General Information
Release Date: March 2025
Price Point: $34.99 (depending on retailer)
Retailer: General Release (Amazon, BigBadToyStore, Entertainment Earth, Target, Walmart etc.) - the preceding links are sponsor/affiliate links for Ben's World of Transformers
Accessories: Blaster hand, Claw hand, Triple barreled blaster arm, Cannon
Official images and text in italics are from Amazon.com:
- AUTOBOT RED ALERT ACTION FIGURE: This 7-inch (17.5 cm) Autobot Red Alert action figure toy features deco and detail inspiration from the Transformers universe
- 2-IN-1 CONVERTING TRANSFORMERS TOY: Transformers action figure converts from robot toy to off-road vehicle toy in 22 steps
- AWESOME ACCESSORIES: This Autobot Red Alert Transformers figure comes with cannon, hand missiles, and claw accessories
- ARTICULATED FOR PLAY AND DISPLAY: Transformers figures feature articulated heads, arms, and legs for action poses
- GIFT TRANSFORMERS COLLECTIBLES: This Autobot Red Alert action figure toy makes a great collectible figure gift for any Transformers fan
- AGE OF THE PRIMES: The Thirteen Primes are the very first bots in Transformers mythology, a pantheon of beings each with a unique ability and personality. Every battle, bot, and power in the Transformers universe can be traced back to them
Unite your favorite characters from across the world of Transformers robots into your collection with the Transformers Age of the Primes Voyager Class Autobot Red Alert action figure! This 7-inch Autobot Red Alert action figure converts between robot and off-road vehicle modes in 22 steps. Includes cannon, hand missiles, and claw accessories. The Autobot Red Alert figure is inspired by the character from the Transformers universe and features articulated head, arms, and legs for awesome action poses. Transformers: Age of the Primes opens up the world of the Primes, the very first bots in Transformers mythology, a pantheon of Thirteen beings, each with a unique ability and personality. Every battle, every bot, and every power in the Transformers universe can be traced back to one of The Thirteen. Collect and combine different characters to create your ideal Age of the Primes lineup. TRANSFORMERS and HASBRO and all related trademarks and logos are trademarks of Hasbro, Inc. © 2024 Hasbro.
Background:
In 2002 Hasbro relaunched the Transformers line with a whole new timeline. There were many familiar elements including new versions of Optimus Prime and Megatron along with a lot of new characters. One of the familiar names repurposed in this line was Red Alert. Instead of the paranoid G1 character, this version was one of Optimus Prime's trusted lieutenants who was stoic and dependable.
The original Armada Red Alert figure was a "Max-Con" class which really does not have a modern day equivalent. He was large and bulky featuring all sorts of action features including a Mini-Con gimmick, interchangeable arm attachments, spring loaded missiles and electronics. Perhaps the most memorable feature were the electronics which flashed lights while saying "Red Alert!" followed by a siren noise. However, because of the way the actor read the line and/or the way the voice was processed it wound up sounding like "Red UH-lert! WOO WOO WOO WOO WOO!" much to the delight of fans everywhere. This makes him one of the more fondly remembered figures of the time.
For those curious, this is not a redeco/retool of the Legacy Cannonball figure. This is a whole new Voyager Class figure.
Packaging:
Age of the Primes represents a dramatic shift in Generations packaging. Unlike previous years of the War for Cybertron trilogy or Legacy which went in dramatic directions with packaging shape and artwork, the designers have dialed back the look of the boxes a lot. The Age of the Primes packaging winds up looking a lot more like Studio Series packaging. The boxes are now rectangular. No weird angles or anything. The background is just plain black. The "Transformers" logo is no longer vertical (dropping a trend that began over ten years ago) and is now horizontal in the front of the packaging with the "Age of the Primes" name underneath it. Character art is featured to the right, but it's only partial art showing a bit of the character in robot mode with focus on the vehicle mode underneath. To the left are icons describing how many steps the character takes to convert from one mode to the other and the age recommendation (8+ in this case).
Red Alert is inside the box attached to a cardboard tray. You can see the entire figure in robot mode thanks to the return of plastic windows! Fans will recall that for the last few years Transformers toys have had no plastic windows in an effort to (ostensibly) make more eco-friendly packaging. However, this led to damaged toys with heads being yanked off and sometimes figures being outright stolen. For many fans, the return of the plastic windows is a welcome one.
