General Information:
Release Date: January 2014
Price Point: $14.99
Retailer: General Release (Toys R Us, Target, Wal-Mart etc.)
Accessories: Cannons x 2
*Images above with asterisks(*) and text in italics below from Amazon.com:
Skywarp could use his teleportation ability to tip any battle in favor of the Decepticons. Too bad his circuits aren't sharp enough to figure out when and where he should use it. Instead of creating an unrivaled tactical advantage, it mostly gets used for harmless pranks. Betcha didn't see that coming. Convert, arm and attack with all the Transformers action you can handle! This Skywarp figure is just the Decepticon to create maximum trouble for his Autobot enemies (other figures sold separately).
In robot mode, your Skywarp figure has 2 cannons for a hardcore attack. But when he needs to unleash a devastating aerial attack, convert him to Cybertronian jet mode and connect his cannons together! Whatever mode he's in, his enemies will think twice before taking him on! Includes figure and accessories.
Features:
Skywarp figure comes with 2 rotating cannons
Cannons connect together
Figure converts to Cybertronian jet mode and back again
Comic book included
Series 2 #012 Skywarp
Ages 5 and up Transformers and all related characters are trademarks of Hasbro.
2012's big "Transformers" multimedia event was not a movie, but rather a video game. Following up on the success of "War for Cybertron", High Moon Studios released "Fall of Cybertron", a game telling the tale of the exodus of the Transformers from their dying homeworld. In concert with the release of this game, a segment of the "Generations" toy line was dedicated to "Fall of Cybertron" action figures. Some of these designs would later appear in the IDW Publishing comic books. This figure comes packaged with a reprint of "Dark Cybertron #3" with a cover featuring Skywarp's cover art from that issue with an exclusive background. It's an interesting choice as the character barely appears in the issue, but he does get a cover so I guess that counts for something.
This figure was preceded in the past couple years by Starscream and Thundercracker. This review will focus on the changes made to the "Seeker" figure for this release, so check out my Starscream review for details on the sculpt and then my Thundercracker review for another look at the figure.
Robot Mode:
There are no sculpt changes to this figure, which works out since the three Seekers Starscream, Thundercracker and Skywarp have traditionally shared not only the exact same body design, but also the same weaponry. What distinguishes each of these characters from one another (other than personality) are their distinct and striking color schemes.
Skywarp is cast in a combination of purple, grey, black and translucent orange plastic. These colors are inspired by his appearance in the IDW comic book, but they're also inspired by the main colors of Skywarp from the original 1984 Skywarp action figure. A good chunk of the fgure is grey including large segments of the torso, the shoulders, upper arms, fists and ankles. Black plastic is used for the forearms, wings, thighs and feet. The purple comes into play on the vertical panels behind his head, the weapons and the lower legs. The cockpit cover on his chest and the eyes are cast in translucent orange, which has a deep, almost amber like appearance. These basic colors alone do a great job of telling you who this character is meant to be, but some paint deco does a nice job of enhancing the appearance of the figure.
The paint colors used on the figure include grey, black, purple and lavender. It may seem lazy at first just to reuse the same colors from the plastic colors for the paint details, but it works out very nicely. The painted decos are all used to fill in additional detail and contrast against the plastic. A good example of this is found on the chest, which is mostly grey plastic but has purple details painted onto it - providing continuity with the purple plastic on other parts of the body. This is also found on the lower legs and feet, where grey and black are used to keep the detailing consistent with the colors found on the rest of the figure. The lavender paint is used for some of the small sections on the torso including the edges of the chest and the rectangular areas on the top of the chest panel. These help provide the familiar "energy glow" effect that was seen on the Transformers in the "Fall of Cybertron" video game and it's nice to see that detail continuity carry over to Skywarp.
Note: this is actually the second "Generations" Skywarp. The first was technically the Japanese exclusive release. That version has a completely different and more metallic looking color scheme that focuses on the color purple. That means if you're a completist, getting this figure probably will only whet your appetite for the Japanese version, not satisfy it.
Skywarp has all the same points of articulation as Starscream and Thundercracker. All the joints on this figure are tight and I had no problem posing the figure. The weapons are the same as those included with Starscream and Thundercracker. They are two triple barreled cannons with two different 5mm pegs on them. The weapons can be combined together, allowing you to turn the gears on them to make the barrels rotate at the same time making them look like they're firing. Skywarp has 5mm ports on the sides of his lower legs, his forearms and in his fists, allowing you to attach a minimum of six weapons!
Transformation to Vehicle Mode:
- Detach the weapons and set them aside for now.
- Swing the angled parts that extend from the chest to the sides of the head forward.
- Rotate the robot head around and push it down.
- Swing the torso and legs up, taking the parts from step two and overlapping them onto the raised sections from the back of the robot mode.
- Fold the forearms over the upper arms and then connect them together.
- Push the arms under the back panel.
- Swing the robot legs back and connect each to the pegs by the robot arms.
- Push the robot feet up.
- Attach each weapon half to the underside of a wing.
- Flip up the tip of the nosecone.
Vehicle Mode:
Like the robot mode, there really isn't one color that dominates the vehicle mode. Instead, the grey, purple and black alternate from the front to the back of the figure. The nosecone is black, the cockpit section is grey which then leads to the rest of the jet which combines the three colors. His wings and the vertical stabilizers on the top of the vehicle are black. Paint details in this mode use the same colors as the robot mode, with more lavender details being revealed on the back portion of the vehicle. The wings have grey on them next to lavender Decepticon symbols. The triangular section on the top of the figure is painted grey with lavender details inside the six thin lines. Combined with the lavender lines at the front section, he gives off that "glowing" appearance in both modes.
Skywarp can attach his weapons to the underside of each wing or the lower leg sections in this form. You can also detach the vertical stabilizers on top, combine the weapons and attach them there and then put the stabilizers on top of the weapon. It looks a tad bit silly, like the jet is wearing a giant hat but at the same time having six barrels like that pointed at an enemy looks quite intimidating. All the weapon attachment points are nice and tight so no worries about mold wear.
Final Thoughts:
I'm very fond of this sculpt, so I'm totally down with picking it up if it's used to represent a different character than the previous releases. This deco is a really nice one, and I was surprised at how well all the colors mesh together even though they aren't concentrated in one particular area or another. Skywarp looks great and is a cool addition to your Seeker army!
