Before we take a proper look at the Wrecker himself, here is his backdrop. It depicts the damaged city of Chicago from Dark of the Moon, though it more appropriately fits another Transformer that we will take a look at in the very near future (and by very near future I mean Friday). I feel the Xantium better fits Roadbuster or the scene where he and the Wreckers were ripping the Decepticon protoform apart, but this is okay, I guess.
Here we have Roadbuster in his vehicle mode. It's an armored up Chevy Impala stock race car made for some serious damage against the Decepticons. I never had the Human Alliance version but I did have the DOTM Deluxe figure from 2011, which was seen as a stock car that didn't have the armored design. This figure is bad to the bone when it comes to guns, whether the Decepticons like it or not. And the sculpted details are thankfully done up with gray plastic to distinguish themselves from the green and white normally used in the vehicle mode. I'm overall impressed with how this turned out!
It's so good to see Roadbuster not look incomplete without those Wrecker touches that simply take him to a whole new level. The stock car didn't look too bad, but it doesn't really fit how the character looked in the movie without the appropriate use of Stealth Force for a character like Roadbuster.
There's even a big thruster in the back, which might be compatible with the Siege effect pieces if you have any lying around! Makes me wish Studio Series figures had Siege effect pieces to help their explosive battles look more alive. I mean even Cyberverse has their own effect pieces, so why can't this line?
Transformation is a little different than you might expect. It's got a bit more of a reliance on faux parts because the chest is actually designed not the front of the vehicle mode as you might expect. Instead, the front of the vehicle mode is used for the legs (as the front bumper is now used for the heels) while the roof portion of the vehicle mode is once again used as a backpack like on the original figure. Now that wouldn't be so much of a bad thing but it does make me wish it would sit up a little higher. At least it's not as annoying as WWII Bumblebee's backpack, but I wish this would be done up a bit better. Still, at least it doesn't look as odd as the old toy did. The robot mode itself does have a bit more bulk than the old toy did, and it thankfully looks more complete in terms of how it's designed, from the arms not having paper-thin armor to the legs having a bit more beef to them, and the shoulder cannons feel better integrated with him unlike previous toys, which looked like they'd snap off. Certainly better done than previous toys, but I still wish there was something to be done with the backpack.
The head sculpt looks a lot closer to the CG model, though the visor should be red instead of olive green. The molded details look crisp here, though the mouth could be a little more prominent. The baseball cap definitely looks more like a spiky hair due.
Articulation is the norm for a Deluxe. Head is on a ball joint, shoulders move front and back as well as in and out, they also hinge upwards and downwards due to transformation. The biceps swivel, the elbows bend (though they also bend backward due to another joint meant for transformation), and the hands curl inwards again due to transformation. Hips move front and back as well as in and out, the thighs swivel, and the knees bend. His ankles can hinge upwards, but that's mainly for transformation. The same gun that he had in vehicle mode can be used for his robot mode, where it can either be hand-held or arm mounted. It doesn't do so well: for one thing, it's too small, and another problem with it is how the arm ports are not deep enough to allow the weapon to look better integrated.
You can leave the cannon on either shoulder port, and I feel it better fits the look of the weapon in my opinion.
Here are the other versions of Roadbuster from Dark of the Moon. The old Deluxe was not a terrible toy, but I felt its design doesn't work for the character given his design isn't armored up as well as his shellformer feel. It felt like a figure that had to be brought out on the shelf yet Hasbro didn't remember to give him his proper guns. The same thing happened to Legion Class Topspin while Human Alliance Leadfoot had that treatment (though it was understandable given his Target exclusivity). Speaking of Human Alliance, Roadbuster did get armored up for that line, but it doesn't really work too week in terms of the robot mode. It felt a little too lanky and almost felt like it gave up in transforming itself with certain parts of it. Still, a better attempt at a Roadbuster than the Deluxe and it also beats the third party version of Roadbuster.
And here is a comparison with some more familiar Transformers in the movie continuity, including Bumblebee (in his MV1 design) and Sideswipe (in his DOTM form). He's in good scale with these two, I feel. I'm positive his height's supposed to be a little taller than possibly Bumblebee, but he works like this either way. All in all, Roadbuster is a pretty good entry for the Studio Series line in my opinion, though that backpack is getting some points taken off. I also should mention that the forearms may be a little annoying to pose because of how they're jointed, and transforming the front part of the car into the vehicle mode is a pain in the ass because the tabs need you to really lock the parts in place. This figure could also go for more weapons or at least a new weapon like a chainsaw. Otherwise, I'm happy to own a version of Roadbuster that feels relatively complete, and the other two Wreckers can't be far off now! I highly recommend this guy!
Final ranking: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
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