Prowl - Universe: Classics Series wave 1

[tamo536]

here are some pics of packaging and instructions
http://i256.photobucket.com/albums/hh193/tamo536/Picture217-1.jpg
http://i256.photobucket.com/albums/hh193/tamo536/Picture219.jpg
http://i256.photobucket.com/albums/hh193/tamo536/Picture220-1.jpg
here is alt mode
http://i256.photobucket.com/albums/hh193/tamo536/Picture221.jpg
http://i256.photobucket.com/albums/hh193/tamo536/Picture222.jpg
http://i256.photobucket.com/albums/hh193/tamo536/Picture223-1.jpg
http://i256.photobucket.com/albums/hh193/tamo536/Picture224-2.jpg
his alt mode is rather nice looking.
Transformation is also similr to g1 with his head coking from the hood and his arms folding inward and trunk becoming his legs.
bot mode is also very nice with his hood becoming his chest and windshield becoming his back.his two Launchers pop out of his chest and sit on his shoulders.
http://i256.photobucket.com/albums/hh193/tamo536/Picture225-1.jpg
http://i256.photobucket.com/albums/hh193/tamo536/Picture226.jpg
http://i256.photobucket.com/albums/hh193/tamo536/Picture227.jpg
http://i256.photobucket.com/albums/hh193/tamo536/Picture228.jpg
Another great figure in the classics line.:thumb
more info to come

[karamazov80]

Thanks for the pictures! This Prowl looks a little "off" to me, but he is still one of my favorite Transformer characters, and I will definitely pick one up when I see one at Target.

[Soundblaster1]

Looks great! I can't wait! :thumb
Thanks for sharing.

[REDLINE]

Would be great if you could get a shot where we can read the whole bio, as well as a scan or at least a totally clear shot of the instructions.

[tamo536]

Would be great if you could get a shot where we can read the whole bio, as well as a scan or at least a totally clear shot of the instructions.

here ya go
http://i256.photobucket.com/albums/hh193/tamo536/Picture232-1.jpg
http://i256.photobucket.com/albums/hh193/tamo536/Picture233-1.jpg
http://i256.photobucket.com/albums/hh193/tamo536/Picture234-1-1.jpg
http://i256.photobucket.com/albums/hh193/tamo536/Picture235-1-1.jpg

[UltraDevmodious]

damn it tamo, i can't resist police transformers...i don't want to have to pay 100+ for this guy just to have him now!

[Brandon]

Nice. Looks pretty cool. Pretty sweet bio for him as well.

[butz]

What is the UPC number on him?

[TENIME_art]

Three similiar questions:

Does the lightbar look like it could come off easily?

Does the spoiler look like it could come off easily?

Does the head look like it could come off easily?

I need to make a custom from this figure... :D

[C.I.A.D.]

Between the return of classics & encore, TFs are really starting to cut in to my Joe budget.

Prowl looks awesome. Can't wait to own him. Thanks for the pics!

[tamo536]

What is the UPC number on him?

PROWL
653556325154

SUNSTREAKER
653569325147

[tamo536]

Three similiar questions:

Does the lightbar look like it could come off easily?

Does the spoiler look like it could come off easily?

Does the head look like it could come off easily?

I need to make a custom from this figure... :D

The lightbar is connected by 1 screw (easily removed)

the spoiler has a pin in it and cant be removed easily

the head has one screw and on a ball joint(easily removed)

[Silent_Magnus]

I think I 'll wait to see henkei pictures before I pick up the domestic version of this guy. Seems like he could use some more paint. Otherwise he looks pretty awesome.

[REDLINE]

Three similiar questions:

Does the lightbar look like it could come off easily?

Does the spoiler look like it could come off easily?

Does the head look like it could come off easily?

I need to make a custom from this figure... :D

I hope you don't go crazy doing that, before finding out which repaints we're going to be getting. Afterall, they intentionally designed these toys with repaints in mind, so We know they'll be repainting these at LEAST once.

[SPLIT LIP]

He looks better than expected. I'm still not gonna get him right away, but if he goes on sale Imight get him just because my collection is short on cops and Prowls.

The fig itself is okay, though I feel he could've been handled better.

[REDLINE]

man, the only thing he's missing is grey on the launchers.

[Quantum_Penguin]

The situation in the bio sounds a lot like the one in the IDW universe, which isn't too surprising considering that this toy was obviously based on IDW Prowl. I wonder just what they mean by a 'real' leader? Is this an implicit dig against Megatron? Is it referring to Galvatron?

[REDLINE]

I would imagine it would be the impending release of Galvatron.

[Ravenxl7]

I hope you don't go crazy doing that, before finding out which repaints we're going to be getting. Afterall, they intentionally designed these toys with repaints in mind, so We know they'll be repainting these at LEAST once.
I might be wrong, but I think he's talking about his custom character, and not Silverstreak or Smokescreen.

Like most of the other figures in the new Universe line, I'm looking forward to Prowl's release. I'm hoping that the mold at least gets mass released repaints. By the looks of it, it wouldn't be that hard for Hasbro to remove the lightbar feature, and possibly alter the spoiler, for the repaints. If I don't get any of the TF's I currently plan to, it'll be because of lack of money, lol. Here's hoping I'm able to get all the figures I really like.

[REDLINE]

well then that would classify as NOT going crazy, wouldn't it? :p

[Shin Densetsu]

IDW Prowl is such a dick, but this toy is awesome. BOUGHT

[Prowl_Delta_31]

I have said it before and I will say it again. I can not wait to get this figure.

[Dropshot]

The mold looks great, but just as sunstreaker, the lack of paint makes it look cheap and common.

[chuckcjc]

I just got this Prowl as well yesterday. G1 Prowl is my favorite Transformer character, so I just couldn't wait. Frankly, I think they did a fantastic job with him.

Maybe he could have used a splash of paint or tampos on this shoulders. The G1 Prowl "Blue Shield with Yellow Star" logo is missing, but perhaps reprolabels will come to the rescue.

The poseability is excellent. Others have stated he has a ball jointed neck, but that is not true. He can not look up. The plate that his head is mounted on, has a 1 mm post on the underside, so the plate is not purely flush with the hood. Its minor but noticeable.

He has rotational pivots in his upper biceps and just below he knees, so he can do some tremendous posing. His feet are the "folding" type, which gives him a longer heel that you can angle to help him hold really dynamic poses.

If I can figure out some image hosting, I will try to contribute more to this thread.

I took off the lightbar to see how difficult it would be to swap a Movie Barricade light bar, and it would just require the dremelling of two small holes to support Barricade's screw mounts. Prowl's mounting holes would not get in the way if one were to try to do this mod.

[BustaJesse]

I think I am going to get the Henkei version dependent on how it looks. It just seems like it is missing something.

[tamo536]

I think I am going to get the Henkei version dependent on how it looks. It just seems like it is missing something.

a simple sticker upgrade would do wonders

[guarddog8471]

I hope you don't go crazy doing that, before finding out which repaints we're going to be getting. Afterall, they intentionally designed these toys with repaints in mind, so We know they'll be repainting these at LEAST once.


I agree RL. I think we'll definately get a Bluestreak out of this one, but just in case, I am going to pick up three or four for repaints of my own. Same with Sunstreaker.

[TENIME_art]

I hope you don't go crazy doing that, before finding out which repaints we're going to be getting. Afterall, they intentionally designed these toys with repaints in mind, so We know they'll be repainting these at LEAST once.

*ahem*

http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k48/tenimeart/Artwork/Zade-001.jpg

:wink:

:D

It's close enough to a 350Z for my tastes. I might change the look of the head, though, simply based on what will fit...

[artiepants]

I think I 'll wait to see henkei pictures before I pick up the domestic version of this guy. Seems like he could use some more paint. Otherwise he looks pretty awesome.

yeah, that's what i'm kinda feeling too, hopefully we'll get good photos for comparing before release.

not sure what you could really add to Sunstreaker besides a smaller Autobrand with the white, but Prowl's looking a tad plain.

[GreenScream]

Prowl is awesome. But I'm waiting for the Henkei version. This one looks a little too plain and dull. You know what he needs....

CHROME.

[REDLINE]

*ahem*

http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k48/tenimeart/Artwork/Zade-001.jpg

:wink:

:D

It's close enough to a 350Z for my tastes. I might change the look of the head, though, simply based on what will fit...

niiiice :)

[Chainclaw]

I like Prowl's form, but he's just a little hmm... plain. I'll probably paint the alloys, and maybe add a dash of colour to the robot mode.

[TENIME_art]

niiiice :)

Thanks. :D

That's just a digibash, as I'd have to do a reshell, and I don't think I'm quite there yet (not to mention how impossible it is to find Meister or Mirage).

But as soon as I saw Prowl's alt mode, I knew I was at least making a Classics version of Zade!!

:thumb

[mx-01 archon]

As per my earlier Tankor review: "As those of you following the news might know, retailer Ages Three and Up just recently got their shipment of Universe wave 1 in, giving those of us in the Vancouver, Canada area and frequenters of their online store access to these much anticipated figures months before their estimated ship date, and at normal Canadian retail prices ($14.99 apiece) as opposed to the hefty eBay markups."

Before I get into the meat and potatoes of this review, I'd like to preface it with:

*MAJOR WARNING*

A few other people have noted this already, but it really needs saying again: the clear painted plastic parts are really sticky. I actually thought I'd avoided the problem as had been reported to me, as initially the paint seemed normal to the touch. However, through further handling, the clear panels began to start feeling really tacky and gross. Perhaps the paint reacted to the oils on my fingers, or something. I dunno. I seem to recall there being a bonding problem with white paints in general, this might be it. To solve the problem, I quickly brushed a coat of Gunge Sangyo brand "Flat Clear" paint over all the problem areas, which seemed to fix it, although I wish I'd caught the problem before, as some of the areas look a little smudgy. I might have to buy another Prowl, as it's bugging the perfectionist in me. Hopefully, this problem will be fixed later down the line. Or perhaps the paint will set up better by the actual release date. I don't know. But if you're buying one of these early figures, be warned. Get a can of paint sealer, or clear paint, and go crazy on all those clear panels before you handle the figure too much.

