Transformers Prime Powerizers Thundertron

This is a figure I purchased with elevated expectations. I love his backstory and all but Thundertron really reminded me of Beast Wars and no matter how much I loved the show...I just didn't care for a good many of the Beast Wars toys produced.So upon seeing this I immediately thought This is really cool Idea but it looks like Hasbro might start up the simple transformations and look of Beast Wars again. BUT now that I have the figure and have got to put Thundertron to the test. These are my results.Beast Mode: Thundertron unlike all the rest of the figures in the Robots in Disguise line, Thundertron transforms into an animal. A Lion to be precise. I love the look at it. I was a fan of Zoids to an extent and I really like the Liger Zero kinda look. I love that this mode gives you an option to have a peg legged Lion or a normal look.As for the paint job,that just simply looks amazing.The white,gold,blue, and translucent blue plastic really does mix together well. The tail shocked me most of all. I was expecting solid plastic but we got the rubbery PVC plastic. My concern was it would be solid plastic and snap easy. I was put in my place real quick. Parents no worries about that specific part breaking. Pose ability is somewhat limited. You have pretty much all the poseability in the world with the rear legs and waist armor. The problem lies with the front legs.Being that as part of the transformation from Beast to Robot they are locked in place. You have a tiny bit of pose ability around the ankle joint and knee but you won't get nothing out of where the shoulder joints should be. For me this is a minor inconvenience, But You can still get him in some decent poses in Beast mode.Transformation for me with Thundertron is unique. It's way more advanced than Beast Wars ever could have been. But it's not like the Transformations we've gotten used to with the Robots in Disguise line. It's not complex by any means. It's fairly simple. Litterally the hardest part being the chest which is fairly easy. On that note I love the head and torso transformation. It's awesome and it's fun. I still however would not recommend this toy for children under seven. Parents you may have to provide some assistance if you do buy for a child younger than seven. But don't worry. If you can transform a G1 Transformer. Thundertron isn't any harder.Robot Mode. I think this looks just plain bad_____ ! I love the pirate look and again we can make a choice with this look as well. Same Choice different mode. Even though I really like the Peg Leg and the fact that it gives more personality to the figure, It confuses me greatly. Because his foot becomes a weapon. So it would make more sense for the foot not to be reattached to the leg in beast mode. I mean it's broken...damaged right? Why would Thundertron use it as a weapon when he could walk normal? Maybe it functions as a hidden weapon for sticky situations...I dunno... That's just one thing that boggles me.The paint in this mode compliments Thundertron as well. I think all the colors come together nicely. Pose ability is great. I haven't had any problems getting him to stand (that's with the foot attached). As far as peg legged. It really takes some stability away. Still easy to stand, but a little more fragile. I'm very happy with robot mode. The coolest part of his Robot mode is the head sculpt. I've heard some people say that it's too white and Hasbro should have painted it up a bit more. While I agree I don't think that Thundertron would need too much more paint. Just a few silver highlights would be prime.He is bearded, which does limited the turning radius of his head. You can still go left and right a decent amount. The sculptors also included hair looking cybernetics with a pretty good amount of detail.And the crest...don't get me started on that. I love it.As for the Powerizer weapon,I'm a little let down. I was so happy they put a locking mechanism on Ultra Magnus's Hammer...but Hasbro did not included a lock on Thundertron's Sword. It would have been so easy to do.All Hasbro needed to do is put a peg in the middle of the faux claw and then a connector on the translucent blue sword.That one little thing Hasbro didn't do could have gone a long way and put this figure at 6 stars. Let's just be thankful Hasbro at least gave us Ultra Magnus's Hammer. A figure that really needed the lock.Also, Like Ultra Magnus the Powerizer gimmick really doesn't function with Thundertron either. Sorry Powerizer fans (if there are any) no simulated flowing energon on this guy either.Just like Ultra Magnus this isn't an issue for me either. My one and only issue is his groin area. During transformation you have to squeeze his legs in. They do not lock and slide back outward easy.This is another thing Hasbro could have easily fixed. I can live with it but I still wish Hasbro would pay more attention to the little things like that.Overall I really really like Thundertron and I was very quick to judge. This is an awesome figure. A massive massive improvement over the Beast Wars series. This figure also give me quite a bit of hope for future Beast Hunters figures (not including the few "mistakes" that could have been avoided). This is a must have experience for the kids,fans and collectors.

Yarr mateys! I be introducin' ye ta the most feared Space Pirate in all tha cosmos! Ye'll be walkin' yerself off tha plank when ye see Cap'n Thundertron on deck!Okay enough with the pirate jargon. Thundertron is very unique among the Transformers. Not only is he a Space Pirate, but he's neither an Autobot, nor a Decepticon. He's not even from Cybertron. Thundertron is a member of a race of Transformers known as Star Seekers, whose home planet was destroyed during the war for Cybertron. So now, these guys are homeless, angry, and out for blood, or in this case, energon. I love, love, LOVE this concept. A whole other faction of Transformers completely independent of the two big ones. I really hope Hasbro builds on this GIMME MORE STAR SEEKERS! Also his symbol is flippin' cool.Alright so alt mode first. Thundertron is a blue and white cybernetic lion. He looks fierce, yet regal. He has poseability in his back legs, but not the front ones due to the transformation. He also has poseable fins that could be treated as wings to a certain degree.The transformation is fairly simple consisting of just straightening and turning the legs and some folding or unfolding, mostly around the lion head. It's not the most complex transformation, but it's fun.The robot mode itself is actually rather distinguished. This guy's got a manly beard and his back plates form what appear to be coat tails. This guy gives off a distinct Captain Ahab vibe, appropriate considering his back story. I love how the front claws form quasi-poseable shoulder pads.Made in the Robots in Disguise tradition, his saber has an automorph feature that I find rather annoying since it can't stay transformed. I can look past it though because the saber can be deployed just attached to his arm, unlike say, RiD Optimus, whose fold out gun gimmick I found to be terrible. You can also attach the saber to his back in alt mode, and....yeah...that um...that looks...let's not talk about it. Anyway another nice feature that goes with the whole Pirate/Ahab motif, is that his right foot can be detached, plugged into his arm, and he's got a peg leg! I bet it works like a hyper jackhammer or something to that degree.All-in-all I can't recommend this guy enough. He's a call back to Beast Wars with being a robotic lion. His design is incredibly unique and has nice display options. And once again he's from a whole new faction completely separate from the bots and the cons! I want the rest of his crew, and I hope there's at LEAST 4-5 more of them. Please please PLEASE Hasbro, make more of these guys! Make 2014 the year...of the Star Seekers.

Great toy. Love robot mode but beast is just okay. My only compliant is the sword which, like all recent transforming weapons, cant lock in place Like it shows on this sale pic. I mostly just leave it on his back as decor and give him generations arcees swords. really the only problems are the sword and his pegleg effecting balance, but you can just choose to never use the pegleg so its no problem. Though i love the parrot; whether they intended it or not its awesome (similar to gurren lagann rumble. Not sure if intended but awesome none the less.)