SS86 Perceptor (Supervista) is one of the first 2022 releases of the Studio Series 86 sub-toyline. SS 2022 wave 1 was found in the UK at Forbidden Planet in early February 2022. Packaging Supervista comes in an old-school box with an actual plastic window, differently from its core class wavemates Ravage and Shockwave. The only accessory in the box is Supervista's handgun. Interestingly, two types of background are included. First, a more blurred background, which could have been simple cardboard, to hold the plastic ties. Then, the actual SS-style background, depicting Autobot City from the SS86 movie. Personally I would have accepted a single or no printed background if it helped cut the price or move the budget elsewhere. Supervista's "cannon" cannot be detached, and sits outside the cardboard insert, see picture. Alt mode Supervista become a microscope. A bit boring, possibly more boring than its past incarnations, but simple to achieve and effective. The transformation is a true pleasure, and makes Supervista an ideal deskbot to fiddle with, transforming it back and forward. A minor concern for the materials in general - the plastic seems soft, but it does its job and holds together fine. Minor paint imperfections, but maybe it's just my copy. Tank mode As it often happens, this character's tank mode is little mode than a variation or tangent. It's simple to achieve and holds together well, but this is the one feature of Perceptor which actually suffered moving away from the Titans Return play pattern. The HasTak team missed an opportunity to add a couple of Titan Master pegs, which would have raised the play value of this toy exponentially. Robot mode Supervista is a wonderful, faithful representation of the original 1986 movie character - possibly one of the best SS86 character interpretations. Following the brand's confusion, Supervista comes with the same 5mm ports you have been expecting for WFC figures since Siege - except for its forearms, where the microscope's wheels seem to be molded directly or glued in place. Compared to Titans Return Perceptor, Supervista makes fewer compromises for integration in a play pattern, other than the aforementioned 5mm ports. This makes for a stronger and more focused figure. Articulation is pretty good: - neck: 360 - shoulders: 360, up to the sides - biceps: yes - elbows: yes - wrists: limited (transformation) - waist: yes - hips: 360 and up to the side - thigh: 360, plus transformation joint for tank mode (minor instability) - knee: 135 degrees (more or less) - ankle: yes (90 degrees) - toes: limited (transformation) Supervista can make the most of this articulation, making for a truly expressive toy. As an added bonus, the relative simplicity of this mold makes it ideal for fossilisers... like Kingdom Slammer. Other versions I am not aware of other versions as of February 2022. The Bottom Line SS86 Perceptor is an outstanding Transformers toy, with a great interpretation of the movie character solid engineering, great articulation and a fun and intuitive transformation, on top of being a triple changer. I am not even a fan of the character, and I still can't find fault in this figure. SS86 Perceptor is FUN. All things considered, I give SS86 Perceptor a 9/10.
That big hole in the back frustrates me. Betting that'll be the first priority of the 'upgrade kit' crowd. Until I find one of those, I'll probably peg his handgun into his back to obfuscate that gap.
Why do you refer to him as Supervista? I found the review hard to take in as every time I read Supervista my mind went blank
Thanks for taking the time to read the review, I appreciate it. I just checked - yes, in that the end of the red handgun's barrel is small enough to comfortably accomodate a blast effect over it. But it's not a standard blast effect peg, it's just luck with diameters. indeed. it's a bit funny, because this mold could have easily accomodated a Titan Master with just a couple of pegs, without the complexity of a full cockpit, sparing that gap on the spine.
Your review is very nice and I really appreciate both, your effort and enthusiasm. Remarkable. Now, with that said.....What a figure full of holes for 22 usd we are getting, that big hole in the back being the worst offender.
Well, Shockwave's Italian name was Brutal, but OP still referred to him as Shockwave. so "Supervista" is quite confusing.
I want a remold into Shattered Glass Perceptor. SG Perceptor is a repurposed Magnificus who uses the 1985 toy head instead of the cartoon head. SG Perceptor would be retconned as travelling to the positive dimension and becoming the evil Decepticon Magnificus. No longer is SG Perceptor repurposed from Magnificus, they would be the same being; although currently they are considered individuals who look identical but have had no interaction with each other. SG Perceptor would come with Magnificus’ partner Ga’Mede; repainted from Battle Master Firedrive Blowpipe or Aimless.
Picked up a copy of the figure myself yesterday since he finally came into stock at a local store. he is very nice, joints are tight however a word of warning, the peg on his pistol is slightly oversized so do not plug it into the 5mm hole on the side of his scope, did that on mine and it has caused stressing. Ironic since the thing itself looks too small
WTF is a "supervista", sounds like a budget compact car. Had to look it up. That shitty hole in the back is getting a printed folding cover the day I get him.
