Despite what most people say, I love Bumblebee. The Camaro is one of my favorite cars and his bot mode is rather good. So naturally, when I saw that Bumblebee will have two vehicle modes (modified 1969 Chevrolet Camaro and 2014 Chevy Concept Camaro) I thought to purchase the Deluxe versions of both modes. However, both versions did not release at the same time. The 1969 version came with Wave 1 as High Octane Bumblebee. Boy was I in for some surprises.
Packaging
This is the first thing you’ll notice when you enter a store to buy the figure. Hasbro mentioned that they’ve introduced the new packaging to make sure it catches the eye. That much is true. Among many other colorfully packaged toys we see a very very white colored area which is the Transformers toy section. Previous packaging had unique shapes while this time they went with a more professional Square shape. Noting to praise and nothing to say bad about either. But the toys are very well securely placed inside the packaging. Praise to that.
Price
The very next thing you’ll notice. Hasbro has increased the price slightly and with it the price of the toys has gone significantly up in Sri Lanka. For a full list of pricing in Sri Lanka, visit TFW2005 (and prepare to get your heart broken).
Size
OK. Now, remember when Transformers: Dark Of Moon toys came out and people complained that the toys are quarter of a size (¼) smaller than the Revenge Of The Fallen/Hunt For The Decepticons line? Well, guess what? Age Of Extinction toys are quarter of a size (¼) smaller than the Dark Of Moon toys. Since I’m reviewing Bumblebee, I must say that the size difference is kind of “ok” when he is in his Robot mode. But it looks teeny tiny compared to other figures of previous lines. In fact we’ve previously had bigger Scout class toys than the new Deluxes.
This is where the toys suck the most. Gone is the sturdiness that was on previous lines. The plastic on High Octane Bumblebee is thin as a A4 paper. Since this is targeted as an Adult Collector Line, it’s best to keep him in one mode and don’t go on into transforming him often. After all, paying Rs. 4250/- means you can’t afford to break it.
Vehicle mode.
As much as I like the Chevrolet Camaro and even this 1969 version there is something about the vehicle mode which is kind of “off”. I do believe it has something to do with the Plastic quality, the whole Vehicle mode looks like it’s about to break apart at any given time. Even the DOTM Bee has this accusation but not this much. Holding him he feels like one of those tiny die cast cars but not even close to the strength it has. The car rolls pretty well. But whatever you to do not roll him and collide him with a wall or another toy. Dropping him even with a small height is a big mistake.
Transformation
The packaging boasts an 18 step Transformation. But to tell you the truth, the transformation is not that different than any previous Deluxe Bumblebees. However, to transform him it takes even more time. Why? Because you are worried that you’ll break something. But the transformation joints are so sturdy they hold the figure up very well. There a lot of click-ety joints that will keep the figure up without drooping. Huge plus point. The Instruction Sheets are reverted back to drawn diagrams rather than images of the actual product; which of course mean it's a bit hard to figure out what's going on. They should have stuck with the images.
Robot Mode
Ah, here’s where the toy really excels. The robot mode ( just like the vehicle mode) is spot on accurate to his on-screen counterpart. There’s a lot of details everywhere. And the figure looks striking. There a whole warrior look to it. But the toy has more Yellow that the actually movie version. But then again all the toys in this line are colorful than their on-screen versions. There are some good articulation and thanks to the sturdy joints, the figure can be posed very well. But the default standing position is really cool looking. The only complain about articulation is the fact that there is no waist articulation this time. So now he feels like one of those early Batman suits. Despite the tic-tac sized head, Hasbro still manged to give him light-piping to the eyes which improved the head-sculpt a lot.
Accessories
He comes with a missile which operates when you apply pressure. No spring-loaded gimmick. No Mech-tech (Thank god. That was a horrible line of weapons. It is certainly not missed). However, after about two times the missile bended slightly (as you can see on the image below).
Overall
Not a bad figure. It’s worth if you like Bumblebee a lot.
Final Thought
This is Sri Lanka. You are paying 3 times the usual retail price. Spend your money wisely for the Age Of Extinction toyline. There are some exceptionally good figures. Voyager Hound and Deluxe Scorn are a must buy. Rest of the line is not that good. They are certainly not bad but nothing you should dump a ton of Rupees. If it gives you any satisfaction and if you like dinosaurs when you were a kid, grab the 4 Deluxe Dinobots when all of them are in Sri Lanka and grab Voyager Grimlock.
