I feel anyone's going to be told "No shit, Sherlock!" when they say that Mario, Luigi, and Peach are the most iconic trio in video game history. I mean, what's new to be said about them? I already know them, you already know them (presumably), need I say more? One's the guy that is in just about every video game his company tends to make, the other is a slightly less popular but still recognizable brother, and the princess is the typical damsel in distress that still remains in that role even to this day. The Mario brand is undoubtedly evergreen, and while it may have others wish to see a bit more uniqueness in the brand that didn't make it seem to mostly consist of the typical references to the NES days, the New series, or the constant Party and Sports games, I still find the appeal in this series. And of course, that led me in purchasing this three-pack after struggling to find it. The problem is, I really wanted one of the three, but are the other two still good? Let's find out together!
Here are the three icons of Mushroom Kingdom out of the package! They each look like what they should be, though while Peach looks perfectly fine for what it is, Mario and Luigi do look like that one meme where people go "what you get online vs when you get it". The way Jakks Pacific does their figures looks fine for the most part, but the way things like the paint apps for the eyes and hats look does feel a little cheap. Don't get me wrong, they aren't horrendous in terms of how they applied the paint, but it does feel give off that assembly line feel that doesn't make them feel right. It's fine for Luigi, but Mario's eyes could be a little better done. At least the mouths look nicely done along with the shirt paint apps added to the blue plastics (mostly made for the overalls); the best looking figure in this set is Princess Peach. While I'd love a bit of a cheery expression, this figure captures the look of the character quite well, with their hair, crown, and dress there's even a hot pink to stand out from the rest of the cooler shades of pink. Her crown could use a little more sheen to it, but this figure looks the best. Even her earrings and center jewel are picked out nicely.
The articulation for these figures are a little basic, but while the Mario Brothers have the same points at the necks, shoulders, elbows, wrists, hips, and knees (with Mario being a little more hindered than Luigi), Peach only has shoulders, elbows, and a waist swivel. While her articulation is a little lacking compared to the boys, it makes sense given that her skirt's a hard plastic that helps her stand.
And now, a comparison with the Figuart versions of the same characters! Specifically, Mario and Luigi getting their comparisons. The Japanese figures are places on the left while the American versions are placed on the right (by that I mean JAP vs US Mario and JAP vs US Luigi). While the quality differences and the joints are different between the two, the Figuarts appear to be based on the Wii era of the characters (first seen in said console's versions of Mario Kart and New Super Mario Bros while) while the Jakks Pacific versions are more based on the Wii U era (first seen in games like Super Mario 3D World and Mario Kart 8). Personally, I like that they're different from one another in terms of the renders that they aim to capture, but I kind of wonder if the Figuarts were meant to be released before the renders were updated. They were revealed two months after Super Mario 3D World came out, so that might explain why these versions of Mario and Luigi aren't the same in terms of renders as the Jakks Pacific versions are. That's especially prominent with the way the eyes look, where they're brighter than before (but not as glossy as the Figuarts ones). Also, While the height differences between Mario and Luigi are not too different with the Figuarts (which makes me think of when Luigi gets a model rigged in Mario's playable proportions in some Wii-era games) while the Jakks Pacific versions have a more prominent height difference. Also, Mario and Luigi have different hands by default while Figuart Luigi comes with open hands as an option.
So while Peach may fit in better with the Mario and Luigi Figuarts, that doesn't mean that the Jakks Pacific figures don't look too bad despite not having the same quality overall. I will say that this pack may be your best shot at getting all three characters if you don't care about the Figuart versions of Mario and Luigi, and Princess Peach herself is scarce as hell online; so all in all, this set is one I most certainly recommend you get if you want to get them in one go, though be prepared to pay 30 bucks for what are essentially good for displays.
Last time I took at something related to Nintendo was waaaaaaaaaaaaaaay back when I covered the Figuarts (this obviously doesn't include those video game posts devoted to a week). Now, I doubt we'll ever get any more Nintendo characters, but if we do, I hope they don't end up being grossly undersized and expensive like Bowser was. Still, let's see what we got in terms of Jakks Pacific's Nintendo selection. They consist of Bowser and Donkey Kong, who otherwise need no introduction!
Here we have both of them in-hand, and I should mention that they're of the larger figure variety compared to the norm. While that would normally be something that makes bigger toys require more details, the fact that these two are fairly basic in terms of appearances makes them acceptable in this scale. Plus, they're large characters to begin with, so I feel these are perfectly fine for what they are.
First up, we have Bowser; who checks the list on what a Bowser should have to make themselves look the part. The proportions, the hair, the horns, and those armbands all capture his cartoony yet menacing look. The paint he has does look a little "pastel" given how Jakks Pacific makes their toys, but it fits the way he looks in the games. The eyes are thankfully painted properly along with everything else. In-hand, it feels fairly light but nothing that I'd label as "cheap". In terms of his articulation, his head can move a little bit along with his arms, elbows, his hands (which bend inwards), and his hips. They're not the most poseable joints, but he otherwise looks the part given how he's not the most dynamic in terms of articulation.
For a bit of a comparison with some other versions of himself, which consist of the S.H.Figuart and the ToyBiz Mario Kart 64 figure. Now I know some will easily prefer S.H.Figuarts like the self-absorbed Japanese toy collectors they claim to be because that name would easily make them hooked on that import bandwagon, but I'm going to say right off the bat that Bowser is too small when put next to the other Figuarts. I guess he works for a fake Bowser, but he otherwise isn't quite what you're looking for. The MK64 version of the guy doesn't look like he's the best for a standalone figure, but his details and paintwork make him stand out from the others and show how he looked from a time when the N64 SGI models were prominent before their Gamecube-era revisions. He looks better with the kart, though.
D.K.! Donkey Kong!
He's the leader of the bunch; you know him well!
He looks the part, as you can tell!
He may not have a coconut gun;
But he still is a toy that's fun!
He's bigger, faster, poseable, too!
He's the first member of the D.K. crew!
Setting aside the D.K. rap jokes, I like this guy quite a bit. But how does he compare to the older versions of the character? The ToyBiz version looks very misproportioned and weird, but the articulation does work well for those interested. The Banpresto version looks the best given how it better captures DK's posture, and moreso than the current figure. Still, this one may have received a few knockoffs if you're not lucky finding it from eBay, a flea market, etc.
