Optimus Prime Transformer
First there was the Marvel Spiderman knock off City Nimrod, next was the knock off of DC’s Batman action figure and now, the knock off version of Hasbro’s Transformer Optimus Prime.
You’ll note the picture of just the head of the knock off Optimus on the left there. No I didn’t take it apart in that sense. Removing the head is all part of the design of this Dollarama toy.
Before we talk about the removing head design, here are the two next to each other for comparison.
You can see the differences, but you should also see the similarities. The head is close, the limbs are similar and the front is just about the same. The weapons included with the Dollarama version are copies of the weapons the real Optimus Prime has, even the axe.
The axe included is for the rarely seen energy, or energon, axe Optimus uses. The axe replaces Optimus’ fist in the cartoon, but this knock off has it fitting right into the weapon holding hole on the fist, and that’s ok, but it also brings me to my next point. This is the first of the dollar store action figures I have reviewed that can actually hold the weapons and accessories included with them, so you can see how this is a big deal. Cheap toy or not, if it is supposed to have a weapon fit in the hand, make the weapon able fit in the hand please.
Well, since this is a transforming action figure, let’s see how you go about transforming this robot into a truck.
| Steps | Step 1 |
Steps:
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| Step 2 | Step 3 |
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I am still trying to figure out why you are supposed to remove anything from something that is supposed to be a transformer, except for the weapons. Removing the head and arms in order to make it look like the truck instead of rearranging them makes it only half of a transformer, the other half being a rip apart stress toy.
Here is what it would look like if you only “transformed” it.
I’d hate to see this thing drive by, or worse yet, trailing me on the highway.
Oh, and some other minor points
- There’s a chest light, but it’s not as good as the City Nimrod or Batman chest lights. It turns on with a button at the front, not the back
- The red chassis paint is very shiny so most likely full of lead(not actually tested, just figured)
- The wheels don’t work, so it doesn’t work well as a truck
- It’s less than meets the eye
Not a Recent Toy
Pictured right is the package I found at the Dollarama. I came across the same Optimus at the Scary Crayon website and that post was made back in December 2006. These things have been around for quite a while. I thought they were new since the wall at the Dollarama was covered in these, and the slight model and color differences, but the only thing that is new about them is the package.
The old package has them called Transformatrix. Don’t believe me? Check out the Optimus at Scary Crayon to see the old package and the other variations, but ultimately the same thing.
If you’re a good painter, and that ain’t me, you can even take one of these and paint it like the real Optimus Prime. You could turn this version of Optimus Prime into a convincing, real Optimus Prime. I didn’t do that, I’m not that good of a painter to paint that well. Kudos to any individual who could do that.
Is this item still available online anywhere? I need the arms for a project.