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Series: Generation 1
Allegiance: Autobot
Categories: Minibot
Year: 1985
To stop me, you have to catch me first.
A show-off... proud that he's one of the few Autobots that can fly. Incredible maneuverability... delights in displaying his dazzling aerial virtuousity, to friends or foes... just wants their appreciation of his talent. Cruises at 500 mph... can increase power output and speed to 3200 mph for short periods. Carries small concussion bombs, shoots thermal beam as plane and robot. Gets into more troubles with enemy planes than he can handle.
Robot Mode: For a G1 Minibot Powerglide is amazingly posable. His lower body is a brick, but his arms enjoy full range of movement in the shoulders and he has elbows. As far as I can remember the only Minibot who can make that claim. From the waist upward he also enjoys a very strong similarity to his cartoon counterpart. His lower body, sadly, is just the rear part of the plane and can't really be confused with anything else, but he stands stably at least. He's also one of the tallest Minibots (which makes sense seeing as he transforms into a pretty big airplane). So all in all a very decent robot mode for his time.
Alternate Mode: Powerglide is one of the few Autobots from that era to transform into an airplane instead of some sort of ground vehicle. It's an A-10 Thunderbolt II combat jet, somewhat similar to the Cobra Rattlers from the GI Joe series. The jet looks pretty good in relation to his scale. The detailing could be a bit more diverse, with everything red some of it gets lost. Still, probably among the best of the Minibot alternate modes.
Remarks: The ever-bombastic Powerglide was the Autobots' number one flyboy in the second season of the G1 cartoon right until the Aerialbots showed up. Despite his small size he liked to go one on one with the Seekers and often came out on top. He survived the Movie (1986) and even had some small appearances in season 3. Also, he remains the only Autobot to ever fall in love with a human being, as depicted in the aweful episode "The Girl Who Loved Powerglide". That last one isn't exactly a claim to fame, but worth mentioning.
As a figure Powerglide certainly ranks among the better ones of the Minibot line. That, coupled with his very likeable character, makes this a toy worth having for pretty much every G1 fan. It's not among the best of the series, mind you, but it's pretty decent. And just a reminder: Powerglide will soon be re-issued in the Classics 2.0 / Universe series as an Ultra-class figure, so get your hands on the original while it's still cheap.
Rating: B
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