So, it looks like the last of my blog post publishing problems has been wrapped up and things should start appearing every Thursday like they’re meant to. For anyone that missed it because of the two Gizmodo posts, I did finally get my Insecticons post to show up. Enjoy!
In the Beast Hunters line there were three toys I was looking forward to the most and one I was looking forward to the least. The first of the three was Smokescreen, the last of the three will be Beast Fire Predaking, the Ultimate Class dragon expected later this year. In the middle are the remaining two: one I was eagerly anticipating and one not-so-much.
What I found was that the one I wasn’t looking forward to at all is actually quite good and the one I was looking forward to is indeed fantastic.
I actually feel a little bad for Bumblebee at this point. He’s been done so many times that you would think that he could get a good long break from that same yellow and black look, but no. Sure, he’s gotten a couple “stealth” releases here and there, but the vast, overwhelming majority have stuck steadfast to the very strict homage. This wouldn’t be too bad by itself, but once you mix it with the sheer number of toys he received on the shelves since his front-and-center role in the 2007 movie; a tinge of animosity can begin to grow.
His Beast Hunters release had it even worse, being a retool of a previous toy. Granted he is heavily, heavily retooled. In Beast Hunters style, he is festooned with the requisite stabby spikes, but he also has new hood detailing, missile carrying racks added to both car doors, and a 5mm hole added to the car roof for mounting weapons.
More specifically — though he comes with the Robots in Disguise release’s arm guns — it’s for mounting his new “Eagleshot Bow” (not to be confused with the weapon of Beast Hunters Optimus, the “Eaglefire Missile Launchers”) for which he comes with six missiles.
He has a new “armored up” headsculpt which basically adds a cool crested helmet to his previous head and giving him a birdlike visage.
I highlighted it in both Soundwave and Wheeljack‘s posts, but the detailing on the new headsculpts for this line truly can not be overstated.
One more major retool he received is that the hinge that lets his roof fold up and tuck away better is removed. The end result is that part of the roof sticks up further in the back on the Beast Hunters release. However, this takes away from the awkwardness of the one part of his Arms Micron and Robots in Disguise releases I didn’t like; the thin panel that juts up behind his head.
So, I am glad to report that even with his yawn-inspiring yellow and black paintjob, the rest of him is surprisingly good.
Not surprisingly good: Shockwave. He is decidedly not surprising in the fact that he is beyond good, he is amazing. What is surprising, is that somehow he accomplishes this while overcoming a very serious handicap. No, not his lack of depth perception or the huge cannon where his left hand should be; those particular “handicaps” are an intrinsic part of Shockwave.
No, his problem is his alt mode. While it’s very reminiscent of Animated Shockwave, it’s a strange half-tracked, spindly suggestion of a tank rather than an actual tank.
For a voyager, I definitely don’t expect to see his arm and hand mostly dangling from the bottom of his alt mode — a problem he shares with fellow Prime Voyager-class release, Dreadwing. At least Dreadwing’s hands stick out in the back, Shockwave’s is right there in front. He definitely isn’t doing the “H-Tank” category any favours.
The other thing he shares with Dreadwing: his robot mode more than makes up for any alt mode deficiencies.
Furthering the Shockwave homage in a very clever way, one of his tank treads unwraps and attaches to this gun arm to mimic his G1 release’s cannon tube.
Also, this mode is impressively large, fitting for his character in the show, but as he towers over Megatron, not fitting for the actual scale of the show.
Megatron: “Who gave you permission to be bigger than me?”
Though some didn’t like the Deluxe size release for War for Cybertron/Fall of Cybertron Shockwave, I always thought it was appropriate for his smaller “Scientist Class” size in the game itself. The difference between these two is almost like before and after shots of some sort of augmentation or upgrade.
Shockwave’s gimmick is a gun feature that expands while it spins. There is no built-in way to lock it open.
This image brought to you by a strategically placed toothpick.
Shockwave shared Smokescreen‘s Beast Hunter feature, having his extra armor pieces as flexible, removal add-ons.
Shockwave during his Soul Calibur phase.
Though, like Beast Hunters Soundwave, I’m not sure why one of the Decepticons needs the Beast-y armoring, but his will go somewhere in a bin like Smokescreens as it doesn’t really add much to either mode.
Someone needs to take Shockwave to get his nails done.
Really, though, what could they have possibly done to improve on this monstrous presence?
'Til All Are Mine 
Nice read. Bit of a nitpick, but I believe Shockwaves cannon is upside down in some of the shots. The grey portion should be at the bottom.
Thanks for the catch! Looks the cannon tip is rotated around too far on all but one of the robot mode shots. Geez, they even provide a notch on the bottom to align it correctly. Guess I’ll have to do some reshoots when I shoot the next post (which just means more playing around with this guy, so not too much of a loss. 🙂 )
I think Shockwave has some kind of voodoo curse on him that makes it impossible for him to have a good altmode. You had the original, Shockwave Bent 60 Degrees and Pointing, then Shockblast Attempting to Touch His Toes, then Animated Shockwave Doing Upside Down Curls, and now Shockwave Stretching.
I think you’re right, Shockwaves over the years don’t seem to have alt modes so much as advanced yoga positions you can lock him in.
One thing I found rather pleasing about FoC Shockwave was that his alt form was referred to as “Mobile Artillery Mode”. I think the term fit that toy perfectly, and lends itself well to the way this Prime version looks, too. Plus, I think it’s a moniker that goes well with his giant cannon arm. My mind needs something that will help differentiate him from the other “tanks” of the lore: Megatron, Warpath, etc… Shockwave has just never seemed like a “tank” kinda guy to me…
But then if they’d take a cue from Soundwave’s ROTF alt mode and make him into an orbiting space-defence satellite/platform, that would probably best serve Shockwave’s science-y, space-y, logic-y, powerful-and-cold demeanor…in my own opinion, of course. 🙂
G1 Shockwave’s personality has always been at odds with both his robot and alt mode, in my opinion. Nothing says “Cold, logical scientist” less to me than a gun. I would think two actual hands would be more useful to him in pursuing science than a huge cannon arm.
Of course, It wouldn’t be the first time he’s been a satellite; there’s always Energon Shockwave… I mean “Shockblast”. 😉
Now updated with (mostly) correctly positioned cannon and more eyeball backlighting! I’m leaving the first one as is, I like how it turned out and I can just pretend that Shockwave has just started it rotating so he can give Bumblebee a full blast in the face. 🙂
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