Another store bought Transformer that scratches that G1 itch, even if the alt mode isn’t that hot.
Powerglide is another Transformer figure I had way back as a kid so I’m ecstatic to get him as an adult. The bot mode is great even though I had a little buyer’s remorse before I opened the package. Like Bombshell, I like the new packaging for the Legends Class figure. Nice, clean, simple, easy to discard.
In the package Powerglide looked a little odd too me. The shoulders are slightly high and he looks really wide. I also picture him with a larger head in my mind. But out of the package those oddities disappeared. After messing around with him for a bit he quickly grew on me and I can say that he now screams Powerglide. In fact, I think I like the bot mode more than I think I should.
The thrusters look a little out of place but they are supposed to be there. He doesn’t have any big hollow spots like Bombshell or huge gaps. If there was one nitpick to point out it would be the butt flap but it’s really not that noticeable.
Even better, he looks great alongside other Legends Class characters like Cosmos.
Like I said, this is now Powerglide in my mind. Love the bot.
The plane alt mode, not so much…
Don’t get me wrong, it’s definitely a plane. And it doesn’t LOOK that bad. But it is one fidgety, fudgey piece of plastic. Lining up the wings, trying to keep the tail fins in position, the whole back half of the body behind the wings wants to bend and split back into bot legs, just a mess to deal with. You can get that sweet spot and leave it alone but forget about a lot of movement or playing.
You can also see a little of his face on the side of the plane’s nose. Not too much but you know it’s there. The worst is the hands though. The arms form some sort of weapons or fuel tanks under the wings but leave the bot hands completely visible. What’s worse is that a simple swivel would have fixed this. The back of Powerglide’s hands blend up into his forearms, the ability to turn this around so that the hands are at least underneath would have made a world of difference. Still noticeable but not nearly as bad.
Then there is the weapon mode, which to me is worse than the plane mode. I say “worse” and that may be a bit much, the plane mode is passable, but the gun mode I can completely do without. Completely. I can appreciate the thought, wanting to make a weapon for the combined mode bot, but this comes out looking simply like Powerglide mid-transformation with his butt flap in the air.
This mode is so far off my radar that I completely forgot to include it in my video review. There I show the transformation, articulation, and how fiddly the plane mode is.
Once again though, buy this for the bot mode. It more than fill that Powerglide spot on your shelf. For $9.99 it’s completely worth it for that alone.