That out of the way, let's get onto business:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v113/zero_chance/Universe%20Classics/Prowl01.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v113/zero_chance/Universe%20Classics/Prowl02.jpg

Prowl returns to his '84 roots with this new release. His car mode appears largely based on the Nissan 350Z sports car (the vehicular form the character takes in the IDW comics), the modern successor to his old Fairlady Z chassis. Of course, it's not an exact reproduction, to avoid licensing fees and whatnot. The most notable difference is the dramatic front intake in the middle of the hood. The shape of the rear bumper and taillights are also quite different, and the distinctive angular headlights of the 350Z are slightly modified into an angular "L" shape. His paint deco is modeled after his original's, which in turn is based on that of Japanese police cars, with a black bottom half, white top half, and the distinctive black "peak" above the front bumper. The markings on his doors read "Highway Patrol" above, and "Police" in larger writing below. An orangey-red Autobot sigil adorns his hood, behind the intake scoop. On his roof is a translucent red "V" shaped light bar, with two small silver triangles painted on top. The wheels hubs are unpainted black. The front windshield and side windows are molded in a foggy, smoky grey translucent plastic, an interesting compromise between the "clear windows" and "painted windows" camp. They are indeed translucent, but they're fogged heavily enough to hide the robot kibble that lays inside. The rear windshield is a painted dark grey/bronze colour. Interestingly enough, after becoming commonplace for so long on car Transformers (even Animated Bumblebee has them), he has no side mirrors.

Transformation from vehicle to robot mode is quite the engineering feet. Toss what you know about G1 Prowl aside, as despite the end result looking so similar, the "A to B" is markedly different, and quite the involving process. It almost feels like an Alternators transformation, with all the parts origami, just (mercifully) without the requirement of massaging panels into place. First, remove the gun from the undercarriage of the car (between the robot arms). Now, grab the front fenders, and unpeg them from the front bumper. Take hold of the doors, and pull the forward, and then out. The whole side panel of the should now be floating away from the car. Rotate this whole assembly so that it's vertical, and sticking out perpendicular to the car itself. Hinge the front fenders behind the doors, and then rotate the assembly down so that it looks like the car's doors are open. There's a tab at the front edge of the door that you can tuck into the crook of the hinge piece, essentially locking the balljoint so that the doors (now the familiar "wings" of the robot mode) don't flop all over the place. Now it's hard to explain this step, but it's easy to do with toy in hand: pull the robot forearms out from behind the pelvis piece. Now, taking a hold of the front wheels, pull them out on their short swing-arms, essentially extending the front wheelbase. Hinge the wheels up, and then swing the arms down, so now the wheels point back against the doors, and position the arms. Flip up the rear bumper, and then rotate the rear half of the vehicle around, to form the robot legs. Flatten the feet out from underneath the rear windshield, and rotate out the heel. *EASILY MISSED, UNDOCUMENTED TRANSFORMATION STEP* Pull down on the feet, extending them down a bit. Pull back on the roof to separate it, and the windshield glass, from the hood. Swing the hood down, which will cause a panel on the hood to flip out, and the robot head to poke out. Finish pulling the head out, and lower it into place on top of the hood (interestingly enough, the instructions show the head as being backwards, and you having to twist it around. While this allows the mechanism to pop the head out all the way automatically, the head doesn't fit quite right in vehicle mode like this, so the hood panel doesn't close all the way). At this point, you can swing the missile launchers under the roof up over the shoulders, or leave them where they are. Either way, close the roof up over the robot's back to complete the transformation. Unfold the gun and place it in either hand.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v113/zero_chance/Universe%20Classics/Prowl03.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v113/zero_chance/Universe%20Classics/Prowl04.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v113/zero_chance/Universe%20Classics/Prowl05.jpg

In robot mode, Prowl really is a modern update of his '84 self. Door wings, horizontal hood chest, wheels on backs of shoulders, head fins, shoulder-mounted rocket launchers, they're all there. The key differences are in the legs, where the robot feet are no longer the rear bumper of the car. However, the key part of the rear windshield glass becoming the shins is still there. And he simply looks stunning in this form. Just like the classic character, only with better proportions and articulation. Lots of articulation. Swivel neck, swivel waist, universal shoulders, bicep swivel, 100 degree hinge elbow, wrist swivel, balljoint hips, double-jointed knees (essentially, as a result of the transformation joint beneath his true knee), swivel below knee, heel hinge (transformation joint, but allows repositioning of heel for better stability), and ankle joints that allow for forward/back and side-to-side motion. In addition, transformation joints in his shoulders allow for some extra expressive poses, as they allow him to shrug, as well as curl his shoulders forward (second 'bot mode picture). Nothing really new is added to his deco in this mode, except for his light-piped grey-blue eyes, which work reasonably well. Notably absent are the blue police shields from his shoulders (and doors), which would have been a nice touch to break up all the white, but he still manages to look pretty good. Much better in hand than in photos, where the detail gets hidden due to the white. I love the fact that they managed to give him his shoulder-mounted launchers without them being clip-on accessories. I love them even more for the fact that they can be stowed away in robot mode. Unfortunately, I find him somewhat difficult to pose in robot mode. Even with the flip-out heels, his feet are relatively small, and he's quite back-heavy, what with the door wings. It takes a bit more effort than it should to find stable poses, but he looks awesome when you can find one.

Really, a great figure. The engineering here is really something else. It's amazing how many joints they've got crammed into this thing. If it weren't for that damned paint problem. Hopefully, it's a problem that will be solved sooner than later. Quite easily fixable, though, but we shouldn't have to.

Minor note: the figure in my pictures isn't indicative of an off-the-shelf sample. I've painted the wheel hubs, light bar, tailpipes, and shoulder missiles silver, as well as repainted (poorly. I'm going to have to go over that again, or do a better job with a replacement figure) the rear windshield glass with gunmetal (I felt it was a better match to the smoky plastic, plus there's a tiny corner of the side windows that winds up a part of the legs that's unpainted).

[Powersa]

Great review. I really like this Prowl and look forward to the release, although I think it would look better if it came with clear windows. Also nice paint job you did.

[Optimus Sledge]

Despite my love for the twins, this is the one I'm really excited about. It's just so... Prowl. And I'm looking forward to the Bluestreak repaint as well. Shame about the paint, but I'll just have to get some sort of sealant. And some silver paint for the gun.

[REDLINE]

Great review. I really like this Prowl and look forward to the release, although I think it would look better if it came with clear windows. Also nice paint job you did.

transparent, yet tinted windows (as they are on this figure) is much better than fully transparent because all you'd see would be all the robot parts filling the cab. this way they're still transparent, yet the car looks much better.

[Jedah]

Great review indeed and some great pics. Man these classics are really tempting me back into collecting again, just wish had the money for it :cry

[artiepants]

Holy heck is he spectacular ~ i can't believe no one has taken any impressive Robot mode pictures (that i've seen) before you. those poses really do shoe him off ~ you can see they've taken what was learned from Alternators, Classics and the movie figures and really put it to good use. Love that you can leave the Missile Launchers stashed away (in the classic comics Prowl was usually depicted without them). be a nice way to differentiate him and Bluestreak.

nice to see we're FINALLY back to RID level articulation.

[Banshee]

Just bought Prowl at Wal Mart... He's awesome in car mode, simply classic. Bot mode is okay, the roof panel on his back in kinda loose, and i find the head sticks out very oddly from the hood.

Also, I have the same white paint problems, which is a major bummer, since I can't pose it without making small smudges. I really need to get some clear coating on it ASAP. Also, some chrome wouldn'T hurt for the gun, missiles, exhaust, etc :D.

[DoubleClouder]

I wonder if the Henkei version is going to chrome the missile launchers

[BuildKing]

Hi again!
Le's go first with a short photoshoot, I will make my comments right after:

http://i242.photobucket.com/albums/ff58/rodimus_album/Prowl001.jpg

http://i242.photobucket.com/albums/ff58/rodimus_album/Prowl002.jpg

http://i242.photobucket.com/albums/ff58/rodimus_album/Prowl003.jpg

http://i242.photobucket.com/albums/ff58/rodimus_album/Prowl005.jpg

http://i242.photobucket.com/albums/ff58/rodimus_album/Prowl010.jpg

http://i242.photobucket.com/albums/ff58/rodimus_album/Prowl008.jpg

http://i242.photobucket.com/albums/ff58/rodimus_album/Prowl007-1.jpg

[BuildKing]

Ok, here we go for the feedback!:popcorn

In one word: impressive.

Car Mode: just fine, but not overwhelming. Sure everyone will recognize here our beloved Patrol Car from G1(with a modern, updated twist) but somehow it's a little bland. More paint apps and "decals" would have help. It's well done but surely not the most overwhelming Deluxe size class I've seen.

The paint, in paticular, could be very blotchy from one Prowl to another: so keep a sharp eye when choosing one at the store. Also, the plastic used for the windows is somehow "blurry" a bit wich takes away a quality vibe from taht vehicle.

Transformation: that's where Prowl shines(with its robot mode also).
Obviously, some Alternators technoloy is involved here but with a simplier scheme. However the legs and arms transformations will remind everyone some of the Alternators like Silverstreak in particular. The head interacts in automorphing features with the torso, very nice! And to my surprise, the twin shoulder blaters are not add-ons: they're very well concealed within the robot body(on its back) and they could be deployed in the transformation process. So cool.

Robot mode: great, just great! Prowl has a lot of articulation points(head, waist, wrists, knees, shoulders, elbows, and so on); he has piping light blue eyes; his gun can fold down and can be stored underneath the car. In his general allure, Prowl has very Alternator-esque look. Wich is not bad for 10$ toy.

Prowl is a very nice addition to the Universe/Classics line despite its little (very little) drawbacks. He has a challenging yet fun transformation for a Deluxe and the robot mode is pure killer. Highly recommended.

Thanks for reading!

[SPLIT LIP]

This is my thing with the fig...

He's got good poseability.

I like that he's basically his G1 version with articulation and better porportioned. Something other Classics figs don't do.

A proper rifle that is also unfoldy like the Alternator guns were.

But then...

He looks so bland with all the white.

His head looks weird sitting so high.

Transformation doesn't look like any fun at all.

I don't like the police car mode.

I really don't like the shoulder missiles/whatev.

[brr-icy]

g1 prowl was my first tf, so i had to get this guy, i really like the transformation, paint on the launchers would've been nice, but all in all. i'm impressed

[Shin Densetsu]

While this toy has a great mold marred by lack of paint, I will pick this up, but I admit I do not like the character at all. That guy is the Cyclops of the autobots(referring to the Xmen leader). Mainly buying him for the sake that its a great figure and I am a fan of the IDW verse, where he is an important part of the cast.

