Here is Soundwave in his vehicle mode. It's not too hot. The problem I alluded to is that the attempt at making Soundwave keep his design while giving him a different alt mode is that it's hard to make the best of both worlds when he's not able to have one or the other. As a result, this altmode doesn't work too well. I guess it's supposed to look like a patrol hovercraft, but it looks more like a shrunken down transporter, as it looks more made for hauling cargo rather than be on the prowl for any Autobots (geddit?). Whatever it's trying to be, it sucks. The arms and thighs are exposed, the thrusters don't have quite the definitive positioning, and, if you look at this mode from behind, his chest is visible.
It's certainly more mobile than the old tape deck, but I don't think it looks too good. Maybe if it had a bit more going on, it'd work well for what it's trying to be, but it's not a good altmode.
Here is Soundwave next to his other companions. It's not too great compared to the other alt modes. Starscream has a decent take on the terra jet, Shockwave looks the coolest he's ever been in a G1-styled toyline, and Megatron's better than I expected. As for Soundwave himself, he looks like he's mistransformed.
Fans wanting to look into recreating the tape deck may be fairly mixed with the results. A third-party kit gives Soundwave some pieces that go near the shoulders so they can move back and stabilize the front. Either way, it's only somewhat of a tape deck.
A third mode that IS advertised by Hasbro (secretly, I might add) is the lamp post mode, which looks pretty stupid, I can't lie. It was a dumb thing in the G1 cartoon, and I can't say that it looks any better here.
Transforming Soundwave is pretty basic. All you're really doing is exposing the feet and hands, revealing the head, and repositioning his body to make it look more humanoid. While Siege Starscream's transformation works well with the altmode despite the shell-forming aspect of it, this figure's transformation feels super underwhelming. I'm sure fans will wonder why I defend some of the Cybertronian modes of the Movie or TFP characters and not this, and the point is that Soundwave still clings onto the classic G1 design, resulting in a vehicle mode that's compromised due to it refusing to ditch the tape deck chest.
The robot mode is undoubtedly the G1 incarnation. That's probably the only good mode that this toy has. It's got the right blockiness that Soundwave has, though it's got some decent sculpting all around. The forearms, thighs, and feet are flat gray, but they'll do just fine. That said, the amount of Siege battle damage all over this figure is...amusing, to say the least. It's all over the chest and the lower legs. Fans have attempted to remove the battle damage off of their other figures, but Soundwave will be a challenge because of how it goes over already painted parts of the robot mode. Removing the damage will cause the paint to come off, so be very careful.
The head sculpt does look pretty good, though it has the toy-accurate (and comic accurate yellow visor). Either way, I don't mind that it's yellow.
Articulation is the same as with the rest of the Siege line. Head is on a ball-joint, shoulders swivel front and back, hinge in and out, swivel at the biceps, bend at the elbows at two points, and the wrists hinge inwards. The waist swivels, hips move front and back (while the flaps move up to make room) as well as in and out, swivel at the thighs, bend at the knees, and somewhat limited pivot at the ankles.
He can use the weapons that resemble the batteries that the old toy used (they weren't real batteries, BTW; they only pretend to be batteries). One that's already attached is the shoulder cannon while the other is the Concussion Blaster with its extension. His left hand is posed with the index finger as it helps with posing the figure to press the button.
A third weapon is one that looks more like a generic pistol. It's an out of place weapon that kind of adds with the Siege weapon compatibility, though I'd prefer replacing it with at least Laserbeak.
You can combine them to form a long rifle, but the end result is lacking. It's too disjointed and underwhelming to say the least.
Now...this was something I feel kind of upset about: Soundwave's chest can be opened with the button near the left shoulder, but the toy doesn't come with any of his cassette partners. As a result, the novelty of inserting a cassette in Soundwave's chest has no real context. Despite that, there are two Micromaster packs containing the partners themselves, and they're called the "Soundwave Spy Patrol". This first set contains Laserbeak and Ravage, both of whom can become "cassettes" (or used as shields), and I have to say that these aren't great Micromasters. The rest of the size class has other Micromasters that have a bit of play value even on their own. This set has little going for it and is extremely needed to go with Soundwave. Sure, they make little animals, and while Laserbeak is decent enough, Ravage ends up looking chunkier than he normally is.