The back of the box shows the character in both modes calling out a 22 step transformation. Behind the character is a sky background with a wheel showing some of the Thirteen Prime symbols. The right side of the box (if you're looking at the front) features the phrase "'Til All Are One" in multiple languages along with artwork of Primes.
I think the designers were going for a more "adult" and "premium" appearance to the packaging and to that end it works. It looks like something you'd see in a museum shop, but I do feel some of the fun and whimsy of the dramatic Legacy artwork and visual bombast has been lost and I'm a tad sad about that.
Accessories:
Like his Armada predecessor, Red Alert comes with a bunch of accessories. Sadly, he does not include an updated version of the Mini-Con Longarm. Longarm was paired with Red Alert in Armada and not having him here really makes it feel like something is missing from the set. Here's a rundown of what is included:
- Cannon: This weapon is based on the handheld cannon included with Armada Red Alert. It is roughly rectangular in shape with lots of nicely sculpted details on top and the sides based on the original weapon. The back features a 5mm peg while the front features a 5mm port to attach the other accessories included with the figure. This piece is made of white and translucent red plastic with gunmetal grey paint on the edge of the lightbar piece at the bottom.
- Claw Hand: Red Alert's left forearm does not have a hand. Instead he includes accessories that attach in place of a hand. One of them is a claw featuring a 5mm peg at the back. This piece is made of gunmetal grey plastic with no paint applications.
- Blaster Hand: Red Alert was most often portrayed in the Armada cartoon using a blaster hand with a single barrel. The barrel also features fins on the sides and one on top. This piece features a 5mm peg in the back and a tip that lets you attach Blast Effects. This piece is made of translucent red plastic with no paint applications.
- Triple Barreled Blaster Hand: This accessory is similar in shape to the Blaster Hand but it features three small barrels and no fins. It features a 5mm peg in the back and a tip that can fit a Blast Effect. This piece is made of translucent red plastic with no paint applications.
Robot Mode:
Red Alert's design is mostly based on the animated series interpretation of the character which was a bit more streamlined than the original action figure. To anyone who was a fan of the show or the toy line he's instantly recognizable. Here are some key details carried over from the original design:
- Head: Red Alert's head has a distinct design featuring wide "V" shaped visor eyes, a cross sculpted into the area above the eyes and the area around his mouth is outlined by parts of the helmet. If you think the head sculpt has a Robocop vibe to it, you'd be correct. Designer Aaron Archer himself confirmed this.
- Chest: The chest is formed from the front of he vehicle mode. This includes angled shapes and a very heavy duty looking grille section with round headlights and a series of three angled lines under them.
- Arms: Each arm is mostly made of rectangular and angled sections (with curves at the shoulders). Each arm features a vehicle mode door hanging off the side.
- Legs: The legs feature the rear wheel wells attached to the sides, distinct knee armor and layers of armor detail at the top of the thighs.
Overall Red Alert's sculpt is spot on in its representation of the Armada character.
Red Alert is made of white, blue, black, gunmetal grey and translucent red plastic. These colors are based on his animated appearance, not the original figure. The biggest indicator of this is the lack of beige/gold colors anywhere on the figure. This color was very prominent on the original figure but it was not heavily used in the animation model. Paint colors include red, gunmetal grey, black, yellow and dark blue. Some of the best deco is found on the front of the chest which combines a lot of different colors together in a fairly intricate pattern. He also features an Autobot symbol on top of his chest. As a representation of the cartoon character this figure does a great job.
There are twenty nine points of articulation on this figure. This includes six in each arm (not counting the left wrist), seven in each leg along with wrist articulation for the right hand. Even by today's standards this is an extraordinary number of articulation points. I suspect this articulation was a goal of this design not only to elevate the original design but to compensate for what has been lost. There are ten 5mm ports on this figure including four on each arm and leg and one on top of the chest section and one behind the head to attach his cannon. Three of these ports are based off Mini-Con connection points from the original figure. On Armada Red Alert he had Mini-Con pegs on his doors and the right side of the chest section. These are now 5mm ports and in theory you can attach some of the Siege Micromasters to simulate Mini-Cons Powerlinked with Red Alert. If you want to store away his extra hand attachments, they can fit in the rear wheel well panels attached to the lower legs. Just rotate them to reveal the slot, drop the parts in and rotate them back into place.