[Sso02V]

I don't think I've seen 2 Prowls painted the same. Look at the pictures here (http://www.allspark.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=47371).

[REDLINE]

there was a Prowl feedback thread just 3 down from the very top.

[mx-01 archon]

Transformation doesn't look like any fun at all.

Which is where you'd be wrong. It's like an Alternators transformation, without the pain of lining up a bajillion hollow panels. It's surprisingly complex, yet intuitive and smooth.

[Draven]

Got mine yesterday. The roof joint on mine is fairly loose, but you can hold it in place using the door panels. As for posability:
http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b296/emperorpete/Toys/Transformers/Classics2-0/BotModePosed2.jpg
Incredibly good.
He's an amazing figure, and definitely prowl; there's no mistaking that head and face.
I honestly can't recommend him highly enough.

[SPLIT LIP]

Which is where you'd be wrong. It's like an Alternators transformation, without the pain of lining up a bajillion hollow panels. It's surprisingly complex, yet intuitive and smooth.I meant how it all becomes a robot. The back halves of the car are the legs, the roof is the back, the front of the car is the chest. It's been done before and I don't like the look. But hey, at least they tried to make it more interesting with the car front fenders on the back wings. (which doesn't really strike me as asthetically pleasing)

I may skip him before I get him. All depends how Animated comes out. If I have the extra money to blow, I'll get him because I am in need of more police car TFs. Still, the paint issue is a big one.

[REDLINE]

but it wouldn't have looked like prowl at all if they hadn't kept those visual cues.

[eyeballkid]

I'm so ready to buy this, although I am also eagerly awaiting some better photos of Ironhide. Shouldn't we be seeing some stuff soon? Or do we have to wait for comicon?

[SPLIT LIP]

but it wouldn't have looked like prowl at all if they hadn't kept those visual cues.I know, hence why I don't like Prowl.

[artiepants]

do you like transformers? Cuz to me Car doors/hood chest/car boots is like, the iconic image of transformers. (with the seeker silhouette a close second)

[SPLIT LIP]

do you like transformers?Gee, I don't know, what do you think? :rolleyes: (not to be rude, but what kind of question is that?)

Cuz to me Car doors/hood chest/car boots is like, the iconic image of transformers. (with the seeker silhouette a close second)To you, maybe. But Transformers is more than just one maybe two designs of robots to me. I just think maybe they could've done someone else for a change. (like some Heademaster updates, or a new Springer that's no a repaint of a two-mode TF. But no, lets redo Prowl again. Can't it be someone else from G1 Season three who's not Hot Rod, Arcee or Blurr?)

[chuckcjc]

But no, lets redo Prowl again. Can't it be someone else from G1 Season three who's not Hot Rod, Arcee or Blurr?)

Yeah because there are a ton of G1 accurate Prowls running around... :lolol

G1 Prowl figures in the last 25 years... Original, Actionmasters, Binaltech, WST, and Classics 2.0. Not too many, really.

All other Prowls are just Prowl by name.

[Optimus Sledge]

Prowl was an obvious choice, simply because there's at least two easy repaints out of him, and maybe even a retool into Jazz. And he's not made of suck and lose like Arcee or Blurr.

[SPLIT LIP]

Yeah because there are a ton of G1 accurate Prowls running around... :lolol

G1 Prowl figures in the last 25 years... Original, Actionmasters, Binaltech, WST, and Classics 2.0. Not too many, really.

All other Prowls are just Prowl by name.But we have loads of the classic... sorry, "iconic" hood on chest design. Cyb Downshift, Crosswise, Alt Smokescreen, Alt Jazz, Alt Shockwave, you get my point...

How many updates does Springer have? Two. Pitiful. Besides, we need a triple-changing Springer.

*Wants Springer update*

Hell, I would've been happier if they did Jazz instead. Jazz I like, so I could get past any design cliche's.

My problem isn't so much with this being Prowl, so much as Hasbro always updating and naming the same guys. Optimus and Megatron I can understand, but there's so many other guys they could've done, why Prowl? Maybe I'm looking to far into the short-term. Hopefully Hasbro will continue classics and Animated so that we can get some more updates of other guys.

Prowl was an obvious choice, simply because there's at least two easy repaints out of him, and maybe even a retool into Jazz. And he's not made of suck and lose like Arcee or Blurr.Finally, someone who agrees that Arcee and Blurr suck.

[onesock]

How many updates does Springer have? Two. Pitiful. Besides, we need a triple-changing Springer.

*Wants Springer update*
But see, this isn't about what SPLIT LIP wants, it's what would be more appealing to the kids. A Nissan 350Z colored like a police car? Kids eat it up. I've shown my nephew Prowl and Sunstreaker, and he freaks out because they're tuner/exotic cars that are on the SPEED channel. Springer's getting a repaint, and we should be grateful that he's even getting that.

Hell, I would've been happier if they did Jazz instead. Jazz I like, so I could get past any design cliche's.
BotCon Jazz is perfect with a little modding, or none at all, if you don't mind the door placement.

[SPLIT LIP]

But see, this isn't about what SPLIT LIP wants, it's what would be more appealing to the kids. A Nissan 350Z colored like a police car? Kids eat it up. I've shown my nephew Prowl and Sunstreaker, and he freaks out because they're tuner/exotic cars that are on the SPEED channel. Springer's getting a repaint, and we should be grateful that he's even getting that.Still, can't SPLIT LIP at least lament what he want's? And who says Springer can't be a cool exotic car like that? (okay, physics but I still want a Springer update. Some people want Fortress Maximus and Dinobots reissues. I can dream, can't I?)


BotCon Jazz is perfect with a little modding, or none at all, if you don't mind the door placement.Still, would be nice to have a Classics Jazz that's meant to be Jazz, but I guess Aniamted Jazz is pretty Jazzy as it gets. Besides the odds of me getting a BotCon figure ever are... well, I'm more likely to become CEO of Hasbro myself before that ever happens.


I won't get Prowl, but I may be getting Silverstreak because it's another case of "liked his charcter so much, I can overlook any design chiches". But not before I can get Sideswipe.

[Abrogate]

Still, would be nice to have a Classics Jazz that's meant to be Jazz,

And THAT is why we've got a Classics Prowl here that looks like a G1 Prowl. Because regardless of whether or not you personally like the character or design, he is one of the 1984 Ensemble Cast and (most) people who bought Classics 1.0 would like to have him for posterity, if nothing else. Yes, it would be nice to have a Classics Jazz and Springer as well, but you have to know that even if they didnt make this Prowl, the chances of them making a Springer "instead" would be pretty low.

[SPLIT LIP]

And THAT is why we've got a Classics Prowl here that looks like a G1 Prowl. Because regardless of whether or not you personally like the character or design, he is one of the 1984 Ensemble Cast and (most) people who bought Classics 1.0 would like to have him for posterity, if nothing else. Yes, it would be nice to have a Classics Jazz and Springer as well, but you have to know that even if they didnt make this Prowl, the chances of them making a Springer "instead" would be pretty low.I guess you're right, but that doesn't mean I can't still hope.

Maybe they'll put Springer in Animated as a counterpart to Blitzwing or something.


But while we're in the Prowl thread, there's been something niggleing me for a while now, what's with the missiles? Some times I see them painted, others they aren't.

[Banshee]

But while we're in the Prowl thread, there's been something niggleing me for a while now, what's with the missiles? Some times I see them painted, others they aren't.

They're unpainted. The pics with silver missiles were a custom. A nice one too, makes me wanna buy some paint :p

[Abrogate]

I guess you're right, but that doesn't mean I can't still hope.

Springer is a favorite Autobot of mine as well, but frankly I dont need a triple-changer version of him to be satisfied. The way I see it, we've went so friggin long without a new, articulate Springer, that I'm willing to take what I can get (as long as it looks good) just to have the character represented. Besides, if he was a triple-changer, he might have some of the articulation problems that Astrotrain and Octane seem to have, which Evac doesn't. If we can get a kickass Onslaught that doesnt combine, then I can accept a nice Springer that doesnt triplechange.

[Optimus Sledge]

I'd be surprised if we don't get a Classics Jazz, just not yet. Maybe next year, once Hasbro aren't trying to sell TFA Jazz.

The unpainted missiles don't bother me at all, because I won't be deploying them. Prowl don't have no shoulder launchers.

Edit ~ Oh, and I've never understood the way some people obsess over Arcee (or Blurr to a lesser extent). I don't recall Arcee doing anything interesting ever until her appearence in TFA. Her whole purpose was to be pink and a girl. Why aren't more people pressing for some of the girls from Search For Alpha Trion? They showed more personality in one episode than Arcee did in a season.

[Wazzpinator]

I love this guy. Just got him yesterday. Does everyones have packaging with Sunstreaker on it?

[Locustreign]

I can't wait for mine to arrive from A3U. I am practically orgasmic in anticipation and I think once it arrives there's going to be a big mess.

[Banshee]

I'm sending mine back to Hasbro because of the smudgy paint.. I should receive their empty shipping box soon. Hopefully the replacement they send me will not have the paint issue.

[gonzo23]

awesome! cant wait! I like the fact that they kept prowl a nissan z.

[Depthcharge]

Prowl is a pretty cool figure. I'll probably be in the minority here but he is my least favorite of these 3 and that isn't really saying much as they are all good.

His alt mode is very sharp looking but the mold is a little lacking in detail. I suppose for a realistic looking car there's not a lot of detail to be had but a translucent lightbar would have been nice. Not sure what to say exactly other than that, while nice, it feels like its missing something.

Transformation is moderately complex and fairly unique. Reminds me a bit of movie Barricade at first. My one comment is that once done, nothing really seems to snap into place much so overall Prowl feels a little wobbly. Not sure how the ankles are supposed to stay in place especially since there isn't much clearance room for them. Likewise the shoulders are a bit floppy feeling but on mine at least they do hold their pose well due to friction.

Robot mode looks good though a bit spindly and awkward. He seems very leggy and feels a bit skinny, perhaps because of the way his car front end splits up and the front quarter panels are no longer part of his chest. His neck seems to stick up quite high above his chest and shoulders as well but not bad to the extent of SWTF Darth Vader/TIE Fighter. My last and largest gripe about Prowls robot mode is the lack of painted detail. Here again he looks sharp but you just can't help but feel like something is missing. The shoulder guns especially hurt as they are solid white plastic with no paint apps on them at all. A little more paint would go a long way to making Prowl a much nicer figure so here's hoping for the Henkie version.