The next set contains Ratbat and Rumble. Ratbat looks somewhat good, but Rumble looks like a joke, what with the stumpiness that it has and how limited it feels even when put next to the G1 version. I feel that these packs may be popular with fans of Soundwave, but I don't think they're as neat as the other Micromasters. At least with those, they could be little vehicles, somewhat poseable robots, and so-so weapons. Soundwave's partners can't do much in their box modes, have robot modes that sort of look alright, and can't look right with other robots but Soundwave's. Even then, they sort of have issues fitting in Soundwave's chest from what I heard.
I should mention that the spy patrol units and Soundwave himself are pretty hard to find. I found the first set every now and then, but the second set...not at all. Soundwave was found ONCE at a Walmart in Indiana, only to never be found again. Meaning that I had to buy it off of Hasbro Pulse (and at a higher price tag than I'd like, I might add). I found Soundwaves at Mexico, but never at any US store since then. The next best thing is the repaint, Soundblaster, which put the figure in the black deco he had in The Headmasters anime. While having a black repaint isn't too special, this figure has the extended chest that Soundblaster was known to have. Sure, it makes the robot mode look fatter, but it's a neat homage, I suppose. It also stores two cassettes at once. It's a repaint that's easier to find at Walmarts (possibly because the 35th-anniversary repaints didn't do so hot).
For a robot mode comparison, here is Siege Soundwave next to some other offerings provided by HasTak. The original G1 Soundwave may not have the nicer proportions of the Siege figure, Music Label Soundwave may have been a glorified MP3 Player, and Titans Return Soundwave (or the Legends version, in this case) may be a retool of Blaster, but they all share one thing in common: having a better alt mode than the Siege figure. Yes, I know I said a tape deck's not a practical alt mode for play (even for role play because most kids don't know what a tape deck or walkman is), but they don't look odd and can make the chest useful (unlike with Siege Soundwave).
Here is Soundwave next to the other Decepticons I have in the Siege line. While in vehicle mode, Soundwave was the weakest one of them all, I'd say these four look equally good, in my opinion. Weird how two of them have proper wrist swivels (Starscream and Shockwave) while the other two don't (Megatron and Soundwave).
It's so nice to see the main 4 G1 Decepticons in a consistent line and scale; while I'm not the biggest G1 fan (and I especially hate the cartoon), these four figures are honestly so nice to have on a shelf where they don't feel out of place. Megatron isn't either a Nerf gun or a pretool of Blitzwing, Starscream is neither a small Deluxe or isn't a Cyber Batallion figure, Soundwave isn't an MP3 player or a repurposed FOC Voyager, and Shockwave isn't a repurposed FOC Deluxe or a Cyber Batallion either.
On a side note, Soundwave's gray blaster has a purpose for those that want to further capture Megatron's gun mode kibble: it pegs onto the back and replicates the Walther P38's barrel. While it's small and probably isn't as impressive as the tank barrel that becomes the sword, it is something.
Now, for Soundwave himself...I want to like this figure. I really do. The robot mode and articulation are really nice. I don't like the altmode at all, the transformation is lackluster, the Siege battle damage has gone too far with this figure, and the tape deck feature, while appreciative, isn't as effective without the inclusion of at least one of the cassette partners. I know not every Soundwave figure in existence comes with a Laserbeak or a Ravage, but at least those that do add a bit to the features Soundwave's known for. You know something's weird when the Cyberverse figure and the Studio Series DOTM Soundwave both include Laserbeaks to some extent while this figure doesn't. The worst part is that I was going to say that he should be purchased at a discount, but it's so hard to do when it was easier to find it from TF fansites getting it in special packages from Hasbro than in stores (unless you're super lucky). Closest experience is getting Soundblaster if it manages to be on clearance, though it depends if your Walmart got the 35th-anniversary subline or not.
Oh and he got reissued instead of the Netflix guy and may or may not have mold on him, so much for removing the windows, Hasbro!
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