G1 Jazz (Commemorative Series)

Robot Mode: Jazz has one of the most classic designs ever, where the hood of his car mode becomes his chest and the rear of the car turns into the legs. Like most Transformers from this era his posability is nothing to brag about, he can move his arms around and that's it. The detailing is pretty good, though, and I just love his face for some reason. Weapon-wise he carries a hand gun as well as a pretty big missile launcher that can fit onto his shoulder. Personally I like him better without the launcher, though. Bottom line Jazz is a great robot look-wise, but play value is limited.

Vehicle Mode: The vehicle mode makes it evident that, in the early years of Transformers, a realistic alt mode was considered more important than things like posability or proportions in robot mode. The Porsche car Jazz transforms into looks very realistic and its die cast metal construction makes sure that casual observers might confuse it with an actual miniature car instead of a transformed robot. No gimmicks, of course. In these early days of Transformers, the car mode WAS the gimmick.

Remarks: Jazz was one of the mainstays of the early G1 cartoon series and one of the coolest characters to boot. After Transformers the Movie he faded into the background, mostly because his famous voice actor Scatman Crothers died before Season 3 production began. Jazz remained a mainstay in the comic books, though, and is a fan favorite to this day. The toy itself is of the same basic design as many Autobot cars of that era (Prowl, Bluestreak, Smokescreen, etc.) but with an individual touch. So to sum it up, while Jazz as a toy isn't exactly a revelation, he is well worth getting for the character and the history behind it.

Rating: B+