All that said, a lot of functionality from the original figure is gone. That includes any Mini-Con activated features, a disc launcher in the chest, the "platform" on the left leg and of course spring loaded and electronic features. This really is a case of "you can't go home again" and as someone who was around when Armada debuted I cannot help but feel a bit of a loss with all these features gone. At the very least I would have liked to have a new version of Longarm but that was not to be.
Transformation to Vehicle Mode:
- Detach all the hand accessories.
- Two of the hand accessories can be stored in the white panels or the blaster hand accessories can be attached to the top of the vehicle mode (more on that below).
- The third hand accessory can remain attached to the cannon if it is deployed in vehicle mode.
- Straighten out the arms and legs.
- Rotate each arm inward, then swing the doors down. Each door has a wide tab on the back that attaches to the slot on the biceps.
- Swing each forearm up against the biceps.
- Swing the panel in the center of the chest section up, and swing the inner panel up.
- Swing the robot head down, then swing the middle panel back into place.
- Swing the back pack section up, then inside that back pack swing out the rear vehicle mode panel.
- Swing each arm up out to the sides, then rotate them forward so the doors face front.
- Swing the arms back, connecting the tabs and slots on the forearms to one another.
- On each foot swing the heel pieces into the bottom of the feet.
- Swing the feet up against the lower legs, then swing the lower legs (using the joint below the knees) back.
- Swing the lower body up to form the back and bottom of the vehicle mode. There are tabs that fit into the thighs and on the rear panel to hold everything together.
- The small blaster hands can be attachewd to the small pegs on top of the car (right above the windshield) using the small ports on the sides of each hand weapon. The claw does not have this so you're better off storing that in the leg panel or attaching it to the cannon.
The transformation is very intuitive and the figure feels super solid. However, my copy has one odd issue involving the cannon. The cannon should swing back and sit flush inside the top of the vehicle. However on my copy of this figure it always pushes up a bit instead of fully sitting inside the slot for the cannon. This does not affect the functionality of the figure much but it doesn't look great. This figure is still relatively new so I haven't see widespread reports of this. Hopefully it's just my copy.
Vehicle Mode:
Red Alert's vehicle mode is a rugged looking emergency SUV. The front end has a lot of angled designs that look like they're built to take punishment. The rear section is curved, offering some sleekness to the design. Among the most distinctive design elements are the pieces on top of the vehicle. The lightbar is bisected by a large...rack? Let's go with rack. Red Alert truly does look like a shrunken down version of the original figure.
This mode mostly shows off white plastic with translucent red on the windows, light bar and the rack on the top of the vehicle. Paint colors include red, yellow, gunmetal grey and black. Of significant note is the "rescue Autobot symbol" on the sides. On the original Red Alert they were the actual Red Cross symbols which caused some legal issues. The Red Cross symbol is trademarked and the organization has very specific defined uses for it and action figures is not one of them. This symbol is a nice compromise and looks cool.
This mode features five 5mm ports. Two on each side and one on top of the hood of the vehicle. The cannon on the left side can be manually swung out and you can attach any of the hand weapons to it. In a fun bonus feature, the back of the rack has an Armada style Mini-Con peg, allowing you to attach Armada Longarm (or any Mini-Con with the appropriate port) to simulate his "Powerlink" action. As mentioned above, there are two small vertical pegs on the top of the vehicle that allow you to attach his "Blaster Hands" using the small ports on the sides.
Final Thoughts:
Red Alert is one of those figures that leaves me conflicted. If I eject all expectations from the past it is a perfectly cool figure on its own. Fun design, striking deco, fantastic articulation and some fun accessories. However, given this is meant to be a new interpretation of a character from the past the comparisons are inevitable. Is Red Alert a good figure? Absolutely. Does he hold a candle to the original in terms of play value? Sadly no. For this figure I will offer a mixed "Recommended".
Pros:
- Excellent sculpt that features a great blend of the Armada toy and cartoon character model.
- Good deco with some nice detail work, especially on the front of the vehicle.
- Fun accessories.
- Intuitive and fun transformation.
- Excellent articulation.
- I appreciate the inclusion of one Mini-Con peg.
Cons:
- Lack of Mini-Con.
- Lack of many features from the original figure (or even modern versions of them).
- The issue with my cannon not sitting flush in vehicle mode is odd and a bit of a downer.
