Ultimate Bumblebee Review
First off, let me say I really love Bumblebee. Whenever I get hooked on an action show or a sci-fi series I usually tend to gravitate towards the badass warrior characters and they usually become my favorites. I’m not really into the weaker, more family-friendly characters but Bumblebee has always been the exception. He was always one of my favorite Transformers and he probably always will be.
I always loved Bumblebee’s classic robot look so I was pretty angry and letdown when I saw the face designs for the movie. I thought he looked stupid and buglike and I really wished they would have stuck with the classic design. I have to say my opinion really changed after I saw the new movie. The new designs grew on me and I have to say I really like the new look as much as the classic look and I’m sure most of the other “Transfans” out there feel the same way.
If you’re like me and you want an incredibly detailed Bumblebee figure with the new movie designs I highly recommend Ultimate Bumblebee. This has to be one of the most beautifully detailed Transformers figures since Masterpiece Megatron. He’s really not articulated but he makes a fantastic display piece and he’s worth the $79.99.
Not all Transfans feel the same way that I do about the figure though. Ultimate Bumblebee, unfortunately, is getting a lot of heat at the various Transformers boards because of the lack of articulation, diecast metal and the high price. He’s also getting flack for being a “gimmick toy.”
I can defend UB for not being articulated and for not being a diecast piece but I can’t argue against the fact that he is indeed a “gimmick toy.” But is that really such an awful thing to be these days? Most toys have some kind of gimmick if you really think about it. These days you can’t find a toy that doesn’t have some kind of action feature or gimmick. “Not Marvel Legends” you might counter. “They don’t have spring-loaded weapons or electronics or spring-loaded gimmicks.”
I’m afraid I’d have to disagree with that argument. You don’t call the whole “Build a Figure” thing a gimmick?
But anyway, I digress. Ultimate Bumblebee is a gimmick toy (an electronic gimmick toy to be more specific) but he’s one of the best gimmick toys I’ve ever played around with.
Ultimate Bumblebee, you see, is an “interactive” toy. He responds to sounds and he has motion sensors so he will “talk back” if you yell at him or clap your hands and whatnot. He also moves and poses and he fires a missile from a cannon in his arm. And that’s when the articulation comes into play. Ultimate Bumblebee is an incredibly articulated figure after all. It’s just…he does the articulating. That’s not to say that you can’t move him around a little yourself. You can. You can move the fingers on his left hand (he has finger joints) and his left arm moves at the elbow as well.
Now I know what you’re thinking. “I want to pose him myself!” You’re probably saying. “I want to play with him!”
As a collector and toyfan myself I can understand your anger to an extent but I have to say that he will actually stand in some pretty cool poses if you activate his electronics so it’s not like you can’t get him to look cool while he’s on your shelf or whatever. And I think the incredible detail more than makes up for the fact that you can’t play around with him very much. If you just want a Bumblebee to play around with and pose and detail’s not an issue I say buy a standard Bumblebee figure and stop knocking UB.
Ultimate Bumblebee isn’t as I’ve stated above, “Mr. Articulation” but that doesn’t mean he’s not a fun toy. He might, as I’ve also stated above, be a gimmick toy but he’s one of the funnest gimmick toys I’ve ever owned.
So just what does he do? I’ll try to give you a detailed account of all the stuff he does when his electronics are activated:
If you turn him on his eyes will light up and he’ll move his head and arms and do different poses. If you say something or move around he’ll light up and speak. He also plays portions of Devo’s “Whip It” (and that seems strange to me because I don’t remember that song being in the new movie at all). He plays portions of a country western song and a rap song as well. He also has different phrases. He says:
“Megatron will stop at nothing!”
“You’re my first human friend.”
“We must protect the Allspark!”
“Be Careful, Decepticons could be anywhere!”
“Eat Plasma!” (He says this when his “action feature” is activated)
“Permission to speak sir”
And…
“That will teach them to mess with an Autobot!”
If you press and hold down the button on Bumblebee’s chest he’ll play portions of the Transformers theme song. He plays the “Transformers! more than meets the eye!” portion of the song as well as “Transformers! Robots in disguise!” portion. If you leave him on and you ignore him he’ll say “Hello?” or “Anyone there?” or “Hellooooooo?”
He also says “This completes our radio broadcast,” before he shuts himself off after periods of inactivity. This feature (the auto shutoff) is cool because it conserves the battery.
Bumblebee also lights up and makes different sounds when he’s in his alt mode as well. And that brings us to…
So the alt mode looks pretty awesome. The toy is not, as I have stated above, diecast metal but it still looks really detailed and sweet. Ultimate Bumblebee is made of a highly durable rubbery kind of plastic that really shines in certain lights. This gives the toy a really nice shine and it makes it look really detailed in certain lights. And the transformation process? The transformation process is difficult and it’s quite a challenge the first time around but its not a nightmarish and frustrating kind of challenge like a Masterpiece Megatron or a Movie Starscream is. You’ll notice I had a hard time getting the driver’s side door to lock into place the first time around.
Alt Mode Gimmicks
The car mode, as I previously stated, also has it fair share of electric gimmicks. If you roll it across the floor it will make driving sounds and it will play different songs. The horn will occasionally honk as well. The car also makes braking noises if you abruptly stop the car so that’s really cool as well.
Now, I normally don’t really make a big deal about the “light up” gimmicks on toys but I have to say the feature really works well here. Check out these pics of UB with his head and tail lights on.
The Inevitable Action Feature Gimmick
These days you just can’t buy a toy that doesn’t have some kind of “action feature.” That’s okay though here though because UB’s action feature is pretty cool. If you press a button on his battery case he’ll raise his “gun arm,” aim and then fire a spring-loaded missile. If you hold the button down his eyes will light up and a little red light inside his head will light up as well and you’ll hear gun noises. If you press the button while you’re holding it down you’ll hear laster blast sounds. This all might not sound like much but it actually looks really awesome and it will almost make you feel like you’re re-watching the scene at the end of the movie when Bumblebee starts unloading on the Decepticreeps.
Closing Statements
Ultimate Bumblebee is a really detailed, highly interactive toy and it’s truly an innovative Transformers toy. It’s not very articulated and it’s definitely not a “play piece” but it really makes for one hell of a display piece. Stand him up next to a Masterpiece figure and you’ll just have something that other fans will marvel at once they see it on your shelves.
While it’s not the most articulated Transformer figure in the world it has a really awesome transformation process and it’s still a lot of fun to play around with. The electronic features that would seem cheesy and annoying on another figure really work for Ultimate Bumblebee and the randomness of what he’ll say and what he’ll do is really cool as well (he hardly ever says his phrases in a particular order so you really don’t know what he’s going to do next). I normally don’t recommend high-priced figures that lack articulation but I really make the exception for Ultimate Bumblebee because he really does look THAT GOOD next to the other high-end display pieces on your shelves. Now that I’ve voiced my opinions…On to more pictures!!!