Here is a comparison with the S.H.Figuarts versions of Mario and Luigi! Despite the quality differences between the two, the two Jakks Pacific guys can still look good next to their friends from a different company. Overall, these two make for a great addition to any video game enthusiast's merchandise collection. Donkey Kong was one I got at Mexico while Bowser was one I got with a Mario that I gave to my brother as well as a Bob-Omb that I forgot to add in this pic (same goes for the Mario, but he will show up elsewhere). All in all, they make for neat toys for kids and for older fans that want to display them, despite Bowser lacking in some points of articulation and sculpting while Donkey Kong a little restricted with his articulation.
Netflix needs no introduction for the masses; it's not only a streaming platform that provides previously released movies and TV shows in a single package, but they're also known for releasing original content that proves they're more than just the equivalent of reruns. I've seen some of their original shows and movies, with content like Triple Frontier, Daredevil, and Voltron: Legendary Defender being the best examples of what they've got. Naturally, from the reactions made with the latter content (especially Voltron), nerd culture began begging for TV shows based on old IPs. We've got a few shows with similar approaches (along with that Toys That Made Us series), and Transformers would later get a show of its own for that platform. Announced at Toy Fair 2019 and later revealed with its first trailer for this year's own Toy Fair, Rooster Teeth is involved with the production and the series is made for an older audience in mind; this should be appealing to the Transformers fans that grew up with the old series, right? Well, it looks like it could on the surface, but as someone that's seen plenty of other versions of the franchise, it's all just a gimmick to keep the G1 fans and normies interested in what is otherwise a lackluster show. Let's take a look at what Transformers: War for Cybertron: Chapter 1: Siege has to offer. WARNING: THIS SERIES CONTAINS SPOILERS, SO IF YOU HAVEN'T SEEN CHAPTER 1: SIEGE, DON'T GO ANY FURTHER.
THE STORY
War For Cybertron sets the warring factions on their planet's brink of total breakdown, with many casualties piling up on both factions, especially with the Autobots. Outsiders avoiding the faction are none other than the likes of Bumblebee and Wheeljack, who are mere scavengers looking to profit off of the war. Upon encountering the Seekers, they escape the moment Starscream and Jetfire argue with one another regarding their ranks in the sub-faction. Megatron arrives, sees the two scavengers remaining neutral, and decides to execute them before Autobot leader Optimus Prime saves their skins. After a failed attempt to convince Optimus that they should let Cybertron have peace his way, Megatron decides to kill his foe until Elita-1 shows up and detonates the hidden bombs for the Autobots' escape. Later, they return to the base and Bee talks about his awareness of their need for energon despite not being too convinced to join their faction. Prime talks with Elita and later Magnus, both of whom share their concern regarding their safety and the refusal to reason with Megatron's treaty, respectively.
The latter would later show up to meet the Decepticons, with the intent to collaborate on a peace treaty deal between him, Optimus, and Megatron. As a result of this, the Autobots start to wonder if Magnus is going to reside with the opposing faction or not. The discovery of the Allspark creates a potential plan to reprogram the Autobots with it. A warning is made about the artifact to the Autobots, and they set out to find it before the Decepticons can. However, they fail to realize a trap is made by the Cons, so they won't get near the Allspark. One of the battles gets Fort Max accessory Cog injured and Impactor assumed dead. The Decepticons begin their plan to reformat the Autobots, while the Autobots get new allies in the form of Ratchet and former Decepticon Impactor. Optimus sets out a plan to get the Allspark off-planet, especially now that there's a chance the space bridge Wheeljack discovered can get them off the planet when it's repaired. Meanwhile, Starscream criticizes Megatron for his reformatting idea, saying that the Autobots won't even be true Decepticons until he argues with Jetfire about each other.
When the Decepticons struggle to find the Autobots, Shockwave attempts to use any method he could. Coincidentally, an Autobot named Mirage shows up in a Decepticon disguise, who turns out to be a distraction for the Autobots' ambush as Spinister and Skytread are taken care of. Another argument within the Autobots ensues after finding their next hiding spot, and it revolves around Ratchet not liking Prime's actions and Mirage questioning his repairs on Impactor...who starts arguing with Mirage. After the edgy arguing, the Autobots now set out to start repairs on the space bridge. Meanwhile, Ultra Magnus refuses to give away where the Autobots are hiding, even with the increasing pain Shockwave gives him. Even with an attempt to go after Megatron and Jetfire upon breaking free, he gets locked up just because he refuses to shoot Megatron. At his breaking point, the city commander finally decides to share some Autobot info. Speaking of Autobots, Impactor removes his comm, notifying Skywarp and Jetfire. The latter betrays the former, who runs off after getting shot by the traitor. Megatron grows a lot more devoted to crushing the Autobots, with his faction taking Ultra Magnus to a memorial meant for Alpha Trion. With nothing in the memorial, Magnus is shot by Megatron before energy flows from him.
Bumblebee gets caught up in the energy made from Magnus, he gets knocked offline and later encounters Alpha Trion. While Laserbeak is sent to look for the strange energy flows and Jetfire to take Magnus's corpse to Shockwave, Starscream and his Seekers call out their ally for killing Skywarp. The traitor flies away before getting shot down in a dogfight. The Autobots hear about Magnus's death and learn of the Alpha Trion protocols' activation as a result of his death. Impactor admits that what he's done is nothing that matches up with what Megatron did. Plenty of Autobots are now made to repair the ship, and Optimus later comes up with a plan to not only get the Allspark off the planet but to look for the Guardians before even doing so. With a limited amount of time to get the space bridge repaired, there's so much that the Autobots can do as they hide from the Seekers. Starscream, meanwhile, is made as the new Seeker leader, while Optimus tells the Guardians to help them stop Megatron without avail. After getting nothing but doubt from his inability to do anything with the Guardians, he is later told that they'll get the Ark up and running. Bumblebee then runs in and tells Optimus about Alpha Trion as well as realizing that he's chosen by the protocols within Magnus. They also find out where the Allspark is, but not before running into their newest ally, Jetfire.