All in all, Prowl is still recommended pretty highly as he's a nice figure but sadly he could have been much better with just a little bit more effort by Hasbro.

[mx-01 archon]

Not sure how the ankles are supposed to stay in place especially since there isn't much clearance room for them.

Make sure you pull the feet down. It's a step that's glossed over in the instructions (they show them extended, but they don't tell you to do so). He's got plenty of ankle room.

Once I figured that out after the 3rd or 4th transformation, my opinion of him went up significantly. With the feet compressed, there was something off about his proportions, with his shins being stumpier (they're actually not that short, but they just didn't feel right). Extended, he looks a lot more proportional.

[Ricky_Stream]

so..no one has gripes with his head? I think the "horns" / "wings" are 2 high in his forehead...

Alt. Prowl has the perfect head, they should have just shrunk it :)

Still....can't wait to get mine as i've been wanting a Prowl for the longest time!

[Storm]

I am looking forward to this guy.

Also I hope they bring out a Kup at some point. 1 fig and an influentual character. he needs more.

[Depthcharge]

Make sure you pull the feet down. It's a step that's glossed over in the instructions (they show them extended, but they don't tell you to do so). He's got plenty of ankle room.

Once I figured that out after the 3rd or 4th transformation, my opinion of him went up significantly. With the feet compressed, there was something off about his proportions, with his shins being stumpier (they're actually not that short, but they just didn't feel right). Extended, he looks a lot more proportional.

I didn't even realize that the ankles pulled out in addition to swinging down... that added length actually doesn't make him look any more spindly than before and adds some nice side to side ankle articulation. Thanks for the heads up.

[GladiatorPrime]

Kay....this one, I like! :D

[Ricky_Stream]

just my luck...finally got mine in the mail today and he has 2 right hands!!! talk about being right handed... :(

First it was henkei starscream with 2 left thighs, now it's Prowl and his 2 right hands... Great QC from takara and hasbro!!!

[chuckcjc]

so..no one has gripes with his head? I think the "horns" / "wings" are 2 high in his forehead...

Alt. Prowl has the perfect head, they should have just shrunk it :)

Still....can't wait to get mine as i've been wanting a Prowl for the longest time!

Alt Prowl's head is more like the Comic version. I think the Classics 2.0 version got it just right (TV show, original toy)

[Razerwire]

Picked up all three Classics today and sadly he's at the bottom of the rankings for me. He's still a good figure, don't get me wrong. But there's just something about him that didn't wow me like Octane did. I was really surprised that I like Octane the best out of the three.

But my gripes on Prowl are:

1. Gun won't store well in car mode. Probably an isolated case but the way it's held by friction just doesn't sit well with me. The thing likes to pop off easily.

2. The doors during transformation. The damned things keep popping off. Again, it might just be mine.

3. The feet. I wish there was a little more room for it to move around.

4. The head. It does sit a little too high. But not nearly as bad as I thought it would be.

5. The wheels. I hate that thin sliver of plastic that goes all the way around the middle of the wheel.

[Otispq]

The doors just have to be twisted around oh so perfectly, and then no problems, but that's no fun now is it.

[mx-01 archon]

3. The feet. I wish there was a little more room for it to move around.


Re-iterating: pull his feet down. He's got plenty of ankle room.

As for the gun thing, there's a pretty easy fix if you've got a knife handy.

Normally, the channel that the gun clips into looks like this:

| |
| |

Fold his torso back about 40 degrees more than it should for car mode (there's enough clearance in the hinge, don't worry about breaking anything) so you're not fighting to maneuver around his stomach and pelvis. Take a knife, and carve a sliver of plastic off each side, so the channel looks instead like this:

( )
| |

It's not difficult at all. Essentially, touch the knife to the plastic just a tiny ways into the channel (ie, don't start carving from the mouth), and just sliver off a piece of plastic. Do that once on both sides, and you're done.

[IhsantheCursed]

I can't wait for mine to arrive from A3U. I am practically orgasmic in anticipation and I think once it arrives there's going to be a big mess.

Thats almost sig worthy. Glad to see there exists mor eUBER-geeks like myself. :)

Anyhow Prowl looks great. This is the best were ever gonna get guys.

[karamazov80]

Anyhow Prowl looks great. This is the best were ever gonna get guys.
Apart from the head switch with Binaltech Alert. Add some reprolabels, and you've got just about the most perfect-looking Prowl that you could ask for:

http://www.seibertron.com/transformers/toys/alternators/prowl/781/1/130/

[Powersa]

Great transformation and awesome bot mode for a deluxe. A little more paint on the wheels and missles will make this figure near perfect.

[Razerwire]

Re-iterating: pull his feet down. He's got plenty of ankle room.

As for the gun thing, there's a pretty easy fix if you've got a knife handy.

Normally, the channel that the gun clips into looks like this:

| |
| |

Fold his torso back about 40 degrees more than it should for car mode (there's enough clearance in the hinge, don't worry about breaking anything) so you're not fighting to maneuver around his stomach and pelvis. Take a knife, and carve a sliver of plastic off each side, so the channel looks instead like this:

( )
| |

It's not difficult at all. Essentially, touch the knife to the plastic just a tiny ways into the channel (ie, don't start carving from the mouth), and just sliver off a piece of plastic. Do that once on both sides, and you're done.Yeah, I went back to check the feet after reading this and mine were just extremely tight. Had to loosen the leg panel a teeny bit.

As for the gun storage in car mode, it's mostly the part that holds the front of the gun that's not working on mine. There's a slot in the car where it's supposed to hold onto the other end of the gun that's a little too wide. I had to use some clearn nail polish to offer a little more surface for the friction to hold in place.

[IhsantheCursed]

Have ya'll seen the pics of Silver(Blue)streak yet? I just did, and he is AWESOME looking. His paint job really adds to this mold so much moreso than Prowl.

Sideswipes the same...cept they switched heads appropriately. Cant wait for those guys.

[Trailbreaker77]

Hi again!
Le's go first with a short photoshoot, I will make my comments right after:

http://i242.photobucket.com/albums/ff58/rodimus_album/Prowl007.jpg


I wish Prowl has some more detail to him like the Diamond Bust has.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v483/Trailbreaker77/Transformers/Prowl.jpg
He just looks like he is missing so much to me.

[Optimus Sledge]

Reprolabels apparently agree. (http://www.reprolabels.com/Classics/prowl.asp)

[IhsantheCursed]

Reprolabels apparently agree. (http://www.reprolabels.com/Classics/prowl.asp)

Right on. Does kinda suck though you have to spend $7 extra bucks (with shipping) just to make your Prowl look better , when Hasbro coulda done the same. Overall, however, Im very pleased with the way he looks.

[Trailbreaker77]

Right on. Does kinda suck though you have to spend $7 extra bucks (with shipping) just to make your Prowl look better , when Hasbro coulda done the same. Overall, however, Im very pleased with the way he looks.

Yes it's not that $7 extra bucks will break me, but Hasbro should have added this from the factory. I would be willing to pay 12.99 for this if hasbro would have taken this extra step.

[IhsantheCursed]

Yes it's not that $7 extra bucks will break me, but Hasbro should have added this from the factory. I would be willing to pay 12.99 for this if hasbro would have taken this extra step.

Totally agreed. Hell Id probly pay $13 if they coulda done it. But as I said, I think we got it pretty good as is. Prowl is an awesome toy...or so Ive seen/heard. My preorders from HTS havent shipped yet so I wouldnt know...

[Optimus Sledge]

I dunno. I'm not sure the Reprolabels make it look any better. But then, I've always preferred a "clean" look to something too busy.

[chuckcjc]

I'm sending mine back to Hasbro because of the smudgy paint.. I should receive their empty shipping box soon. Hopefully the replacement they send me will not have the paint issue.


I just found this guy at Retail. The packaging sample I bought on Ebay a few months back had really smudgy paint. I was worried that the mass release would be similar.

In the store, comparing different samples of Prowl, I could see some examples of the "thinner" paint applications that would possibly be sticky. The one that I bought had nice glossy white paint on both side panels, and has no issues. So maybe this issue was ironed out as the line continued in production. Or perhaps, there is just some variation in the paint quality and curing. Go with the thicker deep glossy white if you can find it.

[Bumblebee78]

The store where I bought mine had 3 and I was able to pick one with clean paint application. That said, I like the toy. It is not great but neat (I think I was expecting a little too much).

[shockwave2005]

Well, now that I have him in hand, I'm pretty pleased with him. I like the sparse deco and the transformation is an interesting take on the original G1 Prowl transform (in that it's not a direct rip of the original transform, but achieves pretty much the same look of the G1 design). Also, I like the sparse deco. The only two things that I wish had been done differently are:

The shoulder launchers - I wish they had been either molded in gray plastic or painted. Not a big deal though, as I fold them down for the G1 toon look.

The feet - I wish the flip-out heels were a bit longer. As they are right now, it's hard to keep him properly balanced. Unless he's posed juuuuuust right, he tends to fall over.

And also, his head does sit up a bit. Kinda funny looking, but nothing horrible. I find that if you push the car roof up a little bit it offsets it.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v471/shockwave2005/TFClassicsProwl.jpg

[Grimlock_13]

I totally biased since Prowl was my first Transformer ever and has been my fav Autobot car ever since, but I think Classicverse Prowl is awesome.

The Nissan car mode being a descendant of the Datsun is a totally nice touch :)

The robot mode does have some issues, the neck area is way too high (must have gotten Octane's missing neck;)) and the main body seems really empty (which is my issue with the Alternators as well). I still totally love it though! The flip out shoulder rocket launchers are awesome, I just wish they were gray. It would have broken up all the white and complimented the black bits nicely IMO.

I don't have many issues with balance, I just position the knees so they're 'locked' (if you use real people terminology) and it helps the toy's center of balance a lot. Some people might have an issue with that look, but I don't mind since I do the same thing with my Classics Megatron to improve balance.

Great update to the original. Bring on Silverstreak, and hopefully eventually Smokescreen!

Another solid A for Classicverse from me.

[ShadowStitch]

Jeezus... I don't know if it's a continuing downward trend for Hastak's Quality Control, or just my rotten luck, but my Sunstreaker was pretty crappy, and Prowl... Oh Prowl. Where did they go so wrong?

