Optimus Prime (2007 Movie Version) [Classic Class]

Lately, a documentary about the live-action Transformers films has been making the rounds, and honestly, the random behind-the-scenes insanity has been pretty funny. It also got me thinking about those movies again—which, despite how much people complain about them, always seem to be playing on some FAST channel. Funny how that works.

As I’ve said before, flaws and all, I have fun with the movies. It felt like a good excuse to dig into my ever-growing backlog and finally build this Blokees Transformers Classic Class kit of Optimus Prime as he appeared in the 2007 film.

This one was a Christmas gift from the Mrs and works as a nice counterpart to the 2007 Megatron kit I covered earlier this year.

 I still remember when early images of this design started circulating around 2006. People lost their minds—mostly because the leak was of the truck mode. Instead of the classic flat-nosed cab, we got a long-nose truck with blue and red flames, and for some reason a lot of folks expected a straight G1 adaptation. Personally, I was kind of hoping he'd be for something closer to the G2 Laser Rod Optimus Prime design due to the truck… and, hey, he did end up with glowing swords.

At that point, after 20-something years of Transformers, I was already used to redesigns. I thought the movie designs looked cool—leaning more into something alien—and I was always ready for something new.

This kit ended up being a really pleasant surprise. Not just because I like Transformers or Blokees, but because the build itself was more involved than I expected. Most Blokees kits are quick, but this one took some time. All those layered details in the movie design? They’re layered here too.

I assumed parts like the chest might be larger, single molded pieces—but no, it’s built up from multiple components, which gives the figure a lot of depth. There’s also a solid amount of paint detail on things like the flame deco. It looks great—likely tampographed, which I’m totally fine with.

One thing that I've always noticed with this design is just how long and skinny his legs are. It never fully clicked until I was putting him together, but they honestly look like a pair of flared jeans with flame airbrushing—like something you’d find at Hot Topic in the late ’90s or early 2000s. I have no idea if that was intentional, but I can’t unsee it now.

Once assembled, Optimus is nicely articulated and can pull off a wide range of poses. He comes with his blaster, both swords, and multiple hands to make the most of it. Like other movie Blokees kits, he also has a light-up feature… and like my robot mode Optimus Primal kit from Rise of the Beasts, the battery was dead out of the box. Awesome.

My only real complaint with the build is that some parts require a very specific touch to get seated properly. I’ve got big fingers, so that didn’t help, but a few pieces definitely tested my patience. The sides of his head, in particular, kept popping off even when they seemed secure. After a few attempts—and some wiener voiced cursing—I ended up disassembling and rebuilding that section entirely. No idea what I did differently the second time, but it worked.

Also worth noting: to equip the swords, you’ll need to partially disassemble the forearms. It’s not a huge deal, but something to be aware of.

Despite a few frustrations, this was a really fun build. I enjoyed the layered construction, and the final result looks fantastic. There’s also an “EX” version with metallic parts and upgraded paint, paired with an “Iceman” Megatron in a two-pack. Based on how good this standard release turned out, I imagine those look incredible.

On its own, though, this Optimus already feels like one of the more premium Classic Class kits—and it looks the part.

Supersize Mech

It's time to start another week of robots, monsters, and misadventure Zone Base readers! I hope everyone had a great weekend, mine sure was! Friday morning I headed out shortly after eating breakfast to get a copy of Pragmata for my PS5 before they sold out. For whatever reason, my local Target didn't get any (they're actually getting terrible at launch day releases). So after a visit to the Mrs workplace to drop off some stuff, I stopped by Best Buy shortly after they opened and got a copy. It's funny, Pragmata is a pretty big deal... and I was the only person who knew what it was at either games department. It's really, really good and I'm looking at some serious time spent having adventures on the the moon. I also picked up Age of the Primes Sideways while out Friday morning! This is a toy I've been looking forward to greatly and am so happy to have one!

Saturday, the Mrs and I went to Daiso. I'd been looking forward to this little trip all week as I'm starting a binder project for the various cards and instructions that come with my models. I'm starting small with Blokees, but plan to work my way up to the larger kits. This is the kind of project that's going to be an ongoing adjustment, so I'm predicting a lot of trial and error. I got some binder pages intended for storing Bikkuriman type stickers, which is just right for the pogs and mini cards that come with the blind box Blokees, this project is going to be fun! While there, I also got some figure stands, a Street Fighter blind pack acrylic stand (got Guile's electrocuted skeleton), and some ramune candy for my desk at work (love that stuff). Also of note, I picked up a bity blocks (their version of Nano Blocks) of a little converterting robot that turns into a space ship. I've got a Nano Block backlog that's demanding attention that it's going into. Maybe those will start showing up here. 

Another neat thing Daiso had was little models of Police motorcycles and helicopters that looked perfect for Diaclone pilots. I didn't buy any, but was super tempted. We then stopped by Walmart where I picked up Age of the Primes Big Convoy and Liege Maximo! I've been chasing Big Convoy all year, so this was a big win for me! Also, they had restocked MOTU Mighty Masters and I got Man-at-Arms and Beastman completing the first series. Hopefully these continue as they're certainly coming to random Wednesday posts here soon!