The Decepticons go over what happened with the signal Magnus made when he died, and they find out that a code was hidden within the protocols and has the ability to go over Cybertron. Megatron, underwhelmed with his ally's inability to do anything with the protocol, goes with Shockwave's idea of using a virus and using Magnus's body to transmit it, despite it's potential damage to the planet. The Autobots understand that Jetfire's no longer interested in the genocide made by Megatron, while the knowledge Bumblebee received from the ATP surprises them; they all discover that the Allspark is now in the Sea of Rust, which is a dangerous part of Cybertron to visit and escape. Despite the reluctance regarding the locations of the Allspark, Prowl and Jetfire are ordered to go out for it. Now that the space bridge is repaired, they decide to hide it from the Cons with Mirage's hologram powers. Magnus's corpse, on the other hand, is set up to unleash Shockwave's virus., which is darker than Jetfire's proposal to let the Autobots override his brain module. Bumblebee goes out with Arcee and Cog to steal Energon from a black Soundwave named Soundblaster while Optimus Prime and a small group of Autobots set out to the Sea of Rust; Elita-1 stays behind because of the gray areas everyone is in. Bee's team fails to trick the failed Soundwave clone with getting the Energon that they need while Elita finds out that several Autobot outposts are getting knocked out by Shockwave's virus.
With desperation kicking in, Elita now tells all Autobots to report to the Ark; that doesn't even work as the virus now begins to hack into the ship itself. Prime and his Autobots try their best to avoid the vortexes within the SoR, but their encounter with the Allspark warns them of the undead Transformers that begin to outnumber them. Everything seems hopeless, especially now that the Decepticons are beginning to make their final attack on the Autobots. Thankfully, Bee's team escapes Soundblaster's base thanks to the virus, and Optimus later obtains the Allspark and ends the Sparkless' lives. Even still, time's running out, as the hologram cloak wore off and Decepticons everywhere start to make their attack. Wheeljack, however, manages to get the Ark set up thanks to the stolen Energon just in time. Megatron finds out that Optimus is on his way to Sector Seven (not the agency), which pursues his plan to destroy the space bridge and the Ark. The two leaders argue, leading to yet another fight that ends with Jetfire saving Prime and Hound. Now the Ark's ready to launch, and Impactor saves Ratchet from an attack made by Starscream. Prime and Megs fight for the Allspark while Bumblebee takes down the Decepticon leader with a shot. Later, Omega Supreme shows up at the last minute and prevents the Decepticons from getting near the Ark. Prime and Elita-1 say their goodbyes, some Autobots stay behind on the last of their outposts on Cybertron, and the ship blasts into space. The war isn't over yet, as it appears the Decepticons will be after the Ark for the upcoming Earthrise sequel.
WHAT DO I THINK OF THE STORY?
I had to write this section because there was quite a bit to write from the story. As for my thoughts on the story itself, it does seem to work well on paper. While the story of the Autobots and Decepticons taking their planet at the brink of destruction is nothing new, the idea of reformatting the Autobots into Decepticons to unify the two factions under Megatron's leadership is something that feels brand new. And the fact that Megatron grew deeply obsessed with becoming victorious in the war purely for the Autobot genocide and to take down those that oppose him makes him a lot more interesting than the usual G1 Megatron ideology of 80s villain cliches. There are certain parts of the story that just don't feel like they're as committed to making the best execution they could possibly make.
The pacing of it, for example, could work for a 6-episode long show, almost like it could work so well for a movie when combined, yet there are parts that feel either rushed, repetitive, or slow. It's almost like the writers couldn't decide what was the best way to space out the series until they chose to go with 6 just to cut time in actually producing the animation. I didn't personally need there to be 13-26 episodes in a season to tell a good story, but it feels like the cartoon doesn't know how to juggle its short episode total, the buttload of characters crammed into the show, and the pace of the story itself. Thankfully, the episodes are released together rather than one at a time, but it feels like the series was originally longer before it was cut down to make the episode total short and the budget small. To sum up, WFC Siege has an interesting premise that's muddled with writing that feels uninvested in keeping everything steady.
THE CHARACTERS
The characters are another part of the mixed bag I need to mention. I've got a feeling plenty of TF fans were happy to see a huge amount of characters rather than the smaller teams we've gotten in previous shows. I honestly prefer the approach in having smaller teams since it's easier to build up to a larger team as the series goes by rather than making a team with far too many characters to keep track of like in G1, and that's something that Beast Wars, Armada, MV1, Animated, Prime, AOE, RID15, and even Cyberverse to an extent did. Siege itself has a huge cast that feels mostly cramped in the 6 episodes alone. Aside from the generics, the characters in this series comprise of Transformers mostly found in the Siege toyline, with the only ones that are original in design or would get toys later down the line comprise of Arcee, Wheeljack, Bumblebee, Alpha Trion, and Elita-1. Moonracer, a character that had a toy in Power of the Primes, ironically appears here and not in the show that was inspired by her toy. Honestly, the characters chosen in the series don't bother me because they were obviously meant to keep consistency with the line itself, but what I don't like is the way they were handled.
Optimus Prime, for example, feels more like he was in his early days of struggling through the war rather than a fully capable leader. It's almost like the scripts weren't revised to reflect that the show took place at the final moment of the war on the planet itself since the Autobots would leave at the end. It also felt really annoying to have Elita-1 act like a mother hen of sorts and doubt Optimus Prime, and it doesn't help that Magnus didn't have any trust with Optimus Prime whatsoever with that peace treaty. I don't want to hear anyone complain about how Movie Optimus is "too violent" anymore, because Optimus Prime in the WFC cartoon felt like an incapable character that gets talked down upon and struggles at taking down enemies at a relative pace. This isn't his first day on the job taking the mantle of Autobot leadership, so why is he incapable of at least keeping the Decepticons on their feet after years of being involved with the war? I'm not saying that like someone would when they hate how Prime died in the 1986 movie, but I'm saying that as someone that felt this Prime was on-par with TFP Ultra Magnus in terms of competence.
And before anyone says "B-BUT ANIMATED OPTIMUS AND BEAST WARS PRIMAL DIDN'T SEEM LIKE CAPABLE CHARACTERS, WHY AREN'T YOU GIVING THIS SHOW A CHANCE???", let's discuss what situation their characters were put in: Optimus Primal was captain of the Axalon, and he was immediately told to go after the Predacons when they stole a ship, while Animated Optimus willingly left the Elite Guard and later became a space bridge repairman. Both characters were able to prove their competence when their enemies arose and handled large tasks, like with Primal saving prehistoric Earth, the stasis-locked Transformers in the Ark, and Cybertron during his final days in Beast Machines; Animated Optimus Prime learned about what it takes to be a hero and didn't let the glory be what truly mattered, especially when he was able to stop the Decepticons at the end of his show. I love Optimus Prime in just about every appearance he could be in, but Siege treats him like he was an Orion Pax doing his first-ever mission (almost like an older script had that idea). And once again, I don't want to hear any more complaints about Movie Optimus's actions or people forgetting about why Optimus Primal and Animated Optimus succeeded whereas Siege Prime failed.
