Nemesis Primal has the same problem.

 

Star Fox, the Final Boss.

 

Hey, so I didn't know if anyone else had been having this problem, but my Primal's left (our right) shoulder doesn't go down all the way, and only recently did i find out this is because, for some reason, my bad luck has struck me again and his left shoulder assembly is flipped, but I'm not sure how to go about fixing this, can anyone help?

 

No offense, but I feel these fan edits would be better suited for the “appreciation” threads? This feedback subforum is for discussion of the actual toys.

 

Did some touch up paints on original release and added maximal faction

 

My NOT Mint copy from Entertainment Earth arrived today.

I really wanted to like this toy but, I don't. I knew there things I wouldn't like prior to the purchase but, I thought the robot mode (and 3rd party or aftermarket kits would save it). I was wrong, so very wrong . . .

Engineering flaws (beast mode):

I've transformed this to beast mode once and, I'm already fed up with having to worry about the paint on the thighs.

While the kibble is minimal in beast mode, this is 2021 and there shouldn't be that much showing on the back half of the beast mode combined with such limited rear leg movement. That's a lot of tradeoff for no gain.

The official standing beast mode makes it look like the legs are some sort of weird broken reversed pelican knees. That knee transformation is absolutely terrible.

Both beast modes don't have any transition between the bare skin of the chest nor the abdominal area. This is a significant failure given that KBW was full throttle highway to hell bent on realistic animals. The crotch panel literally looks like Satan from South Park took off the thong and said check out my fierce mane. It wouldn't have that effect if they had actually transitioned from the skin to the hair like an actual gorilla.

Speaking of gorilla's, the molded fur doesn't look anything like an actual gorilla. It looks like they tried to mimic lush dense fur (e.g. Godzilla vs Kong) and failed to realize those were matted clumps and not really think individual strands of hair with a bunch of gel stylized with a brush/comb. Gorillas have thin fine hair that can look short but, it's still thin and fine even when it's really long. The fur on the hands is a lot closer to what it should have been but, I have a hunch it's because the paint app is hiding a lot of the sculpt detail.Overall, the fur was sculpted too far apart and far, far too deep.


Engineering flaws (robot mode):

The butterfly shoulders feel like they are going to snap off and/or take the outer chest hinge (where the robot and beast chests rotate) with them. This area is really cheap and flimsy feeling.

Any lateral shoulder movement makes me fell like I am going to snap the pegs clean off while breaking the butterfly joints off and breaking the outer chest hinge (where the robot and beast chests rotate) with them. This area is also really cheap and flimsy feeling. This is a result of nothing involving the shoulder/arms actually locking into place in robot mode.

Everything about the way the front half of the upper torso "catches" onto the back half of the upper torso is awful. It takes entire too much force to seperate them and, you don;t have anywhere to get get good leverage because of the issues described above.

The beast mode head puts too much pressure on the outer chest hinge (where the robot and beast chests rotate) which results in the chest rotating up.

Everyone knows about the massive gap at the top of the robot chest but, I had no idea there also one on the bottom of it.

The thighs should have been white plastic with paint apps on the fur. The biceps could have been done the same way if something else needed to be white (assuming they are on the same sprue tree). Painting things like the entire thigh absolutely has to stop. Cyclonus is the only recent toy that can get away with it because of how the legs transform.

The back cannons are neat but, I have to pull apart both halves of the upper torso then pull the head assembly out, then rotate that 90° in order to pull them out. I get it, it's a kids toy intended for people with tiny little fingers but, there really needs to be an easier way to get them out because even children with tiny little fingers might not have the required dexterity. It's a needless barrier for accessibility.

The sword storage has a better connection hold than Siege Springer does but, not by much. For clarity, I get that they can't be stored like the 1996 BW toy, that's not what I'm talking about. I'm talking about how the tabs/slots don't have the proper gripping power.


Engineering flaws (overall):

Everything about the transformation is needlessly simplified which is sad because Hasbro/TakaraTomy are capable of so much more. This is an over-glorified RED figure that sort of folds into a gorilla. The only actual transformation aspect is the upper torso splitting in half, the chest panel rotating, and then the head transformation. That transformation is essentially a slightly more complicated King Hiss yet less complicated because there are no shellforming arms that turn into sneks.


