The Transformers Classics series are up-dated version of popular characters from the Transformers 1980’s toy ranges.

Strike a Pose

Until this run of toys came along, Bumblebee had been missing off the roster of characters for quite a while (since his character has featured prominently in both the Live Action Movies and the Animated cartoon series). The original toy was very simple in construction and therefore I think it is nice to see newly constructed figure for this classic character. Is he up to standard?

Now for a Top Gear moment

It always struck me as a bit odd that the cartoon gave Bumblebee a completely new face. It bore little resemblance to the original toy which I believe is a good thing, because the toy’s head was a little ugly. This Classics incarnation of Bumblebee is modeled on the cartoon character’s face really well. It has his horns, the right shape for the head, his chin and rounds it off with a cute little smile. I suspect it is one of the first Transformers to look happy. In his fore-head is a small moulded vent which has been coloured blue. It works well to break up the yellow in the helmet part and his face is painted silver. He has the usual ball joint for a neck and it seems a little stiff. His cheeks feel like they impede his head movement slightly.

Smile for the Camera

His shoulders have the same blue highlights on them as his fore-head vent and breaks up the black of the upper arms and tire section well. The shoulders have quite a bit of movement available to them, as the tyres can swivel around and the arms themselves are connected via ball joints. One small difficulty with him is if you swivel the tyres about too much in robot mode, the plate that holds his head in place will pop up. Fore-arms are grey plastic which have the doors of the car joined onto at the wrists. The elbows are joined with ball joints and the doors can swivel around his wrists, so even though they are large, they can be maneuvered out of the way easily enough. His hands are black and have a peg hole in each for weapon holding, but the toy doesn’t come with a gun. The chest, which is formed from the cars roof and windshield has an Autobot rub-sign sticker on it as well as some white paint decals. His thighs are covered by the backs of the chairs in vehicle mode and have ball joints, his shins are covered by the bonnet. Feet consist of the front bumper and wheel base of the car. The robot mode is very close to the make-up of the original toy in transformation and even closer to his cartoon representation.There are some nice details moulded into him. On his legs, just above his ankles, there are some shock absorbers, his groin has some detail, that although nothing exceptional is effective, as in robot mode it can only be seen through the windshield. One I really like is on the side of his upper arms are some stripes that look like rank stipes for the army. Although Bumblebee never really climbed the ranks, he was a reliable chap and it’s good to see that he may have progressed a little.

Even though he doesn’t come with a weapon, he is accompanied by his “Wave Crusher” (aka a jet ski). This little addition can be towed behind the car in vehicle mode, or it can also transform into a Jet Pack and be mounted behind Bumblebee’s head. Although it looks a little small in vehicle mode (the scale is out, or perhaps it’s just a really, really small jet ski), it is mainly designed to clip into the back of Bumblebee, which it does well. It is easily and securely fastened and looks reminiscent of the old Action Master version of Bumblebee (which came with Heli-Pack – a back mounted Helicopter which could convert into his gun).

The vehicle mode is a two door compact sporty car with the jet ski mounted on the back. Although a very nice and sleek vehicle mode, I feel that it is not all that much suited to Bumblebee. His original form was a Volkswagen Beetle (Pre Super-Bug, although Goldbug and Pretender Classics/Legends Bumblebee were Super-Bugs) and not a sporty one at that (Volkswagen has denied Hasbro/Takara permission to have a Beetle change-form since they wish to distance themselves from anything battle related). Personally, I feel this is more of a Cliffjumper suited vehicle. However, that is perhaps for another review.

Why not a VW Beetle?

Luckily some of the sporty feel can be removed by un-clipping the spoiler on the back of the car. I was informed of this by a friend and to my relief it is easily done with no chance of damage. Once done, the car looks a lot more like Bumblebee’s car mode should. The main colour is of course yellow, with white decals. The boot area is painted white with red for the brake lights and the doors have a little bit of white with mostly yellow. The bonnet has a couple of stripes running up it and they lead onto the roof. The moulding of the car is good, with some air intake ports on the bonnet and the roof. Obviously this is a rally based car. The front grill has a nice radiator effect and the headlights are transparent plastic. From the side, it can be seen that the vehicle is very low to the ground. One touch that I really like is the seats. They form thigh covers for the robot mode, but the detail on them in vehicle mode is a very nice touch. However, aside from the seats, there are no other details.

Overall, Bumblebee is an extremely well designed figure. The homage (is it homage if it’s the same guy?) is striking and it is obvious this is an update. Even though the articulation is let down by bits getting in the way, it doesn’t get in the way so much as to make the figure a brick. The detail is well done and I recommend this figure to all those who have been thinking of getting it. You won’t be disappointed. It’s also designed by an Australian!

(recoloured and rereleased as Classics Cliffjumper, Timelines Bugbite, Henkei Bumblebee & Legacy Classics Bumblebee (with Legacy Animated Bumblebee and Legacy Movie Premium Series Battle Mask Bumblebee))

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