Dark of the Moon Sideswipe (Walmart)

 

Prelude: This Sideswipe here was available exclusively at Walmart and is a repaint of HftD Sideswipe, so this review here will focus on the differences between the two figures.

Robot Mode: While Sidearm Sideswipe was mostly grey and silver, this Sideswipe here is a lot more colourful. He’s mostly blue with yellow, dark grey and bright grey highlights. Unfortunately, though, he hasn’t escaped the current DOTM trend of saving on paint entirely. His chest plate is unpainted grey plastic. That could have been done a bit better. Otherwise, though, I really like the new paint job.

No other differences to the original figure worth mentioning. It’s still my favourite Movieverse Sideswipe and those who don’t like the Allspark-blue blasters the figure carries can easily swap them with the grey ones of Sidearm Sideswipe, they fit nicely. So the bottom line here: A nicely done repaint in robot mode, though a bit more paint would have been better.

Alternate Mode:Sideswipe transforms into the same Corvette Centennial as before, but this time it’s the blue-yellow racing variant. Apart from a big Autobot logo and the number four, quite a few Transformers references adorn this car’s chassis, listed below:

• Lithoian Drivetrain – referencing the planet Lithonia, Unicron’s first meal in the 1986 movie.
• Axalon Rattraps – referring to the Beast Wars character Rattrap, the Maximals’ space ship Axalon, and specifically the BW episode “A better Mousetrap”.
• Sun Bro – either referring to Sideswipe’s “brother” Sunstreaker or to Sun Bow studios, creators of the first TF cartoon series.
• The Transtech Autobot symbol
• Maccadam’s – shout-out to Maccadam’s Old Oil House, a pub on Cybertron in various continuities.

Nothing else has changes in vehicle mode, of course. A very nice-looking car and the new paint job makes the numerous seams less obvious than before. The blasters can still unfold in vehicle mode in order to give the car some firepower. To sum it up: Thumbs up!

Remarks: Sidearm Sideswipe was among the best figures of the Hunt for the Decepticons line-up, so it’s hardly surprising that we get to see a repaint of it. Store Exclusives are no rarity anymore, either, and Walmart snatched themselves a winner here. Sideswipe’s new paint job fits in well with the DOTM Wreckers, who are NASCAR racers. The only negative thing for me is the unpainted chest plate, but you can always apply some paint of your own if you want to. All in all a very nice figure, recommended to everyone who isn’t turned off of Movie-style figures in general.

Rating: A-

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And for a second opinion, the review by Limewire:

Alternate Mode: This is Sideswipe’s second appearance in the DOTM toy line, this time as a Wallmart exclusive and with a packaging that mimics that of the Premium toys from the first Movie line. A nice homage to the good “old” Movie days.

This figure is a repaint of HftD Sidearm Sideswipe, possibly the best incarnation of its kind so far (though the DOTM version trumps it in term of screen accuracy). So once again Sideswipe is, of course, a Corvette Centennial, though in a very exciting design: a race car, which doesn’t have to take a back seat to the DOTM Wreckers, far from it. The paint job is just fabulous. I’d have LOVED to see it look like that in the movie, working as a counterpoint to the rather rough Wreckers (which I adore, btw).

The alternate mode features a number of homages, including the G1 Autobot logo, the Transtech Autobot logo, the words Rattrap, Sun Bro, Lithonian Drivetrain, the number 04 and the name Maccadam’s (I don’t know the meaning of the latter).

Robot Mode: The great look continues in robot mode. The first thing you notice is that this is one of the most colourful DOTM figures so far. The combination of blue, yellow, red, black and even the rather boring grey and silver work well together. Only the weapons, coloured Allspark blue (the most hated colour for many TF fans), stand out a bit, but they do fit with the rest as well. So bottom line, a great figure! I’m in awe!

Conclusion: If you don’t get this guy, you’ve got only yourself to blame. A must-have!

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And for a third opinion, the review by Optimus19:

Prelude: This figure here is a repaint of HftD Sidearm Sideswipe, so I’ll only look at the differences.

Robot Mode: Not a lot I can say here that the pictures won’t say just as well. The main differences are:
- The primary colours are blue and yellow
- The head seems slightly bigger
- The torso is a brighter shade of grey
- For the rest, just look at the pictures.

Alternate Mode: This time Sideswipe looks more like a race car. The windows are tinted blue. On the doors and roof you can see the number 04. On the rear the name “Maccadam’s” is written. A Google search just revealed a guy from the 19th century, though, so I don’t have any idea why it’s on there.

Conclusion: A good repaint of a good figure. An improvement over the original due to the bigger head.

Rating: A-