G1 Laserbeak

Beast Mode: Laserbeak hasn't got a robot mode, he transforms from tape to robotic condor (or eagle, falcon, take your pick). You would never confuse him with a natural bird, but as a robotic one he looks pretty cool and dangerous. The wings are posable, as you can extend them or fold them in. The legs can only do the split, little else. The head can look up- and down. As weapons Laserbeak carries two big lasercannons on his back to fry Autobots with. As a whole Laserbeak looks pretty cool, but doesn't have a wide range of motion for more play value. Also, the neck joint is pretty weak and liable to break, so you need to be careful there. All in all a cool-looking, but limited beast mode.

Alternate Mode: Laserbeak transforms into a small cassette that fits into Soundwave's tape deck (or that of the Autobot Blaster for that matter). The cassette has all the necessary detailing to appear as an actual micro cassette from the eighties. Now as alternate modes go a simple square isn't that spectacular. What is, though, is how this rather intricate robot can fold itself together like that. So bottom line, a good alternate mode.

Remarks: Laserbeak was one of the mainstays of the early Generation 1 cartoon series and spied on the Autobots so often you have to wonder why the good guys never put up any sensors capable of detecting big, robotic birds. Anyway, Laserbeak did his share of the fighting in G1, even came close to finishing off Optimus Prime on two different occassions. He was also directly responsible for the deaths of Ironhide, Ratchet, Prowl, and Brawn in the G1 Movie, seeing as he was the one who spied on their ship. As a toy Laserbeak is limited, but ultimately fun and doesn't have to take a backseat to any of the other cassette warriors. Coupled with nostalgia value that makes for a pretty good figure.

Rating (Laserbeak): B