Transformers Earthrise Starscream/Skywarp/Thundercracker Review

The Siege Seeker mold we took a look at was pretty good despite the heavy shellformer backpack he had, but that doesn't really mean he was that bad of a Transformer. At the same time, I do feel that the ER Seeker mold might help with getting a more traditional look so the Tetrajet design won't always be used constantly. Initially, I felt it was funny to see Hasbro try to make Earth versions of the Siege characters because we know that the G1 fans would beg for more of that "Geewun Goodness", but then I felt that perhaps a new mold doesn't hurt to check out, but there is something oddly familiar about it. With all that said, it's time we see how the new Earthrise guy holds up compared to his Siege self and said familiar figure. But Starscream isn't alone, as he's accompanied along with Skywarp and Thundercracker from their Target-exclusive Cybertronian Villains 2-pack!

Here we have Starscream in his vehicle mode. We're back to an F-15 Eagle after a year of the Tetrajet! I'm going to be honest and say I like this a bit more because after looking back at the Siege Seeker mold, I felt it was time for a change. While this jet mode isn't quite as perfect as some of the other jetformers in terms of sleekness (especially ones with the F-22 altform), I do like how this jet turned out, what with the proportions being accurate to the way the vehicle looks in real life as well as the color scheme itself. This deco just feels so much nicer to see in a more complete look after the Siege version not having the right spots for the colors given its different design. Only complaint I have is that the stripes could be a little brighter for the red ones, but otherwise, I like how this jet mode turned out. Sure, it's the same as what we normally get, but at this point, given how stuff like POTP Starscream turned out, I'd rather go back to this figure. The only glaring thing about this toy is the lack of a nosecone in the same color as the tailfins. I know that it's not "cartoon-accurate", but seeing it on other Starscream toys made this version feel naked without it. Otherwise, a nice take on the old F-15 jet mode.

This is the undercarriage of the vehicle mode, which does look fairly blocky but otherwise does a decent job at being sleek as much as a G1 Starscream normally could. Not greatly, but at an acceptable rate. You might notice a bit of black underneath that nosecone. We'll get to that in a bit.

Here is a comparison with the Siege version. While that figure does get points for having an original vehicle mode, I feel that the Earthrise version wins for having the better vehicle mode. For one thing, the vehicle mode doesn't really have its parts look all that obvious while the Siege version has the entire robot mode visible from almost every angle. Not as bad as POTP Starscream, mind you, but it's still a bit too noticeable. Additionally, the jet mode doesn't feel as though it'll have a transformation that's underwhelming. Does that make the Siege version totally look like a piece of slag? Of course not! But I feel that while it's neat to see a cleaner than usual Tetrajet in plastic, I do wish more could be better done with it.

Remember when I said that this figure looked familiar earlier? Well, here is a comparison with the Classics version that he is based off of! Initially, I thought that this guy was going to be a straight-up size bump of the Deluxe figure with the same design choices done at the time. That was a thought that I had when I saw Siege Optimus and said that it looked like Classics Optimus, which did not age well; Siege Optimus was thankfully worlds better than that crappy Deluxe, and I'm happy to say that Earthrise Starscream is better than the old Deluxe figure. Okay, the jet modes look similar, and while I'd love to see some landing gear on this mold, this figure does have some molding differences from the old Deluxe to show that it's not a Voyager version of the same toy. For one thing, there's a hinge where the head goes, which is not as visible as it was on the old toy. Then you have the Null-Rays, which are nowhere near as toyish and oversized. There isn't an obvious discrepancy on the part that goes with the rest of the cockpit, the thrusters are different from the old toy by being the actual feet, and there's a 5mm peg on the back, which the old toy never had. My version of the Classics Starscream mold is the Hasbro version from that exact line, which is why it's not colored normally despite looking good otherwise. I would have it be in this review, but I gave mine away after getting the Siege version, and with the Earthrise version in my possession, I don't think I'll miss it too much.

