Cyberworld Sky-Byte

Prelude: Remember that one episode in the 2001 Robots in Disguise cartoon where Predacon Sky-Byte “disguised” himself as a racing car by attaching wheels to his shark mode? Well, two dozen years later we’re finally getting a toy of that hilarious disguise as part of the Cyberworld line. Who’s got the baddest wheels in town? Sky-Byte, let’s go!

Robot Mode: Cyberworld Sky-Byte clearly serves as a homage to RID 2001 Sky-Byte, nicely recreating his look on this smaller and simpler figure. He’s got the colors (blue, yellow, grey), he’s got the head, and he’s got the big claw arm, too. The claw at the end is a separate, detachable piece, so it can spin, too, but only if you turn it by hand. There are some visible car parts on him now, such as the forearms and the wheels, but it’s still clearly Sky-Byte, the baddest shark in town. See the shark head on his chest if you don’t believe me.

Articulation is standard for the more kid-oriented Transformers lines. Legs with knees, arms with no elbows, it suffices for some nice poses. Sky-Byte has two 5mm ports on each forearm and two on his back in order to make him compatible with the weapons of other Cyberworld figures. He can, for example, carry one of Scorponok’s large cannons on his back. Nice compatibility with other figures of the line. 

And that’s pretty much it, really. A nice little Transformers figure that looks like it should, is decently posable, and can interact with others from the line. Pretty much exactly what I expected at this price point, no complaints.

Alternate Mode: Here is where the fun begins. Sky-Byte transforms into a shark, of course. Only this time it’s a shark with wheels. A shark with wheels, people! Do you really need me to write anything more?

Okay, a bit more. It’s a shark with wheels. I wrote that already, didn’t I? Anyway, the transformation is pretty simple, Sky-Byte simply folds both his arms and legs back and they combine into the torso of the shark / chassis of the car. The claw now sits on the back and the four 5mm ports from the arms are now on top, so you can mount all sorts of weapons there. There is an additional port on top of the shark’s head and the fist holes are visible on the sides, too, so in theory you can mount up to seven weapons here.

Also, it’s a shark with wheels. That’s all there is to it. A shark with wheels!

Remarks: Despite starting his existence as a retool of another figure, Sky-Byte has since become a franchise character, crossing over from RID 2001 into Cyberverse, the IDW Comics, Timelines, and now Cyberworld, too. Still haven’t seen much of the Cyberworld cartoon, to be honest, so I only know that he does appear in it and gains wheels at some point. I have to start watching more episodes one of these days, but who’s got the time for… well, anything these days?

But back to Sky-Byte. The Cyberworld version is, of course, a simplified version of the larger figures we’ve seen in the original Beast Wars series and, more recently, in Age of the Primes, but it’s really fun and it transforms into a shark with wheels. That’s really all I needed. So if you can find the joy in having a robot transform into a shark with wheels, this figure is for you. If not, well, you need more joy in your life.

Rating: B