G1 Skydive (Predator)

 

Prelude: It is the year 1992 and the heroic Turbomasters fight against the dreaded Predators to keep the franchise called Transformers alive. The last of them to enter my collection is Skydive, not to be confused with the Aerialbot of the same name. Now finally my Predators are complete and we can review the last of them. Let’s say go!

Robot Mode: In many ways Skydive is a typical figure from the waning days of the original Transformers toy line. He is mostly an immobile brick, the only thing he can do is raise his arms at the shoulders (or possibly elbows, it’s not quite clear), that’s it. This was before the advent of ball joints, so the only way to make sure that the SKIs (stupidest kids imaginable) wouldn’t break off parts and choke on them was to fuse everything together as tightly as possible.

Lack of articulation aside, Skydive looks really good. He has the basic Seeker design with the jet cockpit as a chest, a very nice head sculpt, and the colors are pure 90s fun, so thumbs up for that as well. He carries the standard Predator weapon, a missile launcher made entirely out of gold plastic. The one he carries in the pictures is one of only two left in my collection where the handle hasn’t broken off. He uses it to launch green missiles (also standard for the Predators), which he can store on his wings.

So bottom line: Skydive is a product of its time. For a robot from 1992, he’s pretty good.

Alternate Mode: Skydive transforms into a Northrop YF-23, a prototype fighter jet developed to replace the F-15C Eagle. In the end only two prototypes were produced, as the jet that would become the F-22 Raptor edged out the YF-23, but apparently that was enough time for Skydive to scan one of the jets. Though I assume he added his own color scheme to the design.

The jet has a landing gear, has the missiles under the wings, and can link up with either Stalker or Skyquake to use the Megavisor system. The image he causes to appear in the visor shows all four of the smaller Turbomasters (Scorch, Boss, Flash, and Hurricane) in car mode. Unlike the other Predators he has no separate port for the missile launcher in jet mode, so if you wish to include it in this mode, you have to put it into one of his robot mode fists under the wings.

Bottom line for the jet mode: looking good, a rather unusual jet model, and as detailed as you can possibly expect at the time he was made.

Remarks: The Predators, along with their Autobot counterparts, the Turbnomasters, were released at a time when the Transformers franchise was already over in the United States and Generation 2 had not yet begun. As such the Predators had to wait until the IDW comics came along to get any media presence. In Skydive’s case he made a brief appearance in the Robots in Disguise comic series, where he was a casualty of Bombshell’s attempts to create the perfect combiner. They also made a running gag out of him having the same name as a certain Aerialbot.

As for the toy itself, it is – as mentioned above – a product of its time. If you’re like me and have a certain nostalgia for latter-day G1 bots, limited articulation and boxy design included – then he’s certainly a charming fellow and worth getting. I wished to complete my Predators and I am happy to have the whole squadron together now. If you are not a G1 (or Euro-G1) nostalgic, though, then this figure is probably not for you.

Rating: B