Short and sweet: Bombshell is the bomb. For the most part.
It’s no secret that I’m mostly a Transformers G1 fan. I’ve read some newer comics, dabbled with new characters, but when it comes to buying actual Transformers I stick with the G1 aesthetic. Masterpiece, CHUG, any and all, if it gives me a G1 vibe then I’m most likely all over it. Others I leave on the shelf. So after getting Skrapnel (Shrapnel) to get more Decepticons on the shelf and scratch that Insecticon itch I hoped for his partners to be close behind. Bombshell didn’t come too quickly but I’m glad he is finally in my grubby hands. Now give us some Kickback!
The package has changed but I like it. It’s small and clean and holds my figure. It’s serviceable.
Be gone, plastic prison! Bombshell give me the nostalgia shivers out of the package. He reminds me both of the old toon and the original figure, so that’s a win in my book.
The only thing missing is the transluscent yellow opening hatch, but you can’t have everything. But just look at that headsculpt. Pure Bombshell. The back of the legs being hollow is a little bit off-putting, and you may notice that I have the lowest insect legs sticking straight out the back. I did this so that the legs wouldn’t look funky from the front. The instructions show to have them pointing inwards towards each other. I can’t do that.
And to get it out of the way, my one and biggest nitpick about the robot mode is the knee pegs. Scroll back up and look at the side view. They just look out of place and an eyesore. Maybe they aren’t meant for something that I’m unaware of but I can’t figure out why they are there.
Ultimately I can overlook those and how the figure looks hollow from the back as I display my figures facing forward on the shelf.
For paint, he’s got a slightly metallic sheen on his yellow and purple parts, and the paint here is clean. No complaints at all. Both the purple and yellow is slightly different shades from Shrapnel though, so that may be a sticking point for some. I’m good with it though. It’s not that big a difference.
The other odd thing is the end of fists almost look like blasters.
Again I’m fine with this as he doesn’t come with a handheld weapon. Blast away, Bombshell! In neutral pose the look like hands so there is that.
Here’s comparison shots with Shapnel. Yeah, Bombshell is bigger, but the size is offset a little by Shrapnel’s huge mandibles. Focus on the robots though and it’s noticeable. Hopefully Kickback will be somewhere in between.
The transformation is fairly simple, but like all Transformers there are a couple of sticking points for me. I’m mentioned it before, when I was a kid I barely needed the instructions, I’d just tear in and go at it. I’ve somehow lost that gift as an adult thirty years later. I need blueprints and schematics and a video tutorial. And I sure don’t remember the process several days later. But you can check out the transformation in my video review.
Like Shrapnel, Bombshell’s alt mode really shines. As much as the robot mode hits all my childhood triggers, the bug mode does so even more. Just perfect.
The instructions show for those knee pegs to stick out the back but you can also fold them under to make them go away for the most part. I think I like this way better.
As far as size go, there is some wizardry going on. Despite the size differences in bot mode, the opposite is true for alt mode.
Crazy, right? It almost makes me believe that Megatron can transform down in size into a gun that can be held by Starscream.
All in all, I love this figure. I nearly dropped double the price for him from a secondary seller on Amazon but luckily I found him at my local Toys R Us for $9.99. That’s a deal, especially considering how much I was almost going to pay for the third party ninja style Insecticons last year. And with Shrapnel still on the shelves, at this price, I’m tempted to buy both again to keep on another shelf in bug mode. Yeah, that’s how much I like these guys.