I've already mentioned Optimus Prime quite a bit, so let's discuss the more prominent characters, shall we? Megatron's one of the few characters that I like in this series. He's obsessed with wiping the Autobots out, even if it means destroying the planet he was forged or constructed cold from. The lengths he took to do so make him feel like the ultimate threat, even if it's no different from the plans his other incarnations had in the past (especially when his Movie, Aligned, and Cyberverse counterparts previously had plans to tap into their universe's respective Allsparks and use the artifacts their way). I've got no real complaints about him aside from his been-there-done-that nature regarding the Allspark. Now we go to Bumblebee, a character that doesn't act like he usually does in the Transformers brand. The same Autobot who would look up to Optimus Prime and see him as a father figure of sorts now acts like one of those "I'm too cool to be involved with you" type of characters. IDK why he'd be that kind of character when someone like Cliffjumper or Sideswipe, but I suppose Hasbro and Rooster Teeth decided to make him interesting because he's also a face of Transformers. I'm also positive normie G1 fans that have only seen recent TF media like the Bumblebee movie won't question why Bee acts differently in Siege, but I digress. He searches for Energon to profit off the war and later helps the Autobots when the Alpha Trion Protocols go to him. Bee's personality in this show feels more like the epitome of this show treating its "G1 but dark and mature" angle as a gimmick.
Moving on, we have Elita-1. Fuck Elita-1 in this cartoon. When she's not fighting in this war, all she does it basically tell Optimus "I question your actions". Again, I feel like her dialogue comes from a script that was made when the writers wanted to have a more inexperienced Optimus from a different time period of the war, but if that had been the case, why not stick with that? It'd make Elita-1's concerns make more sense. And it's annoying too because she hasn't been in a cartoon since G1 itself, and to see her basically talk down to Optimus makes me want to see how she'd handle the war herself, assuming she can turn into Orthia in this show. Ultra Magnus similarly talks down to Optimus's inability to stop the war, but he at least does something about approaching Megatron. He thankfully doesn't turn into Sentinel Prime and betray the Autobots, though he sadly wasn't able to buy the Autobots enough time with winning the war or getting off the planet; they had to do that themselves. He emitted the Alpha Trion Protocols, which went to Bumblebee and helped the scavenger realize his potential as an ally. And then we have the Decepticons-turned Autobots in the form of Jetfire and Impactor, the latter making his debut in a Transformers cartoon after years of remaining as a comic character. Jetfire was a character I did like in the show, especially when he started to like Megatron's actions less and less. Impactor's defection to the Autobots felt somewhat odd given that he said Ratchet saved him, though perhaps it'd also make more sense to add that the Decepticons not saving him would further show his support to the Autobots. Also, it didn't match up with his past as a Wrecker, and I'm positive he's supposed to have a different head design.
Also, some of the characters tend to share nearly the same level of behaviors when they join the Autobots. Wheeljack immediately joined while Bumblebee took some convincing, but Ratchet and Impactor felt like they said the same thing when they mentioned that they're joining to help their own kind and not so much because they really want to be Autobots. Almost like Impactor had to copy Ratchet so he has an excuse to be involved with the faction. At least Jetfire had a better excuse to be involved with the Autobots. As for the Transformers that were involved with the series that didn't really do much of significance, they were more or less what they usually act like. Starscream was Starscream, Soundwave was Soundwave, Chromia was Chromia, and Ironhide was Ironhide.
THE VOICE ACTING, MUSIC, AND SFX
Before we begin, I want to mention that Peter Cullen, Frank Welker, and later Garry Chalk criticized the show regarding the voice acting; specifically, the first two mentioned how offended they were that they weren't even brought in to play their characters while Chalk mentioned how lackluster the voice work was. I'm going to mention that I personally didn't need Siege to have everyone from G1 reprise their roles, nor did I expect them to do anything remotely like that. I do, however, find it odd that either Hasbro or Rooster Teeth decided to go with appealing the G1 normies yet not even hire Peter Cullen and Frank Welker given how much attention they'd garner. It's funny how the last time that was done in a G1-related was Devastation. But what about the voice-acting itself? Yet again, I'm not a fan of it.
The Transformers series was able to give us plenty of unique voices since 1984, from the standards of Optimus and Megatron to the many characters done by Scott McNeil, and from the various Movie characters to even Cyberverse attempting to make its non-union casting pool have its VAs stand out. WFC, on the other hand, has very few good voices, plenty of disappointing ones, and a huge slew of repetitive ones. Jake Tillman and Jason Manorcha come to mind, as they've done better performances in Cyberverse and the Prime Wars Trilogy, respectively. Here, Optimus sounds like a poor attempt at a Peter Cullen impression worse than Jon 3.0 did while Megatron's slow and exhaustive dialogue is on-par with how Jeff Manning voiced him in the Japanese PS2 game, except he's slow because he's an English voice actor residing in Japan that doesn't try to avoid the pitfalls localization dubs face. And the others don't fare any better either. Bumblebee sounds alright given his change in personality, as do characters like Starscream and Soundwave, but Hound's got more in common with his Movie personality; not really a dealbreaker given how weaksauce G1 Hound was, but I feel that his voice would go well with another character (which we'll get to), Wheeljack's fine, Shockwave sounded odd, Red Alert was fine, but most of the voice work was just lackluster.
It's either slow dialogue, characters acting similarly to one another, and there's no real variation to how everyone sounds. It's like they're trying to talk dramatically, yet it's more like some amateur VAs attempted to sound cool and edgy without understanding how to make it NATURAL. Dialogue can generally be seen as either characters making small pauses, heavy tones, and dialogue that tries to make it sound dark and mature. I feel like the characters could be easier to listen to if they weren't speaking quietly or with the same remorseful tone 24/7. And of course, most voices don't sound distinct from one another thanks to the vocoding effect; I get that they're robots and they don't want to sound like they took raw recordings and called it a day, but either it should be removed or it should not be used whatsoever. It's especially infuriating when characters don't even stand out from one another; Impactor comes to mind, as he sounds like someone making a vocoded Shadow the Hedgehog voice impression instead of having that tough miner sound to him. All in all, didn't need them to have the classic VAs (not that I expected them to), but they could have done so much better, especially given what it's made for.