My Classics/Universe Prowl looks like crap RIGHT out of the package. It's EMBARRASSING that they'd try to pass this off as a 10$ figure, when at first glance it's more like a 5$ Knockoff. I literally own bootlegged toys that are better quality than this.

In Car mode, The paint apps are sloppy and soft-edged from poor spray applications, and the color matching is grossly off. The White+Black paint on the transparent plastic parts doesn't even come close to matching the parts molded in White plastic, the pieces molded in Black plastic, or the White plastic pieces with Black paint apps. The result is that he LOOKS like he's made of four different plastics, and that's not right at all; especially when the figure should at least pretend to look seamless. Some of the white plastic is actually molded in a dull grey, and for crying out loud, some of it is glossy and some of it is matte!

http://www.shadowstitch.com/images/u_prowl3.jpg
The front fenders appear to have a "5 'o clock shadow", from application of not-quite-opaque-enough white paint on a transparent part.

The rear window, hastily painted brown, with paint drips all over the edges (a problem I also saw on my Sunstreaker) was obviously scratched while the paint was still wet. And every edge of where a white-painted-black part meets another is a tell-tale line of scratchy, unpainted white, totally ruining even the illusion that the black area is contiguous. Believe it or not, my cruddy camera makes it look better than it really is.

http://www.shadowstitch.com/images/u_prowl2.jpg
Overspray and soft lines, where there's any paint at all. And white Tampos on Black paint doesn't look too hot.

And where the paint apps aren't crap, they're missing entirely. The Prowl on the back of the packaging clearly shows tampos and quality entirely unlike what is presented in the real figure -- I feel like Michael Douglas in the Burger Restaurant scene in "Falling Down," when comparing the two.

http://www.shadowstitch.com/images/u_prowl4.jpg
Hmm...notice anything missing, BESIDES some decent quality? How about that freaky-ass lightbar?

The plastic parts are, much like on Sunstreaker, nicked and covered in sprue thorns from being haphazardly pulled from the mold sprues -- some to the point where, like on his legs, the car mode won't even stay together from the gaps they cause. It's not a terribly big deal to remedy that with an X-acto knife, or to sit down and spend an afternoon repainting the figure entirely for that matter...but I shouldn't HAVE to.

http://www.shadowstitch.com/images/u_prowl5.jpg
Sprue thorns poking off the spoiler not so terribly visible. Giant effing gap and crappy brown paint? Pretty visible.

The Bot mode isn't much better. The Articulation is great in theory, but the various joints are either too tight or too loose, resulting in some pivots and swivels that won't move without popping off a ball joint. For a figure with a transformation this ambitious, the quality control is too poor. And it's a shame too, because it's a pretty nice mold except for the head.

I'm sure I echo the sentiments of others here that his neck suffers due to the retarded automorph. Let's be honest -- the stupid gimmicks like automorphing rarely add anything to the figures. To the contrary, they usually cause either a loss of articulation or a design flaw that could have been avoided altogether. In this case, Prowl's noggin is mounted on a spring loaded platform, which makes him look like he's wearing a turtleneck, or perhaps he's decided to join one of those "Giraffe tribes" from Burma. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Padaung) It's a silly and pointless feature, and it hurts the aesthetics of the figure.

Of course, it doesn't help any that due to the shoddy paint apps and molding on my Prowl's head, he looks like he just came off a three-day bender in which he decided it would be a good idea to tie-dye his horns. The paint doesn't cover his whole crest, and in fact, makes up for the deficit by having dripped down the sides of his forehead.

http://www.shadowstitch.com/images/u_prowl1.jpg
Ah do declare -- I barely had time to put on my face, much less finish coloring my horns or paint my missiles.

All in all, he's a decent figure concept that fails on multiple levels thanks partly to some silly design ideas like the useless automorph, and partly due to Hastak's half-assed lax production scruples. I honestly wish I hadn't bought him OR Sunstreaker at USA retail, and these purchases have made me re-evaluate whether I even want to keep buying these mass-market transformers...or at least the American market ones, which have been near-bootleg quality since halfway through the Movie line and continue to plague us past Animated all the way into Classics 2.

Seriously: Compare any of your movie or animated figures, quality and paint-wise, to any of the figures from RID, Armada, Energon, Classics, or Cybertron. Hell, you could even compare the originals of Cybertron molds repainted and passed off as Movie Exclusives, and you'll see a definite noticeable drop in quality.

I WANT to like this figure, I'm just not willing to spend hours repainting him to get him to the point where I'm not ashamed to admit I bought him. I'll wait for the Henkei release and pray that version is at least adequate, since this one I have now is pretty much garbage.

[REDLINE]

you can never compare pics on the box to the fig to look for a paint error. those are never the exact same, just FYI.

[SPLIT LIP]

Man, I feel fortunate about my Sunstreaker. I don't think I'm ever getting Prowl after that horror story. (unless I can find a really good looking one or one on sale)

[karamazov80]

Man, I feel fortunate about my Sunstreaker. I don't think I'm ever getting Prowl after that horror story. (unless I can find a really good looking one or one on sale)
In my case, I think that Sunstreaker is just a superior toy in every way (quality and design-wise).

[Astrotrain52]

Prowl is a nice deluxe, worth the $10.99 I shelled out for him. If his neck wasn't that high and his doors didn't pop off during transformation, he'd be awesome. A few extra paint apps wouldn't hurt either. I give Prowl a 8.5 out of ten. If the neck wasn't that high, 9.5/10. I know there's a way to fix it, but I don't feel like destroying it.

[DVD]

Found Prowl(along with Tankor and Sunstreaker) last night. Prowl's pretty cool, esp. for $10. He's no Animated Deluxe Prime, but he's a super upgrade of his G1 self. The doors popping off are really annoying, but it's not a deal breaker. I'm glad someone mentioned his feet coming down further, because I would have never guessed that. Additional paint apps would have been nice as well, but I'm still so amazed that we actually got this figure, that I really can't complain.

[videriant]

The chest size bothere me at first since I've gotten used to uber-chest transformers but it's really growing on me now. Still not as hot as sunstreaker though!!!

I do have some paint issues mainly on the transparent part but not as bad as the horror story and I didn't get to pick and choose since he was the only one available. If I extend his feet all the way it is too far forward and he can't stand right. I find that extending it halfway gives him a decent feet look but with more stability.

[ShadowStitch]

Man, I feel fortunate about my Sunstreaker. I don't think I'm ever getting Prowl after that horror story. (unless I can find a really good looking one or one on sale)

Yeah -- I would STRONGLY advise waiting until you can find a few of them and pick the one with the best apps. In my case, I only saw one of each and immediately snapped them up without looking, so I didn't have the luxury of being discerning.

In my case, I think that Sunstreaker is just a superior toy in every way (quality and design-wise).

I agree about Sunstreaker -- I really liked him, or I really wanted to, except that mine (again) looked like a cheaply assembled model kit, thanks to the haphazard paint job, all the nicks and gouges at the sprue points, and the fact that the yellow plastic is so cheap and thin in places that it's translucent. I'm TOTALLY looking forward to the Henkei release with fingers crossed, cause I LOVE the toy...

[Peaugh]

Prowl is not quite as awesome as Sunstreaker, but still a pretty cool figure. I had one tiny paint chip in the fender that I couldn't spot in package because it was under (and likely caused by) one of the twist ties, but it's a minor thing.

Video review is up here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OAwOlUTCevw

[Poho]

not a bad figure, looks good in bot and car mode, although the car mode doesn't seem to quite fit together. and does anyone else have the issue with the front side panels that fold behind the doors? the paint seems almost sticky, and retains fingerprints and dirt whenever i touch it.

[tamo536]

not a bad figure, looks good in bot and car mode, although the car mode doesn't seem to quite fit together. and does anyone else have the issue with the front side panels that fold behind the doors? the paint seems almost sticky, and retains fingerprints and dirt whenever i touch it.

the paint issue is hit and miss.I have had 4(one prerelease 2 months ago)3 official and none had sticky or bad paint apps

[neospark1]

Jeezus... I don't know if it's a continuing downward trend for Hastak's Quality Control, or just my rotten luck, but my Sunstreaker was pretty crappy, and Prowl... Oh Prowl. Where did they go so wrong?

My Classics/Universe Prowl looks like crap RIGHT out of the package. It's EMBARRASSING that they'd try to pass this off as a 10$ figure, when at first glance it's more like a 5$ Knockoff. I literally own bootlegged toys that are better quality than this.

In Car mode, The paint apps are sloppy and soft-edged from poor spray applications, and the color matching is grossly off. The White+Black paint on the transparent plastic parts doesn't even come close to matching the parts molded in White plastic, the pieces molded in Black plastic, or the White plastic pieces with Black paint apps. The result is that he LOOKS like he's made of four different plastics, and that's not right at all; especially when the figure should at least pretend to look seamless. Some of the white plastic is actually molded in a dull grey, and for crying out loud, some of it is glossy and some of it is matte!

http://www.shadowstitch.com/images/u_prowl3.jpg
The front fenders appear to have a "5 'o clock shadow", from application of not-quite-opaque-enough white paint on a transparent part.

The rear window, hastily painted brown, with paint drips all over the edges (a problem I also saw on my Sunstreaker) was obviously scratched while the paint was still wet. And every edge of where a white-painted-black part meets another is a tell-tale line of scratchy, unpainted white, totally ruining even the illusion that the black area is contiguous. Believe it or not, my cruddy camera makes it look better than it really is.

http://www.shadowstitch.com/images/u_prowl2.jpg
Overspray and soft lines, where there's any paint at all. And white Tampos on Black paint doesn't look too hot.

And where the paint apps aren't crap, they're missing entirely. The Prowl on the back of the packaging clearly shows tampos and quality entirely unlike what is presented in the real figure -- I feel like Michael Douglas in the Burger Restaurant scene in "Falling Down," when comparing the two.

http://www.shadowstitch.com/images/u_prowl4.jpg
Hmm...notice anything missing, BESIDES some decent quality? How about that freaky-ass lightbar?

The plastic parts are, much like on Sunstreaker, nicked and covered in sprue thorns from being haphazardly pulled from the mold sprues -- some to the point where, like on his legs, the car mode won't even stay together from the gaps they cause. It's not a terribly big deal to remedy that with an X-acto knife, or to sit down and spend an afternoon repainting the figure entirely for that matter...but I shouldn't HAVE to.

http://www.shadowstitch.com/images/u_prowl5.jpg
Sprue thorns poking off the spoiler not so terribly visible. Giant effing gap and crappy brown paint? Pretty visible.

