Cyberworld Scourge

Prelude: When thinking of Scourge, the average Transformers fan usually either thinks of the bearded huntsman of Galvatron, master of the dreaded Sweeps, or of the evil clone of Optimus Prime from Robots in Disguise. Cyberworld does not give a damn about either of those and instead introduces Scourge as a pirate transforming into a pirate ship. Yes, you heard correctly. No space ship, no truck, a pirate ship. Does that sound weird? Well, it is, but in the best of ways. Let us thus look at the scourge (ha!) of the seven rust seas. Let’s say arrrrr!

Robot Mode: The first thing you notice in robot mode is, of course, the head. Scourge wears a purple pirate’s hat, a purple eye patch, and a silver beard. That’s a lot of character right there. His overall paintjob of minty green, turquois, and purple perfects the look of an evil robot with a touch of Dark Energon to boot. Of course, Scourge is meant as a toy for a younger audience, so articulation was not a big factor. No elbows, no head movement, no wrists, the hip is fixed in place, and the legs only bend roughly 45 degrees at the knees. Well, a true pirate captain with a peg leg probably isn’t a master contortionist, either, right?

The figure makes up for the lack of posing ability with a lot of gimmicks. If you push down in the minty part of his torso, the chest flips open and you see a transparent purple skull and crossbones where a Transformers fan would usually place a Matrix. Well, maybe it’s the newest look of the Matrix of Chaos, fit for a pirate king? 

Scourge also comes with several transparent purple effect parts that can attach as a sort of armor to either his shoulders or legs. We also have a big purple sword that glows in the dark and the ship mode’s sails, which serves as a big arm cannon. He can combine the sword with the effect parts, too, though it’s pretty unwieldy then.

So bottom line for the robot mode: wonderfully weird look, nice gimmicks, and a lack of articulation that is sadly typical for a kids-oriented Transformers line.

Alternate Mode: Scourge transforms into a pirate ship by use of an automorphy feature. You fold back the hip and legs, which causes the arms to fold back and the head to lower into the ship’s body. Now you just need to put up the sails, plug in the sword, and you’re done. Quick, easy, and – to me, at least – preferable to a 60-step Masterpiece transformation that takes half an hour.

The finished pirate ship looks wonderfully weird as well. The arms fit nicely into the ship’s hull and while you can still see the hands from above, you barely notice them. The Energon sword becomes the bow sprit and the mint-colored sails with the Decepticon logo tower up in the center. There are lots of sculpted details on the sides of the ship such as portholes, chains, ladders, and life-savers. On the rear deck you can place a smaller Cyberworld figure, so Scourge’s ship mode has a crew, too.

The purple effect parts can either attach to the sides of the ship or the sail. If you put them on the sails, there are handles on the back where a Cyberchanger figure can then “steer” the ship if you’re so inclined. The bow of the ship can open up in this mode as well, of course, to display the Matrix of Piracy in all its glory.

Bottom line: I think this is the very first pirate ship in the Transformers toy franchise. The only thing I could complain about is the size, as it could be a lot bigger in order to have more Cyberworld figures as a crew, but otherwise? Very nice.

Remarks: I haven’t seen Scourge appear in the Cyberworld cartoon yet, but I imagine he will be quite the big guy. With his color scheme he does remind me a bit of the Pirate Seacons from Beast Wars II, who flew around space in a robotic pirate ship as well (though that one never transformed into a robot). And then there was that Timelines comic where Tidal Wave’s ship mode was outfitted with extra parts to make it more pirate-like. So maybe we’ll get a Titan-Class version of Scourge, retooled from Tidal Wave? Who knows, but I’d probably buy it.

As for this figure here, keep in mind what it’s supposed to be. A very nice, big, colorful toy, which leans into its pretty weird concept for all it’s worth. It’s fun and if you ever wanted a Transformer you could use for a Sponge Bob crossover, well, wait no longer. So in terms of play value and fun, this guy here is awesome, just losing some points for articulation, because even kid Transformers can do better than that.

Rating: B