And then there's the audio. Transformers has plenty of great sound effects that are instantly recognizable at the top of my head, from the transformation noises across different shows to the sounds of firepower made from an innumerable amount of guns and even the stomping sound effects in the movies or TFP. Siege is on-par with the Prime Wars Trilogy in terms of not having any distinct sound effects aside from the transformation noises, which could honestly go for an upgrade in terms of how it sounds from robot to robot. The clashes of metal during the fights and the blast effects barely stand out from the setting like the VAs do, and it's just indistinguishable. The background music's nothing to write home about; not that I needed there to be Steve Jablonsky or Vince DiCola levels of greatness in terms of how they write their music but is it hard to ask for BGM that doesn't feel like it's recycled from a royalty-free website? If the music's going to sound serious or epic, can it at least feel engaging to listen to without feeling like a cliche movie trailer snippet?
THE ANIMATION
Alright, I'm going to say this right now: this is in no way an anime. I don't care what Netflix and Rooster Teeth say about the animation; this is in no-way an anime. If you wanted a Transformers show that's an anime, then look at 2001 RID, the Unicron Trilogy, the Japanese G1 sequels, and the Japanese Beast Wars spinoffs. Calling Siege an anime is like calling Avatar: The Last Airbender anime (though in fairness, the influences are stronger here than they are in Siege). Yeah, some Transformers shows used Japanese animation studios from time to time, and I'm positive that there are anime made in Japan that look like Siege, and yes, Polygon Pictures did animate this series, but its writing and voice acting was made in the US. If there is one thing that I can learn from WFC, it's that calling something an anime feels like a gimmick to attract those that think "cartoons" are garbage no matter what. I feel that it's fine for people to like what they like so long as they're not preachy AF about it, but it does a massive disservice to the cartoons that are actually good. Maybe not so much the ones made today, but I know plenty of cartoons that manage to be as good, if not better, than most of the critically acclaimed anime out there. Oh, and it's probably best to not call this an anime and instead say it's anime-inspired. As for the actual animation, it's bleak, grim, and I guess better than the Prime Wars Trilogy in terms of frame-rate. I guess Prime Wars has a better color palette, but Siege doesn't look like it was made on a budget, nor did it suffer from the same framerate issues that Prime Wars had. Sure, there's a good number of scenes that still drag for god knows how long, but an attempt is made. Still, I feel that it's very disappointing how a show made in 2020 doesn't animate as well as Transformers Prime, a TV show made ten years earlier (and by the same studio, no less!); even Beast Wars/Machines have better animation than Siege despite being made from an even older decade.
The weirdest thing is that Siege went with copying the CAD files for the toys, and we get what is possibly the most toy-accurate Transformers show since Cybertron. Seems cool at first glance, but it's more of a curse than a blessing if you ask me. For one thing, the toy accuracy means that things like the 5mm ports, the blast-effect nubs, and the details that would normally not be present on models made from scratch are all intact. Additionally, because the animation models were only meant to work as toys first before they were used in animation, things like the facial expressions and the way their midriffs flex unnaturally end up becoming a bit of a distraction for the way they work. The facial animations are at least a bit better than what Prime Wars and Energon had, but I'd be hard-pressed to say they're a massive improvement. Some facial animations do a decent job of emoting without the dreaded dull-surprise while they would occasionally look more like they're animating as well as Robot Chicken's facial expressions could. There's even the weird shit regarding Megatron's lips, which look more like they're doing that stupid Baka Mitai Deepfake meme instead of looking like they were rigged to animate properly. That's what happens when you're basing your character models off of CAD files that weren't originally made to do additional things like emoting or move certain body-parts in ways that would only work with a newly-made model. And if they're not shooting their guns off or standing still, then their fight animations would come off as convincing as a mid-tier stop motion fight. In other words, making character models before making the toys>making the toys before making the character models.
THE TONE
This will sound fairly hard to stomach to some people, and a bit hypocritical, I might add; the tone for Siege feels like a gimmick. Yes, war is not something full of happiness or bright colors, but if you're going to make something dark or mature, do so naturally! This is what makes Siege fail compared to the other shows that would normally be sneered at for being "light": it doesn't even try to make its tone work past the shitty situation everyone is in. The aforementioned voice acting doesn't make things feel dark and mature in an interesting way because the characters sound about as effective as they would be when grocery-shopping. The setting could be a little more deadly if there was more of that war taking place across other parts of the planet. Instead, the fights feel about as empty as that Civil War airport battle. Perhaps the open areas would work a bit better for some proper guerilla warfare tactics like in Beast Machines, but that requires a bit more thought for the writers. The truly effective part of Siege that feels dark is when the Autobots go to the Sea of Rust, but even that feels pretty weightless when you think about how everything felt undone when the Allspark wiped out the Sparkless.
Characters have a tendency to die in this series, yet it all feels pretty underwhelming considering how most of it feels pretty light in terms of reasons to give a shit about how our heroes could checkmate their foes. The best death, in my opinion, was Impactor's, especially when he saved Ratchet after knowing his dedication in fighting for his people rather than support a faction entirely. Every other death just doesn't feel as impacting otherwise, nor do I get the feeling of "My God, people are dying!"; only other time that honestly happened was in the 1986 movie when the Autobots died, where none of the deaths bar Optimus Prime really made an impact of any kind. There are plenty of dark moments in Transformers history so I decided to choose Cyberverse, a show on a different part of the spectrum, for this quick comparison; it may seem like a generic kiddy show from a distance, but it's actually got more going on with it in plenty of instances in terms of dark moments and even deaths. Let's go over the moments that were dark in that series:
-Optimus Prime and Bumblebee's visit to Megatron's lair
-Bumblebee's encounter with Megatron (where the latter strips the former the ability to speak)
-The death of Blurr and the rest of Velocitron thanks to the rust plague
-Shadow Striker's past
-Shockwave infiltrating Bumblebee's mind
-Grimlock's realization of his dino buddies' deaths
-Teletraan-X's death
-Megatron seemingly killing Starscream
-Starscream's temporary takeover of the Allspark
-The alternate-universe Ark crews disappearing from the multiverse
-Cheetor sacrificing himself to save the Allspark
-The invasion of the Quintessons
-Maccadam's death
I could go on with the moments that were "dark" in Cyberverse, but what makes Cyberverse work with those moments is that they felt tense and even a sense of emotion that is better-conveyed with those characters involved in the series instead of what WFC had, which might as well leave our characters T-posed and speaking through text-to-speech. If a show wanted to be dark and gritty, then I'm perfectly fine with it; all that matters is making sure everything else feels well-written and interesting. And it's pretty funny how nerd culture dictates what stuff that's "dark and mature" gets praised and what doesn't. They're likely to sneer about how Revenge of the Sith, Batman v. Superman, or some Transformers franchises are too violent or serious but they'll go Wojak-open mouth hype mode when they go crazy over seeing stuff like Rogue One, having way more characters than needed fight in Smash Bros (this is coming from someone that likes Smash Bros), and anime where it's way more style over substance. And sadly, nerd culture's more likely to ignore series like Beast Wars, most of the Unicron Trilogy, most of the movies, Animated, Prime, and Cyberverse in favor of stuff that fills their normie geek cards like Bumblebee or Siege; I bet they never even saw Prime Wars (can't blame them if they haven't) or the actual good WFC in the form of the two games made by High Moon Studios.
