Dark of the Moon Powerglide

My Review:

Robot Mode: Powerglide is a clear homage to G1 Powerglide and the robot mode reflects that. You got the red-grey color combination, the legs formed from the rear assembly of his jet mode, and the signature bucket head. The only real difference design-wise is that DOTM Powerglide has his wings on the arms instead of at the shoulders. Still, you easily recognise him as the character he’s supposed to be.

Powerglide is as articulated as you can expect from a modern-day Scout-class figure (yeah, Commander-class now, I know), so no complaints on that front. Added articulation comes from the wings on the arms, which can swivel so Powerglide can use them as shields or blades. Detailing and paint application look pretty good, especially in a line where most details are usually swallowed by masses of unpainted grey plastic. So thumbs up for that.

He carries two weapons, formed from the ordnance hanging under his wings in jet mode. The weapons can combine into a bigger one as well and are interchangeable with other Cyberverse figures. So bottom line: a very nice-looking Scout-class figure and a good homage to G1 Powerglide.

Alternate Mode: Powerglide still transforms into the same jet he always does, the A-10 Thunderbolt attack fighter. Naturally it’s a bit bigger than the jet mode of G1 Powerglide and a whole lot smaller than Universe Powerglide, but it’s still recognizable as the very same type. Powerglide’s assorted weapons are stretched out underneath the wings or you can leave them off to have a (mostly) unarmed jet. The detailing is pretty good for such a small craft, down to sculpted rivets on the side of the jet turbines. The jet has a functional landing gear, too, which is always a plus. Not much more I can write here. An excellent looking jet mode, as realistic as you can probably get at this scale. Nice.

Remarks: All of the Movie toylines so far contained lots of figures that didn’t actually appear in the respective motion picture. Some of them paid homage to characters from past series, such as G1. It’s no different for DOTM, which has already brought us Guzzle and also features what’s only the third-ever Powerglide (not counting the various variants of the big Universe version). Given that they didn’t have any problems changing Powerglide’s colors for his Universe release, I’m kinda surprised that Powerglide is back in his signature red here in DOTM instead of, you know, unpainted grey, but that’s very much appreciated.

Still, the figure kinda lacks a real reason d’être. Powerglide didn’t appear in any movie or movie comic, the figure is a bit too much Movie-style to fit in with your Classics figures, so unless you’re like me and bought him because he’s ol’ Powerglide, he doesn’t really stand out much (except color-wise, because he’s not gray). So bottom line: a good figure, but unless you dig the character homage, he’s little more than that.

Rating: B-

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And for a second opinion, the review by Optimus19:

Robot Mode: Powerglide’s robot mode doesn’t look all that special at first glance. But once you have this figure in hand, you’ll notice how much fun it is. Let’s start at the bottom.

The feet are long and thin, but still give him a solid stance. The detailing on the legs isn’t all that great considering the size class. The legs are ball-jointed, but nothing special, either. The arms are fully articulated and he can twist the wings, using them as shields or melee weapons.

The head can’t really move, but it looks pretty good and bears a certain resemblance to that of Ironhide. A few flaws here, though: the shoulders aren’t all that solid. Not a big thing, though, you only notice when you pull down the arms, so it’s not a huge problem.

Alternate Mode: Powerglide transforms into a red airplane. Two turbines sit above the wings. Looks good. There is a cannon underneath the cockpit and two Autobot symbols on the wings.

Gimmicks: Powerglide comes with two weapons. One is a quad missile launcher, the other has two missiles and a laser gun. Both weapons can combine or be flattened to fit under the wings in alternate mode.

Conclusion: I did mention that Powerglide doesn’t appear all that special at first glance, but he does turn out to be a great figure with cool weapons. Fully recommended.

Rating: A