The Bot mode isn't much better. The Articulation is great in theory, but the various joints are either too tight or too loose, resulting in some pivots and swivels that won't move without popping off a ball joint. For a figure with a transformation this ambitious, the quality control is too poor. And it's a shame too, because it's a pretty nice mold except for the head.

I'm sure I echo the sentiments of others here that his neck suffers due to the retarded automorph. Let's be honest -- the stupid gimmicks like automorphing rarely add anything to the figures. To the contrary, they usually cause either a loss of articulation or a design flaw that could have been avoided altogether. In this case, Prowl's noggin is mounted on a spring loaded platform, which makes him look like he's wearing a turtleneck, or perhaps he's decided to join one of those "Giraffe tribes" from Burma. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Padaung) It's a silly and pointless feature, and it hurts the aesthetics of the figure.

Of course, it doesn't help any that due to the shoddy paint apps and molding on my Prowl's head, he looks like he just came off a three-day bender in which he decided it would be a good idea to tie-dye his horns. The paint doesn't cover his whole crest, and in fact, makes up for the deficit by having dripped down the sides of his forehead.

http://www.shadowstitch.com/images/u_prowl1.jpg
Ah do declare -- I barely had time to put on my face, much less finish coloring my horns or paint my missiles.

All in all, he's a decent figure concept that fails on multiple levels thanks partly to some silly design ideas like the useless automorph, and partly due to Hastak's half-assed lax production scruples. I honestly wish I hadn't bought him OR Sunstreaker at USA retail, and these purchases have made me re-evaluate whether I even want to keep buying these mass-market transformers...or at least the American market ones, which have been near-bootleg quality since halfway through the Movie line and continue to plague us past Animated all the way into Classics 2.

Seriously: Compare any of your movie or animated figures, quality and paint-wise, to any of the figures from RID, Armada, Energon, Classics, or Cybertron. Hell, you could even compare the originals of Cybertron molds repainted and passed off as Movie Exclusives, and you'll see a definite noticeable drop in quality.

I WANT to like this figure, I'm just not willing to spend hours repainting him to get him to the point where I'm not ashamed to admit I bought him. I'll wait for the Henkei release and pray that version is at least adequate, since this one I have now is pretty much garbage.

And ... dear God, my Prowl. I transformed him back into vehicle mode for the first time at work today and discovered my finger SMUDGING THE PAINT JUST BY TOUCHING THE DAMN THING. My fingers were covered in black paint and the toy itself now has blotched fingerprinty black paint stains everywhere.

I am SOOOOO frustrated by first the craptacular quality control and downgrade in plastics for Animated. And now THIS. I am calling Hasbro first thing Monday morning.

I am also going to be calling my Attorney General's office/Consumer Affairs. I'm sure they would be interested in a toy company producing toys whose paint apps come off onto fingers. I wonder if there is some lead in there somewhere?

Shame on Hasbro!!!
:thumbdown

[Valkysas]

I am also going to be calling my Attorney General's office/Consumer Affairs. I'm sure they would be interested in a toy company producing toys whose paint apps come off onto fingers. I wonder if there is some lead in there somewhere?
prepare to be hung up on.

[SPLIT LIP]

TFs don't use lead-based paints, right?

[neospark1]

prepare to be hung up on.

I will never understand people like you. If you have a disagreement in how I want to handle something, then feel free to let me know.

Your statement, however, is not based on fact, and is little more than a thinly disguised attack on how I feel about Hasbro's quality control.

Oh, and it is one thing for a collector to deal with "weeping" paint apps, it's entirely another if you have a young kid who then puts his freshly painted fingers in his mouth, not knowing any better.

[karamazov80]

TFs don't use lead-based paints, right?
I doubt it very seriously. Hasbro wants to brainwash children into buying their toys, only via induction of brain damage as a last possible resort :)

They are mercury based.

[neospark1]

TFs don't use lead-based paints, right?

I do not know. Regardless, it is NOT cool for this to be happening. If a young Transformer fan gets that paint on his fingers and then (for whatever reason) puts his finger(s) in his mouth, what is he putting into his body?

Again, I repeat, Hasbro should be ashamed of themselves for letting this happen.

[Hikuro]

Ya know, you could always make it easier and more realistic on yourself by giving pictures to hasbro or sending the toy back....

And ... dear God, my Prowl. I transformed him back into vehicle mode for the first time at work today and discovered my finger SMUDGING THE PAINT JUST BY TOUCHING THE DAMN THING. My fingers were covered in black paint and the toy itself now has blotched fingerprinty black paint stains everywhere.

I am SOOOOO frustrated by first the craptacular quality control and downgrade in plastics for Animated. And now THIS. I am calling Hasbro first thing Monday morning.

I am also going to be calling my Attorney General's office/Consumer Affairs. I'm sure they would be interested in a toy company producing toys whose paint apps come off onto fingers. I wonder if there is some lead in there somewhere?

Shame on Hasbro!!!
:thumbdown

[Valkysas]

I will never understand people like you. If you have a disagreement in how I want to handle something, then feel free to let me know.

Your statement, however, is not based on fact, and is little more than a thinly disguised attack on how I feel about Hasbro's quality control.

Don't tell me what my statement is. it wasnt an attack.

I'm just saying, you'll get hung up on. because what you're complaining about isnt important. especially since not all prowls have this problem, which means it is something that has already been fixed.

[neospark1]

Ya know, you could always make it easier and more realistic on yourself by giving pictures to hasbro or sending the toy back....

Please do not make assumptions on a situation you know nothing about. I have a postage-paid return label from Hasbro regarding a craptacular number of Animated figures. I will be adding Prowl as a last minute addition.

[neospark1]

Don't tell me what my statement is. it wasnt an attack.

I'm just saying, you'll get hung up on. because what you're complaining about isnt important. especially since not all prowls have this problem, which means it is something that has already been fixed.


How do you know that I will get hung up on? Do you work in the Indiana AG office?

It has been fixed? Have you personally inspected the remaining hundreds or more Prowl's overseas before they are put into packaging?

[Valkysas]

How do you know that I will get hung up on? Do you work in the Indiana AG office?
Yes.

It has been fixed? Have you personally inspected the remaining hundreds or more Prowl's overseas before they are put into packaging?
Yes.

[neospark1]

:lololYes.


Yes.

[ShadowStitch]

:trolls:

If you're gonna complain to hasbro, take plenty of photos, then contact their consumer affairs division and explain what happened, and attach the photos. (http://hasbro.custhelp.com/cgi-bin/hasbro.cfg/php/enduser/ask.php?p_sid=REirn58j&p_sp=cF9zcmNoPSZwX3NvcnRfYnk9JnBfZ3JpZHNvcnQ9JnBfcm93X2NudD02MzUmcF9wcm9kcz0mcF9jYXRzPSZwX3B2PSZwX2N2PSZwX3NlYXJjaF90eXBlPWFuc3dlcnMuc2VhcmNoX25sJnBfcGFnZT0x)

You might also call them. The number is 800-327-8264, and their customer service line accept calls Mon-Thurs 8:30a-4:30p EST and Friday 8:30a-1:00p EST.

As for me, I'm simply going to return my terrible prowl to the store as Defective. If enough people are dissatisfied and send bad figures back, maybe they'll get the hint. Not likely, of course, but I can dream.

[Feralstorm]

OK, Prowl is officially my first Universe/Classics 2 toy.

Overall, I'm pretty pleased with it, though it's far from perfect.

Pros:
* Clever Transformation, which produces a G1-like robot mode while not simply repeating the G1 process.

* good-looking vehicle and robot modes. I can see why some are bothered by the "high neck" and other issues, but they don't seem to bother me, especially if the launchers and/or windshield are up around the head.

* Doesn't look "too white" to me either, certainly not any more than other predominantly white toys anyway.

Cons:
* I'm not a fan of the whole side of the car fold up into the door wing. it's the most annoyingly fiddly and pop-offable part of the transformation, and feels like it shouldn't be necessary.

* Some paint slop on mine, and I would've liked the shoulder launchers better if there was some dark or silver paint on them.

* I'm having the tacky paint problem on the painted clear parts. (nothing rubbing off though, at least not yet) Looks like I'll have to try clear-coating or sealing them somehow to make the toy handleable.

Don't have Tankor or Sunstreaker yet, but if Prowl is considered the bottom end of the wave, it looks like I have a lot to look forward to.

P.S. It was kind of interesting to examine the 'expressionless' package artwork. I didn't realize how much of a movie-based sensibility there is to the art, such as the 'mecha eyeballs' and cybertronian etchings around the face and helmet. Makes it a little more interesting to me.

[Peaugh]

You're heard it by now, I'm getting back to the photo side of reviews, here's Classics Prowl:

http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a355/BenjaminDolle/New%20pictorial%20reviews/DSCF0093.jpg

Prowl is an updated version of his old Police Cruiser self:

http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a355/BenjaminDolle/New%20pictorial%20reviews/DSCF0105.jpg

http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a355/BenjaminDolle/New%20pictorial%20reviews/DSCF0106.jpg

The gun clips underneath the hood:

http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a355/BenjaminDolle/New%20pictorial%20reviews/DSCF0107.jpg


Transformation is fairly complex for a deluxe, not lessened by the fact that being a little careless with cause his front panel/door assemblies to pop off. Other than that though, his robot mode is again a nicely updated version of his G1 self (I painted his shoulder cannons and car mode exhaust pipes):

http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a355/BenjaminDolle/New%20pictorial%20reviews/DSCF0099.jpg

http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a355/BenjaminDolle/New%20pictorial%20reviews/DSCF0096.jpg

http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a355/BenjaminDolle/New%20pictorial%20reviews/DSCF0097.jpg

http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a355/BenjaminDolle/New%20pictorial%20reviews/DSCF0100.jpg

I like positioning the front bumper pieces slightly overlapping the windshild like so:

http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a355/BenjaminDolle/New%20pictorial%20reviews/DSCF0101.jpg

I find it helps hold in windshield up just behind his head for a more G1 look, as well as it lets the bumper pieces hide behind the doors so they aren't visible from the front.


