Energon Omega Sentinel

Robot Mode: Omega Sentinel is a Supreme-class figure and, as such, one of the largest Transformers across the various toy lines. Despite his size he is decently posable, though his bulky design makes some poses more awkward than others. Still, no complaints on that front. Sentinel also carries an abundance of weaponry. His right hand is a huge crushing claw, while his left arm and shoulder sport a double missile launcher (where I'm missing one missile) and two double-barreled laser cannons. A button on the side of the left arm activates shooting sounds. Sentinel also has another double cannon on his left knee and two cannons each on his crotch and his ass (Primus alone knows why).

Omega Sentinel's color scheme is patterned after the Guardian Robots shown in the G1 cartoon series (really the original pre-Transformers color scheme of G1 Omega Supreme) and he looks very spiffy in blue, silver and red. Personally I like that color combo better than the one used for Omega Supreme, but that is of course highly subjective. Overall Omega Sentinel is a very powerful looking, giant robot that you'd need an army of Decepticons to take down. So thumbs up here.

Alternate Mode: Omega Sentinel splits into two different vehicles. One is a battleship / space cruisher that strongly reminds me of the SDF-1 from the Robotech series, which is definitely a plus. The battle ship contains pretty much all of the weapons from the robot mode (except for the claw) and the central tower can convert into a kind of captain's chair for the Headmaster. The other vehicle is a train which pulls a kind of crane behind it. The crane (the robot's claw) can extend and there is a cockpit in the back where you can fit in the Heamdaster (barely). Personally I like the battle ship better, but both vehicles look good.

The two vehicles can combine into a single long 'Omega Train' and each can also convert into a kind of weapons's module (not shown above, see this picture). Neither is exactly a stellar third/fourth mode, but it's still fun and enhances Omega Sentinel's play value. So all in all good vehicle modes, no complaints.

Combiner Mode: Of course Omega Sentinel can also combine with Energon Optimus Prime and, optionally, his OP Force vehicles. The combination pretty muchconsists of putting a folded-up Optimus into his back, thereby replacing his head with that of Optimus. The combination of Omega Supreme and Optimus is called 'Optimus Supreme', so by that method what we have here would be 'Optimus Sentinel'. The color scheme actually fits together very well, seeing as blue and red are Optimus' traditional colors (even though Energon Optimus has very little blue and more black). So if you're a fan of Optimus combinations, Omega Sentinel does very well in that regard.

Partners: Omega Sentinel is a Headmaster (in design if not name) and has a Minicon who transforms into his head. Now, just as with Omega Supreme, it's not quite clear whether Omega Sentinel actually IS that Minicon, with the larger body just an enhancement, or whether they are two guys who unite into a single robot. Sentinel's tiny little extra head suggests the latter, but you can interpret it any way you want. Anyway, Sentinel's Headmaster Minicon is supposed to have a different paint job than the one who came with Omega Supreme (at least according to pics I've seen on the net), but the one I have here is identical. Either it's a case of mispackaging or one of the previous owners switched the heads, no idea. Doesn't really matter, either. The Headmaster is a posable robot, quite big for a Minicon, and his design is based somewhat on Actionmaster Omega Spreem, so we have a double homage here if you will. All in all a nice Minicon, no complaints.

Remarks: Unlike his 'brother', Omega Sentinel never appeared in the Energon cartoon series. Omega Supreme was mentioned to have been a member of the 'Guardians of Cybertron', whom Omega Sentinel commanded according to his bio, but apart from the scene where Omega Supreme is first revived with some other robot shapes visible behind him, none of those other Guardians ever appeared on screen. They must have been a pretty tough bunch, though, as Omega Supreme was said to have defeated Unicron single-handedly.

As far as the toy goes, Omega Sentinel is nothing more and nothing less than a straight-up repaint of Omega Supreme. It's a matter of taste which color-scheme you like better. Omega Sentinel wasn't sold in large numbers, which makes him something of a rarity. Unless you're a completist there really isn't a reason to get both Omegas. Sentinel has the better paint job in my opinion, but Supreme is the one who actually appeared in the cartoon, which just about evens out, I guess. Make up your own mind here. Bottom line, though: a good Supreme-sized Transformers toy.

Rating: B+