Combiner Wars Sky Lynx

 

Robot Mode: Sky Lynx does not have a robot mode in the sense that he becomes a humanoid, two-legged robot. The closest he has is his four-legged dinosaur / dragon mode. In comparison with G1 Sky Lynx two things quickly become apparent. One, it’s clearly the same guy and two, he’s a good deal smaller. Which is just about my only complaint when it comes to this toy, though it does make him proper scale to interact with Legends-class toys.

Unique robot design aside, there is very little to complain about here. All four limbs are nicely articulated, even if posing the hind legs takes a bit of practice. The wings can move, the tail can move, and the neck and head as well. The G1 nostalgic in me is a bit sad that they did not include G1 Sky Lynx’ in-mouth cannon, but it’s not a deal breaker. The tail is a little short, but that’s what Sky Lynx’ two swords are for (not like he can hold them in his hands). Attach them to the tail and it is of proper length for the magnificent one. So overall, a very nicely updated Sky Lynx in this mode. A bit small, but otherwise perfect.

Now in G1 Sky Lynx could separate his primary mode into two components, a lynx and a flying dinosaur loosely resembling a Pteranodon. No bird mode here, but one can approximate the lynx mode. It’s not official, not mentioned in the instructions, but by turning the toy around and flipping out the combiner mode head (see below) you get a pretty passable lynx. It’s not quite as perfect as the primary mode, but it’s still very nice. So two thumbs up for the robot mode(s).

Alternate Mode: Just like in days of yore Sky Lynx transforms into a space shuttle with an attached cargo module / transport crawler. Unlike days of yore the two components can’t separate, but I don’t really mind that and the whole vehicle looks a good deal more streamlined. The two swords can attach to the underside of the wings as guns and... yeah, not really sure what else to write here. A very nice space shuttle mode, no complaints.

Combiner Mode: Like all Combiner Wars Voyager-class figures Sky Lynx, too, can become the torso of a combiner, in his case one called Sky Reign. He can use any four CW Deluxe figures as limbs, but is specifically intended to combine with the team of Wheeljack, Hound, Trailbreaker, and Smokescreen. Why those four? No idea, sorry. Anyway, Sky Reign has Sky Lynx’ lynx head as the combiner head (would have been cool if he had gone the Voltron route and have a face pop out of the lynx’ mouth) and the combiner’s torso is mostly made from his blue and red underside, with the white shuttle parts relegated to the back. The result looks pretty cool and works well, for example, with the mostly white and red Protectobot figures. The combiner can wield Sky Lynx’ two swords either separately or combined into a larger one.

Personally I wouldn’t really have needed this combiner mode to make me buy Sky Lynx, I would have done so anyway, but it works well and doesn’t really hurt the rest of the figure, either, so bottom line: a cool combiner mode. Not strictly necessary, but well done.

Remarks: Sky Lynx appeared in the third season of the original Transformers cartoon and quickly became a semi-regular, mostly when the Autobots were underway in space. He regularly went toe to toe with Predaking, usually coming out on top, and modesty was not among his traits. Being among the more unusual designs in Generation 1 (a licensed toy from Toybox, just like Omega Supreme), we haven’t seen a new version of him since the original came out in 1986.

I really only have one complaint about this toy, namely that it should be Leader-sized, even if that were to mean foregoing the combiner aspect. Still, he’s Sky Lynx. One needs to have Sky Lynx, it’s that simple. He’s the magnificent one, the superb one, the elegant one. He’s Sky Lynx. You need to buy Sky Lynx. Do it now before he is no longer available or you will always feel like you were robbed.

Rating: A-