General Information:
Release Date: October 2008
Price Point: $10.99 (varies depending on retailer)
Retailer: General (Toys R Us, Target, Wal-Mart etc.)
Accessories: Gun
Text from Hasbrotoyshop.com:
There’s not a lot to be said about SILVERSTREAK that he hasn’t already said himself. In fact, there’s not a lot to be said about anything that he hasn’t already said, because he never stops talking. Ever. He talks to his partners on guard duty. He talks during his charge cycles. When he’s alone, he talks to himself. In battle, he chats with his opponent. Despite his formidable weaponry, DECEPTICONS prefer not to fight him mostly because they get sick of talking to him.
Get ready to roll out with this loyal AUTOBOT defender who’s ready to take on whatever adventures you create! Convert the no-nonsense robot figure to sleek sports car vehicle and back again! Take on the enemies with shoulder-mounted volt beam blasters in robot mode!
When Universe 2.0 Prowl was released, it was pretty obvious that a simple retool (removing the lightbar) could easily net Hasbro a minimum of another two Autobots out of the mold. One is Silverstreak (aka Bluestreak) and the other is Smokescreen. I
wouldn't be surprised if they stretched it and released Camshaft down the line too just to match the Alternators line. This review will focus on the changes made to the figure for this release.
Vehicle Mode:
To make Silverstreak a regular civilian vehicle rather than a law enforcement vehicle, the top lightbar has been removed and simply replaced with a rectangular piece of plastic that resembles a moon roof. The rest of the vehicle's structure remains the same including the dual layered spoiler on the back.
One thing I am enjoying about Universe 2.0 is the way one sculpt can be designed to utilize two different paint decos and look very distinctive while being (essentially) the same toy. Silverstreak's deco is largely based on the appearance of the G1 animation model for Bluestreak, which featured silver and black as his primary colors. This is different than the G1 Bluestreak toy which was primarily silver (though a redeco in "animated" colors would later be released as part of the Japanese reissues). Here, Silverstreak is cast in translucent blue, silver and black plastic. Black is used for the wheels and most of the front section of the vehicle. Prowl's translucent parts have been replaced with translucent blue parts here. The spoiler and the rear panels are cast in silver plastic.
Black, dark red and silver paint are used for detailing. The side panels are painted metallic silver, which also extends to the back section. Silver is also used for the front grille, which gives the front of the vehicle a distinctive look as if it were a face giving an evil grin. The hood section, the canopy and the rear bumper are all painted black. A dark red is used for the wheel covers, making them distinctive looking from most Autobots who just use silver or leave the wheels unpainted. A red Autobot symbol fits right into the five sided design on the front of the car and the rear lights are painted red on the top and bottom halves, leaving the middle silver. This gives them a distinct appearance from Prowl's lights and they look pretty cool to boot.
I really prefer this color scheme over Prowl's, but that's sort of an unfair comparison since Prowl's are fairly bland by nature whereas Silverstreak gets a flashier color in the form of the metallic silver. The silver and the black really form a bold contrast, and I'm glad that the designers used the animated Bluestreak's colors rather than the G1 figures' which would just be mostly silver and look quite plain.
Robot Mode:
Silverstreak's robot mode is identical in sculpt to Prowl's with no modified parts. All the changes are to the deco. A new plastic color gets introduced in this mode: red. Red is used for the rocket launchers, shoulders and upper legs. Silver is used on the head, lower arms, waist and lower legs. Black is used on the chest, elbows, fists, hips and parts of the lower legs. The red really helps the figure pop visually and pays homage to the G1 colors as well.
Silver paint decos are used for smaller details. Among them are the rockets on the rocket launchers, the line details on the shoulders, the headlights on his chest and the triangle on his waist. Light blue is used on the waist piece as well. A bit of white is used on the face, which is a better choice than silver since the figure's head is already sculpted in that color. A metallic red color is used for the horns on his head, which look great against the silver. I'm happiest with the rockets on the rocket launcher being colored since I felt that was really a lazy lack of detail on Prowl.
There are no differences in terms of joint tightness or posability. Everything works well on this figure.
Final Thoughts:
Silverstreak lacks some of the problems of Prowl, and I have to say I love this color scheme much more than Prowl's. It feels more detailed and done with care. It seems almost as if Prowl was rushed and then the designers took their time with Silverstreak. The "side panel popping off" is still an issue during transformation, but with that being the only stumbling block, I feel comfortable saying this figure is highly recommended!
