The Titan line-up of the past has been somewhat unique considering how everyone in the past is either a larger-scale character from G1 or a combiner. There were plenty of different milestones, too, with Metroplex being the first of his kind and having a mix of G1 and FOC design elements, while Devastator and Predaking would tower over other combiners, and Fort Max being well-known for being a retool of Metroplex. But the established G1 quadrilogy has been completed in addition to two of the unique Decepticon combiners means there's not much else that can be done with the spot for the Kingdom line. So we get the most unexpected addition of the Autobot Ark, a ship that never presented any possibilities of transforming into a robot...until now, and while the Netflix series may suck as a whole, this is one of the strongest parts of the franchise given how it was a creative robot that is a new form that Teletraan-1 can utilize rather than being a new character altogether. So let's get to the review!
Here is the Ark in the mode you're likely going to keep it in. It's a surprisingly detailed recreation of the Autobot's home, with panel-lines, turret guns, a bridge, the cockpit, and some scorch marks from the ship's approach towards the atmosphere, that result in a very faithful take of the vehicle in plastic form. There are a few paint apps in the form of yellow markings, the blue panels around the front, the Autobot insignias, and some gray on the sides. As impressive as it is, the back doesn't like to stay tabbed in that well, and there is a bit of color mismatching. There are a few gaps, which might be because of the way the figure transforms even if some could argue budget cuts are a thing for parts of the Kingdom line due to the pandemic. Either way, the ship looks good in general, though a darker shade on the plastic coloring like the promo images or prototypes.
The back has a boarding ramp that doesn't really scale with anything apart from the tiny Optimus that is included. This guy is the same type of item that you'd find with the Centurion Drone, only in red instead of gray, and other characters are included with Unicron and Behold Galvatron. Detaching the roof from the ship results in accessing the main bridge, with the globe almost resembling Vector Sigma. There are plenty of ports for other micro figures to stand on. This is no playset as I kind of hope, however...
If you remove the main bridge, you have enough space for a Core Class figure to pilot it, though whether or not this was intentional is unknown. Also spoiler alert for the robot mode but the blast effect pieces can peg onto the boosters though they look a little underwhelming inside them. As for what you remove from the interior, you end up with a hunk of cheese-looking thing that turns out to be a robot folded up.
Transformation for that hunk of robo cheese is fairly basic, as it revolves straightening his limbs before he turns into Mainframe. Yes, the same Action Master is now able to go along with the Ark as the transforming figure in a manner similar to Scorponok's Mega Zarak or Trypticon's Full-Tilt. The resulting robot mode is very different from the one fans are used to, mostly because he has to become both the bridge of the Ark and Teletraan-1, but it's got the same torso, head, and shoulder designs, only much more refined thanks to the competence of the WFC engineers. He does feel a little baggy, probably more so than Classics Bumblebee or Power Core Combiners Bombshock, as the arms, legs, and back all have a shitton of kibble that is, again, from the other modes he possesses. Some may find it impractical since he's going to scale weirdly with everyone if he's meant to exist with the ship, but whatever. It's funny how the bridge is literally on his back, with Optimus still pegged on.
Head sculpt is definitely Mainframe with the simple visor and mouthplate combo, though with better details, though I'm sure there are fans that'd want to give him a gray head and replace the gray paint apps on the forehead and visor with blue so we can have a more broken up color scheme on the guy while maintaining the yellow visor. His articulation features a neck swivel, shoulders that move front and back, in and out, bicep swivels, elbow bends, a slight waist swivel, hips that move front and back, in and out, thigh swivels, knee bends, foot rotation, and ankle pivots.
For a robot mode size comparison, here he is in-between Cloutworthy Cliffjumper and Netflix Prime (not the Premium Finish one); he's abut the height of a normal Voyager, yet his engineering isn't as involved as that of the size class. His intermediate engineering is mostly reserved for the three modes he possesses.
Turning him into Teletraan-1 is a case of folding him inside out, as the panels that make up the Teletraan-1 design take shape into the iconic supercomputer of the ship, and likely the first time we ever got an actual representation of it in plastic form via Hasbro. It's a pretty solid take on it, though how it'll scale with your figures will vary, as it's a little too small for Deluxes, Voyagers, etc yet scales right with Core Class figures. I like the fact that we get various tampographs representing gridlines, schematics for things like the map of the Earth and the Ark, and the various sculpted details that keep it from feeling plain.
While the backs of the two Golden Disks are the same, they both possess unique details from one another. The one on the right hand of Optimus is that of the Sounds of Earth, while the one on the left hand is of Vok origin. If you recall, The Vok's disk was included with Terrorsaur, only it as darker paint.
There is even a Sky Spy included with the set! Yes, the same little drone that scanned the vehicles of both Autobots and Decepticons aboard the Ark is also included. It's missing the blue paint on the center, but it's otherwise accurate.
Transformation for the Ark is weirdly familiar in some way, as it has a bit of a Tidal Wave vibe with the way the legs and the arms to an extent transform. Even the torso has a weird Tidal Wave look to it, though with elements of the Ark and that of the Last Autobot. Yes, this guy is an homage to the Marvel Comics creation of Primus, mostly in the head, waist, and thighs. It's a very unusual set of proportions that makes the waist and thighs super skinny compared to the upper body and arms. It's likely some thing they had to work with considering how the Ark was never made to be a proper Transformer until now, and it kind of makes for a compromise that the toy has as parts of it felt hollow. At the very least, there are gap fillers in the backs of the forearms and lower legs courtesy of the transformation.
Head sculpt continues capturing the look of the Last Autobot, and it's amusing how the role of the Arkbot (yes the robot has a name in the Netflix show) plays a bit of a similar role to the LA by solving the conflict and going back home with everyone else. And as mentioned before, having Teletraan-1 turn the Ark into a robot with the help of the Allspark. His articulation amount is mostly the same as his companion, Mainframe, though he features ratchet joints on every joint except for the neck which uses a swivel, and his hands can rotate in addition to having articulation at the fingers and thumb. Now he can recreate holding Megatron in his hand, which is probably not in scale, but it looks cool nonetheless!
For a robot mode size comparison, here he is with Scorponok from the Earthrise line, and in front of the Titans is Studio Series Devastator with the DNA Design upgrade kit, Legacy Menasor (who will soon get completed with my acquisition of Dead End and the inevitable Breakdown release) and MPM Megatron. He does look big, though his skinny waist and slightly hollow parts kind of betray that aspect. That being said, he looks very cool and is kind of underrated among the many Titans we got. And would you believe me if I said I'm not done talking titans yet because of Metroplex? The Ark may not be perfect with his slight color mismatch and hollow parts, but I like how he stands out from the others thanks to his design, alt mode, and inclusion of Mainframe, who also includes Teletraan-1 and other neat features that make this set a flawed yet still enjoyable toy. This guy is likely getting discounted in some stores, so get your hands on The Ark ASAP at half the price if possible!
Final ranking: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
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