Transformers Legacy United Cybertron Vector Prime review

Vector Prime is one of the greatest parts of the Cybertron series; between his contributions as a guide to Optimus Prime and the fact that he is a guardian of space and time, the fact that he is seen as the first Autobot seems logical. He might be seen as a character comparable to the Last Autobot! Vector Prime's impact in showcasing his role as one of the legendary protectors of the Transformers universe adds a unique sense of layers to not just the Unicron Trilogy, but in subsequent mythos that depict him as one of the 13 Primes. Oh, and he had two versions of a Q&A page. Let's see if this new figure is worth getting, or if you should stick with the original.

Here we have Vector Prime in his Cybertronian space cruiser mode. Right off the bat, it gets a lot of the details right, such as the Sith Infiltrator-esque wings on the sides as well as the front section's mash-up of gold and burgundy signature for a character like him. The design itself is not the same as the original version, both when it comes to the proportions as well as the contrasting back section between the wings. This is due to the figure itself being a heavy retool of Jhiaxus from 2022 rather than being an entirely new mold. As is the case with retools of late for Unicron Trilogy characters, the amount of alterations varies on either budget or how faithful a figure can be while using a functionally different mold. Choosing Jhiaxus doesn't sound like a bad idea, but I wish there was some color break-up to make the back section less bland compared to the more complete front section, even if the wings and the hinges holding them are separate colors from the rest of the back.

The Cyber Planet Key can tab onto the back of the figure, and the Rhisling sword can be pegged underneath either wing hinge. As expected, there is no Minicon of Safeguard included whatsoever, but there is a 5mm peg on the top just to tease fans. I do wonder how much money Hasbro is saving by not including him, especially since figures like Armada Megatron felt pretty basic for Leader Class money without any proper ratchet joints, articulated hands, or Minicon in sight.

Here he is next to his fellow Cybertron mate from a previous wave, Starscream. Despite being a retool of Jhiaxus, Vector Prime does manage to fit in with the Cybertron aesthetics perfectly fine, especially since Starscream himself is very faithful in appearance as one would hope in this line.

And here he is next to the figure he is retooled from, with Jhiaxus reminding me a lot of one of those popsicles that were featured for a loud-as-hell game Joel from Vinesauce once reviewed. I think Vector Prime manages to have a better-looking vehicle mode of the two since it manages to be more refined in detail as well as having a more thought-out design given he would have a toy unlike Jhiaxus (in terms of when they made their fictional debuts). We'll talk about how much is carried over for the robot modes, but the back section and tail fin are still Jhiaxus's.

And here he is next to his old self from 2005. Cybertron Vector Prime was said to not have been as well-thought-out in vehicle mode compared to the robot mode, and while that part itself is true given how the Legacy United version has a mostly better vehicle mode, the Cybertron version does at least more color break up by comparison. As for replicating the back section, that won't be possible given their entirely different transformation schemes, but I'd like to see them try to at least have the robot legs match the ones on the old toy in terms of aesthetics.

The transformation is mostly the same as with Jhiaxus's, with the main differences being the shoulder pads, the front section rotating for the signature robot mode design to be visible, the wing hinges functioning differently given the design they have, and there being no additional nose-cone and shoulder piece as with Jhiaxus. The robot mode continues looking about as faithful to the old toy as the vehicle mode did, though at a slightly better degree this time around. The chest and shoulder pads certainly get the job done, especially given how character-specific they are for someone like Vector Prime. The rest of the figure does have a decent amount of paint apps on the rest of the toy, and the burgundy thighs as well as the feet are appreciative since the mostly unpainted shins do look bland. A somewhat similar thing goes for the arms, where the gold on the shoulder pads and the burgundy hands do try to make the rest of the forearms less underpainted. The back section, of course, lacks the fuselage cape due to how the toy transforms, and it makes the wings on the back look incomplete as a result.

Head sculpt is the best part of the toy, especially with how accurately it represents the ancient Autobot from the Unicron Trilogy combined with the influence of the Autobot insignia he has. Makes you wonder if G1 Prowl is jealous his face doesn't have any Autobot lore despite being the inspiration for the faction logo. Vector Prime's articulation is the same as Jhiaxus's, with a ball-jointed neck, swivels for the shoulders (moving front and back), biceps, wrists, hips, and thighs, hinges for the shoulders (moving out), elbows, fingers, outward leg movement, knees, and the ankles for moving laterally and rocking side to side.

In addition to the Rhisling sword mentioned above, he can still use the Cyber Planet Key, which tabs onto the chest rather than sliding into a slot like on Starscream. The key works the same as with the other Cybertron characters we got in 2024, but this was done to make the waist swivel uncompromised. And if you really want, you can remove the wings from the hinges and peg them on the forearms. I don't recommend it given the wings aren't on normal 5mm posts, but that'll be Hasbro's excuse to not give fans Safeguard.

Here he is next to his old self once again, showcasing where the newer version succeeds in being accurate and where it fails. I'd be happier if Hasbro came up with additional retooling and paint work for the forearms and shins to make them less like Jhiaxus, especially given how they'd go well with the torso and shoulders we have. What we have on display is not bad, but I wish it could have been executed better.

Here he is next to Jhiaxus. As far as this mode is concerned, beyond the structural parts, the arms below the shoulders and the waist down are the same as the Cybertronian of Generation 2. I wish Hasbro didn't skimp out on some of the retoolings one would hope VP would get. It also gets annoying considering how the hinges that held the smaller winglets on Jhiaxus are still left intact; what if a fan who doesn't know any better thinks he lost a piece from a toy out of the box and is unaware Hasbro didn't remove them?

And here he is with Starscream once again. Even if he is a retool of a character from Generation 2, Vector Prime still fits in nicely with the Cybertron collection, though he doesn't have the samy danymic flare that the character designs in the show tend to be known for. One thing they both have in common is underpainted shins.

And finally, here he is next to Galaxy Upgrade Optimus Prime, who I accidentally forgot to give his gauntlets smh. These two both show the 50/50 feelings I have for the figures; what I mean by that is how I appreciate the effort they put into making the retools, but I do wish they had that extra something to make them feel more complete. Not saying these two suck period, but they make me either appreciate the original Optimus as well as want the original Vector Prime more. All I'm saying is that you can be fine with these two figures, but if not, be ready to splash the cash on their original selves.

Final ranking: ⭐⭐⭐ and a half out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