I wonder if they'll do the other version of this character?

 

I'm pretty curious how well the ER Cliff mold can ride this, seeing that we have a TFA Bumblebee coming and they'll probably be a similar size.

 

He's pretty cool, lots of articulation. Transformation to alt mode is kinda fiddly and annoying.

 

Is it just me or are his hubcap shurikens just not working right? The mechanism seems to stop before they're fully deployed on one, and before they're fully retracted on another

 

Yeah on mine the blades open up slightly then I have to manually finish extending them.

 

I'm glad i'm not the only one. I understand why they kept the geared mechanism from the OG, but I wouldn't have been upset if it was axed in favor of individually deploying them for this release

 

That definitely sounds like a Transformer toy made after 2018...

 

Could not agree more. This runty thigh master is a pass at any price.

 

I for one love this figure. Looks great, good tolerances, poses well. Has its quirks, but nothing too major.

I really dig the aesthetic too. Kinda reminds of the older Classics/Universe days where accuracy wasn't a priority. Just cool renditions of the character. Prowl does to Animated what those Classics figures did with G1. And I far more enjoy those kinds of reimaginings to 1:1 accuracy. Really hope we see more Animated characters get this treatment down the line.

 

As someone who grew up with bits of Animated (still remember watching A Bridge Too Close part 1 and 2 as a kid) and who’s been wanting Legacy Animated stuff since before Legacy was officially announced, I was very happy to hear it would be in Legacy and I figured it would be more faithful than the Prime figures at the time.

Didn’t suprise me that Prowl would be our first and I love that since Prowl was the only Deluxe sized figure I had as a kid.

What’s left of my original.

So how is Legach Evolution Prowl?

I think this figure came out really well, the head is a little odd but I got to say it looks better in hand. Doesn’t look as boxy or as big on the body as it did in those first two sets of leaked photos.

I would have preferred him to be less a-symmetrical and the handlebars to not be on his back and I really wish the chin was painted gold but not the end of the world.

Is he better the original figure? I’d say not exactly, definitely in show accuracy it isn’t. and I’d say the bike mode on the og wins for sure. Which I will say looks a little better in hand

But will be honest I don’t see most modern Animated updates topping their original counterpart. And what he does better is certainly places is articulation (also stands way better).

You can get him fully crouching down

And he has some wild head tilt.

The articulation and possibility allows for some truly great posing around for this ninja bot.

Your eyes do not deceive you he can indeed stand on one foot.



Some size comparisons

With original.

And with the G1-ification he fits in with other generations styled figures.

With another Animated-ish bot.

With his big buddy Bulkhead.

Him with the two of the 3 he helped save.


So in the end I’d give him probably a 7.5 to a 8. Fine figure and would definitely recommend. He is a fun figure. Look forward to the other Legacy Animated figures coming next year and in the future.

16 years later, Animated has returned.

 

I have the OG so I'll probably pass but if they do Animated Samurai Prowl....

 

I felt like Prowl was translated well but Samurai Prowl would likely look even better. And pose really well. I think eventually they will do that version.

 

Apparently June is now according to Amazon, Prowl showed up at my place yesterday out of the blue.

What's Good:
+ painted red and blue translucent police lights on the forearms/back of the bike look good
+ deco looks good overall, gold paint is sharp
+ robot mode is well articulated with decent range of motion; even has a few degrees of ab-crunch
+ robot look gets the idea across
+ robot mode is solid
+ decent number of 5mm peg holes



What's Not So Good:
- the bike has weird proportions, is gappy, awkward, and underdetailed
- they turned Prowl from a sleek superbike into a bloated cruiser
- the wheels are teeny for this type of cruiser, especially in the back where it looks like a scooter more than a motorcycle
- chunk of kibble in front of the rear wheel nearly touching the ground
- ninja star wheel hubs are too big for the tiny wheels
- vehicle mode rear robot arms aren't that stable
- transformation doesn't have stops for where things are meant to go, some massaging is needed to get parts in final alignment
- some hollowness in robot mode, and no detail sculpted inside any parts which looks cheap
- faring wings are very thick and awkward
- twist-open ninja stars often don't work quite right, are cast in "gold" PLA that combined with their fat rounded shape look like hamburgers

What's Odd:
? working kickstand is hidden behind the faring and too stiff on my sample to use the fingernail notch to lower
? why leave the ugly grips/shocks prominently facing forward when they could have been made removable as tonfa weapons
? ball-jointed ankles work fine and don't look bad, but are weird
? left hand designed to hold ninja star, can't hold 5mm pegs; right hand is the opposite, has a little trench sculpted so it can rest but it's not super stable, and wedging the blade between his thumb and fingers feels like something will break down the road
? Prowl's styling doesn't really feel G1ified especially well, he's still fairly cartoony and smooth

Overall: C
Animated-universe Prowl isn't a disaster, but he doesn't feel like he was designed to the same level of consideration as other WFC-era figures, like he was made by a different team. Robt mode is the best aspect with good personality and great articulation, yet he's overly stylized and functionality is robbed by the two different hand designs. His vehicle mode has issues with proportions and gaps; transformation to vehicle mode is too sloppy so nothing feels properly aligned and often can result in differences from one transform to another which robs this toy of a lot of fun.

 

Honestly I like thus figure a lot. Only thing that would be nice is if he had better weapons

 

I like this guy. Pics of him screamed loose joints to me, but in hand everything is tight. Two problems to me are the lack of wrist swivel and his weapons. The whole circle blade thing wasn't great with this or the original. Either way, he is way tighter and more poseable than the original, at least my copy of the original which was super flops.

 

“Dinobots, DESTROY car-robots!”

I’ll definitely back that up, the weapons are decent but yeah could he better and wish he could hold them better (in both the hands). Wouldn’t be suprised if in addition to gap fillers is someone does new shurikens.

Yeah I do wish he had wrist swivels to recreate some poses he did in promo art and yeah like said about with AutobotJazz1 wish he held his weapons better.

And yeah I was shocked that he felt nice and tight out of the box. A little too tight but that losses the more you mess with him. Was why I was shocked I got him to stand on one foot on the first try.

Not that this guy doesn’t fall over or the og can’t stand well but I felt like he stands better than the original Prowl does (in addition to a better knee bend). He fell over a bit when trying to do photos.

 

It’s cool to finally see Animated get referenced in something new. This new Prowl definitely feels like Animated Prowl walking into the G1 universe. As of overall design he is great. I think he has an amazing robot mode and a lackluster motorcycle mode. As someone who has played with the original and Samurai versions this Prowl definitely shares some DNA. It’s just his altmode looks like an open blocky mess. Animated was tall and slender. This new figure looks short and chunky. It’s mostly in his thighs. Also the weapons are a mixed bag. I have one who works and another that doesn’t. It feels like the good one has a pin fully down. There isn’t much wiggle on the bottom plate of the ninja star. The other bad one is pretty loose. I also wish the handles turned into pistols just because it looks like it should.

Also this figure doesn’t contain magnets like what the OP says. There are pins for the ninja stars and pins for the bike tires. Magnets are a really weak material to make pins out of.

 

No I think it’s held by those plastic rings slotting in. The OP mistaked the pin heads for magnets. Just got him myself.

however mine has two of the same star…. Need to ask for replacement already ugh.

 

I know now I just didn’t feel the need to point it out

 

I’d like a remold into Armada Sideways. I think that would work.