AND NOW, THE CONCLUSION
Look, I wanted to like Siege and say that it's actually worth watching if you're a fan of the series. I'm sure that the normie TF fan that normally goes "WOAH THEY BROUGHT BACK THE OLD SCHOOL TRANSFORMERS!!! WAIT WHAT ARE THESE INSTANCES OF THEIR RETURNS DO YOU SPEAK OF???" would easily watch them and find nothing wrong with them (which is fine, I guess), but for those that have delved into every other bit of Transformers media and loved them for what they offered, I'm afraid to say that they'll be disappointed with Netflix WFC. It's not, by all means, unwatchable, and there are very few good moments in the series, but I feel that it had a lot more to be desired. Sure, it's nowhere near as lackluster as Prime Wars, but if a series boasts about being on Netflix or appealing to an older fanbase, then I expect more from it than the drab and slowly-paced TV series that they spewed from their rough draft. So far, Netflix War for Cybertron can be best described as a series that looks neat on paper yet doesn't feel properly executed. What keeps it from being a good series is how the writers didn't make the story feel engaging while the voice actors do very little in making their dialogue sound either distinct from one another or at least compelling to listen to.
If the story either had a better pace or more episodes to work with, and if the voice acting was at least more energetic and varied in tone from character to character, I'd be more accepting of Siege; I would even forgive the animation and audio if those things I mentioned were improved. As it stands, what we have is a pretty shallow series with very little to keep me interested in revisiting it. Earthrise and Kingdom could easily improve it, but we'll see if they're either willing to make their stories and dialogue better than they currently are or if we'll get the same thing that Siege has, only on Earth. Alternatively, things wouldn't really be any better and we'll get a repeat of the Prime Wars (which I saw a mile away given how this show initially appeared). All I can say is that this is an example of why making something "dark and mature" to appeal to an older audience without actually making it meaningful is going to make the final product look uninspiring. And now I don't want Hasbro to have some cheap ass company make a Power Rangers series geared to an older audience unless they can take notes from how Marvel and DC once made great direct to video animated films and adapt stuff like Shattered Grid or Soul of the Dragon like that; I'd rather we get that than have the MMPR actors come together and try to act like it's all the 90s when they're actually not interested in wearing the suits and moreso wanting to profit off the reunion.
For an image that really sums up how I feel about Siege, this perfectly does so:
And that about wraps up my review on this mediocre show. While I won't be covering shows, movies, or even comics/novels that often, I will be covering a Transformers show that's actually more worth my time, that being Cyberverse. Once I catch up with the Youtube uploads and give all three seasons a rewatch, then I'll be back with a review for that series. Until next time!
I took a look at the Siege version of the character last year, and I felt that was an amazing Transformer for the Siege line as well as one of my favorite purchases in the year of 2019. Of course, I was interested in seeing how they'll trump that version of the mold with an Earth form of the character. I will admit that the initial images did make me realize he'll be like Studio Series Jetwing Optimus Prime and be a new Voyager figure with a box on wheels. At least Movie Prime had a trailer that doesn't just open up, and he came with a jetpack and plenty of accessories to boot. I was already interested in getting Optimus at a cheaper price tag so I wouldn't have to worry about the scalpers with my gift cards, but then he got a bit hard to buy online. Thankfully, I was able to get him, and now let's see how he stacks up as a Leader Class Transformer.
UPDATE (12/3/2020): Shattered Glass Optimus Prime added
Here we have Optimus Prime in his truck mode. While I appreciate the Siege version for looking unique from the standard truck norms of the G1 take of Optimus Prime, this version of the character is still great to revisit in the Generations offering! It's got a truck mode that gives me serious MP-10 vibes, and that's honestly a good thing since it's one of the better versions of G1 Optimus Prime. There is a little bump that sort of ruins the look, the front rims of the car should be painted, and I wish the smokestacks were longer once again (which can't really be easy to fix given they're molded on the shoulders), but this is honestly one of the best-looking versions of G1 Prime without question. I even love the blue windows looking nice and reflective without exposing any robot parts or attempting to look like the cartoon aesthetic.
The side view looks pretty decent, though the thighs are a little visible. The gas tanks are reminiscent of the Bumblebee movie, and the rims of the vehicle mode are from the MV1 version of Studio Series Optimus Prime...more on that in a moment.
The gun can be stored on the back, which isn't quite as subtle as the method used on MP-10, but it's neat to fill the gap, nonetheless.
Here is Optimus Prime's trailer, which isn't as nice-looking as the cab itself. Some nice molded details, but it feels a little lifeless. The dark gray plastic doesn't look too good with the light gray plastic, and the pieces that hold the tires look like they're attached with half-assed Lego pieces, and while the stand does look realistic for normal trailers, the lack of proper stabilizers makes this somewhat-loose piece feel like an afterthought. Additionally, the decal for the trailer looks ghastly due to the lack of a silver decal to go behind the blue lines and the Autobot insignia. As it is, it feels like an afterthought.
It could have been a lot better than it currently is, and it's not like I'm asking for it to be dipped in silver paint or have die-cast parts, but this feels more like a trailer that would come from a knockoff version of a Robotmasters Optimus Prime instead of the nicely done Optimus Prime this trailer comes with.
