When I last took a look at the Studio Series version of Jazz, I thought it was the more definitive one despite it having a size that doesn't justify its price tag. Still a great toy, but it could use a little more of that Jazz spirit to it. That being said, when I saw the MPM version revealed, I went "HOLY CRAP I WANT IT", only to discover the fact that it was $88.99, and that I needed to catch up with Ironhide even if I got Optimus and Bumblebee. To make matters worse, a guy I met in college got two MPM Jazz copies but had to give one away...I was so close but hey eBay saved me and now I got the first lieutenant of Optimus Prime! Let's review him, shall we?
Here is Jazz in his vehicle mode, the same Pontiac Solstice he took the form of during the first movie. Generally speaking, this vehicle mode is spot-on to the movie model, from the silver paint to the trim in-between the tires and rim spokes, and the little details like the vents, mirrors, headlights, and front section. The Pontiac logo is also done up nicely while it is missing the little silver plus. It's got the look of a die-cast car much like all metallic Transformers do, except whereas Alternators have that sort of civilian look to them that makes them feel kind of generic, Jazz, while a simple silver, at least has that specific personality to him (or maybe Jazz's association with the car makes him iconic).
While the car looks nicely done, I do find the panel lines to be a little distracting for the middle. Understandably, it's for the transformation, but it at least the rest of the vehicle looks accurate to the movie and the real car. I even like the red taillights used in the vehicle.
The weapon can be stored on the rear of the vehicle as well as pegging the spine piece on the bottom of the cannon. We'll get to what purpose the piece serves later on. I will say that I do hope that there won't be any paint chipping for the toy.
For a size comparison, here he is with Optimus Prime, Ironhide, and Bumblebee. He's the smallest of them all but doesn't feel too small like a Deluxe Class Transformer. It's a nicely done scale, even if he might look too much like a normal-sized car next to Optimus.
Transformation is very complex and does his robot mode the most amount of justice. With many different versions of the character, they tend not to quite capture the conversion steps or replicate certain aspects of the character right. His chest is supposed to rotate while he's not supposed to have the roof be the backpack. Jazz's robot mode is the most accurate of them all, from the way the limbs work to the overall appearance of the character. While some might argue that maybe his arms look a little wonky or that the bumper sort of ruins the flow of his chest, he at least has certain details that other Jazz figures don't have, from the proper proportions to the broken-up back section (which also includes the spoiler). Certainly the best at capturing his appearance wonderfully, especially when he's both lacking the size limitations and gimmicks that his Deluxe and Human Alliance counterparts had to contend with, respectively. What surprised me the most is that he has collar pieces much like Bumblebee does, only much more prominent here.
Head sculpt is nicely done to the movie (apart from the seam of the forehead), but this is one of the few Jazz toys to actually depict him with the eyes underneath his deployable visor. That is a nice feature...if only the light piping was stronger or if they had painted them to make them pop more. I also like that parts of the face are dark gray to contrast the silver of his head. His articulation is very well done, from the head that can turn left and right as well as look up and down to his shoulders, which can move front and back, in and out, hinge back and forth somewhat. He can swivel his biceps, bend at the elbows, and his hands are articulated at 2 points per finger, replicating his claw-like look. The waist can swivel but you have big increments due to a certain gimmick that comes to mind. His hips move front and back, in and out (with skid plates to hinge up and down for clearance), thigh swivels, knee bends, and slight pivots at the ankles (which aren't the best).
You can deploy his visor simply by lifting the cranium of his head and flipping it out (it's a little loose on my copy). He can also have his Crescent Cannon cover his hand, and while it is at an angle, it at least gives Jazz a bit more of a unique look to him that fits his character overall. But the thing that shocked me the most about this toy is the fact that it is the first-ever Jazz figure to intentionally have a death gimmick. As we all know, Megatron infamously told the plucky Autobot that he wanted two pieces of him instead of one, and he ripped the Autobot in half, ending his life in the process. You can press a button around his lower back to unlock the toy's waist, leaving his upper body separated from his legs. That is not only a surprising addition of a gimmick but it also doesn't compromise the toy overall! To complete the look, the spine piece can be added under the upper body so he can look more like he was a victim of Megatron's pain inflicted onto him briefly.
Jazz can he held by Megatron if you want to reenact the death scene (which makes sense given how he was the one who killed him), or Optimus can be able to hold him if you want to go for an "Awww, Jazz..." moment. It should be worth mentioning that Megatron is meant to hold the figure since his size allows him to do so, but since the fingers are made of a soft material, it does make the stability a little wonky unless you balance the parts on him just right. Optimus, despite having sturdy hands made of ABS, isn't able to hold Jazz as easily given the size of his hands.
Let's also get into the most surprising addition of the figure, that being a figuring of Sam Witwicky! He's in a running pose, has a stand for him, and is basically the inspiration for the minifigure that came with Studio Series ROTF Bumblebee. The differences are that the poses are mirrored, MPM Sam has the Allspark while Studio Series Sam does not, and their skin tones are different shades. Neither one has a detailed face, though.
For a comparison with the Human Alliance version, you can see just how much of a difference there is between the two versions of the character. While the Human Alliance version is always appreciated for it being the best version of the character for its time, things like the bronze plastic, the lanky proportions, and the inaccuracy to certain parts of the toy, did make him seem incorrect by comparison to the MPM version. And lest we forget, he looks like he has a bubble but compared to the MPM version.
For a size comparison in robot mode, Jazz is appropriately the shortest of the other Autobots we covered, yet he still fits in nicely with them nonetheless. Tell you the truth, he's one that surprised me quite a bit due to the end result of this toy being not just being the most accurate version of the character, but also by not being a nicely sturdy toy overall as well as avoiding the issues that other versions of him had. If you can still find Jazz for a good price, then you might want to get him while you still can. Sure, he might have some issues between the price and the figure itself, but if you are upset at paying $20 for a small Deluxe that could go for a little more of a budget, then you might be more content with this figure for having die-cast, the best engineering possible, and very few compromises towards him.
Final ranking: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ and a half out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
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