Now let's take a look at Skywarp and Thundercracker. It's so nice to have some repaints that would probably get scalped easily on eBay, and the best part is I paid a little less than I would at my Target. They look nice on their own and together despite having different cosmetics from what is otherwise the same toy I already covered, but there's some form of charm with these guys since they could easily make a fleet. Normally, I don't really like collecting Seekers because they're either going to get scalped badly, the prices would be annoying to tackle, and I'm sure getting repaints is not something that interests me unless it's one that I really want to get (like ROTF Starscream or Takara's version of Beast Hunters Ultra Magnus), but at least these were in an accessible store I regularly go to as well as being reasonably priced. BotCon exclusives these ain't (thank Primus). Having them in hand, I kind of wish their decos would be a bit different from Starscream's to make them stand out. I get that HasTak wants to be faithful to the max with G1, and that's something I criticized with Hoist and Grapple, but I kind of wish that they'd get unique decals for their tailfins (which look a little bare without them), and I wish that their wing decals didn't look the same (Skywarp at least has purple stripes while Thundercracker could have easily made his black to be a little different from Starscream's). Nonetheless, they're good repaints nonetheless.

Here is Thundercracker next to his Siege self. He's got some consistency with his Cybertronian self, which is good for the most part aside from the lack of a black nosecone. The same comments I said about the mold apply here, except the color's different.

Here is Skywarp next to the Not-Quite-Skywarp guy himself, Hotlink...Yeah, I should mention that despite being an Amazon exclusive and a repaint of a fairly common mold, Skywarp's somehow the hardest of the Seekers to find, and I've got no idea why. Quite frankly, it's annoying that he's somehow unavailable given that his last few figures in the Generations line, like the Combiner Wars Legends and Leader Class figures, were easier to find, yet the Siege version somehow isn't. I'd still love to get a Skywarp eventually, though customizing Hotlink into a Skywarp is not a bad option. You can see here that despite having more purple than black, the Netflix-themed repaint doesn't look too bad next to the more black than purple Earthrise guy. It does make me wish this was Skywarp from the start and had more Skywarp-themed elements, though.

And now we have the two additional Seekers along with Starscream. As I said, they look neat as a fleet, and if I had three flight stands as well as some effect pieces, I'm sure they'd look even better than they are on the table. I'm sure 2015 me would be a lot happier with getting the Seekers together because I was a lot more into G1 then than I am now where I'm more critical of it and how its prominence takes away any creative potential nowadays. One thing I should mention is that parts that hold the wings and the gray tailfins next to the blue ones are in slightly different plastic shades for at least Starscream and Thundercracker. Not necessarily bad things, but I should mention them.

And here they are with the Siege versions. It's almost like an evolution of sorts for them, though in the case of Hotlink, he's supposed to be Skywarp and what not.

Transformation is similar to the Classics version with a few differences that I'll cover later. It's not necessarily that deal-breaking, but I do feel those that spent a lot more on the Deluxe mold's innumerable repaints way more than they needed to will find pain in seeing the similarities. I personally find the similarities odd at first, but then I started to see how the forearms transformed as well as the legs. I will say that the way the tabs for the torso work is a little uncomfortable, as it's somewhat fragile and nowhere near as effective as I'd hope it could be. Nonetheless, the resulting robot mode does look quite nice. Sure it's the been-there-done-that sort of look when viewed from far away, but to this figure's credit, it's not as flat or underwhelming as I'd expect. There's a good amount of molded detail to this figure and the design feels a lot more refined here than it did in the Voyager toy. The only weird thing is that the nosecone is still sticking out from the back, but it is acceptable.

Head sculpt is the typical Starscream norm, with a big helmet that looks like a boxy haircut if he was human, and a gray face that looks a little unsettled with being near Megatron, but it works well. I like the black-painted helmet and silver paint for the face, but the eyes could be a little more prominent.

Articulation is a bit less of the norm from the WFC line and is only next to Apeface where some of its points are glaringly missing. While he's got all the points you'd expect, he's missing wrist swivels and waist swivels. The former is due to the transformation of the hands while the latter is due to the lack of space made for the joint given how the torso transforms. However, this guy still manages to be more poseable than his older Classics self, which we'll get to in a bit. And yes, his null-rays are attached as they should be.

Here he is next to the Siege version. While the Siege version does have more of that "cool" factor to his design, I think Earthrise Starscream manages to be a bit easier on the eye thanks to the wings looking more like wings and with the battle damage being nonexistent. Thankfully, they do manage to look like they're the same character in two different forms, with one being the Cybertronian version and the other being an Earthly take on the character.

