"Generations" Power of the Primes Evolution Optimus Prime Toy Review

Robot Mode:
Last year Optimus Prime took on two different forms inspired by "upgraded" versions of Optimus Prime such as Powermaster Optimus Prime and previous to that he was reimagined as a Combiner torso. This time out however, Optimus' form is purely based on his G1 appearance. Indeed, there is a lot of agreement among fans that a lot of the design of this figure is actually based on the MP-10 Optimus Prime's design, which is considered by many fans as the most "pure" version of Optimus Prime in action figure form. This is a great place to start as MP-10 did a great job of combining toy-based and cartoon-based design elements from G1 and combining them into a cohesive figure. Here is a rundown of some of those design elements:

• The head sculpt looks like it came right out of the G1 cartoon. It features a crest in the middle, a round helmet section, antennae on the sides sticking up and of course a mouthplate.
• The top of the chest has lights from the vehicle mode pointing forward.
• The arms each have smokestacks on the shoulders (though here they are on the back instead of the sides).
• The chest features windows from the vehicle mode and small raised, circular details around them representing bolts, a feature from the G1 action figure.
• The forearms each feature two rectangular lines with a triangle in front.
• The middle of the torso has a faux vehicle mode grille on it.
• The waist/hip area features a series of details including a rectangle in the middle and angled shapes on either side.
• The thighs feature raised shapes on them also found on the G1 animation model.
• The lower legs have a series of angled panels overlapping. This is a callback to a series of horizontal lines on the original toy and animation model.
• The panels on the sides of the lower legs have storage tanks sculpted into them.
• The front of each foot has a thin series of horizontal lines on it, based on a sticker found on G1 Optimus Prime's action figure.

Not only does this figure have a lot of MP-10's design elements, it is about the same size standing at 9 inches (about 22.86 centimeters) tall. MP-10 Optimus Prime is about a half inch taller but side by side they look almost the same size in height and width. This gives him a nice size despite being a fairly "simple" version of the character without tons of extra armor or gimmicks bulking him up.

While everything I mention above is great, the figure is not perfect. To accommodate the transformation pattern of the figure, there are some design compromises that had to be made. On the back of the figure you'll see Orion Pax's legs folded up. The wind up looking like some type of back pack, but definitely not Optimus Prime's traditional "back pack". The the forearms have panels from the trailer folded up on the sides and bottom. Then the sides and back of the lower legs are also formed by silver panels from the trailer. For the most part, these parts do not really bother me that much. They do wind up breaking the continuity of the red plastic on the arms and blue plastic on the legs, so if that shatters the illusion of the robot mode too much for you, be warned. The good thing is you can see this right in package so you will be able to see for yourself before you buy.

It may not look like it at first, but a majority of this figure is cast in silver plastic. Other parts are cast in blue and translucent blue. Much of the red on the top half of the figure is actually painted silver plastic. You can see a bit of red plastic at the elbows and the shade of red is slightly different. Blue is found on the head and lower legs while the chest windows are translucent blue. Silver paint is used on both the head and the lower legs for detailing. Yellow paint is used on the waist/hip area. The rest of the details on this figure are actually stickers inspired by G1 Optimus Prime. These include:

• Each shoulder has an Autobot symbol on it with a silver foil back. Unfortunately they are not cut well, so the borders are thicker on one side than the other.
• Each forearm has a sticker with two blue pill shaped designs on it, borrowed from the G1 Optimus Prime figure.
• The knees have stickers on them with various shapes including triangles, circles and rectangles. This is based on the stickers from the knees on the G1 Optimus Prime figure.
• The front of each foot has a tiny sticker on it with a vertical rectangle and two smaller rectangles stacked. This is based on a similar sticker from the G1 Optimus Prime figure.

Overall the deco is good and I appreciate the stickers that pay homage to G1 Optimus Prime. I do wish more care was taken to the way the Autobot symbols on the shoulders were cut. The other issue I have are the fists, which are silver and unpainted. It would have been cool to have them painted blue. This would make him more G1 accurate and break up the silver on the arms.

There are twenty one points of articulation on this figure. That includes four in each arm and six on each leg. Sadly, he lacks both waist and wrist articulation, which would add a lot of posing possibilities. Each fist has 5mm ports, allowing him to hold his weapon(s). If you want to attach additional weapons you can use the 5mm ports on the sides of the forearms. The Matrix accessory comes into play when you open up the chest panels. Now, technically there are two sets of panels. The top ones are basically "false" panels revealing an extra set of panels underneath. Open those and the Matrix sits inside. You can pull it out by holding on to the center section. You can easily attach an Enigma or a Prime Master in Spark Mode and place it back into the chest.

