Here is Optimus Prime in his vehicle mode. A modified Freightliner truck with a few modifications to the front with the sun visor and grille guard, along with altered silver paint apps on the sides with slightly sculpted detailing representing the new fins on the shoulders. I honestly groaned seeing the old cab in Bumblebee, especially with the back section looking wimpy as hell. At least the new bits added for Rise of the Beasts made it interesting, and the back section where the trailer would go is at least bulkier! It makes the truck look much stronger by comparison, though I do wish the grille guard and the smokestacks were painted silver (same goes for any unpainted gray parts). Speaking of, the smokestacks do look a little thicker here than they normally should be. One other annoyance is the trio of hinges on the sides.
The back of the truck on this toy is admittedly worse, as the limited use of molds according to Hasbro designers is smaller than the norm for a Voyager. The shins don't have enough parts to make them flush, but I do know an upgrade kit is coming soon as courtesy of DNA Design. Oh and the sword as well as the cannon can be stored in the back.
For a vehicle mode comparison, here is Optimus in-between the SS-38 and mainline ROTB figures. His truck mode is accurate to the prop in the film, and that goes down to the BB version using the Marmon 97 (Evasion Prime ironically doesn't). The mainline version is stylized in comparison, though it gets the details of the movie generally right while doing its own thing. BB Prime does have the best back section out of the three, while the mainline version is not far behind in spite of looking like a dump truck type of bed. It is also in-between the sizes of the other two toys.
And here he is next to Scourge, and the scale between the two should be accurate like in the movie, and this should mean either Studio Series or Battle Blades Prime will scale with this flat nose fellow. And no, this isn't an endorsement to that stupid ass Scourge = Undead Prime fan theory, get real.
And here he is with the other Autobots in both lines! Arcee is oversized, yes, but this Prime is in better scale with his teammates than the mainline Voyager. I do wonder how the Studio Series version of Mirage will look, as well as wait for Wheeljack to get a figure in that line.
Transformation is about as involved as the original SS-38, but we have a few new tricks related to the way the design works, such as the panels that fold into each other with the forearms and the insignia pieces, making this distribute its truck pieces more evenly. However, the torso is what gets more steps, while the legs are much simpler. The resulting robot mode is much leaner and not as blocky and wide as the original figure, better matching the CG model and the proportions. Optimus's design in the movie was criticized for being skinnier than the Bumblebee movie physique, which is nowhere near as noticeable comparing the two CG models in contrast to the changes in the coloring and Earth mode tweaks. The gray plastic on the thighs as well as on the shoulders and forearms does look cheaper than the gunmetal gray or silver, though it comes down to the sprue used to make the mold. Said sprue means some parts had to be painted, including the back where it's blue plastic painted red.
His head sculpt is much closer to the CG model more than the previous toy, and it has a good level of sculptwork that makes it sharp despite being a bit smaller. I would love an unmasked version. As for the articulation, the head has more range this time, the shoulders move front and back like normal but now they move in and out as part of the upper body due to transformation rather than having dedicates shoulder joints (think of SS86 Hot Rod), yet the bipeps swivel and there are now double elbows. The wrists rotate as well as curl inwards slightly because of transformation. There is an ab crunch and a waist swivel a la Marvel Legends, the former being a rarity for a Transformer. The legs move front and back on non-traditional hip joints due to the altered waist, but they move in and out normally. The thighs swivel, knees bend, and the ankles can pivot side to side as well as move around on ball joints; they're also stable unlike SS-38.
His weaponry includes a blade that mimics the Energon blades he'd later receive in 2007, and it can peg either next to the hand or on the forearm; it is also possible for hold it in the hands. His arm cannon is smaller than in the film, but it mimics how the cannons transform out of the hand. It is undersized, however, and there is no axe. You can expect the upgrade kit to rectify those issues, though Optimus Primal is set to come with an axe as well.
Here he is in-between the other versions of the design, with the dumpy proportions of the SS-38 guy and the more stylized take of the mainline figure. I feel that the SS-38 version is a case of Hasbro trying too hard to make a Moviefied G1 Prime that is different from all of the other reuses of that design, but it ends up feeling clunky and unrefined, which is how I see a lot designs in the Bumblebee movie on Cybertron vs the ones made before the new opening was added. The ROTB Voyager is pretty good for what it is, but it still has the cheaper quality, smaller size, and an over-reliance on the blue paint with how no blue plastic is used. It at least has the smokestacks pointed backwards than sideways. SS-102 has the best proportions, and his colors are more fitting for this design compared to the BB version or ROTB version.
This guy generally wins in comparison to the other toys, even with some minor issues that he has. Ironically, he has no Ion Blaster, but you can take either figure's gun to make him feel more complete with the giant rifle that fits him best. The mainline one is reminiscent of TFP while the SS-38 is full-on G1.
And here he is next to Scourge, the main antagonist for the movie. He is taller than the Autobot leader yet part of that goes down to the inaccurate neck design. I feel that if you were to replace it with the final head design, Scourge would be a little shorter than he currently is by at least a few centimeters. But regardless, you can show the evil truck the real power of a Prime while also going "up yours" to the fan theory that wanted to go "up yours" to the Bayverse but failed. Bonaventura - 1, Bay-antis - 0!
And here he is with his teammates, from the Studio Series line with Bumblebee and Arcee as well as the mainline with Wheeljack (whose SS counterpart remains a listing) and Mirage (whose SS counterpart is still up for preorder). And I must say after the mistake of just focusing on one Autobot in a filler movie, it's great that we get another iconic 5-bot team every decade, which works in terms of when the movies came our or the chronological timeline of the films. 07 team in 2007, AOE team in 2014, and ROTB team in 2023 for the release date and 1994 in terms of in-universe events!
And finally, here he is with his future iterations in terms of chronological timeline rather than when each film came out. If I were to put ROTB Prime on the left, it'd be a way of showcasing Optimus going from traditional G1 to a more balanced mix of new and old with the Original Trilogy design, and his more original AOE/TLK design as a knight, making Optimus look further different from the traditional template than when we first saw him in 2007. It's pretty good evolution if you ask me, and honestly, after rolling my eyes on the set dressing fan wank of the Cybertron battle in Bumblebee, I grew to appreciate this design more in ROTB? Is it because it's got silver bits and some less Geewun elements like the unmasked face and weapons? Is it because it's got Peter Cullen's voice without feeling like he had to dub over an imitator voice (Jon 3.0)? Or is it because Optimus was less "LOOKATMEIAMGEEWUNWEEEEE* and more "I should never have brought us so far away?" and felt more like a genuine prelude to the character's appearances in later films with his trust on humans going up and down? Either way, this is an Optimus Prime that I highly recommend you get, even in spite of the flaws it has. What really sucks, however, is the fact that it's exclusive to Target rather than being a mass-retail release. An almost entirely new mold for the leader of the Autobots getting relegated to a store-exclusive status is bullshit to me. That doesn't take points away from the quality of this amazing toy, but COME ON HASBRO!!!!!
Final ranking: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
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