I do appreciate that no parts are reused. The previous pic showed that the null-rays are different molds, with the new ones having a more standard look to them whereas the Siege versions have a machine-gun look to them. The heads definitely make them different personalities, though. Siege Starscream's head sculpt was my favorite part of the character given how it had the light-piping and the face sculpt looking well made. By contrast, the Earthrise Starscream's head looks more G1 than the Siege version's more Unicron Trilogy look (which might be possible that this guy will have his head used for Armada Starscream at some point), and the helmet that ER Screamer has is in a shinier coat of black for the helmet and a less stern expression. Very nice touch on not reusing pieces, Hasbro!

The articulation is a bit worse on Earthrise Starscream when compared to the Siege version. His elbows don't bend as far as the Siege's double-jointed ones do (while the latter's wrists are capable of swiveling).

The hips have less range of motion, even with the adjustable waist piece. Because the hips are part of the skirt, they do have a weird look to them at first glance (where it's so high up it looks like a speedo) but is at least capable of giving him more range. At least Earthrise Starscream has proper feet instead of high heels!

The arms are also slightly less mobile, which does suck that he can't make quite the right look for a null-ray shot without the butterfly joint or waist swivel.

Now here he is next to Classics Starscream. Let's talk about the fact that they're not the same mold (and yes, this guy is supposed to be shorter than the Earthrise guy); first of all, the way the parts are molded doesn't really correlate with what the old toy had. The sculpted details do not match what was previously made, there are small crevices near the shoulder pylons where none were present on the Deluxe, the gray piece meant for the cockpit is not the same as the old Deluxe, the lower legs are molded differently, the shoulder pylons are more erect on the Voyager, and the torso's dimensions are different than on the Voyager. And the feet look better on the ER figure than on the Classics figure because they're not one piece of a foot that tries to use the thruster as a heel. Earthrise Starscream at least attempts to better distinguish himself from a Deluxe figure than Studio Series Starscream did from the DOTM Deluxe. Still, that figure feels like a new mold borrowing the engineering instead of being an upscaled Deluxe figure, so both figures are at least better figures in terms of adding new things beyond the size compared to Cybertron Supreme Starscream, who doesn't really add any improvements beyond the electronics and different weapon.

Next up, here we have the other Seekers. Of course, they're cosmetically different from Starscream, though both share the same silver chests whereas Starscream's is red. so they might seem a little underwhelming for those that want a couple of more deco differences from one another, but...

If you look closely, you'll notice that Skywarp's head is actually different from Thundercracker's by having a yelling face. This was originally found from at least one Starscream that had the head Skywarp would come with. As I'll show you, IDK if it's my lighting or not but I appreciate that Skywarp has a bit of an angry look to his face.

Here is the image I referred to. Starscream doesn't quite look as right as he should be unless he was meant to be repainted to look dead or be a ghost. Initially, it seemed a little odd because it made him look like a dull surprise sex doll, but it works a bit better for someone like Skywarp, who had more of an angry look in comparison.

There's even a bit of difference between Starscream and Thundercracker for the eyes. TC's eyes look noticeably angrier than Screamer's.

Now let's see how Thundercracker looks next to his Siege self. Siegecracjer doesn't have the same silver chest that the ER version has, but what is odd is that the previous figure has a smirking face! That better suits Starscream, and it's ironic to see Siegescream have a face that better fits Thundercracker while the ER figures have the proper faces.

Now here is Skywarp next to Mr. I-Can't-Believe-It's-Not-Skywarp, AKA Hotlink. Yeah, you can tell that this was clearly meant to be a different character since there's no silver chest and is instead replaced with purple, so now it makes sense as to why this is not a Skywarp.

Since we'll never take a look at the Blowpipe until I cover Triggerhappy, here are Heatscorch and Heartburn. These nearly identical Battlemasters are different only by their visors. Yes. They function the same as Firedrive did, and I previously covered that figure for Titans Return Hot Rod. Their arms and legs are on ball joints and they can have the cannons arm-mounted. 

Here are their gun modes, which have different barrel shapes from Firedrive, and no, they can't hold two blast effects at a time.

Hotlink holding some the two in two ways: held individually by Hotlink or combined to become a flamethrower of sorts, further solidifying that Hotlink is his own use despite the fact that he should have been a second chance at getting Skywarp.

Now it's time to go over the reuses! Ramjet and Dirge will be in a two-pack for Amazon. I actually like that idea...in theory! It makes room for more important figures while making these two feel worthwhile still. PrimeVsPrime reviewed them a while back and I'm quite happy with how they look, what with the wings, kneepads, slightly different chests (weapons could be a little more different but eh). These guys, like Skywarp, are hard to obtain at a reasonable price because the Geewun scalpers and their bots made them hard to obtain and are not on eBay trolling others with Bidding Wars.

