Got this figure the other day, probably my favourite movie figure. I had the wheel problem on my first release 08 Bumblebee but not on this premium. All the joints are incredibly tight to the point I could not pop his wheels out from under the hood. Only loose joint was the waist but that's remedied. Best release, in my opinion.
Thanks for the review, now I don't have to open mine. Which is a plus since I like the shiny packaging. Or may open and add the premium yellow car parts to the other black robot body for a better premium I almost passed on him, but remembering the Bumblebee craze not too long ago, when everyone was looking for one, I thought that owning one more bee would be kinda cool. They do like nice lined up in car modes on the display
Just got a Premium Bumblebee today while at Target. It was a little odd walking around a Target that had no power, but it didn't bother me (I prefer the dark). Took him out of the package, and he's actually really good joint and paint wise. The yellow on the head is a little darker, but it doesn't ruin it for me. Mold wise his head looks a little small for his body, but it still looks good to me, and definitely better than his non-battle-mode face. I'm happy with him. I was going to wait and get whatever they come up with for him for the sequels line, but something about seeing the only Premium Bumblebee at a Target changed my mind. In the end it's one less figure I need to worry about getting next year.
I got this a while ago, but hadn't commented on it until now. It's the Concept Camaro mould. We all know that's an awesome mould. The new head is an awesome part. Really, the areas where people are going to have problems are with the paint. Personally, I prefer grey to black on the non-car parts (chrome would possibly have been better), so it really comes down to how good the paint aps are on your specific toy. Unfortunately, it's the head that generally seems to be the most poorly done area, and you can't see that when the figure is still in the package (unless you get the Walmart 3-pack I think). It takes a bit of luck to get a good head, but it's worth it if you do (like I did). Very cool.
Actually, if you look threw the bubble at the right angle, you can clearly see the head (and I was in a darkened Target at the time).
Mine came in a Wal-Mart 3 pack. The faction logo (on chest) is actually different from my original and Stealth.
Just curious, anybody else get a Sunstreaker vibe from his toy bio? The whole cosmetic upgrades thing and staying nice and clean looking just screams Sunstreaker to me.
In a bizarre case of irony, less than 12 hours after I made these positive comments, he broke. I think it must be part of his hood automorph that broke, because I can't get the bloody hood to go together when I try transforming him back to car mode. Oh well, he still looks good in robot mode. This just provides another reason for me to get the 3-pack if and when it comes to Australia (the main reason, of course, being the awesome repaint of Classics Bumblebee).
this happened (i think) to me the day i got him while taking pics for my collection thread. i tried to force the automorph but i didn't know the hood scoop piece was still locked into the area just behind his head. it stripped the gears and his hood scoop wouldn't go flush in car mode. i thought it was wasted so i got the bumblebee 3 pack from walmart. then i fiddled with it one day and forced it, the gears lined up and now its fine. the gears still look stripped though but at least the one in my 3 pack is safe MISB.
For those who messed the gears on the hood, I was able to fix one before by taking it completely apart. With a small phillips screwdriver I took it apart piece by piece until I could open the gear mechanism then I pulled it out and adjusted it to the right spot. It does take time and caution to perform this. Anyways, I played with my first Premium Bumblebee and after having the original for so long, I was very impressed at the detail and quality. The colors really stand out. I did have a paint error on the head but it is fine with me as long as there are no mechanical defects. The gray looks lighter but is a little easier on the eyes than the black on the original. The battle mask looks cool. The shiny yellow paint is a bonus, as the original yellow in the Capture of Bumblebee was fine with me. Hasbro certainly spent more time on this premium model than with the others. If you already have another Concept Camaro Bumblebee, it is probably not worth getting the premium version. In my opinion, the gray looks better than the black because the black has a greater contrast. If I had only one choice, I would prefer the Capture of Bumblebee over the Premium version because of the extra figures and normal unpainted yellow. The battle mode head does not have light piping, so that is a drawback to the original. It is really just a personal preference whether you like the mask or not. If you have the money, gett both versions, but I do not think it makes much difference.
