Prime Dreadwing (Cyberverse)

Robot Mode: Being one of the bigger Decepticons in the TV series, Dreadwing was given the larger of the two size classes available in the Cyberverse subline (not a given), making him a commander and on a scale with good guy Cyberverse figures like Optimus Prime and Bulkhead. And he is exactly what I expect from a good Cyberverse figure, meaning a pretty faithful downscaled version of the larger Voyager class toy. The basic design is the same, the look is the same, he’s just smaller and, naturally, a tad simpler. Otherwise, though, Dreadwing remains Dreadwing.

Sporting good articulation and nice detailing, the smaller Commander figure also manages to beat out its bigger cousin in at least one aspect: weapons. Unlike the blocky, unwieldy light-up monstrosity Voyager Dreadwing is forced to carry, Commander Dreadwing has a nicely proportioned sword and cannon that are a close match to the weapons he carries in the TV series. He can wield both in his hands or fasten them to his forearms.

All in all Dreadwing is probably as great a robot as is possible in this size class and I think he’s just as good as his bigger cousin, just downsized for the Cyberverse line. Very nicely done. Thumbs up.

Alternate Mode: Just like his larger cousin Dreadwing transforms into a modified Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II jet fighter. Unsurprisingly he suffers from the same big undercarriage syndrome most jet Transformers have, but other than that there is little bad I can say here. A good-looking jet, just don’t pay too close attention to the rear where the hands and feet of the robot mode are visible (though not quite as visible as on the Voyager version). So bottom line: a nice jet mode. Not spectacular, but fully sufficient.

Remarks: I’ve already complained in Dreadwing’s Voyager review about the Prime TV series’ tendency to kill off all the interesting characters before they can actually *gasp* develop. It happened with Breakdown, it happened again with Dreadwing, who was gunned down in his prime in Prime (but not by Prime). Unlike Breakdown, though, Dreadwing at least managed to get quite a few toys onto the (non-Japanese) toy shelves.

While I’m not personally a big fan of the Cyberverse line, I do like the idea behind it: putting the entire cast of the TV show (and then some) into a line of smaller, affordable, easily handled toys for the smaller kids. And Dreadwing is a prime example (you see the joke I did there? Did you?) of how to do it right. Recommended to all Cyberverse fans.

Rating: B