Apologies in advance - the insane amounts of chrome on this figure make it very hard to photograph. Originally released at the very end of Generation 2, Laser Optimus Prime was a fitting end to the line. With him, they had taken vehicular TFs as far as they could go at the time. He was extremely posable, had lights, launching missiles and disks, and even the air-powered rocket from his previous Hero incarnation. He was everything great about Generation 2 put into a single figure, but with a painfully dull deco. In robot mode, he was primarily gray and black. he didnt look much like we expected prime to look. So in 2006, Takara, being Takara, decided to fix that and did what they do best - throw chrome at things. In vehicle mode, Laser Optimus Prime is a tanker truck. This was the third time Optimus had been a long nose truck, and the last main line version of the original Optimus Prime character to feature a trailer. In truck mode, Optimus has two features that lend some playability to the mode. the disc launcher ontop of the trailer rotates 360 degrees, and when the knob on the back is rotated, it fires out 1 of five discs. the discs have been remolded to remove the G2 Autobot symbol. Other than the disc launcher, the button ontop of the cab activates his red LED headlights, which are extremely bright, and easily visible in any lighting conditions. The primary deco changes made to the reissue of Laser Optimus Prime in truck mode are the chroming of the trailer (used to be flat gray), changing the disc launcher from black to a dark metallic gray color, the addition of the G2 autobot symbol on the front of the trailer, and both doors of the cab, and removing the "optimus prime" stickers from his doors. Which I'm thankful for. the original version of this figure had his name printed on himself FIVE times. And now we have robot mode. and glare. thanks, takara. The reissue of Laser Optimus Prime really improves on the boring original. They have changed the color of the "cannons" on his shoulders from flat light gray to dark metallic gray, and the other instances of the light gray color on his waist and legs have been given a more metallic look as well. his "grill" has been detailed with black paint, and his entire upper body has been chromed, although the lower parts have been painted over with black. Every sticker in robot mode has been changed, although the basic colors are the same. red on kneecaps, rainbow of circuitry on shoulders (now with more autobot symbols), and red on his chest. his new chest stickers depict the matrix behind the windows, which is much better than the old chest stickers, which were just red with black lines. oh, and they said "OPTIMUS PRIME" on them. If you want G2 nametag prime authenticity, the original chest stickers are included on the sticker sheet. if you have any respect for optimus prime, you will leave them there. Here's a better shot of the new chest stickers. it also shows the only downside to this figure. the chrome isnt well-done at all. I just unsealed this figure a few hours ago, and there are spots where the chrome had chipped off in the package, where nothing could possibly have rubbed against it. the chrome is streaked and scratched, like it was rubbed against a hard, abrasive surface. the trailer has this same problem (but far more chips on the sides) but thankfully the large stickers for the trailer managed to cover them all up. worst chrome job I have ever seen on a non-transmetal transformer. Laser Optimus Prime's main weapon is a sword, that is placed in his right hand, which lights up when you turn the headlights on. it's a clear sword. nothing else to say about it, really. it doesnt light up too well. the edges and sculpted detail turn red when the light is on, but the actual blade does not. Next we have base mode. it's base-tastic. it has a 5-missile launcher, an air-powered rocket launcher, the disc launcher, a gun on the central tower, along with five extra missiles and one extra rocket. Not much to say about it, other than the rocket launcher doesnt work. don't know if its because the bellows are too hard, or because of the kinks in the hose from being jammed up in the trailer for 3 years, but I cant get the bellows to go down fast enough to make the rocket do anything. Aside from the massive amounts of chrome shared by the Black Convoy and Scourge releases of this mold, the are some more deco changes. the tower, the gun on the tower, and the missile launcher are now a metallic dark gray rather than the original black. also, to show I'm paying attention, the trigger buttons for the missile launcher have changed from light gray to the dark metallic gray color used on the launcher itself. You can remove the gun on the tower, and the missile launcher. you can then give these to Optimus. he likes them. (behold the fresh-from-box streaky scratched chrome) The gun's two barrels (and tubes) light up really well when put in the right hand. the missile launcher, being very non-transparent, doesnt light up very well at all when put in the right hand. they don't light up in the left hand either. because it doesnt have a light. but even if it did, the missile launcher still isnt transparent, so it cant pipe any light through from your imaginary light sources. Reissue G2 Battle Convoy Laser Optimus Prime Prime of Justice is a very nice figure. and something fun to throw at the "true fans" when they complain about movie prime being a long nose truck. get him if the chance comes up. even if you own the boring nametag-obsessed original.
I got this guy as well and really like him, mine didn't have the severe issues with the chrome as yours did. I'm a big fan of them switching those awful stickers from the original.
Nice review and pics. The eHobby version interests me the most. If this Ever gets another repaint I hope for a movie deco, or crystal. A clear trailer will be sick!
Yeah man I really wanted the eHobby version but couldn't shell out the dough. I only got this one because BBTS had him down to 40 bucks at one point. Forgot to say it, great review man!
I got this one and the Magnus repaint when they first came out, but I've never actually opened them. They're sitting in the corner of my Hobby room still sealed in the celophane the company I got them from, seems to wrap everything in. My plan at one point was to open them, and then take the electronics from my original G2 Prime and put them into RID Scourge.
Wow. A TF never sits misb with me for longer than the car ride home. (Unless it's something I already have.) Were you just not excited about them?
It was nothing like that. I needed to replace my G2 Prime as the legs were quite loose. I bought him 2nd-hand from a collector who TF'ed it quite a bit. It was just that at the time I had no space to put them anywhere. I only had 3 shelving units and they were all jam-packed. I occasionally still struggle today, so I'm currently working through things to make more space. You can see a year-old setup of mine at the following location - My Page