Optimus Prime can haul the trailer, and while Prime himself looks good, the trailer still feels lackluster on there. Like I said, it didn't have to be exactly a thousand times better than it is, but a little goes a long way.
Here he is in-between the G1 and Power of the Primes versions of Optimus Prime. I'll admit that POTP Optimus Prime's truck mode doesn't look too hot, so we'll only mention that the scale is similar to them (though the POTP trailer feels a little denser in terms of plastic compared to the ER version due to how it functions. Now G1 Prime's trailer is one of the more recent versions of the old mold, but the trailer feels better done in terms of how the sticker contrasts nicely from the rest of the toy as well as the design of the trailer not feeling quite as cheap in-hand as the Earthrise version did. This isn't me saying "they don't make em like they used to" like all the Facebook Geewunners would say, this is me saying "was this the best that Hasbro could do with Earthrise Prime's trailer?"; the cab is thankfully much nicer.
Here is Prime's trailer opened up. Once again, I love all the sculpted details throughout the toy, but I really wish that this wasn't the best that they got for the trailer. I get that they don't want to repeat the same mistake that POTP did and make stickers that would suck, but this trailer would honestly look much better with things like a bit of color and some of the small seats that were meant for the Diaclone line. Weird as it is for me to wish for something a little more "Geewun" on a toy, but if this was Hasbro's idea of making G1 toys but with modern engineering standards, why skimp on some details? It doesn't have to exactly be like a shrunken-down MP-10 trailer, but more could have been added for this thing.
I guess it is funny that the Combat Deck's head, which does swivel and hinge front and back, does look like it's got a goofy face thanks to the 5mm ports and the slit for the gap, but it looks more like it's reaching its claws out and begging for more paint or details. Not even the cockpit's painted!
Here it is next to the other Combat Deck. Obviously, the added color is just made from the stickers, but you can definitely see just how complete the old trailer feels by comparison. I didn't personally need there to be a sticker sheet from Earthrise Prime, but I'd most certainly love to have more life breathed into the color scheme solely by adding some blue. here and there. And no, Roller's not included with this set, but he is included in an accessory kit that comes with a Centurion Drone, which comes with Roller. Yes, you actually have to buy a repaint that comes with everything that could have come with Prime himself if you want to complete Optimus Prime. It's like Nintendo's methods of DLC, only in plastic!
The trailer can be stood up as always for another form or repair mode, which is nice but it's something that can be easily done if it functions like that.
And one more comparison with the G1 toy. I like that it comes with two claws instead of one, but it could look a lot less lifeless in terms of the plastic color.
For a comparison next to the Siege version of Optimus Prime, you can see just how Cybertronic the previous figure looked compared to ER Prime's more Earth form. Some will say that the Cybertronian form looks lazy because it's got eyebrows and a different front end, but I can appreciate that he has something that at least looks like a vehicle mode without relying too much on copying the WFC design (which is meant to be in the Aligned continuity despite not matching up with the TFP aesthetics). It looks more futuristic flat-nose truck than alien, but it's at least nice to see that they're both versions of Optimus based on the forms he's taken on two different planets.
Their weapon storage is different from one another, since Siege Optimus has the gun and shield on the back due to his lack of trailer.
Siege Optimus Prime can haul the trailer if he wants to, though it looks kind of out of place for his aesthetics.
The turn radius is pretty bad for ER Prime, as the front part of the trailer starts to clash with the smokestacks. Perhaps if the peg would be placed a little farther away from the cab, then I wouldn't mind it so much.
It's no better with Siege Prime, as he's got more bulk for the shoulders that make the turn radius even worse.
The transformation is familiar yet different from Siege Prime. I love how the torso works, with the faux grill folding away to fill up the diaphragm while the wheels fold away to the back so they won't be seen too prominently from the sides. The waist swivels for the transformation like some Primes did, and the way the legs transform isn't as creative as with the Siege version. And now we get to the robot mode, which does look good but could be a bit better. In terms of proportions, the waist ends up looking different due to the side parts being used for the transformation, the arms are a little stubby, the legs look noticeably longer, and the chest windows stick out a little bit more than they normally would. These parts of the figure make me think of MP-01's proportions, though he was able to hide his wheels. The wheels themselves evoke how the Studio OX design looks, though I'll be honest and say that they at least look better here than they normally would. You can clip them off if you want, though it will make the clip weaker and the lower back empty. And finally, there are some color discrepancies that I don't understand. The back of the head and the hands have metallic blue paint that looks nice but they don't match up with the rest of the toy; there are gray biceps instead of red ones, there's no yellow for the middle part of his waist, and there are gray pieces for the back and inner parts of the legs that should be blue. Head sculpt is the same as the Siege version, though I think it's worse in some instances. The back of his head is metallic blue despite the original version having the same color on both parts of it. Additionally, the eyes look like they're not painted yet they are; that's because there's no silver paint for the face. The eyes were supposed to be yellow, which would stand out more from the rest of the face, but that is not the case. I plan to swap heads with this figure.
Articulation is about the same as we did previously with the Sieger version, though the hip, shoulder, and waist swivels are different from what we got. The biggest difference is that he's now got articulated fingers, which is quite honestly nice for a Voyager Class figure! I wish Jetwing Prime, as well as Siege Magnus, had them, too. The gun he comes with is a new mold from the Siege version, which is nice that it's not reusing parts but it does look a little too thick and stubby. It's nice that it folds away, but its proportions look more like they belong to a super-deformed version of Prime. Also, there's a gray handle for some reason.
The gun can also be stored on the back if you want.
The Matrix opens up if you want to recreate him passing it to another wielder or if you want him to "light our darkest hour". The chamber itself is nicely painted and also has the window pieces look like they're a part of it, too. The Matrix itself contrasts nicely with its silver handles, copper shell, and blue core. Looks nicer than the Siege version's empty gap.
The open hands not only show that he can hold it, but that the paint could be a little sloppy.
He can hold it in a decent way as if he was opening it. Not perfectly, but it's manageable with some patience. The stubby arms can't let him pose as if he was opening it from the front.
The trailer can be displayed repairing him like days of old...
...but it can also be used to have him laying on his death bed if you so desire!
The head of the Combat Deck is removable, so you can easily make him look like he's using a jet pack. This is a neat way to depict him with flight capabilities without asking Sideswipe for his jetpack. It does look odd, but it is appreciative in a way.
And the trailer itself can have its ramp removed and serve as a shield. There are some clips made for the ramps if you really want to attach him to Soundbarrier.