Overall Optimus Prime has a fun robot mode that looks great and is fun to play with. It is not perfect (for the reasons outlined above) but I do like it more than I originally expected to.

Transformation to Vehicle Mode:

1. Detach the weapon(s) and set them aside for now.
2. On the back there is a blue tab. Push it down and pull out the "back pack" to remove the Orion Pax portion of the figure.
3. Swing the blue legs on Orion Pax down, then rotate them outward so the wheels are on the left and right sides. Slide the tab on the right side into the corresponding slot on the left side at the end of the legs to keep them together.
4. Swing the clear panel on the back down. Then swing Orion's head down.
5. Swing Optimus Prime's head down.
6. Swing each of Orion's arms back, covering Optimus Prime's head.
7. Swing down each of the window panels in the front, revealing the front wheels and side windows.
8. Swing the panels with the front wheels back to form the sides of the cab.
9. Starting with the trailer, swing out the silver panels on each of the lower legs and unfold them all so the panel is flat.
10. Push each foot up.
11. Push the top of each smokestack down.
12. Fold out the silver panels on the forearms, swinging each small panel out.
13. Swing each arm up, rotate it around, then swing the arms forward on the shoulder hinge.
14. Swing the silver panels on the lower legs up and fold the top halves together.
15. Swing the small panels on the arms back to complete the trailer. The panels on the arms clip to the ones on the legs.
16. On the front of the trailer, swing out the small blue peg. This allows you to connect the trailer to the cab.
17. The rifle can be attached to the top of the trailer.

Update: Thanks to fellow fan Pascal Isabel it was pointed out to me that Orion Pax's arms are actually meant to swing down. There are slots on the wrists that connect to the tabs on the back of the chest panel. Check out the last two vehicle mode pictures below to see the cab transformed in this fashion and a close up of the tab and slot. I am sure this was the original intention, but somehow it did not translate into the official photos.

Vehicle Mode:
I normally try to remain positive when it comes to my reviews, but even I must admit that the vehicle mode is the weakest part of this figure. The main issue here is that the transformation is designed to facilitate the combination of the cab and trailer and of course remain at a certain price point. Due to those restrictions, the vehicle mode largely feels like it needed another pass in planning or simply a bit more budget (which in turn would have raised the price, so that was a non-starter). The biggest issue with this form are all the exposed robot bits. The back of the cab section clearly has Orion Pax's arms just sticking out. This is compounded by the way the trailer narrows suddenly in the back whereas this form is normally portrayed as being more uniformly boxy in shape. Then on top of the trailer, you can clearly see Optimus Prime's arms and the front is just an open gap. This really breaks the illusion of a truck and instead it looks like a truck with odd robot bits sticking out of it.

I do not want to make it seem that everything in this form is horrible. There are some nice details on the cab including plenty of sculpted details in the front such as windshield wipers, lights on top, side view mirrors and truck horns on top. The trailer has the classic G1 horizontal line pattern running down the sides and there is even a circle on either side of the trailer that is directly inspired by a detail on G1 Optimus Prime's trailer. The designers definitely made an effort with this, I just wish it had been taken a step or two further to cover up all the open bits.

The cab section is mostly red plastic with some black, silver and blue parts. Meanwhile the trailer is mostly silver plastic with some blue and black plastic showing on the rear "doors" and wheels respectively. The cab actually has a good amount of paint detailing. Silver is used on the front and sides. The headlights are painted yellow and the side windows are painted light blue. The trailer relies on stickers for the familiar blue and silver stripe detail running along the sides. Unfortunately the stickers can easily come off at the front edges when you fold the panels during transformation, so be very careful. Sadly, the rims on the wheels are not painted and they really could have used some silver or chrome to help the figure stand out.

The top of the trailer has two 5mm ports, allowing you to attach weapons to them. The same area also has four Titan/Prime Master pegs, allowing you to have some passengers riding on top.

Transformation to Orion Pax:

1. Separate the cab from the trailer.
2. Swing the panels with the front wheel wells up.
3. Swing the side panels out, then forward.
4. Swing the sections with the two rear wheels down, then separate them from one another to begin forming the legs.
5. Swivel each lower leg so the wheels face the back.
6. Swing each foot out.
7. Swing the robot arms back, then rotat ethe lower part of the arms around.
8. Swing the fists out of the forearms.
9. Swing the torso panel up and swing the head down.