The rest of the weekend was spent playing Pragmata and assembling a desk for the Mrs. I intended to do some room organizing, but my knee was giving me a lot of trouble so that got put off until next weekend. I had broken my left knee a long time ago and there's lingering pain that comes and goes, especially when seasons are changing. Spring is quite chaotic here in the American South, so you can be sure that I'm feeling it literally in my bones. I spent all weekend in my brace unfortunately. However I did get some Blokees assembled Sunday (Sunday is build day!) and enjoyed an excellent Red Robin dinner Sunday courtesy of my mother. She gifted me a dancing Megatron found on clearance and I'm admittedly fond of the silly thing. 

Well, it's time to get this week started Zone Base readers. I've got a fun week in store for you all. Thank you all so much for reading the site. Please share it with your friends and be excellent to each other!

SG Rodimus Prime [Defender Version 06 – Brutal Fang]

There’s just something special about Shattered Glass. Sure, mirror universes aren’t anything new, but for some reason it hits a little different with Transformers.

For me, a lot of that comes down to the colors. When they did Rodimus Prime in Shattered Glass, it felt like a perfect mix of those black special edition toys and Skywarp’s color scheme.

It’s a striking look that really pops, and once you add the evil mirror-universe goatee, it’s just a winner.

It’s always reminded me of the BotCon 2002 program guide, too, where Prowl is colored like Skywarp on the cover. Funny how that kind of thing sticks with you.

The original SG Rodimus Prime toy even used the Classics Rodimus mold as a base, which also ties into the Transformers Collectors’ Club Side Burn. It’s one of those weird little lineage connections that makes him more interesting.

One day I’ll probably do a deeper dive into the Blokees Transformers Defender Version Rodimus kits, but for now I just wanted to take a look at this Shattered Glass release.

Like most SG figures, it’s a straightforward recolor of the standard Defender Version Rodimus from Series 04 Tyrant’s Fury. Aside from the deco, he comes with a recolored version of Blitzwing’s gun. It’s a small change, but it works with the sharper angles to match Rodimus’s overall design really well.

These Defender Version kits have a very specific look that I love. They’re a little cute, sure—but at the same time, they still come across as pretty badass. It’s a weird balance, but it works.

Assembly is simple, as expected. Everything snaps together easily, though the instructions—printed on the back of the included card—are pretty small, so take your time.

Speaking of those cards, earlier series included larger collector cards when you bought a full box. Since Series 05, they’ve phased those out, which is a bit of a bummer. I’ve been putting together a binder for all the cards and instructions, and those larger inserts were perfect for breaking things up between sections. Oh well.

One last thing worth mentioning is the shiny paint on Rodimus’s purple parts. It looks fantastic next to the black and silver—just a really clean, eye-catching combination.

This is a really sharp-looking little Rodimus Prime… have I said that yet?

Skeletor (Alcala Face) [Masters of the Universe]

I’ve been looking forward to this new “kids core” size class in Masters of the Universe—which, interestingly enough, is just labeled as standard MOTU without any extra branding like Origins or Masterverse.

These figures are slightly smaller than Origins. They’re still around 5.5 inches tall, but physically less bulky. It’s hard to describe exactly—they just feel closer to a more typical action figure in terms of mass. A big part of that comes down to the price. At $9.99, Skeletor is a welcome break from the higher costs of Origins and Masterverse/Chronicles figures. Despite the lower price, he’s not lacking. You still get around 14 points of articulation. There are fewer paint applications, but honestly, I didn’t really notice. He’s a good-looking figure—but we’ll get to that in a bit.

As for accessories, Skeletor comes with just his Havoc Staff. That might be the standard going forward at this scale. His armor is removable, and he includes a soft goods cape, which may be taking the place of extra accessories. There’s also likely some shared mold use here to keep costs down, similar to how the original MOTU line operated. Skeletor has the classic “bad guy” hands and feet, while the rest of the body appears to use more standard parts.

From what I’ve seen so far, a lot of this line is focused on movie versions of the characters, but this particular Skeletor pulls from classic MOTU. Specifically, this is a Walmart exclusive featuring a head sculpt inspired by the artwork of Alfred Alcala from the original mini-comics.

I’ve always preferred that earlier, more demonic take on Skeletor over the later Keldor-based version, so this really hits for me. He’s done in his traditional colors, but this exclusive version adds gold-painted accents and a gold skull. The packaging follows suit with a black-and-gold presentation, which looks really sharp.

For what is essentially a budget figure, this is a very nice release. The cape is pretty basic—doesn’t bother me at all, but I can see it being a sticking point for some. Mileage may vary there.

Overall, my first experience with this new MOTU format is a positive one. I’ll still be picking up Origins and Masterverse/Chronicles figures, but I can definitely see this line—and Mighty Masters—becoming my main focus going forward. The price is right, and the toys are fun. Not to mention… they feel just right for a Wednesday post here on the Base.

I’d end this by saying something like “they have the power”… but seriously.