Here he is with some fellow Autobots:

http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a355/BenjaminDolle/New%20pictorial%20reviews/DSCF0095.jpg

http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a355/BenjaminDolle/New%20pictorial%20reviews/DSCF0118.jpg

I know there have been some paint issues with some Prowls, and I'm not sure if mine has it or not. The paint could certainly be applied a little better on mine, but I haven't had any issues of it wearing off like some. Still, worth picking up, especially if you find a later version with better paint.

As always, video review here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OAwOlUTCevw

[Locustreign]

and every time I see one of these reviews I curse that A3U STILL haven't sent mine out despite ordering almost a month ago...

[Peaugh]

and every time I see one of these reviews I curse that A3U STILL haven't sent mine out despite ordering almost a month ago...

Oh, suck. It wasn't my intention to taunt.

[Feralstorm]

If the paint on the clear parts is not getting tacky/sticky with handling, you probably don't have anything to worry about. If it IS, then you might wanna clear-coat them or something like that.

[Locustreign]

Oh, suck. It wasn't my intention to taunt.

I know dude :D not a problem! Just venting a bit :)

[Soundwave3k]

and every time I see one of these reviews I curse that A3U STILL haven't sent mine out despite ordering almost a month ago...

Hence why they lost my business forever. I ordered an MP Megatron from them and got it about 2-3 months after everyone else. Now in that case he had an excuse as he was basically hauling them across the border in his truck to avoid issues with customs grabbing the Megatrons, but I've noticed he's done that with a lot of orders.

Fool me once shame on you...

[Banshee]

Has there been a confirmation that the paint issue has been fixed with newer batches, or is it random? I'm still debating if I should shell out another 15 bucks for Prowl :S

[ckhtiger]

you know, the one thing I haven't seen anyone do yet is take care of the white that shows through in the grill. I took the part that has his head off, ran black sharpie along the white edges, and then did the same on the inside parts of the grille, and it gets rid of the cheap look of the front of the car.

[Ops_was_a_truck]

Man...the more I see of this guy, the cooler I think he is...ME WANT

[Cascadia]

It is a cool little figure....mine could use some touch-up paint. At this point, in terms of finding one with good paint applications, I have heard that it is random and you would have to hunt.

[Feralstorm]

you know, the one thing I haven't seen anyone do yet is take care of the white that shows through in the grill. I took the part that has his head off, ran black sharpie along the white edges, and then did the same on the inside parts of the grille, and it gets rid of the cheap look of the front of the car.

I did the same. It really helps the overall look IMO.

[aksmth]

I really like my Prowl. He's deinately a must buy tory.

[squirrelcar]

I'm loving all the 2.0s, fer sure.

This one's neck drives me crazy, though. I know it's stupid, but it just irritates me.

[Kingplay]

prowl sorta looks feminine to me...

[Darkravager]

I want to like this figure, I really do. However, it just looks ready cheap. Is he really very good?

[Ray Kremer]

Well I guess there's no way to predict the tacky paint problem in the package, but I'm pretty OCD about inspecting the quality of the visible paint apps before buying a TF. I've probably looked through a hundred Animated Prowls and Bumblebees before I bought a Bee, I still don't have a Prowl.

[ckhtiger]

he is, for sure. there's a sweet posed pic in the other prowl thread about 50 posts in that a dynamic pose that made me like a bunch more after I got him. just pose him statically and he's boring looking. the thing about him, which has been said time and again, is that the paint apps are hit-or-miss. you've GOT to buy one in the store so you can check it out beforehand.

[General Tekno]

Yeah - be careful with checking his paint apps.

On mine, he's missing some white paint on the edges of his front sides of the car (the parts above the wheels). Good looking figure though.

Although IMO he's the worst of the 3 deluxes I have so far. And I currently rank him below all the other Universe figures I've handled.

[defstar]

Prowl is like a smaller version of the alternators with a pretty complex transformation (I actually used the instructions on this one)...Once seeing that the cup on the door ball joints was made of "clear" plastic yeah I did use instructions...my experience in the past is that those clear cups are very weak and why Hasbro uses it I do not know...but Prowl is ok...going to add some silver paint on his shoulder missiles so they will stand out a little more...nice toy just a fragile for my taste...

[Veloxiraptor]

I've been careful to avoid touching the painted parts as much as I can, but that's really hard to do when I'm trying to get the damn gun to stay in place in vehicle mode. That stupid groove only holds on to one little corner of the gun, and there's absolutely nothing else to hold it, so it just wobbles from side to side like a loose tooth.

[Veloxiraptor]

EDIT: Double post!

[iheartarcee]

I dont know about prowl... Mine has great paint applications but he looks too cheap for me and his head position is always in the down position like he is looking down, very reminiscent of movie wreckage...

[smkspy]

Highly disappointed in Prowl. Hes just an akward figure...nothing seems to fit right with him.

[artiepants]

i like prowl ok, but the decision to hook the doors and front fenders together like they did really hurts the figure. It makes the transformation far more awkward and fiddley then it needs to be and is hard to find a sweet spot for in Bot mode ~ and i don't really think it improves the look of the chest any by narrowing it down ~ i think a solution more alond the lines of Movie Jazz would have worked better for the chest.

He's fantastically articulated though, and i really like that you can pose him with or without his launchers deployed (which will help distinguish him from Bluestreak)

awesome sculpting on the 'bot mode limbs as well. and the way they did the feet was a clever twist on the original concept. I do find it funny how much better this mold is than Alt Prowl (i love me some Alt/BTs, but the RSX mold was kinda crap ~ Feet like Classics Prowl would have gone a long way to improve it.)

overall i give Prowl a B-, the shoulder/door/fender bit really drops him down a full grade IMO.

[mx-01 archon]

i like prowl ok, but the decision to hook the doors and front fenders together like they did really hurts the figure. It makes the transformation far more awkward and fiddley then it needs to be and is hard to find a sweet spot for in Bot mode


They really don't. Once you understand the TF sequence, then they're only really awkward for one step (slipping them past the wheels, which is still quite doable), and then they're gone.

As for finding that "sweet spot", hook the tabs on the front edge of the door into the "corner" of the hinge part. I might have to take a picture of this at some point, because it's kinda hard to explain. Once you've done that, the doors are locked at a slight upwards tilt, and they only move at the hinge.

[shogun221]

First figure I ever returned due to QC issues. Found a better one to replace it, but even this one has problems...

It's a shame, because behind the terrible paint apps and newspaper-doors, there's a good figure to be found. His bot mode is a terrific update to his G1 self, good poseability....but he comes across as so cheap that it's hard to not feel let-down. Once I finish painting all his unfinished edges, clean up his doors and seal them with dullcoate, I think he'll look great...but why on earth do I need to be doing this to begin with?!

So far a distant third behind Sunstreaker and Octane

[SPLIT LIP]

Well, I got this fig today and I must say it has made my intial feelings on him to stay exactly the same.

QC: Thankfully I have good QC with one little fudge up on the silver waist "light".


As for the figure itself, I'll break it down to the good and bad

Good:

He's a car. Yay!
Articulation is what you would expect. (but is fairly imited due the the kibble sometimes)
Transformation is intricate but not mind-blowingly complex.
For me, it's tolerable, which is good because it better be if I'm getting Bluestreak.

Bad:

High neck. (can be fixed with creative posing thanks to the shoulder joints, but standing like a regular person he looks like he has a neckbrace)
Chest is ugly. I may mod teh ends of the fenders off and attach them here to make it look more solid.
Feet are... where re they? You can't see them and this makes posing crap. I heard there was a trick to them but I haven't found them.
Articulation is limited. Kibble and just the joint design make posing a pain.
Face sculpt. From above he looks like he's buist into tears, but from below he looks like regular, prick-ish Prowl. This is due partly to the mouth which is sculpted with a defined recess. This makes the expression change from angle to angle.

All in all: Is it worth the money? To me, yeah. But barely.

[Veloxiraptor]

Feet are... where re they? You can't see them and this makes posing crap. I heard there was a trick to them but I haven't found them.

The joint for the foot is attached to a little white block, which can actually be pulled down until it clicks. This gives the foot a good bit more clearance for side-to-side motion, though I've got to say that it really doesn't seem to help Prowl's stability issues much at all.

[butz]

I got him a few days ago. Mine didn't have any paint problems (must've got one of the 'fixed' ones) and the high-neck doesn't bug me that much, now that I have him in hand.
However, it is a pain in the ass to get him to stand up! I have the feet pulled out all the way- that's not the problem here. Anyways, that's the one problem I have with him (and not something that can be fixed during the run, like paint apps).

[SPLIT LIP]

I have the feet pulled down all the way, they're just so small. (even with the heels out)

You know, if it weren't for that disk under his head where the pin is, Prowl would be able to look straight forward and not have such a high neck. (it would also sit flush) Maybe originally they had the head sitting flush, but the pin was so small it was unstable and they had to lengthen it and the plastic, creating the higher neck.

[Cataclizm1]

Brilliant toy design. If only some of this design could of been incorporated into Alternators Prowl. just need to hit his missiles with a silver sharpie. Can't wait for Bluestreak.

[iheartarcee]

I think the biggest problem I have with this is I realized this car looks like a 90s toyota celica police car. fail.

[artiepants]

nds of the fenders off and attach them here to make it look more solid.
Feet are... where re they? You can't see them and this makes posing crap. I heard there was a trick to them but I haven't found them.
Articulation is limited. Kibble and just the joint design make posing a pain.


i haven't had a problem at all posing him in tons of super dynamic ways, his feet are small, but they're stable, and aside from his wings interfering with his joints here and there i feel like he's on the high end of the pose-ibility scale...
I think the biggest problem I have with this is I realized this car looks like a 90s toyota celica police car. fail.u,m, no he looks like a Nissan 350 Z. win.

[encline]

350 z yes... paint apps....SUCK!!!! I am repainting him pearl white and black. Or, here is a 350z I painted, I think Prowl would look cool like it.http://img139.imageshack.us/img139/1598/350zcardjs0.jpg

[AndreyOfDoom]

You guys just need to learn how to TF him properly. First you pop and slide forward both door /panels, then you unfold the legs. then you aim the doors toward the sky and fold up the panels. NEVER POPS OFF. this is the order it was meant to be done. I usually finish in 45 seconds and the doors have never popped off ONCE. I have never held one of those pieces unattatched to prowl.

