that the legs are already assembled, but everything about the assembly is pretty easy apart from the head, which is a little hard to nail while the neck is worryingly thin.
And here he is, finally complete. Maccadam's design is captured faithfully on this figure, what with the fat-yet-powerful design he has, the smokestacks on his back, the round shoulders, the "tires" on his forearms and lower legs (the latter needs some paint), and the yellow decked out nicely on the figure, it's a pretty solid take on the guy! The forearms do have a slight color discrepancy, IDK why, but everything else about the guy works well. Also, I know he's a Prime, but why does the chest design and the smokestacks give me an Optimus Prime vibe?
Head sculpt is pretty much a mix between a chad Rung, Thew Adam's mug, Alchemist Prime's head, and pure character when it comes to a character that's welcoming like a bartender would be but also enigmatic when it comes to his past (but in a good way)...it's just a shame that the eyes are sloppily painted, making him look like he's crying. As for the articulation, almost everything is on a ball-joint, so you've got movement on the neck, shoulders, elbows, diaphragm, hips, and knees. Meanwhile, the wrists swivel 360 degrees despite some slight clearance issues. The weapon made for him can be held and makes up for the guy's inability to transform into the off-screen but still terrifying altmode. Maybe instead of transforming, he can use that to strike fear into even Megatron!
And that covers the 2020 lineup of Cyberverse Deluxes! As flawed as the line itself was, I can't help but find enjoyment out of most of the figures we got apart from Megatron and Hot Rod. There's just something neat about finally owning poseable Cyberverse characters, though I do wish we'd get more Decepticons and more prominent characters. I still find it odd that Windblade was not chosen but Arcee was, and while I liked Arcee, she wasn't as prominent as WB was. And Thunderhowl's a neat way to represent Season 3, but I'd prefer if a cat-bot like Cheetor took his spot instead. As it stands, this is a pretty neat selection of characters to own in the line, though I wish we'd get not just Cheetor but also Windblade, Clobber, Bludgeon, Lockdown, Slipstream, Dead End, Whirl, Jetfire, Skybyte...
...as well as a Starscream, Prowl, and Soundwave?! Yeah, these three came out as big surprises! I'll be sure to review them along with other stuff, though for now, expect a victory lap for the WFC line as we prep ourselves into Kingdom. I'm honestly pretty excited for that, but this trio will get attention soon.
Final ranking: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
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