This figure has received a couple of issues with consistency between stock images. Firstly, the initial images depicted a blue middle section for the trailer, blue hands, blue inner sections for the legs, and yellow eyes. The eyes are left intact for the Hasbro secondary images while the hands and inner leg parts are gray, and the trailer is now the final version. Then Takara made things even more confusing by keeping the same by using blue biceps, a mismatch of parts for the trailer, and the hitch all being on the right leg.
While I'm at it, let's go over some of the reuses of this mold. First up, it's the Alternate Universe Optimus Prime variant of the figure, coming with all the accessories that the original Prime came with. He's basically a dead Optimus Prime, which was last seen in toy form with the expensive Convoy Sleep Mode repaint from the Masterpiece line. I wonder why Hasbro didn't do this with all their G1 Primes. Anyways, it's got a nice bonus in terms of tooling, as the head is battle-damaged from the fight with Megatron. Otherwise, cosmetics are simply gray-scale.
Here's another version of the figure, also a store exclusive, but he ditches the trailer like G1 Prime's Walmart reissue did in favor of coming with Sheeldron and Enerax, repaints of Soundbarrier and Pteraxadon. In terms of differences, there are some small metal streaks on the paint and some smokestacks scorches. Interestingly, this is the first version of the mold to lack the trailer while Nemesis Prime, using the Siege mold, comes with it.
Now we have Shattered Glass Optimus Prime, who is included with a Ratchet that's also decked out in the Shattered Glass color scheme. This guy is reminiscent of the Masterpiece version of the character and had he actually come with the trailer, he'd make for a sweet mini-MP. Sadly, he doesn't come with a trailer like Walmart Prime does, but the trailer did get reused for Netflix Nemesis Prime.
Now for a comparison with another version of the character, which is basically the same but different. It's nice that they have some differences to make them feel different from one another, with Siege Prime having the futuristic look to him and the battle damage while ER Prime has standard G1 Prime elements. I kind of like the proportions of Siege Prime better, since the arms don't look as stubby and his legs don't look too long. His chest also looks a bit nicer in terms of proportions. While their arms, torsos, and thighs are different from one another, their legs appear to mostly reuse parts.
Their heads are one of the few parts reused from the previous figure as mentioned previously. Siege Prime's looks nicer because of the silver paint used for the face contrasting the eyes, whereas they look blank on ER Prime.
Their legs have the engineering borrowed from Siege Prime (who has the covers tucked away to make things easier to see), which is weird because the hinged used for the original toy were not necessary for this version of Optimus. Due to the wheels no longer needing to hinge in a different around the legs so the shins can face forwards, Hasbro reusing the shins like that is neat in terms of saving plastic but is otherwise unnecessary in terms of engineering.
Their chests are different from one another, with Siege Prime having no Matrix chamber to speak of and the Earthrise one coming with one.
Though Siege Optimus may not have a normal Matrix on his chest, the vehicle mode does have a faux chamber for decoration purposes. Shame because that figure would look nice with a Matrix of its own.
So I switched out the heads between the two figures, and ER Prime looks a lot nicer with the proper head coloring while Siege Prime looks like a factory error. He won't stay like that because I intend to replace the ER Prime head with another Siege Prime head.
Their articulation does differ slightly from one another, as Siege Prime's waist swivel has more range while ER Prime's is hampered somewhat. The hips on ER Prime, on the other hand, have more range of motion since the waist piece is broken up.
Weirdly, these knee pieces can still open up despite there not being any purpose for it. The legs don't transform exactly like Siege Prime, so why bother leaving them on there?
Their guns are also different from one another. I think I like Siege Optimus's gun compared to ER Prime's due to its proportions, though the Centurion Drone will come with an even nicer Ion Blaster.
Their shields are also different, with one being a ramp from the trailer and the other being a shield that doubles into an ax.
Earthrise Optimus doesn't have an ax, but the jet pack gives him a bit more versability.
For a comparison with his G1 self, you can see that this is basically what people would post pics of on their Instagram accounts and go "Which one do you like?" and what not.
Here he is next to the other recent Leader Class Optimus Primes. They consist of Siege's Galaxy Upgrade Optimus Prime and Studio Series Jetwing Optimus Prime. Why did I bring them together? Well, I wanted to share you my thoughts on which version of Optimus Prime is the best in terms of engineering and value for money. Siege Galaxy Upgrade Prime has a good amount of beef to him in terms of his proportion and comes with the snap-on armor that makes him a bit bigger than before (though not by much). Studio Series Optimus Prime comes with plenty of accessories and a trailer that gives him different display options and a trailer that transforms into the ring. I felt there could be more to make him worthwhile, like gap covers, extra paint, and some new tooling to make the figure look even more accurate (like with the wheel wells). Earthrise Prime, I feel, doesn't have that much to make him worth the value for money that the other two tried their best to live up to. He should be a 100% perfect slam dunk that would require no real improvements aside from 3rd party upgrade kits, but the fact that the trailer feels cheap, there are some questionable execution with what doesn't get paint, and the fact that some accessories aren't included with this figure but come with a repaint from an obscure character doesn't do it for me. I'd rather have a Cybertron Prime that doesn't transform accurately and a DOTM Prime that's missing some attributes to make him feel more complete than an Optimus Prime that feels rushed and would later get high fan demand from scalpers for a good while.
However, if there is one recent-era Leader Class Optimus Prime that I would recommend, Power of the Primes may not be the perfect line that Siege was, but in terms of engineering, play pattern, and value for money, this guy's honestly more worth the $49.99 price tag he went for than the other ones are. I know that Hasbro wants to go with making Leader Class Transformers that are merely Voyagers with additional accessories, but that doesn't mean they'd certainly be worth their price of admission. Galaxy Optimus isn't worth it that much on his own, but he does better fit the price tag somewhat compared to Studio Series Prime and especially Earthrise Prime. As for Earthrise Prime himself, I feel I've been harsh on him. He's not god-awful by any stretch of the imagination. There are things I like about him, especially considering the robot design and the torso transformation. I already mentioned that he's got accessories missing on top of having a weaksauce trailer, but I find the reused parts neat but questionable at the same time. If you do want to get this figure, first of all, be sure that you can find him in-person. Second, try to get him with some gift cards. And third, try to be lucky finding a good upgrade kit if you have no interest in getting the Centurion Drone. At the regular retail price, he really isn't worth it.