I hated classics 1.0 and was planning to skip this line but MAN. What sold me was how they re-engineered the transformation with those side pannels hiding behind the doors. However, the coolest part was how they incorporated the shoulder cannons into the car mode. I hate extra pieces. Prowl rules. Buy him. Worth the extra dollar from TRU because it comes out at Target in a month. Unless you can wait then that's also fine.

[SPLIT LIP]

If they had given this guy and Alternator-type ball-jointed head, he would've been so much cooler. For one, his head wouldn't sit so high and he'd be able to look up.

I'm going to repaint the headlights so they look more like a 350.

Man, so many missed opportunities with this fig. Elbows are okay, but they could've done double-jointed like Sunstreaker and still have looked as good. And why does he not have swivels above the knee? They did that with like every first Classic fig (Minus Megs and Prime, and Mirage who had no horizontal swivels): putting the swivel below the knee. Sunstreaker has them. At least they gave Prowl waist articulation.

i haven't had a problem at all posing him in tons of super dynamic ways, his feet are small, but they're stable,They're not stable, though, that's the problem. I don't care if the feet are big, fat, skinny, long... as long as they're big enough to keep the fig standing, I'm okay with them. Prowl cannot stand with them. He topples over backwards under the weight of his own kibble.


and aside from his wings interfering with his joints here and there i feel like he's on the high end of the pose-ibility scale...I don't. The wings get in the way of the wheels and visa-versa and as I said, his legs are in need of proper swivels. And head ball joint. If he had those three things, I'd be able to overlook the asthetic problems in the head, chest and legs. (moreso the legs, as they're a really minor thing that bothers me)


Still, as much bad stuff I say about him, it's not that he's a bad toy, he's just not a good toy.

[AndreyOfDoom]

His feet (ignore the instructions) look like they are meant to be opened not all the way but at an angle (the heel pieces) They even lock that way and voila he stands perfectly. Good point about the elbows.

If they had given this guy and Alternator-type ball-jointed head, he would've been so much cooler. For one, his head wouldn't sit so high and he'd be able to look up.

I'm going to repaint the headlights so they look more like a 350.

Man, so many missed opportunities with this fig. Elbows are okay, but they could've done double-jointed like Sunstreaker and still have looked as good. And why does he not have swivels above the knee? They did that with like every first Classic fig (Minus Megs and Prime, and Mirage who had no horizontal swivels): putting the swivel below the knee. Sunstreaker has them. At least they gave Prowl waist articulation.

They're not stable, though, that's the problem. I don't care if the feet are big, fat, skinny, long... as long as they're big enough to keep the fig standing, I'm okay with them. Prowl cannot stand with them. He topples over backwards under the weight of his own kibble.


I don't. The wings get in the way of the wheels and visa-versa and as I said, his legs are in need of proper swivels. And head ball joint. If he had those three things, I'd be able to overlook the asthetic problems in the head, chest and legs. (moreso the legs, as they're a really minor thing that bothers me)


Still, as much bad stuff I say about him, it's not that he's a bad toy, he's just not a good toy.

[SPLIT LIP]

I do that trick with almost every figure (giving them 'high heels' for added support in extreme poses) but with Prowl, it just makes his feet look worse.

If there's a trick to making them look good, I'll find it. Just not right now.

[kylash327]

just got this guy, black paint on the sides is a little sticky, and i wish they had made the chest/waist area connect somehow, instead of just sitting there, same with the roof and back, just feels loose.

[Cheebs]

The "meat" of this toy is dead-on perfect but the "trimmings" are awful!

What we have is an awesome likeness of Prowl with an awesome transformation...
with tacky paint that won't dry...
with flat (?!) paint over otherwise clear windows...
and with the worst hubcap and tire tread sculpt in recent memory.


Nothing an afternoon of modding won't take care of, but puzzling and frustrating. Underneath all of that lies an amazing Prowl.

[Sidecutter]

Unless someone has scraped the windows, I don't think they are painted. They appear to be a medium-smoked clear plastic with a matte surface finish.

Also, his "shin bones" are meant to be tilted forward inside the car shells that form the shin exteriors. The fronts of his knees should be nudged against the back of the spoiler bits, which makes him come out pretty darn stable, even with the upper body tipped to be level in relation.

[artiepants]

Also, his "shin bones" are meant to be tilted forward inside the car shells that form the shin exteriors. The fronts of his knees should be nudged against the back of the spoiler bits, which makes him come out pretty darn stable, even with the upper body tipped to be level in relation.

that actually helps a lot with stability and making his face pointed where it should be in neutral standing poses. thanks.

[Cheebs]

Unless someone has scraped the windows, I don't think they are painted. They appear to be a medium-smoked clear plastic with a matte surface finish.

Nope. I took that paint right off of there the first day I got him. They're just as clear and smooth as his headlights.

[Cascadia]

interesting...how did you take the paint off of the windows??

[Bumble Prime]

I took a sharpie to all the clear edges that are supposed to be black and he looks a million times better!

I also blacked out the whole running board trim on it, The sharpie is a lil more glossy so it doesnt match. but as long as you follow molding lines the difference doestn detract from the overall appearance. And now since the gaps are black he looks more solid.

Im gonna add some silver as soon as i get back to my house

[RedHeadKevin]

I took black paint to all his edges, and it makes the figure a thousand times better. I also added a drop of light blue paint into the cavities in the back of the headlights. I was going to do silver, but the G1 toy had light blue headlights, so mine are now blue. I also repainted the red on his "horns." the paint app was a bit lazy here. they only did the front of the horns, and left the rest white. Looking at the G1 toy, it's G1-accurate, but come on. Now I want to try and figure out how to do some of the "badges" the original toy had. I'm a little disappointed that this wave has no rub-signs.

[Cascadia]

My modifications:

-repainted the chevron red
-silver tailpipes
-clear paint on the doors
-white and clear paint on the roof
-more black on the front bumper
-metallic gun gray on the cannons
-metallic silver on the missiles
-metallic gun gray on his gun
-metallic silver on the hubcaps
-for the time being, he has an old 16-pointed star on the hood

Just waiting for the reprolabel stickers to show up in my mailbox. The figure is looking better. sorry no pictures yet.

[SPLIT LIP]

That's it, this guy's neck is getting the dremel. I can't stand that raised neck. One, it's high, and ugly, two, it's not flush!

After that I'm painting the headlights to look more like IDW Prowl and cutting them and the bumper bits off the fenders so he has a complete chest. (dunno how I'm going to do that)

[Cheebs]

interesting...how did you take the paint off of the windows??

Some harsh solvent... I wouldn't recommend it since it eats the plastic if you leave it on there for 1 second too long. I think most people soak it in alcohol overnight. That's safe for the plastic I think...

[Cascadia]

Thank you...I have been using Q-tips and alcohol every few minutes.

[IhsantheCursed]

I took a sharpie to all the clear edges that are supposed to be black and he looks a million times better!

I also blacked out the whole running board trim on it, The sharpie is a lil more glossy so it doesnt match. but as long as you follow molding lines the difference doestn detract from the overall appearance. And now since the gaps are black he looks more solid.

Im gonna add some silver as soon as i get back to my house

I dont know man...in my childhood, any WHITE toy I ever took a sharpie to came out with tints and smidges of black where I didnt want it...just saying.

[AutobotMarine]

Sweet. ;)

[Bumble Prime]

I dont know man...in my childhood, any WHITE toy I ever took a sharpie to came out with tints and smidges of black where I didnt want it...just saying.

hence why i sharpied the BLACK parts

Also went and touched up the white parts with white out, then applied a clear coat enamel. Now no more tacky paint, and i can transform him worry free :)

[Renidragon]

Went to Walmart today to pick up a prescription for my girlfriend, so while she was doing that, I wandered, feeling kinda hopeless, over to the toy section to see if they had FINALLY gotten some Animated toys in stock (closest place that's had em has been 30 minutes or more away). Well, considering the thread this is posted in, I'm sure you can imagine what I got very giddy about. :)

My camera's batteries are dead, so no pictures from me, but you've seen em all anyway, I'm sure. Love the alt mode. Those Nissan Z cars (is it a 350Z Prowl's based on?) always turn my head. It's VERY much an updated version of his G1 alt mode, the Fairlady Z, and you can see a lot of resemblances that just really tickled my nostalgia bone. Of course, as you can tell from pictures, it's not perfect. There's LOTS of visible panel lines, and the back legs on mine don't really stick together perfectly. But that's not really a big deal. His gun doesn't really fit into the underside very well on mine, either. That's kinda annoying.

Transformation... hm. Lemme go do that again. It's interesting. There's some stuff going on here similar to G1, but nothing feels straight out of G1. It's really a completely new transformation, with some G1-inspired elements, that creates a robot very much like his G1 self.

Now the bot. First off, yes, that turtleneck you see in pictures? Yep. It's there. It's kinda ugly. If it weren't for that, he'd be one badass cop. But with that elevated head, he gets knocked down to just "cool." He looks really tall for a deluxe, but that may be his proportions... Though he is taller than Classics Hot Rod (Hot Rod's head only comes up to Prowl's shoulder), and as tall as Mirage's shoulderwheels. He's got some awesome articulation, though it's kinda weird in his legs because of how they transform (knee joints AND shin joints, with a swivel in between), but all usable.

All in all, this dude is awesome. As of my first impressions of all three Classic Universe Deluxes, Prowl, I think, is #2, behind Sunstreaker. A lot of people seem to list him as their least favorite, and honestly, I can see why. BUt it's not a case of him being a bad toy. It's just a case of the others being more awesome. Well, that's how I feel about Octane, anyway. :)

[TCracker]

Just got mine yesterday. The joints are nice and tight but I was rather put off by the paint apps, (or rather the lack of it) so I kinda rectified that.

http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e145/tzey/My%20TF%20Collections/P1000203.jpg

http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e145/tzey/My%20TF%20Collections/P1000205.jpg

http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e145/tzey/My%20TF%20Collections/P1000207.jpg

http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e145/tzey/My%20TF%20Collections/P1000209.jpg

Awesome toy, but not as articulated as Sunny.

Tankor coming in today :P

[Cascadia]

the silver on the body is a nice touch.

[SPLIT LIP]

I too could not help but customize (http://www.tfw2005.com/radicons-customs/repaints-and-minor-mods-4/universe-prowl-modificationsi-kept-my-word-165653/) my Prowl.

[TCracker]

Nice work, Split!

[SPLIT LIP]

Thanks!

[T16skyhopp]

my prowl is sticky his paint is terrible and his neck i