As for a Conehead that is slightly easier to obtain (though that's not saying much), this is Thrust! He's interesting because his wings can be flipped upwards like the older toys, but they can only hinge inwards if they're up like that. I got this guy from Target's website (thank God), but you better hope to find him in stores and the like. Also, why does his nosecone have the black tip but not the real one?

And now for the first repaint of a pre-existing Conehead, this is Sandstorm, based on a G2 repaint that was scrapped. He's a repaint of Ramjet and has a desert-themed repaint that has a bit of camo here and there. What makes this guy have an advantage over the other Seekers is that his chest won't have any paint-chipping issues. He's slightly easier to obtain because he's not a character from the cartoon that the Scalperbots won't let you own as proven with 5 of the 6 uses in the line.

And this is G2 Ramjet! This guy is quite the treat for those that wanted to get the Seeker in his infamous deco, though it's amusing how this is the third time the Seeker mold uses Ramjet's tooling. Since I don't own the Earthrise Conehead 2-pack, this guy will make a makeshift trio of Coneheads with Thrust, Sandstorm, and this version of Ramjet.

And here we are back to square one with Studio Series Coronation Starscream! This guy is the Earthrise version but with new gear for the coronation set as well as a throne. He even has articulated fingers, yet they didn't give him wrist swivels or a waist swivel. He even has some removed paint apps. Sorry but I don't plan on buying this figure any time soon. Even though a discount would be appreciated, I do NOT want to buy a barely different reuse of a figure I already own back in 2020 just for a coronation set. I can get behind stuff like Earthrise PRime's trailer. I can get behind the mass used for Beast Wars Megatron or Galvatron. I will not get behind a release like this.

Legacy went back and gave us 2 new uses of the ER Seeker mold with a no-name troop as part of a 4-pack with an Allicon, a G2 Cybertronian, and an Animated Autotrooper. He looks like Thundercracker only with a purple tint.

And this is Cloudcover, another Ramjet reuse because that's the only tooling G2 ever used for Seekers apparently. This guy is based on, you guessed it, another canceled repaint from the line, and now features proper G2 Decepticon insignias.

And now, the conclusion! This mold is honestly better than I expected, and after seeing some of the changes Hasbro made to make this feel a lot less like the old Classics Seeker mold, I'm very happy with the results. This is a figure that could have made me yawn like Hoist and Grapple did, but it manages to be less G1 with knees and more "We can what 2006/MP can't". While I'd love a waist swivel or wrist swivel, I'm happy to have a figure like this nonetheless as well as both the Seeker repaints and the ones we've yet to get nonetheless. Still gotta be careful with how the chest tabs together, though. 

As for the Siege versions of the Seekers, I feel that while most fans would prefer not to get them and get the more "Geewun" takes of the characters, I'm alright with keeping these guys with me since they're the best versions of the Tetrajet design we'll probably get. Their articulation and head sculpts also look great, plus it's nice to have two sets of Seeker body-types so we won't have to constantly deal with every Seeker looking the same if I ever get the Rainmakers and have them next to the Earth-styled Seekers. I only have Starscream, Thundercracker, and Hotlink, but I'd love to get the other characters at some point if they're cheap, especially Skywarp.

Regardless, I think I'm done with G1 Starscream. I know there's a chance another version of the character will come out at some for Kingdom or for another G1-styled line, but I don't want to see the Seeker get another action figure because there's so much that can keep me interested with the G1 series. I'd rather buy Armada Starscream when he gets remade instead of getting another G1-styled Starscream that is 5% better than his current self. Oh, sure, the tail-fins will be hidden away in the 69th Starscream, not like that will interest me. Still, unless we get an entirely new take on Starscream that doesn't feel like a barely rehashed G1 version of the character yet again, then Earthrise Starscream could easily be the final version of the character that I need for my CHUG display. Sure, I may go back and get the CHUG or Combiner Wars guy, but I'd rather pay for those at a cheap price or in an eBay lot than get a Starscream that'll cost me $32.99 in 2024. So here's a shot at what might be my favorite takes of the G1 Seekers (will be replaced when I get Skywarp, but Hotlink can stay with me and the other stuff).

Final ranking: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (counts for each version of the mold)