Aesthetic flaws (general):

The robot mode pauldrons/spaulders are too long. This could have been fixed with a hinge. For clarity, this isn't an it's not animation accurate thing. It's a they are too long and out of proportion with the rest of the toy thing. I keep them angled to down to compensate


What it did right:

The headsculpt. Well, that's just prime . . .

The forearm cannons. I love how they made the gimmick work on this toy. I know that some people want them longer and that there is a 3rd party and aftermarket kit for that but, I think they look perfect as is. Super stealthy forearm cannons don't need ot stick out of the area they are hidden in (not even if it's animation accurate).

The backpack. I have zero issue with this because I'm 100% fine with the look of here's my massive gorilla back so don't come for me unless I send for you. At the same time though, it's unfortunate that we're back to putting a gorilla's glutes back near the head (I'm looking at you AAOP).

The hands. I'm sure they get a lot of complaints but, these hit all the stereotypical these are how grill hands work poses (pound, punch, crush, etc.).

The shin/feet pistons. These really had to be included but, they could have phoned it in and made it a sculpted detail.

The silhouette and the overall robot mode. This is 100% Optimus Primal. I love how the rear view is 100% all gorilla except for the back of the robot head.


Closing thoughts (pricing):

This is not by any stretch of the imagination a Voyager class. I'll fight and die on a hill that Siege Astrotrain is a leader (part count, weight, gorgeous transformation other than that top back area of shuttle mode, the accessories, etc.), Earthrise/Kingdom Optimus Prime are leaders (due to the trailer and that a better trailer would have pushed it to a Commander class), and that Kingdom Rodimus Prime is a Commander Class, and that SS86 Hot Rod is a Voyager because of the engineering in the transformation as well has how incredible it looks. I can not and will not defend Kingdom Optimus Primal as a Voyager though. It has neither the size nor the engineering nor anything else to warrant it. It's not much taller than Trailbreaker/Hoist and it's certainly not more complex so it must be the weight. However, while it's certainly heavier than Trailbreaker/Hoist, it's not anywhere near OMG Astrotrain feels like a vault full of gold heavy which completely takes you by surprise.


Closing thoughts:

It is without a doubt better than any other mass release general retail BW Optimus Primal but, it doesn't take much to achieve that given that the BW10th Universe version was the last attempt at a mass release general retail Optimus Primal. Yes, KBW Optimus Primal is leaps and bounds better than 1996 Optimus Primal however, this just looks/feels like "hey we need to make this turn into a gorilla at the last possible second. I'm sure that Hasbro/TakaraTomy will eventually hit their stride and create some truly amazing BW toys in the future. Right now though, they are really struggling with any BW toy larger than a deluxe when it comes to engineering and not making awful compromises in one or both modes.


Closing thoughts (purchase):

I can't decide if I regret buying this or not. I only paid $22.49 for it MISB (not mint) which is a little under the current MSRP for a deluxe. That's a fair price given that I feel it's a large deluxe. Again though:

It's exactly what I knew it was going to be and yet, I can't help feeling disappointed . . .

 

That looks so good! How did you finagle the tiny logo?

 

Using toothpick lol…

 

Does the Regular or Netflix version of this mold look more like the original Beast Wars cartoon?

I'm having a hard time deciding. To me, there are times where both look like the original cartoon depending on what screenshot you're looking at.

 

The netflix version is missing paint apps on the robot chest so i think the regular release is more accurate

 

Does anyone have any pictures of this guy with T30 Rhinox? I looked through the thread but couldn't find any.

 

Kingdom Optimus Primal is in the same vein as Earthrise Optimus Prime. Just a solid, high quality, well made, fun figure that is a perfect rendition of the character.

 

I have both. When i get home i'll snap a picture if nobody else does it yet.

 

Here you are.

 

Thanks so much! They look pretty good together.

 

Really digging the range of arm articulation on this mold!

Nemesis Primal can hold the hilt on Nemesis Prime's Ancient Sword with both fists, while Optimus Primal can hold Optimus Prime's giant ion blaster like a champ!  

 

Can somebody direct me to an upgrade that can fix that chest gap? It's really annoying lately

 

You could try the go-better studios kit which adds a neck filler and a jetpack, or if you have access to a 3d printer there's